#choir hunter cecil

[tenebris-metallum]

Inspired by something i actually said/did to @wolfoflua while we were playing Elden Ring, but it's Cecil giving Alfred brain damage by pissing him off on purpose

Bonus:

Close up of alfies tails gets trolled face

[redacted-metallum]

More cecil images

[vampkomori]

short add-on abt the stellaron hunters that i couldnt fit into the original post ⭐

consider this a little side venture that vaguely ties in with my other theory post about Elio and the Stellaron Hunters and their strange connection to Harmony. first lets talk about Kafka.

Kafkas name obviously comes from Franz Kafka, whose most famous work is The Metamorphosis, a story about a man suddenly waking up as a monstrous beetle. This beetle is metaphorical and its species is irrelevant to the message the author is trying to convey, but the appearance of the bug is still based on a specific species: the Coleoptera.

Tayzzyronth’s species is also oddly specified to be Coleoptera, directly tying Kafka to the Propagation. Though there isnt explicit confirmation that the monstrous bug in The Metamorphosis is a Coleoptera, theres another reference: when choosing the Propagation path in Simulated Universe, the ability for Propagation is called Metamorphosis.

Swarm Disaster conveys the idea that normal humans are “transforming” into bugs, and vice versa, this is primarily observed in the Bounty Hunter: Crimson Cleansing Chronicle chapters, where said bounty hunters are no longer able to trust one another because they believe anyone could actually be a swarm monster in disguise, vaguely paralleling Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis. Though one interpretation is that the bugs are evolving to the point of imitating humans, i believe whats actually happening is foreshadowed in Argenti's Companion Mission (Night of Universal Hallucinations) where the bugs never actually change form, but cause hallucinations and illusions that make you see them as something else in order to lure you closer. Their blood is hallucinogenic, after all, so it makes sense for them to have this ability. This is incredibly similar to Idrila the Beauty, whose appearance is said to have “varied depending on who saw THEM, showing the person who the beholder found most beautiful.”

Kafka’s spirit whisper isnt quite that, but its in the same category as manipulating ones mind, though in her case shes controlling/subliminally messaging you. This is somewhat similar to the abilities of Sunday and Robin, whereas Robin can soothe your mind and manipulate it to make it feel more at ease, while Sunday is able to outright control it. 

Once again tying Propagation to Order, Beauty, and Harmony.

Kafka’s banner name Nessun Dorma is also the title of the achievement for Harmony Trailblazer. 

Firefly’s first appearance being in Penacony is also interesting, because her backstory is directly tied to the Swarm. The lore for SAM can be found in the Glamoth's Iron Cavalry Regiment planar ornament set. Roughly summarized, it narrates the story of the Welkin Empire, who employed an Iron Cavalry (which SAM is part of) to fight the Swarm, which was at war with Glamoth. This is why her design is insect/fairyesque. 

The theory that Sunday will join the Stellaron Hunters is based on a readable called “Death of the Crow” which references “The Raven”, a poem by Edgar Allan Poe. 

A word consistently used in the poem is “nevermore” which is also the title of SAM’s battle theme. Ive already talked about Elio in my other post so to avoid repeating myself ill link it here again. but to summarize, if Ghost Trick black cat references arent enough to identify Elio as Cecil Simmes (author of the readable) then SAM’s theme directly referencing the Raven is at least enough to tie it to the Stellaron Hunters.

and lastly, it is still unknown which path the Stellaron Hunters follow. We know theyre pathstriders, because the loading screen blurb about them says “An organization that travels between worlds hunting for Stellarons. It is unknown which Aeon bestows them with their power.”

Its possible that we just dont know their path yet (Finality is a common theory), but this reminds me of the Swarm, the Knights of Beauty, and the Beyond the Sky Choir/Oak Family, who all draw power from “unknown sources” because the paths they follow (Propagation, Beauty, Order) are all leaderless. This baffles people, because a dead Aeon would cause their pathstriders to no longer receive any power, which implies that those three Aeons are not dead, but not quite alive either (since those are our three components of Xipe, they likely exist in a Schrödinger's Aeon situation). This sounds like it could potentially be what the Stellaron Hunters’ path situation is, too.

Also curious is that their entry links to Emanators — despite having no mentions or currently known relation to any Emanators. Its pretty obvious to me that Elio is an Emanator, especially due to his powerful ability, but the entry being linked confirms it (if it wasnt mistakenly linked, that is). i theorize that Elio is an Emanator of Order in the post I linked above, but i found a little mention in 2.2 that makes me want to change my tune ever so slightly:

Pathstriders, and by extension Emanators, can turn their backs on the paths they once followed. This is further back up by the entry about History Fictionologists:

Note that this entry is said to have been tampered with, so we cant fully trust it, but it says that they are Emanators blessed by Aeons, plural. If this isnt a typo, the implication is that History Fictionologists are all Emanators of different paths who turned their backs on their previous path and now follow the Enigmata. This is new territory so we have no idea what that means or if theres any consequences, if they retain their abilities, etc. But its possible that Elio is an Emanator of Order who turned his back on the path of Order and now follows a different path. This would match Sunday’s situation especially since they have parallel imagery with regards to Edgar Allan Poe’s Raven and Black Cat.

Hm ultimately i dont have a conclusion to this train of thought, the Stellaron Hunters have a lot of parallels and presence in Penacony but its difficult to say what it really is until we find out more. i wanted to compile them though since this stuff is really fun and interesting :)

thanks for reading again!

We know where Idrila is, Xipe is an artificial Aeon, and Sigonia is in the Lepismat star system [theory]

interesting thing about Penacony is that it has a lot of symbolic ties and imagery relating to Aeons that have, frankly, no business being there. or do they? having a bit too much fun reading too much into text.

tinfoil hat territory though bc this is for funsies

this will be a bit longer than usual (and the usual is already very long) beause im combining multiple trains of thought. it all started with bees. ahh, bees. were getting to the bees later though. lets start

Transmutation

When the Swarm Disaster began, Ena sought out Qlipoth and called them the "dreammaker that pulls and influences the will of transmutation." Essentially, seeking them out specifically due to this transmutation ability.

To help with understanding, this is the definition of transmutation:

The act of changing from one form, nature, substance, or state into another; synonymous with transform, convert.

heres where things get highly subjective and interpretative, because the moment of Tayzzyronths "fall" is described very, very vaguely.

- Swarm Disaster, Chapter: Preservation II

this is kind of tough to parse, so ill explain how i interpret this event:

During this.. "execution", multiple Aeons are present, "more than three voices". We know that Qlipoth (giant hammer), Aha (subtle laughter), and Tayzzyronth (whimpering) are present for sure. Ena is also likely present if you presume the "symphony" to be their sounds, but there are more Aeons that are left undescribed. 

Interestingly, Tayzzyronth being repeatedly struck (?) by Qlipoths hammer is described as "diluting". just for funsies, heres the definition:

dilute /dī-loo͞t′, dĭ-/ transitive verb 1. To make thinner or less concentrated by adding a liquid such as water. 2. To lessen the force, strength, purity, or brilliance of, especially by admixture. 3. To decrease the value of (shares of stock) by increasing the total number of shares.

To describe Tayzzyronths "death" as them being "diluted" is strange. Also, whats diluting them? Heres were we come back to the idea of transmutation.

Theres no direct evidence for what im about to say, so take it as me just offering a viewpoint and you decide for yourself if you vibe with that idea.

I propose that Tayzzyronth is being diluted by other Aeons. Drowning out their voice, so to speak

After this event, you discover a "white cloth" and "several puzzle pieces that sway in the wind”. The puzzle pieces are a clear connection to Xipe, implying that theyre present, but whats the white cloth?

Ena's puppet body is covered in a white cloth, and it being "tattered" is likely to showcase that they, too, were subject to Qlipoths hammer of justice transmutation.

Xipe is said to have assimilated Ena, so its interesting that they seem to be already present here. Itd be an insane coincidence if Xipe just happened to mysteriously absorb Ena at the same time as Tayzzyronth was "killed", but what if these two events are the exact same thing?

To put it bluntly, Qlipoth combined Ena and Tayzzyronth to become Xipe.

The entire thing is brought up again in 2.2, showcasing once more that any information on ancient history is unreliable because things are told to us very differently here.

Thus far, the events of the Swarm Disaster are vague at best and a complete mystery at worst. the most trustworthy telling of this story comes from the Simulated Universe, where we learn the truth surrounding this event. and as explained previously, during SU:SD we learn that Qlipoth was the one who "diluted" Tayzzyronth while other Aeons watched, and the only detail concerning Xipe was puzzle pieces swaying in the wind after this supposed "execution"

In short, Acheron and Black Swan are completely wrong here. At least Acheron prefaces this by saying "Legend has it" meaning that this is what normal people came up with after millenia of uncertainty. But we are intellectuals, weve played Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, and we know better

what comes after is fascinating though. stories have limited time to tell the things they want to tell, so theyre not going to waste time mentioning something thats genuinely irrelevant. Boothill being written to say that "the two leaderless Paths are working behind the scenes" is purposeful, because they couldve made him say anything else, but they chose to make him bring up the possibility that the Propagation is involved in Penacony.

Dan Heng going on to say that he doesnt see any "descendants of the Propagation in Penacony" is similarly interesting, because this is a simple, obvious surface-level deduction. yes, we dont see giant bugs in penacony.. do we? Again, they couldve made them say anything else, but they specifically chose to explore the idea of the Propagation in Penacony, even if the characters ultimately discard the idea.

Lets veer off a little for a couple of small tidbits to back this idea up a little more:

Path Symbols. The red symbol in the middle is whats used to represent the Swarm Disaster, theres clear similarities to the symbol of the Propagation (left), but its arranged in a strangely familiar, Harmony (right) way?

Theres a fascinating description at the very beginning of Swarm Disaster that, when i was replaying it, immediately reminded me of something:

Soulglad.

This text essentially describes the blood of Tayzzyronth, and by extention, the Swarm, as orange and colorful, smelling of oranges and other tropical fruits, evoking the feeling of an ocean of soda. Additionally, it seems to have hallucinogenic properties. This is consistent throughout Swarm Disaster. The various descriptions of Soulglad(tm) match the traits of Swarm Blood very, very closely, once again subtly tying the Propagation to Penacony.

basically, theres a lot that connects Tayzzyronth to Xipe, really hammering home that Propagation and Order were combined to create Harmony.

but hold your horses.

Xipe has, as we know, three faces. If they were made from two Aeons, their imagery surrounding the number 3 wouldnt be making a lot of sense now, would it?

This might be a bit of a leap, but they dont half-ass their symbolism. if Xipe is associated with threes, then why would it be..two? That doesnt add up. Theres Tayzzryonth and Ena, so, based only on this logic, who could possibly be the secret third Aeon that got roped into the transmutation?

but first, lets return to Swarm Disaster for a bit, and meet Xipe!

Xipe's dialogue is very, very unique, because it has three colors: blue, red, and white. although only red and blue seem to be "clashing". One of them is clearly Ena, but its hard to imagine Tayzzyronth being able to make coherent sentences.

Whats interesting though, is that Xipe knows Akivili, even though this is (potentially) the first time Akivili has met them (because Xipe was born very recently). Yet, Xipe talks to them as if they were an old friend.

Even more interesting is that Aha knows "Xipe" and says something curious about them: "changes happen rapidly"

"We were still negotiating last time, but this time, Ena already became you. It's a shame, my friend! But I must say Ena makes you look even better."

Xipe is a new existence, and the way Aha talks to them is as though theyre talking to who they used to be, and that someone is not Ena, because Aha specifies that "Ena makes you look even better", so who is this "you" that Aha was so familiar with, and whom they were negotiating with, before their "change"? Its not Tayzzyronth, because they were certainly not friends.

We know that both the path of Propagation and the path of Order are considered "leaderless" or... "dead but in a weird situation" if we want to be complicated. so, hypothetically, the secret third Aeon would have to be in a similar situation.

The only Aeons this applies to are Long the Permanence and Idrila the Beauty, both of which have "disappeared under mysterious circumstances" so they check off our requirements! However, we can write off Long, because according to Kafka, "After the disappearance of Long the Permanence, Tayzzyronth divided the Aeon's Path" meaning that Long had already disappeared before Tayzzyronth became an Aeon. This leaves only Idrila as our third candidate and component for Xipe.

So, was Aha friends with Idrila? Itd make sense for them to comment "Ena makes you look even better" if their whole thing was Beauty, and Ena made them "even more beautiful", right?

Fun side tidbit: Kafka says that "when the Swarm Disaster began to take hold, Tayzzyronth was attacked and killed by multiple Aeons." hm! anyway, moving on

Idrila

So, Idrila might be somewhere in our Xipe-flavoured slushie of divinity. Is there...any other evidence except the vague notion that, because Xipe is associated with threes, there must be a third Aeon?

Well, this is a theory for a reason. theres very vague implications, but nothing concrete to really support the idea. But heres a list of circumstantial evidence that could mean something:

All three Aeons (Propagation, Order, and Beauty) can be considered "leaderless paths", yet pathstriders still seem to be able to draw power from their path, which shouldnt be possible if their Aeon were really dead. Idrila is considered to only be missing by the Knights of Beauty, Propagation-bugs still exist despite Tayzzyronths alleged "death", and Order...well, you saw Sunday.

Beauty has connections to music, just like Ena (symphony) and Xipe (song), this is primarily observed in the Sidequest Clockwork: Larose where she talks about a Song of Beauty. Additionally, the Knights of Beauty also "chant ancient beautiful songs/hymns" as they roam the universe. Xipe and Ena, too, have "ancient hymns".

Although all Aeons are referred to with THEY/THEM, Idrila and Xipe are occasionally referred to with feminine terms, Idrila is called the "goddess of Beauty" and Xipe is called "the mother of all stars". This doesnt have to mean anything, but theoretically in a slurry of genderless Aeons, two of which are a giant bug and a robot puppet/floating eye, the feminine aspect of Xipe has to come from somewhere, and it couldve been Idrila.

Idrila doesnt have an entry in the Simulated Universe (which is a trait they share with Long and Terminus, a strange bunch) and we dont know their appearance yet. A bit suspicious, it could be possible that their appearance is similar to Xipe, which would give away the fact that theyre one of their 3 components. Its also implied/speculated that the silver hair in Argenti's Lightcone An Instant Before A Gaze belongs to Idrila, which happens to have the same shade as Xipe's hair.

This is again, highly interpretative, but Xipes ideal cannot be created solely with Order and Propagation, youll have a united Hivemind with those two, but Xipes whole thing is the beautiful dream paradise that the hivemind wishes to live in, which would only be complete if you threw Beauty into the mix.

Origin Universe: "I have seen wonders beyond the scope of human imagination... I have seen dozens of insects intertwine and give birth to entirely new offspring, which in turn weave themselves together like a shape-shifting rose with countless interlocking petals. The reproductive cycle of the Swarm is akin to a flower emitting pheromones and various scents... a breathtaking combination of monstrosity and beauty..." - Swarm Disaster: Sand King: Tayzzyronth, Part IV

Swarm Disaster has a lot of repetitive keywords and imagery all of which represent certain Aeons and their presence/influence. Mentions of roses/flowers, duty and beauty are Idrila’s, which are present in Swarm Disaster. In this case, in tandem with the Swarm. 

Speaking of the Swarm Disaster, we are first introduced to Idrila and the Knights of Beauty through Argenti, who was released alongside the bugs of the swarm and the Swarm Disaster expansion. This is very pointed, because it narratively ties the Swarm to Beauty due to their simultaneous introduction.

In 2.0, theres a dream sequence shown to us by Samporkle that feels incredibly out of place, and weird, and we have no idea whats going on. But theres clearly a hidden meaning there, especially because Samporkle tells us so

Were told that theres a truth behind this dream and that it contains a hidden meaning, its likely an allegory to Penacony as a whole, but even now, in 2.2, we cant really make heads or tails of it. Likely, this will be covered in 2.3, when Sparkle’s buttons come back into play. But the thing i want to focus on is the beginning of the sequence where we encounter three trashcans. 

Now, this could be a stretch, but you have to split something for these three trashcans perfectly evenly, balanced, and theyre each referred to as Serious (Propagation, wealth symbolizing excess here), Wise (Order), and Beautiful (Beauty), i just feel like thats a little on the nose, isnt it? “But why would they parallel Aeons?” you ask, and i hear you, its mosty because the text refers to their watchful gazes a lot, and Aeons.. gaze upon you. A stretch, again, i know, but i felt it was worth mentioning regardless.

And lastly:

The Mirror Holders are a faction following the Beauty, and its said that

"When the God of Beauty died, THEIR fragments were scattered to the cosmos. The wandering Mirror Holders tried their best to find clues and recapture these fragments, hoping to one day piece everything back together and let Beauty return to the world."

This seems to say that Idrila died, but keep in mind that its entirely unknown what happened to Idrila. Whats interesting is that, for some reason, their "fragments" (mirror imagery) were "scattered" when they "disappeared". this would add up if they were subject to Qlipoths ol' magic hammer and turned into Xipe-mush. The process isnt exactly pretty, if Enas "tattered white cloth" is anything to go by.

This isnt the point i was going for though, the point is that theres a rather interesting character in the Clockie Cartoon that fits this description to a T: the Mirror Princess

We know that every character in the Clockie Cartoon represents a person from the past: Clockie is Mikhail, Boss Stone is the IPC, Captain Revolver is Tiernan, and the Mirror Princess is thought to be Razalina, given her involvement with Memoria and her disappearance in the memory zone.

But symbolism is symbolism and a role can fulfill multiple purposes and represent multiple people, especially considering the very pointed imagery of shattering.

They fight against an intangible monster called "Unknown" and we know these events are not what happened 1-1 in the past because everybody here is present for the Mirror Princess' "death", and Razalina disappeared in the memory zone while doing research and we technically dont know what happened to her (personally I think this will be covered in 2.3 but this is unrelated)

Anyway, the shattering of a mirror is extremely evocative of the shattering of Idrila:

When the God of Beauty died, THEIR fragments were scattered to the cosmos.

and particularly they point out that despite the Mirror Princess' death/shattering, she is still watching over "Dreamville" (Penacony) with her radiant glow. That, in turn, is evocative of Xipe, because what else is an intangible entity that watches over Penacony with their radiance? This doesnt sound like something a regular person like Razalina would be capable of

This is just to tie in parallels and connections between Idrila and Xipe though, theres a lot of very circumstantial things connecting them, but again, nothing explicit or concrete. this is a theory. im not expecting to get anything 100% right here.

The mirror-holder gazes into the mirror, but recognizes not the face staring back.

Plus, if Idrila is now Xipe, they wouldnt recognize their Beauty in the face of the Harmony.

So, weve established that Idrila is a pretty good candidate for the third component of Xipe in Qlipoth's act of transmutation. The evidence is circumstantial, but there is this interesting little discovery i made when revisiting our favourite goddess: Gaiathra Triclops

Gaiathra Triclops, Sigonia, and Lepismat

We know Order was "assimilated" into Xipe, this is pretty much fact. but theres some more things that tie into Propagation that ill mention here.

ive established before that the goddess Gaiathra Triclops is Ena (or at least has strong ties to Ena) pretty irrefutably, but the ties go a little deeper, i just didnt have reason or context to make anything of these ties yet. i do now! yippee

Avgin is repeatedly mentioned to mean Honey, seemingly for no reason

"Avgin" means "honey" in the Sigonian language. It's a conventional term irretrievably lost in the long arc of cosmic history. - Sigonia, the Unclaimed Desolation, Planar Ornament Set

Clearly, theres a reason its always brought up, and why its pointed out, and why they emphasize that theres a reason that one of the clans is named "honey". In tandem, "Katica" means "shellslasher". This will be relevant

ive tried tracing the etymology of Gaiathra before, and although this is highly subjective, i ended up with "gaia" and "kerithra": mother gaia the greek personification of the earth, and kerithra which is greek for "honeycomb"

Sigonia is also shown to look like a beehive in the planar ornament set.

Honey evokes the imagery of Bees, which ..are insects. obviously. The hexagonal shapes of the honeycomb are also often used to indicate structure, control, and orderliness in general media. orderly little worker bees, hives, hivemind, you get the idea.

although physical depictions of Gaiathra dont exist, we know shes considered to be a "left palm with three eyes" which is un-insect-like. Thats just a side point though, most importantly is the entire honey-bee-insect association they seem to be going for here.

So, Gaiathra has ties to Order and also Propagation. But we cant forget the second part of her name, Triclops, once again bringing up the imagery of threes, similar to Xipe. Gaiathra has 3 eyes and may thrice close her eyes for you, and is also the goddess of three domains: fertility, travel, and trickery, so...whats up with that. Is Gaiathra just Xipe after all?

Yes and no, i think its simpler and more complicated than that

Origin Universe: "The formidable army spawned by the self-replication and division of the Sand King originates from the Lepismat system. Some units of the Swarm have transformed into ground combat units... They have sacrificed flight for colossal size and hardened carapaces... These units often serve as the shock troops of the Swarm Invasion, using their massive bodies to break through defenses..." - Swarm Disaster: Sand King: Tayzzyronth, Part IV

Before we go into that though, lets establish some ground: Tayzzyronth was born in the Lepismat System, on a Sand Planet later known as Elydichna. The entire planet was home to these insects, until one day an unnamed man arrived with the goal of establishing a civilization there, and subsequently caused the extinction of these insects, leaving only one behind: Tayzzyronth. Being the only remaining survivor, their loneliness made them ascend to Aeonhood.

The way the unnamed man is described is…. very familiar.

“Always managed to succeed against all odds”, “his triumphs have filled him with avarice, hubris, and an unwavering belief that he can conquer [anything]” and “He can get whatever he desires but never discovered what he really wants” Sound familiar? 

Why, that sounds like our good friend Aventurine!

I know, that sounds ridiculous. But also so, so on point, this is hardly a coincidence. Why describe this random, unnamed man in such a way? We follow this guys journey throughout the chapters of Lepismat System: Massacre Saga and it is all a heavy parallel to Aventurines story: Hes afflicted by Nihility, but became a self-annihiliator in search of his lost self, successfully built a civilization yet had to watch its collapse and everyones death while he remained alive throughout it all, until he eventually succumbed to Nihility after finding his lost self and became a Sin Thirster, unable to let go of his regrets.

To my knowledge, this is the first mention of Sin Thirsters by name, tying this to Penacony even more intensely due to Acheron. 

This unnamed man is such a heavy “what-if” parallel to Aventurine that i can hardly even believe it. Whats funny is that theres an allusion to the man being guided to Lepismat by Aha, and coincidentally we know Aventurine was invited to the Tavern, too. Ridiculous, right?

Well, this is getting a little into conspiracy territory again, but I believe this is an iteration of Aventurine in an earlier Samsara. We know Hoyo LOVES samsaras and theres plenty implying that such a thing is happening, especially when we look at the chapter of the Beyond the Sky Choir which ill add in at the end for anyone curious about it. Regardless, the man that founded a civilization on a sand planet in the Lepismat system and caused the ascension of Tayzzyronth is a parallel to Aventurine. 

So, lets just go a little crazy: What if that sand planet is just Sigonia-IV? After millenia, the original name of the planet (Elydichna) was surely forgotten, causing it to be rediscovered at one point and re-named Sigonia. “But theres no basis for this assumption!” There isnt, but im having a blast. Let me point you to something funny:

Aventurine, completely unprompted, brings up the idea of the Intelligentsia Guild digging up the remains of the Sand King Tayzzyronth from the sands of Egyhazo.

What a weird thing to make him say, bringing up Tayzzyronth in relation to Aventurine, his remains no less. It was a lie and he was mocking them, but the mention is interesting nonetheless. Theres also just a mountain of questions here: Does the Guild not know which planet Tayzzyronth originated from? Does anyone? So much knowledge is obscured or lost to time, how do they know Tayzzyronth even died on the planet they were born? How does Aventurine know? Hes talking about a place called Egyhazo here, evidently not Sigonia, unless its the name of a desert in Sigonia? We just dont know. The details dont matter, the fact that Tayzzyronth, and indirectly, the sand planet they were born/died on, is brought up by Aventurine, whom weve established is a parallel to the man who was inadvertently the reason for Tayzzyronths ascension in the first place… is crazy.

But lets focus on this: Tayzzyronths remains. 

According to the scholar, such horrors have not completely disappeared. The Imperator Insectorum's descendants remain, and THEY could return at any moment. This scholar once showed me his collection — A dull yellow piece of amber with moving flecks and a buzzing tremor. I was absolutely gob-smacked to hear him say that it is part of the "Imperator Insectorum's Prison Cell." The omniscia implanted in my forehead could not see the future of this item, which only serves to corroborate the scholar's claims. All I can do is pray in silence to the Reignbow that such a day will not come soon. - Glimpses into the Beyond: Swarm Author

In this text, Fu Xuan narrates that there are pieces of amber containing “remains” of Tayzzyronth. The “amber” is a clear pointer to Qlipoth, and amber is a pretty classic thing to preserve insects in. 

With the release of 2.1, we also got a new ascension material: Divine Amber. Specifically, its “the amber that rains from the Amber Lord's body when THEY swing the celestial hammer.” Curiously, Aventurine is currently the only one to use it. Its clear that this whole thing seems to refer to the moment that Qlipoth swung their hammer at Tayzzyronth to transmute them, and similarly to how a white cloth from Ena and shattered mirror pieces of Idrila were found after the fact, pieces of Tayzzyronth were likely also left over, which were then encased in Amber by Qlipoth.

This is, once again, circumstantial because there is nothing directly tying Elydichna/Lepismat to Sigonia, except for a few common themes and references from Aventurine. Both places, however, are consistently described as desolate to the point that thats a clear keyword to look out for. Also, they make a point to say that Sigonia is “located in an unclaimed zone”, meaning that it could totally be the Elydichna Starzone/the Lepismat star system. The lack of confirmation is valid, too.

The Tear Crystal of Glorious Death synthesis material has a rather interesting description, because it describes a Mourning Actor taking a Gondola to a “silent world of barrenness” which was the site of a “doomsday battlefield”. This is a direct reference to Swarm Disaster, specifically the Gondola: Helping Gods! chapter.

Origin Universe: The gondola set sail, and the drowsy Mourning Actors lay at the bottom deck, carefully guarding the glittering Memory Bubble. But soon, the ship vanished eerily, like a ghost fading into the stream of the universe.

Meaning that the “silent world of barrenness” is Elydichna in the Lepismat system, Tayzzyronths sand planet. Note here that “barrenness” is a synonym for “desolation”, a word consistently used to describe Elydichna, as well as Sigonia, whose Planar Ornament set is literally called Sigonia, the Unclaimed Desolation. (mic drop) 

I jest. Anyway, the fact that Tayzzyronth was fated to “die” in the same place they were born implies the transmutation took place on Elydichna, and that the planet was not destroyed despite everything, considering that the Mourning Actor arrives to the aftermath. 

To focus on the Tears for a moment, they could be anyone’s, ranging from Tayzzyronth’s, Ena’, or even Idrila’s. Due to their crystalline nature, im inclined to believe theyre Idrila’s tears, though. Actually, Idrila’s imagery is very similar to that of Fuli the Remembrace, mirrors, crystals, gems, etc. Herta says that the Enigmata’s birthplace is the Remembrance, and I can see that being the case for Beauty, too. “Beautiful memories” and all that. What a wild family.

Going back to Sigonia, we know there are at least 3 tribes present on Sigonia, once again following the rule of threes. Theres the Avgins (honey), and Katicans (shellslashers) and an unnamed third faction which are only ever referred to as Sigonians. This unnamed third tribe are the ones who established the Sigonian Sovereignty, though “this unity and progress did not extend to the Avgins and Katicans.”

Personally i believe the three tribes to be the descendants of the Elydichnans, each possibly paralleling a variant species of the Swarm, theres a curious part in the Lepismat System chapter that lists three bugs:

Look around while making the record. — You're curious as to what kinds of insects he's caught during the process. Origin Universe: At his feet lie a few *Larnoli Worms*, characterized by their soft bodies and exquisite color hues... reminiscent of jelly drops. Origin Universe: On his table, there are tiny *Fisgerald Bugs*... ruthless and elusive assassins... Some of them only reveal their true form under certain lighting conditions. Origin Universe: He is toying with... a *Tagger* in his hand? No matter how you move around, his gaze never meets yours as he always keeps an eye on your back. - Swarm Disaster: Lepismat System: Massacre Saga, Part IV

These bugs are only ever mentioned here, meaning there is more to them than meets the eye. The tagger is implied to have affected the unnamed man that established Elydichna, while the other two are seemingly irrelevant. This is by and far the biggest stretch thus far, that these have anything to do with the tribes on Sigonia, but the Fisgerald Bugs being “ruthless elusive assassins” is evocative of the Katicans, who are described as “bloodthirsty, cruel, and ferocious”. Additionally, Katica means “shellslasher”, which could refer to the act of slicing through the carapace (shell) of a monster from the swarm. This is wholly and genuinely only based on vibes, though.

Another little side note, throughout 2.1 theres a theme of wondering what the Sigonians (or perhaps, specifically the Avgins) did to deserve “living in a world like that” (one of tragedy and despair). If they intend to imply some sort of “collective sin” that the Sigonians must repay (for the actions committed by their ancestors?), i can imagine the “sin” being the very ascension of Tayzzyronth and as a result, the entirety of the Swarm Disaster. Especially since the unnamed man, who could be blamed as the catalyst, is a parallel to Aventurine. 

Anyway, lets go back to Gaiathra Triclops!

Now that we have this whole context, what can we say about Gaiathra Triclops? Theres ties to Tayzzyronth, but theres evidently ties to Ena, too… Sooo whats up?

What with this whole spiel about remains and there being pieces left over after the transmutation of all Aeons involved (Tayzzyronths remains in amber, Ena’s cloth, Idrila’s shattered mirror), I believe Gaiathra is just that. The leftovers of these 3 Aeons combined, not enough to form an Aeon or resemble Xipe in any way, but enough to be its own entity. A left palm is pretty “thats all thats left over of them?” to me, especially since the Sigonians believe that “the earth, the mountains, and all that exists on the land are a part of the Mother Goddess' divine body” so theres a body, but its the very earth itself, and whats left is only a left hand. 

Gaiathra contains references and imagery to all three Aeons, the eyes of the Avgins being a reference to Ena, the history of Sigonia being tied to Tayzzyronth, especially Kakava: 

The Avgins view the world through the body of the Mother Goddess — the earth, the mountains, and all that exists on the land are a part of the Mother Goddess' divine body. And at the end of each calendar year, her divine body will perish. On that significant day, her divine essence ascends as a resplendent aurora in the night sky and is reborn in the following day. Hence, Avgins celebrate the first day of the new year through their grand festival called "Kakava." During this festival, they weave sacrificial vessels known as "Knots of Cyclicality" and toss them into bonfires to commemorate the Great Goddess' birth. - Sigonia, the Unclaimed Desolation, Planar Ornament Set

They celebrate the “death and birth of the Great Goddess”. To me, this sounds a lot like Tayzzyronths history, born and died on their home sand planet. There is consistent implication of cyclicality in Swarm disaster, as well as rebirth and the foretelling of their return (likely a reference to the samsara). Incidentally, The link rope in the Sigonia planar ornament set is called Knots of Cyclicality, and the Kakava festival is about the annual death and rebirth of Gaiathra.

So how about references to the third Aeon, Idrila? Well, the Avgins are blessed with “attractive facial features, beautiful eyes, and an innate wealth of emotional intelligence.” Interesting thing to point out about them, isnt it? They couldve just been emotionally intelligent but they chose to emphasize their beauty, too. Also, they seem to “have an appreciation for intricately patterned fabrics, as well as a penchant for jewelry crafted from precious gemstones” which i personally believe to be attributes of Beauty as well.

Theres another thing: Gaiathra is said to “reign over all matters related to fertility, travels, and trickery”, which is a very strange bunch of domains to be a goddess of, as they all seem very unrelated to each other and have nothing in common.

This is likely a reference to Propagation, Order, and Beauty. Propagation is clearly fertility, as they reproduce endlessly. Order is most likely trickery, given that Ena was the one who orchestrated the transmutation and people believe its puppet body to be the Aeon when its actually the eye, and travel potentially refers to Idrila, since the Knights of Beauty “fearlessly travel from planet to planet, extolling the name of Idrila to the beings of the universe.“ They have Idrila’s blessing, so in a way, Idrila is blessing their travels. 

So! Thats just about the end of my very longwinded way of conveying the idea that Xipe is an Aeon made of Tayzzyronth, Ena, and Idrila through Qlipoths transmutation by request of Ena, likely to suppress the Propagation and keep it under control so another Swarm Disaster doesnt happen again. With added bonus speculation that Sigonia is Elydichna, the birthplace of Tayzzyronth, and that theres a samsara going on. 

Heres some cut bonus content that is unrelated to the theory, which I thought were fun. They support underlying ideas, but didnt fit into the overall structure, so im adding them here at the end like a bloopers gag reel.

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In 2.1, when Aventurine and Ratio are doing puzzles in Sunday's mansion they come across statues of "nightingales", and Aventurine strangely points out that they actually look more like Torment Eagles to him.

This is a really, really weird remark to make because this goes nowhere. So, i thought, clearly, this is foreshadowing, and these statues are not nightingales, they really are actually torment eagles.

and lo and behold!

2.2 brings up Torment Eagles again. they tied torment eagles to Sunday and Robin and basically answered, yes, these statues were torment eagles, aventurine. and im the only guy excited about torment eagle mentions. i delight in the simple things in life.

this is just to illustrate that they dont bring up things for no reason, and they will elaborate on them.

In Swarm Disaster, theres a chapter about the Beyond the Sky Choir, which focuses on a pair of two twin brothers: the elder twin is made crown prince, while the younger twin is referred to as a singer. Sound familiar?

These are likely incarnations of Sunday and Robin in an earlier samsara, just like how the unnamed man is Aventurine’s. 

Their story ends with a sacrifice. The younger twin drowns, and is said to have the “most moving and holy of voices that ever harmonized for the gods”, extremely evocative of Robin. Remember that in the dreammaster’s original plan, Robin was going to sing at the Charmony Festival and summon the Order, likely intended as a ritualistic sacrifice. 

I didnt manage to fit this into the screenshot, but the text continued like this:

Swarm Universe: ...His sacrifice marked the end of this farcical dispute. Swarm Universe: And a crowd was kneeling by the shore, expressing their thanks for the drowned, even if they still don't know *which one* of the twins it was. - Swarm Disaster: Beyond the Sky Choir: Anomaly Archives, Part II

This is extremely curious. The people witnessing the sacrifice were not able to tell which one of the twins it was that drowned. A strange mention likely intended to mean that the roles were actually reversed, and that it was the crown prince elder twin who ended up drowning, while the younger singer twin is the one that lived. That is what happened in 2.2. Most likely the truth is that in the earlier samsara, it was the younger twin that died, but the implication of reversal was a hint that, in a later iteration, they would swap roles. 

To further hit home that Sunday and Robin are explicitly tied to these twins:

The dreammaster calls them “twins of the Order”, despite them not being twins. Clearly echoing that the “destined path” one of them needs to “follow to the end” is a consistent cycle of siblings being separated.

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/theres another bit of speculation surrounding the Stellaron Hunters which also ties into my other post about the theory of Elio being an Emanator of Order but this post is very long and i cant add any more images. boo. so youll find it in a reblog from me somewhere.

Anyway thank you for reading ♥

[the-record-obituaries]

Feb. 27, 2019: Obituaries

Charles Ratliff

       Rev. Charles Albert Ratliff, age 67 of North Wilkesboro, died Friday, February 22, 2019 at his

home.

       Funeral services were February 26,   at Bethel Baptist Church with Rev. Donnie Shumate and Rev. Rodney Blake officiating. Burial was in Yellow Hill Baptist

Church Cemetery.  

       Rev. Ratliff was born on January 18, 1952 in Wilkes County to Howard Thurmond and Nora Ruth Anderson Ratliff. He had retired as pastor of Yellow Hill Baptist Church after 32 years of service.

       He was preceded in death by his parents, and two brothers, Howard Ratliff and David Ratliff.

He is survived by his wife, Brenda Sue Harrold Ratliff, of the home; one daughter, Alisa Diane Ratliff Church and husband, Jody; and one son, Jason Scott Ratliff and wife, Angela; five

grandchildren, Christina Nicole Church, Joshua Ryan Church, Hunter Isaac Ratliff, Garrett Scott

Ratliff, and Carson Phillip Ratliff; and one sister, JoAnn Ratliff Reavis and husband, Larry, of Hays.

Flowers will be accepted or memorials made to Yellow Hill Baptist Church, 5160 Summit Road, Purlear NC 28665, or to Mountain Valley Hospice Care, 401 Technology Lane, Suite  200, MountAiry NC 27030.

 Elizabeth  Weatherman,  63

Mrs. Elizabeth Stacy Brewer Weatherman, age 63 of North Wilkesboro, passed away Thursday, February 21, 2019 at her home.

       Private family services will be held at a later time.

       Mrs. Weatherman was born June 27, 1955 in Wilkes County to Stacy and Ola Whitley Brewer. She was a Homemaker.

       She was preceded in death by her parents and a brother; Mickey Shawn Brewer.

       Mrs. Weatherman is survived by her husband; Randall Gray Weatherman of the home, a son; Alexander Brewer Weatherman and wife Jessica Leigh of North Wilkesboro, two grandchildren; Jasmine Leighann Weatherman and Chase Alexander Weatherman, two sisters; Fonda Pendry and husband Danny Joe of Hays and Shellia Simmons and husband Gary of Westfield NC.

Charlie McGrady,  84

TSgt (Ret) Charlie Clay McGrady, age 84 of Hendersonville, TN passed away Friday, February 22, 2019 in Hendersonville, TN.

       Funeral services were held  February 26,   at Old Roaring River Baptist Church with Reverend James Pardue and Mr. Walter Hutchinson officiating. Burial with full military honors by Pope Air Force Base Honor Guard was in the church cemetery.  

       Charlie was born August 28, 1934 in Wilkes County to John S. and Mary Frances Hutchinson McGrady. He was one of nine children, sharing a small log cabin with his parents and paternal grandparents in the foothills of Western North Carolina. Charlie recalled many great memories growing up working with his brothers and sisters on his parents farm and he continued his love of gardening throughout his life.

       Charlie graduated from Traphill High school in 1952, when he met his sweetheart Doris.  He enlisted in the Air Force in 1952 and was stationed in France for three years. After he returned home from France, Charlie married Doris on March 2, 1956.

       Assignment highlights took Charlie to South Korea in 1961 on a "hardship tour"  where he was chosen as administration aid to the Commander of The Air Force, receiving a Commendation letter from the Commander for his "outstanding performance of duty", which included his off duty time where he formed a country music/bluegrass band playing for thousands of troops across South Korea.

       During his reassignment to Charleston Air Force Base in 1961, Charlie with his guitar and two other friends with their banjos entered the military's World Wide Talent Contest, naming themselves "The Lazy Mountain Boys" eventually winning their way to the finals at Edwards Air Force Base in California. The Lazy Mountain Boys performed "The Ballad of Jed Clampett", dressed in overalls, jug and all, winning the runner-up trophy and getting a kiss on the cheek by actress Connie Stevens.

       In 1964, Charlie was honored to be nominated and selected for reassignment to a prestigious administrative position at the Pentagon in Washington, DC where he became a member of The Joint Chiefs of Staff, having one of highest security clearances at that time.  

       Charlie retired from The Air Force in 1972 and spent the next 20 years in the manufactured home business in Bristol, Tn later moving his family back to North  Carolina and the mountains where he said his heart always remained.

       Charlie loved the Lord, his church and listening to his favorite preacher Dr. R.C. Sproul on the radio every night.  Charlie and Doris became members of Old Roaring River Baptist Church in 1956 where they were baptized in the river together after they were married. Charlie's love for music remained throughout his life, as he continued singing and song writing, while later singing in his church choir.  

       Charlie spoke of Doris being his "everlasting love". During the final 15 years of their marriage, Charlie selflessly dedicated all of his time taking wonderful care of Doris who was diagnosed with Chronic Pulmonary Obstructive Disorder (COPD). Charlie and Doris moved to Indian Land, SC in 2013 to be close to their daughter Melissa and son-in-law Chad and grandchildren Drew and Delaney, where Charlie recently moved with them to Hendersonville, Tn.

       Mr. McGrady is preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Bessie Doris Gambill McGrady; one daughter, Michelle Doris McGrady; two sisters, Dawn Osborne and Pearl Brown; and three brothers, Vaughn McGrady, Glenn McGrady and Clyde McGrady.

       He is survived by his daughter, Melissa Emerine and husband, Chad, of Weddington; his son, Charles Anthony McGrady of Hays; his six grandchildren, Shannon Slone and husband, Jason, of Hampstead, Matthew McGrady of Hampstead, Mitchell McGrady and wife, Caitlyn, of Columbia, MD, Brandon McGrady and fiancé`, Lucinda Bennett, of Elkin, Drew Emerine and Delaney Emerine of Weddington; six great-grandchildren; two sisters, Mary Esther Burnette and husband Bill, of Columbia SC  and Ella Mae Vires of Bristol,TN  and one brother, Carl McGrady and wife Revely, of Bristol, TN.

       Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Old Roaring River Baptist Church Cemetery, 11156 Longbottom Road, Traphill NC 28685.

Helen  Marsh,  86

Helen Marie Marsh, age 86, of Wilkesboro, passed away Friday, February 22, 2019 at Curis of Wilkesboro. She was born November 8, 1932 in Caldwell County to Dixon and Mary Ayers Taylor. Mrs. Marsh was a member of Beaver Creek Advent Christian Church. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Newel Herman Marsh; a daughter, Lila Jean Phillips; and a brother, Delton Ayers.

       Surviving are her children, Morris Marsh and wife Beverly of Blowing Rock, Doris Wingler and husband Paul of Millers Creek, Joyce Wheeling and husband Clyde of Ferguson, Mitzi Caudill and husband Gary of Lenoir, Shelly Wood of Athens, Alabama; sisters, Hazel Setzer of Lenoir, Edith Watson of Hudson; twelve grandchildren; fourteen great grandchildren; and one great great grandchild.

       Funeral service was February 25,   at Beaver Creek Advent Christian Church with Rev. Allen Marsh and Pastor David Blythe officiating. Burial  followed in the church cemetery.   The family has requested no food. Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Beaver Creek Advent Christian Church, 11665 West NC Highway 268, Ferguson, NC 28624. Miller Funeral Service is in charge of the arrangements.  

 Frances Grant,  97

Mrs. Frances Elizabeth Clark Grant, age 97, of North Wilkesboro, widow of PGA golf pro, Robert Ross Grant, died Saturday, February 23, 2019 at Villages of Wilkes.

       There are no services planned at this time.

       Mrs. Grant was born June 9, 1921 in Audrain County, Missouri to Junius Edward and Jane Victoria Roberts Clark.  In her early life while living in Jefferson City, MO, Mrs. Grant was a member of Central Church and active in the Girl Scouts, the Rainbow Girls and was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star.  Later in life she was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Boca Raton, FL for forty years. She worked in the church office and was also a choir member. Mrs. Grant retired from NCNB Bank. She was presently a member of Wilkesboro United Methodist Church.  

       She was preceded in death by her husband, her parents, and one brother, Cecil Clark.

       She is survived by her daughter, Janey Jones and husband, Thomas, of North Wilkesboro; her grandson, Aaron Ross Jones and wife, Amanda Tomlinson Jones, of Wake Forest; her sister-in-law, Dorothy Clark of Jefferson City, MO; and several nieces and nephews.

       In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Wilkesboro United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 197, Wilkesboro NC 28697.

Shirrell  Holbrook,   72

Mr. Shirrell Dean Holbrook, age 72 of North Wilkesboro, husband of Vicki Waddell Holbrook, died Friday, February 22, 2019 at Wake Forest Baptist Health - Wilkes Medical Center.

       Memorial services will be held 2:00 p.m. Thursday, February 28, 2019 at Oak Grove Baptist Church (Hwy. 268) with Pastor Joel Blevins officiating. The family will receive friends from 12:30 until 1:45 PM at the church before the service.  

       Mr. Holbrook was born November 5, 1946 in Wilkes County to Everette Carson and Wilma Irene Blackburn Holbrook.  He was a member and deacon at Oak Grove Baptist Church. He was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and retired owner of Holbrook Security Systems. He loved visiting with friends and fishing with his grandchildren.

       He was preceded in death by his parents.  

       He is survived by his wife, Vicki Waddell Holbrook, of the home; two sons, Andy Holbrook and wife, Stephanie, of Roaring River, and Jason Holbook and wife, Kara, of Maiden; four grandchildren, Morgan Andrew Holbrook, Marlie Grace Holbrook, Sawyer Nathaniel Holbrook, and Katie Sage Holbrook; and one sister, Carole Barlow of North Wilkesboro.

       In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the donor's choice.

  Howard  Ward,  91

Mr. Howard Lee Ward, age 91 of Ferguson, husband of Louise Triplett Ward, died Saturday, February 23, 2019 at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem.

       Funeral services will be held 2:00 PM Wednesday, February 27, 2019 at Elk Baptist Church.  

       Burial with military honors by Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1142 will be in the church cemetery.  The family will receive friends from 1:00 until 2:00 PM at the church before the service.

       Mr. Ward was born November 2, 1927 in Guilford County to George Vernon and Mary Nicholson Ward.  He had retired from Lowe's Companies as a crew chief on the inventory crew. He served in the United States Army.

       He was preceded in death by his parents.

       He is survived by his wife, Louise Triplett Ward, of the home; one daughter, Martha Ann Pierce and husband,

 Lewis, of Ferguson; four grandchildren, Dakota Ward, Kenneth Pierce, Hunter Pierce, and Cheyenne Pierce; and one sister, Mae Hancock of Highpoint.  

 Ray  Whitley,   82

Mr. Ray McCoy Whitley, age 82 of North Wilkesboro passed away Thursday, February 21, 2019 at Wilkes Senior Village.

       Graveside services with military honors by Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1142 Honor Guard were held   February 24,  at Maple  Grove Baptist Church Cemetery with Pastor Jesse Whitley and Mr. Ronnie Cleary officiating.  

       Mr. Whitley was born March 2, 1936 in Wilkes County to Dewey and Lula Yale Whitley. He was retired from Asplundh Tree Service as a Foreman. Mr. Whitley was a veteran of The United States Army having served in the Korean War. Ray was an avid outdoorsman, loved nature, fishing, birds, loved spending time with his family, meeting people and talking, loved to make canes. His world was his granddaughter, Jordan.

       In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife; Wanda Sue Cleary Whitley, a son; Timothy Scot Whitley, two sisters; Virginia Holbrook and Ruth Wiles and three brothers; AC Whitley, Raymond Whitley and Buel Whitley.

       He is survived by a son, Michael Ray Whitley and wife Chrissie of North Wilkesboro; a granddaughter, Jordan Rae Whitley; a grandson, Justin Miller (Kristina) of Hays; two great grandsons, Greylin and Carter; a sister, Dallie Vinson of Welcome NC; and two brothers, Johnny Whitley and wife Shirley of North Wilkesboro and Jesse Whitley of Hays.

       Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to the Alzheimer's Association 4600 Park Road Suite 250 Charlotte, NC 28209.

Kenneth  Pilkenton, Jr.,  49

Kenneth Darrell Pilkenton, Jr., age 49, of Tennessee, formerly of Wilkes County, passed away Wednesday, February 20, 2019 at Bristol Regional Medical Center in Tennessee. He was born July 4, 1969 in Wilkes County to Kenneth Pilkenton Sr. and Jeanetta Greene Pilkenton. Mr. Pilkenton was a member of White Oak Baptist Church and loved music. He was preceded in death by his mother.

Surviving are his father, Kenneth Pilkenton, Sr. of Millers Creek; sister, Evelyn LeFever and husband Randy of Wilkesboro; nephew, Justin Cahill and wife Kara of North Wilkesboro; niece, Taylor Barnes and husband Daniel of Purlear; two great nieces and five great nephews.

Memorial service will be held at a later date. Miller Funeral Service is in charge of the arrangements. Online condolences may be made to www.millerfuneralservice.com

  Betty Isabelle Brown Cockeran, age 88

Mrs. Betty Isabelle Brown Cockeran, age 88 of North Wilkesboro, passed away Tuesday, February 19, 2019 at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Funeral services will be held 1:30 PM, Saturday, February 23, 2019 at Pleasant Hill Baptist Church with Rev. James Ferguson and Dr. Harold Hudson officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery. The family will receive friends from 12:00 until 1:15 prior to the service at the church.

Mrs. Cockeran was born January 15, 1931 in Wilkes County to James Hubert Brown and Ruby Smith Brown. She was a Registered Nurse and a member of Pleasant Hill Baptist Church.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband; Sylvester McKinley Cockeran, a grandchild; Sonya Jamette Cockerham and a sister; Beulah Marlette Hatcher.

She is survived by a son; James (Buster) Cockerham and wife Catherine of North Wilkesboro, two grandchildren; Brandon James Cockerham and fiancé Amber Rhodes of North Wilkesboro and Gregory Michael Cockerham and two sisters; Billie Sue Hudson and husband Dr. Harold Hudson of Columbus, OH and Bobbie Jean Hunt of Roaring River.

Flowers will be accepted.

Online condolences may be made at www.reinssturdivant.com

  Dorothy Mary Grasmehr, age 86

Dorothy Mary Grasmehr, age 86, of North Wilkesboro, passed away Monday, February 18, 2019 at Forsyth Medical Center. She was born January 29, 1933 in Wilkes County to Grover Estel and Maude Byers Chatham. Mrs. Grasmehr was a member of Center Baptist Church and a US Air Force Veteran. Dorothy enjoyed quilting and was a member of Silver Strides walking group at Wilkes Senior Center. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Joseph Fritz Grasmehr; son, Wayne Grasmehr; and brother, Colbert Chatham,

Surviving are her daughter, Donna Shew and husband Johnny of North Wilkesboro; brothers, Wade Chatham and wife Margaret of Hays, Fred Chatham and wife Callie of North Wilkesboro; grandchildren, Johnathan Shew, Laura Shew and Michelle Shew; great grandchildren, BreAnna Dancy, Dezirae Dyson, Isaiah Dancy, Lillian Shew, Sophia Martinez.

Graveside service with military honors by Veterans of Foreign Wars Honor Guard Post 1142 will be held 1:00 p.m. Thursday, February 21, 2019 at Mountlawn Memorial Park with Rev. David Key officiating. Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Wilkes Senior Center, 228 Fairplains School Road, North Wilkesboro, NC 28659 or to Center Baptist Church, 205 Center Baptist Church Road, North Wilkesboro, NC 28659. Miller Funeral Service is in charge of the arrangements. Online condolences may be made to www.millerfuneralservice.com

  Mrs. Mary Hayes Call

Mrs. Mary Hayes Call, age 59 of Wilkesboro passed away Tuesday, February 19, 2019 at Woltz Hospice Home in Dobson.

Graveside services will be held 3:00 PM Thursday, February 21, 2019 at Mt. Sinai Baptist Church Cemetery with Rev. Brian Poindexter officiating.  The family will receive friends from 6:00 until 8:00 PM Wednesday evening at Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home.

Mrs. Call was born July 27, 1959 in Wilkes County to Bertha Bell Hayes.  She previously worked for Tyson Foods.

She was preceded in death by her mother and brother Clyde "Timmy" Hayes.

She is survived by a daughter; Keisha Jones and husband Joseph of Wilkesboro and granddaughter; Madison Bell Jones and fiance`; Clarence Allen Phillips of Wilkesboro.

Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society, PO Box 9, North Wilkesboro, NC 28659.

Online condolences may be made at www.reinssturdivant.com

  Cardinal Jerome (CJ) Alexander, age 40

Mr. Cardinal Jerome (CJ) Alexander, age 40 of Wilkesboro passed away Saturday, February 16, 2019 at Wake Forest Baptist-Wilkes Medical Center.

Funeral services will be held 2:00 PM Saturday, February 23, 2019 at Reins-Sturdivant Chapel with Pastor George Barber III, Rev. Casey Walker and Rev. Richard Watts officiating.  Burial will be in Scenic Memorial Gardens. The family will receive friends from 12:30 until 2:00 PM prior to the service at Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home.

Mr. Alexander was born June 28, 1978 in Wilkes County to William Jerome "Billy" and Carol Lee Harris Alexander.  He worked for Lowe's Companies.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

He is survived by a sister; Vestula (Tula) White and husband Rex and nephew; Lathan Cannaday all of Statesville and his fur babies; Dolly and Sassie.

Flowers will be accepted or memorials may be made to Rickard's Chapel AMZ Zion Church, PO Box 1689, North Wilkesboro, NC 28659.  

Online condolences may be made at www.reinssturdivant.com

  Mr. Harmon Green Pike

Mr. Harmon Green Pike, age 73 passed away Thursday at Westwood Hills Nursing and Rehab.

Funeral services will be held 1:00 PM Thursday, February 21, 2019 at Reins-Sturdivant Chapel with Rev. Wiley Boggs officiating.  Burial will be in the Union Chapel Baptist Church Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 12:00 until 1:00 PM prior to the service at Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home.

Mr. Pike was born September 16, 1945 in Wilkes County to John Henry and Laura Victoria Wagoner Pike. He was a member of Union Chapel Baptist Church.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

He is survived by a daughter; Wanda Ann Pike, two half-sisters; Gracie Davis and husband Bartley of Moravian Falls, and Mary Taylor of North Wilkesboro and one half-brother; Alfred Pike and wife Ruby of North Wilkesboro.

Flowers will be accepted.

Online condolences may be made at www.reinssturdivant.com

Church and loved music. He was preceded in death by his mother.

       Surviving are his father, Kenneth Pilkenton, Sr. of Millers Creek; sister, Evelyn LeFever and husband Randy of Wilkesboro; nephew, Justin Cahill and wife Kara of North Wilkesboro; niece, Taylor Barnes and husband Daniel of Purlear; two great nieces and five great nephews.

Memorial service will be held at a later date. Miller Funeral Service is in charge of the arrangements.  

[full-imagination]

Virl McIntyre Dearybury

Virl Jane McIntyre Dearybury, 99, of Spartanburg, SC, died Tuesday, February 11, 2020, at her home. Born May 26, 1920, in Arcadia, SC, she was the daughter of the late George Arastus McIntyre and Clara Love McIntyre and step-daughter of Janie Kellett Roberts McIntyre. She was the widow of Paul E. Dearybury Sr. An active member of St. Mark United Methodist Church, the choir and UMW, Mrs. Dearybury taught the Ladies Sunday School Class. She was also a member of the VFW Ladies Auxiliary #9539. She was a graduate of Fairforest High School and Cecil’s Business College and employed for many years with Converse Mill and Raycord. Survivors include her son, Paul E. “Eddie” Dearybury Jr. (Wilma) of Cowpens, SC; grandchildren, Trey Dearybury, Spencer Dearybury, and Meri Dearybury; great-grandson, Jameson Dearybury; brother, John McIntyre of Easley, SC; and sisters, Sue Hunter of Spartanburg, SC and Kate Haulbrook of Charleston, SC. In addition to her parents and husband, she was predeceased by her brothers, Claude McIntyre, George “Buck” McIntyre, Conley McIntyre, Richard McIntyre, and Eddie Roberts; and sisters, Julia Beaty and Doris Martin. A graveside service will be conducted at 1:00 PM Friday, February 14, 2020, in Greenlawn Memorial Gardens, 1300 Fernwood-Glendale Rd., Spartanburg, SC 29307, by The Rev. David F. Ervin and The Rev. Jack A. Caldwell. Visitation will be at the graveside. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Mark United Methodist Church, 3055 East Main Street, Spartanburg, SC 29307; Spartanburg Regional Hospice Home, 686 Jeff Davis Drive, Spartanburg, SC 29303; or Mobile Meals Service, PO Box 461, Spartanburg, SC 29304. Floyd’s Greenlawn Chapel from The JF Floyd Mortuary via Spartanburg Funeral

[djscrewhead]

Screwhead - In Memoriam

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It's been a year since you left us. I got that final phone call that they were stopping resuscitation attempts at 4:20 in the morning, Valentine's Day, and had to laugh; it was get-laid-day, at smoke-weed-o'clock, two of your favorite things!

We had all sorts of times, both good and bad, in my 36 years of knowing you.

You got me into reading. I don't think I was much older than 8 or 9 when you first gave me Dune, Salem's Lot and Pet Sematary to read through. I’d read It and Tommyknockers before the TV Miniseries aired. Read through all your Dean Koontz before I was 12. All those small Conan reprints by Sphere.

You got me into comics, and what always stood out for me were those comics with the Jack Kirby art; Kamandi, Devil Dinosaur, and all those Marvel Treasury Edition reprints of Avengers, Thor and The Fantastic Four.

I still remember the day Superman died; you gave me a note to bring to school, telling them I had a doctor's appointment in the afternoon and that you were picking me up at lunch time so that we could make sure to get to Hero Comics and buy a few issues before they sold out.

We'd pull the same thing two other times; first for Batman Returns and then Jurassic Park both came out on the last day of school, so you'd given me a note that we were going away on vacation and had to leave early, and I would only make the half-day. You picked me up at lunch time so that we could catch the first showing of them while everyone else was still stuck in school.

You just barely missed Doctor Strange and Iron Fist, and you would have loved them! The Punisher would have absolutely blown your mind away. First episode and there was a fight scene set to Tom Waits and I couldn’t help but think you’d have gone absolutely nuts seeing that. Defenders was pretty good, too. You'd have loved Guardians of the Galaxy 2, if just to see throwbacks to Kirby art in the visual style of a ton of the effects. Black Panther comes out this week and it looks fucking amazing.

You got me into movies, even horror movies, a genre you weren't a fan of. Poltergeist was the first movie you rented when we got our first Betamax, and it’s the first movie I ever remember watching. You saw Steven Spielberg on the box and figured it couldn't be THAT scary!

For my 11th birthday, I was bugging you to rent a horror movie because I always wanted to see one, so you said OK, as long as you pick the movie. We made it up to the dog scene in The Thing before turning it off and switching over to Close Encounters of the Third Kind, but I spent weeks getting nightmares from that, and it's now one of my favorite movies of all time. Apocalypse Now, The Killing Fields, The Deer Hunter, anything with Harvey Keitel in it, The Usual Suspects.. So many incredible movies that you recommended I watch that I probably wouldn't have watched otherwise.

And of course, Ghostbusters. I was 3 in the summer of '84, and Cecile was working for a newspaper and she'd gotten a bunch of tickets to an early showing of the movie, and she'd already seen it and said it was a great movie, so she gave you a couple of tickets to it and holy shit was she ever right!

But out of everything you'd introduced me to that helped make me who I am today, music probably had the biggest impact. You had a huge record collection and you were always listening to something different. Then when you had some money, you started getting into the audiophile gear, I learned to really listen to music, and not just hear it. The little details that most wouldn't notice, like the faint rustling of the robes of a choir, the two dogs barking at each other at the start of Amused to Death. You taught me not to just hear music as a fun distraction, but to really listen and appreciate the artistry of it.

Aside from that brief stint of wanting to be a Ghostbuster, which, if I'm being completely honest, I'd still absolutely love to be if it were a real thing, I don't think I've ever wanted to do anything with my life that wasn't firmly rooted in music. You got me my first guitar and amp. You helped me out getting a laptop and soundcard/ram upgrade. When I wanted to start DJing, you got me my turntables and mixer, and let me order 200$ worth of records from Chemical Records on your credit card. Any time I wanted to do anything that involved music, you would help me out and encourage me. Any time I'd make something, even if it wasn't the kind of music you were into, you'd still listen to it.

So, this is me, as a DJ, trying to find some way to put something together with all the music that was important to me that you introduced me to.

↓Track List follows ↓

Frank Zappa - Willie the Pimp

I don't think this one needs any explanation, especially for those that knew you. If you had a theme song, this was it. Frank Zappa was your favorite singer/musician, and was the one act you'd seen the most live in concert, back when you had a nice camera and a fake press pass to get into every concert you wanted to see.

The Fugs - CCD/I Couldn't Get High/Saran Wrap

I mean, it's hard not putting the whole Golden Filth album in this thing. In hindsight, I was probably listening to some music I *REALLY* shouldn't have been listening to! The FBI's File on The Fugs called them “The Most Vulgar Thing the Human Mind Could Possibly Conceive". The benefits of a Coca Cola Douche. A lesbian dwarf tomato orgy leading to doing more drugs than a human should ever do. Using saran wrap as an impromptu condom. None of my friends at school believed that I wasn’t just making up songs when I told them about these until finally you weren’t home one day and they came over and I put the album on.

King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man

You had many stories of going to concerts with a camera and a fake press pass to get in for free. You’d always tell me the one about that first time you saw King Crimson in this tiny venue, and at the very end of their set they turned on a strobe light. As the song progressed, the time between the flashes of light got longer and longer until the room was pitch-black for 5-10 seconds at a time in between brief camera-like flashes of light, until one by one the band members disappeared from the stage while they kept playing their instruments, until finally everyone was gone from the stage, and on what would have been the last flash of the strobe, they abruptly stopped playing and all the lights in the venue came on.

In ‘99 you got me tickets to their side-project, ProjeKct Two, and later in 2000 or 2001 to a proper King Crimson gig, but that ProjeKct Two show was mindblowingly amazing!

Dr. John - I Walk on Guilded Splinters

You listened to a lot of music, and I heard a ton of stuff growing up that most kids never heard. This was probably the first thing I can remember really thinking that it was SO much different than anything I'd ever heard before. It wasn't really rock, jazz, blues, funk, or anything else.. There was something weird and different about this one in a way I couldn't explain or understand until much later. It's that voodoo swamp vibe and I don't think I've ever heard anyone else do anything even remotely similar to it since. It's like listening in on a secret voodoo ritual going on deep in the swamps of New Orleans.

Tom Waits - What's He Building

Another one of those weird tracks, a bit of a theme going I guess. No one tells a story quite like Tom Waits, and I'll get more into why his music means so much to me a little later on. But this is another one of those that, as soon as you got the album, you knew I'd love it, but specifically this track, and you were totally right. I even did a bootleg remix of it a while back!

Dire Straits - Money for Nothing

Back when we lived on Davignon, any time ground beef was on sale, you'd get a whole bunch of it and spend a whole Sunday morning making chili. This was our making-chili album, but we'd always start on Money for Nothing. You had those huge Cerwin Vega speakers and you'd crank the music up so loud that those synth chords and tom-toms had so much power to them I was almost scared that one day we'd bring the walls down with the power behind that intro.

Roger Waters - The Ballad of Bill Hubbard/What God Wants, Part I

Any time you got a new piece of stereo gear, whether it was a new amp, speakers, or even just new cables/interconnects, this is the first album we'd listen to from start to finish, but it's those first two tracks that were the real test; at 11 seconds in, the dogs barking to each other. The mixing and mastering on this album is easily the best I've ever heard. No other album manages to give you what feels like a full surround sound experience from two front speakers, and no one writes a concept album quite like Roger Waters. I'd already understood that religion was an absolute crock of shit at a much earlier age than this, but this album was the first time that I'd ever heard anyone else really saying the same sort of observations about religion and the world that I'd been making for nearly as long as I could think and observe people and current affairs.

ZZ Top - Viva Las Vegas

You often played ZZ Top and I’ve always loved their music. When I was 12 or 13 they came to Montreal for a concert and I wanted to go see them. Before getting tickets, though, you wanted to make sure that I understood that their concerts weren’t going to be like their music videos or album artwork; it was going to be the band playing, and there weren’t going to be any scantily clad women dancing around. I told you I understood, and you got the tickets. The night of the concert, again, you reminded me that this was a concert and not to expect any scantily clad women dancing around.

Then Viva Las Vegas came on, and lo and behold, a parade of scantily clad Las Vegas showgirls came out and started dancing on stage and we spent the whole song laughing!

Green Jelly - Three Little Pigs

We were watching Much Music one day and the music video came on. As soon as it was over we went out to HMV so you could get me the cassette!

Motorhead - Ace of Spades

I remember this like it was yesterday. I was 11, and while going through your records together, you jokingly said that this is the best record you could ever use to wake someone up with. I don't remember you having ever put it on before, so I don't think I'd ever heard it, but, that weekend, I woke up before you did, got the record out, cued it up, and turned the sound system aaaaaaaaaall the way up. You (understandably) woke up COMPLETELY freaked out, ran out of your room, saw me in the living room laughing and realized how you'd absolutely set yourself up for that. We ended up going for breakfast at that place across from Center 2000 and spent the whole day laughing about it.

KISS - Domino

Another one of those "probably not appropriate for an 11 year old to be listening to", but it was a great and catchy rock song that we would often blast in the car as we would drive around. I’m pretty certain this is the first time I’d heard any Kiss. Before this, the only thing I knew about Kiss was that you had the first issue of their Marvel comic.

Marilyn Manson - I Put a Spell on You

Another one that I remember like it was yesterday. It was boxing day 1996. I was living with mom at the time, so for boxing day I went to meet you downtown. We ate at Bistro Duluth, had some coffee at Deux Maries, and then we went to HMV because, amongst other things, you'd given me a gift card for there. I'd started going goth about a year or two before, but other than a couple of KMFDM tapes that Fuzzball Mike had given me, I really only listened to Bauhaus, Sisters of Mercy, Dead Can Dance, and similar type of goth music.

I had never really gotten into music that was too heavy or aggressive, but stuff like Type O Negative and Nine Inch Nails was starting to slowly seep into what I was listening to. I was looking through the more industrial-metal section, and couldn't make up my mind on what to get, since I didn't really know any of the bands I was looking at. You came by and saw Marilyn Manson - Smells Like Children, and in your typical joking-but-dead-serious tone, said you'd heard of Marilyn Manson and that I should get that one because it would probably piss off my mother.

So I did!

At the time there was still Magic and boardgames nights every friday at the Croissanterie across the street from McMagic, so we parted ways and I decided I would walk there since it was only a few metro stops away. I put on the CD and instead spent the next two or three hours walking through the streets of Montreal, from around 7-9pm as the snow was gently falling, getting my mind absolutely blown away by these sounds I'd never heard before.

A few years later, you watched Lost Highway and immediately called me to ask me if I could make you a copy of the soundtrack. You thought his cover of I Put a Spell on You was one of the best and truest covers you'd ever heard, making the song even creepier and more sinister than the original. Also, you liked the Rammstein tracks, because they weren't the same sort of "headbanger thrash shit" that you normally thought of whenever someone mentioned metal.

Bohren & der Club of Gore - Midnight Black Earth

By this time I was completely into Drum and Bass, and you’d listened to some and didn’t really like it much, but you knew that one of my favorite things about DnB was the deep bass. You discovered this album when you still had your house up north and your stereo was still in full working order. I came over one weekend and, after we’d eaten supper, you said you had something to listen to. You turned off all the lights, and we sat down in the living room and you put this on and we silently listened to the whole thing. It immediately became one of my favorite albums of all time. Because of my tinnitus, I can’t sleep without music playing, and this is one of the albums that I put on whenever I go to bed.

Tom Waits - Big Joe and Phantom 309

There was only one place I could put this song, and it was right at the very end of this mix. 1991 was a pretty rough year. I'd been living with my mother, but constantly getting into arguments and fights with her until finally I moved in with you. You were living with Claudine at the time in a small 3 1/2 in St-Leonard. It was one of those tiny "we turned the garage into a rental and just added a B to our address because it was too small to get a real address" type of deals. We used Bobone's address to keep me registered at the school I was at in Laval so that I wouldn't have to change schools and have to make new friends.

Every day we'd wake up at 5am so that we could both be ready and drive all the way from St-Leonard to Laval for the 8am bell. Being a garage-turned-3 1/2, there was only one bedroom, a living room, and a kitchen/diningroom combo. But you still had those huge, beige foam sofas that were 100% foam, no wood or any sort of support structure within, that weighed nothing and were SUPER comfortable.

Every night when it was time to go to bed, we'd move the sofas and pouf around to give me a little nook up against a wall that I could sleep in. For those first few months, every night that I went to bed, you'd sit at the foot of my little nook, and we'd talk about how my day was, how I was handling things, and you would always reassure me that, even though things weren't ideal right now, everything was eventually going to work out.

Then, as you saw that I was starting to nod off, you'd take out Nighthawks at the Diner, and put on this track, and sit with me as it played through and I drifted off to sleep. Every single night until the lease on the 3 1/2 was over and we could move to a new place in Laval that I could have my own room in, you were there to make sure I knew I was loved and cared for.

You didn't really know of any stories that you could tell to help me fall asleep, so you entrusted the telling of my bedtime stories to the greatest storyteller in the world, Tom Waits.

So this is where I'm going to end this mix; with the hope that somehow, somewhere, all this music and what it means to me reaches you. Sleep well.

[tenebris-metallum]

AUGUR, Jan 2025, MS Paint

Why can I only draw like this when im wizard high

Also on bsky!

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Finally nailed down most of what Cecil's Great One form is like!

My design ethos going into this was as follows: Moon Presence + Choir set + my own headcanon that you never actually see a complete Great One in Bloodborne, just parts/most of them

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putting them in situations

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Cecil lore that's going on the art blog so it's easier to find. under a cut bc i wrote it in discord first and im just copypasting lmao

Cecil was the child of two foreign-born scholars who were studying The Blood in the Healing Church, but their parents were killed in an accident when Cecil was a young child. The Church took them in and helped to raise Cecil, taking over their education almost exclusively. Cecil was still a teenager when they went to study at Byrgenwerth, and is one of the youngest graduates from the school. They were inducted into the Choir as an initiate, where they continued their research into Caryll runes until they were granted audience with the Great One known as Ebrietas, at which point they became a fully fledged member of the Choir

They ended up being fairly high ranking because they're fucking Good At Their Job and also they'd earned a Reputation while at Byrgenwerth for being a bit of a radical and a firebrand so the Church leadership was like. "Let's put this weirdo in a room with a lot of books. Surely this cannot go wrong."

Cecil continued to do their research even as the Beast Plague started to become a huge problem and the Hunts started becoming less and less organized. Cecil started attending the hunts in secret, as they felt it was their duty as a citizen of Yharnam to assist.

They eventually started trying to trace back as to How the beast plague started, and when they discovered the healing church's involvement, brought it to their superiors to demand answers, and insist that the people of Yharnam had a right to know. They were branded a heretic and a madman, told that their regular communions with Ebrietas had driven them insane, and was excommunicated, leading to the beginning of the game with Cecil posing as an outsider seeking blood ministration for an unspecified ailment

Other cecil facts:

Maintained their accent on purpose instead of assimilating as a form of childhood and teenage rebellion

convinced that the way to Apotheosis and becoming a Great One (the Choir's secret goal) is through the Hunts, and rejects the notion that All humans should ascend, it should be a personal thing

intersex with PCOS-like symptoms (its fantasy victorian london i dont have to diagnose them if i dont want to)

was Definitely fucking Ebrietas

lies CONSTANTLY about their past

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Some slightly more updated Cecil design notes! Fatter :)

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Cecil image

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To this day this is one of the stories Cecil tells when asked why they were excommunicated from the Choir. Nobody has been able to confirm its veracity.

(Original post by @vivisextion-typo)

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Great Ones + Cecil doodles

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HELLO MS THE DOLL I LOVE UOU

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Drew this last night in ms paint and then took it into firealpaca to add the red and white lines around it. Cecil image.

Also on bsky!