#and then as soon as he sees achilles one on one his courage fails and he runs for his life

[wizardnaturalist]

fascinated by this idea that hector went to his death nobly, accepting? he died begging

[astaroth1357]

Demigod MC Series: Ares

Demigod MC Series: Intro, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hades, Dionysus, Demeter, Athena, Hades Pt. 2, Poseidon, Ares

Lucifer

He cannot overstate what kind of damage this mortal was able to do in their first few seconds in the Devildom...

The instant they got to their feet, they had managed to incapacitate Satan and knock down Beel. Lucifer himself tried to get between them and Diavolo but…

If he hadn’t moved his head, if he was standing just ONE INCH to the left… he wouldn’t have a head anymore. Barbatos was there to intervene, but had he not they could have probably taken out the Avatar of Pride and done critical damage to the Demon Prince himself in one strike...

Frankly, Lucifer prefers not to dwell on that moment... He's sure Ares must be proud of this one...

He pretty much treats the mortal like a live bomb afterward, if he can get away with not interacting with them at all, that’s what he’ll do.

He’s NOT scared of them... much... It’s just that they have a bullish and uncooperative attitude at best and since they know they can take any of them, they don't even consider him - Lucifer, the eldest demon brother - a threat...

But you know what the most frustrating thing is? They won't give him an inch of respect, but they'll always listen to Levi! Levi!!

Look, Lucifer knows he may not hold a rank among the Hell's army and he might not have been a major player in the Celestial/Demonic wars of the day, but he's still the strongest demons here, dammit!! 😡

Lucifer finds nothing is more embarrassing than having to ask Levi of all people to keep the mortal in line because he can't... Oh, the humiliation… He hopes they leave soon...

Mammon

At first, he thought they were scary. But in time he thought they were scary… and also pretty damn awkward.

Mammon wasn’t there when they more or less wiped out the majority of his brothers in the Conference Hall but when he finally showed up he'd never seen Lucifer look so pale… If THAT doesn't make you shit your pants, he doesn't know what will.

Naturally, he kind of toned it down on the "stupid human" stuff real quick after seeing that…

But here's the thing. After the two made a pact together, Mammon started to notice that the MC wasn't all that mean, they were just… violent?

He legitimately thought that they couldn’t stand him for a while until one day a guy on the street called him a dirtbag. The MC threw a punch right there! No questions asked, they just decked that guy!!

It was kind of touching… and messy. Very messy. Did he mention that they’re terrifying yet? 😥

As it turns out, the MC has apparently spent a lot of their life just fighting things and being asked to fight things so they're not very used to showing non-violent affection… 

It took him awhile, but he realized that their way of saying, "I like you," is, "I will attack your enemies." So now all he does when his brothers tease him is say, "I'm telling MC!'' and they'll stop immediately. It's great!! 😁

Considers them to be his bodyguard when he goes out to gamble in some… shadier places. Most of the time not even the bouncers want to take on the MC, ain't nobody getting paid enough to lose that many teeth…

Leviathan

Okay, so. It's not very obvious anymore, but he USED to be on the front lines of the war against demons in the Celestial Realm. He was in charge of battle strategies, he led armies, and even now he still holds the highest rank of the royal navy!

So leave it to the kid of a war god to sniff all that out about him, huh…? They appeared to know all about his record the instant they saw him and they actually seemed to respect him for it!

For context, this mortal tells pretty much everybody to shove off but any time he’s around they call him “Admiral” or “sir” and actually pay attention to what he says! He can tell it drives Lucifer insane, but honestly? It’s a bit of an ego boost. 😌

It’s sort of cute when they come to him asking for tactical advice… They get just as into it as he does with his anime and any time he points out something that they haven't seen before they get so excited it's like they're a kid watching a magic trick. HUGE ego boost. 😏

Speaking of anime, it’s hit or miss whether or not they can watch any of it. Anything with good fight scenes (and let’s be honest, not that much talking) they’re on board for. But if the hero and the villain talk to each other for like an episode before throwing punches then the MC will just rant...

MC: “The enemy is distracted... Why aren’t they attacking yet??”

Levi: “Because the villain killed the hero’s best friend and they’re-”

MC: “They could avenge their friend right now if they ended things right here!”

Levi: “MC, we’ve been over this... That’s not how plot works.”

MC: “And now he got away!! See?? They should have killed him when they had the chance!”

Levi: “*sigh*... Let’s just play some CoD.”

Satan 

The last thing he remembered when the “human” hopped out of the portal was a sharp pain to the side of the temple and Asmo wailing as he fell unconscious…

Yeeeeah, not great. And unfortunately for the mortal the Avatar of Wrath tends to hold a grudge… 

For a comparatively brief moment in time, all of Satan’s considerable ire had shifted away from Lucifer and to their new housemate. They found their bed, clothes, pillows, food, and even their toothbrush cursed!

… But Ares kids must be built from some strong stuff, because half of what he employed didn’t even faze them! He even put an explosive spell on their backpack and not only did they tank the blast, it didn’t hurt them at all!! It was like they’re damn near immortal!

Annnnd they kind of are. Apparently the MC had taken a dip in the River Styx at some point before and became nigh invulnerable…

Was it maybe a little terrifying to know that they had kidnapped a nearly invincible demigod on the level of Achilles? Yes. Did that also mean that they must have had a weakness too? In theory....

Satan honestly devoted a depressing amount of time trying to uncover the “Achilles’ Heel” of his new sworn enemy… until…

The MC was walking with him and Asmo to RAD one morning when they passed by a group of lesser demons harassing a small puppy. Now Satan may be more of a cat man, but NO ONE fucks with animals while he’s around.

He was right about to go over and rip those demons a new one but the MC actually beat him to it! Apparently, the second that they realized what was happening, they launched themselves forward and started bashing the abusers' heads into a wall!

… Live by violence, forgive by violence because in that very moment Satan decided they weren’t so bad after all. He even joined in!

Oh, Asmo gave them both shit all day for the bloodstains on their uniforms and the scratches on their… everywhere, but it’s not like either of them cared. Righteous justice had been served and it was glorious!!

100% would team up with the MC in some kind of vigilante “punish-all-animal-abusers” gig. They have but to ask. 😌

Asmodeus

Oh they TERRIFIED Asmo when they first showed up! How else was he supposed to react?? They brought down his brothers like they were made of cardboard!!

Though he had to admit that the confident, battle-ready look they had about them was sexy as hell, he knew better than to go bear poking! 😣 He avoided them like plague until they finally asked him for a pact.

And then he discovered something… something very unexpected….

They're actually adorable!!!

Okay, like, not in appearance (they look like they could pile drive Cerberus for Pete’s sake!) but he discovered that they have NO CLUE how to handle physical affection. Like zero!!

The first time Asmo actually got the courage to try and hug them he expected them to toss him off, but instead they just stood there like a malfunctioning doll, all flustered and confused… It was so cute!!! 🥰

From that point on, Asmo would take every chance he could to wrap his arms around them or kiss their cheeks just to watch them try and fail to handle it. It's more fun than picking on Levi!!

It took two months for them to finally attempt any kind of reciprocation and even that was adorable! They pecked him on the forehead without thinking about it then nearly passed out from the realization. Apparently, they had never felt like kissing anyone before so he was quite honored!

The brothers know that if the MC's looking too mad to listen to Levi, they just need to call Asmo. A nigh invincible warrior becomes a LOT less scary after you’ve cuddled them into submission! 🤭

Beelzebub

Beel didn't like them one bit, at least not at the beginning. They had managed to get past him and actually attack Lucifer which was NOT a great first impression on their part...

He honestly saw them as a threat for a while, but unlike the rest of his brothers he didn’t avoid them. He just kept an eye on them.... constantly….

Look. Beel is a big guy. Stealth is not his strong suit… If he's tailing you, you're probably going to know about it because there's a six-foot something behemoth in orange following you around while pounding down bags of chips. He's not very subtle…

That being said, after following them around for a while the two finally got to talking and he realized that they didn’t want to hurt anybody or anything. They were just acting on instinct before.

After making the MC promise not to hurt any of his family, they got on much better terms. Hell, he actually got them into fangol!

Beel's sport of choice is pretty much just ultra-violent American football so the MC took a liking to it instantly! After enough begging, the coach let them try out and they got onto his team immediately.

He likes having them as a teammate! They're very good at the game, uh... even if they take it a little too seriously…

They once tried to convince his teammates to decorate the team bus with "the helmets of their fallen foes." They're REALLY into the sport… But hey, they haven't lost a game since they’ve joined. It’ll be fine!... Probably.

Belphegor

Hahaha… He’s in danger… 😥

It took one look at this mortal to make him rethink the whole, “Trick the Human” plan… Since when have humans looked like that?? They could crush his skull under their heel!!

It took all he had in him to play it cool when they first met because his internal monologue was nothing but screaming… THIS was the "human" he had to use to get him out of there?? How in the WORLD was he going to kill them?!

Admittedly, he had to think about it for a while. Belphie's a clever guy… and a demon. So who needs an honorable fight, anyway? If he can’t win one-on-one, then he’ll cheat!

He waited until the MC got the door open and didn't attempt a frontal assault… No laughter, no gloating. He just waited for them to turn their back, claws ready to dig out their heart, and then-!

MC: "Do you really want to try that?"

The MC must have had some kind of danger sense, because they didn't even have to turn around to know what Belphie was doing…

MC: "Look. I like Beel and you're his twin brother… So I'm willing to let this slide. But if you really want to try me…"

MC: *looks over their shoulder with the glare of a bona fide killer* "I won't hold back."

That was... very persuasive.

The MC brought Belphie down to the others peacefully with his tail between his legs and honestly Lucifer was more relieved that he wasn’t a bloodstain on the floor than he was mad… They could have killed him sooo easily… 

They did, indeed, forgive and forget about the whole “attempted murder” thing, though Belphie was never quite able to shake off how frightening they were in that moment… He had nightmares for a while.

Thankfully, Asmo clued him in that the MC would melt into a harmless puddle of fluff if they got even the slightest bit of physical affection... Oh, the sweet payback he could dish out... It’s cuddle time. 😏

[coffee-imagines]

Betrayal

Pairing:  Draco x muggleborn reader

Warnings: acrophobia (fear of heights) blood, injuries, torture, death

A/N: honestly just not really having a good time right now so the angst continues. Some of the dialogue in here is from prompts I found so I don’t take credit for those.

Summary: When Death Eater’s loyalty gets tested, Draco is surprised to get you as his assignment.

———————————–

The stronger the order of the Phoenix became, the more skeptical Voldemort became of his followers. Draco being the youngest of the bunch, as well as being closer to the opposing side, they had to test him more than any of the others, knowing his Achilles heel would do the trick. You still remembered when you’d been bombarded in your own home. It came as a surprise to everyone that the thing that could possibly hold Draco back from his true potential was a mudblood.

You’d been left in the basement of Malfoy manor for what seemed like a week before you’d heard anything from anyone. No matter how much you called out to anyone you never got a response. There was no way you could get any sleep on the cold rock of a floor, most nights you would stay in the warmest corner you could find, only falling asleep when the exhaustion finally consumed you.

“Y/N!” You heard his voice call from the other end of the basement, making you shoot to your feet and make a run for the doors.

“Draco, thank god. Get me out of here. I’m so happy to see you.” You explained, gripping the bars for dear life.

“I can’t.” He shook his head making you feel like you’d gotten slapped in the face.

“What do you mean?” You asked looking up to him, pressing yourself further into the bars. “Draco, what’s going on?” You asked, the worry dripping with each word.

“If I knew...” Draco’s voice cracked, his hands wrapping around the bars, exposing the dark mark that you had known nothing about. “If someone had told me the plan…” He explained, his forehead resting against yours. “You know I would have done things different right?” He asked, making you pull away.

“No. I don’t think you would have.” You explained, shaking your head, moving away from the bars and back to the corner you’d been sitting. 

The following day had been what you would’ve thought to be the worst day of your life, but little did you know it would only be half of it. It started off with small dueling spells here and there that would knock you to the ground, some others giving you the worst feelings you’d ever experienced. Draco couldn’t bear using his hands just yet, trying his best to use the simplest of spells that wouldn’t hurt you too much. It wasn’t long before the others caught on to this, not allowing Draco to see you until he got the courage to lay his hands on you in a way he’d never dreamed of doing before.

“Y/N.” Draco whispered over to you one day catching your attention. You slowly made your way over, your arms wrapped around yourself in order to keep warm. “I’m getting you out.” Draco lied through his teeth, but you’d been too tired to see it.

“Thank you.” You gleamed, almost bouncing on the tips of your toes when you watched Draco’s shaky hands fumble to open the door. “I’ve missed you so much.” You cried into him once you were able to wrap your arms around him. 

It caught Draco by surprise, not expecting to feel you around him ever again. He’d hesitantly returned the hug, almost melting into you. He hadn’t ever wanted to put you in this position, but he was in too far deep to get you out now. The only idea he had was to kill you, and in that moment that was the only thing he could think of, trying to find the easiest way to do it. He’d walked you to his room, and the second the door locked behind you he’d made his decision.

“Imperio.” Draco whispered with a flick of his wand making your entire body relax.

Draco had savored it, thinking it’d be his last moments with you. There wouldn’t be anymore running from you, and you’d finally feel at peace for the first time since you’d been taken from your home. He planned to kill you far before the spell wore off, letting you live your last moments in pure bliss.

“I love you, please this will end soon, I promise.” Draco whispered when he’d turned you around to face him, caressing your cheek.

“I love you too.” You smiled, holding his face in your hands before he pulled away.

“Go jump.” Draco instructed hesitantly with a tilt of his head toward the opening on the balcony.

Without a thought in the world you walked over as if it were nothing, almost as though you were in a trance. There was nothing that could stop you, nothing but Draco. There was nothing that hinted to him making you stop, your feet inching closer to the edge. You gasped when you looked down, being on the top floor finally hitting you from the distance that your eyes took in. It had always been a fear of yours, Draco being the only one who you ever told. There were countless nights you’d woken up from a dream about falling, and you’d never laid your hand on a broom after your first lesson.

“Draco.” You whimpered, finally coming to your senses, your nails trying to dig into the brick wall next to you.

“Come here.” He demanded, grabbing you by the back of the shirt before pulling you back against him.

“How dare you do that to me?!” You exclaimed, throwing yourself away from Draco’s touch. “Why would you ever...” You choked out unable to continue, looking at Draco in a way he’d never seen before. The fear that you’d been hiding for weeks was finally showing, and this failed attempt to kill you had brought it out.

Another week had passed before you had gotten out of the basement. It had been a mistake, the door had somehow been left open, and you’d taken the first chance you’d gotten to make a run for it. A smile broke out on your face when you saw a wand laying on the first chair you’d come across. You froze in your spot when Draco had come into the hall, him doing the same when he’d realized what was going on. His eyes flickered from the wand in your hand back to your face before flashes of light started to fly across the room.

Any spell you both could think of was getting thrown at the other to then be blocked. It went on longer than either of you thought it would’ve. Draco had expected you to be rusty considering the amount of time you’d been away from a wand, and the exhaustion you must’ve felt after everything he had been putting you through in the past two months.

“Expelliarmus!” Draco had finally been able to shout out between one of your spells. You’d been caught by surprise the wand flying from your grip far away from you. Draco started to make his way toward you, but you made a b line in the direction of the door, only to be stopped by him. “If you ever do that again!” Draco yelled, gripping your hair tightly, making your head ache. “I won’t hesitate to kill you.” He threatened and you clenched your jaw.

“You can’t break me that easy, Malfoy.” You spat, a sense of victory filling you when Draco flinched at the use of his last name. Never in the years you’d known each other had you ever used it, but now it hit him like a brick to the face. “I will do everything, and I mean everything, I can to make this so much harder on you.” You seethed, a wince falling from you when he gave your hair a harsh tug before throwing you down the stairs and back into the basement, locking the door with a simple flick of his wand.

It hadn’t taken long after that for you to see a change in Draco. His demeanor had become much rougher and darker than you’d ever seen it. It wasn’t long before Draco would walk into the basement with you, using a knife and his fists to do most of his dirty work, no longer getting what he needed from spells. Draco had taken it upon himself to disfigure your face, hoping to disconnect you from all the things he’d have to do in order to prove his loyalty. 

“Stop.” You coughed, holding up your hand to shield yourself from Draco’s clenched fist. “Why don’t you kill me already?” You asked looking up at him. “Save yourself the trouble and just do it already.” You continued. 

“I will deny you death until you beg for it.” Draco spat in your face making you flinch. There was something in his voice that made you believe it. Draco didn’t want to kill you, not really. He knew there was no way to get you out, but he couldn’t ever seem to bring himself to kill you whenever he tried. 

“Have fun...” You choked out, spitting out the blood that had been collecting in your mouth before you could finish. “Watching someone you love suffer.” You coughed, another pained scream leaving you when your finger was bent further back than it was ever intended.

It seemed the time came sooner than either of you expected. A few days more of torture and a couple broken bones later you could hardly stand to take in a simple breath, each time feeling a sharp pain somewhere in you. You could barely move, the only thing keeping you going was Draco’s blows and punches. 

“Kill me.” You’d finally whimpered out after an hour making Draco’s whole stature falter.

“What?” He stammered, unable to hide the complete shock on his face.

“You said you wouldn’t until I begged you. So please.” You begged, your hand limply grabbing his wrist.

“Y/N...” Draco trailed, his grip loosening on your hair.

“No please!” You cried, gripping him as hard as your tired hand could, pulling him closer. “I can’t take it anymore. They’re never going to let you stop. Please.” You wailed, feeling Draco’s head rest on yours.

“Okay.” Draco mumbled to himself, gripping the knife with a tighter shakier grip than he ever had before. “I love you.” Was the last thing you heard whispered in your ear before the knife was pushed into your chest.

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[megashadowdragon]

Commentary on reddit :

To summarize, Marfisa is basically what you’d get if you combined Penthesilea and Achilles. She starts out as a whirling, if lucid, maelstrom of destruction until she becomes something else; an inverse of Roland being a mostly perfect knight before he abandons chivalry in his explosive grief.

Instead of being taken in by an overprotective wizard, Marfisa was briefly raised by a lioness, adopted soon after, kidnapped and made a slave by a Persian king at age 7, killed her master when she was older, violently took over his kingdom, and then violently conquered several more kingdoms by the time she was 18.

Some writers, even some today, would take her as is. #YAASQUEEN (literally) Knight. Put her up against some strawmen/caricatures and wait for a movie deal. But way back in the 1500s, Ariosto took this character, who was little more than a thug in Orlando Innamorato, and gave her an arc that took her beyond murder and self-fulfillment.

A harder life created a much harder person than Ruggiero, but it also instilled in her a much more mercenary outlook. Tiring of her overlord duties and hearing of the immense war between Charlemagne and the Saracen Kingdoms, Marfisa pilfered the coffers of her subjects and abandoned her empire to challenge the greatest knights either side had to offer.

As a queen with nigh-limitless funds and muscle that allowed her to battle Roland to a standstill, she is a shockingly unencumbered figure in a tale where almost everyone answers to someone, but that freedom becomes a kind of cage as well.

She changes sides constantly, sometimes fighting for the Saracens and sometimes fighting against them. Her one-track mind for combat causes her to gormlessly attack heroic knights and accidentally help slavery ring kingpins. She is also quite vindictive, attacking anyone for slights that range from actual to accidental to simply perceived.

There is hope for her though. During an adventure with Astolfo (who she was on good terms with after allying with him briefly in Innamorato), she, he, and three of his fellow Paladins wind up in Laiazzo, an Amazonian colony 10,000-strong which enslaves shipwrecked men to act as their pet champions and breeding stock (1 man “works” for 10 women). Newcomers can either try and fight their way out or they can slay 10 “servants” in single combat bloodsports, fornicate with a 100 citizens, and earn the privilege of serving the Amazons.

Marfisa (who the Amazons believe to be male because of her armor and mask) is nominated by her companions to do all the fighting. Some take this as a nigh-feminist occurrence where Astolfo and his friends acknowledge a woman (and one not of their ranks no less) as their better in battle. Others believe this is Marfisa having her bloodlust being taken advantage of by the Paladins ala Tom Sawyer so they can do the much more enjoyable 100 women thing as she takes all the hits.

Marfisa kills all but one of the Amazon slave knights and in respect of her skills, he offers to let the group stay the night at his place before they resume their duel the next day.

They learn that in spite of his strength, the knight is barely out of his teens and is terribly depressed with what his masters have made him do. If he wins, he kills a great warrior and remains a slave. If Marfisa wins, then she and the others will become slaves. The Amazons win either way.

This similarity to her own backstory causes Marfisa to feel genuine empathy with someone she had moments ago tried to murder. It might be the first time she’s ever felt it. She muses that if she were to reveal her gender, the Amazons would likely accept her as one of their own or let her go free, but she won’t tolerate such naked vileness, even if it would benefit her.

The next day, she, her new ally, and the Paladins fight to free themselves and the other captive knights despite how outmatched they clearly are. When the fight goes south, Astolfo sounds his dread horn that is cursed to make all who hear it flee in fright (Agartha, baby). He neglects to tell his companions that it affects everyone who isn’t him, and EVERYONE on the island flees so suddenly and swiftly that by the time Astolfo is done blowing (his horn), he discovers he’s been completely abandoned.

Take a look at this illustration (NSFW) by Gustave Doré detailing the escape. That shadowed figure in the background on the hill? That's Astolfo. And that smirking sentinel leading the slaughter? Take a guess.

But the story isn’t done with Marfisa yet. She falls in love with Ruggiero. She gets beaten by Bradamante, her shallow vindictiveness no match for the true wrath of a woman scorned. She sees Ruggiero getting between her and Bradamante in spite of being much weaker than either of them in hopes of stopping the two from killing each other. She witnesses Atlante’s shade, the wizard having entombed himself Merlin style and seemingly disowned Ruggiero for ingratitude at his attempts to raise and protect him, return from beyond to reveal the truth of how she’s Ruggiero’s twin sister to stop the three-way death match.

Throughout this odyssey, this bellicose beauty beholds how courageous a lesser warrior can be, how much and how deeply a man and woman can love each other in spite of distance and difficulty, how a father’s love can be so strong that it can forgive the insults a son sends its way, how painful failure is, and how having a brother feels.

These higher emotions and more complex relationships help her see that there’s more to life than battle. They also inspire her to mature as an individual.

When she, Ruggiero, and Bradamante come across a licentious lord who abuses the women in his domain, they don’t simply overthrow him but reform his society. Rather than let the women completely take over as the Amazons showed her that tyranny is unisex, she demands egalitarianism. Equality. And warns she’ll kill them all if they stray from that path. Hey, baby steps.

Decent extrapolation but it kind of makes me feel like it was written from Cliffsnotes instead of directly reading Furioso.

Within the book it's just said that Marfisa was insistent on fighting the champions on the island of women warriors. It was required that the same person perform both tasks and is supposed to be humorous because Marfisa just heard, "Fight ten strong guys, I am so there" and literally zoned out on the other half. The text also states that the entire group is fortunate they decided to break out, since Marfisa would obviously fail the second trial.

Marfisa, again, was a major fight nut which is the reason that conflicts rose between her and other Saracens. Such as when she had her sword stolen by Brunello and threw off her armor while chasing him, she started a fight by grabbing her arms without saying a word when a contest of martial valor was going on over them - and she is so in love with combat that instead of explaining anything she just started fighting. Or how it was Mandricard who challenged her since she was convinced into one of the few times she wore women's clothes with some friends so he assumed she was a lady and one of her beauty, Mandricard wanted to offer to Rodomont in order to get his romantic rival out of the way. Marfisa merely said that Mandricard had to defeat her personally. Well, in short, it's that the Saracen camp was filled with in-fighting. Shit, when she and Mandricard were about to have their duel, both Ruggiero and Rodomont broke in and EVERYONE wanted to duel EVERYONE over something.

Also it's never mentioned of her falling in love with Ruggiero. Just that the two had a strong bond that the Saracens misconstrued as being romantic love. She only goes out to fight Bradamant because her obviously established love of combat and also that the woman was screaming her name in bloody murder. It's literally when Marfisa is going to confront Bradamant that it mentions the phoenix she wears on her helmet has the meaning that she wants to remain invincible and single for her entire life (as an aside, she killed her slaver and his family and his kingdom out of vengeance when he tried to take her chastity).

As an aside, Ruggiero is on the same level as Marfisa, definitely not "much weaker." There's a reason the Saracens sought him specifically out as an ally despite his being locked away in a tower. When he and Marfisa fight side-by-side the text clearly treats them as equals, and they also view each other as worthy equals.

[bode-leone]

andy + booker, gen, 1,924 words. 

--

K̂ormon means weasel, ermine or stoat in Proto-Indo-European.

The gif referenced is this one.

--

Andy shows up at his Paris apartment, sporting her usual black backpack and sunglasses, nearly two years into the exile. He hasn’t done much but he’s taken to speaking to other people online, through messaging boards and forums, and has even worked up the courage to begin talking to someone more psychologically trained. He’s still in his single digits amount of appointments, and it takes a lot to work through the issues he has when he has to use subterfuge for most of them. It’s from one of these appointments that he unlocks his door, unthinking and not realising that someone is in there until he hears a shift and his hand flies to the gun he doesn’t have on him. 

“You’re not going to shoot little old me are you? Hmm?”

Andy’s voice. It was Andy. He can barely get his eyes up to look at her before tears are running down his face, to both his shock and hers. His appointment had been dealing with a lot of heavy stuff, that is, mainly about Jean-Pierre and his feelings about outliving his family. So Andy showing up for the first time since he’d been left on the river Thames was like a tsunami running through him. He brings his hands up to rub at the tears. 

“I’m sorry,” he says watery, sniffling. “I promise I’m doing better, really.”

Andy looks him up and down and comes to a decision, he can see the cogs in her head turning from where he’s standing in the middle of the rundown apartments living room and kitchen. She soon opens her arms wide, inviting him in to hug her. 

“Come here, Book,” she murmurs and he does, but he drags his feet giving her enough time to back out if she wants to. 

He sees her roll her eyes and she crosses the last few meters herself, throwing her arms around him and seemingly holding him up as his knees nearly buckles, despite the height difference between them. She rubs his back, humming a little, and he clings to her, his face shoved in the junction of her shoulder and neck. He thought he’d never see her again, never again get to talk about translations of classics, never again get to listen to her repeated stories about fighting with the real Achilles, with the real Alexander. But here she is, in the flesh. 

She still smells the same, he notes when his crying has subsided and his body has worked itself into a tired slump, hinting at exhaustion. 

She pulls back and her almost doesn’t want to; wants to hold her in his arms until she knows instinctively that he’s sorry and that he’d never do anything stupid or selfish as what he had done ever again. Looking at her, though, he thinks she knows. He looks at her carefully and she doesn’t look any more older than she had when he had last seen her, maybe a frown line more. 

“I want to go out, Book, know any good places?” She says as she lowers and then removes her sunglasses. 

Her eyes still spark at him and leaves him a little dimwitted.

“Um...ah, I go to a club that plays old stuff, stuff from the forties and fifties. Or do you want to go somewhere more modern?” He says quietly, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. He didn’t really go out much and when he did it was more for the ambience than the dancing, really.

“No, that’s great. It’s getting close to six now, we should head out.”

--

He calls an uber to take them to the 11th Arrondissement and to the club that he goes to. He pays for their entry fees and takes her to where he usually sits. They sit there for an hour, him buying her drinks and listening to anything she’d give him about herself, the others. She purses her lips when he first asks her about the others, obviously running through the risk of her telling him anything anyways, before deciding that some will not bring them to ruin. Again. 

“We’re doing fine. Nile is learning quickly, quicker than you did,” he laughs into his drink to cover the subtle sharp pang at that, “but we’re all different. You were different. She’s different. Differences aren’t bad Sebastien, however much you’re thinking you were never good.” 

He looks at his drink, the beer suddenly souring in his mouth. Yet again his deficits are so easily seen despite the amount of effort he had put in the last two years to fix what was wrong with him. The use of his name further cements this as a failing. 

“I’m sorry,” he says truthfully, looking at her out from under his mop of hair that he really needed to get cut. “I’m in therapy, I have been for the last few years. I know it doesn’t make up for anything but I am trying to be better.”

She looks at him in the eye, taking a mouthful of her horrifying liquor mix as she does so. She sighs when she swallows. 

“Are you doing this for you? Or are you doing this as an attempt to lower your sentence?”

He thinks, for a moment, on the questions. 

“Both. I’m doing it for me because I can’t live with my brain telling me things like that but I also can’t help but hope it’s enough to reduce my sentence,” he says and winces. “Sorry, I guess I’m not really very far in being better. Sorry.”

He looks out into the small crowd of people dancing already, some slowly and some fast. It’s nice to see something kept and saved, even if it’s just a dance. It feels like the more he looks, the more there’s little to recognise. He cannot imagine what it’s like for Andy, with all her thousands of years. 

“Wanting something isn’t necessarily bad, Sebastien,” she says quietly and draws his gaze back to herself. “It’s not bad that you want to come back, I’d be suspicious if you didn’t, but the fact that you can recognise that you need help is the most important thing here. Now, I want to dance and you’re going to dance with me.”

She holds a hand out to him over the booth table and he takes it and tells himself the butterflies he feels are simply the emotions of having contact with his family. 

They dance for hours, both swing and slow, and he blushes involuntarily when his hands are on her hips like he’s a teenage boy, stuttering and nervous. She leads more than he does, considering the last time he had been dancing like this was when the dances were originally from. He finds he has a good time, able to let go of himself for just a little while and pretend he truly was the forty two year old man his body portrays him to be. 

They leave, with Andy’s arm hooked through his, in an uber the same way they arrived. Upon arriving home, he realises he has not planned for a single major obstacle: his apartment only has one bed. He tells Andy that he can sleep on the floor and she can take the bed and her eyes roll upward. 

“Book, it’s fine. Stop acting like everything that happens is the end of the world, we’ll be fine.”

He tries not to stare at the reddish-pink scar on her abdomen when her singlet rides up as she gets ready for bed. Tries to not let its existence feel like the reaffirmation of the thousands of pounds of guilt on his shoulders, rising to his ears instinctively. She huffs at him after brushing her teeth. 

“What you did, it’s shit and horrifying, but it’s been done. It does nobody any good to keep reminiscing on it.”

She lifts her shirt over the scar and motions to it.

“This? This isn’t going to go away no matter how much we both wish it would. Stop looking like you did,” she motions with her neck and shoulders, “you look like a k̂ormon.”

His face must show his confusion over the last word because she rolls her eyes, drags him to the bed, pushes him down into it and turns out the light, plunging the room into darkness. He gets himself situated under the sheets and blankets, not knowing which way to face. Andy checks her phone once before locking it and putting it on the side table. 

“So-”

“It means weasel, Book. You look like a weasel when you do that.”

He bursts out laughing involuntarily, wiping his eyes. 

“K̂ormon, k̂ormon, k̂ormon,” he murmurs, knowing instinctively that it’s from her original language. “I like it.”

--

He wakes up and feels someone’s arms around him. 

It takes a moment for his brain to work and place whose arms they are. Her face is pressed into the back of his neck. He sighs, relaxing out of his tensed position. He looks out the window to the dreary, grey light. It musnt be very late, he can continue to sleep. It’s the first time in a long time that he hadn’t had a Quynh dream, hadn’t woken gasping and thrashing, without the use of alcohol or narcotics. He yawns and buries his face back into his pillow, distantly feeling her arms tighten around him before he slips back under. 

He wakes again to the rustling of fabric and his eyes slip open, blinking slowly. The light is bright and a warmer colour. He turns to where the rustling is coming from, seeing Andy zipping up her backpack. 

“What time is it?” He murmurs muzzily, rubbing his eyes. 

“It’s seven thirty,” she says as she puts her sunglasses on her head. “Know anywhere good to eat?”

He does so he gets up and showers and makes himself presentable to be seen in public. As they walk down the arrondissement towards the café, she slings an arm around his shoulders and leans close.

“The others are waiting for me to make a decision about whether or not you can come back,” she murmurs before pulling away.

He keeps moving, in shock, until he motions for her to stop and they walk into the café. He gets a black coffee and croissant with Andy getting a café crème and croissant. He doesn’t know how to respond to the revelation and eats his croissant and drinks his coffee. Once he’s done and he’s had enough of watching Andy’s self satisfied smile, they get up to leave. He lets her wander out and he pays for their meals. 

He wanders out to her and she swings her pack onto her back using both shoulders. She reaches out and kisses his cheeks, quickly, rubbing her thumbs over his cheekbones.

Slipping her sunglasses onto her face, she smiles at him. 

“It’ll be all good, k̂ormon, you’ll see,” she says, “just wait for my signal.” 

She then walks off in the direction of the metro. 

He rubs his hand over his mouth and then walks in the opposite direction, back to his apartment. 

--

The signal comes in the form of a gif in a text message at 2:45 AM that wakes him up as the tone goes off near his head. 

The gif is of an ermine, a white one, and it looks like it’s talking, saying “we shouldn’t change just so we can fit in here.”

There’s a short message, too. 

It’s time to come home, k̂ormon.

[adouxreve]

OST of book xxii

pheonix rising - audiomachine

Camera pans from the Trojans, to the Greeks, to Achilles. Apollo reveals himself to Achilles. Camera cuts to Priam telling Hector not to fight Achilles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnEkOEigMyQ

for the cause - epic score

Camera cuts to Achilles running towards the city.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34SEoEGSrYE

run - awolnation

Camera is on Hector waiting for Achilles to arrive. Achilles is coming closer to the camera, Hector sees and is gripped by fear. Hector then starts to run for his life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mw2kKyJu9gY

start a war - klergy feat. valerie broussard

We're taken away from Hector running from Achilles and we're taking to Olympus where Zeus is with the Gods.

"Take counsel, immortals, decide! Shall we save him from dead, or good man though he is, shall he die at the hands of Achilles, Peleus' son?"

Athena responded, "Father, Lord of the Lightning and the Storm, what is it? Would you save a mortal from sad death, to which he was doomed long ago? Do so, but don't expect the rest of us to agree."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ab2_ASBnb0

tumbling lights - the acid

Athena leaves Olympus and disguises herself as Deiphobus.

"Dear brother, swift Achilles pressed you hard there, chasing you around the city at a pace, but let us make a stand together, and defend ourselves." Hector smiles and stands along side who he believes to be his brother.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI7nEaCh2Lo

me and the devil - soap and skin

Hector waits for Achilles to arrive.

"My heart failed me as I waited for your attack, and three times round Priam’s city we ran, but now my heart tells me to stand and face you, to kill or be killed."

Achilles cures Hector, "Curse you, Hector, and don’t talk of oaths to me. Lions and men make no compacts, nor are wolves and lambs in sympathy: they are opposed, to the end. You and I are beyond friendship: nor will there be peace between us till one or the other dies and sates Ares, lord of the ox-hide shield, with his blood. Summon up your reserves of courage, be a spearman now and a warrior brave. There is no escape from me, and soon Athene will bring you down with my spear. Now pay the price for all my grief, for all my friends you’ve slaughtered with your blade."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd9LpME3jnk

battle cry - imagine dragons

Achilles raised his spear and hurled it. Hector dodged it and they begin to fight. Hector calls on Deiphobus but realizes he has been deceived.

"Ah, so the gods have lured me to my death. I thought Deiphobus was by my side, but he is still in the city, Athene fooled me. An evil fate’s upon me, Death is no longer far away, and him there is no escaping. Zeus, and his son, the Far-Striker, decided all this long ago, they who were once eager to defend me, and destiny now overtakes me. But let me not die without a fight, without true glory, without some deed that men unborn may hear"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgB2qItM76g

the wolf - fever ray

The fighting continues until Achilles stabbed Hector with his spear.

"While you were despoiling Patroclus, no doubt, in your folly, you thought yourself quite safe, Hector, and forgot all about me in my absence. Far from him, by the hollow ships, was a mightier man, who should have been his helper but stayed behind, and that was I, who now have brought you low. The dogs and carrion birds will tear apart your flesh, but him the Achaeans will bury."

Words continue to be exchanged until Hector dies.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zqz55W5RbQw

war - paolo buonvino

Achilles begins to take off Hector's armor. He rose to give a speech to the Achaeans:

"Friends, leaders, princes of the Argives, now the gods have let us kill this man, who harmed us more than all the rest together, let us make an armed reconnaissance of the city, while we see what the Trojans have in mind, whether they’ll abandon the city now their champion has fallen, or whether they’ll fight on, though Hector is no more. But why think of that? There is another corpse, unwept, unburied lying by the ships, that of Patroclus, my dear friend, whom I shall not forget as long as I walk the earth among the living. And though in the House of Hades men may forget their dead, even there I shall remember him. So, you sons of Achaea, raise the song of triumph, and drag this corpse back to the ships. We have won great glory, and killed the noble Hector, whom the Trojans prayed to like a god, in Troy."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Npu1UvCnaQ8

two dancers (i) - wild beasts

Achilles tied Hector's body to his chariot, whipping his houses to move forward. He then mutilated his body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfRY_JGz_MM

hurts like hell - fleurie

The camera fades out and Hector's family is grieving. Andromache, Hector's wife, has no idea what happened. When she finds out she runs, with tears in her eyes. She cries:

‘Oh, Hector, alas for me! It seems we were born for this, you in Priam’s palace, here in Troy, I in Thebe below wooded Placus, in Eëtion’s house. He it was who reared me from a babe, unlucky father of an ill-fated child. How I wish he’d never engendered me! Now you are gone to the House of Hades under the earth, but I remain cold with grief, a widow in your halls. And your son, the child of doomed parents, our child, a mere babe, can no longer give you joy, dead Hector: nor can you give joy to him."

achilles come down - gang of youths

The screen fades to black, her screams fading out. Credits, alongside paintings of Achilles, start to roll on the screen as the song plays.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_V76Dm42bY

[the-colony-roleplay]

Arthur Meir | Fifty Five; Survivor

House: Brink Status:  Uninfected Security Class: 1 Alignment:  New World Radicals

History

As the only child of the head of a prominent cattle ranch in Australia, Arthur Meir was born with great expectations already set for him. He was always told that one day it would be his turn to run the family ranch, a torch passed down from his father and his grandfather before him. Therefore, much of his childhood was spent working the fields with his father and his uncle Henry—and Henry’s gaggle of children. 

But for all the expectations, Arthur had very little interest in filling them. From the time he could walk, he’d been taught the workings of the ranch, the surrounding brush, the cattle drive and the trade. But the only part of it that had ever really interested him was the business side of things. By age twelve he could balance the books nearly as well as his father. The rest of it, however, was too dirty, too noisy, too crude for his tastes. He was envious of the children in the nearby town, who got to go to public school while he was homeschooled, or whose homes weren’t rampant with children and pets.

Not wanting to think about a fated-future he couldn’t escape, Arthur found reprieve in the past. He found himself absorbed in the history channel or historical documentaries, the story and politics of those who came before them engaging him in a way he’d never felt engaged on the farm. He began reading extensively about any timeline he could get his hands on. With the ranch’s spotty Echo connection, he joined forums discussing political strategies and how they might’ve been improved upon. Such discussions inevitably turned to present politics, which Arthur followed eagerly. This was something that excited him, that made him feel something. He continued doing his duties on the ranch as he was told, but they were often done halfheartedly and as quickly as possible, so that he could sooner get back to his studies.

At the age most students would graduate, Arthur’s parents offered him more responsibility on the ranch. A precursor to his taking over completely—the beginning of the end, the way Arthur saw it. It felt like a trap, a burden he wasn’t born for. So he returned to his parents with a counter-offer: university. He was almost surprised when they agreed—but it was on the condition that he come home in the summer to help with the drive. Arthur happily agreed, having expected more of a fight, but the second he set foot on campus he knew he would never properly return to his old life. 

Rather than biology, economics, business, or anything else his parents might’ve seen as practical for taking over the farm, Arthur majored in Political Science with a minor in History. As promised, he came home for the cattle drive every summer, but only at the last minute and he always left as soon as possible. Calls with his parents, especially with his father, became shorter and shorter. 

It came to a head at his graduation. His father had been under the impression that Arthur was furthering his education to take over the ranch; his son’s real major was a complete surprise. Even worse was Arthur’s flat refusal to come home. He had a new life he cared about, with a future that excited him and he wasn’t about to give up on it now, throwing away all his hard work. His father, nervous about the security of his ranch and hurt by the dishonesty, couldn’t see past the sense of betrayal. They argued until they were blue in the face, Arthur’s mother in tears. Desperate to get the final word, Arthur told his father that if his family couldn’t support him for who he was, then maybe he shouldn’t be a part of the family at all. He stormed away, angry. For better or worse, that was the end of big, obnoxious family breakfasts, of milking the cows at dawn, of practicing Shabbat with his parents—of the simple, but hardworking farm life.

Over the course of the next several years, Arthur worked his way up the political ladder until he was elected into the House of Representatives in the Parliament of Australia. But he didn’t stop there. Many terms later, he found himself working in the Department of Foreign Affairs, and eventually, was promoted to Australian High Commissioner to Canada: Arthur’s crowning achievement. And so, for the first time in his life, he made a little room for personal interests: and fell in love. 

At first, he and Rebecca Fitz seemed made for each other. They were both intensely independent and career driven, both having come from unlikely backgrounds and fought tooth and nail to get to where they were. They were married after roughly two years of dating, but as much as they had in common, their crucial mistake was failing to realize that they were both married to their careers first, and thus each other second. Arthur had apparently looked for himself in a woman, but it had been that which had doomed them for failure. 

Nonetheless, he loved her. Despite the nights of endless fighting and the abysmal communication, he loved her, and in a desperate (and stupid) attempt to save his marriage, he convinced her to have a child with him. For a smart man, this was where his naivety showed—his Achilles’ heel. For him, this could be a new beginning. It didn’t occur to him that perhaps this desperation was coming from a place of wanting to fill a hole he’d dug out of himself years ago, when he’d left his family behind. He’d been alone in the world for so long, but he had never allowed himself to look back, much less admit to himself that he was still burdened with regret. 

To his credit, they almost made it work. For a while, things even got better. But it goes without saying that throwing children into a broken marriage is like putting a bandaid over a bullet wound. The internal bleeding had already begun, and no surface treatment was going to stop that. Five years later, they divorced. 

It was when Arthur was making arrangements to transfer overseas to France—having taken up a job opportunity there so that he and Rebecca wouldn’t have to work under the same roof any longer—that he got the news that his father had passed away. A man he’d seen a handful of times over the years, spoken to on high holy days and special occasions—but never made amends with. The last real conversation they’d ever had, had been an argument. A hateful, hurtful one. 

The news unravelled Arthur. The loss of his marriage, his father, his family—years of guilt wrought with rust from neglect, bubbled to the surface and though he flew home for the funeral and more or less made amends with his mother, it was only a few months thereafter that her time came as well. It was a fiercely bitter-sweet relief that he was by her side, holding her hand in the hospital bed when she died. But in the end, for all Arthur’s independence and ambition, he’d not been prepared for the consequences of the choices he’d made when he was young, and it was in yet another fit of desperation that he arranged to leave his daughter, Dylan, in the care of his Uncle Henry. Perhaps it was cowardice, not being able to look Dylan in the face any longer after everything that had happened—or perhaps it was courage. Courage enough to know that he couldn’t give Dylan the life she deserved, especially not in his state of mind. He needed a fresh start. A chance to rebuild himself. And then maybe one day he’d come back for her. One day, he’d be ready. 

Unfortunately, with the apocalypse on the horizon, ‘one day’ never came. 

Arthur Today

When D-day hit, Arthur was a little surprised he didn’t feel somehow more prepared. It was a global crisis after all; that was what he specialized in. But as governments crumbled and the sky fell, he was rendered just as helpless as anyone else, at least in the beginning. By the time the dust had settled, society as they’d known it had been all but obliterated. But what remained... Arthur could work with. Along with several other politicians, leaders, and crisis workers, Arthur helped to establish a base in a chateau in Nantes. It was a place where survivors could get food, water, first aid, and a safe place to sleep. Eventually, this base would become Colony 16, and Arthur, one of the original founding Elites. 

The discovery of the Infections came as a bit of a plot twist, but Arthur was fascinated by it. Immediately, he saw the potential, the promise of a new world, of fresh, thrilling beginnings. This could change everything. If handled correctly, this could prove to be the reason behind the apocalypse. A chance like nothing anyone could have anticipated. Fate. 

And then the NWRF emerged.

Contrary to Arthur’s beliefs, the NWRF believed that Infected were just that—contaminated. They were afraid of the power the Infected wielded, and wanted to control it for themselves—or better yet, eliminate it altogether. It would be such a waste. A foolish, ill-advised waste based on fear and egotism. 

So when he caught wind of a burgeoning opposition calling themselves the New World Radicals, he eagerly made ties with them. From what he could tell, most of the movement’s supporters seemed to be either outside of Colony walls and on the run from the ‘purging of the wastes’, or laying low as registered citizens with their heads bent. They met only in the dead of night, careful about how they spoke of their cause, and with whom. There was a lot of secrecy involved, but to Arthur, it felt like the beginning of something. 

Having been on the side of the law and politics most of his life, this departure actually felt a little surreal—but he believed that the overturn of the Reformist government was not only necessary, but inevitable. So he would do what he could to further the agenda of those he knew would end up on top. He put his skills to use while at Colony 16, collaborating with other voices of the underground Radical movement and coming up with strategies to coordinate globally. 

And then his chance to implement some of those strategies arrived when he found his daughter as a registered citizen at Colony 22. He’d been considering trying to get transferred anyway, in order to secretly start furthering the reach of the NAR, and he’d been aiming for Colony 4, as he’d heard it was higher traffic; more people meant more opportunities for the NAR to grow. But his heart hitched when he saw Dylan’s name and birthdate in the Echo Database. In the years that had passed, he’d mostly been able to convince himself he’d put her and all his troubled, messy regret from his mind. But seeing confirmation that she was not only alive, but also a lot closer than he would have thought, felt like too fated an opportunity to pass up. 

Besides, asking for a transfer in order to reunite with his long-lost daughter was an excellent cover up to any other intentions he had, and would be very unlikely to be turned down. It also prompted very few questions, which definitely worked in Arthur’s favour. And so it was off to Colony 22 and the little island of Belvedere he went. 

Though he is not short of his own personal ambition and purpose for the NAR, Arthur would like to try to find a way into the ranks of the Elite at Colony 22 once he gets settled. He has plenty of political and business experience that he knows he could brandish around to help him achieve this, and he’s Uninfected, which he suspects will also make it easier. But the tricky part will be making good impressions upon his arrival, and fostering the right connections. With the NWRF in (relative) control at Colony 22, he knows he is going to have to play his cards wisely. But to secure a position as an Elite could help him and his political objectives immensely. 

For the moment, he keeps most of his true thoughts under his tongue, as he gets a sense for the political climate here. But he’s always watching, gathering information and calculating his next move; waiting for that other shoe to drop.

RELATED BIOS: DYLAN MEIR 

OPEN

[hellyeahheroes]

Building Billy Batson in D&D 5e

Hello everyone, I felt like making another build to add to the previous ones (which you can see in the Masterpost) and today....*Phone rings*

Is it done?

The Main Man always delivers. One Dark Multiverse bastish tied up like a gammon. What do ya wanna me do with that creep now?

 Throw him back where he came from. I won’t let him mess with another of my builds. Now, about the payment...

-mmmmmmmpf---mmmmmph.

Shup up or I’ll shove that headband where tha sun won’t shine! Anyway, consider tha one a freebie. One of that bastich’s buddies had an indecency ta die before Main Man’s fist could explain to his face why ya don’ stab me with my own hook. Whippin’ ta smile of tha bastich’s face is now a matter of honor.

Pleasure doing business with you.

*Call disconnected*

Sorry for that. Now that we are sure NO leather-clad clown from Dark Multiverse will get his dark-matter-covered hands on my builds like he did with Supergirl, let’s make build for who might be one of the most popular characters fitting the scope of this blog. So much I worry if the inspiration for these builds, Tulok the Barbarian, won’t drop his own build soon (I mean I did say in Supergirl build I doubt he will do Superman anytime soon....and then he did). We’re tackling an actual movie star this time. You probably already know who I’m talking about, right?

Shazam, vel Captain Marvel, vel Captain Marvelous vel Captain Thunder etc, is such a nice character he already has prepared his own list of goals for his build - the Wisdom of Solomon, the Strength of Hercules, the Stamina of Atlas, the Power of Zeus, the Courage of Achilles and the Speed of Mercury.

For Ability Scores, we’re always using Standard Points Array - 15, 14, 13, 12, 10 and 8. If your game uses a different point buy or your roll the dice, treat these as guidelines, just keep your Wisdom and Dexterity high enough for multiclassing.

Strength - 13, Strength of Hercules after all

Constitution - 14, it is Stamina of Atlas

Dexterity - 10, not exactly Speed of Mercury but we can reflect that easy in other ways.

Intelligence - 8, it reflects learned knowledge and Billy is still in school and is usually portrayed as an average student

Wisdom - 15, as it represents both Wisdom of Solomon (duh) and Courage of Achilles

Charisma - 12, too bad we cannot get it higher but Shazam is MAD (Multiple Ability Dependent) by definition. Anyway, people like Big Red Cheese.

Now for the Race.... Shazam is World’s Mightiest Mortal and he is supposed to be an aged up version of Billy or recreation of Billy’s memory of his dead father, so we’ll go with Variant Human. If you would rather take any form that reflects stories where Billy and Shazam are different people switching places, there are few options - Gensai seems somewhat fitting, so does Aasimar, Filbolg, Goliath or even Elf or Half-Elf, depending on where you’d want to focus with the character.

Variant Human gets 1 free language, pick whatever is campaign appropriate, one extra skill, pick Persuasion to help your good public image, +1 to two Ability Scores - pick up Wisdom and Charisma, and a feat. Elemental Adept allows us to pick a lightning type of damage so that from now on when we deal it, it will ignore the resistance and all 1s on our lighting damage rolls become 2s. Alternatively, you can use thunder for this feat, we will be doing a lot of both.

For background we will build a custom one. Pick up Athletics and Perception for skills, any two language or tool proficiencies you find campaign appropriate, and the City Secrets Feature from Urchin Background, which allows you to, when not in combat, travel twice as fast within a city.

Now for the Class, we’ll start with Sorcerer, which gives us proficiency with Charisma and Constitution saving throws, two skills - pick Insight to further utility Wisdom of Solomon to read people and Religion so you actually know what gods granting your powers are about and, you know, don’t go looking for Greek Titan Atlas and find some other guy named Atlas (King Shazam was a stupid book ok?) - and proficiency with daggers, slings, quaterstaffs, darts and light crossbows.

Sorcerer also gets Sorcerous Origin and Storm Sorcery gives us two features - Wind Speaker lets you talk and understand Primordial language and its dialects and Tempestuous Magic allows you to fly up to 10 feet on a gust of air without provoking opportunity attacks.

Sorcerers get to learn magic. How it works is that we get to learn two spells and two Cantrips and two spell slots. We get to cast a spell using the spell slot and we get them back upon finishing a long rest, while Cantrips we can cast as many times as we want. If these spells require a spell attack we roll it with a modifier equal your Charisma Modifier and Proficiency Bonus and if they ask to make a saving throw, difficulty for that is equal to that sum +8.

Also, from Unearthed Arcana for class options, you can pick Spell Versatility, which allows you to replace any of those spells with another of the same level once per long rest.

We start knowing two cantrips and two 1st-level spell from the Sorcerer Spell List:

Shocking Grasp. You make a melee Spell attack roll with attack modifier equal your CHA modifier + your proficiency modifier (so just the last one) and on a hit deal 1d8 lightning damage to a target. As you level up it increases to 2d8 on level 5th, 3d8 on 11th and 4d8 on 17th

Lighting Lure lets you bring up the fact Wonder Woman was slightly inspired by Captain Marvel - you can make a lasso out of a lighting and on a failed strength saving throw the target is pulled 10 feet towards you and if this makes them end within 5 feet from you takes 1d8 lightning damage (scaling as Shocking Grasp)

Expeditious Retreat which, as long as the concentration is maintained for a maximum of 10 minutes, lets you dash as a bonus action when you cast and on each of your turns. This should add to some of that Speed of Mercury thing.

Jump, it triples your jump distance. 

We will now jump (heh) to the first level of Fighter to gain proficiency with armors, simple and martial weapons and shields. Shazam isn’t wearing armor but you can argue his outfit could be a light armor maybe? If not, maybe consider picking up a Mage Armor instead of Jump. Or just go mad and have ARMORED SHAZAM to terrorize your enemies with. We can learn a Fighting Style and Unarmed Fighting from new Unearthed Arcana will make Shazam’s fists deal 1d6+Strength Modifier for damage, instead of static 2. If he uses two hands, or dropkicks someone, World’s Mightiest Mortal can roll 1d8 damage instead and on successful grapple check and whenever he hits a creature he is grappling he can deal an extra 1d4 of damage. You also gain Second Wind, which allows you to, on a bonus action, to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level.

2nd Level Fighter gets Action Surge, which allows you once per short or long rest to take an additional action on your turn. This, combined with your Expeditious Retreat helps us somewhat stimulate Speed of Mercury.

If you are confused with multiclassing do not worry, from now on we will remain firmly within a single class. Our 4th level will be 1st level of Cleric. I mean, as far as we might call him Wizard, the guy giving Billy his powers is beyond a mere d&d Wizard (tho some of them are close due to how bullshit op wizards are in this game) - a god-like being who often gets invited to sit at the same table with Phantom Stranger and Zeus, sired two freaking demons and gets into arguments about human nature with personification of Abrahamic God’s wrath and pulls cavemen from time to prove a point. Wizard Shazam is your diety, might be some sort of god of magic. 

1st Level Cleric gets to choose Divine Domain and with the whole motive, we have there is no better option than Tempest. You gain few proficiencies you already had from Fighter and Wrath of the Storm. An amount of time equal your Wisdom modifier per long rest you can use your reaction whenever you’re hit by a creature within 5 feet that you can see to deal it 2d8 lightning or thunder damage or half on successful DEX save.

Cleric, of course, learns spells. They work a bit differently from Sorcerer - you always know them but can only prepare a limited amount, equal your Cleric Level + your Wisdom modifier, ahead of time once you finish a long rest. Your Domain gives you extra spells you always have prepared as well. You can prepare spells on a higher level than they are normally to give them more powerful effects. And your Spell Attack and Spell Save Difficulty for Cleric spells use your Wisdom instead of Charisma. Cantrips work the same except new feature from Unearthed Arcana, Cantrip Versatility, lets you replace one you already know with another every time you gain a Cleric level.

Also, remember that since you are multiclassing casters, consult how many spells slots you should have with SRD - it’s very simple, you just sum up your Cleric and Sorcerer levels. You cannot cast spells from a level higher than you have access by the standard class spell progression, so I will still write down all spells as they would be granted on a standard level for a Cleric.

At first level you gain 3 Cantrips, 2 bonus spells and can prepare two spell slots + one for the next level

Virtue lets yu for one round grant yourself or another target 1d4+your Wisdom modifier temporary hit points.

Guidance lets you for up to 1 minute, on concentration, grant yourself or any willing creature a 1d4 to roll and add to any Ability Check.

Resistance works like Guidance but for saving throws.

Fog Cloud - you create a 20 feet fog that heavily obscures the area of your choice. You can maintain this spell with concentration up to 1 hour but it might be dispersed by wind.

Thunderwave makes you explode with the power of Zeus, dealing every creature within 15-feet away from you 2d8 thunder damage, half on a successful Constitution saving throw, and pushes 10 feet away from you all creatures that failed and everything that isn’t tied or nailed to the ground.

Guiding Bolt makes you make a ranged spell attack - on a hit you blast the target with energy, dealing it 4d6 radiant damage and giving anyone who attacks it an advantage on the next attack because of how the lingering energy makes them a sitting target.

Cure Wounds lets you hear 1d8+your Wisdom modifier of damage on a single target who isn’t undead or a construct. This may represent both your resilence in combat as well as how you inspire other heroes to keep fighting with your optimism - remember hit points are not meat points. (as an alternative you can take Healing Word which works similar except cannot be used on yourself instead can be used at distance - think of it as Shazam cheering an ally in the middle of the combat)

Protection from Evil and Good, upon casting lets you choose one type of creature - an aberration, celestial, elemental, fey, fiend or undead. You can hold it up on Concentration for up to 10 minutes and it gives all creatures of that type a disadvantage on attack rolls against whoever you cast it on and prevents them from charming, frightening or possessing them - and if they already are, it gives them the advantage on saving throws to break free.

2nd Level Cleric learns to Channel Divinity, letting the power of Zeus grant you one of the following options once per short or long rest:

Turn Undead forces every undead within 30 feet that can see or hear you to make a Wisdom Saving Throw or be turned for 1 minute or until it takes any damage, a state in which it must spend its turn using all actions to move as far away from you as it can, unless that’s impossible (then it must try to escape that effect), cannot willingly move to any area within 30 feet from you and cannot take reactions. So now you know why Nekron waited until Billy was depowered to kick off Blackest Night.

Destructive Wrath can be activated whenever you deal thunder or lightning damage and lets you just skip rolling and declare you deal maximum damage possible.

Harness Divine Power from Unearthed Arcana lets you spend your use of Channel Divinity as a bonus action to regain a 1st-level spell.

On 3rd Level Cleric gains 1 extra spell slot for 1st level spells and can now prepare 2 2nd level spells and 2 bonus spells from Tempest Domain and I will also get out of the way new Cantrip and another 2nd level spell slot we will get on 4rd level.

Word of Radiance makes you erupt with radiant energy, forcing every creature that you can see of your choice to make a Constitution saving throw or take 1d6 radiant damage (scaling with your total level like previous Cantrips).

Divine Favor is a concentration spell that can last up to 1 minute and lets you add an extra 1d4 radiant damage to your attacks

Enchance Ability is another Concentration spell that lasts up to 1 minute, it lets you grant you or someone else a bonus on Ability Checks for one Ability of your choice with some minor bonuses for physical ones - 2d6 temporary hit points for CON, preventing you from taking falling damage for DEX and doubling your carrying capacity for STR.

Aid lets you increase current and maximum hit points of up to 3 allies by 5 for up to 8 hours. It doesn’t require concentration and doesn’t count it as temporary hit points, meaning it can stack with those and you can cast it early and it should last for a while.

Prayer of Healing will be the improved version of that “Shazam cheers on his friends” deal with healing I mentioned above - now you can heal 2d8+your Wisdom modifier of damage on up to six creatures you can see.

Gust of Wind lets you play a big bad wolf - you huff and puff so much it creates a strong wind in a 60 feet long and 10 feet wide line, which can last up to 1 minute on concentration. It extinguishes any flames that aren’t protected, has a 50% chance of doing so to protected ones as well, and forces every creature caught in it to succeed a Strength saving throw or be pushed 15 feet away whenever it starts its turn in that line. On each turn you can change the direction of the line as a bonus action.

Shatter lets you bring the thunder - it deals 3d8 thunder damage to all not worn or carried nonmagical objects and every creature within the 10-feet radius from you, half as much on a successful Constitution saving throw, which inorganic creatures (like Doctor Shivana’s robots maybe?) make with disadvantage.

A situation where Enhance Ability is put to a good use

4th Level is an ability score Improvement, increase your Wisdom for better Saving Throw difficulty and more Spells prepared

At 5th Level you get Destroy Undead, which means that from now on every time you use your Turn Undead, all undead of Challenge Rating 1/2 or less who will fail their Wisdom Saving throw get instantly destroyed. You also get 2 3rd level spell slots and gain two bonus spells. And one more on 6th level.

Protection from Energy grants you or another willing creature resistance to one type of damage you choose - acid, cold, fire, lightning or thunder - for up to 1 minute on Concentration.

Beacon of Hope also lasts up to 1 minute on Concentration and in this time grants any number of creatures within range advantage on Wisdom saving throws, death saving throws and make all healing spells automatically heal maximum number of hit points.

Speaking of which, Mass Healing Word lets you to heal up to six creatures in 60 feet range that you can see for 1d4+your Wisdom modifier.

Sleet Storm is your second bonus spell and it is pretty hard to explain this one in character, for now. Until it ends, and it lasts 1 minute on Concentration, you can make sleet and freezing rain fall down on an area of 40 feet radius and20-feet in height, centered on any point you chose within 120 feet radius. Flames in the area are doused, the ground becomes difficult terrain and whenever a creature enters it or starts its turn there it must make Dexterity saving throw or fall prone and every creature concentrating on a spell within the area must make a Constitution saving throw or lose concentration.

Call Lighting on Concentration can last up to 10 minutes and it creates a 10 feet tall, 60-feed wide cylinder centered on a point 100 feet above you within 120 feet radius, which makes storm erupt in that area. On each of your turns or when spell is cast you can literally call lighting on any point within that area and have lighting strike it, dealing all creatures within 5 feet to 3d10 lightning damage, half on a successful Dexterity saving throw, +extra 1d10 if you cast it in stormy conditions already. Why does that sound familiar?

Unlike what we learned in Kingdom Come and Justice League cartoon it is not advised you actually stand next to the person you’re blasting with Call Lighting.

On 6th level, you can use your Channel Divinity options twice between rests and you gain Thunderous Strike - whenever you deal Lighting damage on a large or smaller creature, you can push it 10 feet away from you.

7th level Cleric gets to learn first 4th level spell, plus two bonus spells and we will also cover one spell of that level you get at 8th level:

Freedom of Movement lasts for an Hour, no concentration, and make target unaffected by difficult terrain and immune to any magical effects that would reduce its movement, paralyze or restrain it, can spend 5 feet of movement to escape all nonmagical ones like grappling and doesn't suffer penalties on attack and movement underwater.

Aura of Purity, added to Cleric’s list in Unearthed Arcana, lets you generate an aura for up to 10 minutes on Concentration. You and each non-hostile creature within 30-foot radius cannot become diseased, gains resistance to poison damage and advantage on saving throws on any effects that would cause it to be blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, paralyzed, poisoned or stunned.

Control Water lasts up to 10 minutes on concentration and lets you control any body of water in 300 feet area that would fit in a cube up to 100 feet on one side, making a flood, parting it, redirecting its flow or creating a whirlpool. No idea how that fits Shazam, maybe instead of Speed of Mercury you got Aquatics of Moses? But hey, free stuff.

Ice Storm lets you choose any point within 300 feet radius and have it becomes a center of a cylinder 40 feet high and 20 foot wide that gets BOMBARDED BY ROCK HARD ICE dealing all creatures in it 2d8 bludgeoning damage and 4d6 ice damage, half on a successful Dexterity saving throw and the ground in that area becomes difficult terrain until end of your next turn.

8th level is also dense with features. Yoru Destroy Undead now works on all undead of challenge rating 1 or less, you can round up your Wisdom with an Ability Score Improvement and you get Divine Strike. Once on each of your turns when you hit a creature you can deal it an extra 1d8 thunder damage. Alternatively, you can choose to make it radiant with a possible replacement feature from Unearthed Arcana, Blessed Strikes, allowing you to add 1d8 radiant damage to any damage you deal with a hit or spell once each turn. It is more flexible but won’t increase to 2d8 when you gain 14th level of Cleric.

Yeah, being able to call upon Ice Storm does make me think Armageddon has arrived.

9th level Cleric gets a new Cantrip, one more 4th level spell slot and we will do our usual dance with 5th level spells - covering one for a slot you gain on this and next level and two bonus ones.

Light lets you make an object no longer than 10 feet in any dimension shine with bright light in a 20-foot radius and dim light in following 20-foot radius and if that object was held by a hostile creature, it must succeed a Dexterity saving throw or drop it.

Our 4th level spell is Banishment, which lets you do that one trick where Shazam punched a monster so hard he created a black hole and send it to another dimension. Which he did. You choose a target up to 60 feet from you and force it to make a Charisma saving throw. If it fails, you need to keep concentration up to 1 minute. If the concentration breaks, the target returns. If a minute has passed and the target was a native to the plane you are on, it will then return. If it wasn’t, then if you keep up concentration for that 1 minute, they do not come back. Have I mentioned two of your enemies are freaking demon children fo Wizard, Blaze and Satannus? And that one of your deadliest foes, Mr. Mind has been in new continuity an interdimensional threat (and for fans of him being an alien, look up Spelljammer)? Put this baby to a good use.

Mass Cure Wounds lets you to choose up to six creatures within 30-feet radius centered on any point of your choice within 60 feet from you. Each one regains 3d8+ your Wisdom modifies of hit points. Billy further inspiring his friends to keep up hope in face of evil.

Flame Strike is another spell for the “how is he exactly doing that” category. It’s basically you choosing any point within 60 feet range from you and yelling SHAZAM! to make a 10-foot in radius, 40-feet high PILLAR OF FIRE erupt with a center on this point, dealing 4d6 fire damage and 4d6 radiant damage to all creatures within it, half on a successful Dexterity saving throw.

Destructive Wave makes a burst of destructive energy erupt from you. You can choose which creatures within 30 feet radius from you it hits and deal them 5d6 thunder damage and 5d6 either radiant or necrotic damage, whichever you prefer, half on a successful Dexterity saving throw. Those that fail the save are also knocked prone.

Finally Insect Wave. Choose any point within 300 feet radius. It becomes a center of a 20-feet in radius sphere that gets FILLED WITH LOCUST that deal 4d10 piercing damage to all creatures in it, all those who enter the area or end a turn within it, half on a successful Constitution saving throw. On Concentration, you can keep up this nightmare up to 10 minutes. Maybe that M does stand for Moses after all?

This is how it looks like when Shazam tries Banishment, minus that part where he gets sucked in as well.

At 10th level Cleric learns Divine Intervention - in time of need you can call upon your boss the Wizard and ask him for help. Roll percentile dice (1d100 or 2d10, with one serving as tens and another as ones) and if you roll equal or below your level the diety will intervene on your behalf.

11th level Cleric gets Destroy Undead increased to Challenge Rating 2 and learns a 6th level Spell. Otherwordly Form let’s you assume form of divine being. You can say SHAZAM and for one minute, with Concentration, assume either Upper or Lower Planes form and gain following benefits: flying speed of 40 feet,+2 bonus to AC, an abilitty to substitute your Wisdom for Strength when punching people and depending on the planes you picked either immonity to poison damage and poisoned condition (lower planes) or necrotic damage and charmed condition (Upper Planes).

12th level Cleric gains an Ability Score Improvement. Due to many of our spells requiring Concentration, we should invest in Constitution. Remember it grants extra hit points retroactively. 13th level grants us a single 7th level spell. Let’s make SHAZAM! the word of power it deserves to be then with Divine Word - you utter a word imbued with power that shaped the world since the dawn of creation. Choose any number of creatures with 30 feet that you can see. You force them to make a Charisma saving throw and if they fail the following results happen: if the creature had 50 or less Health Points, it gets deafened for 1 minute. If its HP was 40 or lower, it gets blinded and deafened for 10 minutes. If its health was 30 or lower it gets blinded, deafened and stunned for 1 hour. Any loser with HP below 21 is killed instantly. And if you use it on  a celestial, an elemental, a fey, or a fiend and they fail a save they get kicked out to their native dimension and cannot return for next 24 hours unless someone uses a Wish spell, on top of all that deafening and killing.

This is what he is talking about and you cannot convince me otherwise.

At 14th Level your Divine Strike damage increases to 2d8 and your Destroy Undead power now works on undead up to Challenge Rating 3. 15th Level Cleric gets access to 8th level spells. Holy Aura is a Concentration Spell up to 1 minute, making you shine a bright aura in a 30-foot radius. Any creature you choose within that radius shines dim light with 5 feet radius and have an advantage on all saving throws, while everyone else has a disadvantage on all attack rolls against them and if an undead or fiend actually manages to hit them in a melee, they shine brightly for a moment, blinding their attacker for the remaining duration of the spell, unless they make a Constitution saving throw.

16th level Cleric gains another Ability Score Improvement, increase your Constitution again. Our Capstone is the 17th level of Cleric which increases Destroy Undead to now working on Challenge Rating 4 undead and gives us Stormborn, which grants you flying speed equal to your walking speed while outdoors and not underground. So assume all these insane storms were results of Billy flying up and messing with the weather above. Finally, we learn a 9th level spell slot. Upon casting you to restore up to 700 Hit Points divided as you choose between any number of creatures within 60 feet, also curing them of all disease and effects making them blinded or deafened. You know, in case Black Adam used his own Divine Word on your allies.

So this is how I would build Shazam in D&D. Storm Sorcerer 1/Fighter 2/Tempest Domain Cleric 17. Now lets us see how variable this build is. First of all, Big Red Cheese is a good person to be around, always inspiring his allies to push forward and keeping up the morale (aka healing everyone). Second he can use his might to bring terror upon the battlefield, with many area of effect spells wrecking chaos among the enemies. And in a pinch, Billy can tank damage like a champ with around 180 HP and with high Constitution and proficiency in its save he should maintain Concentration easily. You are also surprisingly mobile for a guy doing tanking and battlefield-control.

On the downsides, Strength of Hercules and Speed of Mercury are mostly maintained by casting spells and playing them off as some sorts of abilities you just have. Meaning if you want to maintain that you need to carefully consider your spells for each day and what you might need. Your strength modifier being only +1 also means that without Otherworldy Form you will often simply not hit your enemies. Even your damage in melee is mostly accomplished by fighting style and Divine Strike. Speaking of which, a lot of your damage is done in types that many creatures have resistance and immunity to and this build is too hungry for Ability Score Improvements to pick up second Elemental Adept so you cannot even deal with resistance on both lightning and thunder. Finally, a lot of your spells require Concentration, meaning you can use only one at the time. Overall, however, you are a valuable member of the team, as long as you remember you cannot do everything alone.

ALTERNATIVES:

Speaking of a team, Billy isn’t the only champion of the Wizard. So why won’t we talk about how to alter this build to make any of Billy’s siblings? Here are some quick suggestions:

DARLA: Change Ability Scores to STR 12 DEX 14 CON 13 INT 8 WIS 15 CHA  10 and use your Variant Human modifiers to round up Wisdom and Constitution. Drop fighter and Sorcerer and instead pick up a level of Monk for increased mobility and DEX-based Unarmed attacks, then a level of Revised Ranger with Favored Enemy replaced by Favored Foe from Unearthed Arcana and one extra level left spend on Cleric (from which you should be starting this build now), spend Ability Score Improvements on maxing out Wisdom and Dexterity. You will keep your mobility, decrease the MAD and be able to both move around the battlefield, deal decent damage in combat and still rely on your spells requiring a saving throw or spell attack.

PEDRO: STR: 14 DEX 10 CON 15 INT 10 WIS 13 CHA 8, two +1 spend on Strength and Constitution, replace Elemental Adept with Athlete to round up your Strength, replace Sorcerer with one more level of Fighter and pick Brute as a Martial Archetype, spend Ability Score Improvements on maxing up Strength and Constitution. Focus on Concentration based spells, especially those beneficial to you and your allies, so you can be a team tank.

EUGENE: For Ability Scores replace Charisma with Intelligence and drop a level of Sorcerer and a level of Fighter for two levels of Wizard. At second level pick up School of Lore Mastery for Spell secrets - it allows you to change the type of damage dealt by your spells and the type of a saving throw they demand to make. You’re squishier but more flexible in casting, able to make all your weird spells deal lighting or thunder damage or another way around if you run into something with resistance or immunity.

MARY: drop Fighter and Sorcerer for 3 level of Celestial Pact Warlock, on 3rd level pick up Pact of the Chain and replace one of your Eldritch Invocations with Investment of the Chain Master from Unearthed Arcana and either convince the DM to let you summon a rabbit familiar (despite it not being on the list) or agree to use stats of one of the animals on it while treating it like a rabbit in story. With the Invocation, you will get flying rabbit with magical attacks, or should I say HOPPY THE MARVEL BUNNY?

FREDDY: Drop levels of Fighter and go with 3 levels of Draconic Sorcerer to get better AC, more spells and Metamagic to let you do some crazy stuff.

- Admin

[art-of-manliness]

Podcast #496: What Plato’s Republic Has to Say About Being a Man

Plato’s Republic is a seminal treatise in Western political philosophy and thought. It hits on ideas that we’re still grappling with in our own time, including the nature of justice and what the ideal political system looks like. But my guest today argues that The Republic also has a lot to say about manliness, character development, and education in our current climate of safe spaces and trigger warnings.  His name is Jacob Howland. He’s a professor of philosophy at the University of Tulsa and the author of the recent book Glaucon’s Fate: History, Myth, and Character in Plato’s Republic. We begin our conversation with an outline of Plato’s Republic and how it combines literature and philosophy. Jacob then makes the case that in The Republic, Socrates was attempting to save the soul of Plato’s politically ambitious brother, Glaucon, and why he thinks Socrates failed. Along the way we discuss what Socrates’ attempt to save Glaucon can teach us about andreia or manliness and what it means to seek the Good in life. We end our conversation discussing the way The Republic teaches us of the need to possess not only physical courage, but the courage to think for oneself and stand up for one’s beliefs — a courage that is tested in a time like our own, where it can feel difficult to ask hard questions and wrestle with thorny issues.  Show Highlights * What made Plato stand out among other Greek philosophers? * What makes Plato’s works so readable  * A primer on Plato’s aims and philosophy * The general outline of The Republic * The connections between Plato and pop culture (like Tolkien and The Matrix)  * Why Plato created imaginary cities to use for thought experiments  * Why Glaucon, Plato’s brother, plays a starring role in The Republic * Socrates idea of manliness, and how it differed from the classic Greek ideal * The subtle way Socrates gets his point across  * What ancient philosophys say about masculinity in our modern world  * The importance of being playful  * Is it harder to ask hard questions in our modern world? * What it means to be a fully flourishing human being  Resources/People/Articles Mentioned in Podcast * Howland’s The Republic: The Odyssey of Philosophy * The Republic  * The Symposium  * A Primer on Plato * Socrates * Xenophon * The Spartan Regime * The Allegory of the Cave * What the Ancient Greeks and Romans Thought About Manliness * Plato’s Idea of Greek Manliness * Hector and Achilles: Two Paths to Manliness * Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics * AoM series The Spartan Way * The Iliad * Courage vs Boldness * The Open Society and Its Enemies by Karl Popper * Ring of Gyges Listen to the Podcast! (And don’t forget to leave us a review!) Listen to the episode on a separate page. Download this episode. Subscribe to the podcast in the media player of your choice. Recorded on ClearCast.io Podcast Sponsors Stitcher Premium. You can listen to “Wolverine: The Lost Trail” right now and only on Stitcher Premium. For a free month of Stitcher Premium, go to wolverinepodcast.com and use promo code “manliness.” Headspace. Hundreds of guided meditation sessions that you can do in just 5-10 minutes. Increase your happiness, focus, and mindfulness throughout your day. Go to headspace.com/manliness to get a free one month trial.  Saxx Underwear. Everything you didn’t know you needed in a pair of underwear. Visit saxxunderwear.com and get $5 off plus FREE shipping on your first purchase when you use the code “AOM” at checkout. Click here to see a full list of our podcast sponsors. Read the Transcript Coming soon! The post Podcast #496: What Plato’s Republic Has to Say About Being a Man appeared first on The Art of Manliness. http://dlvr.it/R26ddK

[weloveheather]

Rating these trios:

1- IzNoWen: Izzy's chaotic energy and Noah's calm and neutral energy are the both polar sides to Owen's personality. I mean, they be like the perfect polyamorous group and would probably be the center of most comic relief. I imagine they having conversations like:

"who wants to order pizza?" (Owen)

"me! Hawaii flavored, or maybe pepperoni, half and half!" (Izzy)

"I like these ideas!" (Owen)

"Just get one more simple, like mozzarella" (Noah)

"What about three??" (Izzy)

"Perfect!" (Owen)

*Noah's face palm louder than Owen's farts*

2- BriLeTney: Even though Courtney and Leshawna could have their problems with leadership, Bridgette would be the one to calm they down and get a solution they both agree on. Besides that, I feel like they would be the most powerful of them all, and would have awesome girl's nights and sleepovers, with of course, lots of vegan and gluten-free goodies (just because I feel like Courtney would personally like to do them lol), spa (Leshawna idea), films and pillow war (Wich would surely be initiated by surprise, and everyone would be suspicious as hell). Also, I think they would talk A LOT about their boyfriends/romantic relationships/interests and have nicknames for everyone in the show.

3- HaDyCan: Chaotic. Just like that. Harold and Duncan don't get so well, so they would definitely fight, in his courageous days Cody would try to make things work, but would be shouted down by Duncan or both, in his least courageous days he would stay aside and work alone. There would be times when all of the boys would cooperate and be real trouble, mostly because all of them are really intelligent and could make a successful plan together, but I think they couldn't do nothing or very little against the BriLeTney group, since they're all very intelligent and skilled (and Leshawna/Courtney are the Achilles heel of Harold/Duncan). Besides all that, I don't really like that one because of Duncan, I have a feeling he would have way more power in decisions because of Harold and Cody being more physically weak.

4- LinHeaGwen: Not even the name looks good lol. Heather and Lindsay make a good pair, even though their friendship is toxic on tdi and they almost don't interact in the others seasons, I feel like they genuinely like eachother. Gwen on the other hand can't stand Heather's behavior and don't actually like Lindsay because she's dumb (or at least is what it appears to be in my point of view). They would fight all the time and almost do every challenge alone, plus as a friend group they probably would just stay together for being forced to. Gwen would definitely want to be with BriLeTney and Heather would want her out of the group as soon as possible. I just can't see a way they would cooperate with eachother unless is a really good plan (and when that miracle happens they can destroy everyone). Lindsay would try to make Heather and Gwen stay united and be friends, but she would totally fail.

Some Total Drama characters

[theclumsyxeno]

Team Desire

Alignment: Good

Status: Active

Based in: Athens, New York (Team Desire HQ Condominium)

Founded by: Queen Freesia of Serenity

Lead by: Queen Freesia of Serenity (Status: Captured and presumed dead) Sunset Shimmer (Currently)

Members:

Sunset Shimmer:

Home: Canterlot City (Formerly) Athens, New York (Team Desire HQ) (Currently)

Species: human

Occupation: Chakra shaman/Team leader

Sunset Shimmer was a girl who was cruel, selfish, and hateful. She ruled her high school with an iron fist, and no one, not even the staff were brave enough to argue. However, she was soon dethroned by Twilight Sparkle, after she was consumed by equestrian magic. She was ashamed and felt awful, she left Canterlot City, feeling hopeless and broken, however, she ran into Queen Freesia by pure chance. The royal Shaman saw potential in the teen and took her in as her student. Sunset Shimmer learned to tap into the Chakras and use magic from within, rather than outside sources. Later, Queen Freesia started Team Desire, however, during a mission, Queen Freesia was captured by Zavok and the Deadly Six. Sunset Shimmer was crushed, that she wasn’t able to save her mentor, but swore to avenge her by leading team Desire.

Axl:

Home: Able City (Formerly) Athens, New York  (Team Desire HQ) (Currently)  

Species: Reploid

Occupation: Weapons specialist

Axl is a reploid who’s origins are unknown, he was found by Red, the leader of Red Alert, in a weakened and near death state. Red took in Axl and he became Red Alert’s secret weapon for defeating Mavericks and getting the job done. However, a stranger appeared before Red, who called himself, “The Professor” Who claimed he was a sympathizer with Red’s cause and wanted to “help out” Red Alert, Red agreed, not realizing the mistake he had made. With that, slowly, but surely, The Professor infected almost all the members of Red Alert with the Maverick Virus, causing them to run amuck. Axl, who couldn’t bear to see those he cared for fall to such low states, ran away, He later was found by Zero and Lucario who introduced him to Queen Freesia who welcomed him into team Desire. He helped out with many missions, however, he later found out that Red Alert had been eliminated entirely, and Axl fell into depression. Queen Freesia, Cosmo, and Sunset Shimmer comforted him and eventually helped him back up again. As of now, Axl serves as the Weapons specialist of Team Desire, using his copy chip (Which had been enhanced by Queen Freesia’s chakras and could now also copy living beings) gain not only an edge against his opponents, but also to send info on the battle tactics and and weapons of team desire’s enemies.

Cosmo:

Home: Unknown (Destroyed) Athens, New York City (Currently)

Species: Seedrian

Occupation: Strategist and negotiator

Cosmo was born on an unknown planet and lived there peacefully for eight years, however, the Metarex came and attacked the planet, Her Mother, Earthia, refused to allow the Metarex to harm her. So she sent her off the planet in a pod which later crashed on earth. She was found by Sunset Shimmer, who introduced Cosmo to Queen Freesia, Cosmo explained about how the Metarex destroyed her planet. Queen Freesia adopted Cosmo, feeling sorry for the youngster. She later joined Team Desire, as she had shown great ability in strategy and negotiation.

Kirby

Home: Popstar

Species: Unknown

Occupation: Wild Card

Kirby hails from the Planet Pop Star, he has been it’s defender for over 20 years, stopping the forces of Dark matter from taking over the planet and universe, he even stopped Magalor from taking over the Universe with the master crown, stopped Queen Sectonia from sapping the universe dry, and Saved the universe from Star Dream’s forced peace. After such acts of courage, Queen Freesia sought out the pink puffball, and eventually found him while he was soaring through the sky on his Warp Star. She approached him and told him he could help the universe in amazing ways by joining team Desire, Kirby, despite his simple demeanor, jumped at the chance and joined, team desire as their wild card due to his copy ability, so long as the team had a snack ready for him.

Metal Man

Home: Wily Castle (Formerly) Athens, New York  (Team Desire HQ)  (Currently)

Species: Robot Master

Occupation: Other Weapons Stagist/main bodyguard of leader

Created to be the improved and better version of Cut Man, Metal Man was powerful, fast, and deadly. His metal blades could take out any robot master. He felt he was unstoppable until he was defeated by Mega Man. He felt like a failure, and left the Wily Castle, planning to take his revenge on Mega Man and Dr. Light. He tried and failed many times to defeat  Mega Man. Eventually, Metal Man grew tired and planned to commit suicide. However, He was stopped by Sunset Shimmer, who told him there was a better way, she introduced him to Queen Freesia. Who showed him to use his Metal blades for a better purpose, and used her Chakras to slowly help him open his mind. He, in turn, joined Team Desire and vowed to protect Queen Freesia, as a way of thanking her. Since being reformed, Metal Man speaks in a respectful manner, Especially towards the leaders Calling them “Lady” or “Sir”, when addressing them. He also became the other weapons strategist. After Queen Freesia was captured by the Deadly Six, Metal Man took it upon himself to find her, but after months of searching, couldn’t. He then decided to protect the next leader, Sunset Shimmer. He has since developed feelings for Sunset Shimmer, and has since become more than just friends with her.

Raychel:

Home California (Formerly) Athens, New York  (Team Desire HQ) (Currently)

Species: Battle Robot

Occupation: Muscle and speed

Raychel was one of the early creations of Bill Blackwell, she was created as an experiment, a robot who could absorb the xels of robots and use them in combat. She initially was a success, until an accident at the battle coliseum damaged her xel core, causing extreme decay and turning her into a predator. Bill attempted to repair Raychel, but the decay had messed with her mind, giving her a warped sense of right and wrong, she abandoned Bill and hid in an abandoned cherry Dyn lab for ten years. She later resurfaced, deranged and deathly ill. She threatened Sanda tech, causing Dr. Sanda and Dr. White to send Beck and the other Mighty Numbers to fight her. They defeated her but She escaped and hid once more, later She was found by Axl and Sunset Shimmer, the latter subdued her and the pair brought her to Queen Freesia, who healed her, feeling that she owed her life to the royal shaman, she joined Team Desire as their muscle as well as their speed. She, however, buds heads often with Metal Man, largely due to the pair differing about what's best for the Team, leaving Queen Freesia, and now Sunset Shimmer to break it up.

Shay Cormac:

Home: Colonial America (Formerly) Athens, New York; Team Desire HQ (Currently)

Species: Human

Occupation: Assassin

Born to Irish immigrants in colonial New York, Shay lost his parents at a young age and was brought into the Colonial Brotherhood of Assassins by his best friend Liam O’Brien. They trained under Master Assassin, Achilles. However, Shay never seemed to fit in along with his fellow Assassins and felt at times, lonely. After many successful battles against the Templars, Shay was sent to a temple to find a piece of Eden. But it ended up causing an earthquake, killing thousands. Shay tried to let Achilles and the others in his group know, but they ignored and brushed him to the side, and planned to find the other pieces. Feeling betrayed, he took the manuscripts and tried to get rid of them, only to be attacked by his fellow Assassins, and left for dead. He soon awoke to Queen Freesia, and found himself somewhere that wasn’t even in his time period. She healed Shay and explained to him, that it wasn’t his time to go, and that he had much to do for the world. He, however, worried that his Order of Assassins would abuse the Pieces of Eden, but Freesia assured him, the Manuscripts were in safe hands. She asked him to join Team Desire, to ensure the modern pieces of Eden would not fall into the wrong hands. He agreed, so long as he could get caught up on the times. As of now, Shay has developed many real friendships with his new teammates, and Assassinates those who would threaten the peace of the multiverse, and is always searching for the deadly Six, the ones who kidnapped the one person he truly ever saw a mentor.    

Alexa Woods:

Home: Unknown, Team Desire HQ (Currently)

Species: Human

Occupation: Explorer/battle trainer

A Woman well known for her feats within her own dimension, It wasn’t long before she was approached by Queen Freesia, not to join Team Desire, as the team didn’t exist at the time, but to befriend her and possibly make her, her appertince. While the latter never truly went through, the former did. After many adventures, the pair were approached by Weyland Industries to head to Antartica to investigate a temple under the ice. After a team is assembled, the group headed for the temple and discover it was created by ancient humans eons ago for their “Gods” It’s also revealed that the temple was full of Xenomorphs, Feral, violent, and bloodthirsty Aliens that inhabited the Temple. To make matters worse, three predator-like aliens known as the Yaujta; Celtic, Chopper, and Scar, arrive to hunt the Xenomorphs as a rite of passage, and the humans end up in the middle. Soon enough, almost all of the team is offed by either the Xenomorphs or the Yautja, leaving only Lex, Freesia, and their team member, Sebastion. Soon The trio of Humans come face-to-face with the Trio of the Predators, However, the trio doesn’t attack them, rather they attack the Xenomorphs in the same room, giving the humans a chance to escape them. However, Sebastion got taken by a Xenomorph, leaving Lex and Freesia on their own. However, They are found once more by both the Yaujta and The Xenomorphs. The trio of Yaujta initially have the upper hand against the Xenomorphs, but soon are overpowered. Realizing that the Predators are struggling, Freesia began to assist them against the Xenomorphs, And even kills one. However, one Xenomorph tries to attack Lex, but she impales it and stops it in its tracks. After that, the duo earned the respect of the Yaujta and join them in the defeating the other Xenomorphs and even defeat the Queen. After everything is said and done, The three Yaujta returned to their planet, Lex and Freesia returned to civilization. Years later, after Starting Team Desire, Queen Freesia approached Lex once more, this time to invite her to join Team Desire. To which Lex was more than happy to.

Celtic Yaujta:

Home: Yaujta Prime, Team Desire HQ (Occasionally)

Species: Yaujta

Occupation: Predator

Celtic was a young blood Yaujta who, Along with Scar and Chopper, Headed to Earth to prove himself a true blooded warrior. The trio landed in Antarctica and entered the Temple to hunt down Xenomorphs. He and the others found a team of humans and discovered a few of them had stolen their weapons, and so went after them. Chopper and Scar killed Two of the Humans who had stolen weapons While Celtic handled the Xenomorphs that attacked. Soon enough The Trio caught up to Alexa, Queen Freesia, and Sebastion. However, They didn’t attack them, however, rather they attacked the Xenomorphs in the room. After defeating them, the trio branded themselves with the blood of the Xenomorphs. Making them Blooded Warriors, Later the Trio found Lex and Freesia, however, not to attack them, but to attack the Xenomorphs that were there as well. The trio had the upper hand initially, however, Celtic’s Arrogance got the better of him and he was stabbed and held against the wall, about to be killed, when Queen Freesia saved him by setting the Xenomorph ablaze, causing the Xenomorph to retract its tail and squirm in agony, giving Celtic the opening to kill the Xenomorph. After killing the other Xenomorphs, Freesia and Lex earned the Respect of Celtic and the other Yaujta. Queen Freesia used her Chakras to help the Yaujta to be able to speak English. The two females join Celtic and the other Yaujta in defeating the Xenomorphs, soon enough Celtic personally Branded Queen Freesia with his mark, a sign of the highest form of respect, However, The group gets surprised attacked by the Queen Xenomorph, They work together and defeat The queen. After everything is said and done, Celtic, Chopper, and Scar return to their home planet. Years later, Celtic, Chopper, and Scar returned to earth to fight off a Xenomorph Invasion and run into Lex and help the other humans fight off the Xenomorphs. After that, They were approached by Queen Freesia, asking them to Join Team Desire, Feeling he was indebted to Queen Freesia, Celtic agreed to.

Chopper Yaujta:

Home: Yaujta Prime, Team Desire HQ (Occasionally)

Species: Yaujta

Occupation: Predator

Chopper was a young Blood Yaujta who, Along with Celtic and Scar, Headed to Earth to prove himself a true blooded warrior. The trio landed in Antarctica and entered the Temple to hunt down Xenomorphs. He and the others found a team of humans and discovered a few of them had stolen their weapons, and so went after them. Chopper and Scar killed Two of the Humans who had stolen weapons While Celtic handled the Xenomorphs that attacked. Soon enough The Trio caught up to Alexa, Queen Freesia, and Sebastion. However, They didn’t attack them, however, rather they attacked the Xenomorphs in the room. After defeating them, the trio branded themselves with the blood of the Xenomorphs. Making them Blooded Warriors, Later the Trio found Lex and Freesia, however, not to attack them, but to attack the Xenomorphs that were there as well. The trio had the upper hand initially, however, Chopper became distracted and was Impaled by a grid Xenomorph, Freesia saved Chopper by electrocuting the Xenomorph, forcing it to drop Chopper, Freesia quickly created a sharp piece of metal and sliced it’s head off. Freesia quickly healed Chopped and brought him back from the brink. He rejoined the other Yaujta and after defeating the Xenomorphs, Freesia and Lex earned Chopper, Celtic, and Scar’s respect and allowed them to join them. They fought through the temple and soon defeated the Queen Xenomorph. After it was all finished, The Trio of Yaujta returned to their planet. Years later, Chopper, Celtic, and Scar returned to earth and joined Lex in fighting off the Xenomorph invasion. After killing all the Xenomorphs, the group was approached by Queen Freesia and offered to join Team Desire. Feeling he not only was indebted to Queen Freesia but also owed his life to her, he agreed to join.

Scar Yaujta:

Home: Yaujta Prime, Team Desire HQ (Occasionally)

Species: Yaujta

Occupation: Predator

Scar was a young blood Yaujta who, Along with Celtic and Chopper, Headed to Earth to prove himself a true blooded warrior. The trio landed in Antarctica and entered the Temple to hunt down Xenomorphs. He and the others found a team of humans and discovered a few of them had stolen their weapons, and so went after them. Chopper and Scar killed Two of the Humans who had stolen weapons While Celtic handled the Xenomorphs that attacked. Soon enough The Trio caught up to Alexa, Queen Freesia, and Sebastion. However, They didn’t attack them, however, rather they attacked the Xenomorphs in the room. After defeating them, the trio branded themselves with the blood of the Xenomorphs. Making them Blooded Warriors, Later the Trio found Lex and Freesia, however, not to attack them, but to attack the Xenomorphs that were there as well. Scar had little to no issue against the Xenomorphs, However, He was soon surprised attacked from behind by a Xenomorph, He was struck down and was stabbed in multiple areas, Queen Freesia used her third eye and transformed into a Dilophosaurus and grabbed the Xenomorph’s attention, and spat venom on its face, giving Scar the opening he needed to kill the Xenomorph. After witnessing Both Freesia and Lex kill Xenomorphs, they both earned the Respect of Scar, Celtic, and Chopper and they accompanied the trio as they fought through the temple, and even branded Lex with his mark. Queen Freesia didn’t openly admit it, but she sensed something forming between Scar and Lex, far more than just alliance. They soon were attacked by the Xenomorph Queen. Working together, they killed the Xenomorph Queen (After Queen Freesia rewound time to prevent the Xenomorph Queen from killing Scar) After everything, Scar, Celtic, and Chopper returned to their planet. Years later, Scar, Celtic, and Chopper returned to Earth and joined Lex in fighting off the Xenomorph invasion. After killing all the Xenomorphs, the group was approached by Queen Freesia and offered to join Team Desire. Due to honestly respecting Queen Freesia, and feeling indebted to her, He joined Team Desire.

Sub-members/Other:

Lapis the Jackal (Modern) (Occupation- Sniper)

Tae Kwon Crow (Occupation- Ninja)

Amelia Grady (Unofficial/occupation- tracker/scout)

The Samurai Pizza Cats

Speedy Cerviche (Occupation- Speedster)

Polly Ester (Occupation- Markswoman)

Guido Anchovy (Occupation- Defense)

Wallflower Blush (Occupation- Data Gatherer/hacker)

Meta Knight (Unofficial and only when he chooses to assist)

Bandanna Dee (Occupation: Long-range brawler)

King DeDeDe (Unofficial and only when he chooses to assist)

The Frye Twins

Jacob Frye (Unofficial, Occupation- Negotiation and Assassin)

Evie Frye (Unofficial, Occupation- Strategist and Assassin)

[dumbledearme]

chapter forty-two—death boy

read Child of Land and Sea here

Act V — Walking On Water

Part V — Through the mist, through the woods, through the darkness and the shadows. It's a nightmare but it's one exciting ride.

Andy sat on the cold stone floor wondering if Hades's dungeon was airtight. She felt completely miserable. She was going to die there. Alone. Andy closed her eyes and thought of Typhon and how it was her fault he was looming free. She also thought of Anthony, trying to focus on her good memories, but the only thing she could think of was the fact she hadn't even said goodbye.

Then a voice hissed, "Jackson!"

She lunged blindly and pinned Nico to the floor of the cell with the edge of her sword at his throat.

"Rescue..." he choked.

"I wouldn't need rescuing if you weren't a liar! Why should I trust you?"

"No... choice?" he gagged.

Andy sighed and let him go. Nico got to his feet, eyeing her sword warily. His own blade was sheathed. "We have to get out of here," he said.

"Why?" she sneered. "Your daddy wants another word with me?"

Nico winced like she'd just slapped him. Andy immediately felt bad. "I swear on the River Styx, I didn't know what he was planning. He tricked me. He promised-" Nico held up his hands. "Look... right now, we need to leave. I put the guards to sleep, but it won't last."

In part, Andy still wanted to strangle him, but unfortunately the boy was right. He pointed at the wall. A whole section vanished, revealing a corridor.

"Come on," Nico led the way. Every time they came to a skeleton guard, Nico just pointed at it, and its glowing eyes dimmed. But the more he did it, the more tiredhe got. They walked through a maze of corridors filled with guards. By the time they reached a kitchen staffed by skeletal cooks and servants, Andy was practically carrying Death Boy. He managed to put all the dead to sleep but nearly passed out himself.

Andy dragged him out of the servants's entrance and into the Fields of Asphodel. Then she heard the sound of bronze gongs high in the castle.

"Alarms," Nico murmured.

"What do we do?"

He frowned like he was trying to remember. "How about... run?"

Andy closed her eyes and concentrated. With a poof, Mrs O'Leary appeared before them. "Good girl," she yelled. "Can you give us a ride to the Styx?" Without waiting for an answer, Andy pushed Nico onto the dog's back. She climbed behind him, and Mrs O'Leary race toward the gates. Nico leaned back resting his head on Andy's shoulder and she fought the urge to push the traitor off Mrs O'Leary. His forehead was sweaty and he seemed about to fall asleep.

Mrs O'Leary leaped, sending guards sprawling and causing more alarms to blare. She didn't stop until they were far upriver and the fires of Erebos had disappeared in the murk.

Nico slid off Mrs O'Leary's back and collapsed on the floor. "Your powers drain you too much," Andy noted.

He nodded sleepily. "With great power... comes great need to take a nap."

Andy caught him before he could pass out again. "Whoa, Death Boy. I need you to walk me through this."

Nico took a deep breath and struggled to his feet. Andy looked at the black water. "Should I... jump in?"

"You have to prepare yourself," Nico said, "or the river will destroy you. It'll burn away your body and soul."

"Oh, joy."

"Don't worry. I have complete faith in you," he said softly and his tone was so honest Andy was left speechless. "There is only one way to stay anchored to your mortal life. You have to—" his eyes widened.

Andy looked behind her and found herself facing a Greek warrior. He was handsome and blond, like Anthony, but he had a brutal look in his pale green eyes. For a moment she didn't know who he was, then the bloody arrow stuck out of his left calf, just above the ankle, kind of gave him away.

"Achilles."

"I warned the other one not to follow my path," the warrior said. "Now I warn you."

"You spoke with Luke?"

"Do not do this," Achilles said. "It will make you powerful, sim. But it will also make you weak. Your prowess in combat will be beyond any mortal's, but your weaknesses, your failings will increase as well."

"You mean I'll have a bad heel?" Andy asked. "Couldn't I just... wear something besides sandals? No offense. I mean, your sandals are beautiful, just not very practical..."

"The heel is only my physical weakness, demigod. My mother, Thetis, held me there when she dipped me in the Styx. What really killed me was my own arrogance. Beware. Turn back!" And he meant it, she saw. Andy could hear the regret and the bitterness in his voice.

But Luke hadn't turned back. No one could defeat him because he'd actually done this.

"I have to," she said.

Achilles studied her. "Let the gods witness I tried. Heroin, if you must do this, concentrate on your mortal point. Imagine one spot of your body that will remain vulnerable. This is the point where your soul will anchor your body to the world. It will be your greatest weakness, but also your only hope. No man may be completely invulnerable. Nor woman," he added. "Lose sight of what keeps you mortal, and the Styx will burn you to ashes. You will cease to exist. Prepare yourself, girl. Whether you survive this or not, you have sealed your doom!" And with this, he disappeared.

"I think he's nice," Andy said.

Nico grabbed her wrist. "Perhaps he's right."

"This was your idea!"

"I know. But... I don't want anything to happen to-" his voice faltered.

Andy didn't listen to him. She was ready. She thought of Anthony was last time and then concentrated on the small of her back – a tiny point just opposite her navel, this little spot where her boyfriend would put his hand to pull her to him. She pictured a string, a bungee cord connecting her to the world from the small of her back.

Then she stepped into the river.

She submerged completely and the pain was unbelievable. Andy wanted to scream but, for the first time in the water, she couldn't even breathe. Panic filled her stomach. Every nerve in her body burned. The pain was so strong she was losing consciousness; she couldn't focus on the cord. Her soul was being ripped from her body.

But then she heard his voice, very faintly in her head. "Hold on, Seaweed Brain."

Andy couldn't remember her own name, but she knew exactly who he was. Wonder Boy. The cord strengthened. Memories came to her. Memories of him. Memories of Sally Jackson dancing in the kitchen. Grover playing his pipes. Tyson hugging a hippocampus.

She wasn't dissolving anymore. Her name was Andy Jackson. She was the child of land and sea. She was in love with the son of Athena. She would see him again. She would find him. She would always find him.

Suddenly, Andy burst out of the river. She collapsed on the sand gasping for air, and Nico knelt beside her. "Are you okay?" he stammered. He looked pretty shaken. "Your skin... Oh, gods. You're hurt."

Andy's arms were bright red. She felt like every inch of her body had been broiled over a slow flame. Andy looked around for Anthony, even though she knew he wasn't there. "I'm fine," she panted. The color of her skin turned back to normal. The pain subsided.

"Do you feel... stronger?" Nico asked.

Before Andy could answer, a voice boomed, "THERE!"

An army of the dead marched toward them. Behind them came Hades riding a black chariot pulled by nightmare horses. "You will not escape me this time, Andy Jackson!" he bellowed. "Destroy her!"

"Don't!" Nico shouted, but it was too late. The dead advanced.

Andy got up. She was done with Hades's bullshit. She let out a yell and the River Styx exploded. A black tidal wave smashed into the ghosts and they began to dissolve. Andy uncapped Riptide and charged at Hades. The god raised his staff and a bold of dark energy shot toward her, but she deflected it with her blade. Then she slammed into him and they both tumbled out of the chariot. Next thing she knew, her knee was planted on Hades's chest. She was holding the collar of his robes in one fist, and the tip of her sword was poised right over his face.

Hades swallowed. "Jackson... how did you..."

"You've reached the limit of my otherwise questionable patience," she told him. "So as soon as I let go, you will get out of my face. Got it?" Hades nodded. Andy let go of his robes and Hades disappeared in a black cloud. Andy glanced back at Nico. "Close your mouth, Death Boy."

"You just... with a sword... you just..."

"I think the river thing worked."

"You think?" he chuckled.

"Go back to your father," she said. "Tell him he owes me for letting him go. Find out what's going to happen to Mount Olympus and convince him to help."

Nico stared at her. "I... I can't. He'll hate me now. I mean... even more."

"You must have courage," Andy told him. "Besides, you owe me, too."

His ears turned red. "I told you I was sorry. Please... let me come with you. I want to fight."

"I need you to do this for me," she insisted. "You're the only one who can convince Hades to help."

"But-"

"Nico." Andy walked up to him. "I have complete faith in you."

A roller coaster of emotions crossed his face and Andy couldn't discern any of them. In the end, he just sighed. "Fine. I'll do my best. What are you going to do?"

"Oh," she gave him a wicked grin. "Imma get this war started."

On her way, Andy stopped at a phone booth and left a message to Anthony. He was furious and worried out of his mind, but mostly furious. Still, Andy hoped he'd do what she asked.

It was late afternoon when she reached the Empire State Building. Soon after, three white vans pulled up to the curb. The doors slid open and a bunch of campers climbed out followed by Chiron in his wheelchair. Only the Ares cabin wasn't there.

Anthony shook Andy by the shoulders when he managed to get a hold of her. "Where the hell were you? We were so worried! You can't just vanish like that! What were you thinking? Andy... Why are you looking at me like that?"

Andy didn't answer, 'cause they were being watched by everyone else, but she was so damn happy to see him. She turned to the rest of the group. "Thank you all for coming. Chiron, you go first."

Chiron shook his head. "I came only to wish you good luck, Andy."

"But... you're our leader!"

The centaur smiled. "You summoned the campers, Andy. You're the leader."

Andy wanted to protest, but everybody was looking at her expectantly, even Anthony. She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm. "Alright. Like I said in my message, something bad is going to happen tonight. We need an audience with Zeus to convince him to defend the city. And we just won't take no for an answer."

No one was guarding the way to the throne room, but Hestia stood by the hearth. "Hello again, Andy Jackson," she said. "You and your friends are welcome."

"Thank you, my lady," Andy bowed and her friends did the same.

"I see you went through with your plan," the goddess said. "You bear the curse of Achilles." The other campers started muttering among themselves. "You must be careful," Hestia warned. "You gained much in your journey. But you are still blind to the most important truth. Perhaps a glimpse is in order."

Andy stared into the goddess's eyes. There, she saw Thalia and Luke crouched in the shadows. Luke carried a bronze knife; Thalia had her spear and Aegis.

"Are you sure?" Thalia was asking him.

He nodded. A curtain of corrugated tin quivered as if something were behind it. Luke ripped away the tin, and another boy flew at him with a hammer. "Whoa," Luke said. The boy had tangled blond hair and couldn't be more than nine years old, but Andy recognized him immediately. Luke grabbed his wrist and the hammer skittered across the cement. The boy breathed heavily.

"We're not going to hurt you," Thalia assured him. "I'm Thalia. This is Luke."

The boy hesitated. He studied Thalia and Luke with quick gray eyes. "Tony," he finally said.

Thalia smiled. "Are you alone, Tony?"

"I ran away," he said.

"Well, you can come with us then," Luke invited him. He turned his knife and offered Anthony the handle. Anthony gripped the hilt carefully. "Knives are for the bravest and quickest fighters, my brother," Luke told him. "They don't have the reach or power of a sword, but they're easy to conceal and they can find weak spots in your enemy's armor. It takes a clever warrior to use a knife. I have a feeling it's perfect for you."

Anthony stared at Luke the way he sometimes did at Andy.

"We need to go, boys," Thalia said. "We have a safe house near. We'll get you some clothes and food, Tony."

"You're not... You're not gonna take me back home?"

Luke put his hand on Anthony's shoulder. "You're part of our family now. Home is wherever we are. We keep each other safe. And we won't fail each other like our families did us."

The vision shut off. Andy's knees buckled, but Anthony, the real Anthony, held her. "What is it? What's the matter?"

Andy glanced back at Hestia, but the goddess's face was expressionless. Andy could feel everyone's eyes on her. She straightened up.

That's when Hermes showed up. Hestia nodded toward him and went away. Hermes's brow furrowed as though he was annoyed. He asked the others to take a walk around Olympus and only Andy and Anthony stayed behind.

"Hermes," Andy started. "We need to speak with Zeus."

"I'm his messenger. Leave a message."

"Sir," Anthony said. "Kronos is going to attack New York. My mother must have foreseen it."

"Don't get me started on your mother, boy," Hermes grumbled. "She's the reason I'm here at all. She insisted it was a trap and someone needed to be here. She wanted to come back herself but, of course, Zeus sent me."

"Did she give you any messages for us?" Anthony asked.

"Messages," Hermes muttered. "They said it would be an easy job. Not much work. Lost of worshipers. Hmph. Nobody cared what I have to say. It's always about other people's messages." He stared at Anthony. "Your mother said you are on your own. You must hold Manhattan without the help of the gods. As if you didn't know that, right? Why they pay her to be the wisdom goddess, I really don't know."

"Anything else?"

"She said you should try plan twenty-three." Anthony's face paled. "And she said to you," Hermes turned to Andy, "that you should remember the rivers. And to stay away from her son."

Andy grinned. "That does sound like something she'd say."

"Thank you, Hermes," Anthony said. "And I'm sorry. About everything. About Luke."

Hermes's eyes turned cold. "You should be. You were the only one who could've saved him. You and that Thalia girl. But she chose the Hunters and you chose this fishy demigod."

"Well, it's not his fault if-" Andy tried to say but Hermes cut her.

"Don't defend him, Jackson. He knows exactly what I'm talking about."

"You know, maybe you should stop pointing fingers, Hermes, and take a good long look at yourself," Andy said. "You were the one who left him. You left them. And his mom-" Hermes grabbed her by the neck and pulled her close.

"Hey!" Anthony tried to get between them, but the god gave him the death stare.

"Jackson," Hermes said, trying to control his voice, "because you have taken on the curse of Achilles, I must spare you. You are in the hands of the Fates now. But you will never speak to me like that again. You have no idea how much I have sacrificed, how much-" his voice broke and he let go of her neck. "My son. My greatest pride. My poor May..."

"What happened to her?" Andy asked carefully. "She said... And her eyes..."

Hermes glared at her. "You shouldn't have gone there," he said and then disappeared.

"Are you okay?" Anthony said.

"Yeah. And it's not your fault. He's just looking for somebody to blame. You saw the guilt in his face."

"Why did you went to see Ms Castellan?" he asked in a whisper.

"I... Nico and I... We had to ask her..."

"You..." his voice faltered. "Did you bathe in the River Styx?"

"Anthony-"

"Did you or not?" Knowing she had no other choice, Andy nodded. Anthony shook his head in disbelief. "Do you have any idea how dangerous-"

"I didn't have a choice," she rushed. "It's the only way I can stand up to Luke."

"He did that, too, right? That's why he didn't die when... He went to the Styx... What was he thinking? What were you thinking?"

"He didn't die and neither did I. That's what matters. Now I'll face him. And we'll defend Olympus. Together."

There seemed to be a war going on inside his eyes. "Plan twenty-three," he said, letting of the subject, which definitely wasn't like him. He rummaged in his pack and pulled out Daedalus's laptop. "We have a lot of work to do. If my mother wants me to use this plan, she must think things are very bad."

Just then, the Stoll brothers ran into the throne room. "You have got to see this," Connor said. "Now."

[kl-writes]

The Historama

This is a Shazam-focused Captain Marvel fanfic. The wizard Shazam discovers a new champion. Black Adam and Captain Marvel are mentioned, but do not appear.

“6000 years have passed. And now… when the heroes with powers of ancient times have begun to walk the streets once more, I have found a champion.”

The wizard Shazam examined his historama closely. He willed it to display scenes from the life of young Billy Batson through its crystalline screen. Billy’s soul held all the qualities necessary for a successor.

Eight months ago, at age seven, the boy wandered through the streets on a brisk autumn morning. Another child, playing kickball with some friends, ran into the streets after their toy. A car was going too fast. It could not stop in time. Billy yanked the child to safety, as the car slid to a stop twenty feet past them. The boy was able to see his surroundings, and make a decision in time. He was worthy of the speed of Mercury.

Two years ago, at age six, Billy was kicked out of his uncle’s home, into a cold winter’s night. At first, he sat on the doorstop. He kept knocking on the door, waiting to be let in, as the cold seeped into his skin. Finally, he stood up, and began to walk. He walked until he made his way into the heart of the city, where he found shelter in a subway station. The boy was alone, but still braved the cold night to survive. He was worthy of the courage of Achilles.

Two months ago, at age eight, Billy finally saved up enough money from selling newspapers to buy a hot chocolate on Christmas Eve to go along with his usual can of soup dinner. However, another child, a young girl, also received hot chocolate from her mother. When the girl was reckless and spilled it, her mother was unable to afford another. Billy gave his own hot chocolate to the girl. Although starving, tired, and unsure of any profits tomorrow or the next day, Billy still placed others above his own desires, perhaps to a fault. Nevertheless, only a pure soul such as this could be worthy of the power of Zeus.

Billy has survived two harsh, midwestern winters on the streets, without a home, working when possible to have enough for maybe a can of soup at the end of the day. Fawcett City’s shelters continued to close, or overbook, and Billy continued to bear the weight of surviving outside rather than take a spot away from someone who needed it. For someone so young to do this, and survive, they must be worthy of the stamina of Atlas.

A year ago, at age seven, Billy found an old man bleeding and unconscious. He was not far outside his hiding spot in an abandoned subway station, but to get the man to safety, Billy had to drag him up an old staircase, and then for another half mile before he found anyone still awake in the middle of the night willing to help a stranger. This left him sore for over a week. He was worthy of the Strength of Hercules.

The wisdom of Solomon was a gamble at his age. Shazam had only found three others in the thousands of years of searching that were worthy of 5 of the 6 gods of magic. Billy showed he was worthy of the power of Zeus with his pure soul, which none of the other three had and few of any candidates had. Shazam saw nothing to indicate that Billy was worthy. Indeed, at times it seemed that Billy passed over wisdom in favor of benevolence. It is always hard to judge between youthful naivete of heroism and the deeper wisdom of the greater good. But there was nothing to see in Billy’s life showing him to be unworthy of Solomon’s wisdom, either.

Shazam looked to Billy’s immediate relatives. Both parents were renowned scholars until their untimely demise, and intelligence can run in families. Indeed, Billy’s twin sister Mary showed great aptitude in her studies, being at the top of her class. Her schooling also allowed her another advantage over her brother- she interacted with peers often, and was a good mediator. She was able to bring enemies together as friends, and was able to consider others’ perspectives at a level beyond her age. She was certainly worthy of the wisdom of Solomon. Perhaps Billy would be the same, if he were to enroll in school or at least interact with other children his age.

Shazam looked to see if Mary would have the other five aspects. Mary had all the right qualities of Speed, Courage, Power, and Strength- but did not have the tragedy or responsibilities that would make her worthy of Atlas. Similar to Billy, she was not seen to be unworthy, either. When their parents died, Mary found her way into the foster system, under the name of “Mary Primm” rather than “Mary Batson.” This was done through the meddling of Sarah Primm, the kindly sister of their parents’ murderer, who sought to protect the girl. Mary Primm was soon adopted by a Mr. and Mrs. Bromfield, compassionate parents who aided her in recovering from her parents’ death. But surviving the death of a loved one with the support of others does not make one worthy of Atlas. Atlas holds the world up on his own.

So now Shazam had two candidates. To choose either would be a risk. He could not be sure if Mary would be able to sustain herself through tough fights and personal loss, and the forces of evil were always clawing for a foothold on Earth. He could not be sure if Billy would be able to use proper judgement. Evil wears many faces, and Shazam had already lost one champion to the deceit of his own daughter, Blaze. Admittedly, Black Adam’s pride would have him succumb to the forces of darkness sooner or later, but perhaps with better judgement, he could have been guided-

But it was useless to think of what could be. Black Adam was sealed away now, and a rift between student and master grew into a bitter, vicious enmity. The world needed a new champion.

Both Mary and Billy were worthy of Zeus’s power. At the very least, they would be able to defend against the seven deadly enemies of man. They would not stray from the path of good. But they were both so young. Shazam could wait and see if either of them became worthy of a sixth god of magic, or perhaps he could intervene more directly.

To develop Mary’s stamina, Shazam would have to inflict personal tragedy and hardships, that would last for years. To develop Billy’s wisdom, Shazam would have to take a direct role in Billy’s education, and ensure he made lasting connections with others.

Shazam himself was a champion of the gods, once upon a time. He could not bear to destroy a child’s life. Thus, Billy was the proper candidate.

The old wizard summoned up a spirit familiar to Billy, to fetch the boy and bring him to the rock of eternity.

“You would let me see him again?” asked the ghost.

“Yes,” the wizard nodded, then rose from his chair. He placed a hand upon the spirit’s shoulder, made corporeal through magic. “But you cannot allow him to learn who you are. Not yet. To do so would confuse him, make him emotionally vulnerable. And with these new heroes and villains roaming the Earth, I fear that the champion must face great demons.”

The ghost nodded. “I won’t tell him. I want him to succeed. I’m so glad that someone’s finally going to help him.”

Shazam looked at the man in shock. “Young man, what I intend to do to the boy may be unforgivable. This child must hold back the monsters of the world, alone.”

“No, not alone. He has you. And from what I’ve seen, looking on from the other plane, you’re going to be his first friend in two years. Even if it’s out of necessity, I’m glad someone’s taking an interest. When I was alive, and raising Billy, I always wanted him to do great things, and to be a good man. I guess he’s just going to do it ten years early.”

“I don’t know what to say.” The wizard was 9000 years old. He didn’t learn new things very often. But if the boy was anything like his father, perhaps there was hope for the wisdom of Solomon. “Even if your words are false, you can’t know what they mean to me.”

Shazam would not fail a child again.

[healthnotion]

Podcast #496: What Plato’s Republic Has to Say About Being a Man

Plato’s Republic is a seminal treatise in Western political philosophy and thought. It hits on ideas that we’re still grappling with in our own time, including the nature of justice and what the ideal political system looks like. But my guest today argues that The Republic also has a lot to say about manliness, character development, and education in our current climate of safe spaces and trigger warnings. 

His name is Jacob Howland. He’s a professor of philosophy at the University of Tulsa and the author of the recent book Glaucon’s Fate: History, Myth, and Character in Plato’s Republic. We begin our conversation with an outline of Plato’s Republic and how it combines literature and philosophy. Jacob then makes the case that in The Republic, Socrates was attempting to save the soul of Plato’s politically ambitious brother, Glaucon, and why he thinks Socrates failed. Along the way we discuss what Socrates’ attempt to save Glaucon can teach us about andreia or manliness and what it means to seek the Good in life. We end our conversation discussing the way The Republic teaches us of the need to possess not only physical courage, but the courage to think for oneself and stand up for one’s beliefs — a courage that is tested in a time like our own, where it can feel difficult to ask hard questions and wrestle with thorny issues. 

Show Highlights

What made Plato stand out among other Greek philosophers?

What makes Plato’s works so readable 

A primer on Plato’s aims and philosophy

The general outline of The Republic

The connections between Plato and pop culture (like Tolkien and The Matrix) 

Why Plato created imaginary cities to use for thought experiments 

Why Glaucon, Plato’s brother, plays a starring role in The Republic

Socrates idea of manliness, and how it differed from the classic Greek ideal

The subtle way Socrates gets his point across 

What ancient philosophys say about masculinity in our modern world 

The importance of being playful 

Is it harder to ask hard questions in our modern world?

What it means to be a fully flourishing human being 

Resources/People/Articles Mentioned in Podcast

Howland’s The Republic: The Odyssey of Philosophy

The Republic 

The Symposium 

A Primer on Plato

Socrates

Xenophon

The Spartan Regime

The Allegory of the Cave

What the Ancient Greeks and Romans Thought About Manliness

Plato’s Idea of Greek Manliness

Hector and Achilles: Two Paths to Manliness

Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics

AoM series The Spartan Way

The Iliad

Courage vs Boldness

The Open Society and Its Enemies by Karl Popper

Ring of Gyges

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