#cassius au bellona death

[windrunnered]

my next hot take is that cassius was a good person the whole time and was just trying to do right by the people he loved and were told care about him most in the world

[realmariesplatoon]

“I hurt all over” GODDDDDDDDDDDDD

i think this is the first time in a while, maybe since red rising, that darrow has this much of a physical reaction to someone’s death. as far as i can remember the last time he got to actually mourn someone he lost was in morning star with ragnar (and roque i guess but i hate that guy), and even then he had to move on almost immediately as he unfortunately does with most everyone else he loses.

he also holds it together most of the time, and this is a situation where you’d expect him to steel himself even more. he’s unarmed, without men or armor in the rim before a moon lord court, and his only somewhat assured ally is diomedes (whom he can’t fully rely on considering his other allegiances).

he’s in an extremely vulnerable position, especially so with the revelation that lysander won’t be following through on their initial deal and outright tells everyone there that he’s going to destroy the garter, which will in turn destroy the rim. this is the most inopportune moment to lose his composure, but he does. for once, he cries. he all but completely breaks down, because cassius is dead.

and then when he sees sevro again for the first time afterwards, he’s been under io in a bunker for weeks. but he barely gets a word out to sevro before he completely breaks down into sobs again. i think this is also the most frantic his internal monologue gets in the wake of a friend’s death. it’s so unrestrained, so panicked and mournful. it feels so raw and regretful and just ughhrhrhrhhhggg i hate it here omg. LYSANDER WHEN I GET MY FUCKIGN HANDS ON YOU

bro i just got here FREE MY BOY

[vesperpharsalius]

I read the quote you posted from golden son and I didn’t immediately read the tags so I was going crazy because I remembered the scene differently, but since I have only read GS translated in my language I thought it was a translation change. But now I feel dumb because what are the RR snippets I need more of whatever that was because that was beautiful, the lancelot part got me screaming crying and throwing up. please help😭

Thanks for the ask!

My copy of Red Rising (which is just a standard American mass–market paperback I bought back in 2016) has a teaser for Golden Son at the end, excerpts from Ch. 11–12, which cover the Gala.

It is mostly consistent with the corresponding parts of GS, with less dialogue and detail and overall polishing than the actual book, but there’s the occasional thing that got cut or changed in the final version. Strangely, the teaser at the end of my GS is identical to its corresponding scene in Morning Star—it’s the prologue—so I’m not sure whether this was deliberate.

Here’s the official version of THAT scene:

He of the bloodydamn golden curls is with the girl who nursed me to health in the winter, who helped me remember Eo's dream. His hand on her waist. His lips whispering into her ear. As surely as Cassius au Bellona put a sword in my stomach, he now sticks a dagger in my heart. His hair thick and lustrous. His chin cleft, hands steady. Shoulders powerful, made for war. Face made for the hearts of court. And he wears the rising sun of the Morning Knight. The rumors are true. It rips through the party. The Sovereign has made him one of the twelve. Despite the fact that I won the Institute, he's risen higher, tearing through the Dueling Circuit on Luna like an ancestor possessed. I've watched him on the HC, watched him stalk around the Bleeding Place as another Gold lies near death. But here, now, he dazzles, charms. Face split with a white smile. In his Golden body he has all I have and more. He is faster on his feet than I. As tall. More handsome. Wealthier. He has a better laugh and people think him kinder. Yet he has none of my burdens.

And this is the teaser from RR:

He of the bloodydamn golden curls is with the girl who nursed me to health in the winter, who helped me remember Eo's dream. His hand on her waist. His lips whispering into her ear. As surely Cassius au Bellona put a sword in my stomach, he now sticks a dagger in my heart. His hair thick and lustrous. His chin cleft. His hands steady. Form powerful. Shoulders made for war. Face made for the women of court. And he wears a crown badge. The Sovereign has taken him for one of her lancers. Despite the fact that I won at the Institute, he's risen higher, tearing through the Dueling Circuit on Luna like an ancestor possessed. I've watched him on the HC, watched him stalk around the Bleeding Place as another Gold lies near death. He stalks like a famished beast as if one life cannot sate the hunger that roils inside him. Here, now, he dazzles, charms. Face split with a white smile, he is the man fit for stories of romance, a Lancelot galloping from myth to steal a woman who could have been, but never was, my Guinevere. His is a charmed birth. He has all I have in his Golden body and more. He is faster on his feet than I. As tall. He is more handsome. Wealthier. A golden knight. He has a better laugh and people think him kinder. He does not have my burdens.

As you can see, the final version is a little more eloquent and better–worded. The teaser is rawer and a little clumsier. But… whoever cut the Lancelot and insatiable beast bits out should go to Deepgrave, fr, because they’re just 🤌🏽

With the exception of THAT scene, the differences are minor, the Final Cut being obviously superior and often opulent by comparison. Still, there are some notable omissions that didn’t make it, like:

A brief but important conversation between Darrow and Karnus (where he guzzles like, four glasses of wine in less than a minute; Eagle Rest needs an AA chapter, apparently) about butter, in which they establish that A) Lunese food has too much butter and not enough salt and that B) butter is disgusting and makes them feel like pigs.

Karnus also mentions that Julian loved butter so much he ate it by the stick, alone. Wtf, Julian.

Darrow also remarks at one point that A) Martians pride punctuality and always arrive on time, that B) Venusians disdain it and are always fashionably late, and that C) Lunese either come first or last, to keep people guessing and mess with their heads, ofc.

(I like to imagine the Raa being equally punctual and Dido coming to dinner two hours late wearing a diaphanous dress and body glitter, getting criminally offensive side–eye.)

Secret canon facts! Reblog for Lancelot Cassius and Carny Julian.

[sonsofichor]

The Mark of Wolves - Red Rising fic

Synopsis

All my people sing of are memories. And so I will remember this death. It will burden me as it does not burden my fellow students—I must not let that change. I must not become like them. I’ll remember that every sin, every death, every sacrifice, is for freedom.

But Darrow forgets. He forgets everything. Red, Gold, the mines, the Sons of Ares, his mission, his family, his purpose, his dreams, his past. Eo. So what does Darrow become?

Drabble I: Darrow

He tells me his name is Cassius. Cassius au Bellona.

“Cassius,” I repeat, hoping that at least the taste of his name would bring me some familiarity. It doesn’t.

“Do you remember me?”

I study him—his golden curls, his shining eyes, the cleft in his chin. He’s a boy on the cusp of adulthood, a young man of infinite beauty. He’s not someone you can easily forget. And yet, the sight of him sparks nothing. “Should I?”

He flinches. I didn’t mean to hurt him. You shouldn’t hurt young, beautiful things. He waves away my hesitant apology and calls me Darrow. Darrow au Andromedus. It leaves me indifferent.

I sit cross-legged with my back against the wall. Cassius mirrors my position across from me, and next to him is a slight long-haired boy who’s kept silent until now. He leans forward. “I’m Roque au Fabii,” he says and when that, too, gets nothing from my side, he asks, “What about your family? Your parents? Your home?”

I frown in concentration.

Cassius perks up. “You’re from Yorkton. Your mother’s name was Lexus, I believe.”

I shrug.

"And your father... Your father's name, I mean..." Trailing off, he turns to Roque for help, but all Roque does is shake his head. It’s clear none here knows me all that well.

Roque sighs, “It seems you’ve lost your memories.”

I feel lost.

I woke up surrounded by forgotten faces and with no idea who I am or who I’m supposed to be. Questions tumble through my brain, the next one louder than the one before.

They try to explain the situation succinctly.

It’s our third day at the Institute on Mars,

So, I’m trapped in the savage wilderness, where society has been reduced to young Golds giving in to their primal instincts, and I don't even know what Gold is supposed to mean.

“I do wonder sometimes,” Roque begins after Cassius has recovered, “as to the purpose of all this. How can this be the most efficient method of testing our merit, of making us into beings who can rule the Society?”

“And do you ever come to a conclusion?” Cassius asks.

“They have us here because this valley was humanity before Gold ruled. Fractured. Disunited even in our very own tribe. They want us to go through the process that our forefathers went through. Step by step, this game will evolve to teach us new lessons. Hierarchies within the game will develop. We’ll have Reds, Golds, Coppers.”

“Pinks?” Cassius asks hopefully.

“I … don’t know about Pinks,” Roque says. The idea of a Gold being a Pink offends him. I don’t know enough to form an opinion. “But … the rest is simple. This is a microcosm of the Solar System.”

Roque notices my blank look. “Darrow… do you know what the Society is? The colors?”

I shake my head. “What’s a Pink?”

Roque snorts.

Cassius buries his face in his hands.

…

Roque is finishing his summary of  the Red class when he’s interrupted by two pairs of voices and pounding feet. The girls have returned.

“Has he woken up?” is the first question the shorter girl asks as she steps through the doorway.

The lean, long-limbed girl that follows closely behind her, whistles. “Wow, that looks gorydamn nasty!”

She means the wound on the side of my head—a horizontal, freshly stitched and swollen scar. Nine stitches. Cassius is in the middle of cleaning it with salt water.

I stare at them, suddenly conscious of the fact that I’m wearing nothing but my underwear under the light blanket. Cassius said they’d washed them and hung them to dry in the sun outside.

"What?" asks the lean girl.

"What?" I say.

"What?" she repeats.

Cassius lifts his eyes to heaven. "Great ancestors, spare me."

"He doesn't remember you, Quinn. Or anyone, for that matter." Roque clears his throat. “We believe he suffers from amnesia.”

“Believe?” Cassius gives a harsh laugh. “He doesn’t recall his mother from Jove. It’s a fact, my goodman.”

Quinn gapes. "Nothing?"

"Not a gorydamn truth," Cassius says. I admire how his hands stay steady and gentle despite his heated tone. "We just had to explain to him what the Society is."

Quinn gapes some more.

The short-haired girl brings me a cup of water. “Little sips,” she advises, smiling kindly. She introduces herself as Lea.

“We were deciding who was right to lead us. The discussion quickly devolved into . Titus waited until we had our backs turned.” He nearly growls. “The coward.”

“What happened exactly,” I ask him, “Cassius?” But he remains tight-lipped, the anger obvious in the way he works his jaw. He finishes putting the bandages in place, squeezes the back of my neck and leaves the room. 

We stare after him.

“Did I do something?”

Lea shakes her head. “You should eat your berries, Darrow. You need the energy.” 

After some hesitation, I fall upon them. I didn’t realize how hungry I was.

Quinn takes over. “We were leaving. Titus grabbed the standard and attacked. Caught you—” she points at my temple, the wet spot underneath the bandages, “Right there.”

“I saw it all happen. Titus was aiming for Cassius,” sweet-featured Lea adds, “You saved him, Darrow. You pushed him out of the way, left yourself open. That’s how Titus got you.” She shivers. “Your blood splattered all over us. It was everywhere. We thought you’d died.”

“It was chaos,” Quinn agrees, her gaze faraway. “We fought like hell. Cassius threw himself at Titus with a roar. I grabbed a chair and started swinging at anyone who came close. Got Vixu-something in the chest. He was down for the count after that. Lea did the maddest thing. She hit and bit Titus’s hand until he dropped the banner.” She laughs when Lea blushes. “By then, you’d recovered enough for us to retreat. Roque knew a shortcut through the empty stables. Cassius’d left Titus’s face a gory mess and we covered our retreat.”

“I can’t believe I forgot the standard,” Lea groans, hiding her face in her hands. 

“At least you remembered to grab us some grub instead. I carried that chair out of the gorydamn castle!”

They devolve into giggles.

Roque finishes quietly. “You passed out after a mile. Cassius carried you the rest of the way here. You were unconscious for twenty-seven hours. The rest is history.”

It’s strange how that sentence is true, especially for me. My history boils down to the past hours spent in their company. Anything before that is an empty void.

Cassius walks back in and throws a pile of damp black and gold fatigues on my lap. He seems in an even worse mood than before, although none of his ire is directed at us. “Darrow, get ready, my goodman. Proctor Mars wants a word with you.”

[msunitedstatesjames]

I finally finished Light Bringer. Here's my thoughts (obviously, spoilers incoming):

-First and formost, RIP to the king of my heart, Cassius Bellona. The worst part about his death is that you know it's coming the whole book. You don't take a character like him, a former enemy, give him a solid redemption arc, make him the most ABSURDLY likeable character and source of all humor in the book, and then not kill him off. But still, I held out a tiny bit of hope. I really dreaded getting to the end of this book just because I knew it would be coming. But, you had to respect the way he went out at least. Dude's gonna be legend if that counts for anything.

-So, The Abomination was WORRYINGLY absent from this book, aside from a couple of mentions and that (maybe) he's Virginia's mysterious source of intel? Like, everyone is worried about how Atalantia is sitting around building up her power while everyone else is duking it out, but what about the Abomination? I know he's not anybody's most immediate threat in this book, but is anybody else extremely worried about what he's going to get up to in Red God?

-I was happy with the Virginia chapters we did get, but I hope she gets more time in Red God. Also, same to Victra. She was awesome in this book, as always, but like, I want to see you do even more destroying, girl. We love you. I also missed Electra.

-The Bromance in this book was next level, even by the standards previously set in this series. I loved having a little break from the relentless battles and death in Dark Age, to just get the dudes (and Lyria) hanging out and trying to work out their differences. This also helped get back some of the old humor I missed from earlier in the series.

-This was Lyria at her best in my opinion. She was great. I only wish we got to see more Lyria and Cassius because they were just so heart warming.

-Sevro is back! I loved getting to see the old Sevro make his triumphant return for the last third of the book or so. Sevro walking up to Gaia au Raa and just going, "shut up, crone," really made my day.

-Lysander has killed my favorite character of the book two books in a row now. And both times with a gun. I love how this dude talks about how he's secretly really good with a razor, but every time he's confronted with someone who's actually good at using one he just shoots them point blank. I know I've said this before, but seriously guys, fuck Lysander. I mean, even Atalantia is becoming more likeable than him. She may be an evil, power hungry tyrant, but at least she's pretty much honest about it. Everyone knows she's the worst and she barely bothers to pretend otherwise.

-Admittedly, it's been a few years since I've read the other books in the series, but this might be my favorite of the bunch. Pierce Brown really hit every emotional note and character perfectly in this one, and it felt a lot more balanced compared to the (necessary) bleakness of Dark Age.

[cassius-erosennin]

characters im expecting to be Something in red god:

- pythia definitely knows more than lysander thinks she knows;

- i still see a role for gaia & grecca to play;

- julia au bellona will not take the death of cassius lightly, and i don’t think lysander’s little fable will be enough to fool her;

- kyber and screwface give me weird vibes, on opposite sides of the fight. idk.

- who i believe to be lyria’s brothers (the snippers in DA and the reds who would not move when darrow is boarding the spaceship in the beginning of LB) are more than meets the eye

- pierce brown give me rhonna back or we riot (bet she’s raising hell in mercury — shes in mercury right? my memory fails me)

- any more thoughts?

[385bookreviews]

1.3.3 Morning Star by Pierce Brown

SPOILERS

Pages: 518

Read Time: 11 hour and 4 minutes

Overall Rating: ★★★★★ Storyline: ★★★★★ Dialogue: ★★★★★ Characters: ★★★★★

Genre: Adult Science Fiction

TWs for the book: Violence, war, torture, gore, death, murder, blood, su*c*de, confinement, paranoia, cursing, classism, gun violence, slavery, kidnapping, body horror, emotional abuse, genocide, physical abuse, racial slurs (in accordance with the races of this universe), sexism, su*c*dal thoughts, xenophobia, grief, cannibalism, medical trauma, colonization, drug use, self harm, PTSD

POV: First person; Darrow

Time Period/Location: A future of genetically enhanced and segregated humans across the Solar System, including Mars, Io, Earth, Luna (Earth’s Moon), and the outskirts of Jupiter.

First Line: I rise into darkness, away from the garden they watered with the blood of my friends.

After the tragedy of the Triumph at the end of Golden Son, Morning Star opens a year later, with Darrow imprisoned by the Jackal in a stone box. He is slowly going insane from the darkness, but, just as he is about to end it all, he is slowly lifted from it. The entire time he was inside a stone table, and it has been 9 months that he has been in the box, after being tortured for 3. He is being given by the Jackal to Cassius au Bellona and Aja au Grimmus so the Sovereign can have him dissected. He is taken by Legion XVIII Grays, and during this, rescued by two of them, brother and sister, Holiday and Trigg ti Nakamura. On their way out they encounter Vixus, who reveals that Victra is alive. Darrow demands they free her, which reveals their escape. Darrow kills Vixus, and they escape into a tunnel dug by clawDrills with the help of Ragnar, Sevro, and the Sons of Ares, who Sevro now leads as Ares. This, however, costs Trigg’s life. Darrow awakes in the underground Sons of Ares run city of Tinos. His entire Red family is there, as is Dancer, Sevro, and Ragnar. Sevro reveals to Darrow a lot of things, such as Darrow’s Carving being made public after the Society fake executed him as a Gold and not a Red spy, that the Moon Lords of Jupiter and the rest of the outer Rim planets had rebelled with the aid of Mustang and the Telemanus family, and that Sevro had taken Darrow’s original Red eyes in place of his Gold ones. Darrow undergoes another carving by Mickey to restore him back to how he was, but has his sigils removed so his hands are bare. They go on bigger and bigger missions till Darrow, Victra, and Holiday are inducted as Howlers. Sevro then decides to move on with their mission to economically collapse the society by kidnapping Quicksilver, the richest Silver in the Solar System and the Jackal’s silent partner, and bombing Phobos. They smuggle into Phobos and find Matteo, the pink that trained Darrow in Aureate society before he went to the Institute, but Sevro breaks his jaw when he doesn’t know where Quicksilver is. They head to his office, and are shocked to find Mustang, Kavax au Telemanus, Moira au Grimmus (sister to Aja), and Cassius brokering a peace treaty between the Moon Lords and the Sovereign. Sevro goes off the walls, drunk on power, and begins a battle. Moira dies, Cassius and Mustang escape, and Kavax, Matteo, and Quicksilver are taken prisoner. Darrow assumes control from Sevro and they escape in the void of space out the window and into the back of Holiday’s ship. Once back in the Sons of Ares safe house, they stress on how to escape, and then go to question Quicksilver. He reveals he was the original Son of Ares all along after having found it with Fitchner. Darrow and Sevro fight, and Sevro defers leadership to Darrow. In order to save the Sons of Ares on Phobos and cause a ruse for another plan, he starts a rebellion of all the lowColors on the moon. As the rebellion rages and he is assumed to be on Phobos, him, Holiday, and Ragnar escape in a ship headed for the south pole of Mars, where they plan to raise an Obsidian army and lead them out of slavery. Mustang also accompanies them on this journey, saying she needs proof that Darrow is fighting for the right cause. After the Obsidians challenged Gold years back, the Golds had marooned them on the poles of the planets, brainwashing them into thinking Golds are Asgardian gods and that their technology is magic to keep them in check. Ragnar intends to show his tribe the way to freedom and have them join the Rising, but they are shot down by Cassius and Aja. They fight off cannibals and snow storms and Carved monsters, but eventually track down Cassius and Aja. Mustang shoots Cassius through the throat and he survives but is subdued, and Aja brings down Ragnar before stumbling off of a cliff. As he lay dying, his sister and her Valkyrie arrive on griffins. He tells her to live for more, and then dies. This leaves Darrow, Holiday, and Mustang to entreat Ragnar and Sefi’s mother, Alia Snowsparrow, to join their cause and tell her people the Golds are false gods. She knew already, however, and tells Sefi to turn them into the Golds on the floating mountain of Asgard. Sefi takes them, but not before making a deal with Darrow to let him prove to her the gods are false, and he does, killing Procter Mercury, who was disguised as Loki, and another Gold disguised as Freya. They capture the rest of the Golds in the mountain, return to the tribe, and present them to the war council and Alia. She demands the Golds freed so Sefi beheads Alia, and then slowly kills all of the Golds. Several weeks later, she has united the Obsidian tribes of south Mars, and leads them all back to Tinos. Their next move is to sail to Io to convince Romulus au Raa to ally with them against the Society’s Sword Armada, led by none other than Roque au Fabii. Darrow convinces/tricks them into an alliance, and they defeat the Sword Armada. Roque kills himself before being taken prisoner or disgraced, and Antonia flees, but is soon caught. Darrow destroys Romulus’s ship port, framing Roque for it, so the Moon Lords will not be a threat to him for the rest of the war. They broadcast that they are sailing to Mars when they actually sail for Luna.  During this time, the Obsidians revolt after Darrow’s uncle Narol was publicly executed by the Jackal. They hang Gold prisoners and attempt to hang Cassius, but Sevro proves a point that they need to be better by hanging himself. Cassius and Sevro fortunately survive the display, and shortly after Victra and Sevro are married. They sail on Luna, and, after rebonding with Cassius, Darrow decides to let him go before one of the Obsidians or Reds sneak into the prison during the battle and kills him. He betrays them however, and kills Sevro, captures Darrow and Mustang, frees Antonia, and escapes. They bring Darrow, Mustang, and Sevro’s body before the Jackal, and the Jackal demands Cassius to cut off Darrow’s sword hand, which he does. He then takes them before the Sovereign. Octavia executes Antonia for her cowardice during the battle in the Rim, and then starts live-streaming the execution of Darrow. The Jackal demands to put him down, but instead, Cassius reveals the entire thing was a trick and starts killing the Praetorians in the room. Together, Darrow, Mustang, Cassius, and the now revived, not dead at all Sevro take down the Truth Knight and the Joy Knight, pin the Jackal to the floor, cut Octavia’s belly open, and kill Aja. They let the Sovereign die, leaving her grandson Lysander alive, and then hear the Jackal laugh. He begins to instruct his Bonerider, Lilath, to detonate 30 megaton nuclear warheads all over Luna. He gets around 15 of them off before Darrow rips out his tongue and the Ash Lord destroys Lilath’s ship. Mustang becomes the new Sovereign of the Society, and the Jackal is hanged. The Ash Lord flees to Mercury, and Cassius takes Lysander with him to start a new life. At the end of the book, Mustang and Darrow are on Earth where she reveals that she has been keeping a secret from him. Another ship with Darrow’s family and the Telemanus family arrive, and he is introduced to his and Mustang’s son, Pax. 

Darrow O’Lykos (The Reaper of Mars; The Morning Star): Darrow’s humbling at the hands of the Jackal is some serious character growth that was much needed. He realizes that he and the people around him are not invincible, and is more willing to make sacrifices and smarter decisions. The reveal of him having a son with Mustang is a lovely closing arc (despite there being more books). Eo and their child was lost, but he gained a new life, in a better world with Mustang and their son, the ultimate reward for his sacrifices. The grace he shows for Roque, Cassius, and Thistle despite what they have done to him show him to be a true judge of character.  The only thing I wish had been shown more was his PTSD from the Jackal. Granted he does have it, and it is shown, but I felt as though there could have been better representation of that. 

Cassius au Bellona (The Morning Knight): Cassius has one of the best redemption arcs I have ever seen, starting with when he covers the naked and tortured Darrow after he is brought out of the Jackal’s box with his own Morning Knight cloak. Darrow never gives up on him, even when they are enemies, and it eventually gets through to him. He shows grace, mercy, true honor, and a lack of the “revenge/blood for blood” motto he has in the first and second book. It was a really scary plot twist to go from Cassius being good, to him “killing” Sevro and “capturing Mustang and Darrow”, to him then being revealed as good again. 

Sevro au Barca (Goblin; Ares): I’m sorry but you will be hard pressed to find a more badass scene than when Sevro hangs himself to save Cassius. 

Storyline: The storyline of this book is exquisite. It keeps you on your toes the whole time, and everything flows together really well. Everything makes sense (no “Game of Thrones finale” endings here). Nothing magically resolves itself, there are no plot holes, and the author isn’t shy about killing major characters (RIP Ragnar, Roque, Lorn, Tactus, Quinn, Lea, Pax, Fitchner, and Uncle Narol).

Representation: Orion xe Aquarii, Thistle, and Aja au Grimmus are the only people of color explicitly mentioned. Quicksilver proclaims very proudly that Matteo is his husband. Holiday explains that her brother Trigg was engaged to a man named Ephraim. There are more comments alluding to the fact that Roque and Tactus were involved, and Tactus’ brother makes a joke asking if him and Darrow were involved, as Darrow “wouldn’t have been the first.”

Summary: The plot twists of this book, the secret plans, the bold moves, the character development, the gut wrenching emotions, the entertaining and powerful dialogue, all combines into a serious masterpiece of a book and a great ending to the first part of the series. It has a heavy happy ending; there are still problems, nothing is perfect, they only arrived there through blood, sweat, tears, and death, but everything is good, because they have won, and Darrow has gotten back what he lost in a new way. 

Quotes:  “All deeds that last are painted in blood.” (pg. 5) “’I will give Eo your love. I will make a house for you in the Vale of your fathers. It will be beside my own. Join me there when you die.’ He grins. ‘But I am no builder. So take your time. We will wait.’”-Ragnar Volarus (pg. 237) “’This is always how the story would end, Adrius,’ I say down to him. ‘Not with your screams. Not with your rage. But with your silence.’”-Darrow O’Lykos (to Adrius au Augustus) (pg. 501) “’A man thinks he can fly, but he is afraid to jump. A poor friend pushes him from behind.’ He looks up at me. ‘A good friend jumps with.’” “Justice isn’t about fixing the past, it’s about fixing the future. We’re not fighting for the dead. We’re fighting for the living. And for those who aren’t yet born.”-Darrow O’Lykos “And I wonder, in my last moments, if the planet does not mind that we wound her surface or pillage her bounty, because she knows we silly warm things are not even a breath in her cosmic life. We have grown and spread, and will rage and die. And when all that remains of us is our steel monuments and plastic idols, her winds will whisper, her sands will shift, and she will spin on and on, forgetting about the bold, hairless apes who thought they deserved immortality.”-Darrow O’Lykos “If your heart beats like a drum, and your legs a little wet, it’s because the Reaper’s come to collect a little debt.”-Sevro au Barca “Man is no island. We need those who love us. We need those who hate us. We need others to tether us to life, to give us a reason to live, to feel.” “What is pride without honor? What is honor without truth? Honor is not what you say. It is not what you read.” Romulus thumps his chest. “Honor is what you do.”-Romulus au Raa

[vesperpharsalius]

As surely as Cassius au Bellona put a sword in my stomach, he now sticks a dagger in my heart.

His hair thick and lustrous. His chin cleft. His hands steady. Form powerful. Shoulders made for war. Face made for the women of court. I've watched him on the HC, watched him stalk around the Bleeding Place as another Gold lies near death, like a famished beast as if one life cannot sate the hunger that roils inside him.

Here, now, he dazzles, charms. Face split with a white smile, he is the man fit for stories of romance, a Lancelot galloping from myth to steal a woman who could have been, but never was, my Guinevere. His is a charmed birth. He has all I have in his Golden body and more. He is faster on his feet than I. As tall. He is more handsome. Wealthier. A golden knight.

Ah, yes. Heterosexual Thoughts™️ of my hated rival.

Darrow: ugh I hate Cassius and his golden curls and his broad shoulders and his perfect smile and… what was I saying again

Mustang: … you hate Cassius

Darrow: UGH yeah I hate that guy

[kavinskhhy]

@fandomaestheticnet >> halloween event

Reaper

/ˈriːpə/

noun

a person or machine that harvests a crop.

[based on Red Rising by Pierce Brown]

[darrowsrising]

The Lamb for Passage:

I don't necessarily dislike the cute, sweet, seemingly innocent characters of Red Rising, but I do take the Julian issue differently, because I don't think Pierce Brown drove it enough for the general reader to say it - Julian is nothing special.

Julian seemingly represented everything good and innocent, but also everything weak and undesireable in his...species. He stood out as kind in a cruel world and was nailed down. For Darrow, it was him commiting a crime he never wanted to commit, killing an innocent and his own innocence with no actual choice in the matter.

The 'special' thing about Julian was that he was an innocent drenched in the blood of slaves. Julian never hurt a fish, but ate while Red starved to death, slept while Pinks were raped, had warmth while Obsidians froze in the poles, was lucid and happy while Violets were hooked on hallucinogenics to stimmulate their mad art for entertaintment, and so on.

Julian did nothing wrong, just lived on the unwilling labour of enslaved people and never saw anything specifically wrong with it, because he was protected by his name and family. His main preoccupation was his family's honour, what team won the game du jour and how amazing his skilled big twin brother is and how he could help him.

Julian was supposed to be fighting a midDraft and win his Passage, Nero fixed the game up so he could be assassinated as revenge for Claudius. And while that was not fair between Golds, the entire Rite of Passage is NOT FAIR. I just feel like this last thing is missed big time, none of what the Institute represents is good or fair.

Obviously, Darrow claiming to have done it to get into Nero's good graces is what spurred House Bellona into hunting him, that's his own thing to deal with. But I don't think that missing the hypocrisy of Cassius su Bellona and his shitty family is the point of the Passage plot.

If Julian au Bellona was innocent, so were all thr others who perished in the Passage. If Julian au Bellona was part of the problem - and he was to a lesser extent - so were all the others who sat nice and cozy and reaped the benefits of their status at the expense of slaves. Yet, no one deserved to die.

Yes, people who benefit from the system, who get to be innocent and cry when a fish gets caught in a lure, they are doing it on the blood of those enslaved. And NO, none of them deserved to die.

Yes, Julian is meant to humanize the Golds, the oppressors, because they would kill their own in petty revenge or because they are not cruel enough. However, pretending that only his case was unfair, that he wasn't part of the problem, that he was without flaw, is...unfair.

I do think that out of all the Bellonas, Julian would have been the first to understand that what Golds do to other Colors is wrong. But he didn't get to see/ackkowledge his privileges. On the contrary, the poor boy has been so abused by his own family that he tried to beg Darrow to let him win, because it meant much more to him. His empathy had suffered, I believe.

[wisowind-writing]

Okay so like my ocs right, they're a trio of sisters, triplets if you can call, clones grown together triplets, of which only two make it to the academy on Mars. The 'oldest' having been assassinated four years prior, age twelve.

Their "Mother", Acera au Belladona, or more accurately their donor, since the woman who provided the genetic template for experimentation can hardly be considered a mother works for The Board of Quality Control. The sisters, project name FATES (First Aureate Time Eclipsing Systems) the first experiment on making psychic Gold children, in the interest of Gold's perpetual controlled evolution and dominance over all other races.

The oldest sister, Nona, named after the fate who spins the thread of life, nickname Nonni, is a protegee, able to predict not only an ever changing future with extreme accuracy but also able to accommodate for how the variables of how sharing her pre-knowledge of the future will change the future, able to predict even those new actions and how they will shape time.

At five years old, after showing a remarkable talent for years, she negotiates the adoption of her and her sisters into their 'mother's' family, as her daughters. They live the next seven years as Golds from a well off family, but never treated as fully Gold. They are regarded as anything from abominations to simply experiments but rarely as people or children by the other families. The sisters have few friends who remain past them revealing who they are, one of those few exceptions being Julian au Bellona and later, as they grow into teenagers, Cassius au Belladona.

When they are ten years old, Nonni tells her youngest sister of her approaching dead and makes her promise that she will do what she is told and not intervene, that if she intervenes then all three of them will die. Two years later, at age twelve, despite all the forces and protections in places, assassins break through and the first of the fates dies to save her sisters.

Decuma, nicknamed Deci, is the middle child, named after the spinner who measured the thread of life. Compared to her older sister, her powers of prediction were unremarkable, yet compared to her younger sister they were something to be envied. Her ability to predict major events is good for a month to a year, though what is considered a major event is based on her age. She has trouble managing the variables that are brought about by acting on foreknowledge. Her powers gain potency after her older sister's death, granting her reprieve from any more invasive experimentation.

Morta, nicknamed Mori and named after the fate who cuts the life threads of life, is the youngest. She is the least psychically capable of her sisters but the only one to be physically healthy. In fact, she finds herself physically adept and preternaturally good at dueling and close combat, anything where a few seconds make all the difference.

Morta is the main character and the only one of her sisters to survive the academy after Decuma dies to save Pax.

[shyanonimousunicorn]

Why the Bellona house is better than Augustus.

First disclaimers: I love the Augustans. Adrius is my all time fave villian. How great Mustang is, simply can’t be described. And Nero is one imposing ass dude.  However speaking of connections and love between the family members and even number of actual normal human beings, the Augustus family can’t really step on the Bellona. ( and Mustang can’t carry the whole house on her back) Lets look at the proud Lions for a second so i can make comparisons. Nero may be the most powerful man on Mars however his love is the most conditional love ive seen in a parent. And considering the fact he made his brilliant son a monster and drove his wife to suicide, he is a man you wouldn’t want as a husband or father. Adrius despite being one of my faves in The Red Rising series, is beyond doubt a monster, as a male ( since Nero was obviously so very set on having a male heir) he was supposed to be perfect in ways he wasn’t and he tried and succeeded in becoming more ruthless, more power hungry, more monstrous, merciless and vicious than his father at the end.Only Mustang was spaired the same fate, partially to the fact her father didnt have the same expectations from a girl ( yeah Nero was sexist, you can’t deny that) AND because in the end, she had friends like Pax and Daxo and was raised by the Telemanus family ( technically speaking from all the Gold families, The Telemanus are the healthiest Gold house in the books)  Now as I said, Mustang can’t carry the weight of a whole house on her back but you will ask, okay but then Cassius won’t be able to carry his house on his shoulders either, no matter how wide and huge they are. Well, he doesn’t. The Bellona unlike Augustus family have 50 members and Cassius wasn’t the kindest of them all ( despite being good natured and kind hearted), Julian was. Julian was kind, compassionate, gentle and lovelable. We didnt get to see much of Cassius’s twin but we were given a very clear description of who he was as a person, both from Darrow and from Cassius. In fact he was so beloved by his mother ( yes, Julia is very vengeful, spiteful and full of hatred, but then again, ask any mother...no matter the circustances, how would they feel towards a person who killed her child) she is more than willing to abandon any pride, any justice and all honour to have her revenge. But hold there, contrary to Nero’s cold and absolutly terrifing parenting and conditional love, Tiberius au Bellona, leader of House Bellona and father to Cassius, Julian ( and 8 more kids) is honorable, loving father who taught Cassius to be what he is today - basically the knight in shining armour, a man of honor. During the duel at the Gala, Tiberius saw his brightest child being inches away from death and yet he accepted the fact these are the grounds of the duel.BUT WHAT OF KARNUS, the monster you will ask. Firstly, almost every house seems to have them ( except the Telemanus ) Well I am here to say, I see a lot of people like Apple,well Apollonius is not that much different than his best drunking buddy Karnus - violent, monstrous, ruthless, decandent and excessive in his desires, albeit he is more flamboyant and dramatic in his presence. But the fact he was a monster, but he was quite fond of Cassius ( and resentful of Julian) so he too has depth but this post is mostly not about the individuals rather the house manner - The Bellonas are obviously are family family, they support, they love, and stick together. In fact, their connection rings very similar to that of the Raa - Romulus being the honorable father, Dido being the vengeful scheming mother, Diomedes, the favorite son and AN olympic knight ( and we even have an even worse family monster in Atlas’s face). Cassius, who changed and grew a lot over in the years, never stopped loving his family as we saw in IG. I understand a lot of people tend to villify the Bellona family because Darrow was on the side of the Augustans and they targeted him ( and Darrow is ofcourse our beloved hero) but their reaction was a natural one. One of theirs was killed by Darrow and everything was staged by their biggest enemy the Archgovernor. Later their most beloved son was almost killed in a duel by the same man ( and yes Cassius tried to be mean with words but its normal to taunt the enemy and try to make him less concentrated, after all Darrow - for the drama - yelled at Tiberius face and tried to rile up the Bellona even more to start a civil war, this doesnt make Cassius a bad man) So the Bellona aren’t worse than the Augustus there. Even Darrow senses it, but he had no other choice but to become their enemy in order to fullfil his mission Thus my verdict is final ( at least for myself, everybody is allowed an opinion) the Bellona were technically a greater and healthier family than the Augustus. Nero would never match Tiberius and even Julia as a parent because their love for their children was genuine and uncondional ( Julian whom by Nero’s standarts would be weak and undeserving of care was beloved by his parents ) p.s @jasmin-au-bellona just cause u love to be informed about everything in regards to Cassius au Bellona, your husband :D

[nerd-in-distress]

Well, let's hope that Pierce loves us enough to bring Cassius back then. Because otherwise I'll be so heartbroken and guilty.

Because during Golden Son/Morning Star era I was JUST A BIT annoyed by him because c'mon Cassius give them a break let the guy breathe. BUT I KNEW HE WAS GOING TO TURN OUT OKAY and thats why cassius calling darrow brother makes me this happy

And idk I think all of them deserves happiness in the end. They've been through so much.

BUT FOR A SECOND CAN WE ALL PLEASE APPRECIATE THE MOMENT WHEN CASSIUS CALLED DARROW “BROTHER” AT THE END OF THE MORNING STAR BECAUSE THAT SCENE FREAKING HAD ME CRYING.

[thehaemanthus]

what kind of person would you see cassius with?

Hello, dearest!

This is a difficult question. I’d like to start by saying that, out of almost all the books I’ve read, the characters in the Red Rising saga have always been the most difficult for me to wrap my head around. Are they just super complex? Am I reading too fast and only paying attention to plot points and thus missing out on character beats? Is there a dearth of fanfiction writers doing the work for me in dissecting characters to their essentials and then plopping them into a coffee shop AU? The world will never know.

Point is, it’s a challenge for me to decide who would be a good romantic partner for Cassius while feeling I don’t have a firm grip on the character. So. Be patient with me.

What does Cassius need? Well, poor guy has had a tough decade. He’s lost a lot. He’s tried to do the right thing, but let’s be honest. He hasn’t really been rewarded for it. not that you should be rewarded for simply doing what is right

I want Cassius to be with someone gentle and simple. Someone who will settle down with him on a farm or equally bucolic home on Mars or Earth, where the couple can live in peace and life. I think he’s had an eventful life and has always been on the path towards power and greatness. In this universe, power and greatness also mean death and pain and conflict. So I think it would be nice if one of the last Bellona could say, “okay, enough. We’re living a simple life of happiness and maybe helping people every so often now”. 

I would like peace for all of our characters, tbh. 

But hmmm....what does Cassius need? I think a fresh start. Someone who has not been involved in the wars for the solar system, or only tangentially so. Someone who he can talk to about his past, who honestly doesn’t care what side he was on or about the acts he did. Someone who only sees a man who tried to do what he thought was good. 

In a world where “good” was defined by who your family is or what Color you are, people can be quick to judge. While Cassius may need forgiveness from some people, I don’t think he should have to find forgiveness or atonement from any romantic partner. Does that kind of make sense? I don’t want baggage from the past to follow him into the future.

Literally anyone else is welcome to hop on here, because clearly I have no idea what Cassius needs.  

[commanderkats]

“He is very dreamy, but he is not the sun. You are.”

In a week time the three of them would be at the Institute, Aurelia understood what this party meant. This was a farewell party just in case they didn’t return. She hated it, everything about it, the Institute, this party, the way Cassius seemed to soak it up. He wasn’t giving up the same thing she was when choosing to go to the Institute, he wasn’t one of the most promising ballerinas, he wasn’t giving up on his dream. This choice hadn’t truly been hers, no this was just another one that her father decided for her. 

For as long as she could remember Aurelia had dreamed of being a ballerina just like her mother and at a young age she showed great talent. Her mother had encouraged it, kindle the fire within her to become better. Then she died and the man her father once was did too. Her mother’s death had broken him worse than it had for her, she still had ballet, had an outlet for her pain. Until her father took that from her. Aurelia had sensed it far before he made the choice, Julian had told her his father was pushing for them to get an invitation. She knew when she saw hers that was what her father had done. 

The room was full of Bellona's men and other important people to them, her father included. It made her sick and she wanted nothing more than to leave but Aurelia knew what would happen if she did. Julian stepped away from his parents and walked over to her, she had grown up with the twins and kept a pretty steady friendship with Julian. Not so much with Cassius.

“Bit stuffy in here wouldn’t you say?” He asked smiling, handing her a drink she hadn’t noticed he was carrying.

“Thank you.” She said smiling back, “And I’d only say its Cassius making it stuffy.” They both laughed glancing at the other twin, his curly gold hair bright in sunlight and Aurelia felt her stomach give that all familiar flutter. 

“You know what Aurelia,” Julian turned, his eyes wide and wonderfilled, “How about you go tell Cassius that?” A wider smile breaking across that wholesome face though all it made her want to do was slap him. “Oh excuse me Aurelia I’m needed by my parents. Drink up I’ll bring another.” He tapped his glass against her own and walked off towards his parents. 

A part of her wanted to love Julian, he was sweet and funny, they both spent far too much time reading and she enjoyed dancing as he read aloud. Yet there was always one thing that stopped that from ever happening and he was walking across the room towards her. Cassius au Bellona was the most breathtaking man she had ever seen, it wasn’t fair how handsome he was, everyone paled next to him. 

His smile bright like sunlight, “How are we tonight Aurelia?” There was always this sureness in his voice, no matter if it was silky or silver there was a certainty in it. She also hated the way it made her feel, especially when he spoke her name. Her body tried to betray her, willing to give itself fully over to him, it had always been like that with Cassius. 

“I’m fine Cassius,” She took a drink, “And how’s yours?” 

His too brilliant gold eyes watched her, “Julian and you seem close.” He tried to make it sound casual, something he could do with the simplest of phrases though this time it seemed to fall short. 

Aurelia raised an eyebrow then shook her head hopelessly, “Ah, Cassius.” Her voice ending in a small chuckle. “There’s nothing going on between Julian and me.” 

“Why not?” He asked, his gold eyes roaming over her. 

“I mean don’t get me wrong,” Aurelia glanced towards Julian, Cassius following suit, “He is very dreamy, but he is not the sun.” She took the chance to look at Cassius without him watching, quickly taking in that old beauty that seemed once chiseled in stone, “You are.”

[unlikely-allies]

4.5/5

***SPOILERS***

It has been ten years since Darrow became the face of a rebellion and war has taken its toll on all sides. Venus and Mercury remain under the control of the Ash Lord and The Society, a cold peace is maintained with the Rim, and the Core’s newly appointed Republic struggles to find solid ground. Darrow is the ArchImperator of the Republic, responsible for leading its troops and finishing the war that began so many years ago. Darrow is not the Politico that his wife is, he is a warrior. When the Republic’s Senate deny him the means to liberate enemy Mercury, Darrow trusts in his tactical knowledge and goes against the Republic’s wishes. When an emissary from the Ash Lord’s forces broaches the topic of meeting for peace talks, the ArchImperator sees through the ruse and proceeds with the battle. Mercury is freed of the Ash Lord’s power, but Darrow’s actions cannot be excused, even by his wife the Sovereign. The Senate wishes to engage in the peace talks with the forces of The Society, and a warrant is issues for Darrow’s arrest. Darrow refuses to be imprisoned while the false peace negotiations result in the Republic’s demise. Instead, he takes a group of Howlers and sets a course for Venus to finally end the war with the Ash Lord once and for all.

After the death of Octavia, Cassius takes Lysander under his wing. Cassius seeks penance for his wrongdoings, and dedicates his time to protecting the merchant ships of the Republic from pirates and other dangers. Lysander and Cassius keeps their identities a secret, leaving their location and overall status a mystery to even the Republic. While responding to a ship’s SOS signal, Cassius and Lysander are captured by ships from the Rim and brought before the Sovereign of the Rim, Romulus au Raa. Cassius and Lysander soon find themselves in the midst of a coup and a power struggle over the Rim. The two must tread lightly given the Raa’s history with both the Lune and Bellona families.

The Rising brought the end to a structured hierarchy and complete Gold rule, but it has left chaos in its wake. Red freed from the mines now find themselves wasting away in Assimilation camps and being slaughtered at the hands of the Red Hand. Conditions in the cities have worsened and criminal groups like the Syndicate are gaining momentum. Dancer’s newest project, the political group the Vox Populi, oppose Mustang’s Optimates at every turn. The sides that were once united in their fight now oppose each other in how to rebuild this new “free” world, and the lowColor and the liberated suffer as a result. The issuing of Darrow’s arrest warrant seems to deplete the already unstable foundation of the Core, leaving them open to an attack from the Syndicate. When Darrow’s son Pax and Electra au Barca are taken as hostages, Mustang realizes that Darrow was wrong about the peace talks, and Darrow knows he must choose between his roles as Reaper and father.

A decade was the perfect amount of time to let pass between the events of Morning Star and Iron Gold. The government has been tried and tested, but continues to struggle. Battles have been fought and won, but the war rages on. The toll of rebuilding a civilization is evident in the demeanor of our heroes, and yet they continue to fight. Darrow, Mustang, Victra, Sevro and the others now have families and some of their priorities have changed, but they have started this upheaval and now they must see it through to make a better world for the next generation. Unlike the first three books of the series, Iron gold is told from the perspectives of Darrow, Lysander, Ephraim, and Lyria. The book contains a lot of moving parts and the various perspectives help to bring the whole story into focus, however they disrupt the flow and momentum of the plot. This makes it feel as thought the first half of the book drags a bit. The changing viewpoints become less distracting as the action picks up in the second half. By the end of the book, the friendships between our heroes and civilization itself is fractured. I can’t wait until Dark Age is released on July 30 to see how/if any reconciliations can be made. As Lorn said, the bill comes at the end. It is simply a matter of when that end comes.