#but Shamura is a different case to her

[cosmicheartz]

Runaway Narinder aus are a rlly fun concept but I’m surprised I haven’t seen one where Lamb just doesn’t particularly care that he’s gone.

Usually the Lamb is like obsessed with Narinder and doesn’t let him leave and when he does they try to find him again and bring him back to the cult ( and I’m not rlly any different bc with my other lamb Maveths main canon he is actively searching for Narinder after his escape )

[the-s1lly-corner]

SCRAMBLES IN-

Ive had Cotl Bishop relapse and stumbled across your one bed trope with them-

What if lamb catches on that something more might be brewing and lowkey ships it, so they just upgrade the already existing hut instead of building a new one.

And just a few headcanons as to how reader and bishops grow closer/realisation that their cult leader ships it?

(I think it would be funny if at dinner one time lamb just asks 'so when are you gonna ask them out?' and that sentence alone almost kills the bishops again /joke)

P.s would reader be allowed to be a cuddle bug?

P.s.s sorry if this a lot, feel free to pick and choose what parts of the idea you want to include or not. If you want to cut down on the amount of characters Shamura and Leshy would be preffered. ^^

Lambert playing matchmaker w/ you and the bishops

rubs my little hands- you guys ever make all your other followers to go sleep on holy day rituals but leave just 2 followers (that you ship together) alone so they can actually befriend each other and/or fall in love or is that just me notes: reader is gn, playing off of the one bed trope post , post game but not post final quest, short time jump so its at least within a few weeks of the respective bishop joining the cult, written on mobile cws: implied freaky stuff but like "lambert jokes about sending them and you to the mating tent to try to bring you two closer"

Leshy

He hardly needs the Lambe help to make his move on you, hes still got that god like arrogance... he sometimes pops out of the ground just to bug you while you're working... may attempt to drag you off to do something else

...it does sometimes take him a while to recognize the feelings as romantic, before he just loved how attentive you were to him.. it reminded him of how his followers used to fawn over him in godhood

Probably has the balls to scurry into your bed and ask to huddle up with you- it's too cold in this shelter, hes a bug! Hes cold blooded! Warm him up!! ..his moss.. leaves.. things... dont feel too bad.. and if it's too hot? The moss is cool to the touch! It's a win no matter the condition!

If he could glare at the lamb he would, the question of when hes going to ask you out doesnt make him falter... grumbles under his breath about the lamb being annoying and to go away... he cant see the smirk they're giving him

Finds himself working in the same areas as you- if you're chopping wood hes chopping wood.. and so on... not that hes actually going to do work, hes going to attempt to drag you off somewhere

Heket

Shes like her younger brother, shes confident enough to eventually make a move when she feels its right... she won't turn you down for a cuddle session even if shes not entirely a cuddler...

The lamb catches her beelining for wherever you're working to make sure you're not overworking yourself- and how she sometimes forcefully drags you to get some water or to take a break

She actually can glare, and the look she gives the lamb is enough to kill but they remain unphased and ask if she wants them to assign her to the same jobs as you

Super straight forward when she does ask you out, torn vocal cords make it hard to dance around topics- it may almost come off as a threat but that's just because of the growl and strain, her body language tells you shes trying to be tender

Kallamar

If he didnt feel humiliated from getting his ass beat twice by the lamb he would waste no time in trying to romance you- if he had met you later after hes been in the cult for longer, then itd be a different case...

Hes more subtle, testing the waters to see if you're receptive slowly getting bolder with time until hes basically flirting with you

Damn near inks himself when the lamb asks him when he plans on asking you out... would he like it if they sent the two of you to the mating tent to spend some time together? They say it jokingly but he nearly jumps on the offer... though he'd much rather the idea come from you

Subtly brags about his past accomplishments to try to win you over, regardless of if you know he was a bishop or not

Shamura

Slow slow burn, theyve never rushed into relationships so why start now? They want to know all there is to know about you before committing to you.... this leads to a lot of late night talks in your shared hut

Waits until you're both done with your work for the day before coming to you

To outsiders there doesnt seem to be any feelings on their end- but to their siblings and the lamb.. they can tell.. it also helps when at least one of those people can read minds

They don't give much of a reason to the lamb asking when they're going to ask you out- actually they answer honestly if theyve already decided when

Bonus they chirp/purr at you. Literally the only hint to you that they might have some attraction to you prior to asking you out- excluding them outright saying they think you're beautiful or a good companion to have or the longing gazes or how they guide your hands for a task or-

[neon-virus]

Now ramble shall be under the cut since this also touches on stuff that will be relevant for my fic so, spoilers maybe?? (Also i am no expert in making stuff sensical, so this is mostly shiet ive slapped together thats sitting in my brain)

also excuse any errors, english is hard :D

SO! the crowns.

I've made a lil sketch comic about Shamura and Nari talking briefly and Shamura referring to them as 'beasts'. I like to think that's what they are, parasitic like beasts.

They require strong willpower to withstand their influence. The crowns cannot do anything without someone to wield them, but if that person cannot resist the influence the crowns exert, then they will start to lose themselves to the crown.

The process depends. If the person is of weak mind, then they could become instantly consumed by it the moment it touches their brow. They would no longer be who they once were as the crown infects them in entirety and claims them for its own, eating their essence and making them effectively a shell for its own control.

Of course, these 'bodies' can still die, and once the crown no longer has its host, it becomes inactive.

But if you have a strong will, it comes down to a fierce endurance match, where the crown will try its damnest to break past your mental walls, to weasel its way in until you either give up or the crown submits.

Once submitted, it will effectively be 'inactive' in trying to influence the host, becoming a tool to be used and melded to its host's will. However, suppose that the host falls into a low point or has a grave vulnerability. In that case, the crowns will become active again, seeing their host is becoming weak and thus a perfect opportunity to influence and gain control.

For the bishops, this wasn't much of a problem outside of the initial wearing, at least until Nari started to question. Although Narinder is a very strong-willed person, the red crown still whispers to him, influencing his thoughts in the background and encouraging him until he ends up in his predicament of being imprisoned and leaving the bishops injured and vulnerable themselves.

Though the crowns can be given to others in smaller capacities or abilities granted to others, such as appointing them a vessel, they typically gain access to what is deemed necessary for use and not much else after that.

However, lamb was a bit different. Due to Nari knowing about the prophecy and the lamb showing absolute devotion, he gave her more access than she should have had and gave the crown room to sink its teeth in.

Granted, the crown quite likes lamb, almost imprinting onto her from her sheer strength of will and determination for revenge. It sought no reason to take control or try to as she did what it would have wanted her to do most of the time anyway.

So much so that it gave her a bit of help after Nari 'promised' her the prize she wanted, and the crown placed them into a pact. (That will be its own ramble later.)

and if she hadn't rejected Nari herself, the crown would have tried to make her reject him in her vulnerable state.

Now that he resides in the cult, the crown more or less is her's 100%, no shared control. And now that it has a new host, it no longer needs its old one, for what use is a gross chewed up toy to a beast when there's a fresh one to bite?

It still wants control—it's still a beast in a cage—but it's more willing to let her do as she pleases. It waited with Nari for over a thousand years, and it's waiting who knows how long more for the new host to eventually give in. It's very patient.

Also, when a host becomes infected with the crown's influence, their behavior tends to become strange.

Bursts of anger, erratic behavior, thoughts being replaced with what the crown wants you to think, and hallucinations, both visual and auditorial, are the general baseline for the start of an infection of the host, with other symptoms varying from host to host

[cconfusedkat]

Spooky month means spooky ideas and spooky ideas ??? Lead to AU's!! >:-D i was dwelling on it for a few months and wasn't really sure on how i wanted to create this up?? But nonetheless i managed :-]

"Vampyres of the Old Faith" is an AU centered around the sudden uprise of vampyr (which are the Bishops in this case) and the vampyre hunters intend to stop this revolt before it gets any worse !! This takes place in the eaaaarly 2000's ,,, so it's a modern au ,,, and is a little funny to consider that the vampyr are Old as hell and arent adapted well enough to modern society 😭😭

YIPPEE Now that i got that down here are the four main vampyres :-3c there is a Green Coven, Golden Coven, Blue Coven, and Purple Coven. Each vampyre is able to shapeshift into smaller forms—like how a vampyre can change into a bat—these four can turn into different animals !! Theyve all been alive for different amounts of time, yet 300 years ago they all managed to find eachother and create a pact of vampyr covens!!

Leshy is Def known as the cruelest and invasive one,, he does happen to be the only one to mess with the shaping and mirroring of reality,,,, which honestly is concerning the most 😭 throughout history people have claimed they've seen "a big tree creature walking and taking people's skin" ,,,, So the eldritch rumors are NOT very helpful for him-

Originally i wanted to give heket a hellhound form but i actually liked the snake form better :-] !! Deciding her outfit was a little complicated but ,,, i think it turned out well ? Hekets known for being the most angry and cold vampyre. Despite , yknow, using fire magick . HELP

Kallamar o kallamar !!! She is a siren and she stays only in the water :-) if her siblings needs to speak to her then they make sure to have a water circle in the middle of their meeting room so they can all talk with her there,,, kallamar is known for her manipulative tactics and ways of persuasion which help her catch and convert people into vampyrism

Lastly is our main coven leader Everyone knows that built up the ideas for a vampyre uprising would be none other thann Shamura 👍👍👍 known for their sadistic self and invincibility , using wind magick to get away with a variety of things in a literal snap of a finger ,,, because of being a vampyre longer than all of them they're uniquely the one with sensitivity to blood?? They can still take blood but they dont drink it as often as the other three do (minus the way leshy does it because he literally latches himself onto a victim's shoulder with his mouth ,,,, )

With all the vampyres in mind who are our hunters ???

Well here's the first three bigshots of the company >:-D Sozonius has been hunting and obtaining information about vampyr for years, narinder is fairly new to vampyr bounty hunting yet still exceeded the expectation of a regular bounty hunter (surprisingly the strongest 23 year old), and lamb only recently started researching the vampyr after they lost their mother to vampyrism,, they are mainly known for being a detective and trying to help people out with finding their lost family members or attempting to help revert a vampyr they found back into a mortal !!!!

The company (which im,,,, Honestly not sure of a name about still 😭 i dont know what to call it) has been a benefit to society more than they realize. The unmentioned references happen to be Forneus and Monch. The head scientist is Monch, and Forneus IS the founder of the company to hunt down vampyres! Shes lost her family to vampyrism all the same, especially her two sons (aym & baal) which were kidnapped by Shamura too since theyve stalked narinder and knew he had a fondness over those two kittens just as much as forneus did.

There are more roles within this universe,, ive also been trying to think of how many characters I could add into this,, BUT YEAH !!!! Something really silly and self indulgent over the past few days of making finalized refs for them :-D

Ive been kinda plotting out another secret story for Narinder on how *he* was the one who caused this sudden uprising,, how the betrayal of leaving his siblings caused them to rage in revolution,, but that can be for another time 🕺

[cat-mother-of-two]

"O what good are hearts if they cannot be given? I thought to keep mine to myself, once. Two kits I did have, true love found! And yet one lackadaisy summer day, my beautiful children were taken away… a gift, they said, for the one they loved most, the one that waits… I wept, I keened… But how can one say no to a God? Wherever they be, I hope they are as devoted and loving as I!"

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[Welcome to my new blog!! I'll warn you all in advance. It'll be a bit hard to get Forneus' exact way of talking from the game, so she will talk a bit differently from that!! I can't wait to play her with all of you!!]

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A new individual seems to be lurking around through the trees of Darkwood...

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TOWW, Aym, Baal: @ask-theredcrown

Leshy: @ask-thegreencrown

Heket: @askthe-yellowcrown

Kallamar: @ask-thebluecrown

Shamura: @ask-thepurplecrown

The Lamb: @askacultleader

Helob: @helob-the-spider

Sozo: @ask-sozo-the-ant

Clauneck: @terrorofthetarots

Kudaai: @ask-kudaai-the-weaponsmith

Headcanons (with the help of mod Coffee):

She is very caring to many of those who visit her shop

She goes by She/It and is pansexual

She is always happy to have a chance to chat with anyone

She used to be a follower of the one who waits when he had his own cult

She is similar to one of those sweet moms who are very Christian and use the name of God (or, in this case, TOWW) for everything

She has a loud laugh, and her house constantly has the smell of different candles

She knows just about everyone that can be found along the Lamb's crusades

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[I don't have much rules for this blog, though all I ask is that you don't be weird or overpowered in the asks, as well as not be mad if I do not answer your ask, or I take a while to respond!]

[hoy35]

Theories surrounding how the mushrooms in Anura are not the creation of Heket

In my comic series Fairy ring, I mentioned that the Menticide Mushrooms are not the creation of Heket, and the main storyline is associated to this setting. Although you could look at it as a feature in an alternative universe, I do believe that this may be how things unravel in the official game... (It may be disproven. After all, it's just a non-canon theory.)

Prof 1: The Serpent's Tablet

The Serpent is a key character that only appeared in the DLC in the form of "offering the truth to the Lamb". They are mentioned to be the greatest fanatics in the BGM and the comment of the Five Bishops, they worship and defend the Great Ones, which refers to the Gods who created the world in COTL, and tries to unearth their past.

In their fifth tablet, the Serpent documented that they discovered a place with a Godly skull, with small mushrooms that have spots like eyes around it.

(Shamura made their debut in the seventh tablet.)

This could be referring to Sozo's place in the realm of Anura, where there is a giant skull.

In the background, there are birch trees with red eyes.

This shape seems like the "all seeing eye", but there is one alteration: the line representing the eye crosses the lower eyelid by a great length. My friend adds that "this makes the eye resemble the shape of a mushroom".

(P.S. There are also different symbols of eyes in Kallamar and Leshy's realms, I also have theories surrounding them, but let's not get into it in this article.)

Although this shape is scattered across Anura, it seems that Heket may be trying to suppress it. Unlike Leshy, who directly mentioned that the chaotic flowers in his realm are not his creations, Heket did not mention whether she appears earlier or later than Menticide Mushrooms. But... since it already appeared by the time the Serpent is still alive, Heket probably should not be credited for the creation of these mushrooms.

Prof 2: backgrounds during the crusade

I don't know if the background assets would appear randomly and there are actually more backgrounds for one type of map, but let's assume that there are only one type of background for each type of room background.

In this case, there are actually changes in Anura for regular background and purged version. Last time I checked, Anchordeep seems to be the same in both forms. Darkwood may have changed a little. Please allow me to make further testing before reaching a final conclusion.

So, the first thing we see is the candles lit on small, white tree trunks. This may be Heket's attempt to suppress birch trees, which would be infested with mushrooms in the background.

If the trunks grow further, it would show signs of the same red eye-shapes. Furthermore, there are no complete birch trees in the game foreground. They are all chopped or suppressed.

Someone has to put the candles there. I don't think regular followers would dare to touch their beloved leaders' creations. Therefore, it may be the order of Heket towards diciples and followers to do so.

There is also a mushroom in the background with frog eggs atop. Other mushrooms do not have the same shape of red lines on it. The shape looks like an eye sewed together...

Next, let's look at one room that has changed in regular and purged versions ——the giant frog skull room.

First, let me ask you, have you seen giant spider, squid, or worm skulls in her siblings' realms? The answer is no, right? (There are giant skulls of other species, though)

Even if there are skulls or corpses of the same species of the Bishops, they are usually in simpler form.

But these giant frog skulls have exactly four eyes, something not even Heket's followers or disciples have.

It's as if the game is hinting at her demise, and Heket may be using these followers to predict how much time she had left due to the infection.

In addition, in the background, the purged version had visibly more birch trees and visibly more mushrooms grown out of these trees.(You may zoom-in to see the pictures above)

Due to her absence, no one is still suppressing the Great One. Therefore, the trees and mushrooms begin to grow wild.

The initial room for the crusade and the sacrificial room also changed. There are dense birch tree forest in the background in purged version of Anura. I forgot to take pictures, though. *cries

Prof 3: Heket's "tatoos"

The red eyes happened to grow around her wound, where it's assumed to be the weakest. Therefore, it would be more like an infection than fashion choice.

In addition, making tatoos around her wounds would be linked to painism. It's probably too painful.

The eye patterns also disappear when she is in purged form. Maybe the God no longer feels the need to infest and pester her because she is no longer in charge?

In purged form, the mushroom surrounding her statue also dies.

Also, her follower form seems to have healed from the infection. Or it may just be the creators being lazy and not adding details.

Prof 4: Heket never mentioned associations to Menticide Mushrooms in her conversations. The game let SOZO tell the lamb about it instead.

In addition, Heket got mad when the lamb handed her mushrooms after the indoctrination. Although we usually interpret it as her getting angry because lamb is being pitiful to her, it might also be that she hates these mushrooms? Maybe that still makes sense?

The game seems keen on making little word-plays. Like how Forneus mentioned "how can you say no to a God". Before the DLC, we just assumed that she ment Narinder. But eventually Shamura confessed that they were the one who took away the kittens. So the "God" was actually referring to them.

This may be the same for Heket's case?

I believe that prior to Narinder's betrayal, Heket was doing a good job suppressing the God under the instruction of Shamura. But … due to her injusry, she slowly faded and by the time Lamb appears, Anura is in such a worse state. Also, despite Kallamar and Leshy are also suppressing Gods in their realm, the madness in Anura does not mean that Heket is weak or anything. This God is the most active one, and has begun to be active long before Shamura was even born. It might be the hardest chore for the siblings, and healthy Heket was handling it just fine. So... bad kitty!!! Bad!!

Also, if this theory were to be true, then Narinder would be doing her a favor by killing her prior to her death from the fungus infection. Good job, kitty!

Ok that concludes my theory. If you have anything to prove or disprove it, feel free to tell me!!!

[oneofthosenightbees]

did the lamb give the golden skull necklace to Heket (or any of the other former bishop) because i don't think they married her just to let her die of old age

I’ve actually been contemplating this for a while for all the bishops and I like to think that each of them accepted it for different reasons:

Leshy - Took it out of spite, he didn’t like being pitied, but taking it would give him more reason to annoy the lamb. He thought the lamb was foolish for even it giving to him in the first place.

Heket - Took it at first after realizing her younger sibling got one and didn’t want to leave him behind. Especially not with the lamb. And knowing her other siblings, she believed it was best to keep it on her just in case anything happened to them.

Kallamar - His time in limbo has made him even more terrified at the mere thought of death. He took it without a second thought the moment the lamb presented it to him.

Shamura - They are the only one that is still deciding on wether or not they want to keep the golden skull necklace. On one hand, they believe that living a mortal life would be a fitting and deserving punishment for them, that and there might be someone on the mind thats making such a life worth living but asides that, on the other, they really want to make amends with their family, especially with Narinder. There’s a lot of unspoken apologies, anger, and sadness thats left between all of them, and to leave their family behind in such a state, they would probably would never forgive themselves for it. It’s just a lot on the mind right now, so they keep the lambs offer on the table, trying to wait for the day where they can either confidently wear it, or hand it back to the lamb.

[midnightanxietytm]

Lurking one

a/n: Meet my other disciples, I love them.

Summary: Shamura arrives in the cult, Izebel, their guardian, is having some fun with it, surprisingly.

Nested in the middle of the village there is a shared shelter, and the Lamb often finds themselves going there to meet a certain fox.

“What would I even do without you, Izebel?” They jest as she hands them the paper with the schedules.

“You would do just fine, a bit messier, but fine.” She says with the undying patience she’s had for centuries now. “I’ve been meaning to ask about the procedures for your last crusade, my leader.” The Lamb sighs, the papers on their hands disappear into the Red crown.

“I fear Shamura will be the hardest to adapt, so let’s make sure the pillory is empty in case containment is needed, other than that, they will stay with the- with their siblings in the separate cabin.” The fox simply nodded and dipped her pen in ink to make the needed scheduling. 

“I’m assuming the scribing will be pushed forward for about a week then?” She asks.

“Yes, thank you. The battle record can be archived later, and the integration takes priority. Can I ask you to look after Shamura yourself?”

It’s in the dead of the night when Izebel and the other on-duty disciples reunite on the stairs of the crossroads to wait for their leader to return. 

Izebel turns to them with a quizzical look, when Lameniel looks into her mind he almost gets dizzy with the speed her thoughts are going, not that it isn’t like this any other time. “Of course, my leader.” It’s all she says.

“You think Shamura will really be a handful?” Ygrin asks, his yellow fur all on edge and ears turning at each small noise.

“That’s my burden to deal with, friend.” Says Izebel. “You have your worm of chaos.”

“There’s no need for too much anticipation.” Says Yequon, ever so calmly.

“Yeah, Grinny, we know the worm’s been keeping you busy.” Cain teases, reaching behind Izebel to poke the cat on the ribs.

“You’re jealous because Heket won’t give you the time of day!” The yellow cat hisses at the deer.

Cain snorts; “I’ll have you know that she and I have very different tastes in-” He gets interrupted by Yequon clearing his throat and gesturing to the teleportation circle ahead as it starts to emit a red glow.

The Lamb is approached by their disciples as soon as they materialize in the stone circle, and they greet them with a smile. “We have much to do!” They announce as a bag, likely full of resources, materializes in their hand. “Yequon, Cain, please store those properly.” They hand the bag to Cain and the two quickly move to follow the orders. “Ygrin, please wake up Narinder and tell him to wait for me at the temple.” The yellow cat also disappears quickly, the Lamb finally turns to Izebel and wordlessly gestures to her to follow them.

Together, they descend the stairs and approach the indoctrination circle, they stand in front of it and it lights up on command, portal opening and spitting out a very angry spider.

Izebel feels Shamura’s anger before she even sees them, and she just happens to be the closest one when the spider raises their sight and lunges forward.

She figured this would happen, but she still ends up in the ground with a — very tall — spider on top of her, mouth inches from her face and dripping venom. She stops the bite by placing her forearm against their throat, a single drop of hot green liquid drips on her cheek and sticks to her fur before she deftly rolls out from underneath the spider and uses her legs to force them face-down on the floor, two of their three pairs of arms stuck against their body by her legs and the remaining pair pinned by her hands behind their back.

Shamura trashes and hisses in protest, two pairs of eyes red with the mark of dissent. Lameniel looked down at the scene with an amused smile. “As you can see, Shamura, my disciples are highly trained, I advise you to not attack them.”

Taking Shamura to the pillory isn’t that hard of a task compared to the following reunion in the temple; it lasts until sunrise, arrangements are made, things are changed, boundaries set.

When morning comes, she skips the sermon to prepare a bowl of food, and takes it with her to the pillory.

At this point, Narinder hasn’t really spoken to any of his siblings, and Izebel won’t judge him for it; he tells her what to expect from Shamura, and she listens eagerly, and reassures him that she can rearrange their schedules so he doesn’t need to see them.

Shamura looks, for lack of a better word, pathetic. Izebel feels something thugh at her guts; an unpleasant feeling akin to pity that she dismisses with a sigh as she sits in front of the spider. “Hello, I’m Izebel, I’ll be watching over you from now on.” There is only silence on the spider’s end, so she keeps talking. “I’ll make sure you are properly fed, then move you into a cell, once we’re sure you pose no immediate threat, you will be given a temporary shelter.”

“My siblings?” Shamura asks, it’s more of a demand.

“They haven’t been notified of your arrival yet, but they will be right after the sermon, and they’ll be given permission to visit you as long as I’m supervising.”

Izebel looks around her new living quarters with mild annoyance. She really liked her shared room with Tybre and Julese, and she fears that without her there, their bickering might lead to more serious fights. But then again, Shamura is also a potential source of trouble…

Shamura nods to the best of their abilities and accepts the food.

She figures Saleos can deal with them for some time in her place, just until Shamura is no longer a problem… She had just finished tidying up her work space when the spider in question pushes the entrance curtain aside and stops on the doorway, simply staring at her.

The fox offers a tentative smile. “Hello again… You have quite the plunge, you know?”

“It was supposed to kill you.” They answer, taking the final step inside and letting the curtain fall closed behind them. Now she can see there's quite the height difference between them; the spider is over a head taller than her. “You were supposed to have at least a concussion upon impact, then die in minutes from internal bleeding.” There’s frustration in their words. Izebel likes it a little too much.

“You’ve lost strength, from what I’ve gathered, It’s perfectly normal. Your siblings all went through similar situations.” Shamura hisses in response, but Izebel is above flinching.

“Wretched little thing, you’re nothing but the Lamb’s lapdog, yet you bark at me?”

Silence hangs in the air for a second, the fox sits down on her desk. “As we stand, Shamura, there is more divinity running through my veins then through yours.” She speaks flatly; “Ease your anger, you should know no enlightenment will come from it.”

Shamura blinks at her once, twice, before straightening their posture and leaving the shelter with measured steps.

She still has a book on her hands even as she sits with her companions on the barstools.

Izebel turns to her desk, opens her notebook, dips her pen in ink and writes in fluid letters on a blank page; ‘Shamura; -needs outlet for anger; - needs silence.’

“We’re running low on bones, I’ll need to set an expedition soon.” Says Julese nonchalantly. 

“Hm, I’ll look it over tomorrow and send you to everyone who is free.” She answers calmly. Cain places a wine glass in front of her;

“How is your spider problem? Heket told me Shamura is silent, even for her.” She lets out a small chuckle and raises her eyes from her book to take the glass and sip it.

“They seem to like the silence, I’m not opposed to it. They aren’t dissenting, nor encouraging others to, so I don’t see much reason to interfere.”

“Yeah but they sure watch you a lot.” Ygrin interjects, she turns to look at him and sees his flushed cheeks and distant look with amusement. Somewhere behind her, she does feel Shamura’s presence; lurking and stalking like a researcher taking notes on a test subject.

“Hm, Nari used to stalk the leader just like this…” Julese muses and elbows her with a smirk. Izebel hums dismissively and looks back to her book as she sips her wine.

The silent stalking goes on for a few days, then it evolves to watching the entire cult move from the shadows. Izebel doesn’t need mind reading to see the gears turning on their head; Shamura is observant and diligent, they analyze their new environment coldly.

“That's so?” She says. 

It's her who sneaks up on them after some time; “Accompany me to the Disciple’s Garden?” She asks while smiling politely.

“Is that place not only for disciples?” They question.

“Technically. Yet you’ve been there before.” They don’t seem surprised that she knows. They look down at her, squinting at her as if she’s the last piece of a puzzle they can’t solve. Izebel turns around and starts walking, seconds later, Shamura catches up to her and they walk side by side.

The disciple’s garden is one of her favorite places; hidden just behind Faithful’s hall by tall bushes and twisting vines, the offering bowls, statues and the pond decorated prettily with candles and surrounded with tree stumps for sitting. Shamura follows her as she sits by the pond, and they sit by her side.

“Tell me your woes, spider, no one will bother us here.” She says softly, Shamura stares at her intensely.

“Narinder refuses to see me.” They say after a long moment of silence.

“Why wouldn’t he?” Shamura feels as if this darned fox wants them to kill her, and they almost taste their own venom, itching to sink underneath her skin.

“I do want to apologize to him.” They say, defensively.

The fox hums. “His imprisonment is not all he resents you for, not anymore.” She suggests.

Shamura rattles their brain trying to find meaning in those words, curse their brain, curse this feeble memory, curse the days they can barely string a sentence together, curse the days they can feel nothing but this constant piercing headache. The silence drags, the evening sun casts shadows in Izebel’s eyes and Shamura sometimes fears she does have more divinity in her they’d like to admit.

“The Lamb took Narinder as a spouse about seventy years ago.” She says, nonchalantly, dipping her toes in the pond in front of them. “It was a very merry day indeed, I’ve never felt devotion so strong, theirs for each other and us for them…” She finally looks up at Shamura, they stare at her and again fight the urge to bite her.

“We are all happy our lamb and their husband can have a family again.”

Shamura leaves the disciple's hall first, and they don’t set foot in there for a long time.

a/n: there we go, all of my sillies properly introduced. Plz ask me about them i want to talk abt them so bad

[digimonlover09]

Bishop Swap AU

(Can’t remember if I ever posted it to Tumblr, but I guess I will now just in case. It was just the normal Lamb in this AU before the Goat was revealed. Does not extend into post-game story yet.)

The basics are Ratau swaps with Shamura, Sozo with Kallamar, Helob with Heket, Leshy with Midas, and The Fox with The One Who Waits. The wounds are also shuffled. Bishop Ratau is the blind one, Bishop Helob is the deaf one, Bishop Sozo is the one with brain damage, and Bishop Midas is the mute one.

I also gave The Fox Who Waits the alternate name of Raveni, based on the arg.

The not-Bishops are still siblings, a little adopted family Elder Vessel Shamura put together back in their Cult Leader days. 

Elder Shamura was devoted. They did everything TFWW asked with no hesitation. They were loyal, and so were the family they put together. Their cult was thriving, and so were they. Everyone was happy, everything was perfect

Until, of course, Narinder tried to take their god’s crown. After that, things just fell apart. Their family left and went their separate ways, they got lonely and tired, they became less active, the cult slowly withered away, and eventually the Fox grew disappointed and took the crown back.

Cryptid Narinder wants to be a god, and he’s become something different. Not a Bishop or a god, but not quite mortal anymore either. He’s something in-between mortal and immortal. He requests sacrifices from the Goat, starting small with a simple fish, and working up to requesting the life of his estranged elder sibling, Shamura. He still holds a grudge against them for denying him the power he desired all those years ago.

If they get sacrificed to Cryptid Narinder, Elder Shamura leaves a letter about how they miss their family, how they still love Narinder even after what he did, and how Goat fills the hole in their heart left by their family falling apart.

Cryptid Narinder’s also noticeably envious of the Goat if encountered after they defeat The Fox Who Waits. He might even request the Fox’s life instead of Elder Shamura’s, though he will ask for Shamura if denied. 

If Goat gives him Raveni, Cryptid Narinder will go on a tangent about the Goat accomplishing what he could only hope to, and then grants a Divine Inspiration or God Tear on top of the usual reward.

Shroom Kallamar isn’t infected by any parasitic mushrooms, he’s just addicted. He tries to run from his past and his pain by drowning his sorrows in menticide mushrooms, to the point where he’s never really sober anymore. 

He doesn’t want to remember how his brother betrayed them and ruined everything, how everything just fell apart, how that fleeting time where everything was perfect ended. So he takes any menticide he can get his hands on and drowns himself in the high and the good memories.

Sometimes he talks about them, about his siblings. Sometimes he talks about his time in the cult Elder Shamura ran. If he’s still alive when Cryptid Narinder appears at Spore Grotto, he’ll come out and greet him, say how he misses how things used to be, and then wander back into his usual room.

Cryptid Narinder will be silent for a moment, looking sad, and make a comment about how pitiful his brother has become, before returning to his usual behavior.

This interaction doesn’t happen if Shroom Kallamar already overdosed. Also the swapped Mushroom Sculpture looks very different, is called the Mushroom Shrine, and has references to all five of the not-Bishops.

Unlike canon Helob, Cannibal Heket is very aware that most people don’t eat live people like she does. She also knows that Goat is based in the lands her elder sibling once led a cult in. She sells Followers to the Goat for reasons of nostalgia.

Heket is the only sibling still in contact with everyone. She still talks to Elder Shamura every once in awhile, and sometimes plays Knucklebone with them. She still visits to Mushroom Kallamar, though he’s usually too high to understand what’s happening. She occasionally visits Collector Leshy and gifts him some of her prey. She even encounters Cryptid Narinder in the middle of the night once every great while, though they usually just glare at eachother. 

She’s a bit arrogant and rude when she talks to the Goat, and insults them if they don’t buy whoever she’s offering. She becomes sad after Kallamar dies, and she completely disappears if the Goat gives Shamura to Narinder.

Collector Leshy isn’t obsessed with money, he’s obsessed with people. He traps people in gold so they can’t ever leave him. He’s got a pact with the Gods of Gold for that power, so he still sells things for exorbitant prices to satisfy them.

Cannibal Heket only visits him on rare occasions, because he’s genuinely the most unstable in the family. She’s always very cautious when interacting with the worm, because she’s not sure he won’t try to trap her like his other victims.

Bishop Ratau does actively pity the Goat. But The Fox Who Waits, cannot be allowed to be set free. His pity wanes with every Bishop that dies, and the time the Goat reaches swapped Silk Cradle, he’s just tired. He wants this whole thing to be over and done with so he can mourn in peace.

Bishop Helob doesn’t cast famine, they just steal some of Goat’s Followers and feed them to their own cultists. Naturally, they eat the first one themself. All Followers recruited from swapped Anura come with the Cannibal trait, because of something Bishop Helob did to them.

Bishop Midas is a very hands off Bishop, mostly lets his Followers run wild while he laughs at the chaos. He can be bribed with shiny things, though. Most of his sacrifices get decked out in extra shiny jewelry and the fanciest clothes Plimbo can smuggle. Plimbo and Collector Leshy make the most gold off of Bishop Midas’s Followers, because fancier sacrifices mean better blessings.

[starsfic]

First Lamb Hug in Years

Summary: A goddess and a mortal embrace, missing their loved ones. A request from @mukankei08

She chose the form without a thought.

It had been a nice day in Darkwood before the lesson, with the sun shining bright and the scent of camellias fresh in the air. The Lamb had made breakfast, with grief reduced in their eyes. The harp playing spell was working, providing gentle background music to help her focus. It had been a good day, in Kashe’s opinion.

They had begun their lessons after breakfast and this one had been one she had been looking forward to. “Shapeshifting is one of the most versatile magics in our world,” she said, watching as the Lamb wrote that out in their notes. They were a careful notetaker, apparently due to the hours of paperwork required to run a cult. Kashe had to admit that she missed her followers, but she did not miss the paperwork. “With it, you can take the form of anyone and anything. Can you think of any uses shapeshifting can have?”

“Well,” the Lamb said, tapping the feather of their quill against their lips. “You can use it to spy on someone,” She nodded. “Or to hide or just a quick disguise in case you need it. I know there were times I wanted to slip away without anyone noticing.”

Kashe clapped her hands, beaming with pride, both for her disciple and her good sense for who to make her disciple. “Very good!” She pulled out her spellbook and turned it to the correct page. “In the beginning, you will need the circle in order to fully transform,” she said, angling the book so the Lamb could write it down. She set the book next to them. “But, over time, you will be able to do it as easily as putting on a cloak!” The clothes will change and everything.

She snapped her fingers and allowed her form to shift and change as she spun, unable to help the little drama queen in her heart. It was an awkward feeling, with bones shifting in and out of place and her horns snapping and popping to become new. It was different from placing a glamor, that came with the faint sensation of something soft and delicate, like spiderweb, draping across the form. This was substantial.

She chose the form without a thought.

When Kashe opened her eyes, the Lamb stared at her. Their face was pale and eyes haunted, like she was a ghost. She looked down, confused at the reaction, and felt her own face pale.

She knew this form, this body. Soft white wool, matching her fur color, with strong legs that came from climbing up and down ladders. The cloak that replaced her dress had touches of her soft teal, but were mostly black, teal-colored eyes winking at her as she gripped the fabric. Her head had a new weight from it, from the horns she knew without a doubt curled there.

To the Lamb, she had transformed into the first lamb they had seen in years. To her, she had transformed into her son.

She did not know how to react. An old ache demanded attention in her chest now, the same ache that burst to life when her son gave Shamura, barely older than a teenager, a prophecy and they had decided to flay him alive. The ache had died over time, replaced with fresh ones like the loss of her crown, the loss of her followers, the loss of her friends and family, and the general ache of aging when you were an immortal goddess.

“...Can I hug you?” The Lamb’s soft voice interrupted her spiral. The panic had faded, replaced by a look she recognized. It was grief. “It’s been a while since…since I’ve… since I’ve seen a la…”

Kashe opened her arms.

The Lamb fell into her embrace.

The spell reacted to her emotions, and the music became softer, sadder, as she gave into her grief and held a lamb again.

[rainbowolfe]

A Less Stupidly Detailed Analysis on Shamura's Theme

Here it is if you haven't heard it, the whole OSTs a bop though. Not a single miss. For context to what I'm going to say, every supporting-lead character has a unique "lead vocalist" in their theme, so when I refer to that character that's what I mean.

Link to the full analysis with all the observations

General

Shamura's voice is very hissy/airy, much like it is in-game. Kallamar and Narinder both have very high voices, but while Narinder's has a lot of "body", Kallamar's doesn't. Heket's voice is mid-range but very distorted. Leshy's voice is mid-to-high range, but has a softer feel to it. And The One Who Waits(TOWW) voice is the alto of all altos lol

Chorus 1

I have two ideas for the voice that creates Shamura's Melody. It's either Vephar's (which would imply that Shamura is following the lead of their followers) or Heket's (which would imply that Shamura is following Heket's lead). Either way, Shamura's beliefs are not their own. They're someone else's ideas that they are repeating and upholding. And Shamura and Heket are on the same page about it.

This could be applied to Shamura's origin with the crown. By donning the Purple Crown, they were made apart of someone else's religion/cult and thus upholding beliefs, doctrines, etc that were already established by another.

"In my silk, I snared a Crown… to their faith, irrevocably bound…"

For the case of it being Heket, TOWW and Narinder do have separate voices despite being the same person (physically anyways). This clearer voice could be Heket before her injury, or it could be that Heket also has two sides to her as well—a good and a corrupt side. While her ideas may have been good/come from a good place, the Heket she is now (the Heket that agrees with Shamura) is warped and corrupt.

Shamura skipping notes in certain measures could be a marker for how they felt about their siblings at that moment. Four measures for four younger siblings.

Based on Bishop Order, this would mark some level of disagreement with Heket, Leshy, and Narinder. Based on age order, the disagreement would be with Leshy, Narinder, and Kallamar.

"He of havoc, he of blight; she of hunger, they of might. Five becomes four becomes three becomes two becomes one becomes nothing."

Oh. The separation between Kallamar and Heket (with the ';') aligns with the two "sides" shown in this song. Cool when things work out like that.

Verse 1

This splits the family into two sides: Leshy, Narinder, and Kallamar vs Heket and Shamura.

The use of TOWWs melody could have a literal meaning, representing Narinder's beliefs and ideas. Perhaps the "new" ideas that got him locked up in the void. Leshy and Narinder share a few connections, but the most obvious one is the camelias. Not surprising that these two hold the same/similar beliefs, especially with Leshy being a God of Chaos. Kallamar being part of this group is most interesting because he (and Heket) are the stagnant parts of the Old Faith.

I've always wondered why Narinder opted to start calling himself The One Who Waits, when that clearly isn't what he wants to be. He doesn't want to wait. He doesn't want to be the God of Death the way all the others have been. So, an alternative:

TOWWs melody in this piece represents what they have to be as gods and as Bishops of the Old Faith. Leshy lives by it, Kallamar reluctantly lives by it, and Narinder lives by it reluctantly as well... until he doesn't. He tries to sing a different tune.

The siblings opting not to sing at certain parts kind of stuck out to me, so I'll explore it whenever it comes up. I'll stick to age order, since that aligned well in chorus 1.

Leshy sings all four measures, so he's cool with everyone. Narinder shows disagreement with Leshy and Kallamar. Kallamar shows disagreement w/ Leshy and Heket, but he's coming around on her.

Chorus 2 + Interlude

Without the third voice leading the song, both Shamura and Heket are louder and more confident. Shamura shows agreement with all their siblings, so whatever was wrong resolved? And yet both sides are still singing different melodies, and now Narinder is absent. Based on the two options discussed above, Kallamar is now the one who is either discontent with his role or suggesting new ideas of change. Leshy being less vocal here compared to the last verse could signify a lack of belief in Kallamar, even if their ideas are the same. His absence on the third measure would also mean strife with Kallamar.

Chorus 3

The back and forth between the two melodies show the different "ideas", but the way Shamura's Melody completely overpowers and drowns out TOWWs Melody would point to those ideas not exactly living in harmony. This is emphasized by how, in the bridge, the two melodies are no longer in sync. Without Narinder/TOWW to back those ideas, they fade away and the "same" continues with Heket taking the lead, even if only for a short time. During this period, Heket gained mixed feelings about Leshy, and a lowered opinion of Narinder.

When Shamura takes the lead position again, they and Heket begin to drift apart ideologically. Maybe it's the changes Heket has subtly made. They're upset with Narinder, and their opinion of Kallamar has lowered. But Heket's opinion of Shamura has gone up, even as she refuses to return to her supporting role. She wants to lead. With Shamura? or in their place?

Kallamar is consistent throughout this section, but Leshy shows strife with Shamura when Heket is in the lead, and strife with Heket and Narinder when Shamura is in the lead.

Bridge

The Bishops hit a point where none of them are willing to unify. The family's broken. None of them sing. And there's nothing left but TOWWs influence following the tempo Shamura set, two things that are wholly incompatible. But then Leshy's influence unifies with what remains of Shamura's. Maybe it's less influence in the sense of power, but their love for each other. Leshy's instrument plays to Shamura's beat, and the result is the family's reunification.

It's Leshy who starts it, making amends with Kallamar through TOWWs Melody. The two of them make amends with Narinder, and they make the change they've desired from the beginning. (Or they break free of the roles assigned to them)

Alternatively, Leshy forgives all. Kallamar forgives all but Leshy. Narinder forgives only Kallamar and Shamura. But maybe further forgiveness will come later, because....

Final Chorus

Shamura finally sings a different melody, in harmony, with Narinder and Leshy. One that is hopeful and bright, and honestly led by Narinder IMO. Kallamar is late to join this final chorus, which could be because he still had unresolved tension with both Shamura and Leshy. But it could also be because he doesn't pay attention (he enters late on his own theme song too lmao).

Heket's part in this is so fascinating. She's there by Shamura's side the entire time, supporting their ideals, their beliefs. Never once straying to the 'other side'. She's characterized as someone vicious, whose words are hurtful and toxic. But also as someone who cares a lot about her family. And yet, it would seem that she may have attempted to usurp Shamura's position as either the head of the Old Faith or the head of the family. Which wouldn't work.

This family seems bound by their love for Shamura. Leshy potentially loves and cares for all of them, but theres clear divides for the rest. Heket loves Shamura and Leshy. She might love Kallamar as a brother, but she certainly doesn't like him. Kallamar loves Shamura (even though he threw them under the bus) and possibly loved Narinder before his fear of death/the Red Crown took priority. And Narinder loves Leshy, Kallamar, and Shamura.

What seems like a happy ending is achieved, but without Heket.

[ravenouscultleader780]

COTL(MLP Base Edits) : "The New Blog Banner & Samantha's Backstory.

Hello Everyone, I hope you all are doing well and i have recently just wanted to show my recent two fanarts for cotl mlp base edit with this

and this one being samantha's backstory. Edit : I forgot to add a Whole Synopsis for Samantha's Tragic Origins and Which Bishop she despises the most long after joining Lambert's Cult.

Synopsis : "Way Back in The Ye Olde Times of The Lands of The Old Faith, There Lived 4 Bishops whom were different Rulers/Dedicated Leaders of Their 4 Respective Biomes Including : Leshy(The Youngest Bishop/Ruler of Darkwood), Heket(Middle Eldest Bishop, Leader of Anura), Kallamar(Second Eldest Bishop/Leader of Anchordeep) & Shamura(Eldest Bishop/Leader of Silk Cradle). All 4 of The Bishops Ruled with a Iron Fist of their own along with doing untimely sacrifices and torturing those who live in their biomes. in Silk Cradle's Case Samantha was among the many devoted followers in Shamura's Ruling Cult way before she met lamb. out of all of the Devoted Followers/Crusaders Shamura found Samantha very Special since her Kind of Bat Demons(& Demonesses) were Rare to Find and Capture with Samantha's Family and Herself taken captive by Crusaders of Silk Cradle. Thankfully Samantha Escaped Silk Cradle for good and ran as fast as ever into the forest away from almost getting sacrificed by Shamura himself and to be Free from his everlasting Love of War and his Awful Beliefs he taught his Previous Followers/Loyalsts.

9 Months Later Poor Samantha was Saddened that her own Family were all Killed by TOWW, and felt more alone than ever in her life. until one cold autumn evening, she finally found a safe place to stay with which she saw Lambert's Cult where all of the followers were carefree and happy and living peacefully with the Mighty Lamb. Samantha was shy to introduce herself to Lambert or even Narinder but suddenly she felt out through the bushes she hid behind while the whole Nightosphere Cult was shocked as ever to see her, including Lamb & Narinder themselves.

Lambert & Samantha's First Meeting was Awkwardly Shy at First, but Thankfully Lambert was Sparing her Life and asked to Join his Growing Cult with starting anew being apart of it. Samantha Happily Agreed and explained how she got here through escaping Silk Cradle and Knowing Shamura which Lambert instantly knew abt due to fighting him and Narinder himself being his most favorite sibling after being slayed by his new Husband. Samantha was astonished to hear her New Friends Stories of her Old Leader and Home and Soon Enough 800+ days later she changed her life for good, from Marrying Lamb as his 3rd Spouse(longest living next to her BFFs Lady Dimistru & M3gan Wolfhood) and becoming good friends with many of the other Cultists in the Cult.

Fin.

hope you all like this fanarts and the Synopsis of Samantha's Origins.

Later Everyone!

[bishops-of-the-old-faith]

at the time of this blog,

shamura is sort of everyones rock. theyre the oldest, they know the most, they seem to always know what to say. theyre often busy and i feel the others would be concious of it, not wanting to bother them. i feel shamura is quiet and would love for their siblings to bother them about more things but they dont know how to go about asking or letting them know that they would like to spend more casual time with their siblings. theyre not good at expressing themselves or their own needs, but they are fiercely protective of their siblings and their needs and feel like they have to always be emotionally available to help out, but again, their siblings are worried about interrupting them when theyre busy

narinder is the cool older brother, not entirely mature, but someone who has live longer than you and knows everything thats fun/not fun. often likes to tease his younger siblings, especially leshy and kallamar. hes got a lot of spunk and energy and often messes around w his younger siblings to take it out. he doesnt always understand boundries until he crosses them, then he is very apologetic and feels a lot of guilt about it. similar to shamura, hes not good at expressing himself, but its moreso he doesn't have the proper words to describe what he's feeling, rather than an inability to bring up what he's feeling at all. he looks up to shamura, he often bickers w heket but they laugh it off immediately, he tries to coax kallamar out of his shell, he keeps leshy entertained. hes a bit frustrated that nobody seems to tell him anything when it matters, especially shamura

heket sort of picks up where narinder is lacking in the older sibling department, making herself the responsible one in shamura's presumed absence. she is stubborn and she's the one to keep the others (narinder included) from doing something stupid that could get them hurt (or in the case of shamura, remind them to take care of themselves, too). the responsibility feels heavy on her shoulders, but she keeps it up because she feels like this is what she has to do often. she has a lot of parties and festivals to try and ease things up for herself, but after theyre over, its right back to being strict. her brothers have a lot of fun, she feels, and part of her wants to have fun with them, but she worries they'll get into something disasterous if she lets her guard down and she doesnt want that to happen

kallamar is shy but passionate. he takes a bit of encouragement to get started talking but once he's talking he doesnt stop. he loves talking about his collections and cool stuff he finds and random facts about the ocean to his siblings. in turn he is a good listener when it comes to their interests, asking questions and engaging with them, even if he doesn't entirely understand what is going on. but he is riddled with anxiety. he overthinks often, worries his followers are talking bad about him behind his back, his power will not be strong enough, he wont be able to live up to his siblings, and if he is not good enough, does that mean he will die? he's silent about these fears, not wanting to bring the others' moods down and feel like an even further burden on them, but its just a glass bottle waiting to explode

leshy is very active, probably even more than narinder. what he does is completely at the whims of his ever-changing mind, he may relax in the dirt for a while or go on a rampage in a nearby village, he's very impulsive. he likes to cause a bit of "harmless" (to his siblings. mortals may not get the same treatment) chaos with pranks or sudden humorous remarks. hes just a lot of fun to be around. as the youngest, hes the furthest away from figuring himself out, and hes a bit insecure about it. everyone else has solid domains-- war, death, famine, pestilence. what chaos means isnt as clear. yes it has a definition, but that can represent itself in so many different ways. hes not keen on asking, because he feels, like the rest of his siblings, he should figure it out for himself. they would help him... if they knew he was struggling

tl;dr. lots of miscommunication in these bitches and its not gonna end well for them

[bunnygirlskull]

Im gonna put this under a read more or whatever but im tagging it long post just in case cause im on mobile but its about cult of the lambs ost and how it relates to each boss

leshy is foolhardy and over confident because he cant see what danger is infront of him and his theme mimics that in that it makes him sound far greater and more powerful than he is.

Heket is a far more removed and abstract theme and the vocalizations in it are broken and hard to understand. shes clearly very powerful but refuses to ask for help when needed. as is thematically linked to her slit throat

Kallamar's theme is different in that the end has an almost childlsh quality to it in the flute where in due to him cutting off his ears all he knows is from when he was little. he refuses to listen to the knowledge and warnings of others and thus fell to the lamb.

i feel like Shamura's theme echos leshys but feels more reluctant and the parts where there are static feel like theyre meant to symbolize lapses in thought. the fight is more out of an obligation than a desire and because shamura removed his brain he cannot think critically and thus only does things reactively and obligatorily

nirander is an interesting one in that all he wants is power and in both of his themes they reflect that. i think that he was intended to be the one who cannot act, and upon removal of his arms he refused to be a passive god and wanted to become a userper of power and thats why his arms are just bone. he has a fraction of his forner power and relies on others, but in all cases is unrelenting to become higher than others, but like previously stated he lacks the muscle to do so on his own. so he conscripts others to join his cult through deals and gains strength through sacrifice. he is patient, strong, smart, and aggressive, but the quest for more and more power through usurpation and brutality was the same thing that led to his demise.

[timeflowedbackwardscotlau]

Chapter 5: The Daily Grind Part 1

Verdandi hadn’t noticed Shamura had been sneaking devotion into her food until she started losing feathers. Her wings were a sign of certain facets of her divinity and came and went depending on which facet her body needed to invoke to remain healthy.

So, as her wings receded with the steady source of devotion, she woke up with her bed covered in feathers. As much as she grumbled about it, her wings got in the way too often, and today was the day she would be testing the irrigation system in the greenhouse and setting up a control sample of berry seeds for Basil to monitor.

I suppose I cannot refuse them on this any longer. She thought as she brushed feathers off her bedsheets.Shamura’s condition is improving in leaps and bounds, so the excuse of them needing the devotion more no longer holds.

Which held doubly true due to life slowly returning to their domain, Basil was as devout as they came, and with word of the restoration and restructuring of Spinneret Academy reaching the smaller settlements dotted throughout Silk Cradle, Verdandi had seen an influx of devotion from the sermons held in small town temples and outside village shrines.

It wouldn’t be long before Shamura began awakening the slumbering members of the population.

But for now, Verdandi had a test to run, and a meeting to prepare for.

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

The greenhouse within the main building of the academy was a large room with rows of planters along the length of the room, with enough space between for people to move around. Pipes, the means of distributing water, were suspended above these rows of planters.

Verdandi’s robe, and hands, had a fine coating of dirt as she prepared a planter box for the test run of the irrigation system. Filled with soil and a couple of berry seeds planted, Basil would be monitoring the growth and health of the plants to see if there was anything the two of missed when they had cleaned and repaired the greenhouse for use.

“Ready?” she called out.

Basil stood by the valve for the water near the back of the room.

“Ready!” he yelled back.

“Turn it on.”

She waited, seconds later drops of water landed in the planter, she checked the empty one next to it to see how the water was draining and saw no problems.

She signalled for the water to be turned off and walked over to Basil. “Any trouble on your end?”

“No Ma’am,” Basil replied. “Got a look at the water, looks like the filters are working too.”

This was good news, this room was one of several the main building had and could be used for food production until the farming villages beyond the city-academy were no longer struggling to produce enough food.

“Can you handle things from here?” she asked, and Basil gave her a thumbs up.

“Not too different to working on a field back at the farm, and I took notes in case something comes up.” He replied earnestly.

Verdandi nodded, with Basil ready to keep an eye on the greenhouse, and begin crop production in full, it was one less thing she needed to worry about. The past few days had been a whirlwind of showing the rabbit the ropes, aiding Shamura in revising the doctrine, and working out her new role in the sect.

The busywork was satisfying, it scratched her itch to be useful, to work for something more than her own survival.

She had a spring in her step as she headed back to her room to change.

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

“You wanted to see me, my lord?” Verdandi said as she stepped into Shamura’s room. A note had been left on her bed to see them once she was done in the greenhouse.

Shamura sat on their bed, they were inspecting a purple, hooded robe with black lace around the cuffs of the sleeves and along the hem.

“Verda,” they greeted with a dip of their head. “I was just putting the finishing touches on your new uniform.”

She expected as much, with the confirmation that she would working to bridge the gap between Shamura and their followers, as well as act as Shamura’s assistant whenever they made an appearance for practically anything outside of Silk Cradle, the two of them had come up with an alias and background for her.

The spider handed her the robe and stood. “I will fetch the rest of the ensemble while you try this on.” They said and left the room.

She examined the robe, it was finely made, the purple a similar shade to Shamura themselves, and the black lace was pleasing to the eye. The inside of the robe a belt loops sewn in to hide her tail without straining her muscles. And she noticed several protective wards sewn on the inside of the robe as well, notably, ones that protected against poison and injury.

Changing into it was just a simple matter of wearing it over the undershirt and shorts she had put on after helping Basil in the greenhouse. It settled comfortably over her shoulders and the attached hood had reinforced holes to put her horns through.

All she needed was a pair of gloves and a mask, and she could pass for a goat. She took her time threading her horns through the holes in the hood, and with a light tug to see that nothing snagged, she pulled the hood up fully.

She grinned in excitement as Shamura returned with the rest of her attire. They gave her an amused look as she did a twirl in her new robe.

“Here, try these,” they insisted and handed her a long pair of black gloves. “The inside of the sleeves should have hooks for these to clip onto.”

She pulled a glove on, soon found the clasps that would keep the long gloves from sliding back down her arms and clipped it in place. She repeated the process with the other glove and clapped her hands. The sound was muffled by the thick material.

And lastly, she was given a mask. It was a cloth mask that looked like the face of goat. It had a humble charm to it, like a child’s doll.

And it was secured over her face with buttons, the holes for them on either side of the hood. With the gloves hiding the fur of her arms and hands, and the mask covering her face, she did indeed, look like a goat.

“This brings to mind the forms I would hide myself as,” Verdandi commented and looked up at Shamura through her new ‘face’. “I would use a bit of magic to make myself look like any other goatfolk and walk into the local bakeries, farmsteads and homes to bless the hearths…”

“To act as your own priestess must have been amusing.” Shamura said with a fond smile.

“Hence why I agreed with your idea for me to act as your assistant,” she said. “The position is not too different to what I was doing before as your Head Consort, but has the anonymity that would allow me to perform my duties unhindered.”

“And everything fits correctly?” Shamura asked. “Nothing is too restrictive for you?”

“Not at all,” she replied. “This is honestly impressive since you had it made so quickly.”

The spider looked pleased at her praise. “Time is of the essence, soon I will no longer require your power to retain clarity of thought, so another duty must be assigned to you as a reason for our close companionship.”

They offered her an arm as a portal opened beneath them. “Now then, Miss Hestia, we have a meeting to attend.”

She stood beside them and hooked her arm through theirs. “Of course, my lord.”

[rainbowolfe]

A Stupidly Detailed Analysis of Shamura's Theme

Here it is if you haven't heard it, the whole OSTs a bop though. Not a single miss. For context to what I'm going to say, every supporting-lead character has a unique "lead vocalist" in their theme, so when I refer to that character that's what I mean. I found it interesting that the vocals for all their siblings appeared in their theme when the opposite wasn't the case for the Bishops + Nari's themes.

I don't have any ~formal training~ in music or music theory, but I can FEEL the intent and I can see the stuff, I just don't know all the technical terms. So bear with me XD

Link to JUST the analysis, without all the observations.

General

Shamura's voice is very hissy/airy, much like it is in-game. Kallamar and Narinder both have very high voices, but while Narinder's has a lot of "body", Kallamar's doesn't. Heket's voice is mid-range but very distorted. Leshy's voice is mid-to-high range, but has a softer feel to it. And The One Who Waits(TOWW) voice is the alto of all altos lol

Chorus 1

The song starts with the chorus, that's funky. An unknown* voice sets the melody; 6 beats that start at G, work their way up the scale from C, then end on a high note (A or B). This repeats for four measures, with the final measure getting an extra note (goes low, then high). This will be called "Shamura's Melody".

On the second repetition of Shamura's Melody, Shamura joins the unknown voice in a duet with Heket providing her distorted backup vocals (she is 4 beats, but starts on the melody's 3rd note). I noticed that Shamura tends not to sing the last note of each measure.

Analysis

I have two ideas for the voice that creates Shamura's Melody. It's either Vephar's (which would imply that Shamura is following the lead of their followers) or Heket's (which would imply that Shamura is following Heket's lead). Either way, Shamura's beliefs are not their own. They're someone else's ideas that they are repeating and upholding. And Shamura and Heket are on the same page about it.

This could be applied to Shamura's origin with the crown. By donning the Purple Crown, they were made apart of someone else's religion/cult and thus upholding beliefs, doctrines, etc that were already established by another.

"In my silk, I snared a Crown… to their faith, irrevocably bound…"

For the case of it being Heket, TOWW and Narinder do have separate voices despite being the same person (physically anyways). This clearer voice could be Heket before her injury, or it could be that Heket also has two sides to her as well—a good and a corrupt side. While her ideas may have been good/come from a good place, the Heket she is now (the Heket that agrees with Shamura) is warped and corrupt.

Shamura skipping notes in certain measures could be a marker for how they felt about their siblings at that moment. Four measures for four younger siblings.

Based on Bishop Order, this would mark some level of disagreement with Heket, Leshy, and Narinder. Based on age order, the disagreement would be with Leshy, Narinder, and Kallamar.

"He of havoc, he of blight; she of hunger, they of might. Five becomes four becomes three becomes two becomes one becomes nothing."

Oh. The separation between Kallamar and Heket (with the ';') aligns with the two "sides" shown in this song. Cool when things work out like that.

Verse 1

Leshy and TOWW sing an entirely different melody, slightly off from the Main Beat. Deemed TOWWs Melody because, well, that's what it is. It's the through-thread of his theme. It seems to be on 2/4 and flows up and down in a specific pattern. This verse is only four measures, with Kallamar accompanying the harmony towards the end of the second measure. Narinder joins in for the second and fourth measure, but in the fourth measure he sings 4 notes instead of the 2.

Analysis

This splits the family into two sides: Leshy, Narinder, and Kallamar vs Heket and Shamura.

The use of TOWWs melody could have a literal meaning, representing Narinder's beliefs and ideas. Perhaps the "new" ideas that got him locked up in the void. Leshy and Narinder share a few connections, but the most obvious one is the camelias. Not surprising that these two hold the same/similar beliefs, especially with Leshy being a God of Chaos. Kallamar being part of this group is most interesting because he (and Heket) are the stagnant parts of the Old Faith.

I've always wondered why Narinder opted to start calling himself The One Who Waits, when that clearly isn't what he wants to be. He doesn't want to wait. He doesn't want to be the God of Death the way all the others have been. So, an alternative:

TOWWs melody in this piece represents what they have to be as gods and as Bishops of the Old Faith. Leshy lives by it, Kallamar reluctantly lives by it, and Narinder lives by it reluctantly as well... until he doesn't. He tries to sing a different tune.

The siblings opting not to sing at certain parts kind of stuck out to me, so I'll explore it whenever it comes up. I'll stick to age order, since that aligned well in chorus 1.

Leshy sings all four measures, so he's cool with everyone. Narinder shows disagreement with Leshy and Kallamar. Kallamar shows disagreement w/ Leshy and Heket, but he's coming around on her.

Chorus 2

Shamura's Melody once again, now lacking the unknown voice from the first chorus. This time Shamura sings the final note in each measure, and Heket's backup vocals are more confident.

Interlude

The TOWWs melody, but sung by Kallamar with Leshy providing backup vocals. Only four measures again, Leshy absent on the third.

Analysis

Without the third voice leading the song, both Shamura and Heket are louder and more confident. Shamura shows agreement with all their siblings, so whatever was wrong resolved? And yet both sides are still singing different melodies, and now Narinder is absent. Based on the two options discussed above, Kallamar is now the one who is either discontent with his role or suggesting new ideas of change. Leshy being less vocal here compared to the last verse could signify a lack of belief in Kallamar, even if their ideas are the same. His absence on the third measure would also mean strife with Kallamar.

Chorus 3

Kallamar and Leshy carry on the alternate melody in the same fashion, but now Shamura's Melody is over it with slight modifications. First measure gains a note at the end (down, then up), second measure the final note goes down. For the first two measures, Heket gives the leading vocals while Shamura does backup vocals. They switch spots for the last two measures, Shamura opting not to sing the final (new) two notes at the end of the third measure, and goes down on the final note of the fourth measure while Heket goes up. Heket also stops being backup vocals for the last measure, makes it a duet.

Analysis

The back and forth between the two melodies show the different "ideas", but the way Shamura's Melody completely overpowers and drowns out TOWWs Melody would point to those ideas not exactly living in harmony. This is emphasized by how, in the bridge, the two melodies are no longer in sync. Without Narinder/TOWW to back those ideas, they fade away and the "same" continues with Heket taking the lead, even if only for a short time. During this period, Heket gained mixed feelings about Leshy, and a lowered opinion of Narinder.

When Shamura takes the lead position again, they and Heket begin to drift apart ideologically. Maybe it's the changes Heket has subtly made. They're upset with Narinder, and their opinion of Kallamar has lowered. But Heket's opinion of Shamura has gone up, even as she refuses to return to her supporting role. She wants to lead. With Shamura? or in their place?

Kallamar is consistent throughout this section, but Leshy shows strife with Shamura when Heket is in the lead, and strife with Heket and Narinder when Shamura is in the lead.

Bridge

With no vocals, the alternate melody plays over the Secondary Beat using only TOWWs instruments. They are out of sync. On the second repetition of the melody, Leshy's instrument enters playing the Secondary Beat. On the third repetition, the vocals return: First Leshy, then Kallamar, and then Narinder.

Analysis

The Bishops hit a point where none of them are willing to unify. The family's broken. None of them sing. And there's nothing left but TOWWs influence following the tempo Shamura set, two things that are wholly incompatible. But then Leshy's influence unifies with what remains of Shamura's. Maybe it's less influence in the sense of power, but their love for each other. Leshy's instrument plays to Shamura's beat, and the result is the family's reunification.

It's Leshy who starts it, making amends with Kallamar through TOWWs Melody. The two of them make amends with Narinder, and they make the change they've desired from the beginning. (Or they break free of the roles assigned to them)

Alternatively, Leshy forgives all. Kallamar forgives all but Leshy. Narinder forgives only Kallamar and Shamura. But maybe further forgiveness will come later, because....

Final Chorus

A new melody that everyone* sings together in harmony ･ﾟ･(｡>ω<｡)･ﾟ･ Two high notes sung in alternating octaves for the remainder of the song, in sync with both the Main and Secondary beat. Narinder is the loudest voice, but Shamura and Leshy accompany him. Kallamar joins in on the third and fourth measures before the song ends.

Analysis

Shamura finally sings a different melody, in harmony, with Narinder and Leshy. One that is hopeful and bright, and honestly led by Narinder IMO. Kallamar is late to join this final chorus, which could be because he still had unresolved tension with both Shamura and Leshy. But it could also be because he doesn't pay attention (he enters late on his own theme song too lmao).

Heket's part in this is so fascinating. She's there by Shamura's side the entire time, supporting their ideals, their beliefs. Never once straying to the 'other side'. She's characterized as someone vicious, whose words are hurtful and toxic. But also as someone who cares a lot about her family. And yet, it would seem that she may have attempted to usurp Shamura's position as either the head of the Old Faith or the head of the family. Which wouldn't work.

This family seems bound by their love for Shamura. Leshy potentially loves and cares for all of them, but theres clear divides for the rest. Heket loves Shamura and Leshy. She might love Kallamar as a brother, but she certainly doesn't like him. Kallamar loves Shamura (even though he threw them under the bus) and possibly loved Narinder before his fear of death/the Red Crown took priority. And Narinder loves Leshy, Kallamar, and Shamura.

Shamura loves Narinder the most, so it makes sense they finally come to some sort of compromise. Shamura's way didn't work for the boys. But Narinder's way didn't work for Shamura. And the resolution comes from something that is different from what either of them stood by.

What seems like a happy ending is achieved, but without Heket.