#come gather around [ DEV ] we're slicing them open

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DETAILS : MANNER OF SPEECH

tagged by :  stolen frorm @verumking tagging :  whoever wants to do it!

complexity  

vocabulary :     ◼◼◼◻◻ emotion :     ◼◻◻◻◻ sentence structure :     ◼◼◻◻◻

profanity

frequency :     ◼◼◻◻◻ creativity :     ◼ ◻◻◻◻ watchfulness :     ◼◼◼◼◻

( bold all that apply ) :

arse .  ass .  asshole .  bastard .  bitch .  bloody .  bugger .  bollocks .  chicken shit .  crap. dick .  frick .  fuck .  horseshit .  motherfucker .  piss .  prick .  screw .  shit .  shitass . son of a bitch .  twat .  wanker .

( given proper religious context ) :

christ on a bike .  christ on a cracker .  damn .  goddamn .  gods .  godsdamn .  hell . holy shit.  jesus .  jesus christ .  jesus h . christ .  jesus , mary and joseph .    my god /mon dieu . sweet jesus .

this or that

contractions or enunciation ?   straightforward or cryptic ?   jargon or toned ?  complexity or simplicity ? finding the right word or using the first word that comes to mind ?  masculinity, neutrality , or femininity ?   formalities or abrasiveness ?  insult or injury ? praise or equivocation ?  frankness or lies ?   excessive or minimal hand gestures ? name-calling or magnanimity ?  friendly or blunt nicknames ?

important questions

do people have a hard time understanding or hearing your character ? almost always / frequently / sometimes / rarely / never

does your character’s point come across easily when they speak ? almost always / frequently / sometimes / rarely / never

would your character initiate conversations ?   almost always / frequently / sometimes / rarely / never

would your character be the one to end conversations ? almost always / frequently / sometimes / rarely / never

would your character use ❛ whom ❜ in a sentence ?   yes / no / only ironically

your character wants to make a counterpoint. what word do they use ? but / though / although / however / perhaps / mayhaps

how would your character pick up the phone ? hello / hey / hi / yellow / yo / yeah / [ name ] . / what’s up / who is this / what do you want  / can i help you ?

how does your character end conversations ? walk away / ask if that’s everything / say that that’s everything / give a proper goodbye / tell their company they’re done here / remain quiet / they don’t

how does your character address others ?   titles / first names / surnames / full names / nicknames

what social class would others assume your character belongs to , hearing them speak? upper / middle / lower

in what ways does the way your character speak stand out to others ?   accent / vocabulary / tone / level / politeness / brusqueness / it doesn’t

[parasiteprophet-blog]

CHECKMATE. Below the cut is a sketch i’ve done on how the parasite Amanojaku kind of looks - uhhhh minor body horror warning? I’m not great at drawing this stuff so it’s not like graphic or anything I just wanted to draw like the placement/size of the thing

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Dev post about Kingdom Hearts verse because it’s needed

Sage was one of the many experimented on in the Radiant Garden castle. They volunteered for the experiments after failing to convince the guards to have them join their number. They had looked up to them, and Ansem the Wise, all of their life and simply wanted to be useful. Apprentice Xehanort took advantage of that admiration and accepted their proposal. However they didn’t know what they were truly signing up for.

Many experiments were done on Sage, but they didn’t lose their heart right away. They were strong, their belief in Ansem the Wise and want to help those experimenting on them kept them going and made them a valuable test subject. However they eventually reached their limit - while their heart and mind were strong their body wasn’t, and they eventually fell into darkness. This happened just before the world fell into darkness itself, and a nobody was in the process of being created when Sage’s heartless was created first and did something adnormal. Sage’s heartless was that of a possessor, and instead of possessing an inanimate object, it possessed Sage’s body that hadn’t finished its transformation into a nobody. Had the nobody finished its transformation, it would have became a berserker nobody. But the heartless interrupted the process and forced Sage back whole in an unconventional way.

When Sage became ‘whole’ they still had the darkness associated with a heartless and the ability to use a couple of specially summoned claymores/hammers at once thanks to the nobody they would have become. Using the powers though has taken its tole on Sage and they have passed out due to it before, so they try not to use it as much as possible. However its the only way they can travel to worlds, and how they survived Radiant Garden falling into darkness. 

They passed through a couple of worlds before eventually ending up in Twilight Town. There they were taken in by a train Engineer. They have been living with the Engineer ever since though strangely long to return to Radiant Garden. Partly because they miss home, but partly to maybe find a solution to their condition.

Because the strange possession of their heartless to their nobody’s body, and becoming whole that way, is slowly killing them. Sage can feel it they just haven’t told anyone of the issue yet.

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A dev post on the parasite now attached to Sage and how it effects Sage day to day:

First off it should be stated that this parasite isn’t like Nidhogg, it’s not exactly large on any scale nor will it ever become that way. It’s not even as sentient as Nidhogg, though does appear to have some kind of brain functionality - just barely so. It has very primal instincts that it uses to keep itself, and by proxy Sage, alive as well as follow commands given to it by those with Sparda’s blood as it is a natural instinct for it to listen.

The parasite was referred to as Amanojaku, which is reference to a demon from japanese folklore which is said to provoke a person's darkest desires and thus instigates them into perpetrating wicked deeds. This is also what Sage’s project name was called while they were undergoing testing and experiments in the Order’s research facility. The order were hoping that ‘provoking a person’s darkest desires’ would possibly lead to the power they were seeking.

To be clear, the experiments that Sage was apart of were in fact the earliest stages of the accession ceremony. Meaning the Order’s alchemists were looking for a way to give those in the Order demonic powers - as well as possibly bring them back from the dead. In a way both succeeded with the Amanojaku experiments but it was ultimately labeled as a failure because the parasite did just as much harm as it did good, and didn’t instantly fill the vessel it was attached to with more power. It was only in a life or death situation that the parasite seemed to arise to its full potential. 

The parasite is currently the only thing keeping Sage alive. It brought Sage back from the dead and if it wasn’t for the parasite actively working to keep blood flowing through their body and their heart pumping, they would drop dead in no time flat. So in many ways, the parasite is something that could be seen as positive. Because of it Sage isn’t on as many medication, and while does get sick from time to time easier with things like the cold or flu, they’re not nearly as sick as were when they were younger. 

However as mentioned in their bio, calling upon the parasite’s abilities: giving them super strength, speed, healing powers, etc -- causes the parasite to restrict, literally. The parasite’s arms will clench tighter and tighter around Sage’s heart the more they use the abilities. It will lessen its grip given time, but if they push themselves too far it could be the last time they do - so Sage is always careful.

And as I mentioned, the demon has some primal instincts that are unfortunately projected onto Sage. These mostly being to kill and for human blood. This wasn’t so much of a problem until the events of DMC5 where the demon sword Sparda being close by, demons were everywhere, and lots of humans were dying. It took alot for Sage to hold back on these demonic urges and sometimes they couldn’t, which is why they would sneak back into red grave once the soldiers had stopped people from going in and kill demons in some kind of way to suppress the urges.

Post DMC5 the urges are once again starting to subside but they still get the urges from the parasite and are trying to learn how to deal with them.

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Dev post on the elderly man that took in Sage when they first started living in Red Grave City:

The older man who took Sage in was named Frank, and he was an old widow who had only recently lost his wife. Him and his wife never had kids and so when he took Sage in he had hoped to fill some kind of gap - as his wife always did want to have children. 

They never quite got to that level of a relationship, but Frank did appreciate the company and the help around the house and at work. He liked being able to teach his skills to someone who would actively listen, instead of the punks at the railyard who were just there for an ‘easy job’. He appreciated Sage’s medical knowledge and was able to put the stop to some health problems because Sage was attentive and able to tell when something was wrong. They were friends, at the very least.

When the demon tree showed up in Red Grave City, Frank was terrified. On one hand he had a split thought of joining his wife in death, on the other hand he wanted to protect Sage and the others at the railyard. However learning of Sage’s demonic nature, and being outwardly threatened by Sage made Frank fearful. While Sage did not threaten Frank on purpose, they had only just lost control of themselves for a moment because of the parasite, they were thankful for this happening for multiple reasons. One, Frank would not have left if not for it - Frank was stubborn and determined, and Sage knew that. Two, They had always wondered if Frank would accept them or not, and while it wasn’t the answer they were hoping for at least it was an answer. Three, Sage didn't want to kill another human but especially one they knew - with Frank far away from them at least they didn’t have to worry about that.

Sage started sleeping at the railyard again post DMC5 so that Frank could have his apartment back - though what Sage didn’t know was that the building was destroyed and Frank had to find a new place to live. Sage hears the older people at the railyard talk about Frank, and ask Sage if they would like to pass any message onto him - they always say no.

Frank has had time to think over what happened but he’s still not sure how to feel about Sage considering a demonic force did destroy the city. But he has occasionally left things for Sage to find at the rail yard. This is the only form of communication they’ve had since Frank left the city. 

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character aesthetics. bold what applies!

I. THE FAIRY.  chipped nail polish. glitter highlight. tall trees with smooth bark. tangled hair.the taste of cinnamon sugar. talking too loud and too fast. overgrown flowers in your hair.crumbling buildings reclaimed by nature. flirting. walking home at 3am with no coat. platonic hand-holding. blowing smoke out of your nose. dragonfly wings. chaotic good. freckles. fairy rings. secret meetings. gender nonconformity. leather. smudged eyeliner.  forbidden fruit.

II. THE REAPER. computer errors. a shiver down your spine. haunting beauty. hard liquor. crowns of thorns. shadowed alleyways. decaying plant matter. shattered mirrors and broken glass. corrupted memories. stopped clocks. the scent of stale cigarettes.  tattered black hoodies. walking your friends home. the crescent moon. the sea. a graveyard on a foggy day. cold rings on cold fingers. absolution. looking out the window of an airplane.soft kisses.

III. THE WITCH. graffiti. pretending to know what you’re doing. worn paperback books.growing up too fast. parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. lace and combat boots.moth wings. candles on every surface. a weathered deck of cards. turning the music up.fireflies in jars. calloused fingers. drawing on your skin. sunlight filtering through clouds. petrichor. a dying rose in a jar.  wearing a crystal pendant. illusions and spells. black cats. mint gum.chapped lips. dirt under your fingernails. the cycle of life and death.

IV. THE WOLF. murders of crows. frost-bitten leaves. wolves howling at midnight.knocking on your door. leaving food out for stray animals. the twang of an acoustic guitar. honey. tiny red buds on trees. claw marks on the walls. golden eyes. slightly too long stubble. sharp canines.  soft, thick fur. hunger. a small cottage in the middle of the woods. knitted fingerless gloves. sleeping on the forest floor. always finding your way back home.

tagged by: stolen from one of my other blogs tagging: anyone who wants to !

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CHECKMATE. Tag Dump!

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dev post on Sage’s fighting style and their ‘Rage’

When forced into a fight, or going through bits of primal urges due to the parasite, Sage uses heavier weapons surprisingly. Things that require two hands, like streets signs for example. The parasite gives their strength a bit of a boost and as long as they don’t pick up anything too heavy or try to punch a hole through a wall, they can make it last. Though each swing will become less and less powerful.

They also use their bare hands, and their hands/arms are now rather scarred up because of this. However they are less likely to be able to fight for long periods of time like this as they’re forced to use more of their strength.

The ‘rage’ i mention in their abilities section is what I also touched on in this dev post about Amanojaku (the parasite). It’s the parasite’s primal urges being forced into Sage’s mind and body. At times Sage can resist it and other times they just can’t and it completely takes them over. For a short time their strength, speed, and regenerative abilities are doubled even in to comparison of what they are when Sage is taking advantage of the parasite’s power - but being in this state will leave Sage in a weakened state and they’ll likely be bedridden for a couple of days.

Sage is good for quick down and dirty fights, not long boss-like fights. They can take down many small enemies but not one large one. 

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Dev post about Sage’s belief in Sparda and how his belief has shifted slightly, since leaving Fortuna:

Like all the children raised in Fortuna, Sage joined the Order and was fed the story of Sparda being a feudal lord of the city for a time and how Sparda was their savior. Sage took these lessons to heart, as for awhile it was all they had. With their constant sickness and lack of any kind of familial or friendly ties, the only thing that kept Sage going was their faith and hope that one day they would be useful to the order and by proxy their savior, Sparda. 

After the experiments and running away from Fortuna, Sage was lost in terms of what to think about the religion. But instead of taking it as a sign that it was all fake, Sage took it in a form of ‘well obviously they just turned their backs on Sparda and were never true believers to begin with’. Because despite everything, Sage believed it was their belief in Sparda and the experiments success that brought them back, not just the demonic parasite taking root in their body. In Sage’s mind, if it wasn’t for their belief they wouldn’t have been asked to do the experiments and probably would have died alone having accomplished nothing in their life. The experiment gave them a chance to live again, even if it wasn’t in the way that Sage expected. 

Hearing about what happened in Fortuna only seemed to strength Sage’s thought process that the rest of the order had been lead astray, that they were never true believers and that it was by Sparda’s will that they were taken out. This seemed to be cemented in Sage’s mind as they heard it was someone with Sparda’s blood that took the Order down (they didn’t learn Dante’s name until later nor did they hear about Nero’s involvement until later).

Sage is definitely more...chill about it than before he left Fortuna. They won’t openly talk about his beliefs unless someone asks or the situation is dire and they find the need to pray.

As an extra note though: The demon parasite inside of worships Sparda aswell - much like how the demons in dmc5 were worshiping the demon sword Sparda, the parasite itself would do the same if it came into contact with something/someone related to Sparda. It would be drawn towards it, which in turn would affect Sage. It could come to the point that if Dante, Nero, or Vergil told Sage to do something, their body would move without them even trying because the parasite would want to appease them.