#Spiral of Contempt

[pm-my-beloved]

Spiral of Contempt - Analysis

I have seen A LOT of people either claiming to not understand Spiral of Contempt, or, worse, present an interpretation which in my eyes is wrong (How dare they~). Thus, I am deciding to attempt an in-depth analysis of this abno, and while im there, also Awe, Contempt Ryoshu.

I do want to warn that I might miss some of the information because trying to put it all in somewhat coherent order is, quite hard.

First preface I think is needed to estabilish, is that it probably is an abberation of Burrowing Heaven, and that its DEFINETLY a religious themed abnormality.

So lets start with disproving a theory I have frequently seen that is like, so wrong in my opinion?? And that is, that this abnormality represents "God Complex", which like, if you make a very shallow read of it, and decide to not look at its visual design, then maybe.

But, even just from design, despite being named "Spiral of contempt" the primary action that it does, is an act of worship, of adoration, its hands raised into the heavens, blood spilling from its hands as if some form of a gorey offering.

So, first conclusion to be taken, is that this is not "Godly" abno, but rather, a worshipper. And thus is also why its primarily lust, because the core of this is, as previously mentioned, adoration of something thats been put on a pedestal.

The golden land and the pouring blood is above and beyond you, and even as abno picture shows, beyond the spiral. But what could that mean? Its a surprise tool that will help us later.

"It mus have reached this depth after burrowing and burrowing." Why would something or someone go into the depths for source of worship, rather than simply look at the heavens above? This is a question that we will provide two potential answers later.

Now, onto the abnormality choice that I want to focus on in the Mirror Dungeon

The focus on gaze, or in this case, aversion, and previous mention of burrowing makes me to personally be certain of this abnormalities status as an aberration. It also makes me think, how the original abno itself, treated gaze, as almost an act of worship, to devote your focus, yourself fully to the thing your eyes are set upon.

I believe the check passed can have 3 possible interpretations, each with slightly different implications, and all of which might, considering the surreal aspect of abnormalities, be correct at the same time.

First one, is that by being able to avert our eyes from it, from its own act of worship, it has shown us some reverence, but that act, caused the contempt in the abnormality to be directed at self, for feeling respect towards a worthless bug like us. Though I do believe that the last line "The spiral descended out of sight in the meantime" Implies that the middle statement is not describing what the spiral does itself.

Second reading, is that, The Spiral of Contempt itself is a being of little insignificance, thus to observe it, to worship it with your own attention, would be a cause of contempt, and by not adoring something as worthless at it is, we prove our own worth. I want to point out here, that the option to keep looking, is what causes hatred and contempt to burst out out of ourselves

Finally, third, perhaps most radical option that will need some explaining later, is that, whatever the spiral is worshiping itself is of no significance, is profane, that its object of awe in on itself is contemptable. The reason I think so, is because the spiral has burrowed itself under the ground to worship something, to hold it in awe. I believe that one of the angles of interpretation is that, the spiral is worshipping the profane, the bloody, messy, literally placing blood on altar made of its own hands, rather than seek true heaven. It burrows itself deeper, instead of burrowing to the surface, until it reaches sky. Additional clue is, that the primary ego gift we get from it, the hands with the sanguine offering, is named perversion, otherwise translatable as corruption of the natural order.

Additionally, with the failure of the check, what we are punished for, is failure to have courage to look away, to reject the sight in front of our eyes. This failure check leads me to further believe in interpretations 2 and 3.

Now, onto Awe, Contempt, and how it ties into two of my interpretations. In on itself, the name choice is quite interesting, seemingly two completely contrasting statements, yet if we assume correctness of my interpretation, or look at what Ryoshu represents as a person, it is perfectly fitting.

The quote Ryoshu was given shows how those two concepts compliment each other perfectly "Other, lesser painters are such mediocrities, they have no way to see the beauty that lies in ugliness"

Ryoshu, through an act of art, is a sort of worshipper. She worships the squalor and uglyness and suffering that is present in life, and her art. With her actions, she is elevating the most profane, the most vile, the most worthy of contempt, into a thing of beauty and awe. This, is based on interpretation number 3.

A different, equally valid angle in my opinion, is that this EGO represents her worship of art, while separating herself from it. She is very prideful, but she does not require praise or adoration herself, what she wants is for the art itself to be seen, to focus on artist rather than their work, is what invites her scorn. This one, obviously is based on interpretation number 2.

Thus, in conclusion. I believe that Spiral of Contempt is abnormality that both represents worship of something we choose to see as vastly greater than ourselves, and the act of deifying the horrid and profane.

I will write additional things I notice that don't warrant taking space in the analysis in a follow-up post

[gygesiv]

railway final boss meet cute

[masochnik]

NOSTALGIA CRITIC MEURSAULT

[dogofhair]

Spiral

[ashlynniis-bracketeers]

DeviantArt - r/memeframe - r/TheOdysseyHadAPurpose - r/LimbusCompany

Something that was meant to be a quick, low-effort meme that got very out of hand the second I started drawing the SoC's head rofl.

The only reason I made this is because my brain decided to connect Duviri's "Emotional Spirals" and the name of an Abnormality from Limbus Company dubbed the "Spiral of Contempt". In other words: String-and-corboard brain did a Funny.

Trying to get the SoC's head shape down was a pain in the ass, the only references I have are the in-game idles and the background art for Ryoshu's Contempt, Awe E.G.O, both of which are at funny angles with parts obstructed. And yet again, I have no clue how lighting/shading metal works lmao.

I hope you like it!

[projectmoon-smash-or-pass]

propaganda for Hod

propaganda for Spiral of Contempt

[tomatosmoothie]

spiral

[melliae]

Refraction Railway Line #3 Abnormalities Part 2 (Analysis)

A False Prophet

“@$*@)$ ?@#$!!@#* !@*()!%&$(^!!!!@&(@)” - Abnormality Encounter.

Arguably, this one was a headache to analyze, and that may be the point of its existence: it doesn’t write for any necessity or greater purpose beyond its own twisted pleasure. It is so absorbed in its own writing, trying to reveal and write the future (wink), that it doesn’t notice that it burns everything around it with its quill, returning all interactions with another being with pure, unaltered hatred due to them daring to interrupt its self-serving writing.

Obviously, understanding that much is the easy part; even the characters themselves do. However, now comes the actual question: what is the Skin Prophet exactly writing?

“Yearning for destruction and doom, it writes and writes and writes.” - Abnormality Encounter.

Its own selfish, biased predictions about how everything ends, naturally. It endlessly writes and delights in its own imagination about all kinds of dooms, ruins, and falsehoods, which, again, don’t serve any purpose beyond its own pleasure. If we take into consideration how its self-damaging skill, “6:5”, may be based on Isaiah 6:5, everything coincides:

“‘Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.’”

When actual darkness sets in, when Skin Prophet can finally see only itself instead of being distracted by anyone else or its own writing, “God”—the actual truth—appears… and “He” smites it down. This is telling because, in the Encounter itself and the Logs, it is mentioned that the candles are lit from the get-go (or they constantly go on and off), meaning that it’s never surrounded by absolute darkness, going against the presumed meaning of “9:2”:

“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” - Isaiah 9:2

Despite using its intense wrath to turn off all the candles, the surroundings never go fully dark thanks to its pen and eyes—it’s unable to confront the bitter, cold truth that lies in the abyssal depths. That’s both the reason why it is, above all, weak to Gloom and why it disappears once you choose to “snuff out the candles”: you turn off all that distracts it from what’s true, thus making it confront the contradictory nature of its existence.

“The records, inscribed with that burning quill, are endless. Yet the prophet must write. Because the future is also endless.” - Mid-Combat Event.

How can it write about the endless future if the only thing it yearns for is ruin and doom? To see the worst of everything despite being incapable of confronting true darkness?

In regards to the other check options, they add more to it: choosing to “peek at the book” when encountering it in the MDs ends up with every Lustless ID losing 20 SP; in contrast, passing the check in the mid-combat Event—which requires Lust, by that matter—also leads to -20 SP in the selected ID, independent of affinity. That’s to say, reading Skin Prophet’s “gospel” is a bad idea for just about everyone. But those who are familiar with the violent sway of desire can appreciate its reprehensible contents, even if comprehending such garbage is impossible.

No matter with how much zealousness it writes all its prophecies, thinking they are some sort of divine revelation, because Skin Prophet is just that: a skin-deep, false prophet trying to justify its twisted perception of a half-baked evil, because in the moment it knows true desolation and darkness, it collapses. But at the same time, nobody can deny the obsessive passion engraved in the incomprehensible ramblings, enough for even the most “depraved” people to be shaken to their core.

“Because had they not done so, they could not have endured this world. Because they were weak! I was their lighthouse in this world of tempest… I gave them an unambiguous path to follow!” - Ahab, Inside the Whale (Sinew Bridge), Canto V.

Unreflective, contagious madness about knowing—wishing for—evil, spreading like a wildfire… Surely there are many people or organizations like that in the City, guiding others through self-serving fabrications.

Hatred for All

“You feel a cold wave crawl up your spine in an instant, but it may be the right choice. Even children know not to play with fire.” - Abnormality Encounter.

It hates you. It hates you so goddamn much. Even more than Spiral of Contempt. Though it may be more accurate to say that it hates the entire world, including itself, “hoping to burn all down”, according to Ishmael’s corrosion line, and as its capacity to turn every skill into a Wrath-based one shows. But at the same time, it's a homely presence, unable to guide anyone yet offering a warm embrace anyway.

“These flames… they do not burn; they only bring us warmth. Perhaps accepting them may be of benefit to us.” - Yi Sang, Abnormality’s Observation Log #1

However, the only way to endure that embrace is through understanding and already holding such devastating wrath. Those who don’t have it will be consumed by the embers and set ablaze by the wings of the Moth, who whas accepted a long time ago that way of existing, as its Sloth skills, “Flame Strike” and “Ardor Blossom Pinions”, clearly show: it slowly, lazily—or maybe “mechanically”—strikes the embers within its wings.

The rest of its skills are similar in nature, slowly building up and fanning its fire through the battle until it reaches 5 Embers and its infamous “Ardor Blossom Star”, when there’s no more Sloth nor Pride regarding its existence, just pure hatred for everything that exists, even you, that has entered its territory.

“Something draws you into the haze. Countless flowers in the shape of a butterfly flutter and form a field of stars. A fiery heat assaults you from the haze as you lean over to pick a flower.” - Abnormality Encounter.

Though, if you are able to destroy its wings or remove its “core” during its mid-combat Event, its wrath stops suddenly, since you have taken away the fuel of its flames… but not forever. No matter what you do, Ardor Blossom Moth will keep on accumulating hate until it can burn down everything that surrounds it, even—or especially—itself.

The moth is no more than a lost soul that wishes to end everything. You can’t help it beyond just ignoring it and following your path. Or, if you want to take the risk, go and drown it in sorrows, cut its wings; it may not be 100% effective, but it sure is a better option than feeding its flames through a hug, lest you think you are able to withstand its unending hatred that created its own hell.

Maybe watching from a distance is safer, no matter how warm and comforting the fire—the hate—looks.

The Spiral of Contempt

“Blood pours from above; the land of gold lies beyond. The spiral ahead loudly screeches. It must have reached this depth after burrowing and burrowing. Although it has no eyes, it creaks to face you.” - Abnormality Encounter.

A land of gold and blood. Those are the defining traits of the Spiral’s world, and they are extremely easy to understand: a land of luxury, pleasure, and loftiness built over the sacrifice of endless bloodshed. After all, the Spiral only reached it after burrowing so, so much, but in what it burrows if not in the human’s soul?

“You continue to stare at its peculiar movements with yearning eyes. It feels as though spirals of spikes are digging into your head.” - Abnormality Encounter.

It sacrifices those who look with awe at its golden shape, those who adore it with fervor. Yet, the Spiral can’t detest them more, wrapping its spines and branches around its “adorers” in order to make them worship it with their blood. That’s the reason behind both the unique death animation of the Sinners and of its new EGO gift, “Awe”—as if it wanted people to be envious of its “magnanimity”, even in death.

However, its prideful nature isn’t anything new. Each of its descriptions never fails to mention its “faceless look” of contempt against everyone. But it would be too simple for its arrogance to be born out of economic difference, wouldn't it? All of its attacks point to an impersonality in things, maybe even some sort of “objectivity”, as if it was the good thing to do: the Spiral is so superior to you that it must hate you. I think the name of its theme puts the final nail in the coffin: Cur Dolorem Sentis—Why do you, wretched things, dare to feel pain?

But as in everything I’ve written, the Spiral’s pride isn’t absolute. Quite the contrary: it’s quite frail, because it forgives you once you choose to avert your eyes in its Encounter, be it thanks to your own (self-)hatred or despair, unable to think of yourself as worthy to look at it. That, paradoxically, leads it to show respect for “a being of no significance” in the form of its EGO gift, making it hate itself.

Such fragility is also shown in its passives, “Compounded Contempt” and “Penetrated Gaze”, that make it more vulnerable the more status the Sinners put on it, the more “filth” that penetrates it and makes it hate them even more. The status of “Gaze” and “Contempt” are important in this context too, which are explained by the Observation Log #3:

“We've been missing its logic and pattern this whole time. There’s a specific window where it grabs us if we attack its hands. At first, I thought it was just plucking us one by one, like plucking weeds from a garden… going for the most annoying one of us. You see the logic, right? If you could squash anything getting in your way into tomato paste, wouldn’t you?”

The “Gaze” status, thus, refers to the Spiral giving the Sinners more attention (than it thinks they deserve) until it has enough and intimidates the Sinners through sheer “Contempt” alone. However, if that ID with Contempt is “Grasped” by its only Pride skill, “It Shall Constrict”, then you can show it the truth: that no matter how much contempt it holds for others and tries to crush them to show how superior it is, the Spiral is just as small, pathetic, and fallible as everyone else.

“A piercing gaze sizes us up. It feels as though the Gaze is seeing right through us. You feel its inquisitive, intense gaze.” - Mid-Combat Event.

What is that “Gaze” that sizes the Sinners up? I don’t really know. But I think it is may be the Spiral’s very own gaze, with the Sinners finally returning the contempt and hatred, burrowing deep into its essence so it won’t ever forgive its humiliation.

“It seemed dazed for a good while, too. And that’s when we managed to really hurt it. Mmm… still, we have to let it gaze at us with that weird look if we wanna pull off something like that again.” - Rodya, Abnormality’s Observation Log #3.

Though, as always, if the Sinner isn’t familiar with the sensations and power they want to transmit to the Spiral, it’ll return the favor with utter Contempt.

Now, it’s also important to keep in mind that its “Gaze” can be forgotten if it uses “And It Shall Contempt All”, drowned by its pleasure and satisfaction derived from seeing the Sinners bleed like the lowly maggots they are. Its other Lust skills follow a similar principle: the Spiral is ecstatic at seeing the Sinners bleed through “It Shall Penetrate”, and “It Shall Shun” becomes stronger once it sees the Sinners are unable to break its “Grasp”.

In regards to the other two skills, “It Shall Grip” is the less interesting: It “grips” the Sinners and other people because that is what it has been doing for a long time, and thus nothing special. But “It Shall Be Insidious”... That one is interesting because it implies its hatred wasn’t abrupt; it slowly grew through its continuous burrowing until it reached the heights we see in the games. After all, it’s called “Spiral of Contempt” for a reason.

And maybe that “spiral” is within you too.

“From the excavated brain, geysers of hatred and contempt erupt.  It’s as if those feelings were inside you all along." - Abnormality Encounter.

Hatred for something from the get-go is not possible, or at least not for most cases. It’s something that piles up gradually, experience upon experience, until a trigger appears and your brain is blown into smithereens—burrowing so slowly until you reach the “land of gold”, the perfect utopia for you.

But alas, you shouldn’t construct a city upon the blood of those that hate or adore you, or you will one day confront that very same gaze that you imparted unto others. And no matter what you do, how much contempt you hold for them and expose every single one of their flaws with your “omniscient gaze”, they will drag you once and for all.

Everyone dreams of toppling the tyrant. You are no exception.

[josieblueart]

Cur Dolorem Sentis

Sort of experimental piece with a human version of Spiral of Contempt, why’d they gotta be such a bitch.

[friskyrisk]

these fuckers are so smart!!! Lobotomy Corporation 2 will take place in the LCE and we'll be managing all the Limbus abnos omfg it's peak... i kneel...

[fujoshiwarrior]

rodion you gotta do something she's devouring you

[gygesiv]

Blood pours from above; the land of gold lies beyond.

The spiral ahead loudly screeches.

It must have reached this depth after burrowing and burrowing.

Although it has no eyes, it creaks to face you.

[nostalgia-tblr]

i wish we didnt call it thoshei i get that it's about the best we can do for a smushed-up pairing name but - hear me out - a combined pairing name that uses neither character's actual name just... isn't? especially when the names they do use for themselves and each other are such a Thematic Thing? so it's like. the worst possible pairing name we could be using for this pairing?

[perpetual-pathos]

@ivrket

Tag yourself as this list of “bad art” features, according to a twitter fascist

[acid-ixx]

mild spoilers for chapter six for my series again &. again, but i really feel the need to ramble about this, and i'd love to hear anybody's opinion on this hehe.

as i write outline chapter six (and write for chapter five), i'd like to say i couldn't wait to write the reader's face reveal in bruce's perspective. and it's not just angst, for me, this plays a very pivotal turn for the series— because bruce will spiral to insanity.

to never once see a single portrait of your second youngest child, whose presence has long been erased from the manor, not a single image, nor trace of you is sickening to the heart, even if he scours through the internet day and night for a single memoir of you, nothing— but to find your portrait in alfred's living quarters and seeing you for the first time in forever? graduating a milestone no less?

god, he's in for a ride just analyzing every aspect of your physical appearance.

the color of your eyes, the shape of your nose, the quip of your mouth, the fat in your cheeks; even the length of your lashes! god, does he brand it into the deepest parts of his mind to never forget you anymore. his pearl, his treasure.

the longer he stares, the more he notices and gazes even more, obsessive as he stands lonesome in the room with every bone in his body locking up, his eyes unable to look away from the portrait that showcases his baby child.

and there, there it is that he concludes a detail so small it's unrecognizable for someone who's seen it for his entire life; yet it's all the same triggered deranged emotions deep within him.

— you don't just share him and your mother's traits, no, your smile is also reminiscent of his mother's.

martha wayne, who'd died in his arms, laying in a pool of her blood with a bullet grazed deep inside her body. his loving mother, who caressed his face whenever he'd cry from his nightmares, who'd shown him motherly love that until now he still craves.

she died with her pearl necklace that once decorated her porcelain neck spilling to the ground and stained with crimson.

you wore pearl earrings on your graduation.

the thought alone is enough for him to just snap.

this? this is the child that he's been neglecting far too long? who shares the same, loving expression of his mother's? his child? not even a single memory could be conjured with you but fantasies now do. if your happiest moments were within the picture frame that he holds with shivering fingers at present; could your smile be any wider if you'd be with him?

how come he never once noticed? why is bruce always destined to fail left and right? why, just why is he brimming with jealousy for all the people who must've seen your smile before him, and contempt for himself that he was never there to pick you up from the police station beforehand?

bruce isn't a heckler for favoritism, but a darker part of him is motivated to take you away from wherever you are, and to never let anybody else witness his beautiful, little treasure.

he's gotham's knight, first and foremost. but he's a father, too, with goals to protect his children just like a father should.

and the things he'd do for you, his child, now? anything.

if it means he has to see that smile, then he'll turn the world upside-down.

he has to protect your smile.

[projectmoon-smash-or-pass]

propaganda:

✅️ "Spiral of Contempt would be pretty wild to smash. Imagine its utter disdain and loathing as you blow its back out. Like a hatefuck but actually satisfying and you just KNOW them hands gonna do some work on ya."