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ezra-iolite · 1 year ago

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Swiftwire: Updated Appearance

..... She really needed a fresh new look, due to all the shit she's gone through, and just generally smooth out the rough edges of her lore, which I'll do as part of a full bio later, since it's gonna be a long post.... So I'll just do her main details here for the sake of putting only what's important here. XD But also JUST LOOK AT HER!!! 😭 SHE'S SO BEAUTIFUL!!

This was done by the amazingly talented and legendary Torrent/torrentarts on Tik Tok!! So if you ever see this, THANK YOU AGAIN, HONEY!! >w<

(Also a version of her without her kanga/scarf, her flags or her earring~)

Swiftwire Asya Zahara Mutheru of the Maasai Tribe

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Her story is still generally the same, but just added a few tweaks to make her blend in better with a more canon aligned world (i.e; Earthspark and a little bit of IDW/Lost Light), but I'll reveal it at a later time, once it's fully fleshed out.

~*~

In short.... Swift is still a former human (originally named Asya Mutheru) that was turned into a Cybertronian, doing so by having her body digested by the Energon within a Cybertronian protoform's hollow spark, burning away her corpse to pluck her soul out and turn it into the spark that brought Swiftwire to life, all thanks to her birth father, Jeremy Omari.

~*~

Personality wise, Swift is still as maternal, goofy, vain but kind, and as flirtatious as ever, and is generally the "Mom Friend with gremlin energy" within any group she finds herself a part of.

~*~

Deep inside her psyche, however.... the monster that Swift's body was supposed to become is still alive.... He's just taking the backseat instead of dominating and controlling the body fully like Swift is now. This is purely because Asya was supposed to die and pass on when her human body became the cadaver powering her spark... But instead, her soul took over and changed the Cybertronian husk into her new body, one that became female presenting instead of male.

~*~

That monster is Talos, a Beastformer designed by Jeremy to take on the appearance of a blue Minotaur Spartan Hoplite soldier in the form of a manmade Transformer.

~*~

Talos's presence is still inside Swift, and only truly comes out when she is angry and starts to "see red". That saying, in her case, is literal, as her eyes change and her jaw elongates to show who is slowly taking over her (as seen in the image above Swift~).

This change is known as 10% Corruption Mode, where Talos takes over only a small part of her and dominates only her face and her instincts. The more of her body that changes, the more the "corruption" reaches 100%. When it reaches that mark, Swift will no longer be in the driver seat of her own body and mind, and both will then be fully under Talos's control.

~*~

Talos and Swift are like Jekyll and Hyde, but instead of them simply sharing a mind, Swift and Talos are both Transformers with their own root and alt-modes, existing in the same body. Talos has his main form (the Spartan Hoplite) and his Beast alt mode (the Minotaur), while Swift has her main form/root mode and her jet alt mode. So Swift isn't really a Triple or a Quadruple-Changer.... Talos exists within her with his own root mode body that takes over Swift's, and her jet form becomes the Minotaur form he transforms into.

~*~

When Talos takes over Swift's body, her frame colour changes from glittery orange to a dark midnight blue, starting from the head and bleeding down her body. It is a painful process each time, as it feels like she is being ripped apart from the inside out, especially when she tries to keep Talos locked inside, but before this happens, the first two things that change are her eyes and her jaw, the 10% Corruption stage....

~*~

Her eyes are always the first to change before the colour of her frame switches. Usually, they are blue with black sclera, and white slit pupils that were once round, before Talos first emerged and forced her to change. They remain slit to this day as a remnant of his presence within her, and so when he emerges.... They turn from white to red. The blue of her irises then vanish into the sea of black of her sclera, making her pupils the only thing that stand out in her eyes, and show that Talos has now taken over her mind.

~*~

The next to change is her face.... Her cheeks bear a line across them that is another permanent remnant of Talos's influence, and so that line opens and forcibly stretches and exposes the metal muscles and sinew that connects her jaw to her skull, but it doesn't damage her jaw or skin in any way. Her cheeks heal every time she returns to normal.

~*~

If the changes progress any further from here and reaches above 40% Corruption, then Swift will be locked inside herself and Talos will fully front without any further resistance, and assume full control over the body. If Swift does manage to resist and stop Talos before reaching 40%, then she can regain control and revert back to her own body.

~*~

If not..... Then her body will fully turn blue, her Seeker form becomes masculine and beefier, and Talos will then stand in his full, armored, Spartan Hoplite form with split-hoof bipedal legs, Swift's dreadlocks now forming the iconic mohawk of his helmet (also turned black and blue in hue) and her wings flat and fused together to act like a cape, with Talos's split-mouthed face hidden in his helmet, as the body now presents itself as his.

~*~

As his Minotaur Beast alt-mode..... The wings and dreadlocks are packed away, and his upper body becomes that of a bull with long, curved horns pointed forwards, a thick silver ring in his snout, and his maw still filled with fangs and his arms bearing Swift's claws... Which become blacker and travel further up her arms the more she allows Talos to take over.

The only way to bring Swift back is to knock Talos unconscious.

~*~

It should also be noted that Swift's height is 17 feet... Talos's main/Spartan form is 25 feet tall, while his Minotaur form is roughly 22 feet. (All using Earthspark heights for comparison)

Also..... This is his voice claim.... Everything he says is canon to what Talos is like and how he speaks to Swift in their shared headspace~

#ezra iolite og work #torrentarts #Swiftwire #Talos the Spartan

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dimiclaudeblaigan · 1 year ago

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just got to the stupid zaharas chapter and went through dimi and claude's conversation and my god

they really did not use a single quarter of a brain cell when putting that conversation into ag

"your issue is with the church, not with faerghus?" eh wot hootie tootie claude never had a problem with faerghus and hasn't been acting like it. makes it sound like they've been fighting each other (i.e. this is meant to fit gw but and they just copy/pasted the whole conversation bc it just makes no sense).

"we have nothing to gain by fighting you." yeah, you... haven't been and never said you were planning to.

"we could've been friends." and whhhhyyyy can't you? there is an entire zero bad blood between y'all and lorenz has already pretty much said this whole second half of the war thing has been proof of the friendship between the kingdom and alliance soooo...?

"had i joined with you" uh um but you literally did this has been ongoing for half the war now

additional funnies are claude just being so butthurt that dimitri is like this might endanger your life and claude is like aw shucks my life has been endangered since i was born i'm basically an endangered species!

also, dimitri saying it brings guilt to do the things claude would do bc he's been there. lel. claude had no guilt in gw tho (for killing rhea and all that shit).

but fr tho, it just seems like gw claude and dimi got warped into zaharas and the ag ones are just passed out in the normal world having the same yeehaw ass fever dream LIKE

this entire conversation legitimately makes worse than zero sense. i can only imagine how confused people were who played ag first and got this conversation bc it like, legitimately has no place in this route. this is like a fever dream on steroids that were laced with drugs.

i was lucky i was playing ag while simultaneously watching the other routes on youtube or i would have also been absolutely bonkers confused.

#DCB Three Hopes Run #FR THO LIKE. THAT ENTIRE CONV IS LIKE. WHAT JUST HAPPENED???#WHERE DID THIS ALL EVEN COME FROM??? MATTHIAS IS ALIVE YOU KNOW #CLAUDE GOT TO SEE FAERGHUS' LEGENDARY HOSPITALITY (he fucked the king)#at this point like. im just laughing bc. did they even NOTICE the context they copy/pasted into this route???#even if ag claude post war still wanted to fight rhea and yadda yadda hoo haa #half the conv still makes absolutely no sense at all and doesn't even follow the route #ag is aaaaallllmmmmoooost perfect but then like. the oversights are so bad lmfao #i still look at this and am like. how. no like literally HOW. how did they look at this and not be like #hmmm this makes... so much of no sense to this route that we should prob make a new conv for it #WAIT I GET IT NOW THIS IS WHY RODRIGUE DIES #HE SAW THE FUTURE AND WAS LIKE OHHHH HELL NAH #RODRIGUE SAW THE ZAHARAS CHAPTER AND IT KILLED HIM. BUT! IT WAS A DOUBLE KILL! RODRIGUE DEFEATED THE ZAHARAS CHAPTER!#HE SACRIFICED HIMSELF SO AG WOULDN'T HAVE THE BIGGEST MOMENT OF WTF IN FODLAN GAME HISTORY EVEN INCLUDING HEROES #RODRIGUE SAVED US ALL. HE COULDN'T BEAR TO LET US WITNESS IT #THAT'S WHY IF HE SURVIVES WE GET THE CHAPTER!!! BC HE DIDN'T REALIZE IT WOULD HAPPEN SO HE DIDN'T KILL IT!#AND SINCE HE DIDN'T KILL IT IT DIDN'T KILL HIM BACK. IT'S LIKE THE BARRIER THINGY IN RD'S FINAL CHAPTER #THAT PROTECTS ASHERA. IT DOES HALF THE DAMAGE TO YOU THAT YOU DO TO IT #SO IF YOU'RE NOT CAREFUL IT CAN ACTUALLY KILL YOU. THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED TO RODRIGUE #BUT THE DIFFERENCE IS THAT HE KNEW HE'D DIE BUT HE HAD TO DO IT TO EM #HE HAD TO DO IT TO SPARE EVERYONE THE WONKIEST FEVER DREAM KNOWN TO MAN AND DRAGONKIND

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vedantxarora · 6 months ago

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INTRODUCING . . . VED ARORA

full name: vedant gagan arora

nicknames: ved, raja (by his family)

age: thirty-seven

date of birth: june 15, 1986

gender: cis male

occupation: bouncer/bartender at soundwave

neighborhood: midtown

IN A NUTSHELL . . .

parental death tw, cancer tw, hostages tw vedant was the second of two sons, born on a rainy day in delhi. his life was marked by loss within hours of his birth when his mother passed away due to complications in the delivery. his father, while unwilling, was compelled to remarry by his family. they moved to the united states shortly after, and his step-mother showered both him and his older brother, santosh with love and care. while they saw the relationship between his father and mother was nonexistent, the children never felt the strain of her marital relationship impact her maternal love. when his brother was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of leukemia, vedant was the presumed donor for a bone marrow transplant. the fact that he was not a match and therefore could not help his brother haunts him to this day. within a few years of her birth they said goodbye to santosh as well. grappling with their grief, ved threw himself into school. after graduation, he attended georgetown and then received an mba from stanford. he began to work with the fbi in hostage negotiations. within a few years he had excelled at work and was handling international negotiations. one such mission took him to syria where he disobeyed instructions in saving mahira zahara garcia. upon returning to the us, he was put on probation and after a few more episodes of poor performance since returning, he was asked to take a break. he returned to wilmington to be with family and work through the demons that caused him to buckle under pressure for the first time.

IN THE WEEDS . . .

Born during the monsoon season in Delhi, Vedant’s very first moments in the world brought tragedy with them. He was only minutes old when his mother passed during child birth, leaving with him little more than her name as his middle name. And thus began Vedant Gagan Arora's series of loss and trauma. His father tried to raise his two sons on his own but family pressure and lack of much needed support led him to marry once more. Where Gagan had been the woman he loved, his new wife was the one who could love his children. And he did not need more than the memories of his late wife and the maternal instinct of his new life partner. Soon after the marriage, they moved to the United States to their first home in Iowa. Vedant grew up knowing only his step-mother as his own. And she absolutely doted on both him and his older brother, Santosh. But it was no secret that she showered her oldest son with the most love given his vivacious personality.

Yet his childhood too was marked by struggle. With a rare and aggressive form of cancer that required a bone marrow transplant, the obvious choice was Vedant. After all, they shared the same blood, who could be a more perfect match? Unfortunately, it was discovered that Vedant was not a match and once again he was faced with the possibility of losing a family member. And it would once again be attributable to him. The thought alone haunted him as he grew even more withdrawn despite the family never voicing such sentiments to him. A part of him felt as though he were a bad omen, bringing destruction and loss wherever he went. They had a few years of absolute happiness when they found a donor. Then once again, Santosh relapsed and this time, there was no treatment that could succeed in prolonging his life. The Dasaris said goodbye to one more family member and plunged into misery immediately. The light and happiness of their house vanishing with their oldest.

It took years to heal, and even then the emptiness could be felt throughout the family. Vedant, having always been introspective and closed off excelled in his academics. It was the only thing he could do to keep himself sane. He ended up attending Georgetown University soon after leaving Wilmington, studying psychology. Thinking it were better for his family if he were away from them, things improved slightly in his absence. Or at least, he was not privy to the ways in which his sister carried the burden of ensuring the family stayed intact and afloat. He continued his education, pursuing an MBA at Stanford University a while later. Vedant was hardly made for business, and it was perhaps for that reason that his career path took a far more dangerous turn. Feeling as though it was hardly fulfilling to work as a consultant or banker like many of his classmates, Vedant instead ended up working at the FBI as a hostage negotiator. Driven by a desire to actually be the source of happiness in the lives of strangers, he quickly rose the ranks as his negotiation skills were unparalleled.

His career soon took him from D.C. to international conflicts. With a few years of training under his belt, he whisked off to negotiate higher stakes situations. His entire career was marked by success. Unlike his childhood, in which he lost two family members, Vedant this time around managed to reunite a number of families with their loved ones. He was all primed to work his way up the ladder. But it all changed when he disobeyed orders in Syria. They were two journalists. A woman and a cameraman, caught in the middle of a hostage situation. Vedant was stationed nearby with orders to wait for further instruction. The tensions were high, as were the demands. Ones that the United States government would have to comply with if they were to rescue their own. The crushing guilt of his childhood came crashing back when after nearly 18 days of hostile negotiations, they were no closer to success. It was then that the thought was floated. Perhaps they had never intended to release the hostage at all. With negotiations at a standstill, it seemed that the government was growing less and less inclined to give into the demands and bring the two journalists back to their family. The thought was unconceivable to Vedant and, for the first time, he went against the orders he was given and sought to save the two himself. He could not watch yet another person lose their life because of his failings.

It was only when he entered the compound that he realized that they had already lost one. He had already failed one family. Throwing his life on the line, he made sure to bring Mahira Zahara Garcia out with him. And while the rescue was a success, it also cost him his promotion. It cost him the work that he was doing and that had gained him such accolade. When he returned, he began to work on smaller cases. They were all local, nothing nearly as high stakes. Added to that was the trauma that returned. The years of wickedness and desperation that he had seen in his life. The worst of human kind and the worst emotions one could feel. They came crashing down and the agency appointed therapist suggested that he take some time off. Reorient himself. He returned to his hometown of Wilmington, wondering if surrounding himself with his family, the people with whom he had first experienced loss, would allow him to heal from within.

#wnc.intro #( m: vedant arora )

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kazoosandfannypacks · 2 years ago

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"Wishing it Wasn't" by kazoosandfannypacks

Chapter 1/18: The Most Dangerous Bluff Pairing: CaptainSwan Rating: Teen (for gun usage in later chapters) Word Count: (1K/19.5K) Summary: Season 2 Canon Divergence: When Neal tells Emma he has a fiancée, she claims to have a new boyfriend of her own, and blurts out the first fairytale name she can think of: Captain Hook. Killian agrees to this ruse, but when feelings grow between the two, will the con be more than they can handle? Chapter Summary: After meeting Neal again and finding out he has a fiancée, she claims to have a new boyfriend of her own, and, upon inquiry, gives the first storybook name that comes into her mind. Unfortunately for her, that name is Captain Hook, but as soon as she remembers her ex's personal family history with him, she realizes this opportunity is too good to pass up. Tags: season 2, canon divergence, gun violence in later chapters, angst with a happy ending, fake dating, mild character death, mildly anti neal Author's notes: When I first came up with this fic, I didn't expect to ever finish it, or even get it past the first few chapters. I then made the mistake of telling a certain discord server about it, and they encouraged me to finish it. Anyways, without further ado, here's the captain swan s2 fake dating au! Taglist: @zahara @kmomof4 @jonesfandomfanatic @booksteaandtoomuchtv @jrob64 @tiganasummertree @anmylica @teamhook @undercaffinatednightmare @gingerchangeling @lonelyspectator @caught-in-the-filter @ultraluckycatnd @cs-rylie @pirateprincessofpizza [if you'd like to be added to or removed from this list, hmu in my dms or askbox!]

Also on Ao3!

Cars and taxis inched by in the usual hubbub of New York traffic- but Emma hardly noticed them as she stood on a sidewalk, talking to a man who she'd never wanted to see again- until she was called upon to track him down in New York.

Discovering that her ex was Rumplestitskin's son was quite the shock, but she was handling it like a pro, just like she handled everything else life threw at her.

"Emma, there's something else you need to know." Neal said.

"What's that?" Emma asked. She was already surprised enough that Neal had decided to come back to Storybrooke to be with his father and his son- especially after abandoning both before. What more could he say now?

"I, I can't stay in Storybrooke forever." He said. "I have a life here- a job, an apartment, a fianceé."

"A fianceé?" Emma thought. "It figures that he would've moved on already, found someone else. Why should I care?"

"That's nice." Emma said. "I'm really happy for you." She was thankful Neal didn't have her superpower.

"So there's no hard feelings?" Neal asked. "No jealousy or trying to steal me back or rivalry or any of that?"

"Of course not." And she even faked a laugh as she faked her next sentence, "I have a boyfriend too."

As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them, but she couldn't take it back without looking like an even bigger fool.

"Oh," Neal said, looking down at his shoes, "that's nice."

Emma smiled a little. "Yeah, he's a really great guy."

"Can't wait to meet him." Neal said. "Does he live in Storybrooke too?"

"Yeah," she said, because the best way to lie is to stick with the first thing your brain says, so there's no suspicious pauses in the conversation.

"So he's from the Enchanted Forest too?"

"Yeah."

"Who was he in my worl- our world?"

Emma tried to think of a guy in Storybrooke who she wasn't related to, and blurted out the first fairytale name she thought of. "Captain Hook."

Several curse words ran through her mind. Why hadn't she said "Pinocchio" or "Mad Hatter" or even "The Huntsman" or something?

"Captain Hook?" Neal asked. He blinked a few times in disbelief, then ran his fingers along the bridge of his nose. "You're dating Captain Hook?"

"Is that a problem?" Emma asked.

"Is that a problem?" Neal repeated, then smiled. "I don't mind at all that the mother of my child is dating the same pirate my own mother ran away with. Doesn't bother me at all."

She'd forgotten he had a personal connection like that with Hook- this bluff might prove better than she'd expected.

"Glad to hear it." Emma echoed his previous sentiment. "No hard feelings, right? No jealousy? Trying to steal me back? Rivalry?"

"Of course not." Neal said, seemingly unbothered by her rebuff. "I'm glad you've found someone who makes you happy."

"Yeah, you too." Emma smiled sadly. She didn't know what felt worse, the fact that she hadn't found that happiness yet, or the fact that she was lying when she was glad for Neal's happiness- or the fact that she knew that when Neal said he was glad she was happy without him, he wasn't lying.

"Well, I guess I'll be seeing him when we get to Storybrooke." Neal said.

"Oh, yeah." Emma said, having forgotten entirely that now she'd have to, you know act the part. "That's not going to be awkward for you, is it?"

"Of course not." Neal said. "As long as it wouldn't be awkward for you if Tamara came to Storybrooke with us."

"Tamara?"

"My fianceé." Neal smiled. "I didn't want to invite her because I felt it'd be a little awkward for you, but since there clearly won't be any jealousy or tension, I see no reason why she can't join us."

"The more the merrier." Emma lied.

Emma had told Neal that Henry was unaware of her "relationship" with Hook, that she'd been intending to tell him about it on the way home from this trip to New York, but the double whammy of meeting his birth dad and finding out about a potential stepdad might be a lot for him, and Neal agreed, so he kept his mouth shut about the whole thing all the way back. When they arrived in town, she sent Gold and Henry to give Neal and Tamara a tour of Storybrooke, while she set out to look for the Captain- unfortunately for her though, she ran into her mom first.

"Emma!" Before she saw Mary Margaret or even heard where her voice was coming from, Emma found herself wrapped in a hug from her.

"Oh, uh, hi, mom?" she said.

"How was New York?"

"I called you, like, eighty three times while I was there." Emma said. "I found out Baelfire was Henry's father, we brought him and his fiancee to Storybrooke…" she saw Mary Margaret's face fall as she mentioned Tamara. "Are you disappointed?" Emma asked.

"In what?" Mary Margaret asked.

"That the father of your grandson is engaged to someone else?"

"Why would I be…?"

Emma saw through her lies. "Look, mom, maybe fairy tales are neat, cut and clean, but whether or not we come from them, our stories are still messy." Emma bit her lip and decided to change the topic. "Speaking of 'messy,' is our friend from the Enchanted Forest still in the hospital?"

Mary Margaret rolled her eyes. "Hook is doing fine. After he got out, he unleashed Cora's giant- who has now befriended us and is one of the dwarves- and we haven't seen him much since. Why?"

"It's a long story." Emma said, not even trying to consider how a giant became one of the dwarves. "Any idea where he is now?"

"Probably hanging about near the mayor's office." Mary Margaret said. "He's been working with Regina and Cora."

"Alright." Emma started to walk in that direction, but her mom called her back.

"Where are you going?"

"Long story." Emma said.

#once upon a time fanficton #cs fanfic #captain swan #killian jones #emma swan #once upon a time #ouat #season 2 #canon divergence #gun violence in later chapters #angst with a happy ending #fake dating #mild character death #mildly anti neal

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raccoonsaregay · 11 months ago

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Zahara Starflower

Republic Senator

Home planet: Caladrius

Age: 23

Species: Avres

Zahara becomes senator after the passing of their mother, taking over her role in representing their planet. The beginning of this fic takes place shortly afterwards, one year into the Clone War. They have a pet crow Quinlan who they have bonded with, and now resides with them in Coruscant

Info on their home planet/species---

Caladrius is similar to Earth in geography, but their society is much more close to nature as they build into local vegetation instead of building on top of it. The nature of the planet is much more preserved, & all their structures are integrated into it. Houses & buildings, while modern and made with current technology, are built into forests similar to Endor or Kasshyyk. Caladrius is located in the Mytaranor sector, neighboring Kashyyyk.

The Avres have bird-like qualities. They each share a resemblance to specific kinds of bird depending on where they are from geographically. Those related to predatory birds have excellent eyesight, sharp nails, and especially sharp canine teeth. Feathers will grow among the hair and around the face. Avres all have wings located on their back under the shoulder blades. Their longer, pointed ears can pick up on sounds most humanoids cannot hear. They will sometimes make trilling, chirping noises, similar to the birds they share relation to.

The preservation of life and nature is extremely important to all Avres. They treat all life as sacred, and have strong ties to the nature of their planet. The relationships they have with the birds of the planet are especially strong, many of the Avres people have a bird companion they have bonded with. They take care of these companions as if part of their families, and care for them until the bird dies. Avres greatly value emotional bonds with others and are fiercely loyal, often taking significant others for life. They will braid each other's hair to show fondness & a bond of either friendship or intimacy. Significant others will wear a feather from their partner typically tied into their hair, or somewhere else on their person. Affectionate greetings/goodbyes are given with a light touch of foreheads, or by grabbing someone's hand and pressing ones forehead to it;somewhat like a keldabe kiss- this is done regardless of the nature of the relationship.

While not all the Avres are religious, the religion & folklore of their culture dating back many years is deeply bound into the societies current day morals, traditions, and interactions with other peoples.

#oc art #oc lore #star wars #star wars clone wars #star wars oc #worldbuilding

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popculturebuffet · 2 years ago

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Tal'Dorei Travelouge: Season 2 Episodes 4-6: Creed: The True Threat to All of Tal'Dorei

Hello all you happy people! It's week 2 of Tal'Dorei Travelouge, my weekly look at Legend of Vox Machina season 2 as it comes out and this was both popular enough last week and not as much time out of my schedule as I thought despite being utterly swamped. So we're back for this week as we get something close to a beholder, Vax makes a bargin with death because surely those always end well, Keyleth passes through fire, and Scalan sings for a Sphinx and lets us know creed exists in this universe. All this and more under the cut, full spoilers for this weeks episodes.

Those Who Walk Away: So we start with the second half of a two parter.. and while I expected the secret origin of Trinket at some point, saved by Vex by trappers and thus bonded to her for life. What I didn't expect was for it to gut me so much, as not only does Vax have to mercy kill his mother but he watched. That poor baby bear. Anyways this week we more suprises as when they rejoin the party with us.. never finding out what happened in that hallway apparently, Kashaw reveals ressurection magic STILL EXISTS.

I assumed it'd just be sidestepped completely, with any near deaths just being severe injurys, but it's nice to have as , without spoiling when how or why, there are some pretty sizeable death scenes i'd love to see adapted i've heard of one genuinely dramatic, crushing and leading to a fairly brutal payback.. and the other being entirely stupid in the best way possible. That said they impliment it well, in a way that's less dragon ball z "DEATH DOESN'T MATTER ANYMORE YOU GET A FREE SUNDAE", and instead "It's possible but VERY unlikely it'll work and takes expert skill to pull off", throwing in the fact that our main healer PIke.. has never done one and only does this one with Kash's help. There's also the fact this one.. very nearly dosen't work until we get a line i'd heard of thanks to some fan art.. and that is utterly awesome "Take me instead you raven bitch". In one act Vax sacrfices himself. And i'd like to , thanks to said world of critical roll book, if I may, share the real world story for this as it's utterly fascenating. So when Liam O'Brian did this.. he had NO expectation Vax would live. None. He wanted to save his close friends character, and figured "Well this is done, i'll roll my next character, it's a big sacrifice but it's worth it". Matt... didn't let him off so easy and instead had her take it in another way: Vax becomes the Matron of Raven's champion. As you can probably guess little good can come from this in the long run but in the short I do like that it gives Vax some new heads up: it gives him visions of the calamity allowing him to figure out where the sphinx is.... and he now has instinctual knoweldge of said events.. he dosen't know how he just does. That dosen't come into play until our third.

This also means he has to do a test.. and at a bad time as Zahara decides to go full on antagonist and dump a legally distinct from a beyonder creature on them, nearly killing everyone, all because she assumes the take should have the Deathwalker's Ward.. despite it MANIFESTING on Vax's chest.

Kash naturally nopes out of this and eventually helps, but it's a very tense, very awesome fight as one by one our heroes fall, and it's left to Vax. Vax's trial is also neat as he fights Perve On ina battle.. only to realize it's one of those "don't fight it" tests, to accept death so to speak. So as a result Vax gets a fuckton of neat new abilities I love> one is a nod to the stream: in said stream Vax had some kickass boots that were horribly broken as Matt didn't think about the fact they basically gave him super speed when he ported them over from Pathfinder. IT's one of the things I loved about finding out more of the show from the book: Even with an expertly crafted world Matt is just as prone to mistkaes. Purvan's name was another one of those. He may still be a genius who fucking crafts entire battlefields with expert percision... but he can still goof up.

So to compromise, the ablities are now part of the deathwalker's ward instead, which makes more sense and thus makes vax a combo of the flash and spiderman, able to dart around, easily dodge the creature, then throw a knife in it's goddamn eye. Just like the green goblin and his famous catchphrase "OH GOD THERE'S A KNIFE IN MY EYE WHY IS THERE A KNIFE IN MY EYE".

Kash and Zahara leave the party, and it's clear Vax feels dammned by this.. and while I didn't notice it at first, his personality changes a lot after this: he's no longer as happy go lucky, snarky ... he knows something's wrong with him, he's bound to death and he can't escape it, and he almost lost one of the two people he can't afford to loose. It's easy to see why he shifts but it's heartning to see a guy who while dour was at least happy so miserable and serious. He also punches Percy in the gut for trying to apologize. Granted it's realistically done: Vax simply says not now and CLEARLY isn't in the mood to accept it and Percy at least means well: he's clearly not trying to justify it he just.. feels terrible he nearly got the woman he loves killed and wants to apologize. It's clear the party isn't in a great place and it's not going to get much better.. well for most of them anyway. It also brings up something I like about this season so far: the character focus. Last season had a few arcs for everyone: Keyleth got a better grip on her anxiety, PIke came to terms with who she is, and Vex realized what a bitch she'd been to keyleth... but Percy was the clear center: the briarwoods were his mission, his purpose and letting go of his vengeance was his cross to bear. This isn't a bad thing: Percy is a great character and everyone still had plenty to do, and they were ultimately limited by the story itself: the first major arc they needed to do was Percy's so he got the lions share of the focus. It was also only two stories really with the pilot being more setup and the rest being the long war between our heroes and the briarwoods and between percy and his desire for vengance.

In contrast season 2 is a bit more episodic: there's still a clear main story in the conclave and the vestige hunt, but each adventure is it's own thing for the most part. Even though the first two episodes are back to back in how the story is they feel like two entirley diffrent stories that build up to the larger one. only the Sunken Tomb and Those Who Walk Away has felt like one huge episode, and that was fair given everything that happened.

And honestly.. I like it. It reminds me of when Final Space did a similar thing with it's second season. The one big story approach isn't terrible, it works for plenty of shows, but to me having little stories within the bigger one allows for more character and world stuff between the bigger plot moments and lets the subplots breathe: we got ample build up to where the twins are now, and plenty of background lurking of Grog and his growing dependance on Craven edge, who continiues to hunger. It allows the season to really build while letting everyone shine. So far we've had major arcs for Grog, Vax, Vex to an extent , Pike tagging along for grog's, and now ...it's keyleth's turn

Pass Through Fire: Pass Through Fire is a great example of this, as while it's an okay episode overall, it really does add to the season. It also shows me the team learned form last season as in hindsight, like I said, the focus was pretty percy shaped, with just enough else for it to not be a problem. So it's clear the team made sure with this season and it's wider scope everyone gets a chance to really get fleshed out.

In this case Keyleth deals with the fact her mom never came back from her armante, and allows it to explain why said Armante.. wasn't at all important to season 1 besides a passing mention: Keyleth has been actively avoiding finishing it as she's scared of both leadership and ending up like her mom. It adds layers to her anxiety, which was already relatable enough to me being someone who also suffers from it: part of it is just being afraid she's not good enough, something I painfully feel all the time. We also get Scalan singing while he thinks Grog is taking a dump and Grog trying to hide his talking new murder friend sword from everyone. It's not deathly important but Il ike the building tension: the sword wants blood and he dosen't care who he gets it from. Which wasn't a problem with Sylas: if his sword got hungry he could just go stab a dude and share a meal with what I now assume was his best friend. Like .. they went on picnics and stuff. He sang at Silas and Delilah's vow renewal. They were tight.

Point is it's nice to see her get this focus and to bring up a valid condrum, as while she considers visting the fire ashari since their close, it goes from a passing curosity they don't have time for.. to a deadly danger they dont' have time for as the volcano their in errupts. And it normally dosen't do that. It also nicely shows how badly Vax is rattled by events as he's so focused on the mission he snaps at Keyleth they don't have time and she storms off.. well Mighty Hawks off

And the rest all give him a what the hell and go to save her. The ensuring fight is decent, though the visuals can get chaotic. Long story short someone opened a portal to hell and Keyleth's dad needs her help closing it. He's of the air ashari, a group of nomads of various races, mostly elves, who help people, each one coresponding to an element. And if your wondering "That kinda sounds avatar the last airbender".. your exactly correct as Marisha was a fan of the show, had just watched through it and wanted to do something like that. It also nicely built in a reason for her character to gradually get stronger.

We also get Kim and Allura and the reunion feels off: i mean the gang being happy tos ee them alive, if baffled is nice.. but they really never bonded or antyhing the way they did with their stream counterparts, so it feels like their just writing them the way that's easier. It does make some sense as the group did save Tal'Dorei. As for how their alive Allura teleported them in time, they investigated this, and as it turns out it's their fault: like in the stream Allura was also part of an adventuring party once with Kima, and they fought Thordak. There's even a nice easter egg of one of the party being a dragonkin, as sir not appearing in this cartoon Tiberius Stormwind, played by Orion Akaba, was an early party member and also kind of a prick, but WAS close to allura, so ti's a nice nod to that and shows that despite how the parting wasn't the best even if it was likely for the best the gang hasn't forgotten where they started.

Point is Keyleth has to as you'd guess overcome her difficulties to pass through fire, that's the title, and gain control of the fire elment, sealing the portal, kiling the fire drakes and saving the day. I don't have a ton to say about this one: Keyleth's character growth is really nice, her new outfit is lovely, and of course i'm always going to support some Vaxleth ship tease and kima and allura kissing, with both planning to head to whitestone.. though we get some foreshadowing as the elven city seemingly.. vanished. And given we're going to the feyrealm next week, there was a sudden vanishing and the twins dad is a known asshole they have some issues to unpack with... yeah I can see exactly where this is going.

Into Rimecleft: This was easily the week's best , and that's not downtalking the rest: Pass Through Fire was fine and Those Who Walk Away was truly excellent. Neither are bad.. this episode was just esepcially good as it went. The starting nightmare helped: Prime Video picked THIS as the preview clip some reason despite not only showing Vex survivies, which isn't a huge twist but still maybe don't tell people who don't know critical roll that, but a fairly brutal scene. Still said scene is effective showing that Grog, despite badly clinging to craven edge, is deeply afraid of what Craven Edge means for him and sees where it could go and the image of PIke reaching out to him wondering why he killed her is TERRIFYING. We then get a nice tonal shift as we go from the deeply terrifying opening, to Pike genuinely trying to get grog to open up.. to one of the funniest jokes in the series as while Pike TRIES to get Scalan's help on this his response is to do his best creed impression and say "Dosen't every man play with his sword a little?" I fucking lost it and I kick myself for not repeating it a few times like Purvan. IT's pure comedy gold, and I didn't expect Sam to pull an OSW, but here we are and it was brillant. I want a full version of that song. I also want to know of Creed exists in Emon. LIke.. Scanlan is basically Eminem, long story, so it's probable but i'ts rife with terriffying implications, like that the infection has spread to alternate planes of existance, that Scanlan might one day form creed, that maybe the dragons shoudln't be the thing Vox Machina wipes out first. Just saying Dragons come and go but creed will linger like a wet fart for a decade unless they stamp that shit out NOW.

Anyways onto the important stuff: Percy gave Vex his jacket. Damn that was cute... not only her taking it but him blushing. percy fucking blushed. I didn't know he was capable. He's so pale and british but it happened. It happened and i'm glad. The real treat of the episode though is Tony Plana as Kami.... i'm using Scalan's nickname on the ground there is no way in whatever Tal'Dorei has that functions as hell that I will be able to spell that correctly multiple times. Plana is one of those actors you see in a lot of stuff but generally not starring, though he's voice acting royalty for starring in a game i'll likely cover at some point, Grim Fandango. At any rate he's gold here as he offers vox machina your usual challenge: defeat 70 death gorgons, survivie the labyrinth of misery or wound Kami once... which no one has ever pulled off. Yeah unsuprisingly our heroes pick the last one, aka the dumbest option.. well okay everyone but grog picks that one. Though what I like is while ti's an obvious trap.. it's also a nice show of how off his game Vax is: While he can be impulsive, normally he's one of the group's cheif strategiests, alongside his sister and percy. But here he's just like "I THINK ONE OF US CAN SCORE A DAMN HIT". The line sounds like him but the actions aren't.

So unsuprisingly it's quickly down to Scanlan, and what he'd do to solve it was blindingly obvious to me: he'd never been wounded, you can't hit him.. but he never said the wound had to be physical. And he just so happens to have a mate he hadn't seen in centuries. What makes this show, this character and this moment special though.. is the how. Scalan singing a song is obvious, he's a bard.. but him singing a fucking power ballad, along with a projection of osisya, and the entire sequence being as stunning as it is heartbreaking, that is what makes this show magic. I also love the heart to heart after, wtih Scanlan admitting he knows romance well enough, but has never actually been in love.. something I painfully relate to, as I do just chasing and chasing it. Kamoji's advice really hit

As a result the rest of Vox Machina are restored, and have a hearty group "the fuck" when they find Scanlan has a new pal. But eh it gets Scanlan a neat new sword, mythcarver and the location of the next two vestiges: one is in the feywild, which Keyleth might be able to get to, so it's no problem. The other.. is in westrunn. And while our heroes didn't know it till now, we've been seeing it ocasionally as Umbrasyl has conquered it and gotten the help of the local goliaths... including Grog's own Uncle.. and what I like is while Pike chalks up his reluctance to face him when he finds out his gauntlets are a vestige as his behavior.. we can tell it's NOT Craven Ed. I won't spoil whu for those who haven't seen the campaign or like me seen campaign spoilers, as we'll likely dive headlong into Grog and PIke's backstory next week. For now instead.. it's time for something series original. See part of that westrunn footage.. was giving Dr. Ripley a bit more of an active roll as she has some sort of magic Jareth ball that allows her to see what's going on.. and thus uses that as leverage with Umbrasyl, getting him to go after vox machina. As such our heroes meet the final boss of the season early and Kamy does his best to help. .but ultimately it's not enough. It' sa great battle.. but our heroes simply aren't ready as they have all of one vestige after Umbrasyl steals Mythcarver and while Kamy does his best.. he's simply not up to dragon level and has a very tragic death saving Scanlan. The entire fight is just brutal and hopeless, with Grog being the only one to put up a fight.. and it's not a good thing as Craven Edge fully posseses him to give him the

But also casues one of the most brutal scenes of the series as Grog FUCKING STABS PIKE FOR REAL, something I was not prepared for..l nor I was the twist of the party getting scattered: Keyleth, The Twins and Percy end up in the Feywild and Scalan, Pike, Grog and Fucking Asshole Sword Man end up in Westrunn i'm guessing, hence forth known as Team Double Date and Team Stabbed in the Gut. What will happen to these valient teams/ We'll find out next week. Thanks for reading.

P.S. I think I forgot to mention it but NEIN NEIN! I'm super excited about this deal as it not only means seasons 4 and 5 are in the bag, but spinoffs a plenty are all but assured, as is The Legend of Bells Hells in a few years when that's finished.

#the legend of vox machina #critical roll #grog strongjaw #scanlan shorthalt #keyleth #percy de rolo #vex'halia #vax'ildan #pike trickfoot #craven edge

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briamichellewrites · 2 years ago

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Elliot was officially declared cancer free in 2010. She celebrated by buying herself a cake and bringing it to Brad and Anna’s. The cake was chocolate covered with ganache. It tasted delicious! She shared it with them and her little sister, Shiloh. At seven years old, she had caught up to other children her age due to their love, patience, and commitment. She was shy around people she didn’t know but a chatterbox when she was with people she knew.

She had an imagination that reminded Brad of Elliot. Did she play with Barbies? Yes. Yes, she did. He had come full circle and he found that hilarious! She played with Barbies until she was twelve, having grown out of them. Instead, she interested herself in books. She read American Girl and other age-appropriate literature.

Brad and Anna had broken up in 2012. They shared custody of their daughter. As a single father, he adopted three children: Pax from Vietnam, Zahara from Ethiopia, and Maddox from Cambodia. He then hired a surrogate, who gifted him twins, Vivienne and Knox. His family was complete. The younger children got along well with their sister, Shiloh.

Because of the age gap, they only saw Elliot occasionally as she was working. After Anna, he was involved in a relationship with Angelina Jolie. That relationship was toxic. She was very sexual and was prone to fits if she thought he was leaving her. He found out that she had Borderline Personality Disorder but wasn’t receiving treatment.

She threw things at him and threatened suicide if he ever left her. As a result, he started drinking to get away and he became an alcoholic. Anna begged him to get help but he was too afraid of losing the children.

Angelina was very good at playing the victim and he knew she would make it seem as if he was abusing her. Everyone would believe her. How did he know? Because it happened to men all the time. The children were taken out of the house and moved in with Anna. He finally got sober in 2016 after leaving the abusive relationship. It was because his friend, Bradley Cooper convinced him he needed help.

Do it for yourself and your children. Six years later, he was still sober. Because Angelina didn’t have custody, she could not take the children. That meant they would stay with him. He attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings regularly and had a sponsor. My name is William Bradley Pitt and I’m an alcoholic. At the meetings, he was just another recovering alcoholic. Not a celebrity or Hollywood star.

He found that refreshing because he could be himself and open up without worrying about leaks. Bruce and Freddie had both passed away due to old age. She mourned both of them like they were her children. It took two months of therapy before she could move on. She got a tattoo on her inner right arm with their names above a paw print.

itsthepitts: Cleaning the horses before and after.

Mike took a picture of Elliot dressed in a t-shirt, sweatshirt, work overalls, jacket, boots, hat, mittens, and scarf. He then took a picture of her in her overalls, sweatshirt, and boots an hour later. Her long dirty blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she looked like she had been working hard. They had watched as she swept the floor, disposed of manure, removed mud from the horses’ hooves, brushed their coats, refilled their water, and checked their food.

It was a lot of work, especially when Lady and Duchess got impatient while she cleaned their hooves. Duchess stamped her foot, causing her to flinch. She got her bearings and sighed before putting her tools down on her lap. The horses were like children, who were fighting against taking a bath. If she didn’t remove the dirt, they could become infected.

“Hey! Not today!”

Duchess bowed her head to apologize. She kissed her forehead and forgave her. I love you. She loved her, too. The guys laughed. They could hear her clean hooves hitting the cement floor. Horses were interesting animals. They were taller than them, so they were a little intimidated but she trusted them. Lady came over to check on her sister because she heard the human scolding her. She let her know she was okay. Okay.

Lady went back to walking around the open area of the building. Once she was done with her chores, they went back inside. She excused herself to change clothes. They went to the living room, where the cats and dogs were resting in front of the fireplace. Phoenix was intrigued to see if it was a real fireplace. It was. It burned real wood and it wasn’t just heat coming out. He was impressed. Outside, they got a great view of the Rocky Mountains in the distance.

They also got a great look at a bison walking past the windows. It was huge and it was staring back at them. They stood in awe just watching the creature until it moved on. Holy shit! When she came back down, they told her about it. Yeah, she’s seen them many times. The first time she saw a bear, she freaked out. It took her brain to figure out that it couldn’t hurt her because she was inside.

But it was so fucking scary while also being so cool! She saw bears, bison, boars, birds, elk, mountain lions, and so many other animals during the spring and summer. When she went hiking, she brought a weapon just in case. She also read up on how to prevent attacks. It had never happened but never say never. She was in their territory and they were just defending it. Though she did consider getting a small handgun she needed a license for that.

What was the weapon she bought? It was a wooden bat she found at Target. She carried it with her at all times. They didn’t like guns, though they could understand why she would want one. It was for protection. Bears and mountain lions could easily attack her. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea. What did she need to do to get a license?

They looked it up and found she didn’t need a permit or a license to buy a gun. She needed to submit to a background check, not have a criminal record, needed to have lived in the state of Montana for at least six months, have a valid ID, and be at least eighteen years old. Before going to dinner, they stopped by the local gun shop to inquire about getting one. She would keep it either at home or in her truck. The woman walked her through the process of getting a gun after asking her why she was interested in getting one.

“I live at the foot of the mountains and I love to go hiking during the summer, so I want something small to protect me from wild animals.”

She agreed that was a very good reason to get one. The guys helped her with the paperwork. Could they be witnesses for her? Were they related to her or her employers? No, then they could. She wrote down their names. Did they change their last names when they got married? No, they didn’t. Okay, she wrote down Michael Shinoda and David Farrell. They had decided not to combine their last names due to privacy and to avoid complications. It was also expensive to change their legal documents.

Once she was finished, she handed the paperwork back to the woman. Did she on penalties of perjury, declare that everything on the document was correct to the best of her knowledge? Yes. Okay. She would process her paperwork. They were free to look around while she did that. Thank you. They were a little overwhelmed, so they started looking at the small guns.

They also had ammunition and holsters. A guy came over and asked how he could help. Elliot told him she was looking to get a small handgun to protect herself from wild animals while hiking. Has she ever used a gun or firearm? No. He made his recommendation and brought one out of the glass cabinet to let her try it. The gun didn’t have any ammunition, so she was fine to pull the trigger. She chose a sign and pulled the trigger. How did it feel? She could get used to it.

It was easy to handle. He also brought out a revolver. She liked the Glock better. After going through with her purchase, she put everything on the backseat floor, right next to where Phoenix was sitting. Mike jokingly asked if he was comfortable back there. I’m good! He laughed.

@zoeykaytesmom @feelingsofaithless @alina-dixon

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sistamagza · 11 months ago

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Dj Sbu's name dragged following Zahara's death

New Post has been published on https://sistamagazine.co.za/dj-sbus-name-dragged-following-zaharas-death/

Dj Sbu's name dragged following Zahara's death

Dj Sbu’s name is currently trending on social media following singer Zahara’s death.

The popular DJ’s name was unexpectedly dragged last night on Twitter after news broke that musician Zahara had died.

Mzansi is voicing their opinions on the dispute involving TS Records, Zahara, and Dj Sbu.

After making its way onto social media, a video of Zahara’s previous interview with South African podcaster Mac G went viral. In the video, the late singer Zahara is questioned about how much she was owed by Dj Sbu and TS Records.

Zahara, who passed away at age 36 yesterday evening, says she went to the news and disclosed that ‘TS Records”, a record label she was signed to at the time, was refusing to pay her the money that was rightfully hers. She also disclosed that she was owed between twenty and thirty million dollars by TS Records for royalties, record sales, and live appearances. Apparently, she was only given fifteen thousand rands after every performance.

In 2021, Zahara called out TS Records and claimed not to have received royalties, but DJ Sbu says she owes TS Records money. Sbu Leope has counterclaimed that she owes him money.

Since Zahara alleged that Dj Sbu owes her millions, the self-proclaimed millionaire has not been able to get any love on social media. Zahara talked candidly about her drinking addiction in a different interview with Somizi, claiming that her heavy drinking was a direct result of the circumstances she encountered at TS Records.

Meanwhile, Zahara’s fans are expressing their grief over the singer’s passing, other fans are busy taking aim at DJ Sbu. Speak about emotional damage!

TK Nciza’s name was not left out either.

So far, Dj Sbu has not said anything yet. He has since kept mum on the matter.

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aleasesrestaurant · 11 months ago

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#zahara #teenage wrist #agent side grinder #smile.dk #sponge #music #music review #i love music

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rainsmediaradio · 11 months ago

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Zahara - Destiny Lyrics

Zahara - Destiny Lyrics Some people live their dreams Some their destiny pass them by Tell me the reason why Nothing ever stays the same Sorrow and shame Ooh-ooh Ooh-ooh-ooh Ooh-ooh Only God knows how long It will take for me to reach my destiny Only God knows how long It will take for me to reach my destiny Everything may be rushing on me And everything may be too slow on me But I’ll be here holding it down I know where I am going I know where I am going ‘Cause everything may be rushing on me And everything may be too slow on me But I’ll be here holding it down I, I know where I am going I know where I am going Winning Losing That ain’t the matter I’ll keep on trying I won’t give up Winning Losing That ain’t the matter I’ll keep on trying I won’t give up ‘Cause everything may be rushing on me And everything may be too slow on me But I’ll be here holding it down I know where I am going I know where I am going ‘Cause everything may be rushing on me And everything may be too slow on me But I’ll be here holding it down I know where I am going I know where I am going These people telling me it’s a highway And I pondered of letting go But I know in each and every end of the tunnel There will be a little light in the end And I thought of taking the route Everybody else Oh yes, has been taking But I know I have to find my own destiny Ooh-ooh Everything may be rushing on me And everything may be too slow on me But I’ll be here holding it down I know where I am going I know where I am going Everything may be rushing on me And everything may be too slow on me But I’ll be here holding it down I know where I am going I know where I am going I know where I am going Read the full article

#Zahara

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ezra-iolite · 2 years ago

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Map of Joka Ardhi

I'm still figuring out some of the other villages and pockets of civilization, but I just felt it was time to show the kingdom and where One Last Wish takes place...

Joka Ardhi (The Dragon Lands)

Also known as the Kingdom of Crimson Sands by the common folk, or the Savannah by ignorant older nobles of Primus, the lands that encompass the very south of the world is home to the Jokani people, a culture of both humans and Dragonkin who are the only ones capable of thriving in a land with summer days that never turn to dusk until the cold season begins (a four-month long summer season phenomenon known as the Midnight Sun), where average temperatures can reach well above 34°C / 93°F, and can become as high as 60°C / 140°F during the summer. This is why those of paler skin from Primus and most of the north are rare visitors to the kingdom, for to those without natural and well trained protection... these lands can quickly become your grave, be it from the high temperatures or the dangers that live in the wasteland... Some of which include the giant Sand Serpents, lions, tigers, bandit Dunefarer groups, and the most terrifying of all, the only type of carnivorous flora evolved to be inescapable to fauna and Jokani alike... the Harvester Vines.

Hence why the only way to truly travel between each pocket of civilization, be it a city, a town or a village, is to follow the right constellation in the sky... and to follow the Desire Paths made by the Dunefarers, nomads who live in the desert wasteland between the cities, towns, and villages. They are the only way to be able to traverse the kingdom and survive its harsh lands and those within them.

It is a common rule known to all those who venture into Jokani territory that "no human born upon Primus's soil may sail past the Jokani Sea Boarder and enter the Kingdom of Crimson Sands, lest they break Alhaadhi's Barrier Law and face imprisonment first, then death", a rule that has been in place since the past Dragon Lord, Asya's grandfather, attempted to form a union with Primus's king three hundred years ago, and was mocked so openly by the Primus noble court that their union treaty permanently branded the kingdom of Joka Ardhi with the name "the Savannah", a name that remains to this day within Primus's Common language and proves why Alhaadhi's Barrier Law is still in place, at least until things change on both sides.

The Landmarks

Usiku Island

More commonly nicknamed "The Elder's Head", Usiku Island was once home to a large shrine made by humans who worshipped the Dragons, in the days before their betrayal to their Titan sized neighbors in the Founder's War, and for a while it was left abandoned when the war ended and the sands were stained crimson with dragon blood.

That was until the third ruler of Joka Ardhi, Queen Consort Zahara, rose to power upon marrying her platonic lover and the grandson of the legendary Burning Prince, Dragon Lord Mzuri, and proclaimed herself the High Priestess of the Evenstar Church through her founding of the Nyotan religion, the worship of the stars that included constellation formed gods. One such god of the star based pantheon was known as Usiku the Elder Dragon, God of Rites and King of the Ancestors, for he was believed to be the very first dragon to have ever been born in the time before humans, and upon his death from old age he was reborn in the stars to become the celestial sovereign of all dragons who had passed on, in turn becoming Patron and King of the Dragon Ancestors to all Dragonkin.

Due to this belief, Usiku Island became a shrine once more, and this time a place all major religious rites were to be performed, from the crowning of the next consorts of the crown, to every wedding and funeral wake done for all denizens of Joka Ardhi, be they Evenstar Church pagans or those wishing to be blessed by the stars themselves.

Reef of the Fallen

The reef actually refers to the tiny dots that surround every single island and along the entire shore of the northern face of the kingdom, making it a hazard for all but the native Jokani to sail through safely. For these jagged rocks, as far as any cartographer or navigator is aware of before passing the Jokani Sea Border, appear at first to be islands... But the closer you get to these islands, the more you will see the truth about why human cruelty will always leave a mark in history.

Every white dot you see upon the map that fill the gaps between the larger islands and along the shore of the mainland.... are dragon skeletons of the few survivors that attempted to flee the Blackfire Siege but failed and died to the manmade Black Fire explosion, with some clinging to former islands that they crashed into upon their death. Every single one make up the Reef of the Fallen, and every remnant of the ancestors of the sands can be traced back to the black scorched mountains near the capital.

The Port City of Wajiri

With Wajiri's harbor being the only port big enough to handle multiple ships the size of the Immortal Sun, it has long been recognized as the kingdom's biggest trading hub, with markets of every type being found here that sell both local and traded goods, so all that you need is always found here. And because of how often outsiders visit this city and all the precious goods and wares that pass through its gates and pier, it is also home to the military training grounds of all Morani; the spear wielding warriors trained from their mid teens onwards who serve as knights and act as the police force for the entire northern half of the kingdom.

However, should a Moran or warrior serve for five years and pass the trials set in the capital city, then a Moran will be promoted from a mere common guard into a Kifalme Moran, a Royal Guard that will remain stationed at the Palace or in the capital city of Oasis, while the common Moran are the only guards you will often see in all other cities, villages and towns. The Royal branch of Morani are trained to be one of the many heavily armored and most loyal warriors that protect the royal family and the impenetrable walls of the royal palace and the city. All Morani, both the common and the royal guard, serve under Captain Azaan, who is usually stationed at the capital when he is not training the newest recruits in Wajiri. His status is shown by the Ruby Claw brooch and the long cloak bearing the royal emblem, two items given by the Dragon Monarch to the one they trust most with the training and command over their armies.

Usually, when the Dragon Monarch has siblings, the second oldest sibling is given the moniker of "General of the Armies", the true commander of all Morani. They alone command every military force in all of Joka Ardhi, but they mostly manage the Kifalme Morani and serve their Dragon Monarch as their most loyal Right Hand, and are usually stationed in either the Palace or Fort Imamu in Wajiri. The General is the one who commands the Morani Captain, who in turn acts as the voice of the General and their second-in-command over all Morani guards. But if there is no General, then the Captain becomes the Right Hand of the Dragon Monarch.

Upon inheriting the moniker and responsibility over the role of General, usually on the day their older sibling ascends to the throne, they will also inherit the royal family relic worn by every past General, known only as Kito's Armour; a heavy silver and gold armour set crafted and worn by the second-born heir of the Burning Prince, who became the very first General on the day his older brother Bakari became Dragon Lord. In turn, a relic is also given to the firstborn heir on the day they are crowned Dragon Monarch... The First Lord's Regalia, the very same golden decorative spear Alunnui wielded when he led the first Dragonkin to Oasis and began his dynasty as Dragon Lord and emperor of the kingdom.

However.... When the crown is in the process of inheritance after the death of a Dragon Monarch, the two regalia relics are housed either in the palace or in Wajiri for safety, until the heirs are ready to receive them. But if only one heir was born, the other relic will be housed in the royal palace while a replica is displayed in Wajiri, to await the day the crown bears more than one heir for the armour to return to its rightful place at the throne's side.

The Lifeblood Villages/The River Path to the Capital: Cariya, Koyar and Arindi

The fastest and safest path to the capital city is to follow the Uhai river from Wajiri. Knowing this would be what a majority of merchants, nobles and the entirety of the Jokani people would also do, villages were constructed along the river and as a result of the constant flow of trade between the two cities, three villages became the main pitstops on the River Path to the capital. They soon developed and grew into towns, or rather two of them did, as each domain housed vital trading goods and skills to offer for the rest of the northern half of the kingdom, in exchange for a place in high society in order to help the Jokani people flourish as a whole. As a result, these domains are home to the three most influential Chieftains and their clans in the Royal Council...

The Town of Cariya The ore mining town of Cariya is just one day's journey away from Wajiri, and is ruled by the strongest and biggest Chieftain of the Council: Kandoro Jua-Mletaji of Clan Emberforge (image reference to give you a hint at what he looks like), otherwise known by his regal name (a nickname gifted by the people for a Chieftain to hint at their most well known detail about them), Chief Sunbearer. While being the Patriarch of his small family clan, Kandoro is also the wealthiest in terms of his line of trade to the other domains across the kingdom, as his town mass produces the weapons and armour that arms every warrior, wasteland cattle farmer, Moran and Kifalme Moran alike. In turn, Kandoro is a blacksmith himself, a skilled Sun Blessed human fire mage with the ability to imbue his crafted weapons with strong fire-magic abilities. Only those he chooses individually and fully trusts can be gifted such uniquely powerful weaponry. ~ Kandoro is also the father of Nia, the current Chieftain of Wajiri and daughter of the retired chieftain-turned tailor, Mari~ Their union was strictly political and out of necessity for a strong heir for Mari's line, so they are not bound by marriage. However, they do love Nia equally, and so Kandoro is always making sure that his daughter is doing well during their brief time together in the Council balls and New Moon meetings, and he never hesitates to help her or her mother out with anything they need. She may not be of Clan Emberforge, but Kandoro still considers her his family and always makes sure she knows how loved and supported she is in their shared line of work.

The Village of Koyar On day two of the three day journey to the capital, travelers will then reach the farming village of Koyar, ruled by Uhuro Mwanga-Mfumaji of Clan Thornreach (or as the people call him, Chief Lightweaver) (his image inspiration shown in his name), a fellow human mage like Kandoro but one who isn't Sun Blessed and instead uses his Light magic in a more practical sense than his neighbor. ~ Uhuro is in charge of the food and cattle trade for the smaller villages and towns (who all cannot gain their own due to how barren the sands are) across the northern half of the kingdom, and as such it is up to him to keep tabs on the farms surrounding his land. He does this by enchanting crystals traded with the town of Arindi that create rainclouds on just his crop fields, and rides like a cowboy on his beloved steed, a Common Griffon (example shown) named Keki (meaning Cake, short for Cupcake), to manage the cattle within his village's care. He does this by using his magic to create lassos of light, or painless and ethically crafted brands on his herds of cattle to track them down, should any wander off. ~ Uhuro has two husbands, a purple white-flame healer Dragonkin named Umoja and a human transman named Ikeno, with whom they sired two children: a Dragonkin daughter and heir named Oyana and a human son named Saka.

The Town of Arindi Finally, only half a day away from the capital city, lies Arindi, the gem-mining and magic crystal trading town that houses one of the two biggest public libraries in the northern half of the kingdom, the other being at the Whitestar Hall Academy in the far south, beyond the mountains and desert wasteland. Here, a green Dragonkin rules as Chieftain of the town, who is also known to be the wisest Chieftain of the entire Council... Faizah Jua-Msomi of Clan Stonemarch (Chief Sun Scholar) (image inspiration shown in name). ~ Faizah is in charge of the mining and trading of both normal and Sun Dust infused crystals, as well as the wellbeing of the miners and student mages of the library who call the town their home. As her moniker name suggests, she's a wise scholar who knows everything about Sun Dust (the magic that's found within the sand of Joka Ardhi and makes some people and animals, who are born with too much of it in their veins, gain a physically and magically boosting gene known as the Sun Blessed gene), as well as the endless magic crystals that grow underground, and despite her being born with the strongest type of Dragonkin fire, Faizah herself is a crystal mage, a magic practitioner who uses crystal grids and crystals for combat or daily life. ~ Instead of using her strong Yellow Flame to be a warrior like most Chieftains are with swords or magic, she is more well known for the knowledge that sustained the library she built, which rivals both the Whitestar Hall Academy library and the royal one deep under the palace of Oasis, as hers is used for non-royal mages of all types to research their magical practices in safety and without needing credentials to prove their right to practice and learn, as long as they respect her rules and the wellbeing of her town and everything within it. Hence why her town is the most prosperous amongst the towns of the kingdom, as it is here most new practitioners learn their path and prepare for their next step of their journey to become a royal mage or simply one who understands their magic better... But also because crystal trading is the wealthiest and most common form of trade in the kingdom.

The Capital City of Oasis

While not as prosperous or plentiful in goods to sell within the markets as Wajiri, Oasis, or it's native name Alunn'nchi (Ah-Loon-In-Chee), is still rich in culture that has stood against the passing of the centuries since the Founder's War, for not even the Night of Crowning Fire destroyed everything within the city. As such, the capital is considered the historical heart of Jokani culture, which only further helps in granting a wider area of protection for the royal family that live here. The city is separated into three main districts that follow along the Uhai river that the city was built around... The Sea District, where the grand gates leading into the city are situated, alongside the market square and residential area for the common populace within; the River District, where the nobles and the members of the Kifalme Morani stationed here live, alongside the more higher class shops and the history museum and Evenstar Church; and finally the Sky District, which starts at the foot of the hill leading up to the well fortressed royal palace, its astronomy tower (said to be legendary in its majestic design and its key role in the planning of the building of the cities, towns and villages across the kingdom to align with the stars), the royal family's personal graveyard, and the palace gardens. However.... To get into the city at all, one must enter through the only gates within the curtain wall surrounding and shielding the entire city perimeter. Standing well over thirty feet tall, designed to be seen from any far distance, two giant drake (wingless dragon) golems stand guard on either side of the stone gates, their tails forming the top arch of both individual doors. Only by touching the door and being viewed as worthy by the two drakes, who operate above the crown's will and obey only the need of the people, may one enter the city of Oasis. If not... the guards will be sent and chase off the unwanted visitor back into the wasteland.

Mfupambele/ Boneview Village

(Said as Mm-Fu-Pam-Bell-Lay) Every kingdom needs a large place to bury their dead, and rarely do the people respect death due to their fear of it. But, those in the small village of Mfupambele or Boneview (called such due to their village location allowing them to view the entire Reef of the Fallen, alongside their massive graveyard) mostly consist of worshipers and denizens of the temple to Amne the Maiden, the Nyotan goddess of death.

In the Evenstar Church, it is believed that when a person dies, they become a star in the night sky, with most newly departed souls appearing under the veil of the Maiden, to be under her guidance until they are ready to guide the living alongside the ancestors within the void of the night sky. This is why the Jokani people pray to the stars for guidance, not just to the gods or to the Evenstar, but to their ancestors above. But, before a person can be laid to rest, they must first go through the process of a wake and be cleansed and blessed before their spirit can ascend.

So, their first destination on their final journey is to Usiku Island, to receive their rites and final song through the blessings of the Priests and Priestesses of the Elder Dragon, and for family and friends to bid farewell to their loved one. While they then head to Boneview to prepare the gravesite and dress in white for the funeral (for white is the colour of death and rebirth in Jokani culture), the body of the deceased is left on the island to be prepared for burial. In the Dragonkin culture, however, most prefer to burn their loved one with the fire breath of their family and then bring their ashes to Boneview. Whatever the family and loved ones prefer or know what the deceased wished to have done to them, it is done on the island before they are sailed back to Boneview for the funeral, on a small, white, wooden ship carved in the shape of a mournful sea dragon, his head bowed and facing forever inwards towards his every ward. There, in the village outskirts, the entire population of Joka Ardhi is buried in the same site beside the village, away from the river for obvious reasons.

But, instead of a tombstone or a permanent marker on the grave, a stone plaque is placed on a towering sandstone pyramid or spire in the middle of the walled graveyard, bearing the name, the family lineage and species, and a painted replica of their Life Cord to show their story. This spire can withstand the force of every sandstorm and never be weathered away, even more so under the care of the Priests and Priestesses of the Maiden that tend to the graves and call the village their home. They alone are able to identify the grave of every person buried here, for those who wish to visit their lost one can be led to the person they seek, as gifts such as bouquets, offerings on heavy stone plates, incense and painted rocks are placed on the grave to help identify them, but are then taken away for safe keeping at night and before sandstorms. This is why a Priest/Priestess of the Maiden are taught how to find the right person's grave, in order to place their offerings and gifts back on their rightful place.

But for those lost to the wasteland and having no physical body to recover and bring back for their rites, their loved ones can instead go to the temple in the middle of the village, which is the large tower with hundreds of floors, and create a shrine on one of those floors for their lost loved one. The High Priest or Priestess in charge of the tower will then take guardianship of the new shrine and perform the rites to allow the shrine's bearer to pass on.

Mother Moon's Temple and the Lake of Her Womb

The towering Temple of Ma' Mwezi (Mm-Weh-Zee) sits beside the Enkoshoke-ai Lake (En-Co-Show-Ka-Eye, remember the heavy pause after the Ka), a womb shaped body of fresh water that leads out to sea only after a deadly rapids in the mouth of the lake. The lake itself is considered the literal womb of the Moon Goddess, Mama Mwezi or Ma' Mwezi for short, and so its waters are used for rebirth and birth related rituals, but because of its waters being naturally unsanitary for giving birth in, the temple's indoor pools are much more preferable due to the medical training of the priestesses within that use the lake water only after it's been thoroughly boiled and cleaned.

The temple of Ma' Mwezi is where nearly all mothers plan to give birth when their time comes, or to at least hire a Lunar Priestess from the temple to be a midwife for the birth at home, who will bring along some clean water from their sacred pools to bless the newborn and mother with, purely due to how preferable it is to have a water birth. But should they arrive in time to the temple, they will be greeted by one of the many large pool rooms and a small group of attending Lunar Priestess who will be helping the new mother. In this pool, even during the day, the reflection of the current lunar phase is projected onto the surface of the pool, with tile murals of all the lunar phases circling the room to help the anxious mother learn what phase her baby will be born under.

This is useful for all those present, as it is believed within Jokani culture that the lunar phase can affect how the child will present their gender identity and therefore how they will act or who they'll become when fully grown, with the new moon being completely masculine and the full moon being entirely feminine. As such, a boy born under a full moon is most likely believed to one day grow up as either trans, a feminine man or a man who will instinctually respect women even through nurturing lessons, while a baby born during an eclipse will result in a gender nonconforming or a Non-Binary person. Asya, for example, was born during a Last Quarter Half Moon... Which perfectly fits with her trans identity and later on her intersex transition, meaning she is quite literally both the masculine and the feminine sides, just like a Half Moon.

So, when a new mother goes to the temple to give birth in the sacred water, she does so under the direct light of Ma' Mwezi herself. The child will be delivered under the medically trained and gentle care of the Lunar Priestesses, and under the light of the lunar phase of that current day. But should a mother start to struggle to give birth, the Priestesses are trained to immediately recognize the problem with just touch alone and take the mother into a second room with a table and a smaller pool to wash the baby and mother in, after her C-Section which uses incense to knock the mother out and herbal tea to ensure she feels no pain while momentarily thinning her blood safely to prevent massive blood loss, or after using hands or forceps to correct the baby's position for a safer delivery. After the difficult birth and the mother has an hour or two of rest, the Priestesses will then carry the mother to the sacred pool to bless her and her baby in the lunar waters, to ensure Ma' Mwezi's light can bless them before the dawn of the next day. Then the mother can spend her full month in the recovery wing of the temple to heal her body and to ensure her and the baby are both well enough for travel.

The temple is also a sanctuary to all women and feminine-presenting folk seeking protection due to it being a sacred space to Ma' Mwezi, the Matron of Mothers and the Lunar Goddess of Femininity in All Forms. The law of sacred right is so upholding that all men are forbidden from being anywhere near the temple or lake, demanded by laws untouchable by even the crown itself. Not even an army can enter the grounds surrounding the temple, less they risk facing the wrath of a hundred mothers, a thousand young and old Priestesses, and a mob of abuse victims.

The Dragonden Ruins and the Blackfire Wastelands

At the peak turning point of the Founder's War, which shaped the very landscape of the kingdom over three thousand years ago, the human Founders proclaimed to have found a way to stop their battle against the Dragons for their self imposed right to rule the desert. Knowing the only way to truly beat the dragons was to take away what made them powerful, their very fire and lifeforce, the few mages the humans had on their side made an artificial fire spell that could act as a perfect opposite force against the dragon's natural fire magic within their veins and breath.

By appearances alone, it was dubbed the Black Fire, the most unnatural form of fire ever made that only humans could wield.

And so, the Founders launched their final attack at the foot of the mountains, where they knew all too well was still the home of the Draconic forces and the few human rebels that fought with them for their vision of peace, but also as a sense of irony as this was where the war began... when the leader of the Founders killed the last true Dragon Lord, Apophis, alongside his pregnant mate, his eldest daughter and heir, and her clutch of eggs.

Here, the Black Fire Siege was unleashed, and the manmade cursed flames spread faster than any dragon wing could outfly. One by one, then in the hundreds, then the thousands, the dragons all fell to the devouring Black Fire, taking nearly all the Founder's forces with it. For even after the dragons fell, the fire continued to devour all in its path, including the very blood that was spilled in the battlefields surrounding the entire mountain range. Charred black and drained of all life, both draconic, human, fauna and flora... Only the sacrifice of the last human mages stopped the Black Fire Siege from spreading beyond the islands on the shoreline, for with their deaths came the end of the existence and knowledge of the Black Fire curse. To this day, nothing but black lifeless sand, rock, human and dragon bones strewn about large battlefields, and the accursed Harvester Vines remain, with the giant bulb-like flora being the only reason why no one dares to go near the mountains.

Born from the lingering spark of the Black Fire's magic and the bloodthirst that created it in the first place, the Harvester Vines are stationary carnivorous plants that appear like large bulbs covered in rocky plating that help it blend in with its mountainous environment as it uses underground, paralysis-poison filled thorny vines to hunt and feed its hunger for large, warm-blooded prey. One wrong step within its hunting grounds... and only those larger than a wolf will be ensnared, paralyzed and bleeding non-stop from its anticoagulant venom paired with its neurotoxin poison that paralyzes you but keeps you alive. If caught, you will be dragged down into the sand, where new vines hidden underground will encase you as its prey and begin to digest you, with the merciful hope that the blood loos took you before the pains of the digestive process do.

For should anyone be caught, man, woman, child, animal... None can escape the grip and quick reactions of the Harvester Vines.

Spoilers for One Last Wish ahead...

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Jhamal's Glass Grave/The Tyrant's Field

Upon her return from her forty year long exile, Asya and her new family sailed back to her homeland ready to end what she should have stopped years ago. Following her people's tradition of the Rite of Sacrifice, which was the act of cutting her dreadlocks and shooting them tied to an arrow onto her father's door, she shot her declaration for war onto the door of the tyrant king and marched to her birthplace to face her father in battle, for the right to the throne that he denied and tried to kill her for... For her simply being a transwoman.

Using every resource available to them, including the crystals of the sands that once allowed their dragon ancestors to shapeshift into humans and back again, the two Jokani royals fought as titan sized dragons, with Jhamal as a much bigger black Wyvern and Asya as an orange but much smaller Lindwyrm, the tyrant's daughter won the battle by shooting her dragon breath down his throat and into his belly, rupturing his body in a fiery explosion that burned the sand so quickly that it turned into glass shards. There, the scorched bones of Asya's father remain trapped in an impenetrable and razor filled grave, serving as a reminder to all what happens when a toxic heart inherits the crown.

Thus, the area where the battle took place and where Asya became Dragon Queen became known as The Tomb of the Tyrant.

#long reads #worldbuilding #pirateformers au #Jokani Lore

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