#got an inspiration for it and everything

[blackjackkent]

Yet another case of Rakha wandering over somewhere and finding people shouting at each other - in this case, several teeth-lings and the druids in the grove.

"Let my daughter go! Right now!"

"She's a thief, hellspawn. And you will wait for Kagha's judgment! Now get back!"

That, thinks Rakha, who didn't even want to be here in the first place except Wyll insisted on it, is the beautiful sound of Not My Problem, and stalks straight on by, ignoring one of the druids turning into a bear and roaring at the refugees.

The druids try to stop her too, of course, but she doesn't think much of it ("If it weren't for me, you'd be overrun by goblins by now," she says curtly. "I'll go where I please.") and it's quite likely there would be a fight, except that one of the druids pipes up with a message from their leader, the aforementioned "Kagha", who apparently wants to speak with them.

Rakha's really only interested in the healer, but the leader might know something about the Halsin that Zevlor mentioned. So she allows herself and her companions to be led into the stone structure that sits at the base of the grove.

As they walk, she looks with considerable interest at the ritual taking place at the grove's center.

The sense of magic here is intense. It moves in pulses and waves across her skin, resonating with her own power, but with a slightly different texture.

"Why is it different?" she asks Gale matter-of-factly.

"The distinction between arcanic and druidic magic is a matter of some academic debate," Gale says, perking up instantly at this question. "Certainly druidic spellcasting draws upon the Weave as surely as you or I do, but the focus of the casting is considerably different, drawing on natural forces as opposed to a learned intellectual understanding of the Weave's facets. In truth it is closer to a school of divinity than arcana - as evidenced by the presence of that idol of Silvanus at the center of this ritual. An elven deity of the wilderness."

It is the most he's said to her since they found Alfira this morning, and she finds she relaxes a little to hear him returning to his usual loquaciousness, even if most of the nuance is lost on her. "Interesting."

"It is, isn't it?"

-----

The inner sanctum of the grove is dark and cool, a sharp contrast to the warm spring brightness outside. Inside... once again, people are shouting, and one of them, unfortunately, is the person Rakha was sent in here to see.

"Please-- I'm sorry!" A young girl - probably the daughter of the refugee outside - is crying out in terror, faced down by an enormous serpent with fangs as long as Rakha's tusks.

Two of the druids are standing next to her.

"This is madness, Kagha!" one of them is saying, with a placating air. "She's just a--"

"A what, Rath?" Kagha snaps back. "A thief? A poison? A threat? I will imprison the devil--" Her eyes flick past Rath's shoulder to lock on Rakha walking into the room. "And I will cast out every stranger," she adds pointedly.

Rakha halts. She barely notices Kagha's pointed glare at first; her eyes are fixed intently on the snake.

Memory - a deep, thick flash of it, unbidden, unexpected. A creature like this, held between her hands, twisted at the mouth delicately against a clear empty glass. The spurt of a dark, stinging liquid.

Narrator: A death viper. You have milked their poison before. A single drop of it could kill that child in a heartbeat.

The beast in her mind stirs curiously, but does not quite rouse. The viper's poison is a clean kill, she remembers. There is no blood. Simple, effective - but uninteresting.

"One of your guards outside said you wanted to see me," she says, not moving her gaze from the snake though she speaks to Kagha. "Here I am."

Kagha shrugs dismissively. "We will speak soon enough," she says curtly. "First, judgment must be passed." She folds her arms, speaks with relish, evidently quite satisfied with the judgment she has decided on. "The parasite eats our food, drinks our water. Then steals our most holy idol in thanks! Rath - lock her up. She remains here until the rite is complete." She bends a little to the girl's eye height and smirks coldly. "And keep still, devil. Teela is restless."

Rath struggles to protest. "Come, Kagha. We took back the idol. Surely--"

"Do it!" Kagha snaps. Her force of personality is overwhelming; Rath is lost by comparison. His shoulders slump, his eyes dropping to the floor.

Rakha's eyes have not left the snake during this entire interchange. She is fascinated by the thread of memory that hangs from it, fragile, indistinct.

Narrator: The snake's hiss of approval reveals its intentions. Should the child struggle, it is poised to strike.

The beast stirs again, stronger this time.

Narrator: The death of a child. A timeless tragedy that never grows old...

The moment hang's on a knife's edge, and it would be so easy to push it over into chaos. A sharp flick of the eyes, a tacit encouragement to the child - run, run! And she would run, but the snake would be faster. Rakha can see images of the serpent striking, the quick impact like lightning, the two matching circles of dripping red... and death, inevitable as the breath that preceded it.

Her heartbeat quickens to think of it. The beast gnaws at her skull. Why do you hesitate?

She realizes that she is caught on another, much more recent memory as well. Wyll, in camp, telling her gravely the story of how he took the name the Blade of Frontiers. A lost child, an orphan, surrounded by goblins who fell under Wyll's blade to save the boy. "But what of the others?" Wyll said then. "The children never saved, the cries never heard? The frontiers demanded a blade, and so I heeded."

It is the only conversation about a child she can remember having, ever, before this one.

Wyll, she is certain, would not wish this child to die. The beast, equally certainly, wants to see her writhe as the poison takes her.

What do I want?

The question is... surprising. Up to now, her every decision not driven by the Dark Urge has been rooted squarely in survival, in the avenue of least resistance. But in this case... whether the child lives or dies has no bearing on her.

So answer the question. What do I want?

What she wants is control. Last night, the beast rose up and fed on Alfira's guts, and she had no choice in the matter before it was all over. But she is awake and aware now. She has a choice here, to ignore the beast, to ignore a death that will not serve her.

And Wyll, who thinks she carries a light alongside her darkness, would not want the child to die.

Your mind wants the snake to kill the child. But your heart doesn't. Snap out of it.

Narrator: Her life matters more than satiating your dark fantasies. You focus... and they're gone. But clearly, this child's life is still in danger.

Her breath catches. The moment of focus... and the beast recedes, grumbles back into silence. She has never stood against it before. She is not sure she knew it was possible.

She realizes she has been standing there with her eyes closed, forces her gaze open. The others can see she looks abruptly shaken in a way they have never witnessed before.

[PERSUASION] "Release her," she rasps out sharply. "I'll see that she stays out of trouble." The words surprise her as they reach her own ears. But it is the fastest way to end the situation, and she wants suddenly nothing more than to be gone from this moment, to have time to think over what just happened.

Kagha glares at her, a muscle working in her jaw, clearly gauging whether she would win, should this come to blows. And something she sees in Rakha's eyes frightens her just enough that she submits.

"Very well," she hisses, like an echo of the snake she commands. "She may go. Break your word, and my serpent shall feed." She snaps a hand out. "Ssifisv - Teela, to me!"

Obedient, the snake crawls from its perch to curl around Kagha's boot. The girl whimpers with fear, watching it curve past.

"Out, thief!" Kagha snarls at her. "My grace has its limits."

With a noise of pure terror, the girl rockets to Rakha's side, taking up a position behind the half-orc's robes.

Rath relaxes visibly. "Thank you, Kagha. Master Halsin would--"

Kagha rounds on him with sudden fury, one hand lifting as if to strike him across the face. "Halsin isn't here," she snaps. "Keep his name off your tongue, lest Teela pierce it."

-----

Arabella, for that is the girl's name, peers up at Rakha as they walk towards the sanctum door. "I-- I didn't think you were gonna help me," she says unsteadily.

Rakha says nothing. She has withdrawn deeply into herself; as they move out of Kagha's line of sight, she pauses and leans against the wall, her eyes half-closed.

"Hey." Wyll halts as well, and without thinking, reaches out and puts a hand on her shoulder. He's surprised when she doesn't jerk away. "Are you all right?"

She doesn't answer, but gives a short, sharp shake of the head.

None of them know quite what to do with that. After Rakha's cold-blooded murder this morning, none of them are quite in the mood for empathy towards her... and yet she pulled this child from danger, too. And something in all of that has thrown her terribly.

Wyll frowns uncertainly, then withdraws his hand and instead takes Arabella's. "Come on, lass," he says quietly, casting an uncertain look at Rakha. "Let's let her be a moment, and go find your parents."

Rakha does not look up as they walk away. Her gaze is fixed inward, staring at the black place in the back of her mind where the beast lurks. She can feel it staring back at her, cowed for the moment but not beaten. She can feel a shiver down her back as it laughs.

Let the girl live, then. There will be others. There will be so many others...

[the-raindeer-king]

Simon and Price are the kind of guys that insist on paying for everything on a vacation. They're paying for the hotel, the rental car, food, any stupid knickknacks you want. If you even pull out your wallet, they're going to be all huffy. John will politely tell you not to worry about, he's got you covered. On the hand, Simon's taking your wallet from you, telling you that you don't need to spend your money, you've got him for that.

Johnny and Kyle don't mind splitting things with you. You pay for the hotel, he'll pay for the flights, dividing out the expenses so you've both got money for the actual trip. Johnny gets all lovey-dovey when you buy him things, jokes that you're spoiling him. But don't fret, he'll get you back later. Gaz gets all warm and fuzzy when you pay for dinner, staring at you with a lovestruck expression. He thinks it's so sweet, and it's just one more push towards finally pulling the ring out of his pocket.

[vanilla-extracter]

horses :)

[fukutomichi]

∙ Favorite Trope - Headbutt of Love ∙ Suite Française (2014) ∙ The Old Guard (2020) ∙ Pacific Rim (2013) ∙ Lady Chatterley's Lover (2022) ∙ Interview with the Vampire (2024) ∙ The Rings of Power (2022) ∙ The Legend of Tarzan (2016) ∙ The Punisher (2017) ∙ Captain Marvel (2019) ∙ Fallout (2024) ∙ The Mummy (1999) ∙ Red, White & Royal Blue (2023) ∙ All the Light We Cannot See (2023) ∙ Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) ∙ The English (2022) ∙ Strange Days (1995)

[anewp0tat0]

i lied i had like atleast one more weston thought to expell from my brain, before i miss this boat entirely. we're heading to green lands woooo

[arcanegifs]

PVRIS  — "Oil and Water"

"If you give me your cold shoulders I'll bravе the storm and keep my arms wide open We're oil and water, it's true But I still fall into you"

[mellosghosts]

just doodling silly stuff but theyre so cute

[medusas-graveyard]

Can I have like,, an au where Danny & Damian knew each other while they were tiny kids (whether or not they're brothers or if Danny was like. A kid from one of Raa's servants) where, while Damian is now a better version of himself, Danny has fallen from grace.

Picture; Danny that isn't as op but concerningly smart????? Mad scientist Danny? Mad scientist Danny. Who've been betrayed for too long so now he just... Snaps.

(TW: IMPLIED SUICIDE. CONTINUE WITH CAUTION.)

Gone was the scared teenager that went through loss after loss, after loss. The teenager that was betrayed by the people he served and the 'parents' that took him in, the boy who lost everything. Now, as he stood beside his creation— the one who will end the world itself, Danny is eerily calm, as he looked at Damian that stood across him with a gentle, soft smile. There's acceptance in that smile of his; and he couldn't help but reel on how they both can still change.

But Danny—the sweet, sweet boy that he once knew, simply chuckled and shook his head.

"And this world is merely a dot in the vast universe. Then, our souls will wonder about the vast stars, isn't it beautiful?"

"Bshoufak, Dami." He smiles, "when Time will inevitably reconstruct this universe to a new one, and taking us with it—"

"—I hope, fate will be kinder to the both of us."

[stil-lindigo]

art vs artist 2023

[unknownarmageddon]

swimming pools at night

killer belongs to rahafwabas cross belongs to jael peñaloza rental suits au belongs to me and @psycho-chair

[cozylittleartblog]

when valve has enough money to buy god, but they let bots ruin their game for 5 years and dox people 🤖🔫 #FIXTF2

everyone who signs this 100k+ petition will have their name printed and sent to valve HQ. this shit is unacceptable.

[aashiqeddiediaz]

you know, after watching day 3 of the democratic national convention, i need to say something, especially to other muslims like me.

most of the muslim communities that i'm a part of have chosen to vote uncommitted, or independent, or sometimes, even trump. they refuse to give their vote to kamala harris and tim walz, because of the way the us has handled the war in gaza, and how they have been careless with acknowledging palestinian lives lost, how it was american bombs and american tax money that went towards funding this genocide. it's fucked up, and it's wrong, and there shouldn't be any debate on that.

and i am 100% in support of that anger. i am 100% in support of forcing america to stop funding this genocide. no one wants to keep seeing palestinian lives suffer. no one is free until we're all free, and i believe that to my very core.

my only concern is that where this anger is being placed, from 1 year to 11 weeks before the presidential election, is so scary. because the reality of the situation is that america has a bipartisan outlook. whoever gets the presidency is either democrat or republican. and every vote that doesn't go towards democracy (i.e. voting for kamala harris) inadvertently goes towards trump's big plan of project 2025, which is basically dictatorship. Even voting uncommitted, even voting independent. we cannot afford to elect trump for a second term, and voting anything other than democrat draws that line way too close, especially in swing states like michigan, pennsylvania, wisconsin, georgia.

yes, there are many issues that we wish joe biden would handle better. there are many ways that the democratic party has fucked up beyond repair. there are many ways the democratic party has refused to acknowledge the pain of people affected by their military people throughout the years, and we've been seeing it for years. this is not a new thing. this did not start on october 7th. we see it during pretty much every administration.

however, voting for your candidate should never be based on a singular issue. no political candidate is ever going to check every single box. and its so unfortunate that we have to always take the "lesser of two evils" approach when nominating our president, but that's the reality of the situation at this very moment. there are many other rights to be considered that are at stake this election, all of which trump is trying to remove. abortion bans, women's rights, healthcare, social security, climate change, to name a few.

(and, somehow, there's a belief that trump will lead to a ceasefire deal where biden-harris didn't? let me tell you that is never going to happen.)

does this mean we just stop protesting or pressuring? absolutely not. you NEVER stop, because if our votes are the ones that put the candidate in their position of power, then we expect results. we expect them to work towards what they promised. and we can't let up on reaching out to our local county offices and our state governors and escalating these issues further until someone takes notice and does something about them. we don't elect them and just leave them to do what they want. we keep them accountable. use that anger i was talking about.

but it also means not having tunnel vision. the election in november could very well mean the end of democracy if kamala harris doesn't win. this post is not me all giggly-happy over the democratic party, because trust me, i have my fair share of issues with them as well. this post isn't to tell you what to do, because i can't force you to vote blue. i can't force the community i'm in to change their minds about toss-up votes. but what i can do is put down plainly what's at stake this election. and that is, very simply, our right to choose everything.

so if you are eligible to vote and haven't registered, please do. if you haven't voted before because "what's the point", please see above what the point is. a handful of votes is enough to flip the outcome of an election, especially with the electoral college.

and if you're still on the fence on whether to vote for kamala or trump, hopefully this post gives a little bit more perspective in the most streamlined way i could manage without bogging you down with statistics and numbers.

the choice is yours.

[multipurposetoolguy]

freaky barber who does freaky barberous things

also muriel ^_^ and my human design for courage..poor little guy in the middle of nowhere just wants to keep his adopted gramma safe

[alirienn]

kuronatober

[eruptedinlight]

do you have a moment to talk about my lord and savior

[wyvernity]

sss day my favorite national holiday WOOOOHHHH

bonus