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soleilnmity · 1 year ago

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Doujinshi - [U.S.O (Tankinu Nagase/Shinshu Ueda)] Megami Ibunroku Persona/ Persona 2 dj assortment [RAW]

Titles: (Megami Ibunroku Persona) 阿頼耶DEGO (Alaya de Go), リバース (Reverse) , ゴーバッド (Go Bad) (Persona 2) BIG BAD BINGO, CARRY THAT WEIGHT!

Artist: タンキーヌ・ナガセ (Tankinu Nagase) [Shinshu Ueda's penname for doujinshi) Circle: U.S.O (For Megami Ibunroku doujinshi) ESTMA (For P2EP doujinshi) Google Drive link

Personal Notes: I always wanted to upload these doujinshi, but I usually refrain from posting pure raws because I want the translations too…Unfortunately, I cannot defeat my archenemesis </3 japanese handwriting, and Nagase/Shinshu's handwriting is very……..messy x_x. For some of these, I still want to try my hand at translating eventually, but it'll definitely take a while. I love translating little artist notes and there's a lot of those in every doujinshi so if I can't translate something absolutely fully I end up giving up orz. In any case, yes. These are doujinshi made by Shinshu Ueda under the name of Tankinu Nagase in their doujin circle U.S.O. There are 5 doujinshi attached, 3 for Megami Ibunroku Persona and 2 for Persona 2.

270823 Edit: リバース has now been fully translated! The gdrive has been updated to reflect that. Please thank @falsekaiba for the typesetting and translation! Really well made 🙏 it will also be found in Mangadex as well.

Under the cut are some small explanations for the others, but I'll go straight for the P2EP doujin for introduction, as I actually translated bits of that one.

Title: CARRY THAT WEIGHT! - Eternal Punishment focus (PG, small bits of Kandori mixed in with a Post-EP story) Original printing date: 2000/08/12

This is the only doujinshi of Tankinu that was published under a different circle than their usual "U.S.O.", called "ESTMA". I have never found any other doujinshi of them under this label, and if there were any, they might be lost to time. The first page warns about the book containing spoilers for the ending of EP, so it's advised to proceed with caution. After that, all the way up to page 7 there's small gag bits with Kandori, and an obligatory Naoya illustration (they really seems to like him so much ww). From page 8 to 23 is the actual story of the doujin, "Phantom Pain". FORTUNATELY, it was all written in computer text (not handwritten) and I thought it was such a good story, that I took the time to actually translate it at least. The pictures attached to this post are the translation of those pages. There might be some errors in some of the handwritten parts, but I hope I did well.

TL Notes: アンプ (Amplifier / Ampli), The change in fonts is supposed to represent that Eikichi is talking in english there in the original japanese (but that's hard to showcase to an english translation duh), I keep honorifics like Senpai and Aniki as-is.

I was surprised to know that these doujinshi were never talked about (nor were they ever scanned), but now they exist for all to see.

Now, for the rest of the doujinshi.

Title: Reverse/リバース - Naoya and Kandori (+misc) (PG, a bit of a general all-genre doujinshi mixing doodles for other games and a second half focusing on BAROQUE) Original printing date: 1997/12/28. 2nd reprint 1999/12/24. Has a small gag story called "Dead man's questions" about Kandori in a strange flashy outfit.

English Translated (Google Drive)

Title: Alaya de Go/ 阿頼耶DEGO - Shadow Naoya/Naoya (BL, not explicit but Naoya has (implied) sex with his shadow) Original printing date: 1997/12/28. 2nd reprint 1998/08/14. 3rd reprint 1999/05/03 Naoya is called "Isurugi Tatsuya" (岩動達弥) in this doujinshi.

Title: Go bad/ゴーバッド - Naoya/Hidehiko (BL, Naoya kisses Hidehiko. Seems to have crossover bits from BAROQUE, another ATLUS game Ueda/Nagase did doujinshi for) Original printing date: 1998/12/29. 2nd reprint 1999/05/03. Despite the cover being Naoya with a skirt, there's no crossdressing involved.

Title: BIG BAD BINGO - Innocent Sin focus (PG, done with collaboration with another artist which is Superunknown Corp's sho太郎/沢田翔) Original printing date: 1999/08/??

This doujin physically has Superunknown's side be printed downwards, so you have to flip the doujinshi to read their part which is pretty nice. Unfortunately this is the only one of U.S.O. doujinshi without an specific day of printing, just vague August 1999.

And that's pretty much what I can say for now, at least until when I get to translating some of these (and the folder will be updated accordingly when so)

Sorry, but I don't allow reposts of these scans unless it's with permission (specially not twitter gimmick accounts that are 'daily character accs', etc). However, if you want to translate these you can do that anytime even without my permission! As long as you credit me for the raws (and @ me while you're at it because I want to know...). You can also edit, crop, use them for avatars and whatnot, whatever you want, just that I specifically don't want the whole doujinshi reposted itself without my credit. Just that, sorry for what inconveniences it causes www

#megami ibunroku persona #persona 2 #p2is #p2ep #persona 2 innocent sin #persona 2 eternal punishment #revelations persona #tatsuya suou #katsuya suou #naoya toudou #takahisa kandori #hidehiko uesugi #doujinshi #doujinshi translation

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kaxtwenty · 3 months ago

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It's fun looking back on that original post now--two months later and having now completed both Iron-Blooded Orphans and The Witch from Mercury. I wanna say, "I didn't know what I was getting myself into," but that'd be a lie. I was expecting to watch a pair of space operas revolving around giant robots fighting with stories that would probably get me emotional. Both shows are generally well regarded so I expected them to be good going in. Suffice it to say they both still managed to exceed my expectations.

I firmly believe that these shows should be watched together. If you watch IBO, move on to WFM--if you watch WFM, go back to IBO. WFM very much feels written with IBO in mind (the similarities between the GUND Format and Alaya Vijnana System being the most obvious example of IBO's influence) and I feel that having the immediate context of one going into the other enhances your experience. WFM is IBO's little sister through and through and watching IBO before it made me appreciate the show (especially its ending) more than I would have otherwise.

If you wanna know which one's my favorite, it's Iron-Blooded Orphans. Largely because I love a good tragedy, but also because it felt more complete than its successor. It's kinda obvious in WFM season 2 that they wanted more episodes than they got and had to cram a lot near the end. I could especially feel this in the last 4-5 episodes. Was it bad? Hell no! But there were a lot of plot threads awkwardly left hanging and some others that were under-cooked or felt contrived (the Space Assembly League are painfully under-cooked). I feel like WFM needed at least one more season to reach its full potential, but what we got was still damn good and had me crying waaaaayyy more than I usually do watching television.

In summary uhhhhh...

Mobile Suit Gundam is really good and words cannot describe what these two kids mean to me.

I'm still letting G-Witch settle in my mind before I move on to the next Gundam show and while I know I should go back to the original and start my UC journey; y'know, to enrich my experience through the AUs and mecha anime as a whole...

There's still one other Gundam show I got unfinished business with...

#I've purchased 7 gunpla in the last 2 months I'm here to stay #mobile suit gundam #iron-blooded orphans #gundam ibo #the witch from mercury #g witch #mobile fighter g gundam #g gundam #gifs #mikazuki augus #suletta mercury #domon kasshu #meta #me rambles

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wordsandrobots · 6 months ago

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Huh. Actually -- since I'm stuff home sick and my brain refuses to shut up and let me sleep -- apropos of reblogging @superhelltubedotsys' post citing Barbatos Lupus Rex's status as a werewolf Gundam, I'm now thinking about the significance that has within Iron-Blooded Orphans (some spoilers follow).

Because Barbatos the demon has no association with wolves in the Ars Goetia. The nearest applicable part is "He giveth understanding of the singing of Birds, and of the Voices of other creatures, such as the barking of Dogs", which is fitting for Mikazuki and plays into the comparison between mobile armour Hashmal and a bird, but pointedly does not imply 'appears as a giant fuck-off wolf monster with a knife-tail'. That description would seem more appropriately applied to Amon, the immediately prior demon, number seven: "He appeareth like a Wolf with a Serpent’s tail, vomiting out of his mouth flames of fire . . ."

But of course, Gundam Barbatos' steady revision towards the Lupus Rex form is a drift away from its initial design. Exactly how much influence the Ars Goetia descriptions had on the Gundam project and how much they were just used as a naming convention is a little up in the air. Some do seem to be applicable (Zagan being a 'bull with gryphon wings', Flauros switching between the forms of a leopard and a man, etc.). Others . . . well, Bael is supposed to appear as either a toad, a cat, or a man, or all three at once, and while that has some applicability to McGillis' whole deal, it's not really a match for Gundam Bael's angelic form. Nor do the Gundam's abilities evoke demon!Bael's power to render someone invisible. However, I think we can safely conclude that, in-universe at least, the goetic demons are only pertinent to the Gundams' initial appearances and capabilities.

Barbatos' revisions throughout Season 1 are instead a gradual cannibalisation of various different sources of technology and weapons to get it back into fighting shape (Teiwaz technically restores it to its original appearance, but that doesn't last past the Dort arc; thereafter, we're back to bolting on any spare armour going). Barbatos Lupus then represents a significant step towards redefining it in line with the Chief's goal of creating an 'ultimate' version based on Mika's battle data, with Barbatos Lupus Rex being the end-point for that progression.

Put simply, Barbatos gradually becomes more and more tailored to Mikazuki, specifically. To digress for a moment, this forms a big part of my reasoning that Mika being able to use the katana properly at the climax of Season 1 represents the influence of Barbatos' original pilot; after this, he ditches that kind of weapon entirely. Even while fighting Hashmal, he reaches for the biggest club available (technically, a broad-sword, but so ridiculously huge nobody could call it a precision weapon). It's another interesting detail that Mika can't beat Ein in their final face-off by fighting like himself, which comes back around again as the back half of Season 2 kicks into gear.

Anyway, my point is this: being a werewolf is not inherently part of Barbatos' deal. Rather it represents Mikazuki's growing influence -- as you might thematically expect for a union with a character named after the moon (crescent moon, specifically, though I can't imagine the association wasn't intended given Tekkadan are wolf-coded in the text). And that's fascinating because as I've written about before, Barbatos and Mikazuki are the most blatant example of a devil's bargain in the show. The kid literally sells and arm and a leg (and an eye) for the power Barbatos can give him. And yet, the bestial aspects Barbatos takes on are rooted in Mika.

There's an echo of Gundam Wing's 'Gundams are a curse' refrain in IBO. These machines bring bad luck to everyone who pilots them, as a function of representing humanity subsumed by war. The inherent gamble of the Alaya-Vijnana, the overwhelming nature of the conflict they were built to end, the fact Gundams are never sufficient on their own to change the world -- it forms an unspoken counter-argument to McGillis' zealous faith in their status as symbols of transformation that is actually very in keeping with the demonological tradition from which they take their names. What they offer is costly and potentially damning, while also largely illusory when it comes to anything other than utter destruction. Indeed, Mikazuki is a living testament to how 'cursed' their pilots are.

It just happens that he was able to curse Barbatos back.

Because that's what Barbatos Lupus Rex is, isn't it? Put side by side with its original form, this is a clear degradation of a proud warrior into a savage beast. The same design elements persist, of course, yet by the end, it's near impossible to picture Barbatos as an elegant fighter making precision strikes with a honed sword. It has become a true berserker, tearing into its opponents with teeth and claws (well, claws and knife tail). As Tekkadan in general tend to, Mikazuki strips away the affectations of nobility and 'honourable' warfare in favour of brutal reality.

The detail of the Lupus Rex form merging parts of a mobile armour into a Gundam only heightens this. Weapons are weapons, whoever they serve and whatever guise they wear. Mikazuki is always honest about that. His awed response to Hashmal is of a piece with how easily he fits within Barbatos. He sees himself as equivalent to them -- has, in fact, constructed his entire identity around being so.

Thus, the lycanthropy he inflicts on Barbatos is of a kind that merely reveals the truth lurking under the skin. It was always an instrument of devastation. Now it looks the part.

#gundam iron blooded orphans #gundam ibo #tekketsu no orphans #g tekketsu #gundam #gundam barbatos #barbatos #more rambling #at some point I will get around to finishing that essay about the meaning of Gundams in this show #and putting that in context of the rest of the franchise

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katsona-the-katsequel · 6 months ago

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Status of Persona Users when SMT's Great Cataclysm was supposed to strike

The end of the world never came to this timeline, but if it had, would they have been prepared?

Legendary Persona User (and Lovecraftian cameo!) Randolph Carter is currently 118 years old. His incident with Nyarly already took place and he goes by Chandraputra.

Baofu and Kandori are 25 years old. Kandori has graduated from Oxford. Baofu still goes by Kaoru.

Katsuya is 20 years old. He has begun to study to become a police officer.

Ulala is 19 years old. Her friendship with Maya is recent.

Zenkichi is between 16 and 25 years old.

Maya is 16 years old. Her father died in the Soviet-Afghan War. She just returned to Sumaru for high school six months ago.

Yukki, Maki, Masao, Reiji, Eriko and Kei are 13 years old.

Naoya, Brown and Yuka are 12 years old. Hidehiko already earned his nickname. Kazuya died years ago.

Tatsuya is 11 years old. Has already taken somebody's eye out.

Jun and Lisa are 10 years old. The Alaya Shrine Incident took place some time ago, and Nyarly has taken Akinari Kashihara's place.

Eikichi is 9 years old.

Adachi is 8 years old.

Mitsuru, Shinjiro and Akihiko are 1 year old.

Yukari has just been born. Maybe Minato/Kotone has as well.

That's all of them. From this group, only Carter has fully awakened to his Persona, but has that entire "Nyarly fucked with me and now my mind is trapped" deal going on.

Maya and Tatsuya have also awakened but don't even know what a Persona is. Jun, Lisa, Eikichi, Katsuya, and (maybe?) Kaoru, Ulala and Kandori have already played the Persona Game, so they have the potential.

No wonder Persona Users are basically extinct in main Shin Megami Tensei.

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guujikaroko · 3 months ago

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It's Star Rail x Fate collab time (well, not really, it's gonna be next year) and apparently our beloved Faker has been summoned over by standard Heroic Spirit summoning? If it really turns out to be an actual storyline within the game, it would be nice if I could clear some doubts of Star Rail fans. So I'm explaining about how Servants work here and speculating a little about the plot!

So, the Nasuverse (the world where Fate and other works by Kinoko Nasu take place) is essentially a world where magic exists. To summarize how magic works in the Nasuverse, I'd put it this way: it's a force shaped by belief.

(P.S: you'll probably see the term "Magecraft" thrown around a lot instead of "Magic". That's because Magecraft is the name of Fate's main "power system", while Magic is a different thing.)

Human belief is a very powerful thing in Fate. So powerful, in fact, that humanity itself has a collective consciousness named Alaya, which operates with the objective of "perpetuating humanity", so to speak.

Alaya responds to humanity's beliefs. When someone gains notoriety, humanity believes in them, and when their life ends, they turn into a Heroic Spirit and get engraved into something called the Throne of Heroes, a sort of database of famous figures. Those figures can be summoned by Alaya to fight for humanity in times of need and they can be historical figures, legendary heroes or even literary characters. They don't even need to be fully human in the first place.

Here is the interesting thing: Heroic Spirits can also be summoned by mages through a ritual and become something like their familiar. A mage that summons a Heroic Spirit is called a Master and their summoned Heroic Spirit is called a Servant.

The summoning process can be random (like a gacha, lmao), but you can use an object as a catalyst to summon a Heroic Spirit of your choice. The more specific to a certain figure your catalyst is, the greater the chances of summoning that figure (for example, a piece of the Round Table can summon one of its knights, and a weapon or accessory belonging to one specific knight will summon that very same knight).

Now, you might be asking what is the motive behind summoning a Heroic Spirit? There are many, from personal gain to amassing forces to save the world, but the most famous use of a Servant would be participating in the Holy Grail War.

A Holy Grail in Fate is a massive core of magical energy that can have multiple uses. It also can grant wishes, but it's so double-edged that it lost that specific value over the years, lmao. Sometimes, mages will gather in a region and organize this large-scale ritual called the Holy Grail War, where seven or so Masters each summon their own Servants to battle it out for the right to make a wish to the Holy Grail. There are variations of this model and this shit almost never goes the way anyone wants to.

[P.S: Heroic Spirits are separated by Classes on the Throne of Heroes. Originally, there were only seven (Saber, Lancer, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, Berserker), but a lot more were added later. Conceptually, a Heroic Spirit is put into the Class that better represents their legend. In the game Fate/Grand Order, Classes are a Pokémon Type kind of mechanic.]

With all of that out of the way, I'd like to speculate on what is going to happen in this collab.

It seems that a Heroic Spirit has been summoned by a Nameless of the Astral Express. The description (tan, uses two swords) and the voice at the end belong to the one I'm going to call Archer (because I don't want to expose his identity shenanigans right now).

Now, let's answer the questions this left, starting by the "who". I'm betting the Master is the Trailblazer on pure vibes alone. The "how" is the tricky one: how the hell did the Trailblazer successfully perform a Servant summoning ritual, seemingly unaware at that?

Remember, Heroic Spirits can exist in this world because of human belief. And, as it may, Fate/Grand Order does have a story chapter in a world where Heroic Spirits couldn't be summoned because of a lack of belief from the population. It got resolved once people witnessed one Heroic Spirit perform an unbelievable act and began wishing for more heroes to appear. With that in mind, I wonder if they're going to work this sort of trigger into the story in Star Rail too.

Now, the more pressing matter is the "why", but that's actually easy to answer. The collab is with Fate/Stay Night, the visual novel that kickstarted it all, and the setting is a standard Holy Grail War. Which means: a Holy Grail War is happening in Star Rail and the Trailblazer might be one of the seven Masters selected to the ritual, which then led to Archer's summoning.

Yes, that might mean that other six Star Rail characters were selected to be the Masters of other six Stay Night Servants. Either that or the collab will also introduce the Stay Night Masters as well. There's also a Holy Grail on the loose somewhere, which is... Creepy as fuck? Someone get that thing dealt with, please?

#disclaimer: op is not a nasuverse know-it-all so feel free to correct me if i got something wrong #those who want to ask more about the nasuverse are also welcome to #but man this collab got me giddy #i want to have my kings on my acocunt so badly #i had neither in my fgo account it was a tragedy #and the idea of stelle and archer as a master-servant duo is just hilarious #honkai star rail #fate/stay night #nasuverse

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deyz · 6 months ago

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More screenshots of my Sweet & Sour save! 🍉💗

Alaya went to the club where she met a 4-star celebrity Tom Wordy, she was in a flirty mood so they became friends really quickly and she got another star! The next day after work, she decided to go to the club. JACKPOT. She met her favorite actor, a 5-star celebrity whom she has been following on social networks and has a crush on for a long time - Matthew Hamming oh the man you are... Alaya asked him for his autograph then he left lol not today Alaya maybe next time you get a chance to talk to him more👀. She didn't spent much time in the club that day, but she was so happy to meet her celebrity crush. The next day, while she was at work, she got an invitation to a party from Richie Striker, she went to that party and… SHE MET MATTHEW THERE. She quickly struck up a conversation with him and they are now "best friends" and she's a 3-star celebrity now, but of course Alaya wants more... SHE WANTS THIS MAN TO BE WITH HER for popularity and not only…🤭 Alaya is the GREEDY ONE so she got a wish to kiss both Matthew and Richie 😂. Richie was the one who started it actually 👀 he asked her to watch the stars together WHILE HIS WIFE WAS ASLEEP. Well that's pretty much it! I actually have more but that will be in another post soon 😂 Thank you all for your likes and reposts, I really appreciate it ❤️ Until next time <3

#sims 3 legacy #sims 3 #sims 3 screenshots #ts3 #sweet&sourlegacy #ts3 screenshots #ts3 house #ts3 simblr #sims 3 simblr #simblr

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e17omm · 1 year ago

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(Is this called post hijacking?) This is why Elysia wont have any big part in my Snippets AU and, at most, will only show up in two chapters; when Mobius went to the ER, and when Hua/HoS went in there. And she will basically just say "hi" or have a small chat.

Because the rest of her does not matter. The only important part of Elysia's character is that she did something to make the CE Herrschers retain some humanity (I think? That's what Im going with), and thats it. Because everything else is, as you said, "she's so flawless!"

How she died isnt important. Understanding her doesnt mean anything. Because they both lead to "Elysia is a perfect human" (which is about as inhuman as you can get. Writers didnt think that through). The only important part is that she's the 13th Herrscher of Humanity and she did something to have the CE Herrschers have some humanity too. (I think)

Is it okay to ask why you don't like Elysia? Personally I don't really like her because she's a walking massive retcon who also undermined the efforts Herrscher of Reason made to rebel from the Will of Honkai

I love being asked why I hate elysia, it's like people falling for my infodump trap

so basically, first off her overfriendliness and ignorance of one's boundaries. that damn horn touching scene sickens me to no end, and even more the dialogue after that with raven joking out it while mei wants her not to talk about it. and elysia having the greatest fucking idea of announcing her success in crossing mei's boundaries via megaphone? dude, what the fuck. like, keep it to yourself. the only reason mei didn't kill her that time was because writers didn't want her to

second off it's her constant idealisation. wherever you see or go she's described as "flawless". flawlessness seems to be her only trait. okay, we got it first time, she's pink jesus so fucking flawless and beautiful and everyone loves her and trees are fucking singing for her like for a damn disney princess. y'know, in my discord server we had a talk about the whole lesbian jesus thing and we came to conclusion that elysia is what christians imagine jesus to be like and kallen is what jesus was more like. failed writing very much

speaking of writing, she seems to drain good writing out of everyone she's around. flamechasers have varying opinions about her, from love to hatred and distrust, but when she was about to sacrifice herself everyone was suddenly like "omg elysia so cool", even kalpas and mobius who are the most known for not liking her. I don't even fucking know what happened to mei, beside good writing she seems to have drained her off brain cells. what does herrscher of origin even do, what are its powers? if they don't plan on elaborating on that part before moving on to apho, I... it's just such lazy writing that tries to pass as some pseudo-wisdom. the answers mei came after to elysian realm? what answers, there's that pink elf and that's all that matters

another reason her writing is questionable is like,, she's said to have done something before current era started that was supposed to make CE herrschers docile, no? seems like mihoyo didn't think that one thoroughly because current era very much still had hostile herrschers. great retcon mihoyo, the plot has as many holes as roads in poland

#ill probably be retconning a lot of elysia in snippets as well #like. have her share traits to alaya or gaia in fate #gaia being the will of the planet to survive #alaya being the collective unconsciousness of humanity to avoid extinction #basically have snippets elysia be like an avatar of that or something #and thats why humanity keeps popping up on this world despite honkai causing them to go extinct #and one time have it produce an avatar of origin and thats elysia #maybe? idk im just rambling at this point #either way she wont show up in more than two chapters #both being in ER

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teecupangel · 9 months ago

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Hi Teecup!

I hate to add to your pile of asks, but I've just started watching Star Trek TNG and it made me wonder... what about a AssCreed × Star Trek crossover?

To be more precise, the kind of crossover I'm thinking of is one where we take the characters of AC and mix them with the premise of Star Trek, so everyone is hanging out on a starship and getting dragged into random adventures on a weekly basis.

We can separate the Assassins and Templars into Starfleet and Romulans if we want to keep the fight between the two going, though I'm actually more interested in seeing a situation where there is no reason to fight so those factions no longer exist, and everyone is allowed to interact and make friends with whoever they wish.

Also since I want to keep the joke of isekai protagonist Desmond going, maybe he gets transported into this parallel universe after dying and finds himself face to face with the Star Trek versions of all his ancestors, as well as... himself?

As long as you don't mind the long wait to get to your asks, just pile them in my asks hahahaha

We do have this Q is Desmond’s real father idea before because William Miles’s voice actor played Q and that includes Desmond getting sent to Stark Trek ‘verse.

So for this one, we’re going for AC cast in Star Trek but with the caveat that Desmond gets transported there from his previous world just to annoy him (and probably save his life but he can never be sure about that)

For this one, I like the idea that the Templars and Assassins have finally buried the hatchet because one of the main point of Star Trek (especially the early ones) is that humanity managed to unite. Of course, we can still make some of the Templars Romulans if we want to preserve the ‘antagonist’ route but imagine Desmond’s “????” whenever he learns that Templars he knew as super bad news have formed relationships with the Assassins ranging from “I don’t want to ally with them but they’re good at their job” to “besties!”

Desmond would feel a bit weirded out when Ezio just sigh when he learned they would be allying with a ship that has Cesare Borgia as a high ranking officer. He knows that Cesare’s probably on their side but he’s curious why Ezio looked less like he wants to kill him and more like he’s already tired just thinking about dealing with him.

Then he learned the reason why Ezio looked like that.

‘Allegedly’, Ezio slept with Cesare’s sister, Lucrezia Borgia during one of their downtime in the Borgia’s home planet. And nooooo, this wasn’t a case of “You fucked my sister, you must die!” revenge story. That would not have been complicated enough for Ezio’s messy love life. The problem was… Cesare didn’t get to join Ezio and his sister. Yeah, that’s it. Cesare wasn’t angry at Ezio. He was trying to get in Ezio’s pants (“Of course, we’ll invite my sister”) and Ezio is just… he’s done. He’s soooo done with everything. Fuck being the primary communication liaison of the crew. He’s gonna hide in his room and call his BFF back in his homeplanet (there’s a bet going on if said BFF was “the one who got away” – No that was his childhood sweetheart Cristina- or the “he doesn’t know he’s in love with his BFF or vice versa”)

My primary idea for the crew and a little bit of sprinkled lore:

The name of the ship would probably be Aquila to hammer in the bird motif. Another sorta weird names would be names used to talk about a group of eagles like convocation or eyrie or aerie. Or just go for Alamut which some call “Nest of Eagles”.

Edward Kenway is the Captain. He can be Haytham’s father and Ratonhnhaké:ton’s grandfather, a humanoid with long life and a thirst for adventure. In this life, he’s drinking buddies with Alaya and is also friends with Roberts. To make it funnier, he’s actually John Standish’s godfather (who is the son of Roberts and Haytham’s childhood friend)

Haytham is the First Officer because the entire crew (including his father) lives to make his life stressful. He’s married to Kaniehtí:io and their eldest joined the crew. There’s joke of nepotism because of this but it’s all said in a teasing manner because the Kenway men gets the job done. He trained Charles Lee (and the rest of his Templar Order) when they were fresh new ‘graduates’ so they like to call him Master Kenway.

Ratonhnhaké:ton is the Navigator and is being trained to be the Helmsman by the current Helmsman Adéwalé. He can usually be found talking to Ezio or Aveline. He’s really good at combat so he mostly join offworld missions which is why…

Aveline is the second Navigator in case Ratonhnhaké:ton is offworld. She’s also their offworld liaison if Ezio is not available. Sometimes, she also takes over the Communications Officer’s jobs. The crew is not entirely sure what her actual job is??? (Her parents divorced and her mother is alive. She and her stepmother are close as well and her stepmother is the Captain of another ship)

Adéwalé is the Helmsman and he had been ‘sailing’ with Edward for so long that Edward rarely had to give specific orders. Adéwalé is already doing what Edward wanted. It gives Haytham a headache because ‘communication’ is important, especially for reports and such. Adéwalé takes Ratonhnhaké:ton under his wing and Ratonhnhaké:ton calls him Uncle Ade.

The Science (technically called Research and Development Department) Division is under Altaïr’s complete control and no Kenway can go against him. He wants to go offworld to research one thing or another, he’s joining the offworld team. He wants them to take a pit stop in one of the colonies or world for materials or something, the ship would change course. Desmond didn’t even question it when he heard of it. He just said “… yeah, that sounds about right.” and moved along. The funny thing? Altaïr isn’t the Chief Science Officer. That’s the long suffering Malik Al-Sayf. Altaïr’s official position is “Second Officer”. He has an academic rivalry going on with Robert de Sablé and he still sends letter to his grandfather who is a high ranking government official of the United Federations of Planet.

Ezio is the Chief Communications Officer and he’s always part of the offworld teams (unless something comes up). He comes from a long line of Starfleet officers. His siblings are stationed in other ships and his father is a member of the United Federations of Planet.

Shay is the Security Chief and it is the second most stressful job (after Haytham) trying to keep the peace and order of the ship (okay, that’s an exaggeration). Most of the time, he just makes sure everyone is okay and safe whenever shit hits the fan. He’s pretty chill and is Haytham’s drinking buddy. He still writes to his mentor Achilles who taught him everything and to his childhood friend who joined another ship Liam.

Arno is part of the Chief Tactical Officer and he has a close professional relationship with Evie and Altaïr mainly because those two takes care of weapon upgrade… and other… uuuhh… ‘stuff’ their missions might need. He has a fiancee who is a high ranking officer of Starfleet.

Evie is the Chief Engineering Officer and is Altaïr’s number one supporter. Edward once joked that if Altaïr was to mutiny, they would be fucked because Evie would be first in line in shutting down all the engines and any security procotol they have in place. Ezio would like to stress it was more of a ‘mentor and student’ kind of thing. Desmond learned that Altaïr also had his hands on the Engineering Department and is like “yeah, that tracks too.” Evie has a rivalry going on with Lucy Thorne and her twin would just comment that they should sleep together once and get it over with.

Jacob is usually the captain of the offworld team unless a higher ranking officer joins then he’s the vice-captain. Close to Arno because he’s always asking for new ‘toys’ to play with. May or may not have a son who may or may not be adopted called Jack. The crew isn’t sure if he’s Jacob’s son or his protege.

I’m missing a few more main characters and the modern day characters so uuuhh… they’re there, I just couldn’t think of a position for them XD.

(I kept their species vague so you can make them any race you want. I will suggest that Altaïr be half-Vulcan though because he feels very Vulcan-ish but, honestly, pick whichever feels right for you or what would make you go “you know what would be fun”? XD)

#isus are q's species in this one i guess?#oh god now i have to tag everyone XD #ask and answer #teecup writes/has a plot #fic idea: assassin's creed #assassin's creed #desmond miles #altaïr ibn la'ahad #ezio auditore #ratonhnhaké:ton #connor kenway #haytham kenway #edward kenway #adewale #aveline de grandpre #shay cormac #arno dorian #jacob frye #evie frye

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roboyomo · 1 month ago

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Hello yes throwing ✨ at All. woe

oKAY HAIII I HAVE BEEN AWOKEN FROM MY SLUMBER.

✨- How did you come up with the OC’s name?

FOR ALL 30+ BEASTS???? okay boss!! o7

Ephai / Prometheus - Ephai was named that because i have been searching for names. Yeah the name itself didn't just appear in my head. but their nickname 'Prometheus" did!! I knew the word but never actually knew the origin so i looked it up. Lo and behold, the Implications (tm) (Prometheus is best known for defying the Olympian gods by taking fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, knowledge and, more generally, civilization.) Well uhm. What do they mean by that

Yi Ha-neul and Yi Ae-ra - Again. I have been researching about how the korean naming system works to make sure that the names would be correct. I didn't wanna butcher them,,,,

B7E - I saw it a few years ago,,, and loved the idea of a name made out of uppercase letters and numbers,,, uooouu,,

Yi Dal (Ken and Kenix) - Yeah again. Researched to come up with Yi Dal for these two. But fun fact it was Kenix who originally was named Ken because Ken, at the time of 2021, didn't exist! Later on, lore-wise Kenix is called Kenix only because in the early story, he used to sign off as "Ken IX" for no particular reason (it was a roman numeral he signed off as Ken's name + both his birthay and his own death month. Why the hell would you do that) but others just didn't respect him nearly enough to actually read the IX as a number so they just added it to his name. Boom, you get Kenix. Yeahg

Okazaki Yaku, Xu An, Tao Yuqi, Liliosa, Alaya, Azrael, Artemis/Sora, Maude, Aridam, Achlys, Nahara - These guysies, again, had their names researched. Basically almost everyone on this list had their names researched before i have decided to pick them

Amor and Apollo - OKAY i just wanted new names for them and i just remembered these names. However Apollo'sdoes have at leeast some degree of Implications and possibly Amor's so ???

Rosemary - I just liked the name. Beautiful woman with a plant name :]

Alionora and Ruby - okay so they are part of the trio of characters based off my bestfriends! :] which is why we went with names related to them (Alionora is a modified version of the name and Ruby is the name of the other friend's cat cuz kitties ^_^)

Aileth - The last one of the trio previously mentioned. This time, the name has been found through googling and figuring out which name both of us liked

Kamaria and Inzhu - THE TWIN GIRLIES!!! Wanted to rename them based on their nationality (that i projected onto them) and so i picked Kamaria and Inzhu because i liked them and Inzhu meant Pearl :)

Jef - There is no reason actually. I just liked it and so i gave it to the 8 yr old child. Shrimple as that ^_^

Agatha - because. Agatha from Dark Deception. I named her that back in my severe DD obsession ehfjehdejeh

Arai/Erebus and Inspiration - ??? Bro i have no idea how i get their names. Just these unknown eldritch horror beings with (random) names.

Nemesis, Yakov, Yuriy, Eda, Rina - I just. Felt like it. Remembered the names and decided "Hm yeah you guys are getting named this now"

OKAY I THINK I DIDN'T FORGET ANYONE??????? IF ANYTHING I'LL UPDATE THIS LATER

#THIS TOOK A WHILE. YEAHG #anyways all beasts had their names revealed haiii ^_^#yomoasks #yomo ocs?!

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bookishfeylin · 2 years ago

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Black Fantasy TBR Part 1

It's taking so long to compile all my books that I might as well release my tbr one portion at a time. This isn't really that organized, but here's the first part of my fantasy (and a little bit of scifi) tbr listed out for people who are curious and/or want to see more fantasy books with Black protagonists:

The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton

Nubia: The Awakening by Omar Epps and Clarence A. Haynes

A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow

Abengoni: First Calling by Charles R. Saunders

Across the Broken Tide by Lakase Cousino

Iron Cast by Destiny Soria

That Self-Same Metal by Brittany N. Williams

Kingdom of Feathers by Deborah Grace White

Priestess of nKu by Milton J Davis

Promise of Shadows by Justina Ireland

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson

Queen of Zazzau by J.S. Emuakpor

Elysium by Nora Sakavic

Daughters of Jubilation by Kara Lee Corthron

Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu

Dream Country by Ashaye Brown

The Reluctant Sacrifice by Kerr-Ann Dempster

She Steals Justice by J. Clark

Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen

Queen of the Conquered by Kacen Callender

The Hope of Aferi: The Wolf Queen by Cerece Rennie Murphy

A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy

The Blazing Star by Imani Josey

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne Brown

Bones to the Wind by Tatiana Obey

Treachery of Water by Angela J. Ford

Wings of Ebony by J. Elle

Beautiful Nightmare by L.C. Son

Conquest by Celeste Harte

Blood Scion by Deborah Falaye

The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin

Magic Dark, Magic Divine by A.J. Locke

Shadow's Dissident by Ariel Paiement

War Girls by Tochi Onyebuchi

Mirage by Somaiya Daud

A Conspiracy of Stars by Olivia A. Cole

This was mostly stand-alones and duologies, so the next part of my tbr should be mostly trilogies and longer series.

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miraculousbumbble · 10 months ago

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Alya, talking into the Dupain-Cheng's Ring doorbell: Marinette you gotta stop texting me off your ring, I can never tell what your trying to say.

Alya: you texted me and said, 'bring some queer'.

Alaya: I'm assuming you meant, bring beer but just in case I brought Adrien.

Adrien, popping out from behind Alya: What? I'm not gay?

Alya: dude what? Yes you are.

Adrien: You guys always joke about that, but I swear-

Alya: well then I don't need yah!

Adrien: I walked here with you, what am I supposed to do?

Alya: oh my God

Alya, violently knocking on the door: Marinette answer the door!

#miraculous ladybug #alya cesaire #miraculous alya #adrien #miraculous adrien #adrien agreste #miraculous incorrect quotes

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gremoria411 · 1 year ago

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Fuck it, it’s been out for….. however many days now, let’s talk about the Gundam Murmur.

Gonna be discussing the design and sorta just general implications of its existence (like I did a little with the Haagenti and Rustal).

Design-wise, gorgeous. I love how unique it looks compared to units that came before it, while still retaining enough Gundam-like features to not look too out of place. It is, I suppose, the limit of the Gundam’s human-centric design (watch something else come out that just blows this out of the water), especially since it’s primary weapons (the Surgical Feathers) are controlled via remote (through Alaya-Vijinana). It makes sense as a weapon system, since it seems to be designed to overwhelm a Mobile Armour from range. The form and flowing armour I find quite pleasing - I’d like to assume the engraving was added postwar (particularly since the Fareed’s are part of the Seven Stars), but I’ve absolutely nothing to back that up with. I did think that given the nature of its weapons systems, it’s possible that it relied on a lot of other units (like Hugo’s or Rodi’s) to tie up enemy mobile armours until it could strike the killing blow, so perhaps they’re there to inspire its vassals? Then again, the surgical stylings of its equipment seem to be pointing in a different direction.

I’ve seen a lot of comparisons going around with the Qubeley, because of the flowing nature of its armour, but I honestly associate it more with the Gundam Harute (Final Battle ver.), likely due to the skirt, back weapons and orange colouration. I do have a fondness for the head - it feels quite removed from the typical design, thanks to its large shape, but it retains the key features (twin-eye, “horns”, faceplate). It could even be said that the both have a significant compliment of ranged weaponry, since the Harute has Scissor Fangs. I do like how it’s upper half seems rather lightly armoured, since it makes it seem mobile and able to fight with its surgical knives - too much armour would make it’s mobility less believable, so it’s a nice touch. I generally like skirts on mobile suits (a good example off the top of my head would be the Xamel), so Murmur going the whole hog with a dress and a bunch of knives is just wonderful.

Alrighty, so I mentioned way, waaaaay back when talking about the Haagenti that it’d be interesting to see what the other Seven Stars Gundams are that remain in Vingolf along with Bael (barring Kimaris, obviously)

(Which is a thought. Wonder how Kimaris’ loss was covered up. It’s all very well saying Gaelio died at Edmonton, but surely you’d at least recover the Gundam frame. Supposedly the official records were doctored to say that the Kimaris had been returned, but I feel like someone should’ve at least checked if it’d been returned.) (Hm. Though now I am imagining Rustal just swapping the armour onto Haagenti and then smuggling it into the Baudin’s vault, which is fun).

Anyway, we now have the Fareed and Kujan Family Gundam’s leaving only the Baklazan and Issue families to go (I’ve been seeing some theories floating around regarding the Issue family Gundam, so it’ll be interesting to see how accurate they are). So, to recap, there’s 8 Gundam frames in Vingolf (unless House Baklazan’s missing theirs or something) of the 26 confirmed to still be in existence at the start of Iron Blooded Orphans in P.D. 323 (though we don’t know who’s doing the confirming, so that number’s fairly loose).

So, what does this mean regarding our erstwhile Agnika Kaieru Impersonator over here?

Mcgillis Fareed stood to, and by the second season did, inherit the Gundam Murmur as part of his position in the Seven Stars. It’s not difficult to fathom why it wasn’t used in his coup - Mcgillis wishes to inherit the power of Agnika Kaieru - Bael, the symbol of Gjallarhorn. If anything, I’d wager he actively wants to reject his connection to the Fareeds not only because of his relationship with Iznario, but also because it would tie his coup to the Seven Stars. It would cheapen it to (in his mind) an internal power struggle within the echelons of Gjallarhorn, rather than the glorious revolution he wants it to be, spurred by the inheritor of Agnika Kaieru’s legacy.

Ironically, Murmur’s rejected because it’s a thing of the past - The Fareed family is shortly to cease being an active part of Gjallarhorn as Mcgillis rejects it, Iznario no longer holds any power with which to access it and it’s not a part of the world that Mcgillis wants to create. It’s part of a bygone age - a symbol of the Seven Stars system that Mcgillis aims to remove.

How very poetic.

#Gundam Murmur #Fareed Family Gundam #gundam #ramblings #mcgillis fareed #gundam iron blooded orphans #gundam ibo #iron blooded orphans #Gundam ibo msv #seven stars #gjallarhorn

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nyaacaron · 1 year ago

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Alaya thinks she's funny, well, I'm about to be hilarious

#Fgo #Fate grand order #Fate go #Gudako #Lb7 spoilers #Kind of?#I'm not sure about it actually #Extra class servants #Please show up in the tags #my art

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wordsandrobots · 9 months ago

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IBO reference notes on . . . deals with the devil

As @gremoria411 rightly commented, I skipped over Isurugi in my essay on character parallels in Iron-Blooded Orphans, even though he's part of a fourth 'leader/follower' dynamic, after Orga and Mika, Gaelio and Ein, and Rustal and Julieta.

And I was thinking about that and why exactly I left him out of the previous essay (beyond tripartite symmetry) when I got to contemplating an aspect of the show of which he's an excellent illustration. So let's get Faustian and unpick the devil's bargains made throughout IBO. Spoilers, as ever, ahoy, and this was also partly inspired by a post from @ember-amber, so cheers for that!

An arm and a leg

I should start with the obvious. Mikazuki's 'deal' with Barbatos, unleashing the Gundam's full power in exchange for the loss of his motor functions, first in his right arm, then down his whole right side, is the bluntest example of a character bargaining for greater power. Indeed, we might press the point and say it's not just his body Mika gives up for the sake of victory but his soul, tying himself ever closer to his mobile suit to the exclusion of the things he once sought beyond the battlefield. He resigns himself to always being what Barbatos allows him to be: the gun Orga fires to destroy obstacles. The hints of livelier, more well-rounded person are subsumed by unrelenting warfare. A boy who cannot stop, even when there is nobody left to order him into the fray, bound to a mechanical nightmare.

Yet to single this out is to overlook that Barbatos isn't the first devil's bargain Mika and the rest of Tekkadan have made in their short lives. Employment as a child at the CGS is predicated on Alaya-Vijnana surgery, after all, and even if that doesn't cripple them, their elevation from the gutter is marked by exchanging one uncaring environment for another. The Third Group are mistreated by adults who see them as disposable and draw scant distinction between volunteers, like Orga, Mikazuki and Takaki, and Human Debris, indentured workers on whom the surgery is actively imposed.

There is an extent to which the distinct is scant in any case. A choice may still be an active one when it is coerced but there are reasons we consider coercion a factor in making moral judgements. Can people be held responsible for decisions made under duress? We generally agree responsibility is lessened or even mitigated in such cases. And what is more coercive than facing a choice between slow starvation and the offer of being fed and paid, albeit at the cost of risking a much quicker end?

Well. Except we also – socially speaking – judge harshly those who trade acts of violence for money. Even when circumstances are considered to mitigate some of the blame, are we ever prepared to excuse fighting and killing on the basis those responsible would otherwise have suffered in poverty?

I don't raise simply as a vague 'makes you think' point. Iron-Blooded Orphans does not overly concern itself with the morality of killing (I'd go so far as to say it actively dismisses the question as meaningless). It is, however, rooted in a world where killing is an ugly necessity, not just for the sake of various causes, but as an act of survival. That is what Tekkadan becomes, for the CGS Third Group. A means of surviving in the face of forces that really would crush them if they did not take a stand. Through their bargain with the adult mercenaries who augmented them, they entered a life of fight or be killed. A struggle for dominance at the bottom of the heap. And they are damned for it.

In the eyes of their society, they are monstrous aberrations. It does not matter that they are in many respects typical, reflecting the exploitation on which the world runs. Their brief stint as heroes is overshadowed by contempt and disgust, by the social taboos they break simply by existing, and by their status as scapegoats, sinking the entirety of the blame for the violence they were a party to. Isn't that the ultimate cost of the deal they made? Their innocence as perceived by others, tarnished such that they can never again be the children they were when they signed on the dotted line.

It is interesting to consider the implications this has regarding the Calamity War and the origin of the Gundam frames. We know, of course, that Gjallarhorn actively demonised (hur hur) the very technology that staved off humanity's extermination by the mobile armours. This appears to have been an act of self-interest, ensuring those advancements remained solely in their control, though the details are vague at best – as always, McGillis must be considered an unreliable source. Nevertheless, their efforts were only partially successful, with a cruder version of the Alaya-Vijnana becoming prevalent in the outer-spheres of Mars and Jupiter (and indeed the inner-sphere of Venus; basically everywhere outside Earth and the near-Earth colonies). They managed to make the thing taboo at home while failing to suppress its use abroad. Stop me if you've heard this one before.

And yet the fact remains: the Alaya-Vijnana and the Gundam frames ended the War. We get to see exactly what a fully-unleashed Gundam is capable of and if we are to parallel the deal Mikazuki makes with Barbatos to those Tekkadan as a whole made on entering their life as soldiers, what then can we say about the original Gundam pilots? They must have been under immense pressure to achieve victory, with the fate of the species on the line. Said victory depended on releasing limiters placed inside their mobile suits to protect them from the strain maximum power would put on their bodies. How many, therefore, willingly ended up in the same state as Mika – or worse?

We don't know. But I don't think it an irrelevant detail that Gjallarhorn's prominence as a military organisation is rooted in this possibility, especially since there are more direct parallels with Tekkadan. Ein opts to side with those who oppress his mother's home planet on behalf of a distant imperial centre and he too trades something for security with that decision, though what we call it may depend on well-disposed we feel towards him. Self-respect? Loyalty to his fellow Martians? Whatever the case, his fanatical tendencies were likely not mellowed by the weight of his choice.

Moreover, what the boys in Tekkadan materially are is at most an extreme version of what your average Gjallarhorn solider is: somebody selling their capacity for violence for the means to survive. For all that the show focuses on the likes of Ein, Julieta, and the other extra-loyal elite forces, we still get plenty of cutaways to troops just doing their jobs. The captain of the Sleipnir, grudgingly setting sail on his daughter's birthday. The CO on the bridge at Edmonton, refusing to waste his men's effort doing more than holding the line. The men deployed during the final episode, frightened and scrambling to survive Mikazuki's ferocity.

They all signed up to do violence. They must have had some idea about what they were getting into, likely more so than anyone who joined the CGS as a pre-teen. Again, this is their job. It could get them killed, or at least maimed, and will certainly lead to them killing others. But in the end, it beats poverty.

These characters exist on a spectrum of bodily sacrifice in exchange for material gains. From Human Debris (fight or die), through Tekkadan (fight to have basic human necessities), on to Gjallarhorn (fight or have less power within society) and to the original Gundam pilots (fight or watch the entire species die), the divisions are by degree rather than kind.

Even Gaelio, the most privileged and 'righteous' character (in the sense of being driven by moral indignation, not practical concerns), expends his body and personal beliefs to get what he's after. Though ending the series in a state comparable to Mikazuki is a personal decision rather than a direct consequence of his Gundam claiming a price for its power, it still stems from an embrace of the taboo.

A soldier is, definitionally, a paid gun. States and businesses exchange money with those willing to kill others – something otherwise generally agreed to be an act punishable by society's rules. This is, for better and worse, the transaction that defines our cast.

Dealing with the devious

In this context, the Gundams are admirably frank. As machines, they cannot dress up what they offer or will take for it. It is left to human characters to play the part of the deceitful tempter.

Via Hush's flashbacks to a cheery Builth heading off to join the CGS, we can form the impression that Arkay Maruba's men did not initially present themselves as the harsh taskmasters they proved to be for anyone who receive a successful implant. This may seem trivial compared to other lies witnessed throughout the show, but I don't know that the rest are much deeper. Honeyed words covering a brutal reality is par for the course when the world is brutal realities all the way down.

In this regard, there is a distinction to be drawn between those offering things at a terrible cost and those who do so dishonestly. Consider Teiwaz: their wealth is underpinned by cold, ruthless calculation and cold, ruthless violence. The conglomerate is staffed by perfectly nice people like Merribit Stapleton, but run by the likes of McMurdo Barriston and Jasley Donomikols, who will kill those who get in their way. McMurdo displays many endearing traits and an indulgent generosity. He also uses Tekkadan to remove a threat to his power, then cuts them off so this act cannot cause infighting between his other lieutenants. His breaking of the sakazuki cup Orga returns to him is a canny move, as by doing so he washes his hands of culpability in Tekkadan's actions. Given the structure of Teiwaz, the other subsidiary leaders would likely have felt threatened if he'd overtly squashed Jasley. This way, he gets that same outcome while also dispelling any notion he plays favourites, because he instantly expels those punk kids everyone was worried about, despite his proven soft-spot for them. Order and peace are restored; business can continue as usual.

Which is appalling and hardly counterbalanced by the aid he gives to Orga afterwards (although, to be clear, I don't think you can dismiss said aid either: he is taking a risk by helping Tekkadan out of the hole he shoved them into; he's just also the one who shoved them into it in the first place).

But we're told who McMurdo is from the word go. And so are Tekkadan. Naze makes very clear the Old Man is driven primarily by seeking profit. This has an upside in that he is not concerned with how said profits are made or who he has to deal with to get them. It also has a major downside for those exact same reasons. I don't believe he ever misrepresents himself. He is frighteningly blunt with Orga by the end. His actions, ultimately, are in line with everything anybody ever says about him (except Jasley, who makes the mistake of assuming McMurdo growing old represents weakness, not outliving challengers). The grandfatherly persona, the cannoli and the bonsai trees – these aren't affectations concealing monstrous depths. McMurdo Barriston simply happens to be a gentleman getting on in years, who enjoys good food and gardening, who will absolutely crush anyone who obstructs his interests.

No, for the real devious bastards we have to look elsewhere. Let's start with the Moustache Man. Todo Micronen is introduced in all his pot-bellied glory slacking off on beating Takaki, Danji and Ride over being too slow at their mine-laying practice. For a brief, shining moment, he gets to look semi-decent in comparison to the real bruisers of the CGS First Group.

Then he sells the newly-formed Tekkadan out to Gjallarhon.

Todo makes a show of being on Orga's side, ingratiating himself to the new leadership with his connections and greater life-experience. That experience, however, is predicated on looking out for number one. In the face of the space police stomping them all to get hold of Kudelia, Todo makes a deal to save his own skin. Unfortunately for him, he isn't what we might call good at appearing trustworthy. Orga and Biscuit twig he's up to something and Tekkadan escape the trap, leaving a beaten-up Todo for McGillis to find. This nicely demonstrates that our heroes aren't complete suckers: Orga follows Todo's suggestions because he's not in a position refuse the assistance if it's genuine, but he's smart enough to plan for the alternative.

At first, Kudelia's dealings with Nobliss Gordon lack this awareness. Where Todo gives strong used-car salesman vibes, Nobliss is more competent at wrapping other people around his little finger. Additionally, rather than trusting solely to gullibility, he positions Fumitan as a watchdog on Kudelia's actions, so that whatever he says, he'll always have final control of the outcome. And it seems he really would say anything, to anyone, to get what he's after. He deals with virtually every major faction in the show, assisting them by turns, the proverbial arms-dealer who will sell to both sides, willing to set in moment immense amounts of bloodshed if it increases his revenue.

Notably, when Kudelia eventually discovers his true nature, her reaction differs from Orga's jettisoning of Todo. Rather than breaking from Nobliss, she seeks to reverse their relative positions so that she is using him. Thereafter, she continues to take his money in spite of recognising his motives. If he wants her to be the face of a revolutionary movement creating profitable instabilities, he must keep giving her the resources to pursue her goals. It's a tenuous, strained relationship that ultimately proves a hindrance to saving the people she cares for. But it too is an demonstration, of how sometimes one cannot simply extract oneself from bargains that provide material advantages. For the sake of inching the world forward, it can be necessary to make deals you know benefit those whose aims run contrary to your own.

Which brings us to McGillis.

With McGillis, the lines between deceiver and deceived blur. It's hard to claim he's honest in his dealings with Tekkadan. There is a lopsidedness to the arrangement, whereby he exploits their combat ability for his own ends while offering little more than pie in the sky in return. His grand promises amount to nothing and for all the munitions he funnels their way, he never gives them anything that doesn't ultimately serve his goals alone. He simply provides the means to fight more effectively: the thing he needs from them, not what they require to prosper.

On the other hand, did he believe he would be able to fulfil those promises, eventually? McGillis spends the entire series working towards a dream of absolute control over Gjallarhorn, a position from which he would have the means to dispense boons to his supporters. Whether he'd have followed through on doing so is an open question. But his admiration for Tekkadan appears sincere, so he might well have tried, as poor an idea as it is to give planet-ruling power to a bunch of violent children and, by extension, their mafia benefactors.

We don't know for sure, because ultimately the person McGillis fooled most was himself. He sold his soul to an ideal taken from an old book and willingly embraced the cost, taking an active role in tearing apart everything good in his life. He is at once devil and bargainer, spinning fairytales from his own self-deception and becoming a Pied Piper, leading others inexorably to the same doom that awaits him.

Any star in the dark

Knowing what you're getting into is a vital component of Faustian pacts. Some people do, and work frantically to ameliorate the negative consequences. Some do not, and are struck down when things do not work out the way they imagined. Getting out of the bargain, or trying to, is usually the meat of stories that feature this device so it follows that it matters whether entering them is done with knowledge or ignorance.

I've discussed Kudelia, who starts out naïve and learns better, and Orga, who makes some bargains with full understanding (Todo, Teiwaz, Makanai too) and some with a mistaken belief in their worth (McGillis). Of these two, I would categorise Kudelia as a pragmatist who recognises the world is such that a successful path forward is built on compromise, and Orga as a gambler, always seeking the quickest route to the highest reward. I won't dwell here too much on stuff I've discussed elsewhere about what drives Orga to act this way except to say that it is as much about the desperation of his circumstances as the desire to possess greater riches.

This is a pattern throughout the show, with characters committing to long odds and risky activities to escape miserable situations. And it repeats once more with Isurugi Camice, McGillis' stalwart aide-de-camp, introduced at the start of Season 2.

It is clear from the word go that he is as loyal a supporter of McGillis' intentions to reform Gjallarhorn as you could hope to find. Furthermore, McGillis trusts him to an exceptional degree. Isurugi is party to all the technical details of the coup, serving as the means by which the moving parts are organised, representing McGillis when it is no longer possible for 'The General' to leave Earth unnoticed, and acting as his wingman in battle. Eventually, this dogged support proves Isurugi's undoing. He is fatally injured while intercepting a killing blow Gaelio meant for McGillis.

At this point, we learn what lies behind his loyalty: like Ein, he is a colony-born member of Gjallarhorn and without a well-placed patron, he would have no prospects. With McGillis' help, he was able to achieve a higher rank and consequently, as he puts it, in McGillis' presence he was able to dream of a better future. Even if it meant the bloodshed that comes of trying to overthrow the Seven Stars' historical control of the organisation – including his own blood, shed on Gaelio's knee-mounted drill bit – he believed it worthwhile to throw in his lot with his General.

Predictably, Gaelio reacts by declaring this a delusion perpetrated by McGillis, with no real possibility of coming true. And while he is broadly correct about the second part of that conclusion, it's worth stressing that Gaelio is textually Always Wrong™ about McGillis right up to their final scene together. He thoroughly misunderstands his ex-friend's motivations and fails to recognise where McGillis' priorities lie at key moments (see the business with the mobile armour; Gaelio takes a fully cynical view of it, not realising McGillis is about the only person to genuinely comprehend the threat Hashmal poses ahead of time).

Moreover, as Isurugi tells him during a dying monologue, Gaelio lacks first-hand experience of what it's like to have no future worth a damn. For all Ein taught Gaelio to look beyond his privileged life, he never has to live long-term with the knowledge that things cannot get better. Isurugi did. And when given the option, he chose a path offering a chance of improvement, however far-fetched and however costly.

Now, we are talking about another character who voluntarily joined the colonial police to improve his lot. Isurugi is presented more sympathetically than Ein but their similarities extend to partaking in the same moral compromise. Becoming a solider, specifically one tasked with enforcing imperial rule, is a way out of being just another oppressed citizen, sure, but the fact that oppression extends to the inside is perhaps not a sob-story stirring too much sympathy. At the same time, the structure of the dilemma echoes those faced by the members of Tekkadan or the people of the Dorts: when the stakes are (or are perceived to be) extreme, extreme responses become understandable.

Indeed, the Dort arc is a useful point of comparison, since it represents an opposing pole of reaction. Rather than seeking to escape via collaboration with the authorities, the workers aim to match strength with them, forcing conditions on the colonies to be recognised and resolved. Consequently, Mr Navona's union makes a deal with Nobliss Gordon, under the misassumption that he is a benefactor to their cause. In this way, they are set up to take a fall Gjallarhorn wipes out those who wanted merely to strongarm the Dort Company to the negotiation table and allows those in favour of more immediately violent solutions to run riot as an excuse for further executions.

Notable here is that the union commits to the threat of violence when they march on the Company HQ. There are no pacifists in this scenario, only a debate about the most effective use of the available weaponry. Everyone gambles that fighting the system head-on will bring a reward.

And the system slaughters them, because it has a far greater capacity for violence than they could hope to possess. It is only through the last-minute tying of Gjallarhorn's hands that anything good comes out of the uprising (and even this is tainted, both by the bargain Kudelia makes with Nobliss, binding herself closer to the devil she knows, and by the long-term consequences of Gjallarhorn's escalating action against colonial liberation movements come Season 2).

Perhaps having seen this kind of thing happen, it isn't any wonder Isurugi would look to someone within the system for hope. To him, McGillis is a bright spark of possibility, worth chasing because at least then he can believe there might be a better world than the one he currently finds himself in. McGillis has institutional power, he is charismatic and clever, and he wants to sweep aside those who administer an unjust structure without complaint. These are alluring qualities even when it is clear the endeavour will to lead to loss, violence and death.

There is no gain without cost. And sometimes, the cost is worth the prospect of the gain.

The final bargain

To an extent, Iron-Blooded Orphans is a story about how this is a fool's logic. In the end, even Mikazuki's honest bargain with Barbatos is a trap, stripping him of the capacity to be anything more than an instrument of violence. 'When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail' is not quite the phrase we want here, but Tekkadan are certainly a group of people who, via the deals they have made, lack opportunities to learn how to use other tools. In many ways, Kudelia, Ein, Isurugi, Naze, Savarin etc. are no different. So many people driven into arrangements that come around to harm them, because that is the nature of things. However pure or understandable or sympathetic the reasons behind the choice, there are always consequences.

And yet, in a world built from pacts between devils and fools, everyone is subject to the same traps. The figures we can identify as playing Satan to our many Fausts are each themselves someone else's supplicant. Todo becomes McGillis' cat's-paw. Nobliss is cowed by McMurdo's greater power, while McMurdo has to tread carefully around Gjallarhorn, as embodied in Rustal Elion. And Elion himself has to make his own deals. As he admits to Julieta, he is not some bastion of integrity but just another shady adult, doing what's necessary even when it conflicts with his stated principles.

At the end, Supreme Commander Elion, the one person we can confidently say came out of this whole business with his goals achieved, sits across from Kudelia Aina Bernstein, chairperson of a free Mars. The man who stood for a modified status quo, freed of disruptive influences, alongside the Maiden of Revolution, who has gotten a measure of what she sought despite everything he took from her.

Two pragmatists, making their compromises, for the sake of moving forward.

I don't mean to position Elion as 'just as much a victim' as the rest. He clearly isn't. What I'm seeking to highlight is a consistent thread whereby everyone has to make arrangements with forces that could destroy them. Which is a lesson worth taking with us to the real world. Compromise is often the death of good intentions, yes, but absent a socialist paradise dropping from the sky, the steps towards building a better world for the people living in it involves working around those who'd stand in the way. Bringing the beneficiaries of the system to the point where they have to make deals with you is a long, hard process involving a great many costs – including that of accepting it is going to be long, that things won't change at single stroke, and anyone promising such a speedy outcome probably can't or won't deliver the goods.

At the very least, I find something worth grappling with here, viewing the series through this lens. Iron-Blooded Orphans is uncompromising in its depiction of violence carrying horrific consequences. It places the callousness of the boardroom and the cabinet meeting on par with the casual brutality of a police baton or a pirate's gun. There is no 'good' fighting in this show and no untainted cause. Mythic heroes occupy a space defined by child-soldiers who know no reaction beyond 'kill the other guy first'. The result is a frank admission that it's rarely a question of if someone is going to sell their soul.

It's a matter of when, and to whom, and how far they can get before the price comes due.