#and if she got to know durge actually has it worse than she had with the eponymous dark urges

[thunderboltfire]

I know the Gorion's Ward is dead in BG3 canon (as per Murder in Baldur's Gate and so on), but for me personally the real reason why they aren't in the game is that if Iwona got to know that Bhaal is back on his 'creating bhaalspawns' bullshit, she'd get so mad she'd immediately ascend as a goddess of Pissed Off Offspring and punch her father in the balls.

[sailorgundam308]

Got pretty annoyed yesterday while discussing the game with a friend (don’t worry, we’re still friends lol). But truly, I got annoyed at, once more, seeing how there are wrong assumptions weaved into the community discourse - things based out of someone’s ass, apparently, that got traction and now are repeated by players as if it’s true. But, of course, if anyone stops 2 seconds to actually pay attention to the game, these ideas prove to be just wrong.

This friend, for example, was mentioning how Astarion and Karlach NEVER agree or disagree together in anything. That’s a lie. I’ve (me myself, so I KNOW firsthand) been screen shooting every time there’s an agreement between them and when there isn’t. There are much more agreements than disagreements between Astarion and Karlach. They do come across as having different alignments, but they think alike MUCH more than ‘the internet’ (or even some devs?!) tend to believe. They might justify their rationale in different ways but they do agree together and disagree together way more than they disagree with each other. So that is something I personally can attest to.

Then I heard the argument that Karlach and Astarion don’t get unique scenes between each other: again, untrue. The tiefling party scene with Karlach, for starters, is the only unique romance scene for Astarion. The only person who has back and forth with Karlach after the paladins of Tyr are defeated is Astarion. They have (out of the top of my head, at least 4 unique short banters while both are in the party - again, more than Karl with any other companion.

Then the wrong assumption Astarion can’t go to Avernus : he can and he goes, both as ascended and spawn if you’re playing origin Karl. Ascended if you’re playing him.

A lot stems, again, from simplistic and shallow interpretations of both these characters’ story arcs and personalities. Others come from prejudice, from passing judgement on their appearance instead of their “content”.

Moreover, though, there will never be as much this x that content if it’s involving Karlach (and worse for Wyll) SIMPLY BECAUSE there is LESS than A THIRD the amount of content for Karlach in ANYTHING.

For some reason writers/devs took a long while to decide to put the work into Karlach and when they did they clearly made a bet that blew in their faces - that she’d be a lesser origin character and that’d turn out alright. But she’s the second most popular character and because people like her, they are paying attention to her story - and the massive lack of work and resources dedicated to her arc. Imagine if she had received the attention in detail and the game time / in game content, say, shadowheart received? Instead of a temple Shar, we went to Avernus? In place of Shar, ZARIEL made a personal appearance? We could’ve gotten a young Karlach flashback cinematic, an extra dungeon in act 3, then a personal quest closure with Gortash instead of SH’s parents, so we’d know what the fuck happened. As someone who can’t give two shits about SH, that would’ve been incredible to play. Half of that would still have been a blast. But we get nowhere near. And I’m only bringing Karlach to attention here as an example - if you look at Wyll (who was the front page origin boy since the conception of the game), the disparity is even more shocking.

I’ve read on a writer’s twitter a while back (can’t remember who exactly so you’ll have to excuse me), that they were the writers for Durge, and for a time they got to write some stuff for Astarion for a bit, due to some task delegation changes and whatnot, and they explicitly said they “managed to put in things specific to their “main” character (durge) in Astarion’s writing” - or something in those lines. Honestly… what the fuck? Not sure if that was the intention, but to me it sounded like someone with their own precious OC, which they are obviously attached to, pushing content in to benefit their “main”. In a game where there are several “mains” and many with glaringly less content than others. Again, in my interpretation of what I read that day, this information came across as the most unprofessional shit I’ve seen - if you are tasked to write someone else’s character, you should act as that character’s writer - not a fanfic writer trying to push a personal headcanon or narrative because it pleases YOU, in detriment of other characters. It was wild at the time and I just kinda… walked away and pretended I didn’t read it. It was just shocking and not the attitude I expected from a serious professional.

Whether that’s the whole truth or not I can’t say, but what I can say is that this left me with a weird taste in my mouth and perhaps that’s why until today I couldn’t finish a single run with Durge despite trying several. There are other issues with Durge for me personally in term of the actual writing of the sentences and the way they were worded that just seems impossible to take seriously. (But I’m trying to get over it still, as I want to experience this part of the game too, so I won’t give any sort of personal final veredict).

Also, the idea that Durge was supposed to be the main character… that’s a new assumption for me and my friend also brought it up. That sounded very sus and I went to read more about it and, of course, that’s also wrong. In previous BG games, we always played a Bhaalspawn. It would make perfect sense we played one again - but the butler shit, the amnesia, the gore erotic fantasies, that wouldn’t fly for the average BG3 player - and wasn’t supposed to. When they decided to split tav to leave the “absolutely neutral protagonist” they parted with the bhaalspawn narrative that was a very big part of the previous games, so I assume they didn’t want to just toss it, but put it to another “dark tav” or whatever shit that means. And then they doubled down with the evil and edge lord of kitschy horror narrative. It’s FINE. But isn’t supposed to be the main character.

TLDR: instead of taking random assumptions about bg3 as yours, pay attention to the game itself. And think critically about it a bit. All the origins are presented AS equals but they’re nothing but. And Larian should be (yes, troubleshooting tech issues but also) trying to even out the absurd gaps they allowed to happen in integrating the narrative of, especially, Karlach and Wyll into the game. Make more and decent content for them, fix the plot holes, rewrite the shit that doesn’t make sense for them FIRST.

Tbh, I wouldn’t be complaining if Larian had owned it to their content and presented us with Karlach and Wyll as sort of Halsin or Minthara type of companion - non origin, lesser tier of companion. Then the production choices they made would be at the very least justified. And I won’t EVEN start on the fact that these two, Karl and Wyll, are the two PoC origins… the black guy and the southeast Asian woman. Because, oh, boy, things start to look VERY bad when you put THAT into this equation… 👀

[crossdressingdeath]

I genuinely do believe that Karlach is the earliest sign of Larian's "pander to the fans no matter how much damage it does to the story" mentality. Like, I love her as a character! But she wasn't designed to be an origin companion, and looking at her quest you can see they didn't actually know what to do with her when they upgraded her importance. From what I understand she was originally an escapee from Zariel's army that Wyll was tasked to track down, and that was it! That was all that was necessary! No engine for a heart, no connection to Gortash, she was a one-off quest character who didn't need a deeper story and she was a strong character for what she needed to be. And Larian could've gotten away with making her a recurring NPC or even act 2/3 companion with that characterization, but to please the fans they made her an origin companion... which meant suddenly she needed a more complex story and a personal quest and an arc tied into the main plot, and they botched that so hard because she wasn't designed with that in mind. Her personal quest is a) a fetch quest and then b) tied so tightly to the main plot that you can't even properly complete it unless you do the main story in a specific way. If you ally with Gortash and he's killed by the brain Karlach's quest never properly completes! You never get the conversation with her where she gets pissed about how it didn't change anything because she's still going to die and she wants to live! That is bullshit! Although honestly she should probably leave you entirely if you ally with Gortash, by tying her personal arc so closely to her hatred of him they've created a situation where it feels absolutely bizarre that she sticks around if you do that. Especially playing Durge; you're telling me she learns the group's leader was Gortash's best friend and then they choose to ally with him and she yells at them for two seconds and then is fine with it? That's... stupid. It's stupid. If you're not going to let her quest complete if the players ally with Gortash then at least give an actual reason for that. Also, her backstory doesn't make any sense; why would Gortash go to all that trouble to keep her in the dark about what he was doing? Why would he care? Why would Zariel care enough for Karlach to apparently be her special favourite (but apparently not enough to make more than a halfhearted effort to go after her; seriously, she gives up completely after two attempts and only really comes up again outside of backstory discussion when Karlach insists she'll be after her again if she returns to Avernus as a reason for choosing death over going back even temporarily)? Why would an archdevil care enough to make a deal with the scales weighted so heavily against her for one random teenager? It's actually significantly weakened the emotional impact of the whole thing for me, I keep going down the rabbit hole of how little fucking sense this makes and it drags me out of the story.

...This has gotten away from me slightly. Basically Karlach's story as an origin companion makes it clear that they didn't actually have a plan for making her so important. They just rehashed Gale's exploding chest bomb thing in a much less plot-relevant way and leashed the whole thing to a villain who already had strong ties to an origin companion instead of giving her her own damn villain like all the other origin companions. She barely even has a quest, and certainly not one with a satisfying arc and interesting moral questions involved in it like everyone else got. She was much stronger as a less important character, because as a less important character she didn't need a detailed backstory or personal quest so the question of whether those things made sense or were good was a moot point. And looking at it in hindsight... yeah, that fits very neatly into the running theme of Larian making the story worse to pander to the fans.

[outeremissary]

Oooh how about telling us a little about The Thousand Mile Fall? 👀

Thank you Ash and @bearvanhelsing for asking!

I want to begin by apologizing- I suspect you were looking for Tristian, but this is the single BG3 thing that was on the list. Jay, idk where you stand on discourse game of the year, but Ash, I know that you're not a fan and have been working on distance. I'm placing the rest under a cut. You can read it or not read it. Either thing is fine with me.

As compensation: the one actual Kingmaker ask I got on this (sorry it's not a flashy one), or a PF2e one about Kasander/Asperia.

Still with me? Thank you, I appreciate it!! Let's see to what degree I'm willing to bare my soul before I get too embarrassed and awkwardly trail off.

Ah: DUrge spoiler warning. And content warning: DUrgetash (sorry)

So! The Thousand Mile Fall, something which was only just starting to go beyond planning (and originally planning for a comic) when my laptop committed die. I was really interested in the concept of the Dark Urge as a character who was always framed as having fallen from grace, and who had also fallen from a state of divinity. The liminal state excited me, and we all know how I feel about a horrible someone who's a horrible failure of an angel. Horrible failure of a demigod occupies a similar space. I think the nature of that failure- that fall- began to occupy me quite a bit, since I had a strong concept for Asperia from very, very early on in my playthrough (long before I knew anything besides the DUrge plot besides that they were a Bhaalspawn, even before I had become convinced Kasander and Asperia existed simultaneously) and at the heart of Asperia was someone who was infallible and convinced of their invincibility- maybe rightly so.

So, this story is set only a bit before the game and is meant to unpick the loss of that perfect favor- in my mind, the loss of Asperia's "godhood," something which is stolen twice. The second and definitive loss is of course to Orin in a singular act of violence, but Orin's path to victory was opened by the slow and insidious poison of having known Enver Gortash. In a "the bar is in hell" turn of things, their... acquaintanceship is the closest thing Asperia has ever experienced to a normal relationship and a normal life. And that glimpse of the other side is what unmakes her. It's always been crucial to Asperia's role in the system to be the one who loves being Bhaal's beloved child, who can reconcile anything with belonging, who buys in so fully that it is unthinkable to be less than a god and it is unthinkable to have desires besides those of a god. Others hold the questions, the fear, the other desires- Kasander and Bride especially- but Asperia wants nothing else in life, and Asperia believes with painful, self-destructive fervor.

Asperia has already been acquainted with Gortash for some good while here, the wheels turning in the scheme of the Absolute. This is the longest positive relationship of any kind Asperia has ever had outside of whatever pseudo-parental thing he has with Scleritas, and it has been wonderful: novel, collaborative, a meeting with someone who resembles an equal despite being a mere mortal. Asperia has begun to see other facets of the world through this, to see the ways the world of the living comes together for purposes besides inevitable execution. It's all an act of devotion, all furthering the will of Bhaal, all what Asperia desires and wants to do. But the further it's gone the more it's started to be fun for its own sake too, and a certain fascination with a frenemy has begun to blossom into dangerous fantasies.

Asperia doesn't fantasize. Asperia can't fantasize. Asperia is a god, and he only wants things which are real and deserved. Bhaal's favor is proof of that: Orin's ugly, messy desires make her a worse worshiper, and she's never had their divine father's love. Asperia is Bhaal's beloved. Asperia is defined by her distance from those mistakes. And so too is Asperia the perfect disciple, a being beyond sin. If something is what Asperia wants, then it must be acceptable.

And this is how Asperia begins to lose Bhaal's favor.

Asperia starts the story at a personal high and only rising- with the world at her fingertips and Bhaal's love behind her, she's preparing for the victory lap and has taken an extra prize in becoming more intimately involved with Gortash. But you can't have your cake and eat it too- this impossible personal high the seed of Asperia's ruin, already sown, takes root and begins to grow. Bhaal's perfect killing machine doesn't play house with Bane's Chosen. And there are more than enough people who fucking hate Asperia already and are ready to take note- as well as Gortash himself, so much older and colder than young, sheltered Asperia. There may be some genuine affection there in some form, but calculation and power take precedent, as does the enjoyment of solving this Bhaalspawn puzzle by picking her apart.

Over time the increasingly clear dissonance between the impossible misalignment- the first Asperia has ever experienced- between what they want and what Bhaal allows them to desire and have drives them to spiral into a state of exceptional vulnerability that ultimately allows Orin to usurp them. The escalating stress causes them to lose time more and more frequently, beyond what they can explain away to themself and make disappear, and they begin to doubt themself. To fear what is happening, and to develop their own doubts about Bhaal- things that should live elsewhere, things that cause other parts to bubble up in ways they notice. Asperia is straying and rivals like Orin can see it, is becoming less dependable and reluctant allies like Ketheric can see it, is becoming a less than perfect disciple and that butler shepherd of Bhaal can see it (not that every part was always perfect- Scleritas has always known that "Asperia" is more than just Asperia, and has long pitted Asperia against themself). And Asperia is vulnerable and open and easier and easier to see- and Gortash, who has solved the part of this puzzle Asperia refuses to see quite well, sees it all and drives the spiral deeper. Pulls Asperia closer, and begins to learn the others without letting Asperia know (this is a piece of how Kasander knows Gortash, has known Gortash before anything).

So y'know. It's all heading for inevitable tragedy, heartbreak, ruin, bad feelings, and a tadpole in the head, as well as a shitty asshole boyfriend conspiring with one's sister who has been waiting for ages for the change to REALLY wreck one's shit. Yikes! Feel like not enough was spent on the family drama and that's sold Orin short, but she's played a damn active hand through it all. Sacrificial Orin, always underestimated, always overlooked, always surviving.

I dunno how to conclude this and I feel like I probably talked too long (half just to remember things I can't access until the new laptop arrives and is set up). All in all, just a fun little project to play with while I continue to fail to finish the last teeny bit of the actual goddamn game (I'm the worst at wrapping up the last little dregs of things after I've cleaned up the most fun stuff).

TLDR: Asperia, main character of life, starts to Lose the Plot and gets written out of the story for a little while

[sunflowergem]

2, 11, and 18 for sunflower and valora (for the oc asks! if you're still taking those, sorry i'm super late <:3)

Not to worry, I'm literally always open to take asks especially for the OCS! Thanks for sending some in

2: what is their cafe order?

🌻 since she's based off me, I'll give my go-to order if it's available. I love lattes that have flower syrups in them. One of my particular favorites from a cafe that I used to go to in America had a lavender vanilla latte that I just adored. I miss that Cafe so much. It was right by where I had one of my part-time jobs ���� actually have a bunch of dried flowers that I needed to turn into some syrup so I can start making flower lattes for myself at home. They are usually not available where I live now. At least not in any of the cafes I've seen.

🩸hmmmm, I already have them as a fan of savory items but would they be a tea or a coffee person... I'm going to go with tea and I think there are frappuccino person. They are all about the indulgence and curiosity, so any new seasonal item would probably be their go-to to at least try once. So not so much a regular order but predictable when you can see the menu. If it's a place with a set menu that they go to constantly, probably like a chai frappuccino or a matcha frappuccino. Something with a bit of a strong flavor palette and a lot of really rich ingredients.

🌻 music boxes, sea shells, notebooks, mortar and pestle

11: name 3-5 things that you associate your oc with

I think I already did this one, but let's see if I can come up with some other items 😁

🩸 large pillows, paint, candles, teeth

18: is your oc afraid of anything?

🌻 losing others for sure. Despite the peril that they are all in. She's very happy to be around so many people. Especially as they I'll start to care for each other and become a real group of friends. The end of the campaign after the tadpole is gone is going to be rather devastating as she goes back to a more solitary life. In the best end she'll have a couple of them stick around for a while and some people living in her house but it's not quite the same connection that they had on the road. There isn't really a romantic connection for her either. I've thought about it a lot and I just really can't nail down one companion she would end up with and she just reads perpetually single to me. So I don't think she's going to end up in a relationship despite probably wanting one. She longs for the romantic connection but is never able to foster one of her own. On the more mundane side I don't think she ever truly got over her fear of thunderstorms. She just learned how to cope. It probably got worse when she got older and was left alone in the manner with mom. Not so much afraid of them but she does not like cows.

🩸 typical durge loss of autonomy fear, since she doesn't have a true form of their own loss of identity is pretty big and that one kind of came true after the memory loss because of Orin, they wouldn't remember it during the journey but was afraid of what would happen to Orin without them. They were fully aware of how messed up in the head Orin was but cared for them anyway, I also think they might have found out the true parentage of Orin before being attacked so that made them extra protective. There was a true twisted sense of selfless love between the two 'siblings' and when you love something, you're afraid to lose it. Back when they knew they were a blob. They were also afraid of losing their connection to Bhaal because they did not know if they could exist without him. Eventually they'll fear hurting the companions since they will go to care for them all. As they grow closer to Wyll, they'll end up with a fear of responsibility that would come along with the relationship to him. They end up scared that they can't be a good person, valid considering how much sway an evil entity has over them. Overall pretty typical durge fears, with a little bit extra of an identity crisis. Other than that they are truly too curious and stupid to have mundane fears like darkness, storm, fire, clowns. All that typical stuff doesn't really bother them.

[spacestationstorybook]

didn't want an essay in the tags but just to see if i could do it all of the options on that poll (last rb) and the f/o it applies to

mischaracterization: dash in more or less every way you could think of.

ignored for not being (male): orin oh my godddd the‏‏‎ ‎bg3‏‏‎ ‎fandom has a terrible misogyny problem but it's particularly bad with her the male villains all get thirsted over constantly and essays written about them and she gets maybe the occasional "i could fix her" comment. she was traumatized by‏‏‎ ‎bhaal‏‏‎ ‎just as much as canon durge the only place she was ever given to belong resents her her life is a TRAGEDY and nobody CARESSSSS sorry. i get really sad about orin can you tell

one character trait: harder to say with this one but probably dash again

gets in the way of a popular ship: ...sylvia a little. not that fans actually dislike her but they do push her to the side for yaoi near constantly despite the fact that if‏‏‎ ‎black‏‏‎ ‎eye‏‏‎ ‎was m/m fans would be slobbering all over it. also thetis‏‏‎ ‎but not in the third wheel way exactly

minor character: moss :( tbh i rarely fall for minor characters but when i do it's so much harder lmao i am so bad with characters with minimal content i do not have the energy to be making it all myself:

infantilization: BERNIEEEEEEEEE and‏‏‎ ‎from what i've seen‏‏‎ ‎pomni‏‏‎ ‎gets it a little. yes she's cute but she is not like a baby to be protected or a stay-at-home housewife in the making she is extremely capable strong and smart ESPECIALLY considering what she has had to go through

sexualized: orin or karlach probably since both of them get the Step On Me treatment WAITTTT IT'S MORDECAI‏‏‎ ‎it's worse considering you know canonically sex repulsed so it stands out more when it's always he wouldn't fucking do that.

misinterprets their trauma: THETIS. THETIS. THETIS. THETIS. literally no one EVER wants to acknowledge that she was abused and is a trauma victim while they love to blorbofy her rapist as a Fun Cool Dad. but no she gets to be the abuser because god forbid a woman have bad coping mechanisms

people hate them for something small: thetis‏‏‎ ‎della‏‏‎ ‎hollis‏‏‎ ‎camila I Could Go On but you get the picture. there's a theme.

cartoon killer treatment:‏‏‎ ‎mordecai‏‏‎ ‎lol tbh there are smidgens of this in canon i don't really think she got the Best treatment considering she is by all standards heavily implied to have autism and/or ocd at the least if not a personality disorder (as well as making the cold unfeeling character the ace one) but fandom plays into it heavy as fuck

jokes about trauma: bernie again but this one is wayyyy more canon's fault they are so so fucking disrespectful towards her

useless to the story: bernie‏‏‎ ‎a bit but honestly also‏‏‎ ‎dash‏‏‎ ‎in the sense that people say she shouldn't be an element of‏‏‎ ‎harmony‏‏‎ ‎because she's "too rude" or struggles with her element more than the others. you guys are weak and she should be meaner

[edelblau]

marz said they love my durgey so im gonna use that as an excuse to infodump about them (and try to put it under a readmore but readmores always break for me now so who knows if itll post properly) (spoilers for baldurs gate 3 dark urge playthrough to follow)

my main dark urge is named naught (like zero/nothingness ^_^). he's a tiefling monk with they/him pronouns. below is a lazy reference for his more 'unique' features i spent very little time on

his backstory is largely the normal dark urge stuff; wandering and strange from the get go with unsettling mannerisms even as a child, he was adopted by a poor family. he actually bore a lot of affection for them, and tried very very hard to be 'normal'. when he realized his family was displeased with the way he sort of romanticized violence and death, he tried to tamp it down. however, given the nature of the urge, he was eventually overcome and killed them (second heal memory)

after that incident, he fled his home, and tried unsuccessfully to resist; but as his body count even unintentionally rose he fully gave in. in his time as the leader of the bhaal cult, a lot of his 'personality' outside of the urge was utterly erased and dead.

interestingly, however, he regained some sense of 'self' as the plans for the absolute took place, though perhaps in a way that was worse for everyone. the tldr of this being that because the plan required he interact with and 'bond', so to speak, with gortash, leader of the banites, he was able to have conversations with someone. the issue here being of course that gortash is a terrible person, but so was he, so it was sort of a net 0 for humanity and only really 'good' for him (and maybe gortash, i guess) since it let him retain a hint of personhood outside of bhaal; personhood that would serve him after orin's betrayal at moonrise.

(pictured: real canon shit the durge writes about gortash)

of course, dark urge and gortash's murderous funtimes had to end when orin got tired of the family drama and decided to end it the only way she knew how.

this left naught at the beginning of the game in a position where they knew intuitively that they enjoy others company, they didnt remember how resisting was 'futile', and they were surrounded by people who could definitely kill them if they acted out too harshly. not that naught didn't 'act out'-- he has a very Broken sense of morality and whats 'too far' after everything, and definitely partook of some torture and senseless violence a few times. nothing especially severe (he didn't get arabella killed or the rest of the grove, for instance), but he definitely was... bad. not normal.

these lapses would slowly die down, however, the closer naught came to the others around him. their sense of morality rubbing off on him and making him desire their approval. where he once welcomed his butler, he started fighting back; still bound to his urge, still not entirely 'there', but constantly thrashing against the current-- until the orin battle, which went Great, by the way

even after withers resurrection, though, i dont think hed ever truly be 'normal'. even if his nightmares no longer stem from bhaal, i dont think theyd ever go away fully. and i dont think hed ever fully gain a normal moral compass (hes dating astarion, by the way. so good luck faerun.) nor do i think hed ever fully come to remember his past; though i dont think hed ever fully care to, either. hed always remain this unnerving, somewhat 'immoral' person; always a bit more brutal than he should be, a bit more direct, a bit too stiff and strange. full of love and care that hes learned from his journey, but still with a hint of violence; no longer bhaal's, but wholly his own. always a step away from a 'normal' person even without bhaal's black blood in his veins.

but at least minsc is his uncle. thats nice.

[cienie-isengardu]

Anakin making sure Obi-Wan get medical help & will not sidetrack on his way to medbay

I’m re-reading again The Clone Wars: Gambit duology - or more precisely, I’m focusing at parts about clone troopers and Anakin for my upcoming analysis about the relationship between them and its impact on Skywalker and the  marginalized group of soldiers. Yeah, wish me luck with that, there is so many stuff to check out.

Anyway, the thing I wish to actually talk right now is how Anakin is sort of “mother hen” when it comes to Obi-Wan’s injuries. I mean, both of them are patients difficult to work with, but Kenobi is even worse. He has a tendency to not take a proper care of his injuries and it comes to Anakin to make sure that he is not harassing the poor medics and get to medbay like it’s suggested. What in itself is so funny for me because majority(?) of fans usually associate Anakin with recklessness and immature behaviour which I disagree, but whatever while Kenobi is seen as the responsible, caring and sober-minded adult figure in their duo I sort of disagree with that too.

Whatever can be said about Gambit: Stealth, the interactions between characters are full of interesting things to analyze. Like the scene after battle, in which Anakin came to makeshift “medical infirmary” where wounded clone  troopers were already triaged and waiting for the next medevac flight to arrive. Here he met his injuried padawan and former master (Obi-Wan, Ahsoka and Torrent Company took part in ground assault while Skywalker fought in a space battle):

"No, no, I'm fine, I'm fine. Please don't worry about me. You need to check on Captain Rex and the others, there's nothing wrong with me, it's just a bruise. And I didn't faint, I-I tripped."

The second thing he heard was the clipped, impatient voice of his former Master.

"Ahsoka, be quiet. Captain Rex and his men are in good hands already. Besides, it's not a bruise, it's three fractured ribs, which means-ow!"

Ow? Oh, great. He's done it again.

Threading a path between hurrying medics and clone troopers and scattered bits of Grievous's destroyed army, Anakin let the Force guide him to where he needed to be.

Obi-Wan and Ahsoka sat side-by-side on crates in a hastily setup triage area, just outside an entrance into the spynet building. One clone medic was encasing his singed and smoke-stained Padawan's torso in an inflatable brace, and another was attempting to extract a wicked-looking shard of shattered transparisteel from Obi-Wan's chest plate. Several more shards were deeply embedded in both arms and his right shoulder. He looked like an extremely cranky pincushion.

"General, please stay completely still," said the medic, sounding harried. "I don't want to hurt you any more than I..."

"Can I help?" Anakin said, joining them.

This is not the first time when Obi-Wan get seriously injured. I’m glad that various sources acknowledged that Jedi can be hurt as everyone else. Thinking about it, in Republic comics series Kenobi for sure suffered a lot, including beating from Durge & Asajj’s torture.

Ahsoka’s is so worry about badly wounded Rex and other troopers, she doesn’t care much for her own wounds. Obi-Wan’s voice is described as impatient, what means he is irritated by her reckless behaviour. Even though he doesn’t act any better when in comes to his injuries.

“General, please stay completely still," said the medic, sounding harried.“ Where is your appreciation for the hard work of the medics, Obi-Wan?

"You're sure my Padawan's going to be fine?" Anakin asked the medic.

"No reason to think otherwise, sir," said the medic, allowing a little unprofessional sympathy to show. "Provided she gets to a proper medfacility sooner rather than later."

"She will. Now, about General Kenobi... "

The medic treating Obi-Wan cleared his throat. "The general's life might not be in danger, sir, but I still really need to get this transparisteel out of him. It's not what you'd call hygienic." He looked down. "So, General, if you could please keep still and stop talking, that would be helpful."

"Yes, yes, all right," Obi-Wan muttered, hating the fuss. Refusing to admit any kind of physical weakness. "But do please hurry up. I can't sit here all day."

"Obi-Wan, you can sit there for as long as the medics need you to," said Anakin, and turned to the harassed clone. "Have you scanned him? Is there any arterial involvement? Or nerve damage?"

Obi-Wan hates when people fuss about him and refuses to admit any kind of physical weakness. Yeah, I think such attitude seriously affected Anakin and his lack of social skills & courage to ask for help.

Also Obi-Wan is terrible patient who just want get back to his duties as fast as he can, without regard for his own health. As someone who a) is Jedi and 2) outrank the poor medic, the hustling must be double stressful.

Anakin doesn’t care, just sit and let the medic do his job, thank you very much.

Also, in older comics series, Anakin spent some time in Republic Mobile Surgical Units (R.M.S.U.) and though he is not full trained Jedi healer (not like Legend!Barriss was), it’s nice to see him discuss medical stuff with non-Jedi qualified staff:

"No nerve damage, no compromised arteries," said the medic. "There's a tendon that's not looking too cheerful, but we can take care of it once these transparisteel splinters are out of him."

"You're having some trouble with that?"

"A bit," the medic admitted. "They're stuck in him but good and if I use brute force to pull them out, I'll do more damage than they did going in."

"Please don't," said Obi-Wan. "I've wasted enough time as it is."

Ignoring him, Anakin frowned thoughtfully. "Right. I get the picture. Look, I don't mean to tread on your toes but do you mind if I try something?"

The medic stood back. "Be my guest, General Skywalker."

"Anakin, what are you doing?" Obi-Wan demanded. "We both know you're not a healer. Please, leave this to the exp..."

"Hush up," he said mildly. "You're distracting me."

As Obi-Wan opened his mouth in comical surprise, the medics exchanged amused glances. Ahsoka stifled a giggle.

"Fine," said Obi-Wan with poor grace, defeated. "But whatever you intend to do, get on with it. Captain Drayk and Sergeants Ven and Ando are coordinating what's left of our troops but I need to get back out there. It's going to take hours to clean up the mess Grievous has left behind here."

"Don't worry about that now," he said, and dropped to a crouch in front of his former Master. "Drayk's a good officer. Just relax, clear your mind, and don't fight me."

Anakin is already famous & respected general who outrank almost everyone in that scene (except Kenobi), still he asked if the medic is okey with him “trying something different” (like using Force) to remove dangerous splinters from Obi-Wan’s body.

Did I mention that Obi-Wan is really difficult patient? Thanks the Force, Anakin is stubborn too & sure about his skills enough to just hush his former master.

Also, praising Drayk as a good officer who will get the job done without Kenobi’s help. Someone has a faith in skills of other officers while someone else thinks(?) that without him the job will not be done enough fast and/or good... unless Obi-Wan simply uses this as an excuse to get away from medic / “infirmary”...?

Resting his gloved human fingers on Obi-Wan's forearm, Anakin closed his eyes and breathed out long and slow. Allowing the Force to rise within him, warm and familiar, he let it show him the shape of the eight transparisteel splinters still lodged in Obi-Wan's body. Nasty. Painful. It was nothing short of a miracle they hadn't severed nerves or sliced major blood vessels, which meant Obi-Wan would heal as good as new once the shards were removed.

He lifted his hand and opened his eyes. Focusing the power of the Force, he summoned the first piercing splinter out of Obi-Wan's chest.

"Sorry," he murmured, as his former Master grunted. "This is going to sting a bit. Hold on... hold on... "

Dimly, he was aware of his fascinated audience: Ahsoka, the two medics, the less seriously wounded clones. All of them stared as he eased the shard of transparisteel out of vulnerable flesh and the armor that had failed to protect it. Bloody, the splinter of transparisteel clattered to the oil-stained ground.

He smiled. Excellent. "Okay. One down, seven to go."

Anakin uses Force (including sort of healing I guees) to remove dangerous splinters from Obi-Wan’s body. Personally I think it would be great to see more scenes like that, especially since Legend!Anakin used Force healing also on injured clone troopers.

Medics, Ahsoka and less seriously wounded clones were fascinated by such display.

Seriously, why there is so little scenes with Force healing?? I get that not everyone Jedi is healer (like Legends!Barriss Offee was) but would it kill them if they helped from time to time in medbays? I’m not even talking about "miraculous healing”, just reducing at least some of the pain of wounded soldiers would be really great assistance. And how Anakin is one of few Jedi that uses such skills to heal others --- right, this is Anakin, he wants to help people, especially if those are under his care. What a bad Jedi...

When the final shard was safely extracted, he rose from his crouch and got out of the way. Warm and comforting, the Force resonated through him. Pride, too, for a difficult task perfectly executed. The medic moved in, stripping off Obi-Wan's armor and tugging him out of his spoiled Jedi tunic. Then he slapped a succession of pressure pads on each seemingly insignificant puncture wound.

"General, wriggle your fingers for me," he ordered, tapping Obi-Wan's right hand. It was the tendon in his right forearm that was the cause for concern. "Then make a fist."

Grimacing, Obi-Wan obeyed. "That feels fine."

"Looks fine, too," said the medic, patently relieved. "I think you dodged a blaster bolt this time, General."

"Actually, I dodged quite a few," said Obi-Wan as he eased himself back into his scorched and bloodstained tunic. "Thank you, Sergeant. Now perhaps you could turn your attention to those among us who aren't merely scratched."

"Yes, sir," the medic replied. "But let's get one thing straight, General-those aren't just scratches and you need to take care of them properly."

Anakin grinned. "Don't worry. I'll make sure he's sorted out."

"Thank you, General Skywalker," said the medic, and moved aside with his partner to confer quietly about their other charges.

It’s just me, or clone medics really like general Skywalker & appreciate his help?

Obi-Wan can be polite when he is allowed to get out of temporary infirmary. And then is a total ass.“Now perhaps you could turn your attention to those among us who aren't merely scratched “? Seriously? The medic would take care of them much sooner if you let him do his job. Not being terrible patient would actually help a lot...

Ok, maybe Obi-Wan really doesn’t consider himself that much in need of someone help even when sharp shards punctured his body through the fucking armor (because Force can heal him?) or really doesn’t understand how important Jedi generals are to army (about that a bit later) but I suspect that clone medics would love to save/help their brothers more than dealing with cranky Jedi, who (before leaving) has the guts to tell them how to do their job. I mean, on the front line (but not only!) there is always selection which patient has priority based on the degree of injury and chance of survival. Kenobi’s comment would be less impolite, if his wound was just a scratch that medics prioritize over all badly wounded troops. What was not true. According to Obi-Wan, Rex and other badly injured soldiers were “in good hands already” and the rest waited for medevac. What looks like both Ahsoka and Kenobi - Jedi! - weren’t the first ones to get medical help, even though Republic always favored Jedi lives and put it above well being of clone troopers. I really don’t understand what purpose had such impolite comment.

Anakin has to watch over Ahsoka AND his former master as well. With Ahsoka it's understandable, she is his padawan after all. While Kenobi is not his responsible, Skywalker just knows him too well. "Don't worry. I'll make sure he's sorted out.". Yep.

"General Kenobi. Do you copy?"

It was Yularen, sounding relieved. Obi-Wan tapped his comlink. "Kenobi here."

"The Senate disaster relief team has arrived."

"That was fast."

"They were in the neighborhood. Major flooding on Rishi. They-hold on..." There was some background chatter, then... "The Bothan delegation's here, too, General. They're on their way to your location now."

"That's excellent news, Admiral. I'll be here waiting for them. Kenobi out."

Anakin shook his head. "Ah-no, you won't."

"I won't?" Obi-Wan's eyebrows shot up. "Anakin, I don't recall needing your permission to..."

"Save your breath," Anakin said flatly. "I'm not arguing this with you. Medic!"

And so much for Kenobi taking care about his own injuries. Right. For someone who claims to not like politics, he for sure is ready to meet with delegation from Senate. Is Obi-Wan really such workaholic?

Then again, Anakin said he will make sure that Obi-Wan get to medbay so he will keep his promise. Of course, since he doesn’t have any power over Obi-Wan - they are more or less equal in this scene - he must do it in more cunning way:

The clone who'd patched up Obi-Wan looked around from packing his medkit. "General Skywalker?"

"When's the next medevac due?"

"In a couple of minutes, sir. But it's not coming here, it's..."

"It is now. Arrange that, would you? Then see General Kenobi safe on board-and if it's not heading back to Indomitable, tell them to make a detour."

The medic nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Anakin..."

Exasperated, Anakin glared at his mentor. "Obi-Wan, you don't need to brief the disaster team and the Bothans. I can do that. And get a proper sitrep and sort out our troops while I'm at it."

"Well, yes, that's true, but..."

"But nothing," he snapped, not the least bit interested in good manners. Sometimes Obi-Wan needed a short, sharp shock. Not your Padawan anymore, remember? "You said it yourself-Chancellor Palpatine has to know what's going on. That's our top priority. And in case you hadn't noticed? You're bleeding again. You belong in a medbay. Now, I've given this soldier a direct order. Don't make him disobey it by being difficult and don't upset the chain of command by countermanding me."

Silence. Obi-Wan stared at him.

Anakin should write manual book “how to deal with Obi-Wan Kenobi”. If he doesn’t listen, forget all good manners. Short, sharp shock is the best way.

Anakin is multitasking person; meet with delegation from senate, get a proper sitrep, sort out troops & make sure that Obi-Wan get to medbay like it was suggested by medics.

To sent Obi-Wan to medbay, Anakin had to give clone medic direct and very specific orders. Of course, Kenobi could countermand them, but by doing so he would “upset the chain of command” - something for which Kenobi usually criticizes Anakin. In other way, to sent Kenobi to medbay, Anakin had to put his former master in situation when he can’t get away without creating chaos /confusion in the ranks.

"Okay." Anakin patted his mentor on his undamaged shoulder. "Now I'm going to move my fighter, because it's probably in the way. I will see you upstairs when I'm finished down here. And I promise-in the unlikely event I run into trouble I can't handle, I'll contact you."

With a cheerful nod at his mute former Master, carefully not looking at the medics, he sauntered out of the loading dock, heading for his fighter. As he walked, he toggled his comlink. "This is Gold Leader. Check in, people. Tell me what's going on."

One by one, his surviving pilots replied. Good news all around. No more casualties, lots more kills, the last of Grievous's garbage disposed of. Kothlis was free at last.

"Good job. Head on home," he told them. "I've got a couple of things to do here but I'll be right behind you. And the drinks are on me."

 Check in, people. One of the biggest difference between Anakin’s mindset and other characters, is how he thinks & addresses the clone troopers. People, not just clones.

Anakin’s part in “sent Obi-Wan to medbay” didn’t end there. Getting Kenobi to Republic warship was only first step:

 To his surprise, Obi-Wan found Admiral Wullf Yularen waiting for him when he disembarked from the medical transport in Indomitable's busy main hangar.

"Welcome back, General," the admiral greeted him, as around them deckhands and medics got down to business. "Nice to see you still in one piece, more or less."

"Thank you," Obi-Wan said warily. Since when did admirals loiter about in hangar bays? "I'm fine." Unless... Anakin. "If you were led to believe otherwise, Admiral, my apologies."

Yularen's sober gaze followed an antigrav gurney laden with a bloodied, half-unconscious clone - hurt, but not hurt enough to ship all the way to Kaliida Shoals. Only the worst cases, the touch-and-go cases that needed Kaminoan specialists, were sent there. "I wasn't. Precisely."

No? Obi-Wan found that hard to believe. "But?"

Yularen hesitated, then nodded. "But after bringing me up to speed on the Kothlis ground situation, General Skywalker did mention in passing that you might get-ah-sidetracked, on your way to the medbay."

Oh, really? I'll sidetrack him the next time I see him. "I see."

"I must say," said Yularen, unbending a trifle, giving him a once-over glance, "you don't appear to be knocking on death's door."

"I'm not," he said tightly. "I'm afraid Anakin is..." With an effort he stopped himself. Whatever irritation he might be feeling with his high-handed former Padawan, it wasn't appropriate to vent it at the admiral.

Yularen was looking at him closely, an odd and unexpected sympathy in his deep-set eyes. "He's upset about his lost pilots," the admiral observed. Only a fool forgot he was a smart, perceptive man. "And about our ground troop casualties - as am I. This was an expensive outing, General Kenobi."

“General Skywalker did mention in passing that you might get-ah-sidetracked, on your way to the medbay. “ The most funny thing about this? Obi-Wan was going to do exactly what Skywalker said. So, to make sure Jedi General of Great Army or Republic get to medbay, Anakin contacted with admiral Yularen, so he would be aware of Kenobi’s foolishness. And the admiral - who had enough problems & stuff to sort out already - personally went to “welcome” just arrived Kenobi.

I seriously love dynamic of Anakin & Yularen relationship and how despite their differences it works so good.

"Of course, Admiral. Whatever I can do to assist you. If I might ask... how many people did you lose in this engagement?"

They'd reached the transport. Its doors hissed open, and Yularen let himself be waved in first. "Nine. And three times as many wounded."

"I'm so sorry," Obi-Wan said, stepping in after him. "What about the other cruisers?"

"Eleven dead on Coruscant Sky. Their wounded are still being tallied. Pioneer got off the lightest this time. Four lost, a dozen wounded." As the transport doors hissed shut again, Yularen hit the control toggle. "Medbay, then bridge."

Obi-Wan crushed the rising grief. "Actually, I should code my report to the Council before I..."

"Medbay, then bridge," Yularen repeated, frowning. "I didn't just speak to General Skywalker. I double-checked with the medic who treated you. Have you stopped yet to consider how much explosive force it takes to shatter transparisteel and puncture clone armor? No? I didn't think so. Therefore do please humor me, General. Ten minutes here or there won't make a difference to the Council."

Yularen did not speak only with Skywalker, he double-checked with the medic who treated Kenobi. I’m not sure, if admiral would know which of clone medics was responsible for that - I mean, medics probably keep records about their patients, but Kenobi was treated in the field, not sure how fast / when clone medics upload their files or do they must inform admiral / officers about injures of Jedi. I get the feeling Anakin either told Yularen with one of medics it was (or at least, gave coordinates where Kenobi was treated) because I assume  there were more than one place to sort and treat the injured troopers after such big, bloody battle or the clone medic was somewhere around, so Anakin could call him for talk with Yularen. Either way, I like how admiral analyzes everything in such objective way. Anakin reported mentioned Kenobi must get to medbay but will sidetrack, but still Yularen get the confirmation from medical staff.

Nonplussed, Obi-Wan stared at him. "Admiral - your concern is appreciated, but frankly, I believe it's misplaced. I'm not quite sure why you and Anakin feel the need to..."

"Not quite sure?" said Yularen, incredulous, as they headed toward the warship's medbay. "Since I know you're not a fool, sir, are you by any chance concussed?"

Temper was starting to burn away Obi-Wan's leaden exhaustion. "No, I am not concussed. Admiral Yularen..."

"General Kenobi." With a slap of his hand Yularen halted the transport. "While as a rule I find your modesty refreshing, in this instance I'm inclined to feel peeved. You, Master Jedi, are a valuable asset. Your skills are irreplaceable, your contributions to the Republic's war effort immeasurable. You do not have the right to treat your person lightly. What you have, sir, is an obligation to guard your health and well-being as though it were the health and well-being of our precious Republic's Supreme Chancellor. And if you so cavalierly refuse to do that, then you can hardly be astonished when those of us who aren't blind to your value make whatever arrangements we deem necessary to keep you in one piece." Yularen's salt-and-pepper eyebrows shot up. "Need I continue, or have I made my point?"

Obi-Wan dropped his shocked gaze to the floor. Not once in the months they'd been loosely working together had this highly respected officer raised his voice to him, or even come close to raking him over the coals as though he were an errant subordinate. Nobody spoke to him like that. Not since Qui-Gon. Well, except for Yoda. And Yoda-like Qui-Gon-had earned the right.

Except... perhaps Wullf Yularen has earned the right, too. Today-like so many days-he threw his ship, his life, and every life he's sworn to protect between me and death. I suppose it's only natural he feels something of a vested interest in my survival.

"Admiral... " He looked up. "My apologies. Your point is made."

Breathing out a harshly relieved sigh, Yularen restarted the transport. "You know, General, some say young Skywalker's the crazy one, the reckless one, the Jedi most likely to go down in a blaze of glory. I used to say it-but now I'm not so sure. In your own quiet way you can be just as terrifying.”

"I'm sorry-I don't know what to say to that."A faint smile curved Yularen's lips. "You don't see it, do you?""No, I'm afraid I don't," Obi-Wan replied. "You seem to be suggesting that I take unnecessary risks. I can't agree. I only ever do what I feel is right.""And rarely stop to think of the personal consequences," said Yularen, still wryly amused. "You and Skywalker are cut from the same cloth. And that little Padawan of his-she's been fashioned out of the discarded material!"

Nobody spoke to him like that. Shame, no one did that more often. Also, is it me, or Kenobi sound a bit arrogant here? Like, what? Only other Jedi have right to call him on his foolishness, because they earned the right to do so? How excatly Yoda earned the right, since he get it due to being “the wise master” and the head of Jedi Order for some ages already.

Yularen is such a precious character, I’m so glad he ended with Skywalker. I also like how his view of Skywalker & Kenobi changed. Yeah, Anakin may do crazy things, but his master - despite all the stoic attitude - isn’t better.

"I'll join you on the bridge as soon as I can, Admiral," he said. "Perhaps in the meantime you could ask Lieutenant Avrey to set up for a Priority Alpha shortburst to the Jedi Temple. That is, if our current comm capacity permits."

"It does," said Yularen, professionally impersonal once more. "I'll get Avrey on it immediately."

In Indomitable's impressive medbay anteroom, Obi-Wan breathed in the antiseptic air and felt-and banished-the pain of its occupants, hidden inside the facility's treatment cubicles. A 2-1B med droid stood behind the anteroom's desk. Registering his presence it looked up, its visual sensors electronically gleaming.

"General Kenobi. We've been expecting you," it said politely, moving to join him. "Please come this way. I understand you've suffered a number of penetrating wounds, facial lacerations, a blaster burn, and injury to one of your flexor tendons."

I am far too busy for this. "Yes, but I assure you my situation sounds worse than it is," he said, stepping back. "In fact..."

"Please, General, there's no need for concern," the med droid continued, herding him toward the treatment area. "I was recently upgraded courtesy of the Rhinnal State Medical Academy. I assure you, you're in excellent hands."

Clearly there was no escape. Ungraciously surrendering to his fate, Obi-Wan followed the droid into the serious part of the medbay.

Anakin, there will be a reckoning for this.

Despite clone medic, Anakin & Yularen effort, even in the medbay(!), Obi-Wan tried to shirk from medical attention he should get as fast as it’s possible.

Of course, Obi-Wan isn’t going to forget he ended in medbay because of his former padawan. And the last words doesn’t sound like he truly appreciates Anakin’s effort. And seriously, do you see how much it took Skywalker to make sure Kenobi get the medical attention he needed? And it wasn’t the first time when Kenobi get injured. Good Force, and people say that Anakin is the immature and reckless one.

[shiftyarchfey]

Our D&D campaign today went... actually quite well?

So my dear players @mono-chan17 @crossingkuroyu and @aceparnasse (plus others who don’t have a tumblr) did not do that much fighting, but they found out some crucial information about their manhunt!

Full list of the sessions

-They left the home of Lady Thunderwood in high spirits after their... interesting dinner there. She lent them some horses (and a pony for the gnome rogue Squee) and they went on their way - realizing nobody had an actual idea of the location of the capital since they all came from different parts of the Elderforest and had (except for the tiefling druid Random) never really left it before. They decided to not return and ask for a map and instead just followed their gut.

-A nice lunch was interrupted by zombies and skeletons. While the rest of the group was fighting, the dragonborn ranger Mr. Fancypants just continued to eat his meal in peace. He did shoot an arrow, but it didn’t even hit anything, so he gave up.

-However, Random did fall unconscious, but with a priest nearby, she wasn’t in any danger really... but was (undestandably) quite salty about the group not really caring about it . But she found a small egg on one of the zombies! Who knows what will hatch? She makes a nice nest for it on the top of her head and Francis, the mouse companion of Mr. Fancypants, is keeping it quite warm.

-The half-orc cleric Neega got a bit frustrated, since not that many of her hits actually landed, but she did manage to kill a skeleton, pulverizing it quite nicely. Bludgeoning damage is much worse for them obviously.

-Squee came and went in a quick succession of successful stealth checks and attacks, looting the bodies during the fight quite unsuccessfully however. 

-The drow monk Rasha leveled up! Gaining the Ki feat is no small thing, so the process of explaining it is important. Still, Rasha could count as one of the MVPs in the fight since the damage dealt was quite high while still being at level one, a level lower than the whole group. Luckily, the tree provided enough shadow so their drow-nature was no hindrance...

-After their busy luch, Squee wanted to find out a bit more about Tana Kerr, the half-elf they are supposed to search for Lady Thunderwood. Picking up some small signs from one of the pickpockets on the way, they asked about her in thieve’s cant. Beraht, their unfortunate “victim”, was able to provide some much needed information, such as the confirmation that Tana Kerr is indeed in the capital, searching for someone and keeping some dubious people around her. They also recieved a name, Lian, where they might get more clues about the illusive woman.

-After a night in a small inn (with a nice inkeeper), the continued their journey to the capital of Elwyn, Elwane the city of walls. Mr. Fancypants discovered a small present of the lady in his satchel: the propability of it being a small satchel of durgs are quite high. They re-encountered Beraht and entered the city unhindered. Random however is suspiciously hiding in her cloak...

-The group finds out why: A wanted poster with her face on it. Seems this druid didn’t have nice memories of this place.

-Berhat told them of the city’s open secret: The walls house an entire district, where criminal guilds rule. The hollowed-out walls dividing the city into districts strictly serving one purpose each are the place where they could find Lian. 

-They enter the walls into Beraht’s guild’s territory. The Black Knives, a guild of thieves, usually let people wander their territory unhindered. Their guide to the walls, a small girl, tells them that she has not heard of Tana Kerr, but she did hear that a leader of the powerful guild “Black Shadows” has been assassinated. She also provides directions to Lian’s place, but the things she tells the group about him are not reassuring at all; apparently his shop only provides to the dark arts and he himself has been said to deal with ghosts and dead things... Just like the zombies that have started to appear everywhere.

So for the next session, there might be a lot more coming! Who is Lian and why does everyone have no idea where Tana Kerr is? What did Random do to have her face plastered all over the walls? What is going on in the city? What will the egg reveal?