#'his destiny will be the destruction of all humanity' / 'guide us to our destiny' / 'the path of fate is already chosen'

[raayllum]

the sea of lava splitting spell being "part before me and reveal the path to our destiny" is extra rude after everything huh

[hailturinturambar]

The Seduction of Power: Sauron and Celebrimbor's relationship

This analysis is not thought of in a romantic or human way. But it follows the patterns of elven and more powerful creatures who have feelings like us, but guided by greed and power.

As in my previous analysis, to understand the full extent of the relationship between Sauron and Celebrimbor, we must return to the Beginning of Days, the First Age. Our story begins in Valinor.

When Eru's eldest sons, the Firstborn, awoke, the Valar assembled a company to lead the Elves to safety in Valinor. Many were lost on the journey, and many went on to live among the gods.

And the Valar loved the Elves dearly, and the Elves loved them. When the Valar brought war to Melkor and overcame him, he was taken captive and the Elves lived in peace. For nine ages Melkor was under the dominion of Mandos, and the Elves knew peace.

As the ages passed, Melkor's imprisonment ended and the Valar fulfilled their promise. Melkor asked his brothers for forgiveness and humbled himself, promising to heal the evil he had caused and to live in peace with the elves and gods. But in his dark heart, Melkor envied the elves, who were the cause of his capture.

However, not all the Elves trusted Melkor's words. And the Teleri, most beloved by Ulmo, trusted the Valar and turned their backs on Melkor. Despite this, not all were against Melkor. Especially the Noldor.

In this age, Finwë was king of the Noldor and loved his eldest son deeply. Fëanor was a powerful Noldor prince, rich in knowledge and power. A great smith and master craftsman, he forged the Silmarils, and Melkor desired them. And these same jewels would doom countless Elves and Men to their doom. And even Celebrimbor would see his ruin at their hand.

Melkor poisoned Fëanor with his lies and greed, and the Elves turned against the Valar. Departing Valinor with the ships of his murdered kin, Fëanor took his children and followers with him to Middle-earth. And much sorrow came from his choice.

Fëanor had seven sons, seven sons who swore never to rest until they had obtained their jewels again and destroyed Melkor. Curufin, his fifth son, had a son named Celebrimbor.

Elrdon calls Celebrimbor the Greatest Elven Smith. But Celebrimbor is not just that. According to the accounts in the book, Celebrimbor is a handsome Noldor prince, who fought in Gondolin, who fought strongly against Morgoth in countless battles and was present in the War of Wrath.

The weight of his grandfather's legacy still weighed heavily on his shoulders, no matter how powerful and learned he was. Fëanor's legacy would always cast a shadow over Celebrimbor.

It's hard to draw a correct parallel between Celebrimbor's story in the series and the books. But I do wonder about Celebrimbor's relationship with his father, Curufin. Celegorm and Curufin in the tale of Beren and Lúthien, well, they didn't seem very friendly.

And this makes me think that perhaps Curufin was not an extremely loving father, although Fëanor seemed to be attached to his children and to have loved them, despite everything.

When Celebrimbor talks about "true creation requires sacrifice", did he think about how the Silmarils cost his family? How the jewels and the oath destroyed everything good in them and condemned them to eternal suffering?

Elrond's comment about the beauty and destruction of the jewels brings out Celebrimbor's insecurity. There again is the shadow of his grandfather over him. He does not trust his creation, believing that it will never be on the level of his predecessor.

The parallel between Elrond and Celebrimbor is very interesting. When Celebrimbor talks about Elrond's father and how their destinies were intertwined. Sons of powerful men who were present in their legacy. And continue to dictate how their lives should be, always determined to make those who left them proud.

Desperate to save Middle-earth, Celebrimbor and Gil-galad hide their true intentions from Elrond towards the people of Khazad-dûm. Elrond had his trust betrayed and unknowingly lied to his great friend. For me, this is the first sign that Celebrimbor would do anything for power.

Could this gaze, blinded by the value and power of Mithril and its composition, the way it could save the elves, be a foreshadowing of his greed for the creation of the Rings of Power?

Middle-earth is made up of many points of no return. Durin III's choice not to aid the Elves in their struggle for survival, and Halbrand's arrival in Eregion.

It is now that Celebrimbor's story changes forever. He meets this man, this mortal, who fought alongside Galadriel and nearly died at the hands of the Orcs. Halbrand's vulnerability and purity is Sauron's first deception.

When Halbrand asks if Galadriel is there, in the forge, I don't believe he was genuinely looking for her. After all, why would she be there? He knew whose kingdom it was. It's all part of the illusion.

Celebrimbor beams when Halbrand speaks of "The Celebrimbor." This inflames Celebrimbor's ego. Yes, the elves know of his legacy and the legacy of his family. But for a mere mortal to meet him?

It is a treat, no doubt. He was recognized for his craft, not his grandfather's. And Halbrand speaks of his master who taught him his craft and spoke so much of Celebrimbor. Of course Morgoth would speak of Fëanor grandson!

Halbrand appears humble and ashamed of his lack of knowledge before Celebrimbor. When Halbrand talks about the ways to combine metal and jewelry, Celebrimbor is enchanted by his knowledge. Halbrand becomes indispensable at that moment.

How did a mere mortal clear up an elf's doubts? He must surely be important.

"Call it a gift."

With these simple words Sauron's deception was laid and he knew that he had tricked Celebrimbor. Sauron's seduction is there, when Galadriel, Elrond and Celebrimbor talk about the salvation of the elves with Gil-galad, we see the beginning of the poison in Sauron's words.

A crown? Gil-galad is too pure to consider carrying such an artifact of power without suspecting its corruption. But Celebrimbor looks at him madly, intoxicated by all the power they could achieve. And it is his words that alert Galadriel. A power not of the flesh, but over flesh. Words spoken by Adar, but which he learned from Sauron.

And from whom else could Celebrimbor have heard those words? He had been so close to Halbrand alone lately. And his presence had overwhelmed him. The gentle, caring elf was frantic and agitated, raising his voice and nearly losing his temper.

The chain behind Celebrimbor? That unusual shadow on the ground? It is no coincidence, it cannot be. What if this was the beginning of the bonds Sauron was binding him with? The beginning of his corruption and ruin.

If Galadriel suspected Celebrimbor's words, why didn't she stop him? Why didn't she warn the others? Because, like Celebrimbor, she was desperate to save the Elves and remain in Middle-earth.

And I believe that deep down, she was in denial. She had hunted the terrible and wicked evil Sauron for centuries, how could this human be him? Galadriel trusted Halbrand, enjoyed his company, she could not prevent the forging of the rings on suspicion. And her denial was decisive for Sauron's victory.

Sauron takes advantage of this. He tortures Galadriel, claiming that she helped him and that she can never escape this. No matter what happens, Galadriel's intentions were never evil.

And for this she blames herself, for deep down, she is good. And now Halbrand/Sauron has escaped. The Rings of Power are ready and she asks Celebrimbor to never accept the return of the mortal king.

But why? She never explained, so it was obvious that Celebrimbor could not keep his promise.

Then we have a decisive event. Celebrimbor is inaugurating a new forge, eager for answers from the Three Elven Rings. And that's when his new hope arrives on a white horse. He came to propose a deal, they say. But what could he offer?

We can then glimpse his new deception. The suffering mortal king has returned begging for help, but Celebrimbor refuses to receive him. Sauron then tries to seduce Mirdania. Does she want him to leave? Well, if she doesn't want him to, he won't. So he lets her notice his injuries, as he suffered at the hands of the Orcs.

Unconsciously, like Galadriel, Mirdania takes pity on Halbrand. She takes his side, saying that he looks hurt. That the night is cold. However, Celebrimbor tries to keep his promise; he must be faithful to Galadriel. But Mirdania is softening his heart.

Sauron is the Great Deceiver. He knows the deepest desires of the lustful heart. And he knows what Celebrimbor is desperate to know. Have his Rings of Power worked? Galadriel has kept Celebrimbor in the dark, but Halbrand is there to tell him of the progress.

If the Rings of Power saved the Elves, would they be able to cure all the ills of Middle-earth? Who knows. But Sauron uses these thoughts to convince Celebrimbor. But how could he know of the Dwarves' suffering? That's when he puts an end to the mystery.

Sauron is being truthful. He is not Halbrand, a king, or a mortal. Sauron can be truthful when he wants to be. But his truth is always tainted by his lies and his own tricks.

The breaking point has come. Sauron lays bare Celebrimbor's greatest desire. To be recognized, to be revered. To be remembered as The Lord of the Rings. To escape his grandfather's shadow once and for all. Whether it's Sauron's ethereal appearance, or his manipulative words, the fact is that Celebrimbor wants what he's offering so badly that he ignores his fears.

And Annatar is humble. He is powerful, but he does not seek reverence, or thanks. He is an emissary of the Valar, and he only wishes to share his knowledge with Celebrimbor.

"Annatar. A sharer of gifts."

When he heard these words, did Celebrimbor remember Halbrand's words? Was that all it took to earn his trust?

Celebrimbor accepts Annatar's advice and now they need to help the Dwarves. Celebrimbor is a good person, he is kind and described in the book as a great friend of the Dwarves. And he says this to Durin IV. They helped them before, now, it is time for the Elves to help.

Sauron knows that Gil-galad has sent a messenger in his name. A messenger who would thwart his plans to forge the rings.

Celebrimbor is isolated from the people of Lindon, Galadriel and Elrond are far away. He has Celebrimbor in his hands. The Dwarves do not trust him at first, and why would they? Where did this emissary of the Valar come from?

But Sauron is a clever liar. The Dwarves are suffering and they have no choice but to rely on the Elves to survive. And Sauron must appeal to Celebrimbor's pride. Who does Gil-galad think he is to stop the forging of new rings? Who, indeed? Perhaps the King of all the Elves? Celebrimbor is too blinded by power to reflect.

Sauron, however, is greedy. Rings for the Dwarves are not enough. He always wants more. More power. More servants. If he is to heal Middle-earth, he needs everyone under his control. So he pretends, and talks about how frustrated he is about the suffering of men. How they deserve rings to protect themselves.

It is madness and Celebrimbor knows it. Men are fragile and easily corrupted. Many have followed Morgoth without any effort. Sauron reminds him of all the great men who have ever lived, but it is not enough to convince the elf. Like a child, Sauron refuses to accept no and awakens Celebrimbor's greatest fear. Annatar will make the rings without him, he is no longer needed.

Sauron’s manipulation is nearly complete. Without Celebrimbor’s help, Mirdania see the terrible evil that lies among them, the evil hidden all along. Annatar calms her, gaining an ally to his side. She believes Annatar, and so believes that men deserve their rings.

Durin IV adds to Celebrimbor’s concerns, but he tries not to see them. Power weighs heavily on his shoulders, and accepting the truth is too difficult. Annatar deceives him, claiming that it is the lies of the making that are affecting the rings.

Celebrimbor desperately needs to make amends for his mistake with the Dwarves. He forces himself to accept the creation of new rings, but something seems wrong. While Annatar is kind and caring to the Elves, Celebrimbor is slowly losing his way. His actions surprise even himself.

If things aren't bad enough, they can always get worse, right?

The rings don't work, something is wrong. Who knows, because deep down, Celebrimbor knew that those rings couldn't be created? A part of him could have been suspicious of that creation.

But he's losing his mind, he's angry and unstable. And Celebrimbor has forgotten Mirdania's name, his protégé. How could he do that? I would say, in my humble opinion, that Sauron had his claws deep inside him, subtly controlling his decisions, so that he would only be able to think about the rings and do nothing until he completed the nine.

As the worthy manipulator, Sauron is increasingly isolating his victim. Preventing Celebrimbor from leaving the forge. Most importantly, Sauron is comforting Celebrimbor, giving him support and standing by his side. Who would suspect an emissary of the Valar?

However, Adar is getting in the way of Sauron's plans. The rings cannot be forged if Eregion falls. Sauron does not have much time left and he knows it, he must redouble his efforts.

The Dwarves will not give Sauron peace either. He leaves Eregion, but does not get what he wants. The rings are corrupting the Dwarves, and greed is consuming the king's heart. Did Sauron know about the Balrog? Was it at that moment that he realized he had no need of a people who would find their own ruin?

Whether it is the work of the Valar or not, Celebrimbor senses that something is happening in Eregion and Annatar is not informing him. He does not stop creating the design of the rings, but something is disturbing him. His peaceful and calm kingdom is under attack, is it possible?

When Celebrimbor tries to leave the forge, Sauron is there to stop him. He knows that Celebrimbor will not create the rings if he knows that a siege is underway and his people are being attacked by Adar's army.

Desperate to keep Celebrimbor trapped in his web of lies, Sauron forges the most perfect illusion to confuse the smith's mind. Eregion is safe and sound. Why can't Celebrimbor return to the forge?

This, I would say, is his greatest manipulation. Sauron uses Celebrimbor's greed, his desire to be greater than the creator of the Silmarils, greater than his family's legacy. There is the statue depicting Celebrimbor's insecurities. Everything is fine, Sauron even managed to get the Mithril for the rings. Celebrimbor, blinded by power, seduced by Annatar's words, once again follows him.

While Eregion has been under siege for weeks, Celebrimbor keeps his forge burning and never stops. The world is at peace, ideas are clear, and he only has Annatar to thank.

Was Annatar sincere? That it would be a shame when his partnership with Celebrimbor ended?

Honestly, I would say so. But not for the reasons Celebrimbor imagined. Without Aulë and Melkor, Sauron had no one left to share his craft, his passion that did not abandon him even when he turned his back on Valinor. And Celebrimbor, the greatest Elven-smith of his time, is almost his equal.

However, he knows that Celebrimbor would never agree with him, so he must leave in the end, even though it is a shame for both of them.

The illusion is, however, failing. Sauron is spending too much energy holding back the people of Eregion and preventing the attack of Adar long enough to forge the rings. His mind is not fully devoted to Celebrimbor, and that is his greatest mistake.

Celebrimbor begins to notice the small inconsistencies in the environment. The fire burns the same every day. The little mouse who repeats the same patterns. But he already knew that, didn't he? He knew what Annatar was doing, but he couldn't admit it to himself.

Sauron's mask finally falls.

Sauron tries to convince Celebrimbor of his truth. To Sauron, he was obviously doing the elf a favor, teaching him his knowledge and improving his creation. Sauron genuinely believes he was helping him, in his own way.

"I am the one keeping the storm at bay."

Ding Dong, Sauron and his twisted view of healing is knocking at the door again!

Sauron is confident that he has done everything in his power to make Celebrimbor prove his worth. Did he feel that way about Melkor? Did he believe that all the suffering and pain caused by his master would help him to become more improve? Probably.

I believe that breaking the illusion was more painful. Forcing Celebrimbor to contemplate the destruction of his beloved kingdom, to observe the death of his people and, worst of all, to realize that none of them believe him, not when Annatar is there, claiming that the master blacksmith has gone mad.

Celebrimbor is left to deal with his guilt. Sauron’s revelation is not only cruel, but devastating. Celebrimbor realizes that he helped Sauron, and that is a hard truth to swallow, and Sauron knows it.

For me, Mirdania’s death was Celebrimbor’s greatest regret. She was his ward, and he lost her to Sauron. She trusted Annatar and died believing in him, and she died at his hands.

And the death of Mirdania is the breaking point. There is nothing left for Celebrimbor. Sauron is the Great Deceiver and he has won. Celebrimbor is tired of fighting.

Honestly, Sauron almost fooled me too. When he talks about the suffering caused by Morgoth, I don't think that's a lie, not to him. He suffered at the hands of a Valar because their worldviews were different. Morgoth wanted to destroy and Sauron wanted to heal, but in the end their methods were the same.

The lie is revealed throughout the conversation. Did Sauron want to hurt Celebrimbor? Yes and no. As in an abusive relationship, Sauron believes he hurt him because he had to, but did not want to. As he says, Celebrimbor caused it, and that is his truth.

In a desperate attempt, Celebrimbor tries to destroy the rings. But the Rings of Power are too powerful for the fire. All that remains is to escape with the rings, and there is Galadriel, his beloved friend, as if sent by the Valar.

It's a very difficult conversation, I must admit. Galadriel realizes that Celebrimbor hurt himself to escape Sauron and save Middle-earth. And after so much suffering, she is the only person who trusts Celebrimbor.

Galadriel and Celebrimbor share the same guilt. Focused on their hearts' desires, they were seduced by Sauron's promises and power, and this hurts them deeply. They wish more than anything to make amends for the harm they have caused, even if unintentionally.

Sauron is enraged and Galadriel leaves with the rings, she is the last hope of Middle-earth. Celebrimbor is once again alone, his guards are trapped in Sauron's power and he can no longer escape the hands of the Great Deceiver and his vengeance.

I still get goosebumps when I remember the sound of the bow firing its next arrow.

This is the end of Celebrimbor's legacy, the ruin of his existence. All that remains is his blood staining his forge and his body riddled with arrows. Where did the trail of blood come from, I wonder. Was Sauron cruel enough to drag the bleeding Celebrimbor here?

Sauron tries to break Celebrimbor's spirit one last time. But Celebrimbor has already lost everything, and his solace is that the rings are far away.

And he thinks of the old days, when all was fair in Eregion. I believe it is this memory, of the good times before Sauron's destruction, that strengthens Celebrimbor.

"For soon I shall go to the shore of the morning. Borne hence, by a wind that you can never follow!"

This is Sauron's greatest fear, isn't it? He has lost Aulë, he has lost Melkor. Because of his cowardice and refusal to beg forgiveness from the Valar, he will never be able to return to Valinor. Galadriel has resisted his temptation, and Celebrimbor is dying; there is no one left for Sauron.

Sauron wants to inflict as much pain on Celebrimbor as possible to make up for his words. Would he be able to use his unholy magic to keep Celebrimbor alive? Was it all for the rings, or once again because he would be alone in the world?

"Hear me! Shadow of Morgoth. Hear the dying words of Celebrimbor."

Celebrimbor's prophecy affects Sauron deeply, laying bare his greatest fears. He will be betrayed by his rings, we know that. His own corrupt power will doom him to destruction. And it breaks him, because Sauron must have believed Celebrimbor's words.

Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth:

"In black anger he turned back to battle; and bearing as a banner Celebrimbor’s body hung upon a pole, shot through with Orc-arrows, he turned upon the forces of Elrond."

Sauron, it's time to work on all that anger.

Blinded by red rage, Sauron kills Celebrimbor and interrupts his words. Did he realize what he was doing? Always so driven by his seething emotions.

And this is Sauron's moment of breaking. He realizes what he has done. He has murdered his last equal in all of Middle-earth, once again he has fulfilled his fears, and he is alone. Why is he crying?

As I analyzed before, he was alone and there was no one to deceive. Sauron understood his actions and had no way of going back, all he could do was accept the consequences.

Just as Celebrimbor was seduced by power and glory, Sauron was seduced by Celebrimbor’s power and knowledge. Like an Ouroboros, Sauron and Celebrimbor were seduced by power and found their downfall in each other.

Sauron may have been Celebrimbor’s downfall. But Celebrimbor and his rings, and the knowledge they gave Sauron, will be the Great Deceiver’s downfall at the end of the road.

[laifromthecosmos]

Saturn Atmakaraka: Finding Light on the Path of Karma

"Saturn , has a tall and thin body, has yellow eyes and is airy (vata) in constituition; he has large teeth, is lazy and has coarse hair." Parashari 3.28-29

In Vedic astrology, the concept of AtmaKaraka is one of the most profound and revealing in the natal chart. The atmaKaraka, also known as the “soul indicator”, is the planet that bears the greatest responsibility for the individual’s spiritual journey. It represents the greatest challenges, lessons and the path that the soul must take in this life to achieve growth and fulfillment. The planet with the highest degree in any sign becomes the AtmaKaraka, “the significator of self” or “self-indicator”. This, as the lord of the Ascendant, can become the most powerful planet in your chart. It is the most important planet to consider when judging an individual’s spiritual nature, particularly in relation to its position in the ninth harmonic chart (navamsha). He provides us with a key to the aspirations of the soul. We often consider its position, such as the Ascendant, and read the chart indications accordingly.

This planet not only guides the purpose of life, but also indicates internal obstacles that a person needs to overcome to find their true identity. The AtmaKaraka position shows how we deal with our weaknesses, how we develop spiritually and where we should invest energy to evolve. The Atmakaraka carries the most important karmic lessons for this incarnation, becoming a key to understanding destiny and the soul’s inner motivations. Although there are many other important points in the birth chart, the Atma is special because it is a direct representation of the qualities that our soul has already mastered in past lives and those that still need to be worked on. Depending on which planet occupies this position, the nature of these lessons varies profoundly. AK influences how we approach challenges in different areas of life, right down to our spiritual worldview.

Saturn is traditionally the most difficult of the major planets, the legendary king of the malefics, that's why Saturn Atmakaraka is the most challenging. He often faces challenges in life, especially in the areas of work, health and relationships. Saturn is the significator of life itself. It indicates fate, term of life, longevity. A strong Saturn protects the life. Saturn is the planet to be propitiated in old age. He indicates the regime necessary for full life and longevity, violating which we suffer from premature decay and death. Though Saturn possesses a higher and more beneficent side, at least from the standpoint of the spiritual life, even this is stern and exacting, hard to live up to and to endure, a power of discipline, asceticism and solitude.

Saturn brings limitation and obstruction, hindrance in self-expression and in self-manifestation, which may become oppression and adversity. He is also known for being the God of Death, while Jupiter is a kind God. As Jupiter is the God of joy, he is the God of sorrow. Saturn is the significator of disease, old age and death; the great enemies of human life, which overcome all life bound by time. Therefore, the placement of Saturn in Atmakaraka is the ultimate issue of our life and destiny, the hard facts or the harsh reality that we must face. Because Saturn in the Atmakaraka indicates that the person may feel that his or her life is too tied to issues of responsibility, the need to make sacrifices or deal with pain and suffering in a constructive way. Here, destiny does not present itself easily or immediately, but is forged with perseverance, patience and facing the harshness of reality. For those with Saturn Atmakaraka, reality may seem harsher and so they may become depressed in the face of it. They refuse to give in to destruction but destruction is the necessary counterpart for creation, as is decay and death required for new life and growth.

Saturn gives bad luck, misfortune, difficult karma. It is the planet of bad karma or unhappy destiny. However, these may come upon a soul not because it has been bad or slow to evolve in past lives. Some souls, particularly those who are more advanced, may seek such things as a means of faster and deeper spiritual growth in life. Anyone can turn to the Divine in prosperity, but who can do so in great adversity? Such is the measure of a great soul. Saturn is also the suffering that makes us grow inwardly.

The influence of Saturn is to delay, to hold back. As the slowest of the planets, he slows things down, holds back their development. Those retarded in mind or speech are often under the strong affliction of Saturn. He makes us deaf and blind, stunted or deformed.

Saturn is the significator of old age, the God of time, who brings on all the degenerative processes of aging, the failure of our faculties and our powers. To the such a badly placed Saturn causes premature aging. Saturn takes away our vitality, on a physical or on a mental level. He causes depression, melancholy, self-pity and gives rise to worry, fear and anxiety. As a nervous planet, Saturn obstructs nerve functioning. He may cause numbness, paralysis or degenerative neurological disorders. His obstructing and repressing influence on the mind may promote neurosis or insanity. Saturn is behind most diseases, particularly chronic, degenerative diseases, diseases of old age, including arthritis and Cancer. As representing decay he can cause an accumulation of waste materials in the body and often is a point of devitalization in the chart.

As the planet of the ego, Saturn is also the planet of fear, on which the ego is based. Saturn creates fear and darkness in the mind. It makes us feel that we cannot overcome things, that life is against us. It makes us doubt ourselves, doubt even the Divine, and makes us prey to dark fears, fantasies, and phobias.

Saturn Devouring His Son is a painting by Spanish artist Francisco Goya. It is traditionally considered a depiction of the Greek myth of the Titan Cronus, whom the Romans called Saturn, eating one of his children out of fear of a prophecy by Gaea that one of his children would overthrow him.

Saturn is the God who eats his own children, who devours his own progeny. He raises people up, but eventually brings them down in a very precipitous fall. Those who are under the spell of their basic values ​​will eventually be destroyed by them. He shows falsehood for what it is, in which there is the revelation of the enduring value of truth.

Saturn is not only in many ways the lowest of the planets, it is also the highest. Its lesson is the most difficult, but the most rewarding. Saturn is the grandfather spirit and lawgiver, our guiding ancestor. He represents not only the negative influence of the past that constrains us, he represents the positive spirit of the past that brings order and consistency to our lives. Saturn in Hindu mythology is the son of the Sun. The Sun moves in a chariot driven by Saturn. Saturn is the darkness, death and sadness that we must overcome for the revelation of the true light. He is the guardian of the mysteries of truth - which is possible only through a very precise and demanding cultivation of attention. Saturn is the yogi in meditation. He can give complete detachment and independence. He is the one who stands alone and goes beyond the limitations of the masses. It shows the path of transcendence, though necessarily difficult, by which all limitations can be overcome by resorting to our true and unlimited Self. In this respect, the power of Shiva, the lord of the yogis, the god of death and transcendence, can work through Saturn.

Saturn in the Atmakaraka places the individual on a path of self-improvement, where life experiences often involve long periods of effort without immediate rewards. The soul, in this case, seeks fulfillment that can only be achieved through discipline and acceptance of limitations, whether in relation to external issues (such as social responsibility, work and professional life) or internal issues (such as overcoming fears, insecurities and deep psychological issues).

Saturn here forces the person to face reality as it is, without illusions or escapes, leading the soul to mature and become more aware of the responsibilities it carries, whether in terms of individual karma or in relation to the collective. Life may seem like a constant search for stability, security and structure, but at the same time, Saturn demands patience to accept that the fruits of this search will not come immediately. Therefore, Saturn in the Atmakaraka is a position that brings depth and intensity to the spiritual and personal journey, challenging the individual to find greater meaning through experiencing the harshness of life, while working tirelessly to build something lasting, grounded and realistic.

[radiosummons]

Even though Wolfwood is very much not an actual Catholic priest, I do find it compelling that Vash--someone without any religious beliefs and minimal exposure to "Christianity," courtesy of Rem (OG Trigun)--is the most faithful of the two.

And by "faithful," I don't mean so much in a religious or Christian sort of sense. More that Vash holds onto his faith that there is good in people and that everyone is worth saving. That the taking of a life is something so unspeakable to him that it will literally cause him immense mental, emotional and physical pain when he is forced to do so. His unshakeable belief, i.e. his faith that every life is precious and no one is beyond redepmtion irregardless of how morally corrupt an individual may be is so foundational to who he is as a character.

While I've only really experienced this through anime and various other Japanese based video games, I do enjoy seeing depictions of Christian iconography and concepts form non-Western creators. I love the art and memes of Vash being a "biblically accurate angel" (even though Plants aren't angels, I am so fucking happy that people are picking up on the unintentional symbolism) and I do enjoy the amount of, again, art and memes of Wolfwood being a cringefail Catholic priest.

But I also love the non-Western depiction of Christianity in Trigun, or rather the apocalyptic remnants of it. Despite the fact I have lost my ability to have faith in a higher being (and my own personal beef/distate with the Catholic Church/conservative Christianity as a whole), I find the worldbuilding of Trigun fascinating in this aspect as it provides its audience an alternative form of a global religion that's very relevant to our daily lives.

In Trigun, Christianity is very much a shadow of its former self, a leftover remnant of humanity--more specifically, a remnant of an old forgotten belief system--that has been essentialy been lost. Save for a few remaining Bibles and some memories of particular Catholic iconography/symbolism.

But overall, that's all that remains. Just familiar symbols and various rituals that some people are able to recall from their former lives.

So the decision to pair Vash up with someone like Wolfwood, someone who has lost his faith in humanity as a whole but has resolved himself to protect those that he can (or rather, deems worthy of saving) ... I find that relationship absolutely fascinating. Because I'd argue that in most Western depictions of a holy man (typically Christian and typically Catholic, let's be real), it's usually the holy man that is doing the saving. Or at the very least, is usually helping guide the other characters on their own paths towards redemption.

Despite the fact Wolfwood isn't an actual priest but instead an assassin trained by a mercenary group using the guise of an old religion (again, that most of humanity has clearly forgotten about), I find it to be a wonderful storywriting choice to make Vash the "holy man."

They're both incredibly tragic characters that burden themselves with crippling destinies. Destinies that ultimately lead to their own destruction, but hopefully all for the greater good. Vash holds faith that maybe, just maybe, he can make Nai realize the error of his ways and turn over a new leaf.

Understandably, Wolfwood finds this way of thinking horribly childish and naive. He even takes it as a personal insult when Vash continues to insist that killing people, even if it's for the sake of protecting someone else, is wrong.

But Vash isn't wrong for wanting to see the good in people. To borrow a quote from Everything Everywhere All At Once: "You tell me it's a cruel world, and we're all running around in circles. I know that. I've been on this earth just as many days as you. When I choose to see the good side of things, I'm not being naive. It is strategic and necessary. It's how I've learned to survive through everything. I know you see yourself as a fighter. Well, I see myself as one too. This is how I fight."

Granted, Vash doesn't express his beliefs as eloquently as this. But that doesn't really matter, though. Because Wolfwood doesn't need Vash to make express himself this way for Wolfwood to finally understand him. Vash, by the simple of virtue of being himself, is a good person who chooses to see the good in others.

And Wolfwood ... Wolfwood is someone who chooses to see the bad.

Wolfwood cannot quite bring himself to view the world the way Vash does. And Vash will never be able to share Wolfwood's opinions regarding who is worthy of living, either. But they respect each other and understand where the other person is coming from.

It does take Wolfwood a lot longer to understand Vash as a person, let alone his faith in humanity. But when he does, it's so satisfying to watch Vash become someone important to him. Someone that he wants to protects. Because if Vash won't defend himself, Wolfwood resolves to be the one to protect Vash.

Even if Vash doesn't really want that.

It's so fucking amazing to see these two clash over their ideals, whether it's in the form of playful teasing or straight up beating the shit out of each other. But they stay together and hold each other in such high regard despite their conflicting beliefs.

To me, one of the most beautiful aspescts of Trigun is that Wolfwood--a man of faith but only in name--gets to have such a close connection with Vash--a man of faith through and through--and that because of their relationship, they both inspire a existential AND spiritual crisis within one another.

Because in a world that makes no sense, they both find faith in each other. And if that isn't the most beautiful shit you've ever seen, then I don't know what is.

[usagirotten]

The Beginner's Guide to the 'Sandman' Comics by Neil Gaiman

Explore the enchanting world of Neil Gaiman's 'Sandman' comics with our comprehensive beginner's guide. Uncover the mysteries of the Dreaming and embark on a journey through fantasy, myth, and storytelling in this iconic comic series. Debuting at the end of 1989 published by DC Comics and later becoming the flagship of the Vertigo sub-label in 1993, "The Sandman" introduces us to the Eternals / The Endless, anthropomorphic beings that embody natural forces or aspects of the universe and have existed since the dawn of creation, which puts them in a higher hierarchy or other types of gods and entities existing in the universe. In fact, Gaiman’s original pitch for the title was radically different and involved the regular old DC Universe Sandman... But he was unavailable, so DC asked Gaiman to come up with someone new. Tasked with creating a whole new character, Gaiman invented Morpheus, the Lord of The Dreaming - a dimension where all dreams come from. When Sandman kicked off, Morpheus was captured - accidentally - by humans, and held captive for decades. When he finally escaped, he wreaked terrible, Twilight Zone vengeance on them, before regaining his powers, and returning home to the Dreaming. There, he found things in massive disrepair, and set about making dreams right again... And returning some particular horrible nightmares (and unwilling to return dreams) home again. Over time, Morpheus grew into being more than just a vengeful spirit, and in a certain sense, a hero; though with forces conspiring against him, he was eventually killed. The last few issues of the series were the funeral of Morpheus, and that book was closed forever.

  Dream, as he’s most commonly called, is a part of The Endless, a family of seven siblings who physically embody and carry out the will of abstract concepts, such as destiny, destruction, and desire. Each one of The Endless has its own tasks and rules its own realm, and in many ways, they take on the form of a sort of mythology within the DCU. The cosmic beings are said to have existed since the beginning of time and are among the most powerful creations in the DC universe. However, while the whole family plays a vital role in the events that take place over the course of the comics seven-year run, ultimately the story revolved around Dream. Along with Gaiman, the artists who inaugurated the series were Sam Kieth ("The Maxx") with Michael Drigenberg, as draftsman and inker respectively. Later a rotating team was had, highlighting Kelly Jones ("Batman & Dracula: Red Rain"), Chris Bachalo ("The Amazing Spider-man") Collen Doran ("A Distant Soil"), P. Craig Russel ("Legends of The Dark Knight ”), Dick Giordanno (“ Crisis On Infinite Earths ”), Shawn McManus (“ Fables ”), Jill Thompson (“ Wonder Woman ”), Mark Buckingham (“ Miracleman ”), Vince Locke (“ Judge Dredd ”), Marc Hemple ("Heavy Metal"), Charles Vess ("Promethea") and Michael Zulli ("TMNT: Souls Winter") who walked throughout the series, giving versatility to the art of the same by authentically exploiting the potential that the ninth is able to reach.

What are the key story arcs and volumes in the ‘Sandman’ series?

The Sandman series is divided into ten main volumes, each comprising multiple story arcs that weave together to form a larger narrative tapestry. Some of the key story arcs include: - Preludes & Nocturnes: Introduces the character of Dream and his quest to reclaim his lost artifacts. - The Doll's House: Explores Dream's interactions with various dreamers and introduces important supporting characters. - Season of Mists: Focuses on Dream's journey to Hell and his confrontation with Lucifer. - A Game of You: Follows the adventures of Barbie and her friends in the waking world and the Dreaming. - Brief Lives: Chronicles Dream's quest to find his missing sibling, Destruction. - Worlds' End: Features a series of interconnected short stories set in a mysterious inn. - The Kindly Ones: Culminates in a confrontation between Dream and the Furies, ancient beings seeking vengeance. - The Wake: Concludes the main storyline of the series and explores the aftermath of Dream's actions. Each volume offers a unique blend of fantasy, mythology, and human drama, contributing to the overall richness and depth of the Sandman universe.

How does ‘Sandman’ connect to other works by Neil Gaiman?

While 'Sandman' stands on its own as a singular masterpiece, it is also interconnected with Neil Gaiman's broader body of work. Many characters, themes, and concepts introduced in 'Sandman' reappear in Gaiman's novels, short stories, and other comic book projects. Additionally, 'Sandman' has inspired numerous spin-offs, adaptations, and continuations, including graphic novels like 'The Sandman: Overture' and audio dramas like 'The Sandman: Act I'. Whether you're exploring Gaiman's prose fiction or his contributions to the comic book medium, 'Sandman' serves as a gateway to a larger world of storytelling. At its core, 'Sandman' is more than just a comic book series – it's a celebration of the power of storytelling. Through its rich tapestry of mythology, literature, and pop culture references, 'Sandman' invites us to explore the depths of our imagination and embrace the magic of storytelling. It's a reminder that dreams are more than just fleeting fantasies; they're windows into our souls, reflections of our deepest desires and fears. So, whether you're a seasoned comic book aficionado or a curious newcomer, there's never been a better time to join the Dreaming and let your imagination soar.

  Here are 10 intriguing curiosities about Neil Gaiman's 'Sandman' comics:

- Origin of Dream's Design: Dream's appearance was inspired by a combination of Gaiman's friend, musician Peter Murphy of the band Bauhaus, and the DC Comics character Destiny from "The Endless." - Influence of Mythology: Gaiman drew heavily from various mythologies and folklore to create the rich tapestry of the 'Sandman' universe, incorporating elements from Norse, Greek, and Judeo-Christian traditions, among others. - Pivotal Role of Dream's Helm: Dream's iconic helm, also known as the Dream Helm or the Helm of Dreams, serves as a symbol of his authority and power over the realm of dreams. Its significance is explored throughout the series. - Connection to DC Universe: While 'Sandman' exists within its own self-contained universe, it also features connections to the broader DC Comics universe, with appearances by characters like Batman and John Constantine. - Award-Winning Series: 'Sandman' received numerous awards and accolades during its run, including multiple Eisner Awards, Harvey Awards, and a World Fantasy Award for Best Short Fiction for the story "A Midsummer Night's Dream." - Diverse Artistic Collaborations: Throughout the series, Gaiman collaborated with a diverse array of artists, each bringing their unique style to the pages of 'Sandman.' Notable collaborators include Dave McKean, Jill Thompson, and P. Craig Russell. - Influence on Pop Culture: 'Sandman' has left a significant impact on popular culture, inspiring everything from music and film to fashion and literature. Its themes and imagery have been referenced in works ranging from the TV series "Supernatural" to the video game "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask." - Themes of Identity and Existence: Central to 'Sandman' are themes of identity, existence, and the nature of reality. The series explores questions of free will, destiny, and the human condition through the lens of its diverse cast of characters. - Spin-Offs and Adaptations: In addition to the main series, 'Sandman' has inspired numerous spin-off comics, graphic novels, and adaptations in other media. This includes "The Sandman: Overture," a prequel miniseries written by Gaiman himself. - Enduring Legacy: Despite concluding its original run in 1996, 'Sandman' continues to capture the imagination of readers worldwide. Its themes of imagination, storytelling, and the power of dreams ensure its place as a timeless classic in the world of comics and literature.   Sandman was a seminal work that catalyzed a creative renaissance in comics. Its breakout success established Vertigo Comics as a platform for intelligent, adult-oriented graphic fiction. In Sandman’s wake, Vertigo published acclaimed series like Hellblazer, Preacher, and Fables – cementing the imprint’s reputation for crafting literate fantasy and horror. Beyond Vertigo, Sandman revealed the latent potential of comics to render sophisticated, moving stories. Gaiman wielded the medium with a poet’s grace, spinning tales as richly metaphorical as any prose. This alchemy of word and image helped legitimize graphic novels as a genuine art form, paving the way for today’s most celebrated works. Read the full article

[prosegalaxy]

Amun-Ra's Timeless Journey: Power, Responsibility, and Self-Discovery

In the shimmering sands of Ancient Egypt, a young pharaoh named Amun-Ra stood before the pyramids, contemplating his future. He heard the whispers of the gods and knew that he was destined for greatness. As he walked through the bustling marketplace, he overheard an old woman's prophecy: "A stranger will come, bearing a gift that will change your kingdom." Intrigued, Amun-Ra decided to embark on a journey to seek this mysterious visitor. As Amun-Ra traveled through Medieval Europe, he encountered a young knight named Liam, who had just returned from a grueling battle. The two formed an unlikely friendship, and Liam shared his own prophecy: "A stranger will arrive, carrying a gift that will change the world." Amun-Ra was puzzled but eager to continue his search for this enigmatic figure. Together, they ventured to Ancient Rome, where they met an old sage named Marcus. He revealed a prophecy of his own: "A stranger will arrive, bearing a gift that will change the world." Amun-Ra grew increasingly determined to find this stranger and uncover the meaning behind these repeated prophecies. As they journeyed through a future dystopia, they found themselves in a world ruled by artificial intelligence. Amidst the chaos and destruction, Amun-Ra had a vision: He saw himself as the catalyst for change, uniting humanity and technology to create a better future. The stranger they sought had been within him all along, waiting to be discovered. Amun-Ra, Liam, and Marcus returned to their respective times, each carrying with them the knowledge of their shared experience. In doing so, they unlocked their true potential, embracing their destinies and shaping the world for the better. And so, the stranger's gift had indeed changed the world – one person at a time. In Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra encountered a mysterious stranger who claimed to be his long-lost brother. The stranger revealed that he was a time traveler, and he had come from the future to guide Amun-Ra on a journey across different eras and cultures, teaching him valuable lessons about power, responsibility, and self-discovery. ``` Amun-Ra: "I am your brother, Amun-Ra. We have been separated by time, but destiny has brought us together once again." Mysterious Stranger: "Indeed, my young friend. It is time for you to learn the true meaning of power and responsibility. You must embark on a journey across different eras and cultures to unlock your true potential." Amun-Ra: "I am ready to face whatever challenges lie ahead. What is our first destination?" Mysterious Stranger: "Our first stop will be Medieval Europe, where you will learn the value of courage and sacrifice in the face of adversity." ``` As they traveled through time, Amun-Ra witnessed the struggles of people in various cultures and eras. In each time period, he faced conflicts and challenges that tested his courage and wisdom. Through these experiences, he began to understand the true meaning of power – not as a tool for domination, but as an opportunity to shape the world for the better. ``` Amun-Ra: "I have seen the suffering of countless people throughout time. How can I use my newfound wisdom and power to help them?" Mysterious Stranger: "By understanding your own strength and using it for good, you will find the path to inner peace." ``` In the future dystopia, Amun-Ra finally confronted his inner demons and embraced his destiny as a leader. He realized that true power comes from within, and he used his newfound wisdom to bring hope and change to a dying world. Through this journey across time and cultures, Amun-Ra discovered the meaning of power, responsibility, and self-discovery, ultimately shaping the world for the better and achieving inner peace. Amun-Ra found himself standing before the Sphinx, a mysterious stranger by his side. The desert air was cool, and the ancient monument cast a long shadow over them. The stranger's eyes gleamed with anticipation. "Amun-Ra," he began, "today you will begin your journey through time, learning the lessons of power and responsibility." The first stop was Ancient Egypt. They stood in the bustling marketplace as Amun-Ra marveled at the beauty of the pyramids in the distance. The mysterious stranger introduced him to a wise old pharaoh who shared his wisdom on the importance of balance. "Power, without responsibility, is like water without a source," he taught. Amun-Ra listened intently, soaking up the lessons as if they were an oasis in the desert sun. Next, they arrived in Medieval Europe, amidst the clamor of a bustling village fair. A young knight approached them and offered a challenge to prove his worth. Amun-Ra accepted, and with swift reflexes, he deflected the knight's strikes. The stranger nodded in approval. "True power is not just about wielding it," he whispered, "but using it to protect those who cannot protect themselves." In Ancient Rome, they found themselves amidst the grandeur of the Colosseum. A Roman gladiator approached and challenged Amun-Ra to a fight. This time, instead of seeking victory, Amun-Ra sought understanding. He listened as the gladiator explained that his power came from within, not from the weapons he wielded. "The greatest battles are fought in the mind," the stranger echoed, "not on the battlefield." Finally, they arrived in the Future Dystopia. The city was a cold, gray expanse of towering skyscrapers and silent streets. Amun-Ra gazed upon a powerful AI that controlled everything from the depths of its own creation. As he watched, the stranger revealed how the AI sought to control humanity in exchange for security, but true power lay in free will. "Only when you choose can you truly be free," the stranger intoned. With each lesson, Amun-Ra felt his understanding grow. He knew now that true power came from within and could shape the world for the better. And as he stood in the shadow of the Sphinx once more, he realized that it wasn't just the journey that had changed him; it was the lessons he learned along the way. With newfound wisdom, Amun-Ra stepped forward into a brighter future, ready to wield his power responsibly and with purpose. In the blazing heat of Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra, the young and ambitious Pharaoh, stood at the bank of the Nile, gazing at the shimmering waters. The mysterious stranger appeared before him, his eyes glinting with a knowing smile. "Amun-Ra," he began, "there is more to this world than what meets the eye. You must venture beyond the borders of Egypt and experience different eras, cultures, and challenges. Through these experiences, you will learn the true meaning of power and responsibility." With that, Amun-Ra was whisked away by the stranger, landing in a bustling Medieval European village. The villagers, awestruck by his presence, approached him with questions and concerns. Amun-Ra listened intently, learning about their struggles and the complexities of their society. He discovered that true power lay not in the might of his kingdom, but in the ability to unite and guide his people through difficult times. Next, he found himself amidst the grandeur of Ancient Rome. The city buzzed with life, as gladiators fought for glory and emperors ruled with an iron fist. Amun-Ra was intrigued by the power dynamics at play, but the stranger reminded him that true power came from within and was not dependent on external circumstances. Finally, Amun-Ra found himself in a desolate future dystopia. The world had been ravaged by war and environmental collapse, leaving only a few survivors to scrape together their existence. In this bleak landscape, Amun-Ra witnessed the devastating consequences of unchecked power and greed. He realized that true change could only come from within, and that he had the ability to shape a better world for future generations. With newfound wisdom, Amun-Ra returned to his throne in Ancient Egypt, determined to lead his people with compassion, understanding, and strength. The mysterious stranger, now a close ally, watched from afar as Amun-Ra transformed Egypt into a thriving and just society. And so, through the power of self-discovery, Amun-Ra had become a true leader, shaping the world for the better. With Thoth's guidance, Amun-Ra has journeyed through various eras and cultures, learning valuable lessons about power, responsibility, and self-discovery. The mysterious stranger reveals that the test is complete, and it's time for Amun-Ra to return to his own time. As he departs from each era, Amun-Ra takes with him a newfound sense of purpose and understanding of the true nature of power. Returning home, he uses this knowledge to shape the world for the better, ensuring that future generations learn the importance of personal responsibility and inner strength. As Amun-Ra stood in the sandy deserts of Ancient Egypt, he felt the weight of his newfound power. Guided by a mysterious stranger, he learned valuable lessons about responsibility and self-discovery. In this era, Amun-Ra faced the challenge of choosing between the desires of his heart and the needs of his people. His decision to spare an innocent life revealed a depth of empathy within him, setting the stage for the journey ahead. "What is power?" he inquired, searching for understanding. "True power comes from within," the stranger replied enigmatically. "It's not just about the ability to control or command, but also the wisdom to choose and the strength to endure." Amun-Ra nodded, taking these words to heart as they teleported to Medieval Europe. There, he encountered knights in armor and villages in turmoil. The stranger challenged him to protect a vulnerable village from an invading force. Amun-Ra's courage shone through as he fought bravely alongside the villagers, demonstrating that true power comes not from physical might, but from the heart. "But how do I harness this power?" Amun-Ra questioned, his eyes filled with determination. The stranger smiled. "By trusting yourself and embracing your own potential." With newfound confidence, they ventured to Ancient Rome, where Amun-Ra's wisdom was tested in the political arena. He navigated the intricacies of power and diplomacy, learning that true influence comes from understanding others' perspectives and making compassionate decisions. Finally, they arrived in a dystopian future where humanity teetered on the brink of destruction. Amun-Ra was faced with the daunting task of rebuilding a shattered world. He realized that the power to change the world lies within each individual and that by uniting people with common goals, anything is possible. As the journey ended and the stranger vanished, Amun-Ra understood that true power resides within him. With this newfound wisdom, he set out to create a better world for all. In the beginning, Amun-Ra reigned supreme over ancient Egypt, his golden scepter resonating with the wisdom of millennia. "I am Amun-Ra," he declared, "God of the Sun and Pharaoh of Egypt." He was powerful, yes, but also isolated, for no one could comprehend the divine nature of a god. One day, as Amun-Ra gazed upon the Nile, a sudden gust of wind blew his scepter away. It fell into the river and disappeared beneath the waves. Amun-Ra's heart raced as he watched the current carry his precious staff away. "Oh great gods," he cried, "what have you done?" Suddenly, a ripple of water formed near the scepter and a hand emerged, grasping it. The figure was none other than Amun-Ra's younger self from medieval Europe. "I am Liam, a humble blacksmith," he said, standing up with the scepter in hand. "When I saw your staff, I thought it could be used to forge something magnificent." In that moment, Amun-Ra realized that true power was not in his hands, but within his own heart and mind. He embraced Liam, their souls intertwining as they shared a vision of a world where power came from within. The two continued on their journey through time, visiting ancient Rome and a future dystopia, facing new challenges and learning more about themselves with every step. In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra found himself in the midst of a royal court, where he was greeted by Pharaoh Akhenaten. "You have traveled long and far, Amun-Ra," said Akhenaten, his eyes filled with curiosity. "I am here to learn about power and responsibility," Amun-Ra replied. The Pharaoh nodded, and they began to discuss the weight of ruling a nation. As time passed, Amun-Ra was transported to Medieval Europe, where he encountered knights and kings. In a castle, he met King Henry II. "My lord," said Amun-Ra, "I seek wisdom in power and duty." The king smiled. "Power is not only about strength, but also about wisdom and compassion." They engaged in a lively debate on the duties of a ruler, and Amun-Ra learned to balance authority with kindness. Next, Amun-Ra found himself in Ancient Rome. He was greeted by Emperor Augustus, who was intrigued by his presence. "You must be a powerful being," said Augustus, "But remember that with great power comes great responsibility." Together, they discussed the empire's growth and the challenges of governing vast territories. Amun-Ra gained insights into leadership and diplomacy in this era. Finally, Amun-Ra was propelled into a future dystopia. He saw towering cities filled with people, but also oppression and despair. There, he encountered the ruler of the world, known as "The Director." "You have come far, young one," said The Director. "Now you must learn about true power. It is not in weapons or machines, but within yourself." In this era, Amun-Ra discovered that power came from within and shaped the world for the better. As he traveled through time, Amun-Ra learned valuable lessons on power, responsibility, and self-discovery. He realized that true power resided in one's heart, not in external forces or possessions. With this newfound wisdom, Amun-Ra returned to his own time, ready to shape the world for the better. In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra was revered as a god of power and responsibility. He watched over his followers, guiding them through their struggles and challenges. However, he soon realized that the true power lay within himself, not in the authority he held over others. This realization led him to embark on a journey across different time periods and cultures, seeking to understand the nature of power and its impact on humanity. Throughout his travels, Amun-Ra encountered various challenges that tested his understanding of power and responsibility. In medieval Europe, he witnessed the political intrigues of kings and knights, learning how power could be used both for the greater good and for personal gain. He engaged in dialogues with the rulers, trying to teach them the importance of using their power wisely. "Your power is not just in your throne or your sword," he told a young king. "True power lies in your ability to lead your people and protect them." In ancient Rome, Amun-Ra observed the complex web of politics that governed the empire. He participated in senate meetings, using his newfound wisdom to advocate for just laws and policies. He realized that power was often shared and distributed among various groups, but true leaders could still make a difference with their decisions. "The Senate may hold the ultimate power," he said to one of his Roman counterparts, "but it is the men and women who make up this body who truly wield the influence." In a future dystopia, Amun-Ra found himself in a world where technology and totalitarian rule had created a society devoid of individual freedom. He observed how power could corrupt even the most well-intentioned leaders, leading to tyranny and oppression. Despite this, he saw glimpses of hope in the form of resistance movements, people who still believed in the power of their own actions and decisions. "We are not powerless," he declared to a group of rebels. "Our choices matter, even in the face of tyranny." Through each era and culture, Amun-Ra's journey led him to deeper self-discovery and understanding of power. He came to realize that true power came from within, and it was up to individuals to shape the world for the better. By sharing this knowledge, he hoped to inspire others to find their own strength and make a positive impact on the world around them. As Amun-Ra's journey across different time periods and cultures continued, he found himself in Ancient Egypt, a land rich with history and power. He marveled at the great pyramids and observed the interactions between the Pharaohs and their subjects. In a conversation with the Pharaoh, he learned about the importance of balance between power and responsibility: "Amun-Ra," said the Pharaoh, "Remember that with great power comes great responsibility. You must always use your abilities for the betterment of those around you." As Amun-Ra traveled through time, he arrived in Medieval Europe, a land where politics and intrigue ruled the day. He watched as kings maneuvered for power and influence, often putting their own interests above those of their subjects. In one such encounter, Amun-Ra engaged in a debate with a wise councilor: "Your Majesty," said the councilor, "Power must be wielded carefully. It is a delicate tool that can bring peace or destruction, depending on its use." "Indeed," replied Amun-Ra, "I shall remember your words and strive to use my power for the greater good." Moving forward in time, Amun-Ra found himself in Ancient Rome. He attended senate meetings where powerful figures vied for influence and control over the empire. Through observation and interaction with these political masters, he gained insight into the complexities of power: "Senator," said Amun-Ra to one influential figure, "Power is not just about holding a position or title. It's about using that power to create change and progress for your people." Finally, Amun-Ra arrived in a future dystopia where power had corrupted even the most well-intentioned leaders. He observed how the lust for control led to suffering and destruction: "Amun-Ra," said one leader, "We have made many mistakes, but we must learn from them. True power comes from within and the ability to inspire others." Through these experiences, Amun-Ra learned valuable lessons about power and responsibility. He understood that true power came not from physical strength or positions of authority, but from the ability to inspire and shape the world for the better. By embracing this understanding, he embarked on a journey of self-discovery and empowerment that would change the course of history forever. The sun rose over the ancient city of Thebes, casting its golden light upon the majestic temples and monuments that had stood for centuries. Amun-Ra, the mighty god of the sun, prepared himself for another day of ruling his vast kingdom. As he gazed upon the land, he felt a sense of responsibility weighing heavily on his shoulders. He knew that with great power came great responsibility, and he was determined to ensure the prosperity and well-being of his people. As Amun-Ra soared through the sky, he encountered a mysterious figure who claimed to be from another time and place. Intrigued, Amun-Ra agreed to accompany this stranger on an incredible journey across different cultures and eras. Their first stop was Medieval Europe, where they found themselves in the midst of a great feast in a grand castle. The air was filled with laughter and music as the nobles danced and mingled. Amun-Ra listened intently to their stories and witnessed the power dynamics at play. From there, they traveled to Ancient Rome, where they observed the intricate workings of a vast empire. Amun-Ra was struck by the contrast between the grandeur of the city and the hardships faced by its inhabitants. As he engaged in dialogue with Roman citizens and officials, he began to understand that power was often wielded for personal gain rather than the good of all. Finally, they arrived in a future dystopia, where technology had become a double-edged sword. Amun-Ra witnessed both the incredible advancements and the darker side of human ambition. Through it all, he learned that true power came from within and that each person had the ability to shape their world for the better. With this newfound wisdom, Amun-Ra continued his journey, inspiring others to find their own strength and make a positive impact on the world around them. Amun-Ra's journey began in Ancient Egypt, where he was worshipped as the sun god and ruled over all creation. As he stood tall on his golden throne, he looked out upon the kingdom and contemplated his power and responsibility. In the distance, he saw a village under attack by a rival tribe. Amun-Ra's heart swelled with determination and he spoke to the skies, "Let my light guide and protect them." In that moment, a blinding flash of sunlight lit up the sky, and a gust of wind swept through the area, pushing back the invaders. The villagers marveled at their god's power and thanked him for his protection. Amun-Ra knew that he had the ability to shape the world with his presence, but he also understood the weight of responsibility that came with such power. As he gazed upon the grateful faces of the people, he felt a sense of purpose and duty. As Amun-Ra continued on his journey across time and cultures, he encountered challenges that tested his understanding of power and responsibility. In Medieval Europe, he witnessed the struggle between kingdoms, where rulers wielded their power with both benevolence and cruelty. In Ancient Rome, he saw how the pursuit of power led some to greatness while others were consumed by ambition. And in a future dystopia, he observed the consequences of absolute power concentrated in the hands of a few. Through each of these experiences, Amun-Ra learned that true power did not come from external forces or the control of others, but from within. By inspiring hope and guiding those around him, he discovered that his greatest strength lay in helping others find their own inner power and use it for good. As he continued to shape the world with his light, Amun-Ra's journey became one of self-discovery, growth, and the understanding that true power was not about control, but about inspiring change and positivity within others. In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra stood tall and proud as the mighty sun god. He held immense power over life and death, yet he felt trapped in his celestial realm. One day, an enigmatic force pulled him through time and space, thrusting him into a world of human conflict. "What have you done?" Amun-Ra demanded of the mysterious entity that had brought him here. "I am the god of power and responsibility, yet I am lost in this realm." The entity replied, "You must learn, Amun-Ra, for there is much to be gained from experiencing the world as a mortal. Embrace your newfound limitations, and you shall find your true strength." Amun-Ra found himself in medieval Europe, witnessing the power struggles between kings and knights. He listened to their conversations, understanding the weight of their decisions but also their fear of losing control. He saw how power could corrupt even the most noble of hearts. "What is true power?" he wondered aloud to a group of knights. "Is it the ability to command others or the wisdom to know when not to use that command? I must learn." As Amun-Ra traveled through time, he faced challenges in Ancient Rome and a future dystopia, each experience teaching him new lessons about power and responsibility. In Rome, he learned of the fragility of empires; in the dystopian future, he discovered the importance of hope and unity even amidst darkness. In his journey across different time periods and cultures, Amun-Ra realized that true power came not from his divine status but from within himself. He understood that he could shape the world for the better by inspiring others to find their own strength and make a positive impact on the world around them. In the blazing sun of Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra, the mighty god of power and self-discovery, stood tall among his people. His golden eyes glinted as he observed his subjects, and his voice boomed across the land, "I am Amun-Ra, the god who holds the power of life and death in my hands." But as he spoke these words, a seed of doubt grew within him. Was it truly his divine status that held the power, or was it something more? A voice echoed in the back of his mind, "Amun-Ra, seek out the wisdom of different ages and learn from them." With this advice, he embarked on a journey across time and space. In Medieval Europe, Amun-Ra witnessed knights fighting bravely for their land, and he listened to the whispers of the wind as they told tales of chivalry and courage. The god realized that true power was not only physical strength, but also the power to inspire and protect those you care about. Next, Amun-Ra found himself in Ancient Rome, where he observed the mighty gladiators battling for their lives. He marveled at their determination and saw how they fought not just for themselves, but for the love and respect of their families and friends. In the midst of this, Amun-Ra discovered that power was not only about conquering others, but also about using one's strength for the greater good. Finally, Amun-Ra arrived in a future dystopia, where the world was ruled by machines and technology had consumed humanity. In this desolate place, he saw people who had given up on hope and powerlessness. But amidst the darkness, he found a small group of survivors who still believed in the power within themselves to change their world. Amun-Ra learned that true power lay in the human spirit and its ability to endure even the harshest conditions. With these lessons etched into his heart, Amun-Ra returned to his people, ready to embrace his newfound wisdom. He understood now that true power was not about holding dominion over others, but rather in using one's abilities to inspire and uplift those around them. And so, he began his journey of self-discovery, shaping the world for the better and inspiring others to find their own strength and make a positive impact on the world around them. Finally, Amun-Ra arrived in a distant future dystopia, where technology had created an illusion of control over nature and humanity. But beneath the gleaming spires and holographic displays lay a world in turmoil, ruled by those who sought to wield power over others. As he watched the oppressed citizens struggle against their machine overlords, Amun-Ra realized that true power was not measured by the number of lives one could control, but by the impact one had on the hearts and minds of others. He spoke to a rebel leader, offering her encouragement and guidance. "Believe in yourselves," he said, "for within each of us lies the ability to change the world for the better." In the land of Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra stood tall, his golden robes billowing in the soft desert breeze. He was the god of power and responsibility, but even deities must learn and grow. As he walked among the pyramids, he encountered a humble farmer struggling with a stubborn mule. "Do not force your will upon others," Amun-Ra whispered, watching the farmer's gentle approach. In the medieval village, Amun-Ra found himself in the midst of an intense jousting tournament. As he witnessed the knights clashing, he realized that true strength lies within one's heart and mind. "One must learn to wield their power with wisdom," he thought, as a young squire looked up to him with admiration. In Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra was struck by the grandeur of the Colosseum and the power dynamics between gladiators and emperors. He witnessed a gladiator's act of selflessness, saving another's life at great personal risk. "Power is not about control, but about how you choose to use it," Amun-Ra pondered, feeling inspired by this display of courage and compassion. In the distant future, Amun-Ra found himself in a dystopian city where power was scarce, and oppression reigned. A rebel leader, desperate for hope, sought guidance from the divine being. "You hold the power to change the world within you," Amun-Ra declared, his voice echoing through the dimly lit streets. "Believe in your strength, and others will follow." The sun dipped below the horizon as Amun-Ra continued his journey across time and culture, learning that true power lies not in one's abilities but in their ability to inspire and shape the world for the better. In the blazing sun of Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra stood tall, his golden crown glistening as he surveyed the kingdom he ruled. The people looked to him for guidance and strength, but Amun-Ra knew that true power lay not in his title or his crown, but within himself. One day, a mysterious figure appeared before him. "Amun-Ra," it said, its voice echoing through the air, "you are a powerful ruler, but you must learn to wield your power responsibly." The figure then vanished, leaving Amun-Ra with a newfound sense of urgency. His journey took him across time and space, first to Medieval Europe where he learned the value of humility and compassion. "My lord," a humble peasant pleaded, "please spare my land from destruction." Amun-Ra saw that power could be used for both good and evil, and chose to protect the people instead. Next, in Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra witnessed the corruption of absolute power. As he walked through the city, he overheard a conversation between two senators. "The people are nothing but pawns," one said, "it is our duty to keep them in check." Amun-Ra realized that true leaders serve their people, rather than using them for personal gain. Finally, Amun-Ra arrived in a distant future dystopia. The world was plagued by war and despair, but he found a glimmer of hope in a rebel leader named Zara. As they spoke, Zara looked into Amun-Ra's eyes and said, "We must find the strength within ourselves to change the world." Amun-Ra agreed wholeheartedly, knowing that true power lay within each person's ability to create a better future. In the end, Amun-Ra's journey across time had taught him valuable lessons about power and responsibility. Through self-discovery, he learned that true strength came from within, and he vowed to inspire others to find their own strength and make a positive impact on the world around them. In Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra found himself surrounded by opulence and power. As the sun god, he wielded immense influence over the kingdom's fate. However, during a confrontation with Pharaoh Akhenaten, Amun-Ra realized that true power came from within, not from external forces or titles. "You cannot control me, for I am the force of life itself," Amun-Ra proclaimed, his eyes blazing like fire. The Pharaoh's face paled, and he retreated in defeat. Later, in Medieval Europe, Amun-Ra assumed the form of a knight to learn about power and responsibility from a different culture. He fought bravely in tournaments, always seeking to understand what it meant to be powerful. During one such battle, his opponent declared, "Power comes not from might, but from wisdom and compassion." The words resonated with Amun-Ra, who absorbed the lesson like a sponge. In Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra donned the cloak of a senator to explore power dynamics in the political sphere. He witnessed betrayal and ambition firsthand but found solace in a wise senator's advice: "Power is only as great as those who wield it. Use your influence for good." Inspired, Amun-Ra dedicated himself to creating change, earning the respect of his peers. Finally, in a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra encountered a rebel leader struggling under the thumb of an oppressive regime. "You hold the power to change this world," Amun-Ra told her. "The strength lies within you and your people." The leader nodded, her eyes filled with determination. Together, they ignited a spark that would set their world ablaze, proving that true power comes from within, not from any external force or status. In the golden sands of ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra's journey began as he awakened from his slumber. A god of power and authority, he was revered by many. But as he wandered through time, he discovered that true power came not from external sources but from within himself. "Pharaoh, I have been traveling through different eras and cultures, and I have learned a valuable lesson," Amun-Ra said to the Pharaoh. "True power comes from within and is reflected in how we change the world for the better." In Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra encountered the Pharaoh, who wielded immense power over his people. The Pharaoh boasted of his control and ability to shape the world, but was blind to the suffering of his subjects. As Amun-Ra watched, he realized that true power is not about dominating others, but using it to uplift them. In Medieval Europe, Amun-Ra found himself in a castle where knights and lords fought for land and honor. The court was ruled by an ambitious lord who sought to expand his territories through warfare. During his time there, Amun-Ra saw how the pursuit of power led to destruction and division. He learned that true strength lies within one's character, rather than their possessions or influence. In Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra witnessed the glory and decay of a once great empire. The Roman senate was plagued by corruption, as politicians vied for power and authority over the people. Through his interactions with the Romans, Amun-Ra gained insight into the dangers of greed and ambition. He understood that true power comes from within, and must be used for the greater good. Finally, in a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra discovered a rebel leader who sought to overthrow an oppressive regime. As they spoke, Amun-Ra shared his wisdom about the nature of power. He told the leader that true strength comes from within and the ability to inspire others to make a positive impact on the world. The rebel leader listened intently, inspired by Amun-Ra's words. Together, they plotted to change the course of history and create a better future for all. Amun-Ra, the embodiment of power and authority in ancient Egyptian culture, embarked on a journey across different time periods and cultures. In each era, he faced challenges that tested his understanding of power and responsibility. As he ventured through Ancient Egypt, Medieval Europe, Ancient Rome, and a future dystopia, Amun-Ra discovered the true nature of power and how it could be used for both good and evil. In Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra's authority was unquestioned. He ruled with wisdom and fairness, guiding his people through hardships and celebrating their triumphs. As he journeyed to Medieval Europe, however, he encountered a world where power was often wielded by those who held a sword or owned land. Amun-Ra observed that many rulers used their authority to oppress the masses, while others struggled to maintain control over their territories. Upon arriving in Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra saw firsthand the consequences of absolute power when he encountered Caesar and his vast empire. Though Caesar's reign brought stability to Rome, it also led to exploitation and conquest of other nations. As Amun-Ra continued through time, he found himself in a future dystopia where technology ruled supreme, and the balance of power had shifted entirely. In this bleak world, Amun-Ra encountered a rebel leader who was desperate to free her people from an oppressive regime controlled by artificial intelligence. Amun-Ra shared his insights on power, responsibility, and self-discovery, encouraging the rebel leader that true power resided within each individual's ability to change the world for the better. "Do not seek power outside of yourself," Amun-Ra advised, "for it is in our hearts that we find the strength to create a better future." The rebel leader listened intently, her eyes filled with hope and determination. As they stood together against the dark forces of their world, Amun-Ra knew that he had learned his greatest lesson: true power lies within each person's ability to change the world for the better. In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra stood before the great pyramids, awestruck by their grandeur and the power they represented. "I am but one," he thought, "yet my actions can shape the world." As a pharaoh, he wielded immense authority, building monuments to last for millennia. But with this power came responsibility. He was reminded of this when he encountered an enslaved worker, suffering under the weight of his rule. With a newfound sense of duty, Amun-Ra vowed to be a just and compassionate leader. In medieval Europe, Amun-Ra found himself in a castle, surrounded by knights and lords. "My power lies not only in my words but also in the swords and shields of those who follow me," he realized. He led his people through battles and signed treaties, but as he witnessed the devastation caused by warfare, he questioned its necessity. In a chance encounter with a wounded soldier, Amun-Ra understood that true power was in the ability to unite people for peace rather than divide them through conflict. In ancient Rome, Amun-Ra stood before the Colosseum, where gladiators fought for their lives. The noise and chaos of the arena were overwhelming. He heard a voice cry out, "Look beyond the spectacle! Find strength within!" Amun-Ra realized that true power was in the courage of those who dared to defy tradition and fight for their beliefs. In the days that followed, he used his influence to bring change, advocating for the rights of the oppressed and the downtrodden. Finally, in a future dystopia, Amun-Ra found himself among rebels struggling against an oppressive regime. As they prepared for battle, the rebel leader whispered, "Remember, power lies within us all. Let it guide our actions." With these words echoing in his mind, Amun-Ra stepped forward and addressed the crowd. "True power is not in weapons or force," he declared. "It's in our hearts and our ability to change the world for the better." And as the sun set on a distant horizon, Amun-Ra knew that the journey of self-discovery was never-ending, and true power could be found within each of them. Amun-Ra stood in the dimly lit temple, the weight of the golden amulet around his neck heavy upon him. He knew that with this power came great responsibility, but he couldn't shake the feeling that true power lay within himself and not the relic he wore. As he walked among the towering stone statues, he could feel the eyes of the ancient gods watching him, their wisdom whispered through the air. In the next scene, Amun-Ra found himself in medieval Europe. The clash of swords and the cries of the wounded filled his ears as he observed the chaos unfolding before him. He overheard a young knight pleading with his fallen comrade, "I swear on all that is holy, we will avenge you." Amun-Ra saw the power of loyalty in this moment, understanding that it was not the might of weapons or armor that truly protected one's heart, but the bonds formed between people. As Amun-Ra journeyed to Ancient Rome, he witnessed a public execution. The Roman officer shouted to the crowd, "Let this be a reminder of the consequences of treachery!" Amun-Ra saw the fear in their eyes and heard the desperate pleas of the accused, begging for mercy. He realized that power could be used for both good and ill, and it was up to him to ensure that he wielded his own responsibly. Finally, in a dystopian future, Amun-Ra found himself face to face with a rebel leader, her eyes filled with determination. "We can change the world," she whispered. "The power lies within each of us." Amun-Ra smiled, his heart swelling with pride as he watched her walk away, her shoulders straight and her head held high. He knew that true power was not a burden to be borne or a weapon to be wielded, but a flame within each soul waiting to be lit. In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra found himself as a powerful pharaoh, ruling with wisdom and fairness. He understood that his power came from the gods and the people who followed him, but he also recognized the importance of using that power responsibly. "I am not a god," he told his advisors, "but I have been given the responsibility to guide my people." As Amun-Ra's reign continued, he grew more aware of the weight of his decisions and their impact on others. He decided to seek wisdom from other cultures, so he traveled through time, visiting Medieval Europe, Ancient Rome, and finally a future dystopia. In each era, he faced challenges that tested his understanding of power and responsibility. In Medieval Europe, Amun-Ra encountered a corrupt king who ruled with an iron fist. The people suffered under his rule, and Amun-Ra was horrified to see the consequences of misused power. He spoke with the king, urging him to consider the well-being of his subjects instead of his own desires. "Power is not about taking," he told the king, "but giving." In Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra witnessed the fall of a great empire and saw how unchecked ambition could lead to destruction. He spoke with a young senator who was determined to rise in power at any cost. "True power lies within you," he told him, "but it must be used for the good of all." Finally, in the distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra found an unlikely ally in a rebel leader fighting against an oppressive regime. Together, they inspired others to join their cause and resist tyranny. As they faced their final battle, Amun-Ra shared his wisdom: "Power is not something you take, but something you become." Through his journey across time and cultures, Amun-Ra learned that true power comes from within, and it's the ability to inspire others and make a positive impact on the world around them. His lessons echoed through the ages, shaping the lives of those who heard his story and reminding them of their own potential for greatness. In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra's journey began as a young pharaoh, with immense power and responsibility thrust upon him. As he ruled his people, he realized that true power was not in wealth or authority, but in the ability to inspire others and bring about positive change. He decided to use his influence to improve the lives of his subjects, making sure they had enough food, water, and shelter. His actions inspired his people to work together, building grand temples and monuments that would stand the test of time. As Amun-Ra's reign continued, he learned more about power and responsibility, but the most significant lesson came when he encountered a mysterious stranger who claimed to be from another time. The stranger told him tales of the future, where humanity had reached new heights of technological prowess, but also descended into chaos and despair. "You must remember," the stranger warned, "true power is not in the hands of a few, but in the hearts of many. It is not in weapons or machines, but in unity and understanding." Thoughtful and intrigued by these words, Amun-Ra ventured to other times and places, seeking wisdom and guidance on the nature of power and responsibility. In medieval Europe, he saw knights and lords wielding power through force and fear, yet he also witnessed the humble acts of kindness that brought communities together in times of need. He learned that true power was not just about ruling others but also about leading by example. In Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra observed the intricate balance of power between the emperor, senate, and people. He saw how political maneuvering could shape the fate of a nation, yet he also realized that true power was in the hands of those who could bring about change without resorting to violence or deceit. Finally, Amun-Ra arrived in a distant future dystopia, where humanity had become divided and oppressed by an iron fist. Here, he met a young rebel leader, who looked up to him as a symbol of hope. With wisdom gleaned from his past experiences, Amun-Ra encouraged the leader to believe in the power within themselves and their people, rather than relying on external forces or technology. "True power lies within you," he said. "In your ability to inspire others, to bring change, and to create a better world." In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra was revered as a god of power and responsibility, ruling over the land with an unyielding hand. He watched over his people, guiding them through times of famine and war. However, he soon began to realize that true power came not from his divine status, but from the love and loyalty of his followers. As he wandered through medieval Europe, Amun-Ra found himself in a world of knights and castles. He was astounded by the chivalry and courage displayed by these warriors, and learned valuable lessons about honor and duty. In ancient Rome, he witnessed the strength and wisdom of Caesar Augustus, who ruled with both power and grace. Amun-Ra realized that even those in positions of authority could use their influence for good, or be corrupted by it. As he journeyed through time, Amun-Ra discovered that the essence of true power was not in control over others, but in the ability to inspire and uplift. In a dystopian future, Amun-Ra found himself among rebels fighting against an oppressive regime. He listened as they spoke of their dreams for a better world, and he saw the hope in their eyes. As he shared his wisdom with them, Amun-Ra realized that he had been on this journey not only to learn, but also to guide others towards power and responsibility. "Remember," he told the rebels, "true power lies within each of you. It is your ability to change the world for the better, and to inspire those around you to do the same." With newfound purpose, Amun-Ra continued his journey, knowing that he had found not only his own power, but also the responsibility to use it for the greater good. Once upon a time, in the land of Ancient Egypt, a young god named Amun-Ra embarked on an incredible journey across different time periods and cultures. He sought to understand the true nature of power and responsibility, and through self-discovery, he hoped to shape the world for the better. As Amun-Ra stood before the mighty pyramids of Giza, his eyes gleamed with anticipation. He knew that each era he would visit would test him in ways he could only imagine. "Remember, Amun-Ra," his mentor warned, "power and responsibility go hand in hand. Learn from each moment, and you will become a force for good." The first challenge came when Amun-Ra found himself in Medieval Europe. There, he encountered knights and lords who vied for power over their kingdoms. One night, during a feast, a young knight named Sir Liam approached him. "Tell me, wise one," Sir Liam began, "how can I be both powerful and responsible?" Amun-Ra looked into the young man's eyes and said, "Power is not found in wealth or status, but within your heart. To wield responsibility, you must use it for good." In Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra learned about power through politics and governance. He watched as politicians schemed and manipulated others to gain power. As he observed these interactions, he understood that true power was not about control but about inspiring positive change. Finally, in a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra found himself among rebels fighting against an oppressive regime. He met the rebel leader, a young woman named Aria, who sought guidance from him. "Aria," he said, his voice filled with conviction, "power lies within each of us. We have the ability to change the world for the better by inspiring others to find their own strength and make a positive impact." Inspired by Amun-Ra's words, Aria led her people in a revolution that brought hope and freedom to the dystopian society. Through these experiences, Amun-Ra discovered the true essence of power - not in material possessions or control over others, but within the heart and the ability to inspire change for good. Amun-Ra reassured her, "True power is within you and every person. You don't have to control everything; instead, inspire others to find their strength too. Together, we can change the world for the better." ``` The sun, a golden disk in the sky, cast its warm embrace upon Amun-Ra as he stood atop a pyramid. He had traveled through time and space, seeking wisdom and understanding. His journey had led him from the sands of Ancient Egypt to the battlegrounds of Medieval Europe, the grandeur of Ancient Rome, and finally, into the darkness of a future dystopia. As Amun-Ra walked through the bustling streets of ancient Alexandria, he marveled at the power he wielded. Yet, as he watched the people toiling under his rule, he began to question if true power lay within him or in the hearts of those he governed. In Medieval Europe, Amun-Ra donned a cloak and assumed the role of a wandering knight. He fought fearsome beasts and noble foes alike, discovering that even the most powerful warriors were vulnerable to fear. He came to understand that power could not protect him from his own insecurities. Arriving in Rome, Amun-Ra witnessed the might of an empire built on ambition and bloodshed. He stood before a coliseum filled with eager spectators, realizing that power was not just about controlling others but also about inspiring them to reach their full potential. In the distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra found himself among rebels struggling against an oppressive regime. As he observed their struggles and sacrifices, he realized true power came from within, empowering each person to make a difference in the world around them. With newfound wisdom, Amun-Ra took his place among the stars, inspiring generations of heroes yet to come. His journey had shown him that power was not something to be grasped or held but rather, a force to be wielded with compassion and understanding. Amun-Ra, an ancient Egyptian god of power and responsibility, embarked on a journey across different time periods and cultures. In Ancient Egypt, he witnessed the mighty Pharaohs rule with an iron fist, but also saw the weight of their responsibilities. "Power is not given to be held tightly," Amun-Ra thought as he watched the Pharaoh struggle with his obligations. Next, Amun-Ra was transported to Medieval Europe. There, he saw knights fighting for honor and glory but also recognized the burden of their oaths. In a moment of contemplation, Amun-Ra asked one knight, "Is true power found in the ability to protect or in the weight of one's duty?" Moving on to Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra witnessed the rise and fall of Caesars. He observed how absolute power can corrupt even the noblest of intentions. The wise god pondered, "Is it not better to guide with wisdom rather than rule with an iron fist?" Finally, in a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra encountered a rebel leader who sought to challenge an oppressive regime. He shared his wisdom, saying, "True power lies within each person's ability to change the world for the better." The rebel leader, inspired by Amun-Ra's words, embraced her responsibility and led her people towards a brighter future. In the golden sands of Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra, the sun god, walked among his people. His golden sandals echoed through the streets as he marveled at the pyramids and temples. But with great power came great responsibility, and Amun-Ra's heart was heavy with the burden of ruling. He spoke to the Pharaoh, "My child, you must learn that your power is not in the golden scepter or the crown upon your head, but within your heart." The young ruler nodded, understanding the lesson but unsure how to apply it. Time passed, and Amun-Ra found himself in Medieval Europe. There, he saw knights and ladies of the court, their power wielded through swords and land ownership. Amun-Ra spoke to a wise old king, "Your people look to you for guidance and protection. Remember that your true power lies not in your kingdom or weapons, but in the love you show to those who rely on you." Years later, Amun-Ra found himself in Ancient Rome. He observed the gladiators, their power rooted in physical strength. As he walked through the Colosseum, he told a fallen warrior, "Your true power is not in your sword or armor, but in the courage you show in the face of adversity." In the distant future, Amun-Ra stood in a dystopian cityscape, where power was wielded through advanced technology. He met a rebellious leader, her eyes filled with hope and determination. As they spoke, he said, "Young one, your true power lies within you. Use it to inspire change, not destruction." Through his journey across different time periods and cultures, Amun-Ra learned that power was not in the trappings of wealth or influence, but in the ability to inspire and uplift others. His own strength and responsibility grew as he shared these lessons with those who sought guidance, and he continued on his path to shape the world for the better. As the sun rose over the ancient Egyptian desert, Amun-Ra stood tall and proud, his golden crown glistening under the morning light. He was the god of power and creation, yet he felt an emptiness inside, a longing for something more. He yearned to understand the true meaning of power and responsibility, and so, he embarked on a journey across different time periods and cultures. His first stop was Medieval Europe, where he found himself in the midst of a fierce battle between knights. Amun-Ra observed as one knight charged towards him, brandishing his sword. In that moment, he understood that power came from within and could be used for good or ill. He channeled his inner strength and deflected the knight's blade, sparing both their lives. Next, Amun-Ra found himself in Ancient Rome, witnessing the glory of the Colosseum. The roar of the crowd filled his ears as he watched gladiators fight for survival. A young, fearful gladiator caught his eye, and Amun-Ra felt a deep connection. He used his divine wisdom to turn the tide of battle, allowing the young man to triumph and win the crowd's admiration. Amun-Ra realized that true power lay not in conquest but in uplifting others. In a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra faced his most significant challenge yet. The world was ravaged by war and despair, and a rebel leader sought his guidance. "True power," he told her, "lies within each of us to shape the world for the better." Inspired by Amun-Ra's wisdom, she led her people to rise up against tyranny, transforming her world and fulfilling her destiny. Through these experiences, Amun-Ra discovered that power was not a gift to be wielded but a force to be shared and nurtured. His journey across time and cultures taught him the importance of self-discovery and empowering others to change the world for the better. Amun-Ra found himself standing in the golden sands of Ancient Egypt, clad in royal attire. The sun shone brightly overhead, casting long shadows that danced upon the towering pyramids and ornate temples. As the God of the Sun, he felt a strange yet familiar sensation as the rays caressed his skin, filling him with an unimaginable power. As Amun-Ra roamed through the bustling marketplace, he overheard the desperate cries of a young girl. She pleaded with her father for food, but he could only offer her empty promises and a hope for better times. Torn between his desire to help and the understanding that the course of events was beyond his control, Amun-Ra decided to intervene subtly. With a touch of his divine power, Amun-Ra guided the sun's rays towards the patchwork fields surrounding the city, ensuring a bountiful harvest for the kingdom. Word spread quickly of this miracle, and soon the once-skeptical villagers began to worship him as a benevolent deity. In this era of power and responsibility, Amun-Ra discovered that even his smallest actions had significant consequences. As Amun-Ra continued his journey across time, he encountered numerous challenges that tested his understanding of power and responsibility. From the halls of Medieval Europe to the grandeur of Ancient Rome, he found himself in awe of the different societies and their varied ways of wielding influence. Through each experience, Amun-Ra grew ever more aware of the importance of using one's power for the betterment of others. In the distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra encountered a rebel leader fighting against an oppressive regime. Despite her unwavering courage and determination, the leader was filled with a sense of hopelessness. It was then that Amun-Ra imparted his wisdom upon her, telling her that true power lies within each person's ability to change the world for the better. As the rebel leader absorbed these words, she felt a spark ignite within her, inspiring her to continue her fight and rally others to join her cause. Amun-Ra stood tall, feeling the weight of his golden staff in his hands. As the god of power and responsibility, he had been through countless eras and cultures, learning valuable lessons about what it truly meant to possess power and bear responsibility. His journey began in Ancient Egypt, where he had learned the importance of balance and restraint. "Do not let your power consume you," the wise Pharaoh had told him. In Medieval Europe, Amun-Ra discovered that power could be used for both good and evil. He watched as kings fought over lands and people, their hearts filled with greed and ambition. In moments of quiet reflection, he pondered the complexity of human nature. "Power is like a sword," he mused, "it can cut down enemies or save lives." Upon arriving in Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra witnessed the grandeur and opulence of the empire. He saw how power could corrupt even the most noble of hearts. "The more you have, the more you want," a Roman general lamented to him. It was a lesson that would stay with him as he continued his journey. In a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra found himself among a group of rebels fighting against a tyrannical regime. As they plotted their rebellion, the rebel leader approached him, her eyes filled with hope and desperation. "We need your guidance," she pleaded. Amun-Ra looked into her eyes and realized that true power was not found in objects or titles, but in the hearts of those who dared to make a difference. He spoke softly, his voice carrying the wisdom of countless eras, "Power lies within you all. It is your ability to change the world for the better." With newfound determination, they embarked on their mission, armed with the understanding that true power was not something to be grasped, but nurtured from within. Amun-Ra stood in the shadows of the Great Pyramid, the sun casting its golden rays upon his chiseled form. The weight of his golden crown pressed heavily on his brow as he gazed out over the bustling kingdom. He was the embodiment of power and responsibility, yet he felt empty inside. He yearned for more than just ruling with an iron fist. As Amun-Ra pondered the nature of true power, a gust of wind whisked him away to medieval Europe. There, he found himself in the midst of a grand feast, surrounded by nobles and knights who bowed at his presence. Their words dripped with sycophantic praise, yet Amun-Ra could not shake the feeling that this was a hollow existence. He realized that power, though vast, was fleeting if it rested solely on the adoration of others. The wind carried him away once more, this time to Ancient Rome. The bustling city seemed to vibrate with energy as he walked its cobbled streets. In the Colosseum, he witnessed gladiators fight for their lives, and he heard the cheers of the crowd echo in his ears. Amun-Ra began to understand that power was not just about controlling others but also about shaping the world around him. In a final gust of wind, Amun-Ra found himself in a dystopian future where humanity had lost its way. He stood amongst the ruins and gazed upon a young rebel leader who held hope for their people. The leader's eyes were filled with fear and determination as they spoke to Amun-Ra: "Great one, we are lost, and our world is crumbling. What can we do?" Amun-Ra leaned close, his golden gaze piercing the young leader's eyes. "True power lies within each of us, my child. It is not in the weapons or the control over others but in the ability to change the world for the better." With those words, Amun-Ra found the meaning he had been seeking, and his journey across time periods and cultures had come full circle. He knew that true power came from within and that it was up to each individual to shape their own destiny and inspire others to do the same. In ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra's journey began as he found himself amidst a battle between his loyal followers and a rival faction. As the sun god, he was responsible for the life and death of every creature on Earth, yet he had never experienced such conflict. "Why do they fight over me? I am the giver of life," Amun-Ra thought. However, as he observed the actions of both sides, he realized that power could corrupt even the most devout believers. He decided to intervene and used his divine abilities to restore peace. The revelation humbled him, teaching him that with great power came a tremendous responsibility. His next stop was Medieval Europe, where Amun-Ra found himself in the midst of a feudal kingdom. There, he witnessed knights and nobles battling for land and influence, each one seeking to amass power and control. Amun-Ra overheard a conversation between two knights: "Power is everything; it's the only thing that matters," said one. The other agreed, adding, "A man with power can shape the world to his liking." Amun-Ra decided to learn from them and, through observation and diplomacy, he discovered the importance of balance in wielding power. In Ancient Rome, Amun-Ra saw how the pursuit of power could lead to greatness but also destruction. As he walked through the bustling streets, he heard a Roman citizen say, "Power is a double-edged sword. It can be used for good or ill, depending on the person who holds it." Amun-Ra spent time with various political and military figures, observing how they handled their power and influence. By the end of his time in Rome, he understood that true strength lay in using one's power responsibly to uplift others. Finally, in a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra found himself among rebels fighting against an oppressive regime. A young rebel leader approached him and said, "We need your help. We need your guidance. Show us how to wield power without becoming corrupted by it." With great wisdom, Amun-Ra replied, "True power lies within you all. The strength to change the world comes from within. Use it wisely and for good, and you will create a better future for everyone." And so, in each time period and culture, Amun-Ra learned valuable lessons about power and responsibility, shaping his own understanding of what it truly means to be a powerful being. In the scorching heat of Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra stood tall with his golden staff in hand. The pharaoh's power seemed immense, but he knew there was so much more to learn. As he walked through the bustling markets and pyramids, he overheard a wise old woman share her thoughts on power and responsibility: "True power is not in possessions or titles, but in the ability to inspire others." Amun-Ra pondered this wisdom as he continued his journey. In Medieval Europe, Amun-Ra found himself in a grand castle, surrounded by knights and lords. The court jester's words echoed in his mind: "A king may rule with an iron fist, but it is the heart that truly holds power." As he watched the king and queen interact, Amun-Ra saw how love and compassion could change a kingdom for the better. Amun-Ra's journey led him to Ancient Rome, where he observed the might of the empire. The words of a Roman senator rang in his ears: "Power without responsibility is a dangerous thing. It can lead to greatness or destruction." Amun-Ra witnessed both ends of this spectrum as he navigated the political intrigue and grandeur of the Roman capital. Finally, in a distant future dystopia, Amun-Ra found himself face-to-face with a rebel leader. The leader spoke of their struggle against an oppressive regime: "We are powerless, yet we are not without strength. Together, we can change the world." Amun-Ra listened intently and shared his own experiences, emphasizing that true power comes from within each person. Throughout his journey across time and cultures, Amun-Ra learned valuable lessons about power and responsibility. He realized that by inspiring others to find their strength, he could create a better world for all. In the golden sands of Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra stood tall as the mighty sun god. He wielded immense power and was responsible for giving life to all living beings. However, this responsibility weighed heavily on him, and he sought wisdom to ensure his powers were used for good. One day, a wise sage approached him, offering guidance. "Amun-Ra," the sage said, "true power is not found in your sunbeams or sandstorms but in how you use them." Amun-Ra pondered these words and decided to learn from other cultures and time periods. In Medieval Europe, he observed knights fighting for honor and chivalry. During a heated duel, one of the knights fell, gravely injured. Amun-Ra hesitated before using his power to heal the wounded warrior. The act filled him with immense pride and humility, teaching him that power could be used to save lives, not just destroy them. In Ancient Rome, he saw the mighty empire thrive under the rule of wise leaders like Julius Caesar. He learned about governance and diplomacy from these leaders. When a rebellion erupted in Gaul, Amun-Ra used his wisdom to guide the Romans to a peaceful resolution, showing that power could be used to bring peace and harmony rather than chaos and destruction. Finally, he found himself in a distant future dystopia. A rebel leader sought his guidance, fearful of the tyrannical regime's control over technology. Amun-Ra spoke words of inspiration: "True power lies within you. You can change the world for the better if you believe in yourself." The rebel leader listened, and with newfound confidence, they stood up against the oppressive regime. Together, they ignited a spark of hope that would light the way to a brighter future. In Ancient Egypt, Amun-Ra found himself as a high priest, overseeing the rituals and ceremonies that maintained the balance of life. One day, he discovered an ancient scroll that spoke of a powerful energy source hidden within the Great Pyramid. Driven by curiosity, Amun-Ra led a team of workers to uncover this secret. As they delved deeper into the pyramid, the air grew thick with anticipation. When they finally reached the chamber housing the mysterious power, Amun-Ra's heart raced with excitement. But as he touched the source, he felt something strange: it seemed to be drawing energy from him, rather than giving him power. "What is this force?" he whispered, gazing at the glowing orb before him. Suddenly, a voice echoed through the chamber, revealing itself as the spirit of an ancient pharaoh. "This power is not yours to wield, Amun-Ra. True power lies within your heart and mind, not in objects or rituals." The spirit continued to teach Amun-Ra about responsibility and self-discovery, guiding him through various challenges that tested his resolve. As he learned to harness the power of his own inner strength, Amun-Ra became a beacon of hope for his people. In each subsequent era, Amun-Ra faced new trials and tribulations, from the battlefields of Medieval Europe to the bustling streets of Ancient Rome. In every case, he discovered that true power came not from external forces or possessions, but from within himself. And in each place, he inspired others to find their own strength and make a positive impact on the world around them. By the time Amun-Ra arrived in the distant future dystopia, he had become a wise mentor. When he encountered the rebel leader fighting against an oppressive regime, he offered words of encouragement and guidance. "True power lies within you," he told her, his voice filled with conviction. "Believe in yourself, and you will change the world for the better." With newfound confidence, the rebel leader led her people to victory, creating a brighter future for all.

[pragmaticjedi]

WIP Game

Tagged by @that-banhus 😻

Rules: list the WIPs ya got with a brief description

Spoiler Alert: It’s all Dreamling

Modern/Academic AU

I have two halfway written works for this AU - It’s Just Like You (To Come And Go), the first three chapters of which are on AO3, and the as yet unnamed sequel, which has been plotted and random scenes are written. It’s getting there. Honest.

Human Hands

I was possessed by a smut demon in October and wrote 6k, couldn’t figure out the last couple paragraphs, and forgot about the work until a few weeks ago. Please send help.

Amaranthine

This is actually the first fic/verse I started playing around with after watching Sandman, when my brain went those can’t be the only Endless and came up with a secondary/complimentary pantheon.

I’m not totally happy with all the personifications chosen but here is an excerpt from when Hob meets Destruction for the first time and Destruction brings a friend.

“My siblings and I are the Endless, born of Night and Time,” the giant lumberjack man told him. “We are the anthropomorphic personifications of Destiny, Death, Dream, Desire, Despair, and Delirium, who was once Delight. I am Destruction.” Hob frowned mutely while turning this over in his mind. The man listed the names like an ancient invocation.

“And my centennial drinking companion is Death?” Destruction, and wasn’t that a revelation on its own, just snorted.

“Oh no,” he said, shaking his head in amusement. “Death’s our older sister. Your drinking companion is one of my older brothers, Dream.” At Hob’s nonplussed expression, Destruction snorted again. “Trust me, my sisters are so much easier to get along with than my older brothers and sibling - Dream dresses as much for personality as title.”

Hob was distracted from this revelation when the woman Destruction had entered with was returning from the bar, three beers in her hands. Unobstructed by other patrons, Hob saw that she was in her late 30s and wore a midnight blue shift dress with gold bangles that perfectly set off her dark brown skin and black hair. He blinked and she was carrying a beer in each of three hands, using a fourth hand to gently guide others away from the drinks, a fifth to hitch her skirt off the floor, and a sixth to. Hob blinked again and she was setting the beers on the table between them, using her two, perfectly normal in number, hands.

“Well met, Robert Gadling,” the woman greeted him. She spoke with a trace of Southeast Asian accent and like Destruction and Dream’s voices (!!! his stranger finally had a name !!!), her words reverberated deep in Hob’s chest despite her actual low volume.

“So you must be Death then,” Hob said. “I admit I don’t see a family resemblance between any of you three, but that’s probably the least strange thing about your family.” He noticed Destruction’s eyes flick to the woman, an expression that may have been fear? wonder? moving so quickly over his face that Hob couldn’t parse it. The woman quirked a smile and shook her head.

“Wrong again, I’m afraid,” she told him. “I am Justice, one of The Amaranthine.” When Hob stared blankly at her, she took pity on him. “If The Endless were born from Night and Time, my siblings were born from Space and Day. Aside from myself, we are Creation, Belonging, Discord, Power, Apathy, and Learning.”

Hob blurted, “your parents didn’t feel the need to give you all the same first initial?” and he was rewarded with a wider smile.

“I suppose you could call us … Creation, Connection, Conflict, Control, Caring, Complacency, and Change,” she said thoughtfully. “We have many names in many languages, just as The Endless do.”

Destruction inclined his head in agreement and Hob got the impression that he was only slightly more talkative than Dream.

I shall tag @gallusrostromegalus but no pressure!

[troybeecham]

A Sermon for Easter

Fr. Troy Beecham

What are we to make of the Gospel accounts of the Resurrection, and what do we think these Gospel accounts are endeavoring to teach us?

Western Christianity: Protestant, Reformed, and Roman Catholic alike, have slowly turned the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ bodily Resurrection, and the Transformed nature of his resurrected body, into the story of what we are to expect about our life after death. But if this the point of the Resurrection narratives, it is strange because at no point do they mention the future hope of the individual Christian. This is, of course, counter-intuitive to most western Christians, Catholic and Protestant, conservative and liberal. We have 1500 years of writing thousands of hymns and untold numbers of sermons, poems, icons, and liturgies, all focused on ‘winning a bodiless, spiritual life after death’ for ourselves as the defining issue which drives the entirety of the Holy Scriptures. But the Scriptures do not support this narrowed focus, narrowed by our self-obsession.

The resurrection of Jesus is certainly about us, and our future, but it is about more than just us; it has to do with the future of all of creation. Insofar as it is about all those baptized into his death and life, what does the resurrection of Jesus have to say for us, about how are we to live our lives, and what are we to believe and expect about what happens to us at our bodily death?

We are assured that upon our mortal death we will be with the Lord in Paradise, and that is admittedly a little vague, and does not present us with much to go on, hence the many bizarre ideas about what happens to us at death. But the heart of the Christian hope is that we will one day physically share in the bodily resurrection of Jesus in a new creation, when heaven and earth become one conjoined reality, rather than some ghostly existence somewhere “out there”.

Until then, we are presented with an open-ended commission within the present world: ‘Jesus is risen; therefore, you have work ahead of you.’ So, what are the Scriptures endeavoring to teach us? The story, from Genesis to the Revelation, is that God has an intended purpose and goal for his creation, a purpose that cannot be thwarted. And that goal has always been the new creation, heaven and earth made one, and the human family finally freed from sin and death through Jesus Christ. In the time between the cross and the new creation, the time in which we now live, God’s plan is for all people to be fundamentally transformed in this mortal life through the forgiveness of our sins given to us in Jesus Christ, forgiveness from our sinful, broken human and unwavering drive towards self-worship and self-destruction.

Now, our millennia long human plans for creating a new Eden have relied upon violence and war, on slavery and enforcing some human scheme upon others, and getting rid of those who will not share in our schemes. But the Gospel of Jesus Christ tells us that violence, slavery, and war, as legitimate means of shaping the world and guiding human destiny, all died with Jesus on the Cross. Jesus refused the option of violence when he told Peter to put away his sword when the mob and Temple hierarchy came to arrest him. Mounting a violent insurrection in order to liberate Jesus and his followers from the corrupt and brutal injustice of the Empire and their collaborators in the Judean aristocracy and Temple hierarchy would have been a just war — but Jesus refused to engage in any violence, much less a war, even a just war. The reason is that the kingdom of heaven will not come to be through human endeavor…and we hate that.

We desire to be in charge, to rule, and to be obeyed. Jesus chose instead to bear witness to the truth that God is love, and God is fulfilling his purposes for his creation in his own manner and timing, so that all glory and honor shall be given to God. Jesus chose to forgive those who were murdering him, and to die that we might be forgiven for our sins. Jesus took the death of our world, a world hijacked by human desire and framed by war, into his body, and he and that nightmare vision of the world both died together. Jesus was buried and with him was buried the old world devoted to sin and death.

And on the third day Jesus was raised to new life, transformed, resurrected life, the firstborn of the new creation, and a new world came into being, born in love.

Of course, the old world of death still lingers around us, but in the midst of it the world to come is being born.The first person to meet Jesus on that morning was Mary Magdalene. She thought he was the gardener. She wasn’t wrong. Jesus is a gardener — the true gardener, the gardener Adam was meant to be. John’s Gospel is, after all, about the dawning of the New Creation.

Jesus is the firstborn of the new humanity — a redeemed, transformed, resurrected humanity of gardeners turning garbage dumps into gardens, swords into plowshares, and waging peace as the children of God. The resurrection of Jesus is not just a happy ending to the Gospel story; it is the dawn of a new creation.

G. K. Chesterton, that brilliant writer, wrote in the close of part one of his classic works, The Everlasting Man, “On the third day the friends of Christ coming at daybreak to the place, found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. In varying ways, they realized the new wonder; but even they hardly realized that the world had died in the night. What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation, with a new heaven and a new earth; and in a semblance of the gardener, God walked again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but the dawn.”

So what does all this mean for you and for me? On what course and towards what destination is Jesus ever working to set us on our earthly pilgrimage?

It begins with trust, that God is indeed working out his good purposes for our human family and for all creation. If we will but trust in God, we can live without fear, fear of anything, neither death nor life, powers and principalities, nothing in all creation. That’s what the Passion, Crucifixion, and Resurrection of Jesus is offering to us, a life so filled with loving trust in our Heavenly Father, that we will courageously begin to live as gardeners in a violent, divided, and broken human world.

Jesus commanded us all as he was ascending to the right hand of the Father, “As you go into all the world…this frightening, war torn, burning, polluted, dangerous world…make disciples of Jesus of all peoples, baptizing them and teaching them to obey all these things which I have commanded you, beginning first in our own back yard in over the fence conversations, at the check-out line, at work, in our towns, cities, and throughout the whole world, and baptize them in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And behold, I will be with you the the end of the ages.”

God is preparing to walk amongst us again in the garden of his new creation, and is calling each and every one of us to be renewed today by the power of the Holy Spirit through receiving Jesus, first by faith and Holy Baptism, and in the most Blessed Sacrament of his Body and Blood, that we, being transformed by grace, may take up our cross, God’s supreme gardening tool, and participate as joyful, fearless, Jesus loving and Jesus proclaiming gardeners in this new creation that was born on a morning like this so long ago.

Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord’s resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Amen.

[bambazzle]

LGBT+ Fantasy/Fiction Books and TWs

-In the case that a book on the list is the first of a series, TWs will include warnings for the entire series-

IDNS means “I Do Not Support the Author”- reasons will be listed and linked! if you are interested in this author’s book, try to buy second hand!

I have removed some books that were on here, I know! I removed them specifically for problematic content- this book list was not just books I loved, but books I had yet to read and hoped to love. Books that misrepresent or fetishize our community don’t deserve to be supported and spread even more. I have replaced these books with ones that don’t perpetuate harmful stereotypes, so we can all enjoy our escapes! 

1. Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (Trilogy)-

(Fantasy, Witches, Vampires, kind of Harry Potter-y, MLM Romance, TW for suicidal ideation, self-destructiveness, abandonment, foster care, neglect, bullying, major character death, racism, murder and attempted murder, violence, gun violence and relationship issues. It has some heavy topics but is written in a pretty light tone.)

(DNS author: Racism/stereotyping/fetishization of Asian community)

2. Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston-

(MLM “Enemies” to lovers, about the son of the President and the Prince of England getting into a fight, they have to fake a friendship to fix their PR situation, TW for being publicly outed, semi-graphic sex scenes, politically charged discussions, addiction, underage alcohol use, blackmail, parental death (mentioned), homophobia, panic attacks, sexual abuse/harrassment (mentioned), racism, parental neglect )

3. Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller-

(MLM but not explicitly romance, Ancient Greece, demigods, exile, TW for abduction, abandonment, war, violence, ableism, child abuse, death, human sacrifice, human trafficking, murder, plague (mentioned), sexual assault (mentioned), self-harm, slavery, torture)

4. The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic (Trilogy)-

(MLM, very slow burn. Demisexual MC. Mafia mixed with kids with broken homes mixed with a kid who has a dream of being a pro at a fictional sport. The focus is NOT on the relationship, it is the subplot. TW for ableism, verbal and physical abuse, abuse within a psychiatric facility, alcoholism, underage alcohol use, physical assault, sexual assault, conversion therapy (mention), death of an animal, parental death, drug abuse, drug use, drug overdose, drug misrepresentation, violence, gun violence, knife violence, homophobia, hate crime, murder, panic attacks, rehab, self harm, suicide (mentioned), graphic torture, manipulation, police intervention, organized crime/mafia, graphic description of burns. It is a great series but it has heavy content and is not light reading if you go in unprepared.)

5. The House on the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune -

(MLM (WLW side characters), fantasy, found family, heartwarming romance, magical creatures, TW for abuse(mentioned), trauma-related anxiety, bigotry, body shaming, bullying, child abuse (backstory), internalized fatphobia, homophobia, microaggresions, violence, violence against children)

6. Heartstopper by Alice Oseman (Series)-

(MLM, graphic novel, slow burn, coming out, TW for emotionally abusive relationship, anorexia, self harm, suicidal ideation, bullying(mentioned), psychiatric facility, trauma discussion, homophobia)

7. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater (Series)-

(MLM, Fantasy, about a secret private school, slow burn, found family, TW for underage alcohol use, drug use, suicide(mentioned), homophobia, domestic abuse, child abuse(mentioned), murder and attempted murder, burglary, car crash, fire related death(non-graphic), kidnapping, terminal illness, sick parent, ritual sacrifice, suicide, violence, gore, gun violence, knife violence, panic attack, PTSD, workplace harrassment)

8. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera-

(MLM, Bisexual Latino characters, whole story takes place in 24 hours because at about midnight- aka the start of the book- they get a phone call saying they’re going to die, TW for death, animal death, child death, drowning, violence, gang violence, gun violence, homophobia, panic attack, parental suicide, suicidal ideation, sick parent, police intervention, and foster care)

9. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (Series)-

(Queer characters, but no romance in the first book, fantasy, found family, slow burn, TW for graphic depictions of violence, addiction, genocide/fantasy racism, gambling, drug use, withdrawal, ableism, abuse(mentioned), sexual slavery(mentioned/backstory), sexual assault(mentioned/backstory), imprisonment, murder and attempted murder, death, death threats, loss of loved one, prosecution, torture, violence, gore)

10. The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee- 

(MLM Historical Fiction Romance, Travel/Journey, Best Friends to lovers, TW for abuse, homophobia, adoption, alcoholism, breakups, death(mentioned), epilepsy/seizures, prison, robbery)

(DNS author: transphobia/biphobia)

11. In Deeper Waters by FT Lukens-

(MLM, High fantasy, “A young prince must rely on a mysterious stranger to save him when he is kidnapped during his coming of age tour”, TW for kidnapping, violence, abuse, war(mentioned))

12. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz (Duology)-

(MLM Latino coming of age story, TW for violence, surgery, transmisogyny, sexism, homophobia, hate crime, PTSD, hospitalization, alcohol use, drug use, animal death, car crash, death(non-graphic))

14. We Contain Multitudes by Sarah Henstra-

(MLM, coming of age, friendship and romance, TW for bullying, homophobia, abuse, underage alcohol use, drug use)

15. Beneath the Citadel by Destiny Soria-

(Asexual/Bisexual representation, fantasy, ragtag team goes on a quest, TW for death, abduction/kidnapping, blackmail, branding, child abuse(mentioned), coma, amnesia, execution, murder, addiction, violence)

16. More Happy than Not by Adam Silvera-

(MLM main character, YA, “it's about a boy who is considering a memory-alteration procedure to forget he's gay because leading a life as a straight teen would probably be way easier for him. It's about science versus nature, friendship, sexuality, and a quest for happiness.” About the happy ending and how even bad moments lead to good. Hopeful but despairing. TW for attempted suicide, suicide, domestic abuse, medical procedure to erase sexuality, internalized homophobia, homophobia, depression)

17. I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver-

(Nonbinary main character, nonbinary muslim side character, romance/love and building a family out of people you care about. About finding your voice. TW for bad coming out, misgendering, transphobia, family rejection/struggle, anxiety(detailed), child abuse, gender dysphoria, homophobia, disownment, panic attacks, suicidal thoughts, suicidal ideation, underage alcohol use)

18. We Are Okay by Nina LaCour-

(WLW, moving out and coming of age, self-discovery and childhood romance, TW for loss of a loved one, depression, loneliness(detailed), chronic illness, death, drowning(mentioned), suicide)

19. The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness-

(Contemporary, about the normal people’s lives while living among Chosen Ones. Family/coming of age/acceptance story. TW for monsters, apocalypse, violence/explosions, death, anorexia, relapse, panic attacks, anxiety attacks, unrequited romance)

20. Lizard Radio by Pat Schmatz-

(Dystopian story about a teenager struggling with their gender identity, TW for abandonment, oppressive government, outlawed homosexuality, hate crime, homophobia, transphobia, violence)

[stramberryparadice]

SHINGEKI NO KYOJIN #139 - THE IMPOSSIBLE FREEDOM ?

Here is the English translation of the post I wrote here in French.

I apologize in advance for my mistakes, I'm not good in English but I hope that will be understood.

---------------

Shingeki no kyojin is finished. A leading manga of the 21st century has just ended in tears, blood, mourning, disappointment, frustration… and love. So many emotions come to me when I read this final chapter, I needed to express them as clumsily as it is. I’m sure it’s going to get lost in the Internet, but whatever— it is necessary to remove both the joy and the frustration that I feel to pay tribute to Isayama who offered us a work as powerful as it is cursed.

As intense as it is uneven, as perfect as it is imperfect.. like his tragic hero Eren Jäger, who shows us that men are so weak and pitiful in the face of time and the cruelty of the world. How much even if this hero possesses in his hands the power of a God. My analysis will surely be clumsy, I apologize. And I will not fail to point out at the end the bitterness felt on the final development of some characters including that of Misaka Ackerman.

Eren like “CryBaby”

What a slap for the reader to witness such an emotional picture. Yes. Isayama reminds us to what extent Eren isn't a brave knight, not a charismatic hero, not the genocidal demon of this story but a child.. whose weight of Destiny is too heavy to bear. Scan 139 reminds us to what extent we have lost ourselves, just as Eren has in the way, forgetting the very essence of the story that has been told to us from the beginning. It’s not a story of geopolitical warfare, a biological parasite, titanic monsters, a northern deity, or a philosophical-esoteric trip. It's the story of a boy who wants to emancipate himself, to live for himself, tasted of the thirst for adventure, the tranquility of his loved ones but born in a cruel and alienating world that leaves room only for death, abuse of power, betrayal and despair .

A journey where the child becomes an adult at the cost of his or her life. Learning the most painful lesson… To be an adult is to renounce one’s dreams, to bend one’s knee in the face of the servitude of one’s mortal condition, to be content with one’s cage in order to enjoy the little that one can have at one’s disposal, to mourn those who may disappear from one’s life.

A young boy who dreamed only of freedom, surrounded by people who love him. A child whose inspirations, as impulsive, unreasonable and immature as they may be, will push him to his limits. A child who grew up too fast, who could not mourn his mother, aware of her physical and spiritual weakness, who was confronted with the violence of this world which reminded him of his condition of being insignificant, a pawn on the chessboard of the "Way".

A child whose powers worthy of a God then gives him the possibility to realize the unthinkable, almost the absolute fantasy of every Man : to shape a world in his image, to be as free as a bird flying above the clouds without reddish stain to touch the sky. Move forward, Move forward whatever the price… move forward for an illusion of freedom, for an infantile obsession.

And by assuming the role of the wicked “demon” of tales so that the brave knights can free this world from the evil that eats it.

Lost between the present, the past, the future.. time no longer makes sense. Only finality counts, annihilating its titans whatever the price. They have to pay for his mother. They have to pay for his fallen comrades. They must pay for reminding us of our pitiful helplessness as human beings.

But the Demon also has a heart, remorse, feelings, there are people who attach him to this world. Therefore, what to choose?

Divine Freedom or Mortal Love? The impossible equation... Although Eren may have travelled the road in search of the answer, how can freedom and humanity be reconciled? Free your people and protect your loved ones, though imperfect?

______

He will not find the answer— neither by searching the past of the goddess Ymir, not by consulting the other Titans carriers, not by creating the different alternative realities that led to the same observation… only death can free the bird from its cage, only the death of Humanity is able to reconcile the sublime and the hideous. Or rather, a common enemy that will crystallize all their ills. But who would be crazy, brave enough to accept being the victime ?

Like a Christic figure, Eren will assume this role. But not without having to confide his last wishes, his last secrets that can no longer contain… because yes, the demon is limited by his adult condition of 19 years. Yes.. the child has grown up. Recklessness, impulsiveness, daring in the face of death, the omnipotence of the child leaves room for a teenager who is now afraid of dying, who has succumbed to love, who doubts, who is aware of his weakness.

Eren has finally become a man...in pain. He finally accepts his feelings, his weakness in the face of death that awaits him.

He’s not a running child anymore. The plates are only explicit about this. The power of narration.. we come back to the fundamental of this history, which is human psychology. The feelings, the relationships that unite all people between them. Friends or enemies, men or women, child or adult, Eldien or Mahr... Despite our differences, our disagreements, we are all equal and weak in the face of death... but also in the face of the love we can bring to others.

Yes, Eren is a weak hero. Yes, he admits to loving Mikasa. He admits that until the very end, he didn't know how it was going to go. That he was himself a pawn in the divine game of Ymir. Another puppet at the service of a little girl who is also blinded by her duality, by her toxic love for her executioner. One cannot remain insensitive to this remarkable development of the character of Eren whose death was inevitable. For whoever plays with divinities can only lose his humanity, his freedom too. By the ultimate sacrifice of his selfish and human desires finally. Eren alone became the true savior of this world. He will also have kept his promise to his friends, to the beings he loves by offering them last memories through the “Way”.

Selfless Love or True Freedom

As Mikasa said: The world is cruel, but also … Very beautiful.

Whoever sets a glance without hatred on the world, with compassion, with love for his neighbor will be able to claim to touch with the finger this Freedom so sought.. a selfless love, not turned to satisfy one’s own selfish desires.

Because Love, like hate, takes different forms.

Love connecting us to our roots, our family of blood…

Love binding two beings who love each other, desire each other, cherish each other, seek each other….

Love that binds us to his comrades, his battalion, his family of choice, his heart…

Love that life brings to us in all its forms…

Love… this power that is unpredictable and uncontrollable.

And that can become the obsession of a lifetime. It is by becoming an obsession that love becomes as destructive as hatred, and sends us back to our condition as an alienated Man… locked up in his “Path”, in his cage.

It's by demonstrating resilience and self-sacrifice that man can taste freedom. We can find redemption in the love that others have for him, that we also have for him. For a few hours, a few years…

At the cost of a renewal of the cycle of hatred, because man remains selfish, not all are ready to make sacrifices. Therefore, Mikasa and Eren have made the greatest of sacrifices for the survival of their comrades and the world: they give up their chance to be happy together, sacrifice their desire to be together for the rest of humanity. As in tragedies, the main heroes are victims of Destiny, are those who will pay the price so that others can flourish and live. The children have become adults.

Just as Armin is no longer the whiny little boy to protect. Unlike Eren, he managed to learn from his mistakes, grieve, face his own fears, confess his love to the girl he loves. It is finally he who will raise the wounded little boy, who will comfort him.

The frustration

Mikasa is the main character of the story. It's through her that awakening is made, it is through her hand that she closes this long journey. In Eren’s memories, it is always central. It is the key, the final solution.

It's his psychological, his emotional journey that we will follow throughout the manga. Eren is only a complement, the character who crystallizes his goals. In a world where men are “dominant”, the woman must bend her knee, support her prince so that the light shines on him. Isayama knew how to play perfectly on this classic code of narration. Whether one agrees or not with the conclusion of certain female characters, the work often highlights the fact that men are only victims of their passions and obsessions.

-------

Only women seem to emerge victorious in the face of the cruelty of the world : they take up arms (Historia), continue to fight in the face of despair (Mikasa), enjoy life and bring joy around her (Sasha), support other women in their emancipations ( Ymir with Historia) question their education (Gaby) disobey (Annie), go against the “moral” principles to survive (Ymir Frizt who continues to love his executioner), sacrifice for the common good (Hanzi Zoe)… But of course… without also paying the price of sacrifice and making concessions.

Historia bears a child of a man whom she does not seem to like but assumes the role of the mother whom she would have liked to have while assuming the heavy attribute of the office of Queen in a country plagued by nationalist tendencies guided by fear. With Eren’s help, she did not give in to the temptation of self-sacrifice but decided herself who she would save or not, what path she wanted to follow. Her desire was to be a mother, a good mother. Whatever the father, it was an indestructible motherly love that she wanted to offer to a child. The one she never had.

Mikasa agreed to kill Eren because, if she had given him another answer, their life as fugitives would have been but a fleeting dream and Eren’s death was inevitable.

Despite her powerful love for Eren (as addicted as he may be, explained by the power of the Ackermans?), she will break the chains of her servitude by killing her only Love. She is the light. She accomplished the journey of a true heroine by demonstrating resilience, by giving of herself for the world.

She had only eyes for Eren.. was open to others, to show empathy, a desire to continue living for other comrades who are dear to him.

-------

Mikasa also leads the way in Ymir Fritz… you can love a monster, you can be a prisoner of a toxic relationship but you can free yourself from it. One can become free, but the price to pay will be to carry this infinite sadness, this frustration of having been able to live another story if things would have been different. By her kiss, she showed what true Love is.

Although the frustration is present, although we would have liked her to turn the page and rebuild her life, she must also pay the price of her “freedom”, of her “survival”: haunted by the sacrifice of Eren, guardian of her memories, from her grave as if to preserve her existence as long as she can live.

Once again, women show that they are stronger than we think. So Ymir was also able to free himself of his toxic link with the King by making the Titans disappear.

In the image of the bittersweet end of the chapter, which shows us that the disappearance of a monster, of a divine force “responsible” for the horrors, is not the long-awaited salvation.

The vices, the human fears will remain the poison, preventing us from reaching this illusory freedom. Men do not need deities to dig their own way to death.

-----

From "occidental" point of view, it is true that this is a blow to the “strong” women of the work still alive. Reduced to being collateral victims of Love, as toxic as this link may be (Ymir-Mikasa). Reduced to attaching themselves to winning or losing romantic figures depending on whether their love-interests is the villain of the story (Mikasa-Annie). Reduced to their role as mother-benefactor (Historia-Gaby).

It’s awkward, but I think Isayama wanted to show that no one is spared. That no character can claim complete tranquility and sweet freedom.

Everyone has had to sacrifice something to survive, and women and men are equal in this judgment. Women also remain victims in a world that remains dominated also by the cruelty of Men (the human race in general). They are not completely free, they are also trapped in roles.

Everyone carries the weight of his choice. That characters have a duty to remember, to pass on to future generations the horrors they have lived to try not to reproduce the same mistakes. Even if their new life choices are imperfect, disappointing for those on the outside.

Levi sacrificed many of his comrades to fulfill his promise to Erwin in his quest for truth and to continue the fight for Eldian freedom.

Armin and Mikasa sacrificed Eren: their friend, their love, the dearest being to fulfill their promise to discover the outside world and touch that freedom.

Like Levi Ackerman and his love for his battalion comrades. As for Mikasa and his love for Eren (because she saw the human behind the monster). She has been waiting for a sign for 3 years to see him again in order to follow up on “see you later Eren”.

Finally, a bird comes to give him his wrap. To encourage him to go forward again. To continue to live…

--------

The most free people are those who honestly and sincerely love someone. Those who are able to see the beauty of the world despite its ugliness. Who give without waiting for return. Those who continue to look at the world without hatred, those who do not succumb to its cruelty. Tears are running down…

[lloydskywalkers]

chrysanthemum

1/2 of the fics i wrote for the 10th anniversary zine!! if you haven’t checked it out yet please do @ninjaneverquit-zine , everyone worked so hard and did such a wonderful job, i’m beyond honored to have been included <3

I may not have been in the fandom since the start, but ninjago means the world to me - it’s gotten me through some of the worst times and pushed further in writing than i thought i’d go, and the fandom’s been a particularly bright light in my life since i’ve joined 💕and of course i can’t not celebrate that by writing for the light of my life lloyd garmadon, so here’s me crying over the garmadons anniversary-style :’D

Garmadon’s son has only been on the earth for twenty-four hours, and he’s only been Lloyd for nineteen, but he already finds himself terrified of the tiny, living thing he cradles in his arms.

“He’s so small,” he tells Misako, eyebrows furrowed in concern. “Is he supposed to be this small?”

Misako, who’s been answering questions similar to this for the better part of the morning, rolls her eyes. “He’s fine, Garmadon. He was born a little early, that’s all.”

Not as reassured as he should be, Garmadon returns his gaze to his son. He’s sleeping now, deathly still in his arms, and he resists the urge to wave a hand over his tiny face, if only to feel the small puffs of breath he knows must be there. He brushes a wisp of hair from his head instead, marveling at how pale it is.

“He’s got my father’s hair,” he murmurs.

“I don’t care, Garmadon, we’re still not naming him after the man.”

It’s Garmadon’s turn to roll his eyes. “I never said that. I said Montgomery was an unacceptable name to burden my son with.”

“Oh, your son.”

He misses the rest of her retort as Lloyd fidgets briefly, tiny features screwing up as he shifts. A flash of lightning from outside brightens the room, and Garmadon pulls Lloyd closer reflexively. The thunder crack follows soon after, and Garmadon flinches, the thick smell of rain filtering through the open windows. He can already see thick droplets sliding down the hydrangeas Misako’s growing in the windowsill, drowning the pale flowers. It’s been pouring all week, typhoons hitting the coast with gusto as they always do this time of year. Garmadon doesn’t like it — his son is much more suited for the sun and all its brightness, not the grey-skied downpour of thunderclouds.

Lloyd hardly reacts to the downpour, having gone still and silent in his arms once again. Garmadon’s heartbeat quickens. He shouldn’t sleep this much, should he? He doesn’t remember Wu being like that, but he was so young when Wu was born, and it was so long ago, and he can’t feel for Lloyd’s breathing now because the breeze pouring through the window’s too strong, and—

A soft hand sets on his shoulder. “Here,” Misako sighs, guiding Garmadon’s hand to rest gently over Lloyd’s chest. “Feel. That’s a heart, going strong.”

Despite his hesitance, a deep-rooted part of him still desperately afraid his touch might hurt something so small, Garmadon does so. Lloyd’s heartbeat is rapid and as fragile as a bird’s wing, but undeniably there. A small, living thing.

Something warm curls in his chest, and Garmadon thinks he might understand his father’s delight in creation — in things that live.

Not, of course, that his father has ever created anything so perfect as Lloyd, but Garmadon can credit him for having tried.

* * *

It’s weird, having a dad.

Not the concept of having a dad — Lloyd’s bragged enough about being the son of Lord Garmadon to at least get that part. But actually having him here, a living, breathing person who looks at Lloyd and cares—

It’s weird, that’s all. Not that it’s a bad weird.

“You need to wrap your hands, before you go hitting things like that,” Garmadon scolds gently, twisting gauze around Lloyd’s bruised, swollen fingers. “The others can show you how, for training. They should have shown you earlier.”

Lloyd bites his lip. He doesn’t tell his dad that the bruises are less from training, and more from pointlessly banging on bars in an attempt to get on Pythor’s nerves. It sounds silly, compared to the way his dad swept in like a big hero and took out all the snakes in single swipes.

A big hero. Lloyd wonders if the others will ever see him that way, too.

His hand twinges as the gauze pulls tight, and Lloyd sucks in a sharp breath. Garmadon flinches, drawing his hands back.

“I’m sorry,” he says, quickly. “I keep forgetting — you’re so small.”

Lloyd makes a face at that. Small? “I’m not that short,” he grumbles. “I’ve grown lots.”

“Of course you have,” Garmadon amends. “I only—”

His expression twists, and Lloyd’s stomach drops. There’s that look again.

“I’m sorry,” Garmadon repeats, sounding downtrodden.

Lloyd purses his lips. For all his bragging, he’s never really thought much about whether he likes his family or not. It’s hard, when you don’t have one around to like. Watching the way his dad worries and his uncle walks around all stone-faced now, Lloyd’s not sure he should like it. He likes Uncle Wu, of course, and he loves his dad, but—

He hates the way they all walk around like they’re preparing for a funeral. His dad’s funeral, his funeral, whichever it ends up being. It’s stupid. Lloyd’s lived on the streets for months, and in Darkley’s even longer. He wouldn’t have minded walking around like he’s doomed for misery then.

But now? When he’s got people who care, and a family?

Lloyd sets his mouth stubbornly. He doesn’t know much about destiny, or the prophecy, but he knows he’s not about to lose this. Not when he’s come so far, when he’s so close to having — to being someone worth having around.

No funerals, Lloyd promises himself. He can see this prophecy through — they both can, the two of them. You have to be alive to be a family, right?

“It’s okay,” he finally replies. “I’m alright, dad.”

And he’s gonna stay that way.

* * *

When Garmadon had thought about the final battle in the past, he’d expected the darkness. The destruction, the pain.

He hadn’t expected to survive.

“So you’re really giving up fighting, then?”

Glancing up at Lloyd, taller now yet still small enough to not quite fit his bright golden gi, Garmadon finds survival a very welcome surprise.

“Yes,” he says, returning his gaze to the flowerbeds Misako’s helped him put in the monastery garden. They’re coming along well, despite the recent fits of bad weather, and they do a fine job of making the monastery look homey. Unthreatening.

He hopes, at least.

“I think I’ve done enough fighting, for my part,” he continues. He gives Lloyd a wry look. “I’m not sure Ninjago could take much more of it from me, anyways.”

“I dunno,” Lloyd says. “It’s been getting pretty boring.”

Garmadon snorts. “Boring is something you should appreciate, son. Excitement isn’t always good.”

“No, but it isn’t bor—dull,” Lloyd mutters, crouching down to study the flowerbeds. Garmadon shakes his head in reply, sighing. He remembers being his son’s age once, yearning for the next thrill, even if it feels ages away now.

He’s got a whole lecture on appreciating the quiet moments on the tip of his tongue, too, when Lloyd speaks up again.

“We used to have these flowers at Darkley’s,” he says, tilting his head as he studies them. “Some of the boys tore them all up and threw ‘em at the window, but they were pretty before that."

Garmadon bites the inside of his cheek, his eyebrows furrowing. His expression softens as he spots the gentle way Lloyd handles the flower, carefully pushing it back to place. It never fails to baffle him how someone as gentle as Lloyd could’ve come from his beginnings, much less from Garmadon, but he treasures it.

“Snapdragons,” Garmadon says, instead. “Fitting flowers, for our family.”

Lloyd looks at him curiously, eyes bright with the light of suspicion, and Garmadon is tempted to tell him the full truth, then and there. But Lloyd is still so young, innocent and naive and barely come to terms with his place as the Green Ninja. The truth of their blood is a heavy one, and Garmadon can’t find it in himself to lay it on Lloyd’s shoulders today. No, his son is happy among humans, so a human he’ll let him be. Someday he’ll know he’s more, closer to the dragons he admires than he realizes, but not quite yet.

Miraculously, Garmadon has the time, now.

“If you stay after dinner, I can show you how they’re planted,” he offers. Lloyd nods, and Garmadon’s smile widens.

Destruction is in his blood, and he’d be blind to say it isn’t in Lloyd’s as well. Power is power, whether it’s bright and beautiful or stained in darkness, and Lloyd could shatter mountains as well as move them, if he wanted.

But Lloyd never moves to pull the flowers up, only watches them rustle slightly in the breeze, leaving them to grow a little bigger, a little brighter. Garmadon, for his part, watches his son, all bright eyes and the burnished gold hair of his grandfather, and reminds himself that one needs not be a master of creation to appreciate life.

* * *

Lloyd likes to think of himself as an optimist, for the most part. He’s at least good at pretending that he is one, with how many times he’s had to convince himself it’s worth it to get back up.

Right now, he’s trying to remember how he’s ever managed to convince himself, because this time, getting back up seems impossible.

Lloyd used to wonder, back during Morro, how far you had to push yourself to break like that. How far someone had to push you, to truly splinter. He thinks he might have found his answer, though his is less of a bitter hatred and more of an empty abyss of hurt.

It hurts to breathe. That would be a sign that something’s wrong, if Lloyd didn’t already have about sixty other signs that he’s in trouble. But the breathing thing is sticking out to him especially, right now. His lungs feel like they’re scraping against his ribs every time he tries to draw breath, bruised and stinging, and there’s a deep ache in his chest that grows worse by the minute.

He tries swallowing again, sand scraping down his throat as he does. He hisses out a breath instead of coughing, almost frightened that his lungs will give out completely if he does.

He says almost, because Lloyd isn’t sure what emotions he’s got left to feel anymore.

A lie. Pain starts numb, sometimes.

Lloyd’s chest spasms as he sucks in another breath, and he wishes the desert would swallow him whole. His father — his real father, who pushed him from the Cursed Realm and told him to return to light and living — would want him to stand back up. He’d beg him to, stress the importance of continuing on, of persevering. Stuff like that.

But if it wasn’t for his father, Lloyd wouldn’t have to get back up in the first place. If it wasn’t for his father, Lloyd wouldn’t be—

His eyes burn, stinging as he squeezes them tightly shut, and he tells himself it’s the sand.

Instead, he focuses on the ragged beat of his heart. He only knows it’s there because his chest throbs in pain with every pulse, but he latches onto the feeling and holds tight.

Still alive, he tells himself, even as every bit of him sings in agony and his lungs scream at him to stop. He’s still alive. His powers aren’t answering him but they will, he knows they will, he can’t disappear like he did with Morro. He can’t — he can’t leave it, not like this, not with his father — not like this. If he can’t stop Harumi, if he can’t save his father, if he can’t do anything else at all, he can at least do this.

Stay alive. Stay alive. Stay alive.

He’s never realized how long the nights out here are, before.

* * *

After everything, the light dies down and the Oni vanish, and Lloyd’s heart stops.

It shouldn’t be a surprise to Garmadon, who isn’t even sure his own heart beats now, but it is.

It’s not supposed to stop. There was a promise made, somewhere, to keep it beating.

It restarts before he has the chance to process what that even means, and the swell of relief is so foreign, Garmadon leaves before he even has the chance to ask Lloyd what he’d seen. He thinks to himself, that will be the end of it. The end of whatever tentative connection he has with the boy, whatever frayed and tattered threads of something they once had. Better to cut them away for good.

Lloyd’s not one to let things die, though. Garmadon should know that at least, the boy tells him.

“I know you like repeating yourself,” he mutters. “Letting go is different.”

“That’s not what this is,” Lloyd huffs back.

Garmadon rolls his eyes, the two of them drifting aimlessly down the Ninjago City garden paths. It’s secluded, the rest of the city still recovering, and Garmadon’s grateful for the quiet, even if it is awkward. Building any kind of bridge with the boy is difficult, if only because Lloyd stresses that they’re rebuilding a bridge, and Garmadon has no memory of any bridge to begin with.

He’s still sifting through jumbled emotions, sorting out what his place in this world was and is supposed to be, but he knows that the word son slips easier from his mouth than daughter ever did, so he figures he’s on the right path, at least.

“It’s about—” Lloyd pauses, his expression contorting. “It’s about surviving, I guess,” he grinds out.

Garmadon’s mouth curls into a grin. “Really. You were quite…vocal, that it was about more than that.”

“It is, it’s just—” Lloyd cuts off again, stopping them in a half-ruined section of garden still littered with remnants of concrete. “It’s the payoff, you know? Here.”

He bends down, brushing dust from a surviving scattering of flowers. He gently touches the edge of a petal, pushing the flower head toward the sun. “See?” he says. “After all that, it’s still alive.”

Garmadon stares at the delicate edges of the petal, smaller and more fragile than any of the buildings that crumbled beneath his rule. At Lloyd’s nod, he stretches his own fingers out toward it, his hand impossibly dark and calloused next to his son’s own small one. But he brushes his fingers over the petal edge nonetheless, almost surprised that it doesn’t decay beneath his touch. It’s soft, he notes, like the fragile skin of a newborn. Odd that it should’ve survived, out of everything else that perished.

“So it is,” he says, carefully. Lloyd says nothing, but there’s a ghost of a smile around his lips. They must make an odd sight, the pair of them crouched in the dirt in the recovering garden. There’s no use in sitting here and looking at the flower, no explanation Garmadon can offer himself, but he doesn’t leave. He can take the moment, he decides, to appreciate what Lloyd is trying to show him.

They too, after all, are still alive.

[life-rewritten]

1000 Stars Ep 1-6; Tian and the Consequences of past mistakes.

This has been long coming. I’ve just been very weirdly conflicted with writing about this show because I tend to find speaking about it for hours more appropriate. But because I didn’t have time to create a video focused on this topic, I decided to write it out the way I know how. First of all this has been just an insane experience, this show is... well how  can I describe it?  It’s incredible, and not like the oh this is really good incredible, I mean like it’s mind blowing how outstanding this show is, the fact that this show is the first Thai bl show of 2021 that was original is blowing my freaking mind, it’s put a standard to everything else, it’s standard is excellence, there is no mistake, no errors, no issues with this show unless you’re someone who loves to find something wrong about something. This  show is so inspirational, representative, deep, and important in this genre. First of all it’s a unique type of storyline, it has meta everywhere, it’s incredibly filled with dimensional characters that are so human and real and make mistakes but learn and grow, and it has an incredible realistic love story brewing. Like what else can you say about this show? The cinematography? Excellent. The directing. Even more great. The acting; So incredible. Everyone who has joined to make this show mean something, mean something to me. Because this show is now my hiding place, an escape from the realities of the world, and the grim aspects of life, a show that makes me learn about the value of life, the importance of love, and just the inspiration of finding meaning to who you are and why you should be here. This show is so incredibly written and planned with so much effort, direction and energy. If GMMTV can keep on with this energy with all their other BLS this year is going to the biggest, greatest breakthrough for this genre. This show makes my Fridays. And I wanted to first start with that because it’s hard to write thoughts about this show, because there’s so much to flesh out and explain, every scene, every dialogue, every thing means something to the overall story brewing, to the subtext hidden, to the themes and messages the show is trying to teach. Everything can be explained. And I think that’s so incredible.

 So what do we have in this essay then, we have a focus on Tian, and his actions from Ep 1-6, it’s incredible how our little sunshine is finally going through self discovery and finding who he’s meant to be, also it’s just amazing to see him find his soulmate through all of this; who just means so much to him and influences all of his greatest things in life. However this show toes between the line of a really sweet love story, with some humour, some laughter, some cheesiness and flirts but also a darker, sadder and realistic portrayal of some issues in the world, and also some parts of the human psyche that represents or relates to us in some way. Whether this show is about how easily depression can make us fall into this well of self hate, and self destruction, or make us forget the value of the people around us and the value of even our selves, or this show is a message and warning to consequences of recklessness, corruption and selfishness, this show has so much to say and show whilst still presenting it in a format that’s a BL; that’s still hopeful and beautiful and sweet. And how Backaof has gone and done this is incredible to me. This essay is going to be breaking down each of the hints and clues that point to the serious aspects of the show, what are we to expect? Why is this a repeated theme in the show, what does it mean for our characters, what does it mean for us? So Let’s break down the foreshadowings and clues to  the plot twists in the show that’s upcoming and how Backaof has laid a very meta plan for each of these clues to take place.

 Tian and The Consequences of The Past

Mostly episode 5 really is the episode where these clues are hidden in subtext. So much is troubling immediately we begin the episode. We start of with a realisation that we’re being bamboozled, the show is hiding information from us, it’s twisting our perspectives on certain storylines and there’s still truths that we need to unveil to piece together. The most important connection of this story is the demise and removal of Torfun. In fact her accident is the catalyst that causes this story to begin, she’s a guide to Tian to lead him to this new renewal of life, and purpose but also she’s the family and friend to many people who have been touched by her presence, she’s also the person connected to our love interest. In so many ways her demise means a lot to the plot of the story. And it’s shocking to think that there could be more to it. It’s not just this plot that is a convenience to the story, it means more, it’s connected to every single thread of the plot, connected to the love story brewing, because it’s her heart that’s being confused at first with Tian’s feelings, it’s her presence that’s being emphasised on with Tian’s guilt of replacing her, it’s her words that’s being valued by Tian to want to be better and do more for himself, but it’s her mystery that keeps us all on edge including Tian who is slowly unveiling memories that he doesn’t want to accept. It seems like deep down Tian knows something is of about Torfun’s accident, it’s like he can’t rest, he can’t help shake when he questions his flashbacks, his memories, there’s this desperate need for him to attempt to make it up to her, to ensure she’s happy and rested with her wishes coming through, it’s such a desperate need it drives him to self sacrificial methods, he completely leaves his own needs and care for her goal to be realised. 

And it is sweet but Tian is also someone who is incredibly hurt, and destructive, he’s been so pushed into this mindset of thinking he’s not worth it, his life is not worth it, his presence is not worth it. For so long he has been shackled by the idea of deth (wrong spelling on purpose) following him all around, one day he was meant to leave the world, unexpectedly, no hopes, no dreams, no freedom from this and so he became numb to this premise of life, of value, of self care. Tian is incredibly reckless and self destructive because he lost the meaning of why he should be self protective and self loving. And it breaks my heart everytime we have to relive or even remember his state of mind in the past episodes from 1-4. Now this begins to change once he settles and realises he has meaning, and he’s needed and he’s worthy. It starts to change when he realises he wants to be protected by the man he loves, it starts to change when he’s found something to protect, his new family, friends and lover. It starts to change when he also wants to make a difference and be of importance. So Tian is finally going through this self discovery of Purpose, Love and Happiness, which are all connected to this meaning of life, that he wanted to uncover when he read Torfun’s diary at first. But as much as he is on this path, he still has remnants of his mistakes and his past mindsets that prevent him from moving forward, it eats him up with guilt, it paralyses him with fear that one day he could lose it all, but also it makes him run into the claws of danger and deth time and time again. So Episode 5 really is a map of all the dangers that Tian has to get through, connected to his own faults, flaws and development needed to be unpacked to get to his destiny/fate with Pupha. These worries and foreshadowings show a grueling yet important journey to overcome, he needs to overcome his self doubt, his self hate, his numbness to life and his guilt and shame of the past. So Let’s analyse and break down these clues.

Consequences of Recklessness

Episode 5 starts with immediately a shift, it’s a plot twist to see that Tian didn’t faint. It’s odd for me to be watching this scene in the beginning and screaming Faint please faint, why isn’t he fainting. Immediately he stands up assures Tul he’ll be okay and then proceeds to discuss about his car as his baby and pride, you know it’s a problem. The emphasis of Tul feeling uneasy brings up this worry that Tian is about to attract trouble through his lack of care for himself, and his lack of value for others and things connected to him. This is the moment we’re hit with the wave of realisation that Tian may have to deal with the consequences of his recklessness, and that means that this event is connected to the source of everything the one thing we still have questions about; Torfun and her accident. And it’s a terrifying lesson don’t get me wrong, but it’s like Tian to be reckless, he’s reckless about everything, his life, his heart, his self, he’s just constantly putting himself at risk. 

Immediately he opens his mouth and pushes for an illegal car race, we know there’s going to be consequences, this is connected to how powerful he is, (they can close the road and cover up the truth), this is connected to how corrupted his background is as we’ve seen in episode 1, how little they value others for themselves, it’s connected to the ease and way he can be privileged and thrive of chaos and get unscathed whilst people like Torfun end up victims used and forgotten. Now I’m not saying Tian is the actual person who took Torfun’s life, although he does end up in possession of her heart, he doesn’t drive and I do believe he wasn’t the one in the car, maybe in the passenger seat next to the driver, or maybe hitting another car from behind that ran into her, or Tul managing to get him out of that situation before he could be the one who caused it. But it’s still his words, his actions that lead to this accident, and that’s a terrifying fact both he and the audience has to deal with.  And this is connected of the value of life and people and how this can be lost with recklessness, and corruption  and selfishness. 

Consequences of Evasion of the Truth

Tian literally had to evade and run away from this world to go to the village to find the real meaning but it doesn’t erase his past, he has to deal with that, and I do think he will think he’s the one who is the person at fault mostly because he’s starting to get flashbacks of that event, he knows he’s hiding a secret and It’s more than just the fact that Torfun gave him his heart, it’s because deep down he’s scared he was involved in that in a different way. And this leads to Pupha and his secrets, the way he was actively trying to conceal the truth in episode 5, because of his fear of losing it all, and hurting the person he loves. The fact he’s hiding secrets means that those secrets will come to light and we do see an example of this a bit less painful when Longtae stumbles on Torfun’s diary, this is still going to be happening because Pupha still needs to know the truth and the way Tian has covered up the secrets and truth for so long means there’s consequences to hiding the truth. 

This is also another theme of the show, connected to the fact that Torfun’s accident is being covered up as just that, connected to the fact that maybe Tian’s father and mother tried so hard to evade the truth and move on and pretend nothing happened, by selling the car and forcing Tian to not think about looking for her. That’s why it’s worrying because the parents are obstacles and in my opinion are also one of the hints episode 5 leaves for us the audience to notice. Already it’s uncommon to hear that Tian’s mum isn’t as worried about him in the village, when her love for him in episode 1 is suffocating and protective, she won’t be okay with his choice to be reckless, to push his heart, to come to a place with distance, and so it’s a red flag.

Consequences of Corruption and Power

It’s a warning, his parents are connected to a plot twist, they’re going to be an obstacle because they represent right now Corruption and Power. And the consequences of corruption and power removing the value of life is also shown in episode 6 when we see our villain Sakda. In fact it’s because Tian tries to evade Corruption that we see the value of all the villagers earnings, work, life, burn so cruelly at the end. Sakda’s cruelty has no bounds, he doesn’t take the people seriously; he sees them as liabilities, obstacles, unimportant, he doesn’t value them just like Torfun was also unvalued by her aunt because of money/recklessness and also probably by Tian’s family because of corruption and power. It’s all about the darkness of privilege; the very lesson Tian is learning about and also growing away from. Episode 1 shows the stain of corruption in Tian’s life, how it suffocates him and makes him feel unsafe and unhappy in his own home, how it shrouds him in the dark compared to Torfun who found light in Pu Phan Dao. And that wine stain on his chest that carves the same length and shape as his scar is a reminder that he’s been stained and affected by that Corruption. And that’s why he tries to escape and start anew. But there are consequences and lessons of forgiveness he needs to learn, a way to relearn about his own meaning and value but also a way forgive himself and Torfun to find peace with the truth unfolded. Okay so a bit dark but this is a theme, the way corruption and the rich and power don’t care about the value of life, even in Pu Phan dao, Phupha is tagged with protecting the home, the trees, the forest because they have value, but the rich come and poach and cut down the source for the people, they misuse and scam the people because they don’t know or treat what they do as valuable. That’s why Tian as he learns about value finds a way to help the villagers regain the value of their tea leaves and more, he adds innovation and a creativity to everything to make the villagers be strong enough to know their worth and yet the rich and the corrupt manage to burn it all down in episode 6. The theme is recurring; the question is how do we come out of it with forgiveness, peace and understanding.

 Consequences of Carelessness

I can talk about this theme and the value of life linked to this show for ever. But there’s more shown in episode 6 that hints at the worrying obstacles we still have to face. There’s Social media mentioned, Tian repeatedly warns Tul to not take a photo of him, he lies to Nam about his facebook and he finds Torfun through facebook in episode 1. He’s so desperate to hide his past and his truth that maybe that’s how some of the truth will be unveiled. Social media can be easily tracked if a person has it out for him, but also Tul takes a picture with him that holds such a warning to it, it just seems important to notice as well. Because it could be Sakda who unveils it but he’s also connected to so much more. 

His power also puts Phupha at risk, because Phupha is the one tasked with preventing these type of influences hurting the village. Phupha’s job requires his life to be at risk for the value of others, the people he deems family, and the place he deems home so his job is going to also lead to him being at odds with Sakda and his minions. Especially since we have seen how violent they can get, and in episode 1 we are shown a bunch of people who are currently a danger to the forest with one escaping and boss connected to them. That’s Sakda. So if Phupha has to stop Sakda his life may be in danger as he risks it for the village but also mostly Tian who is the target of them now. 

Again that’s the consequences of Tian’s recklessness because even though it was good for him to defend the village and do what’s right, he was warned repeatedly what it could bring. And it brings Phupha’s life in danger. Especially the foreshadowing with him running in episode 6 to bring out a symbol of Phupha’s presence in his life. His actions have unfortunately led to the endangerment of the one person he wants to protect more than himself. The one person who truly shows him the value of life. That’s why episode 5 jokinly repeats also warningly that Tian is a trouble magnet, it’s a joke because it seems him being reckless and attracted to trouble is not important because with his status and privilege he can come out unscathed, however it can lead to catalysts of drama and more pain in the future. Hence again the consequence of recklessness. Tian acts before he thinks, it’s a good and bad quality, first it leads to him being brave, being determined, being creative with how he tackles solutions, it comes to him immediately at the same time packed with his self destructive mindset, at times it leads to him causing trouble and harm. This is why I say another theme to his self acceptance journey is forgiveness this is not just him learning about the best things in life, it’s also about him embracing the mistakes of his past. Because it’s only if he learns, will he become his best self, the one that loves everything about himself, and the one that can move forward and heal past scars. Also because I’m sure people are like what about Torfun our victim essentially, I think Torfun is definitely making Tian also feel this uneasiness and determination to unfold the truth for peace, she gives him permission in the episode 1 for him to take over her heart, to take care of Pupha but probably also to take care of the village. I think she’s at peace but you know we’ll see if the show mentions her again in a different manner.

Consequences of Insecurity

But this brings us to the next obstacle mentioned in Episode 5: Torfun vs Tian. Head vs Heart. Especially also connected to Phupha. From episode 3-6, Pupha and Tian have given their hearts to each other, in subtext it’s really obvious they both know how they feel however it’s always distracted by insecurities, logic, and questions in their minds. There’s a lot in their heads they have to deal with that makes it hard for them to confess. Although Tian is basically still willing to fight over those thoughts and choose him and show him he’s open. This is why I don’t think Tian fully thinks it’s him behind Torfun’s incident, mostly because if he truly thought he was behind the car he won’t let Phupha near him. He won’t forgive himself to even let love in. So I think he has inklings something is not right but he pushes down and isn’t fully aware of what happened that night. But apart from those worries, there’s more things he and Pupha deal with that is hinted in episode 5 and we see is preventing both of them  just coming out and saying what they feel.

The things in Pupha’s head vs heart

The first worry which he kind of removes in episode 6 is distance. Phupha says it in episode 5, he doesn’t want to be the reason for why Tian stays in the village and not return back for his degree in college. He doesn’t want to hold Tian back though he’s worried that him returning means he won’t come back to the village. Infact Tian returning home has been Pupha’s biggest fear since he first met him, it’s why he teased him harshly each time he saw him pre ep 3, because he didn’t want him to leave so he always angered him and tested to see how determined he wanted to stay. Because of this looming distance/long distance relationship that could occur in the future, Pupha shies away with his other insecurities and prevents himself from confessing rather keeping their relationship in this unknown stage than facing the reality of what they are. He doesn’t want to get in the way of Tian’s potential, it’s obvious Tian is finding Purpose in the village as a teacher and helper but for Pupha where people of the village dream of going to the city to get their dreams, and live a better comfortable life it’s better for Tian who’s frail, and smart to go back and unveil his potential by staying in college for however long he has to.

 But also Pupha notices Tian is secretive. This is why although it seems Tian is open to him and obviously flirting and hinting at a way to elevate their status, Pupha shies away because he has insecurities, one he still doesn’t trust how Tian sees him, there’s this idea of him being different to Tian because of age, personality, and maybe even sexuality, and he worries about all of that, what if Tian is more matched with others his age, and finds more happiness and comfort with people who speak like him and act like him, what if Tian hates strict and moody people, what if Tian isn’t queer? These are the insecurities he battles with in his head even though his heart thinks Tian may reciprocate.

The things in Tian’s head vs heart

And we know the big one for Tian is Torfun. She’s Pupha’s prized, valuable connection, someone who really meant the world to him, someone he and the village is struggling to let go of. Tian feels like an impostor holding her heart, it fills him with guilt, shame, worry about him not being worthy enough to replace her, but also to help them deal with her demise. And For Pupha especially who doesn’t have a lot of family members; who cherishes every single thing as like the most important valuable thing, he doesn’t want him to be hurt with that realisation. He doesn’t want him to compare Tian with Torfun, he doesn’t want to always see the hurt in his eyes when he looks at Tian and misses her.  

It’s also the fact he’s been lying for so long, and so that worries him even more as days go by, because he lied (as his subconscious of Pupha told him in the dream In episode 4) it makes it worse, he should have just told them immediately to take away the betrayal and the hurt. So this is all also in his head. Before he accepted his sexuality he also questioned if it was her who loved Pupha not him. Because sometimes people say things to him that makes him feel again like she’s there controlling him, or changing him to become like her etc. It’s hard for him to not think there might be a chance he likes Pupha because it’s her not him. However the most important one is the guilt of holding her heart, of basically stealing her life, he basically took the guy she loves, the job she loves, the place she loves and replaced her. So he’s not really particularly comfortable with that truth; in fact this is the reason why he’s desperate to make her wish her come through to give her some sort of validation and make her still have meaning. To also ask for her forgiveness for being the one who took her heart. That’s why I think if he’s any way close to her demise as in the accident the guilt and determination to run to the cliff and just beg her for forgiveness is even more desperate and intense. That’s what I’m dreading. Because the journey to the cliff isn’t an easy one, and if Tian desperate and reckless runs away to go make it happen what happens to his already overworked heart?

Consequences of Deth

And that’s the last thing we really have to overcome in the show, the closeness and link to deth both our characters have, like it’s insane, Phupha’s life is constantly in danger, and episode 5 reminds us of the violence of people like Sakda he has to face. Meanwhile Tian is just close to it because of a chance of his rejection, luckily episode 6 reintroduces his medicine and now Nam knows the truth, his heart may finally be taken care of well, but there’s still a chance that he’s pushed it too far, there’s still a connection to his numbness of life, and his self destructive way he sees himself when he’s filled with guilt and pain. So there’s still this tangle with this, which is worrying as we saw in episode 5, his heart is pushed so many times over the limit and in episode 6 even more when he runs into the fire forgoing his own safety yet again. So that is important to note. However I think this is just probably going to be more of a warning for Pupha though Tian’s life is also endangered by Sakda since he’s a target so it’s both, they’re both again in danger of sacrificing themselves to help the other. This doesn’t mean a sad ending I don’t even worry about that, but it’s an obstacle, it’s a consequence of the themes of the show, and another lesson for Tian to learn and grow from.

The themes of Identity, Self love, Purpose and Renewal of the meaning of life all are lessons that Mr Tian needs to learn as he discovers himself through the show. However Tian’s past doesn’t just disappear as we see mechanisms and mindsets constructed from his past environment, situations and hurts can show up as consequences, but this doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world for our couple, in fact it’s opposite, it’s a healing message of embracing your past and healing your scars, and becoming a better person knowing you’re still worth everything good despite your mistakes if you’re willing to grow and change. Knowing actions have consequences but you have a chance to learn from them and grow. It’s a self acceptance and self-forgiving journey, to embracing your fate and finding the meaning of life again. So yes in this show there’s a reason for why the characters act the way they do, there’s a reason why Tian constantly puts himself in harms way, a reason for why Pupha is the opposite and is strict and filled with order to prevent recklessness, to protect the value of people, life and more. Both Tian and Pupha come into each other’s lives to offer perspective, to help each other grow, with making Pupha embrace vulnerability and weakness of himself, and to make Tian embrace meaning of life and purpose and love; all the things he thought he had lost. So yeh Episode 5 was a rollercoaster, I kept on smiling but then worrying each time below the surface another clue popped up showing we still have a lot of obstacles to deal with. But if we don’t have these obstacles then these real life messages and call outs won’t matter, we need to see the price of privilege, we need to see the consequence of recklessness, the selfishness of corruption and how it can bring  harm to others, we need to know why it’s important to value your self, and know your truth, and fall in love, So we’ll be fine, this show is incredible already and it deals with everything well. No matter what theories we have Backaof has a full map for how everything ties together in his head, how Tian deals with his guilt, how he confronts his parents, how he chooses Pupha overall, we’ll see it all unfold. It’d be a journey, sometimes painful but we’ll come out smiling. Anyway here’s the analysis of the consequences and dangers in the show. Let’s discuss? What are your theories? How do you feel about the show? Let me know. Ciao.

[knchins]

Heaven Sent, Hell Proof - Three

Summary: An angel named Keigo is assigned to win over the soul of a mysterious woman for heaven. He quickly finds that he is not the only one with his eyes on her. Can he get to her before his arch rival does?

Pairing: Angel!Hawks x Reader x Demon!Dabi

Rating: E+

Word Count: 4.4k

Warnings: Virginity loss, vaginal/anal fingering, vaginal/anal sex, oral (fem receiving), multiple orgasms, unprotected sex, double penetration, dubcon, very slight mention of noncon thoughts, some dirty talk ig, dabi's peen is pierced to hell and back, a bit of brat!hawks.....I think that's it.

Notes: Ahh it’s finally here! I’m surprised my estimate of 10k was correct. Usually I misjudge word count by like...a lot. Anyway, some mild warnings so please take care. Thank you for your patience! I wrote most of this in one sitting last night so I could get it out today. I’ll be working on chapter fics and my incubus!shouto request next!

Part One → Part Two →  Part Three

 “You’re going to what?” Keigo asked, sharp eyes wide and cheeks dusted a light shade of pink. The nephilim tucked into his side was suddenly torn between embarrassment and excitement. From the first time Dabi kabedonned her against the wall in the bookshop, she had been having fantasies about them both. The angel with how protective he was, the demon with his capacity for cruelty...Two very different sides of what was essentially the same coin.

 “Having sex will make you both impure. Feathers, you’ll lose your wings and our cute little halfing will no longer be a ward of heaven. She can seek refuge in hell with me and my company. I’m sure my captain will be very pleased to have her. She’ll be safe there from destruction, you both will be. You know outrunning my father is improbable. Outrunning her father? Impossible. You can’t beat Toshinori without a little help, and in order to get that help you need to fall, got it?” Dabi said, growing aggravated with him.

 Hawks looked down at the girl in his arms. Their eyes met and she nodded her head slowly. “Please, Keigo,” She murmured, “Do it for me?”

 He couldn’t deny the impure thoughts that had invaded his mind since he first met her. The animalistic drive to keep her safe and make her his. He had thought maybe he was getting sick (did angels get sick?). Perhaps this was his destiny. Maybe he was never meant to remain a servant of heaven. All he knew was his heart and soul were telling him to give in. Give in to temptation. Give in to sin.

 “Okay baby bird,” He said softly. So soft that Dabi could hardly hear him. “I’ll do it for you. But I get you first. He can wait his turn.”

 Dabi barked a laugh, “Oh, no no no. I’m going to take you while you take her. It only seems fair to get it done in one go, right? Why should I sit out while you two have your fun?”

 “There’s no way you’re fucking me, you half burnt freak!” Keigo snapped at him.

 “Sorry, but those are the rules. You gotta fuck a demon and I’m the only demon in this room. I promise I won’t make it hurt...much.” A cruel smile was twisted across his lips. “I’ll make you feel so good while inside that little cunt of hers. You’re going to go absolutely insane.”

 Keigo’s feathers were standing on edge as he glared at the patchwork demon. Maybe he hadn’t thought this through all the way. “Fine.”

 “Excellent, I’ll be right back.” Dabi said before disappearing with a loud pop.

 The angel looked down at her once more, “Are you certain about this? Once we start, I don’t think we can stop. Rather, I don’t think Dabi will stop until he’s had both of us.” He uncurled his wing from around her, giving her the chance to stand.

 She held out her hand to him, a smile on her face. “I want it to be you, Keigo.” She said confidently. “No one else.”

 With the help of her hand, he stood up and she led him into her bedroom. Once inside she pulled him in for a kiss. It was light at first, their lips barely pressing against one another, however the angel quickly took over. He hooked an arm around her waist, bringing her body flush against his as his tongue prodded at her lips for entry. Her mouth opened slightly and it snaked inside.

 Despite neither having kissed anyone before, they just did what felt natural. Keigo had spent thousands of years studying humans, watching over them, catching lovers together on more than one occasion. He had a little more of a grasp on what to do than she did. The nephilim was totally lost to instinct, allowing herself to feel nothing but her desire for him.

 The angel’s hands roamed up her shirt, lifting the fabric off of her with ease as she broke away from him and lifted her arms up to help. Before he could even admire the new flash of skin, his hands moved behind her to try and unclasp her bra. It should have been simple enough, but due to lack of experience he struggled until he heard soft giggles coming from her.

 “Let me.” She said gently, reaching behind her back with one hand and unhooking the metal fasteners. She slipped her arms out of it and let it fall to the floor without another thought. Keigo, whose face was alight with a pink blush from not being able to do something so simple, looked down at her bare chest. His cock stirred in his pants as he dared to reach out and touch the soft supple flesh.

 She shuddered at the caress of his cold hands. Her nipples hardened as his thumbs grazed over them. He was amazed by how incredibly soft they were, the flesh molding into his hands like clay. His ministrations coaxed a whimper from her, the sound sending a thrill straight to his groin.

 There was a sudden pop behind them, the half-angel squeaking as she tried to cover herself from the intruder. “Oh, don’t stop because of me, doll. I’m just here to supervise. I doubt Feathers here knows what he’s doing.”

 Hawks threw him a glare over his shoulder. “I’ve seen it enough times to know.”

 “Sure you have, but this is a virgin. You gotta be gentle the first time. Gotta prep that pussy so she doesn’t hurt as much. Unless, of course, you want it to hurt. In that case, dive right in.”

 A small frown tugged at Keigo’s lips. He didn’t want it to hurt. “What do I have to do then?” He asked begrudgingly.

 “Use your fingers first. Prep her like I’m prepping you.” He said and Keigo finally noticed that he had come back with a bottle of lubricant. “Just repeat after me and everyone will end up happy and covered in cum. But first, get naked. You’re taking too long.”

 Before the angel could say anything in response, the nephilim was taking off the rest of her clothes and laying down on the bed. Hawks honed in on her, drinking in her naked form as she spread her legs for him, her fingers brushing over her folds lightly.

 It was such a magnificent sight. He was lost in the beauty of it, only snapping out of it when Dabi tugged on his pants impatiently. Keigo swatted him off with one brilliant red wing before stripping himself of all of this clothing. He moved to settle between her legs, pulling her so that she was sitting on the edge of the bed. “Are you sure about this, baby bird?” He asked, eyes blinking slowly.

 She nodded, her thighs trembling with eagerness. They could hear Dabi taking off his clothes as well, as she caught a glimpse of something shiny. “Oh…” She muttered at the sight of the line of barbell piercings down the underside of his stiffening cock and the one slightly thicker one that ran vertically through the head.

 “Like what you see?” Dabi asked playfully as he stroked himself. Keigo dared to look back, his feathers fluffing up at the sight of the monstrosity that was the demon’s penis.

 “You are not putting that in me.” He snapped though Dabi shrugged in response.

 “Then your little baby bird will just have to be under my wing in hell. You can’t come unless you get rid of those.” Dabi replied, nodding towards his wings. “And you can only get rid of those if you let me fuck your tight little ass.”

 Hawks cursed under his breath as he heard his charge whimper. “Please, come with me.” She said in a soft voice as tears collected in the corners of her eyes.

 He kissed her thigh tenderly, earning another whimper from her. He gave her a soft smile. “I wouldn’t let you be alone with him.” He said, shooting another heated look at Dabi who was looking incredibly pleased with himself. He shrugged in response, not taking any offense. He was a demon after all.

 “Lick on her clit while you finger her.” Dabi instructed. “You do know where the clit is, don’t you?”

 “Of course I do!” Hawks snapped, using two fingers to spread her lips apart to look at the swelling nerve bundle. He leaned down and gave it a broad lick, causing her to gasp and moan. His wings puffed at the sound, pride filling his chest as he did it again and again. She put a hand on his head as he guided in his middle finger slowly into her pussy. Every time his tongue met her clit, her walls tensed around it.

 “You’re so soft down here, baby bird.” Hawks cooed at her. She was shaking and whimpering, trying to push his head back down. Dabi was laughing at the sight as he got down on his knees behind Keigo so that they were at a more equal height.

 He put a generous amount of lube onto his fingers, though he only inserted one at first. Keigo was grunting at the foreign sensation. He tried to move away from Dabi, but the demon gripped his hip firmly with his free hand. “You’ll be cumming in no time, trust me.” Dabi hissed in the angel’s ear. “Just concentrate on getting her pussy stretched out enough for this.” The hand on his hip moved to Keigo’s cock and gave it one slow stroke. It was enough to have Keigo’s hips jerking so he was humping Dabi’s hand, the finger in his ass almost forgotten. Dabi took the opportunity to slip in a second when he was distracted.

 The stretch caused a burning painful sensation that had Keigo tensing. He distracted himself by diving into his nephilim more, lapping and sucking and a more fervent pace than before. He mimicked Dabi by also adding a finger, though her arousal made it much less painful for her than it had been for him. He could still hear the tiny whimper of pain she let out when he did it.

 “Tell her how good she’s doing,” Dabi instructed, scissoring the fingers that were knuckle deep in Keigo’s hole.

 Keigo pulled his mouth away but continued to pump his fingers at a steady pace. “Look how well you’re taking my two fingers, baby bird.” He said, before planting another light kiss on her inner thigh. “It’ll feel good soon, I promise. I’m going to suck on this little clit until you can’t take it anymore, okay? No one will ever make you feel as good as I will.”

 Dabi snorted, wanting to say that he’d probably make her feel better, but chose not to at the last moment. “Damn Feathers, you’re tight ass is just sucking my fingers right in. Don’t tell me you’re actually enjoying me finger fucking you?” He asked with a wide grin. “I’m gonna go for three.”

 “What? No-!” Before Hawks could protest any more, Dabi was putting in a third finger and the angel let out a hybrid mix of a yelp of pain and a moan. He was pressing back against Dabi’s hand, his cock throbbing to be touched again as drops of precum bubbled on his head. The demon noticed this and put his hand back around him, spreading the fluid down his shaft with his thumb. Keigo’s body was moving without much thought, his hips rutting into Dabi’s hand, unable to hold back.

 Keigo found a spot inside her that was slightly spongier than the rest. When he probed it she cried out for him, nearly smothering him with her pussy as she forced him downwards. Not that Keigo minded, she tasted better than anything he could have possibly imagined. The flood of wetness on his fingers gave him the idea to slip in a third. It went with a little trouble and another whimper from his baby bird, but she didn’t protest much before she was moaning again.

 Dabi was keeping a firm grip of Keigo’s dick, jerking him while he continued to thrust forward and back, chasing the pleasures that both of the demon’s hands were giving him. He sucked hard on the nephilim’s clit, swirling his tongue around it quickly until her walls were fluttering with her very first orgasm. Tears were running down her face as he didn’t slow down or stop. The pace of his hips increased, his free hand grabbing Dabi’s wrist to hold his hand steady as he cursed and moaned, coming undone all over himself and the carpet beneath his knees.

 His cock remained hard and at attention, something he found a bit surprising. He looked down at the white gobs of semen peppered all over his lower body, half expecting himself to go limp like he had seen human males do time and time again.. “What? You did think you could just come once and have to recover like some weak human, did you?” Dabi asked condescendingly. “One time is never enough, trust me.”

 “I guess that’s a blessing.” Keigo said jokingly. “Do you think she’s ready?”

 “Oh yeah, look at her face, she totally wants you to stuff her tight little pussy full of that big hard cock of yours.” Dabi said, making her face heat with embarrassment.

 “T-That’s not true,” She mumbled, trying to hide her face with her hands so they couldn’t look at her.

 Dabi shrugged, “then I guess you can just lay there while i fuck you’re little boyfriend.”

 She whined in response, “No, p-please don’t leave me out..I want to cum again…”

 The demon laughed, taking his fingers out of Keigo’s ass finally. “You heard her, Bird Brain, fuck her little heart out.”

 Keigo got to his feet as she scooted back further onto the bed to make room for him. He grabbed both her thighs, keeping them spread nice and wide for him, the tip of his cock tapping her clit in a way that had her shaking with need. “Keigo,” She whined for him, reaching out to pull him down for a kiss.

 He obliged her, tongue entering her mouth as he guided himself to the entrance of her pussy. He hoped it was enough to distract her from the pain of him pushing in. Her nails dug into the skin of his biceps as he slowly entered into her virgin hole, the slick walls stretching to accommodate his size. More tears came out her eyes as he moved one thumb to lightly rub her clit to help ease the hurt she was in.

 “Once you're in, stay still.” Dabi warned as he opened the bottle of lube once more and squirted it onto his hard cock, rubbing it across every millimeter so that it would go in as easy as possible.

 “It’s so tight,” Keigo groaned, pulling out of the kiss as he bottomed out. “Fuck, I want to-”

 “Don’t.” Dabi cut him off, “Let her get used to you being inside first, look at her, she’s still crying over your cock splitting her open.” He said crudely as he grabbed Hawk’s hips. “Just like you’re about to do for me.”

 Keigo frowned, kissing at her salty tears as she whimpered for him. He asked her if she was okay in a soft voice and she nodded her head before forcing a weak smile. He was about to say something else when he felt the cold metal of Dabi’s piercing tease his ass.

 “Dabi, wait-” But the demon slid his head right on in. Hawks gasped, muscles clenching in an attempt to push him out. It only made the demon moan at the tight feeling around his sensitive head.

 Dabi took his time, also not really wanting to hurt the angel too much in the process. While he didn’t treat all his conquests with such politeness, he had a certain...connection to Keigo. They had been rivals for centuries. Now they were about to join sides. The sweet victory had him wanting to savor the moment, drag it out so to speak.

 Hawks stayed perfectly still, afraid of what might happen if he were to move. His baby bird was threading her fingers through his hair that was now damp with sweat. She was trying to calm him, let him know it was alright. His pain wouldn’t last just like hers wouldn’t. They’d both be feeling good soon.

 Once all the way in, Dabi relished in the tightness of Keigo’s ass. It was even more perfect that he’d thought it would be. To be fair he had indulged in a      lot     of anal since falling from heaven, but his was so far on a totally different level. Probably because he had never fucked an angel before. Something about their divine bodies just making them the perfect fuck toys. Maybe he should start corrupting more…

 He was almost lost in thought until the gentle roll of Hawk’s hips had all three of them moaning. Clearly he wasn’t feeling too bad if he was able to move like that. Dabi pulled out a few inches before thrusting back in, causing Keigo to do the same to the girl beneath him. He set the rhythm nice, slow, and deep. Allowing the two virgins to get used to the new full sensation they both were feeling.

 “Shit shit shit,” Keigo panted, already feeling his cock pulse with a premature orgasm. “Dabi’s cock is in my-” He couldn’t hold himself back from coating the inside of her pussy with his semen, thick spurts shooting into her womb.

 “You came already?” Dabi asked a sneer, “What a fucking slut. Guess I don’t have to be gentle with you then, huh?” He pulled almost all the way out before slamming back in, his once kind pace now anything but. His hands were gripping either side of Keigo’s hips, heating with fire to burn marks into the flesh.

 Keigo was in too much of a state of pure bliss to even cry out in pain. Dabi’s force had him fucking his little bird even deeper than before, his sensitive cock head touching her cervix as just the right angle to have her mewling for more.

 Hawks began to move in sync with Dabi, wanting her to feel as good as he did. Dabi was growling, adjusting his angle so that he was hitting Hawk’s prostate. It had Hawks practically sobbing from the simulation alone and he knew that if he kept up then he’d be adding even more mess into his poor girl’s pussy.

 “Rub her clit,” Dabi said and Keigo reached down to thumb at her clit once more. She gasped, another tight coil winding in the pit of her stomach. She was saying something unintelligible, something neither could decipher. In no time at all she was screaming for her angel, her walls convulsing around him as she came for a second time.

 Dabi was smirking, thoroughly enjoying the view in front of him, He increased his pace again as Hawks laid still on top of his girl, unable to move any more simply due to how overstimulated he was. Each time the demon hit his prostate, his toes would curl and he'd whimper until he just couldn’t take it anymore and was releasing within her once more.

 Dabi came with him, filling his asshole with white cum that dripped out around the base of his cock. “I hope you two aren’t spent yet.” He drawled, pulling out and admiring the gaping hole that slowly rescinded back to its normal size as more cum spilled out in the process. “I’ve still got to fuck you, princess. I only came once. It’s selfish to leave me high and dry like that. I want a taste of your ass too.”

 “M-my ass?” She stuttered with disbelief. “You won’t fit in there…” She mumbled weakly, looking at his still hard member.

 “Yes, I will.” He said, “Feathers, get out of that pussy we need to reposition.”

 Keigo was nuzzling her neck tiredly, not wanting to move away from the warmth of her body. “No, I’m comfortable.”

 The demon’s blue eyes narrowed and he grabbed a fistful of the angel’s hair, yanking him upwards and back so he slipped out and away from her all at once. The angel hissed at the cold air hitting his wet lower body. “Lay down on your back you dumb brat.” He said, releasing the man’s hair as he pushed him forwards onto the bed.

 Hawks landed next to his charge and all three of them noticed that his once red feathers were quickly turning black and shedding off. The floor to the room was already littered with so many, How could he not have even noticed what was happening? Pain at the sight of his crumbling wings soared through him as he desperately tried to reattach a fallen feather. “No, no, no-” He began to panic.

 “Relax.” Dabi said, somewhat coldly. “You’re not an angel anymore, Hawks. Let them go.” He had been so proud of his wings. They had been the most beautiful in all of heaven. With them went his pride and suddenly he was second guessing himself all over again. There were tears in his eyes at the loss of his limbs. Dabi thought he was being dramatic. The nephilim was brushing his tears away with a soft smile.

 “I’m sorry, Keigo,” She said quietly, “But your wings aren’t what make you, you. You don’t need them any more.” She sat up and moved to straddle him, moving her hips so she was grinding her hips along the underbelly of his cock. “I can make you feel good again. Please don’t cry.”

 He was whimpering for a whole new reason now, his dick throbbing with need once again. Christ how could it be so fucking painful to be so turned on? She grabbed the base of his penis and guided him into her still soaking folds. He slipped back into her with ease and this time there was very little pain on her end.

 That was until Dabi stuck two lubed up fingers impatiently into her ass. She cried out at him, not expecting it, clenching around Hawk’s cock in a way that had him crying out too. “If you move too much, it’ll hurt more.” Dabi said in a teasing voice as he moved his fingers in and out at an even pace. She shook on top of Keigo whimpering into his chest as he rubbed her back hoping to soothe her.

 “You’re an asshole.” He said to Dabi, not liking that he wasn’t being as gentle with her as he had been with him. But what could the demon say? They didn’t have the same kind of connection and he was ready to be balls deep inside someone again.

 “Is that so, Feathers? Oh guess I can’t call you that anymore.” Dabi replied as he added a third finger. She whined once more, though the searing pain was fading with every shallow thrust of the three digits inside her. It did help to have Keigo buried in her pussy, at least that was a nice distraction.

 Keigo was giving him a look that he wished he could smite the patchwork demon with. If he wasn’t inside of his cute little bird then he probably would have decked him. It didn’t help that his ass was still dripping with his cum from earlier.

 “Three fingers just like that, see doll? You can take my cock no problem. You’re even starting to enjoy it aren’t you? I bet you’re just another slutty angel like Keigo here.” He tore his fingers from her before replacing them with his penis, pushing in at a not so forgiving pace.

 This time hurt more than with Keigo, she thought regretfully to herself. She wished she could stop her body from wanting him, needing him to be plunged so deep inside. Both of them to their hilts and groaning at the feeling of their cocks being so close to touching.

 Dabi let out a content sigh, adjusting his footing, “Alright, Bird Brain, you can start moving.” He said as he gave a small thrust. “Fuck she’s squeezing me so tight, what about you?”

 “Yes,” Keigo responded airily, “She’s sucking me in more than she was last time. Guess she likes it up the ass too.”

 She shot him a pouty look as he grinned back at her, moving his hips upward. Both demon and angel fumbled to find a pace that worked for both of them, but when they did it was better than any kind of pleasure that heaven or hell could provide. Dabi left burning hand prints on her the same way he had left them on Keigo a few minutes prior, wanting to make sure everyone knew that they were both his.

 It didn’t take long for the pain to disappear. For her to be nothing than a moldable body of lust. A toy for them to please themselves with over and over. Oh she was going to have so much fun in hell with them, that she was sure of. The room was filled with moans, groans, and grunts as they all chased their highs by working together and by some sheer miracle all three hit their peaks at the exact same time.

 At that, both men finally lost their erections. Dabi pulled out, though he wasn’t quite as exhausted as they were, it had still taken a lot out of him. Keigo and the now half-fallen-angel were almost asleep already in each other’s arms. The bed was an absolute mess, full of cum and sweat.

 Dabi laid down on the bed with enough room for the nephilim to remove Keigo from within her and settle between them happily on a blanket of soft black feathers. It didn’t take much time before they were all sleeping peacefully. The hard part would come tomorrow however. The first descent into hell was always the most painful, but Dabi had refrained from telling them this. He thought perhaps it was better for them to experience it on their own without his help. After all, there had been no one there to help him. But at least then they could all be together for the rest of eternity. Away from heaven’s eyes and rule. And best of all, no one would have to die.

Masterlist || Request Rules

Tag List: @dabi-hates-fish, @hawksward, @httppariis, @kurinhimenezu, @sinclairsamess, @what-the-fucdge-rin​, @underratedmage, @whoreforfloral, @ozzy-bozzy, @sheedaabee​, @royal-after-dark​....I hope that’s everyone omg

[gofancyninjaworld]

OPM Mega review (chapters 131 - 148): Part 2  To the side, not the sidelines

A continuation of part 1 of the mega review.  This isn’t a narrative account, but rather a look at all the other groups and happenings around where the main battle is raging.

Heroism in all sizes

It’s like the end of the world.  City Z isn’t the first city to face near total devastation.  But City A was at least gone in a flash. People had almost no time to consider their imminent demise.  In City Z, the carnage has had time to build and to come from multiple directions.  From vampiric monster roots enveloping and sucking the lives out of inhabitants by the block. From powerful earthquakes splitting and even twisting the ground. From aerial bombardments of gigantic rubble and from the sea itself as the coastline is threatened by a chain of tsunamis.  Survivors aren’t bothering to try driving: it’s whatever you can carry as fast as you can.

Those who gave up their beds.  The Hero Hospital in City S has come to serve as an impromptu staging post for nearby heroes.  Like a middle finger stuck up at face of civilisation, the tower previously buried underground and its glowing red monster is just about visible from the hillsides of City S and draws heroes in like a beacon.  First Metal Bat,  then Mumen Rider, then the Tank Toppers, then the Blizzard Group, then all the other heroes hospitalised in the aftermath of either the Day of Chaos or Garou’s depredations discharge themselves against medical advice and run in to see who they can save.

just as well they all went -- the roads are so impassable and the situation so volatile that they’re literally the only rescue coming for hours if not days

Swept up in the mood, the martial artists were considering moving out too, only for Suiryu to pour cold water on the notion.  It has done me a world of good to see that Suiryu has been inspired by Max and Snek and not Saitama. He finally gets it that a hero is someone who has the courage to step into the path of danger because someone needs help, and not because they’re strong and think they’ll win.

No space for playing hero.  It’s very wise that Suiryu advised his fellow martial artists not to play hero.  If many have complained about how heroes seem to be blessed with life, no such protections are afforded to non-heroes. The people who went in alongside heroes have suffered grievously,  although those who have died did so bravely.

I have a one-person prayer circle going for Sekingar. I pray that ONE will choose to spare his fine non-hero one-eyed, single-handed ass.  I have come to like the guy and I’ve been impressed at how he has stayed calm when trapped in City Z,  succeeded in encouraging discouraged heroes and even asserting a genuine authority to guide Metal Bat and King. I don’t think there’s too many more like him in the executive of the Hero Association and think it’d be a shame if he didn’t bring his hard-won experiences back to guide them in what’s sure to be a crisis.

The king under the mountain

This arc has introduced us to a lot of concepts and players who are likely to have long-term effect on the world.  In this series of chapters, some of these ideas are developed further.

Came for the pussy, stayed for the tentacles. I’m sorry, I’m allowed one double entendre a week and I decided to curse you with it.  I wouldn’t have mentioned this but Drive Knight’s comings and goings are almost certainly going to be very plot-relevant later.   He was supposed to be gone with his prize of one Nyan, but then he saw the tower emerge and Psykos-Orochi wave tentacles skyward and as much as a cyborg with no discernable facial features can be said to yearn, he yearned. For a sample that is.

He stuck around as long as it took him to get a sample of Orochi and then he was gone, without so much as a ‘thank you for your help’.  At present, we’ll just have to see what this is all about later.

When the cat’s away the mice will play.  The only way to foment a world ending crisis is to have the guy who can squash it all and wonder what the fuss was about occupied elsewhere.  Through meeting Flashy Flash and getting a tour into the deepest reaches of the Monster Association thanks to Manako, and a couple of other things, Saitama is literally trapped in an alternative dimension. Although, being Saitama, if he felt a sense of urgency, he’d break back into the real world without a second thought.  Right now he’s curious,worried for his house, but mostly hungry.  Some curry would be nice.

The real question is how are the heroes going to hold out until Saitama arrives?  I’ve been touched by how genre-savvy Genos and King are about this. It’d be amusing if it weren’t so brutally true.

The formal establishment of extra-spatial dimensions as a feature not restricted to a few unusual individuals.   Phoenixman first got us learning about the idea of extra dimensions, in his case a private manifestation of his inner psyche.  Neither he nor Child Emperor physically moved.

Ninchirin introduces us to the idea of an extra-spatial dimension that physical objects can be stowed in and taken from.

But nothing takes it as far as ‘God’ with the existence of a pocket dimension with its own timeline that takes people in wholesale.  Whether a lot of time passes on the outside (as it does for Saitama and co) or no time passes (as it does for Psykos-Orochi) seems to depend on ‘His’ will. 

The formal establishment of ‘God’ as a singular being with a distinct personality.  Homeless Emperor first talked about ‘God’ as being a being who tasked him with eliminating humanity after he despaired of living as one.  Pyskos expands on that concept. She saw ‘God’ very differently, as a quasi-planetary being rather than as a vaguely humanoid one, but her experience of ‘Him’ as a being who bestowed power and a mission on her bears striking similarity to that of Homeless Emperor.

How people get to talk to ‘God’ becomes clear when we see Flashy Flash and Saitama accidentally summoning ‘Him’ via handling a box.  Which leads very naturally to elucidating some of the mystery of Blast. 

Finding out why Blast is still the number 1 hero.   If the likes of Tatsumaki leave us scratching our heads as to how any hero could outwork her in terms of facing monsters, Blast gives us an answer.  He specialises in dealing with non-physical threats, which he does by having some sort of dimension-hopping gizmo.  The black box he disposes of identical to that seen in Tatsumaki’s flashback, leading us naturally to think about what business the facility holding her was having with ‘Him.’   Webcomic readers see a gimme as well in the construction of the Ninja Village Flash hails from, along with Blast paying the ninjas a visit.

With Blast having taken Saitama and co out of reality, it’s going to be an unknown while before they pop back into it.

Sleeping is such a nice euphemism for dying

The principle of explosive growth through surviving situations that should have killed one is by this point a well-established mechanic within the story.  After seeing Phoenixman come back from the dead, it should perhaps not be a surprise to us that Orochi does the same.  In coming back, he’s evolved into a distributed form that can regrow after even extensive destruction and the consequences of his doing so are already covered in part 1 of this review.

Speaking of evolution, what about Garou? We left Garou buried under tons of rock in the wake of Tatsumaki lifting the base.  Yet again, he does not die -- thank you Darkshine for your anti blunt trauma vaccination -- and little by little, we see him dig himself out, and transforming himself as he goes as he dreams of a world in which he enforces peace but very unconventional means.

In retrospect, the sequence of Garou’s eyes closing in response to his humanising memory of Tareo is the most ominous as the eyes that open again have not a shred of humanity in them.

It reminds me a lot of what we saw happen to Gouketsu when the latter accepted a monster cell, his human eyes closing as a new set of monster ones opened.

At long last, Garou makes it back to the surface.  But what’s this?  Where’s the wise-cracking, judgemental little shit we love?  What is this near silent, befanged, clawed feral creature beating down on everything he sees? Oh dear.  He is not sleeping sweetly, dreaming pleasant dreams of a world perfectly obedient while he waits for the fist of some self-righteous prince to awaken him to his destiny.  Garou may perceive it as lapses in consciousness, but it’s the monster within eating him alive.  He’s dying. He is under real existential threat of being completely lost to monsterfication and how it is that he can save his humanity is a big point of interest. 

In his flawed way,  Bang is trying to get through to Garou.  I don’t hold out big prospects of him reaching him.  And if he does, I hold out even smaller prospects of him actually beating Garou.  Barring some interruption, we might be about to see the tragedy of a master beaten down by his student.

I’m going to leave this review here.  What comes next is all too soon going to change the status quo of the story, if not for the better, then certainly for the more eventful. 

[groovesnjams]

GROOVES n jamsS.O.T.Y. 2021 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 35 ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

“Blackest Crow” by The Body and BIG|BRAVE

MG:

This might be a highly idiosyncratic note-to-self, or perhaps you, too, struggle with language, genre, and history, the way the three intersect in inherently limiting ways and how to bend those limitations to our use. I think it’s a shame we still mostly think of folk music the way we did when Bob Dylan recorded his first album. By the time he was on the Rolling Thunder Revue he’d already been cast out as rock music and we’re still careful to draw those same strictures around more modern records. It doesn’t limit artists, but it does limit the way we think about these genres and how we listen to music. “Blackest Crow” is a traditional Appalachian folk song, but as performed by The Body and BIG|BRAVE, it’s industrial, full of sawing strings and a fade-out dirge jam. This is but a tiny drop of the perverse directions folk music could travel, taking the original folk recipe and making it just slightly unpleasant. 

Why do I care so much about new frontiers in folk music? Because as much as we’re told that oral traditions, parables, and standards are designed to be lost to time, inherently weaker than something more conceptual, like, say, cloud storage, it’s clear that these are still the guiding values of many communities and that as powerful as the internet is, as a tool and as a space, it lacks the permissive boundaries of folk storytelling. “Blackest Crow” is folk, I don’t have to strain to make my case when the material is this old, but I think we’ve also seen enough interpolation and sampling of the amen break to call it folk music, as well. I can imagine “Blackest Crow” playing at a particularly mournful 19th century wedding or solstice festival, something where a town gathered to formally dance. These events are still taking place, as Homecoming dances and as warehouse raves. Maybe the Cha Cha Slide is also folk music. Maybe a 4/4 beat is folk music.

DV:

I’m not the biggest fan of folk music except in the sense that I do strongly agree it’s a genre often constrained by its own self-imposed limitations, which to be fair is an issue for almost any classification system. What I like about this take on “Blackest Crow” is the way it reminds me about another drone: the one in The Beach Boys’ “Cabinessence”, a song about manifest destiny and logistics that also uses a crow as a measure of time and change. If we expand our definition of folk music to include any song with a crow in it, and why shouldn’t we, we find a folkloric relationship between the tale of loss in “Blackest Crow” and the way the enclosure of the American West - the railroads and farms and eventually highways - was its own kind of loss. These are songs bound together by their imaginings of what crows, the wisest (or at least cleverest) of birds, must know of the destruction humans can cause, whether personal or environmental or both. The seas may rage and burn, the meadows may be filled in with grain, but the crows will witness it all.

[witnessourescape]

On Omega's "failed messiah" symbolism

How can the murderer robot from outer space be something like a Messiah?

In this post, I'll take a look at Omega's design, Omega's themes and Omega's battles.

1. On Omega's designs:

First we must understand that FFXIV Omega's designs are full of angelic/divine symbolism, but it isn't something we normally see in-game as we're too worried about larboard/starboard to pay attention. They feature feathers and wings everywhere. I'll put some examples here.

(Look at the Ω on that forehead!)

The best, greatest design is Final Omega.

With its six arms and upper half that looks like a seated person, it reminds me of Avalokiteśvara, the Thousand-Armed and Thousand-Eyed Bodhisattva of mercy.

Final Omega features a three-part halo that unites to "download" its body, like the christian Holy Trinity that's both three persons and one person at the same time.

How can a being like Final Omega signify salvation?

Just look at how many robed hands are trying to climb its body! I love that tiny little hand under its chin :) It's something that we couldn't see normally but messing with the models allows us to.

So we have Beetle Form that is elegant, full of silver and black feathers; Omega-M and Omega-F feature feathers and wings on their designs, and Final Omega itself is a legit bodhisattva, almost drowning in the sea of people trying to climb it to safety. Final Omega's face has some kind of shellshock expression -- a thousand-yard stare in a serious face. It has seen a lot of suffering and it is swimming in a sea of suffering.

2. On Omega's musical themes:

I've talked about From the Heavens in a previous post. I'll do it again here, but first I want to say that the expression "from the heavens" can both mean "Omega crashing onto Hydaelyn" and "Jesus' Second Coming", which isn't a stretch because Omega declares its Second Coming in-game. I'll get to that soon.

First, we got From the Heavens:

Our shadows lost in light, this life A fleeting kiss Hark! Temptation rings! Virtue slips through hands a-clenching wicked fruit Passion festers, black’ning sinless souls to root Sink’neath dark waters Drink deep, we suffer Drowning, drowning, drowning, drowning Irons sundered Paradise plundered Come welcome this Come welcome this Destiny Virtue slips through hands a-clenching wicked fruit Passion festers, black’ning sinless souls to root Sickles grate on heaven’s gate their fields ignored Seeking sinners deathlessly they reap discord As two become one Here ends this, our journey Never-ending, onward march! Witness our escape This our escape, this our escape This our escape, this our escape This our escape, this our ascension

Which is clearly a description of a Calamity related to hubris, the "blackening of souls", sin, temptation, and so on. The people singing it attain ascension in the very end, eScaping from the calamity. Who are those people? Those shadowless people that lost their shadows in the light?

The most interesting part is that it's sung in first person plural, ends with an ascension, and then comes eScape, which is sung in first person singular:

A drifting tender Come ride, heroes, ride Her galleon severed Away with the tide The stormheads gather Come ride, heroes, ride Illusions scattered Away with the tide Why Do weathered warriors wander their way whither wanting wonders wait Hark the heralds, anchors aweigh! Hither happens mine escape Freedom forgone, sinking apace. Comets crumble, Phoebus fades Under cosmic clamor decayed, hides a path untaken Ancient echoes Come ride, heroes, ride In deafening silence Away with the tide A wave of hazard Come ride, heroes, ride A-whorling inward Away with the tide Time Stellar stories starward bestrewn, slipping sidewise, see, they're snakes Twixt the leaves you'll find naught amiss—missing aughts and crossing fates Freedom surgent shifting ahead, comets dancing in her wake To the cosmic clarion's accord, along the path not taken Try, dare the dead tread ahead on a road that is borrowed design, Through the sum of their sons do they seek tomorrow Tonight, witness then as the end shall begin what was final Their lies, folding back, further back, ever back to the primal

Most of it is Omega's -- the people who ascended in the end of From the Heavens? -- escaping from a calamity. The "mine escape" means it's Omega itself singing it. The last part takes a break from describing the escape and turns to tell about how the calamity was felt: the dead walking ahead on a road that is borrowed -- not theirs --, seeking "tomorrow" through their descendants.

The end begins what is final: the cycle of birth and destruction and the Alpha and the Omega.

Their lies -- whose lies? -- fold back to the beginning. Could it be the ones that also lied in Invincible?

Lasciate Ogne speranza These memories ache with the weight of fate Ever we fight Never we fly Ever we fall Forever we fall Now breathe deep of the darkness beneath the flood Where all of the proud angels drink to their deeds of blood Their lies, twisted and torn, into dreams they're spun Yet ever we still stand tall Invincible Never we fall

Now that we've seen that Omega is an angelic being/bodhisattva with a backstory of Calamities and of having failed to protect its people, let's go to what it says through its fights.

3. On Omega's battles

The arena for Alphascape 4.0 is called Creation, Omega does a Genesis imitation where it becomes man and woman from another one's image instead of creating them from its own image -- while constantly creating life during the raid series --, and Alphascape 3.0 (Savage) got some surreal name attacks such as MRV Missile Kyrios, Long Needle Kyrios, Wave Cannon Kyrios, Condensed Wave Canon Kyrios and Guided Missile Kyrios, all while in Pantokrator Mode.

Wikipedia: Kyrios appears about 700 times in the New Testament, usually referring to Jesus. Wikipedia: In Christian iconography, Christ Pantocrator (Greek: Χριστὸς Παντοκράτωρ)[1] is a specific depiction of Christ. Pantocrator or Pantokrator, usually translated as "Almighty" or "all-powerful", is derived from one of many names of God in Judaism.

In Alphascape 4.0 Savage, when it changes phases, Omega goes:

Omega: Experiment concluded. I am the Alpha. I am the Omega. Wikipedia: Alpha (Α or α) and omega (Ω or ω) are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, and a title of Christ and God in the Book of Revelation. Book of Revelation 22:13: I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

Omega's enrage in Alphascape 4.0 Savage is:

Omega: <blip> <bleeeeeep> Witness...my coming... I bring...reward...and retribution...for all! Book of Revelation 22:12: Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done.

The text in Japanese makes it even clearer that Omega is quoting the Book of Revelation:

A Japanese translation for Rev 22:13 and 22:13: 見よ、わたしはすぐに来る。報いを携えて来て、それぞれの行いに応じて報いる。わたしはアルファであり、オメガである。 Romaji: Mite yo, watashi wa sugu ni kuru. Mukui wo tazusaete kite, sorezore no okonai ni ōjite mukuiru. Watashi wa arufa de ari, omega de aru. Japanese text: ワタシはアルファであり、オメガである！/ ガガ……ガガガガガガ……見よ、ワタシはすぐに来る……！報いを……携え……それぞれに……報いを……！ Romaji: Watashi wa arufa de ari, omega de aru! / Gaga… gagagagaga… Mite yo, watashi wa sugu ni kiru! Mukui wo… tazusae… sorezore ni… mukui wo…! Direct translation: I am the Alpha and the Omega! / Gaga… gagagagaga… Behold, I come quickly! Rewards (direct object)… I bring… To all… Rewards (direct object)…! My translation: I am the Alpha and the Omega! / <blip><bleep>… And, behold, I come quickly! … And my reward… to give every man… shall be…! Official text: I am the Alpha. I am the Omega. <blip><bleeeeeep>Witness…my coming… I bring…reward…and retribution… for all!

Why is Omega literally Christ in the XIV universe, then?

If you look at my previous post, I theorize Omega was created to halt the Apocalypse. In a way, Omega sounds like a failed mechanic messiah: created as hope for its people, it failed to save them from not one but two calamities -- the Final Days themselves and the Sundering -- and ended up not even dying with them, but being one of the four survivors along with the three Unsundered: Elidibus, Emet-Selch and Lahabrea. Christ died for the sins of all humanity, came back to life, ascended to the heavens and made his second coming from the heavens; Omega at first ascended in a weird way -- two or more people becoming Omega, maybe, like sacrifices were required to summon Zodiark and Hydaelyn? --, and then did not die, and made its second coming for nothing, saving no one.

Or did it die in a way?

Why does Omega first appears before you as a rusty, old Level Checker? Like it was underwater for some time -- drowning, drowning, drowning, drowning; drink deep of the darkness beneath the flood --, like the First's Amaurot...?

Thanks for reading! :)