#Justice arcanum

[tarotdeana]

Arcano Mayor XI: La Justicia

Ataviada con un manto rojo, símbolo de poder terreno, la Justicia encarna el equilibrio, o la necesidad de él. Con una de sus manos sostiene una balanza; en cada plato se halla un elemento opuesto al otro, pero complementario: el pensamiento y el corazón, la mente y el espíritu, lo masculino y lo femenino, la luz y la sombra. La Justicia nos recuerda que los opuestos no son enemigos; por el contrario, juntos conforman una armonía perfecta, y si se siente la ausencia de uno, hay que buscarlo y ponerlo en la balanza para encontrar el equilibrio.

En un sentido literal, la Justicia anuncia una negociación o acuerdo próximo a celebrarse, que requerirá que el consultante reflexione y concilie sus pensamientos con sus sentimientos, y lo que se debe hacer con lo que es bueno para él.

Este arcano es la continuación de una historia ya contada por otro: La Fuerza. Mientras que la mujer de aquel arcano se encuentra luchando contra el deseo, representado por un león, la Justicia simboliza el final de dicha lucha, en la que finalmente se obtendrá, no lo que se desea por capricho, sino lo que es justo según corresponda.

www.tarotdeana.tumblr.com

Imagen: Tarot Rider - Waite.

Lee mitología griega aquí.

Lee mitología japonesa aquí.

Lee mitología coreana aquí.

[cosmereplay]

[ID: A digital painting of Kaladin and Syl by Karrah E @karrahe. He is shown from the chest up against a white background. He has light brown skin and his hair is black, shoulder length, wavy, and a bit messy. He has downward pointing eyebrows that make his neutral expression look a bit frowny. He has scars on his forehead from his brands, and the scars are white with angry redness in the surrounding skin. Kaladin's face balances softness and squareness. His jaw is almost harsh in its angularity, and his nose is straight and pointy, but his eyes and lips are round and soft. Kaladin's lips have a natural downturn to match his eyebrows. His eyes are large, with smooth epicanthic folds and brown irises. He wears a blue uniform that's under-rendered, so as not to detract from his face, which takes the spotlight in this art. Similarly, Syl is a small blue silhouette sitting on Kaladin's shoulder and looking up at him. Even the fact that she's glowing doesn't really pull attention away from Kaladin's handsome young face and his determined, slightly tired, expression. End ID.]

Kaladin Stormblessed and Syl

[acesw]

Knowing our Arcanists 4: Dikke

Welcome to entry four of my series: "Knowing our Arcanists"! This is a series in which I introduce and tell the stories of our fellow characters in Reverse: 1999. For today's character we have: Dikke!

Ah one of the first characters hit by the yuri-beam that became very popular in the fandom for her being easily paired with other characters. Her character is pretty interesting, as being one of the vessels of justice and one of the oldest characters in the game. Just wish that her kit was as powerful as her canon, anyway lets get started!

Lady Dikke is a European arcanist coming from the middle ages, born on October 10th. She is the current magistrate and Supreme Chief of the Special Court, and is a very eccentric person who carries out justice in unconventional ways.

Her arcane skill involves an ancient Babylonian soul, who resides in the flaming sword "Justice" and is often depicted as a spiritual claw looming over Dikke's shoulder. While ferocious, it has been her guiding spirit when it comes to doing her job. She states that its sentient, being easily swayed by what it thinks is an injustice. Whether it'd be an action or some believed meaningless rumors, it will respond accordingly.

It can be assumed that this soul is likely based off of Babylonian King Hammurabi, as he is the creator of the law code that ultimately became the law code for others. The code, named after him, is one of the earliest, longest, and best-preserved legal texts made in the ancient Near East.

We don't know too much about Dikke as herself prior to her work, but when she grew older, she first became a chancellor in the (Medieval) Inquisition. Its power started to grow in Europe to carry out cases and trials in place of the secular courts, and when Dikke became bishop, it grew more powerful, gradually prevailing control over the courts and laws across the region.

The Inquisition also had some degree of control on handling the cases of arcanists, both innocent and guilty. While being viewed as cruel and abusive by some, it can't be doubted that it held a special place in the arcanum world. Dikke usually carried out some of these trials herself, providing justice for the guilty and giving mercy for those innocent.

Some time after the Black Death pandemic, Dikke visited one of the villages to investigate the death of a member of a church, conducting a long investigation that seemed unconventional but fully efficient to be able to reach a conclusion.

She found that all the townspeople (including the church) were guilty, as multiple factors led to the death of the church member and the case was silenced further before her arrival. However she carried out no punishment.

At some point, she went to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pamiers in France, and became a magistrate and Supreme Chief of the Special Court there. During this time, she became in charge of conducting retrials of temporal court cases, to prevent wrongful convictions.

She used this to her advantage, as her control of this aspect led to many innocent arcanists to be saved from the witch hunts carried out by humans.

Dikke can be described as a very straightforward and active character, always making it a point to be fair and to be truthful. She never really lies, and continuously works towards carrying out the justice that guides her in every step she makes. Dikke is very insistent on it, and is often reluctant when it comes to accepting a position of power due to its connection with greed.

Despite these, she's not a stone cold person. She'll occasionally have a drink, make a humorous jab about the corrupt and the guilty, and enjoys quiet nights when the day ends with her goals fulfilled.

Dikke's belief in justice aligns with her layered empathy, but she is in no way to consider making an exception. She even tells herself that if she were to carry out an injustice that she too must deserve punishment. No guilty person can escape the blade of justice, neither will the wealthy and the powerful. Dikke will make sure of that.

[arclundarchivist]

[Spoilers C3E99]

-

-

Thinking about who isn’t on Aeor right now.

We have Mercy and Death, Nature and Knowledge, Deceit and Destruction.

And while Etharis is notably absent, she isn’t alone. But why would the Goddess of Civilization come to witness the destruction of the last great sky city? Why would she play her hand? How could law personally create such chaos? So she sends a being… that seems to my eyes to be born of Elemental Chaos, and what *love* does it bring with it?

But there are others.

Kord is waiting in the wings. For the battle has yet to truly begin, but when it does he will be ready.

Yet Avandra. Bahamut. Moradin. Where are they?

Freedom and change doesn’t stand against Aeor’s tyranny yet, perhaps she sees the tyranny the gods themselves have wrote upon the world in their conflicts.

Justice and Honor are not here in Aeor. Does that mean he believes what they do is wrong?

And the Moonweaver? Why does the goddess of trickery not play her hand in this caper?

Moradin is a god of creation and craft, how could he take part in the dismemberment and what is more destruction of the last great edifice of the Arcanum?

And those Betrayers that ignored their kin to follow their own pursuits?

Bane *is* tyranny, is conquest. Is he too focused on forging his domain to care, or does the tyranny of Aeor empower him all the same even if they refuse to pay homage to any?

What of Tiamat? Does she simply stay away because her twin is also missing? Are they too embroiled in their own conflicts? Is there nothing for her to cover in this place? Did her envy consume her enough that she can only look upon her siblings in scorn?

And Zehir, the snake, the spy, the bloodletter, why would the god of murder not wish to wet his hands in the blood of a city so old and defiant? They wish to kill him. Does he respect that wish? Or is he simply eager to watch the pair he hates walk in *his* domain

There is so much a *want to know* but I’m not sure there will be answers.

[nobredoesart]

Continuing my rant about the elves and restructuring them, here are the 3 other missing races!

Sunfire Elves: I do mostly like the designs of the Sunfire Elves, but I did want to reduce the amount of armor and layers a tiny bit, maintaining the accessories and gold accents, while making the clothes more flow-y and vibrant. With that in mind, the Arcanum of the Sun is a very interesting one, because the show does nail it, but it doesn't explore well enough what that would mean for those who have it as an intrinsic part of them.

So, we get to it. Truth, Life, Destruction and Eternity are the core tenants, and they shape how the elves operate. It's not quite that Sunfire Elves can't lie, but the idea of it is almost alien to them, to the point of causing genuine discomfort. Reality exists and one is meant to live it truthfully and with passion. Monuments litter the streets of Sunfire cities, filled with attempts at eternity, shining beacons of who existed, along with the destruction of that which is offensive to the truth and reality itself. Sunfire Elves are a stubborn lot, and their society proves it, believing in justice with little bending, in strong work done well and lives of passionate creation honestly achieved.

Warriors, farmers, artisans and smiths are very well known within the communities, of course, but the petty squabbling of nobles can get in the way.

It's not uncommon for most other Elves to see Sunfire as kinda stuck up pricks, but that is because they do not understand that the elves of the sun would rather break than bend, no matter the cost, and they will rend asunder all that stands in the way of truth and good.

I do like the Sun State from the show, but I do want to add that in Sunfire Community, it's seen as a purer state of being, and used in rituals, ceremonies and even things like courting rituals. Sunfire Elves also passively heal quicker, and have an almost debilitating disgust over being up in the long hours of the night, as the lack of sunshine drains them, and makes them feel unclean.

Earthblood Elves: Gods, do I love the concept art for these, but hate how the only ones we see in the show lack the awesome elements. So, I am choosing to lean hard into the concept art, and then adding more detailing.

Before getting into how their society works, let's talk design. Earthblood elves should have a way more earthy appearance, with stone and dirt being part of their designs, as well as leaning into them being part of the nature that surrounds them. They have little clothing, choosing to usually trim their natural growths to be "decent" and tend to actually look deeply asymmetrical, as the earth is very rarely so standardized. Their horns/antlers are also affected by this, having wild designs and growths, from stone to moss to leaves to many other things!

The idea that Earthblood Elves are passive and against confrontation in canon is also mildly annoying. However, I understand where it comes from, so I am changing it so the motivation fits within the Arcanum of the Earth, which will touch upon Tradition, Growth, Connection and Endurance. It is slightly different from Canon, as are the other slight tweaks to the Sources, but this one has a bigger impact in how the Elves work. Earthbloods have an inherent connection with the world around them, be it the land or the people, with an almost magical sense of empathy, which tends to lead to them serving as great pillars of support within their communities. They also value the soil, the earth beneath their feet, and all those that came before them and worked it, as traditions and that which was are to be held as sacred, like the roots from which a tree grows.

Due to all this, stirring the growth of their community, without ever forgetting their roots is important and necessary, as is a more, grounded set of beliefs. Their lack of confrontation stems from the understanding that people will grow on their own, and that brutality happens in nature, and they should not intervene unless a big calamity would destroy the true center of something.

As for their innate magic, while the whole Earth State they go into that we see on Terri is interesting, I like the idea that it's different. That they go fully stationary, that they turn into a tree or a stone golem, something that doesn't move, but makes things around them grow and fortify and spread. They also just, can feel the ground and trace the roots of mountains and rivers and forests, helping them out in the wilds.

Oceanbound Elves: Why the hells are they named after Tides? No. That is ridiculous. So, they're renamed to Oceanbound, and they are going to get weird. Most of the elves of this race do not actually live on land, or even close. They live in sprawling underwater cities, in chasms deep and vast, in coral reef colorful and grand, with their Arcanum being quite different from the original, appealing to a more eldritch concept, and to more Deep rooted ideals.

So, onto design. I do like the concept art sketches, and, tolerate some of the designs of the show, but they could be so much more! The ocean is such a beautiful hostile space, and so, the elves that dwell within it are something to behold. Coral horns, jagged or smooth, colorful and deadly, sprout either from their heads, covered in tentacle like hair, curling and moving unnaturally. Their eyes seem dead, or overly hazy, with no visible pupils for most of the elves, though more surface dwelling ones to tend to have faint ones. Their bodies are covered in scales and rough textures, fins and elongated tales that vary from elf to elf, with their colouration varying wildly!

As for their clothing, they tend to wear none, or simple decorative leathers made from cephalopods, or leviathans of old, or garments found in ship wrecks. Whist this mostly applies to the underwater communities, most surface dwelling Oceanbound Elves do find clothing to be restricting if not meant to be decorative!

The Arcanum of the Ocean is complicated. All things are born of the ocean, all things will end in it, and its currents are ever shifting but old and true, so, the tenants of the Arcanum end up being Unbound, Eldritch, Beginnings and Inevitability. It's an arcanum that feels old, and those that feel its call have a weight to them that very few can match. Ocean Dragons I'll expand on more later, because I have opinions on that too, but Oceanbound Elves work primarily within the understanding that all things are eventually theirs, that the world is older than most realize (them and Startouch Elves are the most long lived races, living for over thousands of years at times), with a twisted understanding of reality and the sort of eager view of the world of one who is seeing something doomed marching on in spite of it all. They tend to be a very nostalgic race, loving beginnings and neverending concepts, but not thinking far ahead aside from the fact that it will inevitably be theirs to claim.

Death is seen as a distant dream, and the surface as an alien blind land that doesn't quite understand the history of all that came before it. It's also just, sort of funny to them, and the most adventurous of the race do tend to make their way up, breaching the tides to lurk around with their surface pears and see what the world forgot.

Their magic is old. Old and impossible in scale, in an unexpected way, but so is most Ocean Magic. The inherent one is that they can simply shed some of their existing elf like traits to become more monstrous, alien and full of teeth and slime and coiling muscles, bulging eyes and size. They are a dangerous race, but they are some of the few that recall the good of humanity still, with most having lived alongside them, and still choose to sail the seas in ports hidden and passages found.

They are eternal, and they are the beginning heralding the inevitable deep.

[theoraclenextdoor]

Pick a Pile: A Message from the Universe

breathe in, breathe out and pick a picture that resonates with you. please take what resonates and leave what doesn’t. there is love in all of these messages. the tone here is gentle, like an older sibling, best friend, or parent scolding and motivating you at the same time. :)

pile 1 -> pile 2 -> pile 3

Did this resonate with you? If you’re reading this before Friday, October 13th: I’m doing a housewarming tarot game, to celebrate settling into my new blog space! I’ll be doing 3-cards spreads for five people! Want more details?

©️2023 cancersstellium. all rights reserved.

Pile 1

(crystals: black onyx and clear quartz | bottom of deck: six of cups. nostalgia isn’t just about longing or reminiscing about old times. it’s remembering too)

Maybe you feel like in your past there is a lack of a sense of justice. Maybe you didn’t get your due, that person didn’t get their punishment. But it’s coming. Karma cannot be dealt when your “peace” depends on it. The moment you stop worrying about their karma will be the moment that they receive it. Focus on your energy instead. There’s this beautiful, chaotic energy within you waiting, like a volcano waiting to erupt. There’s a reunion coming your way, later this month. Whether that’s with an another person, a part of your self, with the divine is left to be revealed. Whatever it may be: stay open to it, stay grateful, stay blessed. The major arcanum sun here is 6, The Lovers. There’s a duality here. One that requires love, faith, and sometimes a choice to leap blindly. It’s the roses with the thorns; it’s fire and water, a place for both exist; it’s want versus need versus true desire. Lean into this time. Breathe into this time. All of your relationships will be tested. All of your relationships will be challenged. All of your relationships will be upgraded. Trust the journey. Trust the process.

may resonate with: those born in december; cheetos, specifically the hot ones; animal lovers? something about cheetahs?

Pile 2

(crystal: pyrite | bottom of deck: temperance. peace and inner knowing)

Your’s reads more like a story and less like a message. There’s a wish here, a desire. And it seems like now is an auspicious time to get it. “So why haven’t I?” You ask. You planted the seed a while ago and you’re wondering why it hasn’t grown. You’re wondering if you just need to give it time, if you should pull it up and replant it, or just give up on it entirely. Perhaps you can’t see it, but there’s a sense of grief from the Universe in this, a “Why don’t you trust Me?” sense of exasperation. Rushing only results in poorer quality and things like this, can’t be rushed. Just know that all will be revealed in due time. But there’s a compassion here, for your struggle and an understanding that we use time as a measurement. I expect you’ll see some light shed on the situation very soon. The major arcanum sum here is 10, The Wheel of Fortune. There are higher forces at work here. Step aside. (Imagine a “road at work” sign here.) Be patient. Even. More. Patient.

may resonate with: leo suns + leo 1H placements, dolphin(s?) fans, hard workers, “just send me a sign”

Pile 3

(crystal: amethyst | bottom of deck: ace of wands reversed. you’re in your own way. lack of imagination. lack of creativity.)

“When the ‘why’ is strong, the ‘how’ is easy.” Meaning: when the reason behind something is clear, the how it comes about requires little effort on your part. Why are so obsessed with ‘how’ this will happen? Why are you so sure that because you cannot see a solution there must not be one? I ask this with love because I see all the major influences here. There’s a wholeness, there’s beauty, there’s great and beautiful change. The only obstacle in your path is you. And that’s okay! That’s something you can change. In order to get out of your own way, all you need to do is look inward. You already know what you want. Go back to what you knew just before it got complicated. Therein lies your answer. Maybe it felt scary but it’s not, just look one more time. Maybe it feels like the ground is shifting beneath your feet, but what is it that you’re standing on? Have you truly looked? Look again. You’ve come so far, you’ve changed so much. I see a reason to celebrate at the end of this. Feminine energy here. Being, creating, dancing, receiving. The major arcanum sum here is 4, The Emperor. Masculine energy. All it takes is a little organization, a little logic but not the “real world” kind.

may resonate with: “i just feel so alone”, aladdin, wedding tiktoks, jenga, uno (like the card game)

[santoschristos]

Libra

September 23 - October 23

Thoth, God of Knowledge, and Ma’at - Goddess of Truth and Divine Justice

The zodiac series: Libra art by Johfra Bosschart

The tenth holy night of the Christmas season, from January 2 to 3, corresponds to rulerships, the higher intuition (Buddhi, life spirit) and the constellation Libra. In the painting below, Johfra (1919-1998) depicts characteristics of the Libra, and in the following text he provides an explanation.

The Libra is a positive sign, sky in essence, the sign the sun is at the beginning of fall as it crosses the equator to enter the period of winter. The ruling planet is Venus. The distinctive quality of this sign is balance and harmony. That is why the composition of this painting, like that of the Twins, has been kept symmetrical.

In the sign of Libra, the orientation of the soul changes. While in the preceding six signs the emphasis of the evolving human being has been on the self, in the following six signs the non-self is central to the acquisition of experience. It is Venus, the goddess of love, harmony and beauty who reigns here.

It is above all also the balance between head and heart, mind and feeling, which is the aim of this sign. That is why I also involved Thot-Hermes in the performance when compiling the symbolism. Just as I have pictured Mercury as ruler of the mind in his Egyptian form, so here also the goddess Venus appears in her Egyptian form as Hator, the goddess of joy, dance, celebration and love, with cow horns and ears. The two figures keep a balance.

On the one scale the feather of Maat – so again the soul-judgment, but then in connection with love-wisdom. The placement of Mercury to the left and Venus to the right of the balance refers to the kabbalah where Hod, the sefira who rules over the mental aspect in man, stands below on the left pillar of the tree of life (the pillar of austerity), while Nezach, the feeling , is at the bottom of the right pillar (of loving kindness or mercy). So here too the perfect balance between reason and emotion is expressed. Left and right absolutely need each other. Reason without feeling is sterile and deadly. The emotion without the corrective mind is just sentimentality and creates chaos. Both are very dangerous abilities without their polar opposites.

Nezach is the seventh sefira. Hence Hator carries a seven-pointed star between her horns. Below it is the astrological sign of Venus. In her hand she holds a sistrum, the ritual ringing instrument of the Hator priestesses. The four serpentine rods it contains represent the four elements that harmoniously resonate in the cosmos. Winding around the figure of the ibis-headed Thoth are the well-known serpents of the Mercury staff — the negative and positive forces united in harmony. In his hand he holds the ankh cross – the symbol of eternal life among the ancient Egyptians. At the center of his belt is the astrological sign of the planet Mercury.

The harmonic duality of the sign Libra is further depicted in the lower part of the painting by the two Assyrian sphinxes. These represent the chariot (arcanum 7) on the tarot card, which is associated with the sign of Libra. Here the two sphinxes pulling the chariot represent opposing cosmic forces, which work harmoniously under the guidance of the charioteer.

In the painting, the two animals are also symbols of the four elements in a positive (male sphinx) and negative (female sphinx) respect: the head is the element of water, the lion's front legs are the element of fire, the wings are the element of air and the bull's abdomens are the element earth – completely analogous to the four beasts of Ezekiel and the four symbols of the evangelists from the previous sign of Virgo.

The black and white checkered tile floor also refers to the harmonious cooperation of the polar forces at the foundation of the cosmos (this is the floor of the temple of the Freemasons). The lily in the foreground represents the serenity that results from the perfect balance between head and heart.

In the middle of the tiled floor is another Masonic symbol, namely the altar in the shape of a cube. The cube represents the foundation, because it consists of squares. This "cubic stone" is the "cornerstone", the Christ. It is the philosopher's stone of alchemy. This sacred altar in the temple, where the light of the spirit is always burning and never extinguished, was the Hindu symbol for our sign Libra. Officially, this cubic stone should be black and opaque. However, I painted it as a crystal to show the sphere, the golden seed it contains. This also contains the astrological sign for Libra, also in a heptagon, for Venus is related to Nezach (the seventh sefira on the tree of life).

When the cube is unfolded, the six faces form a Christian cross. In that case, the golden seed in the center of this cross. This image is directly reminiscent of the rosary, where the rose is also attached to the center of the cross – see the scales as a rosy cross above. I chose the sign of the Rosycross because this order also strives for the balance between head and heart in building the perfect man. The red rose is the flower of Venus, for it represents self-sacrificing love.

Furthermore, some other symbols related to the union of the opposites: the Chinese yin-yang symbol in connection with the polarization in primordial matter, the superimposed ∞ (the lemniscate, the symbol of infinity), the polar forces of the sun and moon, the spirit and the soul, interacting eternally. - Johfra Bosschart

[beautifulterriblequeen]

Multiple Choice - a Callum and Aaravos theory

Not to be all Han Solo or anything, but when it comes to Aaravos and magic in Xadia, I Have A Bad Feeling About This.

If there's one thing I love more than corrupt systems, it's breaking them, so let's get to it: please enjoy yet another way that Callum's pursuit of magic could potentially go very wrong for him - and how he can still fix it.

The system, in this case, isn't a monarchy (on either side of the border), wartime tensions reaching forward from the cycle, or a Xadia-wide racial hierarchy.

It's magic itself.

We don't know where it came from, magic. Was deep magic always here? Did one of the Star Touch elves create it, or perhaps choose to make it his bailiwick while others chose things like Justice and Mercy?

Aaravos, I mean Aaravos. If he's basically the god of magic (feel free to view him through a Loki-esque lens here, I am), then of course he's an archmage, and of course he's the only one among the Star Touch elves. Magic is His Thing.

And according to Zubeia, the Dragon Queen, its mages are his prey. We don't know yet what his full intent has been. We only have her millennia-long view from the surface of the planet. There's definitely more to the story, but which direction that story takes us is anyone's guess at this point. However, it seems clear that Aaravos's history during his time in Xadia does show a pattern of him targeting and influencing mages. He certainly has been during the years the show has covered.

What all he did with these mages, besides the manipulation, is also still unknown. But even if all he ever did was pull their strings, he's still choosing magic-imbued beings as his favorite puppets. The most likely explanation for this is that mages and Aaravos have something in common, making them easier for him to work with. Is it just magic? Does their ambition count too? Is there more to it?

I think there's more. I feel there is some deep dangerous secret Aaravos has managed to hide from everyone so far - including us. But just because it's dangerous doesn't mean it's evil, or even ill-intentioned. Do we consider the threat to anthills when we begin construction on a new apartment complex? Usually no. We're busy doing human-level tasks. The ants' welfare is truly not our concern. And most of them will probably be fine... right?

So. What's Aaravos really up to, and what does it have to do with Callum?

Something Rayla believes about Callum made me wonder: in the short story Chasing Shadows, she believes that he, and all humans, can change their destiny (and it's super annoying!). Why is that a human thing only, though?

Arcanums, perhaps. We've all seen the elven peoples get uptight about their own rules and the options they can choose for themselves. It's not just the Moonshadows. Sunfire elves can absolutely be sticklers for tradition - look at my disaster boy Karim over here, willing to go to war against his own people because his sister wants to marry a human.

Bruh.

So here's part one of the theory:

Having an arcanum in you forces your destiny into a certain path.

If you're born with it, you know the path of your whole life - and I don't just mean "serve your people" or "be a warrior" or "be one with nature." There is a very dark side to being locked into your destiny. It means you cannot escape it even if you desperately want to.

*wordlessly points to Runaan and his overly honorbound decisions*

*wordlessly points to Rayla and her overly sacrificial decisions*

*wordlessly points to Finnegrin and his overly fear-driven decisions*

*wordlessly points to Janai and her overly dutybound decisions*

*wordlessly points to Karim and his overly traditional decisions*

I don't need to say anything here, do I? Thought not.

But it's one thing to be born with an arcanum - maybe they know and accept this part of their destiny already. Maybe it's just a subconscious thing they... know.

It's another thing entirely to opt into an arcanum as a free choice. And here's where we get to part two:

Callum thinks he chose his destiny. He doesn't know he just gave it away.

If he just handed his fate to Aaravos by embracing an arcanum (and then one more), his destiny isn't currently in his hands at all. It's in Aaravos's. And the archmage has proven that he, at least, knows that, since he's been pulling at Callum's strings and toying with him for a while now. He wouldn't flex like that unless he was supremely confident - which he is, he always is - he wouldn't show that hand early on like this unless he knew Callum didn't understand what he'd done or how to reverse it.

This theory is about more than dark magic. It's about all magic. Even if Callum could cleanse himself from dark magic and never let Aaravos puppet him again, is he really free? He still has an arcanum. Where did that come from? He's walking around with a couple of magical bona fides stamped on his brain, and I just want to know...

Who crafted the stamps?

If all Xadian magic is some kind of... creation, or spill, or experiment... and Aaravos needs that power back for himself in order to be who he used to be and/or re-ascend to the stars, he's got more than one way to harness it again:

dark magic consumes primal magic - but matter and energy are never destroyed, so... where does that power go? Aaravos has a very convenient black hole symbol right on his chest. Maybe every spell dark mages have ever cast sends him some of his precious primal magic again. It would be a very convenient way of getting desperate humans to do his cleanup for him. And he has all the time in the world.

primal magic won't save anyone from his will - it just harnesses the elves to Aaravos's magic rules and binds their destiny to a predetermined outcome. They've become, in a word... predictable.

There's no way to beat a Star Touch Archmage at his own game. He literally wrote its rules. So what's a bright young kid like Callum to do?

To quote War Games, "the only way to win is not to play."

Callum's in a unique position, in that he knows who he was before he had an arcanum. Back when he could choose his destiny every day, without binding him to some powerful force he doesn't fully understand yet. This might lead him to a very difficult and dangerous choice, and it could break the game, and the world, wide open.

If Callum can choose to learn an arcanum, maybe he can choose to forget one.

If he can un-know the things that bound him to that magic destiny, he'd be free again, of Aaravos's reach and of his influence.

And that's just for him, but if everyone else is trapped too, how can he help them and hurt Aaravos's power grab at the same time? No idea, beyond "someone hand him a powerful magical artifact and wait," at this point, but I'm sure he'll find a way to break something important eventually! Something vital to the structure and distribution of magic itself, preferably.

If he manages to find a way to destroy magic itself, then everyone would be free. There would be no rules binding anyone to Aaravos. There would be no dark magic feeding off its fumes, either. It's theoretically possible that destroying primal magic would undo the taint of dark magic, all in one go.

And we all know how Callum loves to go around ruining ancient and powerful magical objects. Kid's got quite a track record by now!

Maybe he's not done yet. Maybe Callum's true destiny will be both Savior and Destroyer. But he'll have to play his own game to do it - he can't play Aaravos's game and win. He'll have to fight outside of magic itself. And if he's going to put down his most powerful weapon, forged by someone else - by the mastermind himself - and try without it, then he'll need help, just like always.

[raayllum]

also interested in the fact that like

out of the three objects we have Lady Justice list, the Celestial elves / star arcanum crafted items literally have two of them

The blindfold, obviously (which they all wear)

The sword (the Nova Blade)

It really makes me wonder if there's a set of Scales running around somehow, unless that relates to the Corona of the Heavens somehow

[futabas-safespot23]

The Phantom thieves and Goro.

[theresattrpgforthat]

THEME: Magic and Mystics

This week's games are all magical in nature, whether they be solo games, supplements, or something as big and as grand as a wizard's tower!

Tower & Town, by Ari Calix.

After years at the Mages’ College, you have finally completed your studies and acquired a tower of your own. What better use for your new arcane residence than pursuing a wizard’s favourite pastime: magical research! The College, of course, has high expectations and anticipates regular reports on your progress.

There is, however, a complication. Your new tower is far from the distractions of the city, but it’s only an hour’s walk from a small town very eager for your magical assistance. You may have plans to revolutionize magical science, but the townspeople are really more interested in your warding their chicken coops against thieving sprites.

Tower & Town is a solo RPG about a rural wizard managing their time, making friends, and changing magical scholarship forever—while trying not to be driven out by an angry mob or lose research funding.

This is a neat little game that provides you with a balancing act: keeping up on your research while also doing favours for townsfolk in order to keep you in their favor. You’ll use two skills, Arcane and Mundane, and two specialties, one that informs your magical abilities and one that demonstrates your non-magical competencies. Your Reputation exists as two tracks that will move up and down depending on your success in meeting demands. The game provides a structured set of stages to ensure your wizard will receive many requests, and there’s enough moving pieces to keep your game playing over an extended period of time - so you can play a little bit every day.

Spellchitects!, by Viditya Voleti.

You craft and design the spells and rituals that are being cast all around your world. Using your advanced knowledge of how magic is weaved, you mark out the symbols, colors, and components to craft the desired effects. 

Sometimes you make spells for customers, sometimes you make spells just for the heck of it! As Spellchitects, it’s all about experimentation, collaboration, and fun!

As a spell-crafting game, this can be a fun little exercise on its own, but it could also be a way to design a magic system for a larger game. Each player will use a variety of different-coloured writing instruments to create elements of the spell. The colour and the marking involved in the sigil will each communicate something about what the spell does. The players will also have to assign a spell component for each extra symbol invoked in the creation of the spell. 

If you bought the Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality a few years ago, you already own this game! 

Summoner’s Fate, by Rae Nedjadi.

You are STUDENTS at a Learning Institution that focuses on the esteemed and complex art of ARCANE SUMMONING. You have learned how to call upon beings to be an extension of your own will and power.

A CONFLICT has arisen, an ADVERSARY reveals themselves. The stakes are high, things are dire! You few are the only thing standing in the way, there’s no one else. You have to rise to the challenge and trust that you’ve got what it takes!

This game takes inspiration from both Spindlewheel, by Sasha Reneau, and Royal Blood, by Grant Howitt. It has a Game Facilitator, also known as Fate, as well 2-4 players. It uses a Tarot deck to determine elements of the game: the Major Arcana provide story aspects and character elements, while the Minor Arcana are used for moments of the story where your summoners will make a wager in order to overcome a challenge. Your characters can summon Powers or Daemons to help them - but doing so also means that you could lose that which you wagered, cracking or shattering one of the crystals from which you draw your power. 

If you like heavily interpretive games, or you like playing with Tarot Cards, this game might be worth checking out!

Research Arcanum, by J. Evan Nyquist.

Research Arcanum is a PbtA game about learning the secrets of a fantasy world for 2-5 players including a GM. It can be used as a supplement to augment an existing tabletop roleplaying game or played on its own to generate the academic history of an Arcanist or to plumb the mysteries of a setting’s magic.

This game is something that you could run as a one-shot inside a larger campaign to give your characters a chance to really delve into the lore of a world, or to role-play the arduous journey of tracking down a specific magical solution to an urgent problem. If you like the idea of magic being something you can study in an institution, this game will give you a chance to really explore that.

I can also see this game being easily hacked into a sci-fi setting as well! Instead of a wizard university, your characters may be seeking information from an alien repository or a Jedi library. Just make the sources places like The Library Planet or Xritex, an alien researcher, and spheres things like Warp Travel, Robotic Intelligences, and Twi’lek Culinary Techniques. 

Wizard Pals, by Tadhg Lyons.

The world is a wretched place, and life is awful. Thankfully, You Are Magic, and even better, you can Do Magic, and it rules. Anyone can be a Wizard, and a Wizard can be anyone.

Wizard Pals is a lighthearted TTRPG/collaborative storytelling game in which every hero is a mysterious and magically powerful being known as a Wizard. To play, you need some pals of your own, some 12-sided dice, and an adventurous spirit. The game itself is easy to learn and approachable, open-ended and chaotic, and perfect for new TTRPG players and veterans alike.

In Wizard Pals, the colour of your robes denotes your area of expertise, your Signature Spells are powerful but require a re-charge, and all of you will go upon a quest to complete a Wizardly Task! There is so much room to make this game as goofy as you like - it’s hard to keep a straight face when one of your wizards is a frog in a top hat, or an ominous floating orb. 

There’s a number of mechanics that remind me of other games, including two abilities and a target number that you must roll under or over, similar to Lasers & Feelings. (The game uses d12s, which is what makes it slightly different!) However, when you’re in combat, your characters will be rolling using something akin to attack and defense, with a stat layout that you have to assign to both. 

This game comes with two supplements: The Bastard of Undertower, and The Haunting of Hobble. These are adventures that a GM can lead the characters through, which is great if your game master wants a little guidance, or just less prep to do. 

What’s So Cool About Street Magick?, by Vincent Quigley. 

So what IS so cool about Street Magick ?  Well... It's a micro-rpg where you play people that have shed the burden of banality and that yield terrible magick for it.  It's a game about the homeless, the vagrant, the people that tend to become invisible in our regular boring ass lives. 

It's a game about finding the fantastic within the rotten. 

It's a game that will need you to make your own. 

This is a simple hack of What’s So Cool About Outer Space?, about magic users on the streets. Follow rumours and fight of arcane threats that nobody else seems to care about. You have power now, but a happy ending isn’t going to just fall in your lap - you’ll have to fight for it. 

This game uses just d6’s and a bunch of imagination. I’d love to see this game in combination with a city-builder, such as I’m sorry did you say street magic, by Caro Acercion, or What is Here? by Matthew Gravelyn. I love the idea of creating a city and then exploring it - it gives me a lot of the same vibes as Urban Shadows or World of Darkness, but with less fiddly bits or chapters of lore.

[self-spaghettification]

thinking about how sunfire elves reveal things under the light of justice but their arrogance has blinded them aghhjfghfjhgghghghg Post Now

(actually on further thought i was thinking. janai, khessa, and karim are just all on 3 points in a spectrum, if that makes sense. janai is more grounded (haha ground... earth arcanum…)& patient, she even comes more with the fear of the sun dimming and blinking out? khessa falls more in the middle i suppose, and karim is intensely blinded, going for more light to fix things)

janai also seems more grounded. and you know what else is grounded? the sunfire seed. that time taken away, that time in earth, gives it the time necessary to grow into something even more beautiful and bright. things grow under the light of the sun, of justice. 

(oh plus. bright future for humanity...)

[theredhairedmonkey]

I've seen a couple posts treating the TOX game handbook like it's the Bible, that it's an accurate breakdown of the show's main characters, and then fighting about what it all means.

On the one hand, some people are arguing "It says Callum cares more about his inner circle than anyone or anything, so he cares more about his friends than morals." But then others are saying "Rayla's Devotion score is #1, so she cares more about her friends than morals."

So I'm just gonna weigh in and say: Guys, my people, y'all gotta read carefully. Specifically the first paragraph about the main cast:

Fans of The Dragon Prince will recognize these key players in the show! We have assigned all of these die ratings, values, and so forth to reflect where we believe the characters would be at the end of Season Three. This way, should you encounter them in your tales and chronicles, you will feel it reflects the natural place where they are in the story. And though Zym is important, we haven’t included him as a catalyst, as he is still a baby dragon and only Ezran knows what his true die ratings are. Feel free to adjust these aspects for your own playing group, including (but not limited to) when the show’s story advances into future seasons.

In other words: "Here's our breakdown of the characters, but it's just our two cents so take it with a grain of salt, and it's just a snapshot as of s3 and they'll likely change anyway."

In short, don't take it seriously, it's no different than a headcanon about where they stood two years and two seasons ago. Imo the real fun is how the characters line up now as opposed to 3x09, since the whole point is that these values are supposed to change over time:

So, in the spirit of fun, here's where I think each main characters' values stand as of s5:

Callum

Here's Callum in s3:

I think he's the easiest to guess because his character growth lines up with which Arcanum he learns. Because Arc 1 was all about him learning the Sky Arcanum, Liberty represented his most important value ("Destiny is a book you write yourself!"). But as of s5, he has definitely been questioning this ("no matter how hard you try, you'll never control everything"), so this has probably dropped. Meanwhile, I think his learning the Ocean Arcanum has opened him up to understanding hidden depths, so his Truth value would have increased to perhaps being his highest one (similar to Lujanne, whose highest value is also Truth).

Soren

Here is Soren's as of S3:

Soren is also similarly easy to guess. His highest value in S3 is Glory, which I think has definitely stepped down (he was willing to hang back in 5x09 and let the trio fight Claudia while he watches over their friends). Instead, I think his Justice value has shot up, especially in light of his standing up for Elmer ("He deserves dignity!"). By the end of the season, I think his highest values are Justice and Devotion.

Rayla

Here's Rayla in S3:

I think, if anything, Rayla's Devotion score is maxed out, but her Justice score has gone up. Rayla is now even more devoted to Callum than ever, centering everything she does around him and trying her best to be his closest companion. But she's also prioritizing stopping Aaravos over her family, so her sense of Justice is higher too. She might still prioritize Callum over their mission, just not over anyone else.

Ezran

Here's S3 Ez:

Ez is probably the hardest to map, just because he hasn't had many moments of introspection or clear moments of growth. But if I had to guess, I think his sense of Liberty has grown somewhat, especially in light of Soren telling him he should have moments to be a kid lest he "grows up weird."

Claudia

And last but certainly not least:

Like Ez, Claudia's change is kinda hard to pin down mainly because she's remained pretty consistent throughout. If she has changed, she has become even more devotional (representing a dark antithesis to Rayla), while her Liberty score has likely dropped. She is, at least for now, chained to the path she is currently on.

Conclusion

In short, neither mine nor the gamecock author's opinions are authoritative, so YMMV here. Let me know what y'all think, but feel free to disagree and, most importantly, have fun!

[luniviravosshipper]

Okay, here’s the plan.

Right now I’m working on a post explaining my theory on deep magic and what exactly it is. Then I’m planning on shortly afterwards posting my theory on what the 8 pillars and staffs in the season 6 trailer were used for and by who, which will take some inspiration from my deep magic theory.

Then I’m working on a post explaining my observations on Viren’s issues with codependency and self image and why I think he might have grown up poor. (I think it’s heavily implied or even confirmed that he did. But I still want to make a post analyzing his character and his possible backstory anyways.)

I know I’m not that active on Tumblr and I’m still new, but I’m still embarrassed about the fact that I haven’t made any posts on Viren yet, especially since he’s, like, my most favorite character in the entire show and one that I relate a lot to.

And then I’m working on another post for my second favorite character, Rayla, and analyzing her relationship with her parents and how the views surrounding the idea of justice by Moonshadow elves plays a part in her character arc. This is a post I actually really want to get out before season 6 but I’m not sure I will.

Later on, I might make a meta post explaining butterflies and the color purple as motifs in the show and how they’re used to relate dark magic to the star primal. But honestly this is one I think I can wait to post after season 6, even if it’s revealed that dark magic and the star primal are somehow connected. It’s not really meant to be a theory, more like an analysis of the types of symbols the show uses for different things.

Ohh, and I almost forgot. I also have a series of posts talking about deep magic and Laurelion that I’ve got saved up in my drafts unfinished. There’s several of them, but I’ll at least say now that one of them is about what else the symbol used for deep magic can tell us about it and another is about what that dragon scale Claudia found has to do with Laurelion.

And then there’s more posts I want to make. Like talking about why I think it makes more sense for Callum to learn the moon arcanum this upcoming season then the star arcanum for example, but I’m not sure I’m going to be able to post all of them. Besides, I think some other people have made posts similar to the ones I’ve been wanting to make myself.

I kinda want to focus more energy on my fanfiction anyways since I want to get that done before season 6 gets released.

But anyways, I’ll still try to get as many of these done as I can.

[avizare]

Moonberry Juice

 ‘I wish I could say that we will see each other again, but I don’t know if we will.'

 Callum chewed on the inside of his cheek, his brows knitting in frustration.

 ‘I hope so. Maybe then, we can share some of Barius’ best cake. Maybe then, I can give you that kiss.’

 He lowered his charcoal to trace the lines of her facial tattoos. He started to draw the first curve with as much care as he could muster, but the outline came up too dark for his liking. Still, he continued, tracing the first marking back up to meet those eyes that haunted his dreams.

 ‘I will think of you under every full moon. Please don’t let this hurt too much.’

 He began tracing the second tattoo, but paused when the line came away shaky and smeared. 

 Imperfect again .

 ‘But, if it does - if you feel that soft aching - know that that piece of your heart isn’t missing.’

 Specks of charcoal littered the page as the tip of his utensil broke away, piercing the parchment.

 ‘It’s not missing at all, Callum: I’m carrying it with me! Always.’

 The room buzzing with static energy, Callum jerked up from his seat, sending the chair clattering to the ground as he twisted and sent the charcoal across Viren’s - his - office, where it thudded against a bookshelf and rested on a row of encyclopaedias on Xadian fauna.

 ‘I love you.’

 Callum clenched his fists at his side, trying to steady his breathing. 

 ‘I love you so much.’

 But he could only shudder as he raised his shaky hand and rubbed the wetness into his eyes before it had the chance to form into tears again.

 He reached over his desk and fastened his sketchbook shut, sealing her away for another time.

 He was done crying.

 Surely, after three weeks, he was done crying.

 He just needed a moment to compose himself.

 “Hey, Callum?!” a voice echoed up the tower. 

 Eyes closed, Callum lulled his head back, silently begging the spirits of his ancestors or Lady Justice or some other unknown variable to just give him this. Just this one moment. Just one minute of peace to-

 "Callum?!" He rubbed hard at his eyes before facing the door. “Caaaalllumm?! Cal?!” He could hear the ‘thomp, thomp, thomp’ of heavy sabatons bolting up the stairs. This was all that he needed. “Magic-man, are you up here?!” Callum sighed.

 “Ventum magneticus” Callum whispers, tracing a small rune in the air and then striking his finger through it as he did so. The door flew wide open, revealing a dumbfounded Soren on the other side, hand extended towards where the doorknob had been.

 “Uh, I- hey, Callum!” Soren smiled warily, raising his hands as if surrendering to the young mage's gaze.

 “What is it, Soren?” Callum watched the man, deadpan, as he tried to collect himself.

 “I- well, Ezran- King Ezran sent me to find you. He says that they're having an impromptu council meeting. Um, right now. In the, uh, council… room. But I suppose he can wait a minute or two while you take care of that.”

 Callum closed his eyes, as if the words had physically pained him. In truth, the pain was only phycological.

 “Take care of what, Soren?”

 “The, uh…” he pointed over the boy's shoulder. “That.” Callum turned away from him.

 “Take care of wh- oh! Spirits above- NO NO NO!” 

 Somehow, a burning piece of charcoal had found its way onto one of his bookshelves and had taken to eradicating a hundred years worth of knowledge on Xadian crustaceans. Callum raised his hand, hastily drawing a rune. “Vacuum spatium!” he cried, pointing at the flames. Instantly, the fire died out.

 The young mage hurried to his precious collection, inspecting the damage. Thankfully, only a few books seemed to have been burnt, though the shelf itself was also marred by a blackened splotch.

 "Practising a new spell, were we?" Soren asked as he stepped into the room. "I thought you needed the fire arcae- arcaenin-"

 "The sun arcanum-"

 "Right. That. Don't you need that to do…" he put his hands together in front of his chest, then pushed them out, firing off an imaginary fireball, "the flameo magic?"

 "Sun magic and fire magic are not the same thing. Yes, most fire spells require a connection to the sun arcanum…" Callum started as he pulled the book off the shelf and begun flicking through its pages, inspecting it for damage, "but I've read of a number of sky spells that appear to superheat the air to create flame."

 "I… see…" Soren said, rubbing his chin as he considered what the boy was saying. "And so… when you froze those arrows in the air with your 'aspiris friggin' in the training yard yesterday, that was… the opposite of that?" 

 Callum slid the book back into place and turned towards the crownguard, a smile playing on his lips.

 "Pretty much. 'Aspiro frigga' is a modification of the 'aspiro' spell that supercools the air I breath out, freezing the moisture in the air and… well," he spread his hands out over his head, as if drawing a rainbow, "ice magic."

 "I connected the dots," Soren crossed his arms, his face awash with pride.

 "You connected 'em," Callum nodded. "I'm going to be putting a similar theory into practice tomorrow." Callum made his way across the room and pulled a book off a shelf. The cover was new, but the pages within stuck out at odd angles, as if some had been ripped out and then stuffed back inside. "Until we get more sky spell tomes, I'm stuck practising what I've memorised from the book Zubeia sent me and trying to… sort of discover new spells along the way."

 "Are the guard getting another magic show in the yard?" 

 Soren bent down and picked the discarded chair up from off the floor, pushing it back under his father's- under Callum's desk. The mage was too busy flicking through his spellbook - one of many - to notice.

 "As long as I'm not interrupting your training too much," Callum said, pulling a loose page from the book and presenting it to Soren. "I can't stand using the castle chambers. Deep, dark and dank may work for dark mages, but I need fresh air to study my craft." 

 Soren nodded thoughtfully, studying the carefully drawn rune on the page as if he had any idea of what he was looking at.

 "I… have no idea what I'm looking at," Soren said, flipping the page in his hand.

 "Hopefully you are looking at the rune for 'aspiro ignis'. I- I mean, in theory you are. I don't know for sure until I try it tomorrow." He took back the page and replaced it in the book, snapping it shut and slotting it into his satchel. "Another reason to do it in the practice yard: I probably shouldn't practise spells like this alone, what with the risk of… setting myself on fire."

 "Bring water; got it. Now, uh, Callum?" The young mage had already turned away to pull at another book.

 "Hm?"

 "The king."

 "What? Oh! Right, right!" The mage hurried to the window and opened it wide. "Manus. Puma-"

 "I was told to escort you myself!" Soren hurried to add. "On foot ." Callum froze, one leg dangling out the window.

 "Escort me yourself…?" Callum looked out at the horizon, expecting to see the sun where he had left it, only to crane his neck up to confirm that it was, in fact, midday. "Huh. The morning is… gone."

 "No kidding?" Soren grinned. "Can we go now? I'm due for some lunch and by the looks of it, so are you." 

 Callum's attention snapped onto Soren and he hurried to clamber back into the room, ignoring the crownguard’s comment.

 "Right! Good! Come on, no time to waste!" The prince reached up and clasped his friend on the shoulder, beckoning him out of the room. "We can't keep the council waiting!"

 "See, I was trying to tell you that," Soren said, reaching for the door, before stopping himself. 

 Drawing his sword, he tapped it against the metal door knob, eliciting a tiny spark from it. Satisfied that he wasn’t going to carry a charge half way across the castle, Soren sheathed his sword and closed the door, patting a sheepish Callum on the back as they made their way down the tower.

 “Not making that mistake twice, are you?” Callum murmured to the blond.

 “Nope,” Soren said, popping the ‘p’. “But, uh, don’t worry about it. It happens.”

  ‘Oh, yeah. Because every mage under the sky has this problem,’ Callum thought to himself, frustration and embarrassment furrowing his brow. ‘But now isn’t the time for negativity.’ Callum resolved himself to force out a laugh, which looked utterly unnatural on his grumpy face.

 “Did Ezran tell you what the meeting was about?” Callum asked, offering the knight a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. Soren shook his head, saluting a pair of guards as they passed them.

 “No, but he seemed happy. I think something good has happened.”

 “As long as he isn’t summoning us to test Barius’ latest creation again. At this point, I’m surprised Ezran hasn’t formally invited him onto the council. He does more to serve the king than any of us.” A small smile played at his lips, and this time it was only a little forced. As they approached the council room, Callum sighed. “It’s probably another two hour long discussion about the riveting developments in trade between Katolis and Xadia. Well, wish me luck. Ventum Magneticus.”

 Soren hadn’t even seen the boy draw the rune, but was quick to stand at attention when the doors blew open, giving the guards standing on either side of it a small heart attack.

 King Ezran’s eyes shot up from the parchment in his hands as his older brother walked into the room, a knowing smile playing on his lips. Ezran gestured for Callum to take his seat across from Opeli, who herself was still recovering from the mage’s sudden entrance.

 “Sorry, Opeli,” Callum said as he sat down. She took a deep breath and removed her hand from her heart.

 “It’s okay, I’ll get used to it eventually.”

 “Or, you could just start entering rooms like a normal person again,” Ezran said with a barely concealed roll of the eyes. Bait, who was perched up in his own chair next to the king, croaked in agreement. 

 Callum had made a habit of using magic whenever possible, no matter how small the task, to ‘practise his craft’, or so he said.

 Maybe, being a mage - and Callum - he just couldn’t help but be a little bit… dramatic.

 Or perhaps, more than anything, it was better for people to be annoyed at him, rather than concerned for him. To focus on the flinging of doors and the unexpected cracking of thunder on an otherwise sunny day, over his progressively scrawny frame and sunken eyes.

 It didn’t work, of course. But not for a lack of trying.

 “Of course, my lord,” Callum offered in as pompous a tone he could muster. That seemed to do the trick, Ezran biting his cheek to suppress a smile, accompanied by a small shake of the head.

 “We have a lot of very important business to attend to,” Ezran started. “So, I need all of us to remain focussed. Now… Soren …” Ezran looked up at the crownguard.

 “Of course, my lord.” The captain declared, turning to leave the council to their business.

 “... Please enter,” Ezran finished. Soren froze for a moment, one foot off the ground, then spun on his heel.

 “Oh! Uh, my bad- my lord, I mean, what can I- what would you ask of me?” Soren started, hurriedly entering the council chambers and falling to one knee.

 Ezran pursed his lips to withhold a smile as he glanced at his brother, who lifted a small moon opal up onto the table; one of a few gifts from Lujanne, who for some reason had taken to doting on the young mage, once she learned that Rayla had decided to strike out on her own. Or perhaps she was simply taking an interest in his magical development; it had, after all, been lifetimes since she’d taught anyone magic.

 Callum quickly drew a simple rune in the air, drawing upon the opal’s power to do so.

 “Manifesto.” As soon as the word had left Callum’s mouth, something started taking shape next to him. Colours warped at his side in a range of brilliant hues, like a chameleon trying to blend into the lens of a kaleidoscope, until they eventually solidified to form the unmistakable shape of a dark, sturdy wooden chair, and a comfortable looking one at that.

 Soren stared at the display, then at the object left in its wake. Then he looked up at Ezran. Then back to the chair. Then back up at Ezran. Silence filled the room for a moment as the gears worked in Soren’s head.

 Was he supposed to take the chair somewhere? Were they expecting him to pick it up for some purpose? Was he supposed to sit on it to test its weight capacity?

 Callum raised an eyebrow and pulled the seat out from under the table, turning it slightly towards the captain.

 “Take a seat, Soren,” Ezran finally said. 

 Soren stood and marched towards the chair, tentatively taking a seat next to the High Mage. He gripped his knees, hoping that he was sitting respectfully enough at this table that had long sat kings, queens, high mages and only the most trusted servants of Katolis. 

 “Is it comfortable? Do you like it?” Ezran asked, unable to stop himself from grinning any longer.

 “Yes, my lord. It's very comfortable. Quite, uh, strong, to be able to sustain not only my armour, but also my mu- my, uh, my body, that is.”

 “Good,” Ezran nodded. “It’s yours.”

 “Mine?”

 “Yours.”

 “Thank you, king Ezran.” 

 Was a simple ‘thank you’ good enough? It was a very nice chair, and it isn’t often that someone receives a gift from the king. Perhaps it would be more appropriate to bow or-

 “Welcome to the King’s Council, Soren,” Opeli piped up as she clasped her hands together, the only person at the table who wasn’t finding any kind of relief in the moment. The gears in Soren’s head stopped turning. More than that, they clanged, clunked, and collapsed under the weight of the elephant in the room that somehow remained just out of his reach. ‘Welcome to the King’s Council, Soren. Welcome to the King’s Council… Soren. Welcome to the King’s Council.’ The words rang out in Soren’s head. ‘Soren. The King’s Council. Welcome.’ The crownguard looked at Opeli, then at Ezran, then at Callum, then at Bait, as if the glowtoad held all his answers.

 The silence was becoming palpable. Humour was lost to disbelief.

 “Uh, I, King Ezran, son of Harrow and Sarai, so declare, as the head of this council, that… uh…” Soren’s attention was affixed on him now, “... that you, Captain Soren, son of…” he stopped himself, “that you, Soren, elite captain of the Crownguard, my most trusted protectors, are now an official member of this council, as of this moment… right now.”

 Soren’s eyes went wide.

 Oh… OH.'

 Soren launched from his seat and Callum caught it in its descent, before it could hit the ground.

 “Thank you! King Ezran, thank you! I- I swear, I won’t let you down! I-” he cleared his throat, clasping his hands together to try and hide just how much he’d started shaking. “I am honoured, my lord. I- I, uh, I won’t let you down. I promise.”

 “You never have,” Ezran smiled, and Soren’s pride faltered a little. “You’ve more than earned your place at this table.”

  Had he? It wasn’t all too long ago that he’d been trying to end the boy’s reign before it had even begun. If Rayla hadn’t stopped him, Ezran probably wouldn’t be here now, and there’s no telling how the world would look today, aside from decidedly worse. Soren worked to keep up his smile.

 “And to celebrate…” Ezran motioned to the guards at the door and they both turned, opening up the room. “A small lunch.” Servants flooded in from the hall. Ten, twelve, twenty; Soren couldn’t keep count as they walked around the council, distributing cutlery, crockery and food about the table fit for a king, or ten. All manner of cold meats, poultries and bovine and venison, flat breads and cheeses from across the human kingdoms.

 Roe and moonberries, hard-boiled chicken eggs, thinly sliced, a salad of exotic Xadian ingredients, dressed with spirits-know-what, crawfish stew and a pot of rice, rich with fragrances he’d never smelt, and a plate of thickly sliced meat he couldn’t immediately identify, topped with spices he’d never seen, all organised around the table according to the councils’ expected tastes, but all easily accessible. At the centre of the table lie the hearty Katolin standards Soren was used to, such as sliced roasts of chicken and pork, a few loaves of bread and a stick of butter. And in the dead centre, a small wooden bowl containing a pile of salt.

 “And don’t worry,” Ezran smiled, “there is also dessert!” Soren looked up at him, his previous concerns all but evaporated from his mind, carried away by the smells before him. As soon as Ezran had reached across the table, so too had Opeli and Soren, the former carefully selecting portions from the most recognisable items and the latter piling his plate high with all manner of meats, breads and cheeses, eager to try it all.

 As if all of this wasn’t enough, more servants walked in with ornate clay jugs filled with water, alongside crystal decanters filled with a variety of wines and juices, accompanied by chalices made of silver, inlaid with gold.

 The room would have been silent if not for the clinking of knives and forks against plates and the ‘mmm’, ‘mmph’ and ‘mmhm’ that Soren released at every portion he tried, his palate expanding into whole new realities as he discovered the joys of eating beyond Crownguard rations and buttered bread, though, he was enjoying that too.

 Only Callum’s plate was left empty as he gravitated towards the moonberry juice, filling a chalice and sipping at it momentarily. For the first time that day, his mind stopped spinning in a thousand directions and focused in on the simple pleasure and the memories it brought up, all of them relatively recent, yet all of them feeling more distant by the day.

 This stuff… It had become his ritual these days. Katolis’ first and biggest import from Xadia, when Rayla had stayed with them for a time. She could have asked for anything in the world and he would have offered it to her without hesitation, or, failing that, he would have found a way to get it for her. She never did, of course. But keeping a steady supply of her favourite beverage was an easy way to dote on her, in no small part because she couldn’t resist the stuff when it was around. Even once she was gone, he continued getting it in, in larger quantities than ever, for when she returned. 

 Should she return.

 He took another sip, his eyes glazed over. It was nice, when he’d first tried it. Not particularly special, beyond it being Rayla’s favourite; her taste of home. A little bit like wine, he’d supposed, but much sweeter, without the tartness. Like grape juice, but… different. What made it special for him, though, were the moonberry kisses that would often accompany it. They made the beverage all the sweeter.

 “Callum,” Ezran whispered. His brother didn’t respond, only absentmindedly taking another sip as he stared blankly at the table before him, eyes half-lidded. “Cal.” Ezran leaned over and nudged Callum, who shook his head, waking from his stupor.

 “Wha…?”

 “Eat something. Please?”

 “I- I’m not very hungry right now, Ez,” Callum shrugged apologetically. “Sorry.”

 “You didn’t eat dinner last night.”

 “I had a big breakfast.”

 “No, they brought it back from your room. Untouched.” Callum raised an eyebrow.

 “I had a… midnight snack? Are you having the servants spy on me?” Ezran shook his head.

 “Just on your eating habits. Or your not-eating habits.” Callum sighed. “I swear you’ve gone the last two weeks on nothing but moonberry juice.” The mage looked down at his empty plate.

 “I… I have some bread every now and then.”

 Ezran pinched the bridge of his nose. Then, in exasperation, he looked to the crownguard.

 “Soren?” Ezran spoke, and the captain looked up from his meal, hastily wiping at his mouth.

 “Yeph, my lore?” he tried, unable to swallow the whole puffy-cheeked mouthful in one go.

 “You would- are- are you okay?”

 “Mmhm,” Soren said, struggling, before sitting up straight, seemingly composed, his tongue still clearly trying to swab his mouth clean before he addressed the king.

 “You would agree that your job, as the captain of the Crownguard, is to ensure that no danger should risk the lives of the royal family, correct?”

 “Yes?”

 “You would agree, then, that it is your job to keep us alive at all costs?”

 “Um, of course,” Soren nodded.

 “Well, my brother is in great danger of starving himself to death. Could you…?” He motioned to Callum’s empty plate, and Soren took to uncertainly piling it up with a wide range of meats and some of the Xadian salad. The table then took to staring at the boy, waiting for him to pick up his fork.

 “You’re a growing boy,” Opeli started. “You need to eat or you’ll stunt your growth.”

 Callum looked around himself. A mother-hen Opeli before him, a concerned Soren to his left and a determined Ezran to his right.

'Damn it. Surrounded on all sides.' Callum finally lifted his fork and stabbed it ruthlessly into the tiniest morsel of pork - of anything - on his plate, popping it into his mouth and chewing it vehemently before swallowing, staring his brother down all the while. Still, Ezran only looked up at him with those big, blue eyes, a pout slowly forming on his face.

 Callum set his fork down on the table and took to shielding his eyes from his brother’s visage.

 “Ugh, Ez, don’t…”

 “Callum? Please?” Ezran whined.

 ‘Nope. Not falling for this. Not happening. Nope.’

 “Cally?”

 “I’m just not hungry, Ez. I’ll eat when I am, I promise.” He momentarily moved his hand, before shielding his eyes again. It was the ‘one-more-story face’, better known to others as the ‘one-more-jelly-tart face’, the breaker of wills.

 Ezran huffed, then, looking back up at the crownguard, he lifted his fork and made a swooping motion with it. Soren’s eyes sparkled, a mischievous grin spreading on his face. He picked up the mage’s fork and stabbed into a bundle of the unidentified Xadian greens. They were… cabbage-like, if nothing else.

 “Okay, m’lord ,” Soren started, lifting the veggies to be eye level with the High Mage of Katolis. “Say ‘aahhhh’ for the angry dragon!”

 Callum looked at him incredulously. “Don’t you dare-” He clamped his mouth shut and shifted away as the fork came towards him, and it backed off, Soren moving it in little circles.

 “Come oonnn. If you don’t eat the dragon, the dragon will eat your toes,” he said in a singsong voice. “Remember?”

 “I feel like-” Callum started, shifting away as the fork came for him, “that this- isn’t appropriate- given the- current- political- climate.” He dodged and weaved as Ezran and Opeli watched on in amusement, until Soren seemingly gave up, lowering the fork. “I appreciate your concern, really, but-” Callum clamped his mouth shut again, defiant till the end, but this time the fork came for him anyway, smushing the veggies against his closed mouth, smearing dressing over his lips and nose and across his cheek.

 There was a beat of silence.

 Then Ezran absolutely lost it, howling as he fell back into his chair, tears stinging his eyes. Opeli, too, covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, and Soren retreated away, lips pursed in a fight to not grin at his handiwork. Callum crossed his arms, putting on his best ‘really?’ face, but even he couldn’t help smiling when Ezran looked up at him and fell into another fit of giggles.

 “Okay, okay…” Callum chuckled, picking up a cloth and wiping his face. “Wasn’t that funny.”

 “Yes it was,” Ezran said as righted himself. “Soren? Do it again.”

 “Wait, wait!” Callum snatched the fork from the crownguard and popped it in his mouth, chewing down the salad and swallowing. “I’ll eat, I’ll eat, just… don’t do that again.” Ezran looked down at his plate, then back up at him, as if daring him to eat his food.

‘You’re going to eat?’ his eyes said. ‘Prove it.’

 So Callum leaned over the table to pick up some Neolandian flatbread, filled it with the sweet smelling rice and then topped it with what he was pretty sure was braised musk bear in spices so otherworldly that they had to have been Xadian. Clearly, someone in the kitchen was enjoying Katolis’ new trade agreements. Then, making direct eye contact with Ezran, he took a bite.

 And he chewed. It was good. Really good. Earthy, succulent and a little sweet, the bread dry but soft. His eyes dropped down to the rest of it, still folded in his hands. He’d meant it when he said he wasn’t hungry - or more accurately, that he simply didn’t want to eat - and he wasn’t sure if it was the levity of the moment or if it really was just so divine, but…

 Callum took another bite, leaning back into his chair even if crumbs were spilling onto his pants. Already, Soren had followed suit, trying this new combination of ingredients he would never have even considered, while Opeli had taken to resting her chin on the backs of her hands, just happy to see Callum finally eat, even if he was yet again staring blankly at nothing, no doubt wishing he could share this with that elf girl.