#gaian mind

[frank-olivier]

Terence McKenna gave a talk at a 1993 UFO convention, where he discussed his personal encounter with a UFO. He had previously written about this encounter in his book "True Hallucinations", which recounts his adventures and experiences in the Amazon Basin during the 1970s. The talk was given to an audience largely unfamiliar with McKenna's work, so he shared his thoughts on UFOs, aliens, and their potential connection to psychedelic experiences. He posited that some psychedelic substances serve as gateways to the collective unconscious and facilitate encounters with alien-like entities, linking the personal psychedelic journey to broader cosmic and evolutionary narratives. This idea blends Jungian psychology with shamanic and esoteric traditions, framing UFO encounters as symbolic representations of deeper psychological truths or potential glimpses into alternate realities.

Terence McKenna: UFO - The Inside Outsider (1993)

In this talk, given at an ethnobotanical conference in Palenque, Mexico, McKenna discusses the idea of humanity entering a new phase of existence. In McKenna's view, the evolution of human communication and creativity was not just a biological process, but also a spiritual and consciousness-expanding journey. He saw the development of language and symbolic thinking as key factors in humanity's ability to perceive and interact with the Gaian Mind, ultimately shaping our understanding of reality and our place within it. He envisioned a world where human activities, including scientific and technological development, would be guided by a deep connection to the Gaian Mind rather than by capitalist imperatives. He used the metaphor of birth to describe this transition, comparing our current state to being in the birth canal of a new ontological order. 

Terence McKenna: New Phase of Human Existence (1994)

Wednesday, July 3, 2024

[kpoptarotastrology009]

https://www.tumblr.com/kpoptarotastrology009/752573325220478976/hello-can-you-do-a-tarot-reading-on-rm-from-bts?source=share

The same reading for Yoongi, please, please? thank you queen 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

BTS'S Yoongi IDEAL TYPE

Personality: (ace of pentacles , ace of cups and the guardian of air from Gaian Tarot)Yoongi from BTS seems to have a pretty specific type in mind! He's likely attracted to people who are grounded and dependable, valuing a sense of stability and responsibility in a partner. He probably looks for someone who is open and sincere with their feelings, capable of forming deep emotional connections and providing a nurturing presence in his life. he might appreciate someone who is intellectually stimulating, able to engage in meaningful conversations and challenge his perspectives. For him, a perfect match would be someone who can offer both emotional depth and intellectual stimulation, creating a balanced and fulfilling relationship.( by the way that works well with his Virgo moon i don't know maybe someone with Virgo placements in their natal chart because if we were to associate these cards with zodiac signs, we might consider Taurus, Virgo, or Capricorn for the Ace of Pentacles; Cancer, Scorpio, or Pisces for the Ace of Cups; and Gemini, Libra, or Aquarius for the Guardian of Air. )

appearance : (eight of cups , four of cups and 9 of wands )Yoongi might be drawn to someone with deep, soulful eyes that have a lot of expression. The color could be anything from dark and mysterious to light and captivating, but what really stands out is how they seem to reflect their innermost thoughts and emotions. Maybe they have a slight shape or size that's unique, like almond-shaped or slightly larger than usual, adding to their captivating gaze. he might be into someone with a face shape that's a bit unconventional, like heart-shaped or oval with defined cheekbones. Their face shape might give them a look of mystery and elegance, complementing their deep, contemplative eyes and adding to their overall allure . When it comes to the body, they'd be rocking a look that's all about balance and grace. Not too bulky, not too fragile, just the right mix of strength and elegance. Picture someone who moves like they own the place, not flashy, but with this quiet confidence

Style/fashion sense: (eight of cups again but this time from zombie tarot i felt like i should use it and i got the eight of cups again and that could be significant , queen of wands and the king of cups) Yoongi's dream girl's style is all about being unique and totally owning it! She's not one to follow the crowd - she's more like a trendsetter, paving her own fashion path. Think bold, think out-of-the-box, think "I wear what I want, when I want!"Her style is all about making a statement without even trying But there's also a softer side, like the King of Cups. She's got this romantic, dreamy vibe to her fashion sense. She might love soft, flowy fabrics, or maybe she's into vintage pieces that tell a story. Her style is like a love letter to the past, with a modern twist that's all her own. this is the picture that i got in the eight of cups from zombie tarot :

i don't know but maybe the style of the girl in the picture could be significant ( i took the picture from google because it's better then taking a picture for the real card that i have to show you the style of the girl better ) i don't know why i kept hearing marilyn monroe over and over maybe he likes marilyn and his type maybe close to marilyn monroe in a sense.

Thank you so much and have a nice dayy <3

[mikkeneko]

Spent much of tonight speculating with @capriceandwhimsy on how COOL you could make an Alpha Centauri franchise -- start with a movie, then go on to a TV show

The movie would be a prequel, telling the story of the Unity Expedition, because I think a 2 hour feature film would be the best format to introduce us to the setting, the background, and the seven vibrant personalities who will later go on to become the seven faction leaders. A movie would be just enough time to show us how the expedition fell apart, how the spaceship crashed and burned, with the closing shot of the life pods scattering as they fall to the surface of Planet.

Then the TV show starts.

Most likely, what you'd want is a setup where the story follows a plucky young lieutenant of a faction -- or a few, possibly they know each other. I think the narrative ball could pass itself fairly seamlessly among the University, the Morganites and the Peacekeepers; there's obviously some ideological tensions there, but they're generally able to put those aside for the greater goal of survival on a hostile world. Like yeah the University are all amoral ivory tower bastards and the Morganites want to recreate the same capitalist system that destroyed Old Earth, but on the other hand everybody is having to deal with the fucking mind worms.

(The Gaians will be there, but largely in the background; they're off Doing Their Own Thing and only occasionally reappearing to be weird and creepy and say vague ominous things about Planet that everybody else will discount because it sounds like frou frou nonsense.)

For once you'd actually have a great excuse to film the whole thing in the Mojave - just slap a pink/orange filter over the desert and boom, Alpha Centauri. You could have a lot of fun with the mindworms, especially with revealing the Isle of the Deep and the Locusts of Chiron in turn. But in the end, the main concern is other humans.

The main antagonists are going to be the Hive, the Spartans, and primarily in the first season, the Believers. Each of the three POV factions could have a subplot going on with at least one of those three. I think the Hive would largely be in the background for the first season except for some oblique Zakharov and Yang "old friend" style homoerotic tension. The Spartans are a potential problem, but they are also the strongest military force on Planet so there's a strong urge to try to court their favor. The Believers, however, are hostile and aggressive to pretty much everybody and will not stay in their own lane, so conflicts with them would escalate over season 1 until there's open war between the Believers and the main three.

Season 1 winds up in a pitched battle against the Believers, which finally end with Miriam sueing for peace, which the Peacekeepers would of course accept while Zakharov and Morgan fume in the background "Lal, are you insane, she is obviously going to attack again as soon as our back is turned" but he just can't make any other choice but to accept the peace treaty because it's everything he believes in.

Sure enough, the Believers immediately rescind on the treaty and gear up to attack again. And that's when the Gaians show up and wipe them out. With domesticated mindworms.

Season 1 ends on that particular Apple of Discord. Next up in season 2: the Human Hive!

[mrblazeflappybird]

TELL ME EVERYTHING AB UR BLORBOS IMMEDIATELYYYY SHARE THE OC LORE POOKS

OH BUDDY HAVE YOU OPENED THE FLOODGATES, DIFFERENT SET OF BLORBOS BUT FOR THESE ONES I MADE A WHOLE MAP (its shitty) AND EVERYTHING SO ITS EASIER/MORE FUN TO EXPLAIN

(I am so sorry for the rant about to take place under the cut)

ESSENTIALLY I TOOK THE LORE OF ELVES AND FAE AND STUFF AND REWORKED IT A BIT AND THERES THESE MAGICAL ISLANDS - GAIAN AND THERIA

Theres a species hierarchy, going:

Fae (basically dieties),

Elves (most common/leading species),

Humans (never seen in Gaian, maybe a couple in Theria but they dont naturally live in this world)

Sorcerer (I made this into a species)

Werewolf/vampire (seen as equally "bad", basically rumoured to be awful and animalistic monsters but generally are much nicer to their people than elves are) and changelings (rare, pretty much died out)

Elves are raised really classist, and as they all are blonde and pale as fuck its easy for them to be a bitch to other people. Also, their eye colour are gold/silver/bronze, and "gold" eyes is rarest and therefore in really old blood, traditional families.

Elves also are genderless until they come of age at 18, where a mysterious, unspeakable event happens where they get transported *somewhere* and then come back with a gender. Firstborns are typically pressured to choose male in fancy shmancy families.

The elves are ruled over by the royal family, who are elves but are decended more directly to the fae supposedly. The King is thousands of years old, mind deteriorating, but his second in command rules in his place and secretely feeds him the info. The King has a half-elf son called Eden who is generally kept locked away (the King loved Eden's mother but she was killed or something angsty, second in command doesnt like him because REASONS)

The main character is an elf called Aeolus Quinn, whose older sister Zephyr was the "chosen one" in a prophecy stating that the eldest living child of the Quinn family will be the one to restore Gaian from evil. Zephyr, however, died (wink wink) about 5 years ago when my plot starts, so Aeolus is having to live up to the expectations that their "perfect" and tragic sister set

Then one day, they are called to the Kings palace at 17 years old to talk with the king about a so called evil group in Theria, which is what they believe to be the evil the prophecy talks about. So Aeolus has to go try deal with that, but they arent very good at anything they need to be, so Prince Eden tags along.

However the evil group is actually like vigilantes and stuff, including a sorcerer called Elliot (gay for Eden), a changeling called Red, and SHOCKER Zephyr

Anyway ;v; thats my blorbos ;v; theres more but im getting very concious of my word vomit

[fruityyamenrunner]

Are 'Blues' in your vocabulary same as Scott's 'Blue Tribe', or something else?

no, not at all. aren't they just Democrats as lightly laundered into the alternative-universe rationalist ontology? rats are a Blue tendency with an ugly hegemonising habit.

Blues are simply the opposite tendency to Gaians. see the appropriate tag for posts on them.

there is an emic point d'appui for the term, but it's not siskind - it's hanson

since the future is far in time, thinking about it tends to invoke a far mode of thought, which introduces other far mode defaults into our image of the future. And thinking about the far future makes us think especially far. Of course many other considerations influence any particular imagined future, but it can help to understand the assumptions your mind is primed to make about the far future, regardless of whether those assumptions are true.

For example, since we expect things further away in time to also be further away in space, we expect future folk to live further away, such as in space, and to habitually travel longer distances. Since the distant past is also further away in time, we also expect past folk to live further away and travel longer distances, but the many concrete details we know about the past reduces this effect.

Since blue light scatters more easily than red, far away things in our field of view tend to look more blue. So we expect future stuff to look blue. And since blue stuff looks cold, we expect future stuff to look cold. Finally, since we expect far away things to have less detail, we tend to imagine them with fewer parts and flourishes, and less detailed textures and patterns. The future is not paisley.

[architeuthis3]

“History is ending because the dominator culture has led the human species into a blind alley, and as the inevitable chaostrophie approaches, people look for metaphors and answers. Every time a culture gets into trouble it casts itself back into the past looking for the last sane moment it ever knew. And the last sane moment we ever knew was on the plains of Africa 15,000 years ago rocked in the cradle of the Great Horned Mushroom Goddess before history, before standing armies, before slavery and property, before warfare and phonetic alphabets and monotheism, before, before, before. And this is where the future is taking us because the secret faith of the twentieth century is not modernism, the secret faith of the twentieth century is nostalgia for the archaic, nostalgia for the paleolithic, and that gives us body piercing, abstract expressionism, surrealism, jazz, rock-n-roll and catastrophe theory. The 20th century mind is nostalgic for the paradise that once existed on the mushroom dotted plains of Africa where the plant-human symbiosis occurred that pulled us out of the animal body and into the tool-using, culture-making, imagination-exploring creature that we are. And why does this matter? It matters because it shows that the way out is back and that the future is a forward escape into the past. This is what the psychedelic experience means. Its a doorway out of history and into the wiring under the board in eternity. And I tell you this because if the community understands what it is that holds it together the community will be better able to streamline itself for flight into hyperspace because what we need is a new myth, what we need is a new true story that tells us where we're going in the universe and that true story is that the ego is a product of pathology, and when psilocybin is regularly part of the human experience the ego is suppressed and the suppression of the ego means the defeat of the dominators, the materialists, the product peddlers. Psychedelics return us to the inner worth of the self, to the importance of the feeling of immediate experience - and nobody can sell that to you and nobody can buy it from you, so the dominator culture is not interested in the felt presence of immediate experience, but that's what holds the community together. And as we break out of the silly myths of science, and the infantile obsessions of the marketplace what we discover through the psychedelic experience is that in the body, IN THE BODY, there are Niagara's of beauty, alien beauty, alien dimensions that are part of the self, the richest part of life. I think of going to the grave without having a psychedelic experience like going to the grave without ever having sex. It means that you never figured out what it is all about. The mystery is in the body and the way the body works itself into nature. What the Archaic Revival means is shamanism, ecstasy, orgiastic sexuality, and the defeat of the three enemies of the people. And the three enemies of the people are hegemony, monogamy and monotony! And if you get them on the run you have the dominators sweating folks, because that means your getting it all reconnected, and getting it all reconnected means putting aside the idea of separateness and self-definition through thing-fetish. Getting it all connected means tapping into the Gaian mind, and the Gaian mind is what we're calling the psychedelic experience. Its an experience of the living fact of the entelechy of the planet. And without that experience we wander in a desert of bogus ideologies. But with that experience the compass of the self can be set, and that's the idea; figuring out how to reset the compass of the self through community, through ecstatic dance, through psychedelics, sexuality, intelligence, INTELLIGENCE. This is what we have to have to make the forward escape into hyperspace.”

Terence McKenna cactus transforms. 24x30''. oil on canvas. adam sturch Aesop Rock, The Four Winds

[loominggaia]

Evangelite Culture

CULTURE

Evangeline Kingdom strictly adheres to the conditions of the Nymph Pact, which prohibits unsustainable industry, as well as the use of plastics, toxic chemicals, and other substances which are harmful to the environment. The vast majority of Evangelites are Lindists, so protecting the environment is something they do with religious fervor.

The average Evangelite is a Lindist who attends temple services at least once per week. They revere nymphs, but believe fae and gaians are inferior beings who must be enslaved. Nymphs are not considered fae by Evangelite law, but a unique class of their own. Evangelites believe iron is a sacred material, as it is protective against magic. They fear magic and believe it should not be used by anyone except nymphs.

They believe humans are Mother Gaia’s “chosen people”, who have a responsibility to guide other species towards their way of life. Dworfs and roshava are lesser than humans, and ogres and trolls are even lesser. Females of all species are believed to be lesser than males, and cannot be trusted to have as many rights.

Evangelites value their scenic, unpolluted lands. Outdoor activities are popular here, especially hunting, fishing, horseback riding, and gardening. Most Evangelites maintain at least a small garden to honor nymphs and supplement their pantries. Evangelite architects keep this in mind when designing housing, as Queen Indiga passed a law requiring that all new construction must have an outdoor space with ample light for plants. Most urban citizens live in stone rowhouses or townhouses with small yards, while rural citizens live in wooden cottages or stone farmhouses.

Slavery has been a quintessential aspect of Evangelite culture since the 4th Age. In the past, only upper classes owned slaves. But thanks to Queen Indiga’s generosity towards the slaving industry, they have become much cheaper and more accessible. Today, slaves are a common sight in middle class and even some lower class households. One of Indiga’s promises during her reign was “a slave for every family”, and decades later, she has nearly made that a reality.

See Also:

Lindism

Evangelite Territories

Evangelite Cuisine (Kingdom | Greenhearstian | Slave)

Evangelite Fashions

Evangelite Hairstyles

Ask - Culture

Ask - Slavery

Ask - Evangeline

Ask - Indiga

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Read the Series

[blu-screen]

7. Who was the very first muse you ever wrote?

((Hooo boy.... Baring in mind I was in my teens at the time!

Meet the (very creatively named) Makoto Tantalius Tribal. My silly little spontaneous FFIX Genome OC/Self insert from... Gosh a long time ago.

Originally she was more like my persona on various Final Fantasy forums but over time she got fleshed out into a whole character, and largely used in battle-based RP since that was the more popular type at the time. Happy upbeat rogue with an experimental terran-gaian fused soul courtesy of you FFIX fans know who.

Eventually she split into two muses because I cannot write anyone who isn't a pair apparently, and I got my second, equally creatively named 'Celeste Savargio' who is technically also her;

A mage specializing in fire and electric magic, as well as being the edgiest little edge frick you've ever met. Literally the only thing stopping these two from killing each other is knowing if one of them dies they both do. Shared soul shenanigans are fun. u_u

..I've been thinking of bringing these two back recently, particularly with a certain other rogue muse getting their claws in me, but I think I'd need to rethink the names, maybe some of their backstory (its currently heavily tied up with an old battle RP guild I was in) but I mean...

I do still like them a lot. It's mostly figuring out how to make OC's work cos that. Looks hard as hell around here tbh. =X ))

[mysticalblizzardcolor]

[caxycreations]

Introduction to Caxy Creations and Relan

Hello everyone, I am Caxy Creations. You can call me Davina. My fursona is a caxy (half-cat, half-fox. Specifically, half Russian Blue domestic cat and half Arctic Fox).

I am an author, an artist, a streamer, and more. I love to dabble in all forms of creation. To get some base details out of the way...

I'm 25 years old, she/her, in a committed and very happy poly relationship, and I'm as casual a person as you'll ever meet.

I have a series of stories called "Tylvinian Tales", with the main story being titled "Tylvinian Tales: The Wolf's Den". All of my stories take place on a planet called Relan, a world of anthropomorphic animals and mythological creatures, with science and magic in equal amounts.

I wanted to make an intro to Relan, to try and hit some of the highlights. I will elaborate on everything listed below in future posts, but as this is simply an introduction I have decided to focus more on revealing the basics rather than elaborating on all of their little details.

For ease of reading, and for organization, I'm breaking this down into seven "chapters", most of which link to posts that go into greater detail on that topic. Click on a chapter title to be taken to the dedicated post, and do bear in mind they are introductory posts: there are intricate and complex underlying circumstances within each country that cannot be explained in generalized posts detailing their basic culture and concept.

Geography

Cultures

Countries

Religions

Time Formats

Scientific Advancements

Magic

Special Notes

So without further ado...

Geography

Relanian geography is divided into five categories.

Fungal

Floral

Woodland

Mountain

Reef

And each category is divided into subcategories

Fungal 1 - Sapro-fungal

Fungal 2 - Para-fungal

Floral 1 - Herbal

Floral 2 - Flowering

Floral 3 - Mossy

Woodland 1 - Deciduous

Woodland 2 - Coniferous

Mountain 1 - Rocky

Mountain 2 - Desert

Reef 1 - Rocky

Reef 2 - Algae

Reef 3 - Cavernous

Reef 4 - Green

More can be found on the individual biomes and their characteristics in future posts.

Cultures

There are five major cultures on Relan. They are as follows:

Senkanorian

Ferusian

Dornumite

Andronian

Eikirian

Countries

The world is divided into six countries, which are as follows:

Sen

Kanor

Ferus

Dornum

Andronia

Eikiria

Sen and Kanor originated as a single country, and were divided by warlords vying for control. As such, their cultures are nearly identical, with very few differences.

More on the countries and their cultures in future posts.

Religions

There are very few religions on Relan, though there are some distinct theological beliefs, as listed below.

Gaian (This link leads to Relanian Gods post)

Naturism

Ancestral

Gaian is the most widespread of the three, and focuses on the Relanian Gods after which the months of the year are named: Gaius, Malor, Fina, Escor, Jan, and Dinora.

On Relan, divinity is not a hotly debated topic, but rather a fact of reality known to be true. The evidence exists in the storms that cover the world a few times a year, the records of sentience itself, and the magic abilities that every living thing exhibit.

More on each God and their domains, abilities, and ideologies in future posts.

Time Formats

The 12-hour clock most of us are used to is the most commonly used format on Relan as well, though "military time" exists as well. However, that is where the similarities taper out.

There are six months in a year, and one year is 360 days. Leap years do not exist. The months of the year are named after the Gaian pantheon, and are, in order from first to last, Gaius, Fina, Escor, Jan, Malor, and Dinora.

Months are categorized as such due to the unique nature of the Gods that govern the planet. Over time, some grow weaker while others grow stronger. These times were observed, and used as the basis for "one month" of time passing. Gaius is at his strongest at the beginning of the year, while the other gods are far weaker, resulting in Gaius being the namesake of the first "month", and when his power wanes and Fina's begins to grow, it is the start of the second "month", and so on. Rather than the planet's years being measured in solar orbits, it is measured by the cycle of power, with one year being complete when Dinora's power wanes and Gaius' power grows again.

Years are measured by how many it has been since the Gods made first contact, with first contact being recorded as the year "zero". There is no A.D, no B.C, simply counting up from first contact as the years go by.

Our current year of 2023 is analogous, scientifically and culturally, to the year 4023 on Relan, with Relan's first recorded contact with the gods being 4,023 years prior. Time is managed this way due to the complete lack of sentient life on the planet prior to the Gods making first contact.

Dates, as such, are written as "[Day Number] of [God Name], [Years since first contact]". For example, my character Ryder Trayson was born on the following date: 30th of Gaius, 3995. This makes him 25 during the time of the main story "Wolf's Den", which begins on the 24th of Jan, 4020.

Scientific Advancements

Relanian science is a global effort, with "military science" being privatized by country. The scientists of the world work without cultural borders, operating together for the betterment of the world.

They focus on necessity over desire, and as a result, some things have gotten far more attention than others. The Worldwide Enclave of Benevolent Scientists (or "WEBS") lists the following as the three areas of greatest importance to the world:

Medical - Medical science is the greatest concern, and the largest focus. Disease and injury are intolerable, and must be treated as the greatest threats to life. As such, medical science is the largest focus and has the greatest advancement.

Natural - Natural science is the second greatest. Understanding the world they are on is of great importance, to better protect the planet and its environment for a sustainable existence on Relan.

Technological - Technological science is third. It is any science related to technological convenience. Entertainment, comfort, and the like are considered "low" priority, but of great importance, as WEBS states "Living without Survival is impossible, but Survival without Living is meaningless". As such, Relanian "creature comforts" are plenty, but ever-so-slightly behind our own world in advancement. However, industrial advancements are slightly ahead, as some corporations have privatized sects of scientists to develop easier, cheaper methods of production.

A few examples of their advancements are:

Medical - They have developed a cure for the common cold, and have treatments for cancer that are known to work a majority of the time. There are chemical agents that promote healing of injury that can heal cuts and scrapes in a day or less, and medical advances that allow for a wide variety of organ transplants with synthetic organs.

Natural - They have explored roughly 87% of the oceans, with Eikirians (ocean-dwellers) assisting land-dwelling divers in harder-to-navigate areas. The remaining sections of the ocean left unexplored are due to technological limitations and deep-water pressure. There are also extensive records of most land-dwelling and water-dwelling species of both Sentients and Ferals. Their understanding and preservation of environments and climates are also a couple of decades ahead of our own.

Technological - Varies between more advanced and less advanced depending on the field. Industrial technology is very advanced, with construction companies able to build skyscrapers several hundred feet high in less than a week, while factories have triple, or quadruple depending on the company, the output an Earth factory might have. However, their entertainment tech is fairly behind, with VR being a brand new concept as of 4020, and with color television being as recent as 3990. This is due to necessary fields taking priority over unnecessary fields of research.

There's much more to Relanian science than this, but that will have to wait for future posts!

Magic

Magic does exist on Relan, and it's where the creatures gain their sentience. Magic was introduced into the world when the Gods made first contact, pouring their collective magic into the ancient Ferals, granting them sentience and thought, reason and logic.

While magic was initially a powerful tool, capable of being wielded by skilled mages and practitioners, it has since dwindled down to a weak, but ever-present force. In the modern day, magic exists in very few forms, but very widespread forms.

Today, magic exists in the following:

Blessings. Abilities and powers as unique as the individual bearing them.

Mythicals. Sentient beings not analogous with any Feral beast. They are the Heavusi, the Wendigo, the Griffons, Dragons, etc. All mythological creatures of Earth exist as Mythicals on Relan, and are the longest-lived species on the planet, as well as the ones with the greatest connection to magic.

Storms. Relanian weather is largely predictable and plain, with very very little in the way of true storms. However, as the Gods power wanes and grows, it forms disturbances in the magic of the world. When these powers clash and their charge grows too great, the entire planet feels it. Great storms erupt, with powerful lightning bolts covering the globe for several hours, striking the surface several thousand times in the process. True storms, though they only happen a couple of times a year, are the largest concentration of magic in the modern world.

More on Blessings, Mythicals, and True Storms in future posts!

Special Notes

Relan is home to a wide and ever-growing variety of creature. Life evolves in all forms, and most species, real and fictional, exist on the planet. As such there is no limit to the type of being that can exist on the world, though there are differences in Relanian life and their off-world counterparts!

So if anything here has you curious, feel free to ask for more information, or present your curiosities! I love sharing my world, and my goal is to create a world others want to be a part of, so if you have interest in ANY of the topics presented in this introduction, by all means ask about it!

Thank you all for reading this far, and I intend to get more posted here as soon as I can. Until then, thank you and have a wonderful day!

[dontjudgemeimawriter]

Find the Word Tag

Tagged by @autumnalwalker ty!

All are from Syndicate (So unless noted otherwise, from Terran's POV)

sweet (From a scene I wrote from Raymond's POV, not in the main story)

“But I did want to just because I’ve learned a lot. How our minds work, even how our magic works. It’s crazy how much I was going on instinct before, but also how I was right about some things. I know where I’m going now, know what I’m doing.” “You’ve always been smart,” [Terran] said, and his voice was sleepy, which was really sweet in a way I didn't expect, and I looked at him and he looked really tired but he was still watching me.  I brushed away the compliment. “I did well in school because Mom taught me how to improve memory. You’re always a step ahead of me unless I lie to you.” “No,” he replied. “I don’t know my numbers, remember?” This time his eyes were closed. “Numbers aren’t that important. You’re smart. You’ve always been.”

grow

“It is them,” I said, still staring at the words in the notebook, as if another message was about to come through. I glanced up at him, processing what he said enough to realize he didn’t make quite the same realization I did. “That’s Abigail’s handwriting.” [Raymond] tensed. “Abigail? The spy who used to be a reaper, that Abigail?” I nodded. I knew her handwriting well enough. Saw it scattered over papers growing up. “Meaning, it is the Judge who’s after you,” I added. 

enough

[Raymond] took a few steps closer. I turned enough that he could see, and he got close enough that I could feel the warmth of his body. He leaned closer, looking for it, raising a hand and I felt his finger gently touch the back of my neck to feel where I’d been feeling were it had been put in. I braced myself as he touched it, the urge to flinch away was strong. “Shit. I’m sorry,” he said, apologizing again. He backed up, facing me again. I shrugged at his apology. It wasn’t his fault. It was mine. But I didn’t think I should say that and I couldn’t bring myself to say it was fine.

curiosity

No one ever mentioned my mother. My father was hardly mentioned either, but acknowledged. I knew his name (Nicholas), I knew what he’d done, I knew he was Gaian, that he’d died because he’d made a mistake. Zachary had even told me a few stories about him when he was in a good mood, though those stories didn’t paint him in the best light. The only thing I knew about my mom was that she must be a Nance, since I was. Abigail was still smirking. Was it possible she did know something? Despite the surge of curiosity, I dismissed it. She likely didn’t know, I couldn’t believe anything she said. She’d just use my curiosity against me. So I pretended I didn’t care. I turned my head, facing forward.

form

I couldn’t make any of their words out, but then, a hauntingly familiar cry of pain. Too quiet to alarm anyone, not fear to get attention—but the horrible sound of suppressing how much something hurt.  My mind raced, trying to figure out what had been going on. I’d been so focused on myself that I had no idea what kind of confrontation could be happening. I stepped toward my door, then hesitated. I wanted to know what was going on, but I’d be stepping into some form of Zachary’s wrath, with no idea what I was getting into. Stepping in would be dangerous, and not like the anger I’d been getting from him. This was much more direct. Raymond wouldn't hesitate. He wouldn’t for a moment be thinking about his own fear, he’d jump right in and do anything he could to make sure Mika got out safe. No matter what it would involve. 

Tagging: @wildjuniperjones @blind-the-winds @eli-writes-sometimes @thegreatobsesso & anyone else who wants to jump on

Your words are: sleep, scatter, urge, paint, & involve

[amp-wrks]

Designing Interactions with the Earth from Interaction Design Association on Vimeo.

When we take in the number and magnitude of threats to the survival of humans as well as countless other species, the future looks grim. As we view the array of disruptions and disasters coming at us in the rush of climate change, we are apt to lose ourselves in resignation and grief. How can we find anything positive to guide us? How might we invoke technology and agency in ways that promote healing of the earth and of ourselves? In this time of daunting challenges, what does successful transformation look like? And how can designers be part of such transformations?

Brenda often reminds design students that “We can’t design from despair.” A corollary is: “hope is an active verb.” In the developments and inventions examined in this talk, we will see how hope is an essential ingredient. That doesn’t mean that everything has to be a success. When design ideas don’t work as we’d imagined, we reflect on our “interesting failures” and learn. And then we move on.

How does the planet feed 8 billion people in the face of the pollution and habitat destruction caused by industrial farming of plants and animals? How might we reframe “conservation” as restoration? How might we attenuate plastic pollution and keep fast fashion out of landfills? How can we address the drivers of deforestation? How might we design and engineer methods for slowing glacial melt and atmospheric heating? There are innovative and promising answers to those questions bubbling up in the minds of designers, scientists, engineers, and transdisciplinary teams all over the world. Brenda’s keynote will review some of those efforts, identify what they have in common, and explore how we might employ those commonalities as heuristics for designing positive interactions with the Earth.

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Brenda Laurel, Principal at Neogaian Interactive United States

Brenda Laurel is an independent scholar whose interests include interaction design, XR, theater, media theory, and Gaian systems. She has worked in interactive media since 1976, in the computer game industry from Atari to Activision, and in research at Atari Research, Interval Research, and Sun Labs as a Distinguished Engineer. In 1988, she co-founded the Game Developers Conference. At the Banff Centre for the Arts, she co-designed and produced the ground-breaking VR piece, Placeholder. She led a research team on gender and technology at Interval Research (1992-1996) and co-founded Purple Moon, an interactive media company for girls, in 1996. She designed and chaired the Graduate Media Design Program at Art Center College of Design (2001-2006) and the Graduate Design Program at California College of the Arts (2006-2012), both emphasizing design research and transmedia methods and skills. Furthermore, she also taught in the Games and New Media program at the University of California at Santa Cruz (2012-2015). ‍ In 2015, she received the Trailblazer Award from Indiecade. She was awarded the Nextant Prize from the Virtual World Society in 2016 and became a Fellow of the Higher Education Videogame Alliance in 2018. In 2022, she was inducted into the inaugural class of the IEEE Virtual Reality Academy. She has served on the boards of IxDA, StoryCenter, the Virtual World Society, and the Communication Research Institute (Australia). She earned an MFA in Theatre and a Ph.D. in Drama Theory and Criticism at The Ohio State University. Her books include The Art of Human-Computer Interface Design (1990), Utopian Entrepreneur (2001), Design Research: Methods and Perspectives (2004), and Computers as Theatre, (1991, Second Edition 2014).

True to her generation, Brenda is a hard-core fan of both the Grateful Dead and Star Trek. She is an avid snorkeler, abalone diver, and amateur underwater photographer, but since she has moved from northern California to the high desert in Santa Fe, New Mexico, US, she now photographs chollas, petroglyphs, and clouds.

[deesfanfictionkin]

IMPORTANT CANON CHARACTERS - OLYMPUS

NAME: Cronus

FACTION: The Gaians, supposedly, though his interests are mostly self-serving and his true goal is just to satisfy his own need for power, since serving as the Headmaster of the University just isn't enough for him anymore.

ABILITY: Cronus has the ability to manipulate time to his liking. The magic over The Ever Young is dulling his abilities tremendously, but he's still capable of creating limited time loops, from one sunrise to one sunset, in which he can trap people. However, using his powers is draining his life-force considerably and weakening him, though he does everything he can to hide that fact.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: Cronus doesn't rely simply on his magical powers. An accomplished fighter, he's skilled with a scythe, which he had a magic weapons maker create for him and which will literally slice years off your lifespan if you get hit with it.

NAME: Neil

FACTION: The Gaians, first and foremost, and it's due to his love of his home and his friends that he's working secretly with La Revolucion.

ABILITY: Neil is blessed with luck. Reality itself warps to give him what he wants or to create the best possible solution for him, though it only affects his immediate person and the area he can see around him, so he can't use it to benefit anyone else, though he's pretty okay with that.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: None as of current.

NAME: Herry

FACTION: The Gaians, first and foremost, and it's due to his love of his home and his friends and family that he's working secretly with La Revolucion.

ABILITY: Herry's ability seems simple on the surface. This boy is strong, incredibly so. His body itself is unique, possessing super-strength and increased durability.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: None as of current.

NAME: Odie

FACTION: The Gaians, first and foremost, and it's due to his love of his family and friends that he's working secretly with La Revolucion.

ABILITY: Odie is a technopath, capable of manipulating technology to his whims with a single touch.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: Going along with his ability, and his quite brilliant mind, Odie's an accomplished inventor.

NAME: Theresa

FACTION: The Gaians, first and foremost, and it's due to her love of her friends and family that she works, in secret, with La Revolucion.

ABILITY: Theresa is clairvoyant, though she only catches glimpses of potential futures in her dreams. The images she sees in her dreams fade quickly and are difficult to interpret, as they're single scenes. She has taken to keeping a notepad on her bedside table to keep track of them.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: Theresa's clairvoyance does grow stronger throughout the story.

NAME: Archie

FACTION: The Gaians, first and foremost, and it's due to his love for his home and his friends that he works with La Revolucion in secret.

ABILITY: Archie is almost, though not completely, invincible. He's impervious to diseases, and it takes a lot to cut through his iron hard skin. It can be done, particularly with magical weapons, but it's still a challenge.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: Archie likes to think of himself as a warrior, and he trains very hard in both hand to hand combat, physical stamina and agility, and has gotten quite proficient in fighting with a whip.

NAME: Atlanta

FACTION: The Gaians, first and foremost, and it's due to her love for her home and her family that she's working, in secret, with La Revolucion.

ABILITY: Atlanta was born with the ability of super speed.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: However, to go along with her ability, Atlanta trains to build stamina, reflexes, and the ability to hold her own in a fight and she's gotten to be proficient at hand-to-hand combat, though her skill is mostly as a marksman.

NAME: Jay

FACTION: The Gaians, first and foremost. It's his love for his home and his friends and family that led to him suggesting to his friends, and joining himself, La Revolucion.

ABILITY: Jay has the ability to influence others moods. He can motivate others and influence them one way or the other, though he tries hard to contain and control his ability so as not to unconsciously use it in an unfair way.

ADDITIONAL ABILITIES: None as of current.

[fruityyamenrunner]

Let the Gaians preach their silly religion, but one way or the other I shall see this compound burned, seared, and sterilized until every hiding place is found and until every last Mind Worm egg, every last slimy one, has been cooked to a smoking husk. That species shall be exterminated, I tell you! Exterminated!

[tamarakkoarchive]

Shin Megami Tensei II livetweet thread (5/8)

so.... beth died while barely having saying a word, daleth was a psycho and became brainwashed by an elf and gimmel failed at crypto and got offed by us

guess there's not much space for doubt that zayin is unequivocally the best character from the lab human roster

i already commented on SMT1 getting the chaos side better than other games and it goes beyond in SMT2, even gaians are depicted with much less nonsensical aggressiveness

idk what to think abt hiroko, to her credit she's given a lot more dialogue than previous heroines but her relationship with aleph still feels random

out of nowhere we get everyone in the game agreeing they are a couple when there has been no scene whatsoever that even distinguished them going from strangers to barely close to each other which we at least got in SMT1

here's my idea of a retake on belphegor: he doesn't turn him into a bishie or anything and just stays exactly the same except now he's playing on his phone while on the toilet

~

hooray we also visit the underworld in smt2!! it's the first time since pretty much the beginning that there are different bgms and graphics altogether, the agony in all those days stuck going through the same reused shit over and over can't be understated

the part where you have to help the japanese deities by building the body of masakado is the worst thing i had to endure in a smt game, even with a guide you just feel like screaming for help

imagine what i went through with MT1 and multiplay by 10 the number of items and locations

~

don't you fucking lie to me, this is the nickelodeon slime pool isn't it

OUR WAIFU HECATE HAS RETURNED for both my amusement and dismayal she's the very first boss i got game overs because the bitch drops a lot of instakills

(remember how humans are inherently immune to light in the snes games? basically she's the first boss to act actually smart and go for mudo instead. i had zero protection against it ❤️)

~

the animation of some sprites load a bit worse than others but this one takes the cake to the point it hurts my eyes

~

i can see why people like to draw aleph with a smiley face, he has a lot of goofy negotiation options lol although in my case i see him as those manly 90s kuudere bishies that unintentionally act like a clown while keeping the serious face

aleph gets church fanboys throwing money all over him while barely trying

~

only law gets normal water, if you're neutral you bathe in slime and if you're chaos go straight to the tomato soup

on this matter, i'm not worried about the options i'm picking because this time the most interesting routes for me are either law or chaos so i'm just going with whatever

that being said, this game is -awfully- biased towards law to the point i haven't been able to switch from it even once, the chaos healers are not only harder to find but they only allow your entry if you pay an 1k fee so it's quite an annoying expense in early game

~

i'm used to how toned down the series turned out to be in video game form despite the novel it originated from but this scene specifically made me go "ok if this wasn't something tailored to be allowed on a nintendo console You Just Know he would say another word instead of kill"

mind break ntr monster ass

sadly the one (1) r-rated smt with actual eroguro we got doesn't have art done by kaneko but some other rando. it's not that bad-looking compared to other guests artists but 🥺 the one chance kaneko had of going all out… poof

[loominggaia]

kid-az What no (Or inefficient) cosmological justice or anti-corruption laws does to an MF: #I do have to wonder if the current generation of world leaders is particularly bad#or if it’s just the norm #or if it can improve someday?

--

I think the main issue is that wealth tends to corrupt. While most nobles are wealthy, the High Rulers are obscenely wealthy, and that leads to obscene levels of corruption among them.

I will note that some of the current High Rulers were not always rich, and some of them were less corrupt in their more humble days *coughGultoppcough*. Others were just dickheads all their lives, rich or not.

But it's no surprise that people like that often find their way to the top of society, because they're the ones who are most willing to step on everyone else to get there. And if they didn't exploit their way to the top, it was probably their shitty ancestors who did it for them, and that behavior tends to get passed down through generations.

I'll also mention that this isn't even the worst gaggle of High Rulers in Looming Gaia's history. At certain points, things were way worse than they are now...

For example: Marghan Matuzu might be a worthless little shit, and his father Yazid isn't much better, but at least Uzoma is pulling some positive strings behind the scenes. She's the reason Matuzu Kingdom maintains its current progressive, open-minded culture. But there was a time when Matuzu Kingdom was ruled by a ruthless family of fae supremacists who tried to enslave all the kingdom's gaians. This led to centuries of authoritarian leadership and the eventual birth of Etios Nation.

Also, Yerim-Mor Kingdom was once ruled by the Divine of Hate himself. I mean, you can't do much worse than that...

*

Questions/Comments?

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