#excerpt: Rebirth

[feral-ballad]

Erika L. Sánchez, from Lessons on Expulsion: Poems; “Amá”

[Text ID: “In One Hundred Years of Solitude, / Márquez wrote that we are birthed / by our mothers only once, but life obligates / us to give birth / to ourselves over and over.”]

[graeaenotgrey]

My lover says I don’t how to be loved

I disagree with him vehemently

He says I can only love when I’m broken

He says I never feel loved unless I’m broken

I laugh in his face, call him delusional

But sometimes I sit and wonder if he’s right.

©️Graeae

[polaris-australis]

just remembered that template that was going around forever ago for turning your project into a fake netflix series and i’m so tempted to dig it up and try to do it for my wip. like i have no idea how it would work esp with the amount of like. blood. and other imagery in it. but i think it’d be fine. hannibal exists so why not

[howifeltabouthim]

I wanted to get rid of myself so there could be room for other selves.

Catherine Lacey, from Biography of X

[kyofsonder]

Find the Word

I was tagged by both @saltysupercomputer and @crossroadcrow to find select sets of words in my WIPs and tag more people with my own words to keep the game going.

My Words: liquid, weather, line, plant, pin, sorrow, breeze, fall, justice, hug

I’ll tag @on-noon, @thatwitchrevan (I tried to find your writblr, but it didn’t come up so I’ll tag your main), @mr-writes, @hannahactuallywrites, @the-inkwell-variable, @writingpotato07, and as always anyone who wants to join in can use the folowing words and say I tagged them!

Your Words: pressure, patient/patience, expectation, seldom, familiar

The excerpts are under the cut as usual, so nobody has to scroll endlessly -- especially since I went overboard on these excerpts.

I found liquid in my novel WIP “To Be Honest”, in a scene that mentions blood and (magic-related) self injury:

Without sparing a second more to think, he brings the knife down on his arm at whatever angle fate decides. If he's lucky, it won't catch any major arteries and he'll be able to bandage himself up later. If he's not... Micah ignores the thought and focuses on the feeling of blood in his own veins. The flow of it through his muscles. The pressure of it against his every atom, heavy with a substance that feels like contradiction itself melted into liquid form. Warmth, cold, weight, lightness, both the smoothness of a river and the sharpness of broken glass, painful and absolutely painless. Focusing on the sensation of magic always makes him nauseous, and he has to grit his teeth against the feeling. A little more. Imagine its extremes as a scale. Push the scale in the desired direction. The foundation of unstructured spellcasting, just like his mother had taught both him and David in childhood. Just like he and David had taught Asher, not long after.

I found weather in my dream journal, full of subconscious stories I plan to eventually rewrite into intentionally original works, specifically in a dream about a pyschic shapeshifter named Sophia and her variously psychic friends:

Only a few people on the baseball team really take notice of the newcomer, each for different reasons. He's a bald, fairly round person who looks like he should be doing judo or sumo professionally. He even has a scowling expression most of the time, whether he means to or not. He's a kind person, but he's not warm or cuddly by any means -- still, I'll call him Teddy. He prefers Ted. What Sophia, Mindy, and (somehow) Sam notice about Ted, however, is the fact that he has psychic powers. After a day or two, he even reaches out to Sophia telepathically. I don't remember what it is they talk about, but it feels disconnected from the sense of tension that's rising for the psychics in this school. The weather itself changes. Now, the afternoons they spend at this school are heavy with rain clouds or even wet with actual rain itself. The sun doesn't make an appearance anymore.

Life goes on like this for awhile. Sophia, Mindy, Sam, and Teddy talk about psychic things between club activities. Sophia and Sam act like an innocent high school couple. Things are fine. Ominous, but fine.

I found line in several of my WIPs, including my novel WIP “Apricots”:

He's known for years that Noah has a hard time explaining things, that words are difficult for him in more or less the opposite way that they're difficult for Kade, but right now he doesn't have the patience to wait for this scattered man to put his thoughts together. Ian will force them into something coherent if he has to, something he can actually understand. "You're dropping names I've never heard like I have any idea who they are, you're getting overexcited like you always do, and you just casually mentioned someone is actively trying to kill you? You can't just... assume I still get what you're talking about when you suddenly veer of like that! I'm not a mind reader! I'm not --" he stops himself, knowing what he'd been about to say but not wanting to say it even in his own head. It feels like a line he can't cross. Comparing himself to someone who isn't here to defend herself. Using Noah's own grief as a weapon against him. This isn't supposed to be an argument. Just a conversation.

I found plant in my short story WIP “Kiyo”:

I name the vines anyway, like the healthy living articles say you should to get the most out of raising a plant. To make that illusion of having a friend around feel more real. I call her Kiyo. It doesn't mean anything as far as I know. It's just a couple of syllables I can say out loud so it feels less like I'm talking to myself. A simple name for a simple plant. I only choose it because I like how it feels to say, so it's not like I'm putting any grand hopes into it either. No extra expectations. It's there to give her some personality. That's all. Though I have to admit, somehow it feels like she has personality even before I start using a name for her. She's alive, and there are times when I look at her and I can feel a sense of warmth that reminds me I'm the same.

I couldn’t find pin, so here’s a fun fact related to the earlier “To Be Honest” excerpt with a lot of blood mentions:

I’ve said it in tags before, but the way Micah uses magic in that excerpt is a last resort for bloodline/circle witches like him. While magic is stored in his blood, using it without some sort of focusing tool is extremely unpredictable and imprecise. It’s the equivalent of trying to perform surgery with a machete. It’s made to cut into things, but it’s not made for fine incisions or careful movements. It’s also extremely dangerous, since a witch that just tears the magic out of their own body is using more blood than they strictly need and risks bleeding out.

Every bloodline avoids this inefficiency and danger in a different way, and makes sure to teach each new generation their methods – even if they’re kept secret from everyone outside their circle of influence. Kilner witches both tend to process their blood into ink and write their spells out as words on paper – which they then burn so nobody can copy their work. Page and Barker witches tend to engrave their spells into wood or metal and then stain or etch the engravings with their blood. Both Jasper and Porter witches tend to make potions, mixing their blood with other ingredients that have significance to their respective bloodlines.Renner witches like Micah tend to turn their blood into paint and craft decks of spellcasting cards. Micah himself is trying to learn the Shepherd way of sewing and embroidering spells into cloth, using needles and yarn doused in witch blood to make enchanted clothes and accessories. There are as many ways to use bloodline magic as there are bloodline witch families/groups/factions that use said methods, but only a handful of them are shared with the general public or used to make enchanted items that even non-magical people can operate. The only thing commonly taught to everyone equally, no matter which circle they belong to, is the danger of doing what Micah does in that scene.

I found sorrow in a rough WIP of a song I’ve been trying to write for the world of Ryedenne where (most of) my novel WIP “A Place to Return” takes place – a folk song warning newly recruited mercenaries and would-be heroes not to fight victims of a certain rage-inducing curse:

Hear the Crows, bound in shackles, cry out

In their rage, Ryedenne's pain, Summer's sorrow.

Some try in cover of darkness to drive them out,

Yet such souls never live 'til the morrow.

If Saints are troubled by the troubles of Crows --

These cursed creatures they barely contain --

Then for mortals who'd call themselves heroes,

What hope of victory could ever remain?

The might of the Crow is the might of the sun

That burns with the rage of the Gods.

A fight with a curse is a fight seldom won

by these challengers facing slim odds.

Hear the Crows, bound in shackles, cry out

In their rage, Ryedenne's pain, Summer's sorrow.

There's Crows who from darkness try to crawl out,

Yet such souls never see light on the morrow.

I found breeze in my shelved novel WIP “Rebirth”, that I apparently last tried to revive in 2018:

I’ve never seen so many stars in my life. It’s dizzying, trying to keep track of where their light ends and the darkness of the night sky actually begins. The trees bend and sway slightly in the soft breeze. Have I seen any of these stars before? Is that even possible? I let myself slip away just a bit, searching for familiar constellations or any markers that might spark my memory somehow. Connect me back to the past.

“Seriously? You’re gonna lecture me over this, too? You’re not our goddamn leader, Mal!” Justin’s voice stabs through the night like a needle through fabric. I sigh. The air is so clear here. The air smells of moss and the campfire below.

“I never said I wanted to lead. I wanted you to listen to common sense. You can talk about right and wrong all you want, but the consequences won’t go away. We’ve still got a target on our heads, because none of you city kids could stop and fucking think before you acted!” the usual calm in Mal’s tone splinters into a hiss at the end, harsh and strained between her teeth. I close my eyes and breathe. The stars spin slowly behind my eyelids, blinking like they’re trying to tell me something. None of them look familiar at all.

I found fall in my Given oneshot fic “Present Tense”:

He taps the body of the guitar again, humming absently as he does. He's not even sure if he's matching the music in his ears. It seems removed from that. From anyone else's songs. From any of his own songs he's already sung. The sound melts into the warm afternoon sunlight, and he gently lets himself fall over onto the cool surface of the stairwell. It's a good spot for a nap. Maybe if he sleeps, he won't think so loud. So much. About things he can't understand or figure out on his own. The last thing he sees as he drifts off to sleep is the set of double doors between the stairwell and the gym. Uenoyama-kun will probably be coming through those doors soon. Sleepily, he wonders if this will count as seeing something from a new angle, or if it cancels out because he's napped here before.

I found justice in my Danny Phantom oneshot fic “Lingering Scars”:

Maybe he's not all that violent in his soul, as a person, if a kid this kind was cloned from him. She's the hero side of him, at least when it comes to personal values. Her priorities are crystal clear. Protect others, stay safe, and don't do harm. The things he likes to think he values, too. The things it takes to be a hero of justice. She doesn't see herself as someone capable of killing, and he's relieved to hear her put that into words. She doesn't see him as someone who could kill, either. It would be natural to assume that he's seen ghosts die this way firsthand, that he's possibly even been the person to make it happen himself. His little sister doesn't even consider that his knowledge or experience comes from destroying the cores of his enemies. Not even for a second. She believes in him, and it hurts in a way that digs ice into the sides of his neck.

I found hug in “Present Tense” again:

"The only way I could stop being hollow is if I stopped being myself. If I was left in silence. I told you. I'm a keeper of memories. I'm the place where temporary things are given a chance at permanence, but I can't keep things that aren't given to me. I can't hold on to things if they're never put into my hands in the first place. I can take as many things as you give me, Mafuyu. Don't think that I won't try. I can hold every moment you ever want to be able to revisit, or hide from, or see from a different angle. I want you to trust me," they pull Mafuyu into a hug this time, gripping him as if reuniting with a long lost friend, and he can't help but to idly wonder if the time in their hands is falling out now -- dripping down his back, maybe, blue and silver and red and white in turns.

This got a little long, even by my usual standards, but I found almost all of the words I was given this time. As much as I enjoy writing fun facts, it’s satisfying when I actually find the words like the game intends. I’m looking forward to the next time I’m tagged again!

[booksandboba]

Rebirth of the Supreme Celestial Being

[pen-and-umbra]

The second episode of the Remake, FF7 Rebirth, has proven to be a terrific experience thus far. SE obviously made a few big decisions here and there.

It is seemingly implied now that Jenova wasn't "brain-dead", and it is hinted that Sephiroth was addled during his breakdown.

It all begins with a strategically placed cut, when Sephiroth touches the door bearing the name Jenova and instructs "Cloud" to close the valve. The scene is merely functional for new fans, yet leaves a vacant space that Crisis Core players will quickly fill in with the inferred arrival of Genesis. Smart move that, leaving the interpretation to the player. Whether Genesis exists inside the Remake's continuity or not, the moment reads differently to each fan. Quite frankly, I was half-expecting “Cloud” to come across a banora apple, rolling on the floor, but I suppose that would be telling.

What's remarkable is that they give Sephiroth almost identical symptoms to those that Cloud has in the remake. Glitches and odd headaches superimpose themselves nicely over the original Crisis Core scene. And, as much as I loathe Tyler Hoechlin's acting in the game, he lends a tangible sense of rage to Sephiroth's disparaging remarks about Hojo and his experiments. You can hear the hatred, a touch of pity, and disgust directed at Hojo's work and the creatures he tortured. In Crisis Core, he refers to the test subjects as “abominations” with the same touch of bitterness.

Back to the point: glitches, pupil dilations, and headaches are visual cues for Jenovaroth's influence or proximity, as shown in the first part of the Remake. However, at this point, Sephiroth is still sane — cracking, but still himself — so the only agent who can exert influence on him is, well, Jenova.

Now, a widely established fan hypothesis maintained that Jenova was brain-dead or comatose. Bodily functions sustained, but brain activity plateaued. Rebirth, however, strangely suggests otherwise.

When "Cloud" returns to Sephiroth in the manor's basement for the second time, Sephiroth recites an excerpt from a journal purportedly written by Professor Gast: 

“The specimen, found in a strata dating back two thousand years, smiled with what could only be described as 'ethereal grace'… Though the truth eluded me at first, I later determined that she was an Ancient - or a 'steward of the planet', as they are referred to in legend”. 

Remembering the battles with Jenova Dreamweaver and Jenova Emergent, the creature is far from "graceful" or "ethereal". There is nothing graceful about her figure in the tube either, and she is not smiling. The game goes out of its way to lampshade the glaring contradiction by showing the flashes of Jenova’s fanged skull and grotesque body as Sephiroth quotes the passage. So how could Gast perceive her as such?.. The answer is most likely found in Jenova Dreamweaver's description given in Ultimania: the entity has the ability to induce hallucinations in individuals who come into proximity with it, which is further corroborated by Jenova Emergent description.

An ancient lifeform that Shinra Company has kept under strict confidentiality. Those who come into contact can have their conscience interfered as well as see illusions. Professor Hojo has dedicated half of his life to researching Jenova, and within the Shinra Company building's top floors lies a secret research center called the "Dome," where Jenova's cells are injected into lifeforms or machinery to conduct experiments. (Ultimania)

Gast even writes that “the truth eluded him at first”, but LATER he determines the specimen belonged to the race of Ancients, as if that answer was suggested. The implication is chilling: Jenova may have purposefully misled Gast in order to present itself as an Ancient. As Sephiroth later explains in the FF7Rb, Jenova is capable of seeing deep into one's soul and impersonating individuals you fear, love, or hate.

If ShinRA and Gast were determined to unravel the mysteries of Ancients and their Promised Land, it would make sense for Jenova to "scan" Gast and determine the best course of action: disguise itself as an Ancient in order to escape captivity in geological strata jail.

The scene in which Sephiroth reads Gast's notes is possibly the final time he is more or less himself, before Jenova's image intermingles with his for a brief moment. Again, I appreciate Tyler's voice acting in this particular section and the real rage he brought to it. Admittedly, I was concerned that with next-gen visuals, they would take a more gruesome approach, displaying Sephiroth conducting the Nibelheim carnage with sadistic pleasure, but they took a different route. Slow, zombie-like movements, and a glassy expression.

He speared the militiamen as casually as if he were spearing bugs, which is far more frightening from a narrative point. What jumped out was how they emphasized the possessed-like behavior: from snarling and flailing the book like a suffering person to an empty countenance and automaton-like strides, as if he was being beckoned. Which is what "Mother is waiting" implies.

The final segment of the Nibelheim flashback is likely the most essential as well. According to previous developer claims, Sephiroth's will took precedence over Jenova's, and he was in control — whether Jenova was brain-dead or simply of lesser willpower.  However, the Rebirth appears to suggest something different right off the bat. First, "Cloud" shouts, "I believed in you… No… Not you — whoever the hell you are!", highlighting the significant personality change and the resulting lack of recognition. But then "Cloud" sees Jenova's image superimposed over that of Sephiroth in a rapid, glitch-like succession.

In other words, he sees Jenova inhabiting Sephiroth's body as a vehicle to once again escape the confinements. Whatever that means, whether it suggests that Jenova is in control from the start, or whether Sephiroth is literally the greatest functional agglomeration of her cells, and therefore literally “becomes” Jenova. 

If Jenova's original body was severely damaged — either as a result of eons of incarceration or Hojo's tinkering — it stands to reason that, if she wished to carry out her plan, she would need a new body, one capable of moving at the very least. Perhaps Sephiroth, an able-bodied skilled Mako-infused fighter of considerable might, served as a better "vessel" than her original damaged one. 

But the crux of the matter lies elsewhere. The possibility of Jenova being conscious and influencing Gast is very terrifying. With the potential to affect others in close vicinity, she may have influenced the minds of the whole science team behind the Jenova Project, particularly those who had long-term contact with her tissue — Gast and Hojo. It could turn out that the whole idea to revive an “Ancient” was planted by Jenova in order to grow itself a powerful host. In fact, if it could "peer into one's soul," i.e. read minds and memories, it might have easily identified a pressure point to indoctrinate people who could forward her objective. It's one thing to inject tissue samples into an adult body; it's quite another to devise a plan to inject cells into a developing human fetus. Who knows. Perhaps Hojo is such an obsessed Jenova nutcase in large part because he fell under its spell; feelings of inadequacy and being overshadowed by his colleague may have offered a crack in his defenses.

One that Jenova easily took advantage of. After all, as Dirge of Cerberus implies, Hojo ended up implanting himself with alien organic material.

Again, Jenova's power to extract information from an individual when in proximity supports a bleak reading of the events leading up to Nibelheim's ransacking. A person who kept on carrying a photograph of his supposedly late mother and badgered others about his background, as suggested by Ever Crisis episodes, was literally wearing his weakness on a sleeve.

Perhaps the 30-something years of the Jenova Project were supposed to bring Sephiroth there.

Perhaps the chain of events had been nudged in that direction, starting from the very discovery of a derelict non-human lifeform. Nudged by an intelligence both cunning and incomprehensible. And that makes Jenova a much, much scarier presence in the remake than it was ever suggested in OG.

[deedala]

SHAMELESS CREATORS NETWORK MARCH THEME: GROWTH🌱

mickey + roots (an excerpt from James Norbury) [x]

when i sat and thought about mickey and growth i found myself imagining roots. moments of growth that didn't feel exactly like blooming but like rebirth and creating a foundation for his own desires and his own place in the world. the first thing a seed does before it breaks through towards the sun is that it sprouts roots down into the dirt below. what we see on the surface growing upwards is delicate, easily blows in the wind, and easy to tear. but that is deceptive, because hidden in the earth there are hundreds of roots weaving around and in-between the soil, the stones, and even older stronger roots. they reach lower and wider making themselves a permanent piece of the land to the point that to truly extract it would require extraordinary strength and effort that would leave behind a literal crater in the earth. we see so many plants get mowed over or seem to die in the winter, but their roots keep them alive and we see them flourish again and again. and that is what mickey's growth feels like to me. he planted himself a new place in ian's existence and he grew deep strong roots that stayed alive even when things above the surface looked bleak. and now they can weather any storm.

[wangxianficrecs]

Rebirth of a Wretched Mayfly by marikazz

Rebirth of a Wretched Mayfly

by marikazz

M, 15k, Wangxian

Summary: He sat upright and clenched his hands, numb from the cold. They felt as real as anything did these days. Wei Wuxian remembered 'yesterday' with relative certainty. They had planned an attack, Lan Wangji never leaving his side, spitfire eyes glaring and turning away in the end. Him, alone, coming down on the Wen's flank like a wraith. The stench of freshly raised corpses and the shrill sound of his own flute bleeding into the rush of blades and arrows piercing the clear air turned rancid. The ground churning into mud, an unknowable amount of fighting and bloodshed passing. Then, clear as day, the memory of an arrow to his back, of his sudden tumble and death. Not too terrible, but he felt there was no use dwelling on it for too long either. --- In the middle of the Sunshot Campaign, Wei Wuxian inexplicably repeats a harrowing winterday. Kay's comments: Incredibly painful Groundhog Day AU where Wei Wuxian lives a day in the middle of the Sunshot Campaign again and again. Either it ends with him dying or with passing out or Lan Wangji dies. It starts grating on his psyche sooner than later and eventually, he stars throwing himself at swords, too tired to continue. The angst in this was sooo good and the ending was so worth it. I really loved how it all wrapped up and how he finally found a way out of this, even though it was the most embarassing route for Wei Wuxian personally. Excerpt: For a moment Lan Wangji merely looked at him with a slightly wrinkled brow. "Wei Ying, why are you still here?" Wei Wuxian rolled his eyes. "I was meditating" Lan Wangji face became a little blanker at that, making Wei Wuxian snort. "We are leaving for the ambush shortly," Lan Wangji said and pursed his lips at Wei Wuxian's general unpreparedness. Wei Wuxian got a phantom sensation of those same lips, slick with blood, sliding against his neck. Fear suddenly clenched around his ribcage, making him recoil violently. "No," he spat. Lan Wangji lifted his hand aimlessly, but Wei Wuxian turned away and blinked rapidly at the ground. He took a bracing breath and choked out, "No, we are not" The frown was certainly noticeable now. "We are in a precarious position, it is unwise to remain here-" Acid curled in his stomach and he clenched his jaw. "We can't go, Lan Zhan"

pov wei wuxian, canon divergence, sunshot campaign, groundhog day, angst, angst with a happy ending, emotional hurt/comfort, death, major character death, suicide, mental health issues, graphic depictions of violence, war, trust issues, hurt wei wuxian, it gets worse before it gets better, miscommunication, misunderstandings, feelings realization, developing relationship, falling in love, getting to know each other, love confessions, golden core reveal, wei wuxian is not okay, wei wuxian whump

~*~

(Please REBLOG as a signal boost for this hard-working author if you like – or think others might like – this story.)

[brokehorrorfan]

Friday the 13th (2009) will be released on 4K Ultra HD on September 17 via Arrow Video. Gary Pullin designed the new artwork for the Platinum Dunes remake; the original poster is on the reverse side.

Marcus Nispel (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) directs from a script by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift (Freddy vs. Jason). Jared Padalecki, Danielle Panabaker, Aaron Yoo, Amanda Righetti, Travis Van Winkle, and Derek Mears star.

The limited edition set comes with a booklet featuring new writing by Matt Konopka and Alexandra West, a double-sided poster, and a Crysal Lake postcard.

The theatrical version and "killer" extended cut of the film are presented in 4K in Dolby Vision with original 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. Special features are listed below, where you can also see more of the contents.

Disc 1:

Theatrical cut (97 minutes)

Audio commentary by director Marcus Nispel (new)

Audio commentary by writers Mark Swift and Damian Shannon (new)

Interview with director Marcus Nispel (new)

Interview with writers Mark Swift and Damian Shannon (new)

Interview with cinematographer Daniel Pearl (new)

A Killer New Beginning - Video essay on Friday the 13th and horror remakes by film critic Matt Donato (new)

Terror Trivia track excerpts

The Rebirth of Jason Voorhees featurette 

Hacking Back / Slashing Forward featurette

The 7 Best Kills featurette 

Deleted scenes 

Teaser trailer

Theatrical trailer

TV spots

Electronic press kit

Image gallery

Disc 2:

Killer cut (105 mintues)

Audio commentary by film critics Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson (new)

A group of oblivious teenagers choose Camp Crystal Lake as the destination for a weekend getaway. Among them, the young Clay Miller (Jared Padalecki) is not looking for fun and frolics, but for his sister Whitney who disappeared around the lake six weeks earlier. The trip turns into a waking nightmare as the bloodthirsty Jason emerges from the shadows, wielding a deadly machete and out for blood. Cut off from civilization, these youths discover too late that Crystal Lake bears the scars of a violent past as they uncover the terrifying events that spurred the masked killer’s quest for violent vengeance.

Pre-order Friday the 13th (2009).

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Books Coming Out in August 2024 🌈

🌈 Good afternoon, my bookish bats! Here are a FEW of the stunning, diverse queer books you can add to your TBR before the year is over. Happy reading!

[ Text list below ⤵ ]

❓What was the last queer book you read?

[ Release dates may have changed. ]

❤️ Failure to Comply - Sarah Cavar 🧡 I Spit On Your Celluloid - Heidi Honeycutt 💛 You're Embarrassing Yourself - Desiree Akhavan 💚 Death of the Hero - Briona Johnson 💙 Between Dragons and Their Wrath - Devin Madson 💜 The Crimson Crown - Heather Walter ❤️ Sacrificial Animals - Kailee Pedersen 🧡 Oath of Fire - K. Arsenault Rivera 💛 The Palace of Eros - Caro De Robertis 💙 This Ravenous Fate - Hayley Dennings 💜 Mistress of Lies - K.M. Enright 🌈 Wolf Bite - T.J. Nichols

❤️ In the Valley, A Shadow - Samantha Tano 🧡 Follow My Lead - Adrian J. Smith 💛 The Last Woman I Kissed - Venetia Di Pierro 💚 Full Shift - Jennifer Dugan & Kristen Seaton 💙 Hers for the Weekend - Helena Greer 💜 Come Out, Come Out - Natalie C. Parker ❤️ Rules for Ghosting - Shelly Jay Shore 🧡 How to Leave the House - Nathan Newman 💛 Plot Twist - Carmen Sereno 💙 On the Far Side of a Crescendo - Kalyn Hazel 💜 Tiny Oblivions and Mutual Self Destructions - Maxwell I. Gold 🌈 Daylan and the River of Secrets - Edd Tello

❤️ The Italy Letters - Vi Khi Nao 🧡 The Gender Binary Is a Big Lie - Lee Wind 💚 The House Where Death Lives - Alex Brown 💙 Ash's Cabin - Jen Wang 💜 The Avian Hourglass - Lindsey Drager ❤️ The Heart Wants - Krystina Rivers 🧡 A Grand Love - Janna Barkin 💛 You Can't Go Home Again - Jeanette Bears 💜 Libertad - Bessie Flores Zaldivar 🌈 Her Golden Coast - Anat Deracine

❤️ Mighty Millie Novak - Elizabeth Holden 💛 Rise and Divine - Lana Harper 💚 Dying for You - L Flowers 💙 I'll Have What He's Having - Adib Khorram 💜 Changing Her Tune - Amanda Kabak ❤️ Monogamy? In this Economy? - Laura Boyle 🧡 The Rainbow Age of Television - Sayna Maci Warner 💛 Medusa of the Roses - Navid Sinaki 💙 Confounding Oaths - Alexis Hall 💜 Idol Lives - K.T. Salvo 🌈 Brother's Keeper - Quinn Cameron

❤️ Key Lime Sky - Al Hess 🧡 Crushing It - Erin Becker 💛 The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou 💚 Not for the Faint of Heart - Lex Croucher 💙 Tasting Temptation - JJ Arias 💜 Ami - S. Jae-Jones ❤️ You're the Problem, It's You - Emma R. Alban 🧡 Cubs & Campfires - Dylan Drakes 💛 The Dark We Know - Wen-yi Lee 💙 Practical Rules for Cursed Witches - Kayla Cottingham 💜 Riyati Rebirth - Kalani Shimizu 🌈 The Brujos of Borderland High - Gume Laurel III

❤️ A Bánh Mì for Two - Trinity Nguyen 🧡 Dance of the Starlit Sea - Kiana Krystle 💛 Scattered Snows, to the North - Carl Phillips 💚 Beyond a World Apart - Caitlin Myers 💙 Don't Let It Break Your Heart - Maggie Horne 💜 Nothing Heals Me Like You Do - Harper Bliss ❤️ How It All Ends - Emma Hunsinger 🧡 How Do I Sexy? - Mx. Nillin Lore 💛 The Palace of Eros - Caro De Robertis 💙 Prince of the Palisades - Julian Winters 💜 Better Left Buried - Mary E. Roach 🌈 Back to Back - Jo Fletcher

❤️ DITCHLAPSE / [REALLY AFRAID] - Tommy Wyatt 🧡 The Love Archives: Bonus Scenes & Excerpts for Palestine - Various 💛 Guardian: Zhen Hun - Ying Priest 💚 The Sunforge - Sascha Stronach 💙 Queering Reproductive Justice - Candace Bond-Theriault 💜 Gender Explained - Diane Ehrensaft & Michelle Jurkiewicz ❤️ The Unlikely Pair - Jax Calder 🧡 In Universes - Emet North 💛 We Love the Nightlife - Rachel Koller Croft 💙 Lessons from Cruising - Martin Goodman 💜 Wild Ginger in the Rhubarb - Eule Grey 🌈 Not My Circus - Delicia Niami

❤️ Asunder - Kerstin Hall 🧡 The Phoenix Keeper - S.A. MacLean 💛 Encounters with James Baldwin - Various 💚 Verity's Game - Jennifer Giacalone 💙 Hunt Me! I Crave the Chase - Fae Quin 💜 The Audacity Omnibus - Carmen Loup ❤️ Haunted to Death - Frank Anthony Polito 🧡 Blood Orange - Paige Grunewald 💛 The Bad Things We Did - Chris Archeske 💙 Dark Restraint - Katee Robert 💜 Worth the Wait - Kenna White 🌈 The Maid and the Crocodile - Jordan Ifueko

❤️ Loving Corrections - Adrienne Maree Brown 🧡 The Last Witch in Edinburgh - Marielle Thompson 💛 The Duchess of Kokora - Nikhil Prabala 💚 The Scales of Seduction - Rien Gray 💙 Survival Is a Promise - Alexis Pauline Gumbs 💜 Loka - S.B. Divya ❤️ The Every Body Book of Consent - Rachel E Simon 🧡 Southern Lights - Liz Arncliffe 💛 Then Things Went Dark - Bea Fitzgerald 💙 Death at Morning House - Maureen Johnson 💜 The Last Doorbell - William Parker 🌈 The Pairing - Casey McQuiston

[graeaenotgrey]

I ask you to break me, as if I want to be broken

The words fall off my tongue so easily, as though they’ve made a home here

And who would blame them

It is I who keeps calling them back.

©️Graeae

[kotias]

Herf G Operation - My Arum Lily

Time to present here as well the porn without even the shadow of a plot that was entirely written to indulge G, one of the four mods of @goodomensafterdark !

Big, big, BIG thanks to all the artists who got involved in this project, offering stunning art for this fic:

- @bea-n-art for her Temptation artwork

- @lauramoon1987 for her Languid Moan artwork

- Zoinksart for their smut artwork (to be found in the fic!)

- @gahellhimself-blog for his winged artwork

- @daneecastle for her Falling for You artwork

- @gleafer for her Gaunder at his statue artwork that inspired a part of the fic (to be found in the fic)

- @vavoom-sorted-chill for her Say It artwork

It was a huge honour working with you all on this beautiful project to destroy G's brain in one messy strike <3

Tags: Wings - mausoleum - Grave - under the stars - Risk of being caught - laudaddy - Cemetery - consenting adult-shaped beings - alcohol leaves body before anything happens - Plot What Plot - Smut with Feelings - Chops Vault (more details in the AO3 tags)

Rating: explicit

Word count: 8,286 words

Summary:

Hoowee, laudanum! Last time Crowley does that!

Plot? What plot? Purely indulgent cemetery porn without even the shadow of a plot.

Excerpt:

Crowley tried to wiggle into a more advantageous position, but stuck as he was in the coffin, all he was able to do was make the wood creak under the power of his wings, shuddering under Aziraphale's weight and soft caresses. “Gah-” His eyes fluttered shut, his mouth opening wide, showing his fangs and forked tongue. “Angel, that’s-” Aziraphale’s hand coursed through the feathers of his obsidian wings, clutching his throat shut. “Goddamn, angel-”

“No blasphemy, wily snake.” He wrapped his fingers around his cock, and Crowley gasped under his grasp.

“Ah- alright, Father Fell.”

Now, that was surprisingly exciting- Aziraphale’s shaft most certainly reacted quite well to the title. “Hmm, indeed. And a holy man’s role is to thwart the plans fomented by Hell.”

“Oh please, Mr. Holy Man, show me the Light that I have forsaken!” Crowley exclaimed sarcastically into the void of the night, his snickers broken off by soft moans that he tried so very hard to conceal.

“Hm, well, you see… The most pious ones go as far as punishing the evil out of a body. Do you think that might work?”

“Oh, I don’t know about tha-” A gasp stopped him in his words, and he closed his eyes for a moment, as Aziraphale’s hand trailed its path among his dark feathers, pressing them between his fingers, caressing them like tender skin.

Continue reading on AO3, accompanied with the 7 beautiful works of those wonderful artists!!

~The Arum Lily, or calla lily, often was used in funeral arrangements in the Victorian era; additionally, also had a strong symbolism of rebirth and resurrection in Christianity.~

[talonabraxas]

"Om Mani Padme Hum"

Avalokiteshvara Talon Abraxas

Visualisation

Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche explains,

“if you are going to recite only one mala of OM MANI PADME HUM, then visualize Chenrezig out of great compassion sending beams to you, like rays of the sun. When the beams are received by you, your mind becomes unbelievably blissful and peaceful. You experience this, then your body becomes totally white, like the nature of light. You are totally purified of all negative karmas and obscurations collected from beginningless rebirths, and all the sickness and spirit harms of this life are purified.

“Chenrezig also sends beams to all the sentient beings —numberless hell beings, numberless hungry ghosts, numberless animals, numberless human beings, numberless suras, numberless asuras and numberless intermediate state beings — from whom you receive all your beginningless past happiness, and all the collections of goodness. You receive all the past, present and future life collections of goodness from them, as well as ultimate happiness, liberation from the oceans of samsaric sufferings. Think that they are totally purified.

“Recite OM MANI PADME HUM… one-pointedly looking at Chenrezig. Try not to be distracted or to think of anything else during that time, as much as possible.

“If you have received the Chenrezig Great Initiation (this is a two-day initiation) then for the first mala mainly think you are purifying yourself. Then you become Chenrezig, the formation of light, having Chenrezig’s holy body with all the qualities, and with the perfect omniscient mind, with perfect power, infinite compassion for sentient beings and perfect power to guide sentient beings. Send light from your heart—from the syllable HRIH and the mantra garland—to numberless sentient beings. They are purified and they all become Chenrezig. While you are doing that, recite OM MANI PADME HUM. For the second mala of mantras you visualize yourself as Chenrezig and all sentient beings as Chenrezig, enlightened.

“If you have not received Chenrezig Great Initiation, then you can’t visualize yourself as Chenrezig. Instead mainly think you are purifying yourself and at the same time all sentient beings are purified. For the next mala, you mainly think you are receiving all the qualities of Chenrezig, and at the end sentient beings receive all the qualities of Chenrezig. You can do like that, but if you want to recite more mantras, for example five malas, then for half think you are purifying yourself and sentient beings and then for the next five malas yourself and sentient beings are being purified. The next ten malas think all the qualities of Chenrezig are received by yourself and all sentient beings. Mainly concentrate on sentient beings being purified and then receiving all the qualities. If you haven’t received the great initiation, then do like this.

“If you want to think of people who are sick, who have died or who are dying and want to do a prayer for them, then visualize beams emitted from Chenrezig and purifying that person. That helps those people who are sick, dead or dying so much. Also you can think of your loved ones and especially your enemies, the people who hate you.” -Excerpted from “Chenrezig Meditation and Mantra“

[laurelwen]

Nigel's Book Details: Spread One

Over the past months, I've been intermittently engaged in the painstaking process of trying to identify the various images we see in Nigel's book. Because the format is a scrapbook with excerpts of text, photos, drawings, etc pasted in, it's clear that the prop department must have pulled these pieces of ephemera from other books either by directly cutting them apart or via photocopy/reproduction. Some of the images are easily identifiable if you're familiar with the subject matter, and others are impossible to identify due to angle/blurriness/incomplete image. For most of them, the trick was to determine what search terms to start with to find the right type of image, and then narrow your search from there.

Using the order in which each spread is presented in the scene where Alex finally reads through Nigel's book, this is the first spread:

The Medal - Knight Templar Star

A key data point I started with on several images from the book is the text that Greg Read mentions in the director's commentary for the film: Freemasonry and the Ancient Gods. He cites this text as inspiration for the occult/secret society elements in the film, most notably the Maraclea story (discussed in this post.) Because this text is in the public domain, it is available online from a few places, though a few of the images are on fold out pages that were not folded out for scanning. Luckily, the Freemasons have full page scans available on this site: Gallery. Because we know Greg used this book, it stands to reason that he provided this book to the prop department for use/inspiration.

The first image on the far left of this spread is only partially visible, but is identifiable as some kind of medal. Using the two pages of Freemason medals included in the text, there is one that stands out as a match.

The Freemasons have elaborate stories concerning their real or invented ties to the Templars, just as the movie asserts. The Maraclea tale is one such example, but an attempt to recreate Templar mysteries pervades the Freemason rituals and customs. A full discussion of this topic is outside the scope of this post, but here's a brief introductory Wiki article for further reading. The motto contained in the circle is "In hoc signo vinces" meaning "in this sign, you will conquer" and referring to the Christian cross at the center. Here are some modern versions of this medal, which is still in use by Freemasons.

Skull on Altar

This is the first of many skull images used in Nigel's book, which stands to reason given the significance of the Maraclea story in his personal mythology. I have searched long hours trying to identify this actual photo, but to no avail. Many clubs and societies have used skulls as symbols, whether for their esoteric symbolism or simply for the macabre vibes.

However, given the context we have regarding Greg's inspirations as well as details of the photo itself, I believe this may be an image of a Freemason "Chamber of Reflection."

This article from Freemason magazine The Square explains the history and significance of this ritual space:

"The Chamber of Reflection is an important symbol. It represents a womblike state, where the aspirant is to participate in his rebirth as an initiate, to indicate when the candidate emerges from the chamber, in the same manner as being born a new man. Thus, the chamber indicates at the same time, a beginning and an end." --Chamber of Reflection

The article goes on to discuss the nature of how the room should be constructed and what it should contain. It is supposed to be situated underneath the main room of the Lodge, windowless, and should resemble a cave as closely as possible, with dark or black painted walls. In the circled detail above, the wall appears to be a roughly-hewn stone texture, and certainly reads as dark or black. Given it's purpose for reflection on one's decision to begin or continue a path towards exploring esoteric mysteries, the room contains multiple symbols representing key concepts of Freemasonry, most notably a skull and leg bones.

The skull has appeared for centuries in various Masonic degrees, tracing boards, and aprons, such as the nineteenth century Knight Templar apron. The skull, together with the crossbones, is a symbol of mortality, and is used to elaborate on the other symbols present in the chamber. Its purpose is to serve as a reminder of the Latin phrase memento mori, ‘remember, you will die.’ It serves as a reminder that our earthly life is not eternal and your time spent on this earth is limited and should be spent to improve society, yourself, and your spiritual service. Death is eminent, and each of us at one point or another must face this ultimate ending.

The room also has mottoes or important messages written on the walls or on plaques. While we cannot make out the words, there is clearly some writing next to the skull in the detail highlighted above. Finally, the lines on the wall behind the skull could be part of a larger alchemical glyph or drawing or they could represent the knotted rope, another important Freemason symbol. Below are a few examples of what this room looked like in the past and in modern Lodges.

Photos

The other two photos included in this spread have defeated me entirely. I have been unable to even determine what the top left photo IS in order to track down any information about it. Seriously, if anyone can make sense of it, I'm begging you to tell me.

The bottom right side photo seems to be only the bottom half of an actual photo. I have no idea why the prop department would do this to me, so I can only conclude that it was a personal attack. It depicts someone, a man most likely, sitting down. Note the clasped hands in the highlighted detail. The white object next to him looks like some kind of voluminous ceremonial cape or robe. I tried a variety of approaches to narrow down my search but I came up empty handed. Without the other half of the photo, I don't think it's possible. From the shiny finish we can see as Alex turns the page, it does seem to be an actual photo rather than a piece of plain paper with a printed image.

As a side note for anyone who might be crazy enough to think about recreating this book (or is that only me?): if you wanted to recreate this image, you could find a similar photo and fold it in the same pattern, then use sandpaper to wear down the folded edges to simulate the wear and tear of age.

Text

I have found that almost none of the text included in this book is legible enough to identify, a fact which pains me immensely. I did scan through the Freemason book Greg used to see if any of the verse in that book matched up to the snippet of verse on the left page, but none of it is formatted in the same way.

Go here for more unhinged posts like this one:

[Like Minds Masterpost]

[blood-orange-juice]

4.5 preload datamine has a book with a Khaenri'ah lorebomb

Text on Project Amber

Excerpts and thoughts under the cut

vol.1:

"In those days, a crimson moon shone down upon the subterranean realm, and not the dark sun of latter days."

Something something Eclypse dynasty.

Due to the Kingdom's unique position, things from outside this world were always leaking into it. The Kingdom's weapons would wipe out the calamities slipping in, but what of all the other objects? Such as, say, a child who may have come from some destroyed world?

What the hell what the hell what the hell

"Oh high lord of the nobles, a child once told me a tale of another world: Once upon a time, there were sea people who believed that the gods came from the sea. Each time they discovered a shipwrecked person, they would treat them with the utmost honor, for they believed that the gods would take the form of the shipwrecked to investigate the mortal realm."

I can't connect it with anything but I feel it's important. Parsifal's and Skipper's story mention a shipwreck. Two, actually. In some sense the twins are shipwrecked and Paimon was fished out of the sea.

The ocean and the sea were often used as a metaphor for the space projected by the stars.

Why sea and Abyss get conflated with it sometimes: Khaenri'ans were more familiar with the Abyssal stars than the sea.

In anticipation of the arrival at their Kingdom of gods from beyond the so-called ocean — or rather, the arrival of beings who could transcend the gods — they founded an organization, an orphanage to take care of such children. In latter days, the orphans of the Kingdom and those who wandered in from outside were accepted as well.

Everything fun in Teyvat is made by kids in orphanages.

The young Perinheri's first memory was that of being asked by the grown-ups to crawl through a dark corridor. This passage might have been a chimney for winter fires, for it was filled with coal ash, and there was not a single crack in it through which smoke or light could pass through. As he crawled, he would sometimes stumble in the pitch-black darkness. Fortunately, the corridor appeared designed for the passage of children in the first place, so the falls were not very painful. It also lacked any annoying cobwebs. When Perinheri reached the end at last, the exit had not opened yet. He knocked, only for the grown-ups to coldly ask: "Are you dead?" Well, how was he to reply if he was dead? But the grown-ups did not like this response. They kept asking the same question, until he at least shouted, "Yes, I'm dead!" The adults then asked, "Did you see it, then?" Perhaps it was the fear brought on by the darkness combined with hunger and exhaustion, but Perinheri did indeed see an illusion. The crimson moon, hanging high in the pitch-dark night sky, suddenly turned around, revealing itself to be a titanic, horrified eye. The adults opened the door and embraced the soot-covered Perinheri: "You have traversed the fire of two worlds within the hearth, and here you are reborn."

Moons being goddesses' corpses, the fake sky, whales, the rebirth ritual in the narcissenkreuz notes. Again, I can't connect it.

Though the crimson moon set, and the dark sun descended into a yet darker dusk, that transcendental person from beyond who the Kingdom orphanage was awaiting never arrived. But unusual individuals they had aplenty, and many of those who strode forth from the gates of that orphanage became great knights of the Kingdom. Perinheri was, in his time, the leading figure amongst their ranks — that is, unless, he were forced to compete with his best friend, Hleobrant.

tl;dr: Khaenri'ah casually welcomed travelers from between worlds, visitors from dead worlds especially. or at least hoped to but didn't get many