#It's a story about fighting alongside (and against) 'difficult' aspects of yourself.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Party of one (divided into four)

[ccmagma]

I think about my story and think about one word: Disbelief. Not because what has happened to me is something shocking, or worrying, no, nothing like that at all. But upon learning my heritage, what has happened over years… It sounds like something from a tale. I’ve heard the story enough times from my parents, more so my father who came from someplace far away much like other refugees. Perhaps, that’s where this story should start… I can’t say for certain how they felt exactly, experiences are, after all, unique to us. However, putting myself in their shoes… I can’t even begin to imagine what it had been like. To have no information, not knowing what was coming and the inability to prepare for it.

My father came from a planet called Earth, a funny name I thought considering the translation of it had meant literal dirt. It wasn’t the most unique of names when I realized the other planets surrounding Earth and its history with Gods and Goddesses.

Earth. It was a planet already doomed thanks to its human inhabitants. The world was crumbling around them, war was a regular term in their households, little did they know something greater was coming. It’s safe to say things did not end well for them, the residents of my home did what they could and saved what humans they could. There were a lot of casualties… Many families were separated and I am certain not many took a liking to their new life.

Emptying Earth and leaving it to ash happened over the course of years. It wasn’t until recently where portals to that planet were closed off as far as two-way travel went. It would be another dumping ground for the creatures that plagued our lands of Izavyn. That was the root of all problems and the cause for most quarrels throughout our countries and city-states. A plague, a virus, an abomination, there were many words to describe what caused the woe of so many but the term we used for those creatures was a simple one, Demons. Their creation was one out of malice but perhaps when an organization sees too much peace, it craves to shift the balance. War might not have been as common here but it wasn’t unknown.

Demons were once people, our people. Changing them back was impossible, at least it seemed that way. When one combines the magic of the land with dark practices given to them by one of The Arms, the one no one mentions for there is power in a name or prayer.

The Arms were created by The Eternal. Those lucky enough to hear her voice or perhaps catch a glimpse learned she had a name, Divi. The Eternal Divi created what we know, her power flows through all of us, and upon passing we re-join her. All life is connected to her and therefore we are all connected, to every fabric of being. The Eternal also created four to help her, to watch and guide us, The Arms. Any paintings or statues of Divi and constructed so that she appears to have four arms, though now at days older art either scratched out or have removed the fourth arm. The fourth betrayed The Eternal and have been gathering followers and temples of his own, promising a new age and have become a powerful deity in his own right. Whispers of The Ascent Mol is rare, but not unheard of.

The Arms were prayed to just as The Eternal was. Though references to them have changed over time. Sometimes I hear elders sigh out, “By the five!” and anyone within earshot is horrified. We no longer reference them as five but as four. After all, if one divine figure goes rogue and attempts to take all, for the most part, you should be against it. Naturally, that isn’t always the cause.

Izavyn had felt responsible for the havoc that came over the years. There are parts of our world that had been destroyed and rebuilt, taken over, some still fight a resistance or civil war. When those who decided to follow Mol and his trek for power over all, things changed. They gave their lives, prayers, their devotion, and in turn, it made him strong. Everything is connected, choosing to give yourself to something so powerful isn’t wise but not all men are wise. Creatures were created, the dangerous sort that can infect you with a wound and have you turned. Death by a Demon though frightening was merciful compared to the other option. They spread throughout the land, diminished populations, and where they roamed, darkness followed. The neverending night was their home, it’s where they flourished and thrived. No one dared made their way to a patch of dark land when the sun was out, the cold and dead land meant creatures that would kill. At night, everyone would stay in their homes, traveling would be banned for cargo ships and merchants. Those who wished to risk it on their own was another story… Not even our armies would venture to the darkened lands. The dark clouds in the distance were an omen, a promise of destruction to those who sought safety. The only way to destroy the patches of darkness would be to kill the hoard that inhabited it, that was not an easy feat. Upon nightfall, they roamed free, and hope at that point was lost.

There was a point the people of Izavyn thought things could turn around. The numbers of Demons were dwindling, causalities were becoming less and less. However, just as we had access to magic, as did they. There was a practice that had been used for the most heinous of prisoners. Those who did wrong beyond fixing and required justice were banished from the world. A portal would open and they would be sent somewhere desolate and free of intelligent life. What happened after would be up to them and no longer the business of our world. However, it turns out that a portal can work two ways with the right studies behind it. That’s how the numbers jumped up again and other worlds began to get involved in the strife that should have belonged to Izavyn alone.

Since then, most Kingdoms and City-States have decided to get involved, working to have the same ability the opposing side did. Wars were fought on all fronts and refugees were taken in of all races, most sent to camps to fight. We needed armies and they needed an escape… it was a dreadful exchange but I could understand the military aspect of it, it didn’t mean I agreed to it. Those who sought asylum were brought over, checked over by doctors and ailments would be removed. The world here was free of sickness that could kill, our healers and their abilities were both inspiring and wanted. Everyone who came through would be treated, and while the masses were grateful… I knew it was because our world could do more with healthy people than sickly ones. It was a double-edged sword of sorts but perhaps everything that had beauty also had an ugliness to it.

To make joining the military enticing, promises were made and kept. Majikas were crafty and their practices were difficult, so much so that only one of the many elements would be taught to them. They could summon fire at will, hold lightning in their hands, or even practice in potions and the arcana which would allow for many things, endurance, a day without needed sleep, even a change of appearance of them or others. Hallows were the most pampered of the bunch, clothes in white and ethereal looking, elegance was their calling and people were in awe of them and their ability to heal the sick or create barriers of protection without needed enchantments. We then had those in the front lines, impressive warriors who gained respect just by their sheer look alone, there were many kinds. Some with bulky armor and a grand sword, an enchanted shield that could but up a barrier. They were front-line men, giving commands to their squadron and leading the way. Others were dressed more lightly, more agile. Some with slimmer long swords, long twin daggers, bows with arrows that would appear on a whim, all enchanted weapons with their own special ability. It all looked glamourous really and those who were not from this world were given promises of a better life if they joined one of the ranks. A promise of enhanced beauty, so you would look like the most prominent version of you courtesy of a Majika, and those who joined the front-line men were given the option of a complete change and land, an enticing idea for those who liked the material things. The person would no longer have to live in the safe house and would instead be given a cozy room to call their own, a private bath included, and the promise to be able to own land or home depending on their choice of rank to follow as well as being given the status of a citizen instead of being labeled a refugee.

The refugees were put to work but they worked alongside everyone else, everyone had to pitch in one form or another. Those with a specialized trade were willing to take on apprentices and that option was one people sought after because it promised a place of their own in the home of the master tradesman. There was also an option to help in re-building, supplies run, guard duty, and many other things. That didn’t mean that there was no downtime, not at all. People were still able to enjoy time with their families or seek out help and therapy due to the drastic changes. Not all took it well and when death rates began rising within the safety of the barriers, those in higher power took action. It was a hard change, but those who remained were able to make it through and over the years the world has prospered the best it can given the circumstances. However, it seems the Demons have run out of souls to take on for their army and the focus now remains on us, the last standing in their path and our unwillingness to bow makes us targets.

Some know that time might not be kind with what looms. Some choose to just make it by, others wise to live as if tomorrow might be the end and that’s what my parents did. My mother is was born in this world, she comes from across the sea and studied as a tailor. Her studies eventually brought her to the City-State of Verrin where she ended up being the private seamstress to the council. She never did talk much of home but I understood. It was painful… Back in her home of Qisyo things were difficult. It was one of the countries where the royal family had been forced out and armies with the banners for Mol were raised. Some refugees from her country could be seen throughout Verrin but I knew of a settlement by the ocean on a cliff where her people were trying to wait out the war across the sea so they can return home. Qisyo’ko was the name of the settlement and I had only been there once…  

My father had arrived when my mother was working in a dress shop, he did not join the ranks and instead chose to live his life in the business of delivery within the city. My mother was someone he came across quite often since he would deliver goods to the shop she worked in and their relationship eventually grew and then they were married. My mother was aware of his status as a refugee and knew marriage wouldn’t secure a future for him but her eventual career opened doors and my father was able to eventually work in the library, much like he had back on Earth. It was a quiet enough life for them, and my appearance made things better for them, something they always reminded me of. I remember spending a lot of time with my father in the library, reading never-ending books, and in the evening bothering my mother beyond words since I had not seen her all day whenever work called for her.

Eventually, I did make friends of my own but there was one I ended up being the closest to. It was around the time the last of the humans from Earth made their way over. There had been a group of orphans but there was one who did not seem as sad as the others. It turned out she had already been an orphan and had been placed in home after home. The events of her world and the drastic change stressed her eyes, but she did not cry over the loss of family like the others and seemed more optimistic, hopeful almost. Her name was Morgan and she and I had a bond that could rival the closest of sisters.

[yaboylevi]

What do you think about "escaping from the forest" topic? Nicolo said they will try to get out of it but how? What do you think Isayama's point of it?

It is one of the deepest messages of the series for me. And alongside Eren’s “we are born free”, I feel like it’s something Isayama agrees with.

Eren’s motto is empowering and deep, and that’s exactly why I would feel disappointed if Eren had taken this mantra and made it all about killing others on an absolutely horrifying scale just so that a minority could benefit from it, basically denying other people’s right to be free. It would cheapen this beautiful message.

As for the forest theme, I feel it is both a critique of society and of the individuals that participate in its cruelest aspects. Both the way their (and ours?) society is structured, and the lack of morality from adults, have caused children to be used, and abused for centuries, dragged into an endless war they weren’t and shouldn’t be part of. After all, society is created by humans so only they can change it, and only they are responsible for society’s cruelty (as well as its beauty). It is something Isayama started to explore since the early stages of the story:

(But for the system to change, someone has to make it change. That's why Nicolo's words sound a bit naive. A small number of people trying to get out of the forest won't make the forest less threatening or dangerous. It's either a big number of people who make it change or someone with great influence/power. Looking at where the story is going, it could be either achieved by Eren, being the bringer of change. Or by great numbers of people realizing that they need to change their society. Or maybe both, because the way a large number of people can understand this, is if they are forced to, and what's better than a global crisis brought about by someone who wants to change the system?)

In this sense, the forest is the dark nature of life, of people. You can lose yourself in there, especially if you are pushed inside by others. Gabi is the clearest example, but it’s a concept that can be applied to all the other characters we have seen grow up. Mr. Braus talks about it in relation to Sasha (and Gabi, and Nicolo), but we can apply it to Eren, Bertolt, Zeke, Connie, Mikasa, etc.

What Sasha’s dad says is that humanity needs to stop the senseless cycle of hate and revenge and violence. The individual has to make a conscious choice, because it’s easier to go along with society and its cruelty than refuse it. This was exactly Annie’s dilemma, and as Annie said, paraphrasing, for the normal person it is easier to follow the current, rather than going against it. It takes effort, and courage, and a certain type of discipline.

Mr. Braus could have lost to his pain and taken revenge on Gabi, like Nicolo wanted to do. But he is a responsible adult. He is a parent. He was strong in his refusal to repeat the cycle, a cycle that took away from him his daughter. 

I have said in the past that Mr. Braus would’ve spared Sasha’s killer even if Gabi was an adult. I feel it would’ve been more difficult to spare them if they were an adult - though it would've been heartwrenching if Gabi was a young adult because she possibly would've reminded Mr. Braus of Sasha and that's one of the reasons why I think he would've spared her anyway even if she wasn't a kid. But the main point is that punishing children for having a messed up mentality created by a cruel system built by adults (who are probably lost in the forest as well!) is always, undeniably wrong. Kids have to be protected. Adults need to take responsibility. Adults also need to fight their way out of the forest and guide the children lost in there. That is why Mr. Braus ultimately also saved Nicolo, by sparing Gabi. He saved Sasha, in a way, and spared her memory from being dirtied by blood, for being an excuse for the cycle to be repeated.

The forest is war, and cruelty, and lack of empathy, and losing to your demons, to violence, to revenge. In Mr. Braus's words, it's "kill or be killed". The forest is outside oneself, but also inside. Everyone has the ability to do "evil", and everyone should try their hardest to stay clear from that path, to listen to one’s conscience and do the best they can, always. Especially in the most trying times. What Isayama is saying, imo, is that it is also something natural within everyone. Especially when in pain, people commit wrongdoings because they are weak, because they are tired, because it's part of them, of everyone. They "lose" because they have been beaten up and conditioned by life - that's the reason why I feel like Isayama is not judging negatively the characters, while a "right choice" still exists.

Annie, in this sense, has lost. She’s tired. She can’t get out of the forest because she was in there for too long, since too young. Nicolo also has been wandering in the forest. He admits that even he has a demon inside, just like everyone else, and it’s his duty to stop himself from listening to that demon, which is his dark thoughts, the worst sides of his psyche.

If Nicolo’s and Gabi’s story has taught us anything so far is that both adults and kids can successfully “get out of the forest”, and find themselves again. But they need help, they need kindness and forgiveness. They don’t need to be punished (because life has already been beaten on them hard enough, and the moment they “realize” that what they’ve been doing was wrong, the guilt is enough to be considered a punishment). This is applicable to these special cases under these special circumstances and in a fictional story where we know for sure what the characters feel and think and have gone through, but of course I believe that war criminals or murderers, etc. in general should receive a punishment.

What Isayama is trying to say with this, I think, is that all humans have the capability of being mean, horrible, to surrender to their instincts, to let society and their environment win over them. But, at the same time, they have also the capability of stopping themselves from following those instincts, they have the ability to fight back and become better people: adults - like Nicolo, like Levi, like Zeke - aren’t excluded. They can’t be, because otherwise, the new generation will again fall trap to the same cycle if adults won’t stop it in the first place. The characters we have been following since day one are in the middle of two generations: they have been kids forcefully thrown into this fight and now they are starting to have to take responsibility for their future and for other kids.

This being said, let me go on to a final, different tangent. What the “forest” metaphor means…is clear. But it is not clear what Isayama is trying to say if he lets the protagonist go too deep into the forest, a place that poisoned Eren, it seems, to the point that he’s repeating the same cycle (involving kids in a war that’s not theirs). There is (almost) nothing wrong until this point from a thematical point of view, but…there is something really off-putting if this is it, when it comes to the themes particular to Eren, and even this main forest theme. If this is the case with Eren and there is no redemption, no other plan, no other reason, even if all the other characters manage to “get out” by the end of the story, it won’t feel satisfying to me.

Because Eren was a kid forced into the forest, forced to go deeper and deeper. For me, it makes no sense for him to be irredeemable. To be punished with no redemption, with no recognition of his struggles. He is one of the kids victim of this system. If he is lost, he needs to be guided out by peers or adults or even his own conscience. If that doesn't happen, there is nothing "cruel and yet beautiful" in this. It would be just cruel.

[spoadicdeviance]

Simple and Clean: The Kingdom Hearts Conundrum

Well it looks like the hype of the release of Kingdom Hearts 3 has calmed down significantly, mostly due to the fact that the game is considered by many to be lackluster. As for myself, I have finished my first playthrough of the game, on proud mode, and done most of the side quests, and while I did like my experience overall, I can’t really refute the criticisms the game has gotten and have to agree that Kingdom Hearts 3 is a disappointment.

I suppose I can’t be too surprised with how the third game in the franchise turned out considering the direction the series has been on since the second game which is actually the third game released but due the number placed at the title the game is still the second game, and I’ll just stop right now before I go on a tangent over the names of each game.

Kingdom Hearts, to me, is a series that captivated me right at the very beginning. I love Kingdom Hearts 1. It’s probably in my Top 20 favorite games of all time. The game managed to encapsulate the whimsy and charm of Disney, while delivering an epic, yet simplistic tale of adventure, light vs darkness, and friendship. The game was fun to play, and the story kept me engaged to the post credits scene. To this day, the game is still one that I would gladly replay and enjoy in its entirety.

Can’t say the same for the other games.

I know, I’m in the minority here on this, but in my opinion, the Kingdom Hearts series peaked with the original game from 2002 while all subsequent games have struggled under lackluster levels, a combat system that favors style over substance, and a convoluted plot with dull, heavy-handed dialog. Heck, a lot of what made Kingdom Hearts 3 such a disappointment to many players can be found in Kingdom Hearts 2 and (to a lesser extent) Birth by Sleep, the two games fans say are the pinnacle of the series.

Now I’m not simply here to say that I like this game over that game end it there. I’m going to explain why I think the Kingdom Hearts 1 (or KH1) is my favorite game in the series while putting into words my disappointment with the later games in the franchise, particularly KH2 and Birth by Sleep. This is going to be a long one so just get yourself comfortable and wait until you finish reading my post before you comment. Let’s go over why Kingdom Hearts 1 is the best in the franchise.

First things first, let’s discuss the levels in these games. The worlds of KH1 are a lot of fun to explore. While not exactly Thief II: The Metal Age complex, they were expansive and navigating them was more than just going from point A to point B. Some of the worlds were almost maze like in their design. There were light puzzle elements to most of the worlds. There was even platforming that, while clunky, added some variety to each level. These different elements made the moment to moment gameplay more than just brawling and therefore playing KH1 never got stale.

It’s quite a different story for the other games. The worlds in the latter games are straight forward in their design. The worlds were usually a singular pathway with the occasional branching off into a mini path, (Enchanted Domain, KH2’s Halloween Town), or central hub area that branches into three-four linear pathways (Beast’s Castle). Just look at the maps of Agrabah from KH1 and KH2 to see the downgrade firsthand.

Not only did the levels lack complex designs, they also had little to no puzzles in them and instead of tweaking the platforming to make it less clunky, the worlds minimize or flat out remove platforming all together. This resulted in worlds where you mostly just walk and fight.

Now these games are not simply all combat. There is something added that is intended to break the monotony, and it’s one of the most out of place aspects of the game; the forced minigames.

To be fair, having minigames isn’t a bad thing in and of itself, even if its put into the main campaign/quest. Games like Jak and Daxter and Donkey Kong 64 have plenty of minigames, however most of them are optional to beat the game. Finishing DK64 requires 50% of golden bananas and minigames give roughly 25% of golden bananas. Final Fantasy IX and Skyward Sword have the player do a minigame, but it lasts for 2-5 minutes out of a 35+ hour campaign and serve more to entice players to do a side quest. Even KH1, the only moments that feel like the game forces you to do a minigame like activity were the race against Rikku at Destiny Islands, the 1 minute of vine surfing at the start of Deep Jungle, and the 2-minute magic carpet escape at the end of Agrabah.

The other Kingdom Hearts games are not as stingy with minigames. As each world progresses, minigame after minigame is dumped on the player. KH2 is one of the worst offenders of this. It doesn’t help that these minigames, unlike the ones from DK64 and Final Fantasy IX, don’t provide a real break from the endless stream of battles. The majority of minigames are just regular fights with an arbitrary stipulation added to it; fight the enemies before the timer runs out, fight the enemies until the timer runs out, fight the enemies while collecting some orbs, fight the enemies while filling the bar onscreen, fight the enemies while depleting the bar onscreen, fight the enemies while escorting a slow ass character. It’s all just more fighting, and it even spills over to some of the bosses as well.

Even the minigames that aren’t centered around fighting, like the rhythm games in Atlantica, are too shallow to provide any sense of fulfillment while playing them. Subsequent Kingdom Hearts games aren’t exempt from this. From Birth by Sleep’s Disney Town world being dedicated to minigames, to the shallow imitation of Nintendogs in Dream Drop Distance, these games also have the same minigame issue that KH2 has.

I have talked about how the games became more combat oriented, however I haven’t really discussed combat itself. This is probably the part where I’ll get the most flack.

Combat in KH1 is a lot of fun and the highlight of the game alongside its story. While basic at first, the fighting gets more complex with the addition of special moves, extra combos, spells, and summons adding variety to the system. Plus, different enemies and bosses a certain attacks and weaknesses. Mashing the x button repeatedly will not get you far, you will have to think and be strategic during battle.

The later games, however, do not have strategy in their combat. Sure, you have different options with drive forms, shot locks, trinity limits, and other sorts of abilities, but at the end of the day, combat from KH2 onward is mostly whaling on the attack button over and over again. The amount of enemies that require certain strategies to defeat them diminish, dodging becomes practically unnecessary, and combat becomes simplified as a whole

Drive forms and trinity limits require little to no strategy when using them. Just activate them and mash buttons while your character zips their way through the battlefield while all sorts of flashy effects fill the screen and enemies go down without a fight. How fortunate that certain abilities could only be unlocked when the player fights with each drive form for a certain amount of time. Forced grinding, what a treat.

The worst offender of this is the context sensitive “reaction commends” that can clear waves of enemies and knock out a huge portion of the bosses’ health. Sometimes it’s the only way to defeat certain bosses. All the player must do during these reaction commands is simple press the triangle button over and over. It’s like a quicktime event only virtually impossible to fail at. There’s a reason why the phrase “press triangle to win” exists.

Magic also got a downgrade as the series progressed. In KH1, magic was not always at your disposal. When your MP got depleted, the player (or companions) would have to use an elixir/ether or land enough melee strikes on enemies to replenish your magic. Despite that, spells and summons were incredibly useful in battle, as well as for environmental puzzles, and the proper use of magic could mean the difference between success and failure.

In the later Kingdom Hearts games, the inverse seemed to be true for magic. Not only were puzzles that require spells became almost nonexistent, removing more variety in level design, but spells and summons became less effective in battle. In KH1, the player could focus on spellcasting, while doing the occasional melee attacks, and get through the game with relative ease. In later games, due to how magic became nerfed, using magic primarily was more of a self-imposed hinderance rather than an alternative style of play. This results in the player using magic almost exclusively for healing. Lucky for those players, MP automatically regenerates after depletion at a relatively quick rate, making ethers useless, which gives the player an unlimited amount of heals.

After KH2’s release, with the emphasis on style over substance, combat in Kingdom Hearts games became more about how to make the player look cool while fighting rather than making the player feel good after the fight.

The reason why it felt good to complete a battle in KH1; the game was actually difficult. Enemies and bosses didn’t just let you pummel them with combos and stylized forms. You had to react to the enemies and the arena you fought in. Even to this day, fights against Clayton, Ursula, Maleficent (human and dragon), possessed Rikku, many more bosses still put me on edge as I fight them.

There was no challenge to the fights in games like KH2 and Birth by Sleep. Since the player has multiples ways to dispose of an enemy, virtually endless amount of heals, and less adversaries that require any strategy outside of “hit me a bunch of times until I no longer exist”, they face little to no challenge while playing latter day Kingdom Hearts games. Bosses that make creative use of the environment you fight are less frequent too. The only way a boss can begin to test the player is when a minigame-like stipulation is added to the fight. Stipulations such as kill all the water clones in this time limit, put the coins in the chest before you can do damage, whatever the heck the Luxord fight was supposed to be, and so on and so forth.

Even then, I still didn’t get that much of a challenge. After three playthroughs of KH2, two of which were on Proud/Critical mode, the combined total of times I died does not even come close to a quarter of the amount of times I died in my first playthrough of KH1. I never even died during KH2’s Sephiroth fight, and I still struggle to defeat him in KH1’s proud mode. The other games provide even less challenge outside of a few endgame/postgame bosses.

And before you reply, the re-releases did not remedy this issue. In fact, the re-release of KH2 gave the player new abilities that allowed the player to cheese his/her way through some boss fights.

Now I have talked about the level design, the moment to moment gameplay, and the difficulty. I supposed that leaves us with the plot of these games.

Do I even have to explain why KH1 has the superior story?

KH1 had a simple yet effective hero’s journey story about a child who wanted to explore the various worlds with his friends but got more than he bargained for when his home is engulfed in darkness and he’s separated from his friends. He goes to various worlds, forms friendships with numerous people, and learns about his newfound abilities as well as the forces that try to stop him on his quest to find his friends. It’s not the most complex of narratives and that’s all for the better. The amount of exposition is kept to a relative minimum, characters can breathe and are not just there to explain the situation, dialogue was never forced or awkward, each world had their own mini-story that’s both entertaining and connects to the overarching plot, and the story is self-contained, no outside material required to understand what’s going on.

You know the pattern by now, but I still need to elaborate. For some reason, Square-Enix thought that they could pull off this grand epic saga spread over multiple games, well they couldn’t. KH2’s plot is a total mess. It’s a constant bombardment of new ideas, exposition dumps, vague allusions to events from games that weren’t even released yet. It was bad enough that the player had to have played a GBA spinoff in order to understand a lot of the plot, but the narrative was so muddled with inconsistencies and unexplained concepts that two more spinoffs had to be made in order for KH2’s plot to make some sort of sense, even then the plot is still convoluted and heavy-handed.

I’ve seen spiderwebs that have less interwoven parts than the plot of Kingdom Hearts, and far fewer holes as well.

And no, this does not make the story “complex and deep”. While I expect a game called Kingdom Hearts 2 would require me to play the first game in order to get a clear understanding of the plot, that doesn’t excuse having to play multiple spinoffs just to get a iota of a clue of what the heck is going on. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, one of the most celebrated series of books ever, contained an epic tale of war across multiple kingdoms and fleshed out worlds with history and culture. Even then, the reader didn’t have to refer to The Hobbit or The Silmarillion in order to follow the plot of the novels. That’s mainly due to the fact that J.R.R. Tolkien, unlike Tetsuya Nomura, can actually write an overarching story.

There’s also the fact that a lot of the plot in these games feels like filler. In KH2, the first visits to most of the worlds don’t connect to the main plot about the nobodies and Organization XIII. It’s not until the second visit to Radient Gardens where the plot starts to get rolling. In Birth by Sleep, almost all of Aqua’s campaign feel inconsequential until the very end. You could cut her story and have her just be a side character in Ventus and Terra’s campaigns and not much would be lost, plot wise.

The reason why I find a lot of the plot to be filler is due to the stories of most of these worlds are retellings of the Disney movies they’re based on while having little connection to the game’s main plot. In KH1, the stories of the worlds were mostly original tales that were intertwined with the game’s main plot. Whether it was dealing with Maleficent’s group of villains, the search for King Mickey, Rikku, and Kairi along with the rivalry between Sora and Rikku, learning more about the keyblade and its various abilities, visiting each world moved the main plot forward while having fun mini-narratives of their own. Even worlds like Wonderland, Deep Jungle, and Neverland focused more on one scene/act from the movie and expanding on it rather than rushing through the cliff notes of the source material.

It seems like for the other games, Nomura just copied and pasted the scripts of the movies the worlds a based on, added interjections from Sora, and called it an original story. It sticks out like a sore thumb and makes visits to these worlds feel more like distractions than anything else.

This longwinded plot also extends to the dialogue. The dialogue in KH1 was natural, aside from a few moments of emphasizing the difference between light and darkness. Characters acted normally, they had actual personalities and chemistry with each other. That was because KH1’s plot was not domineering to the point where the characters were relegated to just be vessels meant to explain the narrative. In games like KH2, conversations don’t feel like a group of people talking amongst themselves but rather like a lecture that the player needs to pay attention to. It makes a large chunk of scenes drag on for what feels like an eternity.

The fact that characters feel more like lore dispensers than actual people leads me to my next point, I don’t care about these new characters. Almost every character introduced from Chain of Memories onward has left little to no impact on me.

Organization XIII are a bunch of cliché Shonen Jump villains, either cackling at how evil they are or brooding over something quasi-poetic until the main character comes in and inevitably defeats them.

Roxas got a 2-hour prologue in KH2 in order for the player to get to know him and I was more relieved than upset whenever he “sacrificed” himself in order for Sora to wake up. Even 358/2 Days couldn‘t get me to care for this guy.

Xion exists solely to die at the end of 358/2 days and then be resurrected in Dream Drop Distance, that’s it.

Hayner, Pence, and Olette are like the annoying group of kids you’re forced to hang out with during college orientation, then they think you want to spend more time with them afterwards.

Ventus, Terra, and Aqua might’ve been interesting characters if we had more than 10 minutes dedicated to their friendship and personalities. Birth by Sleep is so focused on explaining the origins of Xehanort, the ways of the keyblade master, and linking its plot to the overarching plot of the series, that I never find myself connecting to any of the characters. The three separate campaigns don’t do the plot any favors. In fact, it makes the story seem disjointed. To be honest, when the characters were either killed, possessed, or banished to the Realm of Darkness, I did not care in the slightest.

It doesn’t help that Tetsuya Nomura can only seem to write 4 or 5 kinds of original characters, resulting in everyone being a Xehanort/Ansem clone or a copycat of the Sora, Kairi, Rikku dynamic. Seriously, the amount of Sora clones in this franchise is absurd. 

The worse thing about these new characters is that Square seems convinced that the general audience needs more of them and forces them into the plot at the expense of characters we already have investment in.

The most egregious example of this happens at the end KH2 when during the final fight against Xemnas, rather than allowing the player to use Donald and Goofy, the game forces you to use only Rikku in the fight.

I don’t care that it’s meant to serve as Rikku’s redemption. He seemed to have redeemed himself with his self-sacrifice at the end of the first game. I don’t care about that stupid reaction command in the middle of the battle looks cool. It’s just another example of the game preferring style over substance. I don’t care that I get to fight with Rikku. I want Donald and Goofy.

I know we play as Sora and therefore focus on building his stats/abilities, but we put almost as much time into Donald and Goofy while we played the game. The player had to find the best equipment, do the side quests in order to obtain their ultimate weapon, mastered their trinity limits, managed their A.I. to suit the player’s needs in battle. Then the game rewards your dedication to these characters by saying “Screw you! Here’s a premade character with a default weapon you can’t change, and you only have the final level to learn how he is like in combat. You’re gonna love it.”

I’m sorry, but for an RPG to do that is inexcusable. Imagine in an Elder Scrolls game, before the final part of the main quest, your character is killed, and you must play as a premade Dark Elf Mage for the rest of the game. How about in Persona 5 before the last boss, instead of the Phantom Thieves, Joker gets a party consisting of some random side characters you barely interacted with in the game. Would anyone defend that design choice then?

The fact that I’m forced to only use Rikku in the fight, alongside how easy it is, makes the final battle against Xemnas in KH2 one of the worst final bosses in gaming, in my opinion.

I’ve been ranting about KH2, Birth by Sleep, 358/2 Days, Chain of Memories, but I haven’t talked specifically about Kingdom Hearts 3. KH3 is a weird case because it fixed some issues that I had with the later Kingdom Hearts games while doubling down on the issues it didn’t fix and adding new issues altogether.

KH3’s level design is improved somewhat. There’s still generally not much to do in the worlds aside from walk, fight, and do a minigame, however the actual levels are more open and intricate compared to KH2 and Birth by Sleep. The presentation is the best in the series, not just the graphical upgrade but also cinematography of the cutscenes and animations are more expressive than in past games. Plus, I got to give the game credit for making me like Axel/Lea, who before was just another forgettable side character.

However, combat is even more style over substance with additions like the Attractions Summons. The minigames are still as intrusive as they are lacking in quality. The retelling of the Disney plots is so bad here that there are literally shot for shot recreations of scenes from the movies with Sora, Donald, and Goofy added in the background. The Frozen and Tangled worlds suffer the most from this. Plus, the Pirates of the Caribbean world is based on the third movie despite the fact that no Kingdom Hearts game covered the second Pirates movie. Good luck understanding that plot without seeing the films. Dialogue is just as mind-numbingly dull. Also, you know how the plots of the latter Kingdom Hearts game can be described as having 30-50% filler, well KH3’s plot is almost 80% filler.

All this is combined with new problems such as combat feeling floatier compared to KH2 and Birth by Sleep, the emphasis on Disney over everything else, and the fact that this supposed “conclusion” to the trilogy didn’t fulfill on all the promises of past games, forgot to fill some of the plot holes, and felt like advertisement for games yet to come, makes it hard for me to say KH3 is a total improvement over the other Kingdom Hearts sequels and spinoffs. In many ways, it’s a downgrade.

You know, it feels like Kingdom Hearts is the Guns and Roses of the video game industry. Their first effort is groundbreaking and makes a huge impact on the scene. Subsequent follow-ups do their best to expand upon the initial outing only to end up with well regarded yet still confused end products. Then a new project is in the works and gets constantly delayed during which a revolving door of crew members tries to salvage the development, all the while a talented yet egomaniacal leader is micromanaging every aspect. Then when the long-awaited product is released, reviewers give mild praise while the general public is disappointed and finds the end result to be a mish mash of disparaging ideas while feeling almost unfinished.

Yes, Kingdom Hearts 3 is Square’s Chinese Democracy.

If I were asked to do a tier list ranking of each game in the series, at this moment, it would look like this.

This maybe a bit of a surprise to you since I spent the entire time ranting about KH2’s flaws, so let me explain. After playing KH3, I’ve come to notice more of the positive aspects of the second Kingdom Hearts. While I do think that they serve more to make the game easy and hate the excessive grinding that comes with them, the drive forms do give the player a sense of experimentation with some of these fights. In fact, compared to KH3, 2 has more builds for the player, as well as more balanced. KH2 is still easy as heck, and in my opinion inferior to KH1 in almost every way. However, I now appreciate more of the second game’s strong points.

Also, the music is excellent. I think that goes without saying. Yoko Shimomura is a goddess of music.

So as if this entire post hasn’t made it clear already, I love Kingdom Hearts 1. Unlike the other games in the franchise, it knew where to be straightforward and where to have complexity. It had a robust, dynamic combat system, the plot was self-contained and had more personality than exposition, and the gameplay was varied without being diluted. To this day, I find it hard to understand why most Kingdom Hearts fans prefer games like KH2 and Birth by Sleep over the original Kingdom Hearts.

Who knows? Maybe they like the combat to have some flash and felt the fighting in KH1 is too rigid. Maybe they found the puzzles, exploration, and platforming of KH1 to be more akin to fat that had to be trimmed in service to the aspect of the games that they actually like. Maybe they enjoy the plot because it has such a detailed lore and expands the narrative beyond three guys saving the universe from darkness. Maybe they find the new characters charming and enjoy the parallels between them and other characters like Sora and Rikku.

If that’s how they feel, then that’s more than fine. We’re all allowed to have out take on things and no one should tell someone else that they shouldn’t have their opinion.

That being said, in my opinion, while I do enjoy most of the games in the Kingdom Hearts franchise, the only game that I find exceptional is Kingdom Hearts 1.

[eorzeasntm]

ENTM Tumblr Cycle 11  Round One Winner

Hi everyone!  For our first week’s challenge, I asked the models to go out and play in the snow and show us a scenic Winter Wonderland.  Our chilly models took us to all sorts of frosty places, but the model with the coolest shot this week was:

Adam Evershot

Congratulations!  The picture frame around this shot made it feel like a post card, and the judges and I all loved that your character was looking at the small light.  Eureka may hurt, but it sure can be pretty. 

Our guest judge this week was Cullen Dionysion of Mateus, the winner of ENTM Forum Cycle 2.  For all the models, the judges have prepared critiques below the fold.  

Host’s Notes on Judging:  The judges were asked to critique a minimum of three or four models this week.  However, they were allowed to critique as many as they wished, so some judges have provided extra critiques.  Our guest judge Cullen was asked to critique all nine models, since he will rotate out with a different judge next week.

Judge Cullen

Yomu: I love the colors in this shot! The background is well-chosen to the theme but bright enough to appreciate the details. The lines created by the sparkling crystals that direct attention to you is well done too! I think your pose is cute as well though I think directing your body just slightly away from the camera would have felt more like a truly candid shot - regardless it was one of my favorites this week. 

 Yojimbo: This is a really interesting monochromatic shot, it’s very striking to the eye. I think of the sky just had a bit more blue to help contrast the background and foreground it would have been a much stronger shot. I love your choice of glamour in this shot as it’s very theme appropriate and strong, and I can still see you apart from the background but your pose is a tad confusing. Is it mid-walk? Mid-frolic? I would recommend really thinking about the frame of the emote you capture a bit more, but you’ve got a lot of great elements! 

 Luma: The background here is gorgeous. Excellent amount of light and really does match the theme. I can see your story both in your caption, glamour, and pose-so excellent consistency! My only tip would be to consider additional lighting for your face so that your expression comes across more clearly, but I can appreciate the natural light you’ve chosen as well. Ni’ko: This shot has a lot of wonderful elements. I love the choice of weapon to try to act a focal point, so even with the bright sky the viewer is drawn to you as well. The glamour certainly conjurers a God of ice/snow vibe and the aurora is a really creative element with the sky to think of! I was slightly torn with part of the background fading slightly and not as much visible snow but I think this shot is an excellent take on the theme!

Adam: This shot was my favorite for the week. The composition with the diagonal line separating the snow and sky and running to your character draws so much focus especially with your more subtle pose and slight turn from the camera. But it feels like a natural, candid expression of winter wonderland, and the framing is a cute accent to what really could be a poster/framed shot. Well done! 

 Haila: The glamour choice is very cute, very ‘Alice in Winterwonderland’ which I’m sure is no coincidence. I love the colors in the background and the illumination of the crystal, and your pose with the slight camera certainly sells me on the unease of your surroundings. I like the bit of contrast with the green on the foreground though I the lighting is a tad on the too/bright/unnatural side, I think tweaking it slightly would have made it a stronger shot. Still overall great job! 

Peaceful Ursa: I love the glamour choice for this shot! Not obvious snow-related but a creative take with the same tones and colors. I love a good action pose with the snowball throw, but I do think this would have been slightly stronger with just a change of angle to not directly face toward the camera. Also consider the rule of thirds to help draw focus without having to be directly in the middle. Some really great elements though! 

 Kota: I really love the perspective in this shot-facing down a path with the angle really helps unite the foreground and background. I love the snow and the moon as an additional focal point too! It’s a nice adventurous take on a winter-wonderland shot. The pose is a nice mid-motion one but I do think the shot would have been stronger with a specific expression/emotion you wanted to convey on your face, as yours does appear a little static.

Bria: I do appreciate that you made a shot with as the model as the strong focal point. Your glamour looks lovely and I can see some snow on the tree in the background, however, there isn’t much to the story here and I think the shot would have been a lot stronger if you hadn’t cropped out so much with the black circling effect. Think about scene setting more then think about what you as the model can add to stand out without physically cutting it out.

Judge Kusuh

ADAM EVERSHOT I was super excited to hear that this was the first round, because I honestly love every single area that is snowy and cold. With that in mind, I really enjoy how your picture captures a beautiful cold landscape and really fits the definition of “scenic” in my mind. My major critique for this picture is that there is a bit of a lighting imbalance in this picture, with the sparkly star off in the distance (I’m not sure what it is but boy is it bright!) pulling my attention a lot more than your character is. You’re looking at the bright spot, so I’m assuming that this is intentional, but the contrast between yourself and the bright spot means that I look at the shiny thing first, not your character and the line-of-sight to the shiny. I’m a major fan of the lighting/mood overall, because the cold weather along with the twilight lighting make for a really atmospheric scene! For the future, I’d either look into balancing your lighting overall, or making sure the contrast draws my attention to you, not away.  Looking forward to your next shot!  

HAILA WETYIOS: For a scenic shot, going with a vertical camera shot is a risky move that isn’t usually considered, but in this case, I think it works. Your outfit and pose give me some very Alice in (Winter?) Wonderland vibes. I get the feeling that you are lost out here, and the dark and spooky background really reflect that! The one possible issue I see is that the dark background combined with your face so close to the bright snow crystal really starts to wash out your face. Your face doesn’t look to ghostly this time around, but I’d be careful in the future. Other than that I think is is a very strong start to this cycle, and I’m excited to see what you come up with this time!

NI’KO SHAE: I’m getting some major Sailor Moon crossed with Ice Queen vibes from this image! You did an excellent job catching the night sky and all the beautiful lights! Your placement in the image is also excellent; standing over a cliff gives a wonderful scenic view alongside the WHM cane leading my eye up to the night sky above. My one thing to lookout for in regards to this image is that you are a pale character with an equally pastel hairstyle and outfit. In a snowy environment such as this you’ve got to look out for being washed out with the white and cool blue lights you used. You’re starting to fade away into the snow! My main suggestion for this would be to try messing with some warmer lights, you can still get the cold effect without washing out your complexion! Overall this is a great start to this cycle, and I can’t wait to see where you go! 

 YOJIMBO KASAI: Where is this? I ask because you’ve done a great jobs finding a spot that really activates some memories for me; this area actually looks a lot like the winters of where I grew up! The trees are my favorite part of this image because of the way the branches split and break up the background of the image. Here’s the main thing I notice, though: your image is bright. The background is very overexposed, which makes the light become almost blinding. This can have a great effect if used right! With your mostly-totally white outfit though, you very much run into the problem of fading into the bright background. This can be easily fixed by either wearing a color that contrasts better against the very bright background, or but finding a way to have your background be less bright. I can’t wait to see what you come up with next!

Judge Ona

Bria – Although I think your background has “snow”, it is difficult to see the scenic snow that is a requirement of the round. I love the use of particle to highlight the idea of sparkling snow, however this would have had a stronger effect with more to see. The vignette is very large and chokes out the background. Although this helps to focus on you, the scenic element is missing. Remember that all aspects of the round description matter. If the round calls for scenic, find a gorgeous background and have yourself go and enjoy it. If it calls for Battle, make sure you are fighting some monster for your life.

I have always liked this outfit and I definitely love that shade of blue, however I am unsure of the outfit’s connection to the story of this image. It is lacking a theme due to the loss of other elements in the image to influence the viewer to feel a connection to the image. If we were able to see what else was going on, we could connect to the emotions of the image.

I like how at this angle, your hair falling across your face does not fully obscure your face and we can see emotion; however, your face does not show emotion and since you are not focused on the camera, or on an element that the viewer can see, we lose another level of connection.

I would work next week on making sure your images follow the theme and have an element that connects the viewer to the feelings of the image.

Luma Lee - I would have loved to see more of this village! Look at those lights, they are so cozy and inviting! I would try to pan out a little more and add some more of the background to the image. Let me see the darkened night sky!

You are certainly dressed for this cold weather; however, the drab color of the coat tends to blend with the overall earth-tone of the village. My eye tends to be drawn to the gold on your plume because it is different from the rest of the color palate. If possible, try to add a varying color to your image so that one area pops. If this image had been taken at night, and most of the image was a darker blue, then the glow from the windows would have drawn my eye towards the scenery, instead of your plume.

I can definitely feel your theme from this image. Adventurer in Pyros seeing snow instead of what they heard! I am wondering, however, why you are allowing your book to get ruined by all of that falling snow! I would have liked to see you under the porch of a building, writing in your book looking out over the village, almost reflecting on the day. Work on adding some subtle lighting onto your face for next week, as your features are hidden by your hair and glasses, and a little light may have helped to sharpen them up!

Ni’ko - The silhouette of the mountain range in the background is a wonderful way to show scenery especially with the stars tucking in behind it. I love how there is some definition with the trees and the building directly behind you almost insinuating that you walked directly out of that building to cast the borealis into the night’s sky.

Speaking of which, the green of the borealis seamlessly blends into your staff, definitely creating the feeling that you, Ni’ko, are the summoner of the northern lights. Although I would have loved to see more of your signature pink, I love how you intentionally chose to mute the colors in an effort to make the green of the lights pop and bring the viewer’s eyes from you, directly to the scenery and the gorgeous view.

The lighting from the staff, and direction of your gaze, allows for a clear view of your face, allowing the viewer to identify the focus you are taking on your staff and the spell you are casting. Although I am generally concerned for you freezing to death in that outfit, I do love this image overall.

Yumo - You look like you are enjoying that snowfall for sure! Almost breathing in the crisp winter air! I love the intricacies of the scene. Snow covered spires litter the background and are clearly a different approach to “wonderland” than trees and mountains. It is an interesting choice to add ice sprites to the image as well. I am just not sure that they are assisting with the feel or the story. Also, their color is the same as the background causing them to blend a little too much.

You look very warm in your outfit.  I do love that hat too! I am concerned, however, that you are so sharpened and the rest of the image is very soft, and due to the darker shades in your clothes being a strong contrast to the background, that you seem almost photoshopped into the image. If the sharpness was a little softer on you, these harder lines would not make it seem as though you are not part of the image. However, I do LOVE your expression, and the fact that I can clearly see your facial features! Your light source is spot on! I look forward to seeing more images from you!

Kota - I love the angle of this image, the upward shot from your feet while you walk away from the castle, tells a story and asks questions to the viewer. It is the middle of the night, where are you going Kota? The composition is great! The angle of the trees and castle form a valley to the road, and your position takes up the space where the sky would have been empty. I also love that low hanging branch on the left side, obscuring the castle just a bit, it adds another dimension to the image.

I like how your outfit contrasts to the background. The white top against the blue/grey sky, and the boots against the brown road, however, I would have liked to see another color added to this image to help you pop. Maybe playing off the reds/pinks in the items on your belt, however the contrast to the background works here.

One thing I would definitely have liked to see more, however, was your face. Although a spotlight directly on your face would have ruined the feel of the image, a subtle light source above your face to the front (think sun/moon minion) would have cast enough glow that your features would not have been drowned out in shadow.

I would love to know what the story is for your image. I look forward to seeing more images from you!

Judge Terrini

Adam: This is such a peaceful landscape, very tranquil and I love the composition of the icy slopes on the diagonal between sky and forest. It really feels like a postcard, particularly with the white frame. And that Sprite manages to look like the star atop a Christmas tree. The choice of cool blue and purple for your glamor has you match your setting nicely, but I might suggest that you add some more lighting on you to make you pop a bit more because the bright sprite is more striking than you are.. 

 Bria: The bright white sparks with the blue star shimmer makes this shot really look magical and the limb darkening to make you in a little Christmas Ornament or Snow Globe is a nice touch! However, your treescape in the background is rather unfocused and your pose isn't particularly strong. It's like a faint memory of a pretty lady looking back at me at a party, but I can't remember what happened before or after and the glimpse in my head isn't telling me anything. .

Haila: It looks like Alice got a little lost in this Wonderland. It's a really pretty shot and your image composition is great! But that ice sprite seems to be shining so brightly as to be blinding and you're looking right at it! It leaves me a bit unnerved. Your lightling also highlights the green ground you're standing on more than the winter wonderland behind you so I am a bit underwhelmed. It's kinda like you were in Arendelle and suddenly Elsa made the summer into snow. Very interesting concept, but I feel it's a bit weak for the theme. . 

Kota: Such a nice peaceful stroll at night down a well worn path. It has a lovely sense of purpose and it showcases this area beautifully! Your outfit is very practical and brings to mind a certain hero in a certain land known as "Hoth". The angle unnerves me a little... probably because I'm a Lalafell and you're looking up into the sky and not where you're going. Careful not to run me down! .

Luma: You could have framed this shot a bit better. I like your position in the frame, but you have a very plain field of snow stretching out next to you and it would have been stronger to have one of the cabins closer to fill more of the frame. Also, while I love the Scholar poses, they do suffer from the question of what are you documenting? Up close like this, we don't get to see and it can weaken any story that you're trying to tell without you being engaged within the tableau of your image. . 

Ni'ko: Now let me present the new embodiment of Shiva calling up the Aurora Borealis on a crystal clear night. The concept of this shot is great, the setting and timing spot on. I do think that the choice of light on yourself is a bit too washed out and cool. Maybe if you had offered more contrast with a more red tinted purple or even a green like the lights in the sky. . 

Peaceful: I love the individual elements I see in this shot, but your composition leaves me wondering where to focus. You have all these interesting elements to the right half but with you right in the middle of the shot, it just becomes too much. And I like the icicles to the left but the imbalance makes me wonder why you have them there at all? If you had been positioned to the far left I would have been able to naturally take in the picture from you, to the icicles, the trees and then the ice crystal in the foreground to the right for a much stronger image. 

Yojimbo: I actually love how you've managed to get these starkly contreasted pine needles in this picture. It is beautiful and striking. The color of your glamor, however, is not, particularly with the fact that you are particularly dark featured. You get lost in the greater picture and it would have been a lot nicer to have seen you in red to really pop and also de-emphasize that bush behind you that is  the only color and ends up drawing more attention than you. 

Yomu: I somehow feel like you just jumped across all those floating ice crystals and are going "See? I told you, I could do it!" I think that this is a great composition and I love your background. I kinda wish it was more in focus, but I think what you've pulled off is lovely and with you and your shadow being the only things with crisp detail, you stand out wonderfully in your ice blue outfit, that otherwise would blend in quite a bit.

Judge Nadede 

Bria Rirsa:  While these appears to be a nice image of your character, however, I honestly do not know what is going on here at all. It appears that the trees in the background have snow on them but it is so hard to tell with how dark the background appears. I also feel that whatever is causing the blue “burst” (?) off the left shoulder is distracting. My eyes keep drawing towards it than your character just because of how it radiates out from that one point. If you are going to use an effect of sorts, pose the question to yourself “Will this help draw attention to my character or detract from it?” Also keep in mind of body parts that are cut off, like how your left hand is here in your image. It can detract from what could potentially be a nice image. Your image is really a good start, just keep some of the things I’ve mentioned in mind and you’ll do just fine.

Luma Lee:  Not too bad of a start, but I feel that the caption you used for your image does not really suit what is going on in the background. Feels that if going to go with the caption you used, a more scenic shot of Pyros would have been ideal. If you feel like a caption for an image is needed, try to keep in mind that it should make sense with the overall image. The same goes when using the facial expressions when using an emote. It should make sense with the overall image. What I see for an expression is not one of confusion but one of you’re trying to concentrate on something. Before going into gpose, you can do an emote that you are wanting and then you can select an expression to use. After that, go into gpose and see if it is something you are trying to go for or not. It is all trial and error. Another thing that will help you out with your image is how your character is lit up. Right now, you are off to the side and in a shadow while the background is a bit brighter. I suggest playing around with the lighting to help make you stand out from the rest of your image a little bit more, while again, having it make sense with the overall image. I do look forward to what you do with your image next week with the suggestions given. Good luck!

Peaceful Ursa:  Yay it is nice to see a male Roe for a change participating this cycle! That said, I’m trying to figure out what is going on in your image. In your image, your toon feels like it is almost too centered for my liking. Try to play around with what is called “the rule of thirds” a bit more to make your composition even more interesting. I am also a bit distracted with how your feet are clipping into the snow. If where you took your image is where I think it is, it is one of my favorite spots to go to when I play with gpose but same time have a field day where my feet will not be clipped from the snow. Lighting will also be your friend as well. As of right now you almost blend in with the background with just the color of your skin and hair alone. I tend to have that same problem as well when taking gpose shots. Play around with the lighting and also look into using complimentary colors to help make you pop out more. I can’t wait to see what you will come up with next week.

Yojimbo Kasai:  Hold on for just one second. Where are they? Oh good, here they are *puts on her shades* There much better. Your image is very, umm, bright and the lighting of it needs to be toned down quite a bit. I do wish that you could have added a bit more color in the image just so that everything wasn’t just white or shades of white. That might have helped tone down how bright your image is as well. With how bright everything else is, I do wish that you could have played around with the lights to light up your face some so you could pop out some from the background. Your character also appears to be a bit too centered. Just like I suggested to another model, try playing around with what is called “the rule of thirds” to make your composition more interesting. Also keep in mind if body parts are cut off or not that they do not detract from your image. Here, your feet are cut off, taking away from the image. Try to pull back just a little bit with the camera to where perhaps your feet are just close to touching the edge of the shot. I do not think you’re off to a bad start, just try to work with lighting to where it isn’t so bright, which is the challenge within itself with the given theme. Hopefully you will have better luck with the lighting in your next challenge. Good luck!

Yomu Kazul:  This is one of the images that I actually do like this week. Do wish that your face was a bit more lit up though so I can see it more. I also do wish that there was a way your were facing the ice sprites instead of away from them. Would make it look like you are conversing with them (perhaps) instead of leaving me wondering what you are looking at. They are also, in a sense, being used to help draw my eye towards you and your pose continues that line off the page (if that makes any sense lol). I like it when I see an image that has elements within that can have me move my eyes around it and then go back to the main subject matter. It really is a good start and I can’t wait to see what you come up again for next week.

Ni’ko Shae : Welcome back Ni’ko! Your image is another one that I actually liked for this week. Is that within Eureka??? If so, just the aurora borealis alone makes me want to actually go in and try Eureka just to see that. The only thing that I can point out is make sure your feet is not cut off. It does detract from the image big time. Just pull back with the camera just a lil bit to where your feet are just about to touch the edge of the image. I would also work with how the back half of your character is lit. Try to look up what is called “three point lighting” and especially of examples using what is called rim lighting in photography. It will help make you pop out just a bit more playing with the lighting. Looking forward to see what you come up with next week. Good job.

Adam Evershot:  Welcome back to you as well. You were another whose shot, at least compositionally, I liked for this week. How you are sitting looking at the background  and the way the tree leads you to the other side of the image helps me out with looking at the overall image. Only thing that I suggest is working on your lighting. The main lighting source is from the ice sprite and has me wanting to look at it a bit more than at your character. Just as I had suggest with Ni’ko, look into “three point lighting” and play around with the lighting in gpose. Overall not too bad of a job, just work on lighting some more. Good luck for next week.

Haila Wetyios:  Another former ENTM model to welcome back, so welcome back! While I like your image with the lighting and composition, I felt as if you really missed the mark with this week’s theme. It just did not make any sense to me whatsoever. I’m sure your outfit would work for a cosplay round but it did not help resonate a “winter wonderland” like vibe with me. Have a feeling you focused too much on the “wonderland” aspect and not really on the “winter” part of it. I am all for pushing boundaries but same time make it to where it makes sense with the given theme. While this week might be a nope for me I do look forward to seeing how you interpret the given theme for next week. Good luck.

Kota Tumet:  Your image is a good start for the cycle. While I like it, how your right (forward) foot is cut off in the image detracts from the image for me. Zoom out with the camera just some so that you can actually see it, even if it is just barely touching the edge of the image. I like the fact that you have given me something to help guide my eye around the image with the road and moon behind you. I do wish that you can work on your lighting some so that you can pop out some more like the moon in the background. I also wish that there was a tilt in the head or some other expression on your face than just the basic straight faced look. Personally, I would be looking around taking everything in when walking about, whether with just my eyes or wanting to touch something I see. Keep lighting in mind and good luck with your next image.

[spiritroots]

Hi Yejide. Recently, I've been feeling a calling to explore root workin' and ancestral veneration. I've been raised Baptist and still maintain a relationship with Christ, but lately I've just been feeling this internal pull to honor my ancestors. I don't know exactly how or where to start. My entire life, I've been raised to believe that doing any kind of root work is witchcraft and inherently evil. How did you decolonize your mind and break out of that fear?

Hi anon (: Welcome to the struggle! I’m happy for you that you’re feeling the ancestral call, and I hope some of this very long response (+1.4k words, I counted lmao) is helpful in one way or another. 

First off, I want to emphasize a couple different things. For one, hoodoo/rootwork is NOT the same as witchcraft at all. It can be overlapped with witchcraft and/or it can be referred to as a form of witchcraft by black folks who wish to call it that, which is a perfectly valid, personal terminology choice. However, historically, rootwork/hoodoo derives from the various ATRs (African traditional religions) that were practiced by black slaves brought to the US. 

ATRs are not witchcraft either, they are traditional religions practiced by peoples indigenous to Africa that deserve the same amount of respect as any other religion in the world. The negative stereotypes about them are based on racism and attempts to dehumanize African peoples and their descendants in the diaspora who practiced their ancestral traditions. Any time you start to slip into that way of thinking about ATRs, remind yourself that they are religions as deserving of respect as any other religion.

Most African slaves in the US were forced to practice various denominations of Protestant Christianity and abandon their traditional religions or face severe punishments - even death. Hoodoo/rootwork is largely the result of many different practices and beliefs from ATRs combined together and syncretized with Christianity. It is a folk magic tradition that was developed not only during slavery but also largely within the black church. The ties between hoodoo and Christianity are very deep. You don’t have to be Christian to practice rootwork, but it’s not at all un-Christian to practice it either if that’s something you’re interested in doing. (Since you mentioned you still maintain a relationship with Jesus, I figured that might be something you’d wanna look into.)

The majority of traditional rootworkers in the US have always been and still are Protestant Christian. It’s traditional in hoodoo to pray to Jesus during workings, and it’s said that Moses himself was the very first rootworker in history. Why? Because the original Christian rootworkers viewed rootwork as powerful prayers, asking for the help of God to heal, protect, and sometimes issue divine judgment. Hoodoo wasn’t traditionally seen as witchcraft at all, and in fact, has long been used as a method for fighting against witchcraft. Many of the most respected and famous rootworkers in history were also preachers and pastors. Some consider being a good church-going Christian as a pre-requisite to being a rootworker. The Bible itself, especially the Book of Psalms, is traditionally viewed as a powerful source of hoodoo magic.

Now, I’m not sure if you were already aware of any of this or if this information is helpful to you, but I think it’s important for anyone studying hoodoo to understand this side of its history whether you want to connect with these aspects of it or not. If you’re curious at all about my personal journeys of dealing with Christian views on witchcraft and also decolonization within my magic and religious practices, see the mini-novel I ended up writing at 3 am for this ask under the read more line below 😂😂😂

[ Ask me anything ] [ Buy me a coffee ] [ Spirit Roots Shop ] [ About Me ]

It took me about a solid ten years to get to where I am now with decolonizing my mind and breaking out of Christianity-related fears around magic practices. I’ll still always be in the process of decolonization for the rest of my life, but within the past few years, I’ve made some big strides that I’m very proud of for myself. As I hope most of my followers know, I’m not a witch and don’t identify as one for personal and historical + cultural reasons within the context of Africana traditions. BUT that being said, for much of my life I did identify as a witch and actively study witchcraft for a very long time.

I declared myself a Wiccan at the age of thirteen, which was inspired by watching Charmed, yes, but that didn’t lessen the seriousness of it for me as being an actual religious path and practice I wanted to commit myself to. Being an only child who told my very liberal parents everything, I quickly confessed this to them expecting acceptance and happiness for me. Unfortunately, their Christian knee-jerk reaction alongside concerns about a thirteen-year-old learning about witchcraft, fertility rites, and sex-related rituals was enough for them to give me an ultimatum to stop being both a Wiccan and a witch.

That sent me deep into secrecy about it for around a solid 8 years or so - essentially all the way through high school until I had more independence in college. During that whole time, I always felt like I was genuinely a witch and Wiccan and no other religion fit me, but I was too scared to practice because of my parents’ reaction and them having “banned” it. I remember that constant longing mixed with fear of being a witch in my heart while feeling like it would never actually be accepted by anyone in my life.

During college, I finally realized that I could practice it more actively without worrying about my parents anymore. I remember going through all the stages of testing the waters with that, the ex-Christian pangs of guilt and intrigue, the concerns about what Drew and my friends would think and then being the cool and edgy witchy friend after finally mustering the courage to tell them. It was like I could finally be who I always knew that I was inside, but it had required a long process of unraveling the shame and the guilt and the fear, too.

Now, to be totally honest with you, I wouldn’t consider ANY of that decolonization. That was really just my journey of breaking away from a mostly Christian upbringing (my Jewish roots didn’t really play an anti-witchcraft role at all tbh) and finding the freedom to more openly be a witch and deepen my practice of witchcraft and of Wicca. Beginning to decolonize for me was a whole other journey that started soon afterward.

Fast forward to after I started studying Wicca in enough depth as a college student that I realized it really wasn’t for me and ended up converting to Buddhism instead. In a roundabout way, it was converting to Buddhism that sent me down a very different path. I was and still am a very devout Buddhist, but even though the buddha dharma is universal, Buddhism as a religion is deeply rooted in Asian cultures which is not a part of my heritage. As my Buddhist practice deepened over time, so did my longing for ancestral traditions and practices. This is what got me started with ancestor work and studying hoodoo, which is what eventually led me to an interest in ATRs and Ifá in particular. Even reconnecting with my Jewish heritage and identity was a part of this journey to tap back into my ancestral practices and spirituality.

The more I learned about these Africana traditions, the further away I got from Eurocentric ways of thinking about spirituality and magic. Converting to Buddhism from Wicca began my big push away from Eurocentric frameworks, and getting involved with hoodoo and Ifá only cemented that even further for me. Yes, witchcraft can be defined in whatever way one wants so I’m not saying people can’t practice completely non-Eurocentric witchcraft - some people absolutely do that. But for me personally, leaving the concept of “witchcraft” and the identity of “witch” behind completely was even more liberating than reconnecting with it in the first place had ever been. This was a huge part of my personal decolonization process for many different reasons.

That’s all a very long story and explanation, but that’s essentially my point. It can literally take decades to undergo the personal journeys necessary for unraveling and growing beyond what you were raised to believe and what society impresses upon you. Growing up in a very Christian household and in a Western society that enmeshes you in Eurocentric ways of thinking makes it extremely difficult because that’s all your surrounded by for most of your life. 

Unfortunately, there’s no handbook or manual guide for all this. It’s very challenging and difficult. One thing I wish I had had more of through all of it was support from role models and mentors to understand better where I was going and where I wanted to end up. Maybe if I had, these journeys might have been a bit shorter and smoother. If you can, find communities and mentors who can help you grow, but also always listen to your instincts and your own intuition. I wish you the best of luck on your way

[travellingmonk]

Shin Kon Hen / Early Dusk Volume Book 4 - Chapter 2 - A Flash of Brilliance

- > Chapter 2 - A Flash of Brilliance < -

Book title : Book 4 * Samurai Troopers * Shin Kon Hen (Early Dusk Volume) Character designs by Enzan Norio Story by Ushyuu Miki

(Note from the translator : The following section talks about the capital city, how great it is, how far it extends, and how safe the people who live there feel. aka, it's big, diverse, pretty, well-decorated, and, in general, a nice place to be. However, a section of it is incomplete because this use to be a swampy area. In addition to that, in that area, bad guys live there, so it's not a safe location. It does get a teensy bit rambly, so if you want to skip past that, just scroll down until you see the * * * * * and proceed reading. However, if you are interested and want to read these details for yourself, continue reading from here.)

Heian-kyou was a city that, although there were lots of plans before, and during, it's building phase, those plans withered away. It was originally a diverse place full of of brilliance. A nice place to keep a watchful eye on, like a person watching a very interesting board game. The city of Kyoto was a rational move to turn into a capital which used a mountain basin to its advantage. This place was fantastic. When a person entered the city of Heian-kyou the construction and design was similar to that of a fish. At the very end of it, the city would taper off into the tail end, just like the back fin. From there the metropolis region extended onwards from both sides. The plan was that it was be built as follows. You would enter through a magnificent red gate. There you would see a long, narrow main street which extended down into the capital city. The capital city was divided into two. Sakyou and Ukyou. In Ukyou, there were been weeping willow trees that were along the sides of the road and were only along the main street. In Sakyou, there were special temples called 'Nishidera'. They are all about feeling pride about the pledge the people keep and this was a special place for the arrival of high ranking people. Basically, if you were one of the noble people, or were really rich, this was going to be your first stop. Meanwhile, the administration section, called Setoki, is located in the center of the main street. Lots of people live in the capital city, including aristrocrats. There's also a residential street on the north side. That's in the back, across from the four way main street. However, all of this beauty is a little bit deceiving with its symmetrical beauty. There are a lot of damp, swampy places in Ukyou. This is the reason why the completion of the city couldn't be finished and why it was left abandoned.

* * * * *

Although this has had to endure public attention, there was no way you could miss the stark contrast between the brilliant city and the untamed wilds of the swampy area, most people had simply learned to live with the incomplete places. Another disadvantage of this untouched area is that these sections of wet land are very dangerious, and that air of danger hangs around, despite all of the prosperity that was around the people. Inside this capital city, there was a cry for war. These upset people, who heard of lavish gifts that were given to the capital city and were upset that they weren't getting a piece of that action, secretly gathered together. In a small corner of Tokyo, these people became known as Magai and were little more than a den of theives. At night, no matter how dark it was, there in Heian-kyou, there was no where that remained in darkness. Although you couldn't usually spot the items creating light or where, exactally, they were, they created a warm glow of illumination, keeping any darkness at bay. There's an old saying that goes something along the lines of 'once a hawk falls out of the sky and dies, this is a sign of evil being present in the area'. This is mentioned here because a monster, of sorts, exists in this area. The darkness fills people with evil words and horrible actions. This is a sign that the era of peace is coming to an end.

Here in the capital, there's a family known for and quite proud of their kimono designs. Not that they're lacking in beauty by any means, but, even in these modern times, they're still able to make original designs that dazzle and awe people. Which is a pretty big deal. Alongside that, there are plenty of aristocrats living here, so the art of military affairs is pretty well nonexistent. Because of this, and because of the age they live in, its understandable that they feel scared. They can't fight against the encroaching evil threatening their way of life. The people watch with worry as fierce warriors who live in the rural areas aim their anger and aggression at the capital city. Because the fear of death has settled into their minds, its not unusual to see them wandering around with a rug, rich with intricate designs and made with thickly woven fibers, tucked under one of their arms. Its only by some miracle that the people have managed to survive. In all of this chaos, its not unusual for people to end up being poor. Within a group of fierce warriors there's a faction that was formed rather recently. They're called the Seki group. This violent group is looking for the warrior that serve Yakushi (and Yakushi herself who serves the retired emperor Tooru). A young warrior by the name of Tomoaki Amo sits on a nearby mountain, giving him quite a nice bird's eye view of the city. He watches the people very carefully. He left the state of Wakasa a short while ago and went into the capital city for a pleasure trip. Wakasa isn't very far from this new capital so the trip wasn't long or exhausting to make. The violent warriors, jealous of and angry at the people living in the city, know that there's no secret design laid out for them to succeed, for them to live well in the capital city. However, in this capital city, Tooru, who is at the center of any and all administration related duties, had been in charge of building this magnificent city. To hear that he was nearby was enough to make a person's heart race with excitement. The countryside was filled with beautiful, youthful people, and, with him being a young man, made it easy to blend in. No one would ever suspect Tomoaki of being anything other than just another peaceful young man. At one time, he, along with many other people, lived in a place called Hirasaki. It's a very small place and, in order to reach the nearest village or settlement of people, it was a tough climb through some rugged terrain. Then again, even when one did manage to get to another village, the village was small and there weren't many people living there. However, despite there being so little signs of civilization out there, such as shrines made with gold and silver like the capital city would have, there's no map of this valley. No way to know where one is going or where they can find anything. It certainly didn't make for easy living. Tomoaki looked down at the city. This particular perch gave him a vantage point that made him feel like he could command the wind itself that passed through the land. He was certain that if he tried, he could even get a view of the sea in his home village. He'd always thought this way about this one particular spot. It was somewhere any person could stand and feel incredibly powerful. Far below him in the city, a young man is walking around Suzaku-oji, a boulevard in the old streets of Kyoto. As he makes his way through the crowds of people he hears a rumor floating about. There's talk that people have succeeded in overrunning the mountain-filled state of Yamashiro. Not an easy undertaking for anyone. Yamashiro is a nice enough place to visit, however, it wasn't wise to stay longer than a night or two in a temple there. No one really wanted undue attention in such an area. It didn't help matters any that there weren't any guides or teachers at all in these areas to educate the people on anything. Or to act as a warning to anyone passing through of the dangers present in any places. Everyone was self-taught and learned whatever they knew all on their own. Living this way was fine enough if you were a person who enjoyed solving puzzles and and analyzing various situations. If you weren't, this could cause problems and accidents. However, this was simply how life was. The only records being kept of anything at all was the government keeping track of the money flow. As Tomoaki looks around, taking his time to watch the people below for signs of anything interesting, he noticed that a good bunch of the people are old. They were as various as the different aspects of the city itself. Having been self-taught and doing things on their own, most not having a proper enough mindset to figure out puzzles an the like, trying to live or make a living was difficult. Especially trying to navigate the complexities of living in the capital city and the politics that were always happening. Many times they'd end up becoming a monk or a nun, simply because it was a much easier, and less thought-involved way to live. Then again, on the other side of things, it's not like going into a religious faction made things any easier. There were plenty of politics going on there, too, and people making a profit from the namesake of deities. This is why the emperor was going to separate religion from politics. It was too easy for corrupt people to take advantage of others, saying 'we'll say this prayer on your behalf to the gods' or 'we'll say this magical spell that will cure your ailments' only if they get money out of it. This was only hurting more people than it helped. He was trying to get all of this sorted out before Shou Takashi of Tokyo came to take over Tooru's admistrative position. Who even know how well-informed or honest that Takashi would even be in regards to his matter. Best to get this all done and sorted before that change happened. Tomoaki crossed both arms over his chest as a gentle breeze blew through the area. It's not like any of this information was news to him. To be honest, it's actually what he was expecting to find. He proceeded to make his way down the mountain and closer to the city. It didn't take long before he began to be within earshot of people talking about different things. Yakushi was being mentioned. The sort of person she was, how pretty and elegant she was. How she had gained favor with the emperor, etc. He could hear someone else commenting about how a rich man might act and be seen as whimsical, but in a place like this, with everything that was happening, it was easy for his heart to be full of worry. The peace of this land was being eroded away and it seemed like nothing was going to stop that. Tomoaki quietly approached the backside of a building and peered around a corner. His ears keen to listen in on more conversations. The more he could learn about what was going on, the more prepared he could be. "If its to protect her personal belongings, isn't Toneri and other guards enough to handle the job? I mean, they ARE send from the emperor himself to do that." "Sure, if this was someplace like Tokyo, but it's not..." the person's words falling silent caught Tomoaki's curiousity. He could see several people looking across the way at someone. The young man stood up straight, extending his neck and standing on his toes for a better look. He gasped at what he was able to see. A big, muscular soldier came riding down the road on an impressive black horse, as dark as the night sky itself. He was bigger than anyone the young man had ever seen in his life, and was extremely intimidating to behold. It's surprising to see a horse able to so easily accomidate the man, but it's almost like they fit one another quite well and that the man's size and weight didn't bother the horse at all. As if this sight itself wasn't something else to see, Tomoaki noticed the almost blood red color of the horse's reins, which seemed to match the color of the horse's eyes. It was almost painful simply to look at. Never in his life had he ever seen such a beast, and a part of him really hoped he wouldn't have to ever again. A chill raced down his spine at that moment. As he sank back to standing normally, he could still see the large figure towering above everyone else as he made his way past. He had the sort of air to him that would make a soldier concerned that there were more people like him charging into the city ready to do who even knows what horrible things. It certainly wasn't a sight that allowed people to feel calm and happy. Doing his best to stay in the shadows of the alleyway between the buildings, Tomoaki tried to get closer to see if anyone knew why this huge stranger was here. Maybe he was a courrier to some neighboring country or had an important message to deliver. "Hes so scary to look at. Is he even human?" one man asked to another. "From the look of him, he's definately a person who became a soldier of the capital city. Did you know," said the other man, leaning in close and speaking quietly, "it's said that he eradicates any sort of magic." "Really?!" the first man gasped. "If it is this gentleman is like that, then any man would be wise to be afraid of using magic at all and keep a low profile the entire time he's here." "Do you know anything else about him?" "Well," the two men were facing one another, completely absorbed into their hushed gossip, allowing Tomoaki the perfect opportunity to effortlessly listen in and not be noticed. "I don't know his name, but he's referred to as a military man that Yakushi has embraced and keeps close at her side." He couldn't help but notice how uncomfortable he felt, his gaze drawn back to the horse. It had come to a stop in front of a building across the street. For as big, powerful, and fear-instilling as it was, the horse seemed to stand practally unnoticed by other people in the immediate area. Like a needle hidden among a pile of rice. The big man got down from the horse, was greeted by Yakushi, and proceeded to cross the street with her. Tomoaki made his way from where he'd been hiding and entered out onto the somewhat busy and bustling street, managing to blend in with the crowd of other people who were out and about for the day. Unlike the other people who were in the city that loved to talk about anything and everything, Tomoaki was silent. He heard others muttering something about 'it would come soon'. 'It' what? A memory flashed through the young man's mind at that moment. 'You have to follow where ever he goes. . . unfortunately, it may end up being that this man's future will remain unknown. . . ' Not so far away, one young warrior held steadily onto a bow and several bows. In that moment, the gates of Yakushi's mansion were struck.

Some years earlier, when Kaosu was only a 10 year old kid, he could remember that there was a deep divide between the moutain's forest. His father was a woodcutter. Going into a mountain's dense forest was an everyday thing for him. The older man, even from when he himself was a little kid, had done the same thing. The area has a great variety of different kinds of trees, most of which always sold quite well since people require the wood for warmth in cooler months, and cooking the rest of the time. He knew the area very well because of it, but, having the forest and moutains divided that deeply was something that had never happened before. With such a deep divide and getting so cleared out, it was bound to end up as a clear mountain path for anyone who lived there or who passed through the area. Sometimes this would include wild animals, too, taking advantage of the cleared terrain. Although this bothered the boy, he knew full well that his father didn't cut down trees to become a murderer of little animals or destroy the land. There was a bigger reason for why he did this, and this was the first day that Kaosu really showed that he was different than everyone else around. For quite a while now, Kaosu had been showing more and more interest in the world around him, as well as a knowledge about things that most full grown adults didn't possess. Sure it'd been clear that Kaosu was different, right from the first day he was born, but it only became more pronounced the older he got. Today, his father had invited him out on a walk into the forest. The boy was glad to go and enjoyed the surroundings but after almost half a day of walking through the woods and quite a great distance away from his home, he didn't understand where his father was taking him. The man eventually came to a stop at what seemed like a thick wall of foilage. "Ah, here it is," he muttered with a smile. He knelt down and pushed aside a bit of the greenery to reveal the small entrance to an overgrown pathway. If one didn't know exactally what they were looking for, this area could easily have blended in with anywhere else. No one would've ever imagined to think that a pathway was here leading to . . . who even knew where. He placed a hand to the side of his mouth and made a 'hoo' sound, similar to that of an owl. Kaosu watched in silence, puzzled but intrigued by his father's behavior. After a moment, a voice responded with a similar sounding 'hoo' followed by the sound of rustling plants. Someone was on the other side pushing away the plants. Sure enough, after a few seconds, sunlight poured in from the other side to reveal a short, older man with greying hair standing there. It was in that moment that Kaosu realized that everything had suddenly fallen quiet. The sound of the wind had died down, no chirping birds to be heard. It was strange, and almost felt as though time itself had come to a stop. "Follow me," his father said, then led the way through the opening in the foilage, holding the plants aside as Kaosu did as he was told. Soon enough they were through to the other side and standing up. "Onjiyou, it's good to see you," greeted the old man as Kaosu's father respectfully bowed to him. "It's good to see you, too," the old man said in return with a respectful nod of his head. "I see you've brought your son with you this time." Kaosu's father nodded, stroking his son's head for a moment as he looked down at him "I have. Kaosu, the time has come to you to live here for a while. They'll teach you about many things that others cannot." He knelt down so he and his son were at eye level. "Learn well while you're here. It will all be important for you later on when you're older and out in this world on your own." "I will," the boy said. Kaosu's father smiled at him, then rose to his feet and proceeded to leave. Although the boy didn't entirely understand what was happening, he trusted his father. If his father trusted this old man, then he would, too. It's not like he didn't already have a feeling deep inside of him that he was different than everyone else, and was told many times over the years that he's important for this world. This was simply the first step into becoming the person this world would need. He knew he wouldn't see his father again for a long time, his family, or his home village, but, while here, he'd strive to do his best. For as wise as he was, he was still just a 10 year old kid and he'd miss the only life he'd ever known up until now. Kaosu drew in a deep breath and looked up at the grey haired older man. "Don't worry, my boy," he said reassuringly, "you'll get to see your village and family again, soon. For now, let's get you settled in. We've been waiting for you to be ready to come here for quite a long time. It's nice to finally meet you. Welcome to the village of Kaosu" "Thank you. It's good to meet you, too." Just that short of an exchange seemed like it lifted a bit of weight off of the boy's shoulders. It's not like him being here would be a permanent thing, or that he'd become an outcast. Far from it. "Come with me," he said, and began walking. Kaosu quietly walked alongside Onjiyou, taking in his new surroundings. Despite just having been in the depths of the forest, this area had open places with comfortable looking houses. Trees grew all around in such a way that the area felt in balance and harmony. They weren't too clustered together, nor were they greatly spaced apart. "From now on, you'll be living here with us," he indicated to the few visible people who were currently out and about at the moment. A few walking and talking side by side, a few others tending to their own little gardens. "There will be many things you'll need to study and learn about. I'll be your teacher from here on out, even if I am all old and wrinkly," he said, his tone warm and friendly. "If you have any questions, feel free to ask me. It's what I'm here for, after all." Kaosu nodded his head, staying quiet for a moment longer before looking up at Onjiyou. "I have something to ask you. Kaosu is the name of this village. . .but, that's my name, too. Isn't it kinda strange?" "My, now, that's a curious sort of question to be asking this old man. Well, Kaosu isn't so much an individual person's name. I mean, it IS, but, it's also not." He exhaled before continuing, stopping his walking tour to look directly at the black haired, brown eyed boy. "This is a very special place. To put it simply, all of the people here, myself included, belong to the clan of Kaosu. This village? This village is the village of Kaosu. However, "Kaosu" is also," he gently poked the boy's chest, "you. Now, you see, a very long time ago, in the ancient times, an entire famliy took on the responsibility to help this world. To quietly guide the people to be better, nicer, kinder. Also, to help protect them from bad feelings and evil actions. The people who were currently alive, as well as the people who were yet to be born. This role of ours hasn't changed." A gentle, warm breeze blew through the area, rustling the leaves of the trees. "As for your name, well, there was a leader, a man, a very long time ago who was born under the sign of a miracle. As he grew older, it was more knowledgeable, insightful, and good-hearted than everyone else. He's the one who saw everything that was happening and chose to help the people. It's his family that we are a part of and his name that we carry. On the very day you were born, there was a miracle that happened. That's how we knew you were special. That is why your name, his name, the name of this clan and this village, are all the same. You are Kaosu." "Wow," breathed out Kaosu. "To add onto that, there's an old legend that says when a child is born and a miracle happens, this child will be Kaosu." No one had ever told him all of this before, and, understandably so, it was quite surprising to hear about. And yet, at he same time as he was surprised and in awe by this information, it felt 'right'. As if some part of him that had been missing had finally come to light. Things made sense. The old man was amused, watching this kid's reaction. There was nothing quite like seeing that light of 'It makes sense now!!' go off in someone else's eyes. Even at such a young age, it was remarkable to see how fast Kaosu seemed to understand his namesake. It was a pretty big topic to mentally grasp, even for an adult, but for a kid? Well, it's not like this was any ordinary child. This was Kaosu. THEE Kaosu. In this one moment, Onjiyou truly felt as though this boy could be entrusted with everything he knew and be able to handle the weight of all that knowledge. After showing Kaosu to his own little hut, a simple yet comfortable bed already waiting for him, the old man said that Kaosu could take it easy the rest of the day. Wander around, look at the village, greet the other people here. They would begin his lessons tomorrow. As the afternoon passed to night, the stars out and twinkling in the dark sky, Onjiyou looked upwards. An era of "magic" was about to begin and this would be a completely new experience for everyone. It was up to every individual person to decide just how they were going to get through it. This would take many years but, when compared to Kaosu, this would all seem like an extremely short period of time. Then again, this is the moment the old man had been waiting for his entire life. When the next morning came about, after having some breakfast, Onjiyou and Kaosu headed out to a nearby area. This would be their first day together as student and teacher, where he'd tell Kaosu to do something, and he'd execute whatever it was without question. After all, there was only so much he could explain. Sooner or later, life experiences would be needed in order to experience, learn from, and grow because of. This was only day 1. "Today we begin your lessons, Kaosu." He'd led the way through a bit of forested area to a cliff. They stood upon the edge of a sheer verticle rock wall that, far below, held flowing water in the middle of a valley. The boy carefully peered over the edge to the glistening, clear water below. "The area of water below is called Tanikawa. What you must do is get water from there." The brown eyed boy looked curiously back at the old man. They were high up on a cliff. The area below showed no signs of easy access to anywhere that water flowed. How in the world was he suppose to get water from there? There were no paths or walkways, the cliff face looked too smooth to get any hand or foot holds, and they hadn't even brought a container of any sort along with for him to retrieve the water with. The old man smirked in a playful sort of way, knowing full well what was going through the boy's head at the moment. "Yes, I'm fully aware of the fact that there's no direct way to get that water and we didn't bring any tools to get it. I will tell you this in order to help you." He shrugged slightly, in a nonchalant sort of way. "As long as you get water from Tanigawa, then any way you do it is fine. Good luck," he said with a smile, then turned and began walking away. "I know you'll figure it out!" Kaosu's brow furrowed, watching the old man walk away. That makes two people who'd up and left him behind in the span of only 24 hours. Not even that long, in fact. He sighed as the old man walked back into the forest and out of view. He stood closer to the edge, looking down again and giving careful attention to the area. Clearly there had to be some way of getting that water. Should he try climbing down the rock face? He gave himself plenty of time to really look for any possible hand holds to use, but there simply weren't any to be taken advantage of. Maybe there was some way to climb down into the valley itself and get to the water that way? No... that wouldn't work either. The place was more like a huge crevasse, rather than some lush, green, welcoming valley anyone could easily walk through. How about if he tried scooping up the water by tying a long a long rope around something. . .? The trees around him had fairly good sized leaves and nuts on the branches. Yeah... that'd work. However... he didn't actually have a rope to use. Then again, a few vines tied together could make a useable rope for this. After getting the largest nut he could and hollowing it out, grabbing several vines and tying them together then around the nut, he had a perfectly good scoop. Sitting at the edge of the cliff, he proceeded to lower the creation down, but one thing became quickly apparent. It was barely noticed this high up, but the further down one went towards that water, the harder the wind was blowing. The scoop was soon completely unstable. Lifting it back up, he placed a stone inside of it to keep the scoop weighted down, but that barely seemed to change the results. Even if the rope was more than long enough to reach, and a heavy enough stone inside of that tree nut, that strong, consistent wind pretty well guaranteed nothing would get down there Even if, by some miracle, he actually managed to get that nut down into the water, the wind would whip it around the moment it began its ascent and dump out every last drop. Frustrated, Kaosu sat quietly on the edge of the cliff, arms crossed over his chest and his face showing he was deep in thought. There HAD to be a way to get some of that water. One day passed by, then another, then another after that. Each day Kaosu went out to that cliff and wracked his brain trying to figure out how to get some of Tanigawa's water. Every evening he came back, got something to eat, slept, then went back out the next morning. Several days had gone by at this point and he'd noticed that there was always a strong wind blowing up from the bottom of the valley. An updraft. If a kite was there, it would always be in flight and never come down. Sometimes, as he'd noticed, there were clouds that rose from the valley below to become tiny drops of moisture. Those, in turn, formed clouds that would release rain. It was on one afternoon that it was sprinkling, Kaosu having taken shelter under the thick growth of leaves from a tree, that he felt lonesome. He was out here, all day long, no one to talk to or interact with. It was only him and this challenge. He sighed, resting his head back against the tree trunk when the old man's words echoed in his mind. 'As long as you get water from Tanigawa, then any way you do it is fine.' That didn't seem like it helped him at all. There was no way to even get at the water. He turned his gaze upward, watching as water droplets lazily dripped off of the leaves. "As long as you get water from Tanigawa," he muttered, suddenly realizing that the whole water rising as a cloud, then raining, was still Tanigawa's water, "then any way you do it is fine." He smiled and felt invigorated. That's it! That was the answer! He got a bowl from the village then hurried back out to that same spot, letting the sprinkling water fall into the wooden bowl. When it felt enough had been gathered, he went straight for the old man to show him. Onjiyou smiled and nodded his head once in approval. Took the kid a bit longer than he'd been expecting, but he eventually figured it out. Sometimes, the solution to a problem isn't a direct approach or doing all of the work himself to get results. Observation and patience were important. The next lesson didn't sound overly difficult. The old man, who was sitting in front of a bonfire, explained it simply. Go connect a band to the top of a tree. The top of a tree that just happens to look like the peak of a mountain. The tree will be found somewhere on the mountain that's covered with lots of trees. As Kaosu headed for the mountain with trees, he noticed someone disappear into the shadows of the trees nearby. Sure, okay, that was odd, but there honestly didn't seem to be any signs of danger around here. If there was anything dangerous, certainly Onjiyou would've warned him about it. The boy flinched at the unexpected and loud whistle the old man made. Kaosu paused, about to look back at him when what sounded like many roars cut through the air in response to the whistle. All coming from the top of the mountain. Were those tree spirits or something calling back!? The boy was about to ask Onjiyou what that was about, but when he turned to look, the old man was already standing up and walking into the forest. The exact moment he was out of sight, it started raining. Hard. The downpour so heavy it made being able to see more than a few short feet ahead almost impossible. Could he have run back the way he'd came and return to the village until this rain passed? Yes, but there's one problem. It was obvious that this wasn't some freak of nature rain storm. Somehow Onjiyou had made this happen. Or, more specifically, made it happen to challenge Kaosu. As the slope of the moutain started running with water, almost enough to make the boy slip with each step, the best thing he could do was find shelter and figure out this latest challenge. He found a nearby cave and rushed inside, glad to be out of that drenching downpour. His relief was short-lived. Barely more than a few steps into the dark, cool, dry cave the floor suddenly gave way beneath his feet. The was no warning, no sounds of crackling stone or sifting soil. One minute he was on solid ground, the next, he'd found himself falling. It had happened so suddenly that he didn't even have the time to cry out. The next thing he was aware of, Kaosu groaned as he returned to consciousness, laying stomach down on a cold, stone floor. As he slowly pushed himself to sit up, coughing a few times in the process, he wasn't sure if a few seconds had passed, minutes, or hours. Sitting up and taking a few deep, slow breaths, ignoring the throbbing and pain he felt running through his body, he took his time looking around himself. His brown eyes had adjusted to the dim light well enough, but it's not like there was really anything to see. Way up at the top of the hole he could barely make out sunlight. The old man had probably stopped the rain and now everything was calm and brilliantly sunny once more. He could hear water slowly dripping somewhere in the hole with him. A little bit of the rain from earlier had probably managed to find its way into the cave and drop down, little by little, into this hole. From what little he could make out of the hole he was in, the walls didn't have anything jutting out. Nothing for him to use as any sort of hand hold. No way to climb out. Only one way in, one way out. Looking across the floor, he was able to see a few animal bones scattered about. Seems like he wasn't the only one who have lost his way and found themself at he bottom of this pit. He took time to check over his body, seeing what places hurt, what places didn't, if he was bleeding or not. As far as he could tell he was okay. Sore in quite a few places, but, no bones sticking out from his skin, no trails of blood able to be felt. No doubt he had a few cracked bones, but nothing he wouldn't live through. Gathering himself mentally, he stood up, then proceeded to run his hands across the walls as far up as he could reach. He hadn't been able to see anything specific, but had managed to grab onto a few slightly sticking out rocks from the wall. This ended up being a fruitless endeavour since he barely got more than a foot or two higher and felt nothing else he could grab onto. He was quite stuck down here with no way out. This was it? Was he going to suffer the same fate as these animals? No. He had to escape. He HAD to escape. But... He looked upward at that overhead hole again. He had to escape. With a tired sigh, he laid his back flat against the wall, still looking upward. His latest lesson / challenge was to go find a tree on a moutain. He hadn't thought of bringing any tools along with. Just go, find tree, put band on tree top, and done. It was a straight shot from that bonfire to the top of the mountain, even with all of the trees in the way. How could he have expected any of this to happen? He mulled over the possible solutions. Climbing the walls was clearly out of the question. Nothing to grab onto. There were animal bones and loose rocks down here but, that was no where near enough to help him get even a quarter of the way up to that opening in the ceiling. What else could he do? There wasn't anything in here he could use and the walls were solid. He couldn't even use anything down here to strike the walls with to make holes he could use to climb out with. Sliding against the wall, he sat down in a sore, defeated lump. Hours must've passed. The faint sunlight that was at the top of the hole had given way to darkness. There was no light at all. He could've called out to the old man, to any of the villagers and hoped they were close by enough to hear his voice but. . . it was useless at night. When daylight poured into the cave again, from what little Kaosu could even see, that is, he cried out for help. The only answer he got was his own echoes. The day passed into night again and he was still all alone at the bottom of this hole. This is where he went from feeling sad and alone to feeling angry at being stuck. He had to drink yesterday's rain water, which had accumulated into a small puddle. By now he welcomed the tiny fragment of sunlight that actually managed to be seen at the top of the hole. Not about to give up, he tried again at the walls for anything he could use, grab onto, take advantage of. Unfortunately, the same conclusion as before greeted him. He huffed and panted after his latest try, forehead resting flat against the rock wall. Tears stung his eyes. If he really was this Kaosu of legend, if he really was this miracle child who's suppose to grow up and help save the world, then shouldn't he have gotten out of this stupid hole by now? If he was so important, wouldn't the villagers have mounted a search for him? He groaned, half in frustration, half in pain from his numerous bruises, scratches, and whatever cracked bones he now had. Night fell again, leaving the boy all alone, plunged into pure darkness and without any way out. However, unlike the other nights, this one was different. Several people had made their way to the cave and stood at the edge of the hole. By some form of magic, they were able to see into the darkness to see Kaosu. One of them whispered. "Can I help him now? If this keeps up, he's going to die down there." Another one replied in as much of a whispered tone. It was Onjiyou. "No. Let's wait a bit longer. I'm certain he'll figure this out." A different person spoke up, they all doing their best to speak only in whispers. The last thing they wanted was to ruin this lesson or give him false hope. "We can't just stand by and watch this go on. There's talk that an Oni is already in the capital city. The great evil that the old legend warned us about is already starting to show. We can't let Kaosu die. If he does, then there will be no way to save this world from the dark era." "I know, I know. Let's try and have some faith in the boy. He IS Kaosu, after all. One more day. If he hasn't figured it out by then..." he trailed off. He really didn't want to step in. This was crucial. Kaosu HAD to figure this out by himself. Otherwise it'd be like a parent picking up a child and carrying them everywhere, instead of letting the child learn to walk on their own. Three days and three nights had passed by now. What little water remained at the bottom of the pit had long since been gone. Kaosu sat on the floor, legs spread out, arms resting at his sides, and looking like he was some child's abandoned toy left propped up against the wall. The boy was hungry, exhausted, sore, and just wanted out. He'd reached his limit. He looked upward to see that same tiny amount of sunlight at the top of the pit. 3 days. 3 days had come. He knew that once that light was done, he'd be dead. A human could survive for only so long under such conditions. For a little kid, having survived even this long was probably a miracle in and of itself. Or maybe a curse? Being stuck down here in the pure, unforgiving, cold darkness of this place certainly didn't seem like a nice place to be alive in. He closed his eyes. Despite how he felt, there was a weird sense of peace about this moment. He'd felt angry, abandoned, alone, forgotten. . . and yet, somehow, all of that had fallen away to this moment. It was in this moment of quiteness that something Onjiyou had said earlier came to mind. "In this big, natural world, something like the power of an ordinary human being seems insignificant. Me, a regular human being, can't go against the natural time span or abilities of my life. If I were to try, I'd become corrupted and no longer be a human. However, if you possess a natural ability to do something, and make use of it, you would not be corrupted. Besides, you ARE Kaosu, after all. You're not like the rest of us." It was a rather peculiar thing to mention. There was no lead up to it, nothing he'd asked or mentioned would've sparked such an out-of-place comment. So . . . why did he say it? Everything Kaosu had seen of the man up til now had taught him one thing. That old man never acted, talked, or instructed without there being a good reason behind it. His mind wandered a bit, thinking about the ambient light shining in from the opening at the top of this pit, as well as the darkness in this place he was stuck in. The darkness in this hole would never meet the outside world, and, yet, darkness is still here. It's always supporting the light. The radiance of light exists because the darkness is dark. Kaosu allowed his mind to drift, letting all the feelings, aches, and pains of his body melt away until it was like they no longer existed. Maybe in this dark place, he wondered, his body might disappear into the darkness, never to be seen again. That's when something new happened. There, in the darkness, behind his closed eyes, he could see shining stars. As if he were floating in the air and no longer a part of anything. He opened his eyes, only to realize they were already open. He bilnked and realized that, in fact, he WAS floating. High in the sky. Looking around, everywhere he could see a galaxy that was made of seven different colors. It was beautiful beyond measure and like nothing the night sky on Earth could ever hope to display. "Wow," he breathed out in awe. He looked down at his feet and, instead of any ground, there was light. It was small and weak, so tiny in comparison to all of the darkness around it, but it was there. He focused on that tiny little bit of light and watched as the darkness gave way. Before he knew what was happening, he found himself floating through that light, through what seemed light softly illuminated clouds. He looked upward and, among the beautiful, multicolored galaxy, he could see a rip. A black crack. He didn't entirely understand what he was seeing, but one feeling was clear as he looked at it. He felt disturbed and upset. Whatever that black crack was, it was very wrong. Very bad. He pulled his gaze away from the darkness to look down only to be immediately struck with something burning an intense red. The boy found himself standing on a rock and watching as the ground was scorched with boiling magma. This was a fierce sort of heat, and nothing he knew could be compared to it. Laid out in front of him, the rocks were glowing red and flames were occassionally flaring up from the magma as it came into contact with new things. He silently watched the magma move, covering the ground. Like some sort of animal, this glowing, firey thing proceeded onwards. The ground, the plants, the forest, villages, people... nothing was spared. Everything was swallowed up by fire. When baring witness to the immense power of nature like this, one can only bow to its incredible strength. No matter how a person lives their life, we can't forget that we're nothing more than living things and that the raw, unbridled power of nature itself is something we are powerless against. Watching all of this, being exposed to the searing heat, Kaosu's throat felt dry and he felt hot. Too hot. Almost to the point it hurt. "I want water," he muttered without thinking. "Just a bit of water..." His desire, his deep-seated want for refreshing, cool water was so strong that, in an instant, he splashed down into cool water like a rock dropped into a lake from above. He was momentarily taken away by the difference and focused only on how refreshing and cool the water felt. It had embraced every last centimeter of his body, making him feel invigorated. Kaosu opened his eyes and realized he was in the water. Deep under the water somewhere. He wasn't struggling to breathe or desperate to swim up to the surface. He could breathe as easily as if he were still on land. He chuckled with a smile, looking around himself as a small school of fish took their time swimming past him. Maybe they didn't see him, or didn't see him as a threat. There was nothing to indicate that they saw him as a threat at all. What in the world was this place? It seemed so vastly different than the world of heat, magma, and fire he'd just been in. The water was refreshing, cool, and wonderfully blue. This was the mother of the sea. The place that all living creatures came from and that produces life on the waves for everything living in the water and out of it. The waves. . . Just that fast, he found himself standing on top of the water itself. Waves came and went. He couldn't help but feel like the repetition of the waves was like the breath of some living thing. He lifted his gaze and saw the open ocean in every direction. It's crystalline blue depths stretched from horizon to horizon. "Wow," he breathed out. He'd never been outside of the forest he'd been born and raised in. He'd heard about the ocean from stories, but to see it, to feel it like this was beyond what he could describe. As he stood there, quietly watching it all, this exposure expanded what he knew of the world. It was so much bigger than he could've imagined. And, to think, everyone is only allowed to play for a little while in the hands of this huge, expansive, magnificent world. The sun was shining down onto the ocean, making the top of the water seem like it was glittering and amazing. Kaosu figured that if a person stands in the light like this, with the sun shing down onto them, that they'll be illuminated in the exact same way. That, on some level, they'll be a shining, glittering, wonderous sort of thing. People, animals, rocks, trees, even the dirt itself. Everything shining with the sun's radiance. It seemed like, no matter what of kind of history the people create, things on this eternal stage are the exact same. On that same note, as long as this stage exists, life and people can make history. The sound of crashing waves and the sparkling of the light seemed to increase to the point it was uncomfortable. He narrowed his eyes, raising a hand to his eyes as a shield from the light. Even like this, everything still seemed to shine with brilliance. In that moment, it's as if someone had increased the light. As the entire world seemed to change into nothing more than light made of pure white, he having to close his eyes against it, just that fast, everything was darker, cooler. The sound of wind through the leaves of trees and birds faintly chirping somewhere nearby could be heard. Kaosu blinked open his eyes and, to his amazement, found himseld standing in the middle of a forest. No. Not just any forest. He knew this place. Looking around, he recognized a treeline and smiled. He had returned. He was back in the forest at almost the exact spot he'd begun at. Before Onjiyou had whistled and made that rain furiously pour down. He stood up straight and paused. Was this a dream come true? He looked down at the ground and tapped his sandalled foot against it. It felt real and very solid. That's when he looked down at himself. He wasn't covered in scratches or bruises. Nothing hurt. But. . . he'd gone into that cave. He fell through the floor. He could remember the sting of his injuries, the cold of that dark pit and the all-enveloping darkness as clear as anything else in his life. That HAD happened to him. But. . . those other places he'd been to, they'd all felt real, too. If this was a dream, he'd still be at the bottom of that hole right now, probably dead like the animals that had fallen in there long before him had. Was he dead? But. . . he didn't FEEL dead. He felt alive. Very solid and very alive. Looking down at his hands, he saw the cloth band he'd been given to wrap around the top of the tree. The instructions that old man had given to him weren't a dream. So . . . what in the world had just happened to him?? He looked upward to the tops of the treeline and wondered about what he'd experienced. The border between dreams and reality suddenly became a lot less clear and a lot more mysterious. On the plus side of things, he looked fine. He felt perfetly okay. In all honesty, he felt really good. Like he'd been fed, had plenty to drink, had a great night of sleep, and was energized to start his day. Even his face seemed radiant as he smiled, and his eyes seemed to shine with a vigor he'd never had before. Whether all of that had been reality or a dream, one thing was clear above everything else. What he'd experienced was the most precious thing he'd ever learned. He'd been through something absolutely incredible and it had forever changed him in the best possible way. Maybe . . . maybe what the old man had said was true. Maybe Kaosu was more than a simple human being. It was in that moment something both his father and Onjiyou had said popped into his mind. 'There's nothing better in this world than having learned something.' He had to admit, this was a pretty nice feeling. Just as he was gathering himself mentally after his ordeal, feeling better and relaxed, he went stiff. His body on full alert. Up ahead he spotted a large boulder that was sticking out of the ground some distance away from him up the path. On the large rock stood an impressive, strong, stunningly prestine white tiger with white fur as white as the snow itself and black stripes darker than the night sky itself. Just as soon as he was able to get a good look at the creature, it dashed off into the forest and out of sight. The boy closed his hands around the cloth band in his hands, recalling the latest lesson Onjiyou had put forth for Kaosu to complete. Drawing in a deep lungfull of breath, eyes looking up the path leading into the forest, he smiled and began walking forward. After this whole experience, how Kaosu saw this world, how he precieved everything, had completely changed. It was moment where nothing had changed, and yet, everything had changed, too. He couldn't help letting his gaze wander upwards as he walked, looking up at the towering trees, their branches, how wonderfully green the leaves were. The birds chirping away. The wind intermittenly making its way through the area. How these big, old trees rose upwards as if they dared to touch the sky itself. Trees so old they'd probably been alive longer than the people who had been living here for generations. It seemed as though the overflowing power of life itself, coming from everything around him, was being transmitted though his body. He'd never felt so strong before, and had never felt the power of life. It was beyond what he could put into words. As the boy's warm brown eyes surveyed his surroundings, feeling as though this was the first time he was truly seeing everything, feeling a great sense of respect for all of existence, just then, something moved out of the corner of his vision. Kaosu continued walking but could see something slowly move between the dark undergrowths of the forest around him. His pace quickened a bit as he began to walk faster. Whatever it was in the shadows seemed to follow him, getting faster as well. He began to hear a low, rumbling sound coming from in front of him, he able to feel it through the soles of his sandals. The further ahead the boy walked, the louder the sound became. Soon enough the thick forest gave way to a grand sight. A waterfall was laid out before him to the right side, rising up a good distance to reveal where it came from. The edge of a cliff. Stretched out in front of him was a crystal clear lake. Where the edge of the forest met the water left little room for any sort of bank between them. The only warning signs being the loud, ever-rumbling sound it radiated. A breath escaped from between his lips as any thoughts of whatever the unknown beast was that was following him, stalking him were pushed away by this sight. Beautiful rainbows were present near the base of the waterfall as the countless droplets of water from the waterfall collided with the water below. Because of this, even the leaves of the trees sparkled due to the water droplets covering them. "Wow..." He walked forward between a few tree trunks until he stood almost at the water's edge. To the right, the waterfall's bottom. Before him, the lake it poured into. Off to the left, the water flowed out of this lake and into a valley that ran between a deep ridge. This waterway must support the whole area. All the people. The animals. The plants. There must be a lot of fish that live here, too. The water. . . this water probably flows out to the ocean somewhere. His mind, for a second, flashed back to what he'd seen of the great ocean. All the life that place held within it. Everything seemed to support everything else in one way or another. This was a surprise to him. A natural system that forever supported itself. As he watched this for a long minute, the strength and beauty of this sight, he saw the seven colors of the rainbow, now more than he ever had before now. Before he could think too much about this, a figure emerged from a nearby rainbow, walking out onto a nearby boulder that was half exposed out of the water and closest to the shoreline. An odd feeling came to the boy as he looked at this white tiger. The white fur with black stripes. Those brown eyes. "I know-" he coughed then spoke up clearly. "I know you... don't I?" Not today but... from... a very long time ago. Kaosu was certain of it. But when? Where? How? Before today he'd never seen ANY tiger, muchless a white one. He couldn't remember, but that familiarity was there. Yes. He was positive. He knew this tiger. It felt like some old forgotten memory his mind lost track of, but his heart knew without a doubt. He felt really nostalgic looking at the tiger. But . . . why? With a surprising amount of grace and levity for such a strong, massive feline, the tiger lept off of the rock and onto dry land, taking its time approaching Kaosu. The boy didn't move an inch as the tiger approached. The closer the tiger got, the more certain he was that he knew this tiger. The feeling was like a child who'd lived alongside a beloved pet for many years. Feelings of surprise, confusion, joy, and relief swirled around within him. By the time the tiger was close enough, Kaosu placed a hand on that big, soft, fluffy, white fur covered head and, just that fast, he felt peace. All of his thoughts turned quiet. The tiger softly grumbled then stepped forward, nudging its head against Kaosu's chest in a snuggly way, getting a delighted laugh from the boy as he moved his fingers down through the tiger's thick fur. As weird as this moment was if anyone else had been going through it, this was no dream. This was a flesh and blood creature. "You know me too, don't you?" The tiger rubbed his head against Kaosu's side, and there was a feeling of the tiger, on some level, answering him without any words. He knew Kaosu. He'd known the boy since he was born. It was a while later, well into the afternoon hours, when the boy returned to the village with the white tiger walking at his side. The sight made Onjiyou gasp in surprise and took Kaosu offguard. "Are you okay?" Kaosu asked the old man. Onjiyou shut his mouth and nodded once. He needed a minute to recover from this unexpected sight. "Yes. I'm quite alright. This is most certainly a surprise. From the look of things, you appear as though your heart has woken up new senses within you." "I have." He placed a hand on the tiger's side, burying it into the soft, warm, fluffy fur. "When did you know about Byakuen?" "Hm?" "Byakuen. I'm sure of it," Kaosu started. "Byakuen is a legendary tiger god who use to guide people from one sparkling place to another. He fought in the ancient times of the gods." Onjiyou smiled. He raised his voice so everyone in the village could hear what he had to say next. "THIS IS THE PROOF THAT THIS BOY IS OUR LORD! THE ONE TRUE KAOSU!" This caught everyone's attention. The old man looked at the boy. "We've known about this tiger for a very long time. This is the one who came to visit you on the day you were born." The fellow villagers came out of their homes and the surrounding treeline. It's not like they weren't hoping this was THEE Kaosu, but, they needed proof. They needed to see with their own eyes that this observant and knowledgeable young boy was their clan's guardian returned to the world. "He's been a guardian of the Kaosu clan for an incredibly long time, and, yes, long ago, he did help all living beings to that sparkling place." Kaosu looked at his furry feline companion again. He couldn't help wondering why this sacred beast, the one that lived in the time of the gods and long before humans, was now here. Right in front of him. Despite being told of just who he was, and everything he'd been through, he still didn't really feel like it. I mean, would anyone else believe if it they were told that they're basically the reincarnation of some super being that not only led a clan, but helped lead the way to guide people to a better, sparkling, radiant place? It was still a lot to take in. How could a 10 year old boy really, truly believe that he was a living, reincarnated legend? "It all seems so crazy," Kaosu said. "It's, like, some sort of dream, but . . . it's not a dream at all." "Byakuen has come to see you again," Onjiyou stated. It was clear that, in spite of everything, he was still struggling to believe who he was. What he was. His bond with the tiger. "This white tiger, Byakuen, had actually appeared in your village long before you were born and even, for a while, after you were born, too. Keeping watch over you in your earliest days of this life." He looked at the beautifully impressive tiger and couldn't help a small smile. "It's said that Byakuen is the transformation of all life in this world. By having lived a good and rich life here on Earth, he then became the immortal tiger god. All because he has a pure heart. He came to you only because you have a pure heart, too." Almost as if to prove this point, or, perhaps, by mere coincidental timing, Byakuen strolled away from the boy's side, walked over to a nearby patch of growing wildflowers, then laid himself down comfortably for a nap. From one of the nearby trees, a small bird flew through the air, landed on the tiger's back, and began grooming one of its wings. The tiger, clearly aware of the company, did nothing at all about it but drift off to sleep. Kaosu looked at the scene with an amused chuckle. For a tiger god, he sure behaved like a regular old tiger. It was so curious. Any little animal, birds especially, would be deathly afraid of any other creature with huge fangs. Predator and prey. Everything he'd seen so far showed that Byakuen was a cut above the rest. He'd come here today to help lead Kaosu along his path. Help the boy become ready for what lies ahead. This meeting is strong enough evidence that it convinces Kaosu of his fate, of his legend. Kaosu and Byakuen. What could possibly bring these two souls together? Byakuen recognizes Kaosu as his master, while still remaining somewhat of a wild beast. Upon seeing him, there was immediately a love and respect for the tiger that he'd never know about before. Being with him felt natural and as if they were in harmony with one another. Not an owner and a pet. Not a master and his beast. Two old friends. The years flowed by from that day and, before he knew it, a full decade had already gone by. After fully accepting what his destiny was, what fate had in store for him, he threw himself completely into his training. He tapped into his potential and abilities that went beyond mere human power. Then again, who knows? Maybe Kaosu was little more of an ancient survivor of what humans use to be. An example of the power that people had originally possessed in the ancient days, but had long since forgotten about. His fighting skills had improved. He could more incredibly fast, faster than the wind itself. If he concentrated, he could send his thoughts out to someone who was a long distance away. This was a small portion of everything he could do with 'the power of Kaosu'. One day when he was 20 years old, still living in the village, the young man had gone out for a walk. One of the few rare days where he had no lessons to complete, no challenges to overcome, no latent abilities to try tapping into and mastering. He had the day all to himself and had decided a day meandering about around the waterfall would be nice. However, what he hadn't been expecting was to be attacked. The sky was blue and without a single cloud. The air was comfortably warm. The day felt inviting to be out and about somewhere. As Kaosu approached the side of the waterfall, he'd been aware of something being present. He could sense its presence. He'd brushed it off as possibly nothing but a monkey or other small animal. This was quickly dashed away as someone lept down from above with a shout. Kaosu moved at the last moment and heard the sound of a long stick smack against the ground. "Whoa!" It was a good thing he'd spend so much time training. Byakuen had helped out a lot by launching unexpected 'attacks' at him. Enough to catch him offguard and prepare him, maybe rough him up just a little, but did no real harm otherwise. There was no effort needed to realize that the tiger wasn't behind this attack. Kaosu spun around and took a defensive stance, ready to defend himself even without a weapon in hand to use. A voice from above made the raven haired young man look up. "Sorry about that!" came the voice of a young man. There on one of the lower branches of the tree was a sturdily built young man. He made his way down to ground level and retrieved his wooden staff. "I heard something approach and I assumed it was some wild animal. Sure wasn't expecting to see another human being around these parts. My apologies there, friend." Kaosu looked the man up and down. He wore the clothing of a monk. What in the world was a monk doing way out here? Sure, his village wasn't completely isolated from the rest of the world, but that didn't mean it was close to any public roads or forest paths that any random person could stumble onto. The raven haired young man was so use to his fellow villagers in this particular Kaosu clan that to see an outsider left him a bit stunned. The stranger offered Kaosu a smile. "The name's Tetsuhide- ah... no. I shouldn't say that. I meant, my name is Kose Shuusetsu. I'm a monk. Feh." He sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "I guess my clothes were a dead giveaway to that though."

( Translator's note : Sorry for the interruption but I just wanted to say that that Tetsuhide / Kose Shuusetsu is referred to as 'Shuusetsu' in the story, but, come on, let's be honest here. When it comes to us Western people 'Kose' is a LOT easier to read and mentally pronounce than 'Shuusetsu' -shuu seh suu- is. Whether it's laziness or something else, solely for the sake of making things easier to read, I'll be using 'Kose' -koh say- from here on out. It's not a big deal, but thought I should let you know anyway. Thanks for your time and you may proceed reading!)

Kaosu stood normally, realizing this young man was no threat to him at all. Without even letting him get a word in edgewise, he continued. "I bet you're wondering why I'm not at a temple right now. Ugh. I hate living in temples. I try but I get so fed up that I just ran away. . . and . . . heh. . . I feel really dumb. I lost my way and it's been a few days since I've seen another person at all. Finally! This must mean that there's signs of life around here! A village? A town? Anything's better than being stuck out here in the wilderness. I feel like I've abandoned the Buddhist ways by running off and having to eat wild animals and berries and stuff to survive. That's why I was hiding up there. I was hoping some prey animal would happen by here and I'd finally manage to get a meal or something. I really must've been out of it to think that you were an animal." Kaosu couldn't help a smile, feeling a bit bad for the guy. "You really must've been hungry to think I was prey. And to completely miss your target, too." Kose laughed. "Here," Kaosu said, placing a hand on a leather bag that was attached to his waist. "I caught a couple birds earlier. You're free to have a few to eat if you'd like." "What?! Really?!" "Sure," he said, walking past the young man and to the water's edge. "I've got more than enough for myself, so I'm happy to share." He removed one of the deceased small birds from his bag and dipped it into the water to clean it. "Wow! This- this is great! Thanks so much!" Tetsuhide helped prepare the birds and collect sticks for a fire. Upon his first bite of the cooked bird, cried out in a loud, joyful, thankful voice. His accidental attack on Kaosu ended up being the best possible thing to happen to him in a long while. Kaosu watched quietly as he ate his own bird this emotional, exciteable young man ate fast, not even trying to hide how hungry he was. It was a good thing he'd caught several birds early that morning, or else Tetsuhide probably would've keeled over and died by now from hunger. The black haired young man didn't mind sharing what he had, with the other hungrily eating four of the cooked birds before sighing and relishing the fact that he no longer felt like he was starving to death. "Aww, man, now I feel ashamed again remembering what I did," Tetsuhide said. "Seeing how you practally inhaled those birds, life for you at that temple with only a simple meal every day must've been unbearable," Kaosu observed. It's not like Tetsuhide was a thin or older man, where a simple meal a day would satisfy him. Far from it. From the short time he'd been around this young man, he didn't even seem like he wanted to be a monk. "It was. It really, really was. Not like I wasn't honestly trying. I was doing my best but . . ." he sighed and placed both arms behind himself, leaning back with his palms on the ground. "I wanted to be something different than just another person out in the world going about killing things, but, I don't think a monk is it." "I think you're being too hard on yourself," Kaosu said. He was enjoying Tetsuhide's company. After having spent the past decade surrounded by people who only knew him was THEE Kaosu of legend, their leader, the one who would come again to save the from the dark era, getting to be around this guy made him feel like a normal person and it was refreshing. He didn't feel like the weight of the world was on his shoulders for once. Plus, he was really easy to talk to. It felt nice. "You think so?" "Yes. This world is a big place. A very big place. I'm sure there's a place for you in it that's not as a regular person obligated to go out and kill, and not as a solitary life lived as a monk in a temple." Tetsuhide closed his eyes and sighed, looking as if Kaosu's words had lived some invisible weight that had been dragging him down for a long time. The duo had spent the rest of the afternoon and evening together talking. That night, Kaosu and Tetsuhide made their way to the root of a large, tall, strong tree. Kaosu leading the way and feeling as though he was being guided there. Over the years Kaosu had noticed that a few old people usually felt drawn to this village, to spend time with the people there. It wasn't an every day occurance, but wasn't exceptionally rare, either. Although there was no single clear answer as to why, since this village wasn't easy to find by any means, he felt that the reason might be down to these old people who were close to death. Maybe by months or by years. That they, on some level, sought out the peace and inner light that the villagers radiated and were more sensitive to it when compared to younger individuals. When the old people came here, it wasn't at all out of place for some of them to bring out some specially made liquor to enjoy. This was something rarely produced or shown in public, but, here, it was fine for them. Kaosu stopped in front of the large, tall oak tree. There was an old man sitting there beside an area close to the base of the trunk that looked more like a bowl, rather than natural growth that jutted out from the tree. Spots like this were perfect because, not only did it provide overhead shade and protection from the weather, but the bowl-like spot was great to place one's foods and drinks into. When people weren't making use of it, rain and dew would gather here. That way, whether a human or a beast was thirsty, this offered them a bit of water to drink, even if the nearest body of water might've been some distance away. "Whoa," Tetsuhide breathed out. "I didn't know this was a thing that existed!" referring to the 'bowl' of the tree. The old man currently taking full advantage of the space for his own bottled drink and food. A small campfire glowing flames nearby to warmly illuminate the area. Kaosu couldn't help a chuckle at his new friend's reaction. "Yes. If one knows where to look, these are somewhat common around here." He turned his attention to the wrinkled old man resting against the tree's trunk and watching the two youngsters. "Hello. May we join you?" The old man nodded. "Sure, if ya want. Feel free to help yourself to my food and drink," he stated, not missing the fact that Tetsuhide's gaze was practally glued to the bottle of important liquor and almost drooling at the sight of it. "It's not much, but I'm happy to share." "Thanks!" Tetsuhide eagerly said, taking a seat beside the fire. Although this was the warmest time of the year, that didn't mean the air didn't have a tinge of cold to it once the sun had set. As he marvelled at how the people managed to make a pretty comfortable living for themselves here in the mountains, he smiled as the old man reached over, grabbed his bottle of liquor, and handed it to the young man. Kaosu thanked the old man for his kindness then took a seat beside the fire as well, closing his eyes a moment to enjoy the sensations of the moment. The air was cool. The warm fire was burning and crackling quietly. The smell of dried meat and the piece of pottery it had been warmed on floated in the air. It was a good aroma. He opened his brown eyes and gazed upward at the night sky. From between the openings of where the tree's foilage didn't meet, he could see the sky, full of sparkling stars above. With no moon to light the way, the stars were on full display to be enjoyed. Tetsuhide allowed himself a gulp of the delicious liquor and was grateful for the old man's generosity as he passed a piece of warm, cooked meat to him. "This is so great! It's been a few years since I last had a meal anything like this. I tell you what, this doesn't even come close to the meals I was having before." With a big smile, he raised the bottle of liquor over his head. "Thank you for this mountain feast! May all who take part enjoy great blessings because of it!" he called out, then proceeded to drink. Both the old man and Kaosu watched Tetsuhide. "That's a pretty big bottle," he said, "I wonder if it'll be a problem for you to drink all of that." The old man couldn't help a laugh at the entertaining sight. "Bah. He's looks like a strong young man. I'm sure he'll be fine." "Thanks for the compliment," the monk said before taking a bite out of his piece of cooked meat. "Buddhist monks are tough, so I'm sure I can handle it." He was something else, that was for sure. "Oh?" Kaosu asked. "You sure about that? After all, you DID run away from temple life." The monk waved a hand in front of his face as if to wave away the comment.  "Just because I didn't get to the level where I was good enough to shave my head doesn't mean I don't still count as a monk." "Sure, I might've gotten the name 'Tetsuhide' from the monks, but my real name is Kose Shuusetsu." The old man's grey eyebrows rose at this statment, recognizing the family name. "Aren't you originally from this area? Pretty sure I've heard that family name before." "Yeah," he said, taking another bite out of the meat. "Although I lived over in Asuka, my house was like a branch of a branch of a tree when it came to my family. We were pretty poor. With such a big and spread out family, there was no property or fields to divide up and give to someone like me. No way for me to make a proper living of any kind. I guess it comes with the territory. A big family is nice and all, but there's only so much land a father can give to his adult kids to live off of." "And yet," Kaosu chipped in, "you seem rather cheerful for someone with such a sad past." Kose couldn't help a smile, probably due to a mix of the pleasant night, the good company, the food, and the liquor. "Nah. I'm still a happy person at heart, especially when compared to other poor people. I get to study stuff, learn some martial arts, have a pretty okay life. Temple life might be all peaceful, but in this day and age, hearing about people attacking and killing others, well, it's hard to not want to learn how to protect yourself." The old man nodded, completely understanding his logic. These days, due to robbers who hid out in the fields and various noisy people who seemed to only want to make a ruckus, the monks in temples all across the land had to learn how to step up and protect themselves, or else they'd leave themselves open to be attacked, robbed, or even killed. "For a while, I was pretty fond of living at the temple," his mood seemed to come down a bit. His happy, carefree personality showed that, despite his joyful nature, even he could be weighed down by negative emotions. "But . . . the reason why I left there wasn't because of the temple life itself. The whole time I was there," he lifted his gaze to directly look at the two men, "there were things I saw happening right in front of me that showed the 'great monks' who lived there had bad intentions. Everything I've heard about the Buddhist monks when I was growing up always talked about how great, benevolent, caring, and helpful they were. These guys . . . they weren't any of that." The old man reached into the tree's 'bowl', picking up a couple of persimmons, handing one to Kaosu and another to Kose. Kaosu nodded his head once in acknowledgement and thanks, not wanting to speak yet and interrupt his friend. "How so?" the old man queried. "The teachings of Buddha," Kose began, "were originally mean to help save the people. That way they could go out and preach how to live in a righteous way with this world and the other people in it." He lowered his gaze, staring at the small campfire in front of them. He shook his head slowly as a serious expression came to his face, brow furrowed. "When people in need would come to the temple, the monks would take a lot of money from the rich nobels. Instead of offering any true help or blessings, they'd only offer really mysterious, suspicious prayers. It always made me feel uncomfortable." "Mysterious prayers?" echoed the old man, the bewilderment clear in his voice. "Yeah," he looked over at the old man. "Like, if someone came to the temple and was angry at another person, the monk would offer a prayer that would curse or even kill that other person. It's almost as if the monks weren't saying any real prayers, but casting spells, instead. All to make a profit. I'm not crazy, right? That's not how monks should be. To make matters worse, the young monks acted like they didn't see what was going on, or pretended like it wasn't happening. They acted like there wasn't a thing they could do about it, but, for me, I can't forgive that! That's not okay and NOT how a monk should be!" Angrily, Kose popped the last bit of cooked meat into his mouth to chew, perhaps in some unconscious effort to work out a bit of his anger over the situation. "If you're living in the capital city, sure there are going to be higher up people that can't be touched. Their behavior goes unchecked. No one can do anything about what they do, so they get ignored. But. . . it shouldn't be that way in a temple. That's not how it should work." It was tough to hear about, but worse knowing that this young man had actually gone through this. Kaosu glanced over at the old man. He did look a little upset, but he had the feeling that this wasn't exactally the latest breaking news. Kose was right. This sort of behavior was wrong on every count, but, what could anyone do? Whether it was some rich noble person, a rich merchant, or a high ranking religious person, what could an ordinary person hope to accomplish if they spoke up against it? All of those bad actions and evil intentions would be aimed at the person. If one thought that life standing by watching this going on was bad, it would've been made so much worse. "I'm sure," Kose continued, "that I'm not the only one who has a problem with all this." He grunted. "I couldn't take being there any longer. I couldn't standing seeing those rotten people serving Buddha." He brought the liquor bottle to his lips and proceeded to drink what remained. Kaosu shook his head a little, feeling sorry for him. It's clear that this was a good guy at heart. He only wanted to help others and be helpful, to be able to understand people's pain and help them find comfort. Being a monk would've seemed like the perfect outlet for such a life, and he, probably, would've been very content in a normal temple. It was a crappy situation all around. His hopes for an ideal life had been dashed away and here was, left alone in the world and feeling angry. If someone left a temple, they couldn't simply return a while later with the excuse of 'oh! whoopsie! my bad! I got completely lost!'. Sure, after what he'd been though it's not like it would be a lie to say that he DID get lost. A few minutes of quiet had passed by, allowing Kose's temper to cool down. "What'll you do with your life after this?" the old man asked. Kose's smile returned, a bit sheepish. "Well, I do feel a little bad saying this, but I think I'll take advantage of the stick fighting technique I learned when at the temple. I won't be going back to that temple. . . or any other temple. Who knows how far that corruption has spread! I figure, may as well make good use of what I learned there. Maybe I can use it to be someone who guards the gates to a city. You know, taking away something good from a bad situation." Kaosu remained quiet, not sure of what to say after all of that information. He was shocked to hear about it, and didn't realize the evil had become so widespread. Hearing about all of this made his heart hurt. As the night stretched on, Kose, having eaten better than he had in a long time, slept soundly on the ground nearby. This left the old man and Kaosu still awake. The old man poked at the embers, setting a few small sticks on them, breathing a bit of new life into the campfire. He didn't miss how much Kose's story had upset Kaosu. In a quiet tone, so as to not accidentally rouse the monk from his slumber, the old man spoke. "It really is such a shame that in this big, wonderful world, it sure seems like evil things are coming. We're at the beginning of an age of darkness. The evidence for it is everywhere these days." Kaosu turned his troubled brown eyes to the old man. "Why do people get caught up and lost in evil stuff like this? Don't they know better?" The old man fully leaned back against the tree trunk. "In short, it's down to an inherent level of greed that people possess. Taste, touch, smell, the desire to want more of what makes them feel good. From the teachings of Buddha, it's said that we're all trapped within the desires of this world. The more we give into those desires, the more we hunger for them. Even if it means people go around hurting others in order to get it." Kaosu shook his head slowly, feeling upset the more that he listened to all of this. "I'll be the first to admit that I'm not really familiar with everything in this world. I've seen the best parts of it. I've seen that there are more important things to live for and that a heart rejoices in the ability to be alive and experience things." "You're right. The people who are trapped in the world of desires don't understand how important this is. It's not just that they're deprived of this and don't know about true joy, but it seems like they're trapped in a cycle of endless shallow desires. Because they're so caught up in doing these evil things will probably be stuck like that forever, unable to escape from that cycle and will die. An insatiable greed for doing those evil things, and, yet, they seek a reward for doing these things. It's like their own hell." Kaosu's nose scrunched at that word. "Hell," he muttered. What a horrible word. The old man was right. Everlasting greed only gives birth to a bad heart and makes anything a person does become corrupt. As if their hands are covered in forever wet ink. Anything they touch, no matter what their motivations, will be stained and ruined. The saddest part is that a person like this, they won't feel fulfilled unless they continue following the darkness that's in their heart. Even then, that's not enough. It will never be enough. Just like a drug addiction. Kaosu sighed heavily, sitting both legs up and resting his forearms over his knees. "I wonder, can these people even be saved?" The old man doubtfully shook his head. "If someone was able to do so, I guess they could try cutting off that bad cycle. Go cold turkey, as it was. However, I think it'd be like water flowing off the side of a mountain. There's no real way to stop it." "Maybe . . . maybe all it takes is a shining person, you know, someone with a good heart and pure intentions, to make a change. To stop that endless cycle." "My boy, even if you tap into your heart, get rid of the evil ones littering the land, put a stop to their evil work, it's like a single lit candle in a dark room. You're only shining in that one place. No where else. Every where else continues to be plunged into darkness." That's when an idea struck. Even to the old man, he took full notice of the change in the young man. There's an old story that talked about a lone warrior. Someone who was bright and gentle, a spectacular warrior. This warrior was able to purge darkness and evil from the hearts of countless horrible people. With his job done, he'd vanished without a trace. Or, so the story went. What if, somehow, Kaosu was able to do this. He already knew he was different than other humans. He had a special kind of power and had experienced wonderful things no other human had before. What if he could find a way to be like that warrior? Somehow be able to go across the land and purge the evil from the hearts of numerous people. That had to be doable to some degree, right? I mean, he WAS the Kaosu. "The desire to live in a good manner," the old man continued, "is one thing. Wanting to protect that way of life, to help people live a good life, it something else. It's clear that you can feel this. That's the role of our clan. That is your role, too. Kaosu, the leader of our family, our Lord, is to properly protect this way of life. To protect this shining that everyone has within themself." It was only in this very moment that the full weight of his life's responsiblity dawned on him. He truly graped the seriousness of his role in this world. The only thing is. . . he's just one person. One guy. Would such a goal even be achieveable? Byakuen slowly, tiredly made his way into the area to lay down at Kaosu's side. The young man stroked the tiger's head. It was then that he realized there was only one other individual in this world that was like him. This tiger led him. He was the next closest shining thing that existed in this world. He was older and wiser and certainly had to know what to do next. All Kaosu had to do was follow Byakuen. No. It had to be more than that. He had to listen to his heart and to the tiger's as well. Let that be his guide. In the radiant campfire's glow, the tiger's brown eyes seemed to appear more gold. Kaosu sat quietly, admiring this and realized that Byakuen's eyes were better than his own. He could see in the darkness. More than that. He could see the path right in front of them. What if this went beyond physical sight? Was this tiger able to see through the darkness of evil, not being fooled by that, and stay focused on what was true? Kaosu smiled down at the furry animal as the tiger closed his eyes. Yes. That's what he'd do. He'd keep himself open and aware to this god tiger. He'd listen to his heart and let that be his guide. Morning came and found the two young men on their own. "My apologies for all the trouble I've caused," Kose said to Kaosu. "Is there anything I can do to make up for it? I accidentally mistook you for a wild animal, attacked you, and you not only shared some of your food with me, but also you've been so nice to me this whole time. I may not have much, but whatever I have, what ever I can do for you, you let me know. I'll happily give or do whatever you want." Kaosu smiled. Kose was an honorable young man. No laws had been broken, and it's not like the monk had actually broken any laws. Yet, here he stood, apologetic. "Well, it's not like you did anything truly terrible, and I don't hold any ill will against you for what happened. However, if you want to, I'd love to learn about that stick fighting technique you mentioned last night. That is," he bowed his head to the monk in a respectful manner, "if you'd be willing to teach me." "Wow!" Kose gasped. "No, hey, I'd be happy to teach you everything I know, but, please, don't lower your head to me. If anything, I should be doing that to you after all the kindness you've shown!" His warm smile helped bring a bit of ease to the monk. "I appreciate it." "Well, do you have anywhere you need to be? Something else you need to be doing this morning?" "Nope. My day is completely free. If you're in the mood, I'd be happy to begin any time you're ready." "Alright, then," Kose said, scratching the back of his head. "Just keep in mind that, although I'm no longer an official monk of any temple, I'll do my best to teach you what I know and pass on my sense of righteousness to you." "Sounds like a solid plan to me." Figuring that the best place to train woule be beside the waterfall, they walked back through the forest to reach that beautiful waterfall. Once there, Kose carefully selected to long, sturdy sticks, which seemed more like solid rods or staffs made of wood, from the ground, handing one to Kaosu. "There. This one is yours. We're going to start off with a bit of sparring so I can tell where you're at with your fighting skills." This being one of the many things they'd talked about the day prior. "Ready?" Kaosu nodded once. "Ready." That's all it took when Kaosu made the first move. He saw an opportunity and struck at Kose's feet, which only missed by a hair as the monk jumped upwards, lifting his own staff above his head, spinning it around. Kaosu jumped up to stike again, lifting his weapon high in order to strike. Just that fast, Kose moved as he landed on the ground, the edge of his spinning staff making contact with Kaosu's. The resulting collision made it feel as though Kaosu's staff had struck a solid iron wall. He jumped back and watched as Kose kept spinning his wooden staff. It seemed like the weapon was moving freely under the monk's control, and it was abundantly clear that Kose weilded it masterfully. In the hands of this young man, it no longer seemed like a wooden staff, but more like a sharp-edged blade. Kose, seeing his new friend's momentary hesitation, rushes forward and brings down his staff to strike. Kaosu, moving fast, dodges the attack, but not by very much. "Ah!" Kose laughed. "Almost had you that time!" Kaosu regained his footing a few steps away, out of the reach of his opponent's weapon. It was only then he noticed his cheek was stinging. He brushed the back of his hand across his cheek only to see red smudged across it. Kose had managed to make contact. "Oh! Sorry about that!" Kose said, seeing a thin red line on Kaosu's cheek as a little bit of blood rolled down his skin. Kaosu, not ready to let a little scratch interfere with this sparring session, took advantage of the momentary pause to rush at the monk. Kose, quick to take notice, jumped backward to avoid another attack. However, the desire to battle any further had left him and he lowered his staff. The raven haired young man stopped and lowered his staff, as well. He'd been through enough martial arts training in his life to know when the fight was over. These two were rare people, and even more rare in the world of warriors. The duo gazed at one another. "Should we stop?" Kose asked. "Let's keep going," Kaosu returned. Kose lifted his staff and their staffs met again with a loud clash. Then another. It didn't take many more collisions before the two wooden weapons broke apart and went flying towards the water, leaving them both defenseless. Kose laughed. "Well done." This had been a great sparring session and the ending was amusing. Neither one of them truly won or lost, seeing as how both of their staffs were now floating downstream like a couple of harmless chopsticks that had fallen into the water. Kaosu couldn't resist a smile himself as he lightly panted. This had been interesting and entertaining. "The thing about a staff like that," Kose began, "is that it's more than some oversized stick. When handled properly, it can be like a shield that's harder than iron, or turned into a sharp blade to strike through something." Kaosu nodded. It sounded strange, but after having seen such a thing for himself, this was an incredibly interesting weapon. He doubted many people would look at a wooden rod and think it could be turned into such a viable weapon. "You know," Kaosu began, "after all that talk about what life was like for you in the temple and the capital city, could you take me there? I want to see what it's like for myself so I can gauge just how bad everything is. I feel like there's some kind of big, dangerous sensation going on. If I don't begin to take action soon, I have this feeling like it'll be too late for me to do anything at all and stop it." "Well, sure, I guess. Just a fair warning, stay true to your heart. It can be too easy for someone to get caught up in the ways going on in the city." Kaosu nodded once. Despite everything he'd heard of, the true magnitude of how dangerous and evil everything was going to be had yet to be seen. There was no way to know how much worse things were going to get once this new age began, but one thing was clear. Kaosu had to try and stop it. No one else could.

[your-awsome-blog]

Hey! Just posting an origin story for one of my RWBY OCs. Feel free to read it if you lIke! If you have questions about him, please ask!

And a heads up, my OC is part of a made up race, so its not very canon perfect

As it was in the many tribes of the proto-Faunus that existed, the birth of an individual always happened while the chieften was present. Although Krieger Raubtier requested the the chieften not be in the room, as requested of his spouse, who felt uncomfortable with his presence, he was there anyway to witness the birth. And so, it occurred as any other birth would. As his mate carried their child in her arms, Krieger turned to the chieften, who could not peel his eyes away from the infant. "He has silver eyes..." Spoke the chieften in a hushed voice, who was apparently finding difficulty in processing this. Krieger looked between his just-born child and the chieften with growing nervousness. "The child is a disgrace." The chieften spat out, causing Krieger to go wide eyed in surprise. "The silver eyes, they are a human aspect, something our kind cannot have naturally." The chieften hissed out. "He is barely a pure blood." And so, the chief stormed out of the tent, leaving behind a devastated father, and weak mother.

_______________________________

"Where is the child?" Krieger asked as he rushed into his hut, his wife in the process of preparing the evenings meal as he entered. Krieger had a spear in hand, which alarmed her. "I was to teach him how to hunt today, it is his tenth Kiindahsul." He explained. It was an odd way of saying it was his birthday.. "Ah, he was out with the other young 'unths." His spouse explained with a sigh of relief. And so, Krieger went out of the hut, spear in hand, to find his son, a look of determination was on his face as he left.

_______________________________

Krieger stared forward, his eyes wide in shock from the sight before him. In front of him, an entire Elk had been forced down to the ground, its legs clearly broken at the joints. He stepped forward and looked down at his son, his body hunched over the dead Elk protectively as he looked back towards his father. His mouth was red from corner to corner with the Elks blood, still dripping from the fangs that went past his chin slightly. Krieger knelt down slowly, as to not startle his now unstable son, and reached forward slowly. The child, momentarily alarmed by this, lashed wildly at his father. Krieger pulled back quickly and winced, but continued to reach forward, despite the long cut left by his son. He reached forward and, finally, laid his hand down over his sons head. He could feel him shaking under his hand, but the shaking stopped after a moment as he calmed. He pulled away and, after examine the dead animal, looked at his son with an expression of proudness. "You have earned the Raubtier name, little Carnivore." _______________________________

"Today is your ascension." Krieger said to Carnivore as he lead him to the center of their tribe. Carnivore looked around eagerly, watching as other children walked towards the center, either by themselves or lead by adults. "You will need to learn how to fight, how to use a weapon." His father explained. "This will determine your place amongst us once you are an adult, and will earn you the respect of others." Once they reached a large gathering, Krieger looked down at his son before abruptly turning around and leaving him. Carnivore looked back for a moment, nervously, but quickly turned back towards the crowd and walked in. He was stopped by an adult, and looked up at the taller Proto-Faunus as he examined him. He eventually allowed Carnivore to pass, and it was quickly determined that he was the overseer of this gathering, left in charge of all the children to make sure none would harm themselves while practicing. He wandered aimlessly for some time before settling with a small group. After some time, the overseer called all of them over to him and looked over them all once before leading them to a gate. There was a murmur amongst them all, a sense of eagerness for what lied ahead for them. The overseer shoved the gate open and allowed the mass of children to rush in before taking his place amongst other overseers, and lined against a wall and watching over them. Carnivore rushed forward to a massive row of weapons laid about on a wall for him and others to choose from for practice. He looked over them all eagerly, deciding on which weapon would suit him best, and was delighted by one of the many he could choose from; a pair of Cichlid blades. They were a simple design, but exotic when compared to other conventional weapons, and the sight of some hunters carrying them would often attain the attention of others. They had a single handle in them with blade coming from the top, which curved downward and folded over the handle. Several spikes would also emerge from the blade, which could be compared to teeth or the thorns of a rose plant, something that Carnivore enjoyed thinking about with his imagination. But upon grasping them, he was disgusted by the great flaw he immediately discovered in them; should he lose his grip while using them, his fingers would be severely cut upon contact with its inner blade. Carnivore dropped the Cichlids immediately and began to browse the many other weapons that he could choose from, or at least the ones he was allowed to choose from. He settled for a simple pair of axes that he found, which felt comfortable in his grasp. He held up one of them to his face to examine before he glanced over just in time to see another boy beside him reach out and grab a bow, alongside a holster of arrows. He looked into the boys face and found himself surprised by his rather unique features. "Pretty eyes." He found himself saying without realizing, still looking into his rather deep purple eyes. " 'ank." Was all the dark skinned boy could muster out, a pair of prominent mandibles were folded over his mouth that made it difficult to speak with out folding them out, which showed off a rather toothy mouth. Another feature the boy had that Carbivore starred at was the second pair of smaller, but similar, pair of eyes that were closer to his nose then the others. He found them fascinating to stare at. The boy wandered over to a target range, with Carnivore close behind, to test out the usage of the bow. Carnivore took a step back to provide him with room, and the boy fired. Several shots were fired from the bow before he could land an arrow on the target, which did not land on the center, or near it. "Do you feel comfortable with this weapon?" Their instructed asked as he walked over to him and knelt beside him. " 'ot really..." The child explained. "But I wa't to practice." He explained, firing another shot at the target and missing. "Why do you try more, you have already missed more than enough times." A deep voice spoke from behind Carnivore, which made him jump with a startle and spin around. A rather tall, dark skinned adult stood starring at the other boy, a set of similar mandible folded over his own mouth like his, along with a tail of his own. "Hello 'ather." The boy said as the new adult approached him. "Move on to another weapon, there is no reason to stick to one you struggle with." The youth scowled his father as he turned to the target and fired again. " 'ractice, I just need to 'ractice." He explained as he pulled out another arrow. "There is no need to force yourself to use this bow!" "Ease yourself on the child." The Instructor stood up to defend the boy. The two of them bickered over the child as he took aim, finding it difficult to concentrate with their fighting. In a quick, desperate shot, he released the arrow prematurely, causing it to fling past the target and collide with the stone wall erected behind it. To his surprise, the arrow bounced off the wall, rather then fall harmlessly, and bounced off to an awkward angle past them. All eyes were pasted on the arrow as it's flew past them all, all wanting to now where it would land. Not far away, several birds had landed in a row along a wooden fence , all three of them sitting peacefully side by side. The third, and last to land, had folded its wing over its head to preen its feathers as the other two slept soundly. As the arrow arrived, there was a sudden 'fwip' as the steel tip passed through the three feathered bodies, kabobing all three along the arrows length before falling to the ground together. The taller of the two men walked over to the three birds and lifted up the arrow that held them. He examined it closely, allowing his mandibles to reach forward to prod at the dead birds before turning to his son and walking towards him slowly. Carnivore sucked in air with anticipation as he watched, expecting a rough scolding to come from the father and to his son. He stopped in front of the boy and knelt before him, his face tense as his father looked him in his eyes. "You made this kill." The man spoke, his voice coming out deep, but calm. "Your name, the one I have neglected you of, shall be a reminder of this moment forever." He reached forward and rested a hand on his shoulder and let out his best smile, which seemed difficult, given his mandibles. "You are a hunter now, Ricochet."

_______________________________

Many years had passed between that day and now. In that time, Carnivore matured quickly into a prominent hunter amongst his people, and found joy in the praise he received from this. On the nights when his father would wander out of the house to indulge in the daily habit of coming under the influence, he would always make a point of reminding many of his son. On one such night, after a long while of kneeling over a chair and dozing off, he threw himself onto a table and held his arm up high. This grabbed the attention of all who were there, and once he was satisfied with the eyes focused on him, he began to shout about his son. He proceeded to point a finger towards the long scar that ran down his arm while shouting "A gift, from my son!" This led to him blurting out a deep laugh before hopping down to exchange hunting stories with his pack mates. Carnivore also found himself in the company of others he enjoyed. Although too young to form a proper hunting pack, as all adults needed for hunting, he still forged a group of people he felt comfort amongst. Among those people, there was Ricochet, an old friend of Carnivore that he felt proud to call his best friend. At the older age, Ricochet had a long set of black dreadlocks that dangled down his face and tickled his chin with every twist and sharp move of his head. He and Carnivore spent a great deal of time together, finding comfort in one another's presence and opinion on many matters. They also enjoyed to debate on many matters that flowed through the network of talk that was in their tribe. Carnivore would always twist his tail in a striking formation when their debates were heated, which Ricochet did not like to see. The sight of his tail in odd angles would always make Ricochet contort his face into an expression of discomfort while folding his mandibles outward, a sign to Carnivore that he had to untwist his tail and return it to normal rightaway. On one of their many debates that they found themselves in, Carnivore attempted to make the topic into something the Ricochet had not expected. "Have you heard of the hunter pair that wed on the last moon?" He started off. "Both males, a rarity to hear of!" He yelled before throwing his head back dramatically. "Have you heard of it?" Ricochet was slow to respond, as this topic apparently plucked a deeper response then Carnivore had expected. "What of it?" He would respond. "They find a love in one another that any other male could discover in a female." "Yes, yes. Your words are without lie. But it is such an uncommon occurrence, surely to hear of it in your own village is enough to elicit a response?" Ricochet paused, as though to consider an appropriate answer, to Carnivores question. "For me, you see, it is not such new thing." This was enough to peek Carnivores attention, who so desired a reaction out of his cool-headed friend. "It is so, for I have lived with it for most of my life." Carnivore paused to process the words his friend had spoken. For the short time it took, he didn't understand the meaning behind his words. But as soon as he did, Ricochet was met with surprised look. "I have known you for... how long, and not known this?!” Ricochet only responded with a solemn nod, which produced another response from Carnivore. "And when did you plan to tell me this, my friend?” Ricochet rubbed his chin before he spoke. "At the time I found most appropriate." Carnivore took a short while to process this info and come to terms with it. "When did you realize this?" Carnivore finally asked after a while. "Not long ago." Was Ricochets answer, which was not enough to quench Carnivores curiosity. "Could you provide further details?" Carnivore asked. "The day we met." Was Ricochets quick answer, which startled Carnivore. Carnivore took a moment to fully understand the information, trying to make sense of it. When he fully realized Ricochets meaning, Carnivore gave a flustered and shocked look. He attempted to speak, but his voice came out quiet and squeaky, which made him even more flustered then he already was, and brought a blush to his face. After a moment of eye contact, Carnivore raced out of their meeting place and left Ricochet alone, alone to think of the chain of events that had occurred just then.

_______________________________

Carnivore found the pressure on his knuckles uncomfortable as he crawled through the brush, wiping away at it when it stuck to his face. He held back a groan as he felt a thorn stick to the side of his face, which made him want to cry out. He instead pushed the branch aside and bit down on a stick, which relieved the stress he felt, and moved on. He glanced to his side and, across the small clearing between them, he saw his partner Ricochet in a similar position, stalking through the undergrowth. He looked forward, and saw their target. A bull moose, a beast of an animal, grazing. He looked at Ricochet, who looked back as well, and they exchanged a nod. He peered forward, past the beast and saw several other hunters in similar positions. He sat there, patiently, waiting for the signal that would allow him the chance to kill the animal and earn the trust he so desired, to be allowed to form his own hunting party. For a long while, they all laid there, still, and watched the beast graze unaware of their presence. Carnivore grew impatient, but their attention was soon drawn to a terrible cracking sound that came from far away, followed by distant explosions and shouting of people in pain and anger. Carnivore felt his attention waver towards this for a moment, but saw his opportunity as the moose turned its head to face the distant battle, exposing itself to him. He reached for one of his axes and threw himself into the air and dropped onto the beast, blade first. The animal turned to him too late, as it suddenly collapsed with a crunch of metal on bone, feeling its skull violated by the axe as it pierced the bone and met the soft gray matter it protected. The moose jerked back in a brief state of agony before collapsing onto the ground, dead. The other hunters rushed towards Carnivore as he let out a victorious cry of satisfaction, only to have an elbow greet his face and put him onto the ground. He suddenly felt a hand cover his mouth as the hunter before him put a finger over his own beaked mouth to gesture towards being quiet. Carnivore wanted to fight back, but only nodded in response. For a moment, it sounded as though the distant battle began to grow quiet. "You fool!" Hissed the hunter that held Carnivore down. "Do you not know how the humans treat us?!" She stood up and yanked Carnivore sharply to his feet. "They wage war on the hybrids, how do you suppose they feel towards us true-bloods?!" She gave him a quick jab behind his head and stormed towards the others with a frustrated look on her face. Even with the pain of her jab still lingering in his head, Carnivore found the time to glance down at the woman and smile at her sight, making sure for her not to know. A second sharp pain seemed to come from the back of his head as he did, before spinning around to see Ricochet. "Have I not the right to admire beauty in all its forms?" Carnivore asked pleadingly. "Only when my own is not present." Ricochet only responded. Ricochet then proceeded to lean forward and, very briefly, press his forehead against Carnivores. This made Carnivores face burn a shade of red and push himself away from Ricochet, embarrassed. For a moment, the group started to prepare the kill for transport, but they were instantly interrupted by the sudden crashing of branches and trees, startled terribly by this. Carnivore immediately took to the offensive and threw himself into the source of the crashing, only to feel something cold and solid collide with his face instantly. Carnivore gripped the object right away, but soon found that it was gripping back and threw him aside. He felt a brief moment of nothing but air, and then found himself hitting something else, a tree, and then sensing only darkness as he fell to the ground.

When Carnivore finally woke up, he was greeted by a stench that almost put him back under. He shoved himself up right away as he realized the smell of rotting bodies, and pushed himself off the pile of corpses that he was laid on top of. He took a moment to breath, regardless of the terrible smell that assaulted his nose, and clutched himself for a moment to regain his will. After a while, the sound of voices could be heard from past the pile, and Carnivore immediately crawled around the pile to investigate. There, he saw a row of humans carrying an arsenal of what his people had come to call 'thunder-sticks' pointed at a row of others that were lined up and gagged with cloths in their mouths. Amongst them, Carnivore could make out soldiers from some of the great human kingdoms, wearing the symbols of their respective armies. What caught his attention most of all, however, was the sight of Ricochet amongst them. The sight of him beaten and bruised sent a pain through Carnivores body, and to see him ready to be executed made him want to scream out towards him. Without thinking, Carnivore threw himself over the pile of bodies and charged towards the armed soldiers, screaming out at them furiously. As he ran, the soldiers, and Ricochet, turned to face him, but suddenly looked down at the ground beneath him. For only a second, Carnivore looked down at the ground he ran on and saw a partially buried object made of metal just beneath his setting foot. With a sudden click beneath his feet, Carnivore screamed as he felt a sudden coolness around him form. Dust crystals erected themselves around his body, encasing him completely and cutting his scream off short as he reached out towards Ricochet in desperate attempt to reach to him. Carnivore soon felt only coldness and darkness, and closed his eyes as the dust formed around his head, being put unconscious right away.

Ricochet watched intently as the dust invaded Carnivore, unable to save the one he loved. He found himself starring at the ground beneath himself with an intense pain in his chest, enough to bring tears to his eyes. After a moment, the many soldiers that surrounded him and the other humans turned back to the prisoners. One of them could be heard laughing to himself, saying out loud "Look at how that animal ran over a mine, ha! Something to tell the grandkids, eh?" The man who said this could be heard giggling for a short while after before turning back to the prisoners. "Focus!" Shouted another man. "We have a mission here. We take no prisoners," He proclaimed. "so, you know the drill with this lot!" He shouted. Immediately, the soldiers around him all agreed while saying "Ay, Jacques!" The cocking of guns could be heard before the shifting of bodies could be heard. Ricochet looked up one final time, starring sadly at the great crystal that stood where Carnivore once had, and finally dropped his head down again. He found himself whispering quietly to himself in self pity. "I'm sorry... that I could not live." The man then gave the order with a booming voice to the soldiers. "FIRE!"

[fysidsebabettknudsen]

Borgen's Sidse Babett Knudsen on playing the French Erin Brockovich in '150 Milligrams'

As if she hasn’t done enough for the world with her forceful portrayal as the Prime Minister of Denmark in Borgen, Sidse Babett Knudsen is now the French Erin Brockovich, Irène Frachon, in Emmanuelle Bercot’s 150 Milligrams (La Fille de Brest) which screens as part of the French Film Festival. Though Frachon is a very different kind of woman, Knudsen says of the French pulmonologist who between 2009 and 2011 waged a one-woman war against Laboratories Servier, the makers of a seemingly life-threatening diabetes drug Mediator.

Knudsen was nominated this year for a best actress César for her portrayal, after winning last year for best supporting actress in her French-language debut, Courted, alongside Fabrice Luchini.

We spoke in Paris where the attractive, energetic 48-year-old was in an upbeat mood.

Q : Where did you learn to speak such fluent French?

A: I studied and lived here for six years, back in the day when I was young and my brain was still working and I could learn stuff! But I did some extra work for this.

Q: Your Danish accent is noticeable. Is the character meant to be French?

A: Irène Frachon is Parisian. She is not from Brest and is a foreigner to them. Taking it even further and putting a Danish immigrant in there makes the outsider aspect even stronger.

Q: In Borgen you were a driven woman. Are you like that yourself?

A: No. Hmmm. Maybe. Well, I’m not the Prime Minister and I’m definitely not Irène Frachon. But they’re bodies I like to be in. I admire them. When I met Irène for the first time I remember thinking I’m sitting opposite a real hero, like a Marvel hero. She’s larger than life; she’s fierce. She never gets tired of fighting for all these sick people. She’s also so light, so silly. She makes these bad silly jokes and falls over her own legs.

Q: You came to France to study acting and couldn't speak a word of French so that's pretty ballsy. Do you think or yourself that way?

A: Yeah, yeah I think I’m pretty, (hesitates) ballsy. But then there are so many things I’m terrified of. I haven’t written a word or phrase that could possibly change the world as have the women I’m playing. They do that and I don't dare to do that. So in that sense I’m not ballsy at all.

Q: After Borgen had been been successful around the world, did you expect that people would compare the character to real life female politicians, “Oh, she should be like the Prime Minister in Borgen”.

A: Not when we started of course. The Danish people knew it very clearly as fiction. But then during the series there was an election and we had our first female Prime Minister and we could see that journalists would like to compare it and get a good story out of it. I was probably surprised that foreigners take it much more for granted. They do think they know the Danish system a bit, like I think I know the White House after seeing The West Wing.

Q: When Croatia voted in their first female Prime Minister, she said after work she comes home and watches Borgen to relax! What do you think about that?

A: There’s something so nice about TV shows where it's a smaller world and the characters in them become family. It’s comforting. If it can work out in that little world maybe it can work out a little bit in our world as well.

Q: Was it different playing a real life character as opposed to a fictional one?

A: Yes. We said very quickly that we’re not going to imitate her, because it’s impossible and I think that was one of the reasons they went that far to get me. It’s clear it’s not imitation. But the events are chronological; it’s very realistic; she was at that place at that time and did that and said that. If Irène hadn’t been so supportive, saying, “I’m so happy you’re doing this film, it’s so exciting”, I think it would have felt like more of a responsibility. When she saw the film and she was clearly happy, I realised how much I’d actually been anxious, because I really wanted to honour her.

Q: Did you meet her as part of the research?

A: That was the first thing I did, I met her and was so crazy about her from the start. At that point there was no script and I told Emmanuelle I wanted to use what I saw. I love the fact that she’s a clown and that she cries when she speaks about a patient and she’s got her phone on all the time during meetings and there was this Minister calling. She’s on her mission all the time.

Q: Why did Emmanuelle choose you?

A: She couldn't figure out who to cast in France. She was working with Catherine Deneuve at the time (on Standing Tall, also in FFF). They were having dinner and Catherine Deneuve had seen Borgen and she said, “You should look at this lady and she speaks French”. So the producers came to Copenhagen to meet with me for what they called the French Erin Brockovich. When they told me Madame Deneuve’s good idea, who am I to say no?

Q: This film is straightforward. What was it like making HBO’s Westworld, which seemed more like a puzzle?

A: The whole thing was ambitious and super clever. It started with a Skype conversation with Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy and they were talking for an hour. There were so many different elements, philosophical and scientific, and it was so inspiring. I thought this could be something new and creative and interesting. I was really turned on by the vast possibilities it presented. It was a whole new universe. It just seemed really ballsy (chuckles). There was an element of mystery in the workplace which was kind of fun.

Q: In Denmark you started out playing strong characters in comedies and won the major Bodil and Robert awards for Let's Get Lost (1996) and Susanne Bier’s The One and Only (1999). Would you like to do a comedy in English?

A: I’d really love that. But when I did Borgen and I started to be cast in these professional women roles I said, “No way am I bored with being a grown up. I’ve just started.” I think I’ve had much more interesting parts after that. It’s been really great for me because you reach a certain age and it’s incredible that people from foreign countries see you differently. That Peter Strickland wanted me for The Duke of Burgundy was great.

Q: How do you choose between international and Danish projects?

A: I choose according to the roles. Though I’d really like to work in Denmark. I don't think they've seen me in the new way that I want them to yet.

Q: Why did you go back to Denmark from France?

A: I couldn't get any jobs here. My friend had become a theatre director in Copenhagen and she called me to do Peer Gynt and they invited me to be part of the company. I stayed for a year then another year and its now 25 years that I’ve been living there.

Q: What would you like to do now internationally?

A: I’d like to be part of the films that I really really like myself, films like Arrival and A Monster Calls, which were fabulous.

Q: Some of the best series of the last decade have come out of Denmark, not to mention actors like Mads Mikkelsen and Nicolaj Coster-Waldau – and you all stay living in Copenhagen, when Australians often move to Los Angeles. What created this well of talent?

A: It’s so difficult to talk about it when you’re inside it, but when I did films in Denmark in the middle of the ‘90s something was going on. It wasn't just in one place; it was in the theatre as well. It was like, “We don't believe the old stuff any more, the old way of speaking, the old stories, the old clichés. We need something new and told in different ways.” With Dogme, something modern happened and in that process the actors were very much participants in the storytelling. And that’s how I grew up. I feel like I’m a storyteller, I feel like if I read a script and I see something and I think this could be important, I bring it to the table. Having that collaborative experience gave us actors a sense of responsibility and brought importance to the projects.

Q: Why didn't you end up working with Lars von Trier?

A: I didn’t – but I was Nicole Kidman for a week! I was just in the dummy to show the money people what Dogville looked like. We did a few scenes for the package. I was never meant to be in it. I wasn't hired.

Q: He never called you back for another film?

A: No, not yet

Q: Have you ever called him?

A: No. I could I suppose.

[aion-rsa]

Marvel’s Avengers Review: It’s No Spider-Man

https://ift.tt/3mebTlm

A developer assumes a measure of responsibility when making a superhero game. These characters typically have a longstanding fanbase that is oftentimes overprotective and overly precious about how their favorite heroes are portrayed. So when it was announced that Crystal Dynamics and Marvel Games were working on an action-adventure, narrative-driven, loot-based Avengers game, I was skeptical because a) it sounded like an overly ambitious game to make regardless of licensing, and b) this isn’t just any superhero license—these are the most popular, beloved superhero characters on the planet right now. How could the developers possibly meet Marvel fans’ lofty expectations?

My takeaway from Marvel’s Avengers after completing its story campaign and playing through hours of its online multiplayer component is that the game will not meet your expectations. It’s ultimately a bit of a letdown. Certain aspects of the game are even extraordinarily good, but there’s a lack of consistency that runs throughout the game on several levels as well as fundamental flaws that keep it from standing alongside the likes of Marvel’s Spider-Man and Rocksteady’s Batman Arkham series in the superhero game pantheon.

Marvel’s Avengers as an experience is divided into two big modes. The first mode is a story campaign, which is designed as a mostly solo experience and focuses on the hero’s journey of would-be Avenger Kamala Khan (voiced wonderfully by Sandra Saad). Upon completing the campaign, the game transitions into its Avengers Initiative online multiplayer component, which continues the story through largely standalone single- and multi-objective missions you can take on with up to three teammates. If you want to get to playing with your friends right away, you do have the option to skip the campaign entirely, but then you’d be missing what for now is the stronger half of the experience.

The story itself is pretty standard fare for comic book fans. It sees the Avengers disassembled and then slowly reassembled in dramatic fashion before they ultimately save the day. The inciting incident is A-Day, an event in San Francisco in which the Avengers, along with scheming scientists George Tarleton and Monica Rappaccini, were meant to unveil a new mineral called Terrigen as the key to a clean energy-fueled future. But when terrorists led by Taskmaster attack, most of the team rushes to the rescue while Cap tries to secure the volatile Terrigen crystal fueling the Avengers’ helicarrier, the Chimera.

After defeating Taskmaster, the ship unexpectedly explodes, claiming the life of Captain Rogers and spreading Terrigen mist across the city, imbuing normal people with extraordinary abilities. The world comes to refer to these new superpowered citizens as Inhumans. Fearing for their own safety in an Avenger-less world, humanity quickly begins hunting and persecuting these Inhumans, who are forced to hide their powers or risk imprisonment — or worse.

Years later, young Kamala Khan, who met the Avengers on A-Day as a participant in a fan fiction contest and is now secretly an Inhuman with incredible shape-shifting powers, embarks on a journey to uncover the truth about what really happened on that fateful day. Along the way, she reassembles the Avengers and joins the Inhuman resistance and what’s left of SHIELD in their fight against Tarleton’s evil tech organization Advanced Idea Mechanics (AIM). Like Kamala, Tarleton is also going through his own transformation, morphing before our eyes into the grotesque MODOK, who’s never been one of my favorite Marvel villains but is serviceable here.

What sets the game’s narrative apart from other Avengers stories and pretty much every video game story out there is that Kamala is at the center of it, which is cool not only because she’s a great character from the comics, but because she’s a Pakistani American woman starring in a AAA video game. I can’t overstate how much decisions like this mean to underrepresented communities. Best of all, Kamala’s storyline is handled with care, as we watch her grow into a powerful hero that inspires the rest of the Avengers to get back to work. She’s truly the heart and saving grace of the game’s story campaign.

The game’s larger storytelling is far from perfect, however. Kamala is a great protagonist, and the mentor/mentee relationship that develops between her and Dr. Bruce Banner (Troy Baker at the top of his game) is perhaps the title’s best storyline. But the other Avengers—Iron Man, Thor, Cap, Black Widow—aren’t nearly as compelling. They feel like shallow versions of what we’ve seen before in the comics and movies, which would be fine if you only saw them from Kamala’s point of view…but you don’t.

At different points throughout the campaign, you take control of each Avenger, turning the game into more of an ensemble piece meant to explore all of the heroes individually. But other than Kamala and Bruce, none of them has an interesting character arc. Larger than life Marvel staples like Tony Stark and Thor are woefully underwritten here and even their Iconic Missions, hero-specific side stories that tie back into the main plot, leave much to be desired. While these missions are each meant to highlight a specific character and their powers, they mostly play out like every other mission type. More on that in just a bit.

It doesn’t help that Marvel’s Avengers doesn’t do enough to distance itself from its movie counterpart. All I see when I look at the OG Avengers in the game is “Store-Brand Avengers,” lesser versions of their MCU counterparts (don’t get me started on the atrocious Tony character model). And since their individual stories are underwritten, we virtually have no choice but to reference the MCU to fill in the blanks. The game just doesn’t have a strong identity of its own.

Fortunately, combat is pretty solid all around. Crystal Dynamics has done a good job making each hero feel different from the next, from Kamala’s stretch-based powers to Iron Man’s high-flying maneuvers to Hulk’s environment-shattering smashing, and the combat feels smooth, with timed dodges, parries, and ability gauges adding depth to what is essentially traditional beat-em-up gameplay. There are imbalances here and there (like when a dozen off-screen enemies attack you all at once and you have no choice but to, well, die), but it’s generally fun to punch and shoot your way through AIM’s robotic and human goons.

That said, the combat is sometimes hindered by a camera that can’t quite keep up with the action. Things can get so hectic during intense combat sequences that it’s very possible that you’ll lose track of what’s happening on screen all together. I also experienced pretty severe framerate drops at points when there were too many enemies on screen. And although you can tackle multiplayer missions by yourself with three AI companions—which is a nice touch for those who don’t particularly like playing online—expect to grow frustrated with the AI at times.

All of this is compounded by the uninteresting enemies you’ll face throughout the game. No one really thinks of AIM when counting down the best evil factions in Marvel history and the shadowy organization isn’t made any more spectacular here. You’ll mostly spend your time in Marvel’s Avengers fighting bullet-spongy robots, drones, mechs, and jet pack-wearing soldiers, with almost no hint of an actual recognizable Marvel villain in between. How is it possible to have this much access to the Marvel license and include pretty much no fan-favorite villains in the game? Sure, you’ll face one or two, including Hulk villain the Abomination, who was revealed in the beta, but don’t expect to see any A-listers in this game.

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Marvel’s Avengers also puts a big emphasis on loot and character progression. Each hero has their own skill trees, gear to equip, and unlockable cosmetics. Skill points you earn by completing missions and taking down enemies can be redeemed for new abilities on the skill tree, while cosmetics (new costumes) can be purchased with in-game currency at different vendors, bought with real money, unlocked by progressing through the story, or earned through each hero’s Character Card, a progression system structured like a traditional battle pass. As you complete challenges in the game, you’ll earn challenge points that unlock new items on the Character Card.

The gear system is a bit more involved. You’ll need to do a lot of grinding to outfit your character with the best gear and raise their power level, the most important number in the game. Your character’s power level, which is an amalgamation of each piece of gear’s individual power level, defines how strong your character is and whether they can take on increasingly difficult missions.

Each mission has a recommended power level, and it’s in your best interest to heed that warning. If you’re even five below the recommended power level, you’re likely to get annihilated on the battlefield. Unfortunately, this means that you’ll find yourself grinding levels for more powerful gear quite a bit in the game, replaying War Zone missions at higher difficulties in the hopes of getting better item drops. All that said, loot isn’t represented cosmetically, and while there are seemingly countless perks and customization options tied to the pieces of gear you find, at the end of the day, the combat kinda feels the same no matter what loadout you’ve got. There’s a severe lack of variety here.

As we wrote in our preview of the game back in August, War Zone missions get old very quickly. They’re repetitive, are largely set in surprisingly uninteresting environments, and usually involve one of only a handful of mission structures, from attacking and defending control points to destroying AIM tech to simply taking out enemy waves. This is all fun at first, and playing with others online does add dimension to the experience. Coordinating attacks, watching each others’ backs, performing devastating combos on giant robots–the combat is definitely conducive with online co-op.

But the recycled mission structures and environments just aren’t enough to keep me going for as long as the devs want me to. There are some storytelling elements bookending the War Zone missions, especially in the case of the aforementioned Iconic Missions, which is appreciated. But after breaking into the umpteenth AIM lab and destroying the three valuable pieces of tech or holding down the three important control points or destroying another giant mech, you begin to wonder what you’re actually working towards in the game.

As far as I can tell at launch, you grind missions to earn better gear in order to take on tougher missions that feel exactly like the last batch of missions…but more difficult? All in all, repetitive missions make it so that you want off the gameplay loop as soon as possible. I certainly don’t feel the impetus to keep playing now that I’ve finished the story campaign and written this review.

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Another annoyance I have with online play is the matchmaking. It often took forever to find other players and launch a mission. I ultimately enjoyed playing solo with AI companions much more, which really says something about a game that’s meant to be played with others, especially since the AI heroes almost never help you actually complete objectives. They just kind of follow you around the stages. 

I’m looking forward to the Hawkeye DLC that’s on the way for Marvel’s Avengers, as well as the PlayStation-exclusive Spider-Man content coming out next year, but I’ll most likely give the game a rest until then. I wish that Crystal Dynamics had focused more on the campaign because, man, some of the set pieces and Kamala moments show signs of life in a game that mostly feels dead on arrival. I would have loved to play 10 more hours of a Kamala single-player campaign. But alas, I’m left with the bitter taste of a middling, Destiny-like action-looter that unfortunately undermines the truly great things that the game does have going for it.

The post Marvel’s Avengers Review: It’s No Spider-Man appeared first on Den of Geek.

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The Last of Us Part II Review — A History of Violence

June 24, 2020 11:00 AM EST

Tense, heartbreaking, and profound, The Last of Us Part II is an affecting examination of consequences and a masterful sequel by Naughty Dog.

**Editor’s Note: This review, while being largely free of major story spoilers, does mention some of The Last of Us Part II’s second half that changes the perspective of what players experience in-game. I felt this aspect of the game was important to address in order to highlight the direction of the story and tone that Naughty Dog chose with The Last of Us Part II and to better inform what to expect from the game. However, other than that, the rest of the review will try to be as vague as possible regarding some of its larger story moments and reveals to avoid spoilers.**

The ending of The Last of Us, which saw Joel raid a hospital occupied by the Fireflies in order to rescue Ellie, ultimately left players with a question–rather than a definitive statement–of whether his actions were the right ones to take. Saving Ellie’s life was a result of their growing bond, but also came with a heavy cost for the rest of humanity. More importantly, the ending cast Joel’s actions in a different light and was willing to let the player make their own judgments about what had happened and where things could go from there. The ending, more or less, put a period on an emotional story about love and compassion, while forcing players to reexamine how they ultimately felt about Joel’s actions, whether they were noble, reckless, or otherwise.

The Last of Us Part II, by comparison, changes that period to an ellipsis and forces an entirely different read on the events of the first game. Picking up from where Joel and Ellie’s story left off was never going to be an easy task, let alone trying to wrangle the complex emotions of the first game, especially in its final moments. However, calling it “Part II” feels like an appropriate extension of what Naughty Dog was trying to accomplish with this title. On that part, the studio has crafted a game that doesn’t just build off of its predecessor in every way, but puts it into a very different, challenging context.

For a multitude of reasons, The Last of Us Part II is probably one of the most complicated games that I’ve ever had to review. Like many others that loved the first game, I initially was hesitant about what a sequel to The Last of Us could add to its story, given how Joel and Ellie’s journey was told so effectively by Naughty Dog. Then there were the leaks in April that revealed several of the game’s major story beats months before its release, some of which I had (unwittingly) ended up seeing, and the resulting fallout of internet backlash and discourse about those reveals. Then there are the real-world situations surrounding it, from the ongoing effects of the coronavirus pandemic, to a current political and social climate fueled by tension, division, and hate. Though The Last of Us Part II is obviously removed from the circumstances that we’re facing right now with very different contexts, there are moments where it doesn’t feel too far off either, making the game’s similarities to the current state of our world feel even more prescient.

The polarized response to the direction of the story in The Last of Us Part II, in many ways, speaks to the strengths of its writing, performances, and its overarching themes. Initially described as a game about “hate” by director Neil Druckmann, The Last of Us Part II definitely reflects those emotions once players begin their initial quest for revenge as Ellie. But by its end, The Last of Us Part II encompasses so much more than that. Though the game often shows people as their absolute worst through violence and cruelty, its moments of humanity and levity save it from becoming the worst version of itself, in a lot of ways. Whether you’ve seen the leaks beforehand or not, The Last of Us Part II is an experience that can only be fully understood by playing through it for yourself to come to terms with what it has to say.

“The Last of Us Part II is an experience that can only be fully understood by playing through it for yourself to come to terms with what it has to say.”

There is a lot to unpack from the story that Naughty Dog tells in The Last of Us Part II, both thematically and emotionally. Sometimes that’s to a fault as the game’s story is dense and complex when taking it all in, compared to the precise, focused storytelling of the first game. Part II’s unique narrative structure twists players’ expectations at every turn, and in a lot of ways might warrant a second playthrough to fully grasp it. And as much as Part II manages to tell a captivating story over a much longer experience than the original game, it often loses grasp of the many narrative threads and themes it is trying to pull at once. But long after I’ve rolled credits on the game, seeing where Ellie’s path of vengeance winds up hasn’t left my thoughts for days, and likely won’t for some time to come.

Picking up about five years after the events of the original game, The Last of Us Part II shows what happened once Joel and Ellie reached the end of their journey across America. After reconvening with Joel’s brother Tommy in Jackson County, Wyoming, Ellie and Joel have made a life for themselves in its survivor encampment. While the Jackson community has established itself as a safe haven in the midst of the post-apocalypse, Joel and Ellie haven’t been on good terms in some time once the truth is revealed about what happened at the hospital in Salt Lake City.

After a brief introduction to the idyllic Jackson community and a few new characters that play a big part in Ellie’s life, such as Jesse and her partner Dina, the wheels of The Last of Us Part II’s story are set in motion by the arrival of a group of survivors led by Abby. After a violent confrontation with Abby and her group, Ellie is left physically and emotionally devastated by the encounter, and begins a plot to track the group to their base in Seattle, Washington to settle the score.

“There is a lot to unpack from the story that Naughty Dog tells in The Last of Us Part II, both thematically and emotionally.”

There is obviously much, much more to the plot of The Last of Us Part II than that, but it’s difficult to truly reveal what ends up provoking Ellie’s search for revenge without completely spoiling the context for the rest of the story. Even the trailers and gameplay footage since its reveal have had to dance around some major events that set-up the entire premise of the game and to hide its biggest reveals. That said, what sets The Last of Us Part II apart from what initially seems like a simple “revenge story” plot is a major perspective change that alters the course of the story dramatically, and provides a clearer picture of the “cycle of violence” that defines it as a whole and its characters.

After playing as Ellie for the first half of the game where she and Dina venture out to Seattle, a major turning point leads to a perspective change for players in the second half of the game by playing as Abby. By switching perspectives midway through the story, The Last of Us Part II not only completely recontextualizes what happens in the first half from experiencing Ellie’s point of view, but also reframes the events of the first game entirely. Gradually players uncover Abby’s role in the story, while also highlighting Part II’s larger theme of portraying flawed characters that don’t neatly fit into black-and-white moral archetypes. For all intents and purposes, Abby is the “antagonist” of the story, making it remarkable that the second half of the game is able to show her in a much deeper, more empathetic way. For a character that players are almost immediately meant to hate, Abby’s story proves just as compelling as Ellie’s, which is a testament to Naughty Dog’s writing and Laura Bailey’s performance of her character.

“Part II’s unique narrative structure twists players’ expectations at every turn, and in a lot of ways might warrant a second playthrough to fully grasp it.”

The narrative and emotional weight of The Last of Us Part II does much of the heavy lifting for what players will experience in its 20-30 hour journey, alongside its standout performances from Troy Baker, Ashley Johnson, and newcomers like Shannon Woodward. However, the devastating and enthralling story of Part II is also backed by its tense, dynamic gameplay that consistently engages players to fight for survival. While Ellie and Abby both have their own unique feel to them–Ellie being more agile compared to Abby’s more strong-armed approach to encounters–The Last of Us Part II makes a number of refinements to the series’ stealth-oriented gameplay that is incredible in motion.

This is especially compounded with the diverse range of enemies that players will encounter throughout the game, human or otherwise. The Infected–humans mutated by the cordyceps fungal outbreak–once again are a major threat, and The Last of Us Part II introduces a few new variants of the Infected alongside the infamous Clickers and Bloaters. There are also the two main human factions that players will face throughout the game, the pseudo-militarized Washington Liberation Front (colloquially known as WLF or “Wolves”) and a religious cult known as the Seraphites (or “Scars,” who unsettlingly communicate by whistling). Notably, these two factions are at odds with one another throughout the game, leading to some situations where players (as Ellie or Abby) are able to use these opposing factions against each other to their advantage.

“While the violence in Part II at first is meant to be unsettling and brutal, I can’t help but feel that it begins to lose its meaning when every encounter leads to essentially a bloodbath.”

Whether fighting off Clickers or hunting down Wolves or Seraphites, the combat and moment-to-moment gameplay of The Last of Us Part II is undoubtedly satisfying and a big improvement over the original game. But perhaps more noticeably than its predecessor, Part II delivers a much more brutal approach to combat and violence, as a means of both upping the intensity of encounters and making the player reflect on their own actions. Enemies are killed and eviscerated in far more graphic detail, and taking out an enemy will often have their companion shout their name or call out for them if they’ve gone missing.

This intention of humanizing the enemies you’re facing is undoubtedly chilling, and Naughty Dog went the extra mile in making the player feel tense and uncomfortable with the combat in Part II. However, while the violence in Part II at first is meant to be unsettling and brutal, I can’t help but feel that it begins to lose its meaning when every encounter leads to essentially a bloodbath. In the major story moments where violence is impacted on the characters we know and are meant to sympathize with, the brutality and callousness of it absolutely works and reinforces the story’s theme of violent actions having violent consequences. But when faced with a group of enemies that stand between you and the next objective to move forward in the story, killing them in cold blood begins to show the seams where Part II’s narrative ambitions run against the limitations of using horrific violence to make a point. Part II makes us feel and mourn major character deaths (of which there are many), while also leaving Ellie and Abby with a heap of bodies behind them.

“With Part II, Naughty Dog has outdone itself with some of the most meticulously crafted levels and environments that I have seen in a game.”

Much like the original game, players will have to utilize stealth and careful resource management to navigate Part II’s series of environments, which have notably been expanded from the original game. Taking a cue from the more recent Uncharted titles such as Uncharted 4 and The Lost Legacy, The Last of Us Part II features more extensive open areas that not only give the player flexibility in how to approach incoming enemies, but give far more room to explore, gather supplies, and witness more of the story through its world and setpieces.

With Part II, Naughty Dog has outdone itself with some of the most meticulously crafted levels and environments that I have seen in a game. This is especially the case once players reach Seattle with Ellie and Dina, which is easily one of the biggest, most impressively detailed environments that has appeared in a Naughty Dog title. From venturing through lush forests, to wandering the overgrown streets of downtown Seattle, The Last of Us Part II utilizes its spaces to an exceptional degree to make exploration and discovery not only crucial to surviving, but as a way to enhance its storytelling. Granted, these environments can be detailed to a fault; there were several points where I sometimes found myself unclear where to go next and would accidentally backtrack. But thankfully, the game will help point you in the right direction if you end up getting lost, and sometimes it’s for the better to appreciate the intricate details strewn throughout each area.

“The Last of Us Part II utilizes its spaces to an exceptional degree to make exploration and discovery not only crucial to surviving, but as a way to enhance its storytelling.”

Likewise, the signature world-building and environmental storytelling that made The Last of Us so memorable is on full display in Part II. There are ample opportunities to explore different rooms filled with their own stories of the people who once lived there. Some of them are harrowing, some of them are poignant, but they’re never uninteresting and give a huge incentive to more thoroughly explore each environment. Going off the beaten path has always been encouraged in The Last of Us, and Part II draws on the strength of its environments and subtlety to create an even more richly-defined world.

By the end of The Last of Us Part II, I came away from it experiencing some of the most powerful, emotional moments that I’ve ever seen from a video game, let alone any other story told in another medium. Naughty Dog’s long-awaited sequel has the kind of raw storytelling that comes only a few times in a generation, and the fact that the studio was able to pull this off in a follow-up to the original is a feat in and of itself. From the perspectives of Ellie and Abby, The Last of Us Part II succeeds not only as a dark and haunting story of revenge, but as an examination of consequences and redemption. While Part II sometimes falters in its delivery of extremely heavy subject matter, it also proves itself as a poignant exploration of human emotions and all their extremes, whether that is hate, love, or anything in-between.

“Naughty Dog’s long-awaited sequel has the kind of raw storytelling that comes only a few times in a generation.”

Like the journey for revenge that its main characters seek, The Last of Us Part II is often bleak, complicated, and doesn’t provide easy answers for its challenging moral questions. In a lot of ways, The Last of Us Part II will make you angry, it will upset you, and it will break your heart as much as its glimpses of warmth and humanity will lift your spirits. It is a challenging game to play at times; there were several points where I felt completely overwhelmed by what I was experiencing. But the raw emotions and storytelling heights that Naughty Dog reaches with The Last of Us Part II are worth seeing through to the end, as hard as it may be to get there.

June 24, 2020 11:00 AM EST

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Senko no Ronde 2 Review

by Omar (@siegarettes)

Senko no Ronde 2

Developer- G. Rev, Chara-Ani

Publisher- Degica

PC, PS4

Senko no Ronde 2 is a game for a very, very specific audience If you’re not someone whose activation phrases are “Virtual-On”, “bullet hell”, “Psychic Force”, or “arena fighter” you’re probably someone who is going to be bewildered by the chaos you witness. For those with an affinity towards ANY of those, Senko no Ronde will feel like a revelation. It joins the ranks of the few competitive shoot-em-ups, alongside Change Air Blade, Twinkle Star Sprites and its various anime girl imitators like Genso Rondo and Acceleration of Suguri.

But what the hell is Senko no Ronde? In the simplest terms, it’s an arena style fighting game where you operate Rounders, the game’s term for mechs, in the style of Virtual-On or Gundam Versus, while firing scrolling shooter boss style bullet patterns. This boss style combat extends to the super moves, which attach massive mechanical “shells” to each mech and turns them into a full size, screen dominating BOSS that forces opponents to navigate through several seconds of bullet hell.

The actual control of the game is simple, with most special techniques performed by button combinations, and only two universal command moves for each character. There’s plenty of nuance within those simple commands, and a definite learning curve to understanding their full functions. The bullet hell aspects seem intimidating at first, but I found that between the chain dashes, shields, and bullet cancel attacks the bullet patterns became much more manageable than in most shooters.

The biggest adjustment comes from moving away from the habit to fight at close range. Senko no Ronde 2 is a projectile based game, and controlling the match involves zoning out your opponents and forcing them against the ring boundaries and into traps. This leads into another eccentricity--lock on. Like other fighters, Senko no Ronde has you constantly facing towards your opponent, which also means all your bullets aim towards them by default. Most Rounders can easily step out of the way of these shots, and combined with versatile dashing mechanics this means it’s rare to be able to directly shoot an opponent. You’ll have to anticipate their movement, and use your main weapon alongside a more limited secondary fire to force them onto a trajectory that can be intercepted with your bullets. Each shot can also be altered in various ways, and powerful burst shots can be used in exchange for meter to cause even larger damage.

Meter is also used to deploy your shield,  and when drained causes the Rounder to overheat, leaving it unable to block or transform into its BOSS form. On the other hand, getting hit while shielding also drops energy which can be collected by the opponent to charge their meter. Alongside special assists and BOSS stock, it puts a heavy emphasis on managing resources, and creates a back and forth dynamic where the balance of power is constantly shifting.

You might try to block a burst of enemy fire, but doing so could give the enemy more meter, allowing them to earn another burst and continue the pressure. If you find yourself in a bad spot, do you burn a BOSS stock and try to even out the fight with your powerful weapons? Or do you avoid it because you know it’s a bad matchup and being destroyed in BOSS form will leave you with no meter and reward them with a huge amount? You could use your last stock to continue pressure and prevent them from entering BOSS mode, but are you confident you can take them down next round knowing they’ll receive an extra stock for losing the round?

Fights in Senko no Ronde are full of these gambits. Reading and intercepting your opponent’s intentions becomes crucial to controlling the pace. The back and forth of these resources kept me from feeling complacent in victory, or that I didn’t have the tools to come back from a loss. It’s not unlike the feeling of a good Street Fighter match, or when I earned a clutch victory from a difficult shooter boss.

This was less true when I found myself playing against the CPU. Some encounters in story mode can put up a decent fight, but during arcade mode the action felt tedious. Even on hard mode the CPU fails to take advantage of their resources, and lacks the predictive ability to to avoid some basic attacks. I won many battles by activating BOSS mode the keeping a laser held in place while they became confused and wandered into it.

It’s only when playing against others that the different strengths of the characters become clear. One Rounder that used shuriken style projectiles and smoke bombs gave me trouble, but fell apart under some sustained fire. Playing against a friend made that same Rounder much more unpredictable. The smoke bombs allowed them to quickly maneuver into my blindspots and away from my bursts, then close in for melee attacks after I’d fired off in a panic. Closing distance became a guessing game of where they’d appear next, and a bad gamble would mean yet another combo eaten. It kept me from becoming complacent and relying on the same strategies for victory.

On a side note, the online system is about what you expect from a release of this size. Quick match doesn’t seem to have many players, and while it’s easy to get into ranked matches, there’s no options to filter them. Bad connections are exasperated, while stronger ones are about as close to local as you can hope. I played a good session of online games with a friend in the UK, and there was a noticeable lag, though it remained consistent for the majority of our matches. Thankfully Senko no Ronde 2 isn’t a game as reliant on precise inputs as other fighters, so general strategy and good predictions won matches most of the time, though in clutch moments its effects were definitely felt.

Even with these obstacles, the feeling of playing matches of Senko no Ronde with another person was exhilarating. Between the combat dynamics, varied roster and panicked chases through fields of bullets, Senko no Ronde 2 definitely earns namesake of the dance in its title. It pulls and pushes its participants through the gravity of its bullet patterns, and its threat of violence. Each player vies for the opportunity to lead, and acquiesces when they take the wrong step. Here bullets are communication, and curtains of fire become loud, sometimes brash statements. And even when I found myself swept up by my partner’s lead, it’s was difficult to feel upset by it. After all, a good dance always deserves another.