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raviotherabbit · 3 years ago

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royal pain in the ass - chapter 3

Chapter 3: Era of the Skies Zelda meets some new faces.

[first] - [previous] - [next] read it on ao3!

△ ▲△

Link—her Link, Sky—had told Zelda that his fellow heroes seemed to have… issues, with voicing their problems. Which, truth be told, didn’t make much sense to her. Skyloft has always been a very open environment. Everyone knew each other, and so knew when their fellow citizen was struggling.

Would there really be a time where not all of Hyrule was like this?

Zelda didn’t think much of it, not for quite some time. Not until her visit to the formerly Sealed Grounds, where she found the Hero of Legend staring up at the Statue of the Goddess. In retrospect, the whole thing seemed incredibly tacky. Who needs a hundred foot statue in honor of their worship?

Still, she found herself drawn to it. Of course she did. Things had been confusing ever since everything ended and construction of the kingdom had begun. Zelda still wasn’t quite sure what to make of herself.

She startled when she noticed Legend, having expected to be alone. It was a fresh and early morning, but there he was, arms crossed tightly with head tilted up at the statue.

“Hello, there!” Zelda called out, and the hero turned to face her. This one is a bit older than her Link, thank goodness. She’d grown a bit concerned by Wind and Fours’ appearances, even Wild and Hyrule looked a bit too young for her nerves. They all made her worry.

“Princess Zelda.” Legend nodded at her as she stepped up beside him. His gaze returns to the statue, eyes emotionless.

“There aren’t any princesses in this time, Legend,” she said. “At least, not yet.”

“Hm. Apologies.”

“It’s still early. I don’t even think your wolf is up, yet.”

“Let them be,” Legend told her. “I just- I couldn’t get back to sleep.”

“Well, what’s wrong?” she asked. At Legend’s scowl, Zelda continued, “I won’t tell anyone, I promise.”

Legend’s eyes shifted to Zelda, scrutinizing her. He sighed, looking up at the statue once again.

“I’m just thinking,” he said. “I mean, there are patterns to all of this, right? Evil rises, and so a hero and a princess work together to save the day.”

“It’s a nice thought, isn’t it?” Zelda smiled at him. “No matter how bad it gets, there will always be an end to it.”

“That’s not what I’m saying,” Legend countered her. “What I’m saying is, the evil always comes back. The seals break, or something new comes around. So Hylia calls upon someone new to fight, again and again.”

Zelda reached out, placing a hand on Legend’s shoulder, but he shrugged her away.

“No matter what we do, it gets worse. What’s the point?”

For a moment, Zelda paused, gripping at the cloth of her skirt. With a sigh, she sat facing away from the statue, motioning for Legend to sit with her.

“Has my Link ever told you about me?” she asked as Legend sat by her side.

“Just that you’re the best ever.” Legend rolled his eyes. “And that he loves you so much, and he can’t wait to see you again.”

Despite herself, Zelda giggled. “He’s sweet.”

But, truthfully, she was relieved. Sky has enough sense, at least, to keep her secret from those who have a bit of disdain towards their Goddess.

Without thinking, she placed an arm around the Hero of Legend’s shoulders. He tensed at first, glancing at her hand warily, and Zelda was almost afraid that she’d done something wrong. But then he relaxed, and even leaned his head against her.

“I can’t speak to the future of Hyrule,” Zelda told him, tracing patterns on his arm. “But I do know that the Goddess is not infallible.” She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. “Do you know the story of the first hero?”

“Isn’t that Sky?” Legend asked.

“No,” Zelda said, looking up and back at Hylia’s statue. “Sky is only the second hero. There was one who bore the Hero’s Spirit before him.”

Legend looked up at Zelda, so with a smile, she began the story of Hylia’s Chosen Hero.

△ ▲△

Flora and Artemis stumble out of the portal into a dense forest. The nausea sets in almost immediately as both queens double over, Artemis bracing herself with a hand on Flora’s shoulder. After a deep breath, Flora straightens herself out.

“You know, I think I’m getting used to it,” she remarks, offering a hand for her ancestor.

With a groan, Artemis accepts Flora’s hand. “I’m more used to standing on the other end of these things,” she admits.

“Don’t worry,” Flora assures her, gently guiding Artemis to sit below the closest tree. “How about…” She glances past the towering branches to the darkened sky above. “You rest here for a moment, and I’ll get started on our camp.”

Artemis lifts her weary head for a moment. “It’s later here than it was in my time.”

Certain that Artemis is fine on her own, Flora turns her attention to her preparations. The clearing they’re in can more accurately be described as a small gap between the trees, but since it’s just the two of them camping, that shouldn’t be much of a problem. She takes some wood out of her Sheikah Slate, the bundle materializing in her hand.

“What was that?” Artemis suddenly asks, bud eyed and staring at the wood. “Where did that come from?”

For a moment, Flora tilts her head in confusion, before the reality hits her. With a laugh she doesn’t mean to be mocking一though by Artemis’s face, she may have missed the mark on that一she holds out her Sheikah Slate once again.

“Storage,” Flora explains. To demonstrate, she pulls out a few pieces of flint as well, and Artemis gasps in shock. “Rather useful, isn’t it?”

“I know I’ve said it before, but that’s one strange relic.” Artemis notes.

“Oh believe me, I’m aware,” Flora jokes. She lays the wood out on the ground and strikes the flint together, igniting the fire. “Link insisted I stock up on supplies once we started travelling together again, so we’re lucky I haven’t been camping in a while.”

Artemis sighs wistfully, scooching closer to the fire. “The good old days. My Link and I must have run all over Hyrule back during the war.”

“I was a researcher, back in the day.” Flora brings her fingers to her chest as she speaks. “Link- Wild, he used to accompany me to all sorts of archeological sites.” Her hand shifts into a fist. “Of course, we’ve both been much too busy for that recently. But once reconstruction is done and he’s back home…”

A silence hangs over the two queens, both staring into the bright and searing fire. There’s a deep pit in both of their stomachs, twisting and cold. Flora draws her knees to her chest, resting her head on top of them. Artemis, however, places a hand on her descendant’s shoulder.

“They’re fine,” she insists, her eyes as hard as steel when Flora looks up at her. “Warriors, Wild, and all of the rest of them… They’ve come through so much worse than this. We will bring them back safe.”

Flora smiles. “Well, then I suppose we have a lot to do tomorrow. How about some dinner?”

△ ▲△

Zelda’s always been an early-riser. Every morning, she rises as the first rays of dawn break. And then, once she’s ready to start her day, that’s when the business begins. After all, if Link’s to be believed, she’s got a kingdom to establish.

Usually, she’s one of only a few to be awake this early, which she’s fine with. But, on this particular morning, she’s shocked by the presence of someone standing right outside of her tent.

With a scream, Zelda falls back into her tent, but she doesn’t have a chance to reach for a weapon to defend herself with before she hears the person speaking.

“Ah! Zelda!” the figure shouts in panic.

“Pipit!” Zelda pushes her head out of the flaps. “What are you doing outside my tent?!”

“I just- I,” Pipit stumbles over his words, folding under Zelda’s harsh glare. “I saw something when I was patrolling last night! But I didn’t want to wake you! But it’s also important, so I thought I should wait here?”

Zelda sighs heavily. “Pipit… you know you can wake me if something important happens, right?”

“Ah, well-” Pipit’s face grows red, and he awkwardly scratches the back of his head. “You’re in charge here, so…”

With a groan, Zelda stands and brushes herself off. “We can deal with that later. Now, what’s so important that it could either wait or not wait?”

“Well,” Pipit clears his throat. “There appears to be some… Hylians, camping out in the woods.”

Zelda tilts her head. “Alright?”

“I mean, they aren’t from Skyloft,” Pipit quickly adds. “I’ve never seen them before in my life.”

Zelda frowns. “It’s not Link and his friends?”

Pipit shakes his head. “There were only two of them, and I haven’t seen either with Link before.”

That’s… disappointing, sure, but also extremely concerning. Sure, Ghirahim was the only demon they’d ever seen, but Demise could still have followers out there. If these travelers pose a threat, then Zelda owes it to her people that she sees to it. The Surface must be kept safe, at all costs.

“Take me to them,” she commands.

△ ▲△

A breeze rustles past her, carrying the scent of blooming wildflowers. She takes it all in with a deep breath, sighing with relief. It’s a beautiful, crystal clear day. She and Link walk together, hand in hand, though Hyrule Field.

“This is it,” she says. “It’s finally over.”

A giddiness spreads throughout her whole chest, and she can’t help but laugh. Finally, finally! She’s free! Link is here, and he’s okay! They’ve done it!

“There’s so much for us to do!” she happily continues. “We have to visit Mipha, Daruk, Revali, and Urbosa! I’m sure Impa’s expecting us in Kakariko, not to mention the Ancient Tech Labs. Oh, and I’d love to see your home in Hateno, Link!”

Silently, Link’s hand slips from her own.

“Link?”

She turns around, expecting to find Link just a few steps behind her. But instead, the field behind her is barren. Her knight is gone.

“Link?!” she calls out. Desperately, she looks in every direction, trying to find the slightest clue of her friend. “Link, where did you go?!”

From somewhere beyond the castle, a darkness spreads over Hyrule Field like a blanket. She can’t see more than a few inches beyond her face, but still, she frantically yells out for Link.

Something cold grabs onto her wrist from behind, and she shivers.

Right at her back, she sees it. The monstrous, dark form of Link from the battle. He has a harsh grip on her hand, refusing to let go as she pulls away.

“Link is gone,” the shadow says. “Along with the rest of your precious Champions.

“No!” she shouts, trying with all her strength to escape the shadow. “No, not again!”

“You abandoned everyone you cared for!” he wheezes as he laughs. “It’s all your fault!”

The shadow leans right into her face, refusing to let her run away.

“You killed them all!”

Flora gasps awake, eyes snapping open. She barely has time to calm her thoughts before there’s something pointed at her face, and, with perhaps too much of a delay, she realizes it’s a gleaming silver sword.

“Don’t say a word!” the sword’s apparent wielder whispers loudly. Flora’s just barely able to see him out of the corner of her eye.

“Pipit!” another voice chastises him.

“Hey!” that voice is clearly Artemis, and in a second, she’s standing over Flora. She has her own rapier pointed at the threatening intruder. “Leave her alone!”

“State your business!”

Artemis abruptly drags Flora from her bedroll by her arm, keeping her rapier trained on the two strangers. Finally, she’s able to get a better understanding of who exactly disturbed their campsite. The one with the sword is dressed all in yellow, though the design of his uniform is vaguely familiar. He also has one of those long hats the heroes seem to favor.

The girl, though, is wearing a pink dress with a blue cloth attached to her side, and she seems to be trying her best to dissuade her companion.

“Pipit, stop!” She points at him as she yells, as if scolding a child.

“They’re clearly dangerous!” the man, Pipit apparently, argues. “That one has a sword!”

“You’re the one who threatened us!” Artemis shouts, her grip on Flora’s arm tightening slightly.

The girl suddenly shouts, “I said stop!” and reaches for his sword. When she does, two things happen.

One, her hand begins to glow a familiar, warm and holy light.

Two, a symbol appears on the back of Flora and Artemis’s hands.

It’s been a long time since anything has caused Flora’s power to stir. She hasn’t seen this symbol since she sealed Calamity Ganon away, all that time ago. And now, though she can still feel its weakness, it’s here.

With a gasp, the girl draws her arm back, clutching it with her other hand. With it, the Triforces fade away from the other two’s hands.

“You…” Flora turns her hand, looking for any trace of the golden light. “The power…”

Artemis starts, “Then you must be-”

“Oh, I see!” she claps her hands together, a slight nervous energy about her. “Pipit, would you please run ahead and let everyone know we have guests again?”

Pipit, blinking away his confusion, looks over at her with concern. “Zelda, are you sure?”

Ah, that explains it.

“Of course I’m sure,” Zelda explains, and she turns to the queens with an excited grin. “You two are also Zelda, correct?”

Flora and Artemis share a glance. “Well, yes-” Artemis says as Flora offers a nod.

Zelda’s smile grows even brighter. “That’s wonderful!” With a deep breath, she steps forward, hands crossed behind her back. “It’s an honor to meet my descendants.”

△ ▲△

There’s a part of Sun that’s delighted to meet Flora and Artemis. In fact, it’s a very large part. She’s already heard so many great things about them from their heroes, even if Wild had been a bit withdrawn during their last visit. Oh, but the stories she’s heard about them both. From Flora’s incissent drive to Artemis’s reliability, she can hardly believe she’s been afforded the opportunity to meet them.

But, then again, there’s another part of Sun. It’s small, much smaller than the first. When she looks at her descendants, she thinks ‘Why are they here?’

The moment they step onto the construction site, Flora gasps in awe before sprinting ahead of her two predecessors. She looks upon the meager foundations of houses, with walls barely a foot high, as though she were a child being offered her favorite dessert.

“Is this truly the founding of Hyrule?” her fists shake up and down as she speaks.

“Well, it’s supposed to be, yes!” Sun calls ahead. “I know it’s not much now, but-”

“Not much?!” Flora’s taken aback, one hand clutching at her chest. “Sun, this is everything! These stones will mark this location for thousands of generations! You, right now, are building a land that will stand strong for hundreds of years!”

Wow! Great! No pressure or anything!

Feeling a bit hot around the collar, Sun decides to direct her next comment to Artemis, who’s remained by her side. “She’s really passionate, isn’t she?”

“I suppose so,” Artemis admits. Flora remains a few feet ahead, holding a strange tablet that makes a clicking noise. “She didn’t really get to go sightseeing when we were in my time, so she may be making up for that.”

As if proving her point, Flora scampers off out of sight with a joyful laugh.

“When did you two arrive?” Sun asks. “I hope you weren’t out there too long.”

Artemis waves a hand dismissively. “It was only a night. I think I learned a lot about ‘roughing it’. Not too bad.”

Sun can’t help but giggle at that. “Well, we can get you set up somewhere much nicer tonight.”

Just like that, she’s able to get a slight chuckle out of Artemis. “I’d appreciate that.”

There’s a brief pause before Artemis speaks up again. “You made our Triforce pieces glow.”

Sun clears her throat. “I did, didn’t I?”

“Well, it makes sense.”

Goddesses, Sun doesn’t like where this is going. None of the Skyloftians know about her, not really, not except for a few. And if Artemis were to figure it out, blab to someone that Hylia isn’t exactly immortal right now, then-

“If you’re founding Hyrule,” Artemis reasons, “then you must be a much closer descendant of Hylia than us. That is to say, you’re a bit more holy.”

Mentally, Sun breathes a sigh of relief. For now, at least, she’s still just Zelda.

“I never thought of that,” she professes.

“I’m only theorizing, of course,” Artemis elaborates. “But with the way things are going, it seems Flora and I may be seeing more of our relatives.”

Before Sun can ask about that, they come upon the Skyloftian’s campsite, just outside of the Sealed Temple. The first of the Hylians to migrate back down to the Surface situated themselves between the temple and the Goddess Statue not too long ago. It’s a good temporary first home, if a little outdoorsy. But it’s perfect, at least until the first buildings go up.

“Zelda!”

And there’s her father, a wide grin on his face as he notices her. Flora is right by his side, and she’s almost shocked to see them.

“I thought you two were right behind me,” she mutters to herself.

“Hello, father,” Sun greets him.

Gaepora finally catches sight of Artemis. “Oh, and there’s another one, too!” Without much discretion, he leans towards his daughter, though he cups his mouth with his hand as he wonders, “Is it true that they’re our descendants?”

Sun nods. “Yes, they’re the future queens of Hyrule.”

“Queens! How exciting!” Gaepora announces, suddenly pulling both girls into a hug, much to their surprise. “It’s wonderful to meet my granddaughters!”

“Ah, y-yes,” Flora stutters. “It’s an honor to meet you, as well.”

Artemis chimes in with a similar energy. “Likewise.”

“Father, please!” Sun laughs. “Give them some space. I need to talk to them now.”

“Oh, if you insist.” Gaepora releases his hold on the queens, who sigh in relief. “Though I want to hear more from you two, later.” He pats Sun’s shoulder, and when she meets his eyes, she finds that they’re full of pride. “For now, though, I’ll leave you to yourselves.”

Sun lets out a breath as her father leaves.

“Well,” she says sharply. “Come into the temple with me.”

△ ▲△

Despite all the work happening outside, the Sealed Temple remains as untouched as it did for years. Link’s Life Fruit tree still grows nearby, swaying gently in the sunlight. For the most part, though, it’s quiet, and it’s the perfect place for this conversation.

Sun keeps a watchful eyes on the back of the temple, on the ancient doors she once slept behind. “So,” she says, back to her descendants. “Tell me, why have you both travelled to this time?”

Flora and Artemis are both silent, almost startled, for a moment. Sun can practically feel their hesitation.

“It’s the heroes,” Flora finally speaks up. “They’re in danger.”

“Link?” Sun whips around to face them. “What’s wrong with Link?”

Flora taps her fingers together nervously. “Well, you see-”

“It’s an entity by the name of Dark Link.”

In shock, both turn to look at Artemis. She continues with a stern demeanor. “We’ve encountered something like him in my own time, but he was more of a conjuration than whatever this form is.” She raises an eyebrow at her two counterparts. “I take it you have no equivalents?”

“None that I’ve heard of,” Flora taps at her chin. “But it does sound familiar…”

“I haven’t seen such a thing, either,” Sun admits. “Last time he was here, Link told me they were pursuing a shapeshifter.”

“Flora and I witnessed that firsthand yesterday,” Artemis explains. “He took the form of several of the heroes as he fought.”

“Sun,” Flora draws her attention. “Perhaps you could say, when was the last time you saw the Links?”

Sun frowns. “A little more than two months. You haven’t seen them, either?”

“I’m afraid not,” Artemis sighs.

Well, that isn’t good. Sun glances between her descendants, Flora anxiously playing with her fingers, while Artemis does her best to avoid catching anyone’s eyes. And then, there’s the anger. The anger so fiery, so righteous, that it drowns out both the excited and fearful parts of herself, because these are her girls, those are her heroes, and how dare anyone hurt them?

“Then it’s decided.” Sun straightens herself, standing tall and proud, all the goddess she might still be. “I’m coming with you.”

#linked universe #lu sun #lu artemis #lu flora #fanfic #rpita #rav's writing

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tawakkull · 3 years ago

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ISLAM 101: Spirituality in Islam: Part 10

Qalb (Heart) - 1

The heart is the home of God; purify it from whatever is other than Him So that the All-Merciful may descend into His palace at night.

The word “heart” has two meanings. One denotes the body’s most vital part, which is located in the left part of the chest and resembles a pinecone. With respect to its structure and tissue, the heart is different from all other bodily parts: it has two auricles and two ventricles, is the origin of all arteries and veins, moves by itself, works like a motor, and, like a suction pump, moves blood through the system.

In Sufi terminology, “heart” signifies the biological heart’s spiritual aspect as being the center of all emotions and (intellectual and spiritual) faculties, such as perception, consciousness, sensation, reasoning, and willpower. Sufis call it the “human truth”; philosophers call it the “speaking selfhood.” An individual’s real nature is found in the heart. With respect to this intellectual and spiritual aspect of existence, one is able to know, perceive, and understand. Spirit is the essence and inner dimension of this faculty; the biological spirit or the soul is its mount.

It is one’s heart that God addresses and that undertakes responsibilities, suffers punishment or is rewarded, is elevated through true guidance or debased through deviation, and is honored or humiliated. The heart is also the “polished mirror” in which Divine knowledge is reflected.

The heart both perceives and is perceived. The believer uses it to penetrate his or her soul, corporeal existence and mind, for it is like the eye of the spirit. Insight may be regarded as its faculty of sight, reason as its spirit, and will as its inner dynamics.

The heart or spiritual intellect, if we may so call it, has an intrinsic connection with its biological counterpart. The nature of this connection has been discussed by philosophers and Muslim sages for centuries. Of whatever nature this connection may be, it is beyond doubt that there is a close connection between the biological heart and the “spiritual” one, which is a Divine faculty, the center of true humanity, and the source of all human feelings and emotions.

In the Qur'an, religious sciences, morals, literature, and Sufism, the word “heart” signifies the spiritual heart. Belief, knowledge and love of God, and spiritual delight are the objectives to be won through this Divine faculty. The heart is a luminous, precious ore with two aspects, one looking to the spiritual world and the other to the corporeal, material world. If an individual’s corporeal existence or physical body is directed by the spirit, the heart conveys to the body the spiritual effusions or gifts it receives through the world of the spirit, and causes the body to breathe with peace and tranquillity.

As stated above, God considers one’s heart. He treats men and women according to the quality of their hearts, as the heart is the stronghold of many elements vital to the believer’s spiritual life and humanity: reason, knowledge, knowledge of God, intention, belief, wisdom, and nearness to God Almighty. If the heart is alive, all of these elements and faculties are alive; if the heart is diseased, it is difficult for the elements and faculties mentioned to remain sound. The truthful and confirmed one, upon him be peace and blessings, declared: There is a fleshy part in the body. If it is healthy, then the whole of the body is healthy. If it is corrupted, then all the body is corrupted. Beware! That part is heart. This saying shows the importance of the heart for one’s [spiritual] health.

The heart has another aspect or function, one that is actually more important than those already mentioned: It has the points of reliance and seeking help ingrained in it and in human nature, by which it enables the individual to perceive God as the All-Helping and All-Maintaining. That is, it always reminds one of God in the tongues of neediness and seeking help and protection. This is vividly expressed in a narrated Prophetic Tradition, which Ibrahim Haqqi relates as follows:

God said: “Neither the heavens nor the earth can contain Me.”

He is known and recognized as a “Treasure” hidden in the heart by the heart itself.

The individual’s body is the physical dimension of his or her existence, while one’s heart constitutes its spiritual dimension. For this reason, the heart is the direct, eloquent, most articulate, splendid, and truthful tongue of the knowledge of God. Therefore, it is regarded as more valuable and honored than the Ka'ba, and accepted as the only exponent of the sublime truth expressed by the whole of creation to make God known.

The heart also is a fortress in which one can maintain sound reasoning and thinking, as well as a healthy spirit and body. As all human feelings and emotions take shelter and seek protection in this fortress, the heart must be protected and kept safe from infection. If the heart is infected, it will be very difficult to restore it; if it dies, it is almost impossible to revive it. The Qur'an, by advising us to pray: Our Lord! Do not cause our hearts to swerve after You have guided us (3:7), and our master, upon him be peace and blessings, by his supplication: O God, O Converter of hearts! Establish our hearts firmly on Your religion, remind us of the absolute need to preserve the heart.

Just as the heart can function as a bridge by which all good and blessings may reach the believer, it can also become a means by which Satanic and carnal temptations and vices can enter. When set on God and guided by Him, it resembles a projector that diffuses light even to the furthest, remotest, and darkest corners of the body. If it is commanded by the carnal (inherently evil) self, it can become a target for Satan’s poisonous arrows. The heart is the native home of belief, worship, and perfect virtue; a river gushing with inspiration and radiation arising from the relationships among God, humanity, and the universe. Unfortunately, innumerable adversaries seek to destroy this home, to block this river or divert its course: hardness of heart (losing the ability to feel and believe), unbelief, conceit, arrogance, worldly ambition, greed, excessive lust, heedlessness, selfishness, and attachment to status.

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snowflake-of-destruction · 4 years ago

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let's hear about FFVIII seifer, if you're still doing this XD

Why I like them: You know my tastes. A green-eyed man is introduced throwing fireballs around, is kind of a condescending jerk but in a fun way, instigates deep conversations on high ground while staring at the sunset...Well, before we even get to villainy, immolation, and redemption arc, I start going “Is this a favorite character?” I’m joking...kind of. Some of that does factor in, even the fire.

Okay, so my favorite thing about Seifer’s arc is that, in the limited focus he’s given, he’s complex and layered from the beginning, and his villain arc is a clear and fascinating illustration of “No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks” ….with a side of brainwashing.

Let’s break this down:

What are some of the words used to describe him by those that know him (by himself, by Squall, by Fuu and Rai)? Romantic. Idealistic. Sensitive. He is the one who believes in making a difference in the world--not just as a wish or goal, but as an imperative to do what your heart says is right even if it’s going to cost you--where Squall is just follow-the-orders-and-do-the-job. If you’re already reading this and objecting, I’m not saying Squall doesn’t care...obviously he does, defrosting Mr. Go Talk to a Wall and getting him to a place where he admits how many layers of mask he wears is his character development...but Seifer isn’t just a hothead. He wears his heart on his sleeve.

Don’t get me wrong. I am not trying to deny that Seifer can be an abrasive, self-serving, hypocritical jackass sometimes, who can fight dirty, wants to “wreak some havoc,” and has a history as a bully--though, gentlefolk of the jury, I submit to the courts that he puts on a tough act like Squall does and they are both different flavors of trying to mimic toxic alpha male--but let’s not forget that some of his establishing character moments are throwing out his future to disobey orders because he sees that the higher-ups have possibly misjudged the situation and civilians could be in danger, and, again, going AWOL because he thinks Squall and Rinoa could be killed. And he calls himself the white knight and holds up a code of honor until the end, even though it gets twisted. He is about duty and honor, with honor even over duty.

Oh, this was only going to be the beginning. I haven’t even begun to touch on what I would want to touch on--this is just surface personality and the beginning of the game before we even get to joining Sorceress Edea, and even then not all I would say-- but this post isn’t actually supposed to be my Ted talk on what you missed if you just think of Seifer as a recurring boss fight. Let’s move on.

ONE MORE THING ACTUALLY. Even though we see a lot of Seifer at his worst, you can use Fujin and Raijin as a mirror. What do they say near the end of the game if we paraphrase/summarize? They knew pretty early on, before even the senseless slaughter and torture era that Seifer was going down a dark path with the sorceress, but they knew it wasn’t him and stayed with him, not because they agreed with his actions, wanted power, or out of fear, but to take care of him and try to break through to him--and not because they are saints, but because he, despite what had happened in the past year, is the type of person who deserves and inspires that kind of loyalty. Let’s think on that.

Now the rest goes under a read more, because I am going to keep rambling and be wordy

Why I don’t: He can be an asshole, and he’s an asshole in an embarrassing way. As in, if one is trying to say he’s not the little punk his KH counterpart is, you remember he still uses the insult chickenwuss (though that is a legacy insult/nickname since he’s known Zell since childhood--and, fyi, Squall uses it too) and he had a little gang in school. Even once he’s a military commander of an evil army set on world domination, he has some moments where his level of petty undermines him.

Favorite episode (scene if movie): The Dollet mission

Favorite line: Sorry, not sorry that the following is my favorite exchange of lines and that the prison torture scene is another of my favorite scenes. For context, Seifer has captured Squall, has him hanging up on the wall in crucified hero imagery, implied to be shirtless even though his character model isn’t because they talk about scar tissue or lack thereof from a recent shoulder injury/Squall being stabbed in the chest/shoulder area. Seifer has been electrocuting Squall for information. By this point, I might as well have put the whole scene here. Also, I am now going to blame Squall and Seifer text boxes in FFVIII for my own abuses of ellipses...

Seifer: " I was hoping you'd be there, Squall. So... how'd I look in my moment of triumph? My childhood dream, fulfilled. I've become the sorceress' knight."

Squall: [internal monologue] ...Sorceress' knight... ...His...romantic dream...? But... Seifer... Now, you're just a…[Out loud] "... torturer."

[Squall passes out.]

Seifer: "What did you say? [Steps closer] Passed out cold, eh? This is the scene where you swear your undying hatred for me! The tale of the evil mercenary versus the sorceress' knight!”

This isn’t just me all “mmm, tension.” Seifer has passed the moral event horizon, and it’s not just faceless NPCs that are collateral damage anymore. We’ve seen him on screen torture the protagonist, who is also one of the only people who he’s shown to have a real bond with that goes beyond superficial. Then we get this and see Seifer thinks he’s the good guy still, on a noble mission where he’s had to make painful sacrifices, and Squall is a representative of the power-hungry evil. Seifer’s been playing a different game, and had his will twisted via magic.

Favorite outfit: The Amano art where the white coat is cast off and he’s wearing the simple black shirt and black jeans under it. Symbolic? Maybe. I wouldn’t give up the coat though. I love the long white/gray coat, the outer embodiment of wanting to wear the white hat, but the desire easily getting tarnished, and the red cross that turns into a sword and becomes Seifer’s symbol and soon to appear other places, emblazoned nice and big on the sleeve. It’s the Cross of Saint James. TRADITIONALLY red represents the blood of Christ, the three lilies represent the honor of the apostle and reference Christ as lily of the valley, and the sword shape represents the torture that St.James suffered before his murder. HOWEVER, my opinion is that here it’s more vague/altered symbolism (For starters, there are other gods not the Christian God in this world) with a side of “looks cool.” We still have something that clearly calls to mind a mission from on high, innocence in the lilies, blood and blood cost, and then war/violence with the sword. And I love it.

OTP: Seifer/Squall. I should not even start, but lest you think I am just in it for kinky torture scenes: We have these two who, in the beginning, are generally callous or mocking toward everyone, but make each other laugh/smile, see who each other are underneath and describe each other in “soft” terms even if they tease each other for it, repeatedly check in on each other to see if the other is okay, respect each other’s opinion and skills, and...you get the idea. In the words of Zell Dincht, I thought you two were rivals, but you’re all buddy-buddy.

Pause for a second and let’s just say first impression. That opening fight where they scar each other’s faces? It takes place outside Balamb Garden and the area is shown so we see they are alone. Squall passes out. Squall wakes up in the infirmary within the Garden base. Squall has to explain what happened; people don’t already know. This kind of implies after Squall passed out, Seifer, bleeding from a head wound himself, picked Squall up and carried him home, allowing himself to collapse only when Squall was being safely tended to, because he’s that extra. This is his first (okay, second, after fireballs and face slashing) action in the game even though it’s offscreen. I mean, he could have also just called for help/ran for help, but that’s less fun.

Seifer is so concerned with being a badass, but he’s admits to Squall all he’s ever wanted was to be the fairytale knight, not a mere soldier. Vulnerability and confession he wants romance....with the first time it’s brought up in game being while they are watching the sun set together, the traditional Square Red Sunset of Shipping.

Seifer hesitates to defy orders, not for himself, but until he sees Squall is with him. Even though there were other “children of destiny” who all came from the same orphanage, Squall and Seifer were the ones who were never apart, never adopted until it was by a military/mercenary training program, and, even though it may speak more to brotherly than romantic from some angles, there’s a feeling of being the same, knowing each other down to the atoms, adopting an us against the world mindset that trumps trying to best each other when it comes down to it because they are the only constant. When Squall has his breakdown/ breakthrough of why he pushes people away/doesn’t let himself care/tries not to need anyone because people leave/are taken from him and he is scared he isn’t worthy of love and happiness until Rinoa challenges him, this may seem like a dismissal of Seifer, but you can also look at it from “I had no friends or family. I didn’t even have interest in speaking to anyone. I strived to be an unfeeling machine, because all emotion is pain...But also I couldn’t go 48 hours without seeing Seifer.”

Yeah, yeah, we know their main form of hanging out was beating the tar out of each other, but sometimes, especially in older media, this was its own brand of subtext. For more on how Seifer miiiight just view sparring let’s point out that “Isn’t this ROMANTIC?” and “Kneel” as a less easily interpreted as innuendo version of “I want you on your knees” are battle quotes even in Kingdom Hearts sooo draw your own conclusion.

We get a line where Squall makes it clear these were friendly matches looked at as pushing their limits beyond what they are allowed to in sanctioned spars, and he feels prepared to take on anything now because of Seifer. Is it healthy communication in real life? No! Is this real life? No! Plus, the facial scar was an accident, pretty clearly...on Seifer’s side...I could write another essay on how Seifer draws first blood, but it’s because on Squall’s failed block, AND THEN SQUALL GETS ANGRY AND RETALIATES WITH CLEAR PURPOSE AND MAKES THE OPENING SHOT INTO THE FIRST SIGN GOOD VERSUS BAD GUY ISN’T SO CLEAR CUT (even though they both shouldn’t have been going so hard in a friendly training match to begin with).

Seifer’s later, repeated threats/expressed desire to give Squall additional scars once he goes evil? That is a different animal, and a horrible one, objectively. Not objectively? No comment. Okay, one comment. Mark you as mine. Two comments. He knows Squall’s lost some memories and he can’t stomach being the next thing forgotten so Squall needs physical reminders.

Hmmm, I was supposed to be talking about the ship, not just the sparring and scars. We can wrap it up with a Marge Simpson. “I just think they’re neat”

BUT ONE MORE THING

Squall’s jacket when he becomes Leon in Kingdom Hearts. His outfit is mostly the same, right? Except the back of the jacket now has a red patch of an emblem (of Rinoa’s angel wings, not Seifer’s cross...for the OT3 feel), and his fight with Sora he throws a fireball like Seifer’s signature. Just, you know, if you want bonus references/feeling.

Brotp: Fuu and Rai. They are willing to commit war crimes with this man, nurse him back from death’s door, and go into exile with him if he can’t return to a normal life even after a redemption arc. This section deserves to be long, but I am beginning to get talked out. Don’t take that as devaluing the friendship though. I’m glad he was allowed to keep his ride or dies in Kingdom Hearts. FRIENDSHIP! They love him, ya know?

Head Canon: What we see of him at the end of the game is a temporary situation and after he heals and refreshes for awhile he’d go back to Balamb and face consequences for his actions, and probably insist on consequences instead of leaning into “an evil sorceress bespelled me and slowly took my free will.” No hiding away in the wilderness. No crossing into and living his life in Esthar. No, “but in the end I broke free and would have been an active, onscreen part of saving the world if Square had let me join the party!” He would insist on being cast into a deep, dark cell. Squall uses pull to get him pardoned, but not before just, flat out, yelling at him for being a martyr.

Unpopular opinion: He did love Rinoa. It may have been a “shallow love,” but he wasn’t just dating her to pass time or because she played into his damsel who needs a hero mindset. There was emotion. He was prepared to die for her and Squall in Timber, and almost did--only being saved by Sorceress Edea...which wasn’t a kindness, but it all worked out in the end. Sure, he gets mind-controlled into using Rinoa as, basically, a human sacrifice and it isn’t Rinoa he wants stripped and brought to his room when we’re taking prisoners, but he cared about her. He does taunt her about their past relationship, but we’ve already established this is just part of his communication skillset. Yes, I will elaborate more if asked, though it’s more feeling based than text based.

A wish: If there’s ever a sequel, let him have put out the good in the world that was his dream and be seen as a hero. Let us see a matured and peaceful Seifer.

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: My one fear if they ever remake FFVIII instead of just porting it, is that some of the creative team have said they like the fan theory where you are dead part way through the game and the rest is a dying dream or purgatory. It’s creative stuff; I will say that. It’s not my favorite, and I don’t agree, but those kinds of fan interpretations when they go in depth are super cool. PLEASE LET THE INTEREST IN IT JUST BE THE SAME AS MINE OF THINKING IT’S CREATIVE BECAUSE MAKING THIS CANON WOULD BE SO, SO BAD FOR EVERY CHARACTER.

5 words to best describe them: stubborn, misguided, paladin, romantic, petty

My nickname for them: I don’t really have one

#seifer almasy #seifer x squall #squall x seifer #such a long post and still not all or even communicated that well probably #you don't have all the facts the facts are i love him #tina-nina

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words-writ-in-starlight · 4 years ago

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I'm thinking of reading Kencyrath, but I'm not sure whether i'll like it. What do you like about the series? Who would you recommend it for?

OKAY SO, first, the people I would recommend it to:

Anyone who read or watched more than half a book/four episodes of Game of Thrones--the Kencyrath has a similar list of trigger warnings, but commits much harder to the fantasy angle, and in my opinion deals more directly with the ethical problems raised by those trigger warnings

People who like those posts picking apart the minutiae of how high fantasy worlds work--the Kencyrath is one of the only series I’m familiar with that answers the question of “okay great you have a warrior race, so how does that actually work” with “it kind of doesn’t, everyone is starving half the time because we’re all warriors and our land can barely grow food, so if our mercenaries don’t get paid, we don’t eat”

People who like a mix of “low fantasy” moral questions (the first book is kind of like...hm, Lies of Locke Lamora?) with classic “high fantasy” political machinations and battles of good vs evil and such--the Kencyrath HAVE a grand sweeping destiny more or less on their doorstep, but they’ve sort of fallen down on the job about it

People who like books that deal with trauma recovery--Jame, the main character, spends most of her time trying to drag herself (and, ideally, her brother, cousin, and entire race) out of the cycle of abuse that they’ve all lived through, and every character has, to some extent, a trauma that shapes their actions one way or another

People who don’t mind a big cast as long as there are a couple main characters to focus on--the Kencyrath ends up being a pretty expansive cast, with a lot of schemes running at any given time, but it always revolves around Jame and her twin brother Tori

People who like complex societal worldbuilding and Loyalty Stuff--the Kendar/Highborn dynamic (warrior class/ruling class) is so wonderfully messed up and I love how seriously the books take both the advantages and massive pitfalls of that kind of society

People who listened to TAZ Balance and thought that the Hunger was really cool and terrifying and wanted a whole book series about the sequence where the world is fighting it

Anyone who ever read a standard high fantasy book with a Rambunctious Young Lady as the lead and went “this is fine, but if you’re going to spend 250 pages telling me that this girl is wild and uncontrollable, I would like to see her go completely feral, please”--Jame’s brain plays Yakety Sax 24/7 and you can TELL, so if you ever wanted a book where the Unladylike Lead Character goes genuinely apeshit, but also learns how to make friends and respect the value of traditionally feminine work even if it’s not for her

People I would recommend NOT read the Kencyrath:

Anyone who knows they are triggered by written discussion of assault, abuse, sexism, coercion, torture, flashbacks, racism, murder, or basically any other major trigger warning--I personally think the books deal with things pretty well, and they’re never grimdark, but they deal with a lot of incredibly heavy material, including child abuse, sexual assault, coercion, and torture. If you know you have a major trigger that really messes you up when you read about it, please exercise caution and feel free to contact me for more details. Also, if you have a specific trigger and want a different book recommendation, I have them on tap.

Anyone who struggles to read or connect with “problematic” characters--pretty much every character in this series will EVENTUALLY do something you don’t like, including Jame. The books go very hard on “who you are is defined by how you handle making an irreparable mistake,” so be prepared for that. If this is your hard stop but everything else is fine, I would recommend the Imperial Radch series by Ann Leckie (spaceships and war crimes and found family), or something by Robin McKinley (mostly fantasy), especially the Damar books or Sunshine!

Anyone for whom incest between twins is a hard stop--the primary romantic relationship is Jame/Tori, and while I would consider it easily the healthiest relationship in the series, that’s the ship and you should be aware of it. If this is your hard stop but everything else is fine, I would recommend the Captive Prince series by CS Pacat (political scheming and romance) or the Winternight trilogy by Katherine Arden (fairy tale fantasy)!

The stuff I like about the series:

Jame. I love that she’s allowed to be completely unhinged. I love that she faces consequences for her actions. I love her determination to slit reality open and lay it all out like a scientist in her search for the truth. I love her willingness to face unpleasant realities, and I love the times when she can’t bear them and has to figure out how to deal. I love every second she spends trying to figure out how honor works, and whether it’s even possible for a Highborn to be honorable, and how she can save her people without sacrificing who she is. I love to watch people pick a fight with her and immediately learn the error of her ways.

Tori. I know I pick on him a lot, and he deserves to be picked on, but Tori is really one of my favorite characters. He struggles a lot more than Jame to move past their father’s abuse, and he makes a lot of genuinely harmful choices in the depths of that struggle, but I love watching the times where he wins. It makes me frustrated beyond words when he caves to what he was taught, but I’m always elated when he can push past that and reveal the deeply loyal, sincerely honorable, incredibly good person that he became in spite of their father. He’s a good leader, despite everyone’s best efforts, and I love to see him fight for his people. Love to see him consider HIMSELF one of “his people” someday.

Kindrie. I won’t say too much about him, except that I didn’t actually like him that much when I first read the books, for basically the exact reasons Jame didn’t like him much at first--he’s someone doing trauma recovery in the exact opposite way that I was comfortable with. But god I love him so much, he is doing his best and his best is so much better than anyone would expect, from his past. Truly the best boy in the Kencyrath, wise beyond his years and just insane enough to get into the disasters where he’s most needed.

The Kendar. Instead of making this post 4k with individual bullet points about every Kendar I love, here is a brief litany. I love Marc because he’s the only stable person in the Kencyrath. I love Brier because she’s doing her best and it would be okay if everyone (including her) admitted that she doesn’t always know what that actually means. I love Burr and Rue because their rabid determination to turn Tori and Jame (Confirmed Feral Cats) into real nobility will never NOT be funny to me. I love Sheth Sharp-tongue because he’s the only person with his shit so together that not even Jame can ruffle him. I love the Randir Kendar who didn’t move, at the start of Bound in Blood. The Kendar are the most nuanced take on the concept of an eternally loyal warrior caste I’ve ever seen and I love them.

The Villains. I believe I have established that I love a nuanced villain. The Master is a pretty straight up and down villain figure, the voice of the darkness, John Hunger or Saruman or whatever else you might like to compare him to, but no one else is that simple. I love the Dreamweaver, who didn’t know what she was doing and paid for it anyway. I love Tyrandis, who knew what he was doing and did it and spent his eternity trying to fix it without breaking a single rule. I do NOT love Caldane, but he’s a kind of viscerally real, slimy evil that is exceptionally well executed. Likewise, I would like Rawneth to die, painfully, in short order, but godDAMN watching her chessboard unfold over the course of the books is hypnotic. The villains in this are GOOD, folks, and I like them.

I really need to wrap this up, so my last pick for what I like is Overpowered Characters. I complain a lot about media that panics over powerful characters, and responds by taking that power away, or having unstable worldbuilding that means the character is weak when the narrative demands it. The Kencyrath doesn’t do that. Jame is bonkers powerful from day one, and pretty much maintains that level through the series. Instead of focusing on characters building their power, like leveling in DnD, the Kencyrath focuses on the question of using power. Jame’s power in the first book is terrifying not just because she’s insanely strong, but because she has no idea how to use it. Likewise, Tori is determined pretty quickly to be at the same level that she is, but he’s in such deep denial that he’s as likely to kill himself as do anything useful. It’s just very SATISFYING, okay, to have a series actually do interesting things with OP characters. Sure, in a weird way Jame seems less like a magical nuke in book 8 than in book 1, but it’s because she’s not just throwing power around like someone playing darts blindfolded. And watching her figure out how to harness her power into something useful is so gratifying.

#kencyrath #chronicles of the kencyrath #book rec #my a+ number one alternative book rec if you don't think you want to read the kencyrath because of jame/tori is the captive prince #also i know those other book recs seem arbitrary but they're NOT okay i've thought about this #ANYWAY #A N Y W A Y #i hope this was enlightening anon #i'm sorry it got so long but i would need to know a little more about you personally to be more specific #if you have specific concerns please feel free to hit me up #anyway i'm listening to tam lin by tricky pixie and thinking big thoughts about some kencyrath aus after writing this #i need to get back into the me trilogy so i can actually write some stuff for the mass effectyrath au #or maybe go through the books and find a place to spin off that buddy cop jame & archiem arranged marriage fic #OH or to shove a lotus eater plot in there #what are some other good settings...hm actually i'd love to do a hanahaki au of gates of tagmeth #Let Torisen Be Aggressively Confronted With The Reality Of His Feelings 2021 #(i should try and figure out what i was doing with this three pages of soulmate su actually)#(i have no idea what past me was doing)#(but 'you get a mark for your soulmate and also for every lord you're bound to' kinda slaps as a concept)#a queue we will keep and our honor someday avenge #ALSO MY QUEUE TAG IS FROM THE KENCYRATH #Anonymous #asked and answered

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actualbird · 4 years ago

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nobody asked but i think hanso, brynn, and xandra from neopets’ comic “the faeries’ ruin” are queer | a 1.8k presentation i am presenting to my friends at an online party on the 19th, but you guys get early access because for some godforsaken reason, you like this content from me

Good evening class.

Last last time I attacked your dashboards with a long post, I discussed Neopets that would benefit from therapy. I’m sticking with my Neopets shtick but in a funkier Pride flavor. In this post, I will be discussing why the three main characters of Neopets’ “The Faeries Ruin” are queer.

So what is “The Faeries Ruin?”

“The Faeries Ruin” was a Neopets plot that ran through January of 2011. Plots can affect the website's appearance, services, and gameplay, and this plot was most notable because it turned all the Faeries of Neopia to stone.

Quick crash course on Neopets lore, for those of you who don’t know anything about it: Neopets are the main population of the planet of Neopia, but they share the world with other creatures as well. One of these creatures are Faeries, magical beings who can be benevolent or malevolent. Majority of them are good, and can be visited to receive gifts, abilities, new appearances, better stats, etc. Faeries are the most powerful creatures on Neopia. With the Faeries of Neopia turned to stone, all Faerie run services, from games to shops, were suspended because. Well. It’s hard to run a business when you’re stone.

“The Faeries Ruin” had an accompanying quest to play through, items to collect, puzzles to solve, and most important to our discussion, is the accompanying comic to read.

“The Faeries Ruin” comic is 17 chapters plus an epilogue. You can read the synopsis on the slide, and the story follows Hanso, a thief, Brynn, a guard, and Xandra, a scholar, who are all investigating the curse put on the Faeries.

A lot happens in the comic. Really, a LOT, so I don’t have time to summarize it for you. If you’re curious, you can read the plot here, and I’ll explain plot stuff as it becomes relevant to our discussion, but what’s really important are the characters.

These three in particular, Hanso, Brynn, and Xandra, are who I will be focusing on from the queer perspective.

But because I aim to be inclusive, before we dive into calling Neopets characters queer, we need a quick crash course in ‘queer’ definitions.

This is just so that we’re all on the same page. (Also so that I can use the readings I got from the queer theory class I was in last semester.)

Alex Pilcher in the Introduction of “A Queer Little History of Art” gives the word “queer” three definitions. First is the simplest, the word “queer” can act as an umbrella term for anybody who is not straight or cisgendered. The second definition is “queer” as an identity in itself. Instead or in addition to using sexuality or gender labels, one can opt to identify as queer and that does away with any hierarchies or too small definitions that may bother other people. I, for example, am bisexual, asexual, and nonbinary. However, that’s kind of a mouthful, and sometimes I don’t want to explain every facet of my identity. So sometimes I just tell people I’m queer, and fuck them if that’s confusing, it feels good for me. The third definition of “queer” is what I will be referring to quite a lot of times in this discussion, “queer” as a deviation from the norm. This is a callback to the word’s more archaic use, meaning odd or strange. What is “queer” then is what goes beyond or resists against society’s expectations.

Queer Theory is a huuuuuuuge academic genre, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. But we’re on a schedule here, so let’s queer some goddamn Neopets.

First, we have Hanso.

His Neopets species is an Ixi and he is a young rogue/thief. He knows Brynn because he’s a very shitty thief and he constantly gets captured by her. His personality is self centered and egocentric, but deep down, he has a heart of gold, even if his morals are a little skewed.

Also I think he’s bisexual. Why?

As a rogue/thief, he is outcasted by society, a type of queering from the norm. He is only accepted by those like him, which symbolically is parallel to how queer people often find other queer people to be with. Aside from Brynn, nobody trusts him. They think him to be a liar and a cheat, and this, I think, is parallel to the unsavory trope of the “untrustworthy bisexual.” Much the same way bisexuals are often told to “pick a side”, Hanso has both a desire for good and a desire for mischief, a duality that confuses other Neopets, and makes them wary of him.

Hanso is bisexual. And he isn’t sorry about it.

Next up we have one of my early childhood crushes. Brynn.

Brynn is a Kougra, a feline like Neopets species. She is a guard/soldier from the land of Brightvale. She knows Hanso because she keeps catching him, he’s a terrible thief. Her personality is one dominated by courage and a duty to Neopia’s safety.

And I think she’s also bisexual, but more interesting to me her queer expression of masculinity.

Jack Halberstam, a transgender man, wrote a book called “Female Masculinities” prior to his transition (I mention this because I know a lot of you may be wondering why a man gets any say about women’s issues, but I think this is a special case and that his views are still valid.) Halberstam, in his book, posits the concept of masculinity divorced from maleness. What this means, in simplest terms, is that masculinity is not something inherently male, just predominantly male. A female masculinity is thus outside of the norm, and a unique and queer expression of gender.

Concepts related to masculinity are things like power and rebellion. Strength, force, will, that kind of stuff. When we remove these things from maleness and allow femaleness to have these concepts, one of the results is tomboyism. The phenomenon of tomboyism is when a girl, usually young, exhibits masculine qualities. The thing about tomboyism is that it is reluctantly permitted during childhood but less expected as one grows older, the assumption being that a woman will submit to the societal expectations of what a woman is “supposed to be.”

I cannot find any canon sources to say that sexism is a huge problem in Neopia, but gender roles are still present. While we don’t see Brynn’s childhood in “The Faeries Ruin”, it doesn’t take much to imagine that her peers would be surprised with her choice to join the Brightvale Guard, a traditionally male pursuit. And yet she does it. She works hard and becomes such a good soldier that she aids King Altador himself during the story, that King Altador trusts and respects her opinions. Brynn rebels against society’s standards and asserts her own power.

Her personality exudes masculinity as well. Throughout “The Faeries Ruin” she is often dominant over the course of investigation, taking initiative, sometimes omitting truths for the greater good, and generally holding her judgement in high regard.

Her choices, especially in regards to her relationship with Hanso, is also something of note. Brynn is the one doing the catching and Hanso is the one being caught, an interesting subversion of expected gender roles. I will admit now that I have been withholding some information. Hanso, later in the plot of “The Faeries Ruin”, admits that he wanted to get caught by her as often as possible so that he would have an excuse to see her. Brynn did not know this, but I see it as a Hanso recognizing Brynn’s power and masculinity. I see it as a very romantic submission of Hanso to Brynn.

So Brynn is bi, because I say so. And she expresses masculinity in a unique, queer, and female way.

Now, before we move onto the last character, Xandra, I need to talk to you guys about Brynn and Hanso’s relationship. I think it is very good, it was one of my first OTPs, and here’s three reasons why it’s a good ship.

Reason 1: They’re both queer, so like, it’s better than the usual M/F couple. Bi people have more genders they’re attracted to, so the person they do end up choosing had to be better than literally everybody else. We can rest assured both of them are good eggs that are compatible with each other.

Reason 2: Their relationship over the course of “The Faeries Ruin” is that of the “enemies to friends to lovers” trope. Which, HELLO? GOOD SHIT? SIGN ME THE FUCK UP? THE HOSTILITY SLOWLY GIVING WAY TO RESPECT? THE RESPECT TURNING INTO ADMIRATION? Your honor, it’s delicious.

Reason 3: This reason is an NSFW concept, so if you don’t wanna see that, just Ctrl+F to the phrase “This brings us to our last character, Xandra” to skip it. We good? Everybody continuing to read wants to see this? Okay.

BRYNN TOTALLY PEGS HANSO. Like, I don’t have any sources, but by this point in the presentation, I hope I’ve established myself as an expert authority, and I hope you just believe me. She has the sword, in this relationship. Both literally and metaphorically. She pegs him and her strap is huge.

This brings us to our last character, Xandra.

Xandra is a Xweetok and also a magic scholar. She studied under Fyora, the Faerie Queen, and helps Hanso and Brynn with their investigation of the faeries’ petrification. She’s a lesbian because I say so, but uhhhhhh…

She’s also evil. Towards the end of “The Faeries’ Ruin” it was revealed that Xandra was the one who petrified the faeries all along. So yeah, she’s evil, buuuuuuut she’s super queer about it. How? Well, the answer lies in her motives.

The reason why she petrified the faeries was because she wanted to start a new Neopia without them. She believed that the faeries were hoarding power instead of using it to truly help Neopians. She actively wanted to destroy not just the faeries, but a symbol of power and control that arguably rules the world she lives in. She criticizes against that which controls the social expectations, and this criticism and questioning benefits the marginalized, the queered from the norm. Her intention was to create a kind of utopia free from a governing body that holds all the power. That’s pretty damn queer.

Honestly, I’m a little pissed she was branded as evil for this, but it was revealed that when the faeries were petrified, their good magic was gone and left Neopia vulnerable to evil magic shadows and Xandra didn’t really care. So uh, she had good and radical queer motives, but she went a little bonkers with power. I still love her though.

So, Xandra is pretty awesome, I hope she gets therapy then attends a Pride protest. She would totally be there reminding everybody that Pride started with riots. Also she loves women.

Thank you all.

(Read my other off the shits analysis essays at actualbird.tumblr.com/tagged/nobody-asked-but! If you have a request or suggestion for an off the shits analysis essay I can write, send me an ask!)

#nobody asked but #yeah. yeah this is what i do for fun

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eldonash · 5 years ago

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New Order for the Brood || Orobas & Carrington

Summary: Orobas and Carrington establish mutual relations and agree to bringing the vampires together in due time. Off camera they shop for a house for the future brood. @carringtonblackwood

Set up

Orobas was a man who listened, and observed. Information was always a vital piece to survival. He had taken great advantage of this new era and online shopping. If they needed any supplies at all, amazon was one click away to putting it on their doorstep the next evening. It was glorious, and dangerous for a man who had a decent amount of money. It was a shame he couldn’t shop locally often. He was walking calmly down a street in downtown, window shopping their wares while their doors were closed late in the evening. Orobas contemplated if he could get one of the owners to stay open late one night, let him shop their store alone. It would be worth their time and money. Pausing his easy strides, he stared into the window of a suit store, admiring their choices when he heard whispers up the road. Faintly, but with a peak of interest that lured his gaze in a different direction.

Carrington was also a listener and an observer. It was partly how he’d managed to survive for so long. By knowing what was happening in his immediate surroundings. And beyond. Beyond being the community he currently lived in. Whether it was Europe, Japan, Scotland, or here in White Crest, Carrington made it his business to listen to the whispers that drifted through the air. Lost words of conversations carried on the breeze. Rumors that slipped from tongues loosened by alcohol or drugs. Or even by the occasional bit of compulsion. Tonight, Carrington had merely gone for a walk to clear his mind of too many racing thoughts. He had no real destination in mind. No real purpose to his steps other than to let the relative quiet of the evening settle in around him. It wasn’t until the murmur of voices reached his ears that he paused. It was a subtle thing, the way he simply… slowed to a halt. His eyes never the pavement that he’d been frowning at for the duration of his trek. Until he’d pinpointed the source of the sounds. One had grown suddenly frantic… the other sharp and raised, though it still tried to be quiet. Carrington’s eyes slid towards the side-street, and he waited a beat before turning his path towards the growing sounds of conflict.

Orobas curiously turned down the alleyway near him. It's darkness was almost impenetrable less the other side which faintly glowed with a street lamp in mirrored reflection to his position. There he stood for a few seconds, this silhouetted figure blocking the pathway as he stared down, head cocked slightly as he suddenly smelled blood and the muffled choke of a seized throat. Something delirious spun his mind into visions of war and murder, and an insane, almost amused smile twitched his dead muscles into an eerie expression. He walked into the alleyway, seeing another figure on the far side lured in. The more steps he took, the sounds turned into gasps and shuffling as a punch sounded, and someone started coughing as they caught their stolen breath. When he was about ten steps away, he didn't look at the two humans hurting each other, but on the other. "Hmm, seems the world finds it time we meet,"

The scent of blood curled through the air, overlying the dirty, damp smell of the dimly lit alley. Carrington knew the sounds of a struggle, and his instinct was - and had always been - to intervene. If it was necessary. Though he had spilled his own share of blood in dark corners all over the world. Some in self-defense, some in anger. Some in the desperate desire to feed on something warm and living as it struggled and cried out against him. The latter was the flash of a past life that Carrington pushed down fiercely and firmly. He was no monster that preyed on the unsuspecting and unconsenting. The blood he took was freely given. Unless it was that of someone that deserved death. Hunters, slayers… those that harmed the weak and the innocent. Their blood had coated Carrington’s blade time and time again. But this was no hunter attack. Nor was it one of his kind feeding on an unwilling victim. This was a mugging of some sort. Another punch and the sound of forcibly exhaled air sounded through the alley. But it wasn’t this that had Carrington’s attention. Let the humans sort it out between themselves. No. His attention was on the figure that stood less than a dozen paces away. A figure he didn’t recognize, but at the same time, he did. Like recognizes like, after all. Carrington tilted his head slightly, studying the other. Finally, he gave the tiniest dip of his head. “So it does. But what would the world have of us, I wonder.”

One of the people pushed the other back down on the ground, wrapping their hands back on their throat and slammed their head to the ground. The crack of bone ignited old memories, ones filled with desires and bloodshed over a battlefield. Their hand reached out for him, and Orobas had a mind to grab it, to pull them up and into his embrace only to see the realization as they met with another monster. One that was hungry-- someone who was far, far worse than the one attempting to kill them now. He placed his hands into his pockets and relaxed his shoulders, further ignoring the humans. "I'm patient-- perpetually, and you know-- the world always delivers me who I require. I anticipate what immortality means and how much of the life we can remember and enjoy every waking moment, but I’m usually wrong." He seemed almost happy, "I have been waiting hundreds of years to meet you, and it is now that we do, it's extraordinary how that happens. Do you wish to chat?"

The fight between the two humans was becoming a distraction. Carrington wasn’t one to let someone die needlessly, so as the underdog’s skull cracked against the concrete, he frowned. It wouldn’t do to have someone get killed here tonight, especially if someone had seen him enter the alley. Carrington doubted he’d been spotted, but one couldn’t be too careful these days. “I am as well,” Carrington said of patience. “Immortality is both a blessing and a curse. Though the definition of either of those things is all relative. Depending on what the world decides to bring us.” The stranger’s words struck an odd feeling deep in Carrington’s chest. It wasn’t a bad feeling, but it also wasn’t a good one. It was more… to be determined. One thing was certain, however: he did wish to chat. “That it is. That we should meet after so many years, at this very moment in time.” So Carrington nodded that he did indeed wish to chat. But he also had a mind to finish the human squabble himself, before it got out of hand. “A moment, if you will.” And that’s all it took. A moment. Before the man with his hands around the other man’s throat was being slammed against the alley wall. A flash of a blade as he tried to stab Carrington. But the vampire had his fist in his hand before the blade made contact. He squeezed just enough to hear bones break. The human assailant cried out, but Carrington covered his mouth. A few whispered words, and a heavy dose of compulsion, and the man slumped. Carrington let him go, and he staggered off into the street, heading to the police department to turn himself in for assault. But having forgotten all about Carrington and the other vampire. The man on the ground groaned, and Carrington hefted him to his feet. The smell of blood was all around him, but he was alive. Another bit of compulsion and Carrington sent him on his way to the hospital to report the attack, and also forget about the other two men. “Shall we?” Carrington asked, giving the other vampire a small tip of his head.

Orobas would always, and forever, care about his kin to an obsessive, and almost absurd protective point. He was an evil creature to the core, but he had a code he liked to follow, which placed other vampires always by his side first over being enemies. Just like with Harsh, someone he felt deeply with for the longest besides his maker, seeing another vampire who carried the air of age, and wisdom felt like coming home again. He smiled as the fight broke up, the two humans blurry in mind and compulsion as they staggered off. Orobas was intensely curious about what caused it, but other matters now were much more important. He moved away from the dark alleyway, calm, steady, and content in the company. Typically, he'd introduce himself as his new name, but between kin, he didn't mind being honest. Often curious if such a thing was known when legend around it existed. "My name is Orobas Ash," he offered one of the biggest secrets right away to show his trust already. "Are you staying in White Crest for a while? Our kind moves often, don't we? I like it here. This weird little town. It's different than anywhere else in the world."

Carrington had been born to be a knight. His father before him done so, and Carrington had followed in his footsteps, serving his king and the people until it had cost him his human life. Yet even in this second life, Carrington refused to lose his humanity. His sense of honor and purpose. And while he was always a champion of his own kind over the lives of those that sought to harm them - slayers, hunters, and the like - his loyalty to his species only went so far. As he’d told Matty, the vampire slash addict he’d met in another alley much like this, if he couldn’t hold his tongue and made the mistake of tipping off the hunters in town to any of their kind, or Carrington himself, Carrington would cut off his head. He had no loyalty at all to cowards or traitors. But to those that didn’t deserve to be harmed, Carrington would step in when needed.

The humans moved away, and Carrington forgot about them as he took up the slow pace of his companion. It was rare he met someone that felt as old as he was. Carrington didn’t know how he knew this. Call it a feeling, perhaps. But he didn’t question it. It wasn’t until the stranger revealed his name that the odd feeling in Carrington’s chest returned. The unnameable one from before. Orobas Ash. If Carrington’s skin was capable of having goosebumps, they would’ve raced across his skin at the very utterance of that name. Because Carrington had heard that story. And in his naivety at the time, thought it merely a legend told among humans and vampires alike. The flick of Carrington’s eyes to other man’s profile was the only indication of his surprise. Though he was quite aware that the name could be fake. Could be. But Carrington was quite certain it wasn’t. Christ. “I was born Carrington Bishop.” He nodded in agreement of how often those like themselves moved. “It’s Blackwood these days.” He turned back to the road ahead. “I find myself wanting to linger awhile. There are… things keeping me here. By choice this time. Things the world never told me about until I found them.”

"Sounds romantic," he mused gently, curious if that was the real answer or if it was because they were able to call it home. Orobas often wondered what his birthplace looked like now in modern times. He's not been back in South Korea in hundreds of years though, big cities and sprawling neighborhoods would surely devour such a little village. "I had a revelation about a decade ago. A child, school-age, came up to me without an ounce of fear. And you know what they did, Carrington? They placed beautiful flower petals into my hands and lifted them--" he did the motion gently, "right to my face and told me to smell it. Such innocence, this shocked me. It was the first time in my life I wanted to see this little human live their entire life in peace. That is what's here. White Crest is a place of mystery and wonder. I cherish it."

“Perhaps,” Carrington said, his tone giving away nothing. It was the truth, such as it was. There were people here that he cared about, and wanted to be around. Be with. He hadn’t had a place he’d called home for a long time. Not in two hundred years at least. White Crest was slowly starting to feel that way. And that both thrilled and terrified the vampire. As the other man mentioned a revelation, Carrington glanced at him again. His expression was attentive and curious, and as the other revealed the source of this turning point in his immortal life - a human child, of all things - Carrington found his expression softening ever so slightly. He heard truth in the other’s words, and when Orobas was finished with the tale, Carrington gave him a nod of gratitude for sharing it with him. “‘The soul is healed by being with children’,” Carrington mused aloud. “And I couldn’t agree more. There’s something about this place. It…” He paused briefly, searching for the words. “It’s as if, as you said a moment ago, the world finally decided it was time for something. And brought us here.”

Carrington held the same level of sentiment as he did about children. It was challenging to express his emotions clearly, his face stoic, and still less, he managed to smile, but his words, now they could always get to the point. "I tend to speak candidly when I'm not dreaming about the universe caring about the immortals," Orobas joked lightly, offering a chuckle. "We have been brought here, to this one little spot. Have you ever once in life considered settling down with more of our kind? All our life, my maker and I have been together, running, country to country, war to war, but this isn't what we want anymore." He glanced over, shoulders square, and holding a fondness in his gaze. "We'd like to think we could all be together, keep each other safe."

Carrington laughed slightly, the sound warm and soft in his throat. “I find the universe rarely cares for any of us, no matter what our species. It exists as it always has. And when we are all dust, it shall continue on until the end of time.” Though there was humor in his voice as well, his own emotions were usually a whorl of sensations and thoughts that had to be wrangled and sometimes forcibly tied down before they could be expressed clearly. Especially the ones that gave him pause. The ones that shook themselves to life as their conversation continued were just these sort. Old emotions, dry and cracked and stiff from years of disuse. “My maker and I haven’t seen one another in over a century. He still lives - I can feel that much - but…” He shook his head, slipping his hands idly into his pockets. “... I haven’t heard from him since the turn of the last century.” What it must be like, to always have someone there with you. Someone that understood. That just… knew what it was like. Knew you better than you knew yourself. As for the rest. “I settled once,” Carrington said quietly. “But not with another like myself. He was a witch. I… tried to convince him to let me turn him, both to cure the wasting disease that was killing him and so that we might be together, but he wouldn’t have it.” Carrington swallowed. “I’ve not considered settling again. Until recently.” He glanced over at Orobas, noting the soft expression on the other vampire’s face. Carrington wondered if that’s how he himself looked when he talked about a certain doctor he’d grown quite fond of. The notion of a group of vampires existing together for mutual companionship and protection wasn’t unheard of. But it had been a long time since Carrington had heard someone speak the idea out loud. “I could…” He hesitated briefly, before pulling his thoughts together again. “I could certainly consider it. And I’ve a friend who might feel the same.”

"Not that it's our business-- but I'd hope you could find out what they are up to. We can help you if you need it. Pull old contacts." Orobas felt very saddened by this news. What would his existence be without his maker? Haxian did so much to encourage him, to be this other conscious in his mind that to even think about not being with him even for a few nights seemed-- impossible. They likely had a codependency problem, not that they were aware or cared. He frowned sadly at Carrington not knowing where his maker was. At least they weren't dead like Harsh's. "That's-- unfortunate," he said about their partner but didn't understand the emotion Carrington felt for this other person. Never sure about love, especially with a human as well as he should. Even though Orobas tried, he never grasped it a way a human could follow. His steps paused, genuine pleasure exposed. "Wonderful. They are welcome; we are working on a location. We have enough money, but precautions are wanted to go into it, which will require a bit of compulsion to keep the humans out of our business. Taking our time will only ensure it will be safe. Do you have a progeny?"

The offer to help locate his sire was a kind one, and Carrington nodded, stating that he would certainly give it some thought. To see the man again after so long would be… Carrington wasn’t quite sure he had the words to express that particular emotion right now. Carrington could almost claim codependency as well. But not with his sire. Though they had been extremely close, that bond was different from the bond he’d felt with his partner. The love was a different sort of love. An all-encompassing one that had left Carrington hollow and near out of his mind with grief when the man he’d loved more than his own life had passed. It had taken two centuries to even start to consider moving on. And as soon as he had, a man came into his life who was… good and kind and pure. Who made Carrington remember what it was like to feel short of breath and flushed, to have your heart race and your palms sweat… who looked at Carrington in a way that would’ve taken his breath. If Carrington had had any to give.

“Yes, it was,” he answered simply, not wishing to linger over that particular subject. Though his tone conveyed the sadness that still remained, even now. The subject changed, however, and Carrington paused as Orobas did. “One can never be too cautious these days. I came here initially because there was talk of the Hunter population being rather large. They’re out there, as I’m sure you know.” Time was fortunately on the side of the immortals, so even if it took a long time to make a place secure enough for more than a few vampires to meet, it would be well worth it. “How many are you so far? If I might ask?” Carrington knew several others like himself, but had no real numbers as to the actual vampire population in White Crest. “And no. I don’t,” he said of any progeny.

Orobas spent centuries hunting down innocent people. From slaughtering entire ancient fishing villages in south China, or in New York when the skyscrapers were newly forming and penthouses could be splattered in red. Now, Orobas quelled urges he’s had since the beginning, even-- as a human he was someone who killed without feeling. Though redemption was a fickle thing in him, he knew deep down he needed a focus to keep it up, and being with other vampires, seeing them all thrive together here without hunters picking them off. It could be enough to humor retirement until Elder status. Then-- well. “I know of a few I could humor being around, though, I haven’t quite pitched anything yet. I’m not some revolutionary type, but I have met a werewolf in town who has the fire for it. It’s something else to see.” He chuckled. “We have time, I’m in no rush, never have been with anything. Hunters will always exist, and I have taken pleasure in killing off entire family lines.” His grin sharpened, as if knowing the one before him might know that feeling too. “White Crest will always need hunters to kill the things going after humans, eliminating them here isn’t the point. It’s in making sure we are untouchable, unreachable, and too powerful for them to bother. They can worry about the other monsters of the world, and we-- can just exist in our immortality until it grows boring.”

Carrington had spent centuries hunting down people as well. Except his mission had been the opposite: hunt down those who would persecute and harm the innocent. Be they human, vampire, fae, witch, or otherwise. He’d done his share of merciless killing in what he considered their defense. Though he was old enough to know that along the way some innocents had paid the price for his actions. Or lack thereof. Carrington huffed slightly at the thought of being a revolutionary. “Neither am I. Once, perhaps. But not now.” He made a curious sound at the mention of the werewolf who had such a constitution, and tucked the fact into the back of his mind to explore later. Carrington’s expression turned a bit more serious as they moved briefly to the subject of hunters. He gave a small nod of agreement, even if there had been no pleasure taken from killing others. Not in a long time at least. “I’m not interested in the ones that hunt monsters. Only in the ones that harm the innocent.” The idea of being untouchable was… a tempting thought process to fall into. But no one was untouchable. Everything could die, even immortals. But the idea of being something the hunters didn’t dare bother with was appealing to Carrington. “The idea certainly has merit. But you know there are those foolish enough to see a gathering of our kind as some sort of threat. And take issue with it.”

Orobas agreed. “Probably, likely, either way-- it will be interesting. There are already places we all group up in, locations filled with supernaturals in town and they tend to look the other way or know stepping in would be too dangerous. That, is information I want to take advantage of,” Orobas offered a curious glance over, but it held no malice or evil intent. Simply a gaze, all consuming, like he was still surprised they were on the same page. “Would you like to walk with me some more Carrington? To see the houses I have in mind? Another opinion on the manner would be welcome, and the company.”

It was true. There were already several bars and establishments meant solely for their kind dotted about town. So it wasn’t as if such a gathering was unheard of. Perhaps it wouldn’t be seen as so unusual. Or as something that would draw unwanted attention. “Of course,” Carrington smiled in agreement. “I’m quite a fan of good real estate. Though the American obsession with the Colonial style will never cease to confuse me.” They walked on into the night, voices quiet as they disappeared into the shadows. What would come of it, only time would tell. But as they both knew, they had that in spades.

#x: carrington #x: new order for the brood #violence tw

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fuyonggu · 5 years ago

Text

The Romance Continued, Chapter 1

Who doesn’t appreciate a good fanfiction?

This text, Continued Romance of the Three Kingdoms, was written in 1609, almost three hundred years after the original novel. Its author went by the pen name The Unauthorized Historian of Xiyang of Western Shu; their real name is unknown. It continues the story of the Romance, beginning with the fall of Shu-Han and continuing into the Jin era, and it assumes that its reader is familiar with the Romance already. The basic premise is something along the lines of “what if most of the people who brought down Western Jin were actually descendants of people from Shu-Han?” It goes without saying that you shouldn’t expect too much historical accuracy here beyond the broad strokes.

One thing to know is that this is a long novel, clocking in at 145 chapters (making it longer than the Romance’s 120 chapters). Ironically, the work was never finished; the end of the 145th chapter states that the text up to that point was only the first half, and that the second half (either never written or lost) would finish the story.

I don’t know how often I’ll post chapters from this. This is just something fun for now. But there might be more?

後主降英雄避亂

Chapter 1 -- The Later Lord Surrenders, Young Heroes Flee The Chaos

蓋聞天開於子，地闢於丑，人生於寅。自人之生，而有聖人繼天立極以維人紀，上自三皇，中及五帝，下至商湯文武，迭相為治。當是時也，純用禮樂，行一不義、殺一不辜而得天下，所不為也。孔子曰："三分天下有其二，以服事殷，周之德，可謂至德也已矣。"宜其延世三十，歷年八百，後世鮮及焉。迨至戰國，亡王用霸，日尋干戈，壞亂已極矣。秦用商鞅之法，尚戰功，忽禮樂，雖然得志一時，幸吞六國，而享祚不長，傳世惟二，孰謂天道微藐之不足信，禮樂教化之不足用哉？漢高之興，能變秦律，立法三章，天下歸心，隨滅秦楚。雖然厄於強臣佞戚，光武卒能繼述，垂統綿長，不亦宜乎！及於三國之際，炎精將涸，吳魏分崩，所賴薦生玄德，足稱令主。至窮不背於仁，百敗不折其志，天生賢哲為之羽翼。雖雲立國一隅，而實君臣一德。以弱為強，六徵九伐，敵畏若虎，足為一時之偉稱也。奈何營中星殞，丞相云亡，遂使奸雄得志，千載於今，人心痛忿。幸而天道尚存，假手苗裔夷凶翦暴，使漢祀複興，炎劉紹立。要惟卯金餘德未艾，禮樂未廢，人心向慕之至也歟！

In the beginning, the heavens stretched into being, the earth took form, and mankind arose. Ever since the dawn of humanity, there have been wise rulers who have inherited the legacy of Heaven, stood atop the pinnacle, and directed the affairs of the people. In distant antiquity ruled the Three Emperors. Then came the Five Sovereigns. And after them were Tang of Shang and Kings Wen and Wu of Zhou. Each of these passed on the administration of the realm. During these ages, sovereigns were pure and conducted themselves with propriety and ritual. There was never an instance of someone who gained the realm by acting unrighteously or killing the innocent. Thus Confucius could state, "King Wen of Zhou possessed two thirds of the empire, yet with those he still served the dynasty of Yin (Shang). The virtue of the house of Zhou may be said to have reached the highest point indeed." And the house of Zhou indeed ruled for thirty reigns and eight centuries; never has there been another to equal them.

By the time of the Warring States, the royal sway had fallen into decline and the Hegemons ruled the realm; every day saw bloody battle, and the destruction and turmoil were absolute. The state of Qin, following the policies of Shang Yang, achieved military dominance. But they cared nothing for propriety or ritual, and though they achieved their ambitions for a time by swallowing up the other Six States, they did not enjoy a long legacy, and perished after only two reigns. Who then can claim that the ways of Heaven ought to be slighted and belittled, or that the education and culture provided by ritual and ceremony can be ignored?

When Gaozu of Han (Liu Bang) established the Han dynasty, he was able to transform the canons of Qin, and he established the laws in three articles. He won the hearts of the realm, who helped him to vanquish the Qin dynasty and the rival state of Chu. And though at times the house of Han fell prey to the dominance of its ministers and the flattery of its relatives, in the end, Emperor Guangwu was able to continue the succession. He propagated its rule and inherited its legacy; well that it was so!

When the realm split into the Three Kingdoms and the states of Wu and Wei tore the land asunder, the flame of the dynasty was nearly snuffed out. Yet even so, it could still depend upon the efforts of that devoted fellow, Xuande, who was worthy to be called its lord. Even when driven to his lowest points, he never abandoned his benevolence; even when defeated for the hundredth time, he never gave up his ambition. Heaven itself provided him with worthy and talented people to serve as his wings. And though he established his state in a corner of the realm, truly both he and his subjects displayed the selfsame virtue. Six times he mustered his armies for war, nine times he campaigned against the foe. His enemies feared him like a tiger. Worthy was he to be acclaimed as a talent of the age.

Alas, that Xuande's star should fall while he was in the midst of his camps, and that the Prime Minister (Zhuge Liang) too should expire. Their deaths allowed the wicked villains to attain their evil desires. Even a thousand years later, our hearts still rend with pain at the thought. But how fortunate, then, that Heaven was not finished with the house of Han, and it allowed their descendants to slay the cruel and smite the wicked. They restored the fortunes of Han and revived the flame of the Liu clan. The lingering virtue of their house had not been extinguished; the rites and ceremonies of the dynasty had not yet fallen. And our hearts beat with admiration for them!

且說蜀主劉禪自癸巳登位，賴孔明當國，安享四十餘季。丞相既亡，至炎興元年，其中寵用宦官黃皓，致先世文武大臣關、張、黃、馬、趙諸勛舊子孫皆不得干預軍事，或退閒，或致仕，於是國勢浸衰，兵威不振。魏司馬昭聞知，議欲伐之。當有王祥一門，常懷漢德，因上疏阻之云："蜀土雖狹，民感其惠，君臣義睦，無隙可乘。況今歲星在蜀，伐之恐致不祥。"昭不聽，乃命鄧艾領兵五萬，自狄道越甘松嶺出沓中，以絆姜維之師；諸葛緒引兵五萬，自祁山趨武街橋頭，以絕姜維歸路；鐘會引兵十五萬，從斜谷、子午谷分作三路而進，以趨漢中。細作報入沓中，大將軍都督軍事姜維急修表馳奏後主。後主即命蔣舒、傅僉領兵二萬，分守陽平等關要隘，更欲大發兵以助姜維。時黃皓用事，深恨姜維常欲除己，今若發兵助勢，敵退爵尊，我必受虧，隨阻於帝曰："臣曾探得魏主深疑司馬，司馬自救不暇，焉能謀人？此來風聞乃懼我兵見加，故為虛張聲勢耳。"又引巫師詐誕，以聾帝聽，以是帝遂不為設備，罷其預守之議，群臣皆不知姜維上表請兵之故。八月，魏軍長驅大進。姜維聞鐘會兵至，乃與廖化、張翼等合議扼守劍閣以拒之。鐘會引兵攻打，被維出奇兵斷會糧道，前後身自挑戰凡數十合，互有勝敗。會亦慮糧運險遠，急未能得志，隨退兵安營相守。忽探得姜維有襲糧之兵出矣，會心��懼，即欲退回長安，再圖後舉。

But us set the scene. The lord of Shu, Liu Shan, had risen to the throne in the Guimao year (223). And thanks to the supervision of Kongming over the state of Shu, Liu Shan had enjoyed a peaceful reign for more than forty years. But by now, the Prime Minister had died, and it was the first year of Yanxing (263). Liu Shan favored the eunuch Huang Hao and entrusted him with affairs, while the descendants of those great civil and martial servants of his father's age, the families of Guan, Zhang, Huang, Ma, and Zhao, were no longer granted any part in either the army or in government. Some of these scions lived in obscurity, while others held minor posts. But the state had fallen into decline and decay, and the morale of the soldiers had sunk too low to be revived.

When Sima Zhao of the state of Wei heard that such a state of affairs prevailed in Shu, he held a discussion among his subordinates, proposing a campaign to conquer Shu. Among these men was a certain Wang Xiang, who had always cherished the virtues of the Han dynasty. Thus he sent up a petition opposing the proposed expedition. He stated, "Although the territory of Shu is a cramped place, the people there venerate the kindness of their lord, and the relationship between its sovereign and his subjects is proper and harmonious. There is no internal dissension within the state which we could take advantage of. Besides, the Year Star (Jupiter) is currently hanging over Shu. It is well-known that no state which is enjoying the protection of the Year Star can be attacked. Thus to campaign against Shu would only invite misfortune upon us."

However, Sima Zhao did not listen to the pleas of Wang Xiang. Being determined upon the campaign, he devised a strategy for his armies to destroy the rival state. He would order the general Deng Ai to lead fifty thousand soldiers from Didao to cross the Gansong mountain ranges and enter Tazhong, where he could keep the army of Shu's Grand Commander, Jiang Wei, occupied. At the same time, he would order the general Zhuge Xu to lead another fifty thousand soldiers from Qishan to cross the bridgehead at Wujie and cut off Jiang Wei's route of escape. While these operations were taking place, Sima Zhao would send the main army of a hundred and fifty thousand under the general Zhong Hui to advance along three roads through Xie Valley and Ziwu Valley and capture the Shu bastion at Hanzhong.

Word of the planned Wei operations made their way to Jiang Wei at his base at Tazhong. He wrote a petition informing Liu Shan of the situation and dispatched a messenger at once to bring it to the capital. Liu Shan thus ordered the generals Jiang Shu and Fu Qian to lead twenty thousand soldiers to form garrisons to guard Yangping and other strategic places.

Liu Shan even planned to mobilize the full manpower of the state to reinforce Jiang Wei's army. But Huang Hao, who monopolized power at the capital, deeply hated Jiang Wei and had often wanted to get rid of him. He was worried that, if such a mobilization proved critical to letting Jiang Wei drive away the invaders, then Jiang Wei would surely be rewarded and honored while his own influence would diminish. Thus he opposed this mustering of troops, telling Liu Shan, "I have always heard that the ruler of Wei has been most suspicious of the Sima clan. The Sima clan must be entirely focused on securing their own position in Wei; how could they have a free hand to plot against us as well? If we panic in the face of this rumor and thus bolster Jiang Wei's ranks, we will only augment his power for no purpose." And he also brought in some shamans to perform a false ritual, and they deceived Liu Shan. Thus Liu Shan canceled his drafting preparations and dropped all discussion of reinforcing the defences of the state. None of his ministers ever realized that Jiang Wei had submitted this petition asking for reinforcements.

In the eighth month of that year, the Wei armies surged forward, advancing far into the state. When Jiang Wei heard that Zhong Hui's troops were on their way, he held a discussion with Liao Hua, Zhang Yi, and the other generals. They resolved to man the defenses at Jiange Pass and hold out against the enemy. When Zhong Hui's army arrived at Jiange, they launched an assault. But Jiang Wei devised a plan which allowed special troops to sever Zhong Hui's supply lines, and he also personally dueled enemies for dozens of bouts during the fighting. Each side had their share of victories and defeats. Zhong Hui was worried about keeping his troops provisioned over so far a distance and across such rough terrain, and he had his troops fall back to prepared camps to maintain their position. But when Jiang Wei's special troops continued to appear in his rear and launch surprise attacks against Zhong Hui's supply lines, Zhong Hui's heart failed him. He was resolved to fall back to Chang'an, then wait for some later time to plan another campaign.

鄧艾聞知，以書抵會曰："竊窺蜀國無能為也。蓋由宦豎專權，忠良解體，縱一姜維之智，亦不能驅眾遠出，不過虛為聲勢以分我軍，彼得以逸待勞耳。將軍但當堅守，待小將父子引本部兵，從陰平邪徑，經德陽亭，出劍閣之背，西去成都，不過三百里，以奇兵出其不意，衝其腹心。姜維知之，必撤劍閣之兵，還救涪城，都督則可方軌而進矣，何退之有哉？如劍閣兵不回，涪城無救，取之甚易。姜維前後受敵，必為公擒，此不待智者可知也。"艾竟不俟約期，即引兵行無人之徑七百餘里，鑿山通道，極其險處，艾則自裹以氈，推墮而下，將士扳援魚貫以進。至江油城，蜀將蔣舒以城降，傅僉戰死，隨逾陰平。

When Deng Ai learned that Zhong Hui's resolve had begun to waver, he sent him a letter criticizing him. He wrote, "Shu is an exhausted state, unable to accomplish anything. Its affairs are in the hands of a pathetic eunuch, and its loyal and good servants can do nothing. It is thanks to Jiang Wei's cunning alone that they are able to resist at all. But they lack the ability to move their forces about or march long distances. They can do no more than make threatening noises sufficient to cause us to divide our forces, allowing them to safely receive the brunt of a reduced attack.

"General, you need but hold firm and maintain your position. Allow my humble self and my son to lead the soldiers of my command to march through the badlands at Yinping, pass by Deyang Point, and emerge from behind Jiange Pass. From there, it will be no more than three hundred li west to the enemy capital at Chengdu; we can seize it by surprise and occupy the very heart of the enemy's country. Once Jiang Wei learns of it, he will surely bring his troops at Jiange to hurry to hold Fucheng against me, and you can then simply follow in his wake. Why then would you need to retreat? Or if the soldiers at Jiange do not turn back towards the capital, Fucheng will be defenseless and extremely easy to take. Jiang Wei will be surrounded by enemies on both sides, and he would doubtlessly fall into your hands. It would not take a genius to recognize that."

Without waiting for a response, Deng Ai at once led his troops along his proposed route. They traveled through more than seven hundred li of uninhabited land, carving through mountains and clearing roads as they went. When the road suddenly ended in a cliff, Deng Ai had himself wrapped in felt and personally rolled down the cliff, and his generals and soldiers then fashioned a fish-scale rope to descend the precipice. When they arrived at the city of Jiangyou at the far end of the road, the Shu generals Jiang Shu and Fu Qian were waiting for them. But Jiang Shu surrendered, and Fu Qian perished in battle. Deng Ai's troops then advanced to Yinping.

忽於岩畔見一石牌，上題："二火初興，有人越此，二士爭衡，不久自死。"艾探知乃諸葛孔明先設示警者。艾因大驚，遂訪孔明之墓，躬備儀禮拜祭，以求赦宥。是夜乃夢二力士，稱元運真君有召命，艾方猶豫，二士夾之而去。須臾至一處，殿閣崢嶸，光曜顯赫，力士引艾至內門。仰觀殿上，執事羅列，整肅森嚴。少頃，真君出御曰："吾即孔明耳。往時謫降人世，目擊曹瞞、馬懿並無仁德，惟務奸偽，欺上惑下，竊據土宇。吾曾奏聞上帝，削其國籍。劉漢二十六君，守道育民，初無失德，宜使其裔興漢複祀。其餘附奸凶忍之徒，悉填憲典，即目劉主迎降，乃保眾惜民之仁。爾兵進城，若不約束，大禍旋至，可宜知改。"諭畢，命力士引還。後來鄧艾忘戒縱暴，父子遭戮，鐘會亦坐誅夷，魏晉國祚不永，劉氏繼立，漢祀複存，皆如夢中之語。艾既覺悟，神思惑亂，按兵遲回者數日。鄧忠等進曰："大人深明理道，何不察妖幻者邪術也？是不脫王郎假妻為神，以阻光武之故智耳！何因一夢，隨阻軍心？正中其術矣。"艾隨釋疑，引兵而起，進至綿竹。飛報入成都，後主大驚失措，慌議出師，群臣無敢應諾者。

As Deng Ai's troops were marching along the side of a cliff, Deng Ai suddenly saw a stone stele. Upon it was written these words: "Two fires arise; men pass by here. Two commanders compete; both will soon perish." Deng Ai realized that Zhuge Kongming must have earlier placed the stele here as a warning to him. Greatly frightened by the omen, Deng Ai went to visit the grave of Kongming, and he personally conducted the rites to offer a sacrifice to the spirit of Kongming, hoping to win his pardon and forgiveness.

That night, Deng Ai saw two strong men in his dreams, who said that they had been ordered by the Steadfast Lord to fetch him. Before Deng Ai realized it, the two strong men had grabbed him, and they took him with them. The three of them soon arrived at a magnificent residence; its halls and pavilions were lofty and towering, and it shone with a glorious luster. The strong men brought Deng Ai through the gates of the residence. Deng Ai looked up to gaze at the hall, and he saw that everything was laid out meticulously and in strict order, with everything in its proper place.

The Steadfast Lord soon appeared to receive Deng Ai. He told him, "I am none other than Kongming. In life, when I walked the world below, I saw with my own eyes how Cao Man (Cao Cao) and Sima Yi were both lacking in benevolence or virtue, caring only for wickedness and cunning. They deceived their sovereigns above and beguiled the people below, seeking covetously how they might take the land for themselves. But I have heard the wishes of the Supreme God above, and I know how he has laid out the fates of dynasties. Through the twenty-six rulers of the Liu clan of Han, they have held fast to principle and nurtured the people. Never since the beginning have they abandoned their virtue. Thus it shall be that their descendants shall restore the fortunes of Han. Only for the moment shall the minions of the cruel and wicked villains be suffered to hold the laws in their hands. I have foreseen that Lord Liu shall surrender to you, for in his benevolence he wishes to protect the masses and spare the people from suffering. When you advance to the capital, unless you restrain yourself, disaster will overtake you as well. I have informed you so that you might reform yourself." Having finished speaking, he ordered the strong men to take Deng Ai away again.

Alas for Deng Ai, that he later forgot this warning and set loose his soldiers to pillage; father and son both suffered a grisly end. So too did Zhong Hui suffer execution. Nor did the fortunes of Wei or Jin long endure either. For the Liu clan was able to restore itself and the Han dynasty once again flourished, just as this dream had foretold.

When Deng Ai awoke from the dream, his thoughts were troubled by what the spirit had told him, and for several days he kept his troops back and would not advance. Then his son Deng Zhong and the other generals stepped forward and said, "Sir, you have always been wise and clear-sighted. Don't you see this is some sorcery that has taken hold of you? This is no different from when Wang Lang heeded the spirit of his wife and opposed Emperor Guangwu, to his ruin! Why should you burden the hearts of the army all for the sake of a dream? You must see through this craft." Deng Ai thus set aside his doubts and put his troops in order, and they advanced to Mianzhu.

When word arrived in Chengdu that Deng Ai's army was close at hand, Liu Shan was so shocked that he was at a loss. He hastily summoned a council to discuss sending out an army to oppose Deng Ai. But none of the assembled ministers dared to volunteer to lead it.

諸葛瞻急入，大慟曰："國家養兵育士，正在今日之用，何無一人應命？皆由陛下寵用黃皓，以至於此。今事已危急，臣雖不才，願拼微軀，上報陛下，下慰父心。"帝即付以禁兵二萬。瞻至綿竹，與鄧艾兵遇。安營已畢，召子諸葛尚議曰："吾兵屢敗，銳氣已喪，須以奇計取勝。若韓信背水，庶可為力於眾也。"尚曰："大人之見甚善。彼兵屢勝，志必驕惰。若能三軍致死，勝之極易耳。"次日，兩軍方合，瞻即揮退，艾即逼追至港次。諸葛尚大呼曰："前臨溪港，後有追鋒，若諸軍不拼死鬥，則盡無生矣。"以是三軍回身死鬥，艾兵大敗。瞻亦不敢深追。鄧艾收兵，責眾不盡力。忠曰："一人舍死，百夫莫敵，況勝敗兵家之常，安足為責？以子之見，諸葛終非父比，趁今夜彼方得勝，必不提防，一去劫營，必收大功。"艾曰："謀人之所不謀，正此之謂也。"即命忠在前，自為策應，三軍盡起，望瞻寨殺來。是夜，瞻父子果不提備，為忠斫營而入，諸軍俱在睡中，人不及甲，馬不及鞍，諸葛瞻乃嘆曰："天不佑漢人，其如何？"隨與子尚俱戰死於陣。可憐忠義兒，罹此殺身慘。所謂綿竹之戰，見孔明之有子也。敗兵逃回者入城奏知後主，計無所出。或曰急召姜都督回救，或曰棄城奔白帝城，入吳求救。眾議紛紛不定。

Then in rushed Zhuge Zhan, the son of Zhuge Liang. In a voice full of grief, he lamented, "The state has raised its soldiers and trained its officers for just such a day as this. How is it then that none of you will take up the call? It is all because Your Majesty has favored and employed Huang Hao that things have come to this. But though the emergency is already so great, and I have no talents to speak of, still I am willing to take the command and oppose the foe. Thus I may repay Your Majesty above and soothe the heart of my late father below." Liu Shan thus assigned Zhuge Zhan twenty thousand soldiers from the palace guards.

When Zhuge Zhan's forces arrived at Mianzhu, they encountered Deng Ai's army. Once the camp was complete for the day, Zhuge Zhan summoned his own son, Zhuge Shang, and discussed the situation with him. "Since our soldiers have suffered several defeats and their spirits have sunk low," said Zhuge Zhan, "we must rely on a special plan to gain a victory. We shall have to follow the example of Han Xin of old, and post our soldiers with their backs to the river. Then our men will fight with all their strength to defeat the enemy."

"You see things all too well, Father," said Zhuge Shang. "And the enemy, after having won several victories, will have also grown complacent and remiss. Thus if we can compel our soldiers to fight to the death, it will be quite easy to triumph."

The next day, just as the two armies were about to clash, Zhuge Zhan began to have his men fall back. Deng Ai led his own army in pursuit, pressing Zhuge Zhan's soldiers as far as a nearby river landing. Zhuge Shang then called out to the soldiers, "Before you is the flowing river; behind you is the enemy in hot pursuit. Unless you fight for your very lives, not one of you will survive." The Shu soldiers then turned and plunged into battle, fighting for dear life, and Deng Ai's army was greatly defeated.

Zhuge Zhan did not dare to press the pursuit too closely. Thus Deng Ai was eventually able to gather up his scattered soldiers again. He reproached his troops for not fighting with their full strength. But Deng Zhong said to him, "A man driven to the brink of death can overcome even a hundred opponents. Besides, victory and defeat are the common lot of any army. Why should you reproach them? As I see it, Zhuge Zhan is not the equal of his father. He has seized upon a momentary advantage to snatch a victory, but now his troops will be flush with their triumph, and they will surely not have prepared any defenses against us. If we march immediately and strike their camp at once, we will win a great achievement."

Deng Ai remarked, "The schemer does not account for schemes, as they say." So he ordered Deng Zhong to lead the vanguard, while he held overall command. His army advanced at once, determined to see Zhuge Zhan dead.

That night, Zhuge Zhan and Zhuge Shang had indeed failed to prepare their defenses. Deng Zhong was thus able to break into their camp, where he found the Shu soldiers in the midst of sleep. They did not even have time to put on armor or place bridles on their horses before being overrun. Zhuge Zhan wailed, "Can it be that Heaven does not aid the servants of Han?" He and his son rushed into the battle, where both died in the fighting.

What a pity, that such a loyal and righteous son should meet with such a tragic fate. But we can see from his victory at Mianzhu that he was truly Kongming's son.

Some of the soldiers who had fled from the night attack returned to Chengdu, and Liu Shan was thus informed of Zhuge Zhan's fate. He did not know what to do. Some of his ministers advised him to immediately summon Jiang Wei back to save the capital, while others advised him to abandon the city and flee to Baidicheng, where he could seek aid from the state of Wu. Arguments flared back and forth, and no one could decide what should be done.

太史令譙周曰："大將軍拒鐘會，其兵不可抽，抽則兩失。東吳非好相識，且艾兵已近郊，若知陛下出，縱輕騎追之，亦恐不能脫，皆非善策耳。臣觀乾象，見國數已衰，賊氣方盛，客星犯闕，主星韜光，戰則無益，不如出降。上可救全城百姓之命，下可以保全九族，乃應天順時之舉，非臣不忠，敢陷陛下為屈膝事也。"後主惑其言，乃議出降。鄧艾因頓兵城下。當有帝之第三子北地王劉諶知之，急入阻曰："誰獻此計，誤陛下為萬世何如主？況城中尚有十萬之眾，當率之或戰或守，敵兵何能即入？彼兵遠來，野無所虜，糧草不接濟，但能堅守一月，全軍皆沒城下矣。且姜維諸將在外，安得無計？獻此計者，不但誤陛下，誠可斬也！設使勢窮力竭，猶當父子背城一戰，何至含垢忍恥以圖苟活，何以見先帝於地下耶？"帝曰："爾小兒何知國計？可速去。"

Then the Prefect of the Astrologers Bureau, Qiao Zhou, offered his thoughts. "The Grand General is busy opposing Zhong Hui," he said, "and his army cannot break off from that struggle; if they did so, they could neither defeat Deng Ai nor Zhong Hui. As for Wu, they are no good friends of ours. Besides, Deng Ai's army is already so close to the outskirts of the city that even if His Majesty tried to flee, Deng Ai could send light cavalry to pursue him, and I fear he would never escape. So that is not a suitable plan either.

“As for me, I have seen the signs and omens and recognized in them the steady decline of the state. The stars are abundant in the quadrant of the sky symbolizing the enemy, while wayward stars have violated our own quadrant and the luster of our chief star has grown dim. It would do you no good to risk a battle. Better to go out and surrender at once. By doing so, our sovereign may ensure the lives of all those within the city, and we may protect the lives of our own families and clans. It is time to heed the will of Heaven and the sign of the times. Though I am not disloyal, still I must dare to propose that Your Majesty bend the knee."

Liu Shan was beguiled by Qiao Zhou's words, and he proposed going out to surrender. Deng Ai thus halted his troops and waited outside the walls of the city.

When Shu's Prince of Beidi, Liu Shan's third son Liu Chen, learned what was about to happen, he rushed into court to oppose the planned surrender. "Who has proposed this idea and thus led Your Majesty astray?" he cried. "Shall you let future generations wonder at your actions? Besides, there are still a hundred thousand soldiers within the city. We could easily have some of them go out to fight while the others remain to defend the city. Then how could the enemy ever break inside? The enemy army has traveled a great distance, and there is no food in the fields for them to forage, nor provisions in store to keep them supplied. We need only defend the city for a month before their whole army wastes away beneath our walls. And Jiang Wei and the other generals are still in the field; can they really do nothing to help us?

“Bring forth this person who has proposed that you surrender, for not only has he misled you, he ought to be beheaded! At the very least, we should do our utmost and exert every effort by risking a final battle, fathers and sons together with our backs to the city! How could you swallow such disgrace and endure such shame merely in order to save your own lives? How will you be able to face His Late Majesty in the world below?"

But Liu Shan told him, "What does a brat like you know of affairs of state? Begone at once."

北地王知帝存婦人之仁，執性不回，乃將幼子托劉璩撫育，隨哭入昭烈之廟，先殺其妻，乃自刎。劉璩者，梁王劉理之子也。在諸王之內，號稱智囊，且機警有權略，比時亦欲進議，因見劉諶之死，知帝執迷，不可以舌諍也。方哭念劉諶間，有劉封次子劉靈入省，璩曰："今國勢如此，奈何？"靈曰："惟應與吾兄劉宣等商議，全身遠害，豈宜束手待斃，行奴顏婢膝事乎？"劉璩曰："某亦為此而思度，非宣兄莫可與計者。"靈即馳請宣至。璩曰："大廈將崩，一木難扶，城若一破，玉石俱焚。兄輩計將安出？"宣曰："吾弟才略勝我百倍，必有定見。以愚諒之，帝意不可轉，國事不可支，明矣。為今之計，惟有逃避遐方，審機諒勢，或圖興複，此為上也。若還居此遲回，必遭大辱。"璩曰："兄計深與我合。"言未畢，又有一人自外而入，呼曰："��子通在否？"劉靈忙出迎候，乃楊儀之子楊龍也。龍曰："適到尊府訪議，云兄到此，是以隨亦來會。正欲見殿下呈鄙見耳。"於是同入見璩等，乃曰："龍本不識時務之人，因思先父曾言諸葛丞相臨終，惟先父在側，囑以後事。言劉氏此複中衰，越三十年後，當有英主再出，複興漢業，重定中原。臣父對臣言之，謹記不忘，將謂國家尚有一統之日，不意事勢若此。主上惑於譙周之說，必不可移矣。臣觀七殿下相貌不凡，神異種種，將來主大器者，必殿下也。夫智者見於未萌，豈待已著乎？申生止而待死，重耳逃而複伯。此已往之明鑒也。吾輩願從殿下周游，萬死而不辭。"言未畢，有一勇士自外披襟而入，大叫曰："汝眾尚不逃走，是欲自送死耶？"眾視之，乃梁府護衛親兵總領秦州狄道人齊萬年也。

Liu Chen recognized that Liu Shan had only the kindly nature of a woman, and he was stubborn in his decision and would not be swayed. So Liu Chen first entrusted the care of his young son Liu Yao to his cousin Liu Qu to raise as his own. Then, wailing as he entered the ancestral temple of Emperor Zhaolie (Liu Bei), he killed his wife and then cut his own throat.

This Liu Qu was the son of the Prince of Liang, Liu Li. Among the princes of the royal family, he had gained a name for himself as a clever and intelligent young man, and he was quick-witted and had a calculating mind. He too had been planning to offer his thoughts in the recent discussion. But when he saw how Liu Chen had been driven to death, he knew that Liu Shan would not change his mind and rhetoric would not do any good.

Liu Qu was weeping as he thought of Liu Chen's demise, when Liu Ling came into his residence; this Liu Ling was the second son of Liu Bei's adopted son Liu Feng. Liu Qu said to him, "The state has been driven to such dire straits. What are we to do?"

Liu Ling told him, "Why not discuss things with your elder brother Liu Xuan and the others? We might preserve ourselves and stave off danger. Why should we sit here with folded hands and await disaster, or else submit to becoming slaves and bending the knee?"

Liu Qu replied, "I had just been thinking the same thing. Liu Xuan is the only one who can tell us what we should do."

Liu Ling thus quickly sent word asking Liu Xuan to join them. When Liu Xuan arrived, Liu Qu told him, "The trunk is about to fall, and the branches can hardly survive; the city is about to be taken, and the jade will be smashed alongside the stones. Elder Brother, can you think of nothing for us to do?"

Liu Xuan replied, "Younger Brother, you are a hundred times as talented and clever as I am, and you will surely be able to think of something. But in my own humble view, it seems clear that the Emperor's intention cannot be changed and the state can no longer be saved. Thus all I can suggest is that you run away and seek refuge in some distant place, then muster your strength while watching for some opportunity. By doing so, you may find some chance to revive the state. That would be the best plan. But if you stay here and linger any longer, you too will have to suffer the great disgrace of surrendering."

Liu Qu said, "Elder Brother, that is exactly what I was thinking."

He had not yet finished speaking when another man approached the residence, calling out, "Is Liu Zitong here?" Liu Ling quickly hurried out to see who the new arrival was, and discovered that it was Yang Yi's son Yang Long. "I was just about to attend the council," Yang Long said, "when they told me that you were here, so I came to find you. I only hope that His Highness will be willing to see me."

They both went back inside to rejoin Liu Qu and Liu Xuan. Yang Long told Liu Qu, "The reason that I had never taken up office is because I have always been thinking of the words that my father once heard from Prime Minister Zhuge on his deathbed. Back then, my father was the only one by his side, and he was asking the Prime Minister about his last will. The Prime Minister told him that although the Liu clan would fall into decline, thirty years after that time, a bold hero would emerge to restore the endeavor of the Han dynasty and reconquer the Central Plains. My father told this to me and instructed me to be sure never to forget it, saying that such a day for the state was sure to come. Only I never thought that things would come to this.

"Now our sovereign has been led astray by the words of Qiao Zhou, and he surely cannot be moved. I have studied the appearances of the other seven princes of the royal family, but none of them measure up. The only one who seems to have a remarkable appearance and has the makings of a grand leader is Your Highness.

"A wise man recognizes what is going to happen long before the event comes to pass. Why then do you linger here? Do not forget the fates of the sons of Duke Xian of Jin; Shensheng remained at home and so met with death, while Chong'er fled and reclaimed his inheritance in the end. These are clear examples for Your Highness to heed. As for me, I am willing to follow Your Highness wherever you go, and I would not complain even if I suffered ten thousand deaths."

Yang Long had hardly finished speaking when some bold fellow strode into the room, shaking out his sleeves as he roared, "Why haven't you people run away yet? Are you so eager to die?" Everyone turned to look, and they recognized him as a troop leader of the soldiers from the Liang garrison, Qi Wannian from Didao county in Qinzhou.

劉璩乃拉萬年手曰："吾知欲脫此虎阱，非將軍不能周旋，奈何尚有一大關系，須累將軍保扶之。昨北地王死於社稷，天地為之悲慘。又將幼子劉曜托我撫育，以為我必不負托者。我輩仗威力，或可幸全，是兒方在襁褓，為之奈何？若此兒不得出，我亦無棄行之理。"言訖，淚下如雨。萬年言曰："殿下親子在外監軍，尚不言及，而拳拳以托侄，立相與存亡之誓，真仁人之設心也。他日必為萬民之主，不卜可知矣。"蓋璩之長子聰，生而有神力，善於弓馬，因此後主命之監助姜維之軍。姜維每資其力，倚重之，故嘗留於其軍。萬年乃曰："臣敢不體殿下之心以報北地王之忠？但只身恐不能兩全。臣有契友廖全者，真勇士也，兼之義俠逾常，乃平西將軍廖化之子也。每欲從徵為國家出力，渠父惜惟一子，留家不遣，因與臣較藝，隨為刎頸之交。臣當前去約彼至此，將曜主縛於其背，臣則向前開路，誓當死戰以報國恩。但須急速，毋致遲誤。"眾曰："永齡真義勇丈夫也，速宜馳之。"萬年即偕廖全至，劉靈、楊龍等皆會。萬年即手持大刀，當先開路，廖全負劉曜挺槍次隨。劉��、劉宣保護各家眷屬居中，璩與劉靈、劉和等斷後，一齊俱望西門而出。當有魏將方來引兵攔阻去路，曰："吾觀汝輩皆仕宦裝束，且汝主既降，則盡是魏民，吾主方事招徠，何用逃竄？"萬年更不開言，怒眸若電，就輪起大刀劈面斫去。方來亦挺槍相迎。論方來豈萬年之敵乎？但賊兵眾多，又要保衛眷屬，惟衝擊而已。萬年乃殺條血路而出，廖全奮勇挾斗，人不敢追，擁衛眾人以出敵圍。方來不舍，從後引兵追來。萬年曰："賊徒不知死活，尚敢來追，不斬之無以見英雄。"乃隨勒轉馬迎之，未及二合，將方來手起一刀斬之。眾魏兵見如此利害，那個敢來追？各自奔散。正是：他年開國興基手，先向成都顯首功。

Liu Qu took Qi Wannian by the hand and said, "I know all too well that I ought to escape from this tiger's trap. But without your assistance, General, I cannot do so. I have been entrusted with a new ward, and I shall have to depend upon you to defend him. Yesterday, the Prince of Beidi died before the altars of state, and Heaven and Earth grieved and mourned for him. He entrusted me with the care of his young son, Liu Yao, to nurture and raise, for he knew that I would never shirk such a duty. Yet though by my own strength alone I might be able to preserve my life, how could I ever protect this mere infant, still in his swaddling clothes? He would never be able to escape, yet I would not abandon him." And as he spoke, his tears flowed like rain.

Qi Wannian said, "Your Highness has a grown son who is away with the army. Yet rather than speak of him, you show so much concern about this nephew that you even pledge that you shall live and die together? Truly you have the heart of a benevolent man. This very day, I recognize you as my master; who could have guessed it?"

This son was Liu Qu's eldest son Liu Cong, who had been born with prodigious strength and was a skilled mounted archer. For that reason, Liu Shan had ordered him to assist Jiang Wei's army. Jiang Wei had esteemed his strength and deeply appreciated him, thus he had remained at the frontlines.

Qi Wannian continued, "Would I dare not to honor the wishes of Your Highness's heart or repay your loyalty to the Prince of Beidi? Yet I fear that I alone cannot protect both you and the babe. But I have a sworn friend named Liao Quan, the son of the General Who Pacifies The West, Liao Hua. He is a true warrior, not to mention an uncommonly righteous fellow. He has always wished to exert his strength on behalf of the state, yet since he is an only son, his father has kept him at home and not allowed him to venture forth. He has thus taken the opportunity to test his strength against me, and we have become friends who would live and die together. Allow me to go and fetch him here, and I will have him tie the Young Master to his back, while I clear the way in front. I pledge that we will repay the grace that the state has shown us, in life or in death. But we must move swiftly; to delay further would only be a mistake."

The others all said, "Yongling is indeed a bold and righteous fellow. Quickly bring him here."

So Qi Wannian went to get Liao Quan, and the two of them rejoined Liu Ling, Yang Long, and the princes. Qi Wannian wielded a large blade and went in front to clear the path, while Liao Quan followed behind with a spear in hand and Liu Yao on his back. Liu Ying and Liu Xuan stood in the middle of the group, protecting their family members and dependents. Liu Qu, Liu Ling, Liu He, and others brought up the rear.

The group all fled out of the west gate of the city. But they soon found the road barred by Wei troops under the general Fang Lai, who had occupied that place. He said to them, "I can see that all of you are dressed in the attire of officials. Besides, your lord is going to surrender, so you are all people of Wei now, and our lord is going to take good care of you. Why then should you scurry away?"

Qi Wannian did not bother with words, but, with eyes full of rage like lightning, he hefted his blade to cleave Fang Lai's face in. Fang Lai too brought up his spear, and the two of them traded blows. Now could a man like Fang Lai have ever been a match for Qi Wannian? But the enemy was so numerous, and besides, Qi Wannian had to protect the others as well. So he did no more than charge the enemy and break through, leaving the road filled with blood behind him. Liao Quan too put on a bold display. The enemy did not dare to pursue them, thus they were able to escort the others out of the encirclement.

Yet Fang Lai would not stand by, and he soon led his troops to chase after them. Qi Wannian said, "These villains don't know the meaning of life and death, to dare to follow after us. Unless I behead this one, they will not recognize my prowess as a hero." So he turned his horse about to face Fang Lai, and before the two of them had gone two bouts, just as Fang Lai was raising his hand, Qi Wannian lopped off his head with one swing of his blade. When the Wei soldiers saw their commander suffer such a grievous wound, who among them would have dared to pursue any further? They all scattered and fled.

Truly it could be said: that year saw the laying of the foundation for the new state, and here was displayed the first achievement in their flight from Chengdu.

卻說鄧艾知得西門廝殺，即令部將褚群引兵助戰，從後殺來。劉璩忙令劉靈抵敵，曰："不殺鼠賊，無以雪胸中之忿。"乃大喝曰："認得劉將軍麼？"褚群忽見劉靈身長一丈，膀闊三停，威風凜凜，大是驚駭，旋勒馬謂曰："汝家國已破，尚欲何往？不降何待？"靈曰："賊奴！汝輩尚可降彼婦人小子，安能降我真將軍耶？"言訖，橫衝而入。褚群亦魏中名將，舉刀急架。鏖戰移時，魏兵合圍而來。靈即心生一計，抽馬佯敗而走。褚群不料，從後急追。靈故勒馬緩行，褚群馬逸不能收步，撞過馬頭，被靈一槍刺中透心，落馬而亡。後兵潰散，不敢複追。正是：巧施阱虎擒龍技，得樹安邦立國勛。

We should mention that, when Deng Ai had learned of the disturbance and slaughter at the west gate, he had dispatched the general Chu Qun to reinforce the garrison there. These reinforcements were now coming around from behind, determined to slaughter the fugitives. Liu Qu hastily ordered Liu Ling to deal with these foes, telling him, "Unless you slay these scurrying bandits, I will not be able to quell the rage in my chest."

Liu Ling stepped forward and announced to the Wei soldiers, "Do you recognize the banner of General Liu?"

Chu Qun suddenly noticed Liu Ling standing before them; he was a man of great height, with broad and powerful shoulders, and the very air around him seemed to chill in a fearsome aura. Chu Qun was greatly astonished. He turned his horse toward Liu Ling and called out, "Your family has already been smashed, so where are you planning to flee to? Why not surrender at once?"

Liu Ling retorted, "Bandits, slaves! Only the women and children of my generation could deign to submit to you. How could I give in and still call myself a general?" And with these words, he charged forward to attack.

Now Chu Qun too was a Wei general of some renown, so he also lifted his blade and rushed to engage his enemy. As they were fighting, the Wei soldiers began to close in around them. Then Liu Ling quickly devised a plan; he pulled on his horse and, pretending to yield the fight, he ran away. Chu Qun, not suspecting that anything was amiss, dashed after him. But Liu Ling suddenly turned his horse about; Chu Qun's horse was unable to react in time, and the two horses collided. Liu Ling seized the opportunity by driving his spear straight into Chu Qun's heart, and Chu Qun toppled dead from his horse. The other pursuit troops all scattered and fled, none daring to chase Liu Ling any further.

Truly it could be said: Through skill and guile one traps the tiger and catches the dragon. Thus was this kinsman of the royal line able to establish an achievement for the state.

卻說劉靈方離家之際，猛憶起王彌乃吾心腹之友，當今無以為匹者，萬一陷於敵中，為彼收用，則失吾國一棟梁矣。忙使人邀到，與之同出。蓋王彌者，乃北地將軍王平之子也。自幼生而穎異，膂力過人，長而有千斤之力。尤精於騎射，每為其父器重之。後乃襲父蔭居職，嘗有開跋之志。因見帝之昏庸，信任黃皓，妨賢拒諫，遂杜門不出，時人尚未之奇，惟劉靈痛父失事遭戮，飲恨不仕，彌乃與之結為異姓兄弟，時與較藝，始知彌之賢於人矣。其後彌與關氏兄弟俱稱時俊，亦相結納。當日得靈之信，乃喟然嘆曰："吾父子早知有今日矣。子通兄既來見召，倘不從命，是無忠義之心而負生平之所學矣。但關家兄弟與我有休戚之托，彼年尚幼，安能自拔？"遂奔至關家。而關防、關謹見說彌至，乃從內大慟而出曰："飛豹兄，當今事勢若此，奈何奈何？"初，關興於青龍元年間從征失利，患病在家，因見��事日非，每嘆說："任奸邪於危難之秋，喪無日矣。吾族安能免哉？"昨見王彌來省，坐論時事，乃太息曰："王子均之有子也，可以托孤寄子矣。"遂囑防、謹深相結納之。王彌曰："國家垂破，而尊府與賊為世仇，禍且不測。吾因劉子通召往偕遁，深念昆玉，故此特來相訊。且欲議為今之計，惟當速避，後與諸公協謀興複，乃為上策。"防曰："兄言甚是，其如家口之計何？"彌曰："大丈夫為國不顧家，況司馬父子方有大志圖篡天下，假仁假義以收攝人心，安肯仇害人之家屬乎？願賢弟放懷以圖大事。"防、謹乃依命同出，竟留家屬在城中，後遭龐德之子龐惠毒手，合家盡罹慘禍，曾無噍類，傷哉！

We should mention that at the moment when Liu Ling had been preparing to depart from his family, he had suddenly remembered his good friend, Wang Mi. Liu Ling had thought to himself, "Wang Mi is no common fellow, and if by some chance he were to fall into the hands of the enemy and be used by them, we would lose a great pillar of our state." So he had dispatched someone to go and inform Wang Mi of his intentions at once, so that Wang Mi might flee as well.

This Wang Mi was the son of the General of Beidi, Wang Ping. He had been remarkable ever since youth; his arm strength surpassed others, such that by the time he was grown, he possessed the strength of a thousand pounds. And he was exceptionally skilled at mounted archery. He had always been deeply appreciated by his father, who recognized his potential. After Wang Ping had passed away and Wang Mi had inherited his offices, Wang Mi had originally had the ambition to make a name for himself. But when he saw that the Emperor was a dull mediocrity who entrusted affairs to Huang Hao, was jealous of worthy people, and ignored criticism, Wang Mi shut the gates of his residence and would not go out. Thus the people of that time had not recognized how remarkable he was. Only Liu Ling knew about him. Liu Ling had been bitter at how his father Liu Feng had been put to death, and he had nursed his resentment and refused to serve in office. Thus he and Wang Mi had found kindred souls in one another; they formed a bond as brothers of different surnames, and at times they tested their strength against one another. So Liu Ling recognized Wang Mi as a worthy fellow.

Wang Mi had later become good friends with the brothers of the Guan family as well, for they had all been acclaimed as talents of that age. So when Wang Mi received Liu Ling's message, he sighed deeply and lamented, "My later father always knew that this day would come. Now Brother Zitong is bidding me come and join him, and if I should fail to heed the call, I would be betraying my loyal and righteous heart and casting away the things I have learned all my life. But the brothers of the Guan family have entrusted me to share weal and woe together with them. They are still so young; how could they ever escape on their own?"

So Wang Mi hurried to the home of the Guan family. Guan Fang and Guan Jin saw him approach, and they led him inside. Then, bursting with great sorrow, they exclaimed, "Brother Flying Panther (for this was his nickname), you see how dire the situation has become. What are we to do?"

Years earlier, in the first year of Qianlong (233), their father Guan Xing had suffered a loss during one of the northern campaigns and had been lying in his sickbed at home. Guan Xing had recognized the steady decline of the state, and he was always lamenting, "Now is the season when the villains shall have their way; the day of grief is fast approaching. What shall become of our clan?" But then when he had seen Wang Mi come into their home and sit and speak of affairs, he had been reassured and thought, "He truly is the son of Wang Zijun. I can entrust the fates of my sons to him." And he had commanded Guan Fang and Guan Jin to form a close bond with Wang Mi.

Wang Mi now told the brothers, "The state is about to fall into the hands of the sworn enemies of your family. You cannot allow this disaster to overtake you as well. Now Liu Zitong has bade me come and take refuge along with him, and because of my deep regard for you, I came especially to inform you of it as well. If you ask me what you should do, the only option is to seek shelter at once, then later join your efforts with those of the other scions to assist them in reviving the state. That would be the best plan."

Guan Fang said, "Elder Brother, it is just as you say. But what shall we do about the members of our families?"

Wang Mi replied, "When a man acts in the interests of the state, he must put aside considerations of his family. Besides, the Sima clan is just about to fulfill their grand ambition of usurping the throne, and they will want to put on a show of benevolence and righteousness to win over the hearts of the masses. How could they indulge in vengeance against your family? I entreat you, my worthy brothers, to put aside your worries and think only of how to serve the state."

Guan Fang and Guan Jin thus heeded the call and fled along with Wang Mi, leaving their families behind. Alas, the remaining members of the Guan clan perished at the poisonous hand of Pang De's son Pang Hui; the whole family was caught up in that tragic disaster, so that the Guan clan was nearly extinguished. What a loss!

卻說王彌同防、謹到家辭親，帶平時用器、強弓勁弩，忻然偕關氏弟兄一齊躍馬而出。關謹曰："北門有鄧艾自在那裡，不可輕往，東西二門賊兵亦盛，惟南門路窄，提防稍懈，我們當從南門而出。"王彌然之，於是望南門衝突而去。時有魏將李因列兵擋住去路。王彌乃曰："我等是異鄉客人，因在成都生理，今天兵圍城，口食不給，是以欲奔還鄉，望將軍開一生路，放我眾人逃命，深感大恩。"因曰："吾奉主將之令，那敢放走一人？必須拿進大營，查驗一過，方可發落放去。"王彌知事不諧，即輪起大刀殺進。李因亦挺槍急架。二人相持良久，關防怒上心頭，亦提起鐵楞混殺一場。於是且戰且卻，將逃二十餘里。

We should mention that when Wang Mi, Guan Fang, and Guan Jin had gone home to take leave of their families, they had buckled on their usual equipment, including strong bows and powerful crossbows. Then, in joyful company, they had all mounted their horses and dashed off.

Guan Jin observed, "Deng Ai himself is present at the north gate, and we could not easily break through there. And the east and west gates are both filled with enemy soldiers. But the road through the south gate, being somewhat narrow, will be less guarded by our foes. Let us flee through the south gate." Wang Mi agreed, so they hurried towards the south gate.

At this time, the Wei general Li Yin had arrayed his troops to block this road. Wang Mi thus said to him, "We are travelers from another town who were in Chengdu to make a living for ourselves. But now the government troops have surrounded the city, and we have nothing to eat. So we want to go back to our hometown. General, we hope that you will clear a path for us; if you allow us to escape with our lives, we would be deeply grateful."

But Li Yin replied, "I have my orders from my commander; would I dare to let any fugitives escape? You had better go to the main camp first, and once they have examined you, then you might be allowed to depart."

Wang Mi saw that further deception was useless, so he lifted his blade and charged ahead, ready to kill. Li Yin too hefted his lance and hurried to meet his opponent. The pair were engaged in combat for quite some time before Guan Fang, whose heart and mind were now full of rage, also raised his weapon and plunged into the fighting. The trio of fugitives were thus slowly able to get away from the city, now turning to fight, now falling back, until they had advanced for more than twenty li.

且說鄧忠正巡視至南門，知城中奸細走出，李因已去追趕，乃令族弟鄧濮帶領家兵二千，星飛趕捉。而王彌等早被魏人團團圍住不放，正在危急之際，只見東南坡下突出三騎，領了莊客數百人，各持利刃殺入陣來。且看那三人入陣，恰似虎入羊群，揮刀亂斫。鄧濮驟馬接戰，卻不提防被暗箭正中坐馬，把鄧濮掀翻在地，那樊榮只一刀斫死。不想放箭者卻是李圭，於是關防、關謹乘亂殺出重圍。李因馳馬急追，防、謹奮力抵衛，殊不知王彌從旁躍出，將李因一刀刺中左腿。因負痛逃去，諸副將亦不知去向。那三人縱橫衝突，彼追兵伏尸流血，殺死殆盡。王彌、關防等見追兵已散，乃回身下馬，相見拜謝，深感再造之恩，且問為何得諸君來救，願聞姓字因由。三人答曰："某等弟兄乃李圭、李瓚與表弟樊榮也。先祖李嚴被上譴責，徙居於安樂鎮，此去尚有六十餘里。先父李豐曾為參軍，見朝廷任非其人，囑我輩不可出仕。今與叔父李裕權止舊窩，聽得魏兵追捉列位，吾弟兄在前山看已多時，見諸公勢窘，心甚忿怒，以是統領蒼頭前來助鬥耳。"王彌等稱謝不已，亦各道訴逃竄之故。圭曰："既如此，皆是同志，即吾一家，乃天使之相遇也。且今天��已晚，權到敝莊住宿一宵，再作他圖。"王彌等感其殷勤，即與同到莊所。

We should mention that Deng Zhong had been on patrol near the south gate, and when he saw these fugitives making a desperate escape and that Li Yin had already gone in pursuit of them, Deng Zhong ordered his younger kinsman Deng Pu to lead two thousand of their household soldiers and chase after the trio like shooting stars.

Wang Mi and the Guan brothers soon found themselves totally surrounded by the Wei soldiers; they were unable to break through, and they were in a most perilous position. But suddenly they saw three riders charge out from behind a slope to the southeast, and behind them followed several hundred strong retainers, each wielding good weapons and prepared to slaughter the enemy ranks. And when these three horsemen led their forces into the enemy, they were like tigers among sheep, and their blades inflicted great destruction as they swung to and fro. Deng Pu turned his horse to attempt to face this new threat, but then an arrow loosed from some unknown direction struck his horse; Deng Pu tumbled to the ground, where one of the horsemen, Fan Rong, finished him off with a single swipe of his blade. The marksman had been another of the riders, Li Gui. Guan Fang and Guan Jin then took advantage of the confusion to cut their way out. Li Yin made a mad dash to pursue them, but they exerted all their strength to hold him off. Wang Mi then closed in from the side and pierced Li Yin in his left leg. Yelping with pain, Li Yin fled, and his subordinates did not know which way to turn. Then the three horsemen charged their flank, and the enemy pursuit troops were nearly wiped out; the ground was strewn with their fallen bodies and flowing blood.

When Wang Mi and the Guan brothers saw that the pursuit troops had all scattered, they turned back and descended from their horses to offer their thanks to their rescuers, deeply grateful for having been saved from certain destruction. They further asked these gentlemen where they had come from and inquired what their names were. The three riders replied, "We are the brothers Li Gui and Li Zan, along with their cousin Fan Rong. Our grandfather was Li Yan, who was censured and denounced by the court and exiled to the Le'an Garrison, some sixty li from here. Our late father Li Feng once served as an advisor in the army, but when he saw that the court had no regard for him, he charged us never to take up office ourselves. Until this time, we had been doing nothing more than living with our uncle Li Yu in his old home. But when we heard that the Wei troops were about to catch some fugitives, we went up on that slope earlier and saw that you gentlemen were being sorely pressed. Our hearts were moved by anger and indignation for you, so we led our retainers to come and help you in your struggle."

Wang Mi and the Guan brothers thanked them unceasingly, and they too related the stories of their escape. Li Gui observed, "Then it seems that we all share the same ambition; we shall be as one family, for Heaven has arranged for us to meet this day. Yet see how the sky is already growing dark. Let us go and take shelter with our uncle at his village to spend the night, then tomorrow we can plan our next move." The trio were moved by this hospitality, so they agreed to return to the village with the horsemen.

莊內僮僕迎進，其叔李裕秉燭出接，分賓主坐定，又各達姓名衷曲。裕置酒相款，席間嘆息曰："余先君在日，每嘗戮力王室，為國忘家。後因失事被譴，厥志不遂。見諸葛丞相人亡，傷念不已，竟成疾而逝。今吾輩目擊國破主辱，不能繼述先君之忠，以匡救王室，何用生為？"眾皆感悼，無不泣下數行淚。惟王彌撫掌大笑而起曰："夫否泰運也，榮辱數也，何足悲哉？況天生吾才，必有所用。昔晉文避難出奔，賢士雲從，卒複霸業。吾輩才雖不及古人，然有志者事竟成，安知他年建立，出於晉文公下乎？諸君何用作楚囚之對泣耶？"裕曰："飛豹之言，真達時有志之論也。"眾皆拱手稱謝。次日，彌等辭謝，即欲告行。裕曰："且劉氏諸公子，不知去向。諸君宜且暫住寒莊，待我遣人往張、黃、諸葛、趙等各家探聽的實，那時赴會未遲。不然，彼此各自一方，勢分力弱，欲成大事，此實難矣。"彌曰："既蒙老丈厚愛，敢不惟命是從？固願速修書一封，令盛使馳各家一探，則老丈報主之忠，交友之信，可謂兩得矣。但思我輩家屬且不顧，恨不能滅此逆賊而後朝食，安可再有遲疑？今就告別，隨盛使去尋舊主，兼打探各家下落，以共圖大事。蓋國賊不俱生，非賊死吾手，我必死於賊之手矣。"裕曰："有諸君如此忠肝義膽，天地亦為之垂佑，何患事不成哉？"即送王彌等起程。臨行，攜手囑曰："早晚若舉大事，某當遣侄輩三人前來相助，聊盡老夫先世以來報國之志耳！"眾皆謝別。裕又曰："諸公如有確信，望早惠玉音，以慰懸念。"

When they arrived at the village, the household servants came out to meet them, and Li Yu set out candles to welcome their arrival. Once the hosts and guests were all properly seated, Wang Mi and the others all gave their names and poured out their emotions. Li Yu passed around the wine, and from his mat he sighed and said, "When my late father was still alive, he was always exerting all his strength on behalf of the royal house, and devoted himself to the state even at the expense of his family. But alas, because my father committed a fault and was denounced, he was never able to fulfill his ambitions. And when he saw that Prime Minister Zhuge had died, he became so overcome with grief that he developed an illness and passed away as well. As for my own generation, we have seen with our own eyes that the state has fallen and our sovereign has been shamed. We are powerless to carry on the loyalty of our forefathers or rescue the royal family. What purpose do our lives have?" And the others were so moved by his grief that not an eye was dry, but all wept freely.

Wang Mi alone let forth a great laugh. He rose up and declared, "Sir, it is not you who has suffered this extreme fate or endured such bitter shame; why then should you grieve so? Besides, Heaven must have had some purpose in mind when it created such talented fellows as ourselves. Remember that Duke Wen of Jin too was once forced to flee his state and abandon his inheritance, yet worthy gentlemen flocked to his cause like the gathering of clouds, and in the end he was able to restore his lineage and become a hegemon. Although we young people cannot claim to be as talented as those heroes of old, still we too have our ambitions and mean to see them fulfilled. And who knows whether in some distant year we might not establish ourselves and put the achievements of Duke Wen of Jin to shame? What use is it for you all to sit around and weep like prisoners of Chu?"

Li Yu replied, "Flying Panther speaks true. That is truly what a man of ambition would say in such times." And everyone present clasped their hands and apologized to him.

The next day, as Wang Mi and the others were preparing to take their leave, they asked for advice on where they should go. Li Yu told them, "I do not know where the Liu princes have gone off to. Why don't you fellows stay in this humble village for a while longer, and wait until I can send people to fetch the scions of the Zhang, Huang, Zhuge, Zhao, and other clans and inform them of what is going on? Once they arrive, it would not be too late for you to all leave together. But otherwise, if you all go your separate ways like this, your strength will be divided and weak, and even if you wished to complete the great achievement, it would be hard to accomplish anything."

Wang Mi replied, "You have been most kind to us, Sir, and would I dare not to consider your proposal? I am certainly willing to write a letter at once and let you send your messengers to seek out each family. By doing so, you would be able to both repay your loyalty to our lord and win the trust of our friends, and could kill two birds with one stone. But suppose our family members are unwilling to join us, and not ready to dedicate themselves to slaying the traitors before tending to their daily concerns? How then could you say that we would not be too late? So though we part ways for now, we will send out word for everyone to rejoin their former masters and let everyone seek out the whereabouts of their own families so that someday we may plan the great achievement together. For the same world cannot contain both us and the villains; either they shall die at our hands, or we shall die at theirs."

Li Yu said, "With such loyal hearts and righteous souls as you gentlemen possess, Heaven and Earth themselves will lend you their aid. Should there be any worries of failure?" And he accompanied Wang Mi and the others on the first stage of their journey.

As the young men were about to depart, Li Yu clasped his hands and instructed them, "If you should someday launch your great endeavor, perhaps it will have been because I sent my three nephews earlier to aid you. Thus may I repay the ambitions of the generations of our state before us!" They all thanked him and took their leave. Li Yu added, "If you gentlemen are earnest in your efforts, be sure to write to me soon, so that you do not keep me in suspense."

眾應而別，裕贈詩一首曰：君因國破棄家鄉，萬里迢遙赴遠方。此去若能興大業，早傳魚錦慰牽腸。

When the young men had all departed, Li Yu sang a verse to himself:

These scions of a worthy line

Depart their fallen home

Their kith and kin they leave behind

And far afield they roam.

But if their journeys can revive

The state, let them depart!

And should ambitions they achieve,

Send word to worried hearts.

#The Romance Continued #Continued Romance of the Three Kingdoms #Romance of the Three Kingdoms #Three Kingdoms #Sanguo

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rankakiu · 5 years ago

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Thoughts of the Droid: Star Wars Episode IX: Rise of Skywalker

Hello, people of Tumblr! How have they been in these first weeks of the new year? As always, I hope very well. On this occasion, I bring to you all my opinions and thoughts about the last movie of 2019: Star Wars Episode IX: Rise of Skywalker

This film that closes a whole new trilogy that saw its beginnings in 2015 and that also comes to close more than forty years of a story that has been expanded to the point of exhaustion, has received destructive criticism. And it is not for less, since having the honor of being the last film of a main chronology within the canon, made it have very high expectations. It is also influenced by the fact that we all expected this film to redeem the new trilogy, after the disaster that was Episode VIII: The Last Jedi. Is it true that we are in one of the worst films in the saga? Or is there something in it that saves it from such a qualifier? Stay on my review to find out.

WARNING: NOT SPOILER FREE. Read at your own risk

Starting with the review, what did I think of the movie? Short answer: they really fell short to finish more than forty years of history within Star Wars. An enjoyable film, but with the defect of being too simple. Now let's analyze this movie in more detail.

Characters: What can I say about this point? Being honest with you, the whole new generation of characters in this new trilogy was trashed and the potential they had was very wasted. Of course, I am not facing characters that are terribly written, but they also lack genuine development and evolution. It does not feel that they have advanced and that they have had that essential journey, full of learning, that they face challenges that make them discover what they are capable of achieving, as well as knowing their own limits and exceeding them; challenges and situations that make them grow as people and especially that have characteristics that make them identifiable with the viewer.

Above all, the viewer is interested in the lives of these characters. And therefore, I can't think of them as characters that are memorable. Of course, all of them have entered the legacy of Star Wars, along with the fact that they are canonical characters, and no doubt several fans will hold them in high esteem. It will not be so in my case.

We have Ben Solo, aka Kylo Ren, who in the previous film had had a genuine and interesting development (being the most salvageable of Episode VIII), reaching the point of eliminating his master Snoke and that he remained as the new Supreme Leader . Here, in The Rise of Skywalker, he suffers a huge setback of character, being as a mere servant of Emperor Palpatine. Do you remember the scene in Episode VIII, when Kylo Ren, furious, destroyed his helmet? How that particular scene was the representation that he no longer wanted to be left alone as a shadow of Darth Vader and now he wanted to be the only master of the Dark Side of the Force? Well, in this movie you can forget about it, since in one scene, Kylo returns to repair his helmet and symbolically, he accepts himself as an apprentice of Palpatine.

We have Rey, who really, was the character who had everything to be the most interesting and the saddest of all is that she was the most wasted. And it is even more worrying that this happens with what is the main protagonist of this recent trilogy. What I remember most about Rey is that she is a woman with a good heart, with a very strict ideal of justice and a strong moral; Accompanying these traits, there is the fact that she possesses an enormous dominion over Force, whose mystery was revealed to us in this film, but I will leave that for later.

What I will mention now is that Rey remained with those features that I mentioned earlier and we never saw her leave that mold so well defined, but that in the long run, as we can see, she ended up harming her character. In her favor, Rey certainly delivers a couple of positive messages to a new generation: That, you are a descendant of a person whose legacy has been of only evil, does not define you as a bad person per se. What defines you is the actions you do for yourself and for others. In the same way, she delivers the message that, as difficult as it may seem, one must never succumb to darker desires or follow a path that is easy and thus become corrupted at all. We must always remain in the ideals of goodness.

What to say about the other characters? In my opinion, the only ones that remained in their essence and that it is pleasant to see them on screen again, are Leia Organa, Lando Calrissian, Luke Skywalker and Emperor Palpatine. Sadly, the only two characters that was given a dignified closure was Leia and Luke and the other two were disappointing. In the case of Leia, we really have to recognize it, it was a sad and very emotional farewell, where she sacrifices her life in order to make Ben, her son, come into reason, which in the end if it resulted in the redemption of said character (somewhat forced, but redemption after all).

In the case of Luke, even when he appears for a brief moment, his presence is equally enjoyable, especially that scene where he holds his lightsaber, demanding Rey more respect for the weapon of a Jedi, being basically a scene where they put to Rian Johnson in his place instead for that other scene where Luke disparaged his own saber. With Luke, I think it would have been good if they took advantage of what they had established in Episode VIII, where they gave indications that the spirits of the Jedi had powers beyond the unimaginable. But in the same way, it is appreciated that Luke appeared, practically with his personality of yesteryear intact.

With Emperor Palpatine, aka Darth Sidious, I have a problem. I will not deny that it was great to see it on screen, mostly because of the great performance of Ian McDiarmid, which at times reminded me of the Darth Sidious of Episode III, with all his energy and his aura of evil and hunger for power. However, this does not help much, when you consider that his return is only for the film to have a conflict and an enemy to win. It is even worse than when you see it in action, it is not a real threat to the good.

About other characters, better not talk. But I will do it anyway. Do you remember General Hux? That General of the First Order who in Episode VII imposed terror and respect and who in Episode VIII suffered a degradation that turned him into a clown? Well, in this movie it still suffers another degradation, only now it is reduced to a weeping and traitorous coward. And what deep motives did he have for committing such an act? Realize that the First Order was wrong in imposing a tyrannical government? No, he simply wanted Kylo Ren not to be the Supreme Leader. *Facepalm* It is quite curious that the commander who killed him, just by appearing in very few scenes, was a much more memorable character than Hux himself, since this commander did have the ruthless attitude and personality that usually exists between Baddies of Star Wars. That and also influences that it has a slight resemblance to Grand Moff Tarkin helps a lot.

With Finn and Poe Dameron, I have no problem, since we saw them interact together in most of the film. In fact, all the discussion and conflict that both have feels quite real and well acted. In essence, two men in a war, where both seek practical solutions to a conflict of galactic scale, only that each has a different opinion. Although yes, both fight for the same cause. It was especially successful, that both finally resolved their differences and that Poe recognized that he needed help when he was appointed new leader of the resistance. Both supported each other in difficult times and fought side by side, showing an authentic friendship between the two. Well done.

About the soldiers of the First Order, along with the Sith Troopers and the Knights of Ren? They only serve to fill screen, be defeated in an insultingly easy way and especially sell figures. Uselessness at its best. Thanks for participating guys, keep trying.

To finish this point, I will mention a little to C3PO, which serves as a comic relief character in this film. I am quite aware that was the role of the character in previous installments, but I feel that here they exaggerated his role too much, since instead of giving a couple of laughs, he ended up being irritating; In addition, the fact that the other characters treat him as a ballast or a useless object, denotes a very disrespectful treatment towards this character.

In general, the film has a huge variety of characters, but does NOT know what to do with them and does not know how to give them development and evolution so that they feel much more part of the story. In his favor, the film does know how to relate the characters to each other, especially the good guys so they feel like a huge family, despite their multiple differences.

Story: How to define it? Without a doubt the words that come to mind, would be those of a story made in a hurried way and full of conveniences of the script for this advance. The worst part is that they don't even bother making deus ex machina more subtle.

An example of this, we have Rey who discovers from nothing how to use that Sith dagger, with an infallible intuition and precision that makes you wonder if it was guided by the Force or is the product of a poor script. In this case, it would have been better if they had presented us with an earlier scene, where Rey, with genuine curiosity, inspects that dagger to discover that measuring instrument hidden in that weapon.

By the way, who forged the dagger, must have had powers of Nostradamus to know in what position the remains of the second Death Star would remain.

And since I mentioned the dagger, it is just as convenient how they found that relic, falling into a kind of sand trap that overlooked a series of underground caves. And what the hell with that alien snake scene? I imagined that they would face this creature and in the end we have a slightly strange scene, where Rey, making use of the Force heals a wound of said animal. Many would think that this scene is unnecessary, but honestly I don't think so. Yes, the scene is somewhat misplaced, but it has its justification, since later it was established as another power of Rey and that in fact would use to save the life of her rival Kylo Ren.

One of the most controversial points is precisely that Rey was really Emperor Palpatine's granddaughter. Now, the problem, in fact two problems with the origin of Rey, are these: first, Palpatine is the type of character who ambitions power only for him and no one else. In his obsession with getting it and keeping it, that he has hardly taken care of having a family. Second, that Rey was Palpatine's granddaughter first emerged as a fan theory, after the premiere of Episode VII. If the scriptwriters took a theory of fans, that only means one thing: they were devoid of ideas and how to use Palpatine's character and relate it to the story.

Again, in favor of the story, the scenes between Rey and Kylo really show their eternal conflict, where the Sith seeks for Rey to join the Dark Side and accept her dark heritage. Rey for her part, seeks that Kylo pay for the crimes he did, although deep in her heart, she wants Kylo to return to be Ben Solo, to be in the Bright side of the Force. Their interactions are well achieved and in fact they maintain a certain interest in the viewer. By the way, when Palpatine has them both subjected and absorbs the vital energy of the two to regenerate himself, he mentions that the union of Rey and Kylo is a kind of Special Force ... too bad he just mentioned it and history doesn't bother to explain it thoroughly.

Despite what has been said in the negative points, I think it is also a pretty decent story, since, unlike in Episode VIII, which the film did not know what story to tell, here in this film it concentrates quite well in telling only one story: the search and destruction of Emperor Palpatine and the First Order and thus return to the galaxy the time of peace that he needed so much. In addition to telling that story, it also shows us other subplots, without these being fully fought with the main narrative.

Visuals and Special Effects: We can be calm. If there is something that has always characterized the Star Wars franchise are the special effects, and that are always at the forefront with the latest advances in this area. And in Episode IX could not be the exception. The special effects ensure that you are immersed in the different worlds that are shown in the film and even more, they ensure that the spectators feel part of a distant galaxy. The recreation of extraterrestrial beings, as well as abandoned ships and sites were phenomenal in my opinion. I highlight in particular the scenario of the destroyed Second Death Star, which feels like a huge place (quite obvious if we consider that it was similar in size to a small planet), a reflection of a dark era of yesteryear and also serves as a preamble, a reflection of Rey with herself and the destiny she will have to face.

As always, visuals and special effects have a A+ insured.

Action: Unfortunately, the action on this occasion was quite a bit dull. Of course, there are sequences of action very well achieved, such as the persecution in the desert, where soldiers of the First Order hunted our protagonists in some motorcycle tanks quite adapted to arid terrain and with the peculiarity of catapulting towards air to one of the crew (equipped with jet-packs). Certainly that sequence of action is very entertaining and exciting to watch; of how our protagonists face a group that can attack on land and air without mercy.

However, many other scenes remained to be polished, in particular I want to mention the battles with lightsabers. And it is that they lack the emotion and impact that was seen in the prequel trilogy, where the action was rampant and they were beautifully choreographed. Here in this movie, I feel that the intention was to honor the fighting in the style of Episode IV, which was obviously slow and only hit the lightsabers. Even so, these fight scenes between Rey and Kylo were soft, where in my opinion there was a lot of improvisation and hence filming as it is to get the film to market as soon as possible.

A rather negative point in the action was the final battle between Rey and Emperor Palpatine. Being a very disappointing battle, since the battle was for more emotion, however the script resolves it very easily, with Rey acquiring the strength of the Jedi and reflecting the Sith rays on Darth Sidious to end him definitively. Apart from that, the scene is not entirely clear: if the Jedi gave their strength to Rey, or if it was she who suddenly acquired that power to end Palpatine.

Fighting with spaceships and Destroyers of the First Order also suffer from this problem. And it is that by witnessing thousands and thousands of ships, which could easily have demolished the Destroyers without problem, they were in short sequences of action, where we hardly see them maneuvering and firing. It was to be a battle of epic proportions, much like the trilogy of The Lord of the Rings. Even with everything, the action can be enjoyable and is also one of the strongest points of the film.

In conclusion, Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, is a film that while it can be enjoyed, it is definitely one of the lowest quality films within the franchise. Of course, it is far from being the worst of this saga, but it also does not have many elements that make it a memorable movie. In certain aspects it is a decent film and it certainly does not give you headaches when you see it.

However, it is sad to see that this new trilogy has been wasted in this way, and it is even sadder to see that it really had the potential not only to please new generations, but even to unite old and new generations of fans to enjoy a renewed air of this franchise. If you ask me, even though J.J. Abrams directs this movie, without a doubt the fault lies more with Rian Johnson. Abrams, in Episode VII had planted the seed of what would be expected would be a fruitful tree, of new stories, adventures, and characters (and money). And Rian Johnson figuratively destroyed the tree to plant his own that was already dead. Definitely all his ravings began to take charge of this new trilogy and has condemned it to be at a low point.

If you liked Episodes VII and VIII, you might like this last chapter of the saga. If on the contrary you are more fan of the previous canon, for your own sake avoid this movie. I meanwhile, I give this movie 2 of 5 Spirits of The Force. Sadly the force is not with us now in this last film of the main saga.

Greetings

Rankakiu

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love-sapphirerose · 5 years ago

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Naruto: 30 Storylines Boruto Wants Everyone To Forget

https://www.thegamer.com/naruto-storylines-boruto-wants-everyone-forget/

With the reboot of everyone's favorite anime, Naruto fans are noticing inconsistencies. Here are 30 storylines that the creators want fans to ignore.

In the modern day-and-age, there is one word that will elicit a rather polarizing reaction from people. Either they will give you a quizzical look as they slowly move away from what they perceive to be an absolute maniac, or else they'll jump up in joy as they recount some of their most beloved anime and manga. Yep, you guessed right — the word we're talking about is none other than shōnen. It's a word around which so many things have been built that trying to talk about all of them is close to impossible. Thankfully, we're not here to talk about all of these anime and manga — rather, our aim is to talk about only one piece of shōnen entertainment that took over the world by storm. If the first word that came to your mind was Naruto, then you're absolutely right in guessing that (although we're assuming that the title was a dead giveaway).

The fact of the matter is that Naruto has certainly become one of the most popular anime and manga series of all time. Kishimoto has created a world that is so incredibly fleshed out that most people are already familiar with the ins-and-outs of this place. The show was so beloved that a sequel series by the name of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations actually came into play so that rabid fans would be provided with even more material centering around the land of the Shinobi.

However, not all is well with the series — fans are less than enthused about some of the elements of Boruto, namely because of certain things that have already been presented or established in the Naruto universe. Here are 30 such storylines in Naruto that the creators of Boruto wish everyone would just forget.

30. Naruto's Vast Chakra.

Everyone who's seen Naruto can vouch for one universal truth that has been spouted out time and time again — Naruto's chakra reserves are incredibly vast. His penchant to form thousands of shadow clones and fight for hours without being exhausted is proof enough of this.

However, if you've seen Boruto, then this quality doesn't really get reflected.

At the Hokage level, you might assume that Naruto is one of the most adept chakra users of his generation. However, he's failed at the most basic tasks multiple times and tends to get exhausted after the slightest bit of effort.

29. The Very Concept Of Chakra Itself.

To say that only Naruto's chakra system has been nerfed in Boruto would be a gross understatement — in fact, pretty much everyone in the series has been nerfed quite heavily.

The entire concept of chakra has been turned upside down.

What used to be a system that governed every form and type of jutsu — with the sole exception of taijutsu — has turned into nothing more than a glorified excuse to showcase cool blue auras... that don't even stay in control!

Get your act together, Boruto.

28. It Was Stated That Only Three Dōjutsu Exist In The World.

During the events of Naruto, it had been stated time and time again that the forms of dōjutsu present in the world were only of three types — the Byakugan, the Sharingan, and the Rinnegan.

However, fast forward to Boruto, and this wasn't even remotely the case.

Now, there's the Tenseigan, the Jōgan, and the Ketsuryūgan (just what is this last one) to take into account as well! To assume that the historians of the Naruto universe were inept is a poor excuse that Kishimoto is hiding behind.

At the end of the day, these extra dōjutsu are just a lazy way to augment someone's power level.

27. Sasuke Performing Horrible Crimes And Acts That Are Promptly Forgotten.

Sasuke is one of the most beloved characters in the series, don't get me wrong on that. It's obvious that he's one of the reasons why people even watched the series, to begin with... but that doesn't excuse the whole host of crimes he's committed.

Just to put it into context, Sasuke started his very own mini-Akatsuki, attacked the Kages, ended the life of a Hokage, caused numerous avoidable demises... and was almost going to destroy the whole world, had it not been for Naruto!

Jeez... that is quite inexcusable, isn't it?

26. Orochimaru's Malevolent Actions Are Ignored.

Speaking of past crimes, it's time to talk about another fan favorite character that played a major role throughout the series — yep, we're talking about the one and only, Orochimaru. In Boruto, this villain is allowed to run Otogakure, his very own village!

What has he done that mandates such a stupefied reaction? Well, for starters, he experimented — and ended the lives of — countless children, laid waste to a Hokage (he and Sasuke can share that honor), caused endless destruction, and did a myriad of other actions that are definitely on the evil side.

25. Kabuto Performing Countless Transgressions But Being Allowed To Run An Orphanage Anyway.

Of course, we can't talk about Orochimaru without mentioning his loyal sidekick, Kabuto. The fact of the matter is that this character also got a free pass along with Orochimaru and Sasuke, even though his actions could've ended the entire shinobi world.

There are several reasons why this character didn't deserve a clean slate, but we're going to pick out the most egregious one of the lot — his Reanimation Jutsu is the entire reason why Obito managed to amass an army, in the first place!

If that isn't enough of a reason, I don't know what is.

24. The Entire Mythos Of The Ōtsutsuki Clan Being Virtually Untouchable.

I think I'm definitely not exaggerating when I say that the Ōtsutsuki clan is basically the family that helped usher in the age of the Shinobi — and trust me, that's definitely not an exaggeration. The mythos that was built around this family should prove beyond a shadow of a doubt as to just how powerful the Ōtsutsuki actually were.

However, by the time Boruto ruled out, this aura that the Ōtsutsuki sported has completely disappeared. Kaguya was a pushover near the end of the series, and the duo of Momoshiki and Kinshiki was extremely disappointing as well.

23. Naruto Having Family Issues.

To simply state out of the blue that Naruto didn't exactly have a great childhood is a gross understatement — the lack of a father or mother figure, coupled with his status of being the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, led to him being ostracized from society during his formative years.

So, why is it that he's ignoring his own family now that he's Hokage? From not even bothering to eat his wife's food to sending a Shadow Clone on his daughter's birthday — there's no excuse to be made, especially by someone who understands the pain of being alone.

22. Sasuke Having A Horrible Childhood But Still Ignoring Sarada Anyway.

When it comes to bad parenting, it seems that best friends really are alike, aren't they? Just like Naruto has never been around for his son, it seems that Sasuke has also prioritized everything over the task of being a father and supportive pillar for his daughter.

I mean, just imagine — unlike Naruto, Sasuke has experienced the pain of loss. Coupling that with a sense of crippling loneliness should've ideally compelled him to prioritize his daughter above anything else... but alas, it seems that logic is not a mandatory thing for people to have in Boruto.

21. The Focus Of The Entire Series On Valuing Bonds.

The bond that Naruto yearned for with his parents is not the only thing that needs to be discussed here — a major crux of the original series was the fact that everyone had bonds that they treasured, to the point where they were willing to give up their own life for the people closest to them.

However, with the advent of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, it seems that the entire series is missing this crucial element. The titular character himself is a great example — Boruto has formed a ton of bonds throughout the series, but he's never treasured them like any of the characters in the previous generation.

What a sad turn of events.

20. The Very Existence Of Previous Minor Characters.

Speaking of other characters, I have only one question to ask — what is their purpose in Boruto? While I understand that the whole point of this sequel is to focus on the new generation of Shinobi, this basically means that a colorful cast of characters who were already sidelined in the last arc of the previous series won't be given any attention... again.

This is such a massive disservice, especially to great characters like Rock Lee, Gaara, Sakura (hey, don't snigger), Choji, Shino, and Iruka, who were a crucial aspect of what made the series great in its heyday.

Well, at the very least, people like Shikamaru and Kakashi are at least somewhat important, if nothing else.

19. The Sheer Power Of Both Naruto And Sasuke.

While we might've already mentioned the fact that Naruto has been nerfed quite a bit in Boruto, this fact definitely deserves a further glance. In fact, Naruto is not the only person who suffered from this — Sasuke's powers have also unfortunately gone down the drain as well.

The two shinobi who used to be absolute powerhouses by the end of the original series are nothing more than a shell of their former selves in Boruto. It's a darn shame since we would've liked to see more of their astounding power in new combat scenarios.

18. The Era Of Peace That Was Supposedly Ushered In After The Fourth Shinobi World War.

The Fourth Shinobi World War was a landmark event that completely rocked the ninja world as we know it. Oh, and it's also considered by many to be one of the most bloated, rushed, and uninteresting arcs in Naruto... but let's keep that out of the way for now.

The fact of the matter is that the end of this war was supposedly going to bring about a new era of peace and harmony. However, if you've seen Boruto, then you know for a fact that things are still as problematic as ever.

While the scale of these problems might not be all that massive, it's still a worrying development nevertheless.

17. Naruto's Ramen Obsession.

I think I'm not just speaking for myself when I say that Naruto sparked a love of Japanese food in me. To be more precise, he made me love one particular dish that served as an introduction to Japanese cuisine — ramen.

The times when Naruto used to have food at Ichigakure Ramen and absolutely demolish their food is long gone. Now, with the massive responsibility of being the Hokage, it seems that the days of Naruto hogging massive amounts of food is behind him now.

16. The Tradition Behind Team 10'S Leadership.

The leadership status of Team 10 has always been quite iconic for a whole host of reasons. Generally, this team consisted of three members from the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka family. These three whippersnappers would then be led by a member of the Sarutobi clan.

However — in classic Boruto fashion — this age-old ritual has also been broken in the latest installment. While the children from all three families are still constant, the ninja leading them — Moegi — has no relation to the Sarutobi clan.

You can bet that fans were less than happy about this development... or — dare I say — was it a genuine oversight?

15. The Stuff That Sakura Faced At The Hand Of Sasuke.

Ever since the start of the series, one thing was always constant — Sakura had intense feelings for Sasuke. However, childhood crushes rarely stay permanent, and things developed to a point where Sasuke completely disregarded Sakura's feeling and treated her like — for lack of a better word — crap.

So, you'd think that after facing all this stuff, Sakura would shun her crush and go for a man who treated her properly, right?

WRONG.

She ended up with Sasuke only, which was one of the many decisions in Boruto that fans felt wronged by.

14. The Capable Nature Of Ninjas.

The status of jōnin, and — to an extent, even chūnin — is something that denotes the effectiveness of a particular ninja. Achieving this rank is nothing short of amazing, and goes to show just how powerful your skills are.

However, one look at the events of the latest series, and you might be forgiven for being confused. All of the ninjas who've received these ranks are woefully inept at their jobs, with freaking low-ranking genin being a hundred times more efficient and result-oriented than them.

13. The Potential Of Female Ninjas.

As much as I hate to say it, it must be said that Kishimoto did a horrible job of making any of his female characters interesting. They were either a plot point for the protagonists to find their drive to move forward, or served as nothing more than an excuse for fan service.

Kishimoto could've redeemed himself by making Kaguya seem like the most unassailable threat to mankind's existence... but then even she was taken care of with little to no issues.

What. A. Waste.

12. The Fact That Children Need To Be Kept Safe.

Regardless of how the shinobi world might carry out its day-to-day activities, you can't sit and convince me of the fact that it's perfectly fine for children to embark on quests that can put them in substantial danger, which includes the possibility that their life might be snuffed out as well.

This was a problem that plagued the original series as well but reached a whole new level in Boruto: Naruto Next Generations. Now, we have a bunch of kids duking it out in highly dangerous situations... simply because the stakes need to be raised high for any scenario to be even remotely interesting.

11. The Interesting Character Development Of Naruto.

It feels like we're circling back to Naruto time and time again, but the fact of the matter is that this character has suffered the most with the advent of the latest series. We've literally seen him grow from a young, lonely brat into a sensible adult who is loved by everyone.

But, fast-forward to the events of Boruto, and it seems that Naruto has forgotten everything that led him to become such a distinguished enigma in the first place. He doesn't treasure his relationships, has lower power levels, and has generally regressed across a number of verticals.

10. The Highly Durable Nature Of Naruto.

It seems that we simply can't talk about the problems of Boruto's tale without mentioning his father time and time again. However, such are the transgressions that the latest series commits that it's impossible for us to ignore him as well.

Naruto is supposed to be incredibly durable... and yet, there are times when he's been dispatched with ease. Kinshiki and Momoshiki were able to take him with ease, but that's still forgivable.

What is not forgettable is the fact that the most powerful shinobi — arguably of all time — was knocked out in a single blow by his daughter.

9. His Constant And Unwavering Need To Become Hokage.

The knockout blow that Himawari landed on Naruto was enough to take care of him for an entire day. While this might be alright after a bit of cribbing, the worst part is that this happened on the very day when Naruto was to be inaugurated as the Seventh Hokage!

So, in other words, the very day that Naruto pined for his entire life went to waste because he got knocked out by his freakin' daughter,

If that's not a slap in the face of fans all over the world, then we don't know what is.

8. Naruto's Whiskers Being Indicative Of The Fox Spirit Inside Him.

The entire reasons why Naruto has his whiskers isn't because of a misplaced style statement. Rather, it's because of the fact that the spirit of the Nine-Tailed Fox resided in him, contributing to a rather striking outward presence.

However, this brings to light another plot hole — unlike Naruto, Boruto and Himawari don't have Kurama's chakra in them. If this happens to be the case, then why is it that both of Naruto's kids have the same exact whiskers as his father? It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

7. The Introverted Shino Who Gets A Teaching Job.

While Shino didn't get the screen time he rightfully deserved, the fact of the matter is that he was still an interesting character who was liked by the majority of the fanbase. There was one personality trait of his in particular that endeared him to fans — Shino was somewhat introverted and preferred to spend time with his insects.

So, if that's the case, then it's kinda stupid that — by the time Boruto: Naruto Next Generationsrolled out — Shino became an instructor at the academy.

How can someone with zero social skills handle an entire academy full of boisterous children?!

6. Anko's Previous Character Doesn't Fit Her Redesign.

The character of Anko was a highly interesting one. While her appearance and relevance in the original Naruto series might've been brief, it was still notable enough for fans to keep this character in the back of their minds.

However, as Boruto rolled out, fans noticed a development that they simply can't take out of their heads anymore — Anko lost control of her discipline and became quite heavy! This definitely doesn't fit in with Anko's character, and now she's become nothing short of a joke.

A big, bloated, joke.

5. Choji And Karui Having No Romantic History Whatsoever.

When Boruto's story made its debut, fans were understandably perplexed at the fact that so many of the couples that kickstarted the new generation were quite... random, for lack of a better word. While there are some sensible couplings like that of Naruto and Hinata, other people were grouped together simply for the heck of it.

The partnership of Choji and Karui is a great example. Both individuals have seemingly nothing in common and never really interacted on a romantic level in the original series. So, how is it that both these people ended up marrying with zero chemistry?

4. Naruto's Sage Mode.

Sage Mode is an incredibly powerful transformation, allowing Naruto to reach a new level of power that let him take care of Pain and save Konoha once and for all. However, after this amazing battle, Sage Mode is criminally underutilized by Naruto.

However, there are several moments where this mode could've proven to be quite useful in Boruto. Take the example of the battle with Nue — Naruto is advised not to fight this creature since he could absorb the Nine-Tailed chakra and become even stronger.

However, with Sage Mode, the chakra that Nue absorbs would transform him into a frog, making the fight trivial in every sense of the word.

3. Naruto Mastering His Shadow Clone Jutsu.

The Shadow Clone jutsu is one of the hardest clone techniques to master, and Naruto — to his credit — was able to master the technique with just one glance at the scroll. It showed that Naruto did have some talent and could give high-level shinobi a run for their money.

However, the usability of the Shadow Clone technique is barely touched upon in Boruto.

One simple misstep is enough for Naruto's clone to disappear, while the impact should ideally be far greater. In fact, Naruto should use his clones to handle boring paperwork while he spends some quality time with his family.

2. The Entire Fourth Ninja World War And Its Implications.

The Fourth Ninja War was a major arc in the latter half of Naruto, and a groundbreaking war like this is bound to have some grievous implications. However, fast-forward to Boruto, and it's almost like the war had little to no effect.

It's just another fragment of history now.

This should not be the case at all. Wars are traumatic events that can completely alter the mentality of mankind as we know it. If that's the case, then why is it that people go about with their day-to-day lives as if everything is back to normal?

It's not like the war happened ages ago, and the memory of it should still be fresh in the minds of people in the shinobi universe to this day.

1. The Problem Caused By Criminal Organisations Like The Akatsuki.

The Akatsuki was one of the most diabolical organizations around. They were the driving force that caused tons of mayhem all over the shinobi world, finally culminating in an all-out declaration of war against the entire world!

In Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, there's a new criminal organization called Kara.

However, instead of giving this threat its due importance, the higher-ups at Konoha allow a simple genin like Boruto to investigate this organization. If they'd learned their mistakes from before, then the ideal thing to do would've been to nip the threat in the bud before anything serious happens.

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thesecundus-blog · 5 years ago

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Character Analysis/Bio

Name: Mello (Mihael Keehl) Age: 20

Personality:

From a young age, Mello has been conditioned to win, which has served to shape the majority of his overall demeanor. Groomed to succeed L, the world’s top three detectives, Mello has known competition since he was young and carries it with him in everything he does. Life is a game and the world is his playground; he will willingly destroy everything in his way in his effort to be number one. Paired with an inferiority complex that is brought to light when he states that no matter what he does, he always comes in second to his primary rival, this leads him to make overblown, extreme decisions in his quest to accomplish a goal.

Highly intelligent, he has the ability to deduce and predict his opposition’s thought-process and form his own plan of attack accordingly. While his brilliance was originally intended to be utilized for noble purposes, he instead chose to exploit it in order to rise to a high rank of a criminal enterprise. His intelligence shows in his ability to form successful plans and bring them to conclusion, as referenced by one of the mafia members with whom he associates when the man asks his comrades rhetorically whether Mello has ever been wrong in the short time he worked with them. Another area where he is knowledgeable is literature, as when telling the story of Beyond Birthday—the failed successor who went on to defy L—he quotes Holden Caulfield and refers to him as, “One of history’s most famous literary bullshitters.” Given that he was second in line to succeed a genius, it would be safe to assume that his intellect is extraordinary. His reference to Caulfield and the flippant comment that followed is a clue that at some point, he immersed himself in literature to the point of becoming a bit of a well-versed critic.

Before the explosion that destroyed his hideout and wiped out his crew, Mello appears to practice self-preservation through delegation, a primary aspect of his personality denoting selfishness. The duties he imparts on others range from kidnapping the Japanese chief of police’s daughter (who was also Kira’s sister), having underlings seal a deal with a death god—sacrificing half of their lifespan—in order to gain the ability to see his enemy’s names and subsequently write their names in the notebook to simple tasks ranging as low as holding a mobile phone to his ear. In order to win, he has to be alive. Making others do most of his dirty work is a way to ensure this, though he will also have people do small, unimportant things for him in order to assert himself on the food-chain. However, when backed into a corner, he has personally taken drastic actions that have injured and eventually killed him, showing that he's not at all incapable of being the one who will make a move directly.

If it suits his purposes, Mello will employ his high social skills in order to gain the favor of those around him. He will seek the group or individual with the most power and align himself with them in order to exploit their position(s) for his own needs. This will often lead him to operating outside of what would be considered legal restrictions. If criminals have more pull, he will align himself with criminals. However, it wouldn't be wrong to assume that if law-abiding groups have more influence, he will turn to them instead.

Loyalty? What’s that? He doesn't understand the meaning of the word. Through his actions involving the Los Angeles mafia, he shows no loyalty to the L title or the institution responsible for educating and housing him. Through setting explosives all through the building which he detonated with his remaining crew inside, he shows a disregard for those with whom he works. Having no loyalty, he is not trustworthy when forming pacts and alliances. If someone’s motivations align with his own, he will use that to further his own agenda and show no qualms when it comes to disposing of the other party. In the world of Death Note, possessing a person’s name in conjunction with their image gives the notebook holder the ability to kill an individual. There is one picture of Mello in existence and it is possessed by Near after Mello (for unknown reasons) left it behind at the orphanage where he resided. That Mello goes to retrieve this photo and offers information pertaining to the rules in the notebook as a fair exchange shows that he is well-versed in acceptable business tactics and will employ them even if he is not particularly fond of the individual with whom he is interacting. Disloyalty does not necessarily suggest a lack of honor.

That said, Mello is most likely not apt to become close to anyone in the traditional sense. Instead, he will interact with those he holds the most confidence in on a level that may resemble camaraderie though in the end, he is only interested in what the individuals contribute to whatever his given cause may be. Manipulation, however, would be an incorrect assessment as those with whom he associates possess the opportunity to mutually benefit from their interactions.

He possesses a commanding air about him, even going so far as to frighten a god of death with his demeanor. Where the death gods make it a point multiple times in canon to state that helping the human who possesses their notebook is not something that interests them, Mello succeeds in having one not only assist him, but work under him and take orders. It even appears that he hands orders down to the head of the mafia sect to which he belongs, though he does so in less in the way of barking commands, more along the lines of making infallible suggestions that he knows will be heeded. He is frequently shown sitting separate from his gang, as though he has established spaces for himself that others simply don't enter.

In the words of the death god, Sidoh: "For a human, he's scary."

His lack of subtlety shows in the most ridiculously obvious ways: he’s aesthetically flashy, he owns any room that he occupies with nothing more than his presence. He likes to <i>sprawl</i> when he sits, he has the ability to stand at 5’6” next to a hulking mob boss and make the other man look small in comparison. However, this isn’t just limited to the physical. His actions are chaotic: he has launched missiles, killed, kidnapped, blackmailed the President of the United States</i> (successfully), blown his own hideout with himself in it to avoid capture, and he has done it all with poise and style. While many of his moves may be driven by impulse, they are also the result of quick-thinking on his feet and the ability to carry out actions with little time between conception and execution.

Despite his cool exterior, Mello operates on emotion more than it appears. It is shown that he is prone to outbursts as a child such as when he is informed by the school’s headmaster that L has been defeated and killed by Kira, he launches over the man’s desk and takes him by the collar, demanding confirmation that it is in fact true that his predecessor was killed. After this incident, he regains some form of composure and makes the impulsive decision to leave the school and set out on his own. Though given the option to work alongside Near under the L title, he refuses, stating that the two of them don’t get along. He then goes on to acknowledge his own shortcomings by claiming that unlike himself, Near is able to “calmly and unemotionally solve the puzzle.” He makes decisions based on frustration and impulse but will blanket them with a calm justification, though he is very aware that emotions drive his most reckless responses.

Victory, excitement, defeat: these things all show in his facial expressions at any given time.

All bets are off if someone is considered a fierce rival. Mello will hold a grudge forever and lose his composure in the face of said rivalry. Both as a child and an adult, Mello is shown to have little patience for Near’s presence, even going so far as to recklessly pull a gun on the other in the SPK headquarters where the majority of his team is armed. Doing so shows that despite his logic and thorough planning, when in the presence of a worthy opponent, Mello’s emotions will overcome common sense to the point where he will ignore his self-preservation instinct and risk his life in exchange for instant gratification. He is also not above cheating, as he has one of the mafia members execute most of Near's team via the notebook in order to set the other back in his race to capture Kira.

Morally, Mello cannot be defined as either “good” or “evil.” Whereas L sought to bring Kira to justice, Mello states during his hunt that he wants Kira’s head, and that he “will be number one.” It is merely a byproduct of his end-game success that thousands of lives would be saved and the world would ultimately benefit from the removal of Kira. However, this is not to suggest that he is evil in any sense. Though people may get caught in his line of fire, Mello does canonically show remorse for, not his actions, but the fallout from his actions. He expresses regret for the death of his former Wammy’s schoolmate who was eliminated in the process of kidnapping Kiyomi Takada, an underling of Kira. He also states that he originally had no intention of inadvertently causing the death of Yagami Soichiro, Kira’s father and the chief of the Japanese Task Force, during a raid on his hideout. He may be a firebomb, but he does occasionally feel guilt for his actions.

Based on how highly he speaks of L in the spinoff novel, Another Note, he appears to hold his predecessor in high esteem despite deviating from his methods to the point where he falls into the category of “criminal.” He laments the loss of a great man and states that his killer, Kira, is “Not worth the dirt beneath (L’s) shoes” and that meeting L was “The single most valuable memory” that he possessed. He then goes on to gloat in reference to L’s achievements and shows an overall awe of the man he was set to succeed. Mello’s reverence for his predecessor directly contradicts his criminal lifestyle and goes to show that with him, there is no black or white. There are only grey areas, self-serving initiatives that hold no place on either side of the “good and evil” spectrum. What he views as good is anything falling in line with his own wants/ideals with evil being all that opposes him and stands in his way.

With a fierce determination, Mello is unmitigated chaos. He will do anything and everything to dominate any situation which he deems worthy of his attention, including sacrifice himself if it will prove that no one else could have accomplished the goal. His drive is the thing that fuels him, though it can also be his downfall. His capability is often eclipsed by his sense of inferiority—his need to constantly prove himself to anyone he deems competition—and this can lead to him going overboard with his execution to the point of endangering himself and everyone around him. He is a vain, dangerous, untrustworthy, disloyal, self-absorbed genius who has somehow convinced himself that any uncouth action he takes in the grand scheme of things is for the greater good. He wants the world, and he fully intends on taking it.

#death note #dn #death note rp #dnrp #mello #mihael keehl #ooc: info-m

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firecoloredwater · 6 years ago

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Dragonflight Chapter 1 Commentary

And, after way longer than planned, I have finally gotten that commentary written for the first scene/chapter of Dragonflight. Under a cut because this is long, and both spoilers and tangents abound.

(This is also being crossposted on pillowfort here, so if you have an account please consider this encouragement to comment.)

Plot Events

Lessa wakes up with a bad feeling and tries to figure out what danger is approaching. She fails and resolves to wait. The watch wher adores her.

Worldbuilding Details

Lessa trusts the watch-wher to be very aware of/sensitive to danger, so that her sensing something it doesn’t is very strange.

The watch-wher has an “odorous lair” and is kept on a chain in the courtyard. Also: clipped wings, a scaly head, and pointed ears. It flees into the den when the sun rises.

Kitchen drudges all sleep together in the cheese room; Lessa is described as “curled into a tight knot of bones” so presumably drudges aren’t fed well (at least in Fax’s Ruatha). They have sandals and sleep on straw, but apparently do not have any means of brushing their hair (or else Lessa hasn’t been making any use of it, and this isn’t terribly unusual for a drudge).

When describing Ruatha’s deterioration, it’s referred to as “the once stone-clean Hold.”

“Hold” seems to be roughly equivalent to a castle; Lessa refers to the “paved perimeter” of the Hold, as if a Hold is a very physical thing, more a place than a culture or a city which can expand just by building houses/roads/shops.

“the craftsmen’s stony holdings at the foot of the Hold’s cliff” implies that the Hold is built into a cliff, and that craftsmen have stone houses/shops/both that are built at the foot of but outside the cliff.

Lessa’s Hold is initially referred to as “Ruath Hold,” with “Ruatha” used in a way that seems like it might be more equivalent to “America.”

There are a lot of tales and ballads about “the dawn appearance of the red star.”

“Milchbeasts” are probably milk cows, but I suppose could also be goats or other animals used for milk.

The watch wher seems to be able to understand speech, though it doesn’t speak itself.

Commentary

I had forgotten how Anne McCaffrey began every book (every chapter? From the format it looks like it’ll be every chapter, but see, I don’t remember) with an in-universe song excerpt. Not that I wouldn’t have recalled when reminded, but without prompting I wouldn’t have come up with it.

As a result of this feature, the very first words I ever read of Pern (and, of course, the first in this reread as well) were not prose, they were lyrics:

Drummer, beat, and piper, blow, Harper, strike, and soldier, go. Free the flame and sear the grasses Till the dawning Red Star passes.

I like the lyrics, and I think they’re fitting for my experience of enjoying Pern. These lines are very imagistic, very emotional; it’s a remarkably martial feel, considering three of the four characters/archetypes in the lines—drummer, piper, harper, and soldier—are musicians, and only the last is, well, the soldier. It gives me the feeling of all of Pern together gathering themselves and preparing and marching to war… which is what F’lar ends up spending most of this book trying to make happen.

It’s also deeply ironic, considering that I think soldiers exist in Dragonflight and Dragonseye and… well, some of the colonists in Dragonsdawn are retired former soldiers who don’t want to talk about it. But as far as I remember, soldiers just flat out don’t exist in any Pern book other than those two three. Even guards, and the concept of guards, seems to vanish. I’ve heard that national leaders are under much tighter security now than they were a century or two ago—which makes sense, it’s a lot harder to keep an assassin with a rifle out of murder range than an assassin with a sword—but medieval leaders still had guards.

Pernese leaders, on the other hand, seem to be operating under the philosophy that if you can’t personally defend yourself from assassins, then you kinda deserved it anyway and the assassin will probably rule better than you did. You’d think that people would at least be a little concerned about what happens to Jaxom considering he’s the sole possible heir to Ruatha once Lessa and her descendants are ineligible due to dragons, and I can only guess what sort of political mess would result if Jaxom died. But off he goes, wherever he feels like at any time, with not only no guards but not even a ‘visiting my secret girlfriend on her farm, send a search party if I’m not back by the morning’ note. Which I believe of Jaxom easily, but why does no one worry? Why is there no Zazu trying to make Simba-Jaxom behave himself?

And F’lar! Okay, sure, he has a great big dragon to protect him, but on the other hand so did his father, who was assassinated. I think it’s implied that F’lar put extra effort into learning knife fighting so that he could defend himself if someone tried to murder him like F’lon, which is… something, anyway… but F’lar, have you ever considered asking any of the hundreds of men in the military organization you have absolute power over to, say, do literally anything other than stand aside and watch when someone tries to murder you?

Now, to be fair to F’lar (and to all his subordinates who never suggest such a thing) the murder attempts were usually narratively framed as duels (even though they were never initiated with the formalities that would surround dueling when it was a thing in real, Earth cultures). Between that, F’lar’s pride, and the culture just not having the concept of guards, I have no trouble believing that F’lar wouldn’t come up with the idea. But how did we get to a culture that doesn’t have a concept of guards for world leaders? And how come no one else ever tried to interfere? Stab the evil Oldtimers in the back if you must! They went through zero formalities, they just pulled out a knife and aimed for murder, this is closer to a tavern brawl that an honorable duel. The other Oldtimers who value tradition so highly are not gonna side with the guy who tried to murder his peer just because he used a weapon to do it! Hell, Lessa can just psychically smack them down and be done with it, no death needed. Have Ramoth order their dragon to yell at them until they cut it out, just do something.

…Alright, I’ve gone on for a full page and not even read an actual sentence yet. Time to move on.

…Soooo am I the only one who just kind of… forgot that Lessa can see the future?

Okay I didn’t forget forget, the explanation for it is half the plot of the book, but I don’t think it ever quite clicked for me until rereading that Lessa can see the future. The very first thing that happens in the first chapter of Dragonflight (and therefore the very first thing that ever happened in all of Pern) is: Lessa has a bad feeling. She immediately interprets this bad feeling as an indication that something dangerous is about to happen and tries to figure out what it is. The next few chapters are about F’lar and Fax arriving, both of whom are dangerous to Lessa and her plans in different ways. Fax is the usurper who killed her family and would kill (or perhaps forcibly marry, then kill) her if he knew who she was; F’lar immediately takes her away from the Hold she just won back after (I think) a decade of hiding and plotting, and ensures that neither she nor her children can ever rule it. For a good cause and all, but still: pretty dangerous for Lessa’s plans to rule Ruatha.

I’ve gotten off track. Back to the point: Lessa can see the future. Or sense it, anyway. More interesting to me is the fact that she never questions her ability to do this. We know that she went back in time twice to give herself these feelings, to save herself from Fax as a child and to sense incoming danger at the beginning of the book, which is where these feelings come from and why they’re right. I don’t question her trusting it as a scared kid, but as an adult who’s just expecting danger and not yet in it, I’d expect a little more skepticism. Some degree of ‘hm, what if this bad feeling is in fact not world-changing prophecy, and instead is just about the way my boss seemed stressed yesterday and tends to kick me when he’s in a bad mood?’ Or, ‘what if this is just residual feelings from a nightmare, since I just woke up and the watch-wher isn’t bothered?’

Doylistically, the answer is that Lessa is right, her sense of danger establishes suspense for the first few chapters, and ‘but does the danger Lessa sensed actually exist?’ is not a subplot that fit into the rest of the story or that Anne McCaffrey had any interest in. (Presumably. Maybe there was a draft where Lessa doubts herself until Fax arrives, but I doubt it.)

I like Watsonian explanations better though, so let’s look at it that way. The degree to which Lessa trusts this sense of danger makes it seem to me like she’s experienced this before, and probably several times; one distant, panicked memory from when she was a kid is not good evidence of having a reliable, invisible ability that no one else does (or, probably, has ever even mentioned as a fictional concept, considering that Pern doesn’t seem to have fiction beyond slight inaccuracies in historical ballads and maybe room for the possibility of made up characters for love songs and similar).

It’s also fairly plausible that Lessa could have psychically sensed danger before it arrived previously. Her immediate interpretation of what happened, after all, was not ‘I traveled through time and read my own mind’ but ‘I sensed malice from someone with my telepathic powers’ which is definitely a thing she can do, since she spends the next several paragraphs psychically searching for the danger that woke her up and confirming that it’s not anywhere she checks. A handful of instances of that happening (and her actually finding the source of the menace) would give her a pretty good reason to trust her ominous feelings, and might explain why neither Fax nor any of his cronies ever found her.

Lessa has spider sense, is what I’m saying. Go forth and crossover, fandom.

Anyway, Lessa spends a few paragraphs scanning the surrounding area, which is used to give us a sketch of the setting: Ruath Hold is a place contained by walls and set into a cliff; outside it is a paved area and stone buildings where craftsmen live, and a causeway to “the valley.” Wind blows to Ruatha from the shores of Tillek, which seem to be pretty close. Further out is the Pass, which is further than Lessa has ever psychically scanned before.

Then we get a slight detour as Fax is mentioned. He’s described as “the self-styled Lord of the High Reaches” and Lessa is pleased that he’s infuriated by Ruatha’s deterioration and hasn’t been there in three turns. Turns is capitalized for some reason. Was that a thing in 60s scifi? Capitalizing words that replaced ordinary words to draw attention to how scifi the vocabulary is? I remember between always being italicized, and I think I’ve seen similar italicization of new words in fantasy series, but at least ‘between’ is a new use of a word for a new concept. Turn is just an invented synonym and capitalizing it makes no sense at all. I just… don’t know what she could possibly have been thinking, much less what her editors were. Maybe she had an editor who knew nothing about scifi and thought that was a thing? I think I’ve heard that she originally wrote romance, so maybe she just kept a romance editor who’d never read scifi before and decided that fake it til you make it was an acceptable strategy. It’s the closest I have to an explanation.

Moving on, then Lessa gets up. She finds her sandals, brushes straw out of her “matted” hair, and twists it into a knot. I… I have objections to this.

I actually can and regularly do put my hair in a knot at the base of my neck without using any hair ties or anything other than the hair itself to hold it, and doing that when my hair is badly tangled doesn’t work. It’ll go into the knot, sure, but it’ll also just come undone in a minute or less. Getting it into a knot that it will stay in for any length of time requires either something to hold it in place or getting the balance exactly right, and you can’t do the latter with tangled hair. A few small tangles, sure, but anything approaching matted is just… not going to work. If I can’t run my fingers through my hair, it won’t stay in a knot. (Also, ‘matted’ makes me think of fake “dreadlocks” and that there must be mold growing in her hair, but that’s probably more that the connotation has shifted over time. At least, I hope.)

Also, humans are primates that like grooming ourselves and each other; even if for some bizarre reason it’s illegal for drudges to own combs, the drudges should just be finger combing their own and each others’ hair. (Or cutting it all off. Or hiding illegal combs in that straw they sleep on. Whatever.) The matted hair is there to indicate that Lessa is living in a really bad, physically deprived, barely surviving situation, same as Lessa waking up on straw in a cold, smelly room full of other drudges, but that really should’ve been done by making her hair oily or something. She’s going to wash it in a few chapters anyway, at the same time as she combs it.

Granted, I don’t have much trouble imagining Lessa shunning all the other drudges’ company during hair combing time so that she can plot vengeance more, so maybe it’s just her and all the others have only slightly tangled hair.

Anyway, Lessa goes outside. She interacts fondly with the watch-wher, in a very similar way to how a person might interact with a dog, though the watch wher is probably meant to be a bit smarter than dogs are. Then she climbs up to the ramparts and we get a little bit more of the setting: the Hold has a massive gate, and the Pass is within sight.

(How close is Tillek? Technically it said that the danger ‘didn’t scent the breezes from Tillek’s cold shore’ but I refuse to interpret that literally, Lessa is not psychically smelling emotion on breezes. I can only assume that she psychically scanned a significant part of the way to Tillek’s shore, if not all the way there. That was within her ‘I’ve gone this far before’ range while the Pass wasn’t, and now she can see the Pass. Mountains can be seen a pretty good distance away, but ‘the stony breasts of the Pass rose in black relief’ sure doesn’t sound like a smudge on the horizon. How close is Tillek? I’ve been thinking of Holds as capital cities controlling small-nation-sized areas of land, even if most of the land is unpopulated, but this is making them seem more like small towns with barely any space between them. Could I walk from Ruatha to Tillek in a day?)

Lessa stares into the east, then the northeast, and notices the red star (which isn’t capitalized even though it’s clearly a proper name like the North Star, which I just googled because this made me doubt myself, and North Star is indeed supposed to be capitalized. I can’t just have a really old and unedited version, this is the omnibus, there was time to fix this, where is her editor). The sight of the Red Star makes a bunch of “incoherent fragments” of stories about the Red Star at dawn flash through her mind too quickly for her to make sense of them, which conveniently leaves us with the ominous feeling we were supposed to get and no distracting other details. On the other hand, I’m now wondering if all those Red Star story fragments were projected by future!Lessa, so maybe there’s some foreshadowing along with the narrative convenience.

Lessa’s instincts tell her that while there is danger coming from the northeast, the danger from the east is more important, so she goes back to staring that way. But then the warning feeling fades away, presumably because future!Lessa finally figured out what was going on and went back to her own time. Present Lessa accepts that she’s been warned, and just has to wait to see what she was warned about.

Then she looks over the valley a bit and muses about how Fax gets no profit from Ruatha, never will while Lessa lives, and has no idea that she’s the source of this. She smiles and stretches, then panics when a rooster crows and she worries someone might have woken up and seen her with uncharacteristically confident body language, so she lets her hair back down and reassumes “the sloppy posture she affected.”

Okay, I have several questions. First: if she’s that worried about being seen acting uncharacteristically, wouldn’t it make more sense to just return to her normal pose and not whirl around like she has secrets? Yes, she was startled, but she’s been doing this for years. I’m sure she’s had moments where she thought she almost got caught before, she’s had a chance to practice subtlety.

Second, are there really so few drudges that Fax’s cronies can recognize individual drudges and their usual behavior, or does Lessa think some other drudge would tell Fax who she is because they saw her standing up straight with her hair pulled back?

Third, why were there no guards to see her? Fax slaughtered her family at this same time of the morning several years ago, and I remember a specific mention of the guard who had been paid to not sound an alarm. Why does Fax not have a guard now that he rules the place? Lessa was on the ramparts over the gate, she should’ve been easy for a guard to see. She should have been standing next to a guard.

Fourth, I’m pretty sure that after years and years of “affecting” a sloppy posture, that would just be her normal posture. I can accept the “princess is forced to work as a servant, is eventually revealed to be a princess by how her skin is just as pale and her hands are just as soft and her dancing is just as graceful and her singing is just as sweet as if she had grown up with nothing to do her entire life but perfect those things, because it’s just the inherent nature of princesses to be naturally perfect in those ways” conceit in a fairytale, but this is a novel and it bothers me. Both because there are whole worlds of classism going on in that concept which I may not be qualified to analyze but can sure side-eye with a double dose of irritation, and also because it makes no sense.

Lessa is Cinderella (with spider sense and dragons) but she’s supposed to be more plausible, and she’s also singlehandedly sabotaging an entire Hold (however much ‘a Hold’ actually is) while maintaining a cover as an overworked and underfed servant. Her posture is not her priority, and there are no perfect posture genes to be passed down royal lines. Lessa slouches. Probably she gets in a bunch of passive aggressive battles with R’gul and then F’lar over it. That is the only reasonable option.

…Moving on from that rant.

Lessa hugs and pets the watch wher, which is at least as ecstatic about this attention as a dog would be after being left alone for a week. Lessa thinks about how the watch wher is the only living creature that knows who she is, and also the only one she’s ever trusted since her family was killed and she survived by hiding in its den. She reminds it to be vicious to her if anyone else is nearby, it’s reluctant but promises to obey. The sun rises, the watch wher runs back into its den, and Lessa sneaks back to the cheese room. End of Chapter 1.

So, uh, another question: why didn’t Fax just kill the watch wher and replace it with a watch wher bound to him? I can’t imagine there were none available in however many years it’s been, even if watch whers were originally conceived as nighttime guards for Holds and nothing else. I also can’t see Fax being inclined to spare it out of pity or similar. Did all the watch wher breeders refuse to let him have an egg? Couldn’t he have made a breeding pair out of all the watch whers from all the Holds he rules and used eggs from that to replace the watch whers bound to families he’s usurped? Is this another example of ‘Fax doesn’t even want to think about Ruatha’?

Anyway, now I’m going to go even deeper into English major mode.

I really wish I could give this to one of my old English professors and see how they critiqued it. This chapter is a bit under two and a half pages long in the book I have, I’d guess no more than five pages in a regular sized paperback format. There’s no dialogue and very little action. There are several points where the phrasing seems like it’s trying too hard to me, though I suspect that that is due to changes in what’s considered standard in the last fifty years. I kind of suspect that if I had turned in something similar to this for a class, it would’ve been ripped to shreds, mostly on the basis of having lots of exposition with no dialogue and little action.

Despite that, this chapter does a lot of things in a very short time. It introduces us to the setting: we have a decent idea what a Hold is and that a properly maintained Hold is supposed to be clear of grasses, and we have a decent idea of what drudges are and how they’re treated, and we have a sketch of the surrounding landscape and significant nearby locations. We have a pretty good idea of Lessa’s character and motivation, and we know that Fax is an enemy of Lessa’s and that he goes around conquering Holds to add to the one he rightfully inherited. We know the Red Star is ominous. We have pretty good foreshadowing for the discovery of time travel. We know that watch whers have scales and wings, live in dens, and are vicious to most people but adoring of a few, which sets us up pretty well for the dragons that appear next (who might not be strange to us now, but which would have been a lot stranger when this was published). We know that Lessa has psychic abilities, and a broad range in which she can apply them. That’s pretty good for a few pages.

We also have an established tone, and Lessa acting in contrast to it. The scene puts a lot of emphasis on how cold everything is, and how much stone is around, and generally works to make the reader feel how chilled and oppressive and deteriorated everything is. For the first half of the chapter Lessa fits into this: she’s bony, she’s huddled on the floor, her hair is matted and full of straw.

Almost exactly halfway through Lessa starts moving, and she glides.

There have been indications that Lessa rules Ruatha already; she’s psychically tracking everything, to start with. But that is the moment where Lessa breaks out of the general cold-decay-oppression and is shown as a ruler, in secret or otherwise. Starving, oppressed servants don’t glide. Queens do.

The rest of the scene continues to present Lessa as powerful; she stands above the gate and muses about how Fax will never get any profit from Ruatha, and will never know that Lessa is behind it. She tells the watch wher what to do and it promises to obey even though it doesn’t want to. And then she vanishes back into hiding, biding her time. The next chapter will be F’lar’s POV, and this one does very well at establishing Lessa as someone lurking in Ruatha, ready and motivated and able to screw up F’lar’s plans. F’lar doesn’t know she’s there, but we do and are waiting for the collision.

I’ve seen people call Anne McCaffrey a bad or even a terrible writer, and… I suppose it’s possible this chapter is an anomaly, but I’d call this pretty good. Old fashioned in some ways that make it seem pretentious or overdone by modern standards, but we can hardly blame her because styles changed over time. I certainly have objections to her characterization of many characters, and I’d say that her worldbuilding consists of cool ideas which were warped by various prejudices, and there are several details which were glossed over for narrative ease that I wanted more realism on (which I think is partly an example of shifts in what’s considered standard over time).

But when it comes to the actual, literal, technical writing? Anne McCaffrey knew what she was doing. There were a lot of things that she had to accomplish in this scene, and I think she did them all pretty well, and for the most part pretty subtly. She knew how to communicate what she wanted to; just because we would’ve liked her to communicate something else doesn’t mean she was bad at communicating. There’s a reason this series created a fandom which is still going a full half a century later.

#Pern #commentaries #Dragonflight #chapter 1 #commentaries by Para

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tauristar · 6 years ago

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Okay, as far as I can tell, everyone’s been here. Everyone knows this whole debate of Cullen vs. Alistair. However, I wanted to investigate it myself, and bring to light what makes them so different.

(And yes, their appearances count as a difference. Inquisition Alistair’s design was not the Alistair I know. I Do Not Like It. Bioware why.)

So, what makes them similar? They were both sent to the Chantry and were both to become Templars. Beyond that, there’s... Not much else. I think I could find more similarities in Anders and Alistair, or Sebastian and Cullen. Though since that’s completely irrelevant, let’s go back to that one similarity and expand on it to show just how little of a similarity it is.

Alistair’s case:

He never wanted to go to the Chantry. He was sent to the Chantry by Arl Eamon at age 10 because he had nowhere else to go.

Furthermore, he despised being sent away to the Chantry so much that in a fit of anger, he threw his mother’s amulet at a wall and shattered it.

He didn’t take his Templar training as seriously as he could of.

He’s not even that particularly religious, regardless of being taught by the Chantry. (This is noted in a conversation between him and Zevran.)

Does he actually become a Templar? No.

He doesn’t regret leaving the Chantry, or the Templar Order in that matter.

Cullen’s case:

He asked the Templars at the local Chantry every day if he could become a Templar, and they convinced Cullen’s parents to let him train at age 13.

He wanted to be a model student, no matter what. So, he took his training incredibly seriously, in hopes that he would become the best Templar Thedas had seen.

He is a religious man.

Cullen actually completed his Templar training, Alistair did not.

The only reason he left the Templar Order was because after Kirkwall, he didn’t want to be associated with them, and the Inquisition was doing more good than the Templars were at the time.

That’s just on their basis of which they got their Templar training. The only similarity they have, and there are a handful of differences to counter it. Now, to further prove how different they are, let’s move on to: their different views on mage rights and the treatment of mages.

Cullen, admittedly, has been through hell. He’s been tortured for days on end because of Uldred and the other blood mages in the Fereldan Circle, and he watched as countless other Templars succumbed to a fate he tried so hard to resist. Then, hoping that things couldn’t get much worse, he was sent to the Kirkwall Chantry and Circle in hopes of helping establish a sense of peace and control there. Lo and behold, blood mages were coming up all over the place, treatment of mages reach terrible heights, and then the Knight-Commander he was meant to trust goes crazy from red lyrium. Yikes.

But! Does that trauma excuse his anger with mages? To go as far as to state that “mages aren’t like you and me”?

Absolutely not. And that man can’t go back on his word, either: yes, you can romance him in Inquisition as a mage, but even then he seems nervous about it. He still clings to the Templar way of life even when he’s trying so desperately to let it all go. I mean, if he really wanted nothing to do with that life, wouldn’t he have just stayed right out of the choice between Mages and Templars when it came to sealing the Breach the first time? He instead defends the Templars when questioned about their abilities -- “I was a Templar. I know what they’re capable of.” He still wears the title like a badge of honor.

This could be put down as bad writing; it’s incredibly inconsistent, especially if we’re supposed to believe Cullen wants nothing to do with that life.

However, considering it is canon, it goes to show his character. He clings to the Templar life as it’s the only thing he knows, and he distrusts the mages so much that he counters their (theoretically sound) method of helping seal the Breach with the Templar (speculative) method. And have you heard him speak within a five mile radius during Origins and 2?

As a mage Warden, he says some harsh things upon your return.

“You are a mage and I, a templar. It is my duty to oppose you and all that you are.”

Warden: “Is it so surprising that I’ve returned? This was my home.” Cullen: “As it was mine. And look what they’ve done to it. They deserve to die. Uldred most of all.”

Warden: “You need to stay strong.” Cullen: “And to think I once thought that we were too hard on you.” Warden: “We’re not all evil, Cullen.” Cullen: “Only mages have that much power at their fingertips. Only mages are so susceptible to the infernal whisperings of the demons.”

“You can’t save them. You don’t know what they’ve become. They’ve been surrounded by blood mages whose wicked fingers snake into your mind and corrupt your thoughts.” (At this point, if you have Alistair with you, he comments: “His hatred of mages is so intense... The memories of his friends’ deaths is still fresh in his mind.”)

If you tell him that you refuse to risk killing innocents, he says: “I am just willing to see the painful truth, which you are content to ignore.” He also ends the conversation with: “Maker turn His gaze on you. I hope your compassion hasn’t doomed us all.”

... Yikes, buddy. I know your friends have been murdered by blood mages, specifically Uldred, but Yikes.

Oh, he also accuses First Enchanter Irving of being a blood mage. Since, of course, if one was corrupted in the line of Enchanter titles then he must definitely be, since he’s the First Enchanter, right? It’s a narrow thought process, but it’s an understandable one since he just went through a traumatic experience. The thing is he had no evidence in the matter, so his accusation is empty and uncalled for. I have to admit, I hated how Cullen pulled off that stunt.

But if you’re wondering about Dragon Age 2 quotes, there’s plenty in the limited interactions you can have with him:

“Mages cannot be our friends. They must always be watched.”

Hawke: “I got friends who are mages. Are you saying that they need to ‘always be watched’, as well?” Cullen: “I was at the Circle Tower in Ferelden during the Blight. I saw firsthand how templars’ trust and leniency can be rewarded. I still have nightmares of Uldred’s depravities.”

Hawke: “Not all mages are like that.” Carver: “Brother/Sister, not now.” Cullen: “True, not every mage gives into temptation, but none are ever free from it. At any time, any mage can become a monster, from the lowest apprentice to the most seasoned enchanters. Mages cannot be treated like people. They are not like you and me.”

“They are weapons. They have the power to light a city on fire in a fit of pique.”

Hawke: “There’s fault on both sides. We must find a way to live in peace.” Cullen: “Perhaps you’re right. Perhaps mages need better education as to why the Chantry functions as it does.” (Me @ this I... Don’t think that’s what Hawke meant.....)

Overall, he really... Can’t take back what he’s said in the past here. He’s clearly uninterested in the mages and their needs and / or wants after the incident at Ferelden, and doesn’t seem to want to be interested. There’s a level of genuine understanding here, because it can easily be seen as a traumatic experience he can’t move past, but it still doesn’t excuse him for his words / actions.

I would also like to add this quote: “I’ve seen the suffering magic can inflict. I’ve treated mages with distrust because of it, at times without cause. That was unworthy of me. I will try not to do so here.”

Okay, so Cullen at least acknowledges his treatment of mages as horrible and says he will try not to do that again. Try. The key with words is that if you use the wrong word, it creates an implication that you’re not aiming for; Cullen’s choice to use the word “try” in that last sentence proves that although he acknowledges what he has done in the past, he’s only going to try and change it. And, does he really try? Does he really?

He literally continues with: “Not that I want mages moving through our base completely unchecked. We need safeguards in place to protect people, including mages, from possession at the least.”

So, he acknowledges that he had distrusted mages in the past because of his awareness that magic can cause suffering -- especially since he endured torture for days on end thanks to magic. But then, instead of taking a crucial baby step to truly redevelop a better relationship with mages, he wants to place so-called “safeguards” to watch mages to try and stop possession. He can say this to the face of a mage Inquisitor -- can you imagine if the elf Inquisitor or the qunari Inquisitor could respond to Cullen’s suggestion? It’s as though he still refuses to trust them, even a little bit, to move freely through a base without scrutiny.

Overall, his original statement seems void. His choice of words devalue the meaning behind his half-promise; if anything, he should have avoided using the word try if he was being genuine about his attempt.

As for Alistair?

His view is very different. In Origins, he can talk with a mage Warden and express sympathy / empathy for them, when he asks if they ever lost someone close to them:

“That must have felt a lot like when I got sent to the Chantry. You mages don’t even get a say in the matter, after all.”

He genuinely sympathizes with the mages because he has an understanding on what it feels like to be sent away without a choice. The only reason he didn’t was because where else could he have gone? But Alistair recognizes and perfectly understands the situation in which mages face in the Circles. In a way, this really shows his character in one line: he cares. He treats the mages as if they’re like any other person in Thedas, which they are! But that’s not how Cullen sees it, as demonstrated in his quoting.

In Dragon Age 2, as King of Ferelden in Act III, you can go and meet him with Hawke and then walk into him and Meredith having a heated debate. There are two versions of this:

Alistair: Let me guess: that's your final answer? Meredith: Three mages have fled to Ferelden, and you have intervened to protect them as if it is your right to do so. What other answer did you expect, your Majesty?

Alistair: Let me guess: that's your final answer? Meredith: You declare your Circle of Magi free, as if its your right to do so, and thus stir up every mage outside of your kingdom. What other answer did you expect, your Majesty?

He actually protects mages fleeing into Ferelden, and probably being completely aware of what Meredith has been doing to the Kirkwall Circle mages. (Surely a king can gather information on that. Plus, it’s not like it was that big a secret.) Or, if your Warden was a mage and asks for the Magi boon, then the second option plays. He’s genuinely trying to give more freedom to the Circle of Magi, giving them the chance to live as any other human would.

This is one of the most obvious differences between Alistair and Cullen. And it doesn’t end there, either: if Hawke questions him on what happened between himself and Meredith, this is the answer given.

Hawke: You were having an argument about mages? Alistair: Yes, well, apparently I don't feel the same way about mages as the Chantry does. So we're in disagreement. That means they get nasty. They're like that.

Furthermore:

Hawke: Sounds like the Circle is better off in Ferelden. Alistair: You'd think so, wouldn't you? Sadly, I don't control the Circle. I can only deal with mages outside the Circle... of which there aren't many.

And after Alistair says to Hawke to protect Kirkwall, this can be initiated with the Diplomatic option:

Hawke: Protect Kirkwall from what, exactly? Alistair: You ask me, the biggest threat to this city just walked out the door. But maybe that's the ex-templar in me talking.

He’s commenting that Meredith is the biggest threat to the city. Knight-Commander Meredith, who Cullen trusted until the last minute, when she started wielding her sword infused with red lyrium and lost her sanity. Maybe we can’t fault Cullen for that, but Alistair has genuine concern about mages fleeing into Ferelden, mages having actual freedom, and recognizing that Meredith is one of three threats to the city falling apart (the other two being Orsino and Anders, respectively, but that’s incredibly complicated).

These are the two main differences between Alistair and Cullen, and though one can love either one of these characters, the other, or even both of them, it’s very important to know that they’re not both “Chantry boys”. That, and their views are very different particularly when it comes to mages.

(If anyone has anything else to add to this analysis of character, feel free to extend on it! The goal here is to remain neutral to both characters, and instead focus on the writing choices of Bioware and how this expands on the character’s faults, flaws and views that make them different. This may paint Cullen or Alistair in a negative light at times [which is inevitable in Cullen’s case due to his views on mages], but ultimately this is to challenge the character development of both characters and pick out their differences.)

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tawakkull · 4 years ago

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Spirituality in islam: Qalb (Heart)-1

The heart is the home of God; purify it from whatever is other than HimSo that the All-Merciful may descend into His palace at night.

The word “heart” has two meanings.

One denotes the body’s most vital part, which is located in the left part of the chest and resembles a pinecone.

With respect to its structure and tissue, the heart is different from all other bodily parts: it has two auricles and two ventricles, is the origin of all arteries and veins, moves by itself, works like a motor, and, like a suction pump, moves blood through the system.

An individual’s real nature is found in the heart. With respect to this intellectual and spiritual aspect of existence, one is able to know, perceive, and understand. Spirit is the essence and inner dimension of this faculty; the biological spirit or the soul is its mount.

It is one’s heart that God addresses and that undertakes responsibilities, suffers punishment or is rewarded, is elevated through true guidance or debased through deviation, and is honored or humiliated. The heart is also the "polished mirror” in which Divine knowledge is reflected.

The heart or spiritual intellect, if we may so call it, has an intrinsic connection with its biological counterpart.

The nature of this connection has been discussed by philosophers and Muslim sages for centuries. Of whatever nature this connection may be, it is beyond doubt that there is a close connection between the biological heart and the “spiritual” one, which is a Divine faculty, the center of true humanity, and the source of all human feelings and emotions.

In the Qur'an, religious sciences, morals, literature, and Sufism, the word “heart” signifies the spiritual heart.

Belief, knowledge and love of God, and spiritual delight are the objectives to be won through this Divine faculty. The heart is a luminous, precious ore with two aspects, one looking to the spiritual world and the other to the corporeal, material world. If an individual’s corporeal existence or physical body is directed by the spirit, the heart conveys to the body the spiritual effusions or gifts it receives through the world of the spirit, and causes the body to breathe with peace and tranquillity.

If the heart is alive, all of these elements and faculties are alive; if the heart is diseased, it is difficult for the elements and faculties mentioned to remain sound. The truthful and confirmed one, upon him be peace and blessings, declared: There is a fleshy part in the body. If it is healthy, then the whole of the body is healthy. If it is corrupted, then all the body is corrupted. Beware! That part is heart. This saying shows the importance of the heart for one’s [spiritual] health.

That is, it always reminds one of God in the tongues of neediness and seeking help and protection. This is vividly expressed in a narrated Prophetic Tradition, which Ibrahim Haqqi relates as follows:

God said: “Neither the heavens nor the earth can contain Me.”

He is known and recognized as a “Treasure” hidden in the heart by the heart itself.

Our Lord! Do not cause our hearts to swerve after You have guided us (3:7),

and our master, upon him be peace and blessings, by his supplication:

O God, O Converter of hearts! Establish our hearts firmly on Your religion, remind us of the absolute need to preserve the heart.

Unfortunately, innumerable adversaries seek to destroy this home, to block this river or divert its course: hardness of heart (losing the ability to feel and believe), unbelief, conceit, arrogance, worldly ambition, greed, excessive lust, heedlessness, selfishness, and attachment to status.

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canadianabroadvery · 6 years ago

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In Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller, Shadow of a Doubt, spunky, recent high school grad Teresa Wright discovers her beloved uncle is a serial killer.

Wright’s subsequent efforts to protect herself and others from psychopathic Joseph Cotten are continually frustrated by the extraordinary denial of her family and her community lost in the “thrall” of the worldly, smooth-talking Uncle Charlie.

Heartbroken and distraught, she must contend with her uncle’s violent agenda while being obstructed by a naive and vulnerable community of his enablers and/or soon to be victims.

Wright’s horrifying predicament resonates as I witness my – our – psychopathic uncle – UNCLE SAM, the U.S. government – perpetrate violent crime upon crime against humanity enabled by a maddening, morally mute, over-trusting, under-informed and/or indifferent citizenry.

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to fully wrap my mind or heart around the profound lack of outrage and empathy among government leaders from both corporate parties, the corporate media, as well as the vast majority of my fellow citizens at the ongoing atrocities of the Global War on Terror (more accurately, the “US Global War of Terror”) and the “regime change” covert and/or overt operations initially and sinisterly described as “humanitarian interventions.”

The terrorist attacks of 9/11 seemingly justified a “gloves off” bloodlust defiance by the political and military “guardians” of America of the legal and moral pillars of our democracy. All these years since, the mandates for constitutional and moral justice “for all” have gone unheeded.

The Iraq war was launched illegally and with manipulative lies. Bush’s torture program was in total opposition to constitutional, international and moral law. Its perpetrators deserved serious prosecution.

The Geneva Conventions were ratified once upon a time by a U.S. Congress. Habeas corpus, in place since 1679, so cavalierly suspended with the GWOT’s “anything goes” rationale.

When such gobsmacking evil manifests on such a collective and global level for such a sustained amount of time, it deserves a serious analysis by those of us still spiritually awake enough to protest it.

At this point in my concerned citizenship, I am moving beyond anger into an awe of the scope of the – well – I call it downright and seriously unchallenged EVIL. Looking for a more clinical term than that? How about patriarchal psychopathology?

In his acceptance speech for the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature, Harold Pinter acknowledged the long trail of U.S. international war crimes as well as the lack of historical and current accountability by this government, corporate media and its citizenry for them.

“It never happened. Nothing ever happened. Even while it was happening, it wasn’t happening . . . You have to hand it to America . . . masquerading as a force for universal good. It’s a brilliant, even witty, highly successful act of hypnosis.”

Speaking of bottom-line and minimized evil, the specter of torture has reared its ugly head once again with President Donald Trump, an unabashed torture enthusiast, and the confirmation of his choice for Director of the CIA, “Bloody Gina” Haspel, notorious overseer of a secret black prison in Thailand where brutal torture was conducted. She was readily confirmed by a combination of Democratic and Republican senators. Senators, no doubt, who after fearful years of being labeled “too soft on terror” were not about to stick their necks out for decency and morality.

Too many of my fellow citizens, terminally influenced by an amoral corporate media, I am nonetheless at a loss for their easy acceptance of torture.

A Pew Research poll released in 2017 revealed that 48% of the US citizenry believed that some circumstances could justify the use of torture, and 49% maintained there were no circumstances that would ever justify it.

Every other US citizen is thumb’s up for the use of torture!

How disturbing over the last decade for the use of torture to be normalized and decriminalized by the military, citizenry, politicians, media, and those government lawyers who early on cravenly defied the obvious spirit of basic “Golden Rule” morality, the Constitution, and international law, to minimize the savagery of torture with euphemistic labels still parroted by much of the corporate media and or applied as fig leaves over the reprehensible.

“Enhanced interrogation techniques.” Thank you, New York Times. They are monstrous methods of inflicting debilitating psychological and physical anguish on victims even at times to the point of death. Techniques that, along with being illegal and immoral, are universally regarded as unreliable. They are reliable only in generating false confessions (which apparently was one of the goals of the original, craven perpetrators).

Torture is wrong. It is evil.

Reading Jacob Weisberg’s book, The Bush Tragedy, I learned that the main ego-armature for George W. Bush during his Yale University years was his participation in the fraternity culture.

Weisberg discloses that when “W” finally became head of a fraternity, he “ruled” at one point that lowly pledges be branded with real, Texas branding irons as part of their hazing.

When the Yale Daily News got wind of Bush’s sadistic and zealous intention, it disclosed it to the entire university community. The Yale administrative patriarchs immediately huddled together to deal with the negative P.R. (I’m guessing that far outweighed the actual physical or psychological welfare of the targeted pledges.)

The patriarchs’ solution? Rein in Mr. Bush, whose sociopathy they presumably minimized as an impish, “boys-will-be-boys”-ness. With the proverbial wink and nod, they insisted young Bush forego the branding irons and instead ONLY make use of scalding metal coat hangers or lit cigarettes to burn freshman flesh.

Say what?

Problem solved? This Yale incident foreshadowed and undoubtedly helped foster the ultimate creation of the craven and covert torture program by Bush and cabal, particularly with the ever-Satanic Dick Cheney.

The green-lighting of that more modest degree of torture speaks volumes of a troubling, profoundly unempathetic – sociopathic— macho-mindset within the deepest, most influential halls of America’s supposed intellectual and ruling class elite and mentors of said elite. They enabled and abetted young, already morally-deranged Master Bush, instead of role modeling and enforcing boundaries of basic human decency.

Just another rite of male passage? No wonder our American culture is so violent.

Andy Worthington, a prime advocate for victimized prisoners of Gitmo once reminded his audience during a NYC anti-war forum that in 2007 it was Senator Obama who declared:

“In the dark halls of Abu Ghraib and the detention cells of Guantánamo, we have compromised our most precious values. What could have been a call to a generation has become an excuse for unchecked presidential power.”

President Obama posed as a person of character most convincingly. It got him the White House. Twice.

Obama took no responsibility for his breathtaking, 180-degree reversals of golden promises of anti-Bush reform, pre-election.

The most obvious and necessarily immediate reforms that he failed to act on were the restoration of habeas corpus rights and the prosecution of the perpetrators of the clandestine Bush torture program, of those who had most reprehensibly exploited the post-9/11 fear, outrage and vengeance sensibility of much of the citizenry.

Obama’s policy decisions instead included deadly drone warfare, assassination kill lists, unlimited due-process-less detentions, military tribunals, countless corporate wars and U.S. military (corporate-opportunistic) garrisoning; and the continuation of Gitmo and God only knows what other black sites.

Obama’s posture was of an always rhetorically amiable and faux-reasonable Roman emperor with thumb’s up or down power over life and death. Many of his “subjects” adored him.

“We tortured some folks,” he finally admitted with a shrug at a press conference. As if it was not a colossally serious deal. “Folks”? Now there’s a friendly word.

This is heart-of-darkness territory. Obama chose to become an enabler of violators of human rights and then a violator of them himself. To add to the horror, Obama so readily was enabled by the media in this, the vast majority of Congress, and the vast majority of citizens.

Does the cult of celebrity in America overwhelm basic human decency? It seems so.

Do U.S. leaders as diverse (but all amoral) as Bush, Obama and Trump, along with callous political cronies, military leaders and media, only need to repeat the word “terror” enough times to have so much of America fall into a “do with us, our money, or anyone else whatever depraved, anti-humanity behavior you want” kind of swoon?

“To torture or not to torture” not only a hot news media topic, but fodder for jingoistic and sensationalized movies and TV shows (as the normalization of torture steamrolls on).

Loyalty and admiration for the troops (no matter what war crimes they may be committing) and/or blind trust in a national administrative and military authority should not override human decency. American “exceptionalism” should not override identifying and ending war criminality. It does.

The status quo establishment in America has us locked into perpetual war with untold mass global deaths and maiming and ever-increasing economic hardship for all humanity except for a tiny percentage of transnational elites.

A paradigm shift from a “profits over people” patriarchy to the humanism of partnership and cooperation is the answer, but that would require decisions based on a U.S. leadership, a U.S. media and a U.S. society that seriously honored empathy, justice and the law.

Ours do not.

Scott Peck asserts in his book, People of the Lie, that mental health is “dedication to reality at all costs.” This healthy sense of reality includes an in-touchness with one’s inner reality and a respect for the reality of others. It requires the capacity to fully think and FEEL.

This “feeling capacity” – including and especially EMPATHY — seems most vulnerable to dysfunction in our society and world, among both leaders and followers.

Feelings are profoundly under-valued in our U.S. society, and this feeling dysfunction is at the heart (or lack thereof) of the existing suffering and injustice.

Alice Miller, in her book For Your Own Good, refers to a “poisonous pedagogy” that can infect a society. She explains that that was what made the “good” (as in compliant) German population easy prey for the authoritarianism of Hitler.

Miller emphasizes that the capacity for empathy is not linked to one’s intelligence. She points out that both Hitler and Stalin had enthusiastic, highly intellectual followers.

If one is not able to respond with authentic feelings and thoughtful consideration to real life situations involving oneself or others, one is susceptible to “enthrallment” to the will of a toxic and controlling leader, asserts Miller.

She also contends that unprocessed trauma in one’s childhood, that is, when children are exposed to profound degrees of non-empathy from adult caretakers, will cause a crippling or shutting down of their feeling capacity later in adult life along with the potential of a sudden dismantling of their own will for the will of another. Miller explains that such trauma undoubtedly also happened to the original destructive caretakers during their childhoods in a continuing, generational cycle of dysfunction.

When trauma goes unprocessed by feelings, that is, it stays unfelt and un-grieved, it induces one to over-identify with an aggressor and enter his or her “thrall” later in adulthood. Also, such conditioning can induce one to project one’s negative feelings about oneself onto others as scapegoats. People with a disordered feeling capacity cannot handle and take mature responsibility for whatever guilt, shame, anger, frustration gets triggered within them in the present and must deflect it.

In People of the Lie, Scott Peck discusses the experiments of Dr. Stanley Milgram at Yale in 1961 which revealed how people were so readily intimidated by an authority in a white coat that they willingly would inflict what they thought were disabling electric shocks on strangers without question. Six out of 10 of the tested humans were willing to inflict serious harm on strangers from their own over-conditioning to the will of authority figures.

Peck emphasizes how obedience is the foundation of military discipline. “A follower is never a WHOLE person,” he maintains. Tragically, most people are far more comfortable in the “follower” role, leaving the responsibility and decision-making to those who step forward as leaders. When ruthless, reckless, immature, even sociopathic persons assume leadership positions, especially in an authoritarian system, the results can be tragic.

He also contends that a lack of conscience in human beings is partly due to “specialization”, a detachment from responsibility. One regards oneself as simply playing a role in a group scenario and thus can easily pass the “moral buck” so-to-speak to another part of the group. Troops shooting foreign civilians with a kind of “video-game aloofness”, for example will rationalize: “We don’t kill the people. Our weapons do. Whoever gave us these weapons and instructions are really responsible for the killing. Not us.”

Another example he cites is of how weapons manufacturers, sellers, lobbyists, etc. feel no personal responsibility for the consequences of violence from the weapons they distribute. The moral decision as to the use of the weapons is not part of their “specialized” roles. (And the financial profits are just too damn juicy to consider otherwise.)

Peck also cites the regressive shutting down of authentic and appropriate feelings in people due to a phenomenon called “psychic numbing.” The mind has the ability to anesthetize itself from feelings in the face of trauma. “The horrible becomes normal,” he writes.

Finally, he explains that groups bond often within a collectively egotistical groupthink by circling the proverbial wagons against a common, demonized enemy. “The other.” Scapegoating occurs when a group collectively projects the “badness” of themselves, too difficult to fathom, onto others.

James Lucas in an article for globalresearch.com back in 2015 declared that the United States has killed approximately 20 million people in 37 countries since the end of World War II.

How many of us can actually begin to feel and process the utter enormity of such a revelation? (One thinks of a quote attributed to the profoundly non-empathetic Joseph Stalin: “One death is a tragedy, a million is a statistic.”)

What say you to 20 million, America? Look what our UNCLE SAM has wrought.

Can we as a nation cultivate a collective capacity for “empathy”? A critical mass of us reached a breakthrough of collective conscience during the Vietnam era (though it took us long enough, admittedly).

Can each of us dedicate ourselves to a “reality at all costs” awareness for our individual as well as collective mental health?

The fast hardening of soft fascism seems to be happening with little conscious struggle among the masses who seem convinced we non-elites can get away with staying passive and will be supported by our corporate-captured politicians and media.

Can we face down and acknowledge the relentless criminality of our government and representatives (who are not really OUR representatives).

If such crimes are not acknowledged, called out and then accounted for they will continue and escalate in number and nature. Even more frightening, more and more and more “good” Americans will succumb to this “normalization” of evil.

Confronting evil is daunting. Confronting mass and institutionalized evil all the more so. Sickening. Spiritually exhausting. It even has been said to biologically weaken one’s thymus gland that supports the body’s immune system.

We must detach from seductive “cronyism” with authoritarians or authoritarian followers and encourage others to do so.

We must explore the details of what is going on in our citizen name, with our tax dollars and especially with our vulnerable, patriotic and earnest young who can become tragically confounded by and induced to perpetrate institutionalized evil policies.

We owe it to ourselves and our world to stay whole and awake as citizens. To speak truth to power. Once again, “a follower is not a whole person” as Scott Peck declared.

“This is why the individual is sacred. For it is in the solitary mind and soul of the individual that the battle between good and evil is waged and ultimately won or lost.”

It has been said there are three types of people in this world. A smallish group of people who make things happen. A larger group of people who watch things happen. (I am thinking, of those “good people who do nothing.”) And finally the third, excessively large and clueless group, exclaiming, “WHAT THE F*CK HAPPENED???”

Let’s try to shrink the second and third groups and expand the first by getting up and exercising those consciences.

#us militarism #us exceptionalism #us imperialism #us foreign policy

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