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Some people aggressively tried to convince me that it's 100% canon that the Hexcore has its own malicious will and fully controls Viktor, and, well... usually I'm only glad when there is a wide variety of theories – I love exploring them and can peacefully ignore those I don't agree with – but I really can't stand this kind of arguing. Leave others some freedom to have their own interpretations, please...

So, why persuading me into adopting this one is a waste of time and effort: I don't like that it deprives him of responsibility and meaningfulness of personally taking it. The mage admitted that he had chosen a wrong way and attempted to set it right, and this is such an admirable rare strength. It's an important part of his character: staying true to his "in the pursuit of great, we failed to do good" and desires to lessen humanity's suffering, his intentions were always for the best, so he is able to consciously renounce evil when he sees that the consequences betray his ethics. This requires immence willpower and intelligence. His own. He isn't simply cleaning up some unruly magical orb's mess after being its puppet, he acts like a complex personality.

(Just imagine, for example, how boring BG3 would be if instead of its interesting vivid characters all the communication/flirting/teamwork was in fact happening only between their illithid tadpoles...)

Even the original Machine Herald, despite being devoted to the Glorious Evolution for a longer time and certainly not going to abandon it, is also capable of genuine self-introspection and honest abidance by what he thinks is right. (My precious ironclad cinnamon roll ❤️)

As for the argument that the Hexcore recoiled from him in S1 like a living creature, even our own world's nature has a lot of things that can react to a potential threat without necessarily having sentience. Some of them can even learn and distinguish:

What I could somewhat accept is the version that the Hexcore was given life by his blood. If its alleged independent mind is a direct creation and part of Viktor himself, then at least it's more logical than appearing from nowhere (or from the Void that is almost a whole continent away and would have already destroyed Piltover and Zaun long before these experiments if it was somehow involved), has actual on-screen basis and doesn't take away his responsibility so entirely.

Anyway, even after their fusion, there are so many scenes clearly showing that it's still this same Viktor who speaks, watches and makes decisions:

Or his monologue at the end of S2's sixth episode. The character himself explains his reasons, that's why I don't get those saying that there were none so the eldritch influence can be the only possible explanation.

Speaking of which, I do get his logic in some of my own personal ways. The heavy burden of empathy... The constant frustration... The feeling that only some near-impossible universal change would be able to make things better because life is so fundamentally injust and so tragically vulnerable to evil/violence/illness/death/pain... But this would require a whole another post, I'm afraid, and would be highly subjective.

What I see as actual villainizing influence is his own despair. First he had already been about to take his life, then he was horribly killed within an arm's reach of achieving a better future for Zaun, then his hopeful commune was destroyed, a close friend/lover shot him, etc... Anyone in his place would run out of patience to act rationally and nicely, so I understand and forgive him wholeheartedly.

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(gesturing) And this is where I'd put some good long blog posts or finished art... if depression allowed me.

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Seeing "I can't enjoy a game/movie if the characters aren't physically attractive enough for me" for the 100th time, I wonder what people think about me when I swoon over a cosmic giant eye 😅

(Yes, I'll return to my unfinished SSkies fics eventually, I promise...)

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And another post-Arcane pre-LoL fic (1100 words – Orianna, Viktor, Warwick!Vander, Singed).

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Bursol / lake Burlinskoye (Altai, Siberia)

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Thinking about these hands way too much.

Everyone: "Remember that creepy eldritch thing? I wonder where he is now... probably plotting some new villainous plans..."

Viktor: 💅 magic-amplifying art therapy 💅

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The Phantom of the Opera: Masque of the Red Death - IrenHorrors

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May this New Year bring love and peace 🫂

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"To be realistic, I feel something beautiful needs something ugly — something that's depraved or tragic to heighten and embolden that beauty. I think that's a much more realistic depiction of beauty, to have something small and beautiful inside something tragic and decaying. Something that's just plainly, outwardly always beautiful doesn't have a sense of reality to me." — (Hidetaka Miyazaki)

"I remember when I was drawing the Undead Dragon, I submitted a design draft that depicted a dragon swarming with maggots and other gross things. Miyazaki handed it back to me saying, 'This isn't dignified. Don't rely on the gross factor to portray an undead dragon. Can't you instead try to convey the deep sorrow of a magnificent beast doomed to a slow and possibly endless descent into ruin?'" — (Masanori Waragai)

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My cat is very busy.

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Regarding the "since your tongue sticks to frozen metal, would it happen if you lick Viktor in winter? and only the Machine Herald, or Arcane's metal-fused-with-flesh version too?" deep philosophical discussion: I'm sure that while Warwick-Vander and Jinx were in his camp, most likely he might have already been not only licked, but also nipped at, poked with a tree branch, doodled upon... adorably tugged at his cloak by Isha... touched by Vi mumbling "cooool, you have knuckledusters growing straight from your hands"... and his saint-era-self was meditating among them all like Michelangelo's monk:

(This painting is alternatively titled "work emails" in my head.)

Anyway, you shouldn't attempt to lick Viktor... unless you're Jayce or it's "an independent study" 😏

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How to make villainous proposals, according to:

wintersberg – sit him on a chair

jayvik – sit on him

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(fierce clicking sounds of screenshoting every frame of this show)

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"Classic scenario" (1500 words) – Viktor/Jayce, Caitlyn

A mix of Arcane and the old Machine Herald because I like both.

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Various stuff that ended up copied to my Fallen London + Sunless Skies/Sea folder from the occult/mystic art hoard:

(Yes, someone is clearly swooning over the Halved while writing this and that chapter)

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Viktor's new design in LoL and Arcane:

The cloak really wishes to be in an academic painting:

Watching the series, I thought "I miss his armour, but hey, he still can create it in the future"; well, now in-game it turned out to be armoured underwear at most. But I like the overall look. The only problem is that it makes me want to feed him and wrap him in something warm 😁