Ciem: Vigilante Centipede

Ciem: Vigilante Centipede&trade; is a still-in-development, alternate continuity retelling of Candi Levens and her origin story, a somewhat reboot and somewhat remake of the similarly-named webcomic. The book is currently told in two parts: "Birth of a Vigilante" and "The Centipede's Rebellion." These two parts each comprise several chapters of the overall work. The design intent is that if adapted to film, they'd be Volumes 1 and 2. The book is Issue #1 of Volume 6 of the Comprehensive Gerosha Collection. Vigilante Centipede is set to be part of a novella series, which will include Ciem: Nuclear Crisis and Ciem: Condemnation as sequels. The sequels possess similar plots to Ciem 2 and Ciem 3, respectively. Combined with remakes of The Battle for Gerosha and Path of the Ming-Cho, this re-envisioned take on the Ciem trilogy forms the backbone of the Comprehensive Gerosha Universe.

Plot
See also: By-chapter plot synopsis of Ciem: Vigilante Centipede

Heroes

 * Candi Levens/Ciem:
 * Donte McArthur / Emeraldon:
 * Jack Mercreek / Jackrabbit:
 * Dolly Malestrom:

Villains

 * Duke Arfaas:
 * Gunner Soorfelt:
 * Skellig Soorfelt:
 * Jeraime Malestrom / Musaran:
 * Wayne the Vampire:
 * Larissa:
 * Blackmail Ring:
 * Merle Hourvitz:
 * Nolle Barret:
 * Don the Psycho:
 * Trevon:

Candi's family

 * Miriam Flippo:
 * Erin Flippo:
 * Marina Baret:
 * Darius Philippine:
 * Imaki Izuki:

Donte's family

 * Khumar Hamilton:
 * Lindsay Hamilton:

Denny's family

 * Eric Levens:
 * Patti Levens:
 * Jessie Levens:
 * Angie Levens:

Candi's allies

 * Phil Couric:
 * Laurie Pegol:
 * Tracy McAuley:
 * Wilbur Brocklyn:
 * Ann Marie:
 * Jeral Cormier / Botan the Plant-Man:
 * Cladeus Hutchins:

Other

 * Marissa Thanatel: A cop who arrests Candi whilst mistaking her for Miriam.


 * Daghmar Wu: One of many girls left behind in the residence halls of Viron University on Christmas Eve. She attempts to warn everyone of Musaran's approach, but is herself made quick work of.


 * Denise Harold: A short, chubby redhead whom Larissa and her posse try to haze during move-in day. When Candi sticks up for Denise, the girls try to take swings at Candi and miss.  Outraged that she humiliated them, they swear revenge.  Candi becomes one of their prime targets.


 * Betty Stannil: A girl about to jump off a bridge and commit suicide. Candi talks her out of it, but then the Blackmail Ring shows up and drive-by shoots at both girls.  Candi dodges her bullet, Betty fails to dodge hers.  Having gone from blackmail to murder, Larissa's friends have crossed a fine line, leading Candi to use her centuition to stalk their van all the way to their base of operations.


 * Kimiyato Hiryama / Milp: A Milthuen Prototype in Japan who wears a millipede-themed ninja outfit and is good with a sword. However, she is otherwise not a very skilled fighter.  Her archnemesis is Charlotte Yamamura / Mukade.  She is having an affair with Duke Arfaas, and dreams of getting the chance to come to America and have a chance at finding and killing the Gifted Flippo.  Arfaas assures her that if his prior plans fail, he'll give her a shot.

Development
Efforts to make the book more detailed and interesting than the webcomic have resulted in a lot of rewriting of Candi's history. Coming up with a few detail changes to the origin story took the most effort. However, elements of the mythology have also been updated. The Ciem whips are to compensate for the fact that centilegs are now a lot shorter than they used to be. However, the venom is more potent in a centileg in this version. With shorter centilegs, Ciem's fighting style had to become more brutal as well.

The difference in appearance for Candi/Ciem's world meant a different atmospheric sound and lighting, along with other things. Whereas the webcomic used The Sims 2 as its primary screenshot source, a lot of storyboards for the book were generated with The Sims 3. To avoid conflict with EA Games' commercial derivatives licensing with its products, an open source program began to be used in July of 2012 for the creation of cover art. MakeHuman 3D Version 1.0 Alpha Build 6.0 became the default character modeling program for all Dozerfleet Comics cover art, whereas The Sims 3 remained the default program for storyboards. All backgrounds for cover art are actual photos, taken from Dozerfleet Comics photo stock. For several scenes taking place in "Evansville," downtown Grand Ledge serves as a town double.

Music
Main article: Ciem: Vigilante Centipede: The Album

Differences from the webcomic
The book aims to be a much-more detailed version of the beginning of Candi's Heroine's Journey, and takes risks that were not possible with the 2007 webcomic. While the generic plot remains the same, the book looks into issues with Candi's rise from high school graduate with a murdered sister to CSI-in-training college student and part-time superheroine. It investigates topics that would have been relevant to Candi's motivations, and also tries to give the Hebbleskins more to do. It also explores the inner conflicts Candi deals with being a hypersexual with a history of being raped and abused, as she tries to make sense of her moral obligations even as they conflict with her culture - and her own desires. Some of this was in the webcomic, but her struggles with temptation were not explored in significant detail until Ciem 2. Changing out the fictional Dirbine for real-life Evansville has also required changes to the story's handling.

Social issues, enemies, and allies
Andrew the Truck Driver, a racist black man who hates Mexicans, will not return. There is still likely to be a battle across town as Musaran tries to steal Maria. But it will not be a simple battle on top of a semi-truck trailer like before. Claire Rauscher, the token butch lesbian stereotype, will not be returning, as her introduction chapter will be written out entirely. Dagmar will not be a Centhuen Prototype in the new story. She will just be a girl who arms herself with scissors in a futile attempt to thwart off Musaran. She won't be pregnant in this version either. Poison Dart Eddie will not be returning, for that matter. He's been replaced with Wayne the Vampire. Gary and Daryl will still return to cause trouble in Nuclear Crisis. Candi will face some new minor enemies; including some not-yet-named Meethlites who attempt to assassinate her and Denny at the Hazy Eighties.

Tracy goes from a close family friend to an unscrupulous lawyer. Darius Philippine is more of a jerk in this version. Ann Marie, while short-lived, becomes an ally of Candi's that she didn't have before. She replaces Merdie Dolon. Also, Candi meets Denny at the Hazy Eighties, not at a theater. The entire reference to Rebecca Armsrong's 2006 visit to Ferris State is removed. Emile Kayne and Yuri Krennt are not returning. Neither is Kelsey Linney, as this continuity has no desire to acknowledge the Evil Hair Maiden's existence. The house bombing will be the result of deliberate planning by Meethlite mooks; and the whole execution/overkill thing will be part of their plan. This will slightly alter Candi and Denny's relationship with Evansville police as they take over. The Hebbleskin Gang's ties with corrupt US government officials will begin to be explored in the first story, so it doesn't feel as arbitrary in the second.

Laurie Pegol may undergo a few changes in character, but will otherwise remain the same. Erin's body will be left for Candi to find, and Candi will replace her lost clothes from her battle with Don the Psycho in her own home. She will flee while trying to hide that she ever made it back home. Wilbur Brocklyn remains pretty much the same as before.

Imaki Izuki will come to Candi's rescue in the hospital. Tom Flippo never existed in this version of the story. Imaki will die of a heart attack during Candi's hero training, much like he did in the 2005 version. Denny's parents will have a slightly more significant role: Denny will take Candi to meet them in Milwaukee for the honeymoon. They won't be saved for the sequel, like they would have been in the webcomics. Donte's relationship with the Wortells, and his time spent aboard a Meethlite prison ship, will be explored in more detail. The adopting Charlie subplot in Ciem 2 will seem less forced that way.

Geography

 * Gerosha: The town of Gerosha is built on the remains of what was once Boonville, a town where Abraham Lincoln once studied. Its name change is due to the Gerosha Forest, so named after the Gerosha Stone discovered by Stan Flippo, and because in the Gerosha universe, Sgt. Luddin's forces overrun Boonville in the late 80's and early 90's and set up their tyranny there.

This officially makes Comprehensive Gerosha an alternate history. In Classic Gerosha, the town that Gerosha swallows up was named Craterville. As such, the town is still called Gerosha in-story; but Boonville-area geography is used to define it. It is a house in Boonville that becomes Erin's house. Unlike the 2007 depiction, however, Erin's house in this version is a yellow brick house with a 2-car garage.


 * Evansville: Dirbine in Classic Gerosha was a placeholder city. Real-life Evansville now replaces it, but some of the outskirts of Evansville still have name changes.

Burdette Park marks the southern border of Viron, and St. Phillips Rd. marks the western boundary. Highway 66 marks the northern boundary, as the area immediately north is Farrenville. Activities in Viron center around the university campus.
 * Viron: The University of Southern Indiana retains most of its shape, but it is still called "Viron University." The campus is no longer a parody of Ferris State, like in the 2007 version of the comic.  The region of Evansville that is dubbed "Viron" consists of all parts of town that are west of the Ohio River bend, with the border being 9th Ave. and Ohio St. by the Kinder Morgan building.


 * Farrenville: North of Highway 66 is deemed "Farrenville" in the story's world. This area centers around Farrenville Community College, which is the Gerosha universe's equivalent of Ivy Tech Community College.

Attire
The Ciem costume has a new texture from its design in Classic Gerosha. The Sims 3 render of Ciem being used is inspired by an earlier Sims 2 render of the same. This new Ciem is primarily different from the old in two ways: square centileg opening pores in the suit from the get-go (as opposed to a suit upgrade like in Ciem 2,) and retractable wrist-whips to compensate for the fact that centilegs are much shorter in this story.

Buildings
Candi will return to find the Hazy Eighties bombed, rather than bulldozed, after her week off from work. Complete bulldozing was only necessary in the webcomic because of RAM and graphics issues. It is likely that Franklin Lanes will be used as a template for Hazy Eighties, instead of the one seen in the webcomic. Victor Nanale will return, but with Kerpher Gang thugs surrounding him instead of bikini whores. They will simply blow up the building, rather than buy it and convert it to a strip club.

About sexual mores
Ciem: Vigilante Centipede has been described as a morality tale at its heart. While the surface journey is about Candi's coming to terms with the need to be Ciem and defeat the Hebbleskin Gang as a superhero, and the theme right under that is her quest for true love, there's another theme beneath that. It is also her journey to learn self-control. It is her journey to learn to stop making excuses for straying from the path she knows is right; and to stop letting her good intentions lead to bad decisions.

It is also about the mercy she is shown in dealing with the consequences of her bad decisions, as learning wisdom does not come easy to her in her insecure and needy state. She is constantly given temptations to stray from what she knows is right; both from within herself (due to being descended from Honeybee Samuel) and from the outside world. And while she slips up a few times and does what is wrong, she remains determined to make things right in the end.

This contrasts her with her less-moral sisters; who at one point or another in life, became lazy and apathetic about combating their moral deficiencies. The fact that Candi seeks to avoid this attitude is what spares her from suffering a worse fate than her sisters. She must, however, deal with the consequences of her actions even as she's shown mercy for slipping up. Unlike her sisters, who try to avoid responsibility for years, Candi is the first to accept responsibility for her failures.

At the same time, she is able to see how her sisters' rude awakenings were far ruder than her own. This becomes a motivating factor for her to want to adopt better mores in every area of her life, particularly her sex life. Witnessing her sisters' indiscretions is meant to be heartbreaking for her; and becomes of mirror that reminds her of the path she herself would have traveled. As such, she tries to fight the corruption within her own nature. But since she is weak in those regards, and emotionally needy due to her upbringing, she makes mistakes often. That she seeks to overcome her bad decisions means she is a model for other young girls who have made mistakes; to know that just because they've made a few, does not mean they have to give up on acknowledging right from wrong - and pursuing to live by that knowledge.

Candi draws a lot of inspiration in her desire to reform herself from her faith, convinced several times that if it weren't there, she'd have become as morally apathetic as her sisters. This provides youth with the message that they need not rely solely on their own strength to fight temptation; but that they should look for the Spirit to find that strength. That, if left to their own device only, many of them will only be setting themselves up for failure.

Candi is not a model for how a woman should live. She is a model for how a woman should yearn for redemption once she has failed to live as she originally should have. And in spite breaking promises to herself not to fornicate, Candi keeps one promise to herself: never, ever, cohabit; and do not make excuses for it. Since even Miriam failed to live by that standard, it becomes the platform by which Candi establishes that she will not let herself confuse right and wrong, even when it means admitting she'd done wrong.

About the nature of war
There is some debate in the book about the nature of war, and on whether or not it is okay to kill someone in the context of war. When battling ordinary criminals, Ciem either incapacitates them or tricks them into disposing of themselves. Most of them, she does not see fit to kill in cold blood. With militants working for Arfaas during the Battle for Evansville, she was killing soldiers in Arfaas' army that had been capturing and executing civilians taken as political prisoners. They had forfeited their humanity completely, in her mind, by joining with a political force of pure evil - and by visiting that evil on civilians. In this context, she feels it is her duty to execute a rabid dog before it bites more children than it already has.

She displays that same attitude towards Wayne "the Vampire" Norfine, who after attempting to rape her, tried to hunt her down and kill her. He argued that they were both soldiers in the Phaelite-Meethlite conflict, and that he had chosen his side. Therefore, he argued, it would not be "murder" if either one killed the other.

Candi turned that around to show that she was just as excused killing him if going by that logic. She was also able to use self-defense as a justification if discovered, and plausible deniability if not. That Wayne's body was never found meant she didn't have to address the manner. As the sun fried him to a crisp, any evidence that she'd done anything to him vanished. She still felt guilty about paralyzing him and leaving him to die. But she reasoned that he brought it on himself, and that she did the school a favor by defending herself. Otherwise, there would be more girls. And their fates would not be so pleasant as Candi's.

This also underscores the morality of transhumanism and what the effects of superpowers would be on an ethic debate. If someone acquires those powers to become a monster, and someone else is turned into a monster against their will, what is the morality of one monster killing the other, especially if done in self-defense? What becomes of the humanity of both when their essence divorces them from the social contract that the rest of humanity is bound to?

It is clear that Candi feels bad about leaving Wayne to die, even if he was a murderous vampire and a serial rapist. She goes out of her way to not kill Jeraime, in spite wanting to avenge Denny's death. That Jeraime cannot control what the suit and AI are forcing his muscles to do causes her instead take pity on him. She also ends up taking pity on Capp Aard; looking for ways to disable him without having to kill him. But due to his carelessness with radioactive material, Aard does himself in. However, Milp's sadism in Condemnation (and willingness to become a giant millipede-ooze monster and destroy the city) results in Candi losing some of her ability to pity the villain.

With non-mutated Arfaas loyalists, Candi desires to incapacitate rather than kill them; but she'll kill them if they leave her no choice. Her one major exception was during the Battle for Evansville, when she killed three Arfaas loyalists. One of them threatened to murder a small child, while the other murdered the child's parents and forced the child to watch. The third and last of them to be killed execution-style was Ann Marie's ex-husband. After remembering what happened to Ann Marie following the first Denny pill experiment, Candi had vowed to avenge Ann Marie if she got the chance. She decided to make the execution be about Ann Marie's slow and agonizing death, and not about Candi's own personal grievances.

Ciem's strong belief that there are only certain instances when killing is appropriate, but willingness to let criminals dispose of themselves, places her on a peculiar middle-of-the-road from Batman (always save lives if you can help it and never kill) on one end, and the Punisher ("just kill 'em all") on the other. This dimension allows her to be involved in a world with a complicated moral core, and allows her to be defined by something more than just her problems with hypersexuality.

Critical reception
Since the book is not yet released, there is no information available on public perception of the work itself. However, polling data indicates that the characters are perceived as being par-for-the-course for their genre. According to Esdn84 at GirlsAskGuys, she would be "really annoyed" if she met any of the women in Candi's world, including Candi herself. She went on to describe the girls as "spineless," and "lacking in common sense." She also stated that Vienna Dockler (in Nuclear Crisis) is the only one who shows "any amount of self-composure."

She mentioned that she found the recurring theme of rape slightly disturbing, as all three of the Flippo girls have been victims at some point. Ann Marie's drug problem made her the worst-received character, even though that character's death is part of what inspires Candi to become less self-centered. What was particularly "annoying" about Vienna is how utilitarian she is with her body.

Gallery
The following is a sneak peak at some of the concept art for the book's universe. A more thorough view of artwork is available at this location.