#Brimir

[thebeingmerf]

The giants?

[themodernwitchsguide]

the norse gods

WYRD: destiny, the past that led up to the present

ORLOG: the relationship between actions and outcomes, the things in the present that affect the future

our primeval chaos this round,

GINNUNGAP: an area of abyss in between Niflheim (ice) and Muspelheim (fire). when these two regions grew in power and clashed, water was created

for once we only have one creation myth,

YMIR/AURGELMIR/BRIMIR/BLAINN: ancestor of the jotnar, he was born from venom that dripped from the rivers in Ginnungagap. fed on the milk of Auðumbla, Ymir bore a male and female out of his armpits and a six-headed being from between his legs. Odin, Vili, and Ve created earth from his flesh, oceans/rivers/lakes from his blood, mountains from his bones and teeth, trees from his hair, clouds from his brain, heavens from his skull, and Midgard from his eyebrow

AUÐUMBLA: primordial cow that was created from the fluid of melting ice in Ginnungap, she fed Ymir and licked the god Buri out of a salt rock over the course of three days

BURI: ancestor of the Aesir gods, fathered Bor

BOR: married the daughter of a frost giant, Bestla, and bore three sons, Odin, Vili, and Ve. these three grew tired with the unruly jotnar and killed Ymir, causing an avalanche of blood that killed all the giants except for Bergelmir and his wife

BERGELMIR: the ancestor of all "new" giants, resettled his race in Jotunheim

clan Aesir

ODIN: god of poetry, wisdom, war, and magic. Odin crowned himself king of the gods as he was the first one to decide to kill Ymir. he allowed himself to be hung from Yggdrasil for nine days and nine nights in order to understand the secrets of the runes and sacrificed one of his eyes in order to see the cosmos more clearly. some stories claim he could shape and understand Wyrd and Orlog. he had wolves named Gerki and Freki, ravens named Huminn and Muninn, and an eight legged horse named Sleipnir

FRIGG: once may have been the same goddess as Freyja, she is queen of the Aesir and goddess of beauty, love, and fertility, she was gifted with the power of foresight

BALDUR: son of Odin and Frigg, he was the pinnacle of beauty and likeability. his only weakness was mistletoe

HODR: son of Odin and Frigg, the blind god, he is tricked by Loki into shooting a mistletoe arrow, which kills Baldur

VALI: in some stories he's the son of Odin and the jotun Rindr, in others he's the son of Loki, but it makes more sense for him to be a son of Loki so let's just go with this. conceived to avenge his brother Baldur, which he did by killing Hodr and binding Loki with the entrails of Narfi

VIDAR: son of Odin and the jotun Gríðr, he is the god of vengeance, and is fortold to avenge his father by killing the wolf Fenrir at Ragnarok

HEIMDALL: son of Odin and "The Nine Mothers" (nine sea giants), god of keen eyesight and hearing, sometimes foresight. guardian of the Bifrost

TYR: son of Odin, god of war, justice, and order, he lost one of his arms to the wolf Fenrir

BRAGI: son of Odin, god of poetry

IDUNN: wife of Bragi, goddess of youth and fertility, her apples rejuvenated the Aesir gods and reversed the effects of aging

JORÐ: personification of the earth, consort of Odin, sometimes considered to be a jotun

THOR: son of Odin and the goddess Jörð, he is the god of lightning, storms, strength, fertility, and the protector of humankind. he wields the hammer Mjolnir

SIF: Thor's wife, goddess of faith, family and fertility

THRUD: daughter of Thor and Sif, goddess of strength

MAGNI: son of Thor and the jotun Járnsaxa, god of wrath

MODI: son of Thor, god of might

MIMIR: god of knowledge and wisdom, in some stories he is the advisor of Odin. he is sent either as a peace maker or hostage to the Vanir, where he is decapitated. Odin preserved his head and keeps it to guard a well on one of the roots of Yggdrasil

LOKI: god of mischief, wealth, and chaos. his children often caused trouble for other gods, Fenrir being the great wolf of Ragnarok, Jormungandr being the arch enemy of Thor, and Hel, who ruled Helheim

HEL: daughter of Loki and the jotun Angrboda, goddess of the underworld, she was tasked with taking care of the souls that ended up in her realm (since some ended up in Odin's Valhalla and some ended up in Freyja's Folkvangr)

NARFI: son of Loki and the goddess Sigyn, killed by Vali

clan Vanir

NJORD: patriarch of clan Vanir, god of wind, water, and fortune, he was the patron of fishermen and sailors

NERTHUS/NJORUN: although possibly just a female aspect of Njord, some theorize this is actually the sister-wife of Njord, mother of Freyja and Freyr. goddess of peace and prosperity

FREYR: son of Njord, god of peace, prosperity, male virility, and fair weather, ruler of Alfheim. after the conclusion of the Aesir-Vanir war, he was brought to Asgard as a hostage where he climbed his way up the ranks with charm and a good personality

FREYJA: daughter of Njord, goddess of love, beauty, fertility, and blessings. she is said to have introduced the gods to a form of magic called seidr, which was a form of seeing or changing the future

ODR: husband of Freyja, god of madness, wit and poetry. could also be an aspect of Odin, as they bear good similarities

HNOSS: daughter of Freyja and her husband Odr, her name means "gem"

GERSEMI: daughter of Freyja and Odr, her name means "treasure"

the goddesses of destiny, the Norns,

URD: "fate"

SKULD: "being"

VERANDI: "necessity"

[waffliesinyoface]

How would [x] character fare in [y] universe?

Im choosing to interpret this as "gets summoned in place of saito" because the familiar summoning scene is literally the perfect catalyst for ANY kind of crossover fic.

And while *I* think the worldbuilding and setting of halkegenia is neat, Hasami is different enough from me that she would hate it.

Getting isekai'd via reincarnation is one thing, and she's enough of her own person that any emotional connection to her past life is kind of distant. Getting snatched away from her family and her team by random chance? Having to adjust from shinobi village customs to feudal fantasy france customs? Having to deal with people like Louise, Guiche, Montmorency, and Kirche before they got character development? She'd be at her wits end. If Kagemaru came along with her, she'd be very twitchy and angry but willing to mostly chill out on the condition that Colbert or whoever actually attempts to send her back. If Kagemaru is not with her, and she doesn't have even a small connection to home with her, she might very well be on the verge of a complete mental breakdown!!

As for Louise... honestly, some of her more outrageous demands that she makes at the start of the series (ie: telling saito to sleep on a bed of straw and to help her get dressed) are blunted by the fact that Hasami has some experience with shitty clients on C-rank missions, and by the fact that she knows enough about the series that they don't come out of left field. I think Louise would be more put off by Hasami than the other way around. She can do "magic" (Fire Release Ninjutsu), and she has her own "familiar" (Kagemaru), which are both things that Louise really wants, but she's also got tattoos (scandalous!) on her face (extremely scandalous!!), is shockingly willing to Do Violence to people, and has very little in the way of a filter. (IE: the "Guiche duel" which happens in canon and in every ZnT fanfic is started because Hasami catches a whiff of Montmorency's perfume, and goes "god, what the fuck is that smell" within earshot of Guiche AND Montmorency.)

The one positive of their relationship would be the fact that Hasami would give Louise an entirely new perspective on her explosions, specifically along the lines of: "Hey you're from a noble family and expected to Defend the Kingdom" -> "What do you think spells like fireball are intended to accomplish" -> "Do you think you could make an explosion even bigger on purpose?" Until Louise finally gets the message that it might actually be useful to be a walking piece of artillery. Whether that's a positive in the long term... well, that's a problem for later!

Things are also complicated by the fact that I know:

the early plot beats of ZnT (guiche duel, fouqet, talent show, secret mission to albion, wales assassination, reconquista attacking tarbes, zombie prince wales),

some of the later plot twists (Tabitha is princess, Galia is run by an insane dude, the pope is a void mage)

and some of the setting (elves, brimir/sasha/derflinger backstory, whats going on with reconquista)

but i haven't a goddamn clue how the plot ends or how things get resolved or what's actually true to the universe and what is exclusively the product of fanfiction. So Hasami knows she is on a time crunch before things get completely out of hand and she has no idea what to be on guard against. Please get her home before her very limited future knowledge runs out.

[themildestofwriters]

Doing some work on my ZnT fic, and one core issue is the fact that I've given myself the task of inventing a fantasy religion's rites, rituals, and liturgy. Book 1, Chapter 5 follows Lodewijka (Louise) and her year level participating in the Day of Calling prelude service, which involves the morning prayers, followed by a reading from the relevant Saga and a sermon, topped with the Summoning Ritual preperations — an invocation of the Norse Fates, a sacrifice, and the blessing of the students.

So far, I've wrangled myself into needing to create several different liturgical prayers and blessings, up to and including:

The Ritual Purification Blessing

The Morning Prayers and Blessings

The Opening Prayers for Reading the Sagas

The Closing Prayers for Reading the Sagas

The Invocation of the Nornir (Skuld, Verðandi, and Urðr)

The Summoner's Blessing

Might even have to include an Invocation of the Ancestors and an Invocation of the Gods of Magic (primarily Brimir, but Freyja and Oðinn, too), because it is a coming of age ritual, one which every mage does, and because the ritual itself was invented by Brimir.

So far, I've not done much. I want to base it off of Roman Catholic rites, because the Church in ZnT is basically fantasy Roman Catholicism with a Nordic twist, but it's difficult figuring out what parallels I can pull between the two.

The most I got is, like, a rough draft for the Invocation of the Nornir, which goes something like this:

Blessed are the Nornir,

Blessed are the Yggdrasill-Nourishers,

Blessed are the Sisters-Three,

Hear us and bless us,

Skuld, who speaks,

Verðandi, who carves,

Urðr, who preserves,

Hear us and bless us,

We beseech you,

Bless these children,

Guide them (in this holiest day),

Hear us and bless us,

For generations and generations,

We have called on you,

Perpetuate this age old covenant,

Hear us and bless us,

By your right judgement,

Bless them with their fated companion,

Make these children whole,

Hear us and bless us,

As you bless our blood,

We gift you blood,

Accept our sacrifice,

Hear us and bless us,

So we say:

So it is.

It's a call and response. The priest (goði) leads the invocation with the students chanting the italics. I'm just not exactly pleased with the word choice for this piece of liturgy. The word choice feels iffy, though I'm not sure how to fix that. The last few stanzas are especially annoying.

The basic structure is fine, though. It's got the standard structure of a prayer — who are you invoking, why are you invoking, and what you will give in return. Plus the repetition of three is a nice touch.

[mask131]

Cold winter: Ymir

YMIR

Category: Norse mythology

If you study Norse mythology, you should know Ymir’s name. Not that it is his only name, mind you: he is also called Brimir, Blainn, Aurgelmir… And he is also the key character of the Norse creation myth – not only was he one of the very first living beings of the universe, but he is also considered to be the ancestor of the mythological race known as the “jötnar”. You know, the jötnar… a rival race of the gods, renowned for their great size and immense powers. You might be more familiar with the popular English translations of “giants” – but know that the “giants” of Norse mythology are actually the “jötnar”, which is… not really the same thing, the same way you can’t translate “Titan” by “giant”. But I get carried away… Who is Ymir? As usual we need to look at the two main sources of Norse mythology: the Eddas.

Let’s begin with the older record, the Poetic Edda:

The Poetic Edda was the first to use the “triple name” of Ymir. The jötnar are described as “Ymir’s kin” and explicitly said to be all descendants of Ymir. Ymir is said to have lived in a time before waves, sand or sea existed, in a place without grass, earth or sky: the “chaotic chasm”, the “yawning gap”, aka the Ginnungagap. He is described at one point as an “ice-cold” or “frost-cold” giant, and we know that the gods created the world out of Ymir’s body: his flesh became the earth, his bones the mountains and hills ; his skull became the sky/heavens, his blood the ocean ; his hair became the trees, and his brain became the clouds, and Midgard, the realm of the human beings, was created out of Ymir’s eyebrows.

Ymir’s second name, Aurgelmir, comes from a description of the genealogy of the jötnar. The oldest of the jötnar is described as being Bergelmir, born before the earth was formed: he was the son of Thrudgelmir, and the grandsom of “Aurgelmir”. We don’t know much about Thrudgelmir, but we know that Aurgelmir was the first jötunn , created out of the poison dripping out of Elivagar (the primordial rivers and half-frozen water currents at the beginning of the world), and who became the ancestor of all jötnar: he did not reproduce with a female being, since there was none in this time, but rather he created life out of himself. A girl and boy were said to have been born from Aurgelmir’s armpits, while his two feet produced together a six-headed jötunn (unnamed, but who might be the same as Thrudgelmir).

As for his last names, Brimir and Blain, they come from one specific passage of the Poetic Edda where the race of the dwarfs is said to have been created by the gods out of “Brimir’s blood and Blain’s legs”.

This is all we know of Ymir from the Poetic Edda. For more info we will have to look at the Prose Edda, who as usual takes back the elements of the Poetic and weaves on them, expands them into a more cohesive narration.

In the Prose Edda we actually have a full and very detailed cosmogony story for how the world and Ymir came to be. In the beginning of all things, there was only one of the “nine realms”: Muspell, a bright and glowing realm of heat and fire. Then, after some time a second realm appeared: Niflheimr, a realm of coldness, fog and darkness. From Niflheimr sprang forth eleven cold and poisonous rivers known as the Elivagar (remember, just above). And between the two realms was the Ginnungagap, the void between the worlds. Now, the eleven rivers flowed out of Niflheimr into the “northern” section of the Ginnungagap – there the liquid of the river turned into big chunks of ice, where the toxic vapors of the poison became rime ice. The rivers thus, layer by layer, covered the northern area of the Ginnungagap in ice – while in the southern region of the void, Muspel kept sending bright sparks and molten flecks, keeping the area hot and lighted. In the middle of the Ginnungagap was thus a “mild” place not too hot and not too cold, not too dark and not too bright: there, the ice met the hot air and melted, and from this melting was born an entity… an entity in the “shape of a man”, that is known to us as “Ymir” but that the jötnar (his descendants) called “Aurgelmir”. Ymir was not a god, but the first of all the jötnar – even though he only particularly “birthed” one specific subrace of the jötnar, the “hrimthursar” (usually translated as “frost-giants” or “ice-giants”): he birthed them during his sleep. During his sleep he sweated heavily, and from the sweat of his left arm was born a son, from the sweat of his right arm was born a daughter, and his two legs somehow “mated” with each other so to speak to produce a second son.

Now we get into a part of the story the Poetic Edda did not cover: right after the melting created Ymir, it created a second being, Audumbla the primordial cow. From her teats constantly flower four rivers of milk: they were what Ymir fed on. As for the cow herself she licked the salty ice of northern Ginnungagap: she kept licking the ice, again and again, for three whole days to feed herself, and in the process she somehow either set free or sculpted out of this ice a man – that was not a jötunn, but rather the first god (or the ancestor of gods). He was named Buri – “large, powerful, and beautiful”. Buri somehow had a son named Borr (how? Mystery), and this son married a jötunn girl named Bestla, and from this divine/jötnar union were born three sons. Odin, Vili and Vé. And these three sons, for unknown reasons, gathered together and killed Ymir. Oh yes, maybe not so much for unknown reasons… because you see, Ymir is said to have been an “evil” being, and similarly all of the jötnar are also described as being just as evil as him – while the narration mentions that Odin and his brothers (but especially Odin) were named after greatness and glory, and that somehow they were predestined or fitted to become the rulers of the world. Anyway, the three gods killed Ymir, and from this was a bloody murder. A VERY bloody murder: Ymir’s body produced so much blood it actually created an entire flood, in which all of the jötnar race died, drowned by the blood of their progenitor. All… except one, named Bergelmir, who escaped with his wife on a sort of chest or coffin that floated over the blood.

Once the primordial murder was committed, the trio of gods carried Ymir’s body to the middle of the Ginnungagap and created the world out of the corpse. From his flesh they created the earth, from his blood the sea and the lakes, his bones became big rocks and his teeth smaller stones ; from his skull they made the sky (and to hold the sky high above the earth they posted four dwarves at the four corners of the world to hold it). From the sparks and flames of Muspel the gods created the different lights of the sky ; and from Ymir’s brain they made the sky. The world was created as one large circular continent surrounded by a vast sea : the gods divided the world into two. The shores and outside of the “circle-continent” were given to the surviving jötnar, where the humans (and gods) lived in the inner part of the continent in Midgard – a “fortification” build out of Ymir’s eyelashes, to keep away the angry and hostile jötnar. Finally, Ymir’s death accidentally created the dwarf race: after the gods built Asgard for them to live in and held their council, they quickly wondered what to do with the dwarfs (or “dvergr” as they were known in Old Norse) – indeed these beings had actually sprang out of the earth of their own, “like maggots out of the flesh”. In fact, the comparison is pushed forward when it is revealed that the dwarfs started their life AS maggots: the dvergar gained “life and shape” in Ymir’s flesh/the earth, and were no more than a specific kind of maggot feeding of the dead jötunn flesh. The gods however decided to offer these beings intelligence, and to give them a new shape, the shape of “men”, though they kept their ability and habit to “live in the earth and in rocks”.

- - - - - -

When it comes to the "giants" of Norse mythology, things are very complicated... The English translation of Norse myths like to just call everything "giants". Ice giants, fire giants, stone giants... But things are more complicated. As I said the race of the jötnar (jötunn in singular) is the "official" name of the race as a whole. It means "devourer" and is considered to be akin to the Greek "Titan". However in the legends, the jötnar are also called by alternative names. Such as "thurs" (thursar in plural), which is a name often invoked when it comes to describing specific sub-types of evil species: the "frost giants" descendants of Ymir are in truth "hrimthursar" ; and similar other sub-types of giants usually use the term "thurs". It also doesn't help that the term "troll" is sometimes used to designate these entities, but you should not get too confused. The image of the "Norse troll" we have of this sort of big-eating not-so-bright giant with big noses comes from the various types of "modern" trolls as they shaped themselves through folklore and folktales - but originally? "Troll" was just a name for anything magic or supernatural. Thus you often find the term "troll wife" or "troll woman" in old Norse texts - and while it can mean a "female troll", it can also just mean a witch or enchantress or even the equivalent of a "fairy", as "troll woman" just means "magic woman", "supernatural woman". And similarly, when an object was said to be a "troll" object, it meant it had magic properties or some sort of charm related to it. There is a whole study to make here of the various names of the jötnar, but given my limited grasp on the various Nordic languages I'll just let you find out on your own

[elainapendragon]

Pronunciation Guide:

Drakabloð Sögur: DRAK-ah-BLODTH SOH-gur

Valhöll: VAL-holl

Alfheimr: ALV-hey-MUR

Ljósalfar: LYOS-al-VAR

Dökkalfar: DOCK-al-VAR

Svartalfheimr: SVART-alv-hey-MUR

Svartalfar: SVART-al-VAR

Íssalfar: EES-al-VAR

Jötúnheimr: YOET-oon-hey-MUR

Hýrralfar: HYEER-al-VAR

Múspellheimr: MOOS-pell-hey-MUR

Skögralfar: SKO-gur-al-VAR

Grœnnfell: GROEN-vell

Vanír: VAN-eer

Vanaheimr: VAN-a-hey-MUR

Þokalfar: THOK-al-VAR

Nídavellír: NEE-da-VELL-eer

Nærnin: NAYR-nin

Seiðberendr: SAYDTH-ba-REN-dur

Seiðragaldr: SAYDTH-ra-GAL-dur

Fafnir: FOV-neer

Vaeryn Téhlladen: VAY-rin TAY-la-DEN

Zephysus: ZEH-fi-SUS

Höddgardr: HOD-gar-DUR

Kuningaz Xekaara: KOO-ning-GAHZ za-KAR-ah

Raameshaz: rah-MEH-shaz

Hemaara: HEY-mar-AH

Zou’maal: zoo-MAHL

Ne’daag: NAY-dahg

Tal’mar: tal-MAR

Friðrs: fridth-THURS

Iilr: EEL-urs

Bilfjord Beast: bil-FYORD beest

Skjelkii: SKYEL-key

Fjorlagforað: fyor-LAG-vor-ADTHS

Nornadäg: NORN-uh-DAHG

Súnadäg: SOON-uh-DAHG

Múnadäg: MOON-uh-DAHG

Týrsadäg: TEERS-uh-DAHG

Wodensdäg: WO-dens-DAHG

Thorsadäg: THORS-uh-DAHG

Friggsadäg: FREEGS-uh-DAHG

Niflheimr: NIFL-hey-MUR

Hvergelmír: HVER-gel-MEER

Elivagar: EL-iv-AH-gar

Svöll: SVOL

Gúnnthra: GOON-thra

Fjörm: FYORM

Fimbulthúl: fim-BUL-thool

Slíd: SLEED

Hríd: HREED

Sylg: SILG

Ylg: ILG

Vid: VEED

Leipt: LAYPT

Gjöll: GYOLL

Ginnúngagap: GI-noon-GA-gahp

Ymir: EE-meer

Aurgelmír: ARE-gel-MEER

Audhumla: ODD-hum-LAH

Buri: BUR-ee

Börr: BOR

Bergelmir: BER-gel-MEER

Ask: OSK

Embla: em-BLAH

Sol: SOL

Mani: MAHN-ee

Bil: BEEL

Hjuki: HYOO-kee

Hati: HAH-tee

Sköll: SKOLL

Yggdrasíl: IGG-dra-SEEL

Hraesvelg: HRAYS-velg

Nídhöggr: NEED-hog-UR

Ratatösk: RAT-at-OSK

Modsognir: MOD-sog-NIR

Durin: DUR-in

Æsír: AY-seer

Frey: FRAY

Valfreyja: VAL-frey-YAH

Heimdallr: HEYM-dall-UR

Bïfröst: BIE-frost

Baldr: BAL-dur

Nänna: NAHN-nah

Ragnarök: RAG-nah-ROHK

Fimbulvetr: FIM-bul-VEYTR

Fenrisúlfr: FEN-ris-OOL-fur

Jörmúngandr: YORE-moon-GAHN-dar

Naglfar: NAHGL-var

Vígrid: VEE-grid

Gjállarhorn: GYAE-lar-HORN

Einherjar/Einherjerii: AIN-her-YAR/AIN-her-YAER-ee

Valhalla: VAL-hall-AH

Surtr: SUR-tur

Líf: LEEF

Lífthrasir: LEEF-thray-SEER

Gimlé: gim-LAY

Brimir: BREE-meer

Okolnír: oh-KOL-neer

Sindri: SIN-dree

Nidafjöll: NEED-ah-FYOL

Nastrond: nas-TROND

Drekivörðr: DREK-ee-VOR-dthur

Vandr: VAHN-dur

Rígurd: REE-gurd

Dögúl: DOH-gool

Bïfröstblaða: BIE-frost-BLADTH-ah

Sígarsholm: SEE-gars-HOLM

Galdyrbrynja: GAL-dur-BRIN-ya

Gleipnír: GLEYP-neer

Ellída: el-LEE-da

Vaettrhaerr: VAY-tur-HAYR

Izana: AYE-zan-AH

Fjörr: FYOR

Byardölf: BYARD-olv

Jarnir: YAR-neer

Alfhildr: ALV-hil-DUR

Rúnhildr: ROON-hil-DUR

Hildegardr: HIL-de-GAR-dur

Jarl: YARL

Skídbladnír: SKEED-blahd-NEER

Hneflagi: HNE-flah-GEE

Myennr: MYEH-nur

Keifdel Drekínalen: CAVE-dell drek-EE-nah-LEN

Vedthrelta: VED-thur-EL-tah

Lydia: lid-AYE-ah

Feldûrröst: fel-DOO-rost

Fjoðrbrandr: FYO-dthur-BRAN-dur

Asbjorn: AZ-bjorn

Zazyr: ZAZ-ur

Hráfnfär: HRAE-vin-VAR

Valdyrbjalla: VAL-dyur-BYAL-ah

Dàlr: DAH-lur

Múfnir: MOOV-neer

Ylette: YIL-ett

Reiyr: RAI-ur

Denris: DEN-ris

Laefden: LAYF-den

Alyr: AH-lyur

W’ei: wuh-AY

Aallviinaax: ALL-vee-NAX

Norðrljós: NOR-dthur-LYOS

Bleiðarak: BLIE-tha-RAK

Ornúsüm: OR-noo-ZOOM

Iirvaedín: ur-VAY-deen

Araelys: uh-RAY-lis

Ómakligr: OO-mok-LEE-gur

Eljúðnir: ael-YOODTH-neer

[flameof]

So, I just got this review on one of my older fics, and I’m just,

My brother in Brimir, I started this crossover fic of Familiar of Zero and Fate/Stay Night in 2015, and finished in 2017. Of course it’s messy, it’s nearly a decade old.

Just found it funny, is all.

[thebeingmerf]

The giants?

[hellishhin]

And They Fell

Length: ~1,500

Content warnings: Violence, blood, injury, magical attacks, electrocution, unconsciousness

Post themes: combat

Summary: This post is a little different because it's just the subsequent combat scene following up from the last post. This is my first real combat scene ever and I got a lot of great advice for it. If you want to, I would really love some solid critique on how this went. A few questions I'm wondering about most: is this confusing? Does it pace correctly for a fight scene? Did I jump around too much? You can reblog/reply with as much or as little critique as you want. You also can just read for fun and you don't have to critique anything if you don't want to! I also may repost this as a rewrite depending on advice I get, we will see :)

Intro with links to all previous posts

[next post]—-[previous post]

Taglist: (adds/removes always open!) @betwixtofficial @taerandcalentavar @talesfromaurea @faelanvance @definitelyquestionit @drippingmoon @dontcrywrite @a-wild-bloog

One time fight scene tag: @author-a-holmes thanks for being willing to look it over!

Kireen’s blade sang from its sheath and her warrior’s mind kicked into action. This was enough evidence to start an investigation so it was clear they wouldn’t be allowed to escape. Two strides, sword in motion, but it came to a jarring halt against two elvish scimitars belonging to the crossbow man’s comrade. Kireen was able to stave off the biting steel but she couldn’t match the speed of two swords forever.

-

Another bolt was being loaded but Kireen was too preoccupied to notice so K’lai’a’la, throwing knives at the ready, sent them hurtling in his direction. One caught the wood of the crossbow which did no more than mar its polished surface. The second struck his upper arm. She saw the crossbow shudder in his hands and his lips tighten but he slammed the bolt fully into place. K’lai’a’la knew it was coming. With her reflexes, it was nothing to sidestep the bolt and hear it clatter against the stone. Before he could load another, her attention was drawn to a battle cry from Brimir who had drawn his own sword and plunged into contest with the two remaining elves. Sadie seemed to be safely keeping behind the lines so K’lai’a’la drew her own scimitar and stepped to Brimir’s side.

-

It was vital to keep to one’s strengths so as her friends stepped up to engage the elves, Sadie stayed back. As another bolt was prepared, she knew she must target him to keep his attention off her friends.

“Hey!” she called and he turned his attention to her “if arrogance and stupidity had a baby, you would be the afterbirth.” Each word was wrapped tightly into the weave and entered his mind like a dozen shards of glass. She watched him recoil but regain his composure quickly and loose a bolt just for her. It breezed through her hair as she flinched away, unharmed. He was quickly placing another bolt and she shouted at him once more. “If you don’t start using your head for more than a hat rack, I’ll start using it to store my swords!” His shot went wide and lacking the patience to reload, he tossed the crossbow away and yelled something in elvish. Sadie grinned, knowing in her soul that she was just insulted, but his carried no magic.

A man twice her height barreled down on her but she drew her rapier and held her ground. One misdirection and his blade went wide. She went in for the groin but he backhanded her blade away. She could hear his blade whistling toward her again but she didn’t move in time, giving her a stinging bite across the jaw; her vision blurred. She thrust blindly and felt it give into something soft. She heard a grunt, steel flashed, her rapier lifted in defense to take a moment and make sense of the blur in front of her.

-

The elf who had intercepted Kireen was not prepared for her draconic strength. He was parrying her blows but losing ground and Kireen saw it. She pushed harder, increasing the force of each swing but she faltered when the man with the crossbow discarded his weapon and charged past her to where she knew Sadie was standing. Her opponent took his opportunity to step into her guard and thrust his sword into her underarm. Sensing his move she twisted so the armor took most of the blow only leaving her with a sharp ache. With him inside her guard, a quick pommel strike to his head crumpled him. Kireen spun and saw Sadie with blood dripping off her chin, barely holding her own against the onslaught. With a roar, Kireen charged.

-

Sweat beaded, muscles burned, breath rasped sharply but K’lai’a’la and Brimir kept pace with their two opponents. They all bled from several minor cuts but the pain heightened their instincts. One slip was all it took and when K’lai’a’la over-rotated her wrist, the enemy sword broke her guard and cut deeply into her arm. With a feral snarl she lashed out with pure instinct and landed a similar blow across his shoulder. Brimir’s peripheral caught the break in motion. He flipped his sword out, sinking the point into the other elf’s thigh but the one he had engaged swung for the opening. Brimir brought his arm up, catching the sword on his bracer and he winced at the force.

Seeing her opponent stumble to Brimir’s sword, like a predator to the weakest prey, K’lai’a’la redoubled her efforts. As her sword whistled through the air, she watched the elf’s lips move. The air around him rippled and he sidestepped, disappearing entirely. Her sword continued through the air with such force that the tip struck the ground. Brimir’s opponent balked, realizing it was now two on one. He retreated toward the open door just as an older elf with vicious blue eyes stepped through it. Lightning arced through his fingers and K’lai’a’la could hear the arcane language on his lips.

-

The draconic roar behind him made the elf turn his attention away from Sadie to see a blur of red scales and teeth grab him by the front of his armor. Kireen made to bite his face but he pulled away in terror and she only grabbed the side of his neck. Her mind was set on protecting Sadie so the elf’s dagger plunging into her side surprised her and she pulled away. This left her open for two more dagger thrusts to her gut almost bringing her to her knees. A third was incoming but was pulled up at the last second when Sadie’s rapier plunged into the back of the man’s thigh. Kireen was about to rally when a second set of swords appeared seemingly out of nowhere and began pressing her back.

-

There was a carnal satisfaction that flashed through Sadie when she saw the elf’s features contort with pain while her rapier embedded itself further into his thigh. All Kireen needed to do was take advantage of his distraction. Then the second elf from across the room stepped out of a ripple in the air.

The enemies were aware that the dragonborn was the bigger threat. With Kireen already weakened, Sadie knew it was now or never. With a deathgrip on the weave she twisted the strands around the mind of the elf who just appeared before them. His strangled mind succumbed to her power. He began to laugh, a horrible cackling laughter that rang above the clash of swords and scuff of boots. Sadie’s laughter rose with his but the elf laughed so hard he dropped to his knees. Presented with the opportunity, Kireen took it, her sword sprouting from his back in a wash of blood. He died with a twisted smile on his face.

-

Kireen’s entire body burned but whether from wounds or exertion she didn’t know. There was now a second elf or she was seeing double. Either way she was swinging frantically at both until one of them began to laugh. Once on his knees she thrust and found that it was no illusion. She wrenched her sword free of his corpse but her strength flagged, she was backed against the wall, her breath came in ragged gasps. Then she couldn’t see. Everything was white, her muscles contracted all at once and fire seared through her. She couldn’t even scream. It stopped as fast as it started and she welcomed the coolness of the floor on her cheek.

-

The arc of lightning ripped through his body and he staggered but managed to stay on his feet. Beside him, K’lai’a’la was not so lucky. She succumbed without a cry of pain, collapsing into a heap. He looked over his shoulder and saw Kireen fall as well but to his relief, Sadie remained standing. He had one chance to save his friends. One well-placed sword thrust and this mage would be done. Brimir made it one step before there was a silent concussive force around him and the man spoke a word. “Kneel”. The word echoed around in his thoughts erasing all others. He dropped to his knees.

-

When she could finally breathe again, Sadie let out a sob. She looked to Kireen for reassurance but saw her friend lifeless on the ground. Her thoughts were sluggish, looking to call K’lai’a’la for help but she too was on the ground and Brimir was kneeling before the man in the doorway. She was the only one left. It was up to her to get them out of this. Emotions hit her like rolling thunder and a scream of rage pealed out of her. She released her grip on the magic she handled with such care and brought her hands together. A shattering crack echoed around the room loud enough she thought the roof might collapse.

When the dust settled, all the elves were still standing. She had failed. Her last hope was to heal them, she had the magic, she could help her friends. Sadie took one step but a hand in her hair halted her. Pain blossomed across her cheek from a sadistic backhand and that was all it took for the world to go dark. Silence fell along with Sadie. Pure chaos, over in seconds that stretched out into a lifetime but not even the chaos stirred the unconscious people still laying in the corner.

[unit-54ryn]

Day 3 of Inktober

Prompt: “Vessel”

Here you have the mothership/ mobile base of Saryn and her sisters.

The Brimir class carrier named, BSG AresAthena

[darkness9000a]

[jeffreystewart]

Norsery Rhymes from A to Z Happy Thorsday - Brimir, of the Sea of Blood (Ymir)

Well here we are another Thor’s Day and another 20 min sketch of a Norse (and Germanic, sometimes Celtic) mythological character.  This week it’s Brimir, the “Sea of Blood” or “the bloody moisture“, (Ymir, Bainn, Blainn “blue black skull”, Aurgelmir “Roar of the Wet Sand”, Brimir) the original Giant (Jotnar/Jotun). The primeval being and ancestor of all Jotun and so also many Aesir and Vanier Like Loki and Thor.  Also selfish and lazy and destined to get killed by Odin and his brothers Vili and Ve, so they could use his body to make the worlds. As apart from cold and heat and the place that they meet where he was formed, he was all of the matter in the world.  Not counting the giants and monsters he was sweating out, the Aesir that were revealed in the ice, and of course the Primeval cow Audhumla and her rivers of milk, that was the second creature formed of the heat and ice as Ymir was. Brimir seems more of a title that a name, as it describes the oceans created from his blood.

For an image of Ymir as Blainn of the Blue Black Skull with Audhumla you can go here: https://jeffreystewart.tumblr.com/post/183303101164/norsery-rhymes-from-a-to-z-happy-thorsday

For a more detailed and longer story about this you can check out my earlier telling for Aurgelmir, another name for Blainn / Ymir at the link here. https://jeffreystewart.tumblr.com/post/172625799574/happy-thorsday-aurgelmir-ymir-well-here-we

[themildestofwriters]

I have a problem. Lod(e)wijke is a Dutch speaker in an academic setting. The academic setting uses Old Norse as the lingua franca for academic and religious texts and communication.

What language do I use when writing, though? Not the actual narration, but certain phrases, names, and terms? Dutch? Old Norse? English? Does she call Odin All-Father, Odin? Óðinn Alfaðir? Wo(d)en Alvader? Does she call Brimir, her Jesus figure, Brimir? Or do I have to try and “Dutch-ify” the name? Brimir? Brijmaar? I don’t know! Does Freyja become Vrouwe? What of other religious matters? Is the Night Sacrifice translated as Náttablót? Nachtbloot? What about realms and other cosmological terms? Is it Asgard, Osgaard, or Ásgarðr? How do I translate Skýlgarðr, which is Louise’s homeworld? Schuilengaard? Schuilgaard? What would be the English term for it?

For mundane terms, Germanic synonyms to Romance words works well enough. There’s a figure who, in English, would be referred to as Saint Alwijze. However, I call him Holy Alwijze, with “Holy” serving as a Germanic-sourced synonym to “Saint.” Only, how far do I take that?

There’s a lot of magical terminology that hinges on Romance-sourced terms. Transmutation. Arcanology. Those two terms are used in the first chapter. There’s no ready Germanic-sourced term to replace them. The Anglish project has ideas. Wistothering. Gecyrring. Shapelore. That’s transmutation, but it isn’t… right? Malmcraft was one I invented, though that’s more specifically to all Earth related magic, with “malm” coming from a term that refers to both metal and certain types of stone, and “craft” simply meaning “work.” Arcanology was tricky. Galderken. Siddenfrode—I currently refer to a building called Seiðfraeði House, which is the Old Norse term for Siddenfrode, which is created using the Icelandic translation for the “-logy” suffix, in the way of geology. It works, because the various courts within Holy Alwijze's Institute are referred to by the Old Norse names. Suðri instead of Southe(??? How would Suðri be rendered in English??? Sothri? Southre?) Oy.

And what about mages? What term does Lod(e)wijke use to refer to hersef, as a person who perform magic? I’ve been using “highborn,” but that’s also an imperfect term, traditionally referring to nobility itself—but because magic is so intertwined with nobility, they’re imperfect synonyms. Witch and Witcher could work. And what is their magic called? It’s not just magic, because, canonically, there are many different types of magic recognised. I ain’t talking about “potions” v. “spells,” I’m talking about “the elves perform their kind of magic, and the humans perform their own kind of magic, and then there’s vampires, and spirits and other such creatures with their own unique brand of magic.”

I wanna maintain the linguistic shit, but it’s so annoying to figure out a consistent way of referring to things. It’s going to be harder when I get to the Star Wars setting and have to go, “How does Lod(e)wijke refer to certain Star Wars things?” Sure, a lightsaber is a lightsaber, but would there be any language fuckery here? I have this idea that Louise conceptualises Hyperspace as the Bifröst, not that I know how to translate that into something… Duch-y, if I’m going to translate it as Dutch-y.

[battlestarsgunstars]

Brimir Carrier | Battlestar Galactica Online Wikia

[gebo4482]

The Siege of Brimir

Pre-release Trailer

[helga-grinduil]

In Norse mythology, Ymir (/ˈiːmɪər/, Old Norse: [ˈymez̠]), also called Aurgelmir, Brimir, or Bláinn, is the ancestor of all jötnar.