#after the fight with zenos is because she wanted to see them again so bad it Literally brought her back to them

[mxdotpng]

i literally do not know what i want to do with adaline. like i dont necessarily want her to die but endwalker is It for her. she does not do any of the post-patch quests. she isnt there. thats not her. dawntrail? she isnt going. but she is like the least likely of all the scions to Ever retire. being the warrior of light is a type of atonement for her. it is what she must do even if she despises it. so the only answer for her really is death.

[hanako-san]

Ouryuu Zeno (yellow dragon), Zeno was once a priest, he took blood from a dragon and became a 'dragon warrior'. Zeno agreed to accept the dragon's blood to help King Hiyuu defeat the human rebellion. Hiryuu was a red dragon who took the form of a human because he loved them so much, even after their betrayal he still loved them and refused to return to the heavens. The dragons didn't want to lose him either, so they gave their blood and four excellent people drank the dragons's blood.

Zeno is my most beloved dragon of all! He gained immortality, his body was like steel, but before that he had to be wounded, pierced, his legs/arms and head cut off, which regrew to activate the dragon's power. He gained immortality in the process. He lost his beloved brothers and got married. Zeno was briefly happy with his wife, who died because she had a terminal illness. He… lay beside her for a long time… did not leave her for a long time, then traveled aimlessly, saw wars begin, saw many deaths, although he could not die himself. He saw how the generation of dragon warriors was treated,and he understood how he was to die. Hiryuu's Yona reincarnation was his salvation, but not before he took with him new brothers who had reached their limit.

Zeno....

When they tried to stop him. He said it.

He wanted to end his suffering as well as the dragons'. I can't accuse him for anything because he went through hell, everyone he loved died and the same would happen to Yona, Haku and their new dragon brothers. They would die and he would stay. He simply couldn't stand it once again and decided to take action. I can't blame him! I CAN'T, even if my heart breaks for what Jeaha, Kija, Shin Ah, Haku and Yona did. I love them all, I hate to see them suffer, but I will side with Zeno here,and I'm not going to blame him for anything. If it was to help him die and be reunited with his brothers and wife and stop suffering and losing everyone he loves, my heart goes out to him, but I'm also with Yona and Haku.

Zeno didn't even use their names because there would be no point in being attached to them, knowing that he would allow himself to be hurt again and condemn himself and the dragon generation to more suffering that they experienced from humans (except Kija), he was extremely lucky.

You know who else I can't blame? he does bad deeds,fights against fate for a girl who loves and wants to protect her and his brother! Although he has proven many times that killing the supernatural is the right thing, he cannot leave and suffers for 50 years, not 2,000 like Zeno. But he also has his reasons and he keeps fighting even though he fails all the time.

Although it is unknown why Amane does this. It's no secret that he would do it to make Tsukasa protect. Just like Zeno,Amane in order to save nene's life, he was ready to be one of the half-guilty sacrifices for her friend. He agreed to fulfill her wish, knowing what she had to do. Just like he imprisoned her in a perfect arc to protect her so she could live in this fictional world. he killed his brother for some reason, but wanting to protect him, he went with him and protected him all the time, which he also admitted. Both are desperate to the point that they are willing to risk everything for the people they love, to help end suffering in a truly extreme way or to save the life of the person they love.

I can't blame them for their actions and I won't.

With Zeno it's harder for me to go through this because I love Jeaha, Shinha, Zeno, Yona and Haku. And their hurt and pain hurts me, but I understand Zeno and I'm not really going to blame him for anything. Likewise, I'm not going to blame Amane. They do what they want and how they want so that they can finish and save what is important to them even if it is bad and extremely painful! I understand THEM! and I'm on THEIR SIDE! But I also hope that Yona and Haku will find a way to save them! Just like I hope Amane will stop and get to Tsukasa. Even if I know what they are doing is wrong, I will support them and I will be on their side and I will not criticize any of them!

[gothmiqote]

aaa instead of your current glamours for xyz classes can i see ur ideal glamours for your mains (like if you could wear any armor you wanted without restrictions) vs the glamours you have on them usually?

i'll do you one better & take you on a wardrobe tour through the expansions uwu

ARR had a cute ponytail moment, & going forward you'll notice she pretty much stays consistent with both the colour palette and cuts of her clothes. she came into this knowing what she liked lmao. there's definitely shorts on under there, how much are they actually covering is very eh, though.

the start of heavensward aka 'everything is bad and nothing will ever be good again.' pretty much spent the entirety of this era looking like this. it's way more toned down/discreet than her typical vibe, partly because of the weather & partly because of the whole regicide accusation thing. best to avoid as much attention as possible, right? (of course, the weather wasn't enough to stop her from getting a small place in the empyreum later on. she finds the city itself pretty comfortable actually.)

dragonsong was where she ended up cutting the now-iconic bangs. a lot of boot-reusing occurs here--again, varha knows what she likes and knows what's comfortable. she's also a bit more climatized here & has gone back to her usual short shorts. turns out, everything could in fact be good again.

stormblood time! longer pants for a more practical look, still a bit (intentionally) lacking in the actual armour department. the leathers held up decently in the fight with zenos though, so that's something. that jacket is completely destroyed now lmao.

shadowbringers brought out the adoption of crystarium trends. it was colder than it looked over there, there was no way she was going to wear anything except a coat of some kind. did that mean we were going to cover the legs? not really; it apparently gives her a "bigger range of motion," if you believe her reasoning.

garlemald's weather was a different story. it is, in fact, stupidly cold up there.

thavnair's conditions were significantly more favourable, clearly. the boots even got shorter here too.

what can be said about sharlayan aside from a resounding 'it was fine'? like, apocalypse-avoiding bullshit politicking aside, it was just okay. she will not be vacationing there any time soon.

& finally, round of applause for everything in space for being the intersection between the best she's ever looked & worst she's ever felt. did she come home after this and collapse into a breakdown? yeah, but at least she looked hot while it happened.

maybe when i've played through 7.0 ill come back and add that to the timeline who knows

[megarywrites]

the writeblr garden’s spooky season prompts

day 1: antagonist(s)

so, for Seafoam, there are four major antagonists, of which, I'd consider two to be main antagonists. But I’ll only talk about the two who are the most obvious, because I don’t want to give away major spoilers. as is typical for me, this got long, so the meat of it is under the cut lol

— Sosta Diakos

He is not one of the main antagonists, but he is the first one we’re introduced to. He is a Droma, which is like if a priest was made the mayor/lord of a village and the Droma of Psari, the village that Thala grew up in. We’re first introduced to him after Thala and her mother find out that her father was lost at sea, and he’s there to arrange the funeral with Thala’s mother, but he has ulterior motives.

He is, unfortunately, inspired by someone I know irl who ended up being a groomer, so…that’s the energy he brings to the plot. He’s known Thala since she was born, as he was a close family friend and the same age as her late father, and at the funeral, he announces that they will be getting married (his explanation for this is that he appealed on their behalf to the gods for how he could help them in their time of need and the gods told him that he would marry her).

Her mother, however, is not here for it, and takes her place on the wedding day. Below is a snippet from the aftermath of that.

As I stood, my head turned at the scrape of quickened footsteps on the other side of the hedge. Kolette, probably, to check on Ma. Or Zeno, to see me. Rolling my eyes, I started to cross the yard, but then the door banged open inside. Alarm coursed through me, and, spurred on by Ma’s cry of shock, I dumped the logs as I tore back inside. One of the logs almost crushed my toes, and splinters were clinging to my mourning garments and hair as I tumbled into the kitchen.  It was the Droma. His hand was raised, the other clutching Ma’s throat, as he pulled back to strike her across the face. The clap of it thundered through the house.  All thought abandoned me.  No plan sprang to mind as I lunged around the counter to pull him off of her. My nails dug into his arm as I tried to hold him back from hitting her again. She clutched at her face, staring up at the seething Droma towering over her. When she raised his other hand, panic erupted within me. I was too small compared to him to shove him one way or the other, let alone throw him out of the house like a misbehaving dog, so I did the only thing I could think of to stop him.  I pulled back as hard as I could on his arm, deterring him momentarily until I bent to bite down on his arm. Warm blood pooled in my mouth, but I stayed clamped down on him until he shook me off of him. I staggered back, mouth smarting, and glared at him warily as his livid focus shifted from Ma to me, then down to his bleeding arm.  He held it up to me, my gaze darting down to the jagged crimson trickles cutting through his pale olive skin before I looked back up at him. “Have you taken leave of all of your senses?”  Instead of answering, I spat his blood out onto the floor and wiped my lips clean of the stuff without breaking eye contact with him. 

— Geros Kryiaku

He is one of the main antagonists of both books, and for the majority of the story, he is the one at the forefront of the story that Thala is fighting against (in a manner of speaking) and who I'm expecting everyone who reads this to consider him the Big Bad, up until the final plot twist lol

He is the Diamo, which is like if the roles of the pope and a king were mashed up into one person. We are first introduced to him as a character at what everyone thought was Sosta and Thala's wedding, as he is the one who officiates the rare weddings of Dromas.

No one in my life has the dishonor of directly inspiring him, but him and all of his bullshit is based off of pastors of bigger churches in the denomination of Baptist that I grew up in. Story-wise, though, one of the first things that he did when he took on the mantle of the Diamo was outlaw the production of potions, because relying on magic of any kind shows a lack of faith in the gods and their power.

Ironically for him, I've just discovered in my 2nd draft that he can perform magic himself, albeit unknowingly. In certain rituals and ceremonies, he does some chants in the old tongue, which is what the actual gods used to shape the realm. What he thinks is happening, however, is that the gods themselves are possessing him so that he can be their mouthpiece and a conduit for their powers. Below is a snippet from the chapter I'm writing rn where we see him unknowingly using magic.

The Diamo was still in the center of the aisle, his arms open, his palms up, and his hands raised to the ceiling. Even though the sunlight no longer streamed through the windows high above us, he was still bathed in its light. Or, rather, enveloped in it. For as he began to lower his hands, misty tendrils of the golden light curled around him, drifting up and away like steam from a cauldron. And, when he opened what had been his eyes, a blinding, golden light had replaced them. Could he even see?  He began to speak, though with a voice that was not his own. I could hear it still, hidden deep within the recesses of a voice orotund enough to rattle the windows that was intermingled with a host of sharp, disjointed whispers tangling together. “Ye in this congregation with faith enough to dry the sea, come hither, and be healed.” I would have stood and joined the others filing out of their benches to the center aisle, driven by an overwhelming compulsion to obey his words, but Solera anticipated my impulse. She threw her arm across my middle, keeping me from standing properly and shaking her head when I threw her a confused glance.

[silmeria-lafleur]

Another Step

This story is the continuation of this one. It's from Reika's PoV, in first person. There are so many changes and my head almost exploded from trying to fit everything together. I hope you enjoy! (Long post ahead)

A few more days passed before Krille advised me to take some time, and calmly think about myself, away from all this. It was no use walking around with my grim face all the time. Heh... It was best to go somewhere else, clear my mind, at least until they call me back.

The thing was where I was going to go.

Gridania was not an option because it was too close to here. Uldah? Nah... I hated the weather and desperately needed a cooler place. Ishgard... Hmmm, it could be... but... that would mean I would have to see him. And while a significant part of me wanted to be there, I couldn't bear the thought of being a burden to them…to him.

Much less after that fight... *sigh*

Well, there is no other option than to go to Limsa. Maybe I could find something there.

I packed my things and said goodbye to my friends and the people of the Resistance, assuring that I would be there whenever they needed me.A part of me felt bad about leaving them, but on the other hand it was worse to be there doing nothing.

When I arrived it was almost after noon, a clear and refreshing day, in many ways. I immediately thought of the things I could do there. Maybe I could go to the Arcanist Guild and learn a new art. I should upgrade my equipment as well, since the current one was very worn and broken in several parts... and if for some reason I had to face and fight against that Zenos again, I should be better prepared.

Pero por ahora debería ir a The Mizzenmast Inn, my body and mind needed to... calm down. Mytesyn, the inkeeper, greeted me cheerfully. He's always been so nice to me, I smiled back and asked if there was a room available, to which he energetically nodded. Entering the room, I left my things next to the bed and lay down for a while, with hundreds of thoughts per second going through my mind.

Inevitably those thoughts led me to a particular moment... to Fortemps Manor, to that damned fight with Artoirel. I was so mad at him! How was it possible that he saw social duties as more important than the happiness of people!

And he…he called me a hypocrite, now that I think about it he looked so upset, a stark contrast to how he always used to be. He was definitely distressed... maybe... hurt? Yes, it must be. After how I treated him, so improper and rude of me. Still... Now I think he was right, I was a hypocrite, I still am. And that had to change.

If I ever see him again I would like to apologize to him. Being friends again... being able to talk like before until late at night. Those moments now only seemed like a sweet but distant dream.

At that a tear fell down my face, followed by a few others... and many more. I covered my face with my left arm and cried, I don't know for how long, but I was there until my eyes couldn't hold another tear. Taking a deep, shaky breath from that flow of pent-up emotions, I got out of bed. I took an old letter out of my bag, a letter that I always read at times when I felt lost adrift. I sat back on the edge of the bed and read it one more time.

his was one my mother had written to me, weeks before she died. She was so weak in those moments... and yet she found the strength to write this. In it she told me many things, like never giving up, finding my happiness, and above all being myself. She also apologized for things that I didn't give importance to at the time, but that now made much more sense. I knew that she was not my biological mother, who I never heard from, that she took care of me in her place because of the love she had for my father. It must have been difficult for her to take care of an elezen girl in a place where there were none. I remember the day she decided to dye my hair and change my name, to look a little more like her and avoid any more rumors that were already out there. And even against everything and everyone, she raised me with all the love of her heart, I always felt that way.

She also told me that now I had to go my own way, that I didn't need to pretend anything anymore, that I shouldn't look for anything that my heart didn't really want. Now I really understood, the meaning of those words.

"My dear daughter, you will always be the most beautiful flower for me. Remember my precious Reika, that I will always be proud of you, no matter what steps you decide to take towards your own happiness. This from now on is your way, and only yours. With love, Sayaka."

I teared up once more, but this time with relief. As if the fact of understanding the true meaning of these words took a great weight off my shoulders. I always thought that I should carry on her legacy, in my own way. But it clearly wasn't like that, I- I really can be dense sometimes... I smiled warmly as I put the letter away once more.

I left the room for a moment to talk to Mytesyn, he seemed surprised to see me with my red face and disheveled hair, he immediately offered me something to drink, and I accepted. I was a bit embarrassed to be like this, but he seemed to understand that I needed space and didn't want to intrude. Before going back to the room once more, I asked him if I could contact someone, and he nodded with his usual smile.

A few bells later I went out, the sky was already getting dark. I wanted to do more than lock myself up somewhere, so I headed down to the plaza to go to the market and then stop by the Arcanists as previously planned. I already knew that Limsa was a... bustling place. But apparently there was something interesting that was about to happen. I was curious to know what it was about, my plans could wait a little longer. I followed the sound of some musical instruments being tuned a little further south of the plaza... and yes, there were a lot of people gathered there.

It was a group of artists, they called themselves "Trope Falsiam", from Thavnair. Now this was interesting, the group of musicians began to play their melody and a young miqo'te woman appeared in a somewhat... flashy outfit. She took some rather peculiar circular blades and began to dance. She looked happy… free. So focused was I on her performance that I barely noticed the hyuran woman standing next to me, she said a couple of things that I couldn't fully catch, but she seemed to know the dancer. Then she looked at me from head to toe and smiled. After the performance, the people began to dissolve in different directions, and this woman approached me, she had a proposal for me.

"There's definitely something about you... charming. I offer you to learn the art of dance. Not only will you help to brighten people's sorrowful hearts, it can also be very useful in combat, and from what I see, it seems that you have experience. What do you say?"

I think from the way my face lit up he assumed I liked the idea, so he took me with the rest of the group and we introduced ourselves.

The movements flowed naturally, at least the sense of rhythm was still intact, and luckily for me, holding the chakrams was not difficult for my previously injured hand. So I trained, for days... weeks. I traveled to different places improving the technique, not only the dance itself, but also in combat. I learned that dance itself could actually help people to heal from within.

Like myself.

This IS my path... and I will embrace it.

Fun Fact: When I first started playing the Stormblood expansion, Shadowbringer was released. And guess what was the first thing I did... YUP! Unlock the Dancer. So all the Stormblood MSQ I did as DNC ( •̀ ω •́ )✧

Meanwhile, at Fortemps Manor, someone was certainly not happy about Reika's disappearance...

[siderealcity]

Okay, wait, I need to reblog this again with commentary, because the whole relationship between Zenos and Fandaniel is just a glorious trainwreck of characters failing to achieve growth, and I love it.

From the moment we first meet him, Fandaniel seems to be playing the role of the court jester, the fool to Zenos' emperor. He capers around and makes bad jokes, many of them at Zenos' expense. But the role of the fool in the court is to speak the truth to the king. Nobody else can get away with doing it.

And he does. Kind of. His version of truth. Or what he thinks his version is, even though he doesn't seem to think Zenos is listening to him. But the message is less important than the act of speaking, really.

For Zenos, the ascian Fandaniel is the first and only person we see him interact with that he can't get rid of. He's allowed to play the fool for him because Zenos can't meaningfully stop him. Every other person would either do what he said to do, or die when he struck them down. And he's had a lot of people fawn over him, and tell him what they thought he wanted to hear, and Fandaniel does that, but he also gives him direction when he doesn't have any. He offers guidance and motivation that Zenos entirely lacks. He's what gives Zenos hope that he could get WoL to come back at all.

Because we see what happens once Fandaniel is gone: Zenos has no plan. On the moon, he talks about using despair to get us to fight him, but then he just goes home. He wanders around, fighting monsters, bored. If Fandaniel hadn't shown up in Garlemald during Shadowbringers, Zenos' entire existence would have been petulantly napping and monologuing about how he was still waiting for his frienemy to show up.

Fandaniel, the character who thinks he embodies nihilism, supplies Zenos with hope.

And here's the thing: Zenos is the first and only character, other than the WoL, that we see Fandaniel truly talking to that he didn't create himself.

Xande was dead for generations before Amon brought him back. Where did he get Xande's soul from after all that time? Chances are, the last emperor of Allag was just as much Xande as Ysayle was Saint Shiva. So, you can take a lot of what he says in Amon's memory about the meaninglessness of life and death as Amon's own ideas, being parroted back to him through the mouth of his creation.

In Elpis, Hermes spends most of his time with Meteion. And even though she was literally created to answer his question about life's meaning, she can't do it. Because she is his creation, and she's looking for the answer that he expected to find.

Hermes really only ever talks to himself.

Zenos is, ironically, the only person Fandaniel has ever talked to who might express a differing opinion, and here we can see him do it. And we witness the complete bafflement Fandaniel experiences because of it. Because Zenos unequivocally knows what his answer to that question is. Zenos doesn't care whether life and death have meaning or not, he can give them meaning, and he already has. And here's Fandaniel, being told the answer right now, and he goes, "Huh. I don't know how I feel about that." And walks away.

Man failed his wisdom check so hard, he forgot what he was rolling for.

You asked, Fandaniel. You asked.

[clariongradiation]

how is your wol/oc breaking this bad boy [a chocolate orange] open. are they using their job skills to smash the chocolate or are they just lobbing it against a wall or something idk (we're saying it exists in eorzea. it's canon) (astromancing on twitter)

Kai: pulls individual slices, keeps the rest in the wrapper for later

Yuki: inserts a claw in the middle and cracks the whole thing in half

Punch: squeezes it and it falls apart

Twi: bites it like an apple

Negi: a knife 🔪

Tiny: taps it on the table like an egg

I WANT MORE WOL(Or OC)SHIP CONTENT!!!!

Tell me about your ship's fav winter activity that they do together? Skating? Snowball fights? Staying in cozy by the fire? I WANNA HEAR IT ALL!!!! (Weather_Maiden on twitter)

OK SO I hc that all the light aether from the 1st made Kai lose almost all physical sensation, and even after recovering she still has a general physical and mental/spiritual numbness about her. So when the Garlemald campaign happens she wears the coat Tataru gives her because she knows that's what you're supposed to do, but she doesn't really feel the cold (or anything) anymore. When In From the Cold happens, she's suddenly flooded with sensations like pain, cold, weakness again (though the mental effects somewhat shield her) and that's why things are so hard for that quest. Also Zenos, when he starts for Camp Broken Glass, reaches into the coat pocket and pulls out the warm gloves and hat that Tataru had also made (and Kai hadn't even noticed). (He also put on some actual snow boots because even though her body doesn't really feel it, he grew up in Garlemald and he knows what can happen if you're just wearing some thin walking-around boots like Kai had on.) Anyway that wasn't really the question, just a fun cold-weather idea I've been having :)

Where my fellow ace/aro/demi WoL/OC havers at? 🥺 Tell me about them please (Miacoda on twitter)

Kai is ace but very sex positive! In the way where like, she will doink someone just to see what they're like, not in any attraction way (her azem was the same way). Probably the only main person she wouldn't is g'raha (rip) because the hero worship thing kinda puts her off

what's your wol's classpect. quickly (screamsintts on twitter)

Kai: Heir of Heart

Yuki: Sylph of Blood

Punch: Witch of Light

Twi: Knight of Void

Negi: Rogue of Time

Tiny: Seer of Space

[xenodile]

Long and wordy post on Byl and the Leveilleurs, especially Alisaie, to organize my thoughts on the Stormblood timeline and early ShB.

The generalized feel of the Byl/Alisaie arc that I've been brainstorming is they're both awkward and unsure because they're both terribly insecure. They bonded during Binding Coils then Alisaie left to find herself, and while she was gone, Byl and Alphinaud become a couple officially.

When Alisaie returns they're both happy to be together again but don't know what to do next or how to proceed. Alisaie feels inadequate and weak, like she hasn't earned the right to court Byl because she isn't as strong as her, and doesn't want to be the third wheel in her brother's relationship. Bylgrael, on the other hand, feels horribly guilty that she's still attracted to Alisaie despite being in a relationship with Alphinaud, guilty that she finds herself comparing Alisaie to Alphinaud instead of seeing her for her own sake, and doesn't want to ruin the best thing she's ever had by being selfish and greedy. Seriously she can't just talk to her boyfriend about how down bad she is for his sister.

All the while, Alphinaud is seeing them awkwardly flirt but refuse to make a real move and just shrugging because he knows better than to interfere with Alisaie's personal business. He had already resigned himself to being their third wheel back in ARR during Binding Coils, but horribly bungled his misguided attempt to encourage Alisaie, so he knows to let them both handle this at their own pace. He wants them both to be happy, and is certain they'd be happiest together, but he learned his lesson and will simply let it rock unless his input is directly asked for. This has the opposite effect where Byl and Alisaie only feel more guilty about enjoying their time together because now it feels like they're going behind Alphinaud's back about it.

Stormblood happens and things finally come to a head in Ala Mhigo. Bylgrael confides in the twins that she plans to face Zenos alone because her previous clashes with him have demonstrated that anyone else that gets involved in their duels just gets hurt. While both of them know by know that when Byl says she can Handle It then she will, but they can't help but worry about her anyway. Alisaie in particular, having actually faced Zenos alongside Byl back at the Massacre of the Reach and been effortlessly overpowered, and now being unable to fight due to the injury Fordola gave her, is scared and frustrated. When Byl is visiting her at the infirmary before the Battle for Ala Mhigo, her emotions get the better of her and she kisses Byl to see her off, not wanting to let her feelings be unknown should the worst happen.

Byl is sorta stunned into silence and isn't sure how to react, and Alisaie shooes her away rather than talk about it. Byl mentions it to Alphinaud on their way to the front and they talk it out. Alphinaud comes clean about his ulterior motives for encouraging them back in ARR and Bylgrael about her insecurities. Alphinaud gives Byl his approval which is reassuring but doesn't make the prospect of courying Alisaie less awkward.

After Bylgrael defeats Zenos and Ala Mhigo is free, Alphinaud heads to the infirmary to check on Alisaie and address the elephant in the room. They have a heart to heart, Alphinaud properly apologizes for his actions after Final Coil, and Alisaie opens up about her insecurity in regards to Byl. Once again, Alphinaud does what he can to reassure her, and gives her his approval for pursuing Bylgrael. It's still awkward and Alisaie makes it known it's only going to get more awkward if she and Byl do start dating properly.

Stormblood post-game progresses and Alphinaud starts having his doubts. Between Byl having to face Zenos alone, saving him from Lakshmi twice, protecting him constantly during their confrontation with the Lupin conscripts, and tearing through Skalla singlehandedly while he end Arenvald ineffectually got lost and ran from ghosts, Alisaie's worries of not being good enough hit close to home. Back during the adventures in Dravania, he and Bylgrael started fresh and became a couple because they approached their relationship as equals, and he fears he's starting to just rely on her to solve his problems again. Managing Ala Mhigo's finances and helping write a foolproof contract for the Ul'dah-Ala Mhigo salt trade push him towards feeling like maybe it's time he left the battlefield altogether.

And that's when 4.3 happens and he leaves for Garlemald. Bylgrael was already a bundle of nerves due to dealing with Omega, Ivalice, Asahi, and everything else, and she objects. They get into a fight there and then, and part on bad terms.

In addition to his personal reasons, he'd hoped that his absence would give Byl and Alisaie a chance to get closer, and it does. The combination of frustration at him and fear for his safety makes Bylgrael irritable and tempermental, and it falls to Alisaie to rein her in. It's reassuring, in an odd way, for Alisaie to see her hero get just as emotional and frustrated as she does, and Bylgrael is bolstered by how much more in control and level headed Alisaie is.

Then Alphinaud gets souljacked after two months of being MIA and Byl outright breaks. Alisaie is the only person keeping her going, like she is desperately clinging to Alisaie to keep moving forward. When they have their moment before the Ghimlyt Dark, and Alisaie makes Byl promise not to leave her, that's Byl's moment of clarity that she truly does love Alisaie and finally returns the kiss.

Of course, then the Exarch spoils the moment and soulnaps Alisaie shortly afterward, and Bylgrael snaps completely. For the next few days she's barely sleeping, she's out for blood, she hardly even talks to anyone, she's just boiling over with anger, only stopping to check on Alisaie, culminating in her duel with ElidiZenos. At that point she's so far gone she's ready to just fight until she dies or Zenos's body is paste and the Ascians can't use it any more, but then the Exarch interrupts again.

The news that the twins are okay and the Exarch is trying to reunite them by bringing Byl to the First combined with the shock of a near death experience is enough to settle her down enough to rest while the B team Scions look for this beacon. She's rarely far from the twins during that time, sitting at their bedsides and reading or just watching them. She's still in bad shape and is of the mind she ought to just kill this hooded bastard on sight (if only he weren't so frustratingly familiar somehow) but the reminder they're alive and she can save them is an enormous weight off of her.

Once she's been informed the twins are alive and well in the First she goes to find Alisaie first because after the circumstances they were separated under, how could she not. It's messy. Alisaie was there for Byl in a very dark time, and it seems they were finally ready to be Together but then she was forcibly sent away and had to manage on her own for a year. Their reunion should be a happy thing, a chance to sort through how they feel and what comes next, but then Tesleen's death throws Alisaie off balance.

It's an emotional roller coaster, first Byl's finally here for her, then her best friend is killed, then she puts the transformed Tesleen to rest, and Byl restores the night. Alisaie is all over the place emotionally when Byl arrives in the first.

Some in game dialogue can very easily be interpreted as "Alisaie spends the night with Byl after Holminster Switch" and I've been brainstorming along that line but I'm not sure if it's right, or rather, if I could do a scene like that justice. Like I can get the idea of "Alisaie seeks comfort from Byl to deal with Tesleen's loss", or "Alisaie wants to have a happy memory with Byl after they've been through so much hardship together" but I'm having trouble swinging how Byl herself would receive that, y'know? Like I'm not sure Byl would be receptive given the circumstances and how it would play out. Like Byl is attracted to Alisaie and does want to be intimate with her but just as she had a lot of anxiety about going too far with Alphinaud, I think Byl would be apprehensive about trying to be romantic when Alisaie is emotionally compromised. She already worries she's pushing her luck by even looking at Alisaie that way, she's terrified of doing anything to ruin what they have.

[midethefangirl]

Captain America: Civil War - My Thoughts

I know this is like 5 years late but for this, I’d like to resurrect a barely dead discourse that succeeded in not just dividing the Avengers but also dividing the fandom. Before we start, content warning for spoilers and let’s dive into this mess.

So, basically, the entire conflict of civil war stemmed from General Thaddeus Ross (who is a hypocritical dick, btw) coming to lecture the Avengers on being destructive despite conducting destructive experiments (ahem, the Abomination and the Hulk) but I digress. Then, Ross presents the Sokovian Accords which is really lengthy and we see Steve reading like a few chapters(?). Now, let us note that the Accords were presented to the Avengers after a mission-gone-wrong killed about 11 people in Lagos (lay-gos, not lah-gos that pronunciation gave me headaches as a Nigerian).

So, the Sokovian Accords were written by 117 countries and vetted by the UN asking for the Avengers to be under oversight (which SHIELD would have done if HYDRA hadn’t infiltrated it in the first place but it is what it is). Somehow, Steve made it about “our right to choose” (how?! Cause I’m not understanding) and decided to not sign*.

*he later got back to sign, then backed out when he learnt that Tony had placed Wanda under house arrest (even though it was for her protection. I do believe Tony should have fully informed Wanda about keeping her in the Avengers’ Tower)

My issues with the plot of Civil War are:

1. The Sokovian Accords were not read out loud or placed on some kind of PowerPoint slide for the audience to understand why Team Cap is against the Accords. No, the fandom wiki is not a source because that one is from Agents of SHIELD and not a lot of MCU fans are familiar with that show (yours sincerely included). Assuming the contents were read out loud or discussed by the Avengers, I’d have understood why Team Cap refused to sign the accords but since none of that was given, I’d remain Team Iron Man for this one.

2. The Sokovian Accords is not the American Constitution. Then again, the MCU fandom tends to be American-centric and most Americans seem to have this belief that the world revolves around them (and it manifests itself in Civil War discourse).

3. Contrary to popular opinion, the Sokovian Accords were about 117 (mostly third-world) countries asserting their sovereignty and boundaries, not taking away rights from the Avengers. If we go by what the MCU wiki claims about the accords, yes, some parts are absurd (like asking for blood samples and using trackers, why are those necessary?). However, when 117 countries state that they want you to respect their boundaries, I think it is best to comply. Unfortunately, respecting boundaries is one thing the USA has a problem complying with and guess who happens to represent America?

4. The Accords affected only their hero lives, not their lives as a civilian. I doubt the UN would limit the Avengers’ movements as civilians

5. Let us not forget how Steve and Clint protect Wanda from accountability and responsibility. Wanda in the MCU is like y/n in many fanfics where everyone (except for the “big bad villain” who in this case is Tony and 117 countries) seems to love her and want to protect her from facing the consequences of her actions. Anyone *ahem Tony* who has a bit of problem with her is suddenly the enemy. Not to mention how Wanda seems to have a knack for causing destruction in African countries (Johannesburg, Lagos, Wakanda)

6. And fandom behaviour from the Team Cap stans

7. Also, why is Civil War not an Avengers part 3? It’s better than making it a Captain America trilogy and then trying to frame Steve as being right.

8. I do believe that the accords were sped up which left little time for the Avengers to discuss and compromise on certain issues. If they were given more time to discuss, compromise and negotiate, I think the movie would have ended better than it had.

9. In addition, I also agree with Team Cap stans on how the UN arbitrarily deciding to shoot Bucky on sight is a human right violation.

10. “The safest hands are our own” why does this sound like a white saviour talk point from Steve? The accords is about 117 countries wanting you to respect their boundaries and the best you can come up with to refute that is saying something a white saviour would say?

11. “Even if the whole world is telling you to move...” just shut the fuck up, this is no way comparable to 117 countries trying to assert their sovereignty.

12. Look if I have to choose between surrendering a few rights as a hero and just dismissing that of civilians as potential damage, I’d go with the former because the people whom I’m suppose to protect come first. For me to dismiss their deaths as “we can’t save em all” is just not it.

13. “She’s just a kid”, a few years later and I still hate that term. One, it’s infantilizing an adult white woman (something white men have historically done and we all know how that went) . Two, while Tony was obviously wrong for not informing Wanda about her house arrest, he was right to keep her in the Tower when they were people who would harm her with every chance they could find. **

** after watching WandaVision, some people might find every reason to want to harm her.

14. Let us also discuss the motivation of those in Team Iron Man vs Team Cap

Team Iron Man

Tony: feels guilty for the events of Age of Ultron, believes that he’s stepped out of line and the Avengers need oversight.

Natasha: believes that the Avengers should listen to the public and the UN after all, if they had one hand on the wheel, they can still steer.

Vision: believes that the Avengers as a whole bring challenge which brings conflict and then catastrophe.

Rhodey: a soldier; believes in following orders especially when it is from the UN and 117 countries.

T’Challa: dude is just there to kill Bucky. I’m sure if Bucky was on team Ironman, my guy would have joined team cap, lmao 😂.

Spider-Man: not really there for a reason except to bring in Steve to Ross. I do agree that Tony shouldn’t have dragged him to the fight without Peter making an informed decision.

Team Cap

Steve: didn’t want to sign because it takes away his “right to choose”. Idk what that means or how it is relevant to the Sokovian Accords but okay. However, I understand his mistrust considering a few movies ago, we found out HYDRA had infiltrated SHIELD and as much as I believe governments are corrupt and the UN is shit, you cannot just enter a country anyhow without warning ahead of time.

Bucky: was his motivation given? I mean, I believe he joined Steve’s side to stop Zeno from unleashing the other winter soldiers. Not that that’s a bad reason, it isn’t.

Sam: again, I don’t think the movie gave us a reason for him being against the Accords. Did he also believe it was taking away his “right to choose”?

Wanda: undecided as of moment of discussion. Joined team cap because Tony placed her on house arrest. While I agree that Tony should have informed her that he was putting her under house arrest and stated the reasons why, I believe it was for good reasons especially when some people might decide to carry out witch hunts (you get it, witch hunts? 😅)

Clint: only joined because Wanda was placed under house arrest. We aren’t given any reason why he would oppose the Accords.

Scott: fan boy of Captain America, need I say more?

15. Also, to Team Cap stans blaming Tony Stark for Team Cap being imprisoned, grow the fuck up. The people in Team Cap are all adults who made their own decisions yet Tony is to blame for them breaking the law (because they did break the law), wtf.

16. “Are you capable of letting go of your ego for one damn second?” Like Steve’s ego didn’t play a part in all this too, lmao.

17. Okay, the final battle was intense and while I believe Bucky was also a victim, I can understand why Tony lashed out at him. The one to blame here is Steve because even if he had no clue Bucky was responsible for the Starks’ death, he still lied to Tony by not telling him who was responsible. It is more appalling to learn that Steve, in an attempt to “protect Tony and Bucky”, was actually covering for HYDRA!

Also, the way Steve stood emotionless while Tony watched a footage of his parents being killed. Yet, he could shield Wanda from watching the news because of how it affected her, okay.

“I can do this all day”, fuck you, Steve

18. Clint exploding at Tony is so fucking hilarious. Tony is right, Clint has a family yet he decided to fight in a war that didn’t concern him. Also, his comments about breaking backs is so tone deaf after Rhodey just broke his back!

19. If Sam was Captain America, I think Civil War wouldn’t have happened at all, from the dialogue in the Raft.

20. Overall, this movie is a fucking mess and I hate it for dividing both the Avengers and MCU fans.

Before I close with this, I want to add that I am not anti-Steve but Civil War really made me hate him. I get, Steve is supposed to be a Boy Scout and shit like that, but he’s a Gary Stu in the MCU, let’s be honest about it. Civil War should have been an Avengers movie, rather than a part of the Captain America trilogy. The Avengers should have been given more time than three days to discuss the Accords and make necessary amendments; after all that went down in Lagos, Wanda should have been made to sit out missions and maybe we could have had someone like Doctor Strange help in training her; Crossbones would have made a great villain but it is what it is; Peter’s introduction to the MCU could have been as him actually interning for the Stark Industries and forming a kind of acquaintance with Tony Stark before Tony finds out that he’s Spider-Man; Steve should have told Tony about HYDRA‘s hands in his parents’ deaths. Anyway, I’ll go read Civil War fix-it fanfics and fanfics where the Avengers are more like family. Fuck Civil War and I’m outta here.

Edit: okay this was a thought I had when I was trying to sleep but it was too good to ignore. Rhodey has a point about Steve arrogance (if that’s the correct term) in saying “the safest hands are our own” and here’s why:

Like he stated “this is not the World Security Council...neither is this SHIELD nor HYDRA” (paraphrased). This is the UN as well as 117 countries. Look, I am as anti-government as one can go and I don’t believe that the UN are reliable (plus, if we really want to go by the AoS version of the Accords, the Accords are flawed and they need amendments), however, given the US records on disrespecting boundaries in many third world countries, I can understand why 117 countries are wary about a bunch of superpowered Americans entering their country.

To us, the Avengers are saving the world. To these 117 countries and the people who have families who were killed in the crossfire (Zemo is a good example), the Avengers are a bunch of nuisances who leave destruction wherever they tread.

I am still neutral on the whole Accords as I don’t know exactly what it entails but for Steve to go “we are surrendering our rights to choose” (again, how is the Accords threatening the Avengers’ right to choose?) when asked to be under oversight is tone deaf.

[wind-up-thancred]

i actually decided katsu doesn't have any real sineater or final days-related bad ends, but the one bad end AU he does have happens in mid- to late stormblood, where he is tempered by lakshmi. STB spoilers under the cut

STB is kind of a dogshit time for katsu's mental health because he kinda gets hit with a triple whammy: -actively working to support a rebellion is exhausting and makes you witness some awful, truly heinous shit from the oppressors

-going back to his hometown kugane again when he didn't feel like he was ready stressed him out big time, and

-his fights with zenos are the first time in his stint as the WOL that he begins to be actually aware of, and fear, his own mortality

and of course he misses his bf. seeing a glimpse of thancred when he returns to the fringes is nice and all but that glimpse is fleeting and it just reminds him that he does not get the comfort he wants; his job is more important. there is no time for comfort for a tool, its job is to be used.

and if he was, like, 5% more mentally unstable when lakshmi attempts to temper him and the twins, her influence would've wormed its way past the blessing of light and began to infect his head, using his deep inner desire for comfort and fear of mortality as a conduit. she can utilize that, she is the lady of bliss.

it happens slowly, over the next few days, and katsu realizes he can still hear lakshmi calling in his head, slowly growing louder. he knows right away that he fucked up big time, and because of his awful avoidant streak, his first instinct is to hide himself away and fuck off into the mountains of gyr abania. he failed the scions; he could not be their rock. he cannot face them like this.

of course, they'd organize a search party for him after he'd disappeared for a few days, and they'd find him eventually. and that would probably exacerbate the situation more, because he'd be directly confronted by his failure. he never wanted them to see him in this abysmal state.

it would probably wear at katsu's psyche enough to prompt a full tempering transformation to katsu's body, and of course there would be a silly little boss fight, where lakshmi bids katsu to protect himself from "the people who put you into this whole mess, who set you upon this painful path." even though katsu does not truly see them that way, he must oblige.

he even manages a very weak form of tempering on his own, which isn't enough to actually fully convert any of the scions beating the shit out of him (out of necessity of course), but still messes with their heads. and it's not antagonistic— he wants to extend lakshmi's comfort and bliss to them as well, so they don't have to hurt either.

i may be biased but i think it gets to thancred worst of all. katsu probably calls directly to him. he knows it hurts. he knows thancred is still wracked with grief. he knows sometimes he wishes to rid himself of everything at once, that he feels like he can't handle all of it even though he tries, by the gods does he try. and katsu wants to free him from that as well. but thancred knows better than that, and i think he uses minfilia as his motivation to avoid giving in.

he's like, yes gods fuck it hurts that i failed her, and everyone else, so bad, but i'd be failing her even more if i just ran away. i can't. you can't, either. if we had any idea it had gotten this bad for you we would've tried to help, we can give you support, anything, but you can't just run away. anything but giving up. that is not an option.

i think the tempering actually helps the scions recognize katsu's plight that he's been hiding from them, and they manage to pull him out of the transformation with some very strong words and, uh, knocking him senseless afterwards. he's deeply, deeply ashamed once he wakes but turns his shame into motivation to do better instead of using it as an excuse to run away this time.

i also like to think that in this AU, maybe later in MSQ once he's gotten stronger, he's able to channel lakshmi by drawing upon that desire for comfort and use her powers in some niche situations. but none of that is canon in my default verse, just a little side thing i came up with for fun :]

Bad endings? Bad endings anyone?

What if they got consumed by the light? What if they became a primal? Any and all bad endings!

I think mine most likely would've become a lightwarden because she didn't get to Emet-Selch fast enough. "Obsession" would be its name, due to the fact it would be obsessed with the idea of saving others and changing the world, probably leading to either the Scions killing her or to her consuming the First in Light.

.

[autumnslance]

Werlyt 5.4 Emerald Summary

Because honestly, the storyline is disturbing enough that some people will need to skip some of the plot cutscenes, especially if the ending of Sapphire was upsetting already. Luckily, the fight itself is pretty much right away; all the storyline is afterward. Things are mostly OK in the story plotline in the Castrum, it’s on returning to Terncliff afterward that things begins to hint worse.

Below the cut are spoilers for that point and beyond.

Allie’s resting, and it’s revealed she has evidence of extensive and repeated physical abuse all over her body. Severa comments this is common in the Imperial Army; her backstory is revealed where her mother is a native of Werlyt, her father a Garlean (how/why she has a Third Eye is not explained). Her dad had nothing to do with her aside from give her an Imperial name. She was also repeatedly beaten for being half-”savage” to behave. She was in Zenos’ legion and fled after Ala Mhigo fell. On returning home she learned her mother’s medicine had been withheld until the woman died, so she fled again, wandering until she met Gaius.

He begins to realize the Empire is not full of strong men protecting the weak, but of bullies who prey on others. Duh.

Allie wakes up and gives some info, but withholds a lot too, wanting to save Alfonse, and having internalized Gaius’ Bad Parenting. But the real terribleness comes when handing in the main Werlyt quest.

We get an protracted series of cutscenes in Valens’ HQ. Allie’s revealed Valens’ is jealous of Gaius, and an expert in magitek, working under Nero for a time--Valens is also Gaius’ fault, pretty much. But Valens has Alfonse in a correction chamber where he has the little boys he “adopts” (he makes them call him Father) torture Alfonse for him, encouraging the new boy to “burn the bad out” when the child hesitates. He’s using the same face as the priest from the HW patches that threw Maeile off the Vault, BTW.

Valens is unhinged, torturing Alfonse for losing another Weapon and his sister, who Valens also talks about tormenting. Valens says the Diamond Weapon will be loaded with Zenos’ combat data and Oversoul externally triggered to make Alfonse do Valens’ bidding. Alfonse hopes to use the perfected weapon to destroy Valens and the Empire as he lays in agony, but he also hopes he kept Allie safe. He’s also internalized Gaius’ Bad Parenting.

Valens takes his boys to the test lab where a woman and little girl are shaking in fear, the husband in the cockpit. They test Diamond’s Oversoul on him. It’s awful and responds as ferally as one would assume Zenos to. It’s shut down, the man’s mutated form dead. The next test will use his wife as a pilot.

There IS a followup quest that’s about helping the people of Terncliff, I’m going to do that and see if it takes some of the sour out of my mouth. But. Yeah, this is a bit much, I think. And I am rarely bothered by such things, but this is so in your face and has no warning it hit me hard, and I can only imagine will hit others harder.

EDIT: OK SO the followup quest mentioned Livia’s obsession and her keeping the other fosters away from Dad, even though he held her at arm’s length. So let’s add some victim blaming to it, too. Cuz yeah, Livia was unstable, but also a victim of Bad Parenting.

We get a picture of Rhitahtyn out of armor, I guess.

[usagi-mitsu]

Werlyt & Gaius - a bunch of thoughts.

I am a little late to the party. I know. But I just finished the Emerald weapon and before I go to try out the „not Zenos“ weapon as in „Diamond“, I need to get my thoughts on the story straight.

Perhaps I have been spoiled by 5.0s brilliant MSQ and cannot appreciate the inherent beauty of at least decent writing any longer. But this felt so wrong and out of tune with the rest of the game. I started writing this 2 hours ago! I wanted to one in bed by now! XD But I had to get it out of my system… so….

Spoilers for the MSQ and Werlyt incoming??? And no I did not re-read this so not just spoilers but also writing errors incoming. -.-

The good

These fights are epic! I have only ever cleared the normal versions, but I loved those. They are amazing. The callbacks to Eula (her being a woman here! When did they discover that???), Regula (may he rest in peace) and Gaius himself in his prime were delightful. But I could do with a little less rotating, ok? A dragoon has positional, you know? And being allowed to pilot my very own mecha was like *chefs kiss*. On that front? Well done Square Enix!

I am also glad they were able to get another use out of Porta Praetora! That place looks amazing with the wide open field and the lake – and Ala Mhigo across it. It was one of my favourite Stormblood areas and I am always glad to return there. And of course… being able to visit the allied camp again… And Werlyt itself. It’s simply a beautiful place. It reminds me very much of southern Greece. If you’ve watched the movie Mamma Mia you know what I mean.

The music too was really nice. But I don’t think I’ll… you know… listen to it on repeat as I am doing with other parts of the soundtrack.

I’ve also loved how much amazing lore we got about Garlemald and especially the garlean military. And the military abroad. The way soldiers not from the mainland get treated. I love learning about these things.

Gaius

The man. The legend. The guy yelling in Prae.

He’s so very boring here. He has so much potential as a character and maybe I’m missing something, but all throughout this story he has been nothing but passive. He’s a reactive character in this storyline. You know. The guy who made deals with Lahabread (the d is intended), tried to take over Eorzea, lead a whole army, stood idly by as the moon dropped, almost died but then decided just not to die and then though „hm… I’ve got so much freetime now. How about I go and hunt some ascians?“ That guy is NOT a reactive character. He is active. He goes out of his way to make shit he wants happen. And in here? He seems too starstruck and devastated by his adopted kids actions to actually have one clear thought.

The only explanation I have is that he might have gotten hit in the head by something on his way to the ruby weapon. I get why he would rely on Cid for help, but the WoL??? The alliance? If you wish to be an ally and help or something, fucking act like it. You were a former legatus and I expect you to live up to your name – even after retiring.

And yeah.. I guess it’s hard having to watch your kids willingly, knowingly dying. But you fucking raised them. You are a big part of the reason to why they are in that predicament. So like… Aside from that I don’t even get why you are in this story at all.

And for the record: I’m not sorry for him. I’m just flabbergasted by all the bullshit we’ve been learning about him.

To be quite honest, I think this story could have worked just as well or maybe even better, if we got another man as the „hero“ of the story. I am talking about none other than our engineering, hammer-swinging, ex-enemy - of course talking about Nero!

The MSQ has long established that his research into the Ultimate Weapon had been taken, twisted and turned – Estinien had to experience this first-hand. I’m not saying that Nero was in need of a redemption arc and I cannot remember if these weapons were of his creation or even stem from anything he did, but it would make so much more sense for me, to have him confront his past in the garlean military like this and be responsible for the death of his former colleagues. Soldiers that he served with, whom he faught with. Give me Nero and them working together to get the weapons going and him bonding with them as his pilots to a degree. Comrades. Not that strange familiar bond that Gaius appareantly has with them. … Scratch that: Let Gaius be the father figure. Him being that wouldn’t change Nero’s relationship with them, but maybe his with Gaius as his superior.

The story wouldn’t even need to try and redeem Nero: He has already gone through major character development with the MSQ and the Omega raid tier. It would simply be Nero, confronted with the things he created, hopefully instilling more morals and a sense of responsibility for his creations. Heck: Let Cid yell at the guy! Seriously! Cid sticking around to help out would make so much more sense if it was Nero instead of freaking Gaius! Cid hated the guy! He might be a professional, but he is not one to torture himself by staying around a guy he (as far as I know) detests.

Make Nero the central figure and give Cid and Gaius the roles of „angel and demon“: One desperately trying to reach out to his old friend, reminding him why they became engineers and trying to make him realise that he can’t just run around designing weapons and leaving the scematics for everyone to read; while the other has trouble letting go of his imperial past and is struggling to see the errors of his ways – if Nero was wrong, than he (Gaius) was wrong too -and of course they did all of this for their home, to further their cause, and to bring peace to the savage lands of Eorzea, who had been fighting amongst themselves for so long… You get the point.

And you could still have these gundam themed fights. But I think everything would make so much more sense in general.

But speaking of which-

The children

I do not truly care for any of them. And that is a shame: I do think there are great characters and dynamics hidden behind these very few cutscenes. When they were first introduced I was wondering why I was suddenly watching „heartwarming“ cutscenes of my foes as children – until I realised that I was supposed to care and that they were supposed to make me feel pity for Gaius. I was supposed to feel bad for him, because they died and he blames himself. But while their fates so far have been gruesome, I cannot say that I am sad they died. They chose to die as they did. There were a myriad more options. And they chose that.

Actually. Their whole story makes me feel like they were huge masochist from the very beginning. They could have just run away and gotten help from someone more competent than them, but they stayed in an abusive military arrangement just so nobody else got hurt?? Please. Use your brains next time. And for the Berserk-like torture scene? I mean. I get what was implied here. But was it necessary? As a writer myself I follow the rule that torture and sexual violence should never be used in a story, unless it must be in there for the story to work or to bring across a vital point important to the story or it’s moral (or if you are writing porn and you are into it – but we are talking official in-game content here). But the violence towards these „children“ seems unnecessary for the plot and the violence of their deaths by piloting the weapons is already gruesome enough. Sometimes it’s better to leave things like this out – the emotional torture of feeling stuck and having a martyrs complex would have been enough here, I think. If the rest of the story had been well written at least.

(I believe my utter lack of sympathy shows how little character developement they had. I love tragic characters, who choose to suffer for the good of other people – even better if those people don’t even like them. It’s just my thing. And those kids are just… well.)

Their reasons and especially why they were making Allie out as the one who would need to survive was also just… weird. Like. I feel like 75% of what happened would not have happened, if they actually talked to each other, used their brains and had done something about their problems. But no…

These characters are also so exchangeable with basic anime/j-RPG character tropes… I only remember Alfonse, Rex and Allie – because I just did the Emerald weapon. And right afterwards I thought, „huh. So… Fullmetal Alchemist?“ Which brings me to my third point …

…the story at large.

„Pacing is a virtue“ or was it patience..? Anyhow: The author of this story should have had more patience with his story and characters and taken a bloody break! And I am not talking about the obvious blunder of „How is Allie feeling?“, „she is in shock and you cannot talk to her“ turning to „oh yeah if you are careful you can talk to her now“. I mean. WTF. That was MAYBE 10-20 in-game minutes of dialogue.

But everything was moving so very fast – and not even in a good way. There are few things better than a fast paced, action rich story about a group of young people trying to safe (their) world. But if you try to cram in two expansions worth of character development and story telling into about two hours of content each patch.. Well, then you get whatever the hell this is.

Gaius is a very interesting character and while I did not understand why they needed to bring him back in 4.4 (?), I do see how he could be a good asset for endwalker. And his involvement in 5.0 with Estinien was just a dear delight. So I am not opposed to learning more about him, to watching his character grow and changed with time. But I am not ready for badly written content of which 50% get told by suddenly induced echo-sequences. I mean – weren’t there rules for the echo at some point???

I’m not sure which one of the devs said it, but the feature that let’s you play an NPC is super convenient for them to tell the story, because before they could only show what happened where the WoL was.

And that’s just it. Rule number 1 in writing anything is „Show don’t tell“. It feels like they literally turned this one around for these cutscenes. While Valens torture and diet-Fandaniel-routine were very much „show“, the rest of the story was one long cutscene of exposition: We get exposition by Cid, by Gaius, by echo, by Gaius and his crew again, then by Allie. Before having to watch scenes we are not there for.

BTW. Dear square Enix: Your writers are capable of writing amazing villains, antagonist and despicable assholes. You don’t have to write „asshole, must die“ on Valens name card. And I also think the „WoL, strike here“ sign above his head was a tad bit too much. Nuance, dear writers. Nuance. Or perhaps I just got spoiled by these last few foes in the MSQ.

When I said I wanted to just be able to punch a bad guy for once and not feel bad about it, I did not mean this! I meant that I just wanted to play training dummy with Danny-Boy.

(Oh! And as far as I’m concerned you can just… sideline Gaius … „would be killer“ and the lady? Make them targetable NPCs with Dialoge to read. Let them stand somewhere accessible and comment on the latest developement. But ffs don’t give me hour long speeches about how you are going to kill Gaius if he does something you don’t like. The guy could and would wipe the floor with you if he felt like it. -.- So. Please. Shut up.)

Conclusion

Basically. I have to finish the Diamond weapon. But I doubt it will change my perception of this story line even in the slightest.

To be perfectly honest though … bringing Gaius back, having this story with and about him, forcing a sort of redemption ark here. It feels like they are really „grooming“ him to be a morally grey ally in Endwalker, with perhaps a big part to play in the endgame. At this point I wouldn’t even be surprised if they pulled a GoT and made him „King in the North“. Or if they had him die a heroic death to save the world, but especially his country. And to do so they need us to think his sacrifice means something. Or that he is the right person to lead Garlemald into a new future (I don’t think he is). But: For one, neither we (the players) nor the characters need to find him worthy of throne or death by heroism for his sacrifice/ascension to work. To be a useful tool for the story, only the other garleans who might oppose the alliance and scions need to deem him or his sacrifice „worthy“. And only they. And Ishikawa-san has all of 6.0 to accomplish whatever the hell she needs him for. He did not need to be the center of his own botched redemption ark. If that’s what they wanted to do. Or maybe I’m looking at this all wrong and all they wanted was to give the writes in training some literal training grounds to test their abilities.

But! On a positive note: I have yet to be told that raids and other side content are canon to any degree. So when playing the next story quests I’ll blissfully ignore all that happened in Werlyt and if it get’s mentioned (because they do that sometimes when you’ve done certain content) I’ll just ignore it.

Happy ignoring! Also: GIVE ME MORE NERO CONTENT!

[aspectedstar]

UNTITLED; Angst one shot Rating: Mature Pairing: Elidibus x WoL/Azem CW: Possessive behavior, character "death", violence, kidnapping, captivity Summary: The Warrior of Light defeats the Warrior of Darkness at the top of the Crystal Tower. Ready to deal the final blow, his blade hesitates to finish the job.

BAD END.

The Hope of Mankind had won. Darkness defeated; Light will still prevail.

The Warrior of Light form of Elidibus stared down at the crumpled form of a Raen female. Battered, bruised, bloodied, and knocked out. This woman, who had given himself and his deceased brethren so much trouble, was finally going to be put to the sword.

Listelle Viyrel will be no more; He would be free to continue his work of rejoining the shards.

As it should have been long ago.

However, at the same time, she...had been interesting. Just something about the mortal frame of hers sparked a familiarity in her. The mannerisms, the appearance, and her hobbies all reminded him of someone he couldn't remember. Just who...? Who could it be? It was there--at the back of his mind; Just out of reach for him to grasp. A millennia of lost memory would not help him.

The healer had pleaded multiple times that she wished to not fight him. That there had to be common ground amongst them somewhere, somehow. The times they had met in secret; the times he indulged her curiosity of the Ascians themselves. The fact that she had mourned over Emet-Selch's death so much still made him second-guess his choices.

Regardless, his duty came before anything. He had to stay the course for the good of this star, no matter the cost.

Elidibus approached the unconscious form of the downed Warrior of Dartkness; His blade lifted to just where he had to hit. Once she was dealt with, nothing else would get in their way. Listelle had been by far the biggest nuisance they had encountered for a long time. He would remedy that situation quite quickly.

To deal the final blow, the Emissary went to bring his sword's blade upon her neck.

....Except, it never met it's mark.

The tip of the blade was barely above the small mortal's neck. He had stopped himself from dealing the execution of this girl. No! It should have been easy. All Elidibus had to do was kill her. Nothing else mattered, right? Zodiark being reborn would be much, much easier, once she was dead.

His hand trembled violently as he tried again, which ended in the same result. The blade stopped above her neck once more. Frustration was all over his face. No, he couldn't do it. Why? Why did this woman have a hold on him?

Was it because she felt comfortable around him, despite being on opposite sides? Was it because he secretly hated the fact that he would subconsciously seek her out at times? The time where he comforted her, when she had pangs of pain, due to the Lightwardens' aether in her? The time where she burst out in tears after dealing with Zenos yae Galvus to free Ala Mhigo? So many little instances of their encounters....

Elidibus longed for her, despite the insistence to end her here and now.

No, he would not. He would not end her life. Not now, not today, not ever. She was too valuable to him.

Elidibus would find a way to keep her out of harm's way, but also to keep her from interfering. Listelle would live regardless of what their one, true god wanted. This is what the Emissary wanted for once in his lifetime.

He would make sure of it.

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

Only three more Rejoinings until the world would be whole again.

In a plane only the Emissary could access, there was a single, large crystal within the center of the room. A deep blue color that housed a familiar face. The Warrior of Light of the Source was trapped and in a deep slumber within the mineral substance.

Still the same as Elidibus remembered after putting her within this crystal stasis. To keep her safe from harm and the calamities that were brought on the Source. There were mortals that did try to stand up to him and his remaining brethren, but had fallen.

Soon, it would be safe for Listelle to exist. Exist for herself; For him. It seemed the one, true god didn't mind this. The Emissary had remembered a few things by now. The incomplete woman before him was Azem, or at least, the sundered version of her.

Ephine.... how could he have forgotten her? Such a bundle of energy. Always willing to help people, but also be too self-sacrificing. Her love for plant life and animals was a breath of fresh air for him. He had looked up to her when he had been welcomed into the Convocation. Including the fact she didn't want a volcano destroying a precious kind of grape. Which could be turned into a delicious wine to drink. So much about Ephine he loved and missed.

Despite this, he knew she had been against the summoning of Zodiark in the past. The fact that they used him made her even more upset. He had told Emet-Selch and Hythlodaeus to take care of her. They would find a way to fix this star, no matter what the cost. She'd see why he was doing this. For their people; For the world; For her.

Elidibus never saw Ephine again after that; Something that he regrets.

However, he would make that up, once the world was whole again. Start anew with Listelle, or Ephine, whatever she wanted to be called.

He'd make her happy, no matter what the cost.

[soo-won]

I also can't help but see her as kinda self-centered for being angry at the gods only know when she learns /she/ has to be the one to kill Zeno. And that Zeno had to fall this low, plead her, for her to react this way. Like I know we had more information than her about the dragons etc for a long time but idk I wanted to punch the gods for nothing more but the dragons existing just for Hiryuu and forced to wait forever for them and the crimson illness so i'm a bit yes it's nice she's angry and wants to speak with the gods! But why did it take so long...I don't think it was the intention but in the end it's like she wasn't really concerned before it became a problem to her personally. I know it's because she was busy with the plot so I get it on a writing level but on a character level I'm well yes that's what we've been saying for many many years and should have been a topic much sooner.

Also really weird how no character brings up the Crimson Illness when it's definitely connected to all that. On a practical level again I understand that Kusanagi wants to do things step by step but it doesn't feel very natural for the characters to not mention it at all. Again, it makes it like they don't care because it's not their problem. But I feel like the way Yona spoke in ch258 hinted at her having some kind of idea about the illness? so wait and see. My guess for now is to resolve this issue Yona will have to let go of Hiryuu's soul and let it return to the heavens, except she needs that connection right now to save the dragons so she's leaving that for after that's done. Maybe.

I don't think her avoiding the difficult choice is bad though. Like it feels coherent with what akayona is about and the point of all these parallels between Zeno and Suwon. It's all about finding another solution. Zeno is so convinced there's no other solution because he can't conceive fighting against the very fundations, the roots of what made things this way. But Yona has that power. Zeno's plan was doomed to fail because of how he actively tried to avoid involving her and absolve her of her responsibility in all this because of his affection for her and Hiryuu. Even if admittedly Zeno was killed by Yona, that would be only be like playing the gods' game. They would get something from it no matter what it is. Nothing would stop them from creating another Zeno. It is fate. Submitting to the choices pushed on her would be the easy way for everyone. The execution is just whacky for now lol. The story going straight to make her a cool hero without showing much internal struggle and avoid any conflict with Zeno about her decision in 257 is the problem. Like you said, even if yes everything is originally because of the gods, I still wish she would feel some responsibility in all this...That's why I really wanted Hiryuu to be shown to be flawed and partly in the wrong for coming down in the human world in the first place too, but well. I won't get that visibly. At least not for now and I'm not expecting it anymore.

I just...Yona feels so distant lately (lately being at least 3 years tbh lol). We're in her head technically, but it's more for her reactions to what she sees directly and for exposition than it is to really explore her thoughts and feelings. I want to be closer to her again. I don't want to observe her from afar and praise her when she's midly badass, I want to be with her. I personally don't really care if Yona is "such a Queen" or whatever, I just want to feel her experience. I don't think everything will be resolved after one talk with the gods so I'm very curious of where it's going next but yeahhh...I hope it will give us more with Yona's character. I feel like the gods will ask her to return to the heavens in exchange for sure and a conflict can be created from that? wait and see.

i can’t help but interpret this as a selfish act.

what, so she meets with the gods, yells at them a bit, and everything is fine? she’s allowed to avoid making the difficult choice to spare zeno’s suffering even if it pains her? she still hasn’t acknowledged her hand in this either. i hope she has some sort of internal struggle, that she doesn’t get to swoop in last minute and play savior, pinning the fault entirely on the gods. imo that would cheapen both her development and zeno’s betrayal.

[charming-2d-boys]

New follower here! For the 500 follower event, could ask for #16 with hisoka and/or illumi? You choose. Thank you!

Hello! I hope you'll like it here @heyitsgarnet 😊

And thank you all for requesting, I hope you’ll like those as well and whatever else may come! 🙇💕😄

Here is Uvogin’s part and here is Nobunaga’s!

A/N: I put the ones with Illumi together with the other request since they are pretty similar and it would be a bit hard to use prompt 11 in 4 different ways...especially for Illumi. This just became part of something bigger and I had an idea, hope you and the others don’t mind me lumping them together

11. “You’re insane,” “You love me,” “Not right now I don’t.”

12. “Give me attention.”

16. “You met me yesterday.” “Yes, and I would die for you. Next question.”

19. “She’s hiding behind the sofa.”

Word count: 1539

-----

   It hadn’t been his idea. Honestly, if Illumi would’ve had any saying in this, it wouldn’t have even been worth mentioning. But, alas, the Zoldyck family wanted a wife for him and he couldn’t say no. Despite Silva being confident in Killua returning and taking over the family business, Zeno quietly suggested the oldest son having an heir himself. Just in case things didn’t work out as planned.

   That’s how Illumi found himself face to face with you. You were different, he could just feel it. Your Aura, the way you held yourself, how you spoke and even moved. Illumi didn’t really know what to think of you. You must’ve been something if his family chose you. After all, they wanted only the best.

   “The reason we called you here today is because we have a mission for you and Illumi. Here are the details.” Zeno said as a butler came and gave you and Illumi some documents with information about the target. You smiled and agreed while Illumi stared at the paper, confused. It didn’t seem like such a difficult mission, so why did they send the two of you together? “We’d like to see how the two of you would work together.” Ah, so that’s what it was about. After all, if you’d get to be part of the family, knowing that you could work together with Illumi and be professional while also married - and probably giving the family a new heir would - be an asset to the Zoldycks that they couldn’t miss out on.

   Knowing the details, the both of you left together the very next day, watching your target and learning more in order to come up with a good plan. At least, that was the plan. Illumi didn’t seem to want to work with you that much. He barely spoke and kept to himself, shooting down your suggestions and always finding a flaw within them. You kept trying. Not because you wanted to get married to him or anything – you couldn’t care any less. But you actually wanted to get along with him, at least a little. Stubbornness apparently ran in your family.

   During the mission, both of you went your own ways, dispatching guards left and right on opposite sides of the target’s house. You reached an enormous room full of precious artefacts, only to find Illumi in the back of the room, fighting some guards as a few others were doing his bidding and slaughtering their comrades – his Nen needles’ power, no doubt. He didn’t seem to be having a very hard time nor breaking a sweat. But you did see a sniper aiming at him from the floor above, gun propped against the railing as he had a clear shot of Illumi. Whether Illumi had sensed him or not didn’t matter because soon, he was falling, his body and gun hitting the floor with a loud thud. Illumi briefly glanced at the commotion and you before going back to his fight, with you coming to his aid here and there and getting rid of whoever dared to come from above or behind you. One of Illumi’s needles whizzed past you and you heard a gurgling and a thud. Part of you was thankful while another was wondering if he might’ve wanted to scare you with the needle’s proximity. You’d almost thrown yourself in front of an enemy who attempted to catch Illumi by surprise, the aforementioned man angrily dealing with the guard in a split second. As all of the bodies on the floor were soon lying on the floor except for the two of you, Illumi strode to you, toe to toe with you as he glared.

   “Are you stupid? You met me yesterday.”

   “Yes, and I would die for you. Next question.” Illumi looked at you incredulously as if you’d just grown another head. No sooner were the two of you done talking that you noticed a vault door in a hallway to the side, almost hidden, which you wouldn’t have noticed if not for a faint noise coming from its direction. You both looked at one another before silently moving in unison. The door wasn’t completely closed and when Illumi pulled it open, you saw your target in a corner. Needless to say, he was quickly disposed of by Illumi and the two of you returned to the hotel you were staying at, taking a late night dinner together.

   You both talked that night – you more than Illumi, though he talked a lot when it came to his family. At your suggestion a few hours later, Illumi and you decided to stay for a few more days in town, which was solved with a quick call to the Zoldycks. He wasn’t so bad once you got to know him somewhat and he was definitely an interesting individual who seemed to be quite knowledgeable despite his young age. The time together was spent going through different cafés and museums, enjoying the town and whatever it had to offer.

   And as soon as you returned to the Zoldyck estate, it was pretty much settled that you two would get married. Neither you nor Illumi seemed to mind. It would be a new experience for the two of you and you were sure you could make him open up even more. Luckily for you, he already care quite a lot by the time you two tied the knot.

   Besides that first mission where you showed Illumi that you were willing to sacrifice yourself for him, there was one more time when something similar happened. Another mission where the two of you went together – this time as a married couple instead of business partners – and again, your instinct told you to protect Illumi. This time, he was late by a fraction of a second and you got hurt – not badly and you barely reacted, but Illumi grew angry at the sight of blood trailing down your skin and quickly killed whoever hurt you. The target was still alive and Illumi sent you home, leaving before you could argue with him to finish the mission.

   It had left a bitter taste in your mouth and as soon as you were dropped off at the estate, you went to your room and hid behind the large couch present there, just like when you were a kid and got scolded. Looking out the large, open window at the garden outside, mulling over your thoughts and what you could’ve – should’ve – said, you were snapped out of your thoughts by Illumi’s voice coming from outside.

   “Where is (Y/N)?” He asked as he started going up the stairs to the entrance, Gotoh following behind him.

   “In your bedroom. She’s hiding behind the sofa, sir.” You rolled your eyes, readying yourself for Illumi’s appearance. Of course Gotoh would tell him. Soon, you heard the door open and saw Illumi appear  next to you. You refused to look at him as you drew formless shapes into the carpet with your finger. With a barely audible sigh, he sat down next to you, your knees touching.

   “I don’t want you to get hurt on my behalf.” You stayed silent, trying to sort through your emotions and thoughts. You were married – in love or not, you knew you liked him a lot and cared about him – and felt it was natural to want him to be safe, even if he was more than well prepared. It was like your body moved without your mind having a say in it. But would Illumi understand if you told him this? Would he consider you too weak or as if you needed protection? Would he just refuse to let you tag along on missions?

   “Hey, give me attention. I really don’t want you to get hurt, okay?” You sighed before turning to face him, finding Illumi’s stare directed at your face. You had to explain your feelings to him, even if it would be hard for him to understand. But surprisingly, he did understand your point of view.

   “I know you’re strong and capable, Illumi. But so am I, don’t forget that. I was trained to be an assassin, too, even if it’s not what I want to do for the rest of my life.” He only nodded before tensing as your fingers linked with his. He was still getting used to affectionate gestures and tender touches, but he soon relaxed, both of you left in comfortable silence.

   ��You’re insane, you know that?” Illumi asked you after a bit of thinking, though you had a feeling it was a rhetorical question. You could only laugh before squeezing his hand.

   “Maybe~ But you love me~” You looked at him, batting your eyelashes as a playful smile took over your lips.

   “Not right now I don’t.” You pouted before pinching his side, receiving only a confused look which you quickly altered by poking his cheek cutely. Illumi surprised you by kissing your palm, making you freeze and feel your cheeks heat up.

   “You’ll be the death of me one day…” You mumbled before burying your face into his shoulder, trying to compose yourself. Little did you know that Illumi was thinking the exact same thing as he looked at you fondly, feeling the butterflies swirling around in his stomach.

[baidar-oroq]

An Endwalker thought

Going under this here cut:

I wound up being annoyed at the cut scene that ended the generally horrifying "In From The Cold" quest in Garlemald, for one, singular reason.

It should have been Y'shtola that recognized that Zenos was in your body.

The story worked double overtime to make sure she couldn't, lampshading it by mentioning that all of the bad aether in the air was messing with her, and gave the "wait, it's not the WoL moment" to G'raha. Which is doubly annoying, because G'raha had, at that point in time, never met Zenos. He only had heard of him. He had no narrative connection to Zenos at all. He and Alisaie were thrown in the path of the possessed WoL to build the horror of the moment, and there's nothing wrong with that so much, but it's like this.

Zenos nearly murdered Y'shtola.

I used to think that people saying Y'shtola had no character development were being unfair, because she's had some, it just kind of happens invisibly, or comes in moments easily missed, like her line of dialog that comes after Seat of Sacrifice where she wishes she had the Echo so she could see your heart and know what you had seen. But with Endwalker, it becomes a fair accusation in my opinion, because this is a moment where Ishikawa and crew frankly dropped the ball. The fact that Zenos nearly killed Y'shtola is never mentioned. It comes up on a side story on the website and-that's it. She never gets a dialog bubble mentioning that she came this close to bleeding to death as a Garlean prisoner.

Instead her moment is given to G'raha, which makes zero narrative sense beyond appealing to how the community is supposed to accept him as being the special one to the WoL. (Yeah I've got another post in mind about how hard the story drives him being the most special to the WoL, but I gotta be in the right frame of mind to open THAT can of worms.)

I admit to an inherent bias here: Baidar's character arc since Stormblood has been a drive to become stronger than Zenos because he nearly killed Y'shtola, complicated by the fact that Baidar had never lost a fight until Zenos and he wanted to face him again and beat him. My horror in that moment of the cut scene was "Zenos is coming to kill Baidar's friends and Y'shtola can't see it's the man who nearly murdered her", which works for ME, but overall, would it have killed them to still put Alisaie and G'raha where they were, but have Y'shtola be the one who goes "Wait, that's not the WoL?"

(I'm still beefing over how Y'shtola never got a quest where she accompanies you and frigging GODBERT has, but that's another post.)