#but we'll see how it goes. i've never written a non-linear story like this so it's gonna take some figuring out

[direwombat]

For the WIP ask, Ex Paradiso???

ex paradiso is the sequel fic to kneeling at the crossroads! (or in other words, it's the new dawn sequel fic). if my latin is correct, and i'm...95% sure it is, it translates to "(outwards) from paradise". but also it's been a hot second since i've actively studied it, but i'm pretty sure "ex" is the preposition i want.

BUT

if katc is about cycles of violence and the horrors of war, then ex paradiso is about breaking those cycles, healing from the trauma, and picking up the pieces afterwards. the overarching plotline is super ??? at the moment because 1) it's been so long since i've played new dawn, 2) i uh...never finished that game, and 3) katc is nowhere near done so hashing out a plot right now wouldn't be worth it

BUT (x2)

i have so many thoughts about how i want to play with the plot structure. i want the fic to include both the bunker years as well as the world After. i want to bounce back and forth between the past and the present (or...if i can figure out a way to do it, have the bunker years timeline be moving forward while the New Dawn timeline moves in reverse and have them meet in the very middle at some point). i want "The Judge" and "Sybille" (and likewise "The Hunter" and "Jacob") to feel like different characters and you can tell which timeline you're in depending on which name they have.

the most important part of all of it is that syb and jacob, who end katc separated in different bunkers, find each other again and get a second chance in a world where they're actually, genuinely happier and find their purpose. not as warriors, but as community leaders who actively work to care for the people they've been charged to protect.

syb loses her identity for a while and she also loses her tongue, but to atone for the blood on her hands she goes on to protect, raise, and teach a whole new generation of children (breaking the cycle and not becoming her father). jacob, who loses an eye and who faces the terror of growing physically weaker as he ages realizes that he can't do everything on his own and must rely on others, and while he can't hunt the way he used to, he still has a number of skills that help new eden thrive.

also boomer is there and he and jacob bond over being old men with hip problems.