#One Last Wish series

[ezra-iolite]

One Last Wish (A Pirateformers Fanfic)

Chapter 2: War and Fears

The Immortal Sun finally arrives on the sea border of Joka Ardhi, the homeland of their Dragonkin crewmate, Asya Mutheru. There, all is revealed about her past and why she has returned to the land that exiled her. Gathering a small army, including her polyamorous spouses Captain Elbent and Verglaust, they march across the desert to the capital to face the tyrant emperor of the kingdom, Dragon Lord Jhamal, and stop his crusade to invade the northern kingdoms before it begins… And fulfil the prophecy of the Throne of Crimson Sands.

Elbent, Verglaust, Ferrous, Indicolite/Indi and the world of Pirateformers belong to @tigracespace

Starhawk, Nova and Starstrike belong to @dimorphodon-x (I really hope I did them well XD)

Drillburst and Divot belong to @cuppajj

Blue Heron belongs to @hyraxas

Asya, Conduit, Sira, Bori and the kingdom of Joka Ardhi belong to me (But Jokani the language is actually Swahili.... you're welcome to use Google Translate for the few lines of it~)

Enjoy the long read, folks~

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“So… Is this everyone?”

Looking around the dining hall that was now remade into a momentary war planning room, Asya met the gazes of at least a quarter of the crew. Elbent stood beside her three husbands at the other side of the table, along with her father Solclave, who nearly towered over Brynjolf and Verglaust as the candlelit shadows hid his face. Around the right side of the long table, Starhawk and Starstrike stood next to Rodimus, his and Hawk's son Nova, Asya’s eldest children Conduit and Sira, the senior medic Nicole and her husband Hypnos, with Ferrous right beside Asya as he shared an anxious look with Nicole.

To her left, Blue Heron stood beside Indi as she looked equally as nervous as her brother Ferrous, with Flora easing Indi's visible worry with a webbed hand on her shoulder, as Indi and Ferrous's cousin Divot looked up to their father Drillburst with an expressionless but curious glance, as if to ask the bard “You got any idea on what’s going on here, Dad?”

Finally breaking the silence, Elbent replied to her wife from beside Drill at the far end of the table, “This is it. I wish we could have convinced more of the crew to join us, but I know we can ask Max later tonight if he wants to help us, once the curse lets him move again from his gargoyle state.”

“It’s ok. This is more than enough. I… I think I know of a way to help Max be involved without relying so much on the time of day. I’ll tell you about it later, Drill,” Asya nodded to the minstrel, the husband of the gargoyle in question. “For now… let’s get started on the plan, shall we? First, allow me to explain what we’re up against.”

Taking a scroll from the large pile of them next to her, Asya held onto the end and with a strong flap, the paper unfurled and covered the centre of the table, revealing a map of Joka Ardhi in full.

“Whoa… I’ve never seen your homeland like this before.” Rodimus confessed in awe.

“That’s because Primus has never been given permission to see my homeland fully, beyond the northern shoreline that takes up the entire bottom half on any Primus-made map, which show the port cities big enough to dock a ship our size. That’s mainly because all ships and natives of your country, Rodimus, are forbidden from touching Jokani soil. Blame it on your great grandfather, darling. He did act stupidly racist towards my grandfather, the past Dragon Lord. He-”

“Wait, what do you mean your grandfather and my great grandfather? Shouldn’t yours be… I dunno, just as old?” Rodimus asked, leaning forward with both hands on the table to face Asya.

“Uh, Roddie? Dragonkin can live much longer than humans, remember?," Elbent answered. "When your great grandfather would be in his thirties, Asya's grandfather would roughly be in the same equivalent of maturity. Physically, if my math is correct, he would have actually been nearing his nineties, by human lifespan standards.”

“And… how long can your kind live for?” Rodimus inquired curiously towards Asya.

“Five to six hundred years, sometimes a thousand if we’re powerful magic users. The oldest of my kind is the Elder Seer or the oracle of my father’s court, Kamaria. She was born just after Alunnui took the throne and became the first Dragon Lord, and then began her service as a court Seer when his son, Bakari, came of age to inherit the throne. That was nearly three thousand years ago now.”

“Th-Three?! THREE THOUSAND YEARS?! Primus almighty... How is she still alive?!” Rodimus held onto his husband blindly to stop himself from staggering back.

“Magic, a playful bit of spite, and wisdom on what wine suit the season... Well, that was what she always told me, whenever I asked her the same thing,” Asya chuckled with a nostalgic smile. “In truth, I have no idea why she hasn't deteriorated with age yet, and I stopped questioning it a long time ago. After all… she is our eyes on the front lines as well as our double agent. She sent me the letter telling me to return home and informing me of my father’s plans, long before he began to plot them.”

“How did she- Oh right, you said she’s an oracle or seer. Sorry, I forgot,” Rodimus shook off his surprise with a sigh. “Like that’s in any way normal… So wait, if the average lifespan is five hundred years for your kind… how old are you, exactly, Asya?”

“Well… I’m in my mid-thirties, by comparison to human levels of maturity.”

“And in mortal years?” Hawk pressed on, revealing himself to be just as curious as his husband.

“Ugh, just don’t react too… Yeah, you’re gonna react either way, aren’t you?,” Asya sighed heavily into her palm as it slid down her face, before she finally replied with a grumble. “… I turn seventy this month.”

“S-Se… S-Seventy," Rodimus sputtered in shock. "You… You’re only now turning seventy… Seventy. Years. Old… When you look... what did you say? Thirty? But now, you're... Nearly a full century old?”

“Yes, Rodimus, nearly a full hundred years. It'll be a quarter of my lifespan, by that point.”

“I…. but… HOW?!” Rodimus exclaimed, earning him a chuckle from a few around the table.

“The same way a siren keeps looking so divine, of course~,” Asya teased with a wink towards her wife. “For my kind, we age at a normal humanoid pace when we're born, since we are technically half human as a species, just until we reach our twenties. Normally it happens between the ages twenty-one to twenty-five, but around that point we stop developing and aging as a whole. After that, we only start to show signs of greying when we reach four hundred and turn fully grey by our fifth century of life.”

“Huh… You’re nearly as old as I am. Nice.” Verglaust nodded to himself with a soft smile.

“Now, any more questions on my kind, or can we go back to what’s at stake here?”

“Can I just ask one more?”

“Rod, we really need to-”

“Just one more question, Asya! Please?”

“… Only one, Rodimus, and no more. Ok?”

“Ok, so like… What beef did my great gramps have with your grandfather? And why did it cause the complete ban on all things Primus-related touching Jokani land?”

“…. You really want to know? Like... here? Right now? Eh, I have to warn you, darling... It might alarm you. Or rather upset you, really.”

“No no, I can take it, Asya! Please, what did my ancestors do?”

“Alright, don’t say I didn’t warn you… When my grandfather, Alhaadi, ruled as Dragon Lord of Joka Ardhi, long before my father’s older brother took the throne, my grandfather sailed to Primus to arrange a trade union with your great grandfather. However… from what Kamaria told me when she witnessed the meeting while serving my grandfather as his Seer… Your great grandfather’s court of Primus noblemen began to mock my grandfather’s own court. Calling them savages and… Sand Monkeys, and other such names to their faces,”

Hawk suddenly coughed when Rodimus elbowed him harshly, stopping his snort mid-way from becoming a chuckle, allowing Asya to continue.

“So… When the treaty was signed, it caused an uproar for two main reasons. One… None of the Primus nobles had bothered to ask prior to this meeting for an ambassador of Joka Ardhi, in order to train them to speak fluidly in Common and become their translator. And because of their prejudice against wanting a Jokani Ambassador in their court or even to send one of their own here, they instead played a horrendously awkward guessing game in order to form the wording of the treaty. And as such, they caused the second reason for the uproar…

"The scribes of Primus’s court had given my people a new name instead of simply calling us or the country what they're already known by in their own tongue. And the reason I know all this is... well, other than me being his grandchild... Alhaadhi had learned a bit of Common. Even after revealing his minor bilingual skill to show that the Primus court really were being racist and proven thus, they still refused to change their bill or the wording on it. So… my grandfather left and immediately issued a law written in both Jokani and in broken Common, saying that no ship or person made on Primus shall ever dare to go past the ports of Joka Ardhi, unless they wish to die by Jokani hand. And to this day, your people still call us what that bill names my people and country in Common…”

“Savannians… How the hell did they get The Savannah Kingdom from Joka Ardhi?! UGH!! "The Pride of Primus honors all", my ass!!,” Rodimus grunted in frustration as he suddenly kicked the table leg. “Grampa could have changed something during his reign!! Or even Dad!! But no!! They chose to ignore the obvious, and we’re still viewed as your enemy! It’s no wonder trade between our lands was stopped so suddenly as it began! Stupid, bloody, useless-”

“Roddie! RODS!! Hey, hey!! Easy! Easy, Roddie… Easy now. It’s not your fault. You had nothing to do with what your ancestors did. It’s not your fault. There’s nothing you could have done. You didn’t know anything about this, Rodi. You're ok.” Hawk assured, holding Rodimus’s arms to keep him from kicking the table more.

“Ok, ok. I’m ok… I’m good now. I’m sorry Asya. Please, continue with your strategy plan.”

“Thank you, Rodimus. And it’s ok. We’ll fix things in our parents’ place. I’ll make sure of it…. Now then, if you’ll allow me, I’d like to discuss the magic of this land, and why it will affect our battle ahead,”

With a snap of her fingers, orange flames began to spread over her hand, but the moment she touched the scroll and spread its flames over the paper, it did not burn. Instead, the fire rose above the map and thinned out to appear like the surface of a body of water, shimmering with glittery orange light as it slowly bobbed and swirled in the air hovering over the map.

“The magic of this planet can be used like power sources in multiple ways, but magic as a whole cannot be found through just one source. There is no “mother” or any form of a first source of all magic, so to speak… Magic is all around us, and the best way to find a source is to look for what is the most plentiful where you are or where you come from… the elements. Air, water, earth, fire and the spirit. That was what I was taught as a child, and many of you I’m sure got the same lesson but told different ways to find your individual source. Prayer or faith to harness the spirit, the flora of your homeland harnessed through witchcraft, or through your birth element, to harness water or earth.

"For my kind, our element is the sun, and that's what makes the magic of my homeland so potent. Because of the sun's strength here, it grants us the elements of sand instead of regular earth, and crystals then act as a conduit for the other elements since they absorb everything through the ground. Moonstone holds the power of lunar light absorbed by the cold sands at night, while sunstone harnesses the magic of the sand from daylight, and so on and so forth. But the sand of Joka Ardi… it’s special and potent with magic for a reason,”

Gathering the orange dust like light into her hand, Asya tapped the map of the red desert kingdom.

“This entire desert used to be gold, like common desert sand. And some of it is, towards the islands that are nearest to the equator. But those within the Jokani Sea Boarder… Are as red as blood. Can you guess why?”

“Dragon blood… From the Founder’s War.” Flora pointed out.

“Exactly. More so from the Blackfire Siege. Life and death also affect the sources of magic, when too much of one side affects the ecosystem. Therefore, when the dragons fell while fleeing the Blackfire Siege, they fell as their bodies were melting… Leaving their blood and bones to be absorbed by the sands, giving the sands an unmeasurable boost of magic from their magically potent bodies to this day. As time went on, the Jokani began to draw their magic from the sands, but the dragons have always gained their power from it too, long before they fell. And that is because the sun is still an elemental source, just as strong as it was when dragons ruled the sands,”

Opening her hand, Asya allowed the dust to pour like sand from her palm and covered the entire table with it, creating a blanket of illusionary glitter over the entire surface of the table and map.

“Magic in the desert takes another form… a physical one, but also something that affects the people from the moment they’re born. It's also been recorded to affect visitors too, if they live here long enough to absorb magic like how one takes in sunlight or air into their body. But for the Jokani, they merely have to be born on the land to use this source of magic… For the sands are constantly absorbing sunlight, especially during our summers when the Midnight Sun is in effect, for as the sand absorbs the magic, it then takes the form of what you learned as mirages. For the Jokani, however… it is no mere illusion. It is, in fact, pure and raw magic that covers the surface of the sand and fills my people's veins the moment we develop into babies within our mother’s wombs… And in my tongue, we call this Jua’chawi. In yours… Sun Dust,”

To prove her point, Asya quickly sliced open her palm with a flick of her taloned finger, the crimson pooling in her hand to show the team her own blood… with flecks of glittering orange within it being revealed in the dim light.

“If one is born with extra amounts of it in their veins… They develop a gift or condition that alters their appearance and grants them an even higher amount of magic to use. Those with too much Sun Dust in their veins are known as Watoto wa Jua… Children of the Sun, or merely Sun Blessed for short. They are stronger, bigger, faster and much more powerful than any other magic users in Joka Ardhi, be they Dragonkin, human or animal. They will be born with hair, feathers or scales the colour of fire… Red, orange or yellow specifically… And no matter what they're born as, they will be the only sub-species of their kind capable of controlling fire in its most natural state,”

The moment her blood began to seep over the edge of her palm, it suddenly shimmered with light and burst into white flames, the blood immediately vanishing as it shrank towards the cut and the flames reversed the damage of the wound, healing it in seconds, before it vanished with a flicker.

“But amongst my species… Only the royal family can be Sun Blessed. And luckily it is within our favour, as my species are split into two sub-species. The Opal Dragonkin, who can wield fire that instead of burning can instead create things… Such as green fire for flowers and flora, white to heal, blue for ice, and many more along the entire rainbow spectrum of colour. All except the colours of natural fire… They belong to the Ruby Dragonkin, a pedigree carefully bred to always be born Sun Blessed only within the royal bloodline.”

“… Ok, I have to ask… Clearly an Opal can be born Sun Blessed, right? Like… is there some inhibitor that prevents the Opal Dragonkin from becoming one, or…” Blue Heron asked.

“Well, that’s actually something I’m sure has happened, but they don’t seem to show it in the way my family's pedigree do. Amongst the animals born with the Sun Blessed gene, they simply gain an incredibly strong boost in their birth element, such as the Griffons being able to control water and air, while their increased size allows them to become alphas with their distinctive features fitting their role. I think a Sun Blessed Opal Dragonkin is simply one with slightly altered features, but still bears the size and magical boost to their fire type that's increased by the Sun Blessed gene.

"Beyond that, only my family’s lineage shows the extreme lengths the gene can do to one’s whole appearance and magical capabilities, to the point that a Dragon Lord or Dragon Queen can bear multiple children that can all be Sun Blessed, but that’s a very rare thing, I can assure you. Only one out of five children born in a single generation of my family’s bloodline can become Sun Blessed. My father wasn’t, hence why he only became Dragon Lord by proxy, due to his older brother’s death.”

“So I take it only the Sun Blessed of your family are seen as worthy heirs to the throne?” Blue added.

“Exactly that. And it usually always gets passed on to the first born of every generation within my family-”

“So why isn’t Sira?” Conduit suddenly asked, gesturing to his mute Dragonkin sister, who now was her early twenties and was showing the signs of horns and a tail growing from her petite body.

Her words immediately caught in her throat, as Asya struggled to find the right answer. But to her surprise, Sira raised her hand to stop her mother and used both hands to sign her own conclusion, revealing the black tips of her slightly curved fingernails upon her calloused fingers.

“I am not a Jokani Dragonkin. Only those born on the sand of Joka Ardhi can become Sun Blessed. I was born here, on this ship, and far north. Which most likely explains my blue scales and fire. I have only a piece of the magic my mother has in her veins, since I bear her blood. And because of my birth not making me Sun Blessed, but rather a Ruby Dragonkin wielding cold but burning blue fire, I’ll never be an heir to Mama’s throne. Don’t really want to be one, anyways.”

“You can be, if you wanted to, darling.” Asya assured her mute daughter, as Sira’s father, Kevin, nodded in eager agreement.

“Nah, I plan on staying here on the ship and seeing the world you’ll create, once you become queen, Mama. I’m good, thanks.”

“… You are seriously nothing like your father, you know that, Sira?”

“HEY!!”

The blue Dragonkin chuckled at her father’s playfully offended reaction, as she tucked her bob-length braids behind her long, pointed ear and the arm of her rectangular glasses. “I’d beg to differ, Mama, but please, continue. What are the armies like, if some might be Sun Blessed?”

Letting out a long sigh, Asya gathered the fire illusion of the Sun Dust off the map and crafted more fiery illusions to take the form of three figurine sized warriors: Two identical warriors dressed like Asya in red togas and half-plate armour, but this time wielding spears and shields with a dragon shaped helmet under their hoods, and one warrior in black with a shadowing hood and long trousers instead of a toga, alongside a cape with a red handprint on it.

“There are two main lines of defence in my country… Both are two versions of the military army that protect the people and the crown. The army that protects the people and the country are known as the Morani-”

“Heh heh, moron.”

“No, Starstrike. Not moron… More-raw-nee,” Asya explained, her real Jokani accent kicking in as her tongue clicked at the “raw” sound. “They’re the most well trained warriors of my people, or more like knights if you compare them to what Primus and Unicron have. Every eldest son is sent to the camp in the east outskirts of Wajiri, the port city we’re facing right now, the moment they turn fourteen. In my culture, a boy can only be considered a man when they become a Moran first.

"If he cannot fight to defend his family, let alone his people, or is as disrespectable as a child, he is seen as unfit to be mature enough to be a man. It is also law, even more so for the male heir of the throne, to send every son before they reach their teen years to train as a Moran for two years, before they’re allowed home and be seen as an adult, let alone a man… And usually it’s followed by marriage, but thank the stars it’s not an arranged type anymore.”

“And how many are there in Wajiri?” Elbent inquired, leaning on the table to fully take in the sight of the two Moran warriors.

“In Wajiri… Anywhere between ten to thirty thousand, counting the ones in training. But that’s just the public branch… There’s also the royal guard branch, the Kifalme Morani. As an heir apparent, I trained under them to prepare for the mantle of Dragon Lord. And from my experience… they are the least of your worries. For a select few among them are more loyal to my father than any of the Kifalme Morani. Your biggest threat are the Mkono wa Bwana… The Lord’s Hand.”

The two Morani vanished with a puff of flame, allowing the last caped warrior to grow bigger and be joined by others of his guild that knelt down or stood on one leg in martial artistic ways beside him, wielding scimitars instead of spears, and all of them hiding creepy grins under their black hoods.

“The Lord’s Hand are an assassin guild that are the eyes and ears of the Dragon Lord. Anything he whispers of his desire for his kingdom, they enact it immediately. A person causing him minor strife or worry… They will immediately vanish before dawn. Taxes will immediately be paid the day they’re about to be overdue from a poor or struggling family, a bandit group all dead with their heads and bodies on display along the main roads… No one is safe from their wrath. And they only came to be when my father took the throne, the moment both my uncles were found dead, leaving my father as the only child of Alhaadi remaining.”

“The bastard clearly set it up using that guild, didn’t he?” Verglaust snarled.

“I wish I knew, my love… I never got to know him, my uncle Amani. I was born after all that went down, during my father’s… “golden age”, you could say. In truth, it was the only period of his life where things were happy under his reign. But the moment I… I started showing signs that I was not a boy, he lost everything that made him my father and a fitting ruler of the Crimson Sands. But other than his wrath… Our only concern is with the Lord’s Hand.”

“But what about the Morani? Won’t they try to stop us from reaching Oasis, since you've been exiled and are basically a... well... criminal by their laws?” Elbent inquired.

“They will… unless they’re convinced to fight with us, alongside the people. And I know how I can do just that.”

Reaching to her belt, Asya pulled out her short sword and placed it between her teeth, reaching behind her with her free hand to tie her dreadlocks back into a low ponytail before using another length of string to tie the tip of her ponytail with a bow. Holding her sword in hand once more, Asya looked down at it in both hands as her word came out wobbly and gruff, her emotions held back with her lowered tone.

“In my culture… A good leader who has ruled the land for a long time will usually grow their hair extremely long. Be they the Dragon Lord or a chieftain that governs a village or city… Those who have ruled for a long time, and created a peaceful era in his reign, will always have long braids, dreadlocks or long hair in general that is decorated to show how unwilling he is to cut it. It’s why my people will commonly have braids or dreadlocks, to keep their own hair out of their face while they let it grow undisturbed as way to respect their ruler's peaceful reign. Amani had long hair in his time, and it was always decorated with flowers and gems... fitting for a ruler named "peace",”

As Asya tightened her grip on the hilt, she let out a long, shaky sigh that caused the blade to shiver with her, her gaze refusing to rise beyond her sight on the blade before her.

“So… when war is called between two chieftains or a chieftain against the Dragon Lord… The chieftain can demand a one-on-one battle to start and end the war right there and then between only the two of them, to spare their people. In turn, the people can join him to demand the same rite by copying their chieftain to say the same thing..."We demand to see the cruel ruler off his throne". And they do that… b-by… By doing….”

The words dared not leave her throat, as tears suddenly fell onto the steel blade and down its straight, sharp length. Before Elbent or Hawk could react, their hand both reached out towards the crying Dragonkin, her blade suddenly rose and reached behind her. With quick, shallow gasps through her bared fangs to contain her sobs, Asya gritted her teeth and-

“I… I… NGH- NADAI AMANI!!!”

With a dramatic roar of an old rite and a blur of silver, the sword sliced through her ponytail of dreadlocks, the string that held it in place sliding off and allowing her uneven bob to sway freely over her face, even more so as she slammed her sword and chopped length of hair onto the table.

“Oh Primus… What did she say, exactly?” Elbent whispered to Kevin.

“The hair… Primus above, not the hair… Hm? Oh uh… Well… she said, if her Jokani lessons serve me well… I demand peace.”

“It’s what must be said, as part of the rite of my people… Before any kind of war begins,” Asya finally spoke, her face still hidden and lowered under her chopped hair. “When… When a battle is demanded by someone wishing to remove a ruler from his throne… Be they chieftain or Dragon Lord… They cut their hair to show their willingness to sacrifice everything for the right to bring peace. And when one does it before a crowd or… or presents their sacrifice before the people… the people can then become their allies by doing the same thing. If… If I can present a box of hair… to my father… No one else will need to die fighting him.”

Not a word was dared to be said, as Asya leaned heavily onto the table to stop herself from falling to her knees, her soft sobs the only sound breaking the silence.

“… Does it need to be the whole head?” Hawk suddenly asked.

“Wh… what? N-No. Just… as much as you’re willing to sacrifice. Hence why the piece hair that’s been cut off… The piece itself is called the Dhabihu, the sacrifice. What are you-”

"Hopefully I say it correctly... I TOO DEMAND PEACE!!"

With a shout from Starhawk, a hand of black hair was suddenly slammed down onto the table following another blur of silver. Looking up with teary eyes, Asya watched as Hawk, Rodimus, Nova, Verglaust, and everyone with a weapon at their belt used them to cut a piece of their hair, or as much as they could from the top of the shorter few, before Flora took out a handkerchief from her pocket and gathered all the “Dhabihu” pieces into the square cloth before tying it and handing it to Asya across the table.

“You’re not fighting this battle alone, Asya. No matter what the rite demands of you, we’ll all be demanding the right for peace alongside you. Your crazy dad is threatening our home and our lives. And that makes this our battle too… So you’d best not forget that.” Rodimus assured with a smile.

“Uh, babe?” Hawk whispered, using his string to tie back his now roughly cut long bob behind his head into a spiny ponytail.

“I know, I’ll help give it a proper trim tonight, Hawk.”

“No, uh… You kinda… Took a bit too much in the back there.”

“I said I’ll… Wait WHAT?!”

“Yeah, you’re uh… Kinda balding there, hun. I’m seeing more skin than ginger.”

Quickly taking a silver plate from nearby, Rodimus used the side of his sword to see his reflection on the plate, gasping dramatically at the sight of the bald patch on the back of his head.

“OH MY GOD!!” Rodimus exclaimed, as he covered his head with both hands and hid his face when he roughly bumped his head onto the table.

"Oh honey, it's ok!" Hawk giggled, rubbing his husband's back as Nova covered his mouth to muffle his laugh.

“Here, Rods. You can use my hat until it grows back.” Drill chuckled, handing him his beloved feather tipped hat.

The moment it reached his side of the table, Rodimus rapidly smacked his hand across to reach it blindly, attempting to feel for it with a hand that waved over the table again and again, until he finally caught the hat and slowly put it on, letting out a sound that could only be compared to the groan of a dying goat as he slid down onto the floor to hide his blush. The tension immediately lifted like a popped balloon as everyone laughed, even Asya as Elbent came over to hug her and dry the Dragonkin's eyes.

“You ok, fire lily?” She asked over the roar of laughter all around them.

“Heh… I will be. After all… I’ve a revolution to lead.”

~*~

“Is that enough water to last us the three days, do you think?”

“Elbent, we’ll be walking along a freshwater river the whole way up. It’s going to be fine.”

“But for all three days? I dunno, Asya… it sounds rather unnatural for a river to have clean drinking water.”

“Trust me, darling. Whether it’s the magic of the Sun Dust aiding in filtering it or something else entirely, something keeps the water clean and I’ve survived off it for three years after my exile began. No sickness from it either! It’s going to be ok. Now get your tiny rear in the boat already.”

“Alright! Alright, I’m moving!,” Elbent laughed as she hopped onto the large rowboat alongside Verglaust, Kevin, Brynjolf, Starhawk, Conduit and Blue Heron. “But Asya, hun… Are you ready?”

Looking over towards the horizon, to where the city of Wajiri awaited them, Asya could only sigh as she clutched her bag strap tightly. “Honestly? …. No. I’m not. But what choice do I have? Someone has to step up and be there for my people. I… I know I have to stop him, I know him best… I know what it will take to put an end to his cruelty. I just need to get the support of my people to make it happen more smoothly… No one else needs to die for my fear of facing him. No matter what happens… It ends now.”

“And we’ll be with you every step of the way.” Elbent assured, taking Asya’s hand and helping her onto the boat.

“And we’ll wait here for your signal, Mama.” Ferrous assured, hugging his toddler aged, Dragonkin brother, Bori, close to his side, as the infant nuzzled his cheeks of white scales against Ferrous's hip while whimpering nervously

“You and your Grandfather are in charge while we’re away, alright darling? And no matter what happens, do not bring the ship past that rock until I fire the flare to signal you to begin the evacuation of Wajiri. And the moment every Jokani is on board, keep away from the port and keep everyone safe. The Oasis city folk will come to Wajiri in six days, so all you need to do is to keep an eye on them from the ship, until our return… Hopefully. Got it?” Asya ordered, as the boat was slowly lowered onto the water and began to be rowed away from the ship.

“Got it, Mama! You can count on me.” Ferrous assured, smiling smugly with determination…

A smile that quickly vanished the moment Bori slipped from his grip and peered over the side of the ship, wailing at the top of his lungs as he called out to his Mama Asya and Baba Verglaust. Blue and Hawk paused their rowing to look up at the toddler’s cries, at Divot quickly picked him up to carry him away from the side of the deck for his own safety, a lesson they learned long ago judging by their hurried pace. Asya’s shuddered breathing drew their attention from the ship and the echoing cries of the toddler, as the orange Dragonkin placed her bag down and gripped the boat tightly, her talons immediately piercing holes through the wood from her sheer strength alone.

“Asya… It’s ok. Go to him. We’ll go on ahead and let you catch up… It’ll give you a chance to find your well-deserved dramatic entrance after forty years of being away.” Verglaust assured, hugging his wife from behind.

“A-Are you sure? I don’t exactly want you guys to enter Wajiri alone. I mean you don’t even speak Jokani, except Kevin.”

“Asya, it’s fine! We all brushed up on it thanks to you and Kevin, so we know enough to get by,” Brynjolf smiled as he suddenly picked Asya up. “Now, stop dawdling… Na nenda kwa WATOTO WAKO!!!”

“Bryn? When did you learn Jokan-AAH!! BRYN!! BRYN WAIT!! WAITWAITWA-AAAHHHHH!!!”

Asya could only squeal as she was thrown from the boat, across the water and onto the ship, crashing loudly into something wooden. Verglaust, Kevin and Elbent immediately snapped around to glare at their husband, who shrugged innocently.

“WHAT?! Someone should comfort the kids, right?”

“Did you have to throw her so hard?! She could have just asked Apo or Conduit to fly her over!!” Elbent snapped.

“Oh it's fine! Besides, Apo can be her big entrance!” Brynjolf smiled smugly with a flick of his mop of silver hair.

“Ugh, fine. But next time, warn her and us about your idea of throwing her like a rock.” Elbent huffed as she sat down and crossed her arms, Verglaust sitting beside her and rubbing her back to soothe her nervous leg tapping.

“I promise, love… Just thought it would be handy using my half-giant strength for once.”

“Uuugghh, I swear you and Asya are worse braggers than Kevin, sometimes.” Elbent groaned with a sigh.

“Bu- I am RIGHT HERE!!” Kevin gestured to himself with both hands on his chest, before he too sat down beside Brynjolf with a sigh, his gaze returning to the ship.

....

............

“… You think she’ll be ok?” Ferrous asked Flora beside him, watching the boat slowly row away from the ship, as Bori wailed and slammed his tiny fists against Divot’s back whilst over their shoulder.

“If I know your mom well enough after all this time, I’d say as long as your birth mom and your parents all stick together, she’ll be ok.” Flora assured, resting her head on Ferrous’s shoulder.

“I hope-,”

“…aaaaaaaaAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!,” A scream and a blur of orange suddenly flew overhead, causing Rodimus nearby to scream while frantically running in zig-zags trying to figure out where to go, before he finally jumped out of the way, just as it landed with a loud crash in a pile of boxes behind them. “…. Ow.”

“… so? Uh... was that... Mama Asya?”

Rushing over towards the pile of broken wood, Ferrous, Flora, Rodimus, Starstrike, Divot and the now quiet Bori all crept closer to the crash site… to see a dizzy and grumbling Asya emerge from the rubble. “Ugh, that cheeky, giant fu- Uuuhhh… Hi, darlings.”

“Mama Asya? What are you doing here?! Why aren’t you going with Mom and the others?” Ferrous queried.

“And how the hell are you still alive?!” Rodimus exclaimed, brushing off some wood chips from the crushed crates.

“I… Ugh, ow… I came to say a proper goodbye to Bori and the rest of the kids, to make sure you were all ok before I left.” Asya groaned as she stretched out her back, letting a few more pieces of wood fall from her shoulders and horns as she did so.

“By… flying with Apo’s borrowed wings? Or…”

“Brynjolf threw me.”

“Ah, that makes more sense.”

Laughing at the absurdity of it all, with Starstrike rolling his eyes as he walked away with Flora to give the two space, Asya and Ferrous were soon interrupted by another wail, as Divot finally placed Bori down and allowed him to toddle over to Asya as he ran to her. With a smile instantly blooming on her face, she knelt down to scoop him up into her arms.

“Shhh, it’s ok. It’s alright, darling. Mama’s here,” Asya softly whispered to her hybrid child, rocking him gently despite his size becoming far too encumbered for her to more easily hold. “Ngh, you’re starting to grow as big as your Baba, aren’t you, sweetpea?”

“Um… Mom?” Ferrous timidly interrupted, fiddling with his hat he held on his lap as he stepped towards Asya.

“Shh shh, it’ll be ok, darling. Hm? Oh, is everything ok, little flame?”

“I… Ok, forgive me, but I have to ask … Mom, are you leaving the ship? Like… for good?”

“… Ferrous, I…,” Struggling to find the right words, she gently placed Bori down and kept him close with her tail, allowing him to hug it as she stepped forward to gently cup Ferrous’s cheek and wipe away a stray tear with her thumb, being extremely cautious with her talon fingernail. “Honey… I’ll be honest too… I don’t know when I’ll be back. But whatever happens once I reach Oasis… I’ll have to stay here in Joka Ardhi, to fix what’s been broken, both by the battle ahead and what my father did to my home. I… I’ve been avoiding this day for most of my life, and I’m terrified of what awaits for me at the end of this journey. It’s been a journey that I… I’ve been too scared to start, and I’m honestly still scared now, when I know I need to be brave. Not just for my sake, but for the people that are relying on me to do the right thing. Both the Jokani… and the people that have come to depend on me here on this ship.

"And the right thing, Ferrous… it might cost me my life, even if I succeed. And I’m so scared of never being able to see you or my babies ever again. I wish I could act brave for you, Ferrous… But I just can’t. I don’t have the strength to pretend that everything will work out. I have no idea what will happen... and I'm so scared.”

“Oh Mom, hey, hey, it’s ok! It’s gonna be ok. I know it will,” Ferrous pulled Asya in for a tight hug, burying his face into her shoulder as the ebony Dragonkin continued to cry. “You got Ma and the Dads supporting you, Uncle Blue who literally cannot die, Uncle Hawk will help protect you, and you got us. I know you don’t want to involve us in your battle in fear of us… you know… losing… But we can help, Mom! We can fight alongside you.”

“NO!!! Stars above, Ferrous, I can’t let you do that! I’d never forgive myself if I saw you on the battlefield. No… Ferrous, listen to me,” Standing back, Asya held Ferrous by both his shoulders as she stared him down with a serious glare and tone of voice. “Ferrous O’Murchadha-Mutheru… You are going to inherit the mantle of captain, not just because we want you to… but because you consented to accept it, and because you are worthy of such a title and responsibility. And should we succeed in this mission… you will be a prince by proxy. Too much is already on your shoulders, on this day alone…

"So I only ask that you be our last line of defence against my father. If we cannot stop him, and you receive the signal from Conduit… You must stand ready to kill him, no matter what. He cannot leave this country, let alone enter these seas… And you must stop him if we cannot. That… is all I will ask of you to help me with. That will be your battle. But I pray to the Evenstar that it never comes to that… But I know I must tell you to prepare either way.”

“Don’t worry, Asya… You can count on us.” Rodimus assured, placing a hand on her shoulder to share a reassuring smile with her and Ferrous.

Letting out a long sigh, Asya soon fell to her knees to pull Bori close, allowing him and Ferrous to hug her as she once more broke down into a fit of tears. Slowly but surely, Sira, Indi, even Conduit as he flew on board from the boat with his silent leathery wings, the five children of Asya, Elbent, Kevin, Brynjolf and Verglaust all approached and surrounded the maternal Dragonkin in a massive hug, allowing her to cry until she could cry no more… and sigh happily as she melted into the embrace of her children.

“Thank you, darlings… Thank you all.” Asya sniffled, holding the young adult children close as Bori purred while nuzzling his mother’s cheek.

The sirens Ferrous and Indi finally stepped back, allowing the curse-born crystal gargoyle Conduit and blue Dragonkin Sira to pick up Bori, in order to completely free Asya from the dog pile of her brood. The moment she was back on her feet, or rather paws, she immediately pulled them back in for one last squeeze.

“I’m so proud of you, my beautiful babies!”

“Ugh, Mama!” Conduit groaned, but immediately chuckled as he wrapped his wings around his family.

Finally, Asya stepped away to place a kiss onto each child, before she handed Bori to Indi and made her way to the edge of the deck, pausing to turn around and face the crew once more.

“Everyone of the Immortal Sun… Thank you. Thank you for accepting me, and for being my home for so many decades. Now… I ask only that you become the home for my children and their next generation to come. I… I’ll miss this ship with all my heart, but I’ll never regret the memories I made here. Thank you, everyone… For everything.”

With a smile and a stray tear trickling down her cheek again, Asya watched as Conduit flew ahead back to the boat with Elbent and the others of their team. And, with Ferrous and the others waving from the ship, with Solclave holding his shoulder beside him, they watched as the ship rowed further and further away, towards Joka Ardhi before Asya stepped back and made a running jump, leaping from the ship and becoming a fiery comet to soar over the sea, towards the city of Wajiri...

Towards the pier that Asya fled from over forty years ago.

[fonmythenmetz]

The most powerful force user to ever live (smol)

[thesummerstorms]

Okay, but I've been thinking about the parallels between The Last Olympian and The House of Hades.

Annabeth was the one who convinced Luke to kill himself. Obviously, it's a lot more complicated than that and ahe'd given him opportunities to change before. But in the end, it was only because of her and their promise that Luke was able to throw off Kronos's control during the battle in the throne room.

She's the one who convinced Percy to give Luke the knife. Luke killed himself with her blade and saved the world.

Then we get to House of Hades and Tartarus. And at the doors of death, Damasen tells Annabeth that she was the one who changed his mind and convinced him to fight his father. She's the one who tells Percy that they have to leave Bob and Damasen, even knowing they'll die. She cries and sobs and hugs Bob, but she makes the choice.

I'm just saying, after talking someone into to their heroic death twice, even though she had to do it, even though she mourns, even though she's not her fault-

She deserves to be a little fucked up by that.

[spirk-trek]

S2E22: By Any Other Name ⋆.˚ ✧ · ˚⊹

[guardianjameslight]

People should learn at this point that just because the trailer is comedic doesn't mean the movie/show itself won't be emotional.

[whereismyhat5678]

I have a confession to make.

And you can bash me all you want about it. BUT I STAND FIRM ✊✊

*clears throat*

I’ve had a crush on all of these men.💀

Edit: HOLD YOUR HORSES- I forgot at least 2 ✌️ I fixed it now!

[sollucets]

namtan tipnaree as porjai in last twilight episode two

[vaggieslefteye]

CHARLIE MAGNE from HAZBIN HOTEL (2019): Pilot - "That's Entertainment" ↳ "So, I've been thinking: Isn't there a more humane way to hinder overpopulation here in Hell? Perhaps we can create an alternative way to change souls through... redemption?"

[what-aboutno]

An analysis on c!Owen and his behaviour throughout the Outsiders SMP series!

Some disclaimers before I go into this. There will be spoilers up ahead! I would like to warn anyone reading that this post will mention some blacklisted members from the smp because their characters play a role in showing us about cOwen.

For convenience, all the members mentioned are the characters, not the actual ccs themself. Some of this might seem all over the place, but when the characters learn random parts of themselves at different points it's bound to happen.

Owen has changed a lot as the series has progressed and many find his personality to have changed entirely towards the end, however, this isn’t really the case. When we go over his character, we can see his core values have stuck with him throughout the series, so in this post, I will go over how exactly he has changed over time and his character in general.

To make it easier, I’m gonna split it into 3 parts. Early maze days, the introduction of clearing 2, and post memories.

During the early maze days Owen establishes his character very early on. Right from the beginning, Owen arrives with the demon Rasbi. They are notably one of the three pairs that come up, with most coming up the elevator alone. The first time we see him, Owen immediately takes up a role as a protector, asking if Rasbi knows how to fight in case there is danger up ahead.

In this first section, we can also see that he acts a lot more childish and naive. He’s very emotional and easily upset by his past. He can be seen jumping on rocks with Mohwee and the others and crying on his first night over his loss of memories. The overwhelmingness of the clearing gets to him. This isn’t to say he is some weak, stupid or soft character though. 

Owen may be naive in believing things should be played in certain ways according to his rules but there are many instances where we can see he’s not stupid. First episode he can immediately recognise what knife Oeca is holding “Hey that’s a throwing knife right? No that’s a dagger” 

After getting more settled in the maze he asks about the maze’s agriculture, he mentions everyone is unarmed despite fearing the dangers in the maze. He starts asking about protection, armour, shields and notably, “So this place is safe on the inside? It's safe to walk at night?” He’s already worried for everyone’s safety here, he knows the maze is dangerous so is there anywhere that’s safe? 

Very early on his past also becomes a very important aspect of his personality. He is probably one of the first to remember anything significant about his past. By episode 2 he is getting flashbacks about how to make a bow. But he makes a javelin first, noting “I think I was a hunter. No, I was an archer. I was a hunter. I was a soldier? I was good at this.” He then proceeds to aim the javelin at Oeca’s name, because at this point he can’t fully trust Ocea. He is very quick to violence, although he doesn't want Oeca dead, he certainly can’t trust in him. 

Another important note is that Mohwee is one of the people in the clearing he respected and saw as someone with the ability to act. Which is why we get this interaction where Mohwee calls out “Owen.” and Owen replies with “yes sir”. His past even without his memories is important and ingrained enough he still acts like this, and this only continues as we go through this section.

The first time they go in the maze as a group is when Apo arrives. This is a very important moment for Owen because their first trip in the maze solidifies his personality throughout this section and maybe even the series. Oeca is shot because Mohwee was careless and brought anyone in. When the group comes back, Owen asks Graecie, “How many entrances are there to this maze?” After finding out this is the only one that opens, he refuses to let anyone get hurt again and starts blocking it off.

Trust and promises are very important to Owen here too because it's one of the key reasons he blocks off the entrance. It’s not just Oeca getting hurt, it’s the fact he promised Graecie he wouldn't go in. “I broke my promise.” He also takes Apo’s word very seriously in the mine when he tells Owen he didn’t pull the lever. Also because of this he only trusts himself to go in the maze.

When the entrance is blocked off Owen is quick to violence and threatens people if they try to get past him. After finding the old battle axe he starts using it to threaten and intimidate people. “Anyone who goes past this (the gate) i will attack”

“Anyone else that will, I will just cut down” are some of the things he says. He punches Mohwee for trying to get past him. When Oeca comes back after Mohwee’s disappearance, Owen follows him with that battle axe trying to talk.

Owen then goes on to say “I’m not looking for violence” and “I'm not collecting weapons this was instinctual (points at bow)” he doesn't want people to think he’s dangerous and he knows people are scared of him.

Even if he seems aggressive he still wants to protect others. Owen goes back in the maze to look for Mohwee after he randomly disappears on their way back. “My job is to protect people and I will do that to the best of my abilities. At every possible stage”

When Mohwee disappears Owen takes a massive risk to stay in the maze overnight to see if the gates would open. “The only thing I remember about my life Graecie, is that I was raised to protect people. That's all I remember. And I know it was dumb and stupid to go in the maze but if it got us a step closer to finding Mohwee. I was willing to make that risk”

So we’ve established that Owen cares about the people in the clearing even if he doesn't trust all of them, he wants to protect them and he will do it no matter what. It's the purpose he has given himself in order to be useful.

He knows it doesn’t work how he wants it to. People are scared and wary of Owen’s protection. There are multiple instances where he tells his voices, “They don’t get it,” because he knows people don’t trust his methods. His method of control is disliked by a lot of people. 

Ori is one of the main characters to go against Owen. Owen hates this because not only does it risk the safety of others but it goes against his main purpose he gave himself. He takes this job very seriously. So when Ori goes in the maze it’s no wonder Owen becomes very violent.

“Ori I'm seriously sorry I will break your legs and I'm very close to it. Are you gonna make me. “

He doesn’t see himself to be super aggressive though “People think I'm being really aggressive when I talk like ‘oh hey if you come near me I'm gonna break your legs’ but I'm saying it in the most friendly way I can, you understand that right? I'm not trying to be aggressive with that”

“I'm saying like if you do step in here I will have to break your legs. In like a very gentle and I'm very sorry I hate to inconvenience you but I do have to break your legs.”

When Ori sneaks into the maze, Owen talks a lot about his purpose. Things like “Don't, I'll fail them. They'll kill me. My entire purpose here is to stay by this door and stop you from coming in.”

Owen hates to know he is failing the purpose he has given to himself “When I discovered I was a soldier that's what I set myself to (protecting others) but what do I have to show for myself? I have tried my hardest to protect these people. And get they look at me and tell me I'm a tyrant” “you're not in control, who are you to say what happens?”

He would do anything, even if it meant sacrificing himself. As shown before when Mohwee disappears but also as he protects the gate after the second lever gets pulled he says “I'm going to protect them if I die in the process so be it”  

Another note before this section ends is that it’s not just Ori who opposes Owen. Sillvia also talks about Owen’s method of leadership.

Sillvia about Owen: Owen I think you would be great. If not for the fact that you have a militaristic mindset. I don't want to see your leadership spiral into a place where Apo wants. Owen I fear you and I want you to know that. I actually fear you and I don't say that about many people. And ruling should not be through fear. You are a terrifying individual and to see you be in a position of power would be a slope we cannot afford or gamble slipping down. We've seen you tussle with Ori. I know you're a strong individual. You could lead us quite well but it's the risk that comes with your leadership that I am not willing to risk. 

The perception Owen has of himself differs from how he comes off. It becomes more of an issue later but we can already see this happen. 

So as clearing 2 is introduced this is what we know about Owen. He was a soldier once, he wanted to protect people in the clearing even if it meant sacrificing himself. He’s nice to others but his methods are still aggressive and violent, ready to hold a weapon to someone if needed and Owen cares a lot about trust. 

With the introduction of clearing 2 we can see how Owen changes and develops. He’s very cautious of clearing 2 members because for all he knows they could have led the creature that destroyed half their clearing in on purpose. 

Owen also faces betrayal from Apo. We know trust is something Owen values a lot. It’s mentioned in the early days, and it’s a major part of why he feels so strongly about Apo lying. During the scene where Owen faces Apo after finding he pulled the lever that killed the second clearing, his main issue with Apo isn’t the fact that he killed people. It was the fact he lied to him.

“You lied to me. Why did you do it? No no no I don't care about the lever. Apo why did you lie to me? You're my friend I trusted you. I stayed there. I held your back when oeca said it was you. I put my name on the line. Because we stood together in the mine and I asked you to swear to my face that you didn't do it. And you lied to me. Im meant to be your friend and you lied.” 

You can also see what Owen values in a person when they discuss Apo’s punishment and Owen says there's 3 main things he did

- went into maze without group consent

- pulled the lever

- he lied

Owen only adds on at the end that he left Squidney.

With all of this too we see Owen for the first time back away from the job he gave himself. He backs away from leadership, we start to see how tired Owen is from the stress of it all. His reasoning has to do with his trust being broken.

“What's the point they're all liars. This entire place is filled with filthy liars. Every single person. All I've ever done is tried to protect them”

“Forget it. I'm done. I'm don't helping people. No I'm not villain, I'm not a hero I'm nothing.

From now on there is no leader of the maze. They put me in charge. My word means nothing to them I'm done.”

“How am I meant to protect them when I try and stop them with physical force im made out to be some kind of monster. When I try to reason with them I'm made out to be soft.”  

Owen being viewed as soft has always been something he’s aware of. People tend to think because he’s kind that they can do whatever they want (sneak into the maze etc) and this perception Owen is a soft person develops. Even if he’s emotional and kind we’ve seen before in early maze days he is not soft. 

Owen tries to ignore all his problems but with it he grows more aggressive than before. His tone changes when he speaks about other people to his voices.

“To visit him would be to acknowledge he exists. And right now the last thing I want to do is consider the fact that this thing lives and breathes and eats and sleeps under my feet. The sooner he wastes away and fades into nothingness the better. I don't see a life going forward with him in it” - Owen about Apo

“The more I look around these stupid 4 walls the more I'm reminded that he that. That I trusted him.”

"he's everywhere. It's like a disease. Like it festers. The outside looks fine and you look just below the surface and it's rotting vile and it's him”

Apo: Just give me a chance.

Owen: why should I? So you can have another tick to the long list of times Owen has naively believed there is some good in the people that infests this clearing? Oeca, mohwee, Bekyamon, Magic, Graecie, Ori, you, liars. All of you.

I’m not just putting quotes here just for you to see oh trust is important! But more so for you to see that Owen changes when his trust has been broken or when he sees someone as a threat. Some of these things sound very similar to what Owen would say when he gets his memories back. Because to Owen trust and protection are 2 very important values. When that is broken he can’t be certain someone isn’t a threat. 

With this change Owen does become more aware he isn’t the most approachable person due to his methods. I do want to bring up this quote first though 

"Can I kill someone? Ive been thinking about this recently I say I'm a soldier. But I've never actually killed anyone. All my life in these 4 walls I've spoken about security and fighting and I can't remember a time I've actually taken someone's life. What if I have to. What if it comes to that I don't think I could stomach it either. I doesn't feel like me. It's not me it's not who I am. No I can't. I'll only attack this person if they do something first. And even then I'll just aim to incapacitate" - Owen about Ash

This is an interesting quote from Owen knowing his later actions but it’s not that out of character. If we look at every flashback he’s had so far we can see the life of a soldier is not one he’s always wanted.

Owen to his dad: What if I'm not ready to be your protector? No It's what you've always wanted! What if I wanted to do something else? What if I don't want to be a soldier what about me when do I get to look out for myself.

However he is always ready to attack if he needs to, if it comes to it he would do anything to protect someone. I think that means to kill even if Owen doesn’t think so at this point. 

His notebook btw

Another note about his behavior is that because of how others view him he almost dies from the creature’s venom. Ayngel even said before Owen is more angry. Other people even though it sounds jokingly say Owen gets grumpy when people disrupt him, leading to no one but Soup to check up on him when he gets stung.

When Bek comes back he doesn’t hesitate to do the things he did before. He does what he thinks is right and protects Magic by aiming a javelin at Bek. He says he’s not violent but anytime he feels like he’s in danger he pulls out a weapon. He did it when he was in Soup’s basement, he does it anytime he hears about someone potetially harming Rasbi, and he did it when he heard Oeca attacked Graecie. 

Owen in general is a fighter at heart. Even if he says he doesn’t want to kill anyone he is still ready to attack. 

Owen: this isn't you Ori. You fight. That's what you do.

Ori: what are you talking about?

Owen: you fight people. When you don't get your way you fight. You and I are the same

At the end of this section, the group decides not to go back in the maze. They had lost Squidney, Oeca, Mohwee, with the presumption that Red, Apo and Graecie were either dead or dying. Owen is tired of it all “Every Time I've tried to protect someone they've ended dead Kyle” he tries to hope but he is so tired. This tiredness also explains some things that happen when he gets his memory back. 

So to summarise before looking at Owen when he gets his memories back, this is what we know about Owen. He wants to protect his friends, he believes in trust a lot, he is both seen as more aggressive and angry these days and soft at the same time, he wants to be a good leader but other people don’t listen. Not much has changed since the early maze days, but it’s a more solid character now. 

When the reunion comes around Owen in the story has finally had a moment to think about everything that happened between him and Apo. His main regret in the series was how he treated him even if he broke his trust. 

Owen loves to contradict himself a lot but it’s a very human trait he has. He has complex feelings about Apo, and Beks and a lot of people. Yet he’ll still offer his protection to them. It’s because of this the ‘sudden’ shift in personality he has becomes very shocking to the audience. 

Since right before he sees Apo, Owen is very emotional here. Very similar to how he was in the early maze days. It’s out of his character to hope for something like seeing Apo because he knows it’s very unlikely he’ll see him again. However he gives himself this hope, one more chance. 

When Owen regains his memories the tone shift is obvious. He acts less emotional, he seems more mature. But we do need to consider this is someone who just had a lifetime of memories shoved back in his head and his core values are so strong that Owen doesn’t hesitate to act the way he used to. 

There’s lots of similarities to Owen here to the one we’ve known. Like his purpose. He sets one for himself immediately after arriving in the clearing. Even as he talks to Apo about his past he talks about his purpose

“I had a purpose once. I was useful, vital, adored. And suddenly everything changed. The world grew tired of blood shed. When all you're good for is violence, when you've been breed into a killing machine, a nation of peace will toss you aside like a spent torch”

There’s an obvious difference here right? The man we’ve watched in the maze who wanted to protect his friends just killed his best friend. This is definitely a different person right? Yes and no. Owen hasn’t changed that much, and I'll explain why after we go through some more things. But it’s important to note that this isn’t a completely new person, this isn’t something that is unexpected when we go through the information we already have about Owen. 

“I know what you are, you are everything wrong in the world has to offer. You are the amalgamation of all the gluttony and lust of humans with the evil and cunning of demons. You stand as a testament to everything vile. You are a disease on the face of this earth and I am it's curse” 

Apo: this isn't you you've changed 

Owen: incorrect, this is me. The man you manipulated and lied was nothing more than a puppet driven by the instinct to survive. 

Owen wants protection for his friends. He goes to extreme lengths to keep people safe, so when he remembers demons as this evil creature that will hurt people for their own gain he wasn’t going to stand around and do nothing right? 

Surprising or not this is very in character for Owen if we look at everything else we have from the series. To him, he is still doing his job, the one he’s done since day 1 in the clearing. Just now the threat isn’t just the maze and the occasional person, it’s demons. 

The way Owen became a demon hunter is essential too. He used to live in comfort, and based on past flashbacks he was training to be a soldier even if he didn’t fully enjoy it. His mother was a poet and his father was a general. He had grown up hearing all about how terrible demons are, and he didn’t understand until his village had been burned down.

One negative interaction with demons had put this deep hatred in his heart for them. Before his memories returned he was ready to forgive Apo, he knew he wasn’t as dangerous as he made him out to be. But when the sudden influx of memory comes, he has this past knowledge that Apo is a threat. 

Since Apo had hurt Owen before this only adds to it. Remember Owen really values trust. Apo has broken that trust in the past, so everything combined and letting go of the final restriction it’s no wonder he kills Apo. 

Despite this ‘massive personality change’ Owen has, when he returns to the clearing he still makes sure Magic is safe. He doesn't tell people about the lava rising so he wouldn’t cause panic. He still cares about these people. 

But Owen starts to view all the demons as a threat, every demon in the clearing has done something to suggest they could be dangerous. The reason Owen kills Guts is because they poisoned the food at the feast, which led to Magic being poisoned. He carries out this duty for protection

I think another thing people tend to forget about Owen is that he's been slowly breaking apart trying to fit what others want from him as seen in the last section. And it took a major toll on him. His outburst at Magic is one of the ways shown to us how much stress he’s been under. Perhaps even guilt he’s been feeling.

Magic: if you don't you're just putting everyone danger by not leading us… in there…

Owen: danger? You want to talk about putting others in danger? All of this coming from who exactly? The woman who's clearing burnt down under her leadership? The woman who lied about that previous position of leadership as she lacked the spine to correct her friend when she lied? The woman who was tied up and left for dead by that same friend? The woman who swore to protect a stranger only to them shot down in front of her? What the woman who stood still as her friend was ripped apart beside her? Oh yeah the magnitude of your failures Magic is deafening. Do you hear it? When you fall asleep at night, do you hear the screams of the dead who's blood stain your hands? How do you cope? When you find out be a good friend and let me know would you? Been looking for a way to shut them up. 

Owen does try to justify his actions to his voices even if they don’t listen. He knows people here aren’t good. He’s known this since clearing 2 was introduced, but with his memories back he feels like he has to carry on this duty by killing the threat. That’s the only way to keep people in the clearing safe right?

Owen to voices: have you stopped to think why I'm doing this? You seem so attached to these creatures, why? What good have they done? These people aren't good people. None of us good people. We're all in here for a reason. Just because you haven't taken your rose tinted glasses off to see that doesn't mean the rest of us haven't. 

Like before he won’t let anything stop him, even if it means hurting a few people. He doesn't hesitate to pull out a weapon when he hears Ayngel might know him. He can’t risk anything ruining his plans because he can’t afford to. He’s so tired. I think at this point anyone that was a major threat to him he would kill. 

Ayngel: I feel like I recognise you. You and your face from somewhere 

Owen: oh? (Starts to pull out knife from his bag)

Ayngel: I've been having this thought and it's got me thinking (Owen pulls out a knife in case)

Ayngel: actually, honestly forget it. It's all a dream and I'm overthinking

The only exception to his thinking is Rasbi. Rasbi actually hasn’t done anything wrong to him personally. She’s one of the few people that didn’t break his trust but he still kills her. Why? 

First off he doesn’t see her as the friend he wanted to protect but instead as something he protected only to kill in the end to fulfil his duty. Her sister is the reason why he ended up in the maze, so even without Rasbi directly harming Owen in any way it’s enough for Owen to kill her. I’m sure any small mistake or detail would have led Owen to killing any demon, because it only proves his thinking. 

Owen barely survives after Rasbi attacks him. So as Owen starts planning how to kill Krow he starts going a bit insane. His room is a mess, his mind is a mess and he can barely stand it anymore. We really start to see him fall apart here

Owen: this yolk is a burden is a burden I can't carry for much longer. I'm tired. I want to rest. But I took a pact, I made a promise. A glorious death is his for who his country falls and either I or they thing will have to die before I stop. 

Something that’s brought up when discussing the idea of ‘Maze Owen’ is the fact that we can see ‘glimpses’ of him in different interactions. For example when Owen and Krow go out into the maze and Owen spots Puddy he makes sure Puddy doesn’t die by keeping him away. Even if he’s aggressive in the scene the fandom interpretation is the care he has for Puddy as ‘Maze Owen’ slipped through. But It’s not out of character for him to still show care for people after his memories are returned based on everything we’ve seen.

Before ‘killing’ off Krow, Owen does say this “There's no escaping who you are” Which is really interesting since most characters he’s interacted with will tell him in the maze you can escape who you used to be. Owen knows for a fact no matter what he does in life now he will never have anything outside the maze. Because the world doesn’t need him anymore. He kills the demons as his final act of service to the world because he has nothing else to offer. 

When Krow finally comes back and Owen gets hit in the head he says to the rest of the group “I was protecting you all.” and “You don't know what they're like! You haven't seen the outside world.”

Looking at his final moments we see that everyone that Owen has cared about doesn’t trust him anymore. They don’t believe his protection was needed. He’s told that he will not get out of this cell. He’s left alone in the silence of the cell. Finally with the time to think. He starts experiencing multiple flashbacks and it makes it hard for him to think. 

We’ve seen in the past how Owen deals with multiple flashbacks. It gives him a headache or causes him pain in some cases. He also becomes really emotional afterwards. This follows the same case. Except he starts to realize some things.

Krow: I know those eyes. That glint of desperation for approval but knowing it's never coming. We're more similar than you let yourself believe you and I

(Flash back ‘i was an archer.?’ ‘i was a hunter?’ I was a soldier)

“I was a tool. Used.”

He knows he’s going to die soon and he starts to panic. The most important line he says is 

“So what now? This is it!? I deserve to die in battle. I killed them. It was what I. Its just what I was meant to do. I was trained. Should i have? I should have. I should have. I can't think inside my head, it's split in two” 

“So what voices? What was I before then huh? Was that me? Is that who people trust? People trust that one. Old Owen. Yes? It wasn't me. That wasn't me” flashback about Apo first coming up

“I can't think. I can't. They trusted him. They trusted him but not me? My head…”

After this he pleads with Magic to let him out. Owen claims “I hurt them, I hurt my friends. Rasbi, Guts. And Apo, Krow I don't know why I did those things” He pleads and cries. And he's desperate

Owen: “No magic it's me please.” 

Magic: “You kill people owen”

Owen: “It wasn't me I'm sorry. I just wanted to keep people safe.” 

Owen: “Magic please don't go… no… magic. You can't do this.”

Magic: “I can and I am” 

I think when we look at these final clips there’s a very important thing happening. Owen is separating himself from the past. He can’t understand why his friends don’t trust him. Even though nothing has changed. To him his eyes have been opened to the dangers of demons and he fulfilled his purpose. 

Why does this separation even happen? This is where we move to the final part of this long analysis and look at theories. There’s no way I can say for sure this is right or this is wrong. I can only tell you what I think based on the material already there. 

So before I go into this I have to emphasize I am not saying you can't refer to earlier Owen as maze Owen to explain Owen at different periods of his life. I'm saying when we really look at it, maze Owen doesn't exist since they're the same person. 

So what am I talking about? The concept of ‘maze’ Owen has been around for a long time. Even ccOwen talks about his character like that. The idea that just because Owen didn’t have his memories that he was some sweet, soft guy that needs to be babied is something that affects a lot on how you view him as a character. 

'maze' Owen doesn't actually exist because it's a way that Owen has come up with to justify to himself how he could have cared for demons without shattering his ideals. This is confused with Owen have distinct personalities and missing how he hasn't strayed from his ideals since the start with his idea of protecting everyone.

To separate that period of Owen's life in the maze ignores the fact that the characteristics you see in Owen post reunion are the same from before but taken to the extreme.

He's always been capable of ‘evil’'. It's the same as every other character in the series. We don't separate them like we do with Owen. Every character in the series is inherently morally gray, they do things out of desperation to survive. You can never say someone is 100% good or bad. 

Owen’s same mindset of 'I need to protect the people I care about because they're in danger now' carries through. After the reunion in his head demons are no longer part of that group he wants to protect. 

The separation of 'maze' and post reunion Owen forgets even in the post memory phase he had the ability to love like 'maze' Owen had. He released Puddy, he started a small farm, he started to relax. It's all part of him.

In his final moments he says a few important things to note. The first being "I was a tool. I was trained. Should I have... I should have." And then right after "I can't think in my head it's split in two"

It seems some take this as 'maze' Owen coming back and fighting with Owen on should he have killed Apo and the others. However rather than 'maze' Owen coming back i think it's this internal conflict he has with himself and his ideals.

Before he says this he's getting flashbacks to the early maze days where he showed kindness to demons. Something he would never let himself do in the past outside the maze. And something he would never do after he remembers it all.

Then he says to the voices "Is that who people trust? Old Owen" while those memories are playing. The voices respond saying they miss that Owen and he replies "Yes? That wasn't me" this is possibly where it further adds to the whole 'maze' Owen is a different person thing.

Rather than facing the fact that his thinking doesn’t make sense anymore he separates himself from those memories. As soon as Owen accepts that demons are not these creatures that betray and kill you at any moment, his life has no purpose.

Owen’s thinking comes from the manipulation and propaganda he's been fed. In his final episode we get these quotes which show just how much his thinking revolves around protection and also showing what years of training did to him.

He understands he was a tool that was used. He's well aware everything he is doing may not have a purpose and yet he still plays this part. He can't break away from that thinking because if he lets himself, Owen has to face the fact that his whole life had no true meaning.

That is a terrifying thing to do. He has been in this environment for so long you can’t just take him out of it. 

Going over everything you can access in Owen’s pov, we know that before gaining his memories Owen is a person that cares deeply about his friends, he risks himself to protect them, he won’t hesitate to hold a weapon against someone he sees as a threat. Owen thinks trust is an important value to have, he takes it very seriously. But we also know that not everyone likes Owen and his leadership. He’s seen with a military mindset, people don’t want to upset him and it nearly costs his life.

Now let’s compare that with the Owen we get to know after his memories return. He wants to protect the people he deeply cares about, he risks himself to protect them, he doesn’t hesitate to hold a weapon against someone that he sees as a threat, only now the threat is demons. When we start looking at these differences, yes, Owen when he regains his memories is different, his tone changes, he murders people. But those core values we’ve seen throughout the series stay with him.

It’s one of the reasons why Owen can’t understand why no one in the clearing is on his side. He protected them against the threat they didn't know about. That is his purpose, and that’s what he’s good for. Remember right at the beginning of the series Owen sets his purpose to protect these people, now this is still the same. He views demons as a threat because he hasn’t had good experiences with them. Even if Apo became his friend in the clearing, Apo ends up lying to Owen, and betraying his trust. Guts became his friend but Guts tried to poison Magic. Owen has never fully trusted Krow and that distrust only furthers once he knows what Krow is capable of based on his experiences with demons.

So let’s go back to the previous question: who was it there? You’re probably thinking well how do you explain maze Owen and the chips. ccOwen has mentioned before that it's a possibility for the chips to alter memories. Maybe Starr suppressed those memories and maze Owen was there again. Or he was hit hard on the head right? Maybe his chip was damaged and it altered his emotions and memory.

There is too little known information to us as an audience about the chips in their head. We know they can supposedly make the outsiders lose track of time, alter their memories, their emotions and change how they act. But if the chips in their head is the explanation for everything then why does Owen remember killing his friends when he talks to Magic? He says it like he wasn't the one doing it, like he watched someone else do it. How do you explain his behaviour then? If the damaged chip really made him act like that then why do flashbacks still occur when he's in prison? He seems to have no control over those, so the chip must still work fine?

I think when we look at his character the maze has already changed him whether he likes it or not. There’s more doubt in him than before. He lets Apo go with extra time. He hesitated before he ran after him. No matter how small, he has changed.

But when Owen talks about himself in the past he makes this separation. The voices in his head won't stop calling for the guy they used to know, even though he's right here. I think Owen doesn't even want to acknowledge at one point he was friends with the demons he hated so much. 

In that prison cell all his ideals and values are facing him. Everything he's done and he's known has been a lie. I think he knows this but can't bring himself to acknowledge that. Would you admit what you thought for your entire life was wrong? That you killed countless for nothing?

When faced with death Owen becomes desperate. Which I think explains his behaviour with Magic. That is his last hope and he knows people like the older version of him. I don't think he's fully lying though when he says i don't know why I did those things. Not because maze Owen came back or anything but because in the maze he no longer has this duty but he still carries it out. He's so tired from it all and he wants to leave it behind but he can't.

So let's go over his death scene one more time. “My head it's split in two” I think the explanation for this is that he was just hit with a bunch of flashbacks of his first days. Right before this he also says ‘I was a tool. Used’ I believe in his final moments where he has a moment to think he starts to fight himself. Should he have done all this for a country that throws him away the second he's useless? He was trained to do this. But should he have really? That's what I think is making him say my head it's split in two. He's fighting his own views and alongside these positive memories it makes him confused. And overwhelmed.

It's important to note Owen doesn't have a single bad flashback about Apo and Rasbi. He doesn't think about the levers, he thinks about his friends that he met. That he protected.

The more flashbacks he gets the more defensive he becomes. “I'm right here you can't convince me otherwise” He doesn't understand why the Owen in his memories is trusted so much, even though they're the same person. In his mind he's doing what he's always done. protect.

“It wasn't me I'm sorry I just wanted to keep people safe” everything he says to Magic is half genuine and half lie. I don't think even Owen knows which parts are which. It's easier if he separates himself into the nice trusted Owen and who he is now.

No matter what in the end, that was Owen. Not Maze Owen but Owen who is desperate to live. He's tired of it all. He's finished his mission and he won't even get to see what he thinks will be an honorable ending for him.

Remember what Owen says to Apo? "The man you manipulated and lied was nothing more than a puppet driven by the instinct to survive."

So of course he'll do anything to survive even if it means playing up the truth.

It's hard to separate Owen into these neat boxes and say for sure that was Maze Owen at the end or that was full manipulation. Because like Owen everything is a bit grey here. Maze Owen wasn't the best person, he hurt his friends, people were scared of him. And post memories Owen isn't some misunderstood guy that needs babying either. 

My final thoughts on this debate is that in the end the one that pleads for his life is just Owen. To separate him and say it was Maze Owen doesn't allow you to understand how complex Owen is as a character. And continues to let you believe that Owen can't do anything wrong. Not understanding sometimes a good person is capable of this evil. To the end Owen still believed he was doing what was right and that was protecting the ones he cared about. So has anything really changed since the start?

[phoenixcatch7]

Loz fandom stop being angsty and give the daydreaming kids on big fun adventures with a cool glowing sword some actual whimsy and joy challenge

[shima-draws]

Catch me being super emotional and sappy on this Monday morning. Anyway I'm so so so glad I got into One Piece, I don't regret it for a single second, I'm so mad that it took me this long to finally sit down and watch it bc now it's been what. 3 months? And I'm 400+ episodes in. I've never watched 400 episodes of anything before (except maybe Pokeani) and I thought it would feel like a chore but now I'm SO fucking addicted I can't get enough. The story is so good the pacing is so good the characters are SO good I can't help but get attached and scream and jump for joy and cry my heart out (and worry my roommates downstairs with all my yelling but. You know) because it's just EVERYTHING. The found family, the power one goofy kid has to topple kingdoms, to make friends with anyone and everyone he meets, to completely destroy anybody who hurts his nakama, to rid his crew of all their burdens and chains that bind them to their traumatic pasts. I'm going to fucking explode I love One Piece so much. And maybe I'm 20 years too late to the party but I'm here and this series has its claws in me so deep that I couldn't leave even if I wanted to. And there's people here who have been fans for years and years and YEARS at this point who are OP Veterans and you've all been so sweet and kind and nice and it makes me want to cry. GOD DAMMIT. Banging my head against the wall all these emotions ARE going to make me blow up. I love you Monkey D Luffy I love you One Piece

[ezra-iolite]

One Last Wish- Chapter 1 (A Pirateformers AU Fanfic)

The Immortal Sun finally arrives on the sea border of Joka Ardhi, the homeland of their Dragonkin crewmate, Asya Mutheru. There, all is revealed about her past and why she has returned to the land that exiled her. Gathering a small army, including her polyamorous spouses Captain Elbent and Verglaust, they march across the desert to the capital to face the tyrant emperor of the kingdom, Dragon Lord Jhamal, and stop his crusade to invade the northern kingdoms before it begins… And fulfil the prophecy of the Throne of Crimson Sands.

The Pirateformers AU, Elbent and Verglaust belong to @tigracespace

The brief mention of Solclave belongs to @dimorphodon-x

Blue Heron belongs to @hyraxas

Asya and Apophis/Apo belong to me

Chapter 1: Legacy of the Burning Prince

“So… This is Joka Ardhi, huh? The legendary Kingdom of Crimson Sands… You still haven’t told us why we’re here, Asya. And after six months of you playing my role as the navigator, I think now’s a good time as any to tell us what exactly is going on here.”

“I told you already, Blue. All will be explained in time. For now, we just need to stay on this side of the sea border and begin planning.”

The taller native of the desert kingdom turned her back to Blue Heron to face their destination, its glimmering red sands and many colourful and small sandstone buildings of the port city now within sight on the horizon. His focus, however, remained on the Jokani woman as he spotted her long pointed ears droop ever so slightly, a motion caused by the shiver that spread up her back the moment she spotted her homelands far ahead.

“Wait, I-I’m sorry, I must have misheard you over the strong wind. I thought I heard you say that you didn’t-”

“You heard me, Blue… I know I’m normally the “I’ve got a plan, let’s get going” kind of person, but… I honestly don’t know what to expect the moment we enter Jokani territory. I… I-I mean, come on, Blue! It’s been forty years since I left this place, and I haven’t even dared to sail past the equator until now. I’ve never been able to gather the courage to come back here since my exile, not even when they…”

Asya’s words caught in her throat as another shiver ran up her spine, this time accompanied by an audible whimper as she hugged herself to be rid of the chills of her past. Blue’s anger immediately fell as he approached the Dragonkin and held her shoulder, drawing her teary eyed attention back onto him.

“Asya… You’re here now, and that’s all you need to know that you’re ready to face whatever lies ahead. You faced your fear by asking your wife, our captain, to be the navigator for this mission you told her was vital and would be explained later, and your courage has since brought us all the way here. So whatever happens next… You won’t be alone in facing this challenge. But, Asya… We all need to know what you think we’ll face, once we dock in that city. If this is a dangerous mission you’ve started, we need to know what to expect. So please, Asya… tell us why we’re here.”

Sniffling loudly, Asya quickly dried her eyes on her dress sleeve before she sighed and turned to fully face Blue Heron. “Not here… I need everyone to hear this. Gather the entire crew here, then I’ll tell you everything.”

“I understand. I won’t be long.”

“Take your time… And Heron?”

Blue looked over his shoulder as he neared the door to head below deck. Asya let out a long sigh before she looked back up at him with a half-smile.

“Do you trust me?”

“… With my life, my friend. Or… how do you say it in your tongue? A friend?”

Asya chuckled with a soft blush blooming on her dark ebony cheeks. “It’s rafiki. You’re my rafiki, darling… my friend.”

“Huh…. It’s nice to hear your true accent again, and not your preferred posh Primus one,”

“I- Wait, how do you know about tha-”

“But… To answer your question… I trust you, as my rafiki, with my life. And I hope that you can trust me in turn with whatever you need to do here. We’re a crew, Asya… Nothing will change that.” With a wink, Blue slipped through the door and vanished down the stairs, leaving Asya alone in her shocked realization on the deck.

Letting out another heavy sigh to release the tension within her, Asya reached up to her headband and carefully untied its knot under her dreadlocks, removing her most valuable treasure and holding the thin strip of silk in both hands, before her thumb squeezed out the small hard lump within its folded layers to reveal a large ruby that plopped into her palm. Holding the ruby up between her fingers, Asya gazed at the soft glimmer of orange magic within the crystal, letting out another sigh to steel her nerves as she closed her fist around it.

“If only you knew, Blue. I have no idea what might happen the moment I step off this ship. But I know one thing’s for certain… I’m not running away. Not anymore. Bori… Mama… Kamaria… I’m done hiding the real me. It’s finally time to do this… Right, Apo?”

A golden string of pure magic flickered into reality from her chest, its glimmering soft light revealing itself slowly across the deck and up towards the mast, where a red ball of fire roared into life at the end of the golden string and soon formed the shape of a giant feathered amphiptere dragon, his outline and form made entirely out of red fire that did not burn any of the wood of the Immortal Sun’s exterior. Gripping the mast with a winged claw, he hoisted himself up to the empty crow’s nest and used his fiery serpent tongue to wrap around the chest hidden under the floorboard, pulling it out and clambering down to place it in front of Asya before he stood tall before her and finally spoke.

“The throne awaits, my queen~” Apophis purred, wrapping his coils under himself to perch before his soul-bound ward, the string connecting their very souls turning invisible once more as Asya kicked the chest open and knelt down to rummage inside it, placing the crystal and her beloved headscarf in her dress pocket for the time being.

“Don’t call me that… There’s too much that needs to be done before I can even dare to announce my claim to the crown. And luckily, it’s a three day journey from Wajiri to Oasis. And… I still need to actually consider the consequences of what will happen when I show my face there.”

“Well, forty mortal years is a long time for anyone to remember such a detail as your exile. And who knows? Maybe there are those who hate the Tyrant too that will happily choose you over him?” Apo crossed his winged arms over his chest as he coiled his serpentine body under himself to perch before Asya.

Asya glared over the lid of the chest at Apo. “Really? You actually think they’ll side with me? The unwanted runt who was nearly killed for simply coming out as a woman, who then had the entire Lord’s Hand hunt me down the day I left, and killed those who helped me? Really, Apo?! Tell me something, then… If they truly did support me after all this time, then tell me right now that there isn’t a decomposed body being hung on display on the outskirts of that same city my entire first family were slaughtered in. Tell me that they finally buried the only mortal man who ever made me feel loved and helped me escape this hellish kingdom…. Only then will I finally believe you, that the people of this kingdom have truly changed and will willingly betray the crown for me.”

Apo dared to only look briefly to the horizon, before he muttered a soft, “I don’t know… I cannot smell him.”

“Exactly… Only his bones are surely still there. The rest of the Dunefarers were at least burned at the pyre for aiding in my escape. They were given mercy, Apo… He gave them mercy for daring to aid the runt of a child he wanted dead. And I still remember the laughter of the Lord’s Hand members, those damned humans who swore such eager loyalty to him and only him… I remember them laughing as they hunted Bori down… And I could only watch from the drifting ship as he was gutted alive and… Apo, I can’t. I can’t face him again, after what he did to Bori… To the one man I felt safe enough to consider being my Dad, when…. My own blood father killed him, Apo!! Just for helping me and giving me the family I yearned for in that accursed desert!!,”

A hiccup caught in her throat as Asya gripped the sides of the chest with one hand, the other tightly holding onto the red cloth parcel she was looking for, shakily pulling it out to reveal the blood splatters of that day still staining the fabric. Sobbing into the parcel, Apo leaned down to nuzzle his snout against Asya’s shoulder.

“And you’re telling me… I have to see him again, after what he did to me and the Dunefarers? To Bori?”

“Someone has to stand up to him, before he begins his crusade to the north,” Apo whispered as he wrapped his wings around his ward, swaddling her in feathers of harmless fire. “Kamaria would never have sent that letter if her vision wasn’t true. That same vision is surely how the old Seer figured out where to send it in order for it to reach us on time. How else could she have known when none from our old home knows our whereabouts?”

“That… That’s Kamaria for you. Always the first to know what to do in any situation. She’s the Elder Seer for a reason, after all.” Asya sniffled, her grip on the parcel finally loosened to allow her to unwrap it and reveal the gold and leather armour within.

“So then, if you don’t believe me or that Heron fellow that you are ready to do this, then will you at least believe in old ‘Maria? She’s seen an empire rise and fall before, remember? She was there when your forefather, my grandson, took the throne and emerged in fire as her new Dragon Lord. She was there to serve his heir as the first Seer and formed the Mwonaji Council of other Dragonkin Seers. That old hag is the strongest ally we have, and who is luckily hidden on the inside. She knows what you’re capable of… And what your father will do if you don’t stop him.”

“… And what if I have to kill him?” Asya’s thumb brushed over the old bloodstain on her aged armour as Apo’s fiery form shrunk down to the size of a large dog to meet her gaze.

“Then you’ll have an army. Not just on this ship… but along the path to the capital. You are not the first nor only noble of Alunnui’s bloodline to have been born in the wrong body. Your great grandmother was born a male too. And yet she was more than able to carry and deliver your grandfather and his brother. Just as how you delivered Sira. That alone is proof that your father is an idiot for thinking that only a man deserves the crown.”

“But others follow his sexist logic, Apo… Others will try to stop me from doing this.  What if they outnumber those who wish to see my father step down? What if no one wants me in his place?”

“Tell the crew your story… They will be your voice to convince the people of why he must be stopped.”

“But what if they-”

“They have known you for twenty of their mortal years. And while you may hide it, Asya… The closer we’ve gotten to the border, the stronger you’ve become. Your connection to our homeland’s magic is growing stronger, and your once stunted appearance has finally changed. You’re not the same person you were when you left these lands, or when you first stepped onto this ship… These people got to know you as you grew, in both power and through gaining a family. One look at the real you and upon hearing your story of why you left… It will be enough. If you cannot trust in yourself to convince them… Trust me. They deserve to hear the full story.”

“About my ancestor… or about you?” Asya chuckled softly as she dried her eyes and closed the chest, allowing Apo to use his tail to wrap around it and carry it behind him as he slithered over to the mast.

“Why not the both of us? Not many know the tale of the Burning Prince… or why I am bound to your soul. So… why not tell them everything? And show them why you need their help to stop running from what you fear most. After all… You said it yourself. You’re done running… Aren’t you?”

“I am. And I’m tired of hiding it all. I came out once before… It couldn’t hurt to do it again, right?,” Pulling the ruby out of her pocket, Asya looked at it within her palm before looking back up at Apo. “…I’m done hiding from him and from everyone. It ends now.”

Closing her eyes with a heavy sigh, Asya hugged the wrapped armour close to her chest, and with one more look to her fist, she crushed the gem into tiny shards, each one that fell from her opened hand vanishing as they turned into red sand that blew away in the wind before they could hit the wooden floor. The orange glittery magic swirled like a sandstorm around her, rising up from the soles of her boots to the top of her head before it too blew away with the wind, towards the sun high above. As Apo’s form returned to its full size to allow him to hide the chest within the crow’s nest once again, he looked down from above her with a proud smile.

“And there she is… A blessing of the sun itself. Orange suits you, my dear~ So… What’s the plan?”

“I’m not sure yet, but… I think I might change before they arrive. These heels are killing me.”

Apo chuckled as he lowered his tail to her, allowing Asya to sit down on it and lift her up into the crow’s nest, a flash of orange scales appearing under her dress as a tail wrapped around Apo’s own.

~*~

“Seventy-seven… Seventy-eight… Has anyone seen Solclave? I thought he came up here with Elbent?”

“He’s coming up in a sec, Blue! He’s just busy with something,” Elbent called out, as she waved Verglaust over to join her side. “Over here, hun! Is Kevin and Bryn’ with you? Did either of them find Asya yet?”

“Kevin’s fetching the kids right now, and Bryn’ is helping him with that. They’ll be here soon,” Verglaust assured, peering over the massive crowd now gathered on the deck. “But no, they’ve been too busy to look for Asya. But I doubt we need to, since she’s the one who asked Blue to bring us here. He said she had something to tell everyone, about why we’re in Joka Ardhi.”

“Oh, good. As long as she’s… Wait, you don’t think this is about… that, do you?” Elbent gripped onto Verglaust’s arm as she looked up at him.

“We’ll have to wait and see what she says. But I have a bad feeling it might be that.”

As Verglaust turned his attention back on the crowd, he spotted the two half-giants, Brynjolf and Solclave, coming through the door, with Kevin and five children in tow. But just as he waved them over to reunite the family amongst the hoard of crewmembers, a flash of red zipped down the mast from the crow’s nest and landed on the quarter deck above the crowd.

Standing before the entire crew of the Immortal Sun was a warrior wrapped in red fabric that hid her face in a hood, which continued as a drape that wrapped from over her right shoulder and around her chest under a golden half plate of armour shaped as an under-bust corset, leaving her ebony shoulders exposed. From her elbows to her hands, bright orange scales formed a natural armour for her exposed arms, armed with lethal claws for hands that rested upon her pleated skirt of dark brown leather strips, woven with leather string on top of the underskirt of more red fabric that peeked out under the leather to reach her knees, all held together by a belt of cheetah skin and braided red fabric, on top of a tan coloured strip of leather that formed the large belt around the entirety of her stomach and waist. As she made her way to the stairs towards the deck, her bare digitigrade legs were finally revealed to also have orange scales below the knee, leading down to talon bearing paws for feet that made no sound whatsoever as she stepped onto the usually creaking wood of the stairs and stopped halfway to stay in everyone’s line of sight, a long tail of orange scales and black fur covering the tip revealing itself as it curled around her leg.

“Thank you for coming, everyone. I know you all have questions, and they will be answered soon,” The warrior spoke, revealing herself by voice alone to be the Dragonkin.

Pulling down her hood, Asya looked down at the crowd with bright aquamarine, draconic slit eyes, her pointed ears now long enough to reach past her head behind her, and long, curved horns of charcoal black peeked through her tied back dreadlocks and grew above her head slightly before they swooped towards the back into sharp, curved tips, the rings along the horns glimmering like polished crystals that glowed in the colours and red veins akin to volcanic magma. Stopping at the middle step along the short flight of stairs, Asya spoke once more to the entire crew.

“In order to answer at least some of them, I wish to tell you about this kingdom we’re in… About the history of Joka Ardhi. Apo… Would you mind starting us off?”

Closing her eyes, Asya’s head suddenly twitched to the side with a soft crack of her neck, but instead of her blue gaze greeting the crowd, golden eyes that glowed with power and pride narrowed with mischief, as a grin formed to flash sharp fangs in a playful smile and a masculine voice purred from Asya’s lips, as Apo spoke to the crowd.

“Certainly, my dear~”

With a snap of his fingers, Apo brought the lanterns around the entire deck to life with red flames that casted long dark shadows over the deck, startling many of the crewmates as they huddled to one side of the deck, as the fires sputtered and grew brighter within their glass lantern prisons. The midday sun seemed to nearly dull as darkness covered the deck like a tent roof, and from the shadows rose silhouettes outlined by the fires… Silhouettes of dragons soaring through the air.

“Three thousand years ago, dragons ruled the world. They were, however, found to be the most plentiful in the south, where no humans or mortals lived due to the harsh sun and the shifting sands. So, the south gained its name from the main inhabitants of the land… For to this day, it is still known as the Dragon Lands, merely called so in a different tongue. You know it to today… as Joka Ardhi.”

The shadows changed as Apo stepped onto the deck, the light swirling behind him to reveal his true shadow, that of a giant serpentine dragon. As he turned to face the crowd, his eyes in the shadow glowed gold behind him, but around his neck shone the reflections of ruby shards in the shape of a crescent. Beside his shadow were two wyverns, both bearing blue eyes just like Asya’s.

“Three thousand years ago… I ruled the Dragon Lands as their Lord. My reign was supreme in every continent for no dragon could best me in battle, but my seat of power was here in the south. I ruled with my Alpha and wife, Jua… and our many children, including my eldest daughter, Princess Citrine. She was to be my heir, to become Dragon Queen of the skies, the seas and the lands across the world. Then, one day… The first humans arrived.”

His shadow changed as Apo paced to the left, now revealing him sitting like a regal sphinx facing a group of humans that bowed on one knee to him, a large fleet of ships behind them.

“They came from the far north, even farther than the shores of Primus or Unicron. They told me that day that they came to my domain in search of a home, for a place they could begin a new life and to build a culture of their own. I granted them the right of shelter and aided in building their first settlement, and for a time… there was peace. They respected our laws and culture, and in turn we learned about the beauty of humanity, our ability to shapeshift in order to appear like them and walk in their shoes for a time, and the advancements one generation could craft in such a short lifespan. By the time my daughter was in her adult years, the settlement had become a vast village and they were already spreading out to create more for their ever growing numbers. But with such rapid growth and pride in one’s growing strength… came humanity’s true form of hubris.”

The fires dimmed as the shadows changed once more, revealing a cave where Apo and the two wyverns slept around a nest of eggs. Apo’s fist clenched at his side as he spoke with a growl to his voice.

“I…. Rrrrgghhh…. I was nearing the day where I would give my mantle of Dragon Lord to my daughter, for she had already started a family and had asked me to be their guardian in my retirement. I was happy… so happy… to settle down and see my family grow. One night, my den was invaded by humans… seeking something they once swore loyalty to, but now sought to have for themselves.”

The fires suddenly rose into a bright blaze to reveal the humans wielding spears and swords at the mouth of the cave, many of whom had already plunged them into the two wyverns, while others stormed through the nest, breaking the eggs and spilling their precious yolks. The humans that surrounded Apo’s shadow plunged their spears into his neck, ripping off the collar of rubies he wore and frantically started pulling them off the collar.

“They called themselves the Founders, for they deemed their half of humanity as the true inhabitants of the kingdom, and none should dare oppose their right to rule their own kind. So… they took my mantle and crown and killed my family before my very eyes. And with my dying breath, I swore to them that the kingdom of mankind would fall, for the sands have always been home to the dragons, and we do not die that easily. I remember only their laughter at my words… before a spear was plunged between my eyes.”

Darkness then fell over the entire ship, as the wind blew harshly over them all, bringing a chill to their spines as somewhere within the breeze… distant war cries echoed, the clashing of swords and the roar of dragons boomed far off into the distance.

“And so began the Founder’s War… A battle for the right to own the kingdom of the sands… But for my people, it was a battle for survival of the species. A war against humanity’s desire for our extermination. We were once called Titans by them… but now they deemed us pests, monsters… mere beasts. However… during the twelve-year conflict, a miracle happened.”

Out from beside Apo, a new shadow dragon rose, glowing red with blue eyes just like Jua and Citrine’s, with a single ruby shard upon his neck. Beside him… a female human that held his raised claw and looked up at him with awe and adoration.

“My youngest son, Prince Rhodon, led my kind against the human Founders in the war, making him the last true Dragon Lord for a time. However, during the war… He fell in love. With a human of all things, but the human was a leader too. Her name… was Seraphina, and she led a resistance of other humans that saw the dragons as equals, and as such did everything they could to persuade their own species to stop the crusade. In fact, because of their secret union, many other dragons fell for humans too and just like my son and his forbidden bride, they hid their love from the world and used it as motivation to stop the war for good. But… the humans had lived on our lands long enough to learn magic, especially our kind of magic… Fire. And while we used fire as both our weapon and lifeforce, we also used it as our leverage to keep our numbers alive… We had Soulfire. White flames made from the very essence of our souls, we could use it to bring someone from within death’s grip back to life, in exchange for a piece of our soul. A life for a life, something we rarely did only when absolutely necessary. And somehow… Humans learned about our secret and managed to find a way to create its exact opposite. By human hand alone, they made the most forbidden form of magic to this day… Grimfire or, what my people called it back then… Blackfire.”

The shadow of a battlefield soon appeared across the deck, with dragon roars and clashing swords growing louder all around the crew as dragons and human warriors clashed claw and weapon over and over again. From beside Apo, three humans adorned with mage robes towered over the battlefield like spires, the one in the middle holding his hands cupped together and a sinister grin grew under his hood. The flames from within two of the lanterns suddenly jumped out of their glass prisons and into the hands of the mage, the fire gathering into a wild and angry blaze that darkened in colour, until it became black with a purple core and outline and brought an unnatural chill to the crew who stood near it. All three human mages laughed as they released the purple flames… only to join in the chorus of blood-curdling screams and screeches alike as both the mages, the dragons and every single shadow on the battlefield was engulfed by the black fire, the deadly flames spreading over their flesh and turning them instantly into skeletons. One such shadow from the battlefield, a large wyvern, jumped out of the flat shadow world and became a solid 3D figure of green flames that flew around the ship and screeched in fear as the black flames gained tendrils and lashed out at the green life-sized dragon. The black fire leapt out and caught the dragon’s tail, turning its green fire into yellow bone shaped flames as the black flames devoured its flesh like burning paper, causing the green wyvern to screech and roar in agony as it crashed next to the ship but it did not touch the surface of the water. More roars suddenly accompanied it as more and more coloured fire-formed dragons began to appear and drop from the sky onto the sea, right where the rocks were all around the ship.

Apo raised his arms and slowly with his movement, the flames dwindled down to take back the darkness and allow the midday sun to shine through his veil of theatrical darkness… Revealing the giant rocks and small islands all around to be covered in weathered bones of dragons, the closest one being a wyvern skeleton with its lower half missing, its head and wings spread across a rock as it struggled in its final moments to climb onto it, its claws dug into the rock to escape its demise with its maw open wide from its final screech. As Apo raised the veil of shadows once more, hushed gasps and murmurs came over the crew, with Elbent looking towards Apo with eyes full of worry and sorrow. Giving her a simple solemn nod, he continued his tale of the past.

“The Blackfire wiped out every single dragon and human Founder across the battlefield, and then upon every fleeing dragon. After twelve years, the humans won as they became the sole survivors of the Blackfire Siege. In turn… the corpses of my kind that fell in battle and died from the Blackfire on land became the reason why the sands turned red and remain so to this day. But… not everything died by the Blackfire in that final battlefield.”

The red flames brought back the shadows of the battlefield, now littered with skeletons and fallen weapons across the sand. Through the field of bones, two humans made their way into the battlefield, as though searching for something. Through the heavy silence came a whisper of a sound, a sound even the shadowed humans could hear as they looked around in a panic. Through the breeze and the chill of death…. Came the cry of a baby.

“There were survivors found that day that weren’t human… But neither were they dragons. And the first of their kind is the reason why I know all this. For I saw the end through his eyes.”

The scene zoomed in on the humans as they reached the bones of a massive amphiptere dragon, just like Apo, and within his wings was the skeleton of a human. And there, within the shelter of the wings and the huddled embrace of the human… was a baby bawling at the top of his lungs, bearing a black burn scar over the side of his entire face and left arm. A baby with tiny nubby horns, red scales that shone like crystals over his healthy arm and legs, with tiny claws for feet.

“Rhodon and Seraphina had a son… And during the final battle, they attempted to flee to save their family so that they could fight another day. When the Blackfire came… they did as any parent would and protected their son with all their love and sacrificed themselves to save him. Rhodon’s last breath… was a breath of Soulfire for his son. That was the day I awoke and saw the world through the eyes of my grandson… trapped and weak within his soul. All I could do was watch as the allies of Seraphina came and rescued the child. A child they knew the name of from their leader’s loving speeches on how she would cherish the child for a better future.”

He paused to sigh as the shadows swirled and the fires brightened to cast one long shadow onto the deck… before it came forth as an illusion of a man, a Dragonkin with long horns, clawed digitigrade feet and an air of royalty on his rugged and determined face… A face and overall appearance that was just like Asya in every way. The same horns, hair, height, face… Identical in every way but gendered appearance, golden eyes like his grandfather Apo, and the scar across his face and over his entire left arm.

“A child she and my son named… Alunnui. He grew up in the care of the human rebels, as they rescued other hybrids like him and hid them in the underground caves my kind once called our home. His kind, the first of the Dragonkin, all grew up together in hiding, for the humans grew confident and in their pride they built the first cities that still stand to this day in the kingdom before you all. And in his years of living in secrecy, Alunnui was told tales of my reign, of how his father and kindred fell to the humans, and how he and his own secret kindred were the last to bear dragon blood. The stories became inspiration… then motivation, as he reached adulthood. Thus, he began to plan… To build… To prepare.”

Behind the shadow of Alunnui, an army of Dragonkin bowed to him, with one handing him a spear covered in colourful beads, feathers and dragon scales.

“With the Prince’s Spear in hand, Alunnui and the Dragonkin marched to the capital and for the first time since the Founder’s War ended, they exposed themselves to the human world and began their attack. I still remember his words that day, when he stood before the gates and spoke to the king that bore my crown…”

The shadows warped behind Alunnui as he faced towering stone gates, the army of Dragonkin behind him on the deck floor. With a powerful slam of his spear, Apo spoke as Alunnui moved his lips to his words to speak to the shadow of a human in a crown on the walkway above the gate.

“Mortal king of the sands, I speak only to you! Your father and his people have slaughtered my kind, and you now stand on a kingdom forever stained in the blood of my ancestors. Hear me, false king, for I stand before you now as the survivor of my people’s royal bloodline, and so I speak as one royal to another… Give back the land that belonged to the Dragons, to whom you once called your neighbour and friend, or my kindred and I will take your cities and reclaim what is ours by birthright! Deny us our right to our own lands and crown, and your kingdom shall fall and burn with you in it! What say you, thief?”

The shadow of the human king laughed soundlessly, before Apo responded for him.

“You ghastly beasts have fallen once before by human hand! If you truly believe I owe you anything, then I shall happily remind you of how your father and his kind fell.”

With a soundless yell accompanied by the roar of flames from his body, Alunnui charged through the gates and lay siege onto the kingdom of shadows, as Apo continued his narration.

“The Dragonkin attacked the capital city of Oasis in a wave of fire and bloodshed… For when night fell, the palace erupted into a tower of flames, where the king fell and the crownless prince emerged before his people, of both human and Dragonkin alike… Where he donned the moniker of the Burning Prince and the first Dragon Lord of his kind. This night became the historical event known to both humans and Dragonkin… as the Night of Crowning Fire.”

The shadows formed a door that suddenly burst into red and orange flames that did not burn the ship, and with a gust of hot air the doors flew open to reveal Alunnui walking through the fire that did him no harm as the humans behind him fell to their death by the scorching flames. The crowd of shadow Dragonkin and humans all watched in awe and horror as Alunnui stepped out of the palace doors and raised a blood covered crown that burned with flames from his arm, a motion that sent every shadow witness to their knees as they bowed to their Dragon Lord.

The shadowy veil then vanished, and the flames from the lanterns went out, giving back the light of day across the ship as Apo stood before the crowd of crewmates and bowed his head. Upon rising back up, blue eyes met the crowd as Asya gained her voice and body back and spoke with her arms behind her back.

“On that day, a new monarchy took hold as old grudges and fears were whittled out, in respect for the history our people shared. Humans and Dragonkin became one civilization… the Jokani. In turn, the Jokani prospered under the rule of the new emperor, Dragon Lord Alunnui, who then sired an heir and began the Ruby Bloodline.”

Summoning orange fire in her palm, Asya created a new illusion in front of her, with each name she called out revealing a Dragonkin, each bearing a crown like the one Alunnui held.

“Dragon Lord Bakari, son of the Burning Prince and Queen Consort Noxolo…

Dragon Lord Mzuri, son of Lord Bakari the Kind and his King Consorts Amri and Shani…

Dragon Queen Citrine the Second, daughter of Lord Mzuri and Priestess Zahara, founder of the Nyotan religion and the Evenstar Church…

Dragon Lord Alhaadi, eldest son of Citrine the Second and King Consort Lauzel…

Dragon Lord heir apparent Amani, eldest son of Alhaadi the Wise and Queen Consort Lulana, who died before he could take the crown and was succeeded by the second eldest of the three children…

Dragon Lord Jhamal and Queen Consort Gasira Mutheru…”

Stepping through the fiery illusion to make it disappear, Asya stood before the entire crew as she raised her head high and spoke louder than before, only this time tears began to form as she struggled to hold back her sobs.

“Prince… A-Andres, son… o-of Lord Jhamal and Queen Consort Gasira. B-But I do not go by that name anymore! Not since I was exiled by my father for coming out as a woman. For I… I am Princess Asya Zahara O-Murchadha-Mutheru of Joka Ardhi, bearer of the Ruby Bloodline, descendant of the Burning Prince, and the next in line to the Throne of Crimson Sands. And I… I brought us here so that I could ask for your help. My father, Jhamal, intends to invade the north and claim Primus, Unicron and every kingdom beyond here as his domain. But I… I cannot allow that to happen. For my father is also known by many as Jhamal the Tyrant, and he earned that name through his cruelty, for neglecting his queen and letting her die alone with their only child f-from a… a mere, curable fever, for draining this land of its once peaceful and prosperous wealth and wellbeing, and for slaughtering the innocent for merely helping me escape his cruelty many years ago. He has been nothing but a heartless and bloodthirsty monster my whole life, and now he is set on claiming the rest of the world as his plaything. I… I can’t let him do this,”

Quickly turning away to dry her eyes, Asya spoke much more softly as her voice struggled to come out between her sobs and hiccups.

“I… I cannot stay hidden any longer and allow this to happen. And so… I come to you all to ask you only one thing… For should you agree, I cannot guarantee your safety the moment we cross into Jokani territory. And should we succeed in my plan… I might not come back here, onto this ship, ever again. For my plan is simply this… I must go back to my homeland, to the palace in the capital city of Oasis, and face my father in battle for the right to reclaim the throne. Should I succeed and overthrow him, I will become the new Dragon Queen and empress of Joka Ardhi. So, I will need everyone’s help in ensuring the safety of the Jokani people, to keep them away from the battle between me and my father, but should I fail… I will need every one of you to try and kill him in my stead.

“So… Now that you know what lies ahead, I fully understand if any of you do not wish to do this, and why I will allow you this one chance to step away and be safe here on the ship. But for those of you who wish to help me save my home and to fight with me to take down my father…,”

Putting out her hand, Asya offered it with tears now rolling down her cheeks towards the crowd as she weakly smiled and looked around to the crew of the Immortal Sun. “… Will you fight beside me and help me reclaim the Throne of Crimson Sands, for the freedom of this and all kingdoms across the world?”

[f-athr]

guess who’s read some more books >:)

[aevyk-ing]

DreamWorks New Year drawings

EDIT: Found the artist!

[galedekarios]

it's been a year and i still don't understand why ppl are deriding the astral sea version of gale's act 2 romance scene so much, trying to paint it as the "lesser" choice.

there's nothing even remotely practised or choreographed imo about baring your soul literally and figuratively to someone you're in love with.

[stormyoceans]

I LOVE ONE CONSENT KING