#“power doesn't come to those who are born strongest (magical) it comes to those who will do anything to achieve it”

[mollysunder]

The Medarda Family and the True Goal of Shimmer

Nature has made us intolerant to change, but fortunately, we have the capacity to change our nature. -Singed

For most of s1 the only versions of magic the audience really gets familiar with are visualized through hextech blue and shimmer pink, but we can't trust it to represent what actual magic is like on Runeterra. People from PnZ are incredibly unfamiliar with magic, it was banned for centuries, and they're mostly retracing steps and doing guess work. The best metric to understand how magic works is to look at characters and regions that are actually inclined to magic, and the Medardas may be the best example yet.

When Ambessa accepts the Wolf totem from Lamb one half of dual aspects of death, her body is enveloped in a bright purple transformation before being reforged into a red that resembles the kind her ancestors and the Lamb wear.

It's the same bright purple that consumes Sky in Viktor's last experiment with the hexcore in s1.

I think this purple represents magic at its most malleable state, where it can be refined or change others into final products with a proper catalysts. By s1's final scene, we know that Mel possesses magic and likely uses it through her golden armor. We also know it's possible for magic to be a hereditary trait that can be passed down (not perfectly) through family lines, which is prized in Noxus (and Ixtal?).

So if Mel has magic that likely means the Medardas family in general has latent magic that flows through them naturally., but qhat does this have to do with shimmer or PnZ in general?

The Medardas are relevant to PnZ because Zaun leading minds, Silco and Singed, have spent their capital trying to replicate what the Medardas can do!Shimmer doesn't exist purely as a bioweapon, that's frankly secondary to it's point. Shimmer exists as a means to artificially make the users capable of performing magic, or at least shift the user's biology into something that can tolerate magic. Hextech as a solution to the mystery of maguc completely sidesteps the relationship between magic and the user by using machinery as middleman, while shimmer takes a more direct route.

Singed can't literally biohack nonmagical people into mages all by himself. Singed instead developed what's essentially a hormone therapy to give users temporary magic abilities by synthesizing shimmer from these mysterious plants that resembles the color of the magic within Ambessa before her deal with the Lamb.

Why didn't Singed and Silco just give people the magic purple plants directly if it's capable turning them into mages? Sky and Rio might be the best examples for why you don't do that. When young Viktor feeds Rio the purple plants we see Rio immediately lose vigor, as an audience most of us assumed that was simply Rio's pre-existing condition acting up, but the relationship is more simple. When Singed said Rio was dying, he said it with surety because Singed KNEW the exposure to magic was killing Rio. And Sky was DISINTEGRATED upon being exposed to the hexcore's magic.

In that vein, Singed used Rio as a work around. From what we see non-mage humans absolutely cannot tolerate exposure to even base magic, but Rio was able to last longer. Instead Singed and Silco exposed Zaun to a version of those magic flowers that was broken down by Rio's metabolism into a more version that non-magical humans can tolerate.

The wild thing is that all this effort is to get non-mage users to Ambessa's UNREALISED state, the purple is just the base magic that exists in mages. Even still, Singed seems to have developed the kind of strain of shimmer that's the closest he's ever come to real magic, and Viktor and Jinx used it.

Viktor's own magical transformation has been facilitated by the hexcore in the same way the Lamb facilitated Ambessa's transformation. Do i think Viktor has essentially created his own Aspect through the hexcore? NO.

But in the same way shimmer is facsimilie of magical ability, so too is the hexcore a subsitute for living magic. And by living magic I don't mean unicorns or mermaids, I mean magic that is given consciousness and shape by being tethered to human concepts. And the hexcore's basic purpose is supposed to be magic that thinks and Viktor has tethered it to the human plane with his blood.

This all begs the question about what could exposure to the hexcore do to long term shimmer users? What WILL it do to Jinx? We all know that's inevitable next season.

You see, power, real power doesn't come to those who were born strongest or fastest or smartest. No. It comes to those who will do anything to achieve it. -Silco

Tldr: Shimmer is a large-scale project to turn the population of Zaun into mages, or magically tolerant, by essentially microdosing the population with magic through shimmer.

[puppetmaster13u]

Thinkin' of WOF Au for DC, but like, it's a Gothamite and Fawcett thing. (And Amity Park if crossover)

Like those are the most magical areas in the world, even if Gotham is cursed as fuck. An unspoken secret of sorts that while they present themselves as human to outsiders, they are all Very Much Not.

Which means hilariously in the league, when everyone expects Batman to be suspicious and short with the new guy- even made bets on it- they are then shooketh when both visibly relax and start talking. And half the shared complaints don't make sense!

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Now Gotham technically has no Queen, nor does Fawcett, but Batman and Captain Marvel are the closest things. Not in the traditional sense of back when they were in separate tribes (& maybe from a different dimension but shh that was millennia ago) but in the sense of, they're the ones patrolling and protecting the cities along with calling the shots in disasters.

Which does sort of change the dynamic they both have in their city. If one of them calls to arms, the city would follow them. They could declare war, and their cities (begrudgingly in Gotham's underbelly's case of strongest is in charge) would follow. And while Billy is oblivious, both Marvel-the-not-hivemind and Batman are. They know they have to be very careful.

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I'm sure we all want Nightwing Bruce but no. Bruce, like both his mother and father and father's father and so on before him, is actually an Icewing. The Waynes however, have a case of melanism running in their bloodline. Thomas Wayne? Only his quills and part of his back were darker, but Bruce? Practically pitch black scales that shadow his eyes.

Now Alfred on the other hand, is a Nightwing. No special powers there, though you would hear many a child protest with how he seems to know everything.

Commissioner Gordon is a Mudwing, big stocky and very tired, which translates to his human disguise as a large trenchcoat. He finds this very amusing. Barbara similarly, is half Mudwing. Her mother was a Hivewing, making her a hybrid between both. Which does ironically mean that Batgirl does in fact have insectoid wings. Though that does ponder the question on if they'd all go by their original vigilante names.

Dick is a Silkwing. Wingless as he watches his parents fall and unable to do anything despite this place supposedly being safe for beings like them. He grows into his own, and his wings, when they come in, are dark Gotham colors through and through, with the deep blue of the sky he's come to crave.

Jason is a hybrid between a Mudwing and a Skywing. He's also an animus- not that he knew that. He doesn't find out until he's dying, telling himself to not die, to get back to Gotham, to his dad, his family- And then he wakes up in his Coffin, alive.

Now Cass, raised to be the perfect killer, is also a hybrid, just one between a Nightwing and a Rainwing, egg set out under the moon. Which succeeds, partially. She can't straight up read minds, but combined with her talent in reading body language on both human and inhuman bodies, it's a near thing.

Tim is a Seawing, borderline abandoned by his parents who seek treasures and more wealth as he's trapped back in a city where the water is dark and poisoned. But he's Gothamite, through and through, and he adapts. Scales darker than the original blues he was born with, and glow shifting to that sickly white of the Gotham's Bats.

Now Steph, is a full-blooded Rainwing, and can in fact change her scales, but can mostly be found in purples and golds. Though for a short time she was in another set of colors, thought dead before she slithered out of the shadows older and wiser than before.

Damian is his father's son, but he's also an Al-Ghul. The not-quite dragonet is half Icewing, and half Sandwing. And struggled to adjust at first, to a place so different from his first home where the only other dragons were blood related. But like any Wayne before him, he adjusts, and he adapts.

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Billy wasn't a Beetlewing originally, and perhaps he would have hesitated if he'd known it would change him, would change his body and the last thing he had of his parents. But his friends, his Team and new family help. And he can pass as a Silkwing like their sort-of foster mother. All six of them can do so now, even if the others look more like hybrids themselves thanks to not being the Champion. They might not be, but they're his family. And that's enough.

[aphcoolalters]

Alfred's ALTERS :DD

As everyone knows, Alfred suffers from DID, in this blog 7 Alters will be presented, 8 with Alfred, whom you can ask

ENGLISH

Dictator Pickles: Dictator Pickles was the first alter to manifest within Alfred, Created as a defense against abuse and abandonment, Although he appears cruel, his thirst for power and revenge hides a fragile ego and great insecurity, Behind his sarcastic and ruthless attitude In reality, he's just an idiot who hides his own weaknesses

School girl Alfie/ Alfie: Alfie was created so that Alfred could feel better and reaffirm that he deserves the compassion of others. However, when that compassion doesn't come through, Alfie gives it to herself. She inflicts pain on herself in order to provoke pity in those around her, although, curiously, she always seems to be happy and smiling, she is very kind to all the Alters, although deep down they make her a little uncomfortable

Lucifer: Lucifer is a deranged lover of corpses, he is crazy, do not take everything he says seriously because if it is not to annoy, he surely has a plan prepared for later, for that reason most Alters (not all) have Lucifer on the blacklist, not to say that they want to throw him off the 5th floor

Alfem: Alfem is the kindest, cutest, most tender and dumbest Alter of all, she doesn't worry about complex things, she just wants to be happy, she believes in true love, the magic of friendship, and all those stupid clichés, let's say that Alfem represents what Alfred will be like if he had been born a girl, but with everything multiplied x2

Alfred Christ: Another self-centered fool, but this time not unpleasant to others, Alfred Christ has so much in mind that he is the messiah who will free everyone from perdition that it is impossible for him to escape from his role. The others, especially Pickles and Lucifer, try to get on his nerves, why? because it's fucking fun

Dominatrix: Dominatrix is ​​often called a whore, yes she is, but it also doesn't need to be said. Curiously, she is the strongest Alter, which gives her a lot of advantage when fighting with someone, most of the time she is quite aggressive, if you are lucky you will find her distracted by something else that makes her calm, like singing, wow, she really sings well, ALL the female alters sing great, but Dominatrix thinks Alfie and Alfem are just stupid girls, even though she doesn't want to tell them that

Alfred Pim: This guy is a simpleton, he wants with all his might to find a pretty woman and stay with her, but he doesn't even know how to talk to one, he always ends up doing something stupid that makes him look ridiculous. But it's only like that when he tries to flirt with a woman. By this I mean that if you try to insult him, don't think that he will stand idly by

ESPAÑOL

Dictator Pickles: dictador Pickles fue el primer alter que se manifestó dentro de Alfred, creado como una defensa contra el abuso y el abandono. Aunque parece cruel, su sed de poder y venganza esconde un ego frágil y una gran inseguridad, detrás de su actitud sarcástica y despiadada. En realidad, él es simplemente un idiota que esconde sus propias debilidades

School girl Alfie/ Alfie: Alfie fue creada para que Alfred pudiera sentirse mejor y reafirmar que merece la compasión de los demás. Sin embargo, cuando esa compasión no se manifiesta, Alfie se la da a sí misma. Se inflige dolor a sí misma para provocar lástima en quienes la rodean, siempre parece estar feliz y sonriente, es muy amable con todos los Alters, aunque en el fondo la incomodan un poco

Lucifer: Lucifer es un trastornado amante de los cadáveres, está loco, no te tomes en serio todo lo que dice porque si no es para molestar, seguramente tiene un plan preparado para más adelante, por eso la mayoría de Alters (no todos) tienen a Lucifer en la lista negra, por no decir que lo quieren tirar de un 5to piso

Alfem: Alfem es la Alter más amable, linda, tierna y silly de todas, no se preocupa por cosas complejas, solo quiere ser feliz, cree en el amor verdadero, la magia de la amistad y todos esos clichés estúpidos, digamos que Alfem representa cómo sería Alfred si hubiera nacido niña, pero con todo multiplicado x2

Alfred Christ: Otro tonto egocéntrico, pero esta vez no desagradable para los demás, Alfred Christ tiene tanto en mente ser el mesías que liberará a todos de la perdición que le resulta imposible escapar de su papel. Los demás, especialmente Pickles y Lucifer, intentan sacarlo de sus casillas, ¿por qué? porque es jodidamente divertido

Dominatrix: A Dominatrix a menudo la llaman puta, sí lo es, pero tampoco hace falta decirlo. Curiosamente ella es la Alter más fuerte, lo que le da mucha ventaja a la hora de pelear con alguien, la mayoría de las veces es bastante agresiva, si tienes suerte la encontrarás distraída en algo más que la tranquilice, como cantar, wow. , ella realmente canta bien, TODAS las alters femeninas cantan muy bien, pero Dominatrix piensa que Alfie y Alfem son solo chicas estúpidas, aunque no quiere decirles eso.

Alfred Pim: Este tipo es un simp, quiere con todas sus fuerzas encontrar una mujer bonita y quedarse con ella, pero ni siquiera sabe hablar con una, siempre termina haciendo alguna estupidez que lo deja en ridículo. Pero sólo es así cuando intenta coquetear con una mujer. Con esto quiero decir que si intentas insultarlo no creas que se quedará de brazos cruzados.

[winktalks-com]

NO because that tiny tiny shot of gojo's 6? year old self and the way he looked and the way he spoke means so much. "stop looking at me you weakling" was so serious. this kid is obviously not the 17 year old Satoru we know from hidden inventory. and the fact that there's nothing else (that we know of) that changed from this particular flashback to the time hidden inventory takes place in (EXCEPT him meeting Suguru) just serves to drive the point further that he only really acts like that because of Geto.

Children don't act so mature and if they do they don't magically evolve into carefree childish teens.

Cause we know for a fact from the day he was born gojo was just adored by his family. Like "On the day Gojo Satoru was born the balance of the world was altered" type stuff which I am sure they didn't shy away from saying to his face. And children don't have that concept of power. He likely didn't even understand what he was compared to in terms of strength. I mean i doubt those adults would want to talk about the details of cursed spirits with a kid.

And being told you're supposed to be the strongest can be so scary. I mean sure he already had it in him but did he feel it? I doubt it. People born a certain way can't comprehend life beyond their perception.

And then he joined jujutsu high which- we aren't even told why? Cause clans have the option to train their kids themselves homeschooling style. I'd think they'd wanna keep him as close as possible)

But anyway he joins and here comes this other guy who is just as strong as him who has a very very different outlook on life and who speaks about it so confidently and convincingly that gojo starts trusting him with his whole being.

Like "oh Suguru thinks this so it must be the answer" "Suguru thinks I'm right so that's all that matters" "Suguru thinks I'm wrong so I MUST prove to him that I'm right"

And even if they fought a lot Geto remained his moral compass and all of his opinions stood on the pillars of getos belief system even while directly opposing it.

In hidden inventory after Riko's death Satoru asks Geto if he should kill all of those people. And when the other disagrees he doesn't argue. Because Suguru is always right.

And when Geto defects and kills a bunch of non sorcerers his whole world crumbles because His firend has never been inconsistent or hypocritical before. Cause Geto is suPOSED to always be right. Like fuck you mean you talk about how sorcerers are born to protect regular people and then you go kill a bunch of those people you're supposedly meant to protect?

And sure he's angry. But his whole personality and morality is built around Geto. And he still thinks its the right way to think. So he keeps acting like that because in those 4 years they spent together he forgot how to care about his family's opinion. Because the only opinion that mattered was Geto's.

And if I was Gojo I'd be pretty fucking upset. Because sure its "do as I say not as I do" but Geto didn't make that choice only for himself. And how dare he even think he's wise enough to make that type of decision at 17? At any age. He didn't just choose to kill that whole village he chose every consequence of that action too. He chose to have an execution order placed on his head and he chose to kill his parents after that and he cHOSE to leave Gojo behind.

And that's fucked up like ok you made a mistake?? But don't keep making mistakes just so you don't have to admit it.

I hate them

[tohwitchesduels]

SECOND ROUND OF WITCHES DUELS - Battle 13: Bria vs Hunter

Disclaimer: This is not a popularity contest or which character you prefer, in this tournament, you decide who is stronger/better/smarter/etc. opponent.

information for both opponents under the cut to those who don't know what they can do in their battle:

Hunter:

Hunter "Insert your preferred surname/s for him", also known as a former and the youngest Golden Guard in history, head of the Emperor's Coven, Emperor Belos's right-hand man. One must know that unlike other contestants (aside from Luz) he's not constricted to specific covens and tracks since as a former leader of the coven that allows all kinds of magic, Hunter will have expertise in all types of coven magic as well, and he's also very dedicated to studying wild magic.

Hunter knows what Bria did to Gus and certainly doesn't like her. He's more than willing to put her in the ground where she belongs for manipulating and bullying his little bro.

Hunter himself was also known as a genius teen prodigy and is undeniably a child soldier who was raised by both hell and the library to get to the very top. While he was born magicless, it did not stop him from earning his title as the right-hand man of the most powerful witch of the Boiling Isles. Hunter spends days and nights both training and learning everything about magic both as a duty and as fun. He's incredibly knowledgeable regarding all kinds of magic, meaning it's hard to actually surprise him with anything. And since he's a child soldier raised in a magical military with no magic by himself, Hunter had to survive hell even worse than some of the adults that also were part of this coven went through, and he survived it all. Hunter has already been to countless witches' duels beforehand, he made it several times through a maze full of traps, and judging by how he calls getting from the top to the bottom of the mountain alive "a classic", this might as well suggest that this Hunter's version of "summer camp", as he did that numerous times and he considers it "fond memories". Hunter has the most experience among all participants when it comes to battling, because you know Belos never gave him a break or easy time and for Hunter to be where he is today is all thanks to his strength, intelligence, and resilience.

Hunter certainly has one of the strongest wills among all characters in TOH, as despite going through a ridiculous amount of pain, he is capable of brushing it off and pushing forward, with his only weakness being Belos. Hunter's willpower was even able to withstand Gus's trauma bubble which specifically puts you through your worst memories and even renders you useless, but Hunter resisted its effect and calmed Gus down instead, despite his pain being very fresh and severe and Hunter in fact not being ok with it, but Hunter keeps on going anyway. One must know it's very hard to break him, trust Belos, he tried but didn't succeed. Hunter even managed to resist Belos's possession for some time, which is a lot considering Belos was his abuser and had power over him metaphorically and physically in that moment.

Hunter displayed throughout the series to have some great athletic skills and agility, keeping up pace with running Luz without breaking a sweat while proving he has experience in parkour and acrobatics as seen in him flying on staff. Certainly, he can use his skills to evade incoming attacks with his reflexes while keeping up with his opponents and close distance between him and his enemies. He also has plenty of brute strength at his disposal as well, considering he managed to shatter falling debris by just swinging his staff in one hand.

Hand-To-Hand Combat - Hunter has proven to be efficient in hand-to-hand combat throughout the series. While Hunter overall plays more on defense as a protector rather than offense, he is not afraid to throw a punch. This post goes more in-depth about Hunter's proficiency in staff-wielding, but I will explain some of it here too. Hunter as a trained soldier and experienced martial artist has his body be his weapon. He knows how the body works and has great control over it. He defeated both Luz and Eda in his debut with a quick kick while evading their attack, straight-up toyed with Kikimora and had to be put to sleep to be restrained by coven scouts as he was still fighting and kicking. This also gives him a huge advantage against other competitors who are used to fighting across distance, whereas Hunter fights at a close range.

Back in EC Hunter learned how to be smart, resourceful, and strong, and as I've mentioned before multiple times, he's a child soldier. His opponents usually underestimate him, but he's not the one to be crossed. His victories compromise of defeating Eda and Luz on 2v1 in his debut; immediately defeating Luz in HP once he's recovered; defeating Kikimora in HP; and Tying with Amity in EL after being physically and mentally exhausted, in 2v1 with King (who was rather defeated by Hunter in this duel), while wielding a completely new staff and restraining himself to not kill her but just getting the key; winning flyer derby game on his first try; catching Darius off-guard (which is a feat with Darius's great reflexes); making a strong glyph combo on his very first try; resisting Gus's trauma bubble; kicking ass during Hexside against EC battle; he was defeated twice by coven scouts, which while fair, was also due to his poor condition and the second time he had to be put to sleep to be restrained; handling abomatons and scouts with rest of the Hexsquad during S2 finale; standing his ground and protecting Hexsquad from Belos while being severely weakened in KT; breaking through Willow's vines in FtF with his freshly awakened powers.

Hunter now is sub-merged with Flapjack meaning he does not require staff anymore to cast spells as magic now comes from within. What's more, I allow Hunter to also levitate/fly without the help of any staff. This is more of a fanon ability, but it's supposed to connect him to having the powers of a palisman (but no, he can't turn into a staff, nor is wooden) and abilities of a palisman are usually just enhanced abilities of the holder, meaning flight is in capacity of any witch, but all of them utilise staff since flight on its own is probably hard spell to pull off, but Hunter should do just fine for the sake of this tournament. During this fight, he can't use Waffles anyway.

Flash Step - Hunter's trademark and iconic spell. It functions as a high-speed technique letting Hunter travel at the speed of light creating an illusion of teleporting. It allows Hunter to quickly get from one place to another which can be used for either evasion or quick offense as demonstrated perfectly in his fight with Kikimora by him avoiding her attacks without many issues while being capable of closing the distance between them. He can also use this ability to help out his allies, granted his speed is decreased slightly.

Comet Charge - a stronger version of Flash Step. Hunter was surrounded by an outburst of energy charges with his high speed and big force. It can be used to break through any obstacles as demonstrated when Hunter broke through Willow's stronger vines with it or to fly across the air as shown in ST.

Resistance Spell - demonstrated in ST. Hunter managed to be sub-merged with the parts of boiling sea without either harming himself or King (and since Hunter doesn't know about being Grimwalker or King being a Titan, it's not like he could assume if they would survive contact with boiling water without a scratch) meaning Hunter can cover himself in magic preventing from damage like burns or high pressure, and the spell could potentially be used to allow Hunter to breathe underwater and resist hard strikes.

Block Spell - demonstrated in HP and not only that, but Hunter can also block blasts of energy. Since he's now fused with Flapjack, I can imagine him blocking blasts with just his hands now, which seems to be possible considering his resistance spell mentioned above. Still, he could also probably utilise other tools to do the same like a witch's staff or weapon of his choosing.

Underground Escape - theorized ability of mine, but I assume Hunter could potentially use plant magic to escape being buried alive and maybe even transport himself with plants as demonstrated when he saved Luz. Still, it's just pure speculation so take this with a grain of salt.

Tool Creation - as demonstrated in ST, Hunter can create weapons (and possibly other kinds of tools to help him in battle) from thin air (by conjuring air into flesh and then into the tool). On-screen he showed he can create swords, but I extend this ability for him to be able to also create staffs and spears to help him in combat without a witch's staff. I also assume Hunter can wield different kinds of weapons considering coven scouts are shown to use weapons in Agony of the Witch and Hunter's prototype shows him with swords, which could suggest he knows how to fight with a sword.

Tying Spell - demonstrated in HP where Hunter restrained Luz and tied her up. It can be very useful to disarm his opponents during matches.

Battle Armor - demonstrated in ASIAS where he changed his sports attire into his GG armor. I assume Hunter in general can conjure up any clothes of his choosing with magic if he manages to also get a hands-on sports outfit and school uniform. He did say in Dana's Livestream that he had full armor on when testing Flapjack, so I can imagine that during battles, Hunter would create armor for himself to better withstand any damage coming his way.

Laser Bolt - if both HP, Luz, and EL are anything to go by, Hunter can shoot lightning-like lasers at his opponents.

Lightning Strike - demonstrated in EL, which is a stronger version of laser bolt, Hunter is capable of shooting multiple lightning bolts at his opponents and spread even across the battlefield as demonstrated when fighting Amity and King.

Barrier Spell - is not demonstrated in the show itself but in storyboards of Yasmin Khudari, where Hunter could create a force field to shield Willow from falling debris. In the final product, he just used his own brute strength and staff to protect Willow rather than magic, but I will allow this spell meaning Hunter can create barriers that can withstand heavy hits and create them anywhere he desires.

Flesh-Eating Plant - this is more of a speculation rather than a confirmed fact. Still, I rewatched ST, and Luz and Eda weren't originally standing in the flesh-eating plant until GG showed up, so I decided to be funny and say he actually made this plant himself to taunt them, especially since he also knew what it does (which also shows his expertise in plants among many things). Hunter in battles can utilise flesh-eating plants to set traps across the battlefield to both harm and distract his opponents.

Telekinesis - one of GG's trademark ability back when he still had artificial staff (but I don't see why he would no longer know this spell anymore and more so just didn't use it as he didn't feel like it) in which Hunter can move objects with his mind. The objects can be multiple, of big size, and even go as far as lifting other people. Hunter can utilise this ability to change his surroundings, throw projectiles of various sizes, and even push back people with just telekinesis alone.

Sand Blast - demonstrated in his fight against Luz in ST. Hunter can create sandblasts and waves during battles to use as offensive pushback against his opponents or even defensively to push them back.

Sand Construct - demonstrated in ST briefly where Hunter created a platform made out of sand for Luz and Eda to take a good look at the boiling sea. I imagine Hunter using this technique to create bridges, pathways, walls, and columns to move more easily across the battlefield, to defend himself, or to push around his opponents.

Rock Fist - demonstrated in EL against Amity. Hunter can create giant fists made out of rock (though I would also allow a version in which he can create fists out of ice, but it's one and the same attack) which can deal a serious uppercut.

Earth Magic - demonstrated in both his fight against Amity and against Luz and Eda, in which Hunter managed to make the ground move Luz and Eda to the boiling sea and create a crack from which rock fist came. I can also imagine Hunter creating boulders from the ground in a similar fashion and possibly tossing them around with his telekinesis as well, which makes sense since it seems to be a spell of construction coven, and as former covenhead of all covens, Hunter would be aware of it.

Water Magic - demonstrated in his introduction in ST in which Hunter manipulated huge chunks of boiling water for his flashy entrance. I can imagine Hunter telekinetically pulling large bodies of water in the forms of torrents and waves to attack his opponents or to defend himself (in a similar fashion to a proficient waterbender much like Amity does with her abominations). He can utilise cold and boiling water to also deal extra damage with scalds.

Aqua Jet - Hunter can cover himself in a body of water (cold or boiling) and charge at his opponents as a form of attack.

Water Hand - demonstrated in ST, Hunter can create a giant hand of cold/boiling water. He utilised it in the show as a form of transportation, but I can imagine Hunter using the hand in the battle for both offensive and defensive purposes. He could also potentially create the same effect with abomination goo, judging by how Hunter's water hand technique is very reminiscent of Amity's abomination hand.

Wall Of Vine And Ice - demonstrated with Luz's glyphs. Still, I can imagine Hunter pulling out the same trick even without them considering he studies wild magic and normal magic relentlessly. Hunter can create a wall of ice and thick vines that can block strong attacks. This is demonstrated in HM when defending Luz from Belos's attack.

Link to more of Hunter's capabilities here

Bria:

Bria specializes in construction magic without any signs of being interested in other tracks, especially considering she considers them "inferior".

On one hand, Bria is glad she gets to battle the former golden guard. To her, it's rather honorable and feeds her ego. At the same time, she also doesn't take Hunter seriously and is more than willing to tilt him to not hold back and do his worst so she can have satisfaction in beating him. She absolutely thinks she can take him in a fight.

Bria is an absolutely skilled witch who prefers brute strength and talent over anything. She isn't however easy to fool or intimidate. She's daring and adventurous along with being ambitious. She can also be two-faced and deceitful by appearing nice and fair only to drop the facade the moment she has high ground or no interest in playing nice. She may however struggle from PTSD caused by Gus, so while she's not easy to intimidate, she could potentially end up being triggered by events considered "supernatural" or near Gus, or if she feels like losing her powers.

Bria's tool in this tournament, independent of whether or not other competitors also possess it is her sword. She can utilise it in combat or to cut through things standing in her way like bushes.

Bria may or may not have galder stones with her to enhance her magic.

Rock Spike - Bria is capable of creating a rock spike that can be used for offensive purposes. It is also proven to be quite destructive as seen in TTLGR.

Rock Pillar - Bria is capable of creating rock pillars of various lengths and sizes. She's also capable of creating pillars within the pillars she created. Said ability could be used if Bria needs a high ground, for defensive purposes to block attacks, potential transport, or even offensive purposes.

Earth Capture - Bria is capable of encasing her opponents on Earth as she demonstrated in TTLGR when she restrained a Slitherbeast. The move could be considered a finishing blow unless Bria's opponent has enough brute force (and by that, I mean a lot, stronger than Slitherbeast) to burst through her trap. She would usually utilise said ability if she assumes her opponent can't fight back, however.

Link to more of Bria's capabilities here

Link to return to the Masterpost

[episims]

Melody "Full of food and energy, I hope?"

Cedric "Ah... yes."

Melody "Good. We shall clear the air, then."

Melody "When I got pregnant, I told you the moment wasn't right. That I was still young. All these years have passed since, and with all the knowledge and power I've gained... I hoped to feel more sure by now."

Cedric "...I understand. I married you knowing that I have a wish that might never come true."

Melody "That I'm uncertain doesn't equal to no, love. But the reasons I am are rooted deep."

Melody "...I'm afraid, Cedric. There's no question that a child of ours wouldn't become a powerful magic user. What a rational way to produce a new high witch! Just as my mother did before me."

Cedric "Melody... that's never been my reason."

Melody "Oh, your intentions are clear to me. Those are my own which frighten me."

Cedric "Ah... but what else is my baby fever than a desire to pass along a part of me? I don't see a difference in wanting to forward your magic."

Melody "Coming from you, of all people! I was expecting warning words about witches playing gods, at the least."

Cedric "Haha... if I ever see you playing god, I promise I won't hold my tongue. But your concern appears rather humane to me."

Melody "And you? Wouldn't having a child with me go against your contempt for dusty witch ideals?"

Cedric "...I don't want to have a child with a high witch, but I'd be overjoyed to expand the family with the woman I love."

Melody "You'd be closing one eye to only see the side that pleases you more."

Cedric "Perhaps. But I believe it matters too that the baby would be born out of the bond we share, not because we tried to place the seeds where the magic is the strongest."

Cedric "...Take your time to consider. I won't rush you."

Melody "It's not you who are rushing me, love. As someone just reminded me, the hourglass is emptying for witches as well; the time is no longer at our side on this matter."

[storyofmychoices]

Nyx Selenastra (original character)

nonbinary, they/them

Book: Blades of Light & Shadow Love Interest: Aerin Valleros Sexuality: Pansexual Aromantic (Demiromantic) Companion (/pets): LunaRose (Unicorn) and NightWhisper (Raven)

What's in a name?

Name Meaning: Night

Name Origin: Nyx is named after the Greek personification of night. I like the idea that the night isn't really dark, there's always light and hope, you just have to be patient and let your eyes adjust to a different perspective

Pronunciation: n-ih-ks

Appearance

Hair: Black, with a white/silver streak on the right side

Eyes: Amber

Skin Color: Black (but their skin transforms to colors of the night sky at certain times) [more about headcanon here]

Height: 6'1"/187cm

Other Basic Info

Hometown: Ravenswood Ravenswood is a small town up the river from Riverbend. It's near the edge of the Deadwood forests.

Religion: old gods and new gods They particular respect the Mother of Grey.

Birthday: January 13 *January 13 is Make Your Dreams Come True Day

Zodiac: Capricorn

Hobbies: sketching, drawing, painting, journaling, gardening, caring for animals, protecting the forest, stargazing, storytelling, reading, learning the history of all cultures and peoples

Personality

Zodiac Traits: perseverant, practical, ambitious, driven, confident, loyal, faithful, demanding, stern, stubborn, workaholic

Nyx possesses a resilient and strong exterior, a result of the trials they've faced in their life. They may seem tough and unyielding when first encountered, but it's only because they have a shield up to protect themselves. They've been hurt in the past. However, beneath their sometimes intimidating exterior, they are warm, gentle and loving.

Nyx's loyalty is unwavering. They are fiercely protective. Once they've formed a bond or alliance, they are completely devoted, standing by their friends and loved ones with determination.

LunaRose (Unicorn) Headcanons

The unicorn that Aerin meets in Blades 1 and 2 is LunaRose, Nyx's unicorn companion.

Nyx rescued the unicorn when she was caught in a crude animal trap. Her leg was badly injured, but Nyx healed it and has cared for the unicorn ever since. Nyx has a deep bond with LunaRose, at times, it even appears as though they can communicate.

In Blades 2, when Aerin leaves the party after Riverbend, he does so to follow LunaRose, who guides him to Nyx.

LunaRose has some precognition powers and can act as a guide to assist those whose path she crosses.

Headcanons

Nyx's skin tone is naturally black, but it has the ability to transform into a galaxy/night sky tone [read more about this HC here]

Nyx has visited Undermount but is not a fan of how the elves there carry themselves. They believe elves should protect the realm and they can't do that from behind the comfort of their city, with their lavished homes and parties.

Nyx believes in experiencing all the beauties of the world as the Mother of Grey had intended for the elves. [clearly this was written before the Ash Empress....]

Nyx has a strong duty in protecting the lands where they live.

In my fic "Maybe One Day", Daenarya plants a seed in the Deadwood. Each of the characters in Blades 1 do their part to give the little seed a chance, even if they know it's future is bleak. I HC that LunaRose sensed the potential of life and drew Nyx to it. Nyx used their own magic to help it take root and grow. LunaRose also brings water from the lake to it, blessing it with her magic as well.

Nyx's magic is strongest at night under a clear sky and even stronger during a full moon.

Nyx was born during a solar eclipse, so they have near limitless power during those events. Nyx is weakest during lunar eclipses.

Nyx values honesty. Nyx understands people make mistakes, but they value when people are open about them and don't try to conceal them. Nyx doesn't like being lied to. Trust is very important to them.

Best Friend

Nyssa is Nyx's best friend. They helped Nyx discover they were demiro. Learn more about their friendship and history here.

Writing

Unicorn leading Aerin to Nyx (drabble)

Crossroads: Aerin follows a unicorn through the woods, only for it to lead him to a mysterious elf. [1.5K]

Art

My Tiny Human (gift)

Forever My Tiny Human

Edits

Nyx in red vest (ID M!MC outfit) + demiromantic HC

Nyx and Aerin get new outfits from The Cursed Heart

Nyx, Aerin, and Luna (unicorn)

Original Post for Nyx

Nyx and Nyssa (another OC)

Asks

How did Nyx and Aerin meet? How do they get along with the others?

Nyx and Aerin HCs (not listed above)

How does the demi nature of this character work?

Other

Nyx moodboard [gift]

Got a question about Nyx? Please ask!!! 💛

[peggysrpmemes]

Arcane - Episode 2 Sentence Starters

Dialogue & Lyric Starters from episode 2 "Some Mysteries Are Better Unsolved" of Arcane, Netflix. Change pronouns as desired.

"A little danger is worth the risk, don't you think?"

"Careful, that your parents' money you're dropping."

"Who authorized your research?"

"Imprisonment. What a curious principle. We confine the body, yet the mind is still free."

"Remind me why we bother with this dump?"

"Hey! If she didn't keep fixing these things, I wouldn't keep missing."

"You guys know I wouldn't take you on a job you couldn't handle, right?"

"You're just protecting your kids."

"We look out for each other. It's the way it's always been."

"You can't make a prototype without breaking a few wrenches."

"All I see is a boy meddling with things he doesn't understand."

"I've seen this power in the wrong hands. It corrupts. Consumes."

"You carry your chin so high, you fail to see the opportunity below."

"Magic saved your life."

"They're monsters."

"There's a monster inside all of us."

"Real power doesn't come to those who were born the strongest, or fastest or smartest. No. It comes to those who will do anything to achieve it."

"It's time to let the monster out."

"My dad says you're a misfit, and that we can't be friends anymore."

"I'm a misfit too, I suppose."

"You people down here are all the same."

"You're just a small man in a whole the world forgot to bury."

"I'm gonna bury the lot of you!"

"No, we're not okay. They almost saw [name], what if they took her?"

"What I don't understand is how you can work with them."

"I grew up knowing that I'm less than them. That my place is down there."

"I want [name] to have more than that, and I'm willing to fight for it."

"Nobody wins in war."

"Am I interrupting?"

"A little egotistical, don't you think?"

"When you're going to change the world, don't ask for permission."

"I don't even know your name."

"They're gonna work this time, I know it."

"You know, [name], what makes you different makes you strong. Always remember that, okay?"

[diamondfeng]

Name: Danielle "Dani" Feng (she/her/hers) Occupation: Legislative Aide at the Mayor's Office Age: 29 Sexuality: Heterosexual Species: Witch Coven: Feng-Lindon Magic: Earth Hometown: Port Leiry, Oregon Relationship Status: Single Personality Traits: Hardworking, Sporty, Vain, Stressed Out, Community-Driven, Insecure

For much of her life, Dani Feng has come up second. She was the second of six Feng siblings, born after a long gap of time since mother Margot's first child. Speaking of her mom, Dani's the second Earth magic user of their family unit -- a fact that both connects her with and distances her from her mother. And beyond that, the family hopes to present her as this generation's latest Air elementalist, but even then she comes up a measly second compared to her younger sister Jacqueline, the one with actual Air powers. Dani Feng should be standing tall, but somehow she keeps ending up in the shadows.

That's why, outside of her family life, Dani throws herself completely and deeply into the work she excels at. In high school, she was active in student government and the volleyball team. It was there she met Kevin Ma and Luna Sylvestri, who may have at one point described her as "intense" -- but she's since mellowed out. Sort of.

After going out of state to Stanford for college, Dani returned to Port Leiry, moved out of her family's house to live in an apartment with Luna, and got a job as a legislative aide in the Mayor's office, advising on public policies and specializing in park conservation, healthcare services, and city-funded community works. It's a good job and she's well-liked there (both for her work ethic and tendency to bring baked goods courtesy of Jac, Adrian, and Luna often). Plus, it's important for the coven to have ears close to the (mostly human) political side of the city.

Dani finds a lot of solace in yoga and jogging, and is trying to keep herself open to romance -- she hopes to find a husband who shares her values and her awareness of the supernatural. As the second eldest in her family, she feels like there's an expectation there, even if her older sibling might be the one most poised to eventually lead the Feng-Lindon coven. Her personal philosophy is that pressure makes diamonds, which is why she buries her head in her work -- it gives her purpose and makes her feel most useful, especially when none of her family is involved.

Overall, Feng family life is... well, it feels normal, apart from the whole witch coven thing. Dani can't really complain -- her parents (including stepfather Adrian) love and care about her. Her siblings are, well, siblings. And she loves them, even if they're not all extremely close. It's normal! That's how families are. She works hard, has a good job, and is self-reliant. She does sometimes have a tendency to prioritize herself, and while she doesn't mind spending time with Jac, Danielle feels like they are just too far apart in age and stage of life to really... connect. Plus, apart from the Air magic thing, Dani's been doing her own magic for years, focused on following her mother's lead there. Her true powers manifested normally, and she was doing just fine with her normal practice.

Why does she have to be the one to present herself as something she's not? Better yet, why was Jac the one to manifest those powers in the first place? Will Dani Feng always be following someone else's lead?

---

Her Magic:

Dani's Earth Magic functions similarly to Earthbending from Avatar in concept. It's strongest when she herself has her feet on the ground, and barefoot contact makes it most impactful.

Her personal goal is to eventually generate enough pressure within rock to produce a diamond. It aligns with her personal philosophy about high-pressure situations making her resilient and powerful.

Her most frequent, practical use for the power is to subtly clean the dirt off people's shoes before they come inside her apartment or her family's home. Also minor landscaping.

She has a natural intuition for crystals and their composition, though rocks are geologically less complex to manipulate. She can make weapons out of stone and obsidian in situations where she needs to protect herself.

She is not yet strong enough to do any truly significant metal manipulation.

Air magic is her ideological opposite and she has trouble grasping it, but to less disciplined eyes, her ability to kick up small dust storms looks enough like the effect of the wind, rather than the earth.

Established Connections:

Margot Feng, @bewiitcheds - Mother, Earth Magic mentor

Jacqueline "Jac" Feng, @fengforhire - Younger Sister, Air Magic mentor

Adrian Luna, @sntslunas - Stepfather

Luna Sylvestri, @lunasylvestri - Roommate, Friend from High School

Kevin Ma, @kevma - Friend from High School, Chinese families know each other

Wanted Connections:

The Mayor of Port Leiry - Details UTP. It's the mayor. Dani is a mid-level aide in their office, advising on briefings, letters from constituents, and different local voting initiatives. She's not aware of all the larger dealings of their job, and isn't even sure if the mayor knows about the supernatural side of the city. ((I'd love to see this role develop into something larger for the whole group. Let's meet our elected officials!!!) A Future Fiancé - Male Identifying, 28-34, FC UTP. Maybe they've just met, or maybe they've been dating for a while, but Dani is looking for a serious relationship with ambitions of getting married. If you're here for a casual fling, keep moving. She needs someone who's ready to go steady as a rock. General: Coworkers at City Hall, Other Feng Siblings

[tobiltopart]

It's been a long LONG time since I've done updated art of this man on any platform.

Drake Edward Morrison III (the third)

A once mortal immortal touched by the last spark of essence of an ancient god of death. The man that started the creation of an entire universe in my brain, all from creating OCs with my high school best friend Winna in 11th grade.

Born to a noble family of recognized knights in the equivalent of earth year 506, he is now over 1500 years old and lives in modern era Talain, a clean energy, magitech run, green super city of about 15 million people. He has a handful of partners and is currently raising one high energy 8 year old with his girlfriends.

He's old money, having accumulated wealth over his long ass life, and keeping up with ever changing societies and economies...for the most part. There were times where he fucked off into the wilderness to hermit for a couple decades here and there. But currently, he's returned to his ancestral home, built over the old castle ruins with a modern but rustic 12 bedroom, 14 bathroom, 2 kitchen, indoor pool, and a large study home with several other people and a feral cat colony that roams the 150 or so acres of forest and brook covered lands around it.

He's typically seen as being very grumpy and stoic, intimidating to most people. But to those who actually know him to his core, he's incredibly kind and caring and loves to care for children especially. Very dad vibes. He's also well trained in many types of martial arts and use of very many types of weapons. He speaks at least 12 languages, probably more, and is technically the strongest man alive, physically.

He has mastery over fire magic and was gifted power over shadow and death magic upon becoming immortal. Technically, he's an elf. Raised in a mixed culture house, the Earth equivalent being Italio-Spaniard (father's side) and Indio-Moroccan (mother's side). He was closer to his mother than his father, and had two younger siblings; his brother Khalid and sister Refugia.

Some fun facts:

- While the god his power comes from is based on a raven, Drake's wings are that of a barn owl

-- he therefore flies completely silently, but also fairly slowly compared to most others.

- His favorite food of all time is blueberries. If you ever want to get on his good side or attempt to bribe him, bring a blueberry cheesecake (or something of that nature)

- He's a very meat and potatoes kind of guy, simple comfort foods and a lot of it.

- He's recently (as in the past couple decades) replaced his alcoholism with meditation and playing with his kids. Even so, he still likes a social drink here and there.

- He grew up learning from his mother's spiritual practices, the Earth equivalent being Islam. While he doesn't actively practice anymore, he does observe on his mother's birthday and occasionally some holidays.

- He actually loves to sing and dance, they are his art forms. His favorite music to dance to is swing.

- He manscapes. He's actually a very hairy man, but he prefers to be mostly hairless and neat. Occasionally he's okay with letting it grow out, but not often.

[onaperduamedee]

Notes on The Shadow Rising

Full spoilers for The Shadow Rising under the cut

The beginning is so striking, with chilling use of Min’s viewing, as a way to set up a threat that could unfold at any moment. The brutality of her visions, superimposed with the mundanity of life in the Tower, reminds me of Rand’s unsettling “flicker flicker” vision. It’s a shame the book doesn’t make full use of the suspense born in that initial chapter later on, because, to me, it is by far the strongest opening up to that point.

I am still absolutely baffled by the EF5 and Min's reaction to Siuan or Moiraine being actually quite straightforward with what they intend to do with Rand, meaning keeping him from killing himself before the Last Battle because he's both extremely powerful and vulnerable: their takeaway is always that Siuan and Moiraine want to control him rather than “Rand is in unimaginable danger both from the dark side and himself, and the only people who could maybe teach him and prevent him from going mad could destroy him - and if he fails or dies, you all are screwed.”

The story itself lays it down quite neatly, I think, but to live the story through the eyes of characters who cannot toss out the blinders in this particular area can be frustrating. Of course, it’s most likely caused by Rand’s ta’veren gravitational pull and Min’s feelings for him, but other characters have the same attitude toward the whole “What to do when there is a Dragon Reborn in your midst?” conundrum. 

"bubble of evil" is a silly name for a pretty cool concept. It's like magic entropy and it will obviously translate to bloody amazing scenes in the show. 

And the award for coolest character description ever goes to Robert Jordan for “[Moiraine] bore down on Rand like a silent, silken avalanche, icy and inexorable.”

Light, Elayne, Egwene and Nynaeve discussing Rand and Berelain like they are 14 and Rand is a puppy that can be trained and adopted by one or the other... Hey, it's messed up when Moiraine does it with Lan's bond, it's not better when Elayne does it because she's in love. And the slut-shaming of Berelain is all the more grating that the girls are shocked but perfectly able to respect the concept of sister-wife with the Aiel. It's beyond preposterous. At least, Moiraine is there to remind them people have different cultures. 

I've misjudged Thom. Just because he's linked to the parts I've found most tedious in TEotW doesn't mean he is. I've been enjoying his sly fox drama-creating persona quite a lot lately. He's very protective of the kids and genre-savvy which is always a win for me. And his show-down with Moiraine had me holding my breath the entire time. I love that he’s the one getting people assassinated and she still comes off as more terrifying. 

The Trolloc attack was truly blood-pumping. As a non-native speaker, I find Robert Jordan’s descriptions of fighting highly confusing, but deliciously dynamic. The pressure for the show to deliver on those scenes, in particular, must be immense.

Rand trying to revive the little girl will haunt me. I need to draw it, but it is so stark and brutal, I don’t know how to.

Feeling so angry on behalf of Berelain again. Every time she shows up, she gets comments on her appearance and behavior, from men and women alike. And their reaction is so violent, it's absolutely unhinged and unjustified. Faile deserved to land on her ass.

Before the twisted doorway, the book is strikingly similar to TGH. Everyone cooped up in a fortress. Darkfriends held and interrogated being freed during a sudden attack. Rand refusing to make a decision until circumstances force him to. Everyone loathes Moiraine. Magic object the Dark One tries to take. Another hunt after Dark Friends is launched.

Adored the venture into the twisted ter'angreal. I loved the manic energy of the Finn and I guffawed when they just picked Mat up and hurled him across the doorway. The fact that Mat, Rand and Moiraine then proceeded to have a very awkward post-ter'angreal walk of shame, none of them willing to share what they had experienced although extremely curious about what happened for the others was perfect. I do wonder why Moiraine seemed to have experienced it as something more than confusing and almost painful.

Mat gradual mastery of Old Tongue is just *chef’s kiss*.

I don't enjoy any of the romantic relationships so far. I won't go into details about the pairings because one's appreciation of romantic dynamics is highly subjective, but Min and Rand might be the only mostly palatable canon relationship for me.

Rand and the Highlords summon in the Stone was gripping. He has good intentions, lowering taxes and trying to quell inequality, but yeah, he is already showing signs of madness and tyranny. He knows it, he's still fighting, but he cannot do everything at once, be a ruler, a prophet and a sane man. His struggle to do the right thing is well done and Rand has hands-down become my favourite of the EF boys as a consequence.

Siuan is as always demonstrating why she was the head of the spy network by expertly handling Min dropping in unannounced. Did I mention her mind is the hottest thing ever? She’s the M, she’s the Q, she’s the indisputable James Bond of this party.

Everything from the moment the EF5 got separated was highly entertaining: Nyn, Elayne and Thom with the Sea Folk; Rand, Egwene, Moiraine and Mat with the Aiel; Perrin, Faile and Loial in the Two Rivers. Robert Jordan is masterful at building tension and suspense in preparation for game-changers too, even if it drags a little at times.

I lied earlier, the Sea Folk are the hottest.

So the Sea Folk have a prophecy about the Dragon destroying the White Tower and the Aiel about him destroying the Aiel… Interesting. I wonder if the Aes Sedai all knew this.

Everything about Rhuidean. The aura of mystery and age surrounding it. The danger and unpredictability. The bloody ter’angreal graveyard. The beauty of it all. The intense journey back in time to understand the Aiel. The culmination in the utter horror that was the Breaking of the World, as men would annihilate everything in fits of madness. The Aes Sedai planning to hide as many weapons of mass destruction as possible to save what was left of humanity.

Bloody. Hell.

Robert Jordan has the most photographic approach to fantasy I have ever seen.

I haven’t mentioned Mat yet but he is a very dynamic character now, arguably the most in the main cast, and immensely enjoyable as a consequence, whatever he does. With major changes happening so quickly to both Perrin and Rand, while Mat was on pause for most of the early books, I wonder how the changes will spread in the future, for all of them.

Verin explaining ta'veren was perfect... Fascinating that the boys have been obsessed with being manipulated when they are the most likely to control others, although unwillingly.

Respect to Alanna and Verin for sticking with Perrin in the Two Rivers out of curiosity because this is Helm's Deep all over again.

It would be so much easier to take the characters' wariness of Aes Sedai seriously if every sentence they uttered did not sound like it came straight out of the mouth of a 16th c. priest terrified of those tainted and treacherous women. Because that's exactly what it reminds me of.

I would be a hundred percent on their side if Aes Sedai actually held any power in society, like a mirror to patriarchy. But despised and othered as they are, they don't really. It's utterly bizarre because they also can be relevant criticism of old institutions like administrations and academia, peopled by people who can be both intentionally and unintentionally nefarious, but, man, the reverse patriarchy angle is so wrapped in misogyny, external and internal.

Siuan… Siuan… Mille millions de mille milliards de mille sabords de tonnerre de Brest. Min warned us and I was still not prepared. Seeing the chapter’s title, I was so nervous and almost didn’t want to read it. I cannot believe this chapter happened to Siuan. I was shaking,  bloody hell. To her credit, I feel she would have succeeded in turning the White Tower into Rand’s ally had Elaida not burnt with so much hatred for Siuan. The way Siuan’s first thought after she was taken was for Leane, the way she picked herself up and started planning immediately after she was freed… I cannot express how much I admire and love her. 

The way her anger is also something that feels so validating and personal, a kind of rage on behalf of herself that comes from being violated and discarded so casually. And her drive and poise after that, her refusal to stop despite losing everything, her partnering with Logain - reader, I screamed. The only way this could have been greater is if the coup, trial, stilling, imprisonment and escape had spanned across two or three chapters. As it is and in the middle of lengthy Rand and Perrin chapters, it felt like a speedrun. 

However proud I am of Min for freeing Leane and Siuan, Min reflecting, just after seeing Siuan at her lowest, that she preferred her when she was meeker? Unwarranted and cruel. The lack of compassion for Aes Sedai in general can be so jarring.

Although her presence was more muted than in the last book, Moiraine’s journey was as beautifully heartbreaking as Rand’s, especially given all the parallels between the two - Rhuidean unveiling the bond existing between Cairhien and the Aiel, I see what you are doing Master Jordan. There is a quiet despair to her every interaction, particularly with Rand, that is growing urgent: she is failing to reach out to him, despite being utterly dedicated to him. I’m generally wary of attributing a familial reading to older women and younger characters as it’s often flattening the layers of identities and relationships for women, but, you know, I got major mother-son vibes from these two. To me, the reading is incomplete as it fails to factor Moiraine’s prime role as a failed mentor who settled for shield, but the emotions are there and hitting a very specific spot. Despite her hopelessness and refusal to compromise for him, her belief in Rand is devastating. Her speech to him about people fighting for him, with him, without his knowledge was my favourite of the book and made me deeply emotional.

The thing with Moiraine is that she is so isolated and incomprehensible to others - the multiple occurrences when characters question whether she is human and have feelings - that when she just accepts to walk to her death into Rhuidean like that, it almost feels like peace at last for her. Stalwart indomitable guilt-ridden little soul she is.   

Still extremely disappointed we got so little of Egwene and Moiraine with the Wise Ones: some incredible intercultural (gay) exchanges and channeling were happening and we saw next to nothing of it. I am obsessed with Egwene meeting Amys in the Dream World at gunpoint and recreating “the old man yells at cloud” meme, except it’s a Wise One yelling at flying Egwene.

On Egwene, she is so fearless and determined to learn, often going in blind to help the people she loves. She has self-possession and drive in spades, with distinctive earnestness and sharpness. I love her so and had I read these books as a teen I know I would have imprinted on her quite ferociously.

Brigitte hanging out in tel'aran'rhiod was unexpected but welcome… What a delightful and helpful NPC to encounter in this hellscape.

Mandatory “I hate that the EF5 come off as incredibly thick so often”. Nyn and Elayne managed to get fooled by both a Seanchan and a Forsaken and only got away because, nah, that's fine, they don't have nefarious intent toward them yet.

Holy mackerel, just when I was getting frustrated with Nynaeve and Elayne twiddling their thumbs in Tanchico, they actually pull the most badass coolest heist of the entire series so far, doing their recon through dreaming, staging a riot as a diversion and enrolling a seanchan of all people. The confrontation between Nynaeve and Moghedien was bloody epic - and an excellent argument for the show making weaves visible to all.

I love when Nynaeve is in prep mode. It's so much fun. I know she thinks Siuan desperate to pick them for this mission, but Nynaeve is exactly the asset she needed. Given how Siuan and Moiraine got into this search, rather inexperienced and with nothing but determination on their back, obviously the girls are ideal for this mission: Egwene certainly has Siuan's sharpness and Nynaeve Moiraine's stubbornness.

Paired with the number of times Elayne reflects that she would be a good monarch instead of those terrible monarchs, the easiness with which she forgot Egwene was enslaved and tortured by Seanchan is interesting. She’s still so young and her upbringing is that of royalty, so it is in-character at least.

I KNEW ONE OF THE PEDDLERS OR MORE HAD TO BE A FORSAKEN. I KNEW IT. Very well-done.

Between Slayer, Moghedien and Asmodean, the book does a great job showing the escalation in threats for Rand and his allies. The world is now crawling with powerful channelers who are matches for Rand, especially so early in his learning. Also, Moghedien is exactly the kind of gal I could ruin my life for - and so could Nynaeve.

Joking aside, Moghedien was the first time I got the sense the Forsaken could be truly terrifying. Compelling is scary. Lanfear is flirting too often with the unstable ex archetype and the men are mostly irrelevant. Now, I am quite excited about the Asmodean and Rand combo.

Rand's plan to trick the Forsaken into following him and trap one to teach him how to use saidin is a genuinely smart move: he cannot change who he is, it’s time he sees it as a gift and learns to use it. Combined with Rand devouring books to understand himself and the world around him, there is a strong undercurrent of “knowledge is power” that compels me immensely. As Moiraine would say, “the power inside you is the smallest part of your strength. It’s your mind and how you use it that will mean much more in the battles to come.”

The less good: I am having such a hard time with the romances: they rely heavily on the premise men and women are two different species and that any equilibrium between them will be reached through a balance in power rather than understanding (or just plain acknowledgment people are just people). The characters are constantly depicted as elaborating strategies to overpower or submit to the opposite gender in order to handle them (the Two Rivers folk counseling Perrin and Faile are particularly egregious). It's plain gender essentialism and frankly tiring to encounter every four paragraphs. The characters end up being at their worst when they talk to or think about their love interest and it's not even entertaining.

(That said, Perrin's letter to Faile was stunning, and I got misty-eyed, ngl.)

The middle ground: The Two Rivers and Aiel plotlines… I am conflicted. On one hand, they were really enjoyable. I love, love when fantasy is closer to anthropology than it is to fiction and it gave me exactly that level of detail. It’s just vibes and overall great character development for Perrin and Rand, with a blend of political and personal stakes. On the other, both arcs would have benefited from being pruned, for the sake of balance and pacing. Just like with TGH, you get great swaths of chapters focusing on two characters and cultures, and then just one chapter on other players and places. It's all the more dissatisfying that what's happening at the Tower, or with the Wise Ones, or with the Sea Folk, is just as essential.

Did I spend ¾ of the Aiel Waste wondering why the hell they are all described as light-haired and -eyed although they have been living in the desert for 3000 years? I did. And then I got distracted by Moiraine having a great time nerding out with the Wise Ones and riding up close with one in the distance.

The great: The books have now settled into what I was expecting: multiple character threads, extensive and beautiful worldbuilding, complex character dynamics. I’ve begun to look forward to the slow start, middle shenanigans and bombastic finale. The psychology of certain characters - Rand, Egwene, Moiraine in particular - is building up to something quite delicious and explosive, even if I cannot quite tell what yet. Many of the reveals (Rand’s stunt in the Stone, Rhuidean, Siuan’s fate, the Forsaken in the Waste) had me blindsided and were masterfully prepared for. Overall, I did prefer The Dragon Reborn, but the highs of The Shadow Rising were higher than the ones in the last. I am really, really excited to continue.

[misto713]

agreed, sqh and sqq are totally 'cosmic horrors' from PIDW NPCs point of view. and there would actually even be some evidence in canon to support this idea.

take sqq's mushroom body for example.

my pet theory is that it took 5 years to grow because the body wasn't enough to support sqq's soul. not without the system actively supressing shen yuan's spirit. that the souls/spirits of our world are much more powerful (reasons why that is so explained down below), and the system had to actively supress them for the 'possession' to work. and so when the soul catching array connected sy's imprint to the mushroom seed, the seed went like 'wtf?' and had to modify the body to handle much larger spirit capacity... and that took five years.

imagine it like someone trying to stuff a mammoth into some dwarf cattle breed. that's not going to work - the mushroom had to make some changes!

in canon, when SY finally woke up, he was incredibly strong. stronger than any cultivator described before. and sure, some of it might have been shen jiu's damaged cultivation / spiritual roots and some of it was 'without a cure', but it doesn't feel like enough of a difference.

after all, during the skinner attack, SY hadn't been poisoned yet, and couldn't even get outnof a single coil of the immortal binding cables. and yet as soon as he woke up in mushroom body, he easily tore apart a hundred of those cables with his spiritual power alone. that's too much of a difference to be purely due to spiditual roots damage and lack of experience.

and then most of this super OP badassery went away as soon as the system woke up from maintenance mode, and sqq was summoned back into his old corpse (poisoned, much weaker body with damaged spiritual roots) less than a week after gaining all that power.

that's sus, no?

why i think this world's souls would be stronger:

our mythology and legends mention quite a lot of apocalypses that left our world weaker. and there's so many fairy tales where we used to have powers but eventually lost them. think the destruction of the second moon fata so now we only have half the 'cosmis protection' we should have, the fall of atlantis where the world lost its strongest magic knowledge, the fall of the tower of babel that scrambled our brains so we can't fully understand each other anymore, the bermuda triangle that's basically a hole into some other reality, loki who locked up the asgardians and jotuns so we are cut off from an entire pantheon, and so on and so on.

all this means that when a baby needs to be born, its spirit knows it is going into a 'war zone' and needs a lot of power to compensate for the state of the world. especially since this world either doesn't produce enough power (magic, wi, other) to allow people to cultivate it, or we simply forgot how to. so to compensate, we are born with very high amounts of spiritual power (compared to a world without all this damage and with abundant natural resources like qi). so babies are born with enough spiritual power and senses to 'last them a lifetime', so they will be able to die properly when the time comes and actually be able to leave.

and our people do have some nice spiritual senses, don't they? like intuition, ability to tell (or calculate) the future, or even such things like feeling it when someone stares at your back. like.. with which sense do you feel it? your spiritual sense? something that is only fully developed at 'nascent soul' stage or higher?

...

and thrn sqq and sqh's souls travelled through the void between realities, knowingly or not, willingly or not. something like that would change you, right?

so my pet headcanon is that they are not 'golden core' cultivators, but rather either nascent soul or deity transformation cultivators and it's the system that keeps them supressed.

it would also sort of explain how sqh "always got the stages confused and didn't know the difference between foundation establishment and nascent soul". yeah i bet he had them confused when, compared to his own soul state, the nascent souls look 'normal' and yet are considered totally OP.

.

.

.

now imagine a situation after sqq throws binghe into the abyss. a little glitch :)

system (powered by binghe who is not currently in the same realm as the two demi-gods that are under supression) is in maintenance mode. sqq has a terrible depression out of sheer guilt, shang winghua is also going through it since so many innocent children died due to the system-enforced demon invasion and he had to be the one to start it. so they get drunk and start to cuss at the system. "and now, let's say it together, bro: Fuck the system, fuck the system, fuck the system!" they both yell it, again and again, from the heart.

the system breaks.

even without a cure shatters, unable to withstand such pure spiritual power.

the peak lords suddenly ascend two whole stages into their 'natural state'.

the other peak lords rush over, thinking cang qiong are under attack... but instead find two of their peak lords, cultivation through the roof, drunkedly ceying on each other's shoulder. (the lords of the alcoholics peak surreptitiously steals their booze to see if he can ascend that way too and no, he's totally not jealous and baffled about what happened).

oops.

anyway, as soon as they are semi-sober, they realoze just how much more powerful they are now. and that the system is gone.

sqq grabs sqh and punches the air until a portal into the abyss opens. swh (still a little drunk) finds this hilarious. they go through and fall on their asses right in front of poor depressed little binghe.

sqq crying because noooo! he didn't want to hurt his beautoful white lotus! his beloved little sheep! his darling disciple! please forgive him waaaaah!!!

sqh still thinks all this is hilarious and giggles drunkedly like 5 feet away from them. absentmindedly swatting away terrifying monsters that even a heavenly demon like binghe had trouble with.

binghe spends 2 seconds thinking about it... then decides that it doesn't matter as long as shizun doesn't hate him.

cue: binghe and two demi-gods speedrun the abyss in hours. sqh navigating them where to find xin mo, sqq alternating between crying, apologising to binghe and punching any monster that gets too close. binghe honestly enjoys himself amd the 'free ride'. by the end of the night, binghe is back in the bamboo house, beimg cuddled and hugged by his still mostly drunk shozun who keeps calling him a sweet and adorable baby. sqh wanders off to bother mobei.

cang qiong leadership finds them in the morning and learn binghe is a demon but honestly what are they going to do? there is no cultivator or sect strong enough to go against someone at the 'deity transformation' stage (except maybe sqh but 1/ he's not a fighter, 2/ sqq is still stronger than him and 3/ he doesn't mind binghe being a demon either). so they guess they'll have to accept him accept them both.

but, for appearance's sake, sqh uses some of his 'prophet' powers (abandoned outline knowledge), to clear tianlang-jun's name to show that not all heavenly demons are evil.

the OPM is in soo much trouble >:)

anyway, from that point on, the whole world of PIDW is like an extended field trip for the two 'deities'. binghe spends some time in despair because how is meant to catch up to his shi'un now??? but shizun loves him anyway so maybe there's less pressure to become strong when he's already loved.

I love fics that really highlight that Shen Yuan and Airplane are the weirdest entities in the story.

Because it's true! As strange, rare, and powerful as beings like Heavenly Demons or Dream Demons or once-in-a-generation cultivation prodigies are, they are also still native to the world they exist in. They're known to exist, and there's precedent for most of the things they do. Somebody like Luo Binghe may be exceptionally uncommon and remarkably powerful, but in the end he's still existing within the parameters of this world, its history, and its other inhabitants.

Shen Yuan and Airplane, and the System, aren't. They are something else altogether. I mean, canonically! The System is basically a god, and Shen Yuan and Airplane come from a world with entirely different rules, and to some extent are also godlike in their (however unwitting) influence in the creation of this world. They are cosmic mysteries. Even their version of being human is different from the other humans in this world because this world is built different from ours.

For us, the readers, they are the touchstone and the "normal" perspective counteracting the different norms and expectations of the rest of the characters and the setting. But from the perspective of all those other characters (the vast majority of people) in that world, if what they actually were was known, they'd be the most strange and spooky beings around. Like cosmic horror type shit. According to all known things about how the universe works, those guys should not be here. But they are. They are and they know fragments of incomprehensible things, they've taken over the bodies/lives of actual "normal" people, they see the world very differently from everyone else, they have to abide by rules which are invisible and even nonsensical according to the expectations of others (like faerie beings forced to follow contracts, or vampires bound to wait for permission before they can enter a home, except it's all the System's hoops and penalties), but they also have limited information about some peoples' destinies and about things that no one else has seen or interacted with for untold ages (all the lore and subplots that Airplane chucked in).

Like by the standards of our world, Luo Binghe would be a billionaire -- uncommon, over-powered, controversial, gifted with many advantages but also no guarantee of actual happiness or love, etc. But crucially, still definitely a kind of person who can exist without bending anyone's current concept of reality.

But Shen Yuan and Airplane are aliens and/or gods.

I love fics that get into that.

[sapphosdickandballs]

Hello!

For the fandom ask game, I am sending you two of each! :)

Show: Arcane: 5 and 8

Ship: Caitvi: 7 and 9

Character: Jinx: 2 and 7

Hi and thank you!

Arcane

5- scene that lives in my head rent free. I mean everyone’s favorite, the brothel scene. Lives in my head rent free cause I watched it several times. Also, the scene where Viktor is carving runes into his skin and letting the hextech magic flow through him. It scratched an itch in my brain idk

8-Power doesn't come to those who were born strongest, fastest or smartest. It comes to those who will do anything to achieve it. This line is so arghhh

Caitvi-

7-Scene that makes me think they are perfect for each other. Every damn scene. But especially the scene in the rain, ironically. Nothing like a great breakup scene (that was a breakup scene don’t lie to me) to make you be like waitttt y’all would be amazing together

9-Ideal endgame. Errrr ideal? They fucking live happily ever after while working through jinx’s issues. It’d be an uphill battle but ultimately they’d figure it out. They’d get gay married and live together until very old. Likely endgame? Get ready for my theories lmao

I feel like they are never going to end up together. I think it’s likely that jinx will drive a wedge between them. Even if vi let’s jinx go I think the pain of doing that will turn her into a different person. And if vi can’t let go, Caitlyn will never forgive her. Lose lose scenario. Arcane is such a fun show 😃

Jinx!

2- how I would have chosen to change their story from canon. Everythinggggg. My baby does NOT deserve this. I’d say I wouldn’t have her kill her entire family, but that’s prolly a boring answer. So I’d say maybe just have the deal go through and (as much as a hate to say it) just send silco to jail. Not having everyone leave her might not hurt her as bad. Have vi stay with her, Caitlyn would get used to her if she didn’t kill her parents, just give my baby girl a support system please

7-the scene that I think adds depth to their character or the relationship this character has with someone- hmm. I feel like what I like about jinx is she’s very developed, so this is an interesting question. Probably acting like an annoyed teenager towards silco. Most silco scenes. I feel like when she’s dependent on others, it shows an interesting side of her. She tries to act independent, but she’s constantly depending on people. Which I think is part of why it breaks her so bad when silco dies

[hypnotichyenascrunchyrollcatchup]

Crunchyroll Summer 2024 Anime Season

Hey guys, as the new season of anime rolls out, I thought I would make some changes to my review schedule, including making posts like this at the beginning of each season so you guys know what I'll be reviewing. Full disclosure, I will just be taking all this information from the crunchyroll website because I'm not really a journalist, I'm just some guy trying my best ok.

Going forward here's what you can expect from my reviews: First Impressions- Literally just writing down my first thoughts free form Still Watching?- After 4 episodes I will return to discuss whether I think the show is worth continuing Season Wrap Up- If I have indicated that I would be continuing the series in the previous post, this is where I'd organize my thoughts about the season as a whole with much more structure.

Anyway onto the line-up, please note I will be excluding series that isn't on its first season because I won't be reviewing those, so check out the official post for all returning series.

June 26th

The Strongest Magician in the Demon Lord's Army was a Human The fearsome leader of the demon army has a secret identity, but how long will they be able to hide it?

June 29th

My Wife Has No Emotion After a new robot comes into his life, one man will take the leap of mechanical matrimony!

July 1st

The Ossan Newbie Adventurer, Trained to Death by the Most Powerful Party, Became Invincible At 30, a guild clerk trades his job for adventure, training with elites to become an unstoppable force!

July 2nd

TASUKETSU -Fate of the Majority- A student finds himself in a game of survival as half of the human population disappears each night!

July 3rd

Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian This lazy student pretends not to understand when his colleague Alya flirts with him in Russian.

July 4th

Senpai is an Otokonoko Makoto's caught in a love triangle when Saki and Ryuji both confess. Can he navigate the chaos and have fun?

Days with My Stepsister An unlikely love story begins when Yuuta's dad remarries, and his new stepsister is the cutest girl in school.

Pseudo Harem Rin shifts personas to win harem-fan Eiji's heart, but will she ever reveal her true self?

Twilight Out of Focus Two roommates have strict rules about their livelihoods, only to find out more things about themselves.

July 5th

Quality Assurance in Another World A QA debugger saves a girl from a dragon, sparking her curiosity. Together, they seek the world's true nature.

July 6th

SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary Kobato and Osanai aim for quiet lives, but chaos follows them. Can they find peace amid the mayhem?

July 7th

Wistoria: Wand and Sword Will enters a magic academy, with the hidden secret that he doesn't have magical abilities at all!

VTuber Legend: How I Went Viral after Forgetting to Turn Off My Stream One Vtuber will find her life flipped upside down as a still-recording stream reveals her real personality!

Narenare -Cheer for You!- Follow six high school girls, each with distinct personalities, as they navigate life and find support.

My Deer Friend Nokotan Shikanokonokonokokoshitantan!!

A Journey Through Another World: Raising Kids While Adventuring Takumi, reincarnated with powerful skills, will raise twins in a dangerous world as they adventure together.

July 8th

MAYONAKA PUNCH Join Masaki and Live on their quest to hit one million subscribers on their NewTube channel!

July 9th

No Longer Allowed in Another World 20th-century author Osamu seeks a quiet end but finds heroics in a whimsical, otherworldly adventure!

July 10th

Love Is Indivisible by Twins A high school boy is in love with two girls, who happen to be twins and his childhood friends!

July 12th

Bye Bye, Earth Belle Leblac tries to find herself after being born the only human in a world of anthropomorphic animals.

July 13th

ATRI -My Dear Moments- A boy and a mysterious robot girl will live an unforgettable summer in a world mostly submerged underwater!

Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines! Kazuhiko ends up in the unexpected drama of his classmates: the most popular girls who are being rejected!

Why Does Nobody Remember Me in This World? A "World Rebirth" suddenly begins after a war between humans and other races of monsters.

August 7th

Delico's Nursery An aristocrat from a prestigious vampire family refuses a mission because…he has to take care of children?!

One last thing The dates listed here are the dates that the anime first airs, however my policy is to schedule each review a week later because: 1. That's when the anime becomes available for non premium members 2. To give me time because life happens

[worldsapartof]

Not up for making our paracosm/parame masterpost right now, but since Alagaesia is our current hyperfixation, we wanted to share some stuff about some of our presence there.

The first we became aware of was Kaethirin (also goes by Kaethiri). They are a half-elf born during the war against Galbatorix. Growing up, they showed an affinity for magic typically only seen that strong in Riders, and eventually agreed to go to Ellesmera to receive training. At 16, his tutors realized that while they could continue to teach more and more advanced concepts, at this point Kaethiri would benefit from learning control and management of her power from Eragon. They sent her to train with him, but along the way, she got separated from her traveling party and lost deep in the east, well beyond Eragon's stronghold.

There, she stumbled upon a wild dragon egg, which appeared to be abandoned in the middle of a plain so vast it seemed to encompass the whole world. After carefully magically checking it, they found it appeared to be a wild egg, and they took it with them to ensure its safety. To their surprise, it hatched a few days later. They were truly shocked and astonished, though, when shortly after hatching, it formed a rider bond with them despite not seeming to have had the spell done to make it able to make the bond.

She named the iridescent purple-blue dragon Kavrinder, with hir help picking it out. The two of them were eventually able to escape the seeming invisible labyrinth of the vast plains and make their way towards Eragon's stronghold. They were first encountered by a very worried and somewhat crabby Saphira, who carried them the rest of the way to the stronghold.

At the stronghold there are already a few dozen riders and dragons, as well as a very few young wild dragons.

Some notable figures/names:

Azure, a dragon as blue as the sky, and his elven rider Evarína (meaning Star in the ancient language), a strange-looking elf with blue-black skin patterned with constellations that softly glow in dark spaces and eyes that are like lapis lazuli across both pupil and iris.

The urgal warrior ____ and her nearly-black-indigo dragon Ithrö, which in urgal means rebel. Her horns are as large as anyone's. She held a position of respect in her old village being what in human terms we would consider a trans woman (Urgals have their own terminology for and system of gender, to be explained later).

The deep pine-green dragon Hemlock and her rider, the dwarf Kefk. Kefk is a rather closed off, secretive individual, and Hemlock is very vain. Their bond, however, is among the strongest of anyone there.

The young human girl Ella, who mostly doesn't speak to the bonded dragons and riders, but cares for the wild dragons and is close with many of them in a way rarely seen with wild dragons.

Worth noting, most of them are queer in some way or another - there are very few characters that are allo, cis, and het, and it's not common to even be most of those. This just seems to happen with our multiversal selves and parames alike, as a pluralqueer system. Not all will immediately be revealed as such, however. Some may themselves be plural outside of potentially becoming part of our system and the inherent plural-adjacency of riderhood.

Yes, some of them are somewhat "indulgent" or may in some ways come off like Mary Sues. This is partly because we are exceptional in some ways ourselves, but also if you don't like it, just go away instead of making it our problem, thanks.

Feel free to ask questions about them.

[sir-subpar]

Question: which of the 4 character is the strongest from Fachnan, Vega, Irene, and Gable which one is the strongest and or weakest?

Hmm.. That's a good question...

I think what I mentioned that Vega and Irene were "more powerful than Fachnan" I might have confused people a bit.

In Hell, Vega and Irene are more powerful then Fachnan in the sense that they have more social power, if that makes sense. They do also have more magic and the ability to fly (despite how small their wings look). Citizens of Hell treat succubi and incubi with more respect than the common hell-born (like Fachnan).

Vega and Irene don't really do a lot of fighting as it's not really in their line of work, though they are capable if they need to. Fachnan is a lower tier demon, but his job makes him a skilles fighter. (Vega often times hires Fachnan to be her and Irene's bodyguard during their dates. He's constantly a third wheel lol)

Occasionally Vega and Irene come with Fachnan to his assasin/bounty hunting gigs since they can use their powers to lure humans (it only works on those who are attracted to women, but that's a decent amount of people so it's not always an obstacle for them)

As for Gabel..

Well she's meant to be a good nemesis to Fachnan. So I'd say they're more or less evenly matched when it comes to combat. One of Gabel's biggest advantages is that he can fly and Fachnan can't. One thing I would like to note though, is that Gabel doesn't really want to fight Fachnan. They want to convince Fachnan to be a better person and chose that path of redemption, and encourage him to use his strengths to help humans rather than kill them and drag them to Hell (but Fachnan is stubborn, he thinks it's bullshit)

When it comea to who's most powerful out of the four of them... I'm gonna go with...

Gabel

They have physical and social power (on Earth. He wouldn't be treated well in Hell, as I'm sure you can imagine)

Fachnan does have one "advantage" over Gabel though:

His ability to wear down her patience