#Revan mention

[incorrect-kotor-quotes]

HK-47: *holding up a platter of meat* Query: Who wants Gamorrean? Bastila: Gamorrean? But Gamorreans are intelligent. HK-47: Explanation: Not this one. He blew all his money on instant lottery tickets. Revan: OK. Bastila: Oh, OK. Mission: That’s different. Canderous: Good, good. Bastila: Pass the snout. Mission: Can I have the pork belly? Jolee: Hey, quit hogging the ribs. Canderous: Toss me the speech center of the brain!

[redbean-nom]

how did osha (moderately force sensitive humanoid of dubious birth circumstance) killing one guy on a force planet insta-bleed sol's saber crystal

when anakin skywalker (half-Force demigod, Chosen One, most powerful force user in history) slaughtering several hundred children and countless temple guards in the middle of the historic force hotspot that is Jedi Temple had a blue crystal all the way up to mustafar

[ihamtmus]

revan for my dear friend @ramblingsofachristiannerd 💜💜💜

i hope you have the happiest birthday!

[shrinkthisviolet]

Siv has asked your OCs to take care of her sphynx kitten, Delilah, while she's off doing... patricide stuff for a week. However, they warn that Delilah is a little menace who revels in causing problems on purpose, and she also requires very specific care because of her breed. Do your OCs accept? How does it go?

(Delilah pictured below)

*Siv and Delilah Thawne are Revan’s OCs! Read more about Siv here, and their cat Delilah here*

Ooh I think they’d accept! For different reasons:

Morgan’s not one to shrink from a challenge (and though she won’t say it outright, she supports Siv’s goals). She’d be frustrated at Delilah’s antics at first, but she’d warm up to her over time. Her apartment might be a disaster, but hey, she got Delilah to settle down for five minutes—she’s counting that as a success. Plus, she’s very meticulous, so she’d figure out how to care for Delilah properly.

Reyna would accept because she’s intrigued by Delilah. Nora’s more of a cat person, and they end up tag-team babysitting her, which helps keep either of them from totally wearing themselves out 😂

Lucy’s never interacted with a cat before, Delilah is basically an alien to her, and Lucy’s intrigued enough to take on the challenge. It…doesn’t go well. Sorry Lucy, Siv probably won’t be asking you to cat-sit again 😅

Amelia accepts because she’s lonely, and she figures babysitting a cat like Delilah might keep her busy enough to distract her from her grief (hopefully Siv asks when she’s living with the Octaviuses (in the early days specifically), and not one of her sucky foster families). It goes surprisingly well—Amelia figures out how to care for Delilah and even manages to befriend her. She tells Siv with no small amount of desperation that she’s always down to cat-sit again if needed.

Taglist (send an ask or DM to be added or removed):

@arrthurpendragon @ocappreciationtag @raith-way @vexic929 @ironverseocs

@thechaoticfanartist @goldheartedchaoticdisaster @negative-speedforce @dream-beyond-the-fantasy @starstruckpurpledragon

@angst-is-love-angst-is-life @miss-eli-starfleet

[dyspunktional-leviathan]

Ah, fuck it. Repost.

There are abusers in every community.

There are abusers in every community you’re in.

All ideas get used for grooming.

As well as a lot of other things. Literally everything can and does get used for grooming.

No community is special or uniquely dangerous in that regard.

Pro-fiction community is not special and uniquely dangerous in that regard.

Kink community is not special and uniquely dangerous in that regard.

Para communities are not special and uniquely dangerous in that regard.

[Plaintext: Para communities are not special and uniquely dangerous in that regard]

[spectraspecs-writes]

Manaan - Chapter 129

Link to the masterpost. Chapter 128. Chapter 130.

@averruncusho @ceruleanrainblues @chubbsmomma @darthvendar-blog @80strashbag thank you for reading, you get a tag. @skelelexiunderlord thank you for support, you get a tag.

——–

Roland Wann takes a moment before he looks up from his desk, I stand there for a moment before he looks up. “Ah, you’re back,” he say, “I was glad to hear your trial went well.” No thanks to you, buddy. “Have you managed to retrieve the data from our droid in the Sith base?”

“Yes,” I say, pulling the module from my pack, “here it is.”

“Excellent!” He takes the module and looks it over. “It does not appear to have been tampered with, so the Sith did not manage to copy its contents yet. And now for your information…” He looks around, then gestures and brings us into the Enclave. “We are not supposed to speak of this, but since you are a Jedi, and we have exhausted all the other options, I think I can entrust you with this. 

“As you know, the Republic is fighting for its very existence against the evil of the Sith Empire. As you also undoubtedly know, we are doing very poorly. We need much in the way of supplies and material to stem the tide of battle and bring us victory.” I’m not sure I like where this is going. “Manaan is the sole source of kolto, the most powerful medical substance in the galaxy. Frankly, we need as much of it as we can get.”

“What has the Republic done?” Carth asks.

“The Selkath conservatives with their neutrality treaties seek to treat the Sith and the Republic equally. This includes kolto exports. But a few more far-sighted Selkath see that if the Sith are ever allowed to win, the galaxy will be plunged into darkness and there would be nothing to stop them from taking Manaan anyway. So we made a deal…”

“You violated the treaty?!?” explodes out of my mouth.

“Shh!” Wann urges, “Not so loud! Yes, it is a technical violation of the treaty, but it is sanctioned by elements of the Selkath government. We need only keep it hidden from the Sith.”

“This is incredibly dangerous,” I say, “If the Sith found out or the rest of the government got wind of this…”

“I know,” Wann says with a heavy sigh, “but to the senators, it seemed to outweigh the risks. We recently began construction of a secret underground facility to harvest kolto directly at its source. We also hope to one day be able to synthesize it effectively. Current techniques are insufficient for the task, so we must mine it for now. The amount we take would hardly be noticed, since most is lost naturally before it reaches the surface anyway. We were nearing completion of the base when the digging teams reported some sort of obstruction... an ancient building or artifact. Possibly your 'Star Map.'” Sounds like it to me. “Transmissions from the base were cut off abruptly after that, and we haven't heard from the station since.”

That’s odd - construction crews, especially underwater, would have to keep near-constant contact with the surface for safety. “What happened down there?”

He sighs a heavy sigh. “We don’t know. We just don’t know.”

“And you haven’t investigated?” Carth asks.

“As you may have noticed, we are hiring a lot of mercenaries around here. Ostensibly they're to be shipped off-world to aid in our fight against the Sith, but they are really for another purpose. When we lost contact with the station in the Hrakert Rift, we sent our contingent of Republic soldiers down to investigate. None returned.” Yikes. “We have tried hiring mercenaries and sending them down as well” - well, that answers that question - “but none of those expeditions have returned either. The reason we really sent that droid underwater - and the reason we needed its data back so badly - was to find out what had happened to the Hrakert Rift station. But now that we have the data back, our operation is in no danger of exposure to the Sith. And now I must live up to my end of the bargain.”

Well, gee, so I have to go into a place that no one has returned from to get this thing? That’s… actually par for the course, I don’t know why I’m pissed. “How will we get down there?”

“I took the liberty of having a submarine prepared for your departure. Merely use this card” - which he hands me - “to get past the door behind our kolto packing room and enter the sub therein. It has been programmed to take you down to the station, and also to take you back up should you need something. I would send soldiers to assist you, but we have lost many of ours, and nearly exhausted the mercenary population of this planet. The soldiers we have are barely enough to keep this base secure! The Sith have also noted our interest and begun to bribe mercenaries away from us, as you noticed. Please, find out what happened to the facility. There may be some survivors left down there, perhaps even the head scientist - Kono Nolan.” He reaches out to shake my hand. I politely take it. “Good luck in your efforts.”

The three of us walk to the submersible bay and climb in. With the push of a button, the sub closes and begins to descend. My nerves all but vanish as the water rises up above us. This is the perfect chance to observe the ecosystem here, up close. Selkath culture views this ocean as the birthplace of all life on the planet. They’re still semi-aquatic themselves - everything about the species is clearly designed to be as aerodynamic as possible through the water, rather than on dry land. And a planet that’s entirely oceanic is rare - the adaptations in the aquatic animals and plants are sure to be unique. And to add the kolto on top of that - kolto is unique to Manaan. Its potential effects on the evolution of life on this planet hasn’t been thoroughly studied, certainly not in the field. Despite the voice in my head that constantly reminds me that none of my experiences as a scout, none of what I know, is real, all I feel right now is the sense that this is what I was meant to do, where I was meant to be.

But tragically, and too soon, the voyage is over, and we emerge inside the underwater facility. The hatch pops open. While the design clearly matches the base we just left, none of the activity or idle noise is present. The only sound is the occasional drip of water. It’s dark, a little spooky. I really don’t like that drip, it makes me think the walls aren’t watertight. The other side of the submersible bay has a wrecked craft over there. What down here is strong enough to destroy a submersible and can breathe the oxygen atmosphere? A firaxan shark could do it, at least in a group. Even just one could do a lot of damage. But the damage I see came from the top, from within the facility, not from the water. Whatever it is that did this damage came from inside the base. It’s probably the same thing that stopped anyone from contacting the surface. The air is salty, but there’s still the unmistakable smell of fresh death. And it’s not a fishy smell. These aren’t dead Selkath.

There’s only so much I can learn standing here and honestly I’m just scaring myself. I start towards the closest door. It opens to a hallway, and at the end of that hall is a chamber with a Twi’lek in it. Someone alive! The closer we get, I can hear him muttering to himself, crazed. He’s pacing back and forth in the round chamber. Just before the chamber, he hears us, and draws his blaster. Then, “You’re not Selkath!” He lowers it and rushes towards us, grabbing my shoulders. “How-- how did you get in? Did they send another submersible? Quick, we have to get out of here, we have to get away!”

“Whoa, calm down!” I push his arms away. “Get away from what?”

“No! No!” he shakes his head, “We have no time, we have to leave now! I managed to close the door after they killed everyone else, but I don't know how long it will hold.”

“Who’s ‘they’? What happened?”

“The Selkath, they went crazy!” he says, “They started killing anything that moved. Someone must have triggered the defense systems too, 'cause all the droids activated as well.” No wonder this place looks so demolished. “I was one of the mercs the Republic sent down here to find out what happened. We came down and secured the first couple rooms…” He starts to lose his breath. Like he wants to cry but doesn’t have enough water. “...there were bodies everywhere… And the Selkath came out… screaming and croaking their fishy little war-cries.”

“The Selkath?” Carth repeats in disbelief.

The Twi’lek mercenary nods. “They swarmed out and over us,” he says, “There was no way we could stop them. So we ran... But hardly any of us made it. I locked the door behind us, bu... but the others had already left in the submersible!” And left you? That’s cold. “The sharks... the firaxa out there and... worse... I heard an explosion shortly after the submersible left. They didn't make it. Just food for the sharks and the Selkath... like us.”

“Come with us,” Juhani says, “We will take you back to the surface in our submersible.” Right, get this guy somewhere safe.

He relaxes a bit. “Back to the surface, yes,” he says, “Yes… No!” He stops. “There's something out there... it got the other submersible already.”

“Then how are we supposed to get you out of here?” Carth asks.

The Twi’lek shakes her head forcefully. His lekku shake. “We can't leave until you do something. Blow up the entire station maybe.” No. “That might distract whatever it is long enough for us to escape to the surface. But all the machinery and stuff is in the southern half, and that's been flooded! There might still be environmental suits around but... but... the Selkath might have laid their eggs in them!”

“That’s not how fish eggs work,” I find myself saying before I’m even aware of it, “They lack a hard shell so eggs laid on dry land would suffer immediate desiccation.”

“What are you talking about?!” he shouts.

“Forget it,” I say, “I have to get into the station.” I move to step around him.

“No!” He steps back in front of me. “I locked the door so that the Selkath won't get in. If you open it, we're all done for!”

“I’m sorry,” I say, “I have to.”

“If you go in there, you're dead! You're all dead!” We don’t budge. Neither does he. Finally he grumbles, “Fine! If you want to die, then go! You won't hear me mourning for you! I'll stay here and be safe until some sort of REAL rescue comes! But if you're going to go in there, do it quickly! I'll shut the door behind you... but don't expect me to open it again!”

True to his word, he shoves us through the door into the base and locks the door behind us. I’m not particularly worried about a locked door. Anything he can lock, I can figure out how to unlock, and worst case scenario I’ll just destroy the door. There’s only one way to go, forward, to a single door at the end of a long hallway.

Through the door at the end of the hall, there’s a security panel. “Let me see if I can get anything off that,” I say, “hang on.” The card from Roland Wann gives me access and I download a map onto my datapad.

‘That mercenary said there was still staff in the south part of the base,” Juhani says, “Are you able to locate them?”

“Let me see…” A quick security scan for life signs should be easy enough, even at reduced power. That’s… that’s a lot more life signs than I expected. Based on these readings, the base is teeming with life. But that can’t be the case because this place is quiet. I wonder - can I filter these results to only endotherms? Let’s see… there we go.

Holy shit.

Including us, there are seven endotherms, seven non-Selkath in the entire base. Several sensors are offline, but that mercenary said that part of the base was flooded. So where I see offline sensors, that’s probably ocean, and if anyone’s there, they’re Selkath. And the Selkath went insane. “Not including us, there are two non-Selkath on this side of the base,” I say, “One of them is that mercenary, the other is staff.” That’s all I can get - there’s too many damaged systems. “There’s two more on the other side of the base, but there’s an ocean between us and them.”

“That’s where all the machinery is,” Carth says.

“I’m not blowing up the base,” I say.

“I know, but that can’t be the only option,” he says, “Something happened here and maybe the machinery had something to do with it.”

‘We’re not going to find out here, at any rate,” I say, ‘There’s too much damage to find any archived sensor information. Whatever happened, the main computer doesn’t have any record of it.”

“Let’s keep moving, then.”

“One last thing,” I say, “The merc said the defense system was activated. I want to switch them off before we run into anything.” Sentry droids, quite a few of them. I send a remote deactivation command, and they all tick offline. “Okay, we’re good to go.” Sign off. To the next door.

The other door opens to an even longer hallway, lined on one side floor to ceiling with windows. Light filters in from the windows, tinted green by the water. It’s not bright, but it supplements the already-dim station lighting. The view through them is unobstructed - good, I can get a sense of the damage, our surroundings.

And everything makes sense.

We’re in the reef… The kolto must… This habitat is so… The sharks probably… But the Republic…

“You’re mumbling,” Carth says suddenly. Was I saying all that out loud? “What do you see?”

“You don’t see that?” I say. No, I guess not. I run my finger along the glass, tracing the reef and its ridges. “This is prime marine habitat, look at all the firaxan sharks. This reef and its caves and crannies have probably been formed by centuries of erosion and sharks looking for creches to lay their eggs. This isn’t just a home, it’s a nursery. And the kolto is part of that. It’s healing for us, but as a part of their ecosystem, it must have a growth impact here in the ocean as well. Everything here has been shaped by millenia of this delicate balance. The rocks and minerals erode, releasing the kolto into the water, which helps the sharks grow, and they create more crevices, more erosion. And that’s not even considering the other species that call this reef home.”

Carth and Juhani look, but they don’t see it. Can’t see it, not quite. Aren’t used to thinking that way. “I am sure Selkath scientists already understood this,” Juhani says slowly, not quite understanding, ‘Sure they know where the kolto…”

“It’s not about the kolto, it’s about the eggs!” I say, “The construction impacts the nursery sites, you can see the change. The sharks reacted to the construction in defense of their home, their eggs. The vibrations through the water may have affected their communication, too, so not only were they being attacked, the world suddenly got so… loud.” I understand that. The confusion, the mixed signals, the uncertainty. The fear. The lashing out.

“That explains the sharks,” Carth says, “but what about the Selkath?”

I suck my teeth. “I’m not sure yet. They couldn’t have known this would happen when they authorized the Republic to build here - the ocean means too much to them to risk its destruction. But their response… I don’t know. There’s still a few pieces I’m missing. And I’m not going to get them in here.” I take a deep breath. “I’ll have to go out to the ocean floor.”

[dairine-bonnet]

Revan: If you don't remember who you really are or don't want to admit it, how can you fix your mistakes made in the past properly, hmmm?

I devote it to one episode in the game. After crashing on Lehon there's a conversation with all the crew members. Jolee namess the main character Revan while talking about Bastila, and there are two possible options in reply:

1) Don't call me that! I'm not Revan anymore.

2) If Bastila joined Malak, then she'll suffer the same fate he does.

They are both absolutely wrong for my Revan. At this stage, she admits she is Revan, not that false identity. But she has no intention to talk about Bastila (and Malak too, I guess) like that either! Personally, I think it would be a little bit unhealthy for Revan to deny her true identity at that time.

P.S. Despite that, this is literally my favourite computer game. I find it inspirational, fascinating, exciting and almost ideal! Funny fact: I was inspired to write fics and learn English thanks to that game! 20th anniversary... OMG! Yeah, I'm rather old, can't believe it!:D Ha, my favourite moment from the game is still Revelation. I've recently played the game and somehow was shocked when Darth Malak appeared in front of you on the Leviathan at the time when freedom became to seem real (and the whole discussion is something)!

[pigswithwings]

hi for stimboard, would it be ok if i requested a character that i know you know not very much about?

if so could you do revan from knights of the old republic??? that woukd b so fucking cool!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

👍x,,

1👍

-nick

Revan. (Knights of the Old Republic)

☄️ | ☄️ | ☄️

🔗 |  X  | 🔗

⛓️ | ⛓️ | ⛓️

[modwyr]

me when i lie

[soul-reapr]

I'm still really happy with the "I'm so sorry" custom obi wan I painted a while back

[the-outlande-r]

god i love the shitty graphics from star wars kotor it always cracks me up how bad it is

[lordeasriel]

i shouldn't have started playing KotOR again, because now all I can think about is how they could've canonised female revan by having a throuple between her, carth and bastila. have a nice day

[jesuistrefatugie]

I apologize in advance to the Op for the notifications they're about to get with me scrolling through their Kotor tags.

Ah yes, my comfort characters – two jedi knights with something deeply wrong with them.

I have been trying to get out of art block by trying to make less stress-inducing artwork. I just want to focus on what’s fun for me, rather than what’s popular or good. This is another example of taking pose inspiration from pokemon-trainer sprites.

[bones4thecats]

Hello! Can I make a request of a platonic angst (fluff if you think suits it better) with Diasomnia with a male reader who is actually Malleus' brother?

[SPOILERS FOR BOOK 7]

The story being that Meleanor had given birth to two eggs, those being Malleus and the reader, with the Silver Owls stealing the egg that had the reader, which ended with the egg to be sent to Earth, therefore making the reader live for many years, raised by the humans without any idea of who he is, only for the Dark Mirror to bring him to Night Raven College, shocking everyone with the appearance of a Fae that was raised by humans.

Thank you!

M! Reader Being Malleus' Missing Twin

Characters: Lilia Vanrouge and Malleus Draconia Requester: @beawesome04 A/N: I'm gonna do only Lilia and Malleus for this. I couldn't think of anything for the younger Diasomnia boys. Sorry about that! Anyways, enjoy!! By the way, this may not fully follow the canon storyline for Book 7. But, there is a piece on the top explaining the backstory of the Missing-Draconia! Reader's world. ⚠️ Spoilers/Trigger Warnings for: Book 7 and mentions of baby-napping and war ⚠️

••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●•

A decades old tale of the Fae and Human war was one that everyone was familiar with. Schools began to teach the young men and women of the future of the causes and what was used to fix everything and establish the peaceful world that they now lived in.

But, there was always a part that teachers had to withhold many key details on. The attempted abduction of the Draconia Eggs.

Many years into the war, a group of human-affiliated knights had infiltrated the Draconia Castle. And since the previous Queen of the land just had her two babies still in their eggs, a few of the men had made a plan to take them in order to prompt the royals into surrendering.

Fortunately and unfortunately, they had gotten to the eggs and almost got away with both. An at-the-time young General, Lilia Vanrouge, charged in with his men and prompted them into surrendering themselves. Though, in common human-fashion, they tricked their ways out of being held.

And when one guard went to check on the eggs, he announced with loud-blaring fear that one was missing from the nursery. This made all that heard begin to panic. The humans wouldn't be so weak as to take a not-even-hatched baby away from its home... would they?

Barking out the order of finding the missing egg was all that the Fae could do at the moment. But when they all came up empty, he couldn't believe his ears... the humans were exactly what Baul deemed them to be. Disgusting excuses of beings.

After the fall of Meleanor and her husband, Revan, and the re-crowing of the female's mother, Maleficia, Lilia began to care for not only the young heir but for his own adoptive-human son, whom he named Silver.

Despite the firm and carefree smile that was practically plastered onto his youthful-face, he couldn't help but remember the loss of that precious black and purple egg... but maybe he could locate the now-growing child overtime!

As the male floated around the new students of Night Raven College, he smiled at Malleus, who was now one year away from graduating and inheriting the throne of Briar Valley. All of a sudden, the sound of the Dark Mirror opening causes Lilia to look up in shock and ready himself with his magic.

Everybody then froze once the sight came clear. There stood a tall, maybe around 6'3, male with a very clean-and-formal black and green outfit laid wrapped around his form. With a lovely mixture of down and held-up hair black hair, the apparent Fae stood out like a sore thumb.

Especially with a duet set of horns, which folded around a green gem, which glowed brighter with each step you took closer to the members of Diasomnia.

And while your gem caught the attention of many first, only Lilia and Malleus could truly understand who he was...

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, little brother."

••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●•

»»——————————- 　 Lilia Vanrouge 　——————————-««

🦇 When he looked at the horns you had, the previous General immediately understood who you were and what you wanted

🦇 Lilia allowed his feet to hit the ground as his mouth laid open as you stepped closer to him and his small family. And while Sebek yelled for you to stay away from Malleus, you merely ignored him and looked into the slightly-younger male's eyes

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, little brother." You said.

🦇 This claim was one that caused many to gasp. The story of the previous Queen of Briar Valley having two eggs was true! And here the brothers were- reuniting!

🦇 Once everyone was calmed down and told to go somewhere else for the afternoon, Lilia led you and the boys back to the dorm. Specifically the lounge

🦇 When you finished speaking to Malleus and explaining everything to him, you began to look towards Lilia. And he had to admit, the way your cold eyes stared into his soul caused him alarm

🦇 You motioned for him to sit down in the seat next to you. And stated that he could ask you any question

"Where have you been all of this time? Last I knew your egg was taken by the... Silver Owls."

"Fortunately for me, Emilia, who was young maid from the castle, picked me out from the pack of one guard. She then took me home that night and took care of me until I hatched. Her and her husband raised me until they passed away of old age, maybe around 79 and 85. I now live with their oldest son, Zekial, and his wife, Pristy, who are now 59 and 58 respectively. Their great-grand-children, Madyson and Parker, assisted me in getting here. They both attend Royal Sword Academy as third-years." You replied. It was a mouthful, but it seemed to allow the man to confide in his own thoughts to piece the whole thing together.

🦇 Lilia looked at you and asked if you were raised by humans. In which you said yes and admitted that you have seen and met many humans and Fae that have either berated you or your found-family, in which you defended both species, saying they had both flaws and pros

🦇 Hearing how wise you were for a mere 178-year-old Fae made Lilia smile and laugh, prompting a questioning of the action from you

"You may be a youthful-Fae, but you show signs of growth that not even I have gotten the pleasure of having. And I've raised a human for a son!"

"Oh... I see. Is that a compliment?"

"Yes. It is, elder Draconia."

"Please, just call me Y/N. It is what Emilia named me."

••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●••●•

»»——————————- 　Malleus Draconia　——————————-««

🐉 In the last 178 years, Malleus has always believed himself to be alone in this world. In both his social and familial life

🐉 But, seeing someone look so similar to him step out from the Dark Mirror, and dawning a fairly formal outfit with an almost-matching set of horns made that loneliness disappear for a minute

🐉 The sound of your heeled-boots echoing against the hard floor was all that Malleus could hear against his own thoughts of wonder at that moment

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, little brother."

"Little... brother?"

🐉 You nodded and smiled gently at the young man. And when you held your hand out and summoned a small ball of green fire, which formed a dual set of eggs

🐉 Lilia ushered for the boys to leave the room, saying you both needed some privacy. And privacy you did need

"Do you know who and what these are, Malleus?"

"By what I am observing, that is what I was before hatching into a small newborn. Am I correct?"

"That you are. And do you know who and what this egg is?"

🐉 Malleus looked back down at your hand's magic and he shook his head slightly. In every photograph he was shown by his grandmother, Maleficia, all he saw was his egg in the nursery and that was all, no extra egg or anything

"That was me before hatching. The same as you. That makes us not only brothers, but twins, despite the fact we appear slightly different." You said as your magic began to shift into a castle, the Draconian Castle to be specific.

"Born to the same mother and father, we both resided inside of the nursery before an invasion was taken by a group of Fae-hating humans called the Silver Owls. They had came inside in order to steal us to use us as an advantage against our family, but, as the Royal Army came in, they put your egg back, but took mine in an attempt to take a more psychological approach to one-upping our mother and father."

"If you were taken by these Silver Owls, where did you go and who raised you if not our family?"

"I was taken from a guards bag by a maid named Emilia, who then brought me home to raise with her husband, Mustove. They have long since passed from old age, an unfortunate thing humans have. I was then taken in by their children, who are both now reaching elder-hood in human terms, and I was assisted in reaching you from their great-grandchildren, who attend Royal Sword Academy as current third-years. It is thanks to them, to those humans, that I finally can reconnect with you, my brother."

🐉 Malleus stared at you with widened eyes. And while your magical shape-shifting fire burns out along with the glow of your forehead-jewel, your brother began to sniffle and hold his fists tightly against his sides

"I understand that you have felt alone for the many past years, Malleus. But understand that I am here now, and I do not plan on returning to complete isolation away from our family, away from you. Okay?"

"It's just so... nice to have you here with me."

🐉 You held your arms open and allowed the prince to jump into your arms, hugging you tightly as he buried his face into your chest, tears falling form his eyes as he sniffed and smiled with comforted joy and sadness... he finally had his other half with him again. And they wouldn't leave him on their own accord

"May I call you 'big brother'?"

"Yes. Yes you may, little brother."

[cowinatrenchcoat]

Sometimes I wonder at VM being so mad at the Raven Queen. She arguably did them a massive kindness. She accepted Vax's deal the first time to spare his sister, not by killing him, but by making him her champion. Then she accepted his next deal and returned him as a revenent without even clearly understanding why she should (she didn't really know about Vecna but Liam assumed she did so it was big missed high five of a conversation (I think this was when he turned revanent but not sure)).

That's not to say she did it just to be generous. Absolutely not. Her and Vax made deals. She upheld her end, and he has no issue upholding his end because he knows both him and Vex would be dead by now otherwise.

So I was always a bit baffled at VM's hatred of the Raven Queen.

But then I remembered, arguably, their most formative moment as a group was the Whitestone arc. Where they saved Percy from a bird-themed, masked entity that he'd made a deal with. They broke his deal, went against his own will at times, kept him, and it was all good and right.

Then they killed a would-be god. A god with powerful undead followers. A god who moved in shadows and secrets. A god who had tried to kill them and take them from each other. And that was all good and right too.

But now there's a god that reminds them of both Orthax and Vecna. A god who made Vax into an undead follower. A god who won't just let him come back without a contract, a debt. They're powerful, they could fight her. They've been put up against necromancers, dragons, an almost god...surely they could manage the next step up. Together. Like always.

But then Vax...says not to? Says it's ok? Accepts it? Vox Machina are the death denial champions. They haven't accepted death yet for any of them. Why would Vax, why would *now* be different? Surely it's like Percy and they should save him even against his will, right? Surely, even now, he's in this liminal space and could still come back if they just try hard enough.

Sometimes I wonder how different their tone would be on letting him go if any of the others had permanently died. If Vex had failed her persuasion check and Talisen ultimately let Percy die. If they'd rolled just a bit lower on any resurrection and had to actually accept death before.

But with how things went, it's really no wonder they can't move past the denial stage. They were primed to think this was something they could overcome one way or another.

Not to mention the above table aspect. Whether you like this DM choice or not, Matt has made a habit of dangling Vax in front of them. He's thrown down story elements that keep Vax attached to the world; "every day that raven comes to visit," "don't you even dare," it being canon that Vax has stepped in more than once to save Keyleth. He's made it so Liam doesn't even know what he can/should do with Vax.

Campaign 1 gave a beautiful goodbye to Vax. Scanlan's wish bent reality to let Vax "say a few words at his sister's wedding." But...now...is it implied Vax could have come back whenever? Is he in this in-between until Vex dies? Does he even know the parameters here?

So yeah. It's no wonder they're angry. It's no wonder they can't let go. They never had to learn how to let go of each other and he keeps coming back when the plot his god demands.

[spectraspecs-writes]

Manaan - Chapter 127

Link to the masterpost. Chapter 126. Chapter 128.

@averruncusho @ceruleanrainblues @chubbsmomma @darthvendar-blog @80strashbag thank you for reading, you get a tag. @skelelexiunderlord thank you for support, you get a tag.

——–

A thin layer of dust rests on the bench in my holding cell. It probably hasn’t been used in some time. I dust it off with my sleeve before sitting down and watching court officers catalog the contents of my pack and pockets. “One wrap of tools,” one says, picking  up my droid toolkit and holding it for a camera to see.

“Please take good care of that,” I say, “It means a lot to me.”

“All cataloged evidence will be held in stasis until trial, and if it is deemed non-relevant it will be released to next of kin upon verdict.”

“Or… to the accused upon acquittal,” I say, “Right?” They both look at me, not answering, before turning back to their work. How reassuring.

“Two long swords,” the other says, unsheathing my swords gently, “With blood.”

“Hold for analysis,” says the first, before reaching to the next item, “Ten medpacs.”

“One length of rope, approximately three meters.”

“One datapad, mild damage, retrieved from the back pocket.”

“Assorted droid parts.”

“Encoded access pass, keyed for the Sith Embassy.”

“Hold or analysis. Two Jedi-type lightsabers.”

“Be careful with those,” I interrupt, but I’m not acknowledged.

One of them reaches for the final item. “One metal…” He stops. Scrutinizes it. “…something.”

“It’s an encrypted data core,” I say.

They turn back to me. “What’s on it?”

“I don’t know,” I say honestly, “I don’t know the encryption sequence. I could probably figure it out, if I had a week. But for all I know, it could be just environmental data. Or nothing at all.”

“Not relevant to this case,” the other says, and it gets placed in the bin with the other, I assume, non-relevant items. At least if the worth happens, Carth can return it to the Republic. Even though it for sure is relevant, but even if I did tell them that, experience tells me they wouldn’t listen.

“I suppose it would be a waste of my time to ask what my rights are?” I ask.

“As an off-worlder, your rights are the same as those of any native,” one of them says, “You are entitled to a fair trial, carried out in a timely manner. You are entitled to visitors. You are entitled to a competent defense. An arbiter has been summoned for you.”

I nod. “Cool.”

A haggard-looking Selkath, juggling datapads, comes into the holding area and walks to the desk. “I have been summoned as arbiter for a human?” The desk attendant points at me. I wave. “Ah, Min Rena. Or Min Visz? I have little experience with off-worlders, I am uncertain which is correct.”

“Uh, either is- is fine,” I say, “But what is ‘Min?’”

“I - forgive me, I am unfamiliar with human genders as well, so I opted for a neutral title. If you would prefer a different —“

“No,” I interrupt, “no, ‘min’ is fine.”

He looks relieved. “Good. Good. I am called Bwa’lass, and I have been selected as your Arbiter for the duration of your trial. I will endeavor to prove to them that you are not guilty of the heinous crimes that you are accused of, namely…” He searches through his collection of datapads, and drops several before he finds the one he’s looking for. “Ah, here it is. Namely, initiating violence within the Sith Embassy, murdering members of the Ambassadorial  Commission of the Sith Empire, and disregarding our own laws regarding violence in Ahto City, as well as numerous counts of property damage.”

This does not bode well. “Cool,” I say nervously, “Cool. Uh, Bwa’lass, I don’t mean to be rude, but, uh… I understood I had the right to a competent defense… and you seem…”

He sighs. “I know.” That definitely doesn’t bode well! “but I assure you, my lack of understanding of off-worlders does not impact my understanding of Selkath law!”

“I’m not doubting you there,” I say, “You know definitely more about Selkath law than I do. but sitting here, watching you juggle datapads… I won’t lie, I feel doomed.” He doesn’t say anything. “I have to wonder if I wouldn’t be better off defending myself.”

“While it is true that you do have that right,” Bwa’lass says, “I would recommend against it. Due to your confinement, you will not have much of a chance to build up evidence to pursue your case. Also, I do not believe you off-worlders truly understand the minds of us Selkath. It would be best if you left your defense up to me.”

The door opens again, and Carth walks in, flanked by a Selkath officer on either side. “Rena, this is unbelievable,” he says animatedly, “You haven’t done anything wrong. I can’t believe the Republic embassy hasn’t sent someone to defend you.”

“And admit they know me?” I say with a scoff, “Open themselves up to scrutiny, questions they don’t want asked?” He opens his mouth to say something else, but I stop him by speaking again. “Carth, this is my arbiter, Bwa’lass.” The haggard Selkath gives a small wave, dropping two more datapads in the process.

Carth looks from Bwa’lass, to me, back to Bwa’lass, and to me again. “You’re not serious.”

“Court appointed,” I confirm.

He shakes his head, looking petrified. “I’m going to the embassy -- Roland Wann has to assign someone to your defense.”

“Carth, don’t,” I say, “Don’t involve yourself in this any more than you have to be. The Star Map is more important than me.”

I can see the words on the edge of his tongue - “No, it’s not” - but he doesn’t say it. “We can’t get that without the data core. Which you had.”

“Non-relevant evidence will be released to next of kin upon verdict,” I say, repeating the Selkath officer.

He nods a bit, thinking. Then stops. “Or…released to you when they find you not guilty, right?”

“They wouldn’t tell me.”

The door opens again, and Jolee comes in. By himself. “What are you doing here?” Carth asks, “And how did you get here without any guards?”

“Well, I certainly didn’t use a Jedi mind trick,” Jolee says sarcastically, “That would be unethical.”

One of the guards with Carth scoffs. “A Jedi mind trick would not work on one of my officers,” he says confidently.

“Of course it wouldn’t,” Jolee says, then he raises his hand, “But the old man doesn’t need guards, does he?”

The officer’s eyes glaze over for a moment. “Uh…” he says, “no… the old man doesn’t need guards.” Unbelievable.

“I think you’ll both agree Rena’s defense is the more important matter at hand than my being here,” Jolee says.

“That’s an even better idea,” Carth says, “Contact the Jedi, they’ll send someone to defend Rena.”

“No, they won’t,” Jolee and I say at the same time. “This us all Master Vrook needs to have to be convinced of my ‘evil core,’” I say, “Not to mention the fact that they don’t have enough Jedi to spare. You know, the war? The destruction of Dantooine?”

“The Council also wouldn’t interfere in the legal system of a non-Republic world,” Jolee says, “Sending anyone here to Rena’s defense would draw unnecessary attention to the matter.”

“Malak already knows more about this mission than they’d like,” I say.

“We can’t just stand around and do nothing,” Carth says, “We have to do something!”

“No, you don’t,” I say firmly, “Neither of you have to do anything except testify if you’re asked. And in fact it’s better if you don’t do anything. If anything happens to me, it’s up to all of you to find the last Star Map and stop Malak.”

“Indeed,” Bwa’lass says, finally saying something, “It would be in all of your best interests to let me do my job as arbiter. To that end, I would like to interview my client alone so that we may adequately prepare for the trial tomorrow.”

“We have to do this right, guys,” I say, “Please trust me, I don’t want to spend time in a Selkath jail anymore than you do.”

“In fact,” Bwa’lass chimes again, “the punishment for the crime is death, by immediate execution.”

“DEATH?” Carth exclaims, causing his escorts to tense up. Bad time to say that, Bwa’lass.

Jolee holds Carth back. “Calm down, lad, before you get yourself arrested,” he says, “If Rena says to trust her, that’s exactly what we must do.”

“Jolee, I can’t just --” he shouts. But as he looks Jolee in the eyes… I don’t know what level they’re communicating on, what they say, but Carth relaxes. He looks back at me, like he’s trying to take me in. “Okay,” he says finally, “... Okay.” And nothing more.

“Please escort them back to their vessel,” Bwa’lass says to the officers, who nod and turn to leave with Jolee and Carth. But Carth doesn’t stop looking at me. His eyes are set on mine until they round the corner, out of sight. “Now,” Bwa’lass says, taking a deep breath, “I would first like to ask you a few questions regarding the events that led up to your arrest. I have already been given all relevant data on you and your companions, so that can be disregarded. For what reason did you enter the Sith Embassy?”

“I had been hired as a mercenary,” I say, “The court officers found a pass card with my belongings, I heard them catalog it.”

“Yes, I have record of that,” he says, “I find it unlikely that you are a mercenary, but perhaps the judges will be more sympathetic to your view.” Good to know my lawyer has no faith in me. “What is your prior association with the Sith?”

I scoff. “How much time do you have?”

“I beg your pardon?”

Actually… best not. At best, I’ll be told I’m making a mockery of the court if I say I was Revan. At worst I’ll be believed and executed for war crimes. “Forget it,” I say, “Before I joined the Jedi Order, I was a scout. I’d encounter other scout patrols who were hired by the Sith, and I was amicable with them, but beyond that my interactions have been nearly non-existent.”

“I am skeptical of that,” Bwa’lass says, “as will be the judges. You off-worlders tend to congregate much amongst yourself. I see no inherent differences between your two groups.”

“They’re philosophical differences, for the most part,” I say, “Political views, moral stances.”

“I see,” Bwa’lass says neutrally, “There is no need to elaborate further. That should be all the information I require of you, for now.”

Wait, that’s it? “Um… don’t you need to ask more questions?”

“I have all the information I need.”

“How can you expect to defend me without getting more information?”

“I think this trial is relatively straightforward,” he says with a shrug, “It should be obvious to the judges what has transpired.”

Obvious? “Uh… why don’t you tell me what you plan on telling them? Just… so we’re both on the same page.”

He looks a tad insulted, but with a small sigh, he says, “Very well. You were there by circumstance, not involved in the disturbance. You were in the wrong place at the wrong time on legitimate business, the business of the Jedi Order. The Jedi are above reproach, and none of their Order would have murdered so many out of spite.” 

Oh, boy. “You don’t know much about the Jedi, do you?”

“I have no first-hand knowledge, but the reputation of the Order is well-known. Jedi are peacekeepers, not killers.” Yeah, this little war thing is just an effort to keep the peace, not a major struggle between good and evil.

Evil. That’s… oh, that’s good. “I tell you what, Bwa’lass. There was a Selkath present when I was arrested, her name is Shasa.”

“Yes, I know the name. Her father, Shaelas, has been before the judges numerous times, demanding action against the Sith for kidnapping Selkath youth. However, he has never been able to produce evidence to his claims, and has been summarily dismissed each time.”

“Could it be managed for Shasa to give testimony? She’s a part of the story the judges will want to hear,” I say.

“As a youth, her father must be consulted on the matter. I will make the necessary inquiries prior to the start of the trial tomorrow.” I get the feeling he’s just humoring me, but he doesn’t have to believe me. He just has to do it.

“Thank you. After that your services are no longer needed. I think it’s best if I defend myself.”

He sighs again. ‘While that is your right, I strongly recommend against that,” he says again, “I am versed in all the necessary particulars of this case and Selkath law, off-worlder. You would do well to heed my advice.”

“Bwa’lass, I respect you and your knowledge,” I say, “But to put it bluntly, I think that if I rely on you for my entire defense, I’m not going to survive the trial. You’ve been a huge help, but once you’ve arranged for Shasa to testify, I can take it from there.”

“And if her father refuses?”

“I will cross that bridge when I get there.” The Sith master’s datapad should still be with my belongings. I know I heard the court officers record mine, but they were going through stuff before I got brought to this cell.

“Very well,” Bwa’lass says reluctantly, “You off-worlders are not known for your mental prowess. I shall leave your demise up to you.” He bows his head slightly and leaves.

Well. Nothing more to do now but wait.