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Inheritance (a Metroid fanfic)

Chapter 22: Flower in Bloom

The suit is won, the song is sung, and now Samus Aran steps back into the sun. In the bones of the fallen Chozo empire, the final clash for the secret of their absence begins with the lives of three species on the scales.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12580680/1/Inheritance

[cuofeng]

Five chapters until the end!

“After the fall of Phaaze and the end of the X-plague the galaxy was at peace. But as Samus wandered out at the edges of space, whispers came to her of something new: an ancient discovery, a Space Pirate force bearing down on a Federation outpost, and a fight brewing in the bones of the silent Chozo empire.”

[cuofeng]

A New Version of Gilgamesh: Gilgamesh and Agga of Kish

Gilgamesh and Agga of Kish

In previous centuries the city of Uruk had been vassel to the nearby city of Kish, paying tribute to its king to be spared its wrath. However, as fortunes changed and Uruk rose as Kish fell, Uruk ceased paying this tribute and the kings of Kish did not press the issue. However, the relationship had never officially ended so when Agga, son of En-me-baraga-si, rose to the throne of Kish he declared that Uruk must be reminded of its ancient oaths. To this purpose, he began raising and training an army. The bronze-smiths of Kish hammered into the night, setting the city to glow orange. By their art the soldiers of Kish were equipped with the sharpest blades and and deadliest arrows ever yet assembled by mankind.

Agga's envoys arrived in Uruk and presented their demands before the throne of Gilgamesh, Lord of the Kulaba plain, as Enkidu sat on a couch at his left hand. Agga's message was presumptuous and insulting, but Gilgamesh restrained his anger and dismissed the envoys. He then took the matter to the elders of Uruk, choosing his words carefully as he presented the situation.

"Agga of Kish sends men demanding we give him tribute and acknowledge him as master of this city. The message is insulting, yet I believe it is deliberately so. Agga knows that Uruk's greatest strength lies in its strong walls. He hopes to pull our men outside the city, meet his army on the plain where he has the greatest chance of success. I say, why should we go to war simply because this foreign man wishes that we do? In our land there are still many wells left to dig, many irrigation canals to extend. Our city is currently full of hoisting gear for new construction. Our men's effort is best spent there. We should not submit to Kish, but we need not rush to smite them down with our weapons."

However, the elders of Uruk had heard of Agga's new army and were fearful. They said, "Yes, there are wells to deepen and canals to extend. That is why we must submit to Kish. Our people cannot work with the threat of war hanging over their head. Tribute and bowing is a small price to pay for peace. Do not raise weapons against Agga."

However, Gilgamesh did not like this answer and so took the question to a new audience. He convened a meeting of all the able-bodied men of Uruk, all those of fighting age, and presented the same case to them.

The men of Uruk roared out. "We do not consent to be servants of this foreign king! 'Standing duty, bowing down, escorting princes, holding the donkeys' reins: who has that much breath?' So the saying goes and so say we now. Do not let those old men pull us down. We, the young of Uruk, will take up our weapons and smite down anyone who tries to march against out city. Our ziggurat was raised by the greatest gods, gods dwell in the temples of Eanna, our walls are laid on a foundation set out Anu the Creator himself. Gilgamesh, you are our king and our protector. When Agga approaches he will see you standing against him and then he will cower in terror! This army he brags of may hold bright bronze spears, but his forces are small and disorganized. When Agga marches at the front it makes a fearsome image but the back ranks scatter into confusion."

Gilgamesh was heartened by their response and his spirit was emboldened. He said to Enkidu, "My men want battle. On their account, let the weapons and armor be made ready. Enkidu, fetch your great war-mace. When Agga comes you will stand beside me on the walls of Uruk and that man shall know true fear. The mere sight of us will overwhelm his men and throw them into disarray. Then we will fall among them like a bull that tramples new grown grass."

In five days Agga declared war against Uruk, and in ten days his army arrived to lay siege around the city. They came down the Euphrates river in great barges and unloaded before the moat that surrounded the city. When those forces had been far away the men of Uruk had laughed about fighting them, but now that the sun shone down and they saw the gleaming bronze of thousands of spears those same men began to grow fearful. Disorder and confusion began to spread through the forces of Uruk, though they were still safe behind strong walls. Gilgamesh saw this and so went to the market square to address his forces.

He called out loud and bravely, joking to lift their spirits. "Men of Uruk, Agga waits outside my walls, begging audience with me. However, at the moment I am too busy to see him. I am sorry to put this lowly task to you, but could one of you go out there and send him away? The rest of us have far more important things to do."

The men of Uruk laughed and their bravery returned. A man named Birhur-tura, one of Gilgamesh's own royal guard stepped forth, his face shining with admiration for his king. "My king, I will go. Evidently Agga has not heard the true stories about you, so I will enlighten him. However, it is not my fault then if he flees before you get the chance to fight him."

The people of Uruk laughed once again and Birhur-tura walked towards the main gate. Outside, beyond the moat that surrounded the city, the forces of Kish saw the gates of Uruk crack open and readied their weapons to face the full might of Gilgamesh's army. However, when they saw only a single man walking out through the dust of the causeway they were confused. Soldiers charged forward and captured Birhur-tura just outside the city gate. They threw him to the ground and beat him terribly before at length they brought him before Agga, standing in his four wheeled chariot drawn by strong beasts, hybrids of donkeys and wild asses.

Despite his bruises, Birhur-tura began to speak to Agga as if nothing had happened, telling him that the great King Gilgamesh demanded that he go away. However, before Birhur-tura finished speaking, a minor officer of Uruk stepped up onto the city wall and leaned against its parapets to watch how Birhur-tura was doing. At once Agga grabbed Birhur-tura by the collar and dragged him to face the wall.

Agga said, "Slave, is that your king?"

Birhur-tura laughed. "That man is not my king. If he were my king, where are his brows like thunderbolts? Where are his bison eyes, where is his beard like precious lapis lazuli carved by the gods? If that were my king your forces would fall down into the dust, the prows of your barges would be shattered, and he would take you captive in the middle of your entire army.

Agga's soldiers seized Birhur-tura and beat him once again, laying terrible blows across his entire body. Then Gilgamesh himself climbed up to look over the wall of Uruk. Behind him came all the armed men of Uruk, arrayed above the gate. From the great gate itself, once again only a single man stepped forth. Enkidu walked out alone on to the causeway, holding his massive battle-mace loosely in one hand. Above him, Gilgamesh put one foot up on the edge of parapet, standing like a shining god in the sun.

The army of Kish stepped back in fear. In the center of them, Agga beheld Gilgamesh and grabbed Birhur-tura once again. "Slave, is that your king?"

Through the blood in his mouth, Birhur-tura smiled and said, "That man is indeed my king."

Enkidu raised his mace and charged while behind him Gilgamesh dropped down from the top of the wall. Such a fall would have shattered the legs of a normal man but Gilgamesh landed and raced into the fray. Mighty Enkidu smashed into the army of Kish like a rampaging bull breaking the stalks of dry reeds, and Gilgamesh followed into his wake. It was as Birhur-tura had said, the legions of Kish were cast down into the dust, the barges were shattered, and the canal mouths were choked with the fallen dead. Gilgamesh captured Agga, King of Kish, in the middle of his own army.

Witnessing the might of these two heroes, Agga fell down to his knees. Gilgamesh drew near to him and Agga prepared for death. But Gilgamesh did not slay him, instead he lifted him up and welcomed him. "Agga my watchman, Agga my lieutenant, Agga my governor, Agga my general. You give me breath, you give me life, you welcome the fugitive into your embrace, and provide the fleeing bird with grain."

Reversing the rituals of vassalage, Gilgamesh now welcomed the city of Kish as the servant as Uruk. Accepting defeat and grateful for his life, Agga gave over his armor and his weapons as tribute, and Gilgamesh accepted them. Then he set Agga free to return to Kish, now his subject.

From that day every person in Mesopotamia praised Gilgamesh as the greatest warrior and the greatest king, one radiant beyond any other mortal.

[cuofeng]

A New Version of the Giglamesh Myth (Part 2)

Enkidu Comes to Uruk

This version of the Epic of Gilgamesh is a work of fiction first and a representation of the historical text a far distant second. I have read several modern translations of several ancient versions of the story, and have tried to include as much from as many versions as I can. However, I have also freely modified the language, changed some minor events, and liberally added description and narrative. No not think of this as a translation, because it is not, but rather think of it as just another story teller telling the same familiar story like so many before me.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13220995/3/A-New-Version-of-Gilgamesh

[cuofeng]

A New Version of Gilgamesh

This version of the Epic of Gilgamesh is a work of fiction first and a representation of the historical text a far distant second. I have read several modern translations of several ancient versions of the story, and have tried to include as much from as many versions as I can. However, I have also freely modified the language, changed some minor events, and liberally added description and narrative. Do not think of this as a translation, because it is not, but rather think of it as just another story teller telling the same familiar story like so many before me.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13220995/1/A-New-Version-of-Gilgamesh

[cuofeng]

A Light in the Sky (Steven Universe Fanfic)

The war is over and its soldiers are broken, corrupted, or just folding laundry. But there was a time when the banners still flew, the Diamonds still reigned, and the final battle for the fate of the earth had yet to be fought. Within that adventure there were also smaller stories; of Gems who never chose be part of the war. Gems who, despite that, were there at its end.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12219228/1/A-Light-in-the-Sky

(Written prior to Season 5)

[cuofeng]

Inheritance (a metroid Fanfic)

After the fall of Phaaze and the end of the X-plague the galaxy was at peace. But as Samus wandered out at the edges of space, whispers came to her of something new: an ancient discovery, a Space Pirate force bearing down on a Federation outpost, and a fight brewing in the bones of the silent Chozo empire.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12580680/1/Inheritance

[cuofeng]

Reblogging to remember to read this and also test Tumblr since I am new to the site.

Episode 77: Message Received

“I’ll take it from here.”

Like The Answer, watching this episode makes me vividly think back to my immediate reaction when it first aired. Or rather, what I was like the next day. This was during my bookstore years, where I was allowed to go full-blown nerd at work because I wasn’t an authority figure for elementary schoolers who might get scared of my fervor, and I basically gushed to my unconverted colleagues with my brand-new pitch for Steven Universe. See, before Message Received, the way I described the show was along the lines of:

“So there’s these four ancient magical warrior women, but then the leader falls in love with a guy from Delaware and has a kid, and now the three other warriors are raising the kid.”

After Message Received, the way I described the show was along the lines of:

“So there’s these four ancient magical warrior women, but then the leader falls in love with a guy from Delaware and has a kid, and now the three other warriors are raising the kid, and the villain is voiced by PATTI FUCKING LUPONE.”

It’s awesome that Aimee Mann and Nikki Minaj voice guest characters. But it’s incredible that Patti LuPone is on this show. Mann and Minaj are stars, but LuPone is a legend. There are plenty of great voice actors that could’ve nailed Yellow Diamond, but not many of them have won multiple Tonies and Grammies. This is like Meryl Streep showing up on Adventure Time.

And this isn’t a one-off character, either. Yellow Diamond might not be the villain of Steven Universe, but she’s a long-term antagonist and will continue to be a major factor in the Homeworld element of the show. Yellow Diamond has been foreshadowed since fellow penultimate-episode-of-the-season The Return, and after a hint of Blue Diamond in The Answer and the general slow burn of lore reveals, it’s shocking to actually meet her this soon. And we will! But in an embarrassment of riches, this episode is special for reasons beyond featuring a stage icon, so let’s detour to the beginning.

It Could’ve Been Great and Message Received create genuine doubt in the future in a way that few other episodes do, and a big part of that is that even Peridot doesn’t know what she’ll do next. It’s strange, because Peridot doesn’t have nearly the same depth as the rest of the main cast yet, but the stakes here are still the highest they’ll get in the first two seasons, because there’s not enough status quo to hint at how this will play out. Jasper may destabilize Garnet in The Return, but we know she’ll come back. Garnet and Pearl may not be speaking after Cry for Help, but they will eventually make up. But Peridot began as a villain, has shown nothing but loyalty to her Diamond, and hasn’t even been on great terms with the Crystal Gems for their brief period of partnership. There was a very real chance that she was going to turn here.

(Unless you got spoiled by Cartoon Network leaking a promo of Peridot talking with Lapis at the barn during the week this episode aired, which also, y’know, spoiled that Lapis was gonna come back. Good thing the channel learned its lesson and never leaked anything ever again after this.)

Peridot is loyal to Homeworld through and through, but she’s also loyal to life on Earth now, and truly believes that “the most perfect, the most reasonable, rational, efficient decider ever to exist in the universe” will listen to her logical plan for using Earth’s resources without destroying it. And it makes sense that she doesn’t just tell the Crystal Gems her plan: she tries, but she’s terrible at communicating and thinks they’re too dumb to grasp how she’s going to save their planet for them. It’s an excellent use of her character’s lingering ambiguity, and has her finally making a choice based not on logic or pragmatism, but emotion.

Still, despite her moment in the sun, Steven gets plenty to do here. This is the first time his intuition has been this wrong, that his positive outlook and willingness to befriend his enemies has backfired this badly. Things might work out in the end, but I love how much time is taken to show how much Peridot’s betrayal still hurts in the moment. He’s grown so much since Gem Glow, and it really stings to be made to feel like a naive child again.

The Gems’ reactions to Peridot’s betrayal speak to their characters, in that they’re in line with how they think and that they’re imperfect means of comforting Steven. Amethyst just gets mad, and Pearl “helpfully” tells him that he can feel awful about himself after they’ve sorted out the situation. But Garnet’s speech about the value of patience is the trickiest response, because one could argue that she’s not wrong: in the real world, you’re gonna get let down if you try to see the best in everyone.

But considering the outcome of the episode, I’m not sure that’s the takeaway here. Yes, it’ll do you good to not have blind faith in everyone, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to have faith in as many people as you can. It’s hard, and you’ve gotta steel yourself for disappointment, but every now and then a Peridot will surprise you.

The first two episodes of Season 3 have what I consider to be pretty major pacing problems, both as individual episodes and within the context of the series. It’s all the more obvious when compared to Message Received, which pulls a Steven Universe classic by flying through the first two acts without losing track of the episode’s core concept (in this case, that the Crystal Gems are too emotional and Peridot thinks she  can fix things with logic) to give an extended third act. We need to take our time with Yellow Diamond, and I’m continually impressed by the show’s ability to draw out important scenes like this within the confines of eleven minute chunks.

Everything about Yellow Diamond’s introduction is incredible. And I mean everything: before the communicator even shows a full image, Aivi and Surasshu are setting the stage with a frantic rush of the four-note Diamond Motif that slows into a variant of the unearthly sonic sensation that we heard just three episodes ago while meeting Blue Diamond. Both pieces of music intentionally drone on a bit when you listen to them without a scene to accompany them, but seriously, take a few minutes to hear Yellow’s all the way through. It’s drowned out by Patti LuPone in the scene, but it does amazing work ramping up the tension.

Anyway, after the image finally clears up, we see…a pearl. Our second new pearl of the week. And where Blue Pearl was eerie and quiet, Yellow Pearl is straight-up Lucy Van Pelt as an alien: an irritable fussbudget with delusions of self-importance. Her first impression is so strong that seeing her immediately deflate into deference when addressed by Yellow Diamond tells us everything we need to know about who the biggest fish in the sea really is.

Yellow Diamond is intimidating without the slightest bit of effort. She doesn’t even bother to look away from her work until she realizes what planet our Peridot is on. For all of Peri’s praise, she means absolutely nothing to her beloved leader (and, as seen in Reunited, will continue meaning nothing after the conversation ends).

I already talked up Patti LuPone, but seriously, I’m not sure who else could imbue half as much disdain in the word “organic.” Even before she loses her temper, Yellow Diamond’s cold disgust shows that what her subordinates might see as perfection is actually imperiousness. When Peridot questions her objectivity, Yellow assumes she’s questioning her authority. She can handle the gnat-like annoyance of a measly peridot interrupting her work, but the instant a subordinate tries to think for herself is the instant Yellow Diamond gets out of her chair.

In an interview with Rebecca Sugar and Ian Jones-Quartey, Peridot’s use of the term “clod” is revealed to have originated from Jones-Quartey parodying conceited intellectuals like Richard Dawkins trying to convince people to listen to them while simultaneously insulting them (”Evolution is real, you clod!”). The explanation struck a chord with me: I don’t care what the message is or how right you are, you’ll never make anyone change their mind by being a jerk. Peridot, for has long as we’ve known her, has been that jerk.

Through that lens, Peridot calling Yellow Diamond a clod is even greater than simply redirecting a catchphrase against an unexpected target. The word is always used when Peridot is asserting her intelligence over someone she sees as drastically inferior, and after seeing how much she admired Yellow Diamond, it’s downright empowering to see her use the word to reject her leader’s intellectual authority.

This scene gets even better after Too Short to Ride, where we learn that the peridots of Peridot’s generation are small and powerless (or so she thinks) because of dwindling resources. She’s not just arguing on behalf of Earth for the sake of organic life, she’s making the case for using potential resources to help her own kind, and Yellow Diamond explicitly says that she doesn’t care.

This isn’t the end of Peridot’s character development, but the beginning of a new stage. She’s officially done with Homeworld, and while that might cause her to groan so loud that you can hear it from space, Steven’s happy enough for both of them. It might be a while before she gets her star, but from this point onward, she’s a Crystal Gem.

Future Vision!

How the heck does someone like Peridot have such easy access to a Diamond? Because, as we’ll learn as we find out more about the moon base, she’s probably using the same communicator Pink did to talk to her sisters.

Not every pearl knows each other, but Pearl does know Yellow Pearl.

We’re the one, we’re the ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!

A terrific pseudo-finale, even if cooldown episode Log Date 7 15 2 slips in to take that spot (although some sources say The Answer was the finale and Ian Jones-Quartey sees Message Received as a midseason finale, which is actually more in line with my view of Steven Universe working as a show with 50-ish episode chunks, so who even knows.

Regardless, the episode still entertains even when knowing how it ends on rewatch. Steven and Peridot are awesome, and Yellow Diamond speaks for herself. It has less oomph as an episode on its own merits than fellow two-parter conclusion Jailbreak, but a bit more than Ocean Gem; I’m putting it right below fellow “Steven has strong negative emotions and there’s a mystery with Peridot” episode Warp Tour.

Steven and the Stevens

Mirror Gem

Lion 3: Straight to Video

Alone Together

The Return

Jailbreak

The Answer

Coach Steven

Giant Woman

Sworn to the Sword

Rose’s Scabbard

Winter Forecast

When it Rains

Catch and Release

Chille Tid

Keeping It Together

Keystone Motel

Warp Tour

Message Received

On the Run

Maximum Capacity

Back to the Barn

The Test

Ocean Gem

Cry for Help

We Need to Talk

Full Disclosure

Too Far

An Indirect Kiss

Space Race

Steven’s Birthday

Reformed

Lion 2 The Movie

Rose’s Room

Marble Madness

Joy Ride

Nightmare Hospital

Political Power

Historical Friction

Future Vision

Laser Light Cannon

It Could’ve Been Great

Friend Ship

Story for Steven

The Message

Love Letters

Open Book

Bubble Buddies

Garnet’s Universe

Watermelon Steven

Beach Party

Steven the Sword Fighter

Monster Buddies

So Many Birthdays

Arcade Mania

Tiger Millionaire

Onion Friend

Onion Trade

Frybo

Lars and the Cool Kids

Rising Tides, Crashing Skies

Gem Glow

Keep Beach City Weird

Shirt Club

Secret Team

Serious Steven

Steven’s Lion

Together Breakfast

Say Uncle

Joking Victim

Cheeseburger Backpack

Cat Fingers

Horror Club

Fusion Cuisine

House Guest

Sadie’s Song

Island Adventure

[cuofeng]

Waiting for tag-grouping pages to unlock

I read that brand new accounts are not allowed to make such pages, but I am not sure how long I have to wait. This post is in the off chance that there is a post activity requirement.

If you are reading this, then someone eventually stumbled on my page. And, if you are looking down here, stop. This is just me figuring out the site.

[cuofeng]

City map sketch for “The Canals are Burning”, part 2.

[cuofeng]

City map sketch for “The Canals are Burning”, part 1.

[cuofeng]

The Canals are Burning

"Love is of source unknown,(...) The living may die of it, and by its power the dead may live again."

-Tang Xianzu

It was late and the largest city in the world was asleep. Scattered oil-lanterns gleamed up like stars across the dark and jumbled expanse of tiled roofs. The night air was still but this ancient metropolis of stone and brick was never truly quiet. Even in these early hours, before the farmers outside the encircling city wall awoke to hitch up their beasts, the streets and alleys still echoed. Ten thousand subtle nighttime sounds merged together into the silent roar of life temporarily interrupted.

Continued...

[cuofeng]

“The Canals are Burning” Cover Image

[cuofeng]

Another Fanfiction author

I have written quite a few stories, mostly for Avatar: the Last Airbender / Legend of Korra, but also Metroid and Steven Universe. I am going to work at both slowly posting my catalogue of already written stories on this site as well as contributing extras and anything new I create.

This is primarily a test post to learn how posting things to tumblr works.