#I meant to go to bed hours ago

[dinsfire24]

its 1am [-1hp] [-1hp] [-1hp] [-1

[houseofoddballs]

Yandere Error Sans

Sorry if this is rushed, i'm fairly rusty and it's two thirty in the morning. but tada, i'm alive XD

“Tch, I tried being gentle and slow, yet this is how you repay me? By running off with my only friend? For shame Byte.” Muffled screams rang out from every direction as this iteration of the underground decayed in a way. A pair of red slippers stepped into view, or are they flip-flops? Everything about Error shifts so much with his glitching that I can hardly tell. Slowly I lifted my head to look up at Error. Slowly an underground being dissolved into lines of overlapping and intermingling zero’s and one’s came into view, along with Error himself as I raised my head to meet his gaze. 

I had never seen that look on Error before. A look of sadistic pleasure, a smugness that could only be equated to winning, as if he still had more ways to hurt me. He stepped to the side with a flourish of metacarpals and a mock bow as he laughed. I gasped and cupped my hands over my mouth at what I saw. Raised high in the air by blue strings at the most awkward and uncomfortable position, his bones Jarring out in odd angles that no humanoid figure should bend at; was poor Blueberry. Blue and black numbers flooded and poured out of his sockets like tears made of static as his gloved hands dug into his sockets, trying frantically to rip out the pestilence to no avail. 

“Why (Y/n), Why?” He sobbed out, his screams cut off as more lines of code poured from his mouth, running down his chin like some sick drool. Error scoffed and motioned his hand in poor Blueberry’s direction, sending blue strings from his fingertips through blues sockets, cutting through the glitching and wrapping up through the corners of his mouth, pulling Blue’s face into some sort of gruesome smile, in the loosest form of the word.

“An anomaly like you has already stained my little Byte's name with your filthy mouth, and you dare to repeat it in such a scornful manner in my presence? I would have expected better. What a pity.” Before I could lunge toward him, Error flourished his hand in another direction and with a sickening SNAP Blue’s head came crashing to the ground, laying in the snow with that horrific grin sewn onto his face. I stared into his eyes as more of the code spilled out and overflowed.

Error’s laughter filled my ears and flooded my mind, but when I looked up at him he was far from laughing. His lazy grin was still plastered on his face, but his eyes were filled with something closely related to disdain, if disdain and adoration could be mixed. He knelt down to my level, placing a hand out between us almost as if he were going to cup my chin. Instead, blue strings were coaxed from his fingertips to wrap around my throat, tight enough to apply pressure, but gentle enough that they didn’t cut into my flesh. A gentle warning. He let out a sigh. This was as close to me as he dare get, still closer than anyone else though. I wished he would stay as far away from me as possible. His multicolored eyes made me sick, just as sick as the carnage surrounding us.

Error’s laughter rang deafeningly through my mind, the only thing louder than his laughter was the sound of their screams. The screams of monsters as they fled their homes before they could be infected by the binary plague that was tearing reality apart before their eyes, ripping their loved ones from the multiverse. Monsters pressed with their backs against the barrier watching in terror as the static corroding through the very earth crept closer until it swallowed them and everyone they held dear. Yet the pestilence didn’t come within five feet of me and Error, far enough away that It wouldn’t rid me of Blue’s corpse. Before long the screams died out and I realized that the laughter was not Error’s, it was my own. 

I was laughing, tears streaming down my cheeks as my lungs heaved desperately for Oxygen. I couldn’t believe this. Just weeks ago I had been comfortably in my own universe where all of these characters were works of fiction, just days ago I was Error’s prisoner to his awkwardness and mundane finger knitting, just yesterday Ink had rescued me to Blue’s universe where he promised I would be safe; yet here we are. This skeleton that I had once thought awkward and grumpy was holding me at a distance with such dangerous care, Blueberry was dead, staring at me in disfigured glee, and Ink was nowhere to be found. What could I do other than laugh? I was already crying.

Yet still Error looked at me with such tender care, as if I were a declawed cat in a muzzle trying to fight him. Slowly my laughter faded to sobs, violent sobs that wracked through my entire body and brought my frame to tremble. A white hole opened in the black void where reality used to be, the antivoid. As the blue threads slipped from my throat they slid down to bind and pick me up as Error began walking towards and through the portal. I turned my head to watch as the decay of reality swallowed Blueberry. He deserved so much better than what I had unknowingly brought upon him. Error's voice came suddenly only an inch away from my ear, closer than he had ever been as we watched the void of nothingness swallow the once beloved bundle of joy.

“It’s all your fault. This is why you should listen when I tell you that an anomaly like you will simply destroy anything outside of the antivoid. I didn’t do that (Y/n)... You did. You’re so much more than an anomaly. So much worse. So much more… Like me.” He chuckled, sending a shiver down my spine. Was what he said true? If that was the case then why would Ink have put me there? It couldn’t be true, Error had to be the one to do that… Right?

[jaskierx]

it’s not an issue that izzy didn’t get a sea burial!

historically pirates did get buried on land when they died on land or when they died near land. most historians think this indicates a preference for land burial. it was certainly much closer to what we think of as dignified death rites than a burial at sea, which is literally just chucking the guy overboard

burial at sea wasn’t just a ritualistic thing - it was practical. dead bodies don’t smell good and they attract bugs and let’s be honest they’re not great to look at. so you do not want one clogging up your ship for weeks before you find a port to bury them in, especially when that port might be owned by folks who are not very welcoming of the dead bodies of pirates or people of other nationalities or people who don’t follow their religion. burial at sea was necessary for the health and welfare of the living people on the ship

this doesn’t apply to izzy - not only is there suitable land nearby, it’s land with personal meaning, because it’s next to what is now ed and stede’s house

burying him on land was probably a nice touch rather than a disservice. his grave will be tended. he rests beside the home of people who knew him. he rests in a place which is known and immovable. there’s a physical location people can go to if they want to mourn him there

and ultimately it doesn’t matter because this is the show that has shown time and time again that it could not care less about historical accuracy

[painless-innit-colourful]

I love everything going on tonight. everyone causing trouble and breaking rules to try and speak to Cucurucho, groups getting punished with blindness instead of just individuals, more black concrete discovered at Foolish's with a letter from Leo, everyone breaking into Cucu's office, Tubbo's 16 episode office podcast and then finding the books in Fred's office (probably) talking about Bad's antics, buildings, the current state of the workers, etc. and then everyone being chased out by guards shooting on-sight. SO MUCH GOING ON

[abyssalmermaiden]

have some Thancred and Aryaille at the beach as a palate cleanser from everything awful going on with Viola

[itty-bitty-sunshine]

Oooooooh do you have any more lore for your immortal au? It sounds so cool agh

I do! So much! So glad people seem to like the concept this au has been rotating in my brain for such a long time <3

This is gonna be a bit of rambling but thank you so much for helping me organize this enough to explain

So! Our little immortal, Perkeo (could be your yn, at this point this is more a nickname they choose to go by than the legal name they are using) has been around for a good while, few centuries at least

They lived a lot, laughed a lot, loved a lot

Suffered a lot

They are the can't age can't die type of immortal. Cut them to tiny pieces and you'll see them back in one piece somehow

They are a very social creature and are always happy to mingle with people, liking to make people happy because the world is rotten enough as it is

However, as the years go by, they've grown tired of seeing close people come and go — even if someone spends their entire life next to them, they will be gone one day. Perkeo is ultimately lonely

So, as technology advances, they decide to give it all a last shot

Which is how they end up working at the pizzaplex at it's very beginning, home of a few of the most advanced robots and artificial intelligence there is

What's a decade of wait for someone who has centuries?

They could, but do not want to build something to love them. That would be forced, that is not love — so, why not befriend an already built robot instead? They are basically like people at this point, besides, fazbear entertainment is not known for caring that much about their animatronics, so if the place closes down they will eventually be left to rot anyway, isn't that a win? Just gotta wait around for the plex to shut down and eventually have a new life with your friends if they want to go with you

It's not stealing company property if said property is abandoned. And also if you have enough time to transfer the property ownership to you by messing with some papers

Especially if it's the chance you've been longing for all along: to have someone able to be there with you forever as long as they wish to

Robots can last a very, very long time as long as well maintained, can't they?

(Perkeo has a whole background too which is a whole other story. Jobs they've had, people they've known, how they've affected them, there's so much)

[bonetrousledbones]

discovering new hells of skeleton drawing lately

[rosicheeks]

.

[if-loki-was-a-fox]

c!Ranboo gets sick pretty easily, so when he's too sick to go adventuring or sparring, c!Techno replaces their usual training with reading them the Art of War.

What? Nonono, it's not an excuse to curl up on the couch with one of his best friends and read them one of his favorite books at all, what are you talking about? Nahhh, it's to keep up the Main Character Training — efficiency, y'know

[kijosakka]

i have so many hypotheticals for dramaturgy u dont even KNOW (i am going to sit here and go through them though)

so this is all coming up because i was considering a tiny detail about the initial cast relations on island (then turning into this whole. mess.) and wanted to do a little thing where i explore hypotheticals to this au that aren't necessarily 'canon' to it,,

CAST RELATIONS: in my rehash post of island and covering the casts' reactions to noah acting Like That, i say the feeling of uncanny detachedness was immediate. but it could also? not be?

maybe he just comes off as shy at first, or especially standoffish -- perhaps the sense of detachedness is a mounting realization that 'oh this guy is kindof Weird As Hell' instead of an immediate bad sense,, this effectively would not change the cast relations or dynamics at this point, but it would provide more exposition opportunities for cast members to try striking up anything at all with him and getting shut down immediately as opposed to (unintentional) ostracization from the beginning.

^ and also, conflict exploration. not during island, but during his shift in WT, there could be the issue of noah knowing these people already tried and he shut them down each and every time, so what reason do they have to give him yet another chance? (is it worth the emotional risks and potential hurt and no gains, etc etc)

PHOBIA FACTOR: as it is, 'canon' to the AU noah gets eliminated during dodgebrawl (which is necessary for his general character), but phobia factor is a lovely little 'consequences of forgetting about the cameras' if on a much smaller scale.

now,, im ngl this sounded a lot more fun than it is actually going to be. because the simple answer is just that noah lies. put in this position -- if his onscreen character is forced to have depth, then it will be fake for his own peace of mind.

^ the only thing that would potentially happen is that it would, in a way, isolate him from his castmates further, simply because his reaction,,, Isn't. the fear among the cast as they face their greatest fears is shared -- except for noah. because its not genuine. his reaction comes off as flat (and even then the response that he is showing is further, repeated theme, uncanny valley. to have never seen this guy fearful performing some facsimile of it? Weird.)

SIERRA / WT PAN-OUT: ok,, sierras role here is very closely connected to the other idea mentioned here -- a wt hypothetical season play-out,, thing. while not 'canon' to the au for the simple fact that noah has Little to No development in this and thats the point, im spilling all my 'what-ifs' and might as well include this one.

theres actually,, a shocking number of moving parts to this. to summarize: tyler is eliminated in noahs place in london (mostly to keep numbers even), and thus takes his place witnessing the Kiss.

^ im not sure why tyler would be eliminated honestly. havent thought that through. however i do have something mapped out (kinda) for the trajectory of the love triangle,, being that noah doesnt do Anything. it boils over eventually, obviously, since duncan and gwen both know that he knows, im thinking around picnic at hanging dork? (elimination-wise, between london and picnic [*greece & area 51] cody is eliminated, sierra is Struggling but i do need her here for future plot purposes)

[*greece; noah volunteers before duncan in the scavenger hunt and along the way kiiinda talks with gwen?? just a little, just kinda nudging her in a direction away from any Dramatic, Exploitable behaviors]

^ so noah says nothing, right? he doesnt want to get involved in this Plotline, but he can get duncan to spill. so he does that -- talks to others, sometimes points over at him, and through the two challenges and the time between ends up freaking duncan out enough that he confronts noah post-picnic (theyre just outside the plane getting uhhh idk drinks. its Hot.) while the cameras arent rolling. the cast is around though.

duncan spills it all by himself, noah has a little moment of 'i didnt tell anyone, but you just did' -- courtney is pissed, but duncan is downright furious and gets all in noahs face, to which he responds much like he did at the very beginning of island: he doesnt.

he says something to the effect of 'if youre looking for a reaction, im the wrong person to look for it in' (or he doesnt say anything -- this is a work in progress) and Leaves. i also do like the mental image of noah spilling whatever drink he has down duncans shirt to force him away in a manner that doesnt make noah reveal any (perceived sense of) vulnerability via stepping back himself.

not much else on that -- just that post-challenge i also like the idea of noah being physically close to owen after. idk to what ends,, owen just wants to Comfort (< see also, noah can have a little breakdown in the showers or smth. a tiny one. its been far too long having to keep this all up and being close and not even properly involved in some of the drama of the show is making him crack whether he shows it or not)

^ and (im ngl i do imagine gwen being eliminated here? again, semantics r lost on me in favor of the Numbers) now,, sweden comes: duncan definitely believes anything with noah is nuked, so sucks up to owen and alejandro both in similar ways. basically like how canon went, etc etc noah is back to fading into the background.

however post-sweden offers up duncan&noah interactions. say duncan has had time to cool off and now wants to know why noah didnt say anything; noah deflects, bc of course he does, but does talk duncan into a kindof realization of just how much the show itself impacted his relationship with courtney -- not at the moment, but later it would serve to duncan to characterize noah a little better (and by a little i mean a lot); being, he's keenly aware of the cameras and the audience.

niagra brawls,, everything most goes, save the pairing are changed a bit: heather and alejandro, owen and blaineley, duncan and sierra, and courtney and noah. < courtney and noah win immunity (note: courtney definitely carries him across). post-challenge, noah point-blank tells courtney that hes sorry and that he shouldve come to her immediately.

^ courtney,, appreciates the genuine apology. she asks him why he didnt -- noah is, for once, honest, saying it was mostly a selfish reason and he didnt want the fallout. (smth smth he can truly hold sympathy abt the situation, knowing just how badly the presence of cameras can Fuck Things Up)

now. i swear ill circle around to sierra eventually but i need to talk about blaineley really quickly. so dramaturgy right?? noah is In The Business. i had it in the very original post of this (rb, covering cast dynamics) that noah did not like blainely. i renege. bffs. absolute shit-talkers together.

^ the point of that is that noah talks her out of the alliance with chef. im not actually sure what that does bc i still intend for blaineley to be eliminated post-china (aswell as courtney probably idk?? could be switched with duncan) but maybe she also has smth to say about how detached noah acts?? (see also the little scene concept thing of chris pointing out just how unnerving it was seeing noah act so lifeless)

also: noah wins. the china challenge. master of keeping a Flat Face. (note: he definitely does vomit immediately after. sick for Hours)

the semantics kinda fizzle out from here, but in essence noah floats his way to the final three à la cody style (does not want to be there also) and on the way kinda bonds with sierra? < that brings up another little correction ill rb onto another post at some point; sierra, while initially holding the intrigue as opposed to dislike of noahs detachedness, does in fact grow to find it unnerving. seeing him through a screen? really fun! being around him? ...not so much.

^ sierra, through noahs Magical Advice Powers That He Has In This Pan-Out For Some Reason, does earn herself advice from him about her obsessiveness or whatever. havent thought about it too much and actually propped sierra up as me having way more to say about her than i actually do,, but they do bond. they get a little bonding.

also: plane explosion. theres a little scene here that lives in my head wherein heather, frazzled from the explosion and having voted against alejandro, kinda blows up at noah? lashing out at him etc etc,, noah, par for the course, doesnt react -- mostly. he does just get up and leave, and both heather and alejandro get to hear one tiny little intake of breath that sounds vaguely like he might be crying. but he is Gone. (he breaks down around the interns instead, and fully resolves to himself that this is the final three and he was definitely making third place)

anyway beyond that i think it would be funny if the tiebreaker was actually heather and alejandro and noah some how finagles his way out of being tied up to be the first person to hit the water. thus taking himself out of the game and promising a 'dramatic finale between rivals' like hes very aware chris was gunning for.

^ this is,, tbh idk how 'canon' any of this will be?? if ill keep this as a loose outline and just change noahs character and dynamics,, idk idk. its getting late i cant really think and my god this is so so so much longer than i intended.

[makeela]

[slaps miquella on the back] this little guy can hold so many alter egos

ok. here it is. my gigantic tinhat thesis about Miquella and my belief that he is, in fact, like, just so many different guys. at the same time. or, well, mostly women, actually. diversity win!

Disclaimer: this post assumes in large part that you already know a fair bit of the “established lore”. Some things may only be mentioned in passing or glossed over for this reason.

lets fucking go

Miquella and St Trina

Relevant item descriptions:

“Candlestand torch that burns with a light-purple flame. The carvings depict St. Trina, but in adult form, somewhat unnervingly. The light-purple flame induces sleep.” (St. Trina’s Torch, found in the Consecrated Snowfield)

“Silver sword carried by clerics of St. Trina. Inflicts sleep ailment upon foes. St. Trina is an enigmatic figure. Some say she is a comely young girl, others are sure he is a boy. The only certainty is that their appearance was as sudden as their disappearance.” (Sword of St. Trina, found at the Forsaken Ruins south of the Divine Tower of Caelid) “Tree branch blessed with an incantation of unalloyed gold. Craftable item. Pierce a foe, using FP to turn them into a temporary ally. The Empyrean Miquella is loved by many people. Indeed, he has learned very well how to compel such affection.” (Bewitching Branch)

“A record of crafting techniques left by a man who was utterly captivated by St. Trina. He continued the search for her in his slumber. Acquire the knowledge to craft the following: - Bewitching Branch” (Fervor’s Cookbook[3], obtained from Gideon in Roundtable Hold after entering Mohgwyn Palace and resting at a Site of Grace)

This one was kind of a given, but is important to mention for subsequent tie-ins. Given these item descriptions, plus cut quest content from a character named Rhico, which was meant to end in the Consecrated Snowfield after helping him travel in dreams in his search for St. Trina (written below) it’s fairly easy to assume that Miquella and St. Trina were, at least at one point, the same person.

“You know, a holy personage was once abducted from these lands. Thus I am here in search of clues that might unravel the mystery. The abductor's bloody footprints are said to have disappeared in the Forest of Ancient Bowers. Finally, I have found it! St. Trina's, no, Lord Miquella's cadaver.” 

Empyreans, as We Know Them

According to Ranni upon doing her quest, there are currently three (technically two, if you don’t count Ranni herself, which she does not) distinct Empyreans. Herself, Malenia, and Miquella.

“I was once an Empyrean. Of the demigods, only I, Miquella, and Malenia could claim that title. Each of us was chosen by our own Two Fingers, as a candidate to succeed Queen Marika, to become the new god of the coming age."

However, if you look deeper into item descriptions, you’ll find out there was a fourth Empyrean: The Gloam-Eyed Queen. 

“Superior Black Flame incantation of the Godskin Apostles. Summons a circle of Black Flame pillars around the caster. Charging increases the size of the circle. The Gloam-Eyed Queen led the apostles. It is said that she was an Empyrean chosen by the Fingers.” (Black Flame Ritual)

Now, at this point it’s worth noting that there are only two required qualifications to be an Empyrean. You must be chosen by your own Two Fingers, and you have to be a direct descendant of exclusively a god. Ignoring the specifics of Ranni’s parentage (something to get into later, but not on this post), unless Marika and Radagon had additional children or there’s another god floating around, our options are very slim for who it might be.

“Remembrance of Malenia, Goddess of Rot, hewn into the Erdtree. The power of its namesake can be unlocked by the Finger Reader. Alternatively, it can be used to gain a great bounty of runes. Miquella and Malenia are both the children of a single god. As such they are both Empyreans, but suffered afflictions from birth. One was cursed with eternal childhood, and the other harbored rot within.” (Remembrance of the Rot Goddess)

The Gloam-Eyed Queen and Why She’s Important

The Gloam-Eyed Queen was an Empyrean who went toe-to-toe with Marika, which eventually led to Marika removing the Rune of Death from the Elden Ring and sealing it in Farum Azula, a realm separate from the Lands Between where time works differently. The Gloam-Eyed Queen presided over the Godskins, and more importantly, raised(/potentially birthed) them. She was eventually defeated by Maliketh, and Destined Death — alongside her and her disciples’ ability to kill Gods — was sealed away.

“Sacred cloth of the Godskin Apostles, made from supple skin sewn together. Successive attacks restore HP. The Gloam-Eyed Queen cradles newborn apostles swaddled in this cloth. Soon they will grow to become the death of the gods.” (Godskin Swaddling Cloth, found after defeating the Spirit-Caller Snail in the Spiritcaller cave, located in the Mountaintops of the Giants)

“Sacred sword of the Gloam-Eyed Queen who controlled the Godskin Apostles before her defeat at the hands of Maliketh. The Black Flames wielded by the apostles are channeled from this sword.” (Godslayer Greatsword)

“Robe made by sewing together patches of smooth skin. Worn by the Godskin Apostles. The apostles, once said to serve Destined Death, are wielders of the god-slaying Black Flame.  But after their defeat by Maliketh, the Black Blade, the source of their power was sealed away.” (Godskin Apostle Robe)

So now that we know all of that, what’s so important about her? Firstly, she rose in direct defiance of the Golden Order: while we don’t know what her motivations were exactly, we know that she could wield Destined Death and could kill not only Marika, but would have been in a position to kill an Outer God, as well. As far as we know, Malenia had no intention to inherit the Elden Ring, and was fully in service to her brother. This leaves only two obvious possibilities (not including a third, which will be mentioned later): Ranni and Miquella, who both are clearly resentful of the Golden Order, though for different reasons. While it’s conceivable that Ranni could’ve been the Gloam-Eyed Queen, especially given her close proximity to Destined Death with the Night of Black Knives, something like that wouldn’t have been necessary for her to shed her body if she had control over Destined Death in the first place — she would’ve been able to shed her Empyrean flesh long before Maliketh sealed away Destined Death. This leaves Miquella.

Miquella’s Haligtree and His Purpose "... Only... a little further now... Show me the path, O gentle lights... the path to Elphael." (Lost Spirit NPC, Consecrated Snowfield)

Miquella’s Haligtree, hidden behind a waygate in the Albinauric town of Ordina, is presented to the player as a place those shunned by the Golden Order could turn to. You’re first made aware of it in Liurnia upon meeting Albus, who gives you the right half of the Haligtree Medallion and urges you to seek out Latenna, so that you might help her journey to the Consecrated Snowfield.

“A chosen land awaits us Albinaurics. The medallion is the key that leads to the city. It's only a quaint treasure, for we who cannot make the journey. But for dear Latenna, it is needed. To fulfill her purpose.” (Albus dialogue)

“Flanged iron cap adorned with a crown of unalloyed gold. Increases faith. Worn by foot soldiers sworn to the Haligtree. Who is that Miquella shall bless, if not the low and the meek?” (Sacred Crown Helm)

“Silver helm of Loretta, a Knight who served Miquella's Haligtree. Loretta, once a royal Carian Knight, went on a journey in search of a haven for Albinaurics, and determined that the Haligtree was their best chance for eventual salvation.” (Royal Knight Helm)

Upon arrival, you find Haligtree town full to the brim with Misbegotten, who are well-known to be oppressed under the Golden Order. (You’ll also find several Spirit-Caller Snails — this is important for later.) 

This was not, however, Miquella’s original intent in creating the Haligtree. His initial goal was to cure Malenia of the affliction she’s suffered since birth: the Scarlet Rot, and later, free Godwyn from his half-life as the Prince of Death. Since this was something that wasn’t viable under the Golden Order, he split off to create his own Erdtree that could hopefully help in curing his siblings. This research led him to Unalloyed Gold, which, short of removing the Outer Gods entirely, is a way to stall their affliction. This is shown both in the case of Scarlet Rot (Malenia’s armor and prosthetics, Cleanrot Knight armor, Haligtree/Elphael Knight armor) as well as the Frenzied Flame (Unalloyed Gold Needle). 

“One of the incantations of the Golden Order fundamentalists. A gift of gratitude to the young Miquella from his father, Radagon. Produces a golden ring of light and fires it across a wide area. Charging enhances range. And yet, the young Miquella abandoned fundamentalism, for it could do nothing to treat Malenia's accursed rot. This was the beginning of unalloyed gold.” (Radagon’s Rings of Light)

Before looking at how this all comes together, it’s also important to note that in Kale’s cut questline, we see that St. Trina would sing to the merchants to try and stave off the Frenzied Flame. This is the same song that some merchants can be found playing. Link to a youtube video containing the entire cut questline can be found here: https://youtu.be/LK_8F_XwLaE

Where Miquella and the Gloam-Eyed Queen Come Together

Let’s start with the obvious. All Godskins are weak to sleep — in fact, Godskin Duo is the only main story boss receptive to sleep past a brief stagger. Continuing on the sleep thread, all spirit-type enemies (Fia’s Champions, Niall/O’Neil adds, Spirit Soldiers in Castle Sol, etc.) are immune to sleep with the exception of the spirit versions of the Godskin Duo that you fight in the Spiritcaller cave and Spirit-Caller Snails. Despite the name, Spirit-Caller Snails are classified as Those Who Live In Death. Regardless, they are also the only enemy of this type not immune to sleep. As we know already, St. Trina is associated with sleep, and we have established for our purposes here that St. Trina and Miquella are one in the same, and given the fact that these are both outliers specifically because they can be slept, it’s hard not to draw a conclusion between the two. 

(As a note, I don’t think Spirit-Caller Snails on their own are SUPER hard evidence or anything, but laying out that they are all either related by Mohg, Miquella, or Godskins even coincidentally is kind of important)

It’s also definitely worth mentioning that there are only three instances of Spirit-Caller Snails outside of the Haligtree. The first is the faux Godskin Duo who drop the Godskin Swaddling Cloth on defeat, as well as lesser Spirit-Caller Snails in the same cave who summon wolves and (more importantly) disciples of Okina. For those who may not remember, Bloody Finger Okina is the NPC invasion in Mountaintops who drops Rivers of Blood. The second instance is in the Leyndell Catacombs — you know, the ones at the bottom of the sewers, where you can find Mohg’s shackle. This Spirit-Caller snail is protecting the Haligdrake Talisman +1. Lastly, and least importantly (or maybe not, depending on how you feel about “the arbitrary number is the same so therefore it MUST mean something”), in Road’s End Catacombs there is a Spirit-Caller snail that summons Crucible Knights Siluria and Ordovis. On its own this doesn’t mean much, but overall there are seven illusory walls in the dungeon, which strangely enough matches up with the Godskin Noble Robe item description: 

“Robe made by sewing together patches of smooth skin. Subcutaneous fat makes it plump and soft. Worn by Godskin Nobles, known for their seven-face aprons. Strengthens the Noble Presence incantation. Nobles are the most ancient apostles who are said to have assimilated inhuman physiology. Not unlike the crucible, the Erdtree in its primordial form.”

Now, let’s talk about the Black Flame Protection incantation. It’s given to you by Gideon after you arrive at the Haligtree and return to Roundtable Hold. This is the item description:

“A Black Flame incantation of the Godskin Apostles. Summons black fire within, increasing physical damage negation. However, sacred flasks and other such forms of HP restoration are impaired. The Apostles were all embraced by the Gloam-Eyed Queen, and the Black Flame was their armor within.”

Within the context of what and whom Miquella welcomed at the Haligtree — and the fact that this is given to you upon entering the Haligtree — it seems far from unlikely that he would turn away Godskins on his doorstep. 

Other things that are interesting but inconclusive/not worth a full paragraph:

The location where you get the Sword of St. Trina is pretty close to the Divine Tower of Caelid, where you fight a Godskin Apostle for their armor set and the Godslayer Greatsword

Miquella likely has some type of connection to the crucible, or something similar spawned from the Haligtree, considering it was basically a “proto-Erdtree” and Miquella was trying to grow his own; this could have led to physical deformities in the Godskin Nobles if they were present

Black Flame Monks are just Flame Monks that abandoned the Giantsflame in lieu of Black Flame. Doesn’t really have much to do with anything other than proximity, since Giantsflame originates in the Mountaintops

Expanding upon this point, the Black Flame Monk Amon ashes are found on the Hidden Path to the Haligtree after defeating the hidden stray Mimic Tear. Item description states that he was the first of the Flame Monks to convert.

Millicent’s optional quest location that lets you summon her at Dominula (Windmill Village) to fight the Godskin Apostle. This is available only after giving her the Valkyrie’s Prosthesis at the Erdtree-Gazing Hill, which means her route from that Site of Grace to the DTS outside Leyndell (her next summon location) is much longer than necessary, and there’s no plot reason for her to have gone there.

What About Melina?

Disclaimer: very little of this is supported by actual in-game item descriptions or text. This is based almost entirely off of my own inferences and a few lore tidbits.

Earlier I mentioned that there was another possibility for who the Gloam-Eyed Queen could be. This is, of course, Melina. She’s an extremely popular choice for people’s depictions of the Gloam-Eyed Queen, especially since in the Frenzied Flame ending she’s shown to have one purple (“gloam”) colored eye, and she promises to deliver the Tarnished Destined Death. 

“Lord of Frenzied Flame... I will seek you, as far as you may travel... To deliver you what is yours. Destined Death.”

She also has multiple burn scars that would be consistent with either Black Flame or Destined Death, and upon sacrificing herself to burn the Erdtree and grant the Tarnished entry into Farum Azula, she says,

“The one who walks alongside flame, Shall one day meet the road of Destined Death. Good-bye.”

She also brings up being “burned and bodiless” upon resting at a Grace in Altus Plateau for the first time, and later explains that she only has a physical body at the foot of the Erdtree, in Leyndell.

“The Erdtree...is close. Only a little further till the foot of the Erdtree, and the accord is fulfilled. It takes me back. I was born at the foot of the Erdtree. Where mother gave me my purpose. Though now, everything is lost to me. I...have to ascertain for myself. The reason for which I live, burned and bodiless.”

“My utmost thanks. For bringing me to the base of the Erdtree. Here, I can govern my own movement. And thus, the accord is fullfiled. I shall depart to ascertain the purpose I was given.”

Now, it’s not that I think Melina wasn’t the Gloam-Eyed Queen! Quite the opposite, in fact. It’s important to note here that we do not, for sure, know Melina’s parentage, but from context clues (born at the foot of the Erdtree, purpose given to her by her mother which she shirks upon getting to the Mountaintops, semi-corporeal form consistent with curses put on Malenia and Miquella) we can assume that her parents were Radagon and Marika. The problem is that she would’ve had to have been a hidden child, something that seems impossible to do, especially within the more omniscient scope of item descriptions that don’t even remotely mention a secret child but do mention other “secret” things, like Radagon/Marika being the same person, or the existence of Mohg and Morgott.

Truthfully, I’m not certain Melina exists at all. Or, at least, I don’t believe she exists in the traditional sense — her existence and consciousness are very real, but are probably more in line with, say, Radagon. Let me explain.

Miquella is the strongest Empyrean of all. This is stated outright by Malenia, and given what we know of him, there’s no reason not to believe her. He’s the spitting image of Marika, because he’s essentially a clone of her. 

“Winged helm made of unalloyed gold. Worn by Malenia, Blade of Miquella. Malenia awaited Miquella at the foot of the husk. "My brother will keep his promise. He possesses the wisdom, the allure, of a god—he is the most fearsome Empyrean of all." (Malenia’s Winged Helm)

Of course, he’s not as strong as Marika, due to the birth defect that keeps him in a child’s body, which is why he chose to go into slumber in a cocoon — so that he might overcome his curse and ascend to godhood. Despite this, I do think he would be capable of splitting himself off similarly to Marika, though perhaps not in quite as solid a form, perhaps due to the fact that he’s in a “dream” state, so interactions with the  “real” world may be fuzzier and less clear. This could also potentially explain why Melina was in possession of the Spectral Steed Whistle, which clearly belonged to Miquella prior to the events of the game. This is evidenced not only in the fact that the whistle is very similar in appearance to other unalloyed items, but also in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC art, he appears to be riding Torrent.

This would also provide an explanation on how Melina has so many clear memories of Marika without technically being her daughter, and why she’s able to stave off the Frenzied Flame in the Lord of Frenzy ending — she’s resistant by the same logic that St. Trina was when she attempted to keep the Merchants from joining the Frenzy Hivemind. 

Of course, there’s not loads of evidence here either way. Melina is a mysterious character with very little actual lore to speak of, despite being a “main” character, but I do think her being split off from Miquella, especially as an instrument for him to work in the waking world, goes a long way to fill in inconsistencies left when you take her at face value. 

If you’ve managed to make it this far, thank you so much! I’ve been brewing all of this in my head for months. I’m aware that a lot of it is VERY tinhat theory, but I do think there are solid leads that could amount to something. There are too many coincidences for them all to be… coincidences, you know?

Once again, thanks so much for reading!

[terrorofstars]

sometimes the ache will press against your bones as though searching for a home you cannot give and yet still you yearn for something unidentifiable something just out of reach as though it exists only directly to the left of your field of vision no matter how far you turn to seek it

[imperaptorfuriosa]

facebook is the online experience of a high school reunion

[writeouswriter]

Me at my mutuals or blogs I follow when I don’t know where they live: why are you all on here at 3AM??

Me: *remembers existence of time zones and the fact it’s actually an earlier time for a lot of people*

My mutuals and followers realizing what I said in the first line of my post: why are you on here at 3AM??

[thistaleisabloodyone]

THE RAMPAGE wins the second relay race in the Battle of Kingdom

[hamable]

Assfghjkkshdbdbdbdbbd

Been binge reading some webtoons with my free time between semesters and goddamn I cannot believe how good some of these are. I’ll catch up on on like omg this has to be my favorite ever there’s nothing like it. And then the next night I’ve found another gem that is just so good. Jussssssssst gah they’re so good

Recs/recent reads in the tags