#elam grave

[swforester]

Two souls. The sad grave of Elam, 1 year when he died in 1783 and Grace, just 10 months when she died in 1773.

West Cemetery 1/25/25

[innerchorus]

Arslan Senki Chapter 132

Hoooooly fuck. I knew from the chapter title (Warriors From Beyond the Grave) that some horrific stuff was going to go down, but after spending all month worrying about Isfan and Kubard facing Shapur, the fact that they don't even appear this time didn't make this one any less traumatic, lmao.

So, the contents of the other head jars were revealed as dead warriors pop up across Ecbatana. Seems as though they are the ones Team Zahhak were able to gather the heads of (the two who were missing in action at the first Battle of Atropatene are not included; presumably their bodies were never located and were left somewhere on the battlefield).

I enjoyed how Arslan does as Tahamenay asked and tells Gieve to spread the word that Andragoras died in the fall when Innocentis flung them both from the tower... and that Gieve looks at the bloody dagger on the floor. You know that he knows, his look to Daryun and Narsus before he gives his assent just confirms it, and you also know he won't breathe a word of that truth.

(And here we have the first of the dodgy translations in this chapter, because of course there's not going to be further fighting between Parsians at this point unless you count undead Parsian warriors...)

I like that we see word spreading like a ripple through the city. Zaravant's reaction of "NO FUCKING WAY" followed by "Wait, really?" was hilarious. And as we see a lot of the citizens are thinking the same; a man of Andragoras's might, toppled like that? Zaravant had a close encounter with Andragoras; it's no surprise that his first reaction is denial.

Also lol Elam, not quite lying in his attempt to uphold the official version of events. Yes, he saw him die, but not quite in the way that was reported. So Zaravant wasn't wrong, really. Not that he'll ever know it.

Rumours spreading that Arslan killed Hilmes in a duel! It does make me wonder, might the truth of Hilmes's survival be kept quiet and this rumour allowed to flourish instead? Mirroring Hilmes surviving when all thought he had perished in the palace fire, this would allow him to eventually make a quiet exit with Irina and go and live out his life peacefully beyond the borders of Pars. (I would still like to see him rule Maryam with her, though.)

Tahamenay being left alone to watch over Andragoras's body is giving me prickling feelings of imminent Team Zahhak interference...

Dark storm clouds heading towards the city in that one panel look veeeery ominous. I still keep wondering whether we are going to see any of Team Zahhak's creatures unleashed on the world. I'm not sure exactly how dark things are going to get, but we did see winged apes when the legend of Zahhak and his earlier defeat was presented in Chapter 127. So who knows?

THE FACT THAT UNDEAD VAHRIZ SHOWS UP IN THE VERY COURTYARD WHERE HE USED TO TRAIN ARSLAN! I cannot scream about this coming full circle enough, and here it is so very wrong.

But even though it's his uncle, Daryun's typically fast warrior's response saves the day and he gets in front of Arslan to defend against Vahriz's blow (and fuck, these undead warriors are fast!).

The horror just continues to mount as more and more famous undead warriors return, but wrong, so very wrong. I am really digging the way they are presented, though.

Silent, black-eyed, still bearing the wounds they wore in death on their faces, their bodies wreathed in bandages... I'm... honestly not sure that anything below the neck is even corporeal. They look like severed heads on bodies formed from sorcery, wrapped in the same sort of magic-infused cloaks that Team Zahhak wear. Even their weapons are formed from tendrils of snakes (see Kharlan's spear forming). It makes me think that when they are defeated, their bodies may just disintegrate and only the severed head will remain. And that's... fucked up, considering they are fighting people who remember them, who fought by their side, who loved them.

More off translation when Manuchurh shows up; Kishward didn't see his head (he was in Peshawar), he only heard about it. I did wonder why Gieve was so slow on the uptake given that it was his report that confirmed Manuchurh's death to Kisward and Nasrin, but he heard about it from Parsian soldiers rather than recognising Manuchurh for himself. That's why he only infers it from how Kishward addresses him here.

I do like that we get to see Manuchurh's sword here! Sure, it's probably made of snakes, but it is at least modeled on the weapon he would have wielded in life, and that's a neat detail to have so late in the story.

As always, I badly wanted to see Team Hilmes but given what's going on my heart still started to beat faster in alarm when we cut to the room they're in. But it's Sam who leaves the room and is confronted by Garshasp! An undead version of the man whose death he envies... not sure I'm ready for this but please for the love of god let Sam kill a sorcerer before this is over.

Please know that when I scrolled down just far enough to spot Kharlan's moustache I scrolled back up so fucking fast and had to sit for a bit before I could continue.

ZANDEEEEEEH. THAT'S NOT YOUR FATHER! His face and the way he says "Father?" so questioningly breaks my heart.

Hilmes sees quickly that it's not, it can't be Kharlan, because he knows Kharlan is dead, and (unlike Zandeh, who hasn't actually witnessed any sorcery yet) he knows that this is something Team Zahhak are capable of... in fact, he knows it can only be them.

For one horrible second I really thought Zandeh was going to get stabbed right in the heart. Definitely made me realise how utterly devastated I'd be if he died in the manga version.

Thankfully the wound he receives on his shoulder doesn't look life-threatening, but you can see how unprepared he is for it, how he can't quite understand why his father (IT'S NOT YOUR FATHER!) is attacking him like this. I really don't think it would have gone well for him if Hilmes hadn't gotten involved. The way these jar warriors move.. It's fast, it's unnatural, it's deadly. These were all skilled warriors in life; are they even more dangerous now they are dead?

Hilmes protecting Zandeh like this is a brilliant moment, and never have I been so fucking glad to see Hilmes in a rage as I was to see him FINALLY display some anger towards the sorcerers who he knows are responsible. He must finally see now that they are not, and never were, on his side. Sam was right, and I hope Hilmes lets him know before this is over.

I keep thinking about the way the eyes of some of the undead seem to leak blood like tears... their faces look... empty, I guess, but this does make me wonder, is there any sort of awareness there? Do they know what their bodies are being used for? That bit of blood in Kharlan's eye at the end; is there part of him that somehow knows he's attacking his son? Perhaps it's nothing more than the remains oozing blood as they are puppeted by sorcery. The thought that there might be even a fragment of consciousness there is horrific, so I truly hope not.

So yeah, no sign of the encounter with Shapur but all of the undead jar warriors have now taken to the stage, and that stage is set for some unpleasant clashes next chapter. I hope to see some Team Zahhak deaths for sure, and I'm still banking on Team Arslan capturing a mage before this is all over. I imagine the disciples are largely seen as disposable by the Holy Master at this point, but there's no way he would allow himself to be killed or captured so easily, not when he is so close to his goal.

I am worried, though. This is... a lot... for all of Team Arslan to come through unscathed. What a horrible position for them to be in, and even if their instincts tell them that they're not fighting their comrades/relatives, they're surely at a disadvantage due to the shock and emotional turmoil involved. And I'm left wondering, what are Team Zahhak up to? What's the purpose in bringing the dead back like this? Do they wish to kill, torment, or capture other warriors as snake food? Do they simply seek to cause Ecbatana to fall into chaos? Where the heck is Zahhak?

It's going to be a difficult month until the next chapter, lol.

[sag-dab-sar]

This is an Anti-Robert Graves Blog

While researching Robert Graves White Goddess thing to make sure I understood the claims I have realized just how intensely stupid it is, more so than I realized.

Ableist: "Graves believed that one could be in the true presence of the White Goddess when reading a poem, but in his view, this could be achieved only by a true poet of the wild, and not a classical poet, or even a Romantic poet, of whom he spoke critically: "The typical poet of the 19th-century was physically degenerate, or ailing, addicted to drugs and melancholia, critically unbalanced and a true poet only in his fatalistic regard for the Goddess as the mistress who commanded his destiny".[3]" — From wikipedia's page on the book

Racist: "The whiteness of the Goddess has always been an ambivalent concept. In one sense it is the pleasant whiteness of pearl-barley, or a woman’s body, or milk, or unsmutched snow; in another it is the horrifying whiteness of a corpse, or a spectre, or leprosy…. [p. 361]" & "The Goddess is a lovely, slender woman with a hooked nose, deathly pale face, lips red as rowan-berries, startlingly blue eyes and long fair hair [p 10]" .... dude what the fuck.

Eurocentric: "Poetry began in the matriarchal age, and derives its magic from the moon, not from the sun [p. 372]" Art comes from the moon! And the moon is a woman! Meanwhile Anatolia and Japan both have Female Sun deities. The Supreme deity of the Hittite's is The Sun Goddess of Arinna. One of the highest Kami, rulers of Japan trace their ancestry to her, is the Sun Kami Amaterasu-Ōmikami. But those cultures don't count, they don't have deathly pale faces with red lips, and startling blue eyes like the White Goddess does. Also what about the cultures with male moon Gods. Again Japan has Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, Mesopotamia has Nanna and Sin, Elam has Napir. No poets came from those cultures? Robert are you just that fucking unlearned—while pretending to be a learned scholar—and racist?

Extremely Anti Semetic: "The third stage of cultural development–the purely patriarchal, in which there are no Goddesses at all–is that of later Judaism, Judaic Christianity, Mahomendanism and Protestant Christianity…. [p. 322]" & "Now the Jews are fast turning “liberal” and both they and the Christians are further away than they ever were from the ascetic holiness to which Ezekiel and his Essene successors hoped to draw the world, and after many theological ups and downs we have come to be governed by the unholy triumvirate of Pluto god of wealth, Apollo god of science and Mercury god of thieves….Unless the ascetic Michael can quickly reorganize his scattered legions of angels for a new puritannical campaign of sexless unworldliness, there can be no escape from the present more than usually miserable state of the world [pp 390-1]" did he seriously just say that the shitty state of the world is all the Jews fault because of their male God .... in 1948.

Part of me wants to actually read this book to appreciate how fucking stupid it is. I don't want to waste my money I don't have a digital copy on my library app :\

Wikipedia

Quote Source

[glassbead-xx]

Arslan reread pt 6 (last one)

So I’m finally done and I remembered how much I love this series

I started reading almost 10 years ago and I’ve gone through periods of reading it monthly and then not because of app change or stuff (if only Kodansha could put their app in Latin America but nooooo)

I have thoughts that will go on bullet points, tons of them, so yeah (also spoilers)

The last time I reread the story before I lost it was when they were in Gilan (yes that long ago)

I knew a couple of things because of novel spoilers but I assume things are changing from the source material (and Arakawa is the one who made one of my favorite stories of all time, Fullmetal Alchemist, so I trust her)

Also, from the spoilers I gathered from the novels and the changes she made, I’m sure Arakawa has something specific planned for Estelle, what it is I don’t know

18 year old me shipped Arslan and Estelle so hard and I still do but now I know that the chances of it actually happening are astronomically low

Andragoras annoyed me more now, probably because I had no patience for his arrogance now

Also Hilmes has issues. The guy is so obsessed with the throne he made it his entire personality to the point finding out the truth broke him. Literally his only redeeming qualities are his relationship with Irina and maybe Zandeh

Also there are several characters I thought were strangely endearing this time: Zandeh, Zaravant, Jimsa, Merlaine, on top of the one I always loved like Jaswant, Alfreed, Estelle

And yes, I still have a crush on Daryun, I shouldn’t have giggled as much as I did whenever he was fighting someone (Serica flashback when)

If you want a good telenovela look no further than Pars’ royal family

Really what is it about people trying to prevent prophecies from happening, don’t you guys know that the more you try to prevent it the crueler the outcome? Look at Oedipus

Guiscard was so done since the beginning, like really when Arslan told him to go home I was so relieved, like he’s finally free from everyone’s shit

And Bodin died, in your face bitch

But I guess since Innocentis is dead Guiscard can finally have the throne like he wanted

Also, Innocentis and Andragoras’s death wtf was that I almost cried (not for them, but their death was too brutal I know it’s a drawing but their state was too upsetting for me especially Innocentis)

And Tahamine killing Andragoras at the end because she’s pissed he took their daughter away (I have so many theories and questions regarding this girl)

Also is it me, or is Arslan relationship with Elam, Alfreed and Jaswant the cutest thing ever?

I haven’t mentioned Farangis and Gieve but I love them, always did always will

Also Narsus is way too smart, should I be scared

I’m scared for everyone obviously, I know what happens in the novels but if Arakawa is changing things then I don’t know what to expect

Also I hope going for the sword was worth it dammit Hilmes this is why you don’t take from graves, I hope y’all enjoy the flying monkeys (Oz/Wicked reference much)

I’m going to read Yona next, since Yona and Arslan are very similar (they basically have the same inciting incident) I know they’re not the same story but I’ve been wanting to read Yona again for a while so yeah

Also, is no one going to talk about how Arslan and Estelle’s Japanese VAs got married on New Year’s Eve??

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

A Lament for the King of Egypt

1 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, “Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, 2 ‘Son of man, take up a lamentation over Pharaoh king of Egypt, and tell him,

“You were likened to a young lion of the nations; yet you are as a monster in the seas. You broke out with your rivers, and troubled the waters with your feet, and fouled their rivers.” 3 The Lord Yahweh says: “I will spread out my net on you with a company of many peoples; and they will bring you up in my net. 4 I will leave you on the land. I will cast you out on the open field, and will cause all the birds of the sky to settle on you. I will satisfy the animals of the whole earth with you. 5 I will lay your flesh on the mountains, and fill the valleys with your height. 6 I will also water the land in which you swim with your blood, even to the mountains. The watercourses will be full of you. 7 When I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and make its stars dark. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon won’t give its light. 8 I will make all the bright lights of the sky dark over you, and set darkness on your land,” says the Lord Yahweh. 9 “I will also trouble the hearts of many peoples, when I bring your destruction among the nations, into the countries which you have not known. 10 Yes, I will make many peoples amazed at you, and their kings will be horribly afraid for you, when I brandish my sword before them. They will tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of your fall.” 11 For the Lord Yahweh says: “The sword of the king of Babylon will come on you. 12 I will cause your multitude to fall by the swords of the mighty. They are all the ruthless of the nations. They will bring the pride of Egypt to nothing, and all its multitude will be destroyed. 13 I will destroy also all its animals from beside many waters. The foot of man won’t trouble them any more, nor will the hoofs of animals trouble them. 14 Then I will make their waters clear, and cause their rivers to run like oil,” says the Lord Yahweh. 15 “When I make the land of Egypt desolate and waste, a land destitute of that of which it was full, when I strike all those who dwell therein, then they will know that I am Yahweh.

16 “‘“This is the lamentation with which they will lament. The daughters of the nations will lament with this. They will lament with it over Egypt, and over all her multitude,” says the Lord Yahweh.’”

17 Also in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth day of the month, Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her and the daughters of the famous nations, to the lower parts of the earth, with those who go down into the pit. 19 Whom do you pass in beauty? Go down, and be laid with the uncircumcised. 20 They will fall among those who are slain by the sword. She is delivered to the sword. Draw her away with all her multitudes. 21 The strong among the mighty will speak to him out of the middle of Sheol with those who help him. They have gone down. The uncircumcised lie still, slain by the sword.

22 “Asshur is there with all her company. Her graves are all around her. All of them slain, fallen by the sword; 23 whose graves are set in the uttermost parts of the pit, and her company is around her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who caused terror in the land of the living.

24 “There is Elam and all her multitude around her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who have gone down uncircumcised into the lower parts of the earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living, and have borne their shame with those who go down to the pit. 25 They have set her a bed among the slain with all her multitude. Her graves are around her; all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for their terror was caused in the land of the living, and they have borne their shame with those who go down to the pit. He is put among those who are slain.

26 “There is Meshech, Tubal, and all their multitude. Their graves are around them, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for they caused their terror in the land of the living. 27 They will not lie with the mighty who are fallen of the uncircumcised, who have gone down to Sheol with their weapons of war, and have laid their swords under their heads, and their iniquities are on their bones; for they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living.

28 “But you will be broken among the uncircumcised, and will lie with those who are slain by the sword.

29 “There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, who in their might are laid with those who are slain by the sword. They will lie with the uncircumcised, and with those who go down to the pit.

30 “There are the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who have gone down with the slain. They are put to shame in the terror which they caused by their might. They lie uncircumcised with those who are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.

31 “Pharaoh will see them, and will be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword,” says the Lord Yahweh. 32 “For I have put his terror in the land of the living. He will be laid among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude,” says the Lord Yahweh. — Ezekiel 32 | World English Bible (WEB) The World English Bible is in the public domain. Cross References: Genesis 1:4; Genesis 10:2; Genesis 10:22; Exodus 7:5; 2 Samuel 1:17; Job 3:13; Job 7:12; Psalm 28:3; Psalm 139:8; Isaiah 14:9-10; Isaiah 14:15; Isaiah 18:6; Isaiah 30:32; Isaiah 34:5; Jeremiah 1:15; Jeremiah 9:25-26; Jeremiah 46:26; Ezekiel 14:22; Ezekiel 27:23; Ezekiel 28:7; Ezekiel 29:11; Ezekiel 30:20; Ezekiel 31:1; Ezekiel 31:12; Ezekiel 33:1; Matthew 7:24; Matthew 11:23; Matthew 24:29; Revelation 14:20; Revelation 18:10

[fordecree7]

THE BIBLE BOOK OF GOD

Ezekiel 32

A Lament over Pharaoh and Egypt

32 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man,��raise a lamentation over Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him:

“You consider yourself a lion of the nations,     but you are like a dragon in the seas; you burst forth in your rivers,     trouble the waters with your feet,     and foul their rivers. 3 Thus says the Lord God:     I will throw my net over you     with a host of many peoples,     and they will haul you up in my dragnet. 4 And I will cast you on the ground;     on the open field I will fling you, and will cause all the birds of the heavens to settle on you,     and I will gorge the beasts of the whole earth with you. 5 I will strew your flesh upon the mountains     and fill the valleys with your carcass. 6 I will drench the land even to the mountains     with your flowing blood,     and the ravines will be full of you. 7 When I blot you out, I will cover the heavens     and make their stars dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud,     and the moon shall not give its light. 8 All the bright lights of heaven     will I make dark over you,     and put darkness on your land, declares the Lord God.

9 “I will trouble the hearts of many peoples, when I bring your destruction among the nations, into the countries that you have not known. 10 I will make many peoples appalled at you, and the hair of their kings shall bristle with horror because of you, when I brandish my sword before them. They shall tremble every moment, every one for his own life, on the day of your downfall.

11 “For thus says the Lord God: The sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon you. 12 I will cause your multitude to fall by the swords of mighty ones, all of them most ruthless of nations.

“They shall bring to ruin the pride of Egypt,     and all its multitude shall perish. 13 I will destroy all its beasts     from beside many waters; and no foot of man shall trouble them anymore,     nor shall the hoofs of beasts trouble them. 14 Then I will make their waters clear,     and cause their rivers to run like oil, declares the Lord God. 15 When I make the land of Egypt desolate,     and when the land is desolate of all that fills it, when I strike down all who dwell in it,     then they will know that I am the Lord.

16 This is a lamentation that shall be chanted; the daughters of the nations shall chant it; over Egypt, and over all her multitude, shall they chant it, declares the Lord God.”

17 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, wail over the multitude of Egypt, and send them down, her and the daughters of majestic nations, to the world below, to those who have gone down to the pit:

19 ‘Whom do you surpass in beauty?     Go down and be laid to rest with the uncircumcised.’

20 They shall fall amid those who are slain by the sword. Egypt is delivered to the sword; drag her away, and all her multitudes. 21 The mighty chiefs shall speak of them, with their helpers, out of the midst of Sheol: ‘They have come down, they lie still, the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.’

22 “Assyria is there, and all her company, its graves all around it, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, 23 whose graves are set in the uttermost parts of the pit; and her company is all around her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who spread terror in the land of the living.

24 “Elam is there, and all her multitude around her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised into the world below, who spread their terror in the land of the living; and they bear their shame with those who go down to the pit. 25 They have made her a bed among the slain with all her multitude, her graves all around it, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for terror of them was spread in the land of the living, and they bear their shame with those who go down to the pit; they are placed among the slain.

26 “Meshech-Tubal is there, and all her multitude, her graves all around it, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for they spread their terror in the land of the living. 27 And they do not lie with the mighty, the fallen from among the uncircumcised, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, whose swords were laid under their heads, and whose iniquities are upon their bones; for the terror of the mighty men was in the land of the living. 28 But as for you, you shall be broken and lie among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword.

29 “Edom is there, her kings and all her princes, who for all their might are laid with those who are killed by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the pit.

30 “The princes of the north are there, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who have gone down in shame with the slain, for all the terror that they caused by their might; they lie uncircumcised with those who are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.

31 “When Pharaoh sees them, he will be comforted for all his multitude, Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword, declares the Lord God. 32 For I spread terror in the land of the living; and he shall be laid to rest among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword, Pharaoh and all his multitude, declares the Lord God.”

Ezekiel 32

Diane Beauford

[jrhughes]

The Families of the Nations of the World  

(Sunday, July 16th 2023 A.D.)  

Genesis 10:1-7  

Golden Text:      5 - By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations. - Genesis 10:5  

We now come back to the plan of God.  We must realize that God knew every good and wicked thing that was ever going to happen, even before the creation. God knew about the sin of Adam before it occurred.  God knew Cain would kill Abel. God knew that the sons of God (through Adam) would marry into the daughters of man (the line of Cain) and they would be corrupted.  

It is interesting to note that we men are allowing our wives to be deceived by the devil and it all started with Eve. Sure she must have been a beauty to behold, she was a direct creation of the Hand of God, as He fashioned her. But remember as Eve was being captivated, charmed and beguiled by the devil in the form of a serpent, Adam was not deceived. Adam knew that to take of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil would bring death into the world.  Had not God said:  

 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:  17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. - Genesis 2:16-17  

First God told Adam (the man) that he could eat freely of every tree, but one. Adam ate of that forbidden tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God had said, thou shalt surely die. Death passed upon man by this sin.  

WE men claim that it was the fault of Eve. Yet, when the evil one tempted Eve to eat, Adam did not rush over to stop her. Then when she was going to take the first bite, Adam did not warn her.  Then when she did not immediately drop over grave yard dead Adam joined her in her sin and she gave to her husband Adam with her and he did eat.  

God knew all this would happen.  Jesus was willing to come and die for the sins of the world, beginning with Adam and continuing on to you (and me).  

Then after the marriage into the line of Cain, the men of the line of Adam again lost control and then must have joined their wives in those sins and violent acts. It got so bad that it grieved God that He had made man.  And God decided He had to have a new beginning. God said He would destroy all in whom is the breath of life because of their grievous sin and violence. All in whom was the breath of life perished in the world wide flood.  This proved God is sovereign.  This proved that at some point God would have had enough. How close are we to another intervention by God?  

God knew all this was going to happen.  So God chose Noah, as he found grace in the eyes of the Lord and God knew Noah would obey.  Trust and obey for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.  

So with His heart grieved God took out every man and all in whom was the breath of life.  God, however, made a provision for man to continue on through Noah and his three sons. That is just the way God does things.  We start today with the beginning of the second chance by God.  

Message Text   -   Genesis 10:1-7  

1 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood.  

The generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 1st Chronicles sets forth the families of the nations, and states the lineage as:  

4 - Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.  1st Chronicles 1:4  

This traces the line of Jesus from Adam and here is Chronicles it brings us in verse 27 to Abraham and begins Chapter 2 with the sons of Israel.  

Shem means "fame" or "name." He fathered the Semitic people, which included the Jews. Scholars call the language they developed Shemitic or Semitic. Shem lived 600 years. His sons included Arpachshad, Elam, Asshur, Lud, and Aram.  

Shem:       Genesis 11:10 records that Shem was 100 years old at the birth of Arphaxad, two years after the flood; and that he lived for another 500 years after this, making his age at death 600 years.  

Excerpts from Genesis 11:10-27– (Jewish Publication Society translation of 1917):   'Shem was a hundred years old, and begot Arpachshad two years after the flood. ...  

The Bible only mentions Shem in the Book of Genesis and again in the book of  1 Chronicles 1:4, 17, 24. Other than that Shem is not mentioned in the Bible. So, we really have very little that we can know about Shem.  The rest of what you hear or read comes from other sources.  

In Islam:  Sunni Islam  

Shem is regarded by scholars to be the successor to Noah, receiving prophetic knowledge, enlightenment, and leadership of his people. Shem was also one of the people whom God had Jesus resurrect as a sign to the Children of Israel. Early Islamic historians like Ibn Ishaq and Ibn Hisham always included Shem's name in the genealogy of Muhammad.  

Shi'a Islam  

In a Shiite tradition Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq has narrated to his companions that Jibrael visited Noah close to the time of his death, relaying God's message: "Oh Noah! Your prophethood has expired and your days are complete, so look to the Great Name, the inheritance and effects of the knowledge of prophethood, and hand these over to your son, Sam (Shem), for I do not leave the Earth except that there is a knowledgeable one by which obedience to Me (God) can be recognized..."  

Ham  

Ham means "hot" or "sunburnt." Cursed by Noah, his sons were Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. One of Ham's grandsons was Nimrod, a mighty hunter, king over Babel. Nimrod also built the ancient city of Nineveh, which later played a part in the story of Jonah. Nimrod is believed to be the leader or one of the leaders who wanted to build the Tower of Babel.  

Ham is remembered for having gone in unto Noah who apparently was drunk and naked and looked upon his father in his nakedness. Then Ham, apparently, promptly relayed that information to his brothers Japheth and Shem. Those two took a sheet and walked in backwards and covered their father and his nakedness.  

Shem and Japheth received Noah's blessing because they had covered their father's drunken nakedness, while Ham, on the other hand, violated their father by looking at his nakedness. As a result, the descendants of Ham were cursed.   

Ham, according to the Table of Nations in the Book of Genesis, was the second son of Noah and the father of Cush, Mizraim, Phut and Canaan.  

Ham is mentioned in the book of Genesis and in 1 Chronicles as far as being a son of Noah, but the later mentions of Ham seem to be more or less pejorative (belittling, derogatory) in Psalms tells of the anger of God toward them:  

51 And smote all the firstborn in Egypt; the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham:  52 But made His own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock. Psalms 78:51-52  

Or matter of factly, as in:  

23 Israel also came into Egypt; and Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.- Psalms 105:23  

And tells of the anger of God against the people of Ham. Psalms:  

Psalms 105:27 - They shewed His signs among them, and wonders in the land of Ham. (Egypt)  

Psalms 106:22 - Wondrous works in the land of Ham, and terrible things by the Red sea.  

The Bible has little more to say about them, except that they, especially through the children of the child of Ham, Canaan were the enemies of Israel. These Canaanites settled the land that was later the Promised Land. The Canaanite had to be dispossessed from the Promised Land. The balance of what we know is from sources outside of the Bible. One must remember that these sources are not inspired by God and may not be true or totally true.  

Ham's descendants are interpreted by Flavius Josephus and others as having populated Africa and adjoining parts of Asia. The Bible refers to Egypt as "the land of Ham" in Psalm 78:51; 105:23, 27; 106:22; 1 Chronicles 4:40.  

It is interesting to note that it was not a curse settled on Ham, but on the offspring of Ham: Canaan. Canaan would repopulate the area which later became the Promised Land for the descendants of Shem, when Joshua took the children of Israel into the promised land he had to dispossess the Canaanite.  

Japheth  

 Japheth (Latin: Iafeth, Iapheth, Iaphethus, Iapetus) is one of the three sons of Noah in the Book of Genesis, in which he plays a role in the story of Noah's drunkenness and the curse of Ham, and subsequently in the Table of Nations as the ancestor of the peoples of the Aegean Sea, Anatolia, and elsewhere. In medieval and early modern European tradition he was considered to be the progenitor of the European peoples, while Islamic traditions also include the Chinese people among his descendants.  

Again the Bible is relatively silent about Japheth. He is only mentioned in Genesis and in 1st Chronicles. Thus whatever we learn form other sources is to some part speculation and may or may not be true. So we have opted not to quote much of the speculation that is out there. Some of it is contrary to other sources.  All we need know is that Japheth is a son of Noah and through his line many of the Gentile nations (not Israelite) were formed, including much of Europe from whence come many who populated North America and the United States.  

2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.  

This is not a thing to argue with others about as there is much interesting speculation, but there are also solid differences that are not major that are set forth below for your education.  

In the Bible, Japheth is ascribed seven sons: Gomer, Magog, Tiras, Javan, Meshech, Tubal, and Madai. According to Josephus (Antiquities of the Jews I.6):  

 Japheth, the son of Noah, had seven sons: they inhabited so, that, beginning at the mountains Taurus and Amanus, they proceeded along Asia, as far as the river Tanais (Don), and along Europe to Cadiz; and settling themselves on the lands which they light upon, which none had inhabited before, they called the nations by their own names.  

The "Book of Jasher", published by Talmudic rabbis in the 17th century, provides some new names for Japheth's grandchildren not found in the Bible, and provided a much more detailed genealogy (see Japhetic).  

In Jewish tradition, Abraham's wife Keturah is sometimes considered a descendant of Japheth.  

Europeans  

... In the seventh century, archbishop Isidore of Seville wrote his noted encyclopedic-historical work, in which he traces the origins of most of the nations of Europe back to Japheth. ...  

William Shakespeare's play Henry IV, Part II contains a wry comment about people who claim to be related to royal families. Prince Hal notes of such people,  

...they will be kin to us, or they will fetch it from Japhet. (II.ii 117-18)  

In the Polish tradition of Sarmatism, the Sarmatians, an Iranic people, were said to be descended from Japheth, son of Noah, enabling the Polish nobility to imagine that their ancestry could be traced directly to Noah.  

In Scotland, histories tracing the Scottish people to Japheth were published as late as George Chalmers' well-received Caledonia, published in 3 volumes from 1807 to 1824.  

Gomer       The Hebrew name Gomer refers to the Cimmerians, who dwelt in what is now southern Russia, "beyond the Caucasus", and attacked Assyria in the late 7th century BC.  ...  

Gomer was the eldest son of Japheth (and of the Japhetic line), and father of Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah, according to the "Table of Nations" in the Hebrew Bible (Genesis 10).  

Gomer,... is also mentioned in Book of Ezekiel 38:6 as the ally of Gog, the chief of the land of Magog.  

2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,  3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I Am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:  4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:  5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:  6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.  Ezekiel 38:2-6  

Traditional identifications: (Galatians?  Cappadocains? Gauls? Celts?)  

Josephus placed Gomer and the "Gomerites" in Anatolian Galatia: "For Gomer founded those whom the Greeks now call Galatians, but were then called Gomerites." Galatia in fact takes its name from the ancient Gauls (Celts) who settled there. However, the later Christian writer Hippolytus of Rome in c. 234 assigned Gomer as the ancestor of the Cappadocians, neighbours of the Galatians. Jerome circa. 390) and Isidore of Seville circa. 600) followed Josephus' identification of Gomer with the Galatians, Gauls and Celts.  

In Islamic folklore, the Persian historian Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari circa. 915) recounts a Persian tradition that Gomer lived to the age of 1000, noting that this record equaled that of Nimrod, but was unsurpassed by anyone else mentioned in the Torah.  

And the speculation goes on and on.  We cannot know for certain which of these they founded or contributed to greatly. There is a Truth, but since it is not set forth in the Bible, we do not need to know for certainty. I could continue on Gomer and his offspring for a couple of more pages, but you understand. Gomer is said to have peopled areas from Asia minor (Turkey) to Denmark and perhaps Wales.  

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gomer  

Magog       "2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him," (Ezek 38:2)  

In the Bible  

Magog is often associated with apocalyptic traditions, mainly in connection with Ezekiel 38 and 39 which says to prophesy against him and his offspring. ... "Gog and Magog" over time became associated with each other as a pair. In the New Testament, this pairing is found in the Book of Revelation 20:8, in which instance they may merely be metaphors for archetypal enemies of God.  

The Bible mentions Magog in a way that one will not want to be with them in the last days.  

14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when My people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?  15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:  16 And thou shalt come up against My people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against My land, that the heathen may know Me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.  Ezekiel 38:14-16  

Ancient and medieval views  

Josephus refers to Magog son of Japheth as progenitor of ... peoples north of the Black Sea. ... According to Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried (19th century) Magog refers to the Mongols. He cites an Arab writer who refers to the Great Wall of China with the name 'Magog'.  

Javan  

Long associated with Greece and the Greeks  

Tubal  

Associated with both a region in Asia Minor (Turkey) and some Greek lands  

Meshech  

Meshech is mentioned along with Tubal (and Rosh, in certain translations) as principalities of "Gog, prince of Magog" in Ezekiel 38:2 and 39:1, and is considered a Japhetite tribe, identified by Flavius Josephus with the Cappadocian "Mosocheni".  Also it sounds like and some believe it is to be associated with Moscow in Russia  

Tiras  

A sea people who at one time were the terror of the Mediterranean Sea.  

3 And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. 4 And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5 By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations. 6 And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan.  7 And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan.  

Controversy  

Now, as you can imagine, I could be on page 30 if we took time to research and set forth each name, some would be repetition, but we find that these names are primarily here to acquaint us with the nations of the Earth.  We can see clearly that all the nations come from Noah and his sons.  

Verse 5 clearly sums it up by saying these were the names and founders of the Gentile lands. They were not Jewish or Hebrew (well?) but they were the ones who established all the Gentile nations.  This cluster of verses ends with the understanding of the division of mankind by their various tongues. So, we apparently are to view Chapters 10 and 11 as one unit, as the Tower of Babel is in Chapter 11. By the confusion of tongues the families separated into their own nation groups.  

The Family of the Sons of Noah: Moses begins the discussion of the families with Japheth's family, either because he was the eldest, or because his family lay remotest from Israel and had least concern with them at the time when Moses wrote. There seems to be little question that almost all scholars believe that Moses compiled the first five books, including Genesis. Some believe he was copying others who had written, but the majority seem to believe that God was able to supernaturally equip Moses and speak to him. Moses, being obedient, wrote what God the Holy Spirit dictated. But do not join that controversy, just continue to believe the Bible is the Word of God and we must trust and obey.  

We are told the names of the offspring of Noah and his sons who were to repair and rebuild the world of mankind which the flood had ruined. God had started a new beginning.  

4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for His law.  5 Thus saith God the LORD, He that created the heavens, and stretched them out; He that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; He that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:  6 I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;  7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.  8 I Am the LORD: that is My Name: and My glory will I not give to another, neither My praise to graven images. - Isaiah 42:4-8  

NEXT WEEK WE LEARN ABOUT A MOST CONTROVERSIAL FIGURE: NIMROD.  Is he the one that launched the tower of Babel?  Did they all believe they had figured a way to thwart God from flooding the Earth again? Can man ever outsmart God? NO! But we will try. What do you mean Brother Hughes? Well we sin regularly. WE do not obey God. We live too worldly.  We take God for granted. (Ouch!)  

CLOSING ASIDE: Some sins are, we believe okay. Gossip, if you are careful to slander the other person in the form of a prayer request. Pray for so and so, because now you spill out the sordid details. They are having a problem in their marriage is enough, BUT NO. You slander them by telling the details that were most likely given to you in gossip. But you justify it because it is a prayer request.   

Male Teachers? Men fail and refuse to take their responsibility of being teachers and abandon that most important task to the women. Who is at fault? Mostly the men. We are like our fore father Adam we are not deceived. We know the Bible is clear that women are not to teach. But we allow and encourage it. When men avoid the calling of God (as they should be the only teachers), they (we) sin against God and our wives. God created men for certain tasks and women are totally different. The role of a wife is to be a help meet for you (man) in your ministry. What is your ministry? Do you have one?  Should you have one?  

Prayer: Father in Heaven. We admit that we do not love You enough as we do not keep Your commandments. You have clearly said in the Bible if you love Me, keep My commandments. The world in the day of Noah was given to sin and violence to the point that it grieved You, Lord that You had created man.  How far are we in this present generation of violence and sin from Your wrath? Lord please show us. And help us, each as an individual, to be better equipped to keep Your commandments, those found in Your Holy Bible. But You Lord, always willing to have mercy, had a better plan.  You saved Noah and his sons and wives.  You saved pairs of all the creatures in whom was the breath of life. You saved them to begin again.  You knew that we would again sin.  You allowed Your Son to come to Earth, take on the form of a man, live a sinless life and then offer Himself as the Lamb, the Sacrifice, the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world. Now Lord we come to You asking You to show us and encourage us and make us more willing to do Thy will than we ever have in the past. HELP US, we pray. Then all of those who wanted that prayer answered in their life said, Amen and Amen.  

[afreesworn]

12: Tooth and Nail

“The fighting could get very intense.”

Ghoa had prepared her before bringing her here. 

“There is… no guarantee that Anchor will even survive it. You need to steel yourself for this, whatever the outcome. Even if he should fall, there’s no reason either or both of us should follow right on his heels by making a foolish mistake.”

Nabi thought she was ready. She had told herself that she would maintain her composure. It wasn’t to deny Elam Grave any satisfaction in seeing her despair, but because losing her focus would not do Anchor any good. Ghoa had risked her own safety to confide in Nabi the truth, offering her the chance to go to the fighting pits as an invited guest.

But as the roar of the blood thirsty crowd reverberated through the walls of the caverns deep within the Yanxia mountains, Nabi clung onto the railing with white knuckled grip, unable to tear her horror filled gaze away from the arena below. She was wrong. She was not ready in the slightest to witness the merciless violence.

A Highlander named Solvarr was more beast than man, thick white braids swaying like wild mane around his shoulders. Mutated bony growths covered his frame, jutting out from various joints, but also from his scalp like horns. This was the ‘champion’ set against Anchor, who also had an augmentation of his own, a metal gauntlet encasing his left arm. 

From the very start of the fight, it was clear that neither side intended on his opponent's survival. Solvarr’s teeth and bones lengthened at the will, and he launched himself at Anchor like a lion leaping at its prey. Anchor rolled and slashed, a metal blade shooting out from the wrist of his gauntlet like a sword. His agility and quickness was an even match against Solvarr’s ferocity and savagery. The mob howled fervently with each new splatter of blood that decorated the walls below them.

Then the bellowing quieted, turning into gasps of surprise when Anchor grabbed onto one of the spikes growing on Solvarr’s shoulders, swinging up and mounting himself on top of the larger Highlander. But before his metal sharpened fingers of the gauntlet could dig into the exposed neck, Solvarr reached up and grabbed onto Anchor. And rather than tossing him off, he held him there, and then threw himself against the wall behind him along with the attached hyur, while the bones upon his back extended outwards.

The entire arena was hushed for an instant at the scene, and Nabi could see a fine spray of crimson from Anchor’s lips. Her knees felt weak, it was all she could do to hang onto the railing. She felt nauseous and dizzy, but she could not look away. He had to survive this. If he won the match, she would be allowed to heal him. He just had to live!

Anchor, despite the gruesome wounds, didn’t release the Highlander from his grip. He continued to hold him there, stay on his opponent, as his sharpened fingers clawed into Solvarr’s features. And as more blood began to flow from ripped flesh, there was a gleam to the Highlander’s veins along his neck, that then climbed up along the seams of gauntlet. As the veins upon Solvarr began to dim, those upon Anchor’s left arm began to glow. As did Anchor’s eyes.

Nabi had seen that light before, the sickly amber glimmer. She glimpsed it for the first time when Anchor fought the Doman noble’s guards. Back then he had taken grievous wounds upon himself as well. But he had somehow managed to stay conscious and upright, until the last of the enemy was dead. Only then did this eerie energy fade from his veins and eyes, and he fell to unconsciousness.

A slow breath left her lips. Tending to his wounds from before, Nabi knew that whatever it was that he had inside him, this tainted aether, it allowed him to hold on, push past severe injuries to his system. At least, for a little while before his body eventually failed him. But that was why she was here. To make sure it didn’t fail.

He just had to win.

Art by: @r2ruen​

[shaelstormchild]

Business Old And New

Many years ago...

The garlean soldier was writhing on the ground, bleeding from his stump of a leg, the lower portion of it having been blown off thanks to the explosives she had set earlier.

Shael approached the ruins of the wall, her gun rising to point at the man’s head. The garlean’s third eye flickered in the sunlight as the man turned to look up at her, fear contorting his face.

“Well, what is this? An actual true blood for once.” The Highlander snorted, a dark smirk quirking her lips. She had gotten used to seeing dead conscripted soldiers everywhere she went. She was starting to think that there were no more true Garleans that dared to dirty their hands on foreign soil. “I guess it’s my lucky sun.”

The Garlean closed his eyes, his head turning slightly away from the barrel of the gun. She could see that he was steeling himself for the inevitable.

Oh, death would come. Just not an easy one. At least not by her hands.

Shael lowered her gun from his head, pointing instead at his abdomen. She pulled the trigger.

The Garlean's scream cut through the air as the man recoiled in pain. Shael continued to walk past him, toward the remnants of the destroyed barricade. But she stopped when the agonized howls came to an abrupt end behind her with a sickening thunk and a weak gurgle.

She spun around to see the Garlean’s head rolling away on the ground, and a looming roegadyn standing by the corpse, heaving his giant axe back over his shoulder.

“Ya didn’t have to do that, Shooey. The alarm’s blaring all over the place. No one would have heard him.” She shrugged. “At least for awhile, anyroad.”

The Hellsguard shrugged and muttered a wordless mumble. He had a tense look on his face.

“So? For all the people they conscripted, that we killed, I think he was owed some agony. Far more than just bells of it. He would’a died, sooner or later. I chose later.” Shael turned back around to head toward the rubble, not wanting to see the obvious look of disapproval on Shooey’s face. He'd never liked cruelty, and didn't seem primed to start liking it now. And it wasn’t because of any sympathy for Garleans, but because he knew how it lingered on her like a foul smell. And because of him, Shael started to notice it too. How much colder she got with each kill. She just didn’t want to acknowledge it.

But Shooey wasn’t going to just let this go. His hand gripped her shoulder from behind, spinning her back around. He wasn’t angry. He was worried.

Shael avoided his gaze, rolling her eyes to the sky. But his large hands remained on her shoulders, nearly encasing it completely. He just stood there, looking at her.

“Fine,” she relented with a groan. “Like I said, this be our last job, yeah?” She shrugged. “I already told Aylard.” The Highlander felt the weight of his hand lighten, the roegadyn’s stern expression easily splitting into a broad grin as he nodded. That made her smile too. “After this, we just be on our own on the seas. We'll be out of the war business for good.”

Her lips parted into a toothy grin. “We'll be starting our own business. How's smuggling weapons sound to you, Shooey?”

Now.

Shael tapped the ashes off the end of the cigar, letting it drift down to the wooden planks of the pier. One knee was propped up on the crate she was perched on, while the other leg hung off the edge. She didn’t bother turning, though one hand came to rest by her gun that lay next to her leg when she heard approaching footsteps. It was past middle of the night, Kugane had no more wandering patrons this late and the residents had gone to sleep long ago.

She was only expecting one person really, especially in this part of the pier and under the shadows of the criss crossing rafters that hid her and the crate she was sitting on from plain view.

Her presence didn’t surprise the newcomer either. Armored footsteps slowed, then eventually came to a stop.

“Ya know, I could never tell any of you apart with that helm. And the uniform.” Shael set the last remnants of her cigar on the crate, unhooking her leg and hopping off the box. She leaned an elbow against the crate, just next to her gun that rested there. “How do I know yer not the guy I tried to off a few months ago?”

The voice that emerged from behind the helm was muffled annoyance and scorn. “Well if you actually succeeded in what you were supposed to do, then you wouldn’t have that problem.”

Shael snorted and ran her hand through her ponytail. “Can’t argue that. Although I was assured he was going to be alone. And not enjoying some moonlight date with some conjurer.” She cocked her head at him. “Obviously yer still here and willing to do business. So my guess is you took care of him yourself, Justus pyr Drulio?”

There was an icy pause when she said his name out loud. The Garlean then yanked off his helm, revealing dark hair trimmed short, along with a sharp goatee on his chin. The man looked to be in his late forties from what Shaelen could tell. He had narrow and pointed eyes and hawk-like nose. And a third eye shimmered on his forehead.

Shael snorted, her fingers drumming on the top of the crate near her gun.

“Of course I took care of my own end. I may change my mind again on whether he needs to be disposed of, but I can’t afford that scrutiny right now. Maybe if something can be made to look like an accident.” Justus sounded annoyed even in explaining that much, and for that, Shael was pleased.

“Well good. As much as I enjoy shooting Imperials, I’d rather make money. And not have to run from the limb-lopping samurais.”

Justus narrowed his eyes at her, his lip twitching. “So what happened to Grave?”

Shael shrugged. “Accidents. Things happen in our line of business.” She tapped the crate she was leaning against. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t get rid of the surplus you’ve been hiding away.” She lowered her head, looking at the Garlean over the rim of her glasses. “You must be missing the extra wealth you’ve gotten used to.”

The Garlean snorted. “You? You were just a mercenary for Grave. What do you know of this business?”

She shrugged. “Not going to brag. You don’t need to know what I do. You only need to know this. I know your name, where you store your extra weapons, and your association with the Cove. And you also know I am offering you wealth. Just like Grave did.” She smirked, although it lacked any real humor, just a challenge. “So you interested?”

Justus wore a look of disgust, but after a long pause, he nodded. “I have no preferences among savages,” he hissed. He jutted his chin out to the crate next to her. “Do you have a payment for that ready then?”

Shael shook her head. “Not right now, eager soldier. I have to find a buyer.” She furrowed her brow, shooting him a warning look. “And if I even smell another ambush, remember. I am not shy about coming after you, here even in this city.”

The Garlean glared at her through slitted eyes. “Don’t bother with threats. Grave knew the circumstances of that trouble. Which is why you were hired to get rid of that trouble. Let’s not have selective memory here if we are going to do business?”

She shrugged, both hands in the air. “Just wanted to make that clear. Just as Grave can be replaced, so can you. I’d just rather not train another Imperial.” When the Garlean’s expression twisted into something uglier than it already was, Shael knew she was just at the threshold. She barely held off grinning wider.

“I’ll have payment for you in less than a moon,” she offered as appeasement. She gathered her gun and holstered it behind her, before she reached for what was left of that cigar. It was her very last one from Nabi. There was a small voice in the back of her mind that said that neither Nabi nor Tserende would approve of this.

But Nabi wasn’t ever going to know, and Tserende wasn’t here. Shael needed the money, but moreover, the excursion into that mountain lit a fire in her soul again. She found herself hungry for that thrill. The exhilaration that came with getting away with something she shouldn’t. Of surviving situations that she shouldn’t.

Elam had encroached on her illegal weapons business, anyroad. With him out the way, someone had to fill the void again. So why not her?

She stuck the cigar back into her mouth as she passed by the Garlean, patting him on the shoulder. Shooey would be proud. She didn’t shoot this one in the gut even if she wanted to do it so badly.

“Looking forward to doing business!” she called over her shoulder, and strode off into the night.

[sea-and-storm]

ESCAPE :  Drabble (Ghoa)

OOC:  This is my part of a round robin series of posts based around the final fight in the Cigarettes & Fireflies plotline. (Which is why it might not make the most sense if you read it standalone without context.) I’d highly suggest reading the other posts in the series that the others have written because 1.) this scene was amazing to play out and, 2.)  they’re all amazing writers seriously go read their stuff *wheeeeeeeze*.  

You can find the other posts collected in the RPC thread, starting here!

There was little that made Ghoa more anxious than uncertainties, and this day of the final fight was teeming with them. She was unsure if Saltborn would win his match. She was unsure of what Shael and Tserende were plotting. Worst of all, if all of the planning came to naught, she was unsure of exactly what manner of unpleasant fate Elam Grave had in mind for her and her treachery.

Though if one thing was certain, it was that the Mankhadi woman was going to fight tooth and nail before she let anyone take her life or her freedom away from her.

That unease had weighed on her from the time that she had first opened her eyes that morning, settling like a heavy stone in the pit on her stomach. Despite its weight, she had carried herself well, just as she had been instructed to never let on that anything was amiss. No one could know that beneath her usual calm, polished exterior and coy smiles, she felt almost nervous enough to retch when she took her place on the dais between Elam and Hikomoro. No one could see under the gloves that she wore just how white her knuckles had become as she closed her fists tight, watching Saltborn's fight. She couldn't help but feel dread watching that monstrous opponent of his, even knowing that the poison of her making coursed through his system. Would it be enough..?

Then, with that final thrust of the blade through the beast-like Roegadyn's heart, it was ended and -- at the same -- everything began to happen so very, very quickly.

"The victor of the final match!" the announcer cried. "Saltborn of the Cove!"

Ghoa's eyes followed Elam as he rose triumphantly from his seat upon the proclamation of victory, and with the motion her eyes moved past him to someone else. To Nabi, whose golden eyes were filled with an unspoken warning. But she barely had any time to linger on it before the compromised linkpearl activated and Shael's voice was in her ear.

"Ghoa. I want you to stand perfectly still. I have Grave in my sights."

Still she was unsure of exactly what the woman was planning, but between Nabi's urgent look as she tried to slip away from the dais and the former code of opposites that she and Shael had spoken in.. Gods, she hoped she was interpreting it all correctly.

In her position so close to Grave and with him undoubtedly having heard Shael's message all the same as she, she knew there was no way that she could possibly rise and sneak away like Nabi had done.. Or had attempted to do, at least, before Nei had stopped her. For her, it was now or never, and hesitating even just a second longer would put her at risk. And so, wasting no time, she pushed herself up onto her feet -- and she ran.

No one stopped her until she reached the exit to the dais, where the guards were waiting in her way. Her mind was already racing, trying to figure out a way to get past them, when she heard Musa's voice calling out on the dais behind her.

"Let them pass."

Surprised, she chanced a glance over her shoulder at the man, confusion striking her not only at the order the older sponsor had given but the fact that he was now, it seemed, in a standoff with Nei. Had the two not been working together? Just what was happening there..?

Yet she hardly had the time to ponder it now before another voice was calling out.

"Torrad," Elam growled. "Stop her."

Ghoa's head snapped around to find the tongueless brick wall of a man stepping up between her and her chance at freedom. Her heart was racing, a hissed curse leaving her lips, before she steeled her nerves and started forward to try and dart past him. It was a move doomed to fail from the start, as Torrad's hand wrapped tight around her thin wrist like a manacle, yanking her harshly back towards him. But that left her other hand free, and that would be his mistake.

When she had dressed that morning, she hadn't even bothered trying to think of a way to smuggle in a weapon. Even before her intentions had been discovered, the guards at the entrance had thoroughly checked her person before each match. Now, she knew the scrutiny would only increase. It would be impossible to sneak in a knife or poison. She hadn't even risked bringing her ringbands, just in case.

But she was nothing if not creative when backed into a corner.

Prepared for the backwards tug, Ghoa's free hand snapped up to the furs around her neck. Her fingers wrapped around the golden flower brooch that held the white fur mantle in place about her shoulders and tugged it free. Using the momentum of the pull, the Xaela spun in on Torrad with purpose. In the back of her mind, she could hear the advice Edric had once given her when he had tried to teach her how to defend herself. And as soon as she spotted an opening in the man's armor on the underside of his arm, she buried the sharpened end of the pin as deeply as she could -- which still, admittedly, wasn't terribly deep -- into the man's bicep.

The retaliation had seemed to surprise the man, though didn't deter him in the slightest. His hold upon her tightened as he scoffed, and before she could even try to twist out of the way, his armored hand had come crashing across her face. The force of the blow made stars rise and burst behind her eyes. She could taste copper on her tongue, though she wasn't sure if it came from her lip or her nose. Both, perhaps. Dizzily staggering, only Torrad's grip kept her upright as he spun her around to march her back to Elam.

For a moment, she couldn't help but wonder if it was enough. Had she sunk the pin deep enough? She hadn't even had time to see before the man struck her. If she hadn't, if it hadn't worked, then she..

She felt the man's steps slow, almost causing him to stagger. He didn't make it another step before he fell to a knee and his grip around her wrist loosened. The pin, laced with the same Mankhadi paralytic poison that had laced the gifted knife that Nabi had once used against Elam himself, had struck true.

There wasn't any time to celebrate or to feel relief. Her vision was still blurred and her head swimming when she found herself freed, but she lurched towards the exit again. The first few steps were swaying and unsteady before she seemed to find her feet again, bolting into the crowd below scrambling for the exit amidst the chaos, the violence, and the sound of gunshots.

But if she had survived and escaped the dais, the panicked mob wasn't about to stop her now. She squeezed her petite body through whatever narrow gaps she could. When no spaces presented themselves, she made them by shoving, kicking, clawing, even biting her way through. The Xaela was nothing short of hellsbent on getting out of that hellish nightmare of a place, on surviving, and no one and nothing were going to stop her.

[shamsaddinmegalommatis]

HISTORY OF ACHAEMENID IRAN

Tentative diagram of the 40-hour seminar

(in 80 parts of 30 minutes)

Prof. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis

Tuesday, 27 December 2022

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

To watch the videos, click here:

https://www.patreon.com/posts/history-of-iran-76436584

To hear the audio, click here:

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

1 A - Achaemenid beginnings I A

Introduction; Iranian Achaemenid historiography; Problems of historiography continuity; Iranian posterior historiography; foreign historiography

1 B - Achaemenid beginnings I B

Western Orientalist historiography; early sources of Iranian History; Prehistory in the Iranian plateau and Mesopotamia

2 A - Achaemenid beginnings II A

Brief Diagram of the History of the Mesopotamian kingdoms and Empires down to Shalmaneser III (859-824 BCE) – with focus on relations with Zagros Mountains and the Iranian plateau  

2 B - Achaemenid beginnings II B

The Neo-Assyrian Empire from Shalmaneser III (859-824 BCE) to Sargon of Assyria (722-705 BCE) – with focus on relations with Zagros Mountains and the Iranian plateau 

3 A - Achaemenid beginnings III A

From Sennacherib (705-681 BCE) to Assurbanipal (669-625 BCE) to the end of Assyria (609 BCE) – with focus on relations with Zagros Mountains and the Iranian plateau 

3 B - Achaemenid beginnings III B

The long shadow of the Mesopotamian Heritage: Assyria, Babylonia, Elam/Anshan, Kassites, Guti, Akkad,  and Sumer / Religious conflicts of empires – Monotheism & Polytheism

4 A - Achaemenid beginnings IV A

The Sargonid dynasty and the Divine, Universal Empire – the Translatio Imperii

4 B - Achaemenid beginnings IV B

Assyrian Spirituality, Monotheism & Eschatology; the imperial concepts of Holy Land (vs. barbaric periphery) and Chosen People (vs. barbarians)

5 A - Achaemenid beginnings V A

The Medes from Deioces to Cyaxares & Astyages

The early Achaemenids (Achaemenes & the Teispids)

5 B - Achaemenid beginnings V B

- Why the 'Medes' and why the 'Persians'?

What enabled these nations to form empires?

6 A - Zoroaster A

Shamanism-Tengrism; the life of Zoroaster; Avesta and Zoroastrianism

6 B - Zoroaster B

Mithraism vs. Zoroastrianism; the historical stages of Zoroaster's preaching and religion

7 A - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) I A

The end of Assyria, Nabonid Babylonia, and the Medes

7 B - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) I B

The Nabonidus Chronicle

8 A - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) II A

Cyrus' battles against the Medes

8 B - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) II B

Cyrus' battles against the Lydians

9 Α - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) III A

The Battle of Opis: the facts

9 Β - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) III B

Why Babylon fell without resistance

10 A - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) IV A

Cyrus Cylinder: text discovery and analysis

10 B - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) IV B

Cyrus Cylinder: historical continuity in Esagila

11 A - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) V A

Cyrus' Empire as continuation of the Neo-Assyrian Empire

11 B - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) V B

Cyrus' Empire and the dangers for Egypt 

12 A - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) VI A

Death of Cyrus; Tomb at Pasargad

12 B - Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II) VI B

Posterity and worldwide importance of Cyrus the Great

13 A - Cambyses I A

Conquest of Egypt and Cush (Ethiopia: Sudan)

13 B - Cambyses I B

Iran as successor of Assyria in Egypt, and the grave implications of the Iranian conquest of Egypt

14 A - Cambyses II A

Cambyses' adamant monotheism, his clash with the Memphitic polytheists, and the falsehood diffused against him (from Egypt to Greece)

14 B - Cambyses II B

The reasons for the assassination of Cambyses

15 A - Darius the Great I A

The Mithraic Magi, Gaumata, and the usurpation of the Achaemenid throne

15 B - Darius the Great I B

Darius' ascension to the throne

16 A - Darius the Great II A

The Behistun inscription

16 B - Darius the Great II B

The Iranian Empire according to the Behistun inscription

17 A - Darius the Great III A

Military campaign in Egypt & the Suez Canal

17 B - Darius the Great III B

Babylonian revolt, campaign in the Indus Valley

18 A - Darius the Great IV A

Darius' Scythian and Balkan campaigns; Herodotus' fake stories

18 B - Darius the Great IV B

Anti-Iranian priests of Memphis and Egyptian rebels turning Greek traitors against the Oracle at Delphi, Ancient Greece's holiest shrine

19 A - Darius the Great V A

Administration of the Empire; economy & coinage

19 B - Darius the Great V B

World trade across lands, deserts and seas

20 A - Darius the Great VI A

Rejection of the Modern European fallacy of 'Classic' era and Classicism

20 B - Darius the Great VI B

Darius the Great as the end of the Ancient World and the beginning of the Late Antiquity (522 BCE – 622 CE)

21 A - Achaemenids, Zoroastrianism, Mithraism, and the Magi A

Avesta and the establishment of the ideal empire

21 B - Achaemenids, Zoroastrianism, Mithraism, and the Magi B

The ceaseless, internal strife that brought down the Xšāça (: Empire) 

22 A - The Empire-Garden, Embodiment of the Paradise A

The inalienable Sargonid-Achaemenid continuity as the link between Cosmogony, Cosmology and Eschatology

22 B - The Empire-Garden, Embodiment of the Paradise B

The Garden, the Holy Tree, and the Empire

23 A - Xerxes the Great I A

Xerxes' rule; his upbringing and personality

23 B - Xerxes the Great I B

Xerxes' rule; his imperial education

24 A - Xerxes the Great II A

Imperial governance and military campaigns

24 B - Xerxes the Great II B

The Anti-Iranian complex of inferiority of the 'Greek' barbarians (the so-called 'Greco-Persian wars')

25 A - Parsa (Persepolis) A

The most magnificent capital of the pre-Islamic world

25 B - Parsa (Persepolis) B

Naqsh-e Rustam: the Achaemenid necropolis: the sanctity of the mountain; the Achaemenid-Sassanid continuity of cultural integrity and national identity

26 A - Iran & the Periphery A

Caucasus, Central Asia, Siberia, Tibet and China Hind (India), Bengal, Deccan and Yemen

26 B - Iran & the Periphery B

Sudan, Carthage and Rome

27 A - The Anti-Iranian rancor of the Egyptian Memphitic priests A

The real cause of the so-called 'Greco-Persian wars', and the use of the Greeks that the Egyptian Memphitic priests made

27 B - The Anti-Iranian rancor of the Egyptian Memphitic priests B

Battle of the Eurymedon River; Egypt and the Wars of the Delian League

28 A - Civilized Empire & Barbarian Republic A

The incomparable superiority of Iran opposite the chaotic periphery: the Divine Empire

28 B - Civilized Empire & Barbarian Republic B

Why the 'Greeks' and the Romans were unable to form a proper empire

29 A - Artaxerxes I (465-424 BCE) A

Revolt in Egypt; the 'Greeks' and their shame: they ran to Persepolis as suppliants

29 B - Artaxerxes I (465-424 BCE) B

Aramaeans and Jews in the Achaemenid Court

30 A - Interregnum (424-403 BCE) A

Xerxes II, Sogdianus, and Darius II

30 B - Interregnum (424-403 BCE) B

The Elephantine papyri and ostraca; Aramaeans, Jews, Phoenicians and Ionians

31 A - Artaxerxes II (405-359 BCE) & Artaxerxes III  (359-338 BCE) A

Revolts instigated by the Memphitic priests of Egypt and the Mithraic subversion of the Empire

31 B - Artaxerxes II (405-359 BCE) & Artaxerxes III  (359-338 BCE) B

Artaxerxes II's capitulation to the Magi and the unbalancing of the Empire / Cyrus the Younger

32 A - Artaxerxes IV & Darius III A

The decomposition of the Empire

32 B - Artaxerxes IV & Darius III B

Legendary historiography

33 A - Alexander's Invasion of Iran A

The military campaigns

33 B - Alexander's Invasion of Iran B

Alexander's voluntary Iranization/Orientalization

34 A - Alexander: absolute rejection of Ancient Greece A

The re-organization of Iran; the Oriental manners of Alexander, and his death

34 B - Alexander: absolute rejection of Ancient Greece B

The split of the Empire; the Epigones and the rise of the Orientalistic (not Hellenistic) world

35 A - Achaemenid Iran – Army A

Military History

35 B - Achaemenid Iran – Army B

Achaemenid empire, Sassanid militarism & Islamic Iranian epics and legends

36 A - Achaemenid Iran & East-West / North-South Trade A

The development of the trade between Egypt, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Iran, Turan (Central Asia), Indus Valley, Deccan, Yemen, East Africa & China

36 B - Achaemenid Iran & East-West / North-South Trade B

East-West / North-South Trade and the increased importance of Mesopotamia and Egypt

37 A - Achaemenid Iran: Languages and scripts A

Old Achaemenid, Aramaic, Sabaean and the formation of other writing systems 

37 B - Achaemenid Iran: Languages and scripts B

Aramaic as an international language

38 A - Achaemenid Iran: Religions A

Rise of a multicultural and multi-religious world

38 B - Achaemenid Iran: Religions B

Collapse of traditional religions; rise of religious syncretism

39 A - Achaemenid Iran: Art and Architecture A

Major archaeological sites of Achaemenid Iran

39 B - Achaemenid Iran: Art and Architecture B

The radiation of Iranian Art

40 A - Achaemenid Iran: Historical Importance A

The role of Iran in the interconnection between Asia and Africa

40 B - Achaemenid Iran: Historical Importance B

The role of Iran in the interconnection between Asia and Europe

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

Download the diagram here:

[yamayuandadu]

I just read your Enuma Elish post and am wondering about how myths become thought of as standard.

From my understanding, which is admittedly probably heavily colored by modern popular interpretations, Sumerians, Amorites, and Canaanites had common stories of a bleak underworld, a kingship-god conquering nature, and a chosen survivor of a flood. While I realize that we can't know exactly since so much of the evidence is gone, do you think these possible similarities are from common sources, mutual influence, scholarly confusion, over-simplification, or something else?

In Mesopotamia and in the nearby Syrian territories Akkadians (in what's now Iraq), Amorites (in Iraq and Syria) and Eblaites were all influenced by Sumer and gradually embraced its culture - as a result even though they formed the majority of Mesopotamian societies in later times the language and religion lived on. The syncretism of their gods with Sumerian ones was much more extensive than the case of Greece and Rome and the result was beyond mere influence - it's impossible to tell where a Sumerian god ends and Akkadian/etc. adaptation begin, and the inherited core of the religion was firmly Sumerian, with the same cult centers, lead deities, priest types etc. Sumerians weren't opposed to accepting some foreign gods into their pantheon either which helped with these who weren't easy to syncretise (ex. the Akkadian Manzat or Eblaite Ishara). Babylonia and Assyria were the two lead states to emerge in this cultural sphere later on, and most texts we know come from their archives. Outside Mesopotamia - in Canaan, among Hurrians (northern Syria), Hittites (eastern Turkey), in Elam (western Iran) and to a degree even in Egypt Akkadian was THE language of diplomacy. It was effectively the universal language of the learned the way latin was through much of european history and there was a somewhat standard curriculum in scribal schools consisting out of myths and god lists. Some discussion of this can be found in the following articles: 1. Gilgamesh in Hatti by Gary Beckman 2. Under the Spell of Babylon: Mesopotamian Influence on the Religion of the Hittites by Gary Beckman 3. The Gilgameš epic at Ugarit by Andrew George 4.Babylonian Lexical, Religious and Literary Texts and Scribal Education at Ugarit and Its Implications for the Alphabetic Literary Texts by Wilfred van Soldt 5. The Role of Babylon in Western Peripheral Education by Wilfred van Soldt 6. The Susa Funerary Texts: A New Edition and Re-Evaluation and the Question of Psychostasia in Ancient Mesopotamia by Nathan Wasserman Therefore a scribe in Hattusa in the Hittite empire and a scribe in Susa in Elam - not to mention scribes in any of the Mesopotamian city states - were both aware of the same myths (Gilgamesh, the flood myth, etc), and likely worked on similar lists of gods and the like. Compiling god lists was a popular scribal activity, and notes in them often indicate "x deity is the equivalent of mesopotamian y deity among (insert group)." Adaptations for a local audience or reconfiguration of preexisting elements lead to creation of new myths. Small notes on the specific examples from the ask: 1. character of individual death gods varied and the degree of bleakness ascribed cannot be fully evaluated due to little to no sources about private belief. Mythical narratives do paint a bleak image but grave goods tell a different story. Also, at the very least the Hurrians in northern Syria pretty clearly liked their underworld goddess enough to name children after her pretty commonly. Nergal and Ninazu show up in personal names too. 2. "Conquering nature"? That doesn't really apply to any I can think of - if anything Baal is more "nature" than his opponents in the Baal cycle for instance, I would argue... The "kingship" myths have some similarities to each other but aren't adaptations, more like a network of interconnecting stories. Hurrian (Kumarbi cycle), Ugaritic (Baal cycle) and Babylonian (Enuma Elish) ones borrowed elements from each other but have plenty of differences too (eg. only Baal battles death; only Teshub battles a stone giant; only Marduk is a creator but he's not a weather god etc.). 3. the 3 versions of the flood hero seem to all be adaptations of one story (initially separate but later turned into a Gilgamesh episode), which was Sumerian in origin and to my knowledge was transmitted to Ugarit and the Hittite empire under the Akkadian title. Biblical Noah was in all due likeness a much later adaptation of it (whether developed via transmission from one of these bronze age centers or during babylonian exile is unknown to me) and as such is more detached from the original. Other cultural tibits with a lot of cross cultural clout were Ishtar/Inanna, the title "father of gods", exorcism/purification texts and mytical hybrids on top of my head.

[swforester]

The sad grave of Elam and Grace, a son and daughter lost to the Collins family in the late 1700s. Elam was one while Grace was 10 months when they died.

West Cemetery

Somers CT 9/5/21

[latterdaysasuke]

Arslan x Estelle Novel Summary (Book 15)

Elam once again mentions the matter of marriage to Arslan:

" 'This may be redundant, but most of your subjects wish for Your Majesty to marry soon, so please reconsider.'

'They all say that? What would Gieve say?'

'Your Majesty can't take him seriously!'

As soon as Elam finishes, Arslan can't help but laugh.

'I'm sorry to let you concern over this. But the matter of marriage must wait longer! Maybe I can reconsider in another ten years. The crucial matter now is peace in the kingdom. If I marry now, it might even cause trouble for the prospect.'

At that moment, the figure which appears in Arslan's mind is that of the female Lusitanian knight."

From there, Arslan changes the subject to Elam's prospective marriage, which Elam vehemently rejects. Later, Arslan brings up to Elam the possibility of Elam x Aisha, a maid in the royal court.

In a later part of Book 15, Arslan can be seen visiting Estelle's grave by himself:

"In within the low-rising stone walls, submerged by blossoming autumn flowers, stood the small tombstone, surrounded by cosmos, wild roses, platycodon, dianthus, and other flowers found nowhere else in the royal palace, such as imported chrysanthemum. Bending over against the stone wall, Arslan can be seen lost in his thoughts. He hears a cautious approach from behind and turns.

'It's you, Kasim.'

'Ah, forgive my intrusion, Your Majesty'

'It's okay, I'm just here to daze.'

Arslan leans against the stone wall and says.

'You've taken good care of Estelle's grave, thank you.'

'No no no, as your subject, I'm only doing what I've ought to do. Ah, I'm just here to have a look, I'll be going now.'

The servant known as the nephew of the Prime Minister Lushan lowers his head practically to his knees.

'Don't worry. As I've said, I'm just here to daze.'

Arslan grasps at a few strands of golden hair drifting through the autumn breeze."

Elam soon arrives, as does the maid Aisha, who stumbles in with a bouquet of flowers to lay before Estelle's tombstone. Elam catches her from falling, rebukes her for being so clumsy, and for having such a lack of common sense as to place a bouquet in a garden already full of flowers. Arslan's response:

" 'The more flowers the better, this will ensure that Estelle's spirit of valor and chivalry can be perserved for eternity.'

Upon hearing those words, the three subjects stand in awe."

(In a nutshell: As Narsus and Daryun already suspect, whenever Arslan is asked about finding a marriage partner, the image of Estelle lingers in his mind. Even without the mentioning of marriage, Arslan frequently thinks of Estelle. The touching scene with Arslan alone at her gravesite affirms how deeply he treasures Estelle in his heart.)

[anchor-management]

#2 - SWAY

Just for a while longer. 

This is what Anchor swore to himself, now countless times, when he basked in Nabi’s presence. Just for a while more, he’d allow himself to be selfish; let his heart beat for a reason other than the two souls he swore to carry with him on his pursuit for retribution. 

It had begun on the sun they had escaped from beneath the mountain. Brilliant rays of light--he had then been so recently deprived of--streamed through an open window of the inn room. Nabi’s medicinal stall in the markets had been burned to the ground, namely in part to Elam Grave’s vindictive nature, and when she made mention of remaining at the inn while reconstruction took place, the words had escaped without a thought,

["Until ya on your feet, at my own, you could...,"]

Stay.

And so she did. 

It would just be until Nabi could return to her previous life, just until he recovered, just until the dangers had passed, and then Anchor would return to living for the ones that had no such privilege. At least, that’s what he told himself; each time Nabi and he grew closer, every time he started to feel even the slightest spark of joy and then the guilt of those that would never experience such began to weigh him down, he’d simply remind himself: it was just for a while longer. 

More and more, Anchor let that selfish want, that longing, take over all else. And each time, the shame would come back stronger. He was here, alive. Cseri’a and Buoy, were not. He had promised he’d use whatever of himself he had left to make right of that wrong. If they did not have the option for choice, for joy, for worldly experiences--neither should the ones that took that away from them. His body would simply be a vessel to carry out that task. The mind and the heart would just have to be another sacrifice to see it through.

But he wanted. 

Every warm smile and gentle touch Nabi offered him, every time she brightened upon seeing him, every little laugh and impossible joy she got from the most simple things--he wanted to hold onto that. He wanted to be there the next time her golden eyes lit up with wonder and breathe in the beautiful words that escaped her lips.

But he couldn’t.

Anchor had to push her away. Shut down. Close himself off from allowing her in. After all, what would be the point? He would inevitably leave. He had to. He had promised. He had sworn. And what were words without weight? It should be easy, in fact, to put a stop to it all. The sooner he ended things, the sooner things could return to as they were. Nabi could return to her life. She would go on and give so much to so many. He just had to let go. 

But he wanted. 

If rejecting Nabi had her withdrawing, he’d reach back for her desperately. He didn’t want to let go of the life she promised by simply existing. One that did have happiness amidst the sadness and laughter within the tears. It was a life which could be as easy as breathing if, rather than letting go of her and the heart she had restored to him, he released the burden and duty to his late family. 

But he couldn’t.

For, if he couldn’t keep his promise to Cseri’a and Buoy, how could he believe in any of the ones he had made to Nabi…?”

[nico-di-angelato]

here are all the amazing easter eggs and references in the new movie Halloween (2018) !! it does contain spoilers and WHEW this list is long bc im the biggest nerd ever have fun 

i also tried to do it in order lmao 

The opening credits are eerily similar to the original credits back in 1978 and also the same font the original movie used unlike what some of the sequels did. 

In the credits, instead of actor Nick Castle being credited as Michael Myers, “The Shape” is. This further alludes to the fact that Myers is not human and really is The Boogieman. Castle performed a majority of the masked Myers' scenes, so he's not necessarily playing "Michael Myers" in that sense.

In the beginning scenes, we hear recordings of Dr. Samuel Loomis, Myers’s original doctor/psychiatrist, diagnosing him as a demon saying “it needs to die!” Although it sets up the atmosphere of the scene as even more chilling, it pays respects to Donald Pleasence (Dr. Loomis) with his dedication to the franchise who died in 1995. Although it is not Pleasence’s voice, actor Colin Mahan did an excellent job bringing back Dr. Loomis’s iconic voice full of fear and paranoia to the viewers. 

Michael escapes from him being transported like in Halloween and in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers where a prisoner transport goes wrong. However, his escape almost exactly parallels the first movie. In both movies, patients are seen roaming around the field with the crashed bus but no Michael in sight. The soon-to-be victim goes outside their car to check out the damage and then goes back into the car without checking the backseat. Big mistake since Michael strangles his victim to death and steals their car to head back home. 

After Michael is found out to be the last missing patient, he is referenced as with “babysitter murders”. To the average viewer, this could mean nothing more than a simple refresher to the first movie but to a Halloween fan, it’s more than that. The original movie title was going to be “The Babysitter Murders” but was later changed to its iconic title. 

When Dr. Loomis arrives in Haddonfield to find Michael, his first stop is to visit Judith Myers’s grave, the deceased sister of Michael Myers. In this film, it’s the podcasters who visit the grave. 

Laurie Strode’s house, or sanctuary, in this case, gives a very similar vibe to the original Myers’ house from the first movie which first shows the viewers how similar Laurie and Michael have become. 

When Michael arrives at the gas station, there is a pickup truck that has “Resurrection Church” which could be a homage to Halloween: Resurrection (even though it was one of the worst movies in the franchise). 

Meanwhile, at the gas station, the entire scene plays out very closely related to Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers where after he escapes he also visits a gas station and kills all the workers there. 

Michael murders a garage mechanic and steals his utilitarian jumpsuit, which is exactly how he changes from a hospital gown to a pair of grease-stained overalls in Halloween 4.

However, he doesn’t just stop at killing the workers this time. His main targets were the two podcast reporters from the beginning of the movie who he kills in the bathroom of the gas station. In many of the sequels, characters have met Myers in public restrooms whether it be the first time or the last time which serves as an ongoing theme in the films. 

After Michael Myers escapes in the original movie, the scene cuts to Laurie and her friends walking down the sidewalk in Haddonfield discussing their Halloween plans, unaware of the horror that was let loose. This is very similar to the scene with Allyson and her friends but with a more modern conversation and sprinkling in Allyson’s grandmother’s paranoia. 

In school, we see Allyson sitting in the back of a classroom looking out the window while her teacher is talking about “fate”. This alludes heavily to the first film with almost identical movements. However, in the first film, Laurie’s teacher explains that fate is a natural, nonreligious element of our lives, so we’re destined for whatever fate has in store for us -- aka Laurie encountering Michael who will ultimately change her life. Allyson’s teacher, on the other hand, says the quote, “He said fate took a different course.” With some research, we learn the quote comes from a Holocaust Survivor named Viktor Frankl and said “The way in which a man accepts his fate and all the suffering it entails, the way in which he takes up his cross, gives him ample opportunity — even under the most difficult circumstances — to add a deeper meaning to his life… Here lies the chance for a man either to make use of or to forgo the opportunities of attaining the moral values that a difficult situation may afford him. And this decides whether he is worthy of his sufferings or not.” This alludes to Laure’s trauma and how she overcomes it by the end of the movie. 

The biggest and most obvious reference in the classroom scene is when Allyson looks out the window and sees her grandmother across the street staring at her, exactly the same to Laurie’s first encounter with Myers. 

When the Strodes are having dinner, Allyson invited her boyfriend, Cameron Elam. Allyson’s father tells stories to them about how him and Cameron’s father, Lonnie Elam, would “trip balls out in the woods.” This was the same Lonnie Elam who bullied Tommy Doyle in the original, and whose friends dare him to approach the door of the haunted Myers house. 

During dinner, Laurie arrives late and in a state of panic. She jugs down a glass of wine to calm her nerves which she does similarly during lunch in Halloween H20.

Going back to number 2 in this list, “The Shape” is credited to play Michael Myers. Although Myers is commonly called that by many fans, this name was never actually spoken until this film, At dinner, Laurie tells her family that “I saw him. The shape.” So FINALLY, fans can hear the secret name spoken aloud. 

okay this list is really long uhhh tell me if u want more lmao bc i am literally only like 15 min into the movie