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beskarberry · 3 years ago

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Snakes and Ladders

(Naga!Oberyn Martell xf!Reader)[+18]

“Were you expecting someone else, little mouse?” He purred sweetly, leaning his weight on the closest pillow, which surprisingly didn't squish under his weight. "Come closer, I will not bite you. Unless you ask me to."

Summary: Arranged marriages are common in Westeros, and an exceptional way for minor Houses to forge alliances with their neighbors, but as the last unwed daughter of House Blackhaven you're left with the political tablescraps: Dorne. Are the horror stories about the Red Viper just fable, or are they more terrifying than you ever could have imagined?

Rating: Explicit baby you know it

Word count: 7.5k

Content warnings: Blatant disregard for GoT canon. Monsterfucking with a snake man, arranged marriage scenario, predator/prey dynamics, oral m and f receiving, 69, monster cocks/double cocks (hemipenises) double penetration, breath play. architecture porn uhh some other stuff just sprinkled in like praise, biting, breeding sorta? vore if you really squint.

A/N: Toot toot! All aboard the Monsterfucking train! Midnight bound for Lel's Monsterfuckin' Emporium!! Conquer your Ophidiophobia while Prince Oberyn conquers you!

Sea salt.

That was the first thing you smelled from inside the carriage that you’d been living out of for the last week that wasn’t desert wind or horse dung. It’d been an agonizing journey from your home in Blackhaven, first the rugged steppes of the Princes’ Pass, to the infinitely undulating dunes of the Dornish desert; but after days of travel you were finally nearing your goal.

Sunspear, the capital of Dorne, couldn’t be more than a few more hours east if the ocean was already reaching you, and though you were excited to finally see the beautiful city, you were also terrified of what lay at its heart.

The monster you were to be wed to.

You’d never even met Prince Oberyn, but you’d heard the stories. Everyone had. They called him the Red Viper. He was ferocious, they said, his silver tongue coated with venom that he spat at any who displeased him. They said he was just as sly and ill-tempered as the beast he was named for, but worst of all, they said he was a beast!

A monster, born from the unholy union between a man and a dragon, his heart as cold as his blood. You'd heard that his skin was covered in horrible, slimy scales, and that his teeth were long and jagged. Someone even said he might have a tail. His hideous, malformed body was why he stayed hidden in the wasteland city.

The thought of being his wife made you sick to your stomach, but it wasn’t like you had any say in the matter. You were the third daughter of the lord of Blackhaven, the last to be wed, and your father had deemed you to be the olive branch bridging the gap between your hometown and Sunspear. Your eldest sister had gone to Highgarden, and the middle one had crossed the great sea to Storm’s End, leaving you with Sunspear.

Yippee.

Your father didn’t care that you didn’t want to marry, especially to such a loathsome creature as Oberyn, but he wouldn’t hear a word of it. To him you were nothing more than a pawn on his political chess board, another bargaining chip in the game of thrones.

When the rumble under the carriage changed from dirt road to cobblestone, you pushed your face against the ‘window’ –a carved wooden cross hatching to keep a lady from getting too much sun, though from inside the carriage it looked more like prison bars to you. From your poor vantgage you could see the sprawling desert, russet and ochre sands baked golden in the high sun. Farther away there were palm trees growing up near a river that drained into the sea, strategically placing Sunspear on a fertile valley. The city was well known for its citrus fruits, lemons, oranges, grapefruits, but you’d never had a fresh one. The only way they could reach Blackhaven was if they were dried, and fruit jerky just isn’t the same.

Hopefully your new husband would allow you to eat them.

A shadow passing overhead distracted you momentarily – the archway into the city. Immediately there was a change in the air, the tangy aroma of orange and clove, the sound of people in the market square, palm fronds whispering secrets to each other with the wind. The townsfolk paid no mind to your carriage, but you couldn’t take your eyes off them.

They were beautiful, in every sense of the word. They wore brightly colored clothes of ruby reds and orchid purples decorated with bits of gold and turquoise, their kaleidoscopic attire bringing out their very best feature: their smiles.

The people of Sunspear looked… happy! Big smiles, wide gestures, groups of families coming together in the market. Merchant stalls went past you as your carriage continued down the lane, selling all manner of exotic merchandise; well, exotic to you.

Fruits you’d never seen heaped out of gilded crates next to impossibly-high towers of spices. Silk scarves and dresses billowed in the brilliant sunlight, glittering with interwoven filaments of silver and gold. Chirping caught your ear from the other side of your transport, and you nearly jumped across the carriage to look out the other window. Cages of strange animals, with fur and feathers and scales galore, made all kinds of racket as you passed by. The merchant held up a sapphire blue snake for you to see that was so pretty you wanted to reach out and touch it, but the bars of your own cage kept you from doing so.

Could this gorgeous city really have a monster for a prince?

The market passed and gave way to a beautiful courtyard lined with sandstone arches and colorful fruit trees. Marble pathways decorated with colossal urns and delicate floral arrangements cast shadows on your carriage they were so tall. In the center of the green was a three tiered fountain bubbling joyously as water sprayed from its serpent-shaped spouts.

From above you the carriage driver called the horses to a halt, and your heart tried to lurch right out your throat, but maybe from the sudden reality of the situation more than the sudden stop.

It was time to meet your husband.

You wished you were more presentable, the journey having done a number on your clothes and hair. A bath would be nice, but if prince Oberyn really was the monster everyone claimed him to be then maybe he wouldn't mind if you smelled a bit like horse. You stood up in the carriage, trying not to bump your head, and smoothed out your clothes as best you could, adding a spritz of perfume and one of your family brooches to your dress for good measure.

When the door opened you were nearly blinded by the Dornish sun, much brighter here than in your neighboring fiefdom. A sturdy hand reached to grab you, and the spike in adrenaline – plus standing up too fast – nearly had you falling out of the cart. Could this be him?

"Easy there, young lady." Came the familiar voice of the carriage driver. Nope, not him. "Ya nearly toppled! Are ya alright?"

"Fine, thank you." You let him help you down from the carriage, thanking him several more times for the ride here. He was quickly overrun by Dornish teamsters, the palace staff making fast work of your luggage. After them came the handmaidens, and you couldn't help but gasp.

They were beautiful, though apparently so was everything else in the city, so really you shouldn't be surprised. They wore dresses of the finest lavender silk, and gently-fitted collars made of golden filigree bearing the sigil of House Martell: a serpent coiled around a spear passing through the heart of a sun. It matched the coiling snake arm bands they wore quite nicely.

Smiling and perfectly moisturized, the gaggle of sweet ladies welcomed you with open arms like you were coming home, and in a sense, you were. Sunspear would be your home now, and if the city and the citizens were this wonderful, maybe having a monster of a husband wouldn't be so bad.

Speaking of which, you didn't see the king-to-be anywhere in the crowd of onlookers. Surely such a brute of a man would stick out, and truthfully why wasn't he greeting you at the door? He really must be hideous.

The wonderful maidens led you through the palace entryway and through the halls made of the same sandstone you'd seen when you'd come through the market; though these were infinitely more ornate. Carved with intricate geometric patterns, the walls towered high above you towards vaulted ceilings painted deep velvet blue and illustrated with gilded constellations. Lanterns with panes of stained glass hung from long, seemingly delicate chains, swinging gently in the warm summer breeze that passed easily through the wide open archways.

And this was just the front damn door.

Eventually you were brought to a small bath chamber, though its size did nothing to diminish its ornateness. It was just as regal as the rest of the halls you'd seen: a copper, clawfoot tub was the centerpiece here, crouching over hot coals like a dragon making its nest. Incense wafted lazily from censers in the corners, the clean white smoke drifting lovingly through the leaves of countless potted plants native to the Dornish desert.

A hot bath was exactly the thing you needed, but instead of leaving you to your own devices the handmaidens insisted on undressing and washing you. You'd never had anyone offer to wash you before, Blackhaven was too small and too poor for such frivelties, but they wouldn't take no – or the fact that you've been traveling for a week and stank of horse dung – for an answer.

Rose petals and orange slices floated temptingly on the water's surface, and that was just the start to your pampering. The ladies lovingly scrubbed you from your head to your feet, exfoliating away your travels like they'd never even happened. Your hair was washed, dried, brushed and done up pretty, and by the time you stepped – radiant and glowing – out of the bathtub, you finally felt like the royalty you were meant to be.

"Let's get you dressed, my lady." stated a handmaiden that had introduced herself as Yrell. "Prince Oberyn is very eager to meet you!"

oh shit right.

"Why haven't I seen the prince yet? And why haven't I seen any arrangements being made for the wedding?"

"The prince likes his guests to get a taste of Dornish culture before they meet him. It makes it… easier."

"So he is a monster, then?" You asked as two of the other maidens presented you with your clothes.

Wait, no those are definitely not yours.

A ruby red silk dress with gold inlay seemed to flow like wine in the maid's hands, so ethereal in its craftsmanship that it almost didn't look real. Certainly nothing even remotely like it had ever passed through the gates of Blackhaven.

Once again, gorgeous. Everything in Dorne was abso-fuckin-lutely gorgeous. And that's when it hit you.

It's a distraction.

The perfect promenade, the wonderful bazaar, the kindhearted handmaidens were all orchestrated to fill your eyes with stars so you couldn’t see the truth.

"Yrell… tell me the truth. I deserve to know! Is he really a monster?!"

"My lady," she whispered, eyes downcast. "With all due respect, you'll have to make that judgment for yourself like all the others."

"Others?! What others?!"

"I'm sorry, my lady, I don't mean to offend, but… you're not the first lady promised to the prince…"

Standing there, naked and dripping with your jaw on the floor, you waited with bated breath for her to explain herself. It was clear she was uncomfortable, but obviously this wasn't the first time she'd had this little chat.

"None of the other ladies have been able to… uh...stomach him."

You listened in horror as Yrell told you of four other ladies who had been betrothed to the prince while you were dressed to prepare to meet him. All four had found the prince so horrible and repulsive that they ran for the hills before the wedding could commence, preferring exile to a lifetime with him. The finery fit you like it had been made for no other, and though it should have made you feel like a goddess, it made you feel like you were being dressed for your own funeral.

The beauty of Sunspear seemed tarnished now, more so even than when you had been stuck in the carriage imagining all the insidious scenarios awaiting you before your wheels had even hit the sand. Now it was real, and really happing, and really really fucking awful. No amount of false grins or gilded treasures could change reality for you now.

��It’s alright, my lady,” soothed Yrell, trying her best to be comforting. “Perhaps you won’t mind him so much.”

She patted you gently on the shoulder, avoiding your wet, glistening eyes that threatened to spill at any moment. The door to the prince’s chambers was heavier than the few others you had seen in the wide open palace. Imported oak bound in iron, decorated with shields bearing the mark of the Martells, it could easily be mistaken for the entry to the dungeon.

Maybe it was.

The door creaked ominously as it swung open, spilling firelight across the mosaic tile floor. Torches crackled in sconces on the wall, snapping and biting at you as if the prince would let them eat you before he got the chance. Wide stairs vanished into the dark, and for a moment you contemplated tripping yourself down them rather than face the beast in the cellar.

Slowly you descended into the void, the velvet slippers you’d been given making almost no noise. Your dress trailed behind you, pouring like blood in your wake. At least if you died today, you would die beautiful.

As you neared the bottom of the stairwell, you caught the first glimpse of the princes’ chambers, causing you to pause a moment. Just like the rest of the city, the palace, the everything, this room was ornately decorated, though it was much bigger than any other you had seen.

The ceiling towered so far above you that it was partially obscured by the billowing incense smoke as if it had its very own weather system. Light filtered down through the haze from the stained glass dome covering the room, thousands of panes in a kelidoscope of colors casting geometric rainbows across the sandstone columns holding it up. Coiled around the pillars, enormous gold snakes seemed to slither to life under the dancing hues, their jewel-set eyes winking mischievously back at you.

Velvet on wool scuffed quietly as you crossed the enormous floor rug between you and the far area of the room, your heart thundering in your ears as you scanned for the beast that would certainly jump out and eat you. But why would a beast have such a beautiful enclosure? That’s just how Dorne is, it’s all a beautiful faca-

“Lady Blackhaven, I presume?”

A voice, rich and dark as sunsoaked amber, sang your name from what seemed to be a pile of crimson and gold sequin throw pillows. The lovely voice was followed suddenly by a man standing up from the plush pile, and oh, everything is gorgeous in Dorne.

By the Seven, there couldn’t possibly be any way that he was the ferocious Red Viper you had heard so much about, and certainly couldn’t be the beast of Sunspear. Though he was still somewhat too far away to make out clearly, your eyes couldn’t help going wide, and your cheeks couldn’t help going hot.

His lower half was obscured by the ridiculous collection of sparkly red pillows – must be his favorite color because wow there were a lot, like a fuckin nest or something – but his visible top half was worthy of being immortalized in marble.

Skin sun-bronzed gold matched the serpentine sigil of his House, rich and healthy from a lifetime in the sun. You could see so much of it with him only covered by a blue and silver sash draped around his neck. Is he even wearing pants?! Onyx-black hair framed his face from the top of his curly head to the bottom of his razor-sharp jaw, with a few stragglers making their way down between his bare pecs that led to a thicker treasure trail running over his muscular abdomen. All that was partially obscured by a long gold necklace with a square shape on its end, the chain reaching all the way to his naval.

That was definitely a prince.

“P-prince Oberyn?”

You found that strange enough to halt in your tracks. He wouldn't even stand to greet you? His own future queen? Must be a trap, maybe the beast is kept under the floor or something. Also, rude.

"That's not very gentlemanly of you, my prince. A man should greet a lady, not the other way around."

Oberyn seemed taken aback by your forwardness, but not offended. “A lady who knows what she wants, I like that. Since you insist.” As he moved, the sequined pillows moved too, and the very silly notion that the prince had made himself a pillow fort popped briefly in your head.

But they kept moving.

And moving...

No…

They were slithering.

The illusion of the crimson finery dissipated like incense smoke on the Dornish breeze as the once-pillows followed the prince up, up, up, and revealed themselves to be what they really were.

His tail.

Oberyn’s lower half hadn’t been obscured at all, it had been coiled around him in long, undulating waves of scaled flesh; and the serpents decorating every square inch of Sunspear now made more sense.

He rose slowly from where he had been awaiting your arrival, reaching the height of a tall man, then a horse, then a giant, until he was practically looming above you from the far side of the room.

And then he was coming towards you, just like you had demanded. Great idea, asshole. Scales on his belly caught the cathedral of lights sparkling from above in their iridescent shimmer, luring your gaze until you were almost hypnotized. But fear kept you focused on the approaching creature that had snaked right out of your nightmares, your heart a rabbit in your chest that he could probably hear like prey in its burrow waiting to be eaten.

The moment you took a step back to retreat from the encroaching serpent, he lunged for you, owning up to his namesake in a blink of an eye. Crimson scales flashed threateningly around you as he coiled, putting you in the eye of a bloody hurricane before you were face-to-face with the man himself.

“Welcome to Sunspear, Lady Blackhaven, I am Prince Oberyn Martell.” Up close now, you could see him more clearly. His eyes were the color of antique brass, split down the middle with slitted pupils. They flashed coin-like when he smiled, though his grin was that false, people-pleasing kind that develops from being in a place of political power. His teeth were white and perfectly flat, and truthfully you found that odd. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, but I was expecting you to run the moment you laid eyes on my horrific body. Am I not as beastly and terrifying as the ravens make me out to be?”

You found yourself transfixed by the prince, unable to tear yourself away from his face. His eyes, his pouty, slightly-sneering lips, his coarse dark hair. You followed that trail you’d spotted earlier down, following the chain of Dornish gold to where his hips should be. His scales started here, first small and tightly packed, then wide and broad where they continued down his front. His belly scales were like plates, but his body scales were like spears. Triangular and razor sharp, they covered him in impenetrable scarlet armor that any warrior would be honored to wear into battle. Along his spine, however, they were thicker, taller and almost pyramid-like, giving you a crystal clear view of his draconic heritage.

“No.”

The single syllable brought the muscular coils to a sudden halt, the prince suddenly frozen in his confusion. “No?”

“No. I mean, well, yes. You are a beast, but I’m not scared of you.”

“You must be lying.” He accused, but you shook your head. “Have you been drugged? Bribed? Are you sick with moon madness?” He could not believe that you weren’t afraid, his beautifully angular face growing more and more confused. “But… I am a monster!”

A flash of pearly white snapped from his mouth as his fangs distended, hidden daggers folded up against the roof of his mouth. They were as long as your thumb each, their needle-like points glistening with venom and spittle. Behind those, his long, forked tongue snaked out to lick the air inches from your face, and you could swear his jaw had come unhinged.

The blood in your face drained, but only to pool somewhere else.

“No, I’m still not scared of you.” You said softly, reaching your hand out to him slowly. He saw it and recoiled with a jerk, but when he saw no blade hidden in your sleeve, he allowed himself to be touched by you.

His breath left his lungs with a shudder at your touch, the tip of his tail twitching nervously. You cupped his jaw, feeling the scruff against your palm and ever-so-carefully angling your thumb toward a fang.

“No!” he shouted, snatching your wrist with lightning speed. “I mean, I’m sorry, but I’m venomous, and I would hate for you to get hurt.” The fangs disappeared the next second, vanishing into the sheaths hidden behind his teeth. His grip on your wrist lessened, but didn’t let you go. Instead, he brought the back of your hand up to his lips and kissed it, like a gentleman should when greeting a lady.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Prince Oberyn.” Against your skin the bristles of his mustache tickled you when he smiled, and you of course smiled back. “Can I touch your scales? They’re not venomous, right?”

“You may touch anything you like except for my fangs, my lady.” He gestured to himself with a strong, broad hand. A hand that looked so wonderful and rugged that you decided to start there.

Taking his hand in yours, you traced the inside of his palm, the tips of his fingers, the ridges of his knuckles. You trailed up his lean forearms through the dusting of dark hair, circled his elbow, and rode the hill of his bicep towards his wide shoulders.

Oberyn watched you like he was witnessing the sun rise for the first time, awestruck and mystified. You wanted to touch him? Touch the serpent of Sunspear that had horrified so many outsiders before? Surely this must be a farce.

His thoughts were cut off by your return to his face, gliding your fingers over his edges and curves. With no fangs to threaten you now, you gently brushed your thumb across his lower lip, and he snapped at you playfully. “Are all Blackhaven women this brave?”

“I’m not brave, you’re just not as scary as I thought you would be.” He hmph’ed in disbelief at that. “Ok yeah you’re pretty terrifying, but you’re also just… pretty.”

“Pretty?” He chewed the word, his face going flush with it.

“Yeah,” You met his eyes, flicking your gaze down to his lips, trying to convey your desire. “Pretty.”

He took the hint, albeit slowly, and leaned down to kiss you. At first he was tentative, gentle and maybe a little bit still in shock, but when you hummed your pleasure at the pillowy softness of his kiss, he let it deepen. Strong arms wrapped around you, pulling you into him so you were flush against his bare chest, the warm metal of his medallion sharp against your sternum. You let yourself touch him too, lacing your fingers through the dark curls on the back of his head.

Around you the ruby coils tightened slowly, closing the room into just the pair of you. The heat of them was surprising if he was supposed to be cold blooded. Before Oberyn could brave a lick into your mouth, curiosity drove you to touch his serpentine tail.

“Oh!” You broke the kiss to exclaim, splaying your palm wide over the array of living blades. “I thought you’d be slimy, but you’re not!”

Oberyn’s laugh was rough but warm, like the crash of the ocean against the Dornish sands. “And I thought the first kiss was reserved for the wedding with these kinds of things. What other secrets will we learn about each other today?”

“Hmmm….” You pondered playfully, tapping your index finger to your lips. “Thank you for giving me this lovely dress, my prince.” Turning slightly, you swished the dress to entice him, a catty smile on your face. “But wouldn’t you like to have your gift unwrapped?”

The slits of his eyes dilated wide, a heat creeping boldy across his face. “So you truly aren’t going to run away screaming from me? You… want me?”

“Has nobody ever wanted you before? Are you-”

“No, little mouse, I am not innocent. I have loved and been loved by the women and men of Sunspear.”

“Is that why they all look so happy?”

“Do you want to find out?”

“Yes.”

Your given consent was the last barrier, one that not even a monster would dare to cross, but with that gate flung open by you closing the distance between your bodies, Oberyn knew that having to wait for the right queen had made all the difference.

Nimble hands crept under the hem of your dress, the exotic fabric falling effortlessly off your shoulders as the prince revealed your body. You attempted to return the favor by tugging off the celestial scarf draped over his neck, the single article of clothing disappearing behind the undulating waves of red scales.

“Look at you…” he mused, adoration dripping like a pleasant venom. The handmaidens hadn’t given you any undergarments, putting all of you on display for your husband-to-be. “Had I known the women of Blackhaven were so beautiful, I would have started there.” He kissed your lips roughly, then your cheek, your jaw, nipping at your pulse point gently as you started to melt into his embrace. “Do you taste as good as you look, little mouse?”

He didn’t wait for an answer, though as soon as his forked tongue laved across your collarbone you knew you couldn’t give him one anyway. The Red Viper dragged the elongated muscle up your throat, flicking at your ear with a pleased hiss. Your heart thundered, primal instincts kicking into high gear at the sound, drawing Oberyn's lust. “I frighten you, don’t I? But I can tell you like it. I can see where the heat is pooling between your thighs, and I want to taste it.”

Something thick and heavy pressed against your back, the serpent prince’s coils supporting you as he pushed you gently backwards, laying you out underneath him on a bed of ruby and gold. Laying on the scales was surprisingly not uncomfortable, the warm, muscular body feeling more like cuddling a well-beloved pet instead of a half-dragon lover.

You wrapped your legs around his ‘hips’, trying to grind against him as you would a human man, but as far as you could feel, there wasn’t anything there to grind on. “Um, my prince, where’s your-?”

“They’re there.” He said, lifting off you enough to look down between your pressed bodies. There was nothing there. Uh oh. He saw your puzzlement and laughed. “They’re inside.”

“They?? Inside?? I don’t understand.”

“Would you like to explore my body while I explore yours? I’m certain the lady of Blackhaven is as smart as she is beautiful, no?” Waves of crimson rose and fell around you, coils tightened around your body and turned you gently, though the man-sized tube of pure muscle could crush you like an insect if it wanted to. The prince moved you around like you were nothing but a play-thing, and soon you found yourself on top of him with your ass in the air and your legs framing his chiseled face.

“How did-?! Ah~!” Your confusion was cut off abruptly by the sudden intrusion of a long forked tongue, the inuman length of it fully capable of licking to your core. Oberyn hummed in delight, hooking his arms around your thighs and anchoring you to his hungry maw. He lapped at your cunt like a man starved, flicking hibus beastly appendage against your sensitive bundle of nerves before stuffing it back up your pussy. Wet with saliva and your juices, he happily tongue-fucked you into oblivion.

You fell forward against his crotch-but-not-a-crotch, coming face to face with where his skin began to turn to scales. Through the haze of your pleasure you saw where the first two big plates on his belly were parting, showing the first glimpse of a meaty fissure underneath.

Inside.

Mustering all your focus, you shifted forward against Oberyn’s grip, the prince smushing his face into your cunt like a greedy dog having his dinner threatened. He stiffened when he felt you push gently against the scales, attempting to splay them wider. As soon as you touched him, Oberyn bucked into your hands, a shiver going down the entire length of his snakey body.

Under your fingertips the slit opened wider, exposing his most delicate treasures. Between the silky wet walls of his snussy, two little nubs pulsed in time with his heartbeat, already swelling before you’d even touched them.

“Please, my lady,” he begged between your legs, kissing the insides of your thighs and the dip of your slit, asking you with his mouth for you to return the favor.

It was difficult with him licking your brain stem with his tongue so deep in you, but you managed to lean down and lap experimentally at the wound that never heals. Oberyn moaned into you at the contact, his rugged baritone sending a chill up your spine and a fresh gush into his mouth. You took the sudden opportunity to plunge your tongue into him as well, running your significantly shorter one over the two sensitive beans.

They throbbed happily, riding the princes’ tightening abs to be pressed harder against your mouth. Whatever they were, they were as needy as your clit, but soon grew much bigger in size than yours. As soon as you were able to, you suckled on one, tasting the familiar saltiness of precum; and that’s when you realized what you were sucking on were his two penises.

Oh hot damn.

A slight twist beneath you and the sudden weight of a coil on your back had your face pressed as deep into his groin as physics would allow, his almost-fully-hard first cock nudging at the back of your throat. Oberyn could snap your spine in two like this, but even lost in the bliss of your taste, and the sweet sensation of your lips around his dick, he was still cognizant enough not to hurt you.

You were not as strong, the familiar wave of pleasure creeping down your spine to where Oberyn had your pearl teased between the forks of his tongue, and you knew you were almost to the edge. The cock in your mouth rocked against your throat, the second one demanding your attention with an insistent throb. There was no more room between your teeth, so you wrapped your fingers around it and gently tugged on the velvet length; matching the movements of your hands with your mouth.

“Cum, little mouse,” he purred wetly, the thick meat of his tongue slithering against your deepest patch of nerves.You did as your prince commanded, letting his cock pop free from your mouth as your walls bore down around his thick tongue. He drank straight from your source, your fountain of vigor bringing his cocks to their full hardness. They were warm against your cheek as you rode through your orgasm, the pretty pink spires excited to know you inside and out.

Oberyn kissed and licked sweetly at your thighs and cunt, greedily cleaning all your juices off and claiming them for himself. “You are finer than Arborian wine, my lady. I could get drunk on the taste of you alone.” he said as the coil across your back slithered gently forward, coming up underneath you and pulling you up. You rode with it until you were straddling him like a horse, his cocks throbbing up between your legs. “Look how badly I want you, need you. May I pleasure you in the way only a monster can?”

“You’re no monster, Oberyn. You are my prince, and I expect you to pleasure me as such.”

His cocks jumped to attention, beads of shiny precum glistening at their pointy tips. They were both thicker than the average man, but Oberyn was far from average in every sense. His broad hands snaked down to your hips, digging his thumbs into the plush of your ass and sliding you forward until one of his cocks notched at your slick entrance. Stretched and soaking wet, you took him easily, mewling out the prince's name as he filled you. The second one jutted out in front of you as if it were your own, leaving a pool of slick on his broad belly scales.

“By the Seven, you are divine,” he groaned from behind you, watching with lust-blown eyes as your cunt swallowed his shaft. Your ass bounced when it came down on him, his scaly hips leaving indents in the supple flesh. Rocking forward you were able to grind yourself along his second cock, the meaty thing slipping between your folds as you rubbed your clit on it. It disappeared and reappeared under the crest of your belly as you danced the timeless dance of lovers, a shining patch of your slick catching the light streaming down from above with each pass.

“That’s it, my lady, grind yourself to completion on my cock. Let me feel you come undone so I can fill you all the way.” Precum drooled excitedly from his wanting cock, the one plunged inside you doing the same until it oozed back out; leaving your thighs and his tail slick with passion. The tip of his body – seemingly miles away, he was so long – flicked and thrashed, unable to hide his need to fuck you with both cocks.

You rode him diligently, feeling him stretch you from within. The thick veins that stood out on his second cock rubbed gloriously against your sensitive little pearl, beating in time with the thunder of his heart. Heat built threateningly in your chest, blooming like desert roses as your next crest loomed. Oberyn felt it coming, the way your walls throbbed and pulsed around him, making him curse and sweat until you came with a shudder and a scream.

“Thaaat’s it… that’s my good girl.” He purred –no, growled as you squelched around his cock, making a mess on his scales. “So wet… you can take all of me, can’t you, pretty mouse?”

Lust hazed and shaking, you managed the most pitiful little uh huh, breaking Oberyn’s last straw of resolve. Greedy as the dragon that birthed him, the serpent prince curled up against you, caging you in with his warrior-strong arms. Hands splayed wide against your ribs and over the fat of your breast, taking hungry handfuls of you for himself until his chest was flush with your spine, hot breath fanning against your ear. The cock within you slid out until just the tip was caught between your slick folds before it was joined by it’s twin.

Stars exploded behind your eyes as Oberyn stuffed both his cocks into you, stretching you so wide you thought he would tear you in half. A silent scream caught in your throat when he bottomed out, every muscle in your body tight and quivering with pain and pleasure. Your cunt gushed damningly around him as if it were starved, salivating hungrily for more.

Which, of course, he would give you.

“You’re so tight, my lady,” the rough-hewn voice grated in your ear, breath like fire against your skin. “How does it feel? To be fucked by a beast?”

“S’good…m-m…”

“Oh? Speak up, little mouse. Tell me what you want. Beg.”

“M-more!”

Dark laughter rumbled like a hurricane brewing over the wide open sea, a herald of unimaginable devastation.

“As you wish.”

The world around you spun, walls of crimson scales coiling around you as the Red Viper put you underneath him. His massive, muscular body slipped under and around you, tying itself in knots until there was nowhere for you to escape from the prince pressed against your back. The tip of his tail, thin and whip-like, curled up under your arms and over your shoulders until it was snaking around your neck, threatening your airway and locking you in place.

You were trapped, just like prey.

“I can taste your fear, pretty girl.” The monster sneered, his long forked tongue darting out to lick along your jaw. “I can taste that you like this.” Brilliant white fangs flashed into your line of sight with a venomous hiss, and your pussy squelched incriminatingly around his double-stuffed dicks. Oberyn groaned at your pulsing walls, rocking his hips into you needily. “If you keep doing that to me, I’ll fuck you pregnant before we even exchange vows.”

Though the rope of living flesh was tied snugly around your throat, it wasn’t tight enough to suppress your ability to laugh. “I’d like… to see.. you… try.”

His cocks throbbed so strongly within you that they slipped past each other, causing you to convulse from the rearrangement of your guts. “Are you challenging me, Lady Blackhaven?” he seethed, his bladed scales starting to sting your flesh as they began to tighten. Your nod was faint, but he still felt it against his scruffy cheek. “Then I accept.”

His arms tightened like a seatbelt around your waist and between your breasts, and the scaly noose around your throat teased to do so as well. You felt more than saw everything turning, spinning, writhing as the serpent prince constricted around you in a ball, rendering you completely motionless for him to fuck to his heart’s delight.

And fuck you he did. Though he was almost entirely made of muscle, without legs he had no other way to thrust into you than to pull you against him, using his never-ending tail to use you like a fuck toy. His body, once soft and somewhat plush the first time you touched it, was now hard as Valyrian steel; every muscle tensing and flexing to rise to your challenge.

Your hungry, over stretched cunt ached with his thrusts, so full you could practically taste him on the back of your tongue. Oberyn, so lost in his pleasure, started to constrict even tighter, the edges of your vision beginning to darken as your airway was closed. Fear rose like bile in the back of your throat, but couldn’t reach your lips to scream. Your body, shaking like the mouse he had called you, betrayed your instinct to flee from the creature by building up another orgasm. White crackled in the corners of your vision, lightning breaking through the dark thunderclouds that would soon black out your sight.

“Come.”

Your prince commanded, and you obeyed, your cunt squelching and convulsing as you soared over the moon. Your eyes, glassy and sightless above your gaping mouth, rolled back in your head as pleasure coursed through your veins, spinning every muscle tighter than bowstrings before turning them all slack.

Oberyn felt the sudden shift in your body, the open vulnerability between your spread legs, and forced every single inch of his twin cocks into you, putting the gates of your womb under siege. His tail fell limply off of your neck, allowing sweet, precious oxygen to flow into your desperately burning lungs; but you weren’t free from the demon’s desire just yet.

Where his tail had been you felt a new heat, this one wet and jagged where the tail had been scaly and warm; and you knew it to be his mouth. His fanged, venomous, unhinged mouth.

He really could swallow you whole if he wanted to.

Something long, wet and slimy slipped out from where he had you by the scruff of your neck, the smooth muscle of his mouth laving over your rapidly-beating pulse point and driving his hunting instincts wild. His mouth went all the way from ear to ear, your spinal column in the perfect position for him to crush it if he so chose. But of course, he wanted you – needed you – alive and well; but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t tease.

You felt his bite tighten, his fangs nudging your windpipe; one wrong move and they would puncture your trachea and drown you in venom, but not before he took his pleasure from you. His sweaty chest stuck to your back, his scales dug into your skin, and the threat of his fangs dragged along your jugular as Oberyn fucked you to his own completion.

When he came, everything got impossibly tighter. The living ropes of his coils seized around every inch of you both, his hands dug so hard into your flesh that you could almost swear he was touching bone, but worst of all his fangs pressed ever-so-slightly into your flesh; and the threat of death became almost too real. Hot cum spooged out of you, soaking you and the prince in his pearly white sneed, seeping through the spaces between his coils and ruining the rugs beneath you.

His entire body heaved with his ragged breath, the prince winded even though he had lungs bigger than your legs. Slowly, with practiced, noble grace, he unlocked his mouth from around your neck, peppering the pattern his scales had left in your flesh with gentle kisses of adoration. Every coil he unraveled revealed the same pattern of his scales impressed into your skin, a temporary tattoo marking his conquest.

They were just pretty enough that you might get them inked on you for real.

“Are you alright, my lady? I didn’t hurt you too much, did I?” He asked sweetly, a calloused hand cupping your chin to turn you to face him. His slitted eyes – glittering more beautifully than Lanister gold – searched yours for any sign that he’d hurt you. In his post-orgasmic bliss the lines of his face had softened drastically, a youthful glow to his sun-gilded skin. Sweat beaded on his brow, his jet-black curls sticking to the worry-grooves on his forehead, but best of all was the slight pout to his plush, slightly parted lips. Flushed rosy and swollen with exertion, they begged you to kiss them.

“Does this answer your question?”

You closed the distance between you, crashing your lips to his. He tasted like the sea salt you had smelled coming into Dorne, but somehow so much sweeter. Oberyn sucked a surprised breath, his eyes flashing coin-like before he melted into you, letting his softened cocks drop out of you with a flood of your mixed cum. You felt them drag their wetness across your smooth skin as you turned around to face him, aided by his strength until you were in his arms properly.

The dark bristles of his mustache tickled your nose a bit, making you smile into his kiss. You teased him with a flick of your tongue, finding his with a tentative lick that drew him to kiss you deeper. The pointed forks twisted and entwined around your regular human tongue, seemingly moving independently of each other; yet those were not nearly as alarming as the feel of his fang sheaths. One wrong move, one sudden sneeze, and it would be all over.

But they stayed in their casings, safely away from his bride-to-be. You felt his hand splay against the back of your head, tangling in your hair and holding you tightly to him while he kissed you. When you finally broke for air, you couldn’t help but giggle at the way the prince's eyes fluttered back open, lust-drunk and pleasantly blown.

“I have never been so thankful in all my days that I had to wait for love.” The L word left his lips with the slightest hint of embarrassment, a redness creeping across his cheeks. “I mean, erm, do you think you’ll be happy here, my lady? In Sunspear?”

“With you? As your wife?”

None of the fables you had been told about the fearsome Red Viper had ever painted him as one to be sheepish, yet here he was, looking like a boy with his hand caught in the cookie jar. The bristles framing his lips quirked with his cheeky grin. “Yes, with me?”

“Hmm…” you pondered mischievously, looking around the ornate chambers, taking in the palace decor, the smell of fruit and sunshine, the plushness of the destroyed rug underneath you. You reached out to touch the serpent’s tail, walking your fingers up his long spine, feeling the warm armor of his body. Then you crossed the threshold between where the snake ended and the man began, the sudden thinning of scales giving way to smooth, somewhat-fuzzy flesh that rippled with the muscles underneath it.

Up you continued, touching his broad hands and noticing a ring with the Martell crest on his pinky for the first time. You followed the flow of his forearm, the dip in his elbow, the rise of his biceps and the yoke of his shoulder until you were wrapping your arms around his neck and dragging him back to you for one more ensuring kiss.

“For you, my prince? I think it can be… arranged.”

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luminouslumity · 3 years ago

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You are a member of the Dragon Clan! Your allegiance is to your family!

Besides Benched and Amnesia Rules, Great Grand Dragon of the East is definitely one of my favorite episodes from S3, but this moment right here is what stuck out to me the most.

And not in a good way.

Joy.

Yeah, this isn't going to be a fun one, folks.

So, because the number varies, we don't actually know exactly how many children Ao Guang has, but because of a proverb that's taken literally in Journey to the West, it's safe to assume he probably has at least nine kids in total. In terms of sons, we do know he has at least three of them. Unfortunately for the Dragon King, all three of those sons also end up dying.

AO BING (敖丙)

I actually already talked about Ao Bing months ago, but to reiterate, he's the third son of Ao Guang (with his name even referring to the third Heavenly Stem, an ordinal system, when writing it as 丙) and was killed by Nezha after the dragon prince tried to avenge Nezha's other victim Li Gen, who also died trying to attack him after Nezha accidentally disrupted Ao Guang's Crystal Palace by causing a waterquake. After Ao Bing died, Nezha decided to take the dragon's tendon and turn it into a belt.

Keep in mind that Nezha was only seven.

Naturally, Ao Guang was devastated when he learned the news, but Nezha assaulted him before he could report it to the Jade Emperor to keep him quiet. This however didn't stop Ao Guang from trying to take matters into his own hands anyway, so he enlisted the help of his brothers to arrest Nezha's parents for the murders, only for Nezha to sacrifice himself instead.

After the rise of the Zhou Dynasty, Ao Bing eventually gets deified, becoming the god of the Huagai Xing (华盖星), or Imperial Canopy Star.

MOJIE (摩揭) AND LONGDU (龙毒)

The Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea and one of the dragons who's about to meet his end. Because the only thing worse than losing a child is losing two. On the same day. By the same person.

Enter the Crown Prince and Second Prince, apparently sometimes called Mojie and Longdu respectively.

So, centuries after the Nezha incident, what happened was that a group known as the Eight Immortals decided to cross the East Sea using their powers or magic tools, all while being very drunk. One of them, Lan Caihe (藍采和), decided to do so by using their jade clappers, but this quickly caught the attention of Ao Guang and especially his eldest son due to the clappers shining through the water.

Caihe then ends up getting kidnapped by the Crown Prince so the latter could steal the clappers, and though Ao Guang agrees to give Caihe back after another immortal, Lü Dongbin (呂洞賓), injures his eldest son, he refuses to give the clappers back. This soon leads Lü Dongbin to kill Ao Guang's sons shortly afterwards.

Then it's war.

So the East Sea gets dried up, Ao Guang's palace gets destroyed again, and after Ao Qin convinces his brother to just report this to the Jade Emperor, the two sides are eventually forced to reconcile while Guanyin fixes the Dragon Palace and also gives two pieces of the jade clappers to Ao Guang as compensation.

Side note here, but Sun Wukong himself appears in this story towards the end and it's to side with the Eight Immortals.

And as a sort of honorable mention:

LONGNÜ (龙女)

Probably not her actual name, btw; Longnü literally just means Dragon Girl, so it tends to be a pretty common word when referring to a female dragon. But speaking of the Eight Immortals, one of Ao Guang's daughters—prior to the death of her brothers—fell in love with one of them, specifically Han Xiangzi (韓湘子), Lü Dongbin's own apprentice. You know how it goes: boy plays dizi, dragon girl hears it and disguises herself as a silver eel before approaching him... Classic meet cute!

Unfortunately, Ao Guang soon found out about his daughter's affections and forbade her from ever seeing Han Xiangzi again, but she managed to send him a new dizi, one made from Guanyin's own bamboo grove, to remember her by.

#monkie kid #lego monkie kid #mk #lmk #ao guang #ao bing #mei #long xiaojiao #china #chinese mythology

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fuyonggu · 5 years ago

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Biography of Sima Jiong (Book of Jin 59)

齊武閔王冏，字景治，獻王攸之子也。少稱仁惠，好振施，有父風。初，攸有疾，武帝不信，遣太醫診候，皆言無病。及攸薨，帝往臨喪，冏號踴訴父病為醫所誣，詔即誅醫。由是見稱，遂得為嗣。元康中，拜散騎常侍，領左軍將軍、翊軍校尉。趙王倫密與相結，廢賈后，以功轉遊擊將軍。冏以位不滿意，有恨色。孫秀微覺之，且憚其在內，出為平東將軍、假節，鎮許昌。倫篡，遷鎮東大將軍、開府儀同三司，欲以寵安之。

Sima Jiong was styled Jingzhi; his posthumous title was Prince Wumin ("the Martial and Pitied") of Qi. He was the son of Prince Xian ("the Presented") of Qi, Sima You. Even as a child, Sima Jiong won acclaim for his kind and benevolent attitude and enjoyed being generous; he had the same spirit as his father.

Before Sima You's death, although he had become ill, Emperor Wu did not really believe that he was sick. So he sent the imperial doctors to examine and diagnose Sima You, and they declared that he was not ill. When Sima You then passed away and Emperor Wu went to attend the mourning service, Sima Jiong was in a fit of grief, declaring that the doctors had given false reports about Sima You's illness. Emperor Wu ordered the doctors put to death, and Sima Jiong won renown for this act and was permitted to inherit his father's title as Prince of Qi (although he was not the eldest son).

During the Yuankang reign era (291-300), Sima Jiong was appointed as a Cavalier In Regular Attendance, as acting General of the Left Army, and as Colonel Who Supports The Army. The Prince of Zhao, Sima Lun, secretly formed ties with him.

For his role in helping to depose Jia Nanfeng (in 300), Sima Jiong was appointed as General of Roaming Assault. But Sima Jiong was not satisfied by this position, and he often looked resentful. When Sun Xiu realized this, he was afraid to keep Sima Jiong too close at hand, so he had him sent away as General Who Pacifies The East and Credential Holder and had him garrison Xuchang.

When Sima Lun usurped the throne (in 301), he appointed Sima Jiong as Grand General Who Guards The East and granted him the privilege of a Separate Office with equal ceremonial to the Three Excellencies, in order to mollify and appease him.

冏因眾心怨望，潛與離狐王盛、潁川王處穆謀起兵誅倫。倫遣腹心張烏覘之，烏反，曰：「齊無異志。」冏既有成謀未發，恐或泄，乃與軍司管襲殺處穆，送首於倫，以安其意。謀定，乃收襲殺之。遂與豫州刺史何勖、龍驤將軍董艾等起軍，遣使告成都、河間、常山、新野四王，移檄天下征鎮、州郡縣國，咸使聞知。揚州刺史郗隆承檄，猶豫未決，參軍王邃斬之，送首於冏。冏屯軍陽翟，倫遣其將閭和、張泓、孫輔出堮阪，與冏交戰。冏軍失利，堅壘自守。會成都軍破倫眾于黃橋，冏乃出軍攻和等，大破之。及王輿廢倫，惠帝反正，冏誅討賊党既畢，率眾入洛，頓軍通章署，甲士數十萬，旌旗器械之盛，震於京都。天子就拜大司馬，加九錫之命，��物典策，如宣、景、文、武輔魏故事。

Sima Jiong was planning to take advantage of the anger and resentment of the people against Sima Lun, and he secretly plotted with Wang Sheng of Lihu and Wang Chumu of Yingchuan to rise up with soldiers to overthrow Sima Lun. But at the same time, Sima Lun had sent one of his confidantes, Zhang Wu, to keep a close eye on Sima Jiong. When Zhang Wu returned to the capital, he reported, "The Prince of Qi has no ulterior motives against you." And since Sima Jiong's plans were not yet complete, he was afraid that the plot might leak out. So he joined with his Army-Marshal, Guan Xi, to kill Wang Chumu, then sent Wang Chumu head to Sima Lun in order to allay his concerns. However, once Sima Jiong's plan was complete, he arrested Guan Xi and killed him.

Then Sima Jiong raised an army, together with the Inspector of Yuzhou, He Xu, the Dragon-Soaring General, Dong Ai, and others. He sent word around to inform others of his plot: the Prince of Chengdu, Sima Ying, the Prince of Hejian, Sima Yong, the Prince of Changshan, Sima Ai, and the Prince of Xinye, Sima Xin.

Sima Jiong sent out a proclamation of his intentions to every general or minister, to all the Generals Who Conquer, Generals Who Guard, Inspectors, Administrators, Prefects, and Interior Ministers, so that everyone might know what his designs were.

When the Inspector of Yanzhou, Chi Long, received Sima Jiong's proclamation, he was hesitant and could not decide whether to support him or not. But one of his Army Advisors, Wang Sui, beheaded Chi Long and sent his head to Sima Jiong.

Sima Jiong camped his army at Yangdi. Sima Lun sent his generals Zhang Hong, Lü He, and Sun Fu to march out through Eban, where they met Sima Jiong in battle. Sima Jiong had the worst of the fighting, so he withdrew into his defenses and fortified his ramparts. But in the meantime, Sima Ying's army routed Sima Lun's forces at Huangqiao. So Sima Jiong led his army out again and attacked Lü He and the others, this time greatly routing them.

Once the Princes had finished deposing Sima Lun and restoring Emperor Hui to the throne and Sima Jiong had completed his executions of Sima Lun's partisans in villainy, Sima Jiong led his troops into Luoyang, where he made arrangements for accommodating his troops. He had hundreds of thousands of armored soldiers, with a full panoply of flags and banners and military gear, and the capital region trembled.

Emperor Hui appointed Sima Jiong as Grand Marshal and granted him the Nine Bestowments. He was granted regent authority to handle all canons and policies, just as Sima Yi, Sima Shi, Sima Zhao, and Emperor Wu had once wielded such power on behalf of the government of Wei.

冏於是輔政，居攸故宮，置掾屬四十人。大築第館，北取五穀市，南開諸署，毀壞廬舍以百數，使大匠營制，與西宮等。鑿千秋門牆以通西閣，後房施鐘懸，前庭舞八��，沈於酒色，不入朝見。坐拜百官，符敕三臺，選舉不均，惟寵親昵。以車騎將軍何勖領中領軍。封葛<方與>為牟平公，路秀小黃公，衛毅陰平公，劉真安鄉公，韓泰封丘公，號曰「五公」，委以心膂。殿中御史桓豹奏事，不先經冏府，即考竟之。於是朝廷側目，海內失望矣。南陽處士鄭方露版極諫，主簿王豹屢有箴規，冏並不能用，遂奏豹殺之。有白頭公入大司馬府大呼，言有兵起，不出甲子旬。即收殺之。

Sima Jiong thus acted as regent over the government. He lived in Sima You's old palace, and selected forty assistants and subordinates for himself. He greatly expanded the rooms and buildings of his palace, extending the estate north to reach the Five Grains Market and south to connect with the various government offices. He demolished hundreds of homes and buildings in the process. He ordered the Grand Architect to lay out his palace to be on the same scale as Emperor Hui's residence at the Western Palace. He bored a hole through the Qianqiu Gate to make a direct path to the Western Pavilion, and he hung up bells in his rear chambers and arrayed dancers in eight rows (an imperial privilege) in his front hall. He indulged himself in wine and sensual pleasures, not bothering to attend court.

Sima Jiong appointed various ministers without any ceremony, just granting the appointments from where he sat, and he issued commands to the Three Bureaus of the government simply by a mark. And in his selections and promotions, he was not impartial, but only favored those who were close to him and familiar. He appointed the General of Chariots and Cavalry, He Xu, as General Who Leads The Army of the Center. He also appointed Ge Yu as Duke of Mouping, Lu Xiu as Duke of Xiaohuang, Wei Yi as Duke of Yinping, Liu Zhen as Duke of Anxiang, and Han Tai as Duke of Fengqiu; they came to be known as the "Five Dukes", and all of them were Sima Jiong's close companions.

The Secretary of the Central Hall, Huan Bao, submitted a petition without first sending it to Sima Jiong's office for review, for which he was submitted to interrogation. From then on, the court ministers all glanced about in fear, and everyone within the Seas lost hope in Sima Jiong.

A recluse of Nanyang, Zheng Fang, submitted an essay harshly remonstrating with Sima Jiong (his essay is listed below). And one of the Registrars, Wang Bao, often warned Sima Jiong against what he was doing (his essays and biography are in the Biographies of Loyal Ministers). But Sima Jiong did not follow either of their advice, and he even arranged to have Wang Bao killed.

A white-haired gentleman ran into the office of the Grand Marshal, exclaiming that there would be an uprising soon, before the next Jiazi year (in 304). He was arrested and killed.

冏驕恣日甚，終無悛志。前賊曹屬孫惠復上諫曰：惠聞天下五難，四不可，而明公皆以居之矣。捐宗廟之主，忽千乘之重，躬貫甲胄，犯冒鋒刃，此一難也。奮三百之卒，決全勝之策，集四方之眾，致英豪之士，此二難也。舍殿堂之尊，居單幕之陋，安囂塵之慘，同將士之勞，此三難也。驅烏合之眾，當凶強之敵，任神武之略，無疑阻之懼，此四難也。檄六合之內，著盟信之誓，升幽宮之帝，復皇祚之業，此五難也。大名不可久荷，大功不可久任，大權不可久執，大威不可久居。未有行其五難而不以為難，遺其不可而謂之為可。惠竊所不安也。自永熙以來，十有一載，人不見德，惟戮是聞。公族構篡奪之禍，骨肉遭梟夷之刑，群王被囚檻之困，妃主有離絕之哀。曆觀前代，國家之禍，至親之亂，未有今日之甚者也。良史書過，後嗣何觀！天下所以不去于晉，符命長存於世者，主無嚴虐之暴，朝無酷烈之政，武帝餘恩，獻王遺愛，聖慈惠和，尚經人心。四海所系，實在於茲。今明公建不世之義，而未為不世之讓，天下惑之，思求所悟。長沙、成都，魯、衛之密，國之親親，與明公計功受賞，尚不自先。今公宜放桓、文之勳，邁臧、劄之風，芻狗萬物，不仁其化，崇親推近，功遂身退，委萬機于二王，命方岳於群後，燿義讓之旗，鳴思歸之鑾，宅大齊之墟，振泱泱之風，垂拱青、徐之域，高枕營丘之籓。金石不足以銘高，八音不足以讚美，姬文不得專聖於前，太伯不得獨賢於後。今明公忘亢極之悔，忽窮高之凶，棄五嶽之安，居累卵之危，外以權勢受疑，內以百揆損神。雖處高臺之上，逍遙重仞之墉，及其危亡之憂，過於潁、翟之慮。群下竦戰，莫之敢言。惠以衰亡之余，遭陽九之運，甘矢石之禍，赴大王之義，脫褐冠胄，從戎于許。契闊戰陣，功無可記，當隨風塵，待罪初服。屈原放斥，心存南郢；樂毅適趙，志戀北燕。況惠受恩，偏蒙識養，雖復暫違，情隆二臣，是以披露血誠，冒昧幹迕。言入身戮，義讓功舉，退就鈇鑕，此惠之死賢於生也。冏不納，亦不加罪。

Sima Jiong only grew more arrogant by the day, and he never did reform his desires.

A former official from the office of Bandit Management, Sun Hui, also wrote a letter to Sima Jiong remonstrating with him. He wrote,

"I have heard that Your Highness has faced five hardships to reach your current position, and I am familiar with four truths about the impermanence of power. Yet Your Highness remains unconcerned about any of these things.

"To set aside your gravity as keeper of your family’s ancestral temple and lay down your majesty of being lord of a domain of a thousand chariots in favor of personally donning armor and helmet and braving risks and facing dangers was the first hardship Your Highness undertook. To muster a band of three hundred fellows, devise plans for decisive and total victory, assemble soldiers from every corner, and gather together brave heroes was the second. To abandon the hallowed halls of your palace and dwell in the wretched conditions of a soldier's tent, peacefully enduring the noise and filth of the camp and sharing the labor and toil of the generals and soldiers was the third. To organize a flock of conscripts, prepare them to resist the fearsome might of the enemy, devise for them genius plans of martial prowess, and temper them with courage and resolve was the fourth. And to send out proclamations in every direction, gain the trust of sworn allies, restore the deposed Emperor to the throne, and revive the imperial fortunes was the fifth.

"At the same time, I observe these truths: even a great reputation cannot ensure one's position, even great merits cannot secure one in office, even great influence cannot be wielded forever, and even great authority cannot be counted to last.

"Yet Your Highness does not recognize the extent of these five hardships you faced to get where you are, nor do you acknowledge these four truths. I cannot help but be concerned for you.

"In the eleven years since the start of the Yongxi era (in 290), there have been no instances of public virtue, but only reports of slaughter. The imperial clan has suffered the disasters of usurpations and struggles for power, and imperial relatives have inflicted punishments and executions against their own flesh and blood; princes have endured the indignities of jail cells and prison carts, and consorts have lamented their fates of being cut off and set aside. Indeed, in all of history, though we read of states that suffered disasters and close relatives that warred among themselves, never has there been a situation as dire as this one. If the historians be honest about our faults, how will our descendants ever bear to read about them?

"Why then has the realm not abandoned Jin, and why has the Mandate not passed from our dynasty? Only because the ruler has not exhibited tyranny and severity and the court has not governed with violence and cruelty, because of the enduring grace of Emperor Wu and the lasting love of Prince Xian (Sima You). It was their sage benevolence and their kindly magnanimity which bound the hearts of the people toward Jin. And these are the things which secure the support of all those within the Four Seas.

"Now although Your Highness displayed an unparalleled sense of righteousness when you led your uprising against the usurper, still you have failed to show an equivalent sense of peerless virtue by yielding your position afterwards. The realm wonders at the reasons for this, and they seek an answer. Furthermore, the Princes of Changsha (Sima Ai) and Chengdu (Sima Ying) have the same close bond to one another as the ancient lords of Lu and Wey, they are the immediate family members of the Emperor (as his younger brothers), and when one considers whom among the three of you accomplished the most during the recent campaign and deserved the greatest rewards, it is difficult to be certain that Your Highness has an undisputed claim to supremacy. By continuing what you are currently doing, Your Highness will be giving up the good achievements of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin when they selflessly rescued the royal family of Zhou from peril, and treading the same path as Zang and Zha instead. Straw dogs and all the beings of creation are not treated any differently out of any consideration of benevolence.

"Your Highness should honor your relatives and yield in favor of those near in stature to you, considering that your work is complete and withdrawing from the center. Entrust affairs to the two Princes, while you supervise the heirs of the various feudal lords. Display the banner of your righteous intention to yield power and sound the call of your wish to return to your noble fief, dwell within your domain as lord of the great Qi region, catch the spirit of the billowing wind, take the areas of Qingzhou and Xuzhou into your hands, and stand proud at your post at Yingqiu. If you do these things, then even gold will not be a good enough medium to record the greatness of your achievements and even the Eight Sounds will not be sufficient tunes to sing your praises; Ji Wen (King Wen of Zhou) would no longer have the sole claim for sagacity, nor Taibo for worthiness.

"But if you forget the dangers of the great precipice you are standing upon and heedlessly ascend towards the summit, you would be abandoning the security of the Five Peaks and making your position as precarious as a stack of eggs. Without, your power and authority would invite suspicion, and within, your reputation among the officials would suffer. Even if you were to venture to the top of a high terrace or seclude yourself behind rows of walls, I would still presume to fear for your safety, even more now than at the time of Yingchuan and Yangdi (during the uprising). Your subordinates quiver with fear for you, but none dare say a word.

"Now who am I, Sun Hui, to tell you these things? Nothing but a sad remnant in fact. But inviting the onset of calamity and welcoming the perils of the slings and arrows, I once rushed to Your Highness's righteous call; casting aside my common clothes and putting on my helmet, I followed your army to Xu (Xuchang). Of great and glorious deeds in the line of battle, I have none to claim. Yet I followed you through the wind and dust of those days, and I am prepared to receive punishment in addressing you now. Though Qu Yuan was exiled, his heart was always with Ying in the south; though Yue Yi fled to Zhao, his thoughts were always with Yan in the north. Can it be any different with me, who has received your grace and was blessed with your recognition and your care? Though it may seem that I go against your wishes, I am your man through and through; I am baring my flesh to show the sincerity of my blood, and it is thus that I offer you such unpalatable advice. Having presented my words, I am prepared for my punishment. If by writing these things I can convince you to righteously yield power and to secure your achievements, I go to the chopping block willingly, for it would be a worthy end to my life."

Though Sima Jiong did not accept Sun Hui's advice, neither did he punish him.

翊軍校尉李含奔于長安，詐云受密詔，使河間王顒誅冏，因導以利謀。顒從之，上表曰：王室多故，禍難罔已。大司馬冏雖唱義有興復皇位之功，而定都邑，克寧社稷，實成都王勳力也。而冏不能固守臣節，實協異望。在許昌營有東西掖門，官置治書侍御史，長史、司馬直立左右，如侍臣之儀。京城大清，篡逆誅夷，而率百萬之眾來繞洛城。阻兵經年，不一朝覲，百官拜伏，晏然南面。壞樂官市署，用自增廣。輒取武庫秘杖，嚴列不解。故東萊王蕤知其逆節，表陳事狀，而見誣陷，加罪黜徙。以樹私黨，僭立官屬。幸妻嬖妾，名號比之中宮。沈湎酒色，不恤群黎。董艾放縱，無所畏忌，中丞按奏，而取退免。張偉惚恫，擁停詔可，葛旟小豎，維持國命。操弄王爵，貨賂公行。群奸聚黨，擅斷殺生。密署腹心，實為貨謀。斥罪忠良，伺窺神器。臣受重任，蕃衛方嶽，見冏所行，實懷激憤。即日翊軍校尉李含乘驛密至，宣騰詔旨。臣伏讀感切，五情若灼。《春秋》之義，君親無將。冏擁強兵，樹置私黨，權官要職，莫非腹心。雖復重責之誅，恐不義服。今輒勒兵，精卒十萬，與州征並協忠義，共會洛陽。驃騎將軍長沙王乂，同奮忠誠，廢冏還第。有不順命，軍法從事。成都王穎明德茂親，功高勳重，往歲去就，允合眾望，宜為宰輔，代冏阿衡之任。

The Colonel of 翊軍, Li Han, fled from the capital to Chang'an, the base of the Prince of Hejian, Sima Yong. He lied and said he had received a secret edict from Emperor Hui, calling on Sima Yong to punish Sima Jiong, and that Li Han had been sent to Sima Yong to help facilitate the plot.

Sima Yong believed Li Han. He submitted a petition to the court: "The imperial family has suffered from many incidents of late, and disasters and difficulties continue to plague us. Although the Grand Marshal, Sima Jiong, may claim the credit of having called an uprising and restoring the Emperor to the throne, in truth it was thanks to the Prince of Chengdu's efforts that the capital region was pacified and the altars of state were secured. Yet Sima Jiong, not content to observe his proper duties as a minister and subject, has begun to harbor nefarious intentions.

"At Sima Jiong's army camp at Xuchang, he set up eastern and western Ye Gates like one sees at the Emperor's palace, and on his staff there, those whom he appointed as Secretaries of Recordskeeping, as Chief Clerks, or as Marshals all hovered about him with the same ceremony that residents of the palace would show towards the Son of Heaven. During the campaign, although the capital had already been entirely purged and the usurpers and traitors punished before his arrival, Sima Jiong still led an army of a million soldiers to infest the walls of Luoyang. He has kept his troops garrisoned there for an entire year by now. He never attends court, but makes the government ministers bow and perform obeisance before him, while he sits serenely facing south (in imitation of the Emperor). He has torn down buildings of the Music Bureau and the marketplace purely to expand and broaden his own estate. He has helped himself to the stored equipment of the Arsenal, and he has imposed martial law on the city without any sign of lifting restrictions. The former Prince of Donglai, Sima Ruí (Sima Jiong’s elder brother), recognized that Sima Jiong had betrayed his duties, and he presented a petition to the court listing Sima Jiong's offenses, but he was only met with slander and infamy, until he was charged with a crime and suffered demotion and exile. Sima Jiong has presumed to fill the government ministries with his own partisans and minions, and he grants his favored lovers and floozies titles comparable to those used in the Emperor's harem. He freely indulges himself in wine and in sensual pleasures, showing no regard for the common people. He allows his henchman Zong Ai to do whatever he pleases without any hesitation or suspicion, for though the government receives complaints about Zong Ai's behavior, he always gets let off from any charge. He permits a nobody like Zhang Wei to determine whether imperial edicts shall be allowed to go out or not, and he entrusts a miscreant like Ge Yu with control of the state. He hands out noble titles as he pleases, and bribes change hands freely and openly. He surrounds himself with a rogues' gallery, and he makes the call on who will live or who will die. His closest confidantes think only of how to enrich themselves. And he has slandered and punished good and worthy people, while gazing with longing towards the sacred instruments of power.

"I was assigned a serious charge and am responsible for protecting and defending a strategic area of the realm. But as I have witnessed Sima Jiong's actions, I have nursed a sense of righteous indignation. Then this very day, the Colonel of 翊軍, Li Han, secretly came to me by courier horse to present to me the imperial will and decree. When I bowed before him to hear the reading of this edict, which called upon me to raise my banners and turn against my own flesh and blood, my feelings were assailed and all my senses were aflame. And is it not a principle of the Spring and Autumn Annals that one may never war against their liege or their kinfolk? Yet Sima Jiong has a powerful army at his beck and call, he has placed his favorites into positions of power, and not a one of the important offices of state exists but is filled by one of his cronies. So though in turning my sword against Sima Jiong I would be committing a serious crime which deserved death, still I am afraid I could no longer in good conscience accept what he has done.

"Thus I am now marching at the head of a hundred thousand elite soldiers. May the provincial commanders join me in this loyal and righteous cause and combine their forces with mine at Luoyang. I ask that the General of Agile Cavalry and Prince of Changsha, Sima Ai, likewise prove his loyalty and sincerity by removing Sima Jiong from power and sending him back to his estate. Anyone who refuses to heed the imperial order shall be dealt with by military law.

"The Prince of Chengdu, Sima Ying, is wise, virtuous, luxuriant, and friendly; his achievements are lofty and his deeds profound. When he departed the capital last year and yielded his power, he gained the hopes and admiration of all. He is suited to serve as regent over the government. Let him take up the role of A-Heng (Yi Yin) in Sima Jiong's stead."

顒表既至，冏大懼，會百僚曰：「昔孫秀作逆，篡逼帝王，社稷傾覆，莫能禦難。孤糾合義眾，掃除元惡，臣子之節，信著神明。二王今日聽信讒言，造構大難，當賴忠謀以和不協耳。」

When Sima Yong's petition arrived at Luoyang, Sima Jiong was terrified. He summoned the ministers and said to them, "When Sun Xiu plotted his treason before and usurped and oppressed the Emperor and the Princes, the very altar of state was nearly toppled, and no one else was able to stand against such difficulties. I was the one who gathered together soldiers to begin an uprising, and I was the one who swept away and purged the chief evil. I have maintained my duty as a subject and as a son, and the spirits can attest to my trustworthiness. Yet now these two Princes have returned my trust with slander and are causing great trouble. Gentlemen, I shall depend on your loyal advice for how to reconcile with these wayward foes."

司徒王戎、司空東海王越說冏委權崇讓。冏��事中郎葛旟怒曰：「趙庶人聽任孫秀，移天易日，當時喋喋，莫敢先唱。公蒙犯矢石，躬貫甲胄，攻圍陷陣，得濟今日。計功行封，事殷未遍。三臺納言，不恤王事，賞報稽緩，責不在府。讒言僭逆，當共誅討，虛承偽書，令公就第。漢、魏以來，王侯就第甯有得保妻子者乎！議者可斬。」於是百官震悚，無不失色。

The Minister Over The Masses, Wang Rong, and the Minister of Works and Prince of Donghai, Sima Yue, advised Sima Jiong to resign his authority and honor the others by yielding his position.

But Sima Jiong's Attendant Officer of the Palace Gentlemen, Ge Yu, angrily told them, "The commoner of Zhao (Sima Lun) heeded and employed Sun Xiu, and he abused his authority; Heaven and Earth themselves changed based purely on his whims. Everyone talked and talked about doing something back then, but no one else dared to speak up first. It was our lord who braved the slings and arrows, personally wearing armor and helmet and attacking the enemy lines and breaking their formations, and who brought us to this happy day. Considering the rewards he has received for all that he has done on behalf of the state, one could argue that he has still not gotten all that he deserves.

"For members of the Three Bureaus to say such things shows how much you disregard the Prince's affairs. It is no fault of his that rewards for others have been slow in coming. Besides, those who speak slander and stir up chaos should all be put to death. How can you heed the empty orders of this presumptuous letter and command our lord to retire to his estate? And through all the time of Han and Wei, what prince or noble that retired to his estate has ever been able to protect his wife and children? Anyone who suggests such a thing out to be beheaded."

The ministers were greatly disturbed and trembling, and all of them turned pale.

長沙王乂徑入宮，發兵攻冏府。冏遣董艾陳兵宮西。乂又遣宋洪等放火燒諸觀閣及千秋、神武門。冏令黃門令王湖悉盜騶虞幡，唱云：「長沙王矯詔。」乂又稱：「大司馬謀反，助者誅五族。」是夕，城內大戰，飛矢雨集，火光屬天。帝幸上東門，矢集御前。群臣救火，死者相枕。明日，冏敗，乂擒冏至殿前，帝惻然，欲活之。乂叱左右促牽出，冏猶再顧，遂斬於閶闔門外，徇首六軍。諸黨屬皆夷三族。幽其子淮陵王超、樂安王冰、濟陽王英于金墉。暴冏屍於西明亭，三日而莫敢收斂。冏故掾屬荀闓等表乞殯葬，許之。

The Prince of Changsha, Sima Ai, rushed into the palace, then raised troops to attack Sima Jiong's office. Sima Jiong sent Zong Ai to array troops west of the palace. Sima Ai also sent Song Hong and others to set fire to and burn down the various pavilions and the Qianqiu and Shenwu Gates.

Sima Jiong ordered the Prefect of the Yellow Gate, Wang Hu, to steal all the Zouyu Banners and display them (thus compelling all soldiers to cease fighting) while announcing, "The Prince of Changsha has forged an imperial decree."

But Sima Ai also spread the message, "The Grand Marshal has plotted rebellion, and anyone who helps him will have their families executed to the fifth degree."

That night, there was great fighting within the city; flying arrows poured down like rain, and the glow of the fires outshone the heavens. Emperor Hui was at the Shangdong Gate when a flurry of arrows came his way. His ministers were trying to put out the fires, and they fell down dead in heaps.

By the next day, Sima Jiong had been defeated. Sima Ai brought Sima Jiong to the Front Hall. Emperor Hui, feeling sad for him, wished to let him live, but Sima Ai ordered those around him to lead Sima Jiong away, even as Sima Jiong kept looking back. Sima Ai beheaded Sima Jiong outside the Changhe Gate, and displayed his head to the six armies (of the capital soldiers).

Those who were in league with Sima Jiong were executed with their families to the third degree. The Princes of Huailing, Le'an, and Qiyang, Sima Jiong's sons Sima Chao, Sima Bing, and Sima Yīng, were imprisoned at the Jinyong fortress.

Sima Jiong's body was left publicly exposed at Ximing Terrace, and for three days no one dared to claim the body for burial. Then Sima Jiong's former subordinates, Xun Kai and others, petitioned to be allowed to hold a mourning for Sima Jiong and to bury him, and their request was granted.

初，冏之盛也，有一婦人詣大司馬府求寄產。吏詰之，婦人曰：「我截齊便去耳。」識者聞而惡之。時又謠曰：「著布袙腹，為齊持服。」俄而冏誅。

Earlier, when Sima Jiong had been at his zenith, a woman had visited the Grand Marshal's office to ask for some supplies. When the officials had scolded her, she had said, "I'll just make things nice and tidy and then go." This disturbed some people, for they recognized that the term she had used, 截齊, could be interpreted as "cut down (the Prince of) Qi".

And there had also been a ditty going around: "Wrap the cloth 'round the middle bit, to make it all (or, Qi) nice and fit (or, to submit)." And indeed, it wasn't long before Sima Jiong was executed.

永興初，詔以冏輕陷重刑，前勳不宜堙沒，乃赦其三子超、冰、英還第，封超為縣王，以繼冏祀，曆員外散騎常侍。光熙初，追冊冏曰：「咨故大司馬、齊王冏：王昔以宗籓穆胤紹世，緒于東國，作翰許京，允鎮靜我王室。涎率義徒，同盟觸澤，克成元勳，大濟潁東。朕用應嘉茂績，謂篤爾勞，俾式先典，以疇茲顯懿。廓士殊分，跨兼吳楚，崇禮備物，寵侔蕭、霍，庶憑翼戴之重，永隆邦家之望。而恭德不建，取侮二方，有司過舉，致王於戮。古人有言曰：'用其法，猶思其人。'況王功濟朕身，勳存社稷，追惟既往，有悼於厥心哉！今復王本封，命嗣子還紹厥緒，禮秩典度，一如舊制。使使持節、大鴻臚即墓賜策，祠乙太牢。魂而有靈，祗服朕命，肆寧爾心，嘉茲寵榮。」子超嗣爵。

At the beginning of the Yongxing reign era (305), an edict was issued declaring that Sima Jiong's offenses had not been serious enough to merit the harsh punishment that he had received, and that due to his earlier good deeds, his lineage should not be snuffed out. Thus his three sons Sima Chao, Sima Bing, and Sima Yīng were all pardoned and allowed to return to their estates, and Sima Chao was appointed as Prince of a county in order to continue Sima Jiong's lineage. Sima Chao eventually served as a Cavalier In Regular Attendance Without Assignment.

At the beginning of the Guangxi reign era (306), Sima Jiong was posthumously honored with a decree by Emperor Hui.

"I declare the following regarding the late Grand Marshal and Prince of Qi, Sima Jiong:

"The late Prince might have quietly and meekly inherited the fief which he was due. Yet rather than sequester himself in his eastern domain (at Qi), he sent forth his proclamation from Xujing (Xu or Xuchang), and fully acted to protect our royal family and quell the disturbance of the imperial household. Zealously leading forth his followers for a righteous cause and forging an alliance at Lake Chu, he achieved successes and performed the greatest of deeds, and was very accomplished at Yingdong (eastern Yingchuan?). I ought to have responded to these things with congratulations for his exceptional performance, thanking him for his loyal and faithful service, and honoring him according to the ancient standards, thereby ensuring and glorifying his legacy. He ought to have been granted a fief even grander than those once held by Han's Princes of Wu and Chu, and he ought to have been honored with such exceptional courtesy and respect that he would have rivaled the favor enjoyed by Xiao He or Huo Guang. The great assistance and protection which he provided us entitled him to the everlasting admiration of the royal clan and the state.

"Yet the Prince failed to practice virtue, he incurred the enmity of two of his peers, the officials pressed him for his faults, and in the end he was executed. The ancients had a saying: 'Enforce the law, but think of the accused.' How much less can I ignore this sentiment when it was thanks to the Prince's deeds that I remained safe and the fortunes of state were preserved? And how tragic, how heart-rending it seems that only posthumously may his achievements be recognized!

"I hereby restore the Prince to his former title as Prince of Qi, and command that his son and heir be permitted to return and to inherit this title. The salary and privileges, canons and systems associated with the title shall all be as they once were. And I hereby send the Commissioner Bearing Credentials and Grand Diplomat to convey my words to the tomb of the late Prince and to offer a Grand Sacrifice to his spirit. If the dead are still aware of what takes place in this world, then may they take note of my command; may the spirit of the late Prince feel peace in his heart and be joyful of this favor and honor."

Sima Jiong's son Sima Chao thus inherited his title as Prince of Qi.

永嘉中，懷帝下詔，重述冏唱義元勳，還贈大司馬，加侍中、假節，追諡。及洛陽傾覆，超兄弟皆沒于劉聰，冏遂無後。太元中，詔以故南頓王宗子柔之襲封齊王，紹攸、冏之祀，曆散騎常侍。元興初，會稽王道子將討桓玄，詔柔之兼侍中，以騶虞幡宣告江、荊二州，至姑孰，為玄前鋒所害。贈光祿勳。子建之立。宋受禪，國除。

During the Yongjia reign era (307-311), Emperor Huai also issued an edict which again praised Sima Jiong for having the chief accomplishment of having sounded the call to rise up against Sima Lun. Emperor Huai posthumously restored Sima Jiong's rank as Grand Marshal, and he also appointed him as a Palace Attendant and a Credential Bearer and gave him his posthumous name (Wumin).

When Luoyang fell (to Han-Zhao, in 311), Sima Chao and his brothers were all lost to Liu Cong, leaving Sima Jiong without any descendants.

During the Taiyuan reign era (376-396), Emperor Xiaowu issued an edict appointing Sima Rouzhi, the son of the late Prince of Nandun, Sima Zong, as Prince of Qi in order to continue Sima You's and Sima Jiong's lineage. Sima Rouzhi rose in office as high as Cavalier In Regular Attendance. At the beginning of the Yuanxing reign era (402), when the Prince of Kuaiji, Sima Daozi, was about to campaign against the rebel general Huan Xuan, an edict was issued appointing Sima Rouzhi as a Palace Attendant, and he was sent out with the Zouyu Banners to command the soldiers of Jiangzhou and Jingzhou (under Huan Xuan's command) to stand down. But when Sima Rouzhi came to Gushu, he was killed by Huan Xuan's vanguard. He was posthumously appointed as Superintendent of the Crown Prince's Household.

Sima Rouzhi's son Sima Jianzhi inherited the title Prince of Qi. But after Liu Yu accepted the abdication of the Jin dynasty and established the Song dynasty (in 420), Sima Jianzhi's fief was abolished.

鄭方者，字子回，慷慨有志節，博涉史傳，卓犖不常，鄉閭有識者歎其奇，而未能薦達。及冏輔政專恣，方發憤步詣洛陽，自稱荊楚逸民，獻書於冏曰：「方聞聖明輔世，夙夜祗懼，泰而不驕，所以長守貴也。今大王安不慮危，耽于酒色，燕樂過度，其失一也。大王檄命，當使天下穆如清風，宗室骨肉永無纖介，今則不然，其失二也。四夷交侵，邊境不靜，大王自以功業興隆，不以為念，其失三也。大王興義，群庶競赴，天下雖甯，人勞窮苦，不聞大王振救之令，其失四也。又與義兵歃血而盟，事定之後，賞不逾時，自清泰已來，論功未分，此則食言，其失五也。大王建非常之功，居宰相之任，謗聲盈塗，人懷忿怨，方以狂愚，冒死陳誠。」冏含忍答之云：「孤不能致五闕，若無子，則不聞其過矣。」未幾而敗焉。

Zheng Fang was styled Zihui. He was a passionate man with a sense of duty and ambition, and he waded through and absorbed all the Histories and Annals. He was exceptionally talented and zealous, and those in his district who knew him all sighed in admiration of how much he stood out. Yet he never held office, because there was no one able to recommend him.

When Sima Jiong held power over the government and abused his authority, Zheng Fang was so moved with indignation that he set out by foot to visit Luoyang. Styling himself a wanderer from Jing and Chu, he presented a letter to Sima Jiong.

"I have heard that when the sage and wise steer the affairs of the age, day and night they are always careful and cautious, nor do they get carried away in their joy. Thus do they preserve and defend their honor. Yet you, Great Prince, are currently relaxed and not thinking of any danger, sinking into the depravity of wine and sensual pleasures and overindulging yourself in feasting and music; this is your first fault. You ought to be as respectful to the realm as the pure wind, and there should not be the slightest distance between yourself and your kinfolk and your flesh and blood, yet there currently is; this is your second fault. The barbarians are pressing in from every side and the borders are unstable, yet you consider that you have already accomplished enough and you take no notice of these things; this is your third fault. When you launched your uprising, all the people rushed to your banner, yet although there is now peace in the realm, the people continue to suffer endlessly, and I have heard nothing of any orders from you on how their burdens might be lifted; this is your fourth fault. And you made a covenant with blood-smeared lips and pledged to those that supported you in your uprising that after things had been completed, rewards would not be slow in coming, yet although the evil has already been purged, there have been no discussions of merit or distributions of rewards; you have eaten your words, and this is your fifth fault.

"Great Prince, you have achieved uncommon deeds, and you now occupy the role of chief minister of the state. Yet you allow slander and rumor to swirl around you and you do nothing while people bear anger and hatred against you. Though it be rash and foolish of me, still I would risk death to demonstrate my sincerity to you."

Sima Jiong bit his tongue and only responded, "I had no idea of my five shortcomings. If not for you, Sir, I would never have heard of them."

It was not long before Sima Jiong was destroyed.

史臣曰：冏名父之子，唱義勤王，摧偽業于既成，拯皇輿於已墜，策勳考績，良足可稱。然而臨禍忘憂，逞心縱欲，曾不知樂不可極，盈難久持，笑古人之未工，忘己事之已拙。向若采王豹之奇策，納孫惠之嘉謀，高謝袞章，永表東海，雖古之伊、霍，何以加焉！

The Historian's Appraisal: Sima Jiong was the son of a famous father, he sounded the call to rise up and rallied the Princes to his banner, he smashed Sima Lun's false designs and kept them from fruition, and he rescued Emperor Hui from falling into oblivion. Truly his actions and deeds were excellent and worthy of praise. Yet afterwards, when he himself stood at the brink of destruction, he failed to heed the danger, but only indulged his heart's desires and did whatever he wished. Did he not know that pleasure cannot go unbridled, or a host of difficulties left unchecked? Was it not ironic that he mocked the ancients who never finished their work, not realizing that his own achievements had been undone? If only he had plucked out the fine plan offered by Wang Bao or accepted the good advice provided by Sun Hui, by magnanimously yielding his imperial splendor at the capital and going out to his fief on the Eastern Sea, where his lineage might have endured! If he had done that, could even Yi Yin or Huo Guang have surpassed him?

贊曰：偉哉武閔！首創宏謨。德之不建，良可悲夫！

Crown Prince Li Xian of Tang's Appraisal:

Pity the magnificent Prince Wumin!

His deeds were bold, his plans so keen!

Alas, his virtues he did not keep

And thus for this good man we weep.

#Sima Jiong #Eight Princes #War of the Eight Princes #Book of Jin #Jinshu #Jin Dynasty #Western Jin #Chinese History #China

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aion-rsa · 4 years ago

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Mulan And The Chinese Women Warriors of History and Legend

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While American audiences know the story of Mulan through the 1998 animated Disney film and the upcoming live-action reboot, they may not know that the films are based on a Chinese legend. Hua Mulan is a legendary figure whose story was first told in “Ballad of Mulan,” a folksong first transcribed in the 6th century. In the legend, Mulan is a girl who disguises herself as a man and goes to war in place of her father. Mulan fights for many years as part of the army and, after earning much honor and gifts from the emperor, returns home to her family. Only then does she reveal her gender identity.

While Mulan may be the most familiar of woman Chinese warriors (at least to American audiences), she’s only one in a rich history of historical and legendary female heroes in Chinese history. With the live-action adaptation of Mulan releasing on Disney+ this Friday, here are some of the highlights you might encounter when brushing up on your Chinese legends and history—figures who perhaps warrant their own feature film adaptation…

Xun Guan

At thirteen, Xun Guan was already an accomplished martial artist and tactician. Her father, Xun Song, was the governor of Xianyang in the late 200s A.D. One night, when the castle was under siege, Xun Song was ready to lead a force against the opposing soldiers. Convinced that her father leaving the castle would be bad for morale, she proposed that instead she lead a group of elite soldiers out to defeat the enemy. Even though she was only thirteen, Xun Gun had her father’s trust, and he sent her out. Once outside the walls, Xun Guan immediately spotted a weak spot in the enemy’s position, and she and her troops were triumphant against them, successfully allowing the castle to hold out until more reinforcements could arrive.

Pingyang

During much of Pingyang’s lifetime in the early 600s, the emperor, Yangdi, was incompetent, greedy, and vain—he’s become a villain of Chinese history. Pingyang was the daughter of military commander Li Yuan, and became the wife of Chai Shao, the leader of Yangdi’s palace guard. Yangdi decided that Li Yuan was just too good at his job, so he trumped up false charges and had Li Yuan arrested, only to realize that Li Yuan was the only person who could protect Yangdi from people who actually were plotting against him. Yangdi released Li Yuan, but the damage was done: now Li Yuan wanted Yangdi dead, as well. As Li Yuan rebelled, Chai Shao and Pingyang had to decide how both of them could safely support her father; Chai Shao left first to openly join Li Yuan’s rebellion, and Pingyang later escaped on her own, braving the danger because she was confident she could hide in plain sight.

She journeyed back to her family’s lands and threw open the larders, endearing the people to her and recruiting the first members of what would become known as the Army of the Lady, or the Woman’s Army. As the war continued, Pingyang made alliances and built an army 70,000 strong, keeping them all under a strict code of conduct the prohibited looting, raping, and pillaging. Where the army went, they brought food with them to feed the locals, so they were greeted as liberators. Yangdi dismissed Pingyang as a threat (she was just a woman, after all!), until it was far too late; her forces were unhindered by Yangdi’s troops, and they joined up with Li Yuan and Chai Shao for the final attack on the capital—and, in their victory, the establishment of the Tang Dynasty.

Wu Zetian

In the late 600s, China had a woman emperor. Depending on which historical records you read (the sources tend to be very biased against or very biased toward the empress), she lied, cheated, and murdered her way to the throne—and did more of the same to stay there. She started her imperial career as the favorite concubine of Emperor Taizong. When he died, she married his son, the new emperor, Gaozong. Some sources imply that a romance was going on long before the old emperor’s death; others suggest she was so good at courtly intrigue that Gaozong kept her by his side and ruled equally with her, relying on her political savvy. After Gaozong’s death, their children were in line for the throne; Wu poisoned the eldest, exiled the second, and had plans to manipulate the third and continue to rule. When that son showed too much backbone (and made too many other courtiers angry), she had him deposed, replaced him with his younger brother, and then eventually deposed that child, too, taking on the mantle of rule for herself. Though her rule as emperor was short, she made a number of state improvements in religion, literature, and education—and some historians credit those changes with still having an influence on modern Chinese scholarship.

Liang Hongyu

Although she started her career as a musician, Liang Hongyu ended up using her instrumental skills for a more military purpose. She is said to have met her husband, military officer Han Shizhong, when she was performing as a singer and drummer for his troop. They married in 1121, and she later fought by his side as the army pushed back an invasion by the Huns. The drumming comes in because, during that era, commands were sent to different units in the military through flags and drum signaling. Her drummed orders (and the strategy she came up with) are credited with leading a group of only 8,000 soldiers to victory against a force of 100,000 Hun warriors.

Qin Liangyu

Fighting against the Manchus was a family experience for Qin Liangyu, who went to war alongside her brothers in the early 1600s. When the Manchus—from beyond the Great Wall—threatened Beijing, Qin Liangyu led troops from Sichuan to defend the capital. But there were also rebel forces within the Ming Dynasty, and Qin Liangyu fought against them as well, alongside her son, Ma Xianglin. There’s not just one story of Qin Liangyu’s successes; she fought so many successful campaigns that the Chongzhen Emperor appointed her Crown Prince’s Guardian and a title equivalent to marquis. When the Ming Dynasty fell during Qin Liangyu’s later years, she remained in control of an area of Sichuan, where she helped settle 100,000.

Wu Mei

Women in martial arts are common enough in modern schools (and modern film), but they’ve been around much longer! In fact, the founder of the famous kung fu style Wing Chun was one of the legendary five elders of Shaolin Martial Arts, was a woman. Buddhist nun Wu Mei (also known as Ng Mui) survived the destruction of the Shaolin Temple of Dengfeng during the Qing Dynasty. The shaolin practitioners had been accused of anti-Qing activities, and the army went to destroy them for it. In the bloody battle that followed, only the five known as the five elders survived. They’re credited with spreading martial arts across China, and Wu was said to have invented some of the most important styles. Her Wing Chun is possibly the best known of these, named after Wu’s first student—also a woman—Yim Wing Chun.

Ching Shih

In the early 1800s, when the Golden Age of piracy had already faded in the Caribbean, a pirate queen was sailing her fleet, commanding as many as 80,000 outlaws (sources differ), in the South China Sea. History has forgotten her birth name—Ching Shih translates to “widow of Ching”—but not her amazing deeds, which have put her down in the history books as one of the most successful pirates in history. Ching Shih worked as a prostitute until she married the notorious pirate Cheng I (who was reportedly impressed with her shrewd business sense), who had united different factions of pirates into his Red Flag Fleet.

Legends say that she required half the fleet to belong to her as a condition of the marriage, and when Cheng I died six years later, she took control of the entire fleet. She kept order by enforcing a strict pirate code, and though the Qing dynasty officials, Portuguese Navy, and the East India Company all tried to defeat the fleet, she ruled the waves, only ending her piratical activities when she was offered amnesty from the Chinese government. She lived until she was 69, and she’s the inspiration behind Mistress Ching, one of the Pirate Lords in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

Yu Shu Lien and Jen Yu

These two are completely fictional, but as far as pop culture goes, these women warriors cannot be left out. In the film Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Jen Yu (played by Zhang Ziyi) is a teenager and an amazing martial artist who has been secretly trained by the villainous Jade Fox, under the nose of Jen’s father, the governor. Yu Shu Lien (played by Michelle Yoeh) owns and runs a private security company; she’s close friends with Li Mu Bai, and she agrees to go with him to take his sword, the Green Destiny, as a gift to a benefactor. When the Green Destiny is stolen, they track it to Governor Yu’s mansion. Eventually, Jen Yu is discovered as the thief, but her youth and talent make both Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien sympathetic to her, even after they realize she’s been taught by Li Mu Bai’s enemy, Jade Fox. Later in the film, Yu Shu Lien tries to teach Jen Yu a lesson, and the two have one of the best choreographed multi-weapon epic martial arts movie fights in the history of martial arts movies.

Aero

Another fictional Chinese hero is Aero, Marvel’s manhua series star. When she’s not being a superhero, Lei Ling is an architect in Beijing. When the monsters start coming, however, she takes to the sky as Aero, the protector of her city. Using powers of manipulating winds and air currents, she struggles with the destruction caused by supervillains, because her passion is for building and creating, not for seeing things torn down. The character was first introduced in the Agents of Atlas comic, but she started starring in her own ongoing comic series in 2019. It’s too much to hope that we’ll get a hint of her in the MCU’s upcoming Shang Chi, but the ongoing series, written by Zhou Liefen with stories by Alyssa Wong and Greg Pak, and art by Keng and Pop Mhan, is definitely worth picking up.

Honorable Mention: Cassandra Cain

I didn’t know this when I watched Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), but Cassandra Cain—the thief kid who swallows the film’s macguffin—has a long and awesome history in DC comics. She’s a first generation Chinese American; her mother, Lady Shiva, is a dangerous assassin who fled from her village, and her father, David Cain, is one of Ra’s al Ghul’s henchmen. It’s not a love match—he blackmails her into having his child, and then he raises Cassandra to be the perfect assassin and bodyguard. But when she was just eight years old, her empathy made her reject a path of killing, and she ends up in Gotham, where she saves Commissioner Gordon’s life and becomes Batgirl. In fact, Cassandra Cain was the first Batgirl to have her own standalone series run (in 2000). Eventually, after a series of twists and turns, she takes a gig working as one of the global team of Batmen as the Black Bat, where she fights crime in Hong Kong. It’s hard to imagine the Birds of Prey version matching up, but I’d love to see that character in more DC movies!

Mulan premieres on Disney+ on September 4th. Find out how and when you can access it here.

The post Mulan And The Chinese Women Warriors of History and Legend appeared first on Den of Geek.

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captainfangirlll · 5 years ago

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Daenerys book vs Daenerys show

Book: Daenerys has purple eyes and silver hair.

Show: Daenerys has green eyes and blonde hair.

Book: Daenerys is 14 years old in the books and Khal Drogo is (according to Danys perspective) like 23.

Show: The age gap between Drogo and Daenerys is not that big, but still he looks older than her.

Book: Daenerys assumes she’s gonna marry Viserys at some point for Targaryens traditions

Show: This is never mentioned

Books: The first time Daenerys burns and her dragons born she is naked and her hair burns so she stays bald.

Show: Daenerys hair doesn’t burn.

Book: Many Daenerys' followers died, including her maid Doreah

Show: Doreah betrays Daenerys with Xaro Xhoan Daxos

Book: Three emissaries from Qarth come to invite her to the city.

Show: People in Quarth didn’t want Daenerys in the city Xaro invokes the ancient custom of Sumai to allow her and her people to be admitted under his protection

Book: Xaro Xhoan Daxos invites Daenerys to be a guest at his manse and repeatedly asks her to marry him. She realizes that he does not physically desire her and that he only wants her dragons. The custom of Qarth is that after marriage each one has the right to ask one thing of the other. Eventually he tires of her refusals and politely tells her to leave his manse.

Daenerys is told to come to the House of the Undying to seek counsel from the warlocks, as their visions would reveal her future, but instead of aiding her they try to imprison her there. Fortunately, she has brought Drogon with her, and he sets fire on the ancient undead warlocks and burns the place to the ground.

Pyat Pree the warlock who had brought her is furious and vows revenge. Luckily, Magister Ilyrio had despatched three ships to find her with one of his finest warriors Strong Belwas, a mighty warrior-eunuch, and his Squire Arstan Whitebeard of Westeros. They are to escort her back to Pentos. Daenerys however never does what is expected. She decides to take the ships to slaver's Bay to buy herself an army.

Show: Xaro welcomes Daenerys to the city and makes her a guest, but her dragons are stolen by the warlock in the House of the Undying. Daenerys later escapes after retrieving her dragons and with her men invades Xaro's house where she finds Xaro in bed with Doreah, revealing that she had in fact betrayed Daenerys and her dragons to Xaro and Pyat Pree she locked them inside the merchant prince's vault to die, she and her people ransack Xaro's house of all its gold and precious items.

Book: Ser Barristan doesn’t tell Daenerys his identity he pass himself as man called Arstan Whitebeard and in Meeren Daenerys find out. Furious, she gave him and Jorah a mission to prove their newly-proclaimed loyalty.

Show: Daenerys always know Ser Barristan identity.

Book: Daenerys is visited by Quaithe of the Shadow, who warns her of the others descending on her: "Soon comes the pale mare, and after her the others. Kraken and dark flame, lion and griffin, the sun's son and the mummer's dragon."

Show: This prophecy is not mentioned.

Book: Daenerys problem in Meeren is not only The son of the harpy but, the "pale mare" that is a literal horse, carrying a refugee from Astapor. He too brings a gift: plague; by coincidence or not, those who contract it are said to be "riding the pale mare." It ravages not only the Meereenese but the armies of Yunkish slaves and sellsword companies.

Show: The only problem Daenerys has in Meeren are the songs of the harpy and rebel citizens.

Book: In the reopen of fighting pits in Meereen Drogon is attracted by the noise and chaos. Daenerys leaps into Drogon's back and the two fly away, leaving Meereen largely in the hands of Ser Barristan Selmy (who is not dead in books) not Tyrion who in books she haven’t meet yet.

Show: Daenerys is attacked but The sons of the Harpy in the fighting pits, but Drogon saves all and she flies away with him leaving Tyrion in charge because Ser Barristan is death.

Book: The final chapter (aside from the epilogue) is Daenerys's, as she attempts to return on foot to Meereen from a hill in the southern reaches of the Dothraki sea, which Drogon has taken for his haunt, only to be encountered by the khalasar of Khal Jhaqo as the novel ends.

Show: Drogon takes Daenerys in the Dothraki sea, and she is captured by them, that’s the end of season 5 and we all know what happens next.

Book: Tyrion Lannister is smuggled to Pentos with the help of Varys and left in the care of Illyrio Mopatis, supporter of Daenerys Targaryen. Tyrion decides to offer his services to her, and makes the journey in the company of a tall taciturn knight, "Griff," and his son "Young Griff." Tyrion takes note of the care with which Young Griff is tutored, as well as his coloring, and deduces that the boy is actually Aegon Targaryen, long-believed-dead son of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia of Dorne;Jorah kidnaps him as a prize to win his way back into Daenerys's graces. Unfortunately the Selaesori Qhoran, the ship Mormont hires to take them to Volantis, is waylaid by slavers, and he, Tyrion and Penny are sold at markets in the shadow of Meereen, claiming to be an entertainment act. From there, Tyrion sneaks his way to the camp of the Second Sons, led by Brown Ben Plumm, and pledges his sword to them as another step in getting closer to Daenerys.

Show: There is not an Aegon Targaryen and we never see Illyrion again, Jorah takes Tyrion to Daenerys and he serves her until (almost) the end.

OTHER DIFFERENCES

Book: The kraken, Victarion Greyjoy (Eurons brother), Captain of the Iron Fleet, has sail his forces east towards Meereen to serve Daenerys.

Show: Victarion doesn’t exist in the books.

Books: Prince Quentyn Martell, eldest son of Prince Doran Martell of Sunspear, is traveling east as well. He has a parchment signed by Ser Willem Darry many years ago, establishing that his elder sister Arianne Martell is to wed Prince Viserys Targaryen when he comes of age; it is Prince Doran's wish that Quentyn and Daenerys stand in place of their deceased elder siblings in this matter. Alas, he arrives too late, finding Dany about to enter into a political marriage (see below), and is then left in a bad position when her new husband tries to have her poisoned—a tactic notorious to Quentyn's uncle Oberyn Martell. In a last-ditch effort to prove his worth, Quentyn visits Dany's two dragons, Viserion and Rhaegal, and attempts to tame them. He dies of his burns three days later.

Show: Quentyn doesn’t exist in the show.

Book: Ser Barristan is a loyal servant to Daenerys and their relationship is deeper than the show, she names him the Lord Commander of her Queensguard and gives him new gold-and-silver armor.

When Drogon begins attacking people in Daznak's Pit, Barristan tries to protect Daenerys by drawing the dragon's attention to himself.

Show: Daenerys and Barristan relationship and his loyalty to her isn’t that explorer in show because he dies by the Son of The Harpy.

Books: Missandei is 10 years okd in books so her relationship with Daenerys more of protectiveness from Daenerys part.

Show: Missandei and Daenera are arround same age and they are best friends.

MY THEORIES

There is a lot of significant changes in Daenerys history from the books, so I think she will reunite with Tyrion like in the show, we don’t what will happen with Victorion is very possible he takes Yaras roll and give Daenerys the ships to go to Westeros.

At the moment she is with the Dothrakis amd we don’t know how she is gonna escape.

Aegon Targaryen is also a thing and theres a lot of theoriea that he is gonna be the one who cause Daenerys craziness and not Jon.

Personally I think Aegon will arrive first to Westeros and he will take KL, in books he he suggests attacking Westeros and go for it, establishing a beachhead which Daenerys can later reinforce. He too seeks Daenerys's hand, and too is keenly aware that he must have something worthwhile to offer her besides his own bloodline as her nephew, in a revelead chapter of Winds of Winter shows Aegon is already in Dragonstone.

My theory is that we will see a war between Daenerys and Aegon before a war between Cersei and Daenerys. Or Daenerys will go North to help Jon and after she will fight against Aegon for the throne.

• I don’t know how is gonna be her relationship with the Stark, I think Jonerys will be a thing in books aswell, maybe her relationship with Arya will be better since they both are alike and the two favorite female George characters.

• Missandei and Greyworm aren’t a couple in books so I don’t think Missaned death will be crucial in Daenerys journey.

• There is a possibility one of Daenerys dragons become and ice dragon but not in the way that happened in the show. Maybe with the Joramun's horn, which is a legendary horn with magical properties, This horn is mentioned by Ygritte and Free folk believe that blowing the horn can bring down the Wall awakes Dragons and more.

So we actually don’t know how is gonna be Daenerys descent to madness in the books or if is she will become mad at all. She still have Ser Barristan, Jorah, Missandei, the unsullied and her three dragons.

Is very possible she will meet Jon but she have to deel with Aegon first, in books Jon Targaryen blood isn’t confirmed yet.

Personally I believe she will fall in love with Jon like in the show, collaborate in the long night and become mad at the end. Also I believe Jon will kill her too, but George will writte the plot very different and with logic so we have to wait, there’s gonna be HUGE differences.

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lendmyboyfriendahand · 6 years ago

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Amrodnor

Amrod was on the ships, but when he saw Feanor approaching with a torch, he jumped.

He swam to shore. He figured is his family was going to kill him, he might as well leave - the plan had been to go back to his mother, but that was no longer possible.

He ran into a group of Nandor, and joined their community.

His old names didn't fit – he’s no longer the smallest Finwe, having rejected his house. He keeps half his name, and instead of Doomed or Upwards-Exalted, he becomes Exalted-by-Fire; the burning of the ships was what gave him the strength to turn from an evil path.

It takes him a bit to decide on this, dramatic Finwean he is, and in the meantime the Nandor called him Bright Eyes, for the Treelight reflected in his gaze. He says this is a more appropriate name for a horse than a person, and they compromise on calling him Star Bright

So Amrod hangs out is southwest Beleriand, avoiding Sindar and Orcs and Noldor and Men alike for over four hundred years.

The Bragollach, the Nirnaeth; Beleriand isn't safe.

The Nandor decide to go east across the mountains. Amrod decides to see how the Noldor are doing - despite himself, he hopes his brothers are okay. He finds Nargothrond.

He says he is Rodnor Gil-Galad, called in his youth after his hair.

Orodreth doesn't recognize him - Orodreth is young, born after the division between their families was already stark. Orodreth rarely saw Amrod in Tirion, and everyone saying he looks just like Amras means the brown hair throws him.

Celebrimbor does recognize him.

"What are you doing here?" "I'm trying to avoid our family!" "I thought you were dead!" "Don't you dare tell anyone you met me!" - excerpts from the whispered confrontation in Celebrimbor's workroom

Eventually they agree that yes, Feanorians are terrible and blindly loyal, and they're both glad to be out of it.

They spend time together, a bit, more as escapees from the same cult than out of a desire to reminisce about Tirion.

Celebrimbor accidentally mentions Fingon as if they both know him in public. People ask how Gil-Galad knew him. He fumbles and says they're related. Later he slips and says Celegorm “turned out to be the family disappointment after all.” That makes him pretty obviously Finwean, though he still doesn’t admit who.

Someone tries to draw him out, and spends a whole conversation deliberately referring to Maglor Feanorian, Fingon Fingolfinion, and Finrod Finarfinion.

Rodnor eventually says, “By that manner I suppose I’m Gil-Galad Erenion.” This shuts up the first guy for a moment, but people start speculating how he can be the descendant of multiple kings – did Thingol have any other kids?

Turin arrives; Rodnor has no opinion of him or of men in general, and no official seat on Orodreth’s council. When the dragon kills Orodreth and kidnaps Findulias, Rodnor leads the survivors away to the south. He feels bad about abandoning them, but the number of soldiers they ‘d lose rescuing her is too high, and just because a life is royal (or family) doesn’t mean it’s more valuable. (Feanor burned a prince, his son, as easily as he killed fishermen.)

His opinion on royalty isn’t widely held though. The people of Nargothrond have decided he is Orodreth’s heir and started calling him Lord Erenion. He declares that Cirdan is lord of the Falas, which gets people to at least decide bring some of their issues elsewhere, and tries not to stress about the details.

So Rodnor is in charge of the Noldor in Sirion. Galadriel is in Doriath. They do meet when it falls, but only for a few hours as the Iathrim refugees settle in, and she speaks more with Cirdan than with him. He tells her of the Nandor tribe he was with and their plans for the journey, and off she goes to the East.

After the council is over and every newcomer has a bed, Rodnor goes to Celebrimbor. They mourn privately those who neither of them dare speak of publically. Rodnor is back in his own rooms long before morning. He spends the next few weeks solemn, but everyone is gloomy after news of another kinslaying.

Gondolin falls. There are suddenly a lot more Noldor in Sirion. Pretty soon they're calling him King. He considers telling them it's not true, that the succession hasn't come to him yet.

On the other hand, having a leader be whoever happens to be the son of the previous leader is kind of silly. The Sindar tribe he was with acknowledged Elwe, but not Dior. Your leader was whoever you trusted to do right by the community. When Denethor died, his son took interim authority, and then they all met and discussed it and decided that actually Enellas knew how to manage people better, and so Denethor’s son stepped down.

If Rodnor squints, this is the same. At the very least, if the Nargothrondrim hated him one of them would have proposed crowning the ten-year-old Eärendil instead. So King Gil-Galad takes up the throne.

He was on Balar when the attack came. He told himself later he couldn't have stopped it, couldn't have helped. He could guess by how much more enchantingly beautiful the Silmaril around Elwing's neck seemed, that his brothers would attack soon, but not the month or day. And she was a queen, he could not order her to hand over the jewel. So all he did was warn her, not tell her his birth name, or leap across the council table and pull it off her throat. He could not have known there was no time to wait for Eärendil’s return. He had not set a watch on the island towards the city, but he had no reason to.

He did not want to kill his brothers, but he was a king and he could not let that make his decisions.

He can't stop himself from crying when he sees Amras's body. The Feanorians had tried to make a pyre, but must have left with it still burning and the wet sea wind had extinguished it, and the wood had barely caught.

"Relight the pyres."

"Your Majesty?"

"For the dead Feanorians, relight them."

"But they're murderers! They showed no such respect to us." Indeed, the city is still littered with the corpses of Noldor, Men, and Sindar alike.

"And we are better than they are. We will bury our dead, with a week of singing and lamenting, and tales of their deeds told by friends and kin. We will mark our people’s graves, and the Men will leave grave goods on theirs. And we will not leave the enemy dead to rot where they lie or be eaten by beasts, though they showed us not that respect." He sighed. "We have not fallen as they have, and we must hold onto that."

"Yes, your majesty"

"Have someone take a census of those who are left. And lists of the dead – ours and theirs." He needs to know how strong the rogue army was. If it is now leaderless, he would... he isn't sure. He wouldn’t have to declare a feast for victory over the Kinslayers, they'd lost enough of their own. But some kind of amnesty, with reparations, if any Feanorian soldiers wanted to rejoin... He thinks of the abstract plans now, while he is unsure, because he knows he'll barely be able to keep together if Maedhros and Maglor are dead and he is alone. (Three died last time.)

His eldest brothers are not among the dead invaders.

Lady Elwing and her sons are not found, either dead or living. Gil-Galad knows that his brothers would have no interest in taking her prisoner, for if she was under their power they could rip their glorious, wonderful jewel from her neck and cast her aside like so much wrapping. So he assumes that instead Elwing got away somehow, taking her sons with her. Whether the Feanorians have the jewel or she does is unimportant, he reminds himself, at least unless she returns. He decides then that Balar will never house the Silmaril – he'll bury it beneath the mountains with his own two hands if that's what it takes. His people deserve one place, just one, that isn't destroyed around them. Please Valar, grant them this, for Cirdan's sake if for none of the Noldor.

Ships come one day out of the West. King Finarfin leads them, and Eärendil is with them. Eärendil says that his wife Elwing escaped, but not the boys. (Eärendil is politely told he must either take off the necklace, stay on his ship, or go to the mainland.)

Gil-Galad realizes where they must be. It's hardly fair, but he knows at least they're being treated as well as can be. Maedhros and Maglor did alright by the five of them, and have never been cruel to children.

No one else seems so optimistic, though they are willing to believe that the boys are alive, even after seven years, simply to avoid believing the alternative. Gil-Galad and Finarfin cooperate to get a letter and a messenger (a newly arrived Noldo) that will be demanding but – hopefully – not provoke violence.

It takes two years more, with messengers from both parties expressing grave concern for the boys’ safety on a journey and reluctant to meet the other too close, but Elros and Elrond are returned. They meet Eärendil again, but he is on the front lines and so they spend most of their time in the camp. Gil-Galad has them sit in on strategy meetings to keep them occupied.

The war is over, Morgoth is defeated, and the Noldor are allowed to return.

Gil-Galad finds he doesn’t want to.

Returning had been as much about getting out of Feanor’s shadow as finding safety, and he realizes he has done the first and the second is near at hand. If he goes back to Tirion, he will be again Pityafinwe, one of Feanor’s youngest sons, half of the twins with a missing twin. The child so redundant his own mother had known so, and asked Feanor to leave her one of the youngest without care for which. Pityafinwe had led no armies, fought no battles, earned no praise. Pityafinwe killed Teleri and was murdered by his father, and did nothing else.

Sure, he could try to be both, admit he was Pityafinwe to start with, but no one will understand. The will see him as the usurper of the crown that should have gone to – Eärendil perhaps? and then Elros? or Galadriel? Maybe they’ll weigh his victories in battle against his theft of the crown, and say they make up for it, but maybe they’ll say anyone could have done them, or he should have done them as a general in the real King’s army. So he’d be Pityafinwe, who pretended to be a king for a bit but understands now that it’s not his place, and that his place is to be the sixth-born son of the (dead, disgraced) Crown Prince.

Besides, they’re making the ‘leaders’ apologize for leaving, and Gil-Galad spent enough years wandering Beleriand safe behind Noldorin fortresses he can’t really be sorry they came.

Gil-Galad does write a letter though, to the Lady Nerdanel, his mother. He tells people that it’s commendations for her grandson’s valor, and assurance that Celebrimbor will be regarded on his own merits in the Age to come. The letter does contain those, but it also contains “You were half right about my mother-name; I was fated to die but leapt out of Fate’s way.” It’s rather blasphemous, but Gil-Galad isn’t going to be setting foot near the Valar again.

ao3

#silmarillion #amrod #Gil Galad #The Silmarillion #silm #My fic #gil galad son of plot hole #amrodnor

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darealmangakitsunever2 · 3 years ago

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After passing through, he became Ao Fan, the eldest prince of the East China Sea Dragon Palace, inherited the East China Sea Dragon Palace and became the new generation of East China Sea Dragon King. At the time of the crisis, Zhuo Fan found that he had turned on the system and could add something to everything! “God blocks and kills the gods, meets the ghosts and beats the ghosts. Whoever refuses to accept, kill them!” Lead the declining dragon clan to rise, fight for hegemony and confine the gods!

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caitlinsmithfmp2 · 4 years ago

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A Song of Ice and Fire

Best know for being the series “Game of Thrones” is based off of, this series was written by American fantasy novelist and screenwriter George. R. R Martin. First published in 1996, “A Song of Ice and Fire” is set on the fictional continents of Westeros and Essos in a very fantasy esc world that contains magic, dragons and more. Despite this, it was praised for its realistic aspects in such a fantasy themed world, showing that actions have consequences, morals are not always the character interest, and that death is inevitable. It is best known for being the start of the “Game of Thrones” world and the now extremely popular series is caught up to the upcoming books, the show is loosely based off of the books but follows a similar premise.

The first book in the series follows a three part story, the first part shows the rise of the “King of the North”, its new leaders proclaiming that the North is now independent from the rest of the realm. The second part introduces us to a giant wall of ice, stone and magic that now guards the North from the rest of the realm. The final and most important (and interesting/reasonable) part shows a kingdom across the “Narrow Sea” to the East of Westeros, previous rulers of the kingdom, exiled prince Viserys and princess Daenerys. Engaged to be married in order to retake their kingdom, Daenerys is gifted three petrified dragon eggs as a wedding gift and feeling although they are special, keep them close to her at all times. Although she is engaged her suitor refuses aid for her brother and ends up killing him, after Daenerys is almost assassinated her suitor finally decides that they need to take back Westeros. The battle leaves him near dead but they take back the kingdom and Daenerys smothers her groom as revenge for him killing her brother. At her brothers funeral she places the dragon eggs into the pyre and eventually walks in herself due to her sorrow, despite this she emerges unharmed and now has three hatched dragons, the first seen in thousands of years. Drogon is Daenerys’ personal mount, a red and black dragon. He’s named after her suitor who's death ultimately triggered the Game of Thrones dragons’ birth. Rhaegal, a green and bronze dragon, takes his name from Rhaegar, Daenerys’s eldest brother who died before she was born. Viserion, a gold and cream dragon, named for Viserys, Dany’s other sibling who met his end at the hands of her suitor. All around her swear their allegiance to her and she becomes the queen of the kingdom. This is where the first book ends, the series follows a similar plot line and ends in the same way.

I have never read or watched “Game of Thrones”, overall the idea is very complex, making it hard to explain as you likely have to start from the first book or episode in order for it to make sense. I mainly researched it due to the dragon aspects of it but this is not exactly fully focused on the creatures all the time. I’m not really sure if the role they play in the series is important, however when the dragons are featured in it, they look very cool and realistic, however more scary then intelligent. I’m not really sure why the series is so hyped up, I might missing something but some of its grimier aspects just aren't for me.

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hopelesswanderer1789 · 5 years ago

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4th Dornish War

It was late in the day and the sun was starting to set as lord Boremund Baratheon looked out over Cape Wrath, before him the Dornish fleet was preparing to make landfall. The sea was covered by hundreds of ships, from troop transports to great war galleys carrying the colours of Dorne. Several great warships stood out by their brightly coloured sails and banners, all the lords of Dorne were at sea: Jordayne, Yronwood, Qorgyle and many more, but above them all rose the great banner of the prince of Dorne. Prince Morion Martell had come for war and besides his lords he had also brought a host of sellsails from across the Narrow Sea. Dorne had been slighted and the young prince came North to these rocky shores for blood. The Stormlord was anxious, the Dornish forces outnumbered him three to one. He could have waited longer and gathered more men but then the orders from King’s Landing came, march to Cape Wrath to meet the Dornish with whatever forces he had and march quickly. And so lord Boremund had marched his 7.000 men out of Storm’s End to meet the enemy in the field. After a forced march of several days the men of Storm’s End stood arrayed on the shores of Cape Wrath, the great yellow banners of house Baratheon above them flailing in the wind. ‘The landing that’s where we get them, the landing, they can’t get a beachhead.’ The Stormlord murmured to himself. The entire battle would depend on the Dornish securing a beachhead to allow reinforcements in, get a secure beachhead and prince Morion could bring the might of his numbers to bear. On the Dornish flagship the prince was thinking the same and to those ends selected the van. He would be in the first wave, leading from the front. He would take the Uller and Yronwood men with him in the first attack. Men started to climb down ladders into the rowing boats which would take them to the shore. The prince stood on the quarterdeck overseeing his men filing down the ladders, a confident grin nearing arrogance appeared on his lips as he turned and looked to the shore with eyes like a predator about to pounce on its prey. He beckoned for a servant to give him his helmet and as he took it the air was pierced by a shrill shriek and a roar that echoed through the sky. The prince looked up at the sky and to his terror he saw what beast had made the noise. Lord Boremund opened his visor and gawped at the sight before him, the king had come and he was not alone. They came diving down, three of them the sun at their backs. King Jaehaerys dove down, the light of the dying sun glistening on Vermithor’s bronze scales. Beside him were his eldest sons Aemon and Baelon both riding their own dragons, Aemon on Caraxes and Baelon on Vhagar the great dragon ridden by Aegon’s sister Visenya during the conquest, a colossal beast. The three men and their dragons plunged to the earth, Vhagar was the first to pull up and unleash her fiery breath on the Dornish ships. Panic struck in the Dornish ranks, the prince was desperately shouting orders. Men we’re running to ballista’s and scorpions trying to get a fighting chance. Archers sent their arrows flying knowing they could do nothing but finding solace in action. Caraxes swooped down and lifted a rowboat full Uller men out of the water only to drop it 50 feet later. Vermithor the Bronze Fury unleashed a firestorm on every ship unlucky enough to be in his path. All around ships were burning and men were screaming out of pain and hopelessness, some braves manned the scorpions and tried to fend off their attackers. Aemon veered Caraxes away as a salvo of ballista darts shot past them, merely missing the red dragon. Aemon turned her around and flew head first towards the ships which had just fired at them as Caraxes unleashed a terrifying roar and set the ships alight. Baelon steered Vhagar over a cluster of Yronwood ships gripping one with her claws and ripping it apart as she sprayed fire over the others. On the shore the men of Storm’s End could do nothing but stare at the sheer destructive powers displayed before them, the Dornish didn’t stand a chance. As the ship to his right burst out in flames prince Morion shouted desperately for his men to rally. The rowboats were filled with men making a mad dash to the shore preferring to take their chances with the Baratheon host. Men jumped into the water many unable to swim but trying to stay afloat and make their way to land. Captains on the surrounding ships were trying to get a hold on their men to steer the ships away hoping that they could still escape. The prince saw half a dozen sellsails steering away to the East seeming to make a succesfull escape until he looked up and saw Caraxes break away to hunt down the escapees. He saw Vhagar hovering above a score of troop transports raining down fire as he turned towards a mighty roar, Vermithor was coming straight for his flagship. The king had spotted the great Dornish banner from the corner of his eyes and had steered his dragon to head for the Dornish princeling. Morion drew his sword and ran to the bow roaring his defiance, the great dragon was closing in. As the prince ran to the front he could see the dragon opening his mouth and he could see the light of the fire about to engulf his ship. The words were circling through his head: ‘unbowed, unbent, unbroken.’ He kept running, he did not know what to do against this great dragon with but a sword, but with the foolish bravery of his young years spurring him on he knew he had to face his enemy. Once he climbed up to the forecastle he could go no further, he stood there sword in hand seeing the king approaching being able to make out the silver hair and the black and red armour of his attacker. Looking into the dark eyes of the bronze dragon quickly drawing nearer. He dropped his sword as the dread took over and he stood there frozen as he and his ship were swallowed by the fires. Sunset had turned into night though to any onlooking eye there was no difference but the disappearance of the sun. the flames of the Dornish fleet lit up the night brightened by sporadic bursts of fire as one of the dragons found another victim. From the shore the Baratheon men could hear the screams and wails from the dying survivors of the slaughter which were occasionally drowned out by the roar of a dragon. Lord Boremund Baratheon looked out on the fiery seas. He thought he might die today, perished at the hands of a Dornishman, but by day’s end it were the Dornish who were slaughtered and not one men of Storm’s End had lifted a sword. He knew his house words boasted about the fury of a Baratheon, but this night he knew that his fury or that of his ancestors wasn’t the one to be feared the most. That would be the fury of the dragonkings, for Dorne wanted revenge but all they got in the end was fire and blood.

#got #4th Dornish war

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thekingsmanscycle · 7 years ago

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Karlemon’s Lands: Dalecar

The Czardom of Dalecar forms much of the eastern frontier between human lands and those beyond, a cold and heavily forested kingdom oft besieged by the nomadic tribes of Ugurzhna by both sea and land. Ruled for centuries by the czars and their lords, the Dalecarii are a rugged and glib people, used to violence and death and a hard land. The Dalecarii society is a martial one, concerned with self-sufficiency, honourable combat and self-improvement in order to survive the harsh environment and led by the Czarina Valeriya IV Sergeyevna, the nation is a stable one, governed by a strong leader.

The six fortress cities are ruled by the lords and the four townships by their boyars, all of whom are subordinate to the rulings of the Czar or Czarina, who rules from the Blue Palace in Valdemar.

Population: circa 15 million (70% human, 10% dwarf, 7% goliath, 6% half-orc, 3% elf, 2% tiefling, 2% halfling.)

Capital City: Valdemar (ruled by House Nikolayev.)

Fortress cities: Sarnika (ruled by House Vitaliev), Zagregradt (ruled by House Yegorov), Breitenfeld (ruled by Archon Pashkinov), Griegesstadt (ruled by House Zakhorov), Kistalint (ruled by Archon Ilyasov).

Townships: Michusnovy (Rybakov), Orynezhgradt (Gasparov), Arsevsky (Zhurov) and Kyrgorod (Tsyganov)

Religion: Lydian Polytheism (72%), Church of the Four Virtues (14%), Chthonism (10%), other religions (4%).

***

In spite of its proximity to the cradles of humanity, the Kanja’s Rise mountains and the former Ynen Valley, Dalecar is a relatively new nation, conquered out of the wilderness through axe blade and iron rod. The last refugees from Kanja’s Rise after the long droughts of the early Common Era did not leave their ancestral homes lightly and when they migrated they did so into a hostile and already inhabited land. It is only through the unity of the human, humanoid and dwarven populations that the kingdom survive today.

Led by a warlord known only to history as the Lord of Iron, the last of the Kanjani, which through time became Dalecarii, fought desperately to conquer a homeland for themselves, raising the ire and grudges of long-established peoples with long memories and blades. However, despite making many enemies, they also made firm allies and friends in the dwarves of the Wyrmspine Mountains far to the north-east, who had suffered long under the harrying of the nomads. The Great Compact was signed between the then-warchief of the Dalecarii, Iskhak Izvalov and the Lord of the Wyrmspine, Sigemaer Trollborn in 337 CE, guaranteeing defensive alliance between the two polities.

It was an alliance that was and still is greatly needed, as the nomads of Ugurzhna hold grudges and territory jealously. The disparate settlements of the Dalecarii were fairly easy pickings in the early days of the territory, being low in number and less mobile than their competitors. It wasn’t until the rise of the first Czar, Beati Mikhail I Uladimovich, that the consolidation of the Dalecarii as a nation began in earnest. Said to have been blessed by the Lydian goddess Argeia for his piety and philosophy, he founded the fortress cities of Valdemar and Sarnika in 387 and 392 CE respectively to wall in the invaders of his new kingdom and crush them between two great anvils.

The Uladimovs were without exception warrior-kings, uniting the Dalecarii and over time incorporating their foes into their governance, swelling the populations greatly. This was to transmogrify over time into something of a pattern, as the life expectancy of Dalecarii tends to be lower than in other lands, so people tend to marry fairly young. This has lead to a series of young monarchs and regencies over the centuries as their parents have been killed leading troops in battle or in attacks by one of the many monstrous beasts and beastmen that still plague the eastern reaches of Dalecar.

The death of the last male Uladimov, Jaroslav II, of black fever in 499 CE was to cause a brief succession crisis as no prospective heir was immediately acceptable to the lords and boyars. A compromise was found in a break in tradition and so the first Czarina, Jaroslav’s niece Verusya I Grigorievna held the Valorous Throne, beginning the shorter-lived Grigoriev dynasty. Under their rule, the borders of Dalecar expanded to beyond the southern foothills of the Milesian mountain range and east of the Dusan River.

The Grigorievs were popular but envied, and were eventually overthrown by rebel courtiers led by Gerasim I Leonidovich, who deposed the Czar Lukyan I in 641 CE, whence the remaining Grigorievs fled into exile in the Taman Peninsula, where they remain to this day as the petty lords of the so-called Principality of Kazimir. The new faction, the Leonidovs, were on the whole unpopular with the commoners and boyars, but they kept the lords onside through wholesale bribery and gifting of privileges.

It was the Leonidovs under Nikodim II Leonidovich who faced the elvish invasion of Karlemon’s Lands in 699 CE and who is begrudgingly remembered as a cunning ruler and adept soldier, to the point where Valdemar was never taken though besieged for three years by the Grand Vizier Pelionach’s favoured apprentice Undolaeil of Lylstaesi. He is also remembered for his charitable and generous nature after the war, leading some to say he was a bastard of the dynasty and so therefore not a true Leonidov.

However, the Leonidov dynasty did not last much longer, falling victim to an outbreak of winter influenza in 898 CE that decimated much of the city of Valdemar, now known today as the Chill. There was no succession crisis this time, as the Lord Regent of Valdemar, Maksim I Sergeyevich was elected unanimously by the Dalecarii lords to Czar in 899 CE. The Sergeyev dynasty rules to this day.

***

The Dalecar Royal Family

Czarina Valeriya IV of House Sergeyev, daughter of Konstantyn III and Ioanna Ryzhovna. Age: 31. Known as the Queen of Knights.

Prince Radomir Sergeyevich, son of Pavel and Inga Nikolayev. Age: 31. Consort to the Czarina and an honorary member of the Order of the Wyvern for his renown as a dragon hunter during his youth in Kistalint.

Czarevich Vadim Sergeyevich. Age: 7.

Lords and Boyars of Dalecar

Agnessa Nikolayevna, Lord of Valdemar. Age: 40. The elder sister of Prince Radomir, she is the current head of the Order of the Wyvern, a dynastic knightly order dedicated to the execution of counterattacks across Dalecar's borders against hordes and tribes that threaten the kingdom's frontiers.

Tikhon Yegorovich, Lord of Zagregradt. Age: 23. The son of late famed hunter and anatomist Pavel Yegorovich, a lord killed in battle against a horde of trolls, he has staged three summer campaigns to clear Dalecar of all trolls, with rumours of wanting to move onto all of orc kind.

Klaudia Vitalievna, Lord of Sarnika. Age: 34. An adept tactician and leader of troops, she has won renown in the successive defences of Kistalint from the inheritors of the great nomad warlord Khagan Toothcracker, whom her grandmother was complicit in slaying.

Aleksei Ilyasovich, Lord of Kistalint. Age: 50. Though gravely and permanently wounded in successive battles to defend his city from attack by the tribes of Ugurzhna, he is a stubborn, cheerful and dogged man, one with a cool and pleasant temperament.

Iosef Zakhorovich, Lord of Griegesstadt. Age: 63. The eldest member of the Mountain's Court, he is permitted to wear red in place of blue as a pride of honour. A consummate statesman and trader, he is renowned throughout all of Karlemon's Lands as a worthy ally and adversary.

Artemiy Pashkinovich, Lord of Breitenfeld. Age: 52. The vassal of Lord Zakhorovich, he received his lordship as reward for defeating the Bear's enemies on the field of battle in successive summer and winter campaigns in the hinterlands south of the Wyrmspine.

Tomasz Rybakovich, Boyar of Michusnovy. Age: 44.

Henryk Gasparovich, Boyar of Orynezhgradt. Age: 56.

Agasha Zhurovna, Boyar of Arsevky. Age: 39.

Arkady Tsyganovich, Boyar of Kyrgorod. Age: 51.

#dnd 5e #geography #worldbuilding

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sanderssides-fics · 7 years ago

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The quest

Plot: fantasy au (my own), Roman only

Tw: swords, violence, dark, candles, pirate mention

Tags: @lampisimportant @polysandershell @analogically-prinxiety @the-prince-and-the-emo @princeyandanxiety @softlogic _____123_____

In the kingdom of the everlasting crystal waterfall, where the trees glistened with morning dew in the evening, and the animals were in a harmonious symbiosis, lay the kingdom of ash. The royals that slept and loved in this kingdom were the kindest of all Royals in the universe. Allowing orphaned children to stay in extra rooms until there was a family for them, in times of need the royals provided shelter, nourishment, and wisdom to keep young and old alive and well until all was safe once more. Every morning was concerts and every evening the jouster told jokes and stories to the children of the kingdom, the cicadas would hum in the day and the crickets charmed at night. The kingdom was peaceful, and war was never waged because the royals whom lived in this kingdom would help their neighbours. Gems were no issue, money was no issue, fresh and clean water was a simple task, and assistance in their own wars was assisted.

The streets of the town that was guarded by stone and clay walls were lined with carts and stands, making money was fun and easy here. The butcher performed knife tricks, cleaver flips, and fillet shows. The baker would decorate cakes and pastries so delicately and satisfactory that the queen purchased a cake every week, sometimes two. The shoe maker and shiner were lovers that worked together to create the best shoes in the valley, kingdoms far and wide ordered their shoes by the dozens. The blacksmith was held in high regard, she made the knives and tools for the entire town, she also made presents for the kingdom. Specifically necklaces for the princess.

The royals were a merry group of folk. The king was kind souled. An addiction to animal friends was his only flaw, the backyard was home to a series of creatures ranging from the moles of the west valley to the elk of the east valley, he loved all creatures. His wife, The queen, better known as Lady Willow for her days caring for the willow forests with the faeries and gnomes, was a lover of animals as well but not to her husbands extent. She helped humans and the great creatures of the Willow stretch, that was her pride and joy. Some days Lady Willow would leave for days to the willow trees and only come home when safety returned to the stretch. They had 3 children together, 2 Princesses and a Prince.

The princesses were born 6 years apart with the prince born in the middle. The eldest Princess was named Orchid, after her godmother, the fairy queen. Orchid was a stunning sight for any suitor, but was orchid was not interested in love, she found her self fallen for art and books instead. The princess would spend days if not weeks in the library, a velvet reading chair was her thrown and the characters in her fantasy future books were her loves. She insisted to her mother and father, if they gave her time, to read all the books in the library, and paint all the art the castle walls could hold, she would then marry. The royal parents had no qualms with such requests.

The youngest daughter answered to Maple, though that was not her name, her name was Veeva. Maple preferred the name she chose for herself, because she spent her time in the back ground’s trees. Maple, being only 14, was not up for lovers yet. She was thankful for such as she was not interested in Princes like her ghastly brother. All the sweat and danger that came with such boys made her cringe. She spent her days with the talking trees and the scared mice. Veeva was however interested in the sea, oh how she longed to venture out to open water with a crew and a huge sail. To hoist on ropes and shout ‘Heave HO’ like in her favourite stories that Orchid would read. To ride in a crew of pirates, to be a captain of a ship, she told her parents of this though. She did tell her lovely mother about her dreams of the sea, of visiting far away kingdoms and finding love. The king and Queen did not see flaws in this plan of love quests, however they wanted her to grow older before her journey but nevertheless allowed the kingdom sailors to teach Maple about the ways of the sea.

Their only son was called Roman, and he was like any other boy growing up. He played the games, he sung the songs, he made belief and then some. What made Roman stick out though was his love of Adventure and quests. It was always a quest to clear the garden weeds. An adventure to the market, and his miniature pony was a noble steed! So for his 16th birthday they gifted Roman a beautiful Pegasus, Roman was so pleased that he wept. When he was 16 and 3 moons, a dark storm arose in the west. The black clouds originated from dead trees of the south where the coven of the lone star took settlement. The witches had brawn something disastrous in that pot of theirs and it had seeped into the outskirts of their land. The black clouds stole the sunlight and in 4 days flat, the crops had died and the flowers stopped blooming. The willow stretch was fading of life and the kingdom grew worrisome.

“Daddy when is the son coming back?” Asked Maple, as she turned away from the window of the commons room. The scarlet curtains seemed much more dark in the lack of sunlight, the candles were dying out quick as well.

“I have no idea, my dear, but when she does come back you must thank her for shining once more” The king responded and Maple responded with a single nod and went to sit on her father lap, curling up in her black dress that matched her Raven hair. Her blue eyes shone brighter than any candle had ever flicked. Orchid was reading on witches spells in the scrolls of the south, to learn what might have happened. Meanwhile Roman was clipping his red Cloak on over his princely attire. His adventure boots were clipped tight and shone to the shimmer. He had to save his kingdom.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Lady willow spoke in her butterfly silk voice. She was always a soft speaker, never once raising her voice at the children. Mainly because they never misbehaved.

“to save the kingdom” without another word he left, he was 16 and could do as he pleased anyways, he had been training in combat and safety since he was 7 so they also knew their precious son would be as safe as he could be. Roman walked through the corridors with his cloak flowing behind him. Determined look on his face, the ruby encrusted sword in its sheath bouncing against his hip. He walked out to the stable in the deathly dark outside, it was only 5 it shouldn’t be dark like this. Roman had to fix the witches mistake. He took his memorized route to the stables and easily found his Pegasus by her glowing mane.

“Come with me Maleficent, its time to save the world” Maybe Roman read too much fantasy, or maybe he was just very determined in his quest. He opened the stable door and Maleficent left the stall easily and helped Roman on to her back before running forth and her great white wings extended their lengths to pick at the sky and lift them up, Roman kept hold on the leather strap as they flew through the air, though Maleficent would never let him fall.

They rode for hours through the thick smog and over barren valleys of decaying and dead plants, the crops were all lost. This dark curse was of deadly intent, and Roman needed to stop it. It was a few hours after that that Roman had maleficent land at the entrance of the Forest of Lights, a deep forest filled with mysterious lights that whistled and sung as they left their dissipating trails in and around the trees. The black oak trees were old, older than the Kingdoms themselves. These trees were taller than every castle and stronger than the strongest dragon. Roman had spent many years here during his training, learning how to climb the trees and befriend the lights. Roman whistled out a tune before he began to sing in his favourite voice, a red light continuing the whistle for him.

“My friends, I travel here to thou. To beg for help, from your loving sounds. My kingdom’s dark, from the witches spell. Lady willow, she needs your help.” He sung and at the mention of his mother many lights surrounded him. “her daughters Orchid, and Maple vee, they’re scared of the dark so help me please. Travel far to the ever lasting waterfall, the kingdom ash will hear your call. Light up their rooms so they can sleep and never hear our princesses weep. oh please, please do as I say. Please keep the dreadful creatures away” many lights began to leave the forests at Roman’s pleas.

They made their way to the kingdom as fast as any light could, spun in circles in whistling tunes in all the rooms, some even lit the streets to halt the village children’s sobs as well. The village had light again and everyone knew that Prince Roman was doing fine. Roman kept his journey going, Maleficent having a little wisp light on her mane, the blue light that followed Roman year after year. He had named it LB, short for Little Blue. It was as blue as a mid day sky where the clouds met the son but they were too light to be white. A nice soft blue that was comforting. The journey was still long, but maleficent made it quicker. She took off once more with Roman heeled on her back, the little wisp flew into Roman’s cloak to stay as the wind blew strong and hard, making Maleficent slower. Roman kept his praise in her ear, so that Maleficent wouldn’t give up. The valleys and meadows below were dried up and dead, the little wisp made a sad hum seeing the damage the darkness had caused. It wasn’t long before they were flying over the land of the white stag. It was rare to see such a creature but it was also considered the best thing in any humans life. However this was probably the worse way to see the stag that roman saw now. Lain bloated, fallen on it’s side as its coat was tainted red by beasts of the dark land. How dare they kill such a great creature.

“Maleficent! Fly down!” Maleficent did as instructed and landed in the brush nearby, Roman unsheathed his sword and held it with determination, as he ran towards the shadow creatures that looked like skeletons of demon-deer dressed in unholy cloaks of death. He sliced his weapon at the shadow beast, slicing its darkened exterior and chopping its head next. That beast laid dead now as he continued to the next. Defeating beast after beast in a fruitful fight that was easily won by Roman. Their glowing yellow eyes glowed no more as each beast fell broken in shards of what they once were like a stained glass mural. Roman ran to the white stag after he was done and found it breathing heavily, its innards lain on the grass.

“I am so greatly sorry, I will avenge you great stag.” Roman spoke with broken tears, stroking the fur of the dying creatures head and neck that now rested in his royal lap. Its antlers falling off in its defeat, their golden shimmer staying true, it eyes shutting as its final breaths drew closed. Roman sobbed for minutes more, allowing his emotions to better him before getting help from the gnomes that came from the edge of the willow stretch with rocks in their hands to dig a grave for their lost one. They laid the great creature to rest and buried him deep. No one and nothing could hurt him no more. Roman placed the antlers in a bag on the side of Maleficent. Roman sheathed his sword once more and they left, the blue wisp taking hostage in the bag to stay safe as they kept on their journey towards the darkness origin. He needed to stop this deadly reaping before it got worse.

The journey continued, Roman both got more determined and more angry as they kept on their journey. There was no way of time telling at the moment, but roman grew tired, they couldn’t rest anywhere though because no area was safe from the darkness beasts, no place was light enough other than home. Roman was about ready to waste some time by flying west to the mountain crest to sleep in a closed cave, when he noticed a light in the near distance. “Maleficent, that way” he called out loudly, cloak hood blowing off as the winds grew stronger towards the light.

Maleficent landed sloppily, exhausted from the journey, Roman instructed her to go sleep in the stable they saw a few minutes back, the wisp would shield her from darkness. Maleficent left, the wind assisting her journey this time. Roman crept close to the building the lantern light flickered inside of. An old log cabin, home of the witches of the Coven of the lone star. Roman peered inside quietly and stealthily and heard the witches cackle.

In a voice that sounded like orchids creepy echo sound when she read to Maple, a witch gleamed “They’ll be running to us for a cure in no time”

“Too bad they’ll never get it” another cackled, laughing loudly.

“Takes a white stags antler to cut this darkness” they all cackled and Roman smirked, he decided now was a good time to enter so he kicked down the front door for his own added drama he deemed necessary.

“witches, you’ve just spelled out your plan to the wrong prince!” He growled and pulled his sword out as the witches scrambled for their wands. Roman hated killing witches or anybody, but this had to be done or they’d do this again. He sliced at a witch, which happened to free her hands from her wicked body. She could no longer hold a wand, roman plunged the blood soaked sword into her chest.

“Night Night” he removed it once more and spun around and chopped another witches head off, the witch that was last flung a fire spell at him, which singed arm and caught his shirt on fire, without a second thought he removed it and began his attack on her, she attempted to push him into their cauldron, which he ended up just knocking over, spilling its watery contents on to the witch whom screamed in fright and agony as her feat dissolved and she fell into the puddle.

“Don’t mess with a Prince” Roman stressed every word as the witch died in front of him. Roman went outside and whistled for Maleficent, it took a moment for the white Pegasus to fly back to him, roman used a spark from his shirt that still was in flames to set the antler he hoisted from the bag on fire and threw it into the house. Roman watched as the flames spread from window to window, travelling to take the whole house as it’s meal. Roman took a deep breath as the house blew up after they moved away, the darkness shattering and falling away, every beast that sprung from it died in a melting, slithering mess and the winds halted to their usual light breezes. It would take a while for the land to return to its natural state, but they could wait. Roman took his journey home at Maleficent’s speed. Which so happened to be, as fast at Pegasusly possible.

He was welcomed to a party and an overjoyed family, Roman had did it, he had saved the world. He proceeded to quests and adventures as often as they came. Maleficent was his steed, and the sunset was their favourite direction.

#prince sanders #sanders sides #thomas sanders #sanders #roman sanders #roman #roman solo fic #roman's quest

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adventures-in-everhaven · 6 years ago

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The History of Everhaven

(Note: Everhaven as a setting uses the pantheon from Green Ronin Publishing’s The Book of the Righteous, so all the gods mentioned are from that, and draws on Matt Colville’s Strongholds & Followers for some past history of the setting, especially the Ganarajyan and Xin Empires during the Age of Wonders and the Caelian Empire during the Age of Conquest; the Age of Giants and the Thousand Year War as a general concept comes from Wizards of the Coast and Dungeons and Dragons. I do not own that stuff.)

The Age of Gods

The Creator formed the planes and the five elements: fire, earth, water, air, and arcana. Having formed the worlds, the Creator made a servant He named Kador. Kador was placed in control of fire. Then, the Creator made more servants: Rontra, who was given earth; Urian, who was given air; and Shalimyr, who was given water.

Shalimyr and Rontra together planted a seed (given to them by the Creator) that grew into a great and lovely tree. Urian tended to the tree and called it Eliwyn. Kador came to hate the tree, for he had become corrupted with his power. He began to believe he was better than the other three.

The Creator made more servants, for soon He would form the mortal races, and servants would be needed to guide them. He made Terak, Tinel, Morwyn, and Zheenkeef. Kador asked Terak and Tinel which was older, and both claimed they were the eldest. Thus started the Lesser War of the Gods, for Terak with his axe and Tinel with his magic fought to rightfully claim to be the eldest of the two and Zheenkeef believed that if she could destroy them both, she would take that title. Morwyn looked on in horror as Zheenkeef tricked the brothers into killing each other with Eliwyn, destroying the tree in the process.

In the moment that the two brothers were slain, the Creator formed Mormekar, the Shadow. Mormekar formed a pyre from the wood of the tree and burned the bodies of Terak and Tinel upon it. Zheenkeef was so entranced by the flames that she leapt upon the pyre and was consumed. Seeing Morwyn weep, the Creator reformed Eliwyn, Terak, Tinel, and Zheenkeef; at the same time, he created Maal. Morwyn formed three laws for the gods to obey from that day forward:

· The gods would never again make war upon one another;

· The gods would do as the Creator commanded and use their strength to guide mortals;

· No one god would rule over the others. Morwyn would lead, but she could not order the others to obey and follow.

With these laws agreed to, the gods turned their attention to Kador, who by this point they knew was evil. They attacked Kador in the Great War of the Gods and smote him down. The Creator cast Kador into another plane to serve as his prison: today, it is known as Infernus.

There was peace, for a time. Morwyn took Terak as her husband, and they tutored the new servants the Creator formed: Anwyn, Korak, Darmon, and Aymara.

Then, the Creator set to work creating mortals. With Aymara and Urian, He carved from the wood of Eliwyn the elves and the fey, who were placed on another world from the other mortals; on Korak’s anvil, He forged the dwarves from Rontra’s earth and stone; with Zheenkeef’s blood He formed the gnomes and halflings; and with Morwyn He made the humans.

The Age of Heroes

After this was the Age of Heroes, when the gods walked among the mortals and the giants warred among themselves. It was during this time that the Creator made the last of the gods: Naryne, Thellyne, and Canelle.

Although the gods had been barred from waging war directly against each other, they found that they could pit their servants against each other. Eventually, though, the struggles of these servants grew so ugly and intense that the gods almost went to war again. To prevent this, the gods agreed on the Compact: the Lords of Good would set themselves apart and would no longer dwell in the Material Plane, and they were to return to it only in times of great danger to mortals. Nor would they ever again be able to directly order the mortal races to do their bidding.

The Compact created a system whereby mortals might be given powers to serve the will of the gods only if they came, of their own free will, to follow that god.

During the Age of Heroes, the gods also warred with the aboleths. During this time, seven gods were slain, their power spreading to the mortals around them. These bloodlines founded the first mortal empires, but now they are rare.

The Age of Wonders

During the Age of Wonders, mortals began to create great things with magic. Mighty empires were formed, such as the Ganarajyan Empire and the Xin Empire in the east. The greatest of these was the Ganarajyan Empire, of course, but the last and most feared was the Spider Kingdom.

In his time, Vecna was one of the mightiest of all wizards. Through dark magic and conquest, he formed a terrible empire and even threatened other planes. For all his power, though, Vecna couldn’t escape his own mortality. He began to fear death and took steps to prevent his end from ever coming about. Orcus, the Demon Prince of Undeath, taught Vecna a ritual that would allow him to live on as a lich. Even though his body gradually withered and decayed, Vecna continued to expand his evil dominion. So formidable was his temper that his subjects would not say his name. He was the Whispered One, the Master of the Spider Throne, the Undying King, and the Lord of the Rotted Tower. Eventually, the Spider Kingdom was brought down from the inside: Vecna’s greatest general, Kas, took the sword his master had made for him and attacked the Undying King, until all that was left behind was the gem Vecna had replaced his right eye with centuries before and the lich’s gnarled, six-fingered left hand in its black gauntlet.

The Age of Giants

After their civil war during the Age of Heroes, the giants became united in purpose. They easily took over the small races, and thus was formed the Ostorian Empire. The storm giants ruled the tritons from undersea fortresses and the rest of Everhaven from cities in the sky. The cloud giants served as their seconds-in-command, living in floating castles. The fire giants forged weapons and the stone giants made great works of art and craft. The frost giants defended the realm from what enemies there were. The hill giants subjugated the small races in more immediate, local terms.

For four thousand years, the Ostorian Empire dominated Everhaven. There was relative peace. The only beings who could truly challenge the giants were the dragons, but when they did it was always local, personal conflicts that were resolved through tests of skill, strength, or wit. That is, until the red dragon Garyx railed against the prosperity of Ostoria. “We are dragons: why should we not be the masters of this place?” Garyx and several dragons who had been stirred by his words rose up and attacked Ostoria, and thus began the Thousand Year War.

There was no front line or safe haven. The war was a mess of endless ambushes, sieges, and atrocities committed on both sides. Eventually, stronger forces got involved. For the last time, Bahamut, king of the metallic dragons, and Tiamat, queen of the chromatic dragons, husband and wife, joined forces and battled the children of Annam.

It was at this time that the elves came to Everhaven. Fleeing from their enslavement on another world, some elves arrived in Everhaven. Seeing the plight of the mortals, the elves sought to protect them, and their valor won them a hearty welcome to the world.

Finally, a fourth side joined the war: the gods. They sought to end the war to protect the mortals who were caught in the crossfire. Terak and Canelle begged the Creator for warriors, and thus He made the orcs; then Bahamut petitioned the Creator for defenders for the mortals, and thus He and Korak made from the flesh and blood and bone of the eldest dragons the dragonborn, whom Bahamut charged to defend mortals everafter.

In the end, Ostoria was broken, the grand capital Voninheim frozen over, and over the next thousand years what remained of Ostoria fell. Never again would such a war be fought.

The Age of Conquest

The Coming of the Goblinoids

Nobody is sure where the goblinoids came from, but they were not recorded among the small races ruled by the giants. The goblinoids name themselves the Eliksni and say that they used to be blessed by gods. They controlled great amounts of land until one day their gods seemingly abandoned them. This triggered a cataclysm known as the Whirlwind, and it caused a breakdown of goblinoid society. Eventually, the civil war was tentatively ended and the Eliksni set out for a new home, as theirs had been ruined.

The goblinoids are recorded by the dwarves as coming from the sea. They terrorized humanity and the other races when they first arrived, conducting raids and attacks against outposts. As time wore on, the Eliksni began to understand that if they wanted this new home, they would have to take it by force.

In an attempt to truly begin their new home, the Host of Devils staged a coordinated attack on the human city of Mandrake Keep in what would come to be known as the Battle of the Six Fronts. During the battle four groups of soldiers protected the newly constructed walls of the city against six enemy approaches, and not a single front faltered. There the Devils faced off against many warriors who would later become known as legends.

The Warlord of the Host of Kings, manipulating the other Hosts, pushed for a united effort against Sturm, the greatest city in this or any age. The Hosts of Kings, Devils, and Winter stood together against Sturm in what would later be known as the Battle of the Twilight, with the Devils leading the charge. Sturm managed to push back the united goblinoids, with Marshal Zander Goranir leading a counterattack that broke the Hosts. At the end, the legendary paladin Brennan Embersword led a bloody assault to dislodge the remaining goblinoids that directly surrounded Sturm. In what would become known as the Embersword Crusade, the brave warrior fought against Solkis, Warlord of the Host of Devils, killing him with a headbutt and bringing the offensive to its final end.

The Caelian Empire

The Caelian Empire was the most magnificent human empire seen since the Age of Wonders. It stretched from Logres in the north to what are now the Red Wilds in the south, and from Valumar in the east to Oriellon in the west. It was brought down, however, as much from internal turmoil as from the Dragon Empire.

The Dragon Empire

The dark elves arrived in Everhaven after their kin. They decided to stay in the mountains and live in the caverns. The presence of the dwarves, who didn’t respond well to these newcomers, caused the dark elves to retreat further than even the dwarves were willing to delve, into what is known as the Underdark.

On this journey, some dark elves found five white dragon eggs. These were cared for until they hatched, and then the wyrmlings were trained to obey the dark elves. Recently, the dark elves had come under the influence of a faction that urged for them to conquer, and now the opportunity was seized. With the power of their dragons the dark elves began to spread, forming what is now known as the Dragon Empire.

The Dragon Empire was finally brought down from the inside. A prince of the empire who had soured against his cousin the emperor went to the high elf cities, the dwarfholds, and the human realms that remained independent and offered to lead their warriors through the labyrinthine network of mountain valleys and Underdark tunnels that led to the empire’s capitol. The humans agreed, and so fell the Dragon Empire. The capitol was sacked and put to the torch, the dragons slain, and the dark elves were broken.

The Golden League

It was some time before another great organization rose to power. When it finally did, it was mostly human and it was an alliance.

Good King Arthur was something of a reformer. When he looked at the world, he saw the opportunity for the various races to work together and develop. He went to the various other realms and brought them together in what is known as the Golden League.

That was eighty years ago. For twenty years, Good King Arthur has been dead, and the Golden League is quickly approaching collapse.

The Modern Age

None may yet say what the current age will be called, but it is an age of chaos.

#everhaven #history of the world #history of everhaven #d&d 5e

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