SuperStarter

njae wrote: Wow, those results are quite extreme. Serena's votes were quite similar but Hannah's literally exploded. Wouldn't be surprised if there was a bot voting going on there somehow.

Was wondering that myself tbh, seems like a lot of traffic for just 4 days compared to previous weeks, plus the gap between costume and power votes is enormous.
Or the site has a lot more lurkers than I guessed. 

Whatever wrote: Come to think of it,  might it be prudent to give Hannah and Serena some power that is unique to them? I know that this goes against the main dynamic of the story somewhat, so I certainly don't want to suggest anything too powerful in a way of direct comparison- but something befitting their unique approach to being super. Something the other can't/ won't replicate? 

That's a really good idea, but I'm pretty far along with these powers and have some ideas for the rest of the story at this point. If you don't mind, though, I would like to use that idea in a future story...

Njae and Revan, I think you may be correct. Someone apparently REALLY wanted Hannah to be powerful for this upcoming episode. (She will be!)

To the creator of the bot-thing that was willing to put that much effort into changing the voting, if you're reading this: I could write a story just for you, just how you want it, you know. I take commissions... (hint, hint)

Kidding, of course.

Kinda.

Okay, not really--you got me!

Okay, part 4 is submitted for posting Sunday. I tried to help Woodclaw by attempting to format this one. I can't even figure out how to tab-indent paragraphs in the editing tool! I fear I made his job even harder by attempting to help.

Did I say how much I appreciate your help taking my jumbled mess of text and making it look pretty? If I haven't recently, then THANK YOU!!! (Unfortunately, I'm probably the worst maintenance problem he's got among the wonderful authors on this site.)

Last time, I just had a jumble of links to costume pictures, which he arranged into something that looked really good.

Anyway, I thought I'd paste in the first couple of paragraphs as a teaser for the next episode...

The pleasure that flowed into Serena was quickly overwhelmed by the cries of rapture that rang inside her mind…

...from Hannah!

Serena forced her eyes open to see what was happening.

Hannah’s back was bowed, every muscle in her body contracting at once. She tensed her arms and legs, which erupted with slim, defined muscle. A golden glow emanated from her body as it shook with the massive influx of power that she was absorbing, far more than either girl had experienced to this point.

Hannah let out a high-pitched scream as she quivered with the unbelievable amount of energy flowing through her. Her cry sent a shockwave through the stadium.

“My God!” said Serena aloud.

As Hannah’s body began to change, Serena was, for the first time, in awe of another woman. Serena knew that her own body was beyond gorgeous. She also knew that she couldn’t hold a candle to the goddess she saw on the platform across from her.

Hannah was flawless. Her impossibly thick, vibrant, shimmering hair swirled around her, seeming to defy gravity. Her eyes were closed, her insanely long eyelashes fluttering with the aftershocks of what Serena knew was rapture beyond imagining—she could feel the overwhelming echoes of it in her own mind through her telepathic connection with the younger girl.

Hannah’s complexion radiated healthy, tanned perfection. Her lips parted as she gulped air, the nubile beauty breathing heavily as she recovered from the assimilation of the most powerful surge of energy ever unleashed on earth.

Maybe Superstarter is about fame. Maybe it's about how many obese nerds you can convince to lick the Cheetos off their hands and write a voting bot. I guess that's a kind of fame.

Episode 4 is now live! I can't wait for episode 5. Now that the girls can wipe the floor with the rest of the Fairness Team, I'm thinking training is over and the next episode should have some real action...

I'm thinking they altered the machine to give Hannah's votes to this lady, Siphon--hint is in the name--and possibly multiply the power generated. If that's true, called it! And nice twist. Hope that observation increases "Hannah's" vote total...for some competition for the heroes.

Great job. Your productivity is admirable.

Gotta say, this episode made Serena click for me a lot more than she has before. I was interested to see if she'd have a similar reaction to Hannah to being totally outclassed, but even though for her, the chasm is far wider, she took it with far less envy. 

It's almost weird to see the once-overconfident character be the less self-absorbed of the two. Seeing her having to reinterpret the situation without needlessly crumbling, all the while pretty much being the driving force of this episode, made me appreciate her presence a lot. Hannah even looked almost superficial in comparison, and even caring about that in a story we, let's be fair, probably all read for the fetish fuel first and foremost, says a lot about how well it's written. 

Serena should be an absolute blast to read enjoying her powers in the Future chapters. 

Whatever wrote: Gotta say, this episode made Serena click for me a lot more than she has before. I was interested to see if she'd have a similar reaction to Hannah to being totally outclassed, but even though for her, the chasm is far wider, she took it with far less envy. 

It's almost weird to see the once-overconfident character be the less self-absorbed of the two. Seeing her having to reinterpret the situation without needlessly crumbling, all the while pretty much being the driving force of this episode, made me appreciate her presence a lot. Hannah even looked almost superficial in comparison, and even caring about that in a story we, let's be fair, probably all read for the fetish fuel first and foremost, says a lot about how well it's written. 

Serena should be an absolute blast to read enjoying her powers in the Future chapters. 

I’m glad it made Serena work a little better for you. This chapter was from Serena’s POV, but I felt as though much of the action needed to happen with Hannah, the way the voters powered her up. I tried to strike a balance there by having Serena watch Hannah and sense her dream. I should have done a better job with the dream, making it more abstract. I was a little stuck on it, though, and running short on time, so I just put something functional in there. It shouldn’t hinder the story, it’s just not very elegant. Pretty much what I could say about all my writing!

We’ll see, Bolt. Careful, though. If you call things too close, I may just have to change them...

This vote is interesting so far. Hannah is getting quite a few votes as expected, but Serena’s mental powers are going crazy! Maybe people want her to be able to eavesdrop on Hannah’s thought again? I didn’t expect that, but I like it...

Let's dispense with the idea that these pills are anything but rigged. Serena's telepathy shot up 2000 in under 6 hours with no other changes. 

You're watching bots, or an algorithm. Still, the story is entertaining, but either make it more democratic, or just sit back and watch the bots decide.

I am not really sure how I feel about this right now. Given that I didn't like her at all in the beginning, I gotta say I do have warmed up to Serena after the twist. However the opposite was the way for Hannah in this chapter as she no longer feels like a protagonist. That dream was the only real insight we had to Hannah in this chapter and I am not trusting that source of information one bit. Given her power level it feels totally off for Serena to accidentally invade Hannah's dreams now while it would have felt quite right in the previous two chapters. Given that Hannah's mental powers are way bigger than Serena's, Hannah should now be able to read Serena like an open book. And to be honest, it actually makes more sense than what she's been showing so far. Maybe Hannah has realized the weirdness of the situation and took a page out of Serena's book by pretending to become corrupted to get some insights into Syphon?

Another thing this chapter showed was the pitfalls of using the votes 1:1 for the power levels. Thanks to the bots (hard to explain otherwise) the numbers are now very skewed and Hannah suddenly has reached levels that were outright game-breaking. But what caught my eye is that the girls only use very little of their powers. Both of them had become flying bricks after the first round and now things are really just a question of numbers that doesn't really add anything new - just more of the same. It was nice to see Hannah demonstrate that her super breath was stronger than Ultramans super strength but this only made it clear that these numbers only made sense in such a direct comparison. In any other scene of Hannah using her super breath, the numbers behind that power would have little impact. Even worse with heat vision.

I think in hindsight the polls could have been a bit more RPG-like. Like chosing their "Class" in the first round (favorite super power, or super hero) and then building up stats that only vaguely resemble powers, After reaching certain levels new powers become available and so on.

Bolt527 wrote: Let's dispense with the idea that these pills are anything but rigged. Serena's telepathy shot up 2000 in under 6 hours with no other changes. 

You're watching bots, or an algorithm. Still, the story is entertaining, but either make it more democratic, or just sit back and watch the bots decide.

The method of achieving the high vote counts has been discovered. It is not bots, but it does represent the desires of an enterprising person who cared enough to go through the effort to influence the results. It's not democratic by number of people, but may be by effort. Regardless, it can still produce a good story--which I fully intend to write. That is the real point of this, after all!

Luckily, the vote-influencer seems to be leaving other things, like costumes and names largely alone, judging by vote count, which will become very relevant in the penultimate episode six vote.

I believe that the SWM team is going to fund an improved voting system, given its popularity, at their own expense, which we should all be very thankful for. That will make future installments and/or stories more traditionally democratic.

njae wrote: I am not really sure how I feel about this right now. Given that I didn't like her at all in the beginning, I gotta say I do have warmed up to Serena after the twist. However the opposite was the way for Hannah in this chapter as she no longer feels like a protagonist. That dream was the only real insight we had to Hannah in this chapter and I am not trusting that source of information one bit. Given her power level it feels totally off for Serena to accidentally invade Hannah's dreams now while it would have felt quite right in the previous two chapters. Given that Hannah's mental powers are way bigger than Serena's, Hannah should now be able to read Serena like an open book. And to be honest, it actually makes more sense than what she's been showing so far. Maybe Hannah has realized the weirdness of the situation and took a page out of Serena's book by pretending to become corrupted to get some insights into Syphon?

Another thing this chapter showed was the pitfalls of using the votes 1:1 for the power levels. Thanks to the bots (hard to explain otherwise) the numbers are now very skewed and Hannah suddenly has reached levels that were outright game-breaking. But what caught my eye is that the girls only use very little of their powers. Both of them had become flying bricks after the first round and now things are really just a question of numbers that doesn't really add anything new - just more of the same. It was nice to see Hannah demonstrate that her super breath was stronger than Ultramans super strength but this only made it clear that these numbers only made sense in such a direct comparison. In any other scene of Hannah using her super breath, the numbers behind that power would have little impact. Even worse with heat vision.

I think in hindsight the polls could have been a bit more RPG-like. Like chosing their "Class" in the first round (favorite super power, or super hero) and then building up stats that only vaguely resemble powers, After reaching certain levels new powers become available and so on.

That episode was from Serena's perspective and was meant to give insight into her, as well as introduce Angel. The next episode, told from Hannah's perspective, will put her in the driver's seat once again. I LOVE your idea about the class and RPG approach, however. That could be an improved way to design a future story when less malleable polling system is put in place. I never anticipated the massive vote tallies of this one or 1:1 being a problem. Even before the "extra" influence that took off in episode 3, participation was pretty staggering! Before I posted the first story, my original thought for Ultraman was that his stats would be around 100! 

Anyway, I have ideas to put a (hopefully) satisfying and interactive end to this little tale in the remaining three episodes. The only thing that I have no idea about now is what is in store for the finale. I'll have to see where the upcoming votes go on more than just powers before I can formulate a plan for that final episode.

I don't think a poll by effort, as opposed to individual votes, can be called democratic; maybe technocratic. And the word vote is kind of misleading in this case.

But sure, I'm all for the story incorporating this might makes right mentality. That is, after all, why many of us are here.

Maybe Syphon's actually controlling the voting, and steals it all by the end. Would be poetic justice.

Bolt527 wrote: I don't think a poll by effort, as opposed to individual votes, can be called democratic; maybe technocratic. And the word vote is kind of misleading in this case.

But sure, I'm all for the story incorporating this might makes right mentality. That is, after all, why many of us are here.

Maybe Syphon's actually controlling the voting, and steals it all by the end. Would be poetic justice.

Yes, you're totally right on the democratic thing. These darn words... messing me up, I say!

Maybe Siphon is controlling the votiing... or maybe someone else is controlling things... can't wait to find out!

If that's true, and the vote control is part of the story, then hats off to you sir! Seriously, that's some next-level thinking. 

Hoping it's Siphon, for the record. I mean, with a name like that...

I stand corrected on the difficulty of manipulating the vote. Apparently, it’s not that difficult. Serena seems to be going crazy this time, as well.

And a little ElF may have given me some ideas for another twist in the tale...

(sorry for the little teasers... it just that some of us don’t have Circes-level talent and have to get readers with fun gimmicks instead!)

 

 The method of achieving the high vote counts has been discovered. It is not bots, but it does represent the desires of an enterprising person who cared enough to go through the effort to influence the results. It's not democratic by number of people, but may be by effort.

Holy hell, really? I was just about convinced that this was actually some kind of story trick, because it fit so well with Amplifier and Siphon, an illusion of voter's choice, so to speak... guess I was way off.

But seriously, Serena's stats in this chapter alone have risen well in excess of 30.000, are we sure it's not bots? Who has time to click on anything 30.000 times?

Speaking of Hannah's power spike, right now it's looking like in spite of Serena's massive numbers in the current poll, if they stay more or less at the same proportion that they have now they'd pretty much even out both girls' power levels when you consider the huge difference from the previous week and add in Hannah's current votes as well. I have no idea how many people are involved in the vote-rigging (of the fact that it's happening there is no doubt) but maybe that's what they're going for? I vote once for each girl/additional choice but for my preferences I'd say I'm team Serena, so a return to a more balanced approach between the two would be welcome as far as I'm concerned.

If the vote-rigging is not reflected in the story, it should be. Would be an excellent chess move on HAs part.

Furlough wrote: Speaking of Hannah's power spike, right now it's looking like in spite of Serena's massive numbers in the current poll, if they stay more or less at the same proportion that they have now they'd pretty much even out both girls' power levels when you consider the huge difference from the previous week and add in Hannah's current votes as well. I have no idea how many people are involved in the vote-rigging (of the fact that it's happening there is no doubt) but maybe that's what they're going for? I vote once for each girl/additional choice but for my preferences I'd say I'm team Serena, so a return to a more balanced approach between the two would be welcome as far as I'm concerned.

Wow! You're right!

Just when I'm thinking of a story designed around Hannah being über-powerful compared to everyone else after this round of voting, I'm wrong again! Going to have to think of some new ideas to adapt to an equally powerful Hannah and Serena now. Should be fun! When the voting is all over and the story is just the story, I wonder how it will feel to the reader with all these unexpected events in the voting! I would think it would be very unpredictable, given that I as the writer am being perpetually surprised! Hmmm... maybe I should write a mystery this way. Good luck trying to predict that ending!

That's the only problem with writing the stories--it's difficult to read them as a real reader would, seeing them for the first time. That's why I love the feedback/interactivity! It helps me understand how things come across to the reader.

It also makes me enjoy the stories of others so much more too.

Bolt527 wrote: If the vote-rigging is not reflected in the story, it should be. Would be an excellent chess move on HAs part.

Wow! They don't call this place SUPERWOMENmania for nothing! People really want über-super-ultragirls. Wowzers! Time to hit the thesaurus for some more superlative words to describe these two! Surprisingly enough, Serena is now dominating!

HANNAH
POWER	RND 1	RND 2	RND 3	RND 4	TOTAL
Strength	143	923	7776	39045	47887
Invulnerability	143	480	7776	39045	47444
Speed	36	101	4062	11817	16016
Flight	36	29	4062	11817	15944
Laser Eyes	25	11	3202	7841	11079
X-Ray Eyes	25	15	3202	7841	11083
Superbreath	25	20	3202	7841	11088
Telepathy	54	24	2820	8745	11643
Telekinesis	54	18	2820	8745	11637
Total	541	1621	38922	142737	183821

SERENA
POWER	RND 1	RND 2	RND 3	RND 4	TOTAL
Strength	268	1523	1183	70825	73799
Invulnerability	268	452	1183	70825	72728
Speed	74	937	1008	20970	22989
Flight	74	383	1008	20970	22435
Laser Eyes	51	83	111	11038	11283
X-Ray Eyes	51	82	111	11038	11282
Superbreath	51	89	111	11038	11289
Telepathy	162	481	80	21793	22516
Telekinesis	162	374	80	21793	22409
Total	1161	4404	4875	260290	270730

 

 
NAMES

HANNAH
Golden Goddess (WINNER!!!)	133
Ultragirl	31
Glory Girl	5
Goddessy	3
Apex	25
Infinity	32
Divinity	25
Pinnacle	11
Celestia	72

 

 

SERENA
Dark Justice (WINNER!!!)	77
Captain Wonder	10
Shade	59
Serpentine	67
Avengeance	5
Dark Avenger	9
Titania	25
Marvelette	8
Agent S	16

 

Lfan knows this group well. He told me, when he was helping me brainstorm names, that the first option would win for both. He was right! I'm kinda glad. It means I can use "Divinity" for another story I'm planning.

Anyway, part 5 is officially underway. I've got to figure out a way to deal with these insane power levels now...

Part 5 is finished and has been submitted. It's fairly long at almost 7,800 words. It's also, by far, the most action-packed story I've written. I hope you enjoy it! I can't wait for it to go live. The voting will be a bit different this time. I'm so curious to see what happens with it!