#faction frenzy

[blighted-lights]

old lady grouchy wine aunt ravage. you agree.

[nemesis-is-my-middle-name]

nother dispatch is i forgot just HOW much gaeric is not a fan of you or your plans when you first meet. like he goes along with it bc irida asked him so niceys but he's very >:( the whole time. he doesn't like the idea of quelling avalugg when it hasn't actually done anything dangerous yet, and later irida also explains that he doesn't like the whole idea of the pearl clan engaging more with the other hisui factions, apparently having been reserved abt it "more than any of us [the pearl clan]." so that's like. another one who essentially shares calaba's position and might even be further along that line than she is. and then the actual non warden clan members doesn't seem to actually care? that much? abt frenzy quelling, or getting involved with the diamond clan and galaxy team, or any of that. they're too busy gossiping abt their leader with every stranger who wanders into their homes

[doedipus]

elden ring sidequest/subplot tier list

this tier list is inarguable and objectively correct!

s. ranni's gang, volcano manor/rya

a. millicent/the scarlet rot/the haligtree, patches, alexander, sellen, flame of frenzy & adherents

b. fia/rogier/d/godwyn, boc, diallos, roderika, castle morne, kenneth haight, the eternal cities

c. dung eater & the omens, nepheli loux & gideon, corhyn & goldmask, varre, the albinaurics in general, any other minor quest that it's easy to miss big chunks of e.g. blackgaurd big boggart or latenna

d. whatever mogh's deal was, whatever the fire cult's deal was, whatever farum azula's deal was, whatever the ancestral followers' deal was, any other recurring group of enemies that doesn't have an associated speaking role

e. any quest that revolves around handing in collectibles to a stationary dude

f. seluvis, who is that while also being one of the worst person you're still technically able to help

[mizu-melon]

Yeah, I'll post this without any context about my ocs.

Full art without the text below!

[gruesomejack]

I think vi deserves to kill Vic in this verse fbdhXNXBD

GhFBZVXC HONESTLY

[balteus]

actually re: fromsoftware politics. i do think it's very interesting that the anti-colonialist RLF, ostensibly considered the 'good guys' of the game, were initially explicitly called the communist faction. armored core always has been a series critical of oligarchies and hyper-capitalism, but it's... very interesting to see just how blatant that is in ac6 specifically

you'd think that fromsoftware would eventually drop the ball on the "the ruling class will kill you and cannibalise itself in order to stay alive" considering that they're considered elite AAA devs rn, but thinking about elden ring and ac6's narratives, they've really only gotten more obvious about it - the horrors of colonialism and genocide and the sympathy given to the rage of its victims is something that's actually insane to see, to me, from such a big studio - fromsoft doesn't even attempt to be centrist about it.

for example, the frenzy flame ending. the only thing melina can tell you to dissuade you from pursuing it, ie literally destroying the world forever, is that there's still beauty in the world, apart from the suffering the golden order had caused. at no point however is the sheer despair of the people that the flame represents villanized. if anything, it's portrayed as a self-fulfilling prophecy, it is a tragedy. the only villain is the order who slaughtered all of these people, the flame of despair is something that emerged in them as they were buried alive. and the flame isn't even intended as a revenge upon the world, it's simply a means to end the pain they feel for being subjected to this.

their grief isn't something for the player to judge, it isn't something they're forced to overcome, it's simply a physical manifestation of the reality that was forced upon them. and these people, the merchants, are still kind to us, even knowing the order that we pursue. (in fact, the true, considered best ending of elden ring, is literally just sacrificing yourself in order to achieve complete anarchism. and getting a cool wife to endure the loneliness of space along the way)

in ac6 then, ayre is so terribly forgiving towards us, knowing what we are, knowing what made us, knowing what we participate in. some of this undoubtedly is because of her narrative role, she has to be a sympathetic character. but we do get to see her rage at the end, her grief for her species being seen as nothing more than a resource to be exploited or burned fully vocalized. but the RLF is sympathetic too as resistance fighters who want their home back. the only criticism the game ever leverages towards the RLF is that they're actually not radical enough in their pursuit of freedom, and that criticism is made by a villain.

it's so... i almost want to say optimistic? other games would have tried to pull a "ooh but what if the good guys did bad things (poor attempt at moral grayness)" but no, the RLF is justified at every step of the way. idk it makes me feel things. i dont particularly want to portray fromsoftware as these bastions of political correctness or sth - they're not perfect and i don't expect that ever lmao, but it's so fucking weird that their games are this progressive and have been for a long ass time.

[random-fandom1984]

Can I have some g1 soundwave x reader please😅😅😅😅😅

Being the only femme Cybertronian on the Ark can be... something. Especially when some of them try hitting on you without getting to know you; quite annoying really, but you keep it pushed down; but some people can tell because of your alt-mode.

You stayed in the Ark because of your job as a medic. Your alt-mode is a heartbeat monitor, which also corresponds with your sparkbeats, which is how some people, very few, can tell what you're feeling.

You made your own little base of operations under an abandoned amusement park. You'd bring in people who were injured and left behind in the ruckus of the battlefield between the two factions. Human or Decepticon.

Whenever it's a human, you'd ask them to promise to not tell your Autobot friends about your place of escape, and they do. But with Decepticons, you make sure that they are knocked out, and you just give them a few amounts of anesthesia because they would break in, destroy the place, kidnap you and hold you for ransom against your friends.

One day, when looking through one of the many aftermaths of a battle, you found a minicon in the rubble, Soundwave's minicon: Frenzy. When you took him back to your base, you realized you've forgotten to stock up on more anesthesia, so now you have to worry with the fact that he might wake up soon as you did the procedure of fix-and-repair.

As you were putting your tools away, he woke up with a fright, and you quickly explained the situation to him, which slightly calmed him down. Key word: Slightly. He was suspicious of you but is slowly diminished as you continued to work on the minor injuries that just need a new paint job and be buffed. The last bit disappeared in an instant when you gave him an Energon Goodie.

When he came by again, to your surprise that he remembered the way here, you gave a tour of the place above, he somehow managed to get the place up and running again; thank Primus that your location was miles away from the nearest civilization.

As time went by, Rumble found out, then Ravage, then Laserbeak. When they come to visit, it would be like as if there was no war, they're having a good time in the amusement park.

Sooner or later, Soundwave got suspicious. Where were his kids minicons going late at night?

Being the best spy he is, he followed them, and was surprised that they were hanging out with an Autobot, weren't fighting like there was a war, stopping a fight between Rumble and Frenzy as calm as possible- and somehow easily get them to make up?! He couldn't do that without them continuing to squabble with each other.

He used his telepathy powers to look into your thoughts to see if you secretly had ill intentions with his sons minicons, but there wasn't any!

When his minicons return back to base, it's an instant interrogation the moment they step foot back in the habsuite: How long has this been going on? How did this happen in the first place? What do she always do with them? The only questions that were about you were answered back with positivity.

Curious, he decided to look more into your file when the Decepticons fight the Autobots near the Ark. When he does, all he finds is all good things.

When it was the next time they decided to visit, he wanted to meet her in person. And so he did, and by Primus were you nervous. You were worried he might blow your helm up. You, Soundwave, and his minicons walked through the park, watching the minicons play games, ride the rides; he began to trust you.

The more you all hang out in private, at your secret location, the more you begin to bond closer together, mainly you and Soundwave; the minicons noticed it as clear as day.

So, being mischievous little ones they are, Rumble and Frenzy decided to stage a lil' something. In private, the minicons would call Soundwave Sire, or dad in human terms. So, when the next time you and they met up, they would unexpectedly drop Carrier, mom, at random times in the night. When they first did it, they'd put on an act like as if they didn't mean to say it and it just slip. You fell for their act, so did Soundwave because it was unexpected.

They see you? An Autobot medic? As a parental figure? I mean, sure, you heal up their injuries, you give them Energon sweets if they be good and behave, calmly deal with their fights, gives them sweet head pats, have the most caring optics he's seen, the most beautiful smile- Oh, scrap! He's in love.

He would lie awake at night, questioning why he found you attractive. For starters, your gently touch that he felt when you repaired him, your smiles seem to shine brighter than any star, and sound from your vocalizer was like a siren's call and he was the sailor that was lured by its enchanting melody, your optics the prettiest shade of blue that rivals with this hunk of rock's sky, have the spirit of a Carrier with his kids- Primus, he was hooked, lined and had sunk deep.

After he came to terms with his newfound emotions, he started noticing something about you. Every single time he was close to you, he'd see the screen of your alt-mode, on your chassis, start getting taller. One time, he danced with you as music played in the park, and he saw that the big spikes became frequent, and a subtle blush would be on your cheek plates that you try to hide with your servo and turning your helm to the side. He found this adorable, so much that he became addicted to having that cute blush on your face.

When back on the Ark, you would get pings from an unknown comm-link number, only to realize it's Soundwave, and he's sending you something. When you are finally alone in your habsuite, you would take a look to see that they were poems; they were so sweet, you reread them, laying on your berth, kicking your feet as you excitedly giggle from how nice, sweet, and adorable they are that they might as well be invitations for Cupid to continue to shoot arrows into your spark, making you fall harder for the Con.

When they spent the night in your secret base, you all had fun doing any activity that comes to mind: pillow/blanket forts, teaching the little ones the steps on how you make your glorious Energon Goodies, etc. The last activity was a horror movie marathon. Every time a jump scare would pop up on the screen, you would hug the closest bot, and it just so happened to be Soundwave. During the horror movie marathon, you, Soundwave, and his kids ended up in a cuddle pile, scared, all but Soundwave, Ravage, and Laserbeak.

They decided to spend the night here before returning to the Decepticon base at the break of dawn. You decided to put the little ones to sleep. He decided to start cleaning up the mess that was made, and when he finished, he came back to you telling the ending of an old Cybertron bedtime story.

To him, it looked so nice and peaceful, and you looked so motherly that he just wanted to confess right there, right now. What sealed the deal was you placing a goodnight kiss on the top of their helms, tucking them to sleep before leaving the room they were occupying, only to be dragged off to somewhere by Soundwave, into the place you slept in from time-to-time.

You wondered what was happening, until Soundwave got on one knee plate, servos holding your own, visor looking up into your optics, glistening as he let out a very poetic, charming, delightful, exquisite of him telling you about his feelings, everything about you that made his spark soar: your voice, your optics, your touch, everything.

He carefully watched the screen on you chassis to see if there was any indication of making you uncomfortable or not. And by the end of his heartfelt confession, he watched the heart monitor didn't make any giant spikes. Oh, no. It made a heart at the center of the monitor as blush covers your entire faceplate.

Part 2 coming soon!

[writtenbyjeanofarc]

Come back to me. Think of no one else.

Your eyes wandered aimlessly through the horizon, thoroughly yet obliviously. Navigating the scene, you turned your head behind, your mouth open wide in anticipation for your next move. Then you’d look right in front, then to the left, and then to the right. The cycle endlessly repeats. It was as if you fell into a frenzy of mixed feelings, mostly that of panic.

It all started when he met your gaze by the table’s counter, his face stern and eyes piercing right into your current position. He wasn’t even the most powerful man in the room, but it was his prideful posture that rendered you helpless. You just had to search through the bar for some way to escape the situation you fell into, knowing you aimlessly flirted with one of the men in this faction known as the Astral Express.

…..And his presence just disappeared, just like that.

Your senses began to lighten as your drink’s side effects began to sink in. Your head felt like it spun around, observing the lighting in a way that made it appear blurrier than usual. The colors of your surroundings began to produce an oversaturated hue, and it felt as if the sounds were growing distorted. There surely wasn’t someone who drugged your drink now, was there?

You knew deep down that you made a terrible attempt at trying to betray him, so you rehearsed every possible excuse you could give him to avoid accountability for your actions. Before you could retreat from your seat, you bumped into his chest. Staring coldly into his features, you could sense his eyes were somewhat….off. It seemed as if he was struck with Mara, or perhaps he was just descending into mild insanity after seeing you mingle with Dan Heng.

“Your plans to go against the trust I had for your abilities are not as effective as you think it is.” Blade argued, his voice monotonous and firm. “You’re not fooling anyone.”

“I can explain.” you spoke faintly. “Please, just give me a chance to—“

“I don’t give second chances,” Blade replied. “In fact, consider yourself lucky the Mara does not strike me as of this moment.”

“I understand. But if you let me explain my side of the story, I hope we’ll—“

“I don’t need to hear any of your excuses.”

Blade started pacing around until he reached your back. Reaching his hand forward to tuck a single strand of hair behind your ear, you could feel his breath nearing your neck, it almost felt intimate. His head leaned closer, closer until his head was on par with your right shoulder from behind.

“Come back to me.” he murmured sensually against your earlobe, heavily breathing at a close distance. “Think of no one else.”

[in1-nutshell]

Bot Buddy the Autobot who’s unexpected Conjux is Soundwave

SFW, mentions of injury but not specified, platonic, romantic, Cybertronian/ Bot reader

Transformers Earthspark

Autobot Buddy and Soundwave were Conjux Endura shortly before the war broke out, they never made the relationship public. There was too much at risk, especially when tensions on both sides heightened.

Tension between them both rose when discussing which side was better to side with.

“What will it be then? Its clear we both can’t agree on a side. What do we do?”--Soundwave

“… we join different sides.”--Buddy

“What?”--Soundwave

“We join different sides.”--Buddy

“Yes I heard that but—”--Soundwave

“We do that. We pick a side in the war. We stay alive for each other and when someone win, we vouch for the other to come join peacefully.”--Buddy

“…it sounds like a good plan…but what about Us, Buddy? I’m concern on what will happen to Us in this war.”--Soundwave

“Don’t worry. We will be fine, as long as we have the bond, as long as we have each other alive, we will be fine. Just take care of yourself and the mini’s, can you do that?”--Buddy

“I will and…I trust you Buddy… I love you so much, my Spark.”

“I love you too Soundwave… Now and beyond the Allspark.”—Buddy

Buddy went off and joined the Autobot’s and Soundwave and the minicon’s joined the Decepticon’s. Never once telling anyone of their relationship, they promised each the other their safety and they were going to keep it.

Soundwave had set up a private link between them to keep in contact.

“Hey…”--Buddy

“Hello…”--Soundwave

“How was work today? Are you feeling, okay?”--Buddy

“Work was… adequate… and yours?”--Soundwave

“Things are getting harder I’m not going to lie… I miss you…”--Buddy

“…I miss you too…”--Soundwave

“Tell Buddy I said hi!”--Frenzy

“Frenzy!”--Soundwave

“Tell them we all miss them!”--Lazerbeak

“Lazerbeak enough—”--Soundwave

“…”--Ravage

“…”--Soundwave

“…Frenzy, Lazerbeak and Ravage say hello…”--Soundwave

It got harder to keep contact as the war grew longer, especially when both factions came to Earth. Suddenly it was just radio silence from Soundwave. Buddy was upset and concern at the lack of radio response but there was nothing they could do now without drawing too much attention to the both.

“Hey Soundwave? Are you listening? Things have gotten out of control at HQ… its almost funny…”--Buddy

A few days later…

“Soundwave? Are you here? Listen can you give me some sort of sign that your okay? Are the mini’s okay? Please answer as soon as you can.”--Buddy

A few days later…

“Soundwave… please… any sound would do… please just let me know you’re okay… love you, now and beyond the Allspark…”--Buddy

Buddy meets the Terrans and Maltos and they are both delighted and horrified that there’s literal sparkling’s running around with other children in a sketchy base.

“Buddy these are the Maltos and the Terrans I was talking to you about.”--Optimus

“Hi!”--Terrans and Maltos

“…Prime, Megatron, Elita-One… Mind explaining to me why there are literal Sparklings running around!?--Buddy

“Well—”--Megatron

“You know what I don’t. C’mere kids let me introduce myself.”--Buddy

They don’t trust GHOST at all and refuse to wear a GHOST badge. Buddy wears their Autobot badge proudly. They agree with Megatron in advocating for better treatment of “prisoners”. It’s one of the few things they can agree on.

“This isn’t right. Even if they are Decepticon’s, they don’t deserve to be treated like this.”--Buddy

“I agree. Something needs to be done about this.”--Megatron

“…Can’t believe I just agreed with you on something.”—Buddy

Besides agreeing to protect Dot and her family at all costs. They try to visit the Terrans and Maltos as much as possible. It was such a regular occurrence that they got their own bunk in the Dugout.

“Kids? What’s all this?”--Buddy

“Surprise!”—Terrans and Maltos

“Woah! What’s is this?”--Buddy

“Well, you’ve been coming over so much and staying almost regularly now. We all decided to make you your own place here!”--Robie

Yeah, now you don’t have to go back to the base and we can have even more sleepovers!”--Mo

“…”—Buddy

“Do you not like it?”--Thrash

“…”--Buddy

“Maybe it’s the color?”—Nightshade

“…”--Buddy

“No can’t be that.”--Twitch

“Maybe it needs another pillow?”--Jawbreaker

“…”--Buddy

“How about another family portrait?”--Hashtag

“Wait guys hold it.”--Robie

“Buddy? Are you crying—”--Mo

“THIS HAS TO BE ONE OF THE NICEST THINGS ANYONE HAS DONE IN A LONG TIME! I LOVE YOU ALL!!”—Buddy

Things were going great for Buddy. Enough to occupy their mind from the pain in their spark. One mission got them hurt really bad. They refused to go to GHOST for medical attention.

“I’d rather have Starscream scream in my audials for an hour than set a foot near GHOST.”

Now they were at the Dugout fighting to stay conscious. Due to the power of plot convenience, they need a jumpstart their spark, which would be possible if they weren’t bonded. Being bonded meant that the other that was bonded would have to jump them with a shock through their spark bond. Which would be great but Buddy won’t tell.

“Wheeljack what needs to happen? I feel like I’m dying here.”--Buddy

“Dying!?”—Mo/Robie

“Wrong choice of words. My bad kids.”--Buddy

“Well since you’re bonded, that means that your Sparkmate need make the jump with you. So now the only thing we need to know is the Sparkmate.”--Wheeljack

“…Yeah that’s not going to happen.”--Buddy

“What?”--Wheeljack

“Buddy, did you understand what Wheeljack said? You are going to die if your Sparkmate doesn’t come an do the jump. We don’t know who it is, you need to tell us!”--Dot

“…sorry Dot…but like I said, that’s not going to happen.”--Buddy

Buddy made a dumb promise but they are sure going to keep the last thing they had with Soundwave. Optimus, Bumblebee, Arcee, Grimlock, and Elita are trying to remember if Buddy had mentioned their Conjux before in their ranks.

“Lets see… Ironhide?”--Optimus

“Nope.”--Bumblebee

“… Cliffjumper?”—Elita-One

“No.”-- Bumblebee

“Maybe its Jazz.”--Grimlock

“No.”—Bumblebee

“Gears? Ratchet?”—Arcee

“No cant be either of them.”--Bumblebee

“Okay then what’s your idea then?”--Arcee

“…Prowl?”--Bumblebee

“NO!”—Optimus/Elita/Grimlock/Arcee

Wheeljack and Megatron are trying to look through the database of Teletran 1 for any alternative to the medical procedure.

Meanwhile the Terrans are trying to tend to every need Buddy has to the best of their ability.

Robbie and Mo are at both sides of Buddy’s head rubbing it softly as they wince from time to time from the pain.

“C’mon Buddy. Can’t you just tell us?”--Robie

“Please Buddy. Please?”--Mo

“Sorry—urgh—kiddos. No can do.”--Buddy

It’s Alex who brings up the possibility of Buddy’s Conjux not being an Autobot at all.

“I mean what if Buddy’s significant other isn’t an Autobot at all? What if they are human or a Decepticon? Relationship between factions have definitely happened before right?”--Alex

There’s silence and its being considered. Buddy groaning in pain breaks the silence. Megatron heavily considers it, suddenly wondering how many of his own troops entered interfraction relationships.

“No, they—”--Megatron

Suddenly remembers Deadlock and how he would always single out Ratchet in many battles.

“…You know it might be possible…”--Megatron

Megatron asks Hashtag to send a specific message through a cryptic frequency and starts heading out of the Dugout. Dot, Optimus, and Bumblebee follow him, meanwhile the rest stayed to monitor and look for other cures just in case.

Megatron, Dot, Optimus, and Bumblebee reached a clearing a bit far from the house. Not a moment too soon, Soundwave came into view and transformed in front of them deploying Frenzy, Ravage and Lazerbeak standing their ground. The Autobots reach for their weapons, but Megatron tells them to lower them and takes a step forward towards Soundwave.

“Soundwave.”--Megatron

“Megatron. What is the meaning of this traitor?”--Soundwave

“We need your help.”--Megatron

“Give me one good reason to help you.”--Soundwave

“For old time sake, one favor.”--Megatron

“…What is it?”--Soundwave

“We need to know any Decepticon’s who have Conjux Endura’s—”--Megatron

“That is out of the question. You do not have the right to know about their affairs.”--Soundwave

“So, you do know?”—Megaton

“Of course, but I will not tell you.”--Soundwave

“Soundwave—”--Optimus

“Save it Prime!”--Frenzy

Soundwave turns to leave with his minicons, which is when Dot snaps. She wasn’t about to lose a dear friend like this, no not like this.

“Buddy’s dying!”—Dot

This statement stops the Decepticon’s right in their tracks.

“Listen, they don’t have much time. They got hurt real bad last mission. They need their Conjux to help them with the medical procedure.”--Dot

 “We don’t know who they are Soundwave. Buddy will not tell us who they are. I will not lose anymore bots when we have a fighting chance. Right now, you are our only way of finding them. Without your help they are going to die.”— Optimus

“Soundwave we wouldn’t be asking you for anything if it weren’t dire. We don’t have the luxury of time because that is something Buddy doesn’t have right now! So, are you going to help or not?”—Bumblebee

The mini’s are looking at their boss in some sort of desperation before Soundwave transforms and agrees to help.

Everyone was ready to move to another location but were surprised when Soundwave asked where Buddy was. That’s when the other realized the shocking truth. Soundwave was Buddy’s Conjux.

They arrive at the Dugout and enter its doors. The Terrans are immediately on guard seeing Soundwave, especially when Buddy yelps in pain squeezing their optics close not knowing who was in the room.

“Freeze!”--Twitch

“Calm down he is here to help Buddy.”--Megatron

“What so is he—”-- Thrash

“Yes.”—Megatron

Soundwave had never felt so much regret of not contacting his Conjux for so long than that moment. He calls to them, this causes Buddy’s optics to snap open in disbelief.

“Buddy…”--Soundwave

“—urgh—Soundwave?”—Buddy

The mini’s came out and started shooing everyone out of the room. Wheeljack gives Soundwave quick instructions on how to do the jump starting before also exiting the room.

Now it’s just Buddy and Soundwave

Soundwave is getting the equipment ready when Buddy calls him over and apologizes for bringing him here where he and the mini’s could get captured. Soundwave finishes setting up the equipment and grabs Buddy’s servo as the process began.

“I’m sorry—”--Buddy

“I apologize—”--Soundwave

“You can go first.”--Soundwave

“I’m sorry for getting you into this mess, you and the mini’s.”--Buddy

“Apology not needed. I should be the one apologizing. If I’d had known… If I had kept in contact…”--Soundwave

“…Can we just forgive each other? I don’t want my last moments here to be just pointless apologizes on childish things we both did.”--Buddy

“You’re not going to die. Not when I have a say in it, my spark. I… I missed you, my spark.”--Soundwave

“I love you too, now and beyond the Allspark.”—Buddy

They both begin talking and catching up on some things. Before they knew it, the procedure had finished, and Buddy was going to make a full recovery.

After the procedure was done, they both walked out servo in servo. The mini’s as it turned out had told the Team a bit about their relationship.

“Yeah, so one time Soundwave thought it was a good idea to fly with Buddy around sunset. But he didn’t know that—”--Lazerbeak

“Lazerbeak.”--Soundwave

“Soundwave! Buddy!”—Frenzy

Everyone there was shocked by the story, but they eventually got over the shock. The longest one to come out of the shock is Megatron. He feels guilty and so blind. How could he not have seen this coming, especially from Soundwave?

Soundwave lets Buddy have one more squeeze before getting the mini’s in his chest compartment. He turns to leave, but he stopped after hearing Dot’s voice.

“You can stay the night here? I think it would be good for Buddy if they knew you were here.”--Dot

“And if you are worried about GHOST, their radar doesn’t come by here. It’s perfectly safe.”—Megatron

He pauses for a minute. Looks back at Buddy and then the setting sun. one night wouldn’t hurt, right? He turns to Megatron stating that if this was a trap, that there would not be a planet he could go to hide from him. With that he swooped in and carried Buddy bridal style and marches into the Dugout as he deployed his mini cons to have fun on the farm.

Meanwhile Soundwave and Buddy cuddled on one of the medical slabs all night long.

[roseonthewindow]

The backhand gesture

In lies of p this seen is used to justify a ship but as someone who understands the nuance behind what it actually means to "slap away an offered hand" I can't understand how you can be so fucking lost form the story's narrative at this point. First and foremost Krat appears to be a Italian/French/German influenced region but studying it closely it is mealy Italian aristocracy with French/Germain influenced architecture basically your standard china template for South East Europe, which to them is anything that is not china. Back in the 1800's any gesture involving being smacked with the back of a hand was a insult/challenge.

In this reference it was the equalivant of Carlo telling Romeo "I would not fuck your fat mom." Carlo was not being cheeky he was insulting Romeo but what spurred the best of friends to be enemies at this point in time? Many people suspect it was the bosses up to this point being connected directly to Romeo and making a fated effort to try and KILL Carlo leading to the question why? our answer comes from a hidden boss.

When Geppetto meets his end we see a strange device on his hand; this device seems to control the strings of un-awakened puppets. Since Romeos Court was made of Un-awakened puppets it was a no brainer who was really controlling the strings there. THIS shows us the hidden darker secret. Gepetto put Carlo against Romeo with his actions and we do not discover this fact until we climb the Alchemist tower to save the old man. IF Carlo was killed by the puppet frenzy and not his petrification disease or the Alchemists unfinished experiments it is not a exudation to assume he was killed by his old man. HOWEVER in game notations express that Carlo's death was the trigger point for the Puppet frenzy. Which means that even if was the disease, that at this time was being Amplified by the alchemists to attack the engenders, Carlo was murdered by the Alchemist faction. So when some bozo asked me "did we play the same game" I Played the official "Lies of P" game, I do not know where you are getting your information form. I am just not a lunatic and have a very very traditional East European family. I understand that backhanding an offered hand is a INSULT, and not a being a drama queen insult. At this time in the events of the GAME Carlo is PISSED at Romeo and has no incentive to know that Romeo had no control of his underlings it was mealy a play he was trapped in. Remember Carlo gives him true freedom by putting him out of his missery since he is in pain. "I'm burning up" is not Romeo blushing whatever's left of him that was human was literally catching fire!

[probablyasocialecologist]

Today, the PA lacks any political legitimacy to mask its role as a second South Lebanon Army for Israel. The continued theft of land and the denial of rights of the refugees of the Gaza Strip, as well as the rest of the Palestinians, bestowed a duty upon Hamas and the resistance factions to launch the attack to break the status-quo. Oslo failed to free the Palestinian prisoners as promised by PLO officials, and the right of return was similarly sidelined; the Great March of Return in 2018 was crushed by the kneecapping of protestors in their hundreds. The international community cheered on, hoping to trap both Gaza and the West Bank with its own standards of passive resistance, statebuilding, and individualist economic prosperity that hides itself behind the veil of a collective effort to produce the New Palestinian to the world. The significance of the October 7th assault thus becomes clearer: it was an attack not only against Israeli settler colonialism, but also against the fundamental discourse that underlies the PA. It broke the taboo on centering Palestinian rights through the lens of decolonial and revolutionary armed struggle. More importantly, it scathed the colonial hubris of a nuclear-armed beast that boasts of its weaponry and supposed military superiority to the world when ‘mowing the lawn’ in Gaza. No wonder, then, why the international community is cheering on the destruction of Gaza and the elimination of resistance. Out of fear that Hamas would break the perpetual stalemate that the PLO signed on to in 1993, the US wants to quench the Zionist bloodthirst that ensued after October 7th through JDAMS, Delta Force squadrons, and a media clergy that parrots every Israeli army claim that demonises not only the Resistance, but the entire population of Gaza. The entire Israeli political spectrum is united around portraying Palestinians as Nazis, ISIS members, ‘children of darkness’, as well as human animals in order to manufacture worldwide consent for the continuous bombardment of the Gaza Strip. It is already clear that October 7th will become a landmark moment in the history of Palestinian resistance against Zionism, its benefactors, and its local agents. The PA, US, and Europe are encouraging the massacre and total siege of the Gaza Strip, not only because of their inherent interest in the continued existence of Israel on Arab land, but also because of their frenzied desire to try and restore the status quo, an imagined reality that existed before October 7th. Attempts to soften Hamas’ position on liberation via the Quartet and Qatar never bore fruit, as evidenced by what has transpired since. The failure of the peace dividends to thwart the Palestinian people, the collapse of the political discourse that masks securitisation behind a national goal, and the continued will of the resistance groups in Gaza to fight despite an international siege and soft power tactics to entice them to stay silent – all of this will pave the way for a more revolutionary discourse with regards to liberation. The era of pseudo-statebuilding is finally behind us, and an age of liberation is coming.

[mychlapci]

Arranged marriage between combiners, for peace. It's like a mutual nuclear disarmament for both factions. Stunticons to Aerialbots. Combaticons to Protectobots. Computron to Predacons. (The 'structies get Prowl)

Some of them will remain distant and antagonistic, while some will get closer and become amiable. Vortex and First Aid in particular would find themselves in an unlikely freaky but romantic relationship. One that's so lustful it influences the rest of their teams. Bruticus ends up getting urned on by the sheer horny exuded by Vortex, while Defensor gets super needy just from First Aid's thirst for that rotarycock.

Bruticus would make such a good wife out of Defensor, he'd keep him pregnant in order to force the teams to stay combined for as long as possible. After all, Defensor can't uncombine when he's gravid with all those bitties, and Bruticus can't pump him full of the transfluid he needs without having his massive goliath spike to plow him with. This might result in all of the respective gestalt members mind melding permanently into a singular psyche, but they're always so horny, they don't really care by that point. Till all are one and shit, yanno-🔌

ooooH yes yes yes... Love me some pregnant combiners. I am all for Defensor being kept pregnant for so long that he forgets he can uncombine. Maybe he can't uncombine at all anymore. Maybe Bruticus can't either, the two of them constantly locked in a breeding frenzy...

Once again I am thinking about how disastrous it would be if a bot that big started giving birth. There'd be a little river trailing down, all of it thick, viscous birthing fluids. It'll take a couple weeks for it to dry up. I bet some bots could even bathe in it...

[witchofthesouls]

You know that one video of those elephants from a elephant sanctuary that literally run to meat and greet a new orphaned baby elephant?

That’s how I imagine the first meeting between Starscream’s trine and or Soundwave and his cassettes and Megatron’s newborn/young daughter/s went 🥰

Starscream will literally shank anyone else and bury their corpse in the deepest grotto that dared be the first to greet the newsparks outside of Megatron's direct kinship-ties. This is due to Vosian-style of Seekerkin propriety, which has strict guidelines on what is and isn't acceptable within the shifting hierarchy.

Starscream may enact assassination attempts on Megatron, but that can be taken as an extension of his duties since the Decepticon SIC aligns enough to be the most prominent Ring-Wing as it encompasses internal defense of the faction/flock. Newsparks are an immense life-event to Seekerkin. Who is and isn't allowed to interact with them, especially during the initial exchange outside the carrier and sires, is a highly telling social cue to other Seekerkin. Starscream would be absolutely furious if Megatron didn't let him and his trine meet the newspark since keeping them away would cause strife with the other Decepticon Seekerkin and destabilize Starscream's authority among them.

Because Starscream is almost genial as he only done three scathing comments to Megatron, the miner thought the congratulatory Energon-wine from Thundercracker had been poisoned. The blue Seeker holds the newspark with practiced hands as Skywarp vibrates everywhere, crooning at the blind, wiggling infant. Starscream leaves a thoughtful set of training daggers, but Megatron has no idea what to do with the gruesome etchings of distorted faces done by Skywarp...

(The rest of the Air Force are hungrily waiting to start preparations for a very belated baby shower. Megatron will be up to his helmet in gifts.)

Soundwave's cassettes are the ones that actually stampede their way to coo at the newest bitty. Ratbat is enamored that he's no longer the smallest on the ship. Frenzy and Rumble jostle each other and actually have the ball-bearings to comment how tiny she is with Megatron's coding. Laserbeak enjoys a peek-a-boo game by dipping her beak down for the bitty grab, whereas Buzzsaw prefers to clean the infant. Ravage may act cool and collected compared to the rest of them, but Megatron shifts his gaze whenever the cougaraider dips her tail into the cradle-pod to play with his infant daughter.

[everlastiingiimmortals]

A Review of the Borisin: Feixiao's History and the Mentality of War Culture

hey. it's me again. wanna talk about one of the most fucked up factions presented in the game so far? sit down, this is going to be long.

to get matters out of the way, i'll be addressing quite a number of things here: borisin culture, my theories about feixiao's history, how a borisin environment has affected feixiao's mindset all the way into the present, and a theory on the parallel between moze and yingxing (this is heavily delulu) and the cyclical nature of generational trauma (particularly when a culture subsists on and is defined by war). heavy topics all around, including death, abuse, slavery, and general violence, so do mind yourself if you're not in a place to read about this analysis! no spoilers or leaks involved; all this is pulled from lore available in game or from official media.

so to get started, i want to first and foremost address the borisin; all of my information for them stems from the duran planar ornaments and the prisoner relic set. from these two sets, and especially the duran set, we glean that the borisin are, historically, of a nomadic origin that mainly raised and herded livestock. however, over time, after receiving the blessings of abundance and warring more and more with the original foxians, they eventually grew massively in strength and became what we know now: a society and culture wreathed in the worst interpretations of "survival of the fittest," one built on conquest and war. to this date, the borisin, even after decreasing in strength with the defeat and capture (evidently not for long) of their warhead, hoolay, still have foxians and other species enslaved to use as cannon fodder, livestock to breed and construct their weapons for them, and fuel for their mechabeasts. this mentality is not just directed towards other species, but also to their own kind; borisin pups go through what is effectively a trial by combat as their coming of age ceremony, where they have to hunt, fight, and ultimately tame a mechabeast of their choosing (a reminder here, too, that their mounts are both machine and organic, and can breed and eat. horrific.) to be considered an adult. if they failed, they would become slaves themselves, or be devoured by the very beast they were hunting. some would even kill each other in an attempt to get the best mount. the borisin, as is evidenced by hoolay, will even commit cannibalism. it's as i said to jace: to the strongest go the spoils. anything less than that is seen as cowardice, and here is where we really see that "survival of the fittest" on steroids mentality shine through. if you aren't one of the fittest, you aren't fit to survive. period. it's no surprise to see how quickly the borisin grew in strength like this, and with their mastery over gene manipulation (either via experiments or traditional selective breeding).

and naturally, this applies to their slaves, too. we learn a lot about the borisin's treatment of their slaves -- and especially the foxians -- from a plethora of sources: the aforementioned sets, the valorous relic set, and baiheng's travelogue about the zhuming. but the key information for my purposes comes from the valorous relics and duran ornaments. from these, we learn that a significant portion of the slaves and the majority of the borisins' slaves, historically, are foxians, and that the borisins particularly favor aggressive and warlike foxians to take hostage and effectively become fodder farms under the same mentality, experiments, and selective breeding as their livestock. we learn that, as a result of this history, the foxians enslaved have mixed bloodlines, both foxian and borisin in descent. these mixed foxians, though possessing the fearsome strength and speed of their wolf-headed masters, also suffer from shorter lifespans and a heightened risk of succumbing to frenzy and mutation. they were subject to being sent out against the xianzhou, with paralyzing bridles latched around their necks to control and subdue them. from the best (read: the most vicious, the most violent) of these foxians, more were bred to sustain the borisins' campaigns and living war machines. this is the environment that feixiao was born into. she grew up with the mindset that survival was for the fittest, because anything less would mean being subject to getting torn apart and fed to the mounts, or even devoured by the borisin themselves. i have an image of feixiao, prized for her aggression and talent for battle, being set against mechabeasts and other half-blooded foxians for sport. every single day was a fight for existence, and from the borisin she learned to fight, learned to hunt, learned to survive, learned to kill. under them, she became a dangerous weapon, even at a young age. this is the feixiao, newly freed, that the previous yaoqing general met.

i will remind you, too, that the previous general saw feixiao as a beast at first; described her with an animal-like figure, felt the pressure of her predatory drive. to her, feixiao was neither wolf nor fox, having become so far removed from her foxian culture under the borisin. only after declaring her wish for vengeance did the previous general see feixiao in a new light. and this wish is what would carry feixiao up the ranks. feixiao takes with her the lessons learned from the borisin, her survival becoming her perfect weapon against them: she knows how they hunt, how they move, how they think. they taught her ruthlessness; she is ruthless towards them. and though she has reunited with her foxian culture, it's evident that she will not, or perhaps cannot, undo the conditioning she faced under the borisin. she declares herself lacking in "worries, rivals, and regrets." that's not just an empty statement. applying this to her history offers a rather sick perspective. does she view her past as trauma? i hesitate to think so. trauma is a source of weakness, in her opinion. there is no room for weakness with the borisin. she does not suffer nightmares of her childhood. she views her upbringing, rather, as a source of strength, and looks upon it with twisted pride; pride in herself for surviving, prevailing, seeking revenge. she values these terrible lessons from her past, not because she agrees with them, but because they give her purpose, and something to destroy. something to direct her rage towards. there's something to be said about the previous general's statement, as well: you were born for war, and you will die for war; from the moment of her birth, she was intended to be fodder to slaughter and slow the xianzhou. now that she's on the other side of the field, she will not rest until her thirst for vengeance is sated (it never will be). i struggle to imagine that feixiao can wrap her head around a perspective that differs from hers regarding her mentality. this is trauma — you can see it in her eyes, no light shines in them — but she simply does not comprehend it as such. it goes so far that i truthfully believe feixiao would be unsatisfied drawing her last breath in peace. her entire life has built up to destroying the abominations, her entire life a fight to prove she's worthy of more than survival. she would rather earn her place in death with teeth and claws, even if it means being killed as an abomination by a beloved one or even herself. she would be incapable of giving up and surrendering peacefully. i cannot see her accepting otherwise.

and unfortunately, feixiao is not the first, and she's absolutely not the last to be caught in this cycle of vengeance. the verdant knights routinely recruit mixed foxians, and when they succumb to their rage, their armor becomes their shackles, their prison. this cycle of trauma and war doesn't start and end with the foxians either; yingxing was also a victim. he, too, was obsessed with vengeance against the abominations. he took joy from creating the devices that caged them in their prison cells. it's possible that moze, too, is a short-life (noting the scar on his arm) that was enslaved by the borisin and freed by feixiao. because unfortunately, tragedy follows war, and the xianzhou subsists on it as much as the borisins. the alliance lacks a purpose without their war; it defines them, has given them their fearsome reputation. it is glorified, genocide is justified on either end. regardless of which side feixiao, jing yuan, hoolay, or any other member of this conflict lies, the cycle continues so long as both sides stand. feixiao, for one, has no intent of breaking the cycle that defines her entire life. she was born for war, and she will die for war. she sees no greater glory.

[surelyspacejunk]

Melina is the Gloam Eyed Queen

I've come to this conclusion because I think the simplest possible answer the game provides is going to be more convincing than the 5D chess theory crafting required to explain her existence. Convoluted theories of her being the GEQ's child, or the GEQ sealed in a child, or cursed from an Empyrean rival or what not require theorizing how Melina could end up with the GEQ's powers when the simplest answer is that she simply is the GEQ.

If that's not enough for you I've listed below several reasons why I've come to believe that Melina is the GEQ.

1. The Frenzied Flame Ending shows you that Melina is the GEQ.

The Frenzied Flame ending shows her vowing to deliver destined death to you with the appearance of the Gloam Eyed Queen. I don't think it gets any simpler than the game telling you who she is.

2. The Shadow Realms may imply that there is a period of time between Marika's Ascension and the establishment of the Golden Order.

I list this as important because it slots Melina's story neatly into a timeline where it can exist and make sense.

The two biggest hints that this period exists are the Marika statues and churches scattered across the land (even in places Messmer's crusade could not reach such as the Abyssal Woods) and the hornsents' fixation on Marika's betrayal.

Some people believe the betrayal happened shortly after (or during) her ascension but that doesnt don't really sit well with me because the hornsent would have needed to trust her first for the betrayal to feel real. No evidence in game shows that the hornsent had much respect for the shamans beyond them being great concrete goo, so it doesn't really make sense that they'd feel betrayed by someone they feel below them. If they felt someone below their station had become a god they didn't accept, they would surely use the word cheated would they not? But they don't use the word cheated, they use the word betrayed. For a betrayal to feel real, the hornsent would have needed to trust and consider her to be an important part of their culture first. Perhaps they did not care all that much that Marika was a shaman, just that she was a successful result of the Divine Gateway they built. Surely after all the sacrifices they must have felt some relief that it worked out?

So after her ascension, churches and stakes are propped up through out the land before they are abruptly slaughtered and sealed away during Messmer's campaign. Sometime between those two events is where the GEQ's story fits in.

3. Dominula's Rituals show that both the GEQ and Marika share similar cultural traditions. Festive Grease ties it back to traditions in the Shadow Realms.

There are a number reddit posts that have connected the braids of Dominula's festivals to Marika and the Godskins. This reddit post points out cultural overlap of the flowers, runes and visuals seem to imply that they are honoring Marika from traditions that predate the Erdtree, yet in practice seem to be in-line with what the Godskins celebrate. I believe that the festive grease implies that the flaying traditions were done by the Numen shamans themselves which was then picked up by worshipers in Dominula. Perhaps, Melina herself incorporates the cultural flaying in her faction as a twisted and bittersweet way to remember the shamans that came before her. With all this laid out, it's easy to conclude that the Erdtree allows the Dominula tradition to continue despite it's connection with the 'heretical' Godskins, because it has always been a part of Marika's heritage as well.

4. Ranni and Melina's sealed eye implies that they are both Empyreans. (more info for Miquella & Malenia to follow.)

I also like the theory that all of the Empyreans are one eyed which would neatly explain what similarities Melina and Ranni may have. There isn't much visual evidence that Miquella and Malenia were one eyed, but people on reddit speculated that Miquella could have literally meant that he had one eye when when said, “I abandon here my eye”. For Malenia, it could have been that the rot had already claimed one of her eyes in youth as we could see with Millicent's sisters, with differing variances of their sight being afflicted by the Scarlet Rot. Hers is admittedly the shakiest conjecture, but it's a theory I like that visually links Ranni and Melina and gives unity to all the Empyreans born under the Golden Order.

This reddit post is the one that put me on board with the one eyed empyrean theory which lists a lot of evidence for this pattern. There are some points that make me pause though, because I could not verify some of these claims, such as the One Eyed Marika statue supposedly located in the Round Table. If they are talking about the Colosseum Marika, I think the statue is simply too damaged for that to be verifiable.

That said, I think this is an interesting observation, and it'd be interesting to see fanart of Miquella with one eye.

4. Melina is one of three other people who are familiar with Torrent, two of which are Empyrean Demigods.

This one is simple. Torrent seems to have a nose for power. Ranni seems to be familiar with him and we see promo material of Miquella riding him in the Shadow Realms.

5. The Drama

The drama of a Marika having Maliketh kill her child who rebelled against her sounds so messy and inline with the rest of the family's mess that I can't help but enjoy it. This is not proof of anything, this is me admitting that accepting Melina as the GEQ aligns with my flavor of Rule of Cool. Not to mention it would be in character for both Fromsoft and GRRM to have a daughter rebel against her mother and be crushed and erased from history for it.

So if we assume Melina is the GEQ, the timeline would imply that:

Melina, first daughter of Marika is born as an Empyrean.

Gains control over the Rune of Death and the Godskin Apostles.

Implements characteristics of the Crucible in her Godskins (with their animal/snake like features) and adopts the practice of ritual flaying.

Comes into conflict with her mother, Marika and is defeated by Maliketh.

Marika creates The Golden Order.

Various wars to consolidate the Golden Order's power are launched.

The Messmer's crusades are launched and sealed away with the Shadow Realms and are forgotten.

The Shattering happens.

Melina is left as a somewhat amnesiac spectral version of herself until the Tarnished guides her on their journey back to the Erdtree.

The rest is up to us.

====

And that's that.

As usual, all this theory crafting is just for fun and can be right or wrong. I know I already disagree with some of my Messmer/Melina theories I myself wrote(lol) but I've settled on this one pretty strongly lately and wanted to share.