#emerald sword saga

[arkan1126]

Warrior Of Ice spirit fanart

[wigglywarpybogroots]

The patch shack debut; symphony of the enchanted lands

Some pictures of my latest piracy, for one my gavorite albums of all time. The shadows and lighting are especially based off of the Rhapsody patch made by desecrations of souls productions. Its one of a pair of patches, the second dragon is pictured below, which makes up the scene of the inner panel art from symphony of the enchanted lands. Here are some progress pictures:

I wasnt happy with the grey dragon at first, but now it reminds me of the illustration style for the how to train your dragon books, i might change the hem color though. These get the spot of honor, right on my vests shoulders \m/

[mapas-fantasticos]

Maps of the Enchanted Lands from Rhapsody of fire's Emerald Sword Saga.

[a-funeral-pyre]

Headcanon that the Warrior of Ice in the Emerald Sword saga was named Loinir after the Sword's creator in the hopes it would bring him luck. Which it did, a little bit.

[arkan1126]

EMERALD SWORD FANART (The Last Winded Unicorn)???

Hardboard fantasy/surreal paintings

Fairy (2015) // Angels of Dragonland (2013) // The Last Winged Unicorn (2012) // Betta (2012)

[stayallnite]

[kryscent]

tsuki no hikari ☆ 2

an: it's 1.45 I promise I will format this later today. please have these crumbs as I have awoken from the depths of tumblr trenches - school has been cooking me but I am the chef now

pairings: opla!zoro x gn!reader

wc: 1.5k

content briefing: slow slowburn. canon typical violence (description and dialogue). the east blue saga. lore heavy!reader. multi-chaptered work so expect fluff, angst and suggestive content ahead. alternating povs. the reader used to go by the name hikari but is not an oc (i promise its for the plot)

synopsis: a vigilante of sorts, you roamed the east blue without any particular aim, until one odd mission pulls you back into a part of your life you'd almost left behind, meeting someone you'd almost forgotten.

previous | next

When you trench-crawled into the circus tent, Zoro was mostly taken aback by how invisible you were to his notice – he didn’t even know you were there until you got to your feet, staring at him, before walking right out. The other part of him was rattled by the shockingly familiar kitsune mask on the side of your head, resting at your temple and streaked with sandy dust.

An unnerving stillness, he has to turn to look to know if you’re behind him by a half-step, or leaning on the wall with him. It messes with him – his senses are sharpened as far as they can go, from years of gruelling training and meditation, and yet, you dodge and elude every barricade of his perception with hushed ease. It's achingly intrusive, a nagging thought at the edge of his memories.

It's when you introduce yourself – as a Shimotsuki scholar, not specific to the swordcraft of the village but the region; shinobi – that the nagging ebbs away to the recesses of his consciousness, clearing the path like the rising tides at dusk washing away sand that had settled at noon.

The sifted sand settles, murkiness giving way to diaphanous caustics when he realises where he had last seen that shroud; that kitsune.

Porcelain white, ribbons and curves painted in bleeding crimson in crescents, meandering around the eyes, looping into the temple and swirling the swell of the cheek.

Turning away after receiving the Wado Ichimonji from his sensei; the day is dim, cloudy; gaze rising from the sword in his outstretched hands to sweep mindlessly over the students in funeral garb – a white belt over their black gi replacing the usual emerald – his eyes catching onto the bone white mask in a sea of solemn faces; his stomach dropping at the haunting expression of the wearer, or lack thereof, shadows bending into the crevices where their eyes should be, hands folded neatly on their lap.

When Zoro isn’t spending hours upon hours in solitary training, he doesn’t have much to do – he used to spend time running through the forests, climbing trees and jumping into slow, deep-enough rivers with Kuina – he now lacked that companion. A companion. Not that he thinks company was necessary to have fun, of course, but it’s whatever.

So, instead, he dedicates his time to discerning the weird, freakishly quiet student, who for some reason only appears for four months a year. He asked sensei why they visit so randomly, and he said it's because they travel to different villages to study different subjects in rotation by order of an Emperor of the Seas – which Zoro thinks is stupid: there’s only one subject worthy of dedicated learning, and that is swordsmanship. But whatever. (Implore. He’s only eleven years old. His worldview is green.)

“Hey,” he kicks a rock in your direction, where you’re advancing through the katas you’d apparently modified yourself, alone in relative silence aside from the sharp “hai” you raise at the end of each progression, and the distinct whoosh of your wooden katanas whipping through the air.

You pause momentarily, nodding in acknowledgement, before resuming and beginning the next set. “When did you first come here?” he asks, drawing his foot out to the pebble to drag it back to him, to kick it around. “Last year,” you hum, breathy from the exertion of holding out two swords. The year she died. You probably didn’t get to meet her, he ponders numbly, kicking at the ground a bit harder. (You did. Kuina knew you, and liked you well enough to speak to you more than once. But it is not for him to know yet.)

“What's your name?” he asks, staring at you. You tilt your head mid swing, wondering what to say. “Dunno, but my Sofu used to call me Hikari.”

“How old’re you?’’ You raise a brow at the barrage of questions, sweat trickling down your hairline. “Eleven.”

Oh. Same age. She was a year older. She is twelve this year. Would have been.

Despite your fluid movements, whetted but poised, there’s that creepy stillness that he doesn’t like – you complete each move decisively, firm, but you’re still nimble, light footed. Like a bird preparing to take flight, a cat arching its back before leaping away. ‘Ready to run away from a fight at a moment’s notice,’ he thinks to himself, nose upturned with contempt, ‘Like a coward.’

He decides he doesn’t talk to cowards, because they’re weak, and walks away right as you turn at the lack of response, sudden silence, rock flicking at your ankle.

That was the first and last time he ever bothered to approach you.

He observes how you stand close at Luffy’s right, Nami on his left, nodding along to his requirements for his dream ship. Your light footfalls down the wooden boardwalk to the shipyard contrast his careless ones as Nami suggests sneaking away with one, and he stops in his tracks.

‘You want to steal a ship?’ Luffy, for once, has no trace of a smile on his lips when talking to them. Nami only sighs, exasperated. ‘How else did you think we were gonna get one? Pay for something we can’t even afford?’

‘There’s a lot of hardwork and effort that goes into the craft,’ you murmur dimly, casting a sidelong glance at the numerous workers – their arms glistening, shirts sweat soaked and dusted with sawdust from carving wood in the hot sun – and you square your shoulders, standing upright. ‘It’s not…fair to that labour; to take advantage of what they reap.’

‘The awesome ship that's gonna get us to the Grand Line,’ he counters, voice firm as he nods in agreement with you, ‘–is as much of a member of our crew as the rest of us. And if we’re going to get a great ship, we’re gonna get it the right way.’

‘Yeah you can pitch that to the salesman, I’m sure he’ll strike a deal with that story,’ she shoots back, glaring at the both of you with her voice dripping with sarcasm, but it doesn’t register. He beams, throwing finger guns. ‘Exactly!’ Zoro’s eyes fall to you as you laugh lightly, shaking your head, before Luffy pulls you along by your hand without much protest from your side.

‘So what’re we actually going to do?’ he rests his wrists on the hilt of Wado, watching you go. ‘I don’t know,’ Nami drops her arms against her side. ‘Guess we’ll just have to scope out and see how lax the security is around here,’ she tilts her head with a tired smirk.

‘Got it.’

Luffy knew you; going as far as calling you one of his best friends, despite not having mentioned you before. You seem to be… good, a lot like Luffy when it comes to big dreams and unshakeable morals. There’s a lot he doesn’t know about you, he surmises, looking away to peer at the multitude of handmade vessels, most with only a frame of wood to call a hull, and others, rarer, are honed to perfection. Like the caravel in front of him, a ram as a figurehead, with Luffy clambering up the makeshift scaffold staircase to get to it, with you in tow. His eyes stray from the ship to you, the relenting agreement to go wherever Luffy drags you, the glint in your eyes, the curve of your smile- stop.

Zoro knew there was something familiar about you, unable to put his finger on it until you introduced yourself fully, so he knows enough now. Cool. Normal.

It gets abnormal when he realises he wants to know more.

More than just your name, than what's good for him. For his goal.

Shaking his head imperceptibly to himself, he eyes up the catwalk, squinting in the sun as Luffy chats with someone on board, holding a rag. As the trio of you make your way down, he studies you (doesn’t even realise he’s doing it), paying heed to how you stay close to your captain and don’t say much at all in response to their conversation aside from amicable nods and sparse laughter.

‘Guys, this is Usopp, and he’s gonna sell us his ship – it’s the one,’ he nods solemnly, patting Usopp’s hand.

‘Uh– technically it’s not my ship, and I’m not a salesman,’ it sounds more like a question than a statement, and Nami narrows her eyes at him. ‘Do you even work here?’At her cynicism, the guy aligns himself, straightening his shoulders.

‘’Course I work here! I’m the Chief Officer of Encrustation Removal and Aviary Waste Disposal.’ To his credit, his confidence is unwavering and Luffy nods, jaw-dropped, along to the contrived title. ‘He scrubs barnacles and cleans bird shit,’ Zoro calls bullshit, scuffing his boot against the planks.

Usopp falters, but soldiers on. ‘But…I do know the person who owns it – owns the whole shipyard ‘fact,’ he smirks, gripping Luffy’s shoulder and giving it a firm shake. ‘She’s my best friend; rich rich. I can take you to her, if you’d like. Help strike a deal maybe?’ Nami smiles at the swordsman, and he shrugs noncommittally. Deals? Now that was something she could get around.

‘I’d love to meet her.’

kryscent '24

do not copy repost etc. likes and reblogs are most definitely appreciated!

dividers by @cafekitsune | gif by @divineandmajesticinone

taglist: @gaslysainz @janedoe-69

taglist is open! lmk if i missed out on your tag <3

[arkan1126]

Lately I've been drawing a lot of dumb Warrior Of Ice art

Nothing serious

[feotakahari]

Saga Emerald Beyond's tutorials are overcomplicated, so I'm testing whether I can explain the classes and techniques in a less confusing way. Please let me know if this makes sense.

Overview

Most of the techniques you use in combat can be described as weapon techniques, spell techniques, or relic techniques.

More rarely, there are mech techniques, ephemeral techniques, blood techniques, and soul techniques.

Not In This Guide

There are stats like strength and acuity, but I won't discuss them because this is complicated enough already. I will discuss how the mech and ephemeral classes interact with them.

Weapon Techniques/Kugutsu Part 1

Humanoids, meaning every class except monster and mech, learn weapon techniques. They can be subdivided into one-handed melee, two-handed melee, one-handed ranged, two-handed ranged, and martial arts, each of which has a different stat for how good you are at using them.

Yes, I'm counting martial arts as a weapon technique. Shut up.

Characters start with at least one weapon technique of each class. Using direct offensive techniques teaches you more of them, e.g. repeatedly punching teaches you to kick. Other techniques are learned situationally, e.g. if you repeatedly get attacked while holding a weapon that can parry, you'll eventually learn to parry.

The skills you learn later on can be sub-subdivided. E.g. an axe is a one-handed melee weapon, but using one can teach you moves that can only be used with an axe, not a sword. Thankfully, there's no specific axe substat--you just use the one-handed stat for damage.

There's a class called kugutsu that can't learn weapon techniques just by using the weapon. They have to watch other characters use the weapon in order to mimic them.

Spell Techniques

Every class except mech and squire can learn spells.

(Squires aren't mentioned elsewhere in the tutorials, so I'm not sure what their deal is.)

Spell techniques can be temporarily learned from equipment, and lost when the equipment is removed. Most characters don't start with spells, so they need an item to get them started.

Although spells have a single spell stat that improves as you repeatedly cast, they also have five elemental stats that, as far as I can tell, never improve at all.

Repeatedly casting a spell permanently teaches you other spells of the same element. You learn these spells faster if your element stat is high.

Relic Techniques/Monsters

Monster and mech classes use relic techniques. Some of the humanoid classes can use them too--it's pretty random.

Relics are equipment. They start out empty, but each can be filled with a relic technique if their user gets the killing blow on a monster-type enemy that uses that technique.

Each monster-type enemy has multiple techniques, and it seems to be random which one you learn.

If you're full up, you can "unleash" a relic technique in combat to remove it from the relic and make room for a new one.

Monsters have a permanent, unremovable relic technique to get them started. Other than that, you can't permanently learn relic techniques.

Monsters can't equip weapons or armor, only relics or accessories.

Mech Techniques/Mechs

Mech is the only class that uses these.

Every equippable item has a technique attached to it. Equipping it to a mech temporarily teaches the technique.

Mech techniques cannot be learned permanently, except for one permanent technique you start with.

Mech techniques that can attack are divided into melee and ranged, which have separate stats for your skill at using them. Mechs don't care about the one-handed or two-handed distinction.

Armor and accessories have techniques that give temporary buffs. These techniques have no associated stat.

Mechs can never permanently improve stats like strength or acuity, only stats associated with techniques.

Mechs can put any equipment in any equipment slot. There's nothing stopping you from giving them six weapons at once.

Ephemeral Techniques/Ephemerals

Some ephemerals are monsters. Others are humanoids.

Remember those stats like strength and acuity? Ephemerals get temporary bonuses to most of them as they survive more battles. These bonuses are accompanied by title changes, starting at juvenile and ending at elder.

However, title changes temporarily reduce endurance and max life points.

When an ephemeral's life points hit 0, they drop down to juvenile again, but get small permanent stat boosts and permanently learn some ephemeral techniques. The higher their title was, the better the gains. Gains stack as they repeatedly fall in battle, so make sure to endanger your elders!

Ephemeral techniques have no associated stat.

Blood Techniques/Vampires

Vampires are humanoids. Everything I know about them is from tutorials.

By defeating humanoid enemies, they improve their blood techniques.

Defeated humanoid enemies become new party members called thralls.

There's special equipment you can give to thralls to turn them into knights, which can use blood techniques.

If you remove a knight's special equipment, they permanently turn into a wastrel, which has 1 max life point and can never learn any more techniques of any kind.

Yes, this all sounds pretty evil.

Soul Techniques/Kugutsu part 2

Kugutsu learn something called soul techniques.

I know absolutely nothing about how these work.

[patchun]

Emerald Seaglass Elite 4 Saga

This is not a challenge romhack or anything but I am on Hard Mode and I do really like my team so I figured I'd document my experience here. Just one post this time no worries lol.

This has been a fairly casual run with me, as usual, coming overprepared and taking the game far more seriously than it should be taken for the majority of it - but nonetheless, in the interest of not wasting healing items and such because the economy was actually kind of rough, I've been playing on Switch mode. But, for the purposes of a more challenging Elite 4, I have switched() to Set.

First is Sydney. No real documentation on the trainer changes in this game so I'm just going to assume Mightyena lead. Fairy/Dragon Altaria should be more than enough to deal with pretty much his entire team, but should I need it, I do have Absol with Sacred Sword in the back. Here we go-a.

Yeah no Moonblast just wiped the floor with all of his Pokemon one by one lol. I kind of wish this WAS a challenge romhack because Pokemon is just kind of braindead otherwise BUT moving on

130 base Attack. Buffed to 95 base Speed. Sharpness. Night Slash, Psycho Cut, Sacred Sword - Absol is the best its probably ever been here. And if she isn't enough, Ghost/Normal Banette (whose best attacking move is unfortunately Phantom Force) should be able to handle anything else. The two complement each other well, with Banette being able to switch into Fighting moves and such.

..was that necessary

Oh actually Mismagius is a genuinely scary Pokemon, Ghost/Fairy and undoubtedly going for Moonblast here. My Fairy answer is Yuumi the Chimecho so I'll pivot into her before switching Misery in on a Ghost move.

Misery took a Moonblast before going for Phantom Force,... which then gave Phoebe the opportunity to switch to her own Banette. A better physical Ghost move would have been cool here. Predicting a physical attack like Darkest Lariat, I switched to Walrein (Fur Coat... it's so bulky). But this is a special attacking Banette who used Thunderbolt, so I switched out again, this time to Chiyari.

Which brings in Froslass... Okay, these ghosts are actually pretty tough. I go Yuumi on the Ice Beam and then Jill on a... Will-o-Wisp. I then swap Skadi in on a 150 BP Infernal Parade... or at least, I thought it was 150 BP? Skadi basically took nothing. I'm not sure I'm telling you this walrus is insane in this game.

okay well fuck me for saying it was easy or whatever hahaha.

I finish Dusknoir off w Yuumi so that I'm in this position when Mismagius comes in. Highly expecting either Shadow Ball or Infernal Parade, one if which I'm confident I can survive - HOWEVER, I'm also confident that Flash Cannon won't kill here. However if all goes well I should be able to switch into Misery afterwards to get the kill with Shadow Sneak.

If this were a Nuzlocke losing Flygon would have been devastating. But it's not so onward

so yeah Ghost type was pretty rough to deal with but surely Ice wont be so bad ri-... *looks at team*... Well it really depends. I went ahead and taught Yuumi Calm Mind which I was holding off on. Skadi also knows it, and Jill has Sacred Sword - but bringing her in might not be possible, so I guess I'll lead with her. (side note you may notice my low level pokemon yes because my exp share is turned off for the sake of challenge(

What madman was responsible for making Walrein one of the best defensive Pokemon in the game lmao, the battle just came down to Skadi beating up the other ice types with Bouncy Bubble

Anyways onto Drake now, and I have quite a few answers for Dragon types. Gonna go ahead and turn the EXP Share back on for this fight seeing as I am now at a 6 level disadvantage that should be enough lol

What's particularly nostalgic about this, and the big reason I've been wanting to use Flygon lately, is that my very first time ever beating the Elite 4 was with a Flygon. Playing Ruby version at my grandmom's house in the country, I must have lost so many times, even though I'm 100% sure I was definitely using Groudon too. Probably Blaziken and Gardevoir and Breloom on there... good memories.

Drake brought in Altaria so I swapped to Yuumi,,, he then proceeded to set up two Dragon Dances and then hit me with a terrifying +0 Dazzling Gleam. lol.

Which brings in Drake's own Flygon but like... what is it gonna do to me. A weak Flamethrower? Oh Crunch no, that's actually bad. Okay Skadi your turn dear

A Crunch into a CRIT Earthquake did that much like... what is this

Now then, with my underleveled ass two water-resist ass team,,, onto Wallace.

I'll spare you the details as this fight was mostly stat-checking but Jill came in very clutch with a crit on Whiscash in the end and this one might have in fact been necessary >:D

[ghilliedubh]

Vrinda: The Ivy Queen

Exploring the connections between the Norse goddess Rindr/Vrinda and ivy folklore

I am writing this with my mind swathed in a dark emerald green. Last Yule night I drew the rune Gebo, the Ivy card from my Ogham deck and the Queen of Swords. This painted an interesting picture in my head, of a green lady wandering amongst ivy-clad ruins. I dived into ivy folklore and mythology, researching who this might be. I visited Hebe, the Maenads and the various Green Ladies of Britain, but one particular solemn figure was sitting and waiting for me.

Very little is known of the Goddess Rindr and her name’s origin is obscure, but it is thought to be connected to a Gotlandic word for ivy, rind. A variation of her name, Vrindr, Wrinda or Vrinda (the name I prefer), can possibly be found in the Ostergotland place name Vrinnevi, the meaning of which would in that case be Vrindar-Vé (Vrindr’s Shrine). Oscar Lundberg proposed that she was therefore a fertility goddess represented by ivy or perhaps even made of it. The theory of her being connected to Vrinnevi has been debated, and some argue that the place name simply means “Ivy forest”. Even so, the similarity between the name Rindr and the word rind is hard to ignore and I strongly feel that she is represented by ivy as Lundberg suggests. Previously I had only known her as some kind of winter goddess and as the unwilling bearer of Óðinn’s son, Váli. This connection to the ivy plant opened up a whole new dimension of her.

I want to start by criticizing Patricia Telesco’s interpretation of Vrinda being a goddess of accepting uncomfortable changes. That just as winter yields to spring, so does Vrinda yield to the advances of Óðinn and become warm and fertile. Whether or not Vrinda’s myth is a metaphor for the changing of seasons, I find it appalling that someone would look at a story about sexual assault and draw from it the lesson that one should not fight “positive change”. Change can be good, but that attitude in this context is disgusting and disrespectful to all that have had to go through such a horrible experience. Now, moving on…

First there is the madness. The maenads were wild, ecstatic worshipers of Dionysus who wore ivy. Often willing participants of the frenzy, but sometimes forced. In Gesta Danorum the tale is told of how Óðinn, when thrice rejected by Vrinda, uses magic to drive her mad and then ill. Disguised as a medicine woman called Wecha, Óðinn tells her father that he can cure her but it would cause a violent reaction. Vrinda is tied to her bed and Óðinn proceeds to commit one of his ugliest crimes. I connect these two instances of forced madness with certain properties of the ivy; ingesting the leaves can cause delirium, convulsions and even hallucinations. Surprisingly, wearing crowns of ivy was believed to prevent drunkenness. To me, all of the above makes Vrinda a goddess of madness, but as a sufferer. We who may have bouts of bad mental health may find comfort in her.

Next I want to talk about the Green Ladies of Britain, specifically the melancholy yet usually benevolent ghosts that haunt castles. The Green Ladies are dead but are still kind, often protecting living residents of their haunts. The Green Lady of Huntingtower Castle in Perthshire (known as Lady Greensleeves) is said to have healed a young boy who lived in a house on the estate. Ivy was also seen as a protective plant in Britain.This protective element also be a domain of Vrinda, John McKinnell writes about a kenning for a warrior in the saga of Guðmundur Arason, serkja Rindar Sannr. Sannr is a name of Óðinn meaning “truth”, Rindar serkur would be “Rindur’s serk”. According to McKinnell this hints that she may have been able to enchant clothing to work as a protective charm. But back to the Green Ladies. Most of them are thought to be the ghosts of particular women of noble lineage that lived in the castles and were usually killed in horrible ways. The Green Lady of Caerphilly Castle is the ghost of Alice de la Marche of France who died of shock when she learned of her husband’s men killing her lover. I mention her specifically because of her ability to blend into the ivy that grows on the castle walls. The ivy in this story feels like a very appropriate symbol and I feel it could be extended to the rest of the Green Ladies. Ivy clings to ruins, it clings to trees long after they die. I want to quote the first stanza of Henry Kendall’s The Ivy on the Wall:

The verdant ivy clings around

Yon moss be-mantled wall,

As if it sought to hide the stones,

That crumbling soon must fall:

That relic of a bygone age

Now tottering to decay,

Has but one friend—the ivy—left.

The rest have passed away.

I believe this sentiment lives with Vrinda. In this aspect, she is a goddess of mourning and trauma, of yearning for the irretrievable past. But at the same time she is a goddess of protection and overcoming hardships and devastation. As ivy holds together and decorates the weathered stones of an old castle, so too can Vrinda help hold together our broken hearts and shattered selves.

Then there is winter. I have read many articles and blogs online written by pagans associating Vrinda with winter and almost nothing else. I never actually saw mentioned any concrete reason for it, but now that I have become aware of her ivy realm it has become obvious. Most people are familiar with the carol The Holly and the Ivy. Both plants are evergreen and are part of a family of yule plants alongside mistletoe and yew. Ivy and Holly historically represented the feminine vs masculine, in parts of England there are still dances between the Holly boy and the Ivy girl. It was supposedly custom once for men and women to light-heartedly taunt each other through song. Sadly it seems mostly the songs praising Holly have been preserved, an example is the following verse:

Nay, Ivy, nay; it shall not be i-wys ;

Let Holly hafe the maystery, as the manner is.

Holly stond in the Halle fayre to behold;

Ivy stond without the dore; she is full sore acold.

Holly and his merry men they dancyn and they sing.

Ivy and hur maidens they wepyn and they wryng.

(Ballad from the time of Henry VI)

In a more positive light, holly and ivy feature in a poem by Henry VIII called Green Groweth the Holly. Here ivy's steadfast color throughout winter symbolizes fidelity. It is a charming poem if a bit ironic, since Henry himself wasn’t exactly a paragon of fidelity. I’ll let you read the third and fourth verse:

As the holly groweth green

With ivy all alone

When flowers cannot be seen

And greenwood leaves be gone,

Now unto my lady

Promise to her I make,

From all other only

To her I me betake.

It is not strange that Henry made this connection. In the language of flowers ivy represents fidelity, wedded love and friendship. Ancient Greek brides would carry ivy as a symbol of undying love and sprigs of it are often found in wedding bouquets today. I think ivy being an evergreen as well as it’s ability to cling tightly are good reasons for it being a symbol for faithful love. We also see generosity and kindness as ivy provides berries for birds in winter. These aspects all together give me the feeling that, yes, Vrinda is a winter goddess. However, I feel she is more a goddess of persevering winter, rather than a goddess of the frost and cold itself. She stays living, green and fruitful when other plants lie dead. Her love persists through hardships. Winter or summer, it holds on.

Just before I conclude I’d like to touch upon animal associations. There is not a lot to work with, but the color and winding tendencies of ivy invoke the spirit of a serpent. Perhaps an adder, with its ivy-like pattern and ability to hibernate. The adder, like the ivy, is also toxic. The maenads wore serpents as well as ivy so it's not entirely far-fetched to see snakes as a favorite of Vrinda, but I’m not sure how well it fits. Perhaps the wren, a bird often seen darting through ivy bushes and has connections to winter. The word “wren” is of obscure origin but the words wren, rind (the Gotland word for ivy) and rindill (the Icelandic word for wren) sound curiously similar to Wrinda and Rindur.

Then there are owls. In Britain ivy has a special relationship with the tawny owl, which is sometimes even called an ivy-owl. Most people are familiar with owls being traditionally associated with death, but it may surprise some that ivy is so as well. This seems contradictory to it’s tolerance of winter, the death of the year, but this association likely stems again from fidelity as well as ivy’s tendency to grow over tombstones. Ivy was also a frequent motif on headstones and there it likely represents immortality and eternal life. Both snakes and owls are carved on headstones too. Ivy was also used to foretell death.

This association with death ties well in with the aforementioned Green Ladies. Owls and ivy are paired together in the idiom “like an owl in an ivy-bush”, which is used to describe a person with a vacant stare (usually due to drunkenness) or in some cases those with a frightened and dishevelled appearance. I almost forgot to mention that tawny owls usually mate for life, fidelity again. Finally, the carol I mentioned earlier has a couple of verses mentioning owls:

Ivy hath berries black as any sloe;

There come the owl and eat him as she go

…

Good ivy, what birds hast thou?

None but the owlet that cries how, how.

That brings us to the end. It’s quite bold of me, I know, to just give Vrinda all these associations purely based on ivy folklore and mythology. However, I feel so uncomfortable just leaving her bound to that one, grisly story of her impregnation. It’s unfair. I really do feel she may have shown herself to me that Yule night, or at least an aspect of herself, and I’d rather she lived in my mind as a lush and complex entity. Maybe I am getting lost in a thick forest of wishful thinking but maybe, like the Green Lady of Caerphilly Castle, she has indeed been hiding in the ivy.

Vrinda the broken, Vrinda the crazed,

Vrinda the wanderer of ruins and graves.

Vrinda the devoted, Vrinda the evergeen.

Vrinda the beautiful, unwavering Ivy Queen

Hrafnsunna Ross

Sources and further reading:

On English ivy folklore and mythology:

http://khkeeler.blogspot.com/2021/10/plant-story-folklore-of-english-ivy.html

https://interestingliterature.com/2021/05/ivy-symbolism-in-literature-religion-mythology-analysis-meaning/

https://from-bedroom-to-study.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-hedonistic-history-of-interesting.html?m=1&fbclid=IwAR3kerXYa_Nud94rzbCuhPlv-qH8Dah2R2jibqFLPYV4d8GmGTP87GJgVBQ

https://books.google.is/books?id=eOvyDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA118&lpg=PA118&dq=ivy+drunkenness+folklore&source=bl&ots=n3L6TNUO9e&sig=ACfU3U1PGGIezufv-sZbxklBhjBdNuqwKw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjDi6SxgYT1AhWTEMAKHcEyBN4Q6AF6BAg0EAM#v=onepage&q=iv

y%20drunkenness%20folklore&f=false

https://speakingofwitchwands.net/2017/11/16/the-magick-of-ivy/

https://www.woodland-ways.co.uk/blog/hedgerow-medicines/ivy/

Properties of English ivy:

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/hedera-helix/

On Maenads:

https://www.thecollector.com/maenads-women-bacchus/ On Green Ladies: https://www.spookyisles.com/scottish-green-lady-stories/

Wedding flower customs:

https://www.theknot.com/content/wedding-flowers-customs-traditions

Wren:

https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=rindill

https://www.bardsinthewoods.com/2012/12/the-wren-wren.html

Tawny Owl:

https://www.peakdistrictonline.co.uk/birds-of-prey-the-tawny-owl/

Evidence pointing to Rindr being a worker of protective magic:

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.138/16i.962.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/John_McKinnell_Meeting_the_Other_in_Norse_Myth_ab-ok.cc.pdf

https://norse.ulver.com/src/biskup/gudmunda/index.html

Gesta Danorum book 3, where the story of her assault is written:

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1150/1150-h/1150-h.htm

Possible etymology of her name:

https://books.google.is/books?id=DtcMCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA160&lpg=PA160&dq=scandinavia+ivy+goddess&source=bl&ots=GMILPvloOP&sig=ACfU3U3EX9SDhIxFUwiTT_sNHFbMbxOlng&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjv-_fXvYP1AhUwQEEAHdY1D9cQ6AF6BAgfEAM#v=onepage&q=scandinavia%20ivy%20goddess&f=false

Headstone symbolism:

https://headstonesymbols.co.uk/

[arkan1126]

HISHADSKASDKJNHKJS EMERALD SWORD FANART

Inktober 2017

1. Swift - Swift dragonswift 2. Divided - 3. Poison - Salamndra salamandra salamandra (salamandrine) 4. Underwater - 5. Long - That didn’t quite hit the mark! But I will know for the future drawing similar to this… 6. Sword - Only a warrior with a clear heart could have the honour to be kissed by the sun Yes, I’m that warrior I followed my way led by the force of cosmic soul I can reach the sword (Rhapsody - Emeralnd Sword) 7. Shy - Done for azraelangelo.deviantart.com/ar… 8. Crooked - Boardragon 9. Screech - 10. Gigantic - Done with Promarker and my first drawing done by Promarker… and I love it!

11. Run - Runing Liliensternus 12. Shattered - Done for azraelangelo.deviantart.com/ar… 13. Teeming - Vipera berus 14. Fierce - 15. Mysterious - 16. Fat - Bufo bufo 17. Graceful - 18. Filthy - Filthy little dragon… too curious! 19. Cloud - Smutná saň // Sad dragoness 20. Deep - What to think about one who draw this?…

21. Furious 22. Trail 23. Juicy 24. Blind - Third eye blind. Can you see beings around? 25. Ship 26. Squeak - Archaeopteryx lithographica 27. Climb 28. Fall 29. United - Sumer Solstice 30. Found 31. Mask

[spiderman616]

i need to know your favorite parts of archie. i wanna hear you talk about this so bad. er. read your thoughts about this so bad. zonic is obvious but what else (leaning toward you with chin in hands)

hmmm well if im going chronologically mecha madness is an easy one to put in. people talk about it all the time as being hype as fuck but it is. its hype as fuck idk what to say. a less discussed one is super sonic vs hyper knuckles. that was ALSO hype as fuck but had less stakes than mecha madness it was a lot more light hearted. sonic quest is also a fun little thing related to the classic games but its pretty entrenched in the current comics plot. and then after robotnik died the politics stuff is very hit or miss but it was pretty convoluted sometimes. however the whole sonic+tails world tour/fighting ixis naugus went pretty hard. not good 100% of the time but its really fun stuff. archie knuckles has some fun stuff too once in a while but not enough to reccomend full bits of it. if anything i would reccomend reading the arc where elias is recovered from angel island since it concludes a side plot from the sonic series. sonic vs knuckles battle royale is also good. the return of robo robotnik is built up really well, as well as the issue where sonic gets his adventure design via shenanigans with the super emerald. the adventure adaptation is slept on honestly, it plays very by the books in terms of adaptations because of behind the scenes reasons, but its still quite enjoyable to see the game's story put into the terms of archie AND how those developments affect the plot later down the line, and this is the last and in my opinion best full game adaptation in preboot. the rest are either omitted or only cover the beginning or abridge them into side stories. honestly ALL the stuff with mammoth mogul is a blast to read because he brings a very unique villain archetype to sonic that eggman doesnt, where eggman lacks foresight and patience mammoth mogul is literally immortal and concocts very elaborate plans and schemes. the plot about the source of all/sword of acorns is pretty good too, although that may be only when compared to everything else of its time so your mileage may vary. sonic adventure 2.5/tossed in space is a MUST READ though. even if you don't know archie that is really just top notch stuff. return to angel island also really nice especially if you want knuckles moments. jon grays art really does help a lot in this case. and of course the extended anonymous saga is awesome too, especially if youre a long term reader since it brings in a lot of stuff from previous stories. house of cards is dogged on a LOT which i dont think is quite fair. its a pretty compelling read. the scourge stuff could get grating depending on your opinions, but it has its moments. hedgehog havoc being a highlight of those moments too. the entire iron dominion saga is a good one too, (including journey to the east of course.) and its nice seeing it shake up the status quo with more game elements incorporated. the new mobotropolis thing is pretty short but its fun. extended chaotix being in knothole/the city leads to some fun moments as well since angel island is in a bit of a complication. of course that leads to the whole knuxerjak thing, which is quite honestly really awesome stuff if not resolved in a pretty lame way. the sonic universe series as a whole is really fun but highlights include the silver saga tails adventure and chaotix quest. and to cap it all off the whole mecha sally arc (coupled with silvers whole. gestures) is nice although again. the ending is pretty cheap which is a big problem with a lot of archie sonic arcs as a whole.

Now in terms of smaller MOMENTS. I mean. damn thats pretty hard to pick out since there are so many characters and interactions. but general rule of thumb if character pairings are out of left field that almost always means they'll be fun to witness if not only for a little since most stories are sonic centric. expected character pairings are also nice to see sometimes if only to deepen established relationships. in terms of set pieces it really depends on the artist, but action scenes are usually done well when there is low amounts of punching and high amounts of slapstick/cartoony violence

[hanzajesthanza]

gimme calanthe (i am so unpredictible i know)

a beast kickass mother unleashed - first of all, i'm not calling her a beast, that seems rude. but i wanted to select this option because just knowing how she did everything to protect pavetta and ciri, i think this is really where her 'lioness' moniker shines. i mean, regarding emhyr, if it were not for her who knows what would have happened to pavetta and ciri, and sooner! one of the worst things a parent can do is be careless about the safety of their child... i adore and respect that calanthe guarded them from evil, even when the evil was in the house:

‘(...) Calanthe was keeping a weather eye on me.’ ‘She never trusted you.’ ‘I know. I think she knew something about that prediction. And would have done anything to hamper me, and in Cintra I was in her power. (...) Calanthe guarded little Ciri like the apple of her eye. I couldn’t even have dreamed of kidnapping her.’

my friend's favorite, the blorbo by proxy -hiii :D and well, it's true. especially since i'm more of an aficionado of the saga than the short stories, i think you got me to appreciate calanthe a lot more and i'm very grateful for that <3

the fandom is so mean smh - or, alternatively phrased, unfortunately, our apartment's wall is right up against that of the netflix fandom's. but the book fandom also doesn't treat her well, particularly on reddit i've read some nasty comments about her with armchair military direction, essentially saying that they could have done a better job at defending cintra... guys. it's a story, and in this story the fairytale land is trampled by the big evil empire - no matter how good of a queen or military strategist calanthe ever was, no matter how good of defense cintra had, the massacre of cintra was going to happen because its what the plot demanded. i also think it's inaccurate to lambast calanthe for the nilfgaardian invasion, because not only are the nilfgaardians depicted as some kind of medieval-esque fantasy blitzkrieg, in these circumstances it's actually depicted that calanthe did a great and heroic job defending cintra. compare and contrast with the other northern monarchs during time of contempt! foltest, hem hem!

"They surrounded the Cintran army in the Marnadal valley. A battle was joined lasting the whole day, from dawn till dusk. The forces of Cintra fought courageously, but were decimated. The king fell, and then their queen (…) headed off a stampede, didn’t let them disperse, gathered anyone she was able to around herself and the standard. (...) They fought their way through the encirclement and fell back across the river towards the city. She defended the river crossing with a handful of knights, and shielded the retreat. They say she fought like a man, threw herself like a woman possessed into the greatest turmoil. They stabbed her with pikes as she charged the Nilfgaardian foot. She was transported to the city gravely wounded."

that's a solid design right there - "Calanthe adjusted the narrow golden circlet on her curled ash-gray hair (...)" "Calanthe, her fingers tapping an emerald necklace, the smallest stone of which was the size of a bumblebee (...)" i adore her design, it's so wonderfully fantastical, which adds to the entire fairytale atmosphere of "a question of price" and cintra in general. and i also appreciate how it is mentioned that she gained weight in her grief following pavetta's death. i also really love the imagery of her in geralt's brokilonian vision: "The woman is wearing a silvery suit of armour, bloody, dented and punctured by the points of pikes or halberds. Blood drips in a thin stream from the corner of her mysteriously and hideously smiling mouth." strikingly saintworthy.

literally i would kiss them - i'm sure one of her "unfailing smiles" would make me blush!

if anything happens to them i will cry - i guess, "when things happened to them i cried," the massacre of cintra especially told through geralt's vision in "sword of destiny" and dandelion's account in "something more" are crushing, and especially taking into account the end of calanthe's part in "something more" where she tells geralt that she feels it will be the last time they see each other. there was so much vision, foreshadowing, and premonition around her death that it's like a wave of dark molasses... it inches closer and closer, as a reader you're entirely powerless. and i believe calanthe herself felt this too, but refused to live any different way because she would not abandon her country and people.

character bingo

send an ask

[the-lupine-sojourner]

The Story Traveller Saga [Book 1: Martin the Warrior] [Martin/Rose included]

Hi there!

I had this idea for Ayana as a 'Story Traveller' for a while and I'm finally starting the journey!

For those not familiar with Brian Jacques' Redwall series, it is a very wonderful (in my opinion) series of 22-ish books set in a really fun area called Mossflower. The titular Redwall is an abbey made of red sandstone and is populated by peaceful woodlanders such as mice, hedgehogs, otters, sometimes shrews, moles, etc. The villains in the stories are always foxes, weasels, stoats, ferrets, etc that threaten Redwall in some way.

Another location is Salamandastron, the mountain stronghold of warrior badgers and the Long Patrol hares.

In general, the plot is bad guys decide to attack Redwall, the abbey had to defend itself, someone is named Warrior of Redwall (picking up a famous sword wielded by Martin the Warrior, one of Redwall's founders), and the day is saved eventually. That's a really rough oversimplification, but hopefully you understand what I'm trying to say.

I will point out that this is Martin's origin story, with the story of how he helped found Redwall coming right after I finish this book! :)

Btw, if you like my writing, please consider buying me a ko-fi, or if you want, you can continuously support me writing stories by joining my Patreon!

Anyway, I will let you guys read the prologue for now, and I hope you guys like it! Any questions are welcome! (or if you wanna be on a taglist, please let me know!)

God Bless and Good Day!

~The Lupine Sojourner

My life was changed by four little words.

"Ayana…it's your grandmother." My heart dropped to my toes as my aunt sobbed over the phone, telling me my ailing grandmother was gone, passing quietly in her sleep.

It was the ideal way to go, but that doesn't dull the pain of her loss at all.

All too soon, I sit at her funeral, tears a steady stream down my face. Then, we all went from the memorial (held the day after the funeral) to the will reading.

It was fairly standard, really. My uncle and his wife got the house, and the grandchildren were to split my grandmother's clothes and other belongings among ourselves…except, apparently, her books.

"The personal library of Elizabeth MacBurrow is to be given to her granddaughter, Ayana MacBurrow, in its entirety, along with the enclosed envelope in its entirety."

Murmurs rang through the room. I myself was shocked. Nana and I had always been close but I hadn't expected this. No one had. 

She'd always say I was the only one of her grandkids that would really listen to her bedtime stories (wonderful stories about heroes and villains, told through woodland animals) or let her talk to me about those books she loved (her bedtime stories were probably inspired by those books), but I never thought this would happen.

Now I have more books than I know what to do with, and a weird envelope. What was inside, I have no idea.

But, I have to go up and get the envelope, trying to ignore the murmurs still ringing around the room.

Strangely, it felt like there was something in it. Some small object, most likely made of metal as well as whatever paper was clearly inside.

I walk back to my seat, where my siblings tried to look at the envelope, but I tuck it into my purse, refusing to open it til I was alone.

I shrink into my seat, wishing this will reading was over already.

=#=#=#=#=

My mom, bless her, knew I wanted to be alone, so she didn't let anyone stop me from going to my room.

There, I lock the door and flop on my bed so I could finally open the mysterious envelope I'd gotten from Nana.

In it, as I thought, was a letter, and…a ring?

It was a lovely silver ring, looking like something an ancient king would wear, patterned a bit like a snake with an emerald for the snake's eye.

I frown. Why would Nana give me this, and her books? This makes no sense…

I open the letter, hoping that would clarify things.

My dear Ayana,

I'm afraid I don't have very long left in this life. I've made my peace with that, as sad as I know you and your family will be.

I've always felt that you were the most like me out of all the grandchildren. You are the only one with stars in your eyes, eager for an adventure. So I left my library to you, along with this ring.

I stumbled on this ring at an estate auction I attended years ago with your grandfather before his passing.

It took a long time to discover its wonderful ability, as I'm sure you will discover for yourself.

It may be frightening at first, but if my instincts are correct, you will grow to love the adventures the ring will unlock for you.

Remember always, dear child, that I love you. I will always be thankful I got to nurture your love of reading and adventures. I hope that passion continues to flourish in you.

I love you always,

Nana

Tears blur my vision. What does all this mean? What does this ring do? What does Nana want me to do?!

Not sure what else to do, I try the ring on my fingers. Turns out, it fits best on my left pointer finger. I twist it on my finger absently. Nana's books would be given to me tomorrow, more than likely. We lived fairly close to Nana's house, and we were planning on going through Nana's stuff tomorrow anyway.

I flop on my bed, sighing heavily. Nana had always been a bit eccentric but I loved that about her. I could listen to her stories for hours! I always felt like she and I sort of understood each other…

Now…I'm not sure what she's asking me to do. Does she want me to read her whole library? Or just…whatever I want to read from it? And why give me the ring? This makes no sense! Couldn't you have written a clearer note, Nana!? Why'd you have to be so enigmatic about something like this?

Feeling helpless and unsure, I fiddle with the ring as more tears flow.

=#=#=#=#=

Dinner had been awkward, and I wasn't looking forward to the trip over to Nana's house, or the influx of questions I was sure to get.

I'd been grilled about the envelope at dinner so much that Mom and Dad had to step in and tell them to leave me alone. Dinner ended up with me finishing my meal alone in my room, the door locked. Eventually, I fell asleep, still feeling awful I couldn't decipher Nana's note.

True to my prediction, my cousins are eager to know about the letter, so I hid in one of Nana's spare bedrooms to try to calm down as my parents explain the situation.

They'd knocked on my door last night and I let them in, letting them read the letter. They were as confused as I am, and agreed to not talk too much about it.

Eventually, the conversation grows quiet so I come out to find a few boxes of books ready to go and my parents boxing up more of Nana's library.

There were a lot, and I go to help them.

My parents had sent my cousins away to start looking at Nana's glassware collection, which I wasn't interested in at all.

"You ok, honey?" Mom asks gently as we close up a box of books.

"I dunno. I still feel…numb, I guess." I confess. "And a little overwhelmed with all these books and this ring business."

"We're here for you, Ayana. You know that, right?"

I nod.

"I know. I really appreciate you keeping the vultures away." I quip, trying for a smile.

"Couldn't let them munch on my baby!" Mom also tries for a smile, but neither of us can quite manage it.

One of my cousins, Rosemary, walks up. "Hey, Annie." She greets. It was a nickname my family had started, and I never minded it.

"Hey, Mary." I retort, using her nickname.

"I'm sorry for bombarding you with questions earlier. I just got so excited by what might be in that letter and I didn't even think of how you felt about it." Rosemary murmurs, sitting beside me. Mom and Dad move away to oversee what was going on in the basement.

"I can understand that curiosity. I am still trying to figure it out myself, I guess as a distraction from how I got the ring and letter."

"I get that." Rosemary chuckles a little and rubs my back. "Hey, um, we females are going to go over Nana's other jewelry if you want to take a look."

"...Ok."

We go into Nana's bedroom, where her jewelry had been spread about the foot of the bed, a few pieces already on my cousins' hands, wrists, or necks.

"Hey, Annie." A few greet, no one wanting to awkwardly apologize for their behavior, but I could see the remorse and regret in their eyes, so I let it slide and start peeking at jewelry.

The rest of the day passes fairly uneventfully (my wardrobe a little fuller with some sweaters, cardigans, and coats of Nana's with a few trinkets wrapped up in clothes, a small box of pins, a few necklaces, and a few pairs of earrings) and soon we were unloading the many boxes of books into our living room where my parents were partway through making some bookshelves to house my new books.

I open a box of books Nana seemed to have read a lot, judging by the wear to the outside. I reach inside and grab a random book, heading to my room.

I barely get three pages in before I fall asleep, feeling like I was falling, but I wasn't scared as the darkness envelopes me.