#VOID; EVIL and DEATH were honestly most relatable for me

[orange-artblog]

Mint Mirage, a forestcore oc, they/them pronouns. (outdated)

their actual form(no leafs attached) below (i like to think I am funny)

the actual version here;

If you find it counts as nudity, pls tell me so I can tag accordingly!

front faced

[mad-hunts]

[[ I have questions about Barton's thoughts on cannibalism and some of the aspects it holds and means to him. Now suppose, SUPPOSE!!! We go the whole Death of the Family route. And adjust it to fit our respective takes of Barton and Joker. Are there any feelings regarding the whole process of taking Joker's face off? ]]

AHH, forgive me for how late i am to replying to this, but thank you so much for the ask! i really do love y'all for wanting to know more about him tehe <33 BUT onto the rather taboo matter that is cannibalism, i would honestly be more than happy to talk to you about it in relation to barton's character more ( because i know we already talked about it a bit together, buttt of course, making posts about these things is always fun and i want you guys to always feel free to ask me questions about things on here :D ) . because being a cannibal is one of his most unfavorable traits since it is... well, VERY morally depraved, to put it simply. and perhaps surprisingly enough, this is the one aspect of what barton does that he usually doesn't try to excuse and/or just completely NOT care about it's inherent evilness. i'd honestly say that his thoughts about it are heavily negative and he tends to regret it afterwards in the occasion that he remembers he has done it (and just a quick refresher here, i say 'in the occasion that he remembers' because barton has suffered from blackouts before where his brain was just like ' oh, so we're doing this now, huh? yeahhh... i don't think we're going to be able to cope wth remembering this, so we're just going to metaphorically pack it somewhere where it can't be accessed.')

and it's, unfortunately, not so simple as him being able to stop doing it just because he knows it's gross + wrong. because i have to admit that this is hard for me to articulate properly into words but cannibalizing is like something that fills a void for him. which is SUPER twisted, of course, but most cannibals throughout history that also happened to be serial killers were extreme loners and don't have a lot of friends. so although it's criminal and definitely not something i condone, killing and eating someone for barton is like ensuring he is never alone in a way, because it's as if he is 'carrying the victim' along with him as part of a trophy. and this feeling is wickedly intoxicating for him because he is just SO alone all of the time. also, being able to have power like that over someone is appealing to barton, as i've read in several studies that some cannibals do what they do because it gives them this sick sense of satisfaction. and it makes him feel powerful because he's capable of doing something so few people have ( i mean, for good reason because it's TERRIBLE in ways i can't even describe, but barton is a very deranged individual y'all (,,: ) + it gives him that dopamine rush even though it really shouldn't.

but yeah. that's why, when it comes to people coming across barton while he may be in the act of doing so, that he almost appears as if he's high probably a good chunk of the time 💀 like the man is TRULY a menace to society jsjsj but this momentary 'bliss' doesn't last long, as i was saying that he normally regrets doing it afterwards and it tends to sometimes even give him stomach aches by psychogenic means. and when he's like this, i hope this makes sense whenever i say this, but barton feels the most unhuman-like that he probably ever does so it also... scares him in a way??? yeah, i'd say that's pretty accurate. and so barton will normally deflect whenever the issue is brought up by other people in conversation. though, strangely enough, he also uses it to his advantage a bit to scare people he really doesn't like. as a threat is a lot more powerful when you know that someone is capable of doing it so if barton were to tell another muse that, if they betray him again like that, that he'll EAT them?? idk about that muse but i would be like ' oH. NO, I WAS TOTALLY NOT GOING TO DO THAT PSHHH ' and just completely brush away any plans i might've had of betraying him SKSKK

BUT yes, i hope that answered your question regarding his thoughts about cannibalism and what it means to him, as well as what some of the aspects hold to him. it is basically a brutal reminder that wesley still holds influence on him even after his death, honestly, as harrowing as that might sound because without him — he likely wouldn't have started doing it at all. so, in the case of barton's story, his bio father does 'haunt the narrative' as some people may call it. but OOH, honestly, like i was telling you before... i think it would be intriguing to maybe figure out a way it could be implemented between them so if you want to end up doing that, then do let me know!! but there is absolutely no pressure so don't feel like you have to. and as for feelings surrounding the removal of the joker's face, it isn't touched upon in the comics, BUT i'm going to be honest. barton is basically my OC now so i shall be telling you my perspective on how doing it made him feel. because barton deals in 'dead things' like he would call it, especially at the time that death of the family took place, i believe that he would be morbidly excited about the occasion of being able to quote unquote 'do his work on someone who's actually alive' and thus he would be a willing participant to it... just like barton was in the comics. though, i know that's messed up.

barton is just SO into the mindset that he is a 'creator' like we were talking about and since he didn't know at the time just how bad joker was, barton would have little to no reason to be wary about working with her. and he finds beauty in grotesque / unusual things so he likely would've seen it as some form of macabre form of art especially if it was... well, hooked on the wall, like it was in that panel of the comic 🫠 BUT ANYWAY enough of talking about gross things! the point i was trying to make is, barton would be excited to help her as sickkk as that sounds and if joker viewed it as some sort of rebirth / transformation just like the character did in the comics as well? then perhapsss barton would be proud that he's helping someone in a very questionable and gross way to become their more 'authentic self,' so yeahhh. i hope you enjoyed my response to this even though i know it was a bit long-winded!! i just wanted to cover everything is all, haha

[cosmicseapop]

My take on that one Bad Ending timeline

Sharing my brain rot with the void and 10ish people in this tag about that main alternative timeline that was touched on in Shadow of War, the one where basically everyone dead and started Malgor’s time loop adventure. 

So, the only events we got from that timeline that directly contribute to it ending were Gravelyn and Victoria’s death (and Drakath trying to get us to fight back or whatever, it not important right now). While it’s was sad and tragic and all that jazz, I honestly don’t think their death were the only things to push the Hero into despair. Like it wasn’t the first time someone we knew/cared died, probably the closest people to us dying but still (could be wrong about this, I did skipped a good bit of the Queen of Monster saga and still need to go back). And there was an extend, unaccounted for period of time between their death and the timeline ending, so anything could have happened. 

The question is what could have happened so bad to made the Hero to just give up? 

Second Elemental Champion War

Sure, most of the known champions are Good/Neutral aligned. Doing their own thing that may or may not relate to their respective elemental plane, just living their best life and vibing. Hell, a few don’t even know they’re Champions at the time of the Queen of Monsters’ death. I doubt any of them would have woken up one day and said “hey, killing some of the other champions who maybe or may not be friends of mine to increase mine and my elemental plane’s power sound like a great idea”. At least in the days following the Hero’s disappearance, they probably had better things to worry about than power. 

Gravelyn was the only one who was on the side of Evil and had the means to wage that kind of war if she wanted to, and she’s the first person to die. 

So who started it then?

Oh I don’t know. Probably the guy who focused on the ruler of Shadowscythe being the Champion of Light, in a position of leadership and influence to wage a war for the sake of Good, and already caused the death of one of her dead wife’s sister. 

Brentan 

Giant leap, probably, but hear me out. 

This scenario was brought up in the  Champion of Darkness questline, the what if a normal person killed a Champion and took their position (Idk if this got recon, but for the sake of this brain rot, it has not). So it is possible for Brentan to become the Champion of Light via being the one to kill Gravelyn. I don’t think he would kill her with in mind, since it doubtful that that info would be told to the leaders of the Alliance and became a closely guarded secret between those who initially learned it (I feel like this info is on the same level as the Hero being literal god). He probably viewed it as ridding Lore of an evil, and becoming the Champion of Light was a surprise. 

Obviously, this would happen during Gravelyn’s attack on Swordhaven. Maybe her and Victoria are having a duel and are avoiding dealing a deceive blow to the other, so he goes for it and actually manage to almost kill Gravelyn. Also, entirely possible that Brentan had a spell or weapon crafted to combat Gravelyn’s affinity to Light, like how he used Infernal weapons against the Infernal invasion and the net/spell Warlic made to ground Drakath. So while Victoria is either freak out on him for just killing her last reminding family member or just shutting down and the Hero is trying to save a dying Gravelyn, he’s celebrating his victory against Shadowscythe. 

Then boom, Champion of Light Brentan, and this is when things start going downhill fast.

There a few group in Lore that view Light as pure good and everything else as evil (ie the new Temple of Light, Higher Light elementals like Astero, the inquisition from that one Hollowborn questline) that I’m sure would be thrill to have a Good aligned Champion of Light that support their causes of ridding Lore of evil and monsters. I’m also pretty sure this could be why Brentan had Victoria executed and not literally anything else less extreme, these groups most likely putting the idea that she would want revenge for Gravelyn’s death since they were sisters and that he need to act quick and decisive for all that was good. No idea about Lynaria being considered the second coming of the Queen of Monsters tho since she was so revered for being the Champion of Light. Probably just propaganda/rumors from getting exaggerated and used to get Brentan to act quicker. I don’t think he would have wanted to execute Victoria straight off the bat, maybe just imprison her, but got pressured into it and started believing it was for the best for the kingdom somewhere along the line.

Of course, this would not have been received well by the other Champions, the Hero, friends of Victoria, and probably several other leaders in the Alliance. (Did you see the amount of side eye he got in the “Your Hero” cutscene when he was bashing Victoria’s leadership so far? like bitch you couldnt have done better) I can see them trying to talk sense into him about the execute, but most likely got the same response he gave the Hero about it, that it would be treason and they would be treated the enemy to Good if they tried to interfere (well in the Hero’s case, it was straight to being consider the enemy for even thinking about it but they would have been the biggest threat, but I’ll get back to that in a different part). 

Would they try to do something to save Victoria? Absolutely, but what would it be? 

I say there’s two ways this would play out, either all out war right off the bat or an attempted prison break to get Victoria to safety before dealing with Brentan. Honestly I say the latter is more interesting and most likely since no one would want a war with Swordhaven yet and Victoria’s niche was her spy network, and I’m sure some of her spies would already be working on getting her out way before being imprisoned.

Yet will that much support from her friends and allies, Victoria still get executed. Why? 

Maybe after Gravelyn’s death, the weight of everything just crushed on her. She wasn’t suppose to inherit the throne, that was Brittany’s right that she never got to claim. She was forced to leave Tara behind during the Infernal invasion, knowing that her sister would be brutally murdered and that she couldn’t protected her. She had to watch her dad slowly die due to his corruption then destroy the city he loved and kill his daughter. She was put in the position that she had to go against her brother in law for the throne, someone who was whole heartedly welcome into her family. She had to fight her last reminding family member the sack of her kingdom and had to watch her get mortally wounded and die. Victoria was going to be buckle under all of that at some point sooner or later, she couldn’t stay strong forever. 

Unfortunately it was now.

In the aftermath of Gravelyn’s invasion and death, I think Victoria just shut down and gave up. So when the rescue party shows up to save her from her impending doom, she would refuse to leave and accept her fate. At this point, she probably would fully believe the deaths of Gravelyn and Tara, plus the suffering of her people since taking the throne were due to her own failures as a ruler and accepted her death. 

Which would leave Brentan unchallenged as king of Swordhaven and in change of the forces of Good. 

This is where the war actually starts. 

Tbc later when i have the time to continue writing the rest

[pheonixfire4015]

Elliot and Oliva- Something I felt I just needed to say....

No one may see or read this but I thought I would write it for myself, to get it out of my head, and in case someone out there is like me and reading this makes them feel less alone in their struggle. Over the years I watched SVU and related to it deeply due to the trauma I had experienced in life. After Chris left the show and I saw continuous trauma being done to Liv I just couldn’t continue watching. When I saw that Chris was returning, I came back. There was one scene that was really triggering for me- it was difficult. In order to explain why it was I need to give some background.

When I was young, I was placed into a foster home. Due to the trauma from my upbringing, I had never had an emotional connection to my own parents.  When I moved into the first foster home it was like a dream come true. I never imagined I would ever be lucky enough to get a second chance at being a part of a family. Every night I thanked God, because I knew how many kids are in foster care. They offered to adopt me and I so desperately wanted to be a part of them. I opened my heart up to the mom in a way I had never opened up to anyone before. So that mom bond I never had with by biological mom I developed with the foster mom. However, they didn’t realize that when a child has trauma there is a lot of things you have to work through. Sadly, the system does not prepare family’s enough for what it will be like. With most foster care kids you may run into kids with severe issues… some struggle to connect to others, some lash out in severe anger or bad behaviors, struggle developmentally, etc. The only issue I had was I was developmentally behind, I didn’t know how to communicate, and I had a lot of memories and experiences I had to work through. I was like an 80 year old in a kids body. I was a good kid. I didn’t have any friends and never once got into trouble. For years I got to experience family meals, movie nights, having someone tuck me in at night with hugs and kisses, I had someone to talk to, I was safe, I would be held and loved, they wanted to adopt me-  I was worth fighting for, ect. I began counseling. I worked hard because I wanted to show the family I would and could get better, that I would be healed. It was hard as hell but I did it. However, as time went on I noticed that the mom was pulling away and lashing out at me. As a kid I didn’t understand it at the time. So I tried harder. But no matter how hard I tried she just kept pulling away. She explained to the counselor that all I came with was too much and listening to past trauma made her feel helpless as she couldn’t fix that. She explained her kids were jealous and that her husband no longer wanted me there- as I was taking time away from him and their biological kids. Eventually they decided they didn’t want me apart of their family and no longer wanted me to live with them. I was then placed into a new family, a family I didn’t want to go to.

I cannot express in words how deeply that experience affected me- how badly it messed with my head. Going into adulthood I was so willfully unprepared for life. I was lost and alone.  In my upbringing there was physical and sexual abuse, I was surrounded by substance abuse, and my mom left when I was 11. I can honestly say that the harm and pain caused by that foster family choosing to leave far outweighed the pain my own parents caused me. I wanted to die. To finally feel like you belong, to be loved, and held, and safe and then have it pulled away. Its like dangling a carrot in front of a starving animal. The hole and void it left has never left me. It hurt so bad I felt I was physically dying. I am 38 now and I have gone through a lot of counseling. I have a different perspective now but to this day the hole, the wound they left remains. Due to health issues I don’t have kids and am not married. As protection for the most part I stick to myself. There are still triggers- places, smells, and sounds that bring things up so I do my best. I still live in the same town and have run into her in stores. It was like mourning the death of someone who is still alive. They went back to their normal lives leaving me with less than I had, and taking with them the part of my heart I gave them. It’s something I have learned I will have to live with for the rest of my life. And I will forever have to live with all the implications of what it means to have a family decide they now longer want you.

When Elliot was written off the show, seeing Liv go through that experience was so triggering for me. It was TV but real, so deeply real for me. I just couldn’t do it, I couldn’t watch anymore. There was a scene in the reunion with Fin and Elliot. Fin states, “It took Liv a minute but she eventually moved on.”  People have no concept when you’re dealing with major trauma in your background and you let someone in and trust them, losing the one stolid support is earth shattering. Liv had never known family until Elliot came into her life.  So, the minute Fin said that line I said out loud, “Bullshit, she moved on.” I paused the episode and went for a walk.  The pain of Elliot leaving left a void in her she had just learned to live with. That didn’t mean that every day she didn’t hope he would choose to come back, that she didn’t ache for closure. When Liv said “Elliot, you were the most, single most important person in my life and you just disappeared.” I felt it all the way to my bones, I got it with every fiber of my being. Every day I hoped they would come back, realize they made a mistake, that they loved me, that I was worth fighting. Every day I hoped the mom would wake up and realize the mistake she made and reach out. Even to this day its there, so you just learn to cope with those feelings, always there under the surface. I dream about them, think about them, etc. It will never leave me.

Watching a fictional character get the chance to do and say what she needed for closure- knowing I probably never would, was hard. I understand this is a show and they have to keep viewers watching every week but I just hope they do this right. As they have no idea the people watching who have actually endured these traumas in real life. I long to see Oliva get the chance at some peace in her life, to experience family. I wrote a fic recently “Peace in the midst of the storm” because I just needed to write the full conversation I hope or wish Elliot and Olivia would have. I hope Elliot and Olivia end up together, I really do. I’d love to see both of them go into counseling, and finally work through shit instead of continuing to bury it as it festers. I’d love the end scene of SVU to be Liv sit in the backyard of her own small home with Elliot next to her, watching her son play. There’s enough evil and trauma and pain enough in this world. I just hope Dick Wolf does having Chris back justice! This show has been important for a lot of people who have endured hell in their lifetimes, but weirdly its healing to see some good coming to those who have struggled- namely Olivia- even if she isn’t real. If you are watching SVU and you are in the same boat as me. I pray all the blessings and peace for the remainder of your days! Heres to hoping we get a beautiful SVU and E/O outcome :). Thanks for hearing me out.

[yomiurinikei]

I mean, Linuj did basically say that he was inspired to make Kanade Like That because of Korekiyo so you're on to something

yeah exactly!

uhhhh under the cut for length + full game spoilers for all games + mentions of many many characters (m1tch isn't mentioned at all, k0r3k1y0 is but not by name)

liiiike. you have a game with the shsl maid who's responsible for at least one death and the game where the protag is a fake and is responsible for at least one death (im intentionally being vague here pls don't come @ me abt v3 ch6) we have the blue haired boy who winds up taking more of a leading role we have the buff gentle giant perceived as having social issues, we have a "almost the tallest" boy who knows a good bit abt religion, we have the girl who's constantly being lewd towards her classmates, w/o getting into a more serious convo abt that, thennn

we have a girl who's overall helpful and does a lot for the cast but then surprises most everyone with their actions and dies (kaede/akane), we have the girl with v long hair who's rather cold/distant but winds up surviving after being involved in some way with the person who in ch5 starts coughing up blood right before/as they get executed before dying on their own terms instead of in a execution for a murder where their hand was forced too much, aaaaand even more comparisons could prolly be found by someone who's actually played through v3

now then.

we have chapter 1, in which a character who seemed they'd be relevant/important is killed by a blond(e) leading to more tension and district within the group (yuri seeming like the "~crazy antag~" and hajime revealing the existence of void/it's members being in the class, and kaede being a figure of trust/hope and committing murder and being executed, as well as. what actually happened being kinda horrifying)

chapter 2, in which a girl generally polite/caring murders someone. there's not really many parallels here but also i havent played v3 so??? anyways yuuki directly looked up to and was a fan of emma whereas kirumi served to help the whole group, so we were heavily exposed to these characters as positive influences and then... yeah, they killed bc of something outside the game (emmas trauma vs kirumis job)

chapter 3, mentioned in this ask/in some of my posts, in which a girl dies being directly manipulated (hibikis.. existence/tenko being used for the ceremony) by serial killer killing for their sister, in smthn that "huuuuuh??? no it's not at all related to trauma they're just evil and fucked up inhetently!!!" -the creators of both games.

also uhhhh smthn smthn angies whole thing she had going on that chapter vs the fact that setsuka was like. working with nikei on his plan. goals to revive the dead students vs all the shit nikei proceeded to pull abt whether or not the others could come back, to try and fuck over mikado who was gonna kill the CoU to bring back utsuro. cinematic parallels perhaps

chapter 4: dark haired twink looks at local bara and chooses violence, much to the distress of a girl with light hair who just wants that twink obliterated. more at 11. execution that cues a lot of "hey what the fuck they didn't deserve that that's bullshit also what the actual HELL are the mono mascots up to this time" also there's soooo much debate on like. who was where and the weapons and locations and on and on that has to happen so. good job twinks i guess!

i have a huge essay to do for college now and honestly do not think i know enough about the other 4 chapters (v3/sdra2 ch 5/6) but!!!! in conclusion: im right

[thehouseofvs]

[RP Journal - 1/20/2021] Valeria Camena: Gifts, Truths, and Consequences

I suppose this is going to become a thing now, isn’t it? The idea of keeping a journal like this still seems rather silly to me, but perhaps my thoughts will change as I continue writing. That said, I guess I should provide an update since my last entry. That’s how these work, right? After Rae-Hann and I boarded our flight out of Kugane, the trip went by relatively quick. At least, quicker than it would have, if we had decided to depart by ship as originally suggested. Though, perhaps that might have been the better option, given how anxious the airship flight seemed to make Rae. It’s actually rather amusing; I thought nothing seemed to phase the Mystel, but heights appear to have accomplished the impossible. Thankfully, we were able to take a small break with a brief lay-over in Limsa Lominsa. At least, enough for Rae to be at bit more at ease before we took off again for Ul’dah. The journey was uneventful, honestly - but we spent the time with brief discussions, moments of quiet, whatever Rae-Hann seemingly wanted to indulge in...not that I minded, honestly. He has been through a lot lately, so I did not want to bother him too much. With our arrival in Ul’dah, we temporarily stopped by the Quicksands to purchase a couple of rooms for the night...though, frankly, neither of us wanted to stay for long. Rae-Hann had to go and take care of the business he had originally come to the city to do, and I...well. The Quicksands is a rather filthy place - by far the dirtiest hub I’ve seen in Eorzea. I do not know how Mistress Momodi stands it. No, I preferred to be on my way.

And what was my business in Ul’dah? Well, certainly nothing like Rae-Hann’s. I decided to stop by the Goldsmith’s Guild, to see if I could have a piece of jewelry prepared. Back during Starlight, Rae-Hann had gifted me a crystal infused with his own aether; a source of color that was separate from himself. It is such a beautiful magenta hue...

To my pleasant surprise, the artisans at the Guild were very helpful - albeit for a price. Fair is fair, I suppose. I wanted a swift job, and they wanted swift coin. That’s the nature of things. One of the goldsmiths presented me a necklace design that would suit the crystal, and after approving and paying, all I had left to do was wait. With that business taken care of, I also took the chance to contact my handler, Rikotsu. He was one of the first people I met after fleeing Garlemald, and while I wouldn’t exactly call him a ‘friend’, he has been a reliable contact of mine who had helped me get started as a mercenary. He had been kind enough to watch over Anemo while I was away in the East - I informed him of my return to Eorzea, and that I would swing by to collect Anemo after some initial business. To my utter lack of surprise, Anemo was a good boy...a happy griffin indeed. Other than that, the two days that I had to wait until Rae-Hann was finished with his task were...uneventful, to say the least. I tried to spend a little time in the Quicksands’ bar area, but after the fifth lewd gentleman...and gentlewoman...caller, I decided to leave. The rest of the time was a blur, as I took the time to explore the city. Despite coming here many times, I’d never attempted to really look at Ul’dah. It has quite the beauty of it’s own, though I did find myself wondering how different it’d look if it were any other shade than gray...

At the end of the second day, I had gone to collect my necklace from the Goldsmith’s Guild - and conveniently ran into Rae-Hann on my way out with my new prize. He seemed pleased with the new look to the crystal, so I was happy that the both of us could appreciate it. When I looked him over a bit, he did not seem to have changed, or be hurt, or anything like that. Honestly, I do not know what I was expecting, exactly. Only that when we spoke in Shirogane, he said he might be ‘different’. Whatever it was, he wasn’t willing to share until we were beyond the city’s walls. Which was fair enough, given the nature of his...dealings. So we agreed to head further in-land, towards Drybone in Eastern Thanalan. And, of course, we teleported...Mother, I despite the aetheryte system. Always leaves me feeling queasy. And Rae-Hann knows that, too, and takes pleasure in my discomfort as a tease. Well, we’ll see how much he’s laughing when he’s forced to fly on Anemo’s back...

When we arrived in Drybone, the first thing we agreed to do was find a spot where we could talk without being interrupted, so we settled on the local tavern. Most of the folks here tend to mind their own business, due to the number of travelers that pass through. So we went inside, found a place to sit, and Rae began his retelling of the last couple of days’ events. And of course, as he typically does, Rae-Hann started by dropping a shrapnel charge; apparently, Siannault had come to visit him last night, but he was not certain if it was real, or some sort of vivid hallucination brought on by consuming Una’to’s blood. Needless to say, all that strung together gave me considerable worry, but I allowed him to continue his tale. Thankfully, he explained that beyond a decent dosage of Void-tainted aether, he had not undergone any other changes to his being. And when I examined him, he was right...mostly. The aether certainly did not appear to be reacting negatively to his own, but the once-vibrant magenta that I knew to be his own aether had become murky with that ill, sickly purple hue that I knew all too well. For him to willingly do this to himself...it hurt, thinking what would bring him to take such lengths. So I asked why.

According to Rae, recent events had made him reconsider his position in the world. He did not see himself as normal, like the other people in his life, so in some strange logic, he thought that by consuming the rest of Una’to’s offered blood, he’d change in a way that would make people recognize his differences from them. And he mentioned a name, ‘Skadi’. A necromancer...the one that had his soul. In his usual fashion, he tried to deflect from the conversation by having us go and see what jobs lay in store for us here in Drybone. But I wasn’t having it. I wanted him to talk to me, to open up...and I wanted to know more about this Skadi. Yet another damned monster who took advantage of a man through his suffering, and knowing that Rae-Hann was a victim of it made my blood practically boil. In the past, Rae had tried to convince me that not all Void-related entities were ‘evil’, but if this is what his associates were prone to do...well, maybe I’d have to make a visits when our journey has concluded. At the very least, the intervention of several parties over the last few days had apparently inspired Rae-Hann with the will and desire to live - to prolong his existence, and avoid the inevitable prison that waited for him after his death. We discussed of ways to prevent that from happening, but beyond convincing Skadi of revoking the contract, or simply killing her, our options were limited - not to mention we would have to wait until she contacted him again, anyway. I hate necromancers.

We didn’t have much more to talk about after that, so we decided to take out our mutual frustrations on some of the local creatures in Thanalan. Fortunately for us, the locals here had a never-ending list of problems - and we ultimately settled on clipping a few imps of their wings, and clubbing a few of the walking dead near the Invisible City. With our destination in mind, we had set out. But, of course, things couldn’t be as simple as that. It never is. When Rae-Hann tried to summon forth his aetheric pegasus, Kurda, it instead transformed into a gnarled beast neither of us had seen before. It lashed out at both of us, and we were forced to put it down. After we decided that it would be best to keep such summonings to a minimum until further notice, we headed for the ruins, and handily disposed of the roaming ashkin that had made it their abode. It wasn’t a particularly difficult task, honestly, but it helped us relief some pent-up stress, and filled our pockets with a bit of gil. So, a win-win.

With our work finished, a heavy rain started to pour down onto us. Without a doubt, we were soaked by the time we got to the Golden Bazaar, but at least the man who put out the job notice also owned the local inn, so we were given a free night on top of the pay. Once in our room, we discussed where we would head off to next. Given our current location, the South Shroud seemed like the best choice, considering that Quarrymill was a prime destination for adventurers looking to catch their stride. Not that either of us were fresh to this sort of work...but dealing with a few bandit gangs might be fun, I think. As for sharing a room with Rae-Hann, well...I can’t say that the idea isn’t nerve-inducing. But I know he is not the type to do anything. I will just wait until morning to change, I guess...I still want to talk with Rae about some things. Particularly, some of these new memories that have begun to resurface in recent nights, with the usual nightmares that come with them...but am I ready to share these memories? Aurelian...if you were in my position, what would you do? You’d probably be handling things far better than me. You were always the stronger of the two of us. I guess that’s why- -No. Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow. @yokasaris​

[mask131]

The Godhand and the Devil archetypes

I recently got into the Berserk universe, and I thought about the Godhand. I don’t know if this has been talked about before (I mean, it is kind of obvious) but the Godhand seems to me as reflections of the different roles and archetypes the Devil-figure can take in myths, legends and tales. (And by Devil-figure, I mean all those “big bads” of mythologies, religions or cultures, not just the christian Devil, but also other “supreme villains” such as Ahriman/Ahra Mainyu or the buddhist Mara)

For exemple: 

# Slan seems to represent the Devil as a being of forbidden pleasures that encourages people to go past their social and moral taboos in order to indulge into excesses, sins, vices and lusts - a sensorial and moral decadence. In general, the Devil was seen as a very sexualized being, encouraging or ordering orgies, rapes, bisexuality, bestiality... And is also linked to figures such as the succubus or the incubus, embodiments of the “evils” of temptation and seduction. The Devil was everything that was immoral, the incarnation of debauchery, the enemy of everything decent or moral. 

# Conrad rather seems to represent the Devil as the bringer of ills, disasters and plagues. Demons were thought to be the origin of plagues, epidemies and sicknesses (and that well before christianity). The Devil and the demons were also interpreted as the causes of natural disasters, famines and accidents - they were a way to explain all the bad things that happened in the world, and why nature seemed so hell-bent on destroying humanity. 

# Ubik plays the typical role of the “trickster” Devil. He is the one that pushes people into making contract with the Godhand, “selling their souls” so to speak. He is at the same time the manipulative Devil that deceives and lies to convince people to go to his side or to enslave them ; and the Devil that actually never lies but enjoys twisting the truth in order to corrupt or change people’s beliefs and views of the world. Because the Devil is also known to be one of the greatest businessmen of all, and a damn good orator, whose purpose is to get as much people/soul on his side as he can. 

# Femto plays several figures. He is the Devil as a being of ambition and pride that wishes to conquer or obtain his own paradise and his own kingdom, to invade and rule over the world, to be supreme leader, king of the universe, or to replace God himself. As a result Femto also reflects the idea of the Devil as a “fallen angel” or a “false Messiah”, a being still incredibly beautiful and powerful, a creature of magnificence one would believe to be still on the side of God and on the side of good, but that is actually a rebelious, power-hungry and self-centered spirit, only using others to reach his own goal. (The idea of the Devil as an envious or jealous being that seeks to overthrow others or to destroy them or things related to them merely out of spite or previously-mentionned jealousy seems to also be kind of filled by Femto)

# For Void, I had a bit more trouble... But I have quite a lot of ideas. Void’s name, as well as his manipulation of dimensions and the void, evokes the idea of the Devil figure as the ruler of death, of cold, of darkness, of the abyss, of the nothingness -- plainly said of the voice, the absence and the non-universe -- when usually God is seen as rather a being of materiality, of presence and existence, the one that breathes life and light in the world. On the other side, Void is also known to be the most “philosophical” of the Godhand, and as a result may embody a much more abstract and philosophical aspect of the Devil-figure. The Devil the philosophers love to re-interpret and play with. The Devil that is too complex to be fully understood or even fully seen by humans. The greater evil genius, the supreme spirit that acts on a much greater and wider scale than a single human life. [But honestly, I don’t know a lot about the devil in philosophy so I don’t have much material here] The fact that he also loves to bring up notions such as fate also reminds me of the “infernal machine” of tragedies, where the role of the “Devil” figure is filled often by Fate, Destiny, Transcendance - where humanity is confronted with the will of the gods, ancient inhuman laws or the order of the world itself, something that bounds them and will break them if they fight it, the “ultimate tyrant” as well the ultimate force that rules the world, a gigantic torture mechanism that isn’t so much “evil” in nature as merely perceived as tyranical and unjust by humans... 

And that’s all I have for now :P

Again, I am honestly fairly new to the manga, I haven’t had time to read all of the chapters (even though I went past the Eclipse, and past Griffith’s return), so my interpretations may be cranky.

Don’t hesitate to comment, discuss or point out stuff, I’m here to talk :P

[kryptsune]

Outerfell Lore Post

🌼It took me a while to think up something different for Outerfell but I am pretty happy with this lore. It’s not 100% solid but the ideas are fun. I hope everyone enjoys! 

(this is a complete joke I swear he will not look like this)

------------------------------------------------

Universe type: OuterFELL

Relationships: Alphys, Undyne, other?

Alternate “Nicknames” Info: 

Sans: Crux- Crux is not all that different from WTU Red. He is flirty, grumpy, a hedonist to some degree, and “lazy”. He tends to play up his cruel and aggressive behavior in order to stay in the good graces of the King and Queen. He is honestly just tired of all this killing and ransacking all the time. When he was younger he used to love the stars and he feels that has been stolen from him. He is known as being ruthless but only depending on the company that he is surrounded by. When at Grillby’s Outpost he relaxes a lot more even wearing different clothing that does not scream ROYAL Armada. He and Grillby have been friends for so long that Boss considers his outpost Crux “vice” though he knows the true nature of some of those visits. He has to put up a facade as with most Fell verses. 

Papyrus: Eclipse- Papyrus in this instance is very similar to his WTU Counterpart though instead of wanting to pursue a career in cooking he would rather be an ambassador between both the humans and the monsters and eventually does. He puts up even more of a facade then his younger brother. He is known as the ruthless Captain of the Royal Armada. He is openly known to not be cruel and merciless in his tactics which is something he struggles with. He knows he has to keep up the act. When the rest of his guard is not looking he does little things to help but even among humans, he is feared. His job also requires him to be a military tactician and advisor to the King including feeding some misinformation. Just like Crux, Eclipse is just as tired which would explain the dusting of red under both the brothers' sockets. A sign of sleep deprivation. When in the company of rebel sympathizers he is known to be enthusiastic and energetic. He enjoys his ego telling others about his brilliant plans to thwart the latest attacks. He is one monster that brings charisma to the rebels often. He is also at the side of Asriel being his advisor as well.   

Grillby: Cynder-  Grillby is just as he is in WTU without all the vices. He is a proud father of his two children. One being Fuku, his eldest and the second being his human adopted child Frisk. He works at his bar being a mixologist and bartender always adding his flare. He tends to keep out of the politics of the monster allegiance unless required to. He is a rebel spy and helps often with their operations. He is known as a refugee smuggler. He used to be at the head of the Royal Armada but left that life after he was ordered to murder an innocent child. That child being Frisk. He could not do the act and now he lives happily at the outpost with his two children. He can be a flirt but he is not exactly known for that kind of behavior. Unlike his WTU counterpart, he is enthusiastic and outgoing but only when need be. He is not trying to always be the center of attention.   

Asriel: Azren- The leader of the rebel faction and former Prince. Asriel is kind-hearted but he is not afraid to put his foot down when things need to be done. He is considered to be like a younger more empathetic version of his father. Unlike UT Asriel he is an adult and conducts himself as if he is still a prince. He does not look down on others but he does have this air of regality about him. He rarely leaves SafeHaven as unlike the rest of the monsters acting as double agents he is well known to be in opposition to the monster allegiance. He is occasionally seen at Grillbys. It’s rumored he has a crush on Frisk but the two have not openly expressed that kind of relationship. His closest confidants and friends are Crux, Eclipse, and Dr. Gaster.

Dr. W.D. Gaster: Nero- The Royal Scientist and Engineer, Gaster is under the rebel faction as a double agent just as Crux and Eclipse are. He is the one that has helped the rebels stay under the radar for so long with his phase technology. Unlike WTU Gaster (because lets’ face it, I need to make a Gaster not evil for once) he is empathetic and kind regardless of his appearance. In allegiance, he is known as the cruel mad scientist just like the rest having to put up a facade in order to stay undercover. His human experimentation is what he is most known for in that way. He shares his love of science and astrology with his youngest son, Crux and his love of mechanics with his eldest, Eclipse. Gaster is known to keep to himself unless provoked which is why he only appears at the Kings side due to summons and council. He would rather spend his time in his lab. He is naturally curious and always excited to invent new technologies.  

Muffet: Morana 

Undyne: Lilith

Alphys: Keres

Asgore: Kek

Toriel: Hecate

MTT: Corion 

A long time ago: 

A long time ago monsters used to live in harmony together on their own home planet free from anything that would corrupt their pure and kind nature. Their planet was one that thrived off an unusual power source, magic, a great power with many different types. The first monsters began to develop abilities to utilize this magic as they were always surrounded by it. In the soil, the food, the air, and water. It was a part of them just as breathing was natural for all living things. Some of these magical abilities were natural while others far extended outside the reaches of the natural order of things. One such ability was to be able to heal any wound or even more so save one from death. 

As time passed on these traits which ringed their souls in a bright hue of colors began to change their biology. Once creatures of flesh and bone now they had become creatures entirely composed of the magic they were so tied to. Instead of bleeding like other living creatures they dusted instead but these changes did not concern them. Their lives were filled with joy and happiness. Their kindness helped them stay at peace with each other. The centuries passed and they began to invent new technology to better their lives and the lives of others. A combination of both magic and science. Giant capitals were built, great roads paved with glittering gemstones, schools built, and jobs created. All of this in the name of progress. The monsters had created their society together. 

They were considered the Ancient Ones. A people that were technologically advanced so far beyond others that other civilizations looked primitive. They were alone in the galaxy for a very long time. Time had passed for another planet too so much so that this planet and its people were finally journeying beyond their little corner of the universe. At first, it was just about exploration but soon enough the humans began to establish trade and diplomatic relations with other worlds. One such world was the planet on which the monsters called home. The humans were amazed by these advances, the science, and most of all the magic. They became close allies. Some monsters even visited the human's home planet sharing the knowledge that they had. All was well. 

The centuries passed and a council was formed with one delegate from each of the major races. They would make decisions regarding the fate of their civilizations all together but the humans began to question their monster allies. They accused them of withholding the very source of their power from them, magic. If they truly wished to help the universe as they so claimed then why could they not share the source of their amazing abilities? This political debate sparked trouble between their alliance. The people begin to distance themselves and the witch hunt begins.

The humans in their infinite paranoia begin to spy on the monsters developing potential “preventative” measures. This goes on for decades until the point that the humans' new leadership decides to do the unthinkable. During their time developing new weapons with the technology provided to them by monster kind they began to develop a more permanent solution to the monster “threat.” 

Long story short the humans set their sights on the core of the planet. Getting an urgent summons throughout the entire kingdom of this betrayal they begin to board their ships to flee the planet before it explodes. Those closest to the Capital and those under the King are able to flee the planet but that was such a small handful of monsters. Even the ones that did escape were hunted down and destroyed by members of the human military. When word reaches of the destruction the humans are in horror about what their government had done. Disgusted by their loathsome actions the humans rebelled against the government tearing down the old order. 

The monsters lost their home, their trust, and their friends and family. So many. Lost. The ships that were able to flee were chased down by the human galactic armada. Just as they claimed their victory hunting down the royal vessel it suddenly vanished without a trace. The monsters and their royalty were gone. 

A tear in space and time: 

The monsters were concerned about the humans strange behavior. In response, they wanted to experiment with a new technology. One that combined both magic and science. A way to create a doorway between their reality and others. A place that is in between, known as The Void. In this place, the monsters crafted a New Home. A new Capital and different outposts all on various planets unique to this new frontier. Each planet or outpost is characterized by their environment that correlates with the locations of the original UT (ie. Snowdin, Waterfall, Hotland). Each one also contributes to the Monster colonies in some way. Snowdin is mainly used for building materials due to its rich forests. Waterfall is dedicated to a lot of natural resources like water or vegetation. Hotland’s export is all industrial based such as metalwork and technology.      

The destruction of Humanity:

In despair and grief, the monsters began to think of things that they had never thought of before. Their rage of feeling this betrayal caused them to twist. They become hateful and spiteful. The king and his queen are filled with a desire for revenge and thus a new decree is ordered. The new crusade to destroy humanity for what they have done and punish them for their crimes. The new technology that allows them to reside in this pocket universe safely is then utilized to appear out of nowhere and destroy human ships and colonies. A phantom ship that no one can ever see coming. This ability leaves humans living in fear, helpless. The monsters become pirates. They pillage and destroy human colonies and inhabited worlds without mercy. The ship on which they once made their escape is considered a death omen. A phantom ship that appears from the deepest reaches of space to destroy all that stands in its path. 

SafeHaven:

So much time spent destroying began to take a toll on the universe. The stars that used to glitter so brightly in the sky now seemed to disappear. All those planets completely destroyed void of life. The King continues on his tyrannical vendetta at the cost of the rest of the universe. Some of the monsters lower their heads and continue to stay obedient to their King and Queen almost becoming like puppet soldiers. Some of these monsters also enjoy the criminal and destructive lifestyle that they are allowed to partake in due to this seemingly never-ending desire to destroy. 

That is not how all think, however, as there is a group of monsters trying to thwart these plans. Even creating a place for human and monster refugees. There are even “rebels” within the highest rank of the Royal Armada. It is unclear which monsters sympathize with this new human and monster cohabitation initiative. Just like the monster colony, this new safe haven rests in a pocket dimension that can only be accessed with the use of phase technology. The same technology that shifts the entire fleet of the armada into this dimension parallel to the current dimension. This makes them essentially invisible. It also means that if someone is on their ship out of phase the monsters can not be seen or interacted with unless the human also is able to shift into the same phase frequency. This also lends to the ghost ship idea as it appears to run on its own without a crew.    

The Rebels Mission:

The rebels simply want to create a universe that atones for the sins of both humans and monsters. They both did horrible things but these monsters keep in touch with their past love and compassion even if some of them appear not to. The main notable rebels are as follows. Asriel, Gaster, Grillby, Red, and Boss. The initiative was created by Toriel and Asgore’s son Asriel as he could not believe that their vendetta was right. He began to gather other like-minded monsters to form the rebel faction. They tend to attack monster strongholds that perpetuate more destruction or hate. That goes for humans as well as the human ambassadors and refuges are unified under the same initiative. It takes some time but eventually with the help of one of the most brilliant scientists in the universe, Dr. W.D. Gaster, they are all able to form SafeHaven.

   Grillby’s Outpost (rebel undercover): 

Very simple idea but Grillby owns a rebel outpost that is known as a rest and recovery for anyone that stumbles upon it. He runs a bar and works as the bartender there as a cover just in case the monster armada figures out his rebel ties. He also needs to provide for his family. Fuku who works in the restaurant/bar as a waitress gathering intel and spying on the royals and “pirates” that find themselves in their little establishment. This is where Frisk grows up being taken care of by Grillby and big sis Fuku.  

  Muffet's Intergalactic Casino (Circumstantial allegiance): 

The opposing establishment under monster “allegiance” would be Muffet’s Casino. It is where the majority of intergalactic bounty hunters and hitman reside. Even though Muffet’s is mostly under the monster claw that does not mean she won’t aid or deal with anyone that pays a pretty penny. A lot of unsavory monsters and humans alike tend to hang around that port. It is extraordinarily dangerous for anyone, especially humans. It is, however, where one can see Mettaton's shows all done up in lights almost to the point of gaudy. The blinding strobe lights when one enters into the port is a huge indicator. I like to think of it like the Las Vegas of the galaxy complete with intergalactic espionage. 

Main Plot Synop: 

The story revolves more around the world and its characters then it does a main plot but there are some notable points that need to be made. A long time ago as Grillby was still a part of the Royal Armada he was tasked to scope out a little planet. A human-inhabited planet that was on the King’s list to be destroyed. The destruction he laid eyes on was too much. The once lush and fertile planet was reduced to nothing more than a lifeless husk and within the flames, bodies had begun to pile up. He was not one to go and put his boots on the ground so this order was strange to him. It would appear that these humans lived on a planet so similar to their old home. It was infused with magic. Not as potent as their home but enough. The humans that lived here began to develop similar magical abilities that the monsters possessed. It was a threat and had to be destroyed. 

Just as he was about to leave the planet he heard the cries of a child. One that was just a baby. They were surrounded by his Royal Guard about to be killed when he stepped in explaining that he would be the one to do the deed. They trusted him and left them alone. Grillby being a father of his own couldn’t bear to kill an innocent human child. Instead, he faked killing the child and took her home to his wife and his youngest daughter Fuku. At first, he was fearful of what the King would do if he found out about his treason finally forcing himself to step down from command. It was later passed to an old friend’s eldest son, Eclipse. 

Grillby took care of the child as his own and opened an outpost of his own. It was his safe corner of the universe free of mad kings and human paranoia. He is happy working at his own outpost with his family. When Frisk grows older she starts to exhibit the ability to use magic which is exactly why the rest of her planet was destroyed. The number of survivors is unknown though it is rumored to be seven. As she grows she starts to train with the former Captain. She has a good relationship with her older sister and looks up to her greatly. Frisk reads the story about the “Phantom” ship all based on the Armada and its unusual capabilities.  

She runs into the two brothers when her father is talking to a group of monsters she has never seen before. She is terrified of them mostly due to their appearance and that they wear the insignia of the Armada. Grillby eventually introduces her to them though it takes time for her to warm up to them. Years pass and she becomes an adult working at the same family-run outpost and establishment. Fuku continues her waitressing but Frisk wanted to learn more about the art of mixing drinks. The same job her father does so she becomes a bartender only being hidden away when those of the Armada comes to visit. The rest of the monsters appear to be neutral on the matter. 

The rest of the story is about Frisk falling into the rebel faction desiring to unite the monsters. That includes her sneaking aboard the Armada as her soul seems to have unique property, hope. A trait that has the ability to help dissolve the hate within the soul. She finds out that a certain Prince has a crush on her and they even run into a brainwashed human that tries to tear down all that they have built and continue to build.

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[kaypeace21]

‘Robin’ - is a codename, she’s Sarah Hopper, one of the numbers (Theory)

So I talked about why I believe Sarah was alive in a previous theory about a year ago,  here, but after reading the prequel novel, more evidence was brought to light. So for those who haven’t read it, I’ll simply copy (from that post) all the proof Sarah is alive first, and explain after why I believe Robin is her.

In s1, Hopper first describes Sarah by saying “Sarah, my daughter … the galaxies, the universe, what not, she always understood all that stuff.” Then, in s2, when Hopper is referencing blackholes, he says “Sarah had a picture book about it, she loved it.” But, if Sarah had powers like Will and El, her extreme interest in the “blackholes” (*the void) and “the universe” (* the upside down) would make much more sense, since it’d be her way of rationalizing what she may have been experiencing/seeing- and making her less afraid of them.

I also have to point out that other posts have mentioned the fact that after her ‘death’, Hopper grieves on a very similar looking set of stairs (that appear to be in  Hawkins lab). Is it possible someone tampered with the Hoppers’ memories or caused visual halucinations of her death-in order to kidnap her? Also the fact, that Hopper negotiates El’s freedom (gaining a daughter in the process) on a similar stair case (to where he lost his first daughter) could be more than simply symbolic.

When Terry goes to find Jane, we see her find Kali and a girl we are supposed to assume is El- but let’s be honest does this girl look anything like El? Or does she look more like Sarah?

Also, after Sarah’s ‘death’ Hopper states to Joyce “After Sarah, I saw her too and I heard her. I didn’t know what was real and then I figured it was all in my mind.”However in that same ep, Will literally uses all his strength and power to astral project and communicate with Joyce (to prove he was alive). El does something similar when trying to communicate with Mike, and Mike similarly confides in Will saying “Sometimes I feel like I still see her … sometimes I feel like I’m going crazy”.It’s very possible after Sarah’s kidnapping, and faked-death, she tried to contact her dad- but eventually gave up (which is honestly heartbreaking, if true).

However, I think the greatest evidence is in the symbolism, behind the fact that Will and El had stuffed lion-plushies while Sarah had a tiger doll.

As someone who wanted to be a writer, I can assure you this is most likely being used as foreshadowing or symbolism. So, I decided to look up mythology/symbolism based on these animals.

“Chinese guardian lions-are lion statues that are common guardians of villages (*Hawkins) and even private homes (*Castle Byers and El’s bed room).  These lions can be a sign of protection of an individual or family. These lions are always depicted in pairs consisting of a male and a female, the female representing yin and the male yang, When, there is too great an imbalance between Yin and Yang, catastrophes can occur.”

I mean, that sounds pretty on the nose, don’t you think? XD

So, for consistency’s sake I looked up Chinese mythology/culture relating to tigers. “The tiger is personified by the constellation Orion (interesting given her interest in space). The tiger represents protection over human life (hmm?). Tiger charms were used to keep away evil and disease (that’s awful ironic if she died in the manner she did). In Buddhism, wearing tiger skins during meditations was believed to bring protection from spiritual interference and potential harm while exploring astral dimensions (ok, now I’m just screaming, since this makes too much sense XD).”

------So now for the new evidence, well... I totally called it about the tigers XD. In the prequel novel ‘Suspicious minds’, Tigers are referenced in relation to Kali (11 times!). Just some examples

Kali: “I was named after a goddess. She wore a tiger skin and was fierce in battle.”

Then Kali says to Alice (a women who can see future visions): “I love you, Alice. We can be tigers.”

This parallel (in relation to Alice) is fascinating because Kali actually uses her powers to fake Alice’s death- and to trick Dr. Brenner, and allow Alice to escape. The allusion was so realistic, that Terry could even touch the ‘dead’ Alice. So after Dr. Brenner realizes he’s been tricked, it wouldn’t be surprising after learning Kali could do this- that he’d use this power again, to his advantage. And Just like Kali & Alice are tigers together, so are Kali & Sarah (indicated by Sarah’s stuffed animal) their fates are forever linked.

Evidence Sarah Hopper is ‘Robin’

Now , my theory is that  at the behest of Dr.Brenner she was tasked to follow El and Will ( and gather intel), and make sure the plan to take them to whatever lab he is now operating in, goes according to plan. And before you say, that’s ludicrous... Dr. Brenner has already used numbers to track and bring in those he suspects have powers.

Last week the first chapter of the number 6 comic came out. Here it was established that number 3 (was given a fake mom and ) was tasked at spying/observing Francine (to see if she had powers). She attracted Brenner’s attention, since before her parents won the lottery, they had only been off by one number, on multiple scratch off tickets . In the comic, He (number 3) actually believes he’s doing a good thing . Now you can call it stockhold syndrome, but both the prequel novel and the comic imply the other numbers (aka the ‘Indigo children’) are treated much differently than El & Kali (11 & 8). And this is because, 1-7, and 9-10 have much weaker powers.  The prequel novel states this to be the case “ Eight wasn’t allowed to know there were other children here. They were all ordinary so far. He worried they’d infect her...Child shows gifts that require isolation from those who might weaken her...”. The book also implied that torture and traumatic events can strengthen powers, and that it was utilized more so on them- why Kali tells El to tap into her anger when using her powers. The comic alludes to this as well, the other numbers get to interact with one another, have lunch and talk, and even the guards are nicer and less dehumanizing towards them. Although, It’s mostly a facade.

So what number 3 tells Francine (number 6), may be how Sarah/Robin is seeing this mission. “ It was about protecting you. You can hate me if you want... it doesn’t change the fact that this is the safest place for people like us. Can you honestly say you’d rather be at home right now? Because I’m sure as hell glad they got you out of there.” 

When Francine’s parents found out about her powers they became abusive when she couldn’t use them properly, and since both number 3 and 1 agree that this is the safest place- this is sadly probably a common occurrence for super-powered kids. So even though, Sarah didn’t have such an experience she probably has heard plenty of horror stories from the other numbers- and wants to protect these 2 kids.

So when she says this to Steve, it’s a joke- but she’s probably trying to subtly figure out if he’s also close to Dustin’s other friends (ie. Will & El)

- other evidence includes the fact that the new prequel novel ‘Stranger Things: Darkness on the Edge of Town’ confirms that Sarah’s birthday is on the 4th of July (the same time period s3 will take place in)! And I just find that really suspicious.

-Also, Sarah and Robin have similar facial features, and hair and eye colors. The comic even doubles down on the fact that El was supposedly blonde (yes, people’s hair color/texture can change... but it’s still suspicious). Robin’s wrists are also both covered- so she could easily hide her tattoo, and she’s referred to in her character bio as simply an “alternative girl.” And frankly, with such a huge ensemble cast it makes no sense just to add her , simply to be a love interest.

-The one flaw in this theory, is that in ‘Stranger Things: Darkness on the Edge of Town’ if we takes the dates accurately- Sarah would be about 15 (and Robin seems to be closer to Steve’s age). However, since the other prequel novel got El’s birthday wrong-it’s still a strong possibility. Even if Robin isn’t Sarah, she is alive and we will see her again- whether that is in s3 or s4 though... is yet to be determined.

* all the edited gif/pics aren’t mine- and are simply being used for visual evidence.

[bxstiae]

⚜ ; [ GANONDORF'S DEMISE / HC.3  ] WORLDBUILDING │ META

i honestly didn’t know how to go about this making this mainly because there’s so much to talk about for this topic. while i want to talk about ganondorf’s demise in Twilight Princess & the after effects of it, i should also point that that if affects link a lot more than it should -- mainly because it has to deal with the triforce of power and ‘the brand.’ let it be known, link is severely affected by the battle of ganon & absolutely has survivor’s guilt from it. 

first & foremost: i do NOT support ganon as a character for is he absolute EVIL & only wants to conquer the light. he is an antagonist! and if you think i support the antagonist, then please go to a corner to think about what you just assumed. I do not support him!!! but that doesn’t mean that i don’t consider him an important character. he is! he is one of the primary 3 of the triforce, without him, you cannot have the link or zelda. now, without further ado, let me get into this.

ganondorf could be considered a victim of circumstance if you look at it. no, i don’t think he should be pitied, but just consider everybody in the triforce:

link → courage zelda → wisdom ganondorf → power

each one has something special about them, which i will go into some other time, but for the sake of this headcanon, lets look at ganon. ganon is the wielder of power: he represents it! therefore he seeks out only to defend what he represents. Just look what he says in Twilight Princess:

"Your people have long amused me, Midna. To defy the gods with such petty magic, only to be cast aside… How very pathetic. Pathetic as they were, though, they served me well. Their anguish was my nourishment. Their hatred bled across the void and awakened me. I drew deep of it and grew strong again. Your people had some skill, to be sure…but they lacked true power. The kind of absolute power that those chosen by the gods wield. He who wields such power would make a suitable king for this world, don’t you think?"

just look at the fact that while ganon represents power, he also can represent pain, anger, & anguish. zelda, in a way, is supposed be the middle ground, while link is supposed to represent hope. ganon is fear. it’s also important to note that ganon is considered very unlucky in many cases. both zelda & ganon remember their incarnations -- this is a given for ganon because he literally says the following: "Do not think that this ends here... the history of light and shadow will be written in blood!" he knows they are constantly reborn. & zelda knows because she’s the representative of wisdom. link is the only one who is lucky to not remember is past incarnations. it’s set like that for a reason. because he cannot be tainted with the past. he cannon have doubt in his actions, he can only live in the moment. but i dirgess. back to the point: ganon is power, therefore is power-hungry. & he remembers all of his past lives and how he was foiled by link. 

ganon is a man of pride. there is nothing like that, but he resents link because link has it all. link has the god’s gift but link is also loved. link is incredibly humble. he doesn’t know the pains of royalty, he doesn’t know what it’s like living on the streets. he’s been lucky to be raised by people who care for him -- he grows up innocent. ganon doesn’t have that luxury, so yes, he resents link for what link has. but consider this: the brand is both a blessing & a curse. 

they will always be stuck in a battle with each other for all eternity. Their lives are intertwined forevermore. so while ganon spends his lives knowing his past ones, and spends each life trying to take what is always taken from him, link goes in not realising any of this. link legitimately goes in 100% blind at the fact that he will take what ganondorf struggles to have. & in the moment, link is only doing what he thinks is right. he has to take down ganondorf to protect hyrule. he has to. He’s never given a choice: he is told. 

he’s told by the spirits. he’s told by midna. he’s told by zelda. he’s told by everybody. the goddess hylia herself is telling him to because he has to. yet.... while he never questions the WHY, he does feel a sort of emptiness when everything is all said and done. after all, he took down one of the pieces of triforce. he’s fufilled his task, yes, but.... at what cost?

for link, it feels like he’s taken a part of himself too.

( never mind the fact that midna also goes home too and destroys the mirror of twilight as well, that’s another piece of him taken, but i’m focusing on the triforce here )

consider this: link had to kill a man that was like him.

there are only three people that can relate with one another in hyrule: link, zelda, & ganon. even more so with ganon than zelda tbh. like ganon, link still has to go through trials. link can relate to ganon because link has to go through a lot to prove his worth. he’s not given anything like zelda and ganon, and like ganon, link struggles.

so after he kills him.... he realises what he’s just done. he’s killed somebody who was pretty much like him. both are bearers of the brand, but they both didn’t have it easy ( not like zelda ).  he doesn’t realise this like immediately. no, he realises it after the fact. it eats at him. link has seen a lot and has witnessed death, but it’s ganondorf’s death that hits him the most. & yes, he feels somehwat GUILTY that he had to go & kill the only person that could understand him.

honestly, somebody told me that link looks so sad all the time. yes! he is actually! aside from being so absolutely tired & often times grumpy, he very much is sad. he feels used. he’s no longer innocent from the cruelness of life. he sees the world for what it is. the world is not nice. nothing is easy, & you have to sacrifice so much to obtain happiness. but in the end was it worth it? for link: no. 

link is not happy. at all. yes, he’s glad that the people he cares about are safe. he’s glad that the world isn’t ending. but he cannot go back to his normal life in the village as a ranch hand. he was ripped from that life & he cannot go back for the fact that he has all this experience under his belt now. he’s restless, tired, sad, & feels really empty. 

his heart is broken in more ways than one. he lost his best friend -- a friend that he didn’t really know he had or loved until she left and destroyed the only thing to visit her. he lost somebody who could have been a mentor of sorts. ganon could have been a friend to him absolutely, he could have been a teacher ( if he wasn’t such an asshole ). but that didn’t happen cause he had to kill him. he lost a bit of trust in zelda for the fact that she just let things happen & never told him anything. link is extremely jaded after everything & built his walls incredibly high up because he’s just afraid of getting hurt again. note: afraid, not scared! there’s anxiety in him that he’ll lose more of himself. 

lets also not mention that his entire journey was hell. he’s been poisoned, electrocuted, burned, etc.... like as much as he has a high pain tolerance, he’s had many moments where he could have died if it were not for the fairies and midna. not to mention that people have mistaken him for a monster too -- he doesn’t have self-esteem issues, but its given way to the fact that he finds hylians are extremely ungrateful. 

he feels that at this point,nobody really understands him. which sucks cause not only does he suffer from survivor’s guilt, i would say that he has a mild case of ptsd as well. he doesn’t sleep well anymore. he relives his battle with ganon all the time ( ganon image seems to torment him constantly ). he panics when he considers what would have happened if he just let ganon go too. link is not pure anymore. yes, he still represents hope, and yet, he can’t help but to look at things from a neutral stance.at the end of the game. link does, in fact, go from a neutral good to a lawful neutral position.

in a way, it’s all thanks to ganon. his death/end changed link. honestly, i would want to say its for the better. link isn’t a child anymore, & you can thank ganondorf for that. 

[awilliamswrites]

11/11/11 Tag

Thank you @katherinescribbles for tagging me! My answers are really long, sorry!

1 Who is your favorite character in any work of fiction and why?

This is SUCH a hard one. Do you have any idea how many favorite characters I have?? I don’t! There are too many!  For some reason, however, the very first character that came to my mind was Tiffany Aching, followed closely by Carrot Ironfounderson. Both belong to the Discworld universe written by the great Terry Pratchett.  Tiffany Aching is smart, and brave, and powerful. She takes responsibility for her mistakes and she tries (and mostly succeeds) in doing the right thing even when it’s hard or boring or she doesn’t particularly like the people involved. I haven’t actually read the last book in her series, The Shephard’s Crown, so I don’t know how her journey ends. (At first it was too painful, I felt like if I read the last book Terry wrote it would be too final and I would have to accept that there weren’t going to be any more. For the past couple years I’ve been wanting to read it but just haven’t had the time or energy to make it to a library to find a copy.) Anyway, I look forward to one day reading it and finding out who she grows into and where she ends up. Carrot Ironfounderson is honest and upright and at first glance naïve. He’s also very clever. I’ve always loved that about his character because most people seem to take the cynical view that if you’re kind or honest or open that you must be stupid or doing yourself a disservice in some way, but Carrot’s kindness and honesty always works out for him and he’s shown to be very shrewd as well, showing that cleverness and goodness can exist in the same person.  One of the things he believes that I’ve always remembered is “personal isn’t the same as important” which struck me as very different than how most people think and also profound.

2 Do you remember the first piece of writing you ever wrote? What was it?

I think the first “real” writing I did was write in the journal I got when I was … eight? I think? The first fiction writing I remember starting was about this girl who was either actually a fairy or a half fairy contacted by her people to stop an evil horde of monsters who were going to pour out of a mountain that she could see from her back yard. Or at least that was the idea, I think I wrote maybe a page of that before abandoning it. I was probably around 10 or so. I got frustrated because I couldn’t think of a reason the fairies would ask the protagonist for help specifically rather than just deal with the problem themselves. I’m honestly surprised I still remember so much about it.

3 If you could be any kind of fairytale creature, what would you be and why?

Hmm, depends on if I were stuck in that form or if I could shapeshift at will. If I could shapeshift then I’d love to be able to turn into any size dragon I wanted. If I had to choose a form to stay in forever then I’d definitely go with being an elf (LOTR movie-style elf of course). 

4 What is your zodiac sign and MBTI? 

Pisces and INFJ

5 How would you describe your writing style?

I just took a “who do you write like” quiz and apparently I write like Stephen King!? I’ve never read a Stephen King novel! (I don’t like horror). 

If I had to describe it for myself I’d say that I like dialogue and describing what characters are thinking a lot, and focus on setting and action less than I want to/should.

Also, slowly, infrequently, and generally with little forethought (I’m more of a pantser than a planner, although I’m trying to change that.) 

6  Come up with a 5 word prompt! What is it? 

A fairy in the garden.

7 Where do you find most of your inspiration for your writing? 

I tend to be drawn to fantasy a lot, so a lot of my inspiration or ideas for stories come from standard fantasy tropes. I think subconsciously I pull a lot of inspiration from other stories. I do it consciously some too, but try not to do that a ton, even if “great writers steal.”  

I’ve always wanted to write a standard hero journey, "person leaves home town and becomes hero of kingdom” story, but I’ve haven’t worked on one in a long time because I know it’s been done a million times by much better writers. I get really frustrated and wish I could think of something new to bring to the table while still having the story recognizably fit that mold.

8 What was the last piece of fiction to make you feel an extreme emotional response over?

Avenger’s: Endgame. SPOILER ALERT. Next question bolded for ease of jumping your eyes to it. Skip to the next question if you haven’t watched it yet.

I bawled when Black Widow died. The weird thing was though that I wasn’t entirely certain why I was crying, or why I was crying so much, but something about her death made me cry so hard the first time I watched it that I missed everything from the shot of her on the ground to the shot of Clint hitting the water with his fist.

9 What’s your favorite trope?

Tough to choose one favorite, but I love it when characters get injured and are nursed back to health/cared for by their loved ones AND/OR their loved ones get really angry/protective and proceed to go destroy the thing that injured them. 

10 Opinion on love triangles?

I generally hate ‘em. They’re always the same. Girl has to choose between nice guy or bad boy. It just seems stupid to me that any intelligent girl would think “this guy seems shady, I think I’ll get involved in his business and show way more interest in him than I should just because he’s handsome!” Whenever I encounter this trope it undoes my suspension of disbelief, I’m too aware that the relationships are manufactured for the drama and the story, and I can’t view them as “people I’m reading about” instead of “characters the author is manipulating for the sake of a plot”

I've probably read some that are well done and liked them, although I can’t think of any examples at the moment. In general though, especially in YA books which are the majority of what I’ve read, love triangles are just boring and frustrating.

11 Something you wish you’d see more in the stories you read?  

Related to the above, more characters in YA books who act and think like real, intelligent people and not like stereotypes. Like, immaturity does not equal stupidity (stupid actions sometimes, sure, but still). It always frustrated me as a teen when I was reading about someone my own age (or older!) who were apparently dumber than me. (Like, not making bad decisions that included reasonable rational for the experience/information they had, but bad decisions that were made obviously because “the character needs to be stupid and to make this decision for the plot”) 

These were excellent questions. Here are mine! 

1 What is your favorite book or series and why?

2 What piece of writing are you most proud of and why? This could be anything, not just fiction writing; if you wrote a paper for school that thinking about still makes you feel good, I’d be curious to learn what it was!

3 Are you a planner or a pantser?

4 If you could live in the world any book series, which would it be? If your choice is different than your favorite from question 1, why is that?

5 Do you have a book that you love that most people you talk to tend not to have heard of? What is it?

6 Do you read/write fanfiction? What’s your favorite fandom to read/write in?

7 What time of day do you write best during? Morning? Midnight? Any time?

8 Have you ever done Nanowrimo? What was your project?

9 What is your opinion on poetry? Do you like it? Do you like modern poetry?

10 Choose your favorite question out of the 11 questions I answered and answer that one! (Indicate which one you’re answering too).

11 What was the last book you read?

asking @ofinkblotsandscript @writings-of-a-narwhal @nonchalantxfish @slothwrter @corisanna @ashesconstellation @azawrites @scribbles-to-feed-the-void @juls-writes @indievixen @sheabutterskyes (I’d love to hear your answers! When you answer please tag me so I can see!)

[itsswimmingtragedycollection]

The Dumpster Fire that is ‘The Order’

First of all, why is his show labeled as a horror? My humble guess is that it was intended for younger audiences?? I genuinely wanna know. Because, even if it was for teens, some blood and a few dead bodies does not a horror make.  Secondly, what the fuck? And I truly mean that.  I mean, the idea itself doesn’t sound bad at all. A college student joins a secret society and finds out his supposedly evil dad is the head of it? He’s also in a werewolf club that fights that same secret society? Sign me tf up. But the execution just takes a really weird turn.  From the get go, you kinda aren’t sure if the show wants to be takes seriously or not. And that question is never answered. Literally in the opening scene the letter changes from ‘we regret to inform you’ to ‘congratulations’ in front of Jack’s eyes and he has absolutely no reaction whatsoever to that peculiar development, which kind of screams ‘not to be taken seriously’ similarly to the whole ‘My evil dad killed my mom so naturally I’m gonna join a secret society, become someone important and powerful and eventually use that power to fight him.’ Who on earth plots a revenge along those lines? But then a second later, the plot falls back in the supernatural drama category.  To top it all off there’s a whole lot of ‘woke humor’ which most of the time comes across as cringe worthy edginess we’re all happy we outgrew after HS.  But, even if you could somehow get pas the not-so-subtle jumps from complete absurdity to realism, there’s nothing else to hold on to. No character, no relationship, no plot line we’re offered is strong enough to pull us in.  In fact. one of the most annoying things about The Order is that basically no character has a personality. I am 8 episodes deep (and I don’t intend to finish it because that’s how boring it is) and I still don’t know anything substantial about anyone. And can we take a second to just look at Jake’s relationship with Alyssa? What even is that? Are they flirting are they not, does he really like her or is she a means to an end, is she into him or his dad, why are they kissing and why does it look so uncomfortable, did they just cast two people with the least chemistry on purpose or is bad writing/directing? So many questions. If we draw a parallel between Jack’s progress with her and him being on board with the wolves, it makes even less sense. He needs how many episodes to decide to try and kiss her, but when it comes to dedicating your whole life to fighting bad magic, you go from ‘no way, you’re all insane, you made me kill an innocent man’ to ‘I pledge my life to the cause’ within two seconds.   Speaking of things that make no sense, I have to mention Jack’s ‘friendship’ with Amir. Don’t get me wrong, I get that we meet people and think to ourselves how that could grow into a beautiful friendship, but acting as if someone you just met is really your friend, and that odd flashback to like one beer they shared, when Amir was found dead, is just... I don’t even know what to say.  The Order as an organization is equally puzzling. Who are they? Why are they? What’s the purpose, what’s the goal, the mission? I can’t settle for just a group of magic users who follow strict hierarchies but kinda all look out for themselves and don’t really like each other that much. And occasionally sacrifice goats. And change people’s memories.(And they can revive a golem and ask it who made it, but the fact that Jack, who found out about magic like yesterday, sabotaged their spell somehow goes right over their magical heads. ) But essentially it’s for the good of the whole wide world.????????????? And the masks are what makes me think an 8yo came up with the whole concept.  If you thought the werewolf knights are any less confusing, think again. They hear noises when ‘bad magic’ happens and solve it by killing anything that moves. Heroes. Also, how do they know what they are supposed to do if they refuse to read anything? I mean, that’s not how a secret society, since that’s more or less what they are, works. Someone has to tell you, show you, teach you. Sure, you have the wolves inside you, but if you don’t know they speak a certain language, it’s fairly certain you don’t know a whole lot. And why is there only four of you? How can four knights take down an organization as big as The Order? Especially since their preferred method is violent murder, something that is not very subtle and does not go unnoticed for long, which basically ensures the rage of the entire Order falling on their heads before they even begin their so called mission. Once again: ????????????????? And what even does ‘bad magic’ mean? The term is so vague and abstract that I have a hard time understanding how can you form an organization that fights something barely defined. All magic can potentially be bad magic. What are the guidelines here? Help me comprehend.  The show also has a very odd relationship towards death. One can sort of ‘forgive’ the wizards and the wolves for being chill about it, but if someone was targeting and butchering people on your campus, wouldn’t you be at least a bit worried? We don’t see any students panicking, we saw one police officer, there were no measures taken by the college, unless you count turning Amir’s death into a bike accident. And just when you start getting used to being casual about it, Jack has a whole meltdown over killing someone the first time he turned. And then also his professor. But even that meltdown is not very convincing, since most of what he does is just screaming ‘I KILLED AN INNOCENT MAN!!!’ into the void, without a much deeper attempt to deal with that. Which is why I don’t get why the show even made an issue out of it.  I also don’t get Jack’s grandpa. Like not even a little bit. Because if you think about it, it’s not * that * unimaginable that a little boy would come up with the idea of joining a secret society to avenge his mother’s death, but it is * very * odd to imagine an old ass grown up who not only thinks it’s a good idea to direct your whole young life towards revenge, but encourages it to a point of making a detailed plan on how to do that, and basically spends your entire childhood grooming you to become a little rage fueled bundle of psychological damage. All of this is only scratching the surface of the mess that is The fucking Order, because the show is a giant entangled coil of nonsense and I barely knew where to start. It’s fair to say that the biggest buzzkill is failure to pick a direction and stick with it. You don’t have to look that close to see some of the influences. The biggest one being, obviously, The Magicians, followed by some Teen Wolf, there’s even elements from Scream Queens, a bit of Buffy, a pinch of the Craft, etc. Almost like someone decided to look up successful shows in the supernatural/fantasy/horror genre and just smash them all up together in hopes of making something appealing to the largest audience possible. Personally, as a * very big * fan of before mentioned The Magicians, I get the feeling that Netflix wanted to make something that could rival it, but better. Because TM is, dare I say so, one of the best, if not the best, shows of the decade. I honestly have not seen anything like it, that has the same platform, in literally a decade. If you have, please let me know. 

Whit the BDE, edgy, but in a good way, humor, strong political views, strong female characters, fun twist and turns that actually do manage to mix absurd with normal life in a magical, no pun intended, way, sexuality representation, but not in a ‘we just want to please the gays so they give us the views’ way, great male characters we wish we saw more of, compelling character development and so on. Tho the most likable aspect of the series is probably the take on overdone story lines, where they twist the narrative just enough for it to become actually relatable. We all are tired of super special chosen ones who save the world because they are soo special and specially chosen by gods to save the world and all the dumb boring unspecial people with their pure hearts and strong characters. And also find true love.  You see attempts at this within The Order on every turn, except that it doesn’t work nearly as well for them, precisely because they went for that AND MORE. More wouldn’t even be a bad thing if it was’t so all over the place that it just comes off as ‘WE WANT EVERYONE TO LIKE THIS, GIVE US ALL THE VIEWS, ALL OF THEM.’ I am very much inclined to think this is what happened, considering other stuff Netflix has put out there. (Mostly referring to endlessly stupid shit like YOU, which only has the intention of being controversial and attention grabbing, for the views. Tho they do have some fun shit too, don’t get me wrong.) So I guess what I’m trying to say is,  the though of making something like TM, is not a bad one,  I’m all for it, but you actually have to put a shit ton more imagination into it if you want it to work out. But that’s just my opinion.   

[puppyenergy]

💕 Undertales

pete i owe u my life

*proceeds to write a fucking essay on why i love every single character in undertale*

i love all the characters in undertale. i just love how real they are. how real their motives feel. and how those motives don’t always have to be like “i wanna free everyone” how those motives can be flawed or how those motives can be as simple and genuine as “a lady i don’t know asked me to protect you and i’m honoring that because she likes my knock knock jokes” and how each character is connected in some way, they just feel so natural and real and alive and it brings their world to life as well.

and i also adore the fact that you can’t get to the true ending of the game until you meet and befriend every single one of these characters. it’s the fact that your bond with them is what incites all of these characters to save you. and it’s the fact that they end up being what pushes you onwards, to save them, and save everyone as well.

undertale could’ve just been a game where monsters are trapped underground and you free them someway somehow, but it’s just. so much more than that.

anyways here’s just a few reasons why i love every one of undertale’s characters in no specific order:

alphys

in all honesty, i rlly appreciate alphys’s character. for most of the neutral run, the person you’re getting to know isn’t actually the true alphys. and u end up finding out she was lying to u the whole time, using mettaton to help her fabricate this narrative. it’s so SO fitting that alphys is the one u have to go back for to get the true ending. u end up seeing her tear that persona down bc she wants to better herself. and u end up seeing her admit to her mistakes, and change, and do better. and it’s just, so healthy to see an adult character with all these insecurities who’s avoiding her mistakes actually improve herself.

sans

sans is rlly a wholesome character. it’s so clear that he genuinely cares about everyone in the underground. i mean, look at what happens when u go to grillbyz with him! everyone knows and loves him! he sells hot dogs at his sentry station to monsters, he does stand up comedy at the hotel to keep everybody happy, he starts a fucking pretend concert when ur jamming out with shyren. his entire motivation for not killing frisk the second they left the ruins is bc someone he didn’t even kno asked him not to and “someone who genuinely likes knock knock jokes has an integrity* u just can’t say no to” i’m CRYING. and it’s clear that he’s not the happiest skeleton in the world, all the jokes & puns aside. he had to give up on his past experiments and thusly had to give up on “going home.” dude is stuck in a place he doesn’t belong but he’s doing his best to make his little brother & everyone else around him happy, all while protecting frisk. jeez????

*i also love this line bc both sans & papyrus can turn ur soul blue and the blue soul is integrity.

papyrus

papyrus is also a great character and i’m not just saying that bc he has some of the best lines in the game. also his battle is so fun. it’s the first battle in the game where ur heart turns a different color. this skeleton BELIEVES in u. he believes that everybody is capable of being a good person. i love how he comes out of the gate boasting about how he’s going to capture you and become part of the royal guard but he ends up wanting to be ur friend instead. bc despite how many times he calls himself great, deep down he’s insecure and just wants a cool friend who thinks he’s also cool. yet he still has these great messages about boundaries and how it’s important to have many friends and not just cling to one person. tbh i think that’s one of the best messages papyrus gives, besides the fact that anyone can be a good person. i also love how he lives to not only uplift himself but others as well………

undyne

man i fucking ove undyne’s PERSONALITY, like, the moment i fell in love with her was when she was standing atop the cave and was like “first let me tell u the history of our people………ACTUALLY, U KNO WHAT? SCREW THIS! WHY SHOULD I TELL U WHEN UR ABOUT TO DIE” and there’s just all these close up shots of her face and her theme song is blaring and she like, whips off her helmet and u see her face for the first time but it’s this dramatic shot of her standing on top of a fucking mountain its so ANIME AKLGHDKSLHGDSH. both her battle & her hang out are probably my favorites in the entire game. ITS JUST SO FUNNY LIKE. “undyne clenches her fist and shakes her head.” “undyne thinks about her friends and pounds the ground with her fist.” “undyne suplexes a boulder just because she can.” AND THE DYNAMIC OF HAVING TO RUN AWAY FROM HER AND SHE CHASES AFTER U BUT UR JUST WALKING THE ENTIRE TIME AND SHE FUCKING STOPS WHEN U GET A PHONECALL AND PAPYRUS IS LIKE, in the middle of undyne chasing frisk down to kill them, “hey human! let’s hang out with undyne later!” AND THEN RESUMES CHASING U AFTER UR DONE. she gets too hot in hotland and passes out, but if u give her water then she just. goes home. without saying a word. bc even tho she has been consistently trying to kill u, and u could’ve just left her there, u HELPED her. up till that point she was convinced u were faking kindness. but after that, she realizes ur not a bad person and leaves bc she can’t kill someone who’s not a bad person. her soul mode is literally the color of kindness. i can go on and on, how obvious and cute her crush on alphys is, alluding to how she literally just keeps soda at her place even tho she hates it bc she knows alphys likes it and won’t let u drink it bc that’s for her crush omg. how she teaches papyrus how to cook bc she doesn’t want to tell him that he’s not fit for the royal guard. how much she admires asgore and goes as far to say frisk reminds her of him bc they’re both so kind. and god everything she says after alphys confesses to her that she’s been lying about everything undyne is so FULL OF LOVE FOR HER FRIENDS

HOLY FUCK I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT WHAT UNDYNE DOES IN NO MERCY TOO I’M SCREAMING

THERE’S A REASON WHY THE NARRATION IS SO DIFFERENT DURING HER NO MERCY BATTLE AND WHY NARRATOR CHARA ADMIRES UNDYNE AND THINKS SHE’S THE BEST CHARACTER IN UNDERTALE AND THAT’S BECAUSE SHE IS

(i have a theory that chara, during no mercy, thinks that undyne has the best chance of stopping u which is why they get so excited when she arrives and so upset when she loses. i also just think chara and undyne are rlly similar too, in like. so many ways. also ik i’m going off on like 3 different tangents i’m so sorry to anyone who’s reading this i just get rlly excited about undertale.)

mettaton

mettaton is probably close second for my favorite battle. i honestly love his character and how it never rlly hits u how the whole “evil human killing robot” facade was so obvious until u play again. he’s obvious trying to do what he loves, entertaining people, while being saddled with this task to pretend he’s an evil robot trying to kill you. the reveal that he’s actually a ghost inside a robot is even more like a punch in the gut bc u realize that…alphys never made him. she made him a body, sure, but not him. i rlly like watching let’s players react to his battle bc of what he says towards the end, about how humans have so many actors and entertainers, but monsters only have him. and how much life and happiness he brings to the underground, and how he would leave a gaping void if he were to leave. it’s rlly sweet to see let’s players connect with that moment imho. i also love how he returns home to visit his cousin after their phone call.

also death by glamour…objectively sexiest undertale song

napstablook

speaking of mettaton’s cousin, napstablook is so sweet. ik this post is getting massively long but it wouldn’t feel complete without them. honestly, the fact that after mettaton left, they wanted to start getting to know their other neighbor (undyne) but was too intimidated to talk so they started making her a mixtape which is just a bunch of dudes screaming their signature wrestling moves is so fucking adorable and hilarious. also the fact that they just straight up avoid the apocalypse by not answering when it knocked on their door.

toriel

toriel……..is my mom. enough said.

ok no i lied not enough said. dude how heart breaking was it learning that all the kids she tried to protect in the past ended up leaving her and getting killed by her fucking ex-husband’s order?? hello???? and that she was so desperate to not lose another child that she was going to destroy the exit to the ruins, which would mean she would never be able to hear another knock knock joke from her only fucking friend (sans), and she would just be stuck in the ruins forever bc she’s goddamn immortal. i’m gonna CRY.

asgore

i like how asgore is written, i don’t like his actions tho. i definitely love all the build up to him, the parallels, how he’s always painted as a nice guy and every character tells u to talk to him, but the second u get to him he destroys ur mercy button and ur left with no choice but to fight him or get killed. new home & onwards is when undertale’s storytelling is at its strongest, is what i personally think. asgore definitely plays a part in that.

flowey & asriel

flowey & asriel are such complicated characters idek if i can summarize what i think about them but i guess all i’ll say is i’m just happy with how undertale treated the both of them.

frisk

me when it’s revealed that they’re their own person and not the player or chara

chara

ok finally on to the character who, if i had to pick one to be my favorite, would claim that spot.

i will admit. i am a big chara stan. :pensive: i personally think they’re the most relatable and interesting character in undertale. i also hate how they’ve been treated by the fandom, like they’re evil. i think it’s undeniable that they are the narrator in all paths in the game. they are woken up by frisk’s determination, after all!

of course, with the true ending, u help their brother gain closure on losing them, proving both chara & asriel that the idea of “kill or be killed” is wrong, and then helping them finish the plan that they both failed- destroying the barrier and freeing the monsters. then flowey encourages chara (and indirectly, the player) to not reset and to let frisk live their life, which chara does, unless the player decides to start a new game.

the one thing i just rlly like about chara tho is that they’re always encouraging u, making all these silly puns, jokes, quips, providing advice and tips on how to spare monsters- like they r rlly invested in helping frisk. it’s clear they’re a good person. they knew almost every monster in the underground. they’re incredibly smart. they’re a big fucking nerd and into anime. they liked gardening to the point of having a gardening knife specifically for cutting plants. they cared about their family so much that they had bff necklaces with their brother, they knitted a sweater for their dad, they loved their mom so much they talk like her. but they’re not a flawless character. they’re coded as a mentally ill abuse victim. they hated humanity, they ran away to a place where people are said to never return. when they messed up, they got so upset that they laughed to cope. they’re flawed, but their brother idolized them so much. and on top of this all they had this pressure on their shoulders that they were “the future of humans and monsters.”

but their plan failed, and it was either kill or be killed by the humans attacking them. and u all kno how that ended. :(

i guess in a way that’s kinda why i think chara and undyne are rlly similar. they’re both incredibly determined, they both wanted to free the people they cared about, they both had a loved one who didn’t want to hurt people, they both shouldered this huge responsibility, and they both would not hesitate to hold ur ass responsible if u ended up doing some awful shit.

✌️

SORRY THIS WAS SO LONG OMG this is my only excuse

[commander-daine]

*wrings hands in glee* human asks; 4, 5, 6, 13, 16. Other one; 6, 16, 22, 23, 26, 28/29, 35, 50. TELL ME EVERYTHING.

4. Do they have any strong ties with their heritage?

Yes! She’s part-Canthan, obviously from several generations back. That side of her family landed in Lion’s Arch in 1128 AE, having left not long after the Canthan Emperor Usoku started being an isolationist and xenophobic prick. Her ancestors were members of the Kurzick House zu Heltzer that were dissatisfied with the way the nation was controlled under the Ministry of Purity. They intermarried with the locals, mostly Krytans, and the family spread out from there.

Her family didn’t live in the Canthan District (dodged a bullet there), so they still have their old heirlooms, including a few zu Heltzer poetry scrolls. Canthan is a fairly dead language on mainland Tyria since there are no newcomers that speak it, but she could hold a brief, basic conversation in it if needed. Old Canthan glyphs are something else entirely - she knows around 100 of them, mostly basic things like numbers, the elements, some basic objects, etc. but honestly she’s not sure how much they’d even be used in Cantha nowadays, assuming it still exists.

She also has a carved mandarin duck made of Echovald Forest wood, and it holds a special place in her heart.

5. Describe their childhood.

Her parents owned a large tailor shop with a top floor that served as a residence for the family. She has a brother that’s older than her by several years and was already being trained to do basic tailoring tasks when she was born. They were a rarity among rarities - a happy, functional family. 

Despite owning a local business, her parents were often away for long periods, which should have given away that something was up. But Daine was young enough that she thought their excuses about traveling long distances for exotic fabrics were legit. It turns out they were Shining Blade agents and got themselves killed, and that’s influenced some key opinions of hers rather drastically down the line.

The childhood itself was mostly a medley of playing with kids in Salma District, going to basic education classes, spending time with her family, learning to tailor, and being ecstatic when her parents returned home for a while. Her brother still runs and lives in the tailor shop, along with his husband.

6. Do they feel particularly blessed by one of the Six?

She’s closest to Dwayna, being most in-tune with lightning and air, but she’s always felt fairly distant from the Gods. After the whole fiasco with Balthazar, her opinion of Dwayna went from “thanks for the air magic” to “please keep your idiot pantheon in line.”

Ironically, she would have been a Dervish in another life, and a Ritualist in yet another. It all came down to the time and place she was born.

13. Are they comfortable with where they are in life?

Usually, no. Sometimes she’d rather be in a different universe entirely. When she decided she wanted to ‘help people’ she didn’t mean she wanted to be a hero a la sagas and epics. She’s been responsible for more death than she can ever absolve, no matter how much good she does. Her dream was to fight evils the size of the Nightmare Court and such (quantifiable, and making an impact on the world) as opposed to leading people into fights with forces of nature that are almost guaranteed to kill them all.

But if you asked her, she’s not sure what she’d rather be doing. A tailor’s life would be rather boring after all of her misadventures, and pure domesticity isn’t in her blood.

16. What’s their love life like, if they have one?

It’s changed from “happily single” to “wakes up with spikes stuck in sensitive places and is pleasantly surprised that Canach is still there to grumble at about it.” It takes a while for this to happen, and the process is far too long to describe in a post.

6. What were they like at school? Did they enjoy it? Did they finish? What level of higher education did they reach? What subjects did they enjoy? Which did they hate?

Daine went through public school in Divinity’s Reach, and she was an obnoxiously good student without ever worrying about studying. History was her favorite subject aside from the more specialized classes that taught her beginning elementalist magic. Thankfully she wasn’t required to stay in classes that didn’t interest her past her earlier school years (which were sort of a trial run to assess kids’ talents) so there aren’t classes she can say she ‘hated.’

16. Do they collect anything? What do they do with it? Where do they keep it?

No real time and place to collect anything right now, but if some twist of fate leads to a retirement, she’d love to have a duck pond that includes a pair of Canthan Mandarins among other breeds.

22. What are their favorite insults to use? What do they insult people for? Or do they prefer to bitch behind someone’s back?

She’s most likely to complain quietly to friends, but gods help you if you tick her off in-person by being incompetent or stubborn. She’s sarcastic and biting with her words if confronted directly, and people are often left reeling after a sudden confrontation with the ‘cute’ commander.

23. Do they have a good memory? Short term or long term? Are they good with names? Or faces?

Above average with facts and statistics, around average with names and faces. She tries her best to associate them since they’re individual people that matter to her, but she can’t remember them all and that’s just another thing to feel guilty about when they eventually die under her command.

26. How do they act when they’re happy? Do they sing? Dance? Hum? Or do they hide their emotions?

It depends who she’s around - among bigger groups of soldiers she tries to appear serious and hide her emotions most of the time, but will let positivity show via smiles and laughter and gentle teasing. In smaller guild groups and in her alone time she sometimes sways/rocks in her seat and hums happily to herself.

28. What is their biggest fear? What in general scares them? How do they act when they’re scared?

Her biggest fear should, theoretically, be something like “Tyria exploding” or “failing to neutralize a dragon” or “dying in the line of battle.” But the thing that wakes her up at night is the thought of having to kill Canach.

Because she knows, from personal experience, what it’s like to look directly into the eyes of a beloved sylvari as you skewer them on a sword. And Trahearne was just a friend; with Canach as her lover, and given her newfound expertise with a blade, just how much more visceral would it be?

She wakes up to panic attacks from related nightmares, and although he’s sometimes there to see them, she’s on the fence about letting him know. It’s a lot more openly emotional of a topic than they usually touch.

In general, the thought of ‘nothing’ terrifies her. Having no friends, no talents, no powers, no sense of time or space. She’s not a huge fan of the Mists, which is ironic because they contain a lot of Thing™, but so much of it is empty that it might as well be a void if you’re dropped in at random. She respects Rytlock a lot for dealing with that.

And how does she act when she’s scared? Brusque, at first. A “no time to waste, let’s get in, take care of it, and get out” attitude. Puts on a mask, because she’s the Commander and she has to. But if it’s a longer lasting scenario she’d be clumping around friends and getting quiet, overthinking things. If she was still anxious when away from friends, she’d probably go back to her tent and cry herself to sleep if it was really bad. She’s bad with stress. And she deals with a lot of stress.

29. What do they do when they find out someone else’s fear? Do they tease them? Or get very over protective?

Depends on the severity. For something small, there could be some teasing. For bigger issues, she’d support them through it and be fairly protective if they were pushed unnecessarily in regards to it.

35. What’s their guilty pleasure? What is their totally unguilty pleasure?

Guilty pleasure: She once bought a multi-colored melon from the Choya in Pricklepatch Hollow and ate the whole thing in one sitting. They’re excellent, sweet without being overpowering or too watery, but she’s not sure how she’d explain purchasing and consuming what appears to be something’s kin.

Unguilty pleasure: twisting wire into pretty shapes and running electricity through it. It’s a soothing form of artistic expression and stress relief. Sometimes there are variations like lightly burning/engraving/frost-etching patterns onto wood/stone/metal, but air is her favored element to play with in general.

50. If they could only take one bag of stuff somewhere with them: what would they pack? What do they consider their essentials?

Fairly standard stuff - some rations and food, maps of the area and a compass, a basic med kit, a journal and pencils, a change of clothes, a blanket/bedroll, and a towel. 

[e0nian]

What is a Source?

----    As there's actually no word in the human tongue for this species, Source is the term used for lack of an official title.  A Source, essentially, is a sentient physical manifestation, a tutelary of a specific concept, these concepts ranging from the more literal (i.e. Source of Nature, Source of Light, Source of Death) to the more obscure (i.e. Source of Time, Source of Prophecy), the latter of which are often referred to as simply Concepts for the purpose of distinction.  Generally, a Source is fully unique in appearance, barring the small few that were made to resemble other creatures (as Sariel, the Source of Light, was designed to resemble humans).  Often, the more obscure the concept, the more obscure the appearance of the Source.  

----    These beings are not physically affected by each others’ abilities-- this, as well as the process of their birth and death, is the only similarity shared between Sources.  This is important to note because it means that no Source is bound by time or space; though their sentience is usually only limited to their physical bodies, each Source is capable of existing in whatever time and place their purest forms have existed or will exist.  For example, Sariel could alternate between sipping tea in a Viennese café in the 70′s to picking mirrored flowers from a faraway alien planet, trillions of years into Earth’s future, in nearly the same instant-- so long as light exists in those places at the time she visits (don’t be mistaken to think she would need to travel by light to reach those places; if light exists there, she is technically already there).

----    Because only one physical manifestation is necessary for one concept, no alternate versions of a Source exist; one could travel the endless seas of universes and timelines and find only one version of each Source (barring each Source’s successors and predecessors, who share the same body but exist in different mindsets.  More on that in the Birth/Death section).  It’s worthy of note, though, that there is likely no single being alive that knows just how many Sources exist.

 ----    Sources are capable of sharing small bits of their power, and by extension their responsibility, with other beings to serve as acolytes.  This phenomenon is uncommon, though there are two Sources notorious for having done so: the Source of Time (whose acolytes are given the title of ‘Aeon’) and the more well known Source of Death (whose acolytes are given the title of ‘Reaper’).

How are they born? How do they die?

----    Every few eons, a successor will be created upon the Source’s request, so that one day they might relinquish the responsibilities and burdens that come with their existence. The Source in question will design the outline of their successor’s first several years to their tastes and, with the guidance of the Source of Life-- giver of sentience to all other Sources-- the two will construct a temporary world for the successor to live until the day they ascend into their abilities (whatever chosen number of years into their future that may be).  On the day the new world is complete, the former Source’s soul will move on to the next, and a new life will develop in the newly youthful body of the predecessor-- who, in truth, is simply a memory-less version of the former.

----    Once a Source ascends into their abilities at the chosen age, the world they were 'born' into is destroyed, like the shell of an egg that breaks to release an infant bird. All of the relationships they would have known would now be gone as their lives are made anew, their slates wiped clean, save for what they've learned in those first several years.  A Source will not age from this point on.

 [ Adriel, Sariel, and Darius, the successors of Nature, Light, and Void (respectively), were purposely born into the same world, a world in the reflection of Earth, in the hopes that they would understand humanity and humility before ascending. They were the first of all Sources to share a world with another, at the behest of their predecessors.  These are also the only Sources that are human-like in appearance. ]

    It should be noted that a Source’s death does not fall to the responsibility of the Source of Death, nor to the Source in question.  In fact, it’s only when the Source of Life gives consent to perform this ritual that one is given the option of their pseudo-death.  This is because it’s common for a newly-ascended concept to reject their responsibilities and, when exposed to such naked loneliness as a Source’s life and unending exposure to life’s harsh realities, inescapable through different universes and timelines, it’s not uncommon for one to wish for death as an appeal for peace.  The conditions given by Source of Life for consent to death are: 1.) you must live a given number of fulfilling millennia, long enough to fully appreciate the most splendid of goods and the most wretched of evils, and 2.) you must feel satisfied with, and have no desire to take your own life.

FAQ / TL;DR:

  Can my muse kill Sariel or Darius?  Technically, yes.  Their bodies die easily enough, and neither is especially skilled in combat, but so long as their natural forms exist (photons in Sariel’s case, void in Darius’s) in some universe whether past or present, they will always come back.  Only by stripping their sentience, (a power wielded by the Source of Death, incidentally) to the degree needed to do this, can they be killed in the truest sense.

  Do I need to create an AU for my character to interact with Sariel or Darius?  Nope.  As one Source isn’t bound by another’s powers, they aren’t bound by Time or Space, either; it’s not out of the question for one of the two to be able to visit your character’s world, so long as Light and Void exist there (they can’t, however, travel to worlds that aren’t tangible, such as ones built on memories.  They also can’t sleep, and therefore can’t dream, so they’re unable to visit dream worlds without some kind of loophole).

  How old are they in the main verse?  Sariel had spent more time travelling space than Darius, and as such has racked up more years than the other muses (apart from Gabriel).  She’s around 8 centuries old in the main verse, give or take a few decades.  Darius, having spent most of his life in one space and timeline, has only been around about 250-300 years since his ascension.

  Can they heal quickly?  Yes; when damage is done to them, their bodies naturally revert back to the form they’d taken at the time of their ascension (it’s because of this Sariel is unable to grow her hair, and Darius is unable to cut his own).  Their regeneration rate generally isn’t so great that it would do much good in a fast-paced battle.  However, the more they’re hurt, the more rapid their rate of healing will become over time.  For example, a war-savvy Source who’d spent many centuries in battle would probably have a healing rate high enough that one could hardly have time to see the damage dealt when inflicted, whereas a more mundane or antisocial Source would have a healing rate only moderately more impressive than a human’s.  

  Can they fight?  Neither Sariel nor Darius is especially adept at fighting in the main verse.  Darius knows self-defense, and Sariel had once spent many centuries at war-- though she was primarily used as a strategist.  So their greatest  weapons would be their natural abilities, which both are reluctant to use against others.  Just try not to fight them, please.  They really don’t want to be dealing with that.

  Can my muse get pregnant by/impregnate a Source?  Sources can not procreate, so no.  It’s against the Source of Life’s wishes for the power of a Source to be shared in any way barring the small amount given when deigning an acolyte, so producing offspring is out of the question.

  Sariel and Adriel don’t look exactly human.  Do they travel to human worlds looking like that?   For Sariel, not always.  Being the tutelary of Light, she can manipulate the color of her eyes and hair with ease, and often does in worlds where her natural colors would call too much attention to her.  She most often goes for blonde hair and green eyes.  

As for Adriel, he is marginally taller than the average human, the aquamarine of his eyes just a little too deep-- too bright-- his skin almost shimmery in the sun, with pointed ears and a face that looks maybe a little too sharp, but... well, honestly, there isn’t much he can do about that.  He’s come to accept that he'll always look a little different.  So yes, he’ll straight up travel Earth in all his mud-elf glory.

FINAL NOTE.  Why should I feel comfortable presenting my muse to such an OP character?

  This is something I want us to be very upfront with each other about.  Sariel and Darius are both reluctant to use their abilities in front of others, so in general interactions, they won’t feel much different from your average human (if a bit weird and aged in the eyes).  However, if their abilities make you uncomfortable, please let me know and I’ll make sure they don’t use them around your muse!

  Please keep in mind that Sariel and Darius can’t actually do much besides what’s related to their concept, and even then, your muse isn’t likely to see much of that (unless they ask or the situation demands it, but even then, they’ll be frugal).  It sounds like a lot, but rather than seeing their concept as a power or ability, I often think of it as the truer form of the Source.  It gives a sense that yes, these characters are powerful, but at the same time, they’re also simple.  They’re not Gods who rule over things or people-- they’re not ancient sorcerers with accumulating abilities-- they’re just beings with a simple and true connection to existence, a larger... mass, I suppose... and longer lifespan than most.

[chorusnihili]

Backstory Ask meme, numbers 1-6?

BACKSTORY ASK MEME

1. How did you first come up with your muse’s backstory, if you did at all?

I'm going to put this answer at the end because it's going to get long.

2. If your muse is from a particular show/movie/comic/etc. , how did you first react when you first found out about your muse’s backstory?

Haaa, I honestly wish I remember. I honestly can't even explain why I find Gaster fascinating or even why I chose to write him. I just do. I literally don't have an explanation and... it's kinda weird, tbh.

3. Is your muse’s backstory relatable to you?

Honestly? Not really! I mean, I can find bits and pieces that are similar but, honestly? He's had a rough life. To put it mildly. He experiences and has been through a lot that I haven't. I can sympathize, but it's honestly not something that's relatable to me, as I've thankfully had a fairly good life.

4. Would you rewrite your muse’s backstory? If so, how?

There's been a few parts that I've considered rewriting, mainly because I feel Inferior to other portrayals of Gaster, but as it stands I've held my ground and there's nothing I'm particularly dying to change.

5. What song reminds you of your muse’s backstory?

Echo, probably. It's cliché as fuck but I'm really terrible at associating music to things. Or associating anything, really.

6. Does anything fit your muse’s backstory aesthetically?

I usually use a lot of black vs white vs grey to represent Gaster. Not only because it's his own color scheme, but Symbolically of the good he wants to do, the evil he ends up doing, plus the battle of Determination vs Void, etc. What Gaster used to be, what he wants to be, what he's becoming, what he currently is.

1. How did you first come up with your muse’s backstory, if you did at all?

Hold onto your butts.

The thing with Dr. Gaster is that we get a few key points in canon, and that's about it. We know he was the Royal Scientist before Alphys, that he was incredibly intelligent, that he was destroyed by his own creation, that he created the CORE, and that he's 'scattered through space and time,' whatever that's supposed to mean.

I think as far as canon goes, that's all we get. Entry No. 17 is in Wingdings and assumed to be related to Dr. Gaster, because his initials are W.D. and people assume it stands for Wingdings, due to the precedence of Sans and Papyrus. Plus the MysteryMan, who most people assume is Dr. Gaster, but there's no real evidence either way.

The portrayals I were really interested in were the ones that portrayed this being as some eldritch creature beyond understanding, outside reality, that can toy with the world; sometimes appearing against Genocide Frisk / Chara, sometimes maliciously attacking whatever else in sight.

Restoring Dr. Gaster from his predicament is common in a lot of different fanon, so that was actually the starting point for development of this version.

In the original roleplay where I developed this character, Gaster had isolated some superpowered humans, tricking them into thinking the world was ending so he could nab their souls, steal their Determination, ???, profit.

It was a pretty natural extension of what we see from Flowey that something that’s Soulless, or in Gaster’s case, missing most of his Soul, doesn’t exactly act... friendly.  He’s acting irrationally, acting in his own self interest, and not really caring about the impacts of his actions so long as he gets what he wants.  This remains the foundation of Unbound Form.

In this original RP, he also tricked one of the human protagonists into absorbing his soul and merging their minds.  Upon doing so, he regained most of his clarity and I got a much better first look at who Dr. Gaster actually was.  The first thing that stood out to me was a lot of fear.

It’s a pretty common headcanon that Gaster was among those who was on the surface originally.  And given that he’s a scientist, the idea of him being a fighter--at least back then, didn’t really want to fight, didn’t really understand what was happening--why are they killing us? why can’t we live in peace?  why is this happening to me?

We see most monsters desperately wanting to return to the surface, but then you think about what Sans talks about to the human--good food, good friends, good laughs; is leaving really worth it?

So I started to think about a monster that didn’t want to leave the Underground.  Who so desperately just wanted to be safe, who wanted to build a paradise for monsters without humanity being involved.

Someone who was so deeply terrified of humans, so deeply terrified of the war.  

This proved to be convenient, too--as it allowed Alphys’s discoveries to be her own, and allowed Gaster’s to be his own.  I’m all for reinserting Gaster into the timeline, but that doesn’t mean he needs to take credit for things other characters did.  

The exact details for this would come later.

For now I was working on his fall and shattering.  I know a lot of people portray the CORE as a really dangerous place, where one wrong step will send you careening over the edge, but it never made sense to me.  Gaster is smart, Gaster knows the power of his own inventions.  I couldn’t imagine him ever exposing something that dangerous.

So then I added in this idea that the CORE shifts around on its own.  Of course, it’s meant to just be another puzzle.  But the idea that it could double as a means to reduce stress from the intense heat of the CORE gave me a unique opening:  It meant that there was a brief time when the CORE’s... core was exposed and Gaster could fall.  

Gaster may be meticulous and careful, but he can also be distracted and impatient, which lead to the accident of him disregarding the safety features and falling anyways.

As for his survival, the obvious culprit is Determination.  In fact, it was so obvious that my roleplay partner figured it out before I even revealed it.  The very thing that Gaster was trying to get in the roleplay all along, ... he already had!  

Rather than make up some reason why Gaster would have Determination, either naturally or through experimentation, I chose to take inspiration from the Undyne fight and essentially say that Monsters are capable of producing Determination through willpower if their soul is falling apart but they’re managing to live on.

...

Of course, Monsters and Determination don’t get along.  So that implied to me that something ... was missing.

The answer then was the Void.

Despite being an almost universal concept in the Undertale fandom, I’ve never really seen an explanation for what it is.  Since the Void is so commonly associated with nothingness, emptiness, darkness, etc., I made the decision to make it the counter-force of Determination.  Where Determination is the force that allows a soul to live past its demise, Void is the force that tries to push a soul to death.  

And I decided to push it bigger.

We know that enough Determination allows one to alter fate and time.  Obviously.  It’s the entire premise of Undertale.  But... why?

So I decided that Determination is not only the force that pushes Souls to exist, but the very force that pushes time forward.  Ergo, when a soul possesses more Determination than the timeline itself, they become capable of seizing control of the flow of time and can manipulate time itself to their will.  

In that case, Void would then become the force that seeks to end timelines, the controlling force, the force that prevents timelines from growing indefinitely and colliding into one another.  It’s a buffer, the space that exists ambiently between timelines.  The junkyard where anything that doesn’t belong to time gets yeeted.

And suddenly it sounded a lot like the general fandom’s interpretation.

Now, it’s easy to think, oh, the Void wants to destroy everything, it’s bad and Determination is good.  But, just as the Genocide route shows us the evil power of Determination, the Void does good as well.  As any gardener or oncologist knows, things growing indefinitely is not good.  

And if a timeline remains stable by the ongoing push and pull of Determination and Void, I had my solution for how Gaster remains stable.  Each piece of him produces Determination that’s kept in chack by Void that’s integrated into his soul.

So I had that explanation.

But how did his soul end up in pieces?

...Is anyone actually reading this?  It’s ... pretty long.  I’m going to cut it off here.  If anyone wants to hear the rest of it send in an ask and I’ll finish typing it up lmao.