#We know Death and Reign happened in current continuity.

[thefaeriefeatherdark]

I do love how Jon Kent is one of those things which utterly fucks over the DC timeline.

Like. Jon cannot have been born before Reign of the Supermen without making some major retcons to Death and to Lois's deal throughout that story.

Jon Kent was 10 before any time warping shenanigans got involved.

Kon El was Superman/Superboy at the time of Reign (meaning he appeared at this time).

Kon El has to have been around for at least ten years.

Unless we make major edits to the timeline Kon and YJ all have to have been around for around 10 years.

Kon and YJ all have to be in their 20s at least.

[fluffywing-e-tarot]

What I am not (Fic Idea)

Summary.

Merlin of Ealdor, son of Huneith, was many things that revolved around Prince Arthur Pendragon. He is not Arthur Pendragon.

Where, Merlin changes all but Afew’s perception into believing he is Prince Arthur Pendragon.

~*~

Leon returned to Camelot after spending time away with his family and managing his land. Leon knew he would need to go out on patrol soon.

“Sir Leon”, a squire greeted him with groomsmen from the stable. Taking the reign as he dismounts

“Prince Arthur requests your presence.”

Leon walks to the prince’s chamber, contemplating the topic. There's the Harvest count. Patrol routes. Potential knights. A new training regiment.

Leon arrived, knocking on the door.

“Enter,” his lord grants. Leon enters the room, ready to do whatever Arthur deems necessary to reevaluate. Standing over the table in the prince's chamber, a map and papers strewn across the surface weren't the blonde prince but the raven hair of the Manservant.

“Merlin?” Leon asks.

Merlin’s head snaps to look into his eyes.

“Leon, you recognise me,” Merlin said. A look of disbelief on his face

“Of course, Merlin,” Leon said

“Close the door.” Merlin looked stern as one of the guards outside the door. They noticed the conversation.

Leon closed the door. Then looked around the room for the blond prince. “ Where is Arthur?”

“Leon, I need you to promise me something,” Merlin said. Blue eyes giving a frigid satire.

“What do I need to promise?”

“What I'm about to tell you doesn’t make it to King Uther.” Merlin started to pace; he looked frustrated.

“I cannot promise you, Merlin. If what you tell me is a danger to Camalot. Then, as her knight, I must tell him.”

“I’m Prince Arthur,” Merlin said. Leon scoffed.

 “That’s impossible. I would have remembered growing up with your scrawny limbs on the training ground,” Leon said 

Merlin continued, “That’s what the entire castle believes.”

“ You don’t resemble Arthur at all. And you’ve worked for him for years.”Leon said the pieces fell into place. Leon whispers, “There’s magic involved.”

Merlin snapped towards the quiet declaration.

“Are you cursed, Merlin?” Leon asks. “You never liked Royalty; must have cursed you.”

“In a manner.”Merlin said, “But it hasn’t affected everyone.”

“Who else knows?”

“Gaius, Gwen, Arthur, and now you,” Merlin said.

“How do you know Arthur knows.”

“I designed it that way,” Merlin mumbled 

“Say again?”

 “It was during Negotiations,” Merlin said clearly. Leon’s stomach dropped.

“This happened when Camelot was in negotiation with another Kingdom?”

“Yes,” Merlin said, slumping.“ They had already known Arthur's appearance and mannerisms. I didn’t want to panic the delegation, so I did something stupid.”

Leon felt his chest tighten and worry that a curse was upon his friend to pose as Arthur. However, both Gwen and Gaius know Arthur is currently the manservant.

 “You Cast the spell.” Leon pointed his blade at Merlin. Merlin didn’t resist; a small trickle of blood fell from his neck. Merlin looked resigned to his fate of death. Leon let him keep talking.

“Two days after the Noble delegation arrived, Arthur decided to go Hunting. At the third watch of the Night, he burst into my room and took me hunting for the morning. While we were hunting, I tripped, and during my recovery, someone attacked, overwhelming and taking Arthur, disappearing before I could follow.”

Leon could tell where this was going.

“I didn't want to be punished for losing Arthur. The negotiations were just starting, and Arthur needed to be present. I cast a spell to have the Bandits and Cort believe me as the Prince.” Merlin bounced his leg. “ I did it in hopes Arthur would be back by now. I can’t lift it until Arthur is safe. I can’t let up now.”

“You would immediately be charged with treason and impersonating royalty,” Leon said. But he understood. Merlin didn’t want to die. No one wanted to die. Merlin had to act dispassionate because that is what was expected of him, not to throw the kingdom into chaos. Leon dropped his sword. He was kneeling before Merlin.

“Sire,” Leon said affectionately, despite Merlin only posing as the prince.“I will find your manservant. I will bring him home.”

“Leon, I can’t in good conscience allow you to undertake such a feat alone.”

“Perhaps not. You must have allies outside the castle. Could your magic lead me to them?”

“Lancelot and Gwain. Those two would be the only people I trust to help.” Merlin said

Leon left Prince Arthur’s chamber with five letters. He dared not touch them for the magic that Merlin enchanted three of them with. He began to walk towards Gaius but was intercepted by a summons to Uther.

“How is Arthur?”

Leon had to remind himself that Merlin was currently Arthur.

“Missing his Mansurvant.”

“That boy can get another one,” Uther said. Leon knowing Merlin’s magic, determined. No other servant is out there with the magic or loyalty to Arthur.

Leon gathered his squier and another knight he knew who thought the private conversation wasn’t entirely adverse for magic to set out on patrol. Leon hoped that he wouldn’t report the use immediately upon seeing it.

“You rarely choose me as your partner, Leon.” Sir Dresden said.

“There is an important task given to me by his highness,” Leon said

“I didn’t hear anything different?“ Hurlburt, his squire said.

Once they left the city, Leon called to halt dismounting.

“What is it?”

“What I am going to tell you must be kept secret.”

“What is it?”

“ An enchantment has been placed on the whole of Camelot.”

They both looked stunned. “Leon, how do you know this?”

“A sorcerer is posing as Prince Arthur,” Leon said. They both laughed at him.

“There is no way Prince Arthur is a sorcerer.”

“King Uther enchanted and marring a troll,” Leon said. They both stopped laughing, remembering that such an alteration to the king’s perception had almost lost the kingdom’s stability and heir.

“I see.” Sir Dresden said. “ and why do you trust this sorcerer?”

Leon didn’t want to reveal that Merlin was the sorcerer, so he said, “The sorcerer gave me the quest to find the real prince.”

“And what must we do to aid you?”

“Continue on patrol. I hope my quest will yield results.”

“I will join you.” Sir Dresden said.

“ So will I.” Hulburt siad.

They mounted up again. Leon told Dresden where to meet on the patrol route, handed over one of the enchanted and standard letters, and demonstrated how to operate the enchanted letter.

He went for Gwaine and handed him the regular letter. Gwaine joined immediately after reading it. They went to the meeting spot and opened the final letter, leading him to the prince.

The battle to reclaim Prince Arthur was short, and he was glad he had accepted Sir Dresden's offer and his squire as there were more than he was comfortable with for the bandits and a sorcerer leading the troop. Lancelot delivered the final blow to the sorcerer.

Arthur was severely injured due to the torture he took. They found a farmer’s house near the woods and summoned Gaius for treatment. Gwain and Lancelot promised to stick around and watch Arthur on his recovery.

When Gaius cleared Arthur to return to the castle, Merlin declared he was going hunting. When he reached the farmhouse, he dispelled the enchantment and roughed himself up—with assistance. 

Merlin's return was appreciated by both Arthur and much of the surviving staff. Merlin’s normal workload was stressing many servants out. Leon smiled when Hespotted Merlin with the wash maids in intense discussion. Uther was none the wiser to what was happening around Arthur. 

[cry-ptidd]

I got a currently unrelated but important and angst af question(s?);

I know you said that Jean didn’t know that the beast of gevaudan was his daughter Laura, but imagine if he did, before or after he ‘killed’ the beast. Can you imagine the raw heart ache and grief finding how that his baby girl was turned into a monster and (had to) killed her?

Also, if Jean and Laura somehow met in modern Hellsing, even for five minutes, what would be said between father and daughter?

Enjoy the pain ☺️

I'll add onto that, anon, and share some historical facts with you that make this situation even more painful!

According to sources (article in French citing Guy Crouzet), Chastel's signature doesn't appear on the Marin report written the morrow after the beast's death, the 20th of June 1767. In the article, they speculate as to why, considering it was very clear according to eye witnesses and the lord of Apcher. According to Crouzet, the hypothesis could be that he either wasn't invited to sign it or that he was, but refused to attend.

If we want to take this into Laura's story and canon, then the idea that Jean who is hailed as the hero of Gévaudan for killing the beast and whose signature on that report would've "hailed and justified his glory and exploit for centuries to come", refused to attend it. He knew how to write and read, everyone knew he was the one that fired the shot. Why wouldn't he come?

Of course, why wouldn't he come. He will be given money and his name will be remembered as the hero who slew the beast and ended its reign of terror. Except the beast had his daughter's eyes, the eldest daughter he hadn't seen in 9 years because of a single day where she went to herd cows in a clearing, when whatever the hell started to happen to her. He hadn't heard from her since, he didn't know what she became, if her affliction was cured, if she was taken care of. The daughter he knew as kind and obedient and devout and the sweetest and a bit naive child he proudly loved, then the worst thing happens to her and years later something similar to what she's seen, a "wolf-like creature" terrorizing the locals, starts to happen again.

And two years after the beast's continuous rampages, he finally meets it face to face, and it's unnervingly familiar.

He would barely have the time to even process what happened before it's torn up, and he'd recognize the awful monster he just shot was his daughter that he left in the care of holy men to cure her and she was supposed to be better so what the hell was that thing he just shot? Is that supposed to be what happened to his child? This creature, so hateful and plain ungodly, is what his little girl grew into?

And now he's invited to sign the Marin report to confirm that indeed he did shoot the beast. It's what he will be remembered for, for killing the monster that no one knows is his eldest daughter that "succumbed to an illness" nine years ago and he's later offered just 72 pounds for the life of his daughter. That's what she was worth, apparently.

It was also noted that the beast's body was very poorly embalmed after its recovery. I imagine that whatever they found - or whatever the dogs had torn up in Laura's stead - had a rough time. I think that if Chastel saw it here, he would've been thankful for everything to not recognize the dead eyes staring up at him.

[jujapaya]

OKAY SO - someone mentioned this idea for the Vengeance of Moon Knight, and while it may sound extremely bad—like I’m Mat-patting it up in here while comparing things that may not make sense—it’s Mackay, and he makes me go insane.

The idea was behind what was introduced in Issue 8 of MK 2021 — stories. (If you see this, op, PLEASE dm me or at least message on here so I can add credit <3)

More below! :)

Issue 8 was the first main issue for Hunters Moon. If you don’t remember, MK was facing imprisonment because of what was happening in Devils Reign, and Detective Flint needed help with an investigation surrounding Scarlet Fasinera.

As the issue goes on, Hunters Moon finds Scarlet, brings her down via Khonshu, and apologizes to Reese.

Overall, it’s a pretty cut and dry story! However, what really stood out about THIS issue and THIS issue alone is that it talks about how powerful stories are, and it’s never talked about again. Maybe that’s coincidence, but there are major parallels to how Scarlet survived through becoming a story, and what Moon Knight has done.

First: The wall paintings.

On the left is how Scarlet survived through becoming a story. People prayed to her. The second, well, Marc sums it up well in the first issue:

DO YOU SEE WHAT I MEAN?? Not to say that Moon Knight can PROBABLY come back as a story, but I’m saying that. He’s already set up to be with the paintings on the walls AND his death.

We do not see this EVER again in the run, so that’s why it’s very suspicious to me… I know Mackay loves stories that constantly have action, but as we've seen for the entire run, everything has a meaning and a place in the story. It'd be odd if this was just thrown to the wolves with no further exposition.

Second: her talk about stories.

IF Moon Knight comes back through those symbols, the story is crafted by those beliefs and prayers (AND it's not just Mackay's Moon Knight run we see this motif- even in the current Avengers run, also written by him, we hear that when Thor fights the horrifying biblically accurate angel).

However, what strikes out to me is the "A story changes in the telling, Hunters Moon, but never learns."

Do you know how we see this new Moon Knight portrayed? That's right. Bloody and ruthless are a few words I can name off the top of my head. We have not seen a cover yet, except for issue one and the variants, that is them not fighting someone.

Do you know how Moon Knight is seen in a lot of peoples eyes? Bloody and ruthless. Do you know how stories are made? Through beliefs of other people. We even see this in issue #25!!

It's easier to be someone who everyone else knows. Not yourself. If no one knows who you are, truly, than your story—your new life—is not going to be yourself. Who you actually were, but it is you. To other people, you are the same.

Now, to end this all off... An excerpt from Badr:

While one person believes in Moon Knight, his story will continue. Do you see what I mean?

[lolitastories]

Helpless

Description: She worked as a lawyer in New York until she received a phone call from the man she owes her career to. She knew she would be back and what she was in for but what she didn’t know is that her life would change even more than she imagined.

Chapter 10

Chapter 9:

The trial took longer than expected. That asshole thought he could get away with threats and lost. Got on the list of sex offenders and after serving 3 years in jail he will have probation. Community service for a year. I avoided my parents and everybody else I didn’t have to see for the 2 weeks I was there. Beth went home for the holidays after the 3rd night. I was currently at the entrance of the ranch. “You can drop me off here” The driver nods as I get out of the car and take out my luggage.

“Have a good day miss'' I wave back waiting for him to drive off. I start my walk down the long road. There is no noise even this far away from the house, and that's not a good thing. The cold is freezing my fingertips as they are the only part except my face that is not covered by multiple layers. New years have gone by and it's the 5th day of the month and a new beginning for me. I haven’t left it all behind yet but it's a good start. The people in town know what happened now. The idiot got what he deserved but most importanly my parents got to know how wrong they were and even if I didn’t get to see their reaction it felt good.

“Want a ride home!?” I look at the distance and see Rip riding up.

“I am never getting on a horse again” Thankfully I had sneakers on because there was no way I was walking down the long dirt/gravel road with heels. I continued walking as Rip got off his horse and took him by the reign to walk beside me.

“Why the long face?” I looked over confused but quickly shook it off.

“I had a long couple of days” Something about walking in the cold air clears your mind.

“Tell me about it” He huffs. “You are going to have a list of chores to do when you get back home” Oh fuck. “Jaime, John, Beth, all the Duttons, even Kayce” He turns to look at me for a split second. “They all need family therapy” I chuckle a bit.

“You ain’t telling me something I ain’t already know.” Rip sighs as we get infront of the house. “Can I ask you something?” I turn to him, letting go of my suitcase. He nods so I continue with my question. “Are you and Beth okay?” Before the trip I knew they were spending more time together but knowing Beth this has been an ongoing thing. She tries to make it work but along the way she makes herself take a step back and shield herself again.

“We are working on it. I waited this long and I will keep on waiting as long as she needs” I knew Rip was a good guy even with the character everybody thinks of him as.

“Well. Let me go inside before I freeze to death out here” I tell him goodbye before heading inside.

“Well look who's back” It wasn’t so early in the morning when I arrived so I was suprised to see John. “Had some family fun time during the holidays” I held my dead stare on him.

“Being funny isn’t good for you” He chuckles a bit, offering me a cup of coffee. “Sorry I didn’t answer these past few day”

“Don’t worry about it but now that you are back I have a list for you” oh I heard. I nod my head taking a sip of the coffee. “I need you to go see the livestock commissioner” Before the word why could slip out he got a phone call. “Beth left the paperwork on your bed” He leaves out the door. It feels good to be back. Somehow this kind of work, although it can be stressful, is what I strive for most. I took a long needed shower and got dressed to head out. I grab the paperwork and head down to see the livestock agents. I always laugh when I hear about them. Like I know their jobs are serious and all but come on, livestock AGENT?. It's like Bond being recruited to take care of sheeps.

“What did I do to behold such a sight?” I shake my head walking through the doors as Ryan holds the door open.

“Nice to see you too Ryan” I say hello to the rest of the guys in the room before turning to the secretary.

“Mr Dutton called and said you were coming.” She gets up and leads me down the hall. “He just came from the meeting so I didn’t get a chance to notify him” I gave her a sympathetic look.

“Don’t worry, Jaime is used to not planning things” quick hot head he is. I smile before opening the door. I stop dead in my tracks. I should have knocked. Knocking so I would have heard who was inside and it would have given me a chance to figure things out before coming in or just bolt out of this place.

“Mr Duton, Miss l/N” I think her name was Jenny. Thank you Jenny.

“Thank you” Kayce stands up as my legs feel like jello walking over to the chair infront of his desk. The room wasn’t warm. It stayed on the cool side but my body felt like it was burning. “Hey”

“Hey” I sighed. The air felt thick and my lungs couldn’t grasp enough of it. “I need you to sign a couple of things” I pull out the file and slide it towards him.

“Do you want something to drink?” Something to eat sounds better. Coming here with on coffee in the stomach wasn’t the best choice.

“No.” That sounded a little too harsh damn it. “Thank you” I stand up walking closer to the desk to open the file. “Everything you need to sign is marked but on one page you need to place your imprint” I flip it to make sure he knows which page it is. I remove myself from leaning in as nerves run down my body seeing him from my side view that he got up.

“Y/n?” It was a whisper but enough for me to hear. I look up and see him walk around to the desk towards me. Am not nervous because anything that happened between us came to mind but because he somehow makes me feel little. Not in a bad way eitheir, like I don’t need to be something am not with him beside me. I take a step back.

“Kayce we need to talk but I don’t think this is the time or place” I put my hand up defincisbly. I don’t know what was going on. My body wanted to tremble and for some reason my eyes were feeling up with tears. My cheeks were burning and all I wanted to do was crawl into a corner until I could think again.

“Y/n?”

“What?” I finally find his eyes again and he is just a couple steps away from me giving me the space I needed.

“Are you okay?” That's when I lost it. All the emotion I was holding in slipped out and rolled down my cheek. First one tear and then a couple more. I bit my lip trying to hold in the sorrows that wanted to leave. “y/n?” I shake my head back away again.

“Just give me a minute. I just need a minute” I close my eyes, wrapping myself in my arms trying to hold it together. This happened once when I was 15. I was at a party and all the emotion evaded me. For the remaining of it I locked myself in the bathroom and cried to the tunes of the songs. No one came to check on me and when I finally got out nobody knew why I was crying and I felt like a baggage to them. I locked myself in my room and screamed my lungs out until I didn’t have any energy left in me. I promised myself if it ever happened again I wouldn’t let it overtake me again. I felt him wrap his arms around me and pull me closer.

“You need to let it go. You have been holding on to so much and I promise you it gets better when you let go” He whispers. And I don’t know what happened. Everything that was slipping out my mouth

“It's not fair” I let out a cry. Gripping on to his jacket. “It's not fair how they can just continue their lives without me! I saw them before I left, I was going to go up to them and let them see me but I didn’t want to give them even that. I always had a little feeling inside that they would come find me one day and apologise and maybe something would go back to normal. Why do they get to pretend to be a happy family when it's not complete? Was I the problem the whole time? When I was with them they couldn’t stand eachother, maybe I needed to leave so they could be happy. But why do they get to be happy and I got the worse part out of it? Why don’t I have a happy family? Maybe it didn’t affect me before because I had someone on the line if they found out the truth and having the feeling of them owing me an apology in the future made it better. Was that too selfish? Am I too selfish to want that? Should I have just told the truth? Maybe I didn’t do it because I cared for my cousin so much but because I wanted to embarrass them in the end. Because if I did everything right then why am I the one hurting at the end?” Then everything stopped. The tears, the cries, the tight hold I had on Kayce as he was still holding me. I took a deep breath and pulled away from him.

“y/n?” I look at him wiping away my tears. “I think you deserve a loving family and I know one day you will build that. I don’t know the whole thing but I know that she was grateful she didn’t have to do it alone”

“Ok” I smile, rubbing my hands on my thighs trying to get the nerves out. “That was enough for today” I hear him chuckle. “What?”

“Nothing” He shakes his head. He walks closer to me enough to feel his body heat. “I know right now is not the time and place after all of that” I roll my eyes at his comment. “How about dinner?” Is he crazy?

“Kayce” I warned, shaking my head. I wanted nothing more than to leave right now.

“Listen. We need to talk about everything that happened, I don’t know about you but it wasn’t just to let steem out” He says defensibly.

“Ok” Before walking toward his desk he grabs my upper arm pulling me towards him. His other hand slides up to my cheek making me look at him. “What?” The grin I had was there although I was trying to hide it.

“Nothing,” He whispers, moving closer.

“Make sure those papers get signed so you can give them to me later” He smiles and nods. “Am serious” I was getting aggravated due to the fact he had a stupid smile on his face and his stare was making me blush. I hit his chest puting some distance but I was only pushed back in again and into a kiss. I couldn’t hold back and I wrapped my arms around his neck. His kiss was slowly and every promise of air was long gone. I didn’t mine. I just wanted him. Both hands slide down to my hip holding me steady and close.

“7?” He says as he pulls away. My eyes still closed, I nod my head. He pecks my lips. “Anything specific?” I shake my head still with a stupid smile on my face. “Have a curfew?” That made my eyes roll again.

“No sir I do not” I slide my hands down his chest pushing away from him. “Don’t be late”

“Yes ma’am” he smiles as I open the door to leave. I turn around once more.

“Don’t forget the paperwork”

“Yes ma’am” I stayed there for a minute watching him take a seat behind his desk. He may not have wanted this job as commissioner but he sure does look doing it.

[leahnardo-da-veggie]

Lich-Queen, pt 7 (FINAL)

I'M DONE!! AAAAA >:)) Thanks to everyone who followed this thing, I love y'all platonically. Anyways, to anyone who's new, I'll post the full thing soon, so in the meantime have part 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and the drabble accompaniment that we can pretend is part 4!

Story below cut :D

My steps down the stairs left a trail of blood behind them. I stopped at the base of the stairs, meeting the eyes of my new allies. There was approval in Empress Sucsu'anane's nod, delight in the shifter delegation, and… Horror? Fear? Amongst the elves.

Saivere, the same elf who had been ever so pleasant towards me, stepped forth. “What in Solaria's name have you done? That…” He shook his head violently. “That was wrong. Do you not understand the meaning of the word?”

Empress Sucsu'anane laughed at him. “Young Nari-ilra, do not be rude. All reigns end and begin with bloodshed, even yours. Why should she try to hide it under a veneer of civility? Honesty is a valuable trait,” she told him.

Saivere squared himself resolutely. “This is inhumane,” he insisted. “We just watched an innocent man be tortured to death. I will not stand by and watch this travesty, and if you had any sense, you would not either.”

Like a kindergarten descending into chaos, the people before me divided into two camps. Overlapping voices argued with each other, clamouring and demanding to be listened to. All for little old me! It was absolutely delightful.

When I had grown bored of the fuss, I raised my knife and tapped it on the metal railing. The resulting clang resounded through the hall, silencing the crowd as it went. 

“Now,” I said, into the void of suits. “If you are done bickering like little children, I have a thing or two I'd like to say.” 

Crossing my hands behind my back as straightening up to my full height, I continued, “It has been brought to my attention that we are having a certain… overcrowding issue. We, as immortals and long-lived species, are running out of living space, living space that we deserve. Now, who has been taking that space?”

I paused, and the shifters piped up. “The humans,” they cried, joined in belatedly by the spirits and my ghouls.

“Exactly,” I replied, nodding. “The mortal mayflies. Irritating, multiplying, and absolutely everywhere! Even the spirit-tongue recognises them as Kina-ilra, the everywhere people. Bad enough that they pop up all over the place, but that they are driving us out of our lands? That they are moving into our cities and taking up jobs that belong to our people and coming up with new technologies? That they have forgotten their place?”

Saivere's face fell. “Have you forgotten your past? You were a human once too,” he cried.

“Don't hold it against me,” I quipped, grinning at him. Yes, the flow of the crowd was turning against him. I could feel its heartbeat, the crashing waves of murmurs. “I'm trying to put those days behind me.”

Saivere opened his mouth to rebut me, and I hushed him again. The creases of anger and worry on his forehead gave me another idea. I took a mocking bow towards him. “You know, ladies, gentlemen, and eternal abominations, we all have one thing in common. Can anybody tell me what it is?”

From the crowd, someone piped up. “We're all inhuman?”

“Do you hear that? That's human centric language right there.” The rhetoric of Queendom was coming to me. “We need to stop that. Tell me, what unites us?  We're all Ilre, Kitzche, immortals! That's what defines us, not that we aren't forsaken mayflies.”

“But the elves aren't immortal,” another member of the elven delegation shouted. There was a distinct aura of gotcha from him. Oh, we were going to see who had gotten who soon enough. “We just happen to have long lifespans.”

I stepped forward, and the elves stepped back. “Exactly. Tell me, who taught the humans machinery? Who helped them with agriculture, encouraged democracy within their borders? Which non-immortal species is currently infringing on the Cescere spirit's lands?”

A dangerous hush descended upon them. I smiled even wider, grateful for my new face, for I could literally smile ear to ear now. “Tell me… Who is just as much to blame as any human?”

The answer came in a ripple, as much magic as any spell. The elves. The nari-ilra. The mortals. All of them. Every last one. Not a good one amongst them. Fingers sharpened to claws, weapons drawn. 

The elves never stood a chance.

I watched Saivere be shredded before my very eyes, letting his gore mingle with Tamaris'. I grasped his severed head and lifted it up. By the gods, if my sister could see me now. She would weep with horror and fear, to see what I had become. I revelled in the thought that I had become the very monster she so desperately sought to stop. That in the end, she was the powerless oracle, and I the great necromancer. That all her prophecies were not enough to prevent the fate I had so craved.

“Look at this,” I commanded. My people obeyed.

“This is a sign of our new regime,” I announced. My people listened.

“We will kill every human, and then we will rule atop their corpses!”

And my people cheered for me, their Lich-Queen.

Taglist:

@coffeeangelinabox, @dorky-pals, @calliecwrites, @kaylinalexanderbooks, @shukei-jiwa

@thewingedbaron, @pluppsauthor, @cowboybrunch, @wylloblr, @possiblyeldritch

@ramitola, @urnumber1star, @fortunatetragedy, @bigwipscholar, @ratedn

@vampirelover890, @possiblylisle, @illarian-rambling, @the-ellia-west

@finicky-felix, @evilgabe29 (Anyone else who wants to get added can tell me in the comments, pm me, or send me an ask about it!)

[ogdoadfates]

It was only a cough: Ch #9 Chromatic orb

Holy shit! It's the next chapter! Huge thanks to @ravendruid for helping me out whenever I needed it! I hope y'all enjoy! And of course here's the ao3 link to the story!

Percy lay atop the van on his stomach, gun at the ready,  eyes trained on the front doors and windows for any sign of trouble. Yet his mind and ears remain focused on the two conversing below him. It’d started with whispers but gradually grew to a normal conversational volume after a while, to be honest, he reckons they’ve forgotten that he lay above them, easily eavesdropping on their conversation.

“Five bucks that Vax will be the one needing to get patched up.” Scanlan declares, where Percy would expect Keyleth to say something in defense of Vax or to tell the short man to knock it off she instead snorts.

“That’s not a bet I’d go against.” She says with a sigh. “He’s always more reckless after something happens to me, well, or Vex.” Scanlan just hums in agreeance, with the light clinking of what could only be him swinging his legs back and fore to where it’s hitting the bumper of the car. 

Gods does he wish he could see the expressions the two have on their faces, instead he’s left to play the game of context clues. The two of them have been hemming and hawing about how horrid everything has become and how they constantly have to be the ones to keep everything light-hearted, with a few nods to Pike at least attempting to do the same. 

‘Giving credit where it's due’ he catches Keyleth say. It’s truly mindboggling and eye-opening to hear their flow of discussion, it sounds both old and new like they’ve had this same conversation with slightly different words many many times. Which in all fairness makes sense, the two are almost always the ones left behind to guard whatever the group was currently calling home whether that's his van or some building they cleared. Doesn’t make it hurt any less that Keyleth goes to Scanlan with these thoughts instead of him.

It’s his shuffling that reminds them that he’s there, that he’s listening in, that he now knows some of their secrets. They fall silent once more. At least until Scanlan speaks.

“So, it snowed a bit last night.” An emotion that Percy couldn’t place takes hold of the musically inclined man’s voice. He hears Keyleth hum in agrenece before he hears the short man continue. “Think it’s going to again?”

Percival’s swears his confusion spreads to even his bones. Sure, Keyleth knows the weather better than everyone in the group but even he knew it was a definite probability to snow again. It’s too damn cold for it not too, not to mention it has been for the last week. Keyleth gives off a long sigh before silence reigns over them again.

He swears for a moment that they’d spend the entire time they waited for the others in silence till Keyleth speaks. “You don’t have to talk in codes, Percy is going to ask me the same question at some point regardless might as well answer it at the same time.”

“Okay. You doing okay? Like really, no stuffy nose, coughs aren’t hurting, no crippling pain or anything?” Suddenly it feels like Percy shouldn’t be hearing this, it’s unbelievably rare to hear such concern in the smaller man's voice that it almost feels like committing some sort of violation to be hearing it. “Cause I got to say. You scared the complete shit out of me when I found you. You looked like you were begging for death.” Percy is starting to regret Keyleth’s decision to forego the code words, as much as he wants to know if she’s okay the memory of what she looked like just a week or so ago is traumatizing in its own right.

“I’m okay, coughing a bit here and there but no pain. At least nothing more than the usual aches and pains.” Her voice is small but he doesn’t hear even a hint of a lie in her voice. “I know we joked about it a bit before but I’m more so focused on the others right now. I don’t have a good feeling about this, how about you guys?”

“I’m-” A loud rumble blasts through the air before Percival can finish even the first part of his sentence, rain starting to dribble down afterward. The two below him shift, knocking things about the van in their surprise, as Percy quickly finds his way off the roof of the van and into the back. A waterlogged gun would be horrific with them so close to what they're guessing is a hoard.

As they get resituated, Scanlan is more inside the van than before and Keyleth and Percy stay at the open backdoors, the rain starts to fall in sheets.

Pike is having a bad fucking time. The adrenaline in her body is helping her but gods will she be sore tomorrow not to mention it appears that it’s started to storm outside. Fucking great! Vex isn’t running as fast as her and Grog, Vax is purposely staying behind with her. Grog’s been doing a good job of clearing the path for them but it’s still not as fast as she’d like, to be honest, she has half the mind to have them break through another window to at least get outside. Actually, that could work. 

“Grog! If you see a window that goes outside smash it! We’ll get out that way!” She can tell he’s heard her by his louder-than-usual grunt. This plan comes with its own risks, Injuries caused by broken glass are no joke but at the same time, it’s better than being eaten alive by a hoard of debilitating undead.

If they don’t lose anything in their haste this will actually be a great haul, she isn’t too sure on how much the boys found but Vex and her hit the jackpot for painkillers and antibiotics. They will be using some of those as soon as they get back to the van but luckily that won’t actually put that big of a dent into the supply. 

Pike’s no stranger to anxiety, none of them are, but she’s starting to understand how Keyleth must feel close to a daily basis. Gods, how does she function like this? The last time they’d been in a hospital was when she almost died. It was excruciating. Being torn apart like a pinata but instead of candy it was flesh, if the others hadn’t gotten to her in time she has the feeling she would’ve figured out what her own intestines looked like. 

“Pickle!” Vax’s voice shatters the fog that’d started swirling in Pike’s head, she’d slowed down. She’s a hell of a lot closer to Vax and Vex now than she was. Head in the game. You’re well you’re not safe but you are mobile, so move! She shouts inwardly to herself with a shake of her head, speeding up again to catch up to Grog who’d suddenly taken a sharp turn.

She doesn’t have to wonder for long as to why he changed directions when the beautiful sound of glass breaking and cascading onto the floor reaches her ears. It’s a good break not much glass is left on the bottom meaning they’re less likely to stab themselves which is good cause they don’t have time to be cautious.

“Everyone out! Now!” She shouts as she jumps and tumbles out the window.

Thick mud, small glass shards, and deafening rain greets her as she hits the ground, her face and parts of her body hurt but she doesn’t focus on that as she rushes up to get out of the way as Vax leaps out. His landing is a lot more grateful than hers in the sense he doesn’t fall flat on his face but she doesn’t miss the loud hiss and grunt that leaves him as he hobbles back to the window to help Vex get through. Once Vex is out nothing happens for a second and Pike’s heart starts to drop before Grog bursts through the window, as soon as he stands up they’re running again.

It’s pouring and Pike can barely see in front of her face, it’s like having a perpetual waterfall in front of her, but she can see just enough to know where she’s going. In no way is it easy, she hears and in some cases feels the others almost slip occasionally.

It takes what feels like hours but most likely was only a few minutes till she sees the van, she commands her legs to run just a bit faster.

“Freddie! Start the fucking car!” Vax shouts and gods his voice is going to join her nightmares. He’s scared, gods when isn’t this poor man scared? First, his girlfriend gets sick which can be life-threatening for her but now his twin sister is hurt. Pike just wants to bundle everyone up in a blanket and put them in a safe, dry, warm bunker but she can’t and it hurts.

[nectaric]

@kallistcs asked: Guilt, Excuses, and Principles for Zeus, the difficult past headcanon meme!

Guilt // What actions or decisions do they feel guilty or regretful about? Or is there no sense of guilt whatsoever? What would motivate them to reflect?

this is complicated. because, yes, zeus feels immensely guilty about a lot of decisions he's made or actions he's taken (the deaths of semele and metis, the marriage of hephaestus and aphrodite, the harshness of his punishments towards those who attempted the coup, the murder of iasion, and many more things) - zeus knows that he cannot travel too far down that path, or the guilt will eat him alive. he has much he feels remorse for, and has found himself stuck in that pit on many occasions. and so, he tries very hard not to give in to that guilt, not using it as his motivation for change - but instead using his love for the people he's hurt to motivate him to do better.

Excuses // Do they try to defend or excuse their past or current actions? What excuses do they bring up, if they do?

it's a pretty natural inclination to want to defend our actions, particularly if we never intended the bad consequences to happen. zeus is certainly guilty of this - and was more so in the earlier days of his reign. zeus has gotten quite good at taking accountability for his actions, and a huge part of his journey and growth is accepting the harm he has done and working to make amends.

but yes, he has made excuses and continues to do so. they are usually either the i did what i had to do for the good of this family / kingdom / council, which IS usually true, but has still obviously resulted in a lot of harm. or, more often in the later years, he explains away his actions as a result of his upbringing / the wars / etc. usually, when he does that though, he's never trying to say "it's not my fault, i have trauma!!" but he does fall into that natural desire to defend himself, and tries to say "look, i know i hurt you, it should never have happened, here's why it did ___" so again. not necessarily trying to excuse his behaviour, but explaining it certainly, which can sometimes come across the wrong way.

Principles // Are there certain limits to what they do or don’t do? Are there exemptions to their set principles?

i think there are generally two rules zeus follows with every course of action he takes. one: he really does not like to be cruel. he lashes out in anger, yes, and has done extremely violent things. he can be brutal in the way he treats those who hurt his loved ones, for example. his punishments can be quite harsh. but, with very few exceptions (ixion, for example), i don't think zeus ever intends to harm those above and beyond what he deems is necessary. of course, his version of cruel is a lot different from others version of cruel, but he really doesn't intend to be so. he doesn't go into his decisions wondering what the maximum amount of suffering he can cause is.

and two: is that he will not do anything that disrupts the order of olympus - not intentionally, anyway. as a god of justice and maintainer of order, the decisions zeus makes, if sometimes done in anger, are still never intended to cause chaos. he does not want to "stir the pot" necessarily. he wants to maintain order, and will use an iron fist to do so.

[blossom-hwa]

you smelled this from a mile away but requesting: (any) form of prince/king/royal hongjoong just as long as he has that fucking cane 👍

this request is just so correct. so perfectly correct thank you anne <3 (also I adore your pfp)

5 year anniversary drabble game: send me a Stray Kids/TXT/Golden Child/Ateez/The Boyz member + a prompt (check out the post for ideas) and I’ll write a drabble for you!!

REQUESTS OPEN!!

~

Title: Coup

Pairing: none (Hongjoong is the main character)

Word count: 960

Warnings: violence, mentions of blood

~

When the lost prince returns, a patch over one eye, a cane in his right hand, the people rejoice. His father may have cast him out as dead, blinding him in one eye and shattering the bones in his right leg, but none of that could stop him from reclaiming his rightful throne. Not an empty eye socket. Not a permanent limp in his leg.

A true son of Nemesis would never let an enemy get away without proper revenge, after all. 

In the wake of the battle, Hongjoong takes to the palace balcony amid a bloody orange sunset. His shock of parted hair, one side blinding white, the other dark as night, ripples proudly in the wind as he addresses his people from overhead.

“I have lived among you,” he says, voice carrying over the crowd. “I have learned your ways. I know you, and you know me. In me, you will find a ruler who knows the debt he owes his people, and will do his best to repay that debt before his death.”

Not a single creature dares to break the silence, save a whispering wind that ripples around the prince-turned-king, the center of a hurricane, the eye of the storm. 

“You have taken me in, kept me safe. You have fought for me, died for me.” At these words, Hongjoong bows deeply. Amid gasps of shock from the audience, he rises, leaning hard on his cane as his leg trembles beneath him. “My mother’s mantra is an eye for an eye,” he continues, gaze flicking toward the deep red flags that now jut from the palace overhang. “I know this lesson well.”

He leans over the balcony edge. “I pledge to you that I will repay the eye you have given me,” he calls, voice echoing on the wind. “That I will do all I can to raise you, to give you the lives and rights you were stripped of the day my father -” he spits the word - “took his place on the throne. I will live for you. I will rule for you.”

The crowd seems to hold its breath as the king speaks his next words. 

“And if need be, I will die for you.”

All fine words, the people thought, words befitting of a ruler. But words without action had come too often, and so they waited for news that would demonstrate proof of his promise.

They didn’t have to wait long.

. . . . .

A land dispute arises a week into the new king’s reign, land his father had recently conquered but never put into use on account of his death. Nobility wanted it for weapons manufacture. The new king thought it better for food production instead.

Amidst the debate, one advisor steps forward from the throng. “More weapons will stabilize your reign, Your Majesty. Other countries will be eyeing ours for the taking in light of... recent coups, which makes us weaker.”

“Our agricultural sector has been decimated by battle, and not just those that I caused,” Hongjoong snaps. “Destabilization will happen faster within our own country if we don’t remedy this immediately, and only then should we focus our sole attention on outer threats.”

The advisor sighs. “With all due respect, Your Majesty, they are only peasants. They will not gain from having more food as they are used to their current fare -”

A raised hand cuts his words short. Hongjoong leans forward, eyes narrowing, clear disgust curling his lips. “Only peasants, you say.”

The advisor has enough sense not to respond. 

“I lived as a peasant for several years,” the king says quietly. “To insult them is to insult me.”

“But, Your Majesty, you are royalty -”

“You seem to forget your place,” Hongjoong purrs, rising from the throne. The cane taps on the stone dais as he takes a step forward. Several guards make as though to follow him, but a wave of his hand keeps them back. 

The advisor stands slightly taller than the king, though as Hongjoong draws closer, it doesn’t seem as though he notices the difference at all. “I think I remember you, Advisor,” he says quietly, coming to a stop in front of the taller man. “I remember how eager you were to bow to my father’s whims, all so that you might have a chance to bring yourself closer to the throne.” 

Not a single person breathes as the king takes another step forward. “Where is your daughter?” he asks quietly. A smile grows slightly on his lips as the advisor’s face pales. “I seem to recall her around my older brother every so often. Where did you take her when I killed him? I hope, for her sake, that it was somewhere far, far away.”

The advisor blanches. 

Hongjoong laughs, taking the tiniest step back. “But worry not,” he says to a silent court. “I am not my father. I will not punish a family for a crime committed by one.”

His smile grows.

“But that does not mean that the one in question will have no punishment at all.”

Two cracks sound of a cane, lightning fast. Screams and gasps echo off the stone as the advisor falls to the floor, clutching his side in agony as blood runs down his face.

Hongjoong hefts the cane, wiping a drop of blood from his cheek. “My court is different from my father’s,” he announces. “I welcome dissenting opinion, but if you so much as hint at hurting my people for your own gain...”

As if on cue, the man folded over on the ground whimpers in pain. Hongjoong’s smile widens. 

“Well, I don’t think I need to show you again just what might happen to you.” 

[twiceasfrustrating]

Haggle for a Better Price

Rating: Mature (for mild implications and slight horror?) Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Category: Gen Fandom: Shall We Date?: Obey Me! Relationships: Asmodeus & M!OC Characters: Asmodeus, M!OC Additional Tags: Soulmate au (only loosely relevant but not really), burning to death, demon deals, the OC is more a vehicle for the story than a real character, Asmodeus being a two-faced deal-wielding demon, body horror (Asmo has a fucked up mouth), soul eating, OC is not MC Summary: In a world where everyone is supposed to have a match, one man lies dying without knowing where his could be. A stranger happens upon him and offers to give him the answers he seeks. A/N: This… is nothing like what I originally planned it to be, but fics do what they want sometimes. This fic decided to be Asmodeus being a demon for 1,000 words (even if he’s never mentioned by name). Word Count: 1100

He could only stare at the flames rising around him with the kind of terrified indifference only felt by people who knew they were about to die and could do nothing about it. His limbs were numb and his eyelids heavy as the fire continued to rage around him and steal the oxygen from the air around him.

He wasn't even upset that he was dying. He was more upset that he would die without answers to all the things he didn't know. Somewhere on that list, was the question of why he didn't have a mark of his own.

In a world full of soulmates and marks to bring them together, why was he without and where could his partner be?

"Usually, I try to leave the inquisitive ones to Satan since he has all the answers," a lithe shadow stepped out from the flames currently cooking him alive, hip cocked to the side in obvious disdain even without a visible expression and light brown hair blowing gently from the wind of the flames, "but you called upon my department so let's get this over with so I can grab your soul and go."

He tried to speak, but his mouth wouldn't move and the only sound that came out was a low, raspy groan.

"Right. You're dying. So let's make this fast before you lose your chance to make a terrible decision." The shadow squatted down beside him, revealing a soft face framed by short, champagne hair. "What are you looking for? You want to live long enough to find your soulmate? That's a pretty common wish. Or maybe you're upset you didn't get to experiment since you were waiting to find the one and now you want a week to have free reign with a flurry of indiscriminate partners? So many people realize they were forcing themselves into a box at the end and want to give freedom a spin. Or maybe you're one of those selfless ones that wants to make a deal on your partner's behalf? The goody two shoes usually go for that kind of crap."

He blinked, closing his eyes for so long that he almost forgot to open them again just the stranger pat him roughly on the cheek; the feeling of razor sharp nails lingered against his skin.

"No dozing off now. You need to say what you want or else I can't finish the deal. Then we'll have both wasted my time."

He looked at the stranger's whirling, hazy silhouette framed by the rising flames. It was getting harder and harder to see in general, let alone distinguish any features, but he did notice something; rather, a lack of something.

He looked at the stranger's arm, noticing that nothing was there, then he slowly dragged his vision back to his own markless arm.

"Don't get any weird ideas. I don't have one of those things because I don't have a soul. It's not some moment of revelation where you finally discover that we were meant to be. Perish the thought." He was, after all, far too much to be bound to some random human, of all creatures.

He didn't know what to do then. What good was a mark that wouldn't appear for him? What was the point of it all? Why was it just him that didn't have one?

"Do you want to know?" The stranger tilted his head subtly to the side and smiled just enough to catch a hint of fangs behind his lips. "Your soul for the knowledge you seek? It's a classic deal. Not a balanced one when you're about to die, mind you, but as long as I'm getting the better end of it I don't care how you screw yourself over."

All he wanted was to know what was wrong with him.

"Oh, nothing is wrong with you. You simply don't have a soulmate. It happens from time to time when the angels forget to cut one in half before sending it down." The stranger shrugged. "You don't have a mark because those are the remnant scars from where the soul would have been cut and your never was. Satisfied?"

That… didn't make sense.

"Well, you asked for the answer. You didn't specify that it had to make sense by human logic. It isn't my fault if all you mortals put a heavy emphasis on the idea of soulmates and their supposedly intrinsic value when they aren't any more special than any other relationship."

The stranger placed a hand against the dying man's chest. "I fulfilled my end of the deal, so I'll be taking what's mine now. Don't worry. Humans can live without their souls. Not that you'll be alive for much longer, but my point stands."

His chest felt like it was burning as the stranger touched him.

"Souls are a heat sink and you're currently being burned alive, so, yes, it will feel hotter than usual once it's out. It will only be for a moment though." 

Suddenly, without reason or explanation, it was like he was looking at the stranger's form at a different angle. He felt small and cold and the stranger looked large and… did he always have horns and wings? And did his eyes always glow orange like that?

"You really did trade this beauty for nothing. Such a juicy specimen would normally fetch a better price, especially since it hasn't been cut."

The stranger licked his lips and the dying man felt uncomfortable. 

"Oh, it's a little too late for that. You made your bed, or… dug your own grave in this case." The stranger smiled wide, rows of perfectly white fangs behind cherry lipstick. "And you were so close to beating temptation too. If you would have waited a few more minutes I'm sure an angel would have been here to scoop you up and whisk you away. But death always makes you humans more amicable."

The stranger opened his mouth wide, jaw opening sideways rather than vertically, disconnecting and moving like some horrible machine, and gaping with thick saliva dripping down. In the back of his throat was something that looked like a hook creeping forward to pierce into the thing that was the dying man's soul and hold it in place while the separate sections of the stranger's jaw bit and tore away at him.

He didn't have nerves anymore, but he could still tell that what was happening was painful. He was sure that it was awful and he wanted to scream for mercy from anyone that would listen. Maybe if he did it loud enough, someone would hear, even if he no longer had a mouth.

The stranger, still tearing away at him, simply giggled as if they had heard something funny.

[inkyweenus]

Post 8 edit: This has nothing to do with EP8, but I still stand by it.

I was kinda frustrated at first with how little actual plot information we've been getting each episode, but then I realized that if we got any semblance of a plan from Lu Guang, that would mean that Xiao Li would also probably get that information, and then he'd fuck up everything with sheer incompetence.

I mean... it's pretty much his fault that both of his partners are dead, and if it weren't for Qiao Ling reigning him in, he'd have done a lot more damage already. But she's reigning everyone in this season. Post 8 edit: I stand by this QL statement even more now. Although, because of the shitty subtitles, I'm not 100% sure if Wang Juan is actually dead yet.

Love that for Qiao Ling. But back to Xiao Li:

I have very little sympathy for him.

As a boss, he never gave his subordinate a day off. Not even to have a proper wedding. Or to care for his pregnant wife and unborn child. And after working Chen Bin several days in a row without even letting the man go home to sleep, XL was too caught up in getting some civilians to do his job that he didn't even notice CB leave the room during a time that he said himself everyone was to be on high alert. And we all know what happened after that.

And then after seeing his dead partner fall from the sky, XL was knocked out by random extras he knew would probably be afoot, rendering him incapable of doing anything while those civilians and some old people safely (?) apprehended the suspects.

(Okay, that one isn't fair. He was definitely in shock. But still.)

And then once he was conscious and back to work, he demanded the civilians continue to do his job for him, even though one was literally hooked into a hospital bed, because he's not even competent enough to look into cases that his former colleague-turned-evil and current antagonist was involved with during his downward spiral.

And then, he doesn't even wonder why some random unidentifiable witness only wants to talk to this civilian that shouldn't isn't publicly on the case but is essentially running it. XL just gives said civilian, who minutes before exited the scene of a double homicide while experiencing not only his own emotions but those of the child watching her mother (and almost brother) be beaten to death, a crash course on police interrogation and says, "Go get 'em, Tiger!"

And then, after losing his first trusted partner to a person who has proved capable of possessing anyone to do anything including kill themself and kill their friends, he established a whole buddy system to avoid people getting possessed and hurt but said his currently assigned partner was fine to go alone because he trusted her and she's "strong." Isn't that even more reason to not want her to potentially get possessed? It literally just happened to a cop you trusted, so it's not like the law makes them immune.

And then when his new partner, this civilian he can't stop traumatizing, and the person that has admitted on mic to be the one possessing people went missing after acting suspicious on camera AND MICROPHONE, he didn't even bother to call and notify the guard posted at the exit, who was also not part of this buddy system apparently. Like... Where did you think they were escaping from, the air vents?! This isn't a spy novel. And you left the one guy who's in charge of people coming in and out of the premise alone and totally out of the loop?? When one of the people involved is a former cop that people around here seem to kinda trust a bit?!

AND THEN he couldn't even catch the kid he put a tracker on, but this time he didn't even have to ask the civilians to do his job for him. They just heard that CaPtaIn XiAo was on the case and immediately jumped into action--evading police and hijacking vehicles to triangulate their partner's location by land and sea to prevent his capture

(at least for now... things can go south pretty quick and I'm just being dramatic while I wait for this episode to drop) Post 8 edit: Obviously things were going to get worse first. Would love some understandable subtitles to really know how much worse, though.

Or.

He's actually the bad guy and all of this was on purpose. I think I'd be okay with that.

[patricia-von-arundel]

Oh my christing fuck, this is why "I took three history classes in high school" should mean you never, ever, ever act as if you know a damn bit about anything. Because you don't.

"They won." Oh my god. No, honey. No. They did not "win." They beheaded a king and then settled in for another half-century of war, riots, starvation, and a period called THE REIGN OF TERROR.

Ultimately, yes, society was in the midst of great social upheavals in Europe between the mid-18th century and the 20th century. Absolutely. And most of it ultimately was positive (even if not permanent) for the lower classes and for establishment of voting rights, eventually for all adult citizens. But birth is a messy, rough, dangerous process. And France wasn't the first to revolt and kill a king - who can tell me when the English Civil War was?

Started in 1642. Led to thousands of deaths not only from war, but also from disease, religious unrest, famine, and absolutely abysmal conditions for prisoners of war. Up to 4% of the entire population of England died.

Know what percentage of the population was estimated to have been killed or died from war-related causes in World War I? About 2%. 🤷‍♀️

And if you were in Scotland or Ireland (both under English control - hell, the king they beheaded, Charles I, was a Stuart. AKA... a king from the Scottish Royal family, who took control after the childless death of Elizabeth I), Scotland lost an estimated 6% of its people, and Ireland a whopping 41% of its population. That's more than died during the infamous famine in the mid-1800s. Around 130,000 people died from non-combat-related causes.

That French Revolution you want to see as some amazing, grand idea? Children were being guillotined. 17,000 people were officially condemned to die during the revolution, but tens of thousands more died without that "official" condemnation.

Hey, read or seen Les Misérables? That wasn't the French Revolution. It was 1832 - over 40 years later. Hundreds more dead. There was another insurrection in 1848. More dead. France ping-ponged between royal and republic governments for over half a century.

Women and children and other non-combatants? Gavroche says hi.

Or he would have, but...

C'est la vie... 🤷‍♀️

Oliver Cromwell, who took power in England after the Civil War? He remained in power until his death (likely from sepsis). But a few years later, they dug up his body and posthumously "executed" him.

Richard Cromwell, his son, was such a poor leader that they ultimately invited Charles II back from exile.

About a century later, England again got sick of their king (James II), and kicked him out of Britain and asked William and Mary to take over. James' son, the self-proclaimed Charles III (don't tell the current king), decided he wanted the place back, and danced around rebellion in Scotland (which wanted independence) before shrugging it off and going back to the continent. Unfortunately, it didn't end so well for Scotland: the Jacobite Rebellions of the 1700s ended at Culloden, where in less than an hour, over 1,000 Scots were killed. After, the English continued killing the leaders of Scottish clans involved in the rebellion, and many more Scots died either as prisoners of war, of disease, or of starvation after the English also slaughtered or stole all the livestock they could find (they also killed any wounded Scots they happened to stumble across at the same time). Scotland remains under English control to this day.

The power behind the revolution and then reign of terror in France? That would be Maximilien Robespierre. Let's talk about what happened to him, shall we? He tried to commit suicide when he realized he would otherwise be executed himself - but he only managed to shoot his own jaw off.

In the contemporary account of Jacques-Joseph Cassanyes:

Most of the watchers fixed their gaze on the cart in which Robespierre, his brother, Caution and Henriot were riding. These miserable creatures were all mutilated and covered with blood. They looked like a band of brigands the gendarmes had surprised in the forest and were unable to arrest without inflicting serious wounds upon them.

It would be difficult to describe the appearance of Robespierre. His face was wrapped in a bandage of dirty, bloodstained linen; his features were horribly disfigured. A pale pallor made it even more repulsive. He kept his eyes downward and almost closed; whether that was from the pain of his wounds or an awareness of his misdeeds, one cannot say.

Just before arriving at the place of execution, Robespierre was shaken out of his lethargy by a woman who forced her way through the crowd and rushed up to the cart carrying this cannibal. She grasped the cart rail with one hand and threatened Robespierre with the other, saying “Monster spewed from Hell. The thought of your punishment intoxicates me with joy”. Robespierre opened his eyes and looked at her sadly as she said: “Go now, evildoer, go down into your grave carrying the curses of the wives and mothers of France!”

When the cart had reached the foot of the scaffold, the executioners carried the tyrant down and laid him out prone until it was his turn for execution. While his accomplices were being beheaded, Robespierre appeared not to be taking notice; he kept his eyes shut and did not open them until he himself was carried up the scaffold. Some said that when he saw the instrument of death, he heaved a sigh of pain, but before dying he had to endure bitter suffering. After having thrown down his coat, the executioner roughly tore away the bandage and splint which the surgeon had put on his wounds. This unhinged his lower jaw from the upper jaw and caused the blood to flow in torrents.

The wretched man’s head was now no more than an object of horror and repulsion. When at last it was severed from his body and the executioner held it by the hair to show to the people, it presented an indescribably horrible sight. 

So long, Max.

Russian Revolution? Up to about 12 million people died. Most were civilians. Then Lenin took over, and millions more died. And then, they got Stalin. You know Stalin, right? Pretty well-known guy. Between Lenin and Stalin, we get political executions, ethnic cleansing, and famines.

Would you like to see the results of the famines in Russia in the early 20th century?

I'm not putting the pictures here, but I'll link to them. Do not click if you are squeamish. I am not exaggerating. These are some of the most horrific images I have ever seen, and I've been in the OR during brain surgery and have looked at many unaltered images of murder scenes/victims. I've watched the suicide of Budd Dwyer. These are worse. Consider yourself warned.

I'm very serious. If you know what you're going to see here, please back me up on this: this is graphic, gruesome, and not something you want to see and then try to forget.

Starving people resort to desperate measures to survive. Sometimes including eating their own siblings.

The Chinese Civil War/Revolution that began in the 1920s and ended with the takeover of the government by communists in 1949 left up to 3.5 million people dead. In the years following, China under Mao saw further mass murder along class lines (up to 5 million more killed), and then the Great Leap Forward, during which up to 55 million died.

55 million. 55,000,000.

The one-child policy then led to the deaths of millions more, with mostly female babies killed or left to die in the elements because of a greater desire for a son. Forced sterilizations and undocumented female children were also a result of the policy. The effects continue even now, with an estimated 33 million more men than women in China. Such imbalances are correlated with increased violence.

Even in 1989, 40 years after the end of the civil war, the impacts of revolution reverberated through protests of the communist government at Tiananmen Square. A warning again - extremely graphic images in the link, including dead bodies, blood, and brain matter. These pictures are in color. Do not click unless you are certain you want to see and can handle seeing such things.

Do I think revolutions are a bad thing, inherently? Not at all! In many cases, they do, ultimately, lead to improved conditions for non-ruling classes, more egalitarian societies, republican or parliamentary government where every adult citizen is given voting rights and thus a voice, and less censorship of alternative views and history.

But revolutions and sometimes many decades after the "official" end are awful, bloody, terrible, nasty, dangerous times to be alive.

It isn't as simple as "revolution good, let's do it."

It never has been.

Please don't assume you understand how revolutions generally play out, or the repercussions of those living during or after them, because there was a page and a half about the French Revolution in your tenth-grade history textbook.

[tenaciouschronicler]

October 13 2024 2009

Hey Nanna?

Hey Nanna.

HEY NANNA?!

UM EXCUSE ME WHAT WAS YESTERDAYS UPDATE!

Ok. ok ok. So inside the original Colonel Sassacres book Nanna wrote John a letter full of even more implications than what happened with Mom and the Jasper bunker. In this letter, Nanna states the book has some sort of journey that ended on her date of death. Potentially afterwards if Dad wished it. Firstly, I guess its not entirely strange for her to assume she would die before John came of age depending on her own health and age. But the way its framed leads me to believe their is some sort of, I dont know, cycle? predetermined fate? something! that Nanna was aware Needed to come to pass. And Dad knew at least some of it. Is that why hes so obsessed with meteor sightings? What does he know? What did Nanna tell him? Is that why hes unbothered by the existance of Imps?

Moving on to the real crux of it all.

"There will come a day when you will be thrust into another world ... a realm of Warring Royalty in a Timeless Expanse."

What sort of prophetic BS?! Has she been to Skaia/The Incipisphere? Did she hack into SkaiaNet or something?? How did she know! You are already dead (let alone fictional) otherwise I would shake you down for more context! But thats for later.

In closing, Nanna goes cryptic again and I am scrutinising every word. She feels as though she and John have already met and Will meet once more, again playing into my cycle theory.

Theres just so much going on here and I am full of exicement and frustration and I have so many questions!!! *exhale* Im gonna just go over some of the things she has underlined in the third paragraph. Get ready for dictionary time!

Agents: a person who acts on behalf of another or takes an active role to produce a specified effect. Most likely to be, seeing as this is a game of chess, the minor pieces (bishops, rooks, knights) that we have yet to see.

Exiles: person in forced or voluntary absence from ones own home/country. So far consists of Wandering Vagabond and Peregrine Mendicant considering their current location is future Earth and their names.

Consorts: significant person, typically spouse, to a reigning monarch. Surprise, surprise. Looks like queen pieces will be very important to the story though I wont discount kings getting in on the action.

Kernelsprites: entities that affect the Medium upon entry after prototyping that act as sudo NPC guides. Weve met them, sort of, but this implies a far greater significance than has been shown so far.

These first four, all in the same sentence, seem like they are going to play some major roles in the story and how it unfolds.

Underlings: a person lower in status or rank. Pawns or I guess in this case Imps. Described as toiling.

Denizens: inhabitant or occupant of a particular place. Does this imply beings outside of the chess game? Are there any on the planet below John? Described as slumbering (or are they awake now that John has arrived?)

These two are also in the same sentence and while are seen probably wont go too far beyond whatever their defined roles are.

These next four are 1. a doozy, 2. probably going to describe our four friends, John, Rose, Dave and GG.

Heir of Breath: (inheritor of life tasked with its continuance)

Heir- inheritor of a legacy with the expectation of continuance

Breath- that which enters and exits the lungs, life

Seer of Light: (able to see beyond the visible path)

Seer- one that sees, predictor of events/developement sometimes by means of divination

Light- (god theres so many) visible spectrum, device to start flame, understanding of a problem (as in enlightenment)

Knight of Time: (servant to the progress of existence)

Knight- mounted man-at-arms serving a feudal superior

Time- indefinite progress of existence/events in the past, present, and future as a whole

Witch of Space: (able to manipulate the expanse of space and its demensions)

Witch- a person normally associated with evil supernatural power

Space- a continuous expanse which is unoccupied, the demensions within all things live and move

There is a ton of speculations you can make with these definitions alone but whos to say Hussie will follow expectations. I added my own theories next to each title and Id love to read any others.

Ascend: to go up, climb

Probably the most clear definition as we've seen it in action with John and the eccheladder. However, it feels too simple of a process for how convoluted Skaia has been. Theres gotta be something else we are missing here.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed dictionary time. Im gonna go ruminate on this some more while we wait for more updates.

[dybdahlsvisitportugalspainfrance]

Toledo and what we learned on the way to Toledo...

September 13, 2023

We left Ubeda and headed north to Toledo.

It was a long trip today but with Carolina you know you will be learning a lot on the way. There have been many conversations about the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) and the dictatorship of Generalisemo Francisco Franco, so today Carolina spent a lot of time filling in our gaps. I am AGAIN so frustrated to not know this history. Oh, I knew some aspects. I knew Hemmingway was not a Franco fan but i really did not know that this brutal war lasted for nearly three years (July 1936-March 1939), claimed at least one-half million lives and sent another one-half million refugees into exile.

This entire thing has taken on new meaning to me since I hope to see Picasso's "Guernica" at the that Reyna Sophia Museum when we go to Madrid.

First, I think we can all agree - in retrospect - that Franco was a deluded, sick and twisted man. His strong belief that Spain must be a 100% Catholic country caused the deaths of 100s of thousands of people. Additionally, his believe that if you held a viewpoint that was not aligned with his - imprisonment or death was a great "persuader" to get you to change was evil. He used all of the methods Hilter used to cleanse the population of Spain - but he did it first. He called the Catalonians the "Jews of Spain" and did what was necessary to rid the world of them. He arranged to have the Nazis bomb the Basque region. He took Fascism to a new low. and historians have said that he and his regime previewed the WWII for all to see.

While Spain remained "neutral" in WWII, Franco supported the Axis Powers and did whatever he could to support them including sending troops, money and equipment while claiming neutrality.

So what were the sides in the war? The left side, known as the Republicans, was formed by the Spanish government together with unions, communists, anarchists, workers, and peasants. On the other side were the Nationalists, the rebel part of the army, the bourgeoisie, the landlords, and, generally, the upper classes. The Nationalists won the war, which ended in early 1939, and ruled Spain with an iron fist until Franco's death in November 1975.

Franco's regime did not end after WWII but continued into the 1970s reigning terror on his enemies. Spain is #2 behind Cambodia with the greatest number of mass graves. Think about that - my friends. The Basque Region - where we will be visiting on Sunday - were also considered traitors and people were tortured and imprisoned.

Franco was considered unwelcome in the international community because after WWII dictators that killed their own people and arrested political opponents were kinda' frowned upon. They were not allowed to join NATO even though they had leaned hard into the Allies once it appeared Germany would be defeated. BUT then this happened:

I am still NOT sure what happened to make President Eisenhower so happy to greet Franco - but I'm guessing it was Franco's strong anti-communist stance. You know the "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" thing. Anyway, Spain's fortunes turned at this point.

Now, I am NOT naive enough to think I would explain to you all the happened under the Franco regime - but for most people it was not a good time from 1939-1974 BUT what I do know is that there are people who long to go back to that time. No doubt it was people who WERE having a good time during that time period - but it is very upsetting to many Spaniards.

We stopped at a place that supports the return to the Franco style regime. It reminded me of places that support Nazism in the US - and probably in other places around the world. It made me sick - but there we were at Casa Pepe.

I thought this was interesting as well:

My Spanish is not great - but I know this says (sorta') protection from the virus, De Sanchez (the current president of Spain) and all the groups of Communists and Separatists." The Separatists are of course referring to the Basques and the Catalonians. Fascists unite!!!

Enough of that!

We have left Andalusia and are in Castilla La Mancha.

And what famous author lived in Castilla, long ago? Miguel de Cervantes who wrote the 17th-century novel Don Quixote. Which was adapted into a Broadway musical in the mid 1960s "The Man of La Mancha". (Now in my head I'm hearing "To Dream the Impossible Dream. But that is just me.). Anyway as we drove along, we saw these:

and then...

Don Quixote is always fighting the windmills that he believes are monsters - and low and behold - there they are in the middle of Spain. This place used to be a wheat mecca and they needed windmills - lots of them, but I didn't know that! In recognition of this famous author - Don Quixote statues are everywhere.

Then finally we arrived to TOLEDO!!!! Located on the banks of the Tagus in central Iberia, Toledo is known as the "City of the Three Cultures" for the cultural influences of Christians, Muslims, and Jews. In Portugal this river is called Tegas and runs through Lisboa. FYI - don't look for any Muslim or Jewish communities today. Sad...

And of course there are Roman Ruins - those darn roaming Romans....

What a beautiful city. We settled into our hotel had a great lunch of vegetable soup and carcamusas (pork stew) and began a walking tour of this city. First up, St. Tomé Church and El Grego's masterpiece - "The Burial of the Lord of Orgaz."

Ok - this sucker is huge and you can look and look and never really know what you are looking at - but our city guide, Carlos, knew and he enlightened us. This painting is about a well-liked city patron, Lord or Orgaz and how important he was that even his death both out the big guys of the church on earth and in heaven. You would have to be there to get the full picture - but there are lost of well know city people in this pic, including El Greco, his wife and children. It was a who's who of Toledo at the time. Pretty cool.

And while we were there we took a look inside St. Tomé Church.

We also visited the Jewish neighborhood a population that was very importance in the history Toledo - until they were run out or killed or "converted." in the 1490s.

Toledo had the biggest Jewish population in Europe prior to the 1490s. There were 10 synagogues in Toledo in 1400 and the oldest written document from the Jewish quarter date back to 300 CE. The most famous synagogue in Toledo is the synagogue of Santa Maria la Blanca erected in the city of Toledo, Spain in 1180 (according to the inscription on a beam). It was constructed in Christian territory, the Kingdom of Castile, by Islamic constructors, for Jewish use. It is considered a symbol of the cooperation of the three cultures who populated the Iberian Peninsula in the Middle Ages. The synagogue is a Mudejar construction, created by Moorish architects in Christian soil, for non-Islamic purposes.

By 1500, this was a Catholic church but the name and the architecture was left untouched. It is the oldest Synagogue in Europe today.

Toledo is also home to a Cathedral built in the 13th century. You will be happy to know it is still a Catholic Church.

The inside is magnificent.

The truth is I'm starting to get Cathedral overload. I am WAY over the opulent golden walls and icons that the hungry cannot eat.

Clearly, I am tired.

One more thing - TOLEDO STEEL.

From the Toledo website:

Toledo has been a traditional sword-making, steel-working centre since about 500 BCE, and came to the attention of Rome when used by Hannibal in the Punic Wars. Soon, it became a standard source of weaponry for Roman legions.

Toledo steel was famed for its very high quality alloy, whereas Damascene steel, a competitor from the Middle Ages on, was also famed for a specific metal-working technique.

Today there is a significant trade, and many shops offer all kinds of swords to their customers, whether historical or modern films swords, as well as medieval armors and from other times, which are also exported to other countries.

Toledo is magnificent!

Madrid tomorrow.

Stay tuned.

[fortoffort]

FOF 96: EXILE 16: THE UNCLAIMED PROMISE, JOSHUA 23

After four hundred years enslaved in Egypt and then a further forty years wandering in the wilderness the people of Israel had reached the promised land. Joshua succeeded Moses as the leader of the nation. He was tasked with leading the people to lay claim to the promised land. They did this by defeating and subduing the people groups that were occupying the land. Yet even after numerous battles there are still many other ethnic groups remaining in the promised land. Joshua is nearing the end of his life and before he gives up his position as leader he wants to share with the people of Israel the next step they should be taking. The work is unfinished, if they continue to hold fast to God he will continue to be true to them and drive the other nations out of the land.

There is a tension between spreading out and living in the country but then knowing that they don’t fully possess it yet. They have evidence that God always keeps his promises and in this moment he is making another one, they can take full possession of this land. I imagine that the thought of more battles was tiring to even think about for the Israelites but that is the nature of our world; we have to work in order to yield the results we desire, rarely do things ever fall into our laps with no effort on our part. They could be heartened then to hear that God was willing to make the labour he called them too much, much easier than it would have been without him. It is not hyperbole when it says that by God’s power one soldier can rout a thousand.

On the surface it seemed like the exile lifestyle was over, they had a strong foothold in Canaan and even more importantly they had the one true God promising that he would fight for them to inherit the entirety of the land. It is heartbreaking to now know that the Israelites never manage to take full advantage of God’s promises to them. Joshua warns them that if they don’t push the current occupants out then they will become a snare to the nation, they will begin to adopt their cultural practices and ways of thinking ,all of which will lead them to rebel against God. This is exactly what happens, the Israelites end up becoming just like the nations around them and start worshipping other gods.

Living a life partnering with God takes discipline. Once we know God and are part of a church we can feel the temptation to coast and to take the path of least resistance. It has been my experience that it’s not possible to remain stationary in our spiritual life, we are either growing to love God more or falling back into old, harmful habits. It may sound cliche but the Christian faith is a battle, we face different forms of opposition so we have to daily prepare ourselves to defend against those attacks but to also go on the offensive. Going on the offensive does not mean that we’re going to go and conquer a country but it does mean we have to actively be a force for good in a world that desperately needs goodness. The promise God makes the Israelitles is true in a different fashion for us. We can be absolutely certain that God will be side by side with us all the time, whether we feel like he’s there or not. We can also be certain that he is infinitely more powerful than any opposition we face. If we take on that spiritual battle alongside him, we will see more ground taken for his Kingdom. Not a geographical location but a group of people who all swear allegiance to Christ our King. The one who allowed the greatest evil and death itself to over power him so that he by the power of God could overpower every evil and even death to reign supreme.

[achillesuwu]

If it’s a post-canon world different than our own and where magic is praticed widely this could definitely happen so : AU where people use seer and magical artifacts to see the past (mostly used by historians before, most sorcerer protect themselves against it so only +100, 200,… vision can be seen but since it’s merlin his protection took way longer to wear off and… anyway back on the au) and with tv some people said 👀 wait a minute 👀 we can make accurate serie using the REAL image off the time !!

(Merlin still very much alive : >:(

People who wanted to do that : 👉👈 don’t strike us please

Merlin : >:(

People :

Merlin : >:(

People : we will not talk about your mistakes ?

Merlin : >>>>>:(

People : we will… show the half of your coin in a favorable light ?

Merlin : :D

People : :D

Merlin : but don’t forget to show that he was a prat too

People, who kinda had it coming by choosing the most powerful dude around instead of a random historical figure : D: …ok

Merlin : *remove his wards over his past self* cool go ahead

People : it was that easy ?

The gouvernement, who had been trying to convince merlin to pick up his phone for ages because they NEED him to agree to not moving the moon/sea/lava in a weird way on a specific day, please, for science:

The gouvernement :

The gouvernement :

)

One thing leading to another the New series ‘Merlin, the immortal lord’ got published (beginning with the events that lead to the purges *put Dragonlords getting killed in a light of the Seven way because that’s the only explainable way that Uther could have killed them* passing by Merthur meeting, Arthur death, Gwen reign and currently still continuing on Merlin’s shenanigans around the world)

Needless to say that the fanbase of merthur is stronger than ever UwU and historian are going wild too because many thing were burn during the purge and they never had access to this part of history because of Merlin.

Merlin doesn’t really tell to Arthur that this series exist so when arthur find it he is quite surprised (and skeptical) then he goes completely bonker over it and his insanity raise even more when a fellow fan recommends an ao3 fic on fb (yes, fb, Merlin still doesn’t know about twitter, that man is old and HE doesn’t have facebook he just heard about it and mentioned it once to Arthur)

That’s how Arthur start to act like a 15 year old boy with a shady internet history everytime merlin get too close of his computer and also how arthur became the Fanbase biggest Merlin supporter while also being The Biggest Hater know to man (Arthur on specific fic: HE WOULD NEVER SAY THAT !!!!!!

Also arthur : HE WOULD NEVER SAY THAT *blusing furiously* but damn I wish)

If Arthur had a laptop, he'd read merthur fanfiction all day.

... Call me based but I'm right XD

Arthur: what is this magic? All magic is evil, I must ...

Laptop: Did you know there is 31,518 stories about you and Merlin getting together on ao3?

Arthur: ... Your wile tricks won't work on me!

Laptop: Really?

Arthur: ... hmmmmmmmm..... okay fine, show me.