#however they retained an ability to absorb spirits

[marbleboa]

Thinking about the esper kids Claw took made me remember an idea I had for a mp100 oc around that subject...really liked the idea of an esper kid who was taken, experimented on, but did eventually manage to escape from Claw--however, deeply struggled with returning to a normal life after their experiences.

Few years pass, WD arc happens, basically all their worst fears confirmed, and that's the breaking point for them to go off act on the urge they've had for a long time now. Ends up throwing themselves into this Revenge Quest to track down and eliminate the members that scattered after Claw fell.

[bitter-bats-cult-of-the-moon]

Cleansing Methods for Magickal Items

Before using a magickal item it is suggested that you clear away any existing negativity and/or personal energies.

You never know who may have handled it. Most items will require a single cleansing before being ready to properly use.

However, some items may retain lingering unhelpful energies even after a cleansing method is performed.

Items inherited from another person who had it in their possession for an extended period, or items previously charged and used for specific purposes may be more difficult to cleanse.

If one application doesn’t do the trick, repeat the process. If that is still not sufficient, try a second method.

Please be mindful of closed practices when performing these techniques. Always check and research before choosing a cleansing method.

Remember to use logical means when determining which method would work the best for the situation.

Keep in mind, there are stones that can be damaged by submerging them in water.

Metals may be damaged by salt.

Lightly colored quartz, amethyst, and other stones may lose all or a portion of their color and energy when they are left in direct sunlight.

The least damaging methods of cleansing include direct moonlight, sound manipulation, and using your own personal energy.

Smoke Cleansing – This has been used for a long time. Smoke from dried herbs bundled together, candles, or incense are widely used today. Using the smoke pass it over and surround the item while focusing on sending any negative energy away allowing it to become neutralized. Incantations may be used in conjunction. Deities, Elementals, or other spirits may be called to assist if needed.

Water – Submerge or sprinkle water over items while focusing on your intent to cleanse the item of unwanted energies. Remember to be sure that the item can handle water. The best resources come from natural bodies of water including rainwater, creeks, rivers, and the ocean.

Sea Salt – Make certain that the salt will not be damaging beforehand, bury it in the salt and leave it for a few hours or a few days. This lets the salt absorb the unwanted energy.

Sunlight – Bathe the item under direct sunlight making certain there will be no damage warranted. Leave the item there allowing the solar energies to properly cleanse.

Moonlight – After sunset place the item under the moonlight. Bring it back in prior to sunrise allowing the lunar energies cleanse away any unwanted energies.

High Vibration Sounds – Try using your favorite music to turn up loud. When applicable use Tibetan Singing bowls, lead crystal bowls, gongs, drums, or tuning forks.

Pyramid Energy – Items can be placed under or inside charged pyramids meant for cleansing and protection returning the item to a neutral state.

Personal Energy – Use your own personal energy to cleanse items in question. This method is generally safe for every item. This can be intensive for some depending upon the quantity and quality of energies needing to be pushed away.

Charged Crystals – There are some crystals that can be used to strip away unwanted energies having the natural ability to do so. Amethyst crystals excel at this. Items may be placed on larger crystals or have smaller crystals set on or around the item to properly cleanse.

[demonslayedher]

Hello!! It’s such an honor to find myself in your ask box. Your work actually helped inspire me to make my own tumblr and AO3! Thanks for giving us such wonderful content! :D <3

My question today: How did Akaza retain his spot as an upper moon when he has such a low appetite? Muzan, Douma, and pretty much everyone else keep insisting that eating lots of humans is essential to building strength. Poor Kyogai even got booted from the ranks once he couldn’t bear to eat any more. But despite Akaza’s apparent inability to eat nutritious women and his preference to gain power through training, he was allowed to keep his spot and even given a special pardon from Muzan. Why do you think this is? Is the whole gaining-strength-mainly-through-training thing an ability that is special to Akaza? Could that be interesting enough to Muzan for him to forgive Akaza for having a weak stomach? Or is this just straight up favoritism because he’s loyal and does good work? I’ve always been confused at how he was able (and allowed!) to keep up with his fellow Moons, because they certainly all eat plenty.

Keep up the good work we appreciate you lots!! :D

Tumblr and AO3?? That is an honor! Thank you for joining the rocks I live under on the fandom internet, I hope you have fun! And thank you for your interesting posts thus far!

As for our favorite gym bro Akaza keeping his spot among the Upper Moons, he perhaps started with way, way, way more Muzan Juice than someone like Kyogai did. Akaza's always had such a focus on training as a means of getting stronger than I think it really does have as powerful an affect as Nezuko's sleeping, for as Daki noted, Nezuko's regenerative abilities were on par with or even faster than Upper Moons. However, we don't know that Akaza lacks an appetite in the first place. Unlike Nezuko he's never had a reason to hold back from eating someone who looks appetizing, and especially in his early days, I'll bet he ate plenty. However, overtime, Akaza has put more faith in his own strength and training, and sets his sights on someone else with a similar attitude, Kokushibo. Kokushibo likes this spirit in Akaza and let him live after he lost their battles (instead of absorbing him like he did with other loser demons), like professional courtesy between martial artists. Kokushibo's problems with Akaza are in his professionalism, not with his lack of eating humans. He's recognized Akaza as having potential as a worthy opponent, whether or not Akaza eats a lot of humans, because by this point, Akaza just doesn't need to. He's not like some lowly Lower Moon who needs to try to do something as crazy as eat over 200 people at once before he's even got a chance of challenging an Upper Moon.

Douma is more like our resident health supplement salesman and I'll bet he's never touched a dumbbell. Although Douma wholeheartedly believes that women are more nutritious because their bodies can support the growth of other human beings, that doesn't necessarily mean he's right. Also, what's most nutritious and beneficial to one demon might not necessarily be the sort of nutrition good for another demon's needs, like who knows, maybe the Snake Demon didn't just enjoy the flesh of babies, but they were easily for her to digest or something. The one common rule is that the stronger and healthier your food the stronger and healthier it'll probably make you, and if you're a strong enough demon to catch and eat a Pillar, that'll probably make for a really good protein shake.

See here for much, much more thought on how eating humans actually works and benefits demons, but even though this is the normal pattern of how demons get stronger, I don't think Muzan cares if Akaza isn't eating humans so long as he's strong anyway. It's annoying that Akaza is such a sissy when it comes to women, but like you said, it probably is straight up favoritism because he’s loyal and does good work. You know, except for that lack of blue spider lily results. Akaza's still an easier underling to have around than Douma, even if Douma is technically stronger.

Could Akaza overtake Douma, and perhaps even Kokushibo if he chowed down more on people, like the Pillars he's killed? While this could certainly help, by this point he's developed his own constitution to be so oriented toward physical training that perhaps digestion isn't even his strong suit (unlike Douma, that show-off who doesn't even need to use his mouth). It make not be that he can't eat, like how Kyogai found his limits, but it just takes more energy than its worth when he could better spend that on training. As for Akaza's eating preferences, he know he likely avoids eating women, and I could see him punching the head off some guy abusing his wife and then nonchalantly eating that guy while the wife runs off screaming, but what I truly wonder if he would had eaten Kyojuro is given the chance. It may be that he'd have seen this as a way for strong people he knew to live on, like mementos of their fights (but this feels like a very Douma style of looking at it), but on the other hand, he may have had too much respect for them and professional courtesy to have found them appetizing. Tanjiro, though, yeah, he'd probably had taken a big bite out of his brains just 'cause he hated him. Not that he'd gain much from eating a weakling like that, though! Eating people of that caliber is probably just like staying hydrated, not a proper meal. But again, this is all guesswork on his actual eating habits!

[paragonrobits]

hey so here's an OC question I wondered if anyone might have insight on

I have an ongoing project where I simulated the natural character growth of player characters in the Exalted setting as a creative thing and I wound up getting so attached to the characters that I've done another project where I've made them part of a central group of country-building adventurers in an original setting of my creation, tweaking them to be more original flavored

so here's my problem; two of them have VERY similar power sets, making them feel a bit redundant.

The issue is two characters: one of them is a fairly straight translation of one of the main characters of the project (an over the top trickster who's pretty much what you'd get if you made Medic TF2 and Loki from Norse mythology do a fusion dance and had a spider theme); the second one, however, is largely based on two different characters; a heroic bruiser with a heart of gold loosely patterned after Transformer's Grimlock on a personality level, and a wise talking kung-fu dinosaur sage who is one of the last remaining people of his kind.

Here's my issue. BOTH of these characters are patterned after Lunar Exalts, a character type whose central gimmick is having shapeshifting powers. Lunars can take on a specific animal form and make hybrid monster forms from it, as well as assume any shape they've claimed. They otherwise have a diverse power set who do wildly different things within the team. However, OC-ifying them and keeping their powers otherwise the same makes them feel kind of redundant, because in a team of diverse power sets, they both have a similar focus on shapeshifting.

So here's my question; what would be a good idea to fix this problem?

here are a few ideas I've had:

everyone on the team is SOME kind of shapeshifter, so they do the same thing as everyone else; giving them different styles of shapeshifting might fix this.

Transfer all the Lunar character aspects to the trickster lady, while the sage hulk gets more of a focus on the dinosaur sage aspects of his inspiration. One of that character's future powers IS shapeshifting, but into a number of very defined forms; as such, even if they have a similar power, Trickster Lady has way more she can do with it.

Sage hulk guy's shapeshifting is not a natural aspect, as least to the same degree as Trickster Lady. He might be able to assume a spectrum of limited forms that are particularly relevant to his character concept, but his other transformation powers are from magical items he's been given; he might need a necklace with the teeth of various animal spirits he's bartered with, or he's somehow had his skeleton replaced with a magical artifact with the sacred names of different forms carved into it.

Retain the shapeshifting but distinguish them by giving Sage Guy a distinct character by moving away from shapeshifting as a specific theme for him as it is for Trickster Lady; look at the powers of both his inspirations and compare them, looking for common elements and focus on THAT as his central theme. If he stays a shapeshifter, it can play into the rest of the team having transformation and physical mutation as an important motif in general, rather than something specific to him. On an unrelated note, the other team members include: a Kirby-esque crafting lady with the power to grant herself new powers and transformations by incorporating other things and using those to customize herself; a robot girl who absorbs machines and objects into herself to manifest new abilities based on them; heavy metal rockstar demon lady who is also a tiger and sometimes turns into one (mostly as an aesthetic choice)

[darkhearthorns]

The Thief of Destiny- Mordecai Voidwalker

Long ago, in a distant land, there lived a man named Mordecai Voidwalker. Born into a family of renowned scholars and librarians, Mordecai possessed an insatiable curiosity for knowledge from a young age. He spent countless hours immersed in books, absorbing the wisdom and stories contained within their pages.

As he grew older, Mordecai's thirst for knowledge turned into an obsession. He became consumed by the desire to uncover the secrets of the universe, to possess the ultimate knowledge that would grant him power beyond imagination. In his relentless pursuit, he delved into forbidden tomes, ancient scrolls, and arcane texts, disregarding the warnings of his family and the wisdom of his ancestors.

One fateful night, while delving deep into a hidden chamber within the family library, Mordecai stumbled upon a rare and ancient grimoire. Unbeknownst to him, this particular book was cursed, imbued with the essence of a mischievous and vengeful trickster spirit known as the Thief of Destiny.

As Mordecai opened the grimoire, a surge of dark energy engulfed him, binding his fate to the curse of the Thief of Destiny. From that moment on, he became forever trapped between the shelves of libraries, his presence flickering in and out of existence like a phantom.

The curse bestowed upon Mordecai was twofold. Firstly, he was condemned to wander the interdimensional corridors of libraries, able to materialize only in the spaces between the bookshelves. He could observe, interact, and communicate with those who entered, but he could never leave the confines of the library. Secondly, the curse twisted his once noble nature, turning him into a cruel trickster. Malachi found pleasure in toying with the minds of unsuspecting library visitors, leading them astray, and playing wicked pranks upon them.

Over time, Mordecai came to be known as the Thief of Destiny, a ghostly figure rumored to haunt libraries across the realms. His reputation grew as tales of his malevolence spread among scholars and students, warning them to tread carefully within the hallowed halls of knowledge.

Despite his cursed existence, Mordecai retained his love for books and the pursuit of knowledge. The shelves between which he materialized became his domain, and he became an incredibly knowledgeable librarian, possessing an uncanny ability to locate and retrieve any book sought by those who dared to ask for his assistance. However, his aid always came at a price, as he delighted in exacting tricks and riddles upon those who sought his help, leaving them with valuable knowledge but also a bitter lesson in humility and the consequences of their actions.

And so, Mordecai Voidwalker, the Thief of Destiny, continues to haunt libraries, forever bound to the interstitial spaces of knowledge, both a seeker and a tormentor of those who dare to disturb his spectral domain.

[fivenightsatfreddysfanfiction]

I’m curious about the helpers; 6 and 7, but the Bellas, too. Are they sentient enough to keep or add memories when they’re awake? For example, if (for however much time) 6 and 7 were aware for the 30 year gap and not dormant, do they 'remember' dealing with the three Purple ghosts? Or do they only retain memories when they’re connected with a living host, either Damien or their origins?

It depends both on the strength of the spirit and the closeness in relevancy the memories are to their goal or mission.

The Bellas were both incredibly strong from the strength of emotions Isabella poured into her knife and her wishes/intent, the length of time she continued to do this, and the proximity of the knife to Meera who continued feeding her wish/intent into it that aligned with Isabella's. Their memories revolve around their intended goals and missions, so they remember family members, they 'remember' what Elder William Afton did to Lucian (or at least what Isabella suspected he did and what Meera could confirm from her investigation), and any memories made that don't immediately help them focus on either reuniting family or destroying the Afton bloodline/souls tend to fade as they're not 'important'. They can be refreshed through interaction while awake.

6 and 7's strength was based on Mike and Jeremy's emotions, the strength of the 'curse' placed on them by Jonathan, and time spent in Freddy's absorbing whatever Remnant and emotions were ambient from degrading souls bound to objects. But all those years were spent without a direction, a goal/mission, so they weren't actually spirits in that time. No memories made. They were just grief-bound Remnant applied to those two objects and used as part of a seal on the hidden room, only possible because the last strong emotion infused into them was the determination to oppose the Purples.

When they became spirits properly thanks to Damien giving them specific direction to counter Panther and Router and protect the guards (specifically himself but he generalized without much thought), they started accumulating memories via their connection to Damien. This added more strength to them, more awareness (Remnant builds on emotions and memories and a soul is full of both), and when Damien passed them back to Mike and Jeremy, they started drawing on Mike and Jeremy's memories to refine their goals further based on what was found in those memories.

6 took on more qualities of the Strength to Survive from Mike's memories of night shift survival, which gave him back the ability to survive anything that could immediately kill a normal man and refuse the slower death of time as long as there was reason to anchor himself to life. Similar to 7 who took qualities of the Warmth of Life to continuously heal and transfer 'life' (re-anchoring a soul to a body that can support it via a feed of emotional Remnant) from Jeremy's memories and used it to keep him healing from the damages of aging, slowing it down and extending his life.

When they're not active and able to make their own memories, they'll draw on the memories of their hosts, retaining just the ones that will better help them fulfill their missions.

So 6 would 'remember' fighting Panther and evading/blocking animatronics, but he won't recall details like Toy Chica being pervy or that it was specifically Foxy who bit Mike or that Mike's daughter got married unless he's attached to Mike to draw on those memories to retain them until he's disconnected again, and then they fade over time.

It's also why the Bellas seem more 'sentient' compared to 6 and 7; Isabella and Meera kept talking to them through their prayers over the knife and then when they manifested, they kept being interacted with and spoken to, strengthening their awareness. But Damien didn't do that with 6 or 7 because he views them as belonging to Mike and Jeremy, and Mike didn't talk to 6 because 6 was a reminder of Freddy's while Jeremy didn't talk to 7 because he's a reminder of his time with Mike. So 6 and 7 don't really speak much to anyone of their own initiative and take longer to create their own memories independent of their hosts, especially if they're not about countering Purples and protecting guards or fulfilling the aspects of Strength to Survive and Warmth of Life.

[jokertrap-ran]

(光与夜之恋 Light and Night) Charlie’s 5✩ Inspiration: Daytime Spiritualities [昼日疑魂] Date Translation (END 5: Heart-throb)

“Entrust me all your fears and astonishment alike; there’s no need to hold back.”

*Light and Night Master-list | Charlie’s Personal Masterlist *Spoiler free: Translations will remain under cut *Join the Light & Night Discord (＾▽＾)~ ♪ *5✩ Inspirations have 5 Endings!! *CG Image used with permission from 蓝咕咕 ☆ *Charlie’s tag will be #For Night, For Paradox

✥ Choice: Heart-throb [心动] ★Night★

How should I reply to him…?

★ E5 NIGHT: Nope★

As an adult well-versed in the horror genre, I was immune to horror movies for the most part.

MC: Of course not. We can bet on it if you don’t believe me.

Charlie: Stakes?

It appears that I had aroused his competitive spirit, for he smiled at me with interest.

MC: How about we bet on… who gets scared out of their wits first?

Charlie: Are you certain? I’ve never once lost a bet.

It was a gamble where the outcome was uncertain. The loser would be the first to lose their composure from fear.

There’s no way I’d admit defeat all so easily in the face of a show-off like Charlie!

MC: Absolutely!

Charlie: Interesting. I accept your challenge.

Charlie: You’re going to be the one losing your pride if you get so terrified afterwards that you can’t move.

Charlie: But, before we commence this bet… Aren’t you forgetting a little something?

MC: What do you mean?

Charlie: Where did you go this morning?

MC: The hospital.

Charlie: Think again. Before the hospital?

MC: Before…? Oh, right! I went out to buy snacks.

I jumped up, running to the door and rummaging through the bag of groceries I’d left there.

MC: What do you want to drink?

Charlie: Beer, like you.

I secured two cans of beer from the contents of the bag… Wait, no! What did he just say? He wants to drink BEER!?

I thought he didn’t drink? I mean, last time…

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During my last day off, Charlie had called me in the middle of one of my drinking moods.

Charlie: You’re drinking your sorrows away at home?

MC: I’m not drowning my sorrows in alcohol. I just felt like I was in the mood to drink; there’s an emotional appeal to it.

MC: Don’t you do the same when you go to bars?

Charlie: ...I do go to the bar, but I don't drink.

MC: ...Oh?

The rumoured star of the night who bombed a ton of money in private clubs is actually a “good boy”?

MC: How's that possible? You're lying, aren't you?

Charlie: Is it that odd to not drink?

MC: ...Not really.

Charlie: It's even odder to think that going to a bar equals drinking.

Charlie: Let’s just put it this way. The only reason why I go to bars is to play.

Charlie: And administering alcohol to the body is the greatest thing one can do to sully the living and perfect human brain.

Charlie: Especially this sort of low-quality alcohol made with fermented malt. 100g of the sweetened water called beer and its low molecular weight generates 180 joules of heat with your body.

Charlie: Drinking beer? Might as well swallow active bombs instead. At least, it’ll be much faster that way.

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So… Just what was going on here? It was one of the principles he lived by. Yet, he was doing a whole 180?

MC: Aren’t you afraid that ingesting alcohol will be an insult to that sober brain of yours?

Charlie: Didn’t someone say that drinking appeals to the mood?

Charlie: I'm with my Fiancée right now. Do you think I should retain a high level of reason, or show a rare moment of dullness?

MC: Do I have a choice?

Charlie: Of course not.

Charlie: Don’t worry. I won’t use the excuse of being inebriated to pull anything funny.

MC: ...Look who’s talking here?

Charlie: I can’t stand those sort of people.

Charlie took the can of beer from me before sitting back down.

Never mind; I'll gladly drop the topic. How can an adult not drink at all? Although, I bet his abstinence is probably so that it doesn't affect his job.

Click! Click!

The crisp sound of cans being opened sounded.

Never thought that he'd open it for me.

MC: Thank you, Dr. Zha!

I naturally held an outstretched hand out, waiting for him to pass me the open can of beer.

However, Charlie didn't react.

Click, click, clack…

The continuous sounds of cans clacking came from him.

I curiously peered over, only to find Charlie staring awkwardly at the cans with his brows furrowed. They were still as intact as they came.

MC: Charlie, don't tell me that not only have you never drunk alcohol, but you also don't know how to open cans…?

Charlie: You're questioning a doctor's practical ability?

MC: Then, you...

Pop!

Charlie had cracked the can open.

He freezes, frantically shoving the beer into my open hand. Then, he shoved his hands into his pockets, putting up a professional act.

Charlie: I have the habit of trimming my nails for surgeries, so it's not convenient for me to be opening cans.

For a moment, I didn't quite know what to say as I looked at our nails. They were nearly equally long.

He doesn’t drink. He doesn’t even know how to open a can. So why does he suddenly feel whimsical enough to start drinking today?

I cracked open his can of beer for him. He carefully wiped the foam that bubbled forth the mouth of the can with a tissue.

Charlie: Just now...

He took a sip of beer and slightly furrowed his brow.

Charlie: It was a mere mistake of a perfect person.

Charlie: It will not happen again.

Saying so, the glint of pride returned to his eyes once more. And the can of beer was quietly pushed far, far away.

MC: Okay, let's get back to watching the movie.

The paused screen lit back into action, encasing the room in a chilling and terrifying atmosphere once more.

The plot gradually thickened and I got increasingly absorbed with the movie.

Everything around me started to fade as I zoned into the movie, Charlie included.

Charlie: *Coughs*

MC: ……

Charlie: (Y/n).

MC: ……

Charlie: Are you really not scared?

MC: Stop moving.

All I could do was to use a free hand to keep Charlie in place as he fidgeted in his seat.

Charlie: ……

In the movie, the prisoner that was on death row managed to successfully escape into a cramped and narrow underground passageway. As muddy water splashed everywhere, the horrible cries of the jailer sounded from the other end of the door to the secret passage.

I'd given my entire self over to the movie at this point, watching the prisoner's every step with peeled eyes. I'd totally missed the faintest of all finger snaps in the world that'd sounded by the sofa.

Squeak…

The door to the entrance opened.

MC: Is the prisoner about to get caught?

However, the movie never cut scenes to show the jailer coming through the door. Still, I was fairly certain that I'd heard the sound of the door opening. And if had also been very clear.

Just as I was about to turn around to ask Charlie about it, I witnessed a bone-chillingly horrible scene…

The door the prisoner had closed suddenly opens. Sinister winds were brewing outside.

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MC: ……

MC: It should be a sealed-off corridor outside. There shouldn’t be any wind…

The more I thought about it, the more terrified I got. All I could see was the epitome of horror in this movie unfolding before my very eyes!

I felt a chill run down my spine; one different from anything I'd ever felt before, its icy tendrils spreading across my body. An alarm sounds in my heart. I was hyper-aware, with all my nerves strung tautly. It was as if any minuscule change in the surroundings would be able to set my senses off.

BANG!

A loud sound rang out in the air as the secret passageway’s metal door was knocked down. The jailer’s savage smile was reflected upside down in the pool of water by the prisoner’s feet.

MC: AH!

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I frantically covered my eyes, subconsciously backing away into the thing I was leaning against.

Crap! I had such a big reaction! He definitely noticed...

Alas, his low voice entered my ears.

Charlie: Scared now?

His warm and powerful arm snaked around me from behind, wrapping itself around me above the blanket.

My searching back hit his chest; and the moment it did, a small yearning for comfort started making itself known within my heart, growing ever more so… Just like a lost traveller who'd finally found the lone source of light deep inside the forest.

Charlie: Admitting defeat this quickly?

Charlie's warm breath brushes against the top of my head, making the shell of my ear burn. Just a little closer and my face would be able to access the crook of his neck.

MC: Am not.

I stubbornly refused to admit defeat, but my feeble voice, muffled by my hand, proved otherwise.

Charlie: If so, then why are you covering your eyes?

Charlie: You're the one who said we're going to be watching this together? Can't live up to your words now?

His chest rumbled slightly. There was undeniable mischievousness in his voice.

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Charlie: Last chance. I’ll count to three. Put your hand down, hm?

Charlie: Three.

MC: I’m not even closing my eyes! See!?

I vehemently glared at Charlie through the gaps of my fingers.

Charlie: Not counted. I don’t advocate such viewing methods.

Charlie: Two.

MC: ...What can you even do to me?

Charlie: You don’t want to admit defeat, but neither do you want to put your hand down. Is there ever a bet so kind in this world?

His bony left hand reached up to cover the back of my hand as he attempted to push my hand back down.

I struggled against him with all my might, but he was way too strong. Hence, I had no choice but to admit defeat in this losing battle.

MC: One. I lose!

Charlie lets up, dropping the strength he’d been putting behind his fingers and ruffling my hair.

Charlie: Why are your lips poised so high up? Mad?

Charlie: Losing to me is nothing to be ashamed about.

Charlie gathered up the blanket that pooled around my waist, inadvertently pulling me closer to him as he did.

I sulked and refused to reply to him. I can’t believe I still managed to get scared by a horror movie when I’m already a full-grown adult! Not only did I lose, but I also feel ridiculed by this!

Still, I didn't want to admit that Charlie's embrace certainly did provide me with a sense of comfort.

Charlie: There, there. Don't be scared. I'm here.

He gently pats the back of my hand, speaking softly in a manner one would comfort a child.

His warm chest pressed against my back as his steady heartbeat resonated alongside mine, beating in tandem.

MC: ……

In hindsight, I realized that I’d always felt at ease and that I could forget about all my troubles whenever I was with Charlie. Even though he never fails to render me speechless and makes me want to roll my eyes at him for the most part.

Maybe it’s because he’s always so frank about things with absolutely no intent to hide anything? I don’t know...

Leaning into Charlie’s embrace, my fear and panic slowly ebbed away.

However, the door still made me feel a little uneasy, and I often found myself looking at it with frazzled nerves.

Suddenly, I noticed something strange about the little tailor alarm clock by the door.

Its hour hand was pointed at 12. The small mechanical tailor that told the time had jumped out of the clock, bobbing as it frantically rolled its measuring tape back up. Yet… I did not hear any chimes from the clock itself.

MC: What's up with today?

MC: Please tell me it’s not an actual supernatural occurrence…

I was just about to ask Charlie about it when a far-fetched reasoning for this suddenly flashed through my mind.

And it ingrained itself in my brain upon appearance, growing ever stronger…

No sound, with only the motions… Why didn’t I think of this earlier?

MC: Charlie?

Charlie: Hm?

MC: Is there anything that can cancel out sound?

Charlie: Why do you ask?

He withdrew his hand and stuffed it back into his pocket. There was a sliver of wariness in his eyes.

MC: It just came to mind. Just answer me.

Charlie: Vacuum. Sound cannot travel without mediums, and there are no atoms or molecules in a vacuum.

MC: And isn’t that your talent?

Charlie: Y-Yes?

I was getting closer and closer to confirming my suspicions.

The door that had suddenly opened without a sound, and the soundless alarm clock. If there was a scientific reason to explain all of those, then it’d be…

Charlie had just created a vacuum inside the door. That way, the air difference in air pressure on the inside and the outside would be able to push the door open.

Pity; but the soundless alarm clock had given me enough hints to piece everything together.

MC: You purposely scared me so I'd admit defeat myself? Well done, Charlie.

The movie was currently showing the part where the jailer collided with the metal door.

Thud, thud, thud…

This sound was vaguely familiar. A sudden idea hits me.

I tugged on the corner of his clothes, purposely lowering my voice.

MC: Charlie, do you hear something?

MC: Thud, thud, thud. Like someone knocking on the door.

Charlie: Are you having auditory hallucinations now? That's coming from the movie.

He held my head with both hands, turning it left and right.

Charlie: You haven't gotten any water stuck in your ears either.

I directly put my finger to his lips and looked around warily.

MC: Not that. Listen carefully.

A distant but very real thud sounded above us.

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

Charlie was so terrified that he'd started shaking as he looked up at the ceiling incredulously.

I took the chance to grab onto his arm, leaning sideways to get closer to him and whispered into his ear.

MC: Believe me now?

MC: Actually, I saw something by the door just now and…

Charlie: What! What’s by the door!?

He quickly shot up from the sofa, encasing me in the shadow cast by his tall and wide back.

The movie had been paused, stopping on the dark scene of the secret passageway. The door of my entryway was partially shrouded by the eerie lighting coming from the projector. The creepy atmosphere intensified.

Charlie silently stared into the darkness for a good ten seconds before letting out the breath he’d been holding.

Charlie: What can there be?

Charlie: If ghosts truly do exist in this world, then why would the world ever allow someone as perfect as me, someone, who goes against even the laws of nature, to exist?

The corners of his mouth were raised in their usual arc. Looks like he has already regained his spirits.

The only thing that betrayed the nervousness he felt deep down were his hands that had yet to crease trembling.

He placed both his hands into his pockets, putting on a calm facade as he surveyed the room…

He’s putting his hands into his pockets again? Does he like to do that whenever he feels nervous?

Charlie: Perhaps something fell upstairs. It’s just a coincidence…

He'd only just finished speaking when another thud sounded. This time, it was much more solid, the sound seemingly reverberating through the very air of my apartment.

All colour drained from Charlie's face. I hurriedly stood up.

MC: Do you hear that!?

Charlie: Yeah.

I hid behind Charlie, slowly putting my hand into his shirt pocket. I could feel the slight tremor of his shoulders through the thin fabric of his dress shirt.

Charlie: ...I certainly do hear something.

His adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed down more of his fear. He unwittingly attempted to put his hand back into his pocket… only for it to brush against my hand that had touched the cold beer earlier.

Charlie: AHHH! HELP ME!!

Charlie: SOMETHING’S HERE!

Charlie could no longer maintain his noble attitude. He jolted, frantically throwing his composed facade out of the window as he flung my hand away.

MC: It's me!

Charlie: You…

Charlie gripped onto my shoulder with one hand while the other went to his chest. His frantic breathing slowly eased back to a normal rhythm.

Maybe it’s about time I tell him about “that”?

MC: Actually…

MC: There was once a girl who'd been imprisoned here in this room. She died from starvation here. That's why you'll often hear the sound of the door being knocked in the middle of the night.

MC: I never thought that she'd make an appearance in the morning this time…

Charlie: You're joking, right!?

I shook my head with a pained smile.

I placed both hands on his shoulders as I reached higher. I cupped my hand and got close to his ear and purposefully lowered my voice.

MC: If everything was fine and well at my place, then why would I have to call you here to watch a movie with me?

MC: Don't tell me you're thinking of running…?

Thud!

A resounding thud suddenly rang out, shaking even the walls as it reverberated.

Charlie: AHHHH!!

Charlie lost all his composure, screaming shrilly as he dove for the loveseat. I lost my balance as my knees hit the loveseat.

Amidst the chaos, Charlie had wrapped his arms around my shoulders as we both tumbled into one of the corners of the loveseat.

Charlie's skin was flushed from all the adrenaline, his breaths coming out in short and ragged pants. He was akin to a laboratory mouse who had its amygdala stimulated, lying against my shoulder paralyzed in fright.

His shrill scream earlier still faintly resonated in the air, making my eardrums ring in protest. I could help but recall how confident of himself he looked back when he made the bet...

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

Charlie: You’re going to be the one losing your pride if you get so terrified afterwards that you can’t move.

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

MC: Pft- Hahaha! This is way too good!

I couldn't keep up the act anymore. I leaned my forehead against his as I snickered like mad.

MC: Okay, okay. I'm just pulling your leg!

Charlie: ...What?

Charlie: You're joking? But, you— I— Just now…?

Charlie raised his head, looking absolutely appalled. Having just had a tumble, a tuft of hair stuck out from the top of his head.

I grabbed the tuft of hair that stood arrogantly upwards and pushed it back down with a vengeance, smoothing it out in my revenge.

MC: Yeah! Who told you to scare me with your vacuum earlier!

I could acutely feel how his face immediately heated up against my shoulder. Is it because he just found out that I was tricking him? Or is it because of something else?

MC: So, can you get off me now?

Charlie: I refuse.

He simply buried his head into the crook of my neck shamelessly, avoiding my gaze.

Charlie: You'll have to first explain to me just what is going on here.

Charlie’s arms were snugly wound around my body, seemingly threatening not to let go until he’d attained what he wanted.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at that. Is this man truly the same Dr. Zha that was listed on the leaflet detailing the famed doctors of the Hospital...?

MC: The hungry ghost was just a story I made up to scare you

Charlie: Uh-huh.

Charlie: But, just now…

MC: That was just the heating pipes.

MC: The grandpa upstairs turns the heating on at noon every day.

MC: It's going to be summer soon, yet he still keeps it up. Always at 12 sharp. The man's way more on point than the afternoon news broadcast.

Charlie raised his head, his sweat-soaked hair brushing across my cheek. It was a little ticklish.

Charlie: That's it?

MC: Yup!

Charlie: Ahem.

He sat back up, lightly clearing his throat before composing himself. Gone was the embarrassment from having lost his composure.

MC: Phew… You finally let up, huh.

He reflexively smooths out his collar. Soon, he returned to his usual self that you were all so familiar with.

Charlie snaps to attention with his hands behind his back, purposely looking around the room in an off-handed manner.

Charlie: Actually, I could already tell that something was wrong with the structure of this housing apartment the moment I stepped into it.

Charlie: Alas, it was just as I expected. The pipings are so terribly loud.

Charlie turned to look at me, slightly lowering his head and peering down at me in approval.

Charlie: Also, your acting is really good.

MC: ?

Charlie: Actually… I wasn't scared at all.

MC: ??

MC: If so, then may I ask what’s the whole purpose behind the fear that you so kindly expressed earlier?

Charlie: I was merely playing along with you. It’s the greatest form of acknowledgement towards your acting skills.

Just who is playing along with whom, in this case? Is this even up for discussion?

Still, I think his red ears speak louder than words.

Charlie returns to his seat on the loveseat. His familiar warmth envelops me once more.

Charlie: You still lost today.

MC: How did this come back to that?

Charlie: You're the one who got scared out of your wits first. You still have a penalty to serve, so...

Charlie: Comfort me.

He turned his head to the side as he hugged me. His cheeks were a rarely seen shade of red. He was flushed from the neck to the tip of his ears.

Looking at how embarrassed he was, I couldn’t help but find it a little adorable.

The heat in his embrace didn’t make me feel uncomfortable. In fact, it made a reassuring sense of familiarity slowly spread through my heart, like a warm summertime breeze blowing from the side.

I boldly nestled deeper into his arms, basking in the soft dream-like moment.

MC: How rare for you to be so quiet.

MC: Man, if only your first instinct wasn't to pick fights...

Charlie: Please, Miss. It's not like you don't enjoy it either. It'll be over soon enough.

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

The movie ends before we know it after the dazed silence that lapsed.

The projector stopped screening once the movie came to a close. The screen blanked out along with my guilt, panic, and fear.

And I’d completely missed the ending of the movie.

MC: Charlie? Do you remember how the prisoner who was sentenced to death got away?

I thought that Charlie would respond immediately in that prideful tone of his, giving me a clear and concise answer. Hell, I was even prepared to withstand another round of his narcissism if that ever came to pass.

Yet, he sounded a little unsteady and unsure, almost as if he too, was thinking of an appropriate answer.

Charlie: ...How did the prisoner getaway? Simple. He defeated the jailer who imprisoned him. All horror movies end the same way.

MC: He defeated… the jailer?

MC: The jailer here is a figment of his imagination; it doesn’t exist.

MC: The prisoner’s trapped in his own dream.

To prove what I’d said, I quickly pulled up the homepage of the movie where the summary and all the reviews were written. I pointed it out to him.

MC: Look, it’s even written in the movie’s summary…

I raised my head to clarify with him, but Charlie chose to completely ignore me, turning his attention to the plush pillow on the sofa. His eyes were very shifty.

Suspicious. VERY suspicious…

MC: Charlie, you… you didn’t take this movie seriously at all, did you?

Charlie closed his eyes in a slight grimace, his eyebrows knitting…

That reaction…. I KNEW IT.

However, he quickly bounces back from that moment of frustration. His expression suddenly turned serious and exaggeratedly grim.

Charlie: (Y/n), life is but a fleeting one.

The hell is this man talking about!?

I didn’t quite know why, but the serious tone he was taking with me sounded vaguely threatening. I could only nod in accordance.

Charlie: I see that you agree as well.

Charlie: If one wishes to have a glorious life as glamorous as the sun in this fleeting period, then some trivialities will have to be forgone.

Charlie: Alas, that movie earlier was an unfortunate one to have been forgone by this perfect life of mine.

MC: ……

MC: I see. I never knew that there was such a poetic way of saying “I don’t remember”.

Charlie: Who says I don't remember?

Charlie: I remember as clear as the day how my Fiancée got so terrified that she burrowed right into my arms.

I helplessly sighed. Looks like it'll be a long time and a good long way before I'll ever manage to understand how that brain of his works.

MC: Then, does the matter of rating and evaluating this projector still exist in your precious time of existence, Dr. Zha?

Charlie: The projector? Average.

Charlie: It's hard for me to be evaluating a projector below $200,000.

Charlie: But, I can consider using it as a console for couples.

He raised an eyebrow, smiling.

MC: And just where are your thoughts running off to?

Charlie: I'm just giving my honest, unbiased opinion.

Charlie: I hope you can convey this precious review of mine to the brand makers. Consider it my good deed for the day.

MC: Alright, Mr. Charitable.

MC: Now, are you quite done with your charitable acts? I'm going to pack the projector up and send it back.

Charlie: Why?

MC: Because… I feel like I don't really need a home theatre.

Charlie stilled my hand with his own, moving to block the projector off from me.

Charlie: Wait. I’ll take it if you can’t find a use for it.

Charlie: Send it to my house next weekend.

MC: You sure about that?

Charlie: Of course, I naturally have the right to accept any common personal property that my Fiancée chooses to give up.

Charlie: Come to my house next week, and don't stand me up.

With that being said, he confidently walked out of the apartment.

The golden sports car parked by the road gave a tremendous roar as it sped up. It soon faded away, replaced by the ever-present bustle of the people on the streets  

Watching the silhouette of the car gradually disappear, the events of what had gone on within my apartment resurfaced to the forefront of my mind… Charlie was far more bizarre than any horror film I'd ever watched.

However, it’s as if his appearance was slowly lowering my impenetrable guard over my small piece of land.

Now, as for what will appear in the future… Will it be volcanos? Or channels? Who knows; we’ll just have to wait and see.

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

✥ Choose your Ending:

END 1 | Choice: Do Nothing [都不做]

END 2 + 3 | Choice: Approach [亲近] ⊹Touch⊹

END 4 | Choice: Listen [倾听] ❖ASMR

END 5 | Choice: Heart-throb [心动] ★Night★

❖☆————— ⊹ For Night, For Paradox⊹ —————★❖

Previous Part: Prologue

[epithmia-moved]

         there’s  no  particular  order  to  this  as  i’m  going  to  be  covering  a  few  things  shortly  in  one  go  before  i  manage  to  sit  down  and  figure  out  more  headcanons  and  what  really  is  going  to  get  fully  expanded  on  without  me  just  wasting  an  entire  post  on  nonsense  ,    but  there  are  spoilers  within  this  pertaining  to  the  end  of  endwalker  msq  ,    the  pandaemonium  raids  and  shadowbringers  .

         first  of  all  ,    i  want  to  fully  iterate  outwardly  now  that  shadowbringers  has  fundamentally  altered  mana  ,    as  in  aside  from  appearances  ,    mana  has  retained  habits  and  inclinations  from  the  influence  of  nearly  becoming  a  full  light  warden  .    that  means  that  it  is  of  course  predominately  seen  in  violence  based  instances  because  that  is  what  usually  triggers  it—  lightwardens  sought  aether  to  feast  and  sate  their  never  -  ending  hunger  with  little  care  for  much  else  unless  they  were  of  higher  intelligence  in  which  (  as  shown  by  ardbert’s  own  company  members  in  their  specific  role  quests  )  frequented  areas  and  actions  in  line  with  the  most  impactful  events  of  their  lives  .    for  mana  that  means  that  they  may  display  bouts  of  prevalent  bloodlust  or  more  unfettered  actions  that  can  read  as  nothing  else  but  instinctive  and  perhaps  borderline  feral  (  as  in  ,    biting  to  deal  harmful  damage  mid  brawl  or  grapple  ,    or  the  rending  of  flesh  or  metal  with  the  use  of  their  claws  )  .    and  i  absolutely  use  one  of  y’shtola’s  lines  from  the  baldesion  annex  visit  scene  ,    though  the  entire  event  applies:

“  You  will  recall  that  serving  as  a  vessel  for  abundant  Light  in  the  First  very  nearly  ended  poorly.  ”    …    “  I  recall  vividly  how  battered  and  broken  it  [the  wol’s  soul]  was  in  the  depths  of  Amaurot  …  Would  that  you  could  have  seen  it  with  you  own  eyes.  Mayhap  then  you  would  understand  why  the  greater  part  of  me  is  glad  you  did  not.  It  was  …  a  horror  beyond  description.  ”

         what  mana  experienced  became  twice  the  pain  of  what  the  story  wanted  the  average  warrior  of  light  to  go  through  because  of  the  nature  of  their  echo:  it  absorbs  offending  aether  and  possibly  even  tries  to  assimilate  it  and  convert  it  into  mana’s  own  so  that  the  energy  can  be  redirected  back  out  in  extra  force  during  a  battle  .    shb  shows  that  a  lightwardens  aether  is  corruptive  —  it  taints  and  eats  any  portion  of  aether  it  comes  into  contact  with  —  and  that  with  mana’s  ability  means  mana’s  own  body  and  soul  entered  a  very  vicious  cycle  of  aether  vs.  aether  akin  to  a  tug-of-war  battle  .   and  slowly ,    mana’s  was  losing  as  more  and  more  was  taken  and  constantly  amplified  .

         promises  and  vows  has  been  an  underlying  theme  to  mana  that  i  now  believe  has  come  to  a  full  head  and  will  more  than  likely  be  the  predominant  one  i’ll  be  referencing  and  thinking  about  when  the  next  expansion  comes  and  as  we  all  continue  through  the  rest  of  pandaemonium  and  whatever  else  se  has  in  store  for  us  .    mana  believes  words  are  often  insufficient  for  a  lot  of  things  ,    and  that  they  often  hold  no  weight  or  not  nearly  enough,  as  it  is  very  easy  to  say  something  and  then  disrespect  it  or  not  follow  through  by  your  actions  and  style  of  life  .    thus  ,    does  mana  often  fall  flat  in  expressing  sentiments  and  some  such  verbally  ,    and  why  most  of  their  affection  and  care  displays  in  acts  of  service  and  why  when  mana  is  coerced  (  or  initiates  it  themselves  )  a  promise  is  never  broken  .    it  is  now  at  that  point  something  important  enough  to  live  by  as  well  .    and  throughout  all  of  the  msq  in  xiv  ,    mana  has  canonly  only  made  three  promises:

         ι .          to  alisaie  before  her  coma,  during  patch  and  the  beginning  of  shadowbringers ,    when  each  and  every  scion  was  being  pulled  across  the  rift  to  the  First ,    and  essentially  mana  vowed  that  they  would  never  be  found  elsewhere  if  and  whenever  and  however  alisaie  needed  them  .

         ιι .          to  g’raha  tia  himself  various  times  about  the  promise  of  experiencing  an  adventure  with  him  and  the  fated  “  would  you  believe  me  if  I  said  we  will  meet  again  ?  ”  after  the  seat  of  sacrifice  before  carrying  everyone’s  spirit  vessel  .

         ιιι .          towards  hythlodaeus  (  and  another  that  is  connected  to  this  and  thus  extended  to  hades  )  in  response  to  hearing  his  wish  at  elpis  ,    the  aetherial  sea  ,    ultima  thule  ,    and  the  bits  of  recovered  memories  throughout  and  in-between  all  of  that  .

“  To  help  them  realize  their  dreams—this  will  be  my  greatest  contribution  to  our  world.  ”  … “  And  when  they  have  fulfilled  their  respective  purposes  …  so  too  shall  I  have  fulfilled  mine,  and  together  we  may  return  to  the  star.  ”

         in  mana’s  perspective  ,    considering  the  truth  of  all  things  and  how  they  are  as  themselves  now  ,    they  have  denied  hythlodaeus  that  wish  .    as  they  still  yet  live  ,    and  the  means  by  which  all  of  their  different  ends  came  about  .

         the  other  half  is  directed  towards  emet  selch  ,    as  he  goads  and  tells  the  wol  to  still  yet  seek  out  experiences  and  knowledge  of  the  world  they  have  yet  to  know  that  he  himself  even  took  the  time  to  find  .    for  him  and  for  what  once  was  as  when  they  were  the  fourteenth  seat  ,    they  will  do  so  .    and  thus  mana’s  promise  is  this:  when  it  is  truly  time  for  them  to  die  and  when  they  have  fulfilled  their  age  old  duty  ,    will  mana  return  to  them  ,    so  that  they  may  otherwise  be  reborn  together  or  rest  .

         this  next  ‘ theme ’  of  mana’s  fits  perfectly  to  me  ,    save  for  the  reasons  above  ,    that  so  far  up  until  now  i  once  described  in  the  most  accurate  way  i  ever  have  ,    mana’s  total  growth  as  a  character  and  all  of  their  experiences  as:

 “  a  constant  battle  /  journey  of  the  self  .    the  self  vs  external  obstacles  .    sometimes  self  vs  self  .    self  vs  self  vs  external  .  ”

         a  realm  reborn  and  mana’s  personal  backstory  before  then  fit  the  most  into  the  self  vs  external  obstacles  .    heavensward  transitions  slowly  towards  the  end  and  blends  both  the  self  vs  external  obstacles  and  self  vs  self  .    stormblood  for  where  it  counts  is  entirely  a  slow  start  up  to  self  vs  self  where  it  peaks  into  self  vs  self  vs  external  in  shadowbringers  .    and  with  endwalker  it  finally  transitions  with  the  different  victories  and  losses  and  overall  results  of  each  battle  into  a  slow  acceptance  of  the  self  that  will  be  prevalent  with  this  expansion  and  any  content  onwards  .    an  internal  identity  crisis  always  facilitated  by  outside  means  that  finally  finds  a  place  with  the  process  of  integrating  a  proper  acknowledgement  of  ones  past  ,    present  ,    and  future  .

         sort  of  think  about  mana’s  approach  to  themselves  as  an  example  trying  to  explain  schrodingers  cat  and  superposition  —  “ [  timestamp  0:30  ] …  at  the  instance  before  the  box  is  opened,  the  cat  is  equal  parts  alive  and  dead,  at  the  same  time.  It  is  only  when  the  box  is  opened  that  we  see  a  single  definite  state. ”  they  are  in  some  instances  both  mana  and  notus  ,    and  only  when  approached  or  brought  back  or  otherwise  left  to  be  —  do  they  become  one  or  the  other  afterwards  before  existing  in  the  more  stable  and  prevalent  self  .   this  will  be  even  more  so  when  they  finally  enter  the  aetherial  sea  and  regain  everything  of  themself  that  has  been  lost  to  time  and  the  sundering  that  may  not  reveal  itself  over  time  in  keeping  their  promise  .

[wexarexmadxhere-archive]

Malachai Parker; Muse Info

“I had a soft spot for one of my sisters. 'Cause otherwise, I would've cut her lungs out, and not just her spleen.”

Full Name; Malachai Parker Nickname; Kai Face Claim; Chris Wood Gender; Male Pronouns; He/Him Marital Status; Single Sexuality; Demisexual/Asexual Age; 49 Date Of Birth; 1972 Occupation; Killin People Residence; Unknown Species; Siphon, Witch, Heretic - Hybrid; Witch & Vampire, Spirit Of Hell Hierarchy; Coven Leader Family; Josie & Lizzie Verse; Biography/Timelines; Malachai "Kai" Parker was a major recurring character and the main antagonist of the sixth season of The Vampire Diaries. He also appears as a recurring character in the eighth season of the series. Kai was the son of Joshua Parker and his unnamed wife, as well as the twin brother of Josette, and the older brother of Olivia, Lucas, Joey, and three other unnamed and deceased Parker siblings. However, when his true nature as a Siphoner was revealed in adolescence, his family began to treat him poorly and referred to him as an "abomination," which, among other factors, led to him growing up to be a sociopath. He was first seen trapped in a prison world with Damon Salvatore and Bonnie Bennett. Kai unwillingly formed an alliance with Damon and Bonnie in hopes that they could all escape the parallel dimension and return to the real world. Eventually, after Bonnie sacrificed her chance to escape in order to ensure Damon could return to the living world, Kai and Bonnie were the only two left in Kai's metaphysical prison. Later on, he and Bonnie attempt to escape the prison world, but Bonnie stored her magic in a teddy bear and sent it back to the real world as well so he couldn't force her to help him escape. Though he was enraged by this act, Kai brought Bonnie to his childhood home in Portland, Oregon, and cooked her a Thanksgiving meal. However, he later betrayed Bonnie, taking the knife his sister's magic was stored in and stabbing Bonnie in the stomach with it to gain her Bennett blood to use to escape. Kai eventually freed himself from the 1994 prison world, after which he made it a point to antagonize the Mystic Falls Gang, as he sought to kill his surviving siblings and merge with Jo, regardless of the consequences. However, in Prayer For the Dying, his younger brother Luke attempted to merge with him instead. Kai ultimately overpowered Luke and absorbed all his magic (as well as his ability to produce and retain his own magic) during the merge. Soon after, Luke's essence also merged with Kai, passing down his emotional capability and capacity for empathy, which mellowed Kai out, making him less evil and even allowing him to briefly work with the Mystic Falls Gang as an ally. However, in A Bird in a Gilded Cage, Bonnie, who was still holding an understandable grudge toward him for the torture he put her through, left him behind in the 1903 prison world with the Heretics, a group of former Siphoner exiles from the Gemini Coven, who had been turned into witch-vampire hybrids by Lillian Salvatore sometime in the 19th and 20th centuries. In the Season Six finale, I'm Thinking Of You All The While, Kai escaped the 1903 Prison World with the Heretics, cloaking their location from Lily in exchange for her blood so that he could be turned into a hybrid as well. He killed Jo and, seemingly, her twins at her wedding to Alaric Saltzman to avoid any competition for the role of leader of the Gemini Coven. Kai then wiped out the coven through his suicide, killing his father and other coven members in the process and thereby rendering the Gemini extinct. Kai woke up and transitioned into a witch-vampire hybrid, but was decapitated by Damon Salvatore soon after out of revenge for placing Elena in a mystical slumber until Bonnie die. In What Are You?, Kai is temporarily able to return from Hell, with the ringing of the Maxwell bell. Kai attempted to enter a bargain with Cade in order to remain in the living world and successfully did so by giving him Elena's coffin. Later on, he attempted to kill the last remaining Gemini witches, his nieces: Lizzie and Josie Saltzman. After he failed, he was permanently banished and imprisoned in the newly created 2018 Prison World by Bonnie, Lizzie, and Josie.

[stygiantarot]

Winter Witchcraft

(Taught in @thealexandriarchives on 1/17/20)

Winter. The solid dark earth, bright swirling snow, prickling sharp ice, stark reaching branches, echoing warm silence. It can appear in a variety of different ways around the globe depending on the local season. I shall do my best in today’s class to give inspiration and tools that apply to as many persons as possible. I apologize in advance if this Midwest USA witch is a bit too used to intense winters and forgets to adjust as much for those in more temperate zones.

When it comes to the season of winter, it is most commonly associated with snow, ice, cold, all those Hallmark style holiday card scenes with snowmen, scarves, and white covered buildings. At it’s core however, winter is really just your area’s fallow period. It doesn’t have to involve cold or snow; just the time when things are not growing (or not growing as much). Locals may tend to be more inclined to stay indoors; regardless of the weather, and just be more lethargic and measured in their time.

When it comes to incorporating winter and it’s attributes and power into your witchcraft, the main ingredients you’ll want to work with are:

Dirt: Fallow dirt is mighty! Like a hibernating bear, it’s carefully collecting all those nutrients and minerals and saving them up for spring to share in full with local flora and fauna again! It is stable, strong, and patient. A good ingredient for spellwork involving breaking a habit, defensive protection (long term wards especially!), prosperity and abundance spells; especially slowly building ones like a long term money spell, spells or glamours relating to hiding or camouflage, encouraging a relationship to remain stable and grow, and many more. Though it should be strictly collected/harvested during the winter, you can store it year round and it retains it’s Winter attributes.

Snow/Ice: The most obvious winter witchcraft ingredient, this will mostly be used in a melted water form but some examples I’ll offer use solid snow and ice and the melting of it is part of the spell. It’s a good ingredient for: cleansing, freezing a person or problem, healing, banishing, creativity boosting (especially in physical crafts). Like with winter dirt, you can only collect during specific times but can store year round. You can even refreeze in your freeze if you have a spell that requires it to melt in some fashion that you want to cast in spring or summer.
Specific types of snow and ice correspondences: https://orriculum.tumblr.com/post/ 168151692633/winter-correspondences.
My own post on using snow in witchcraft: https://stygiantarot.tumblr.com/post/181955654194/ we-just-had-our-first-real-snow-here-in-ohio-and

Stones: Stones found in winter can have a special sort of power to them. Despite being unchanged physically year round (besides temperature), stones absorb energies readily. They are attuned to what is going on in the locale seasonally despite not directly changing themselves. It is because of this physical permanence that they are more easily able to be energetically sensitive. I like to use them especially in divination work (whether directly in creating runes or oracle sets or indirectly in boosting divination power and focus). They hold that deep quiet and patience of the season deeply under their hard surfaces. They also make excellent spellwork batteries and anchors for warding or enchanting.

Sticks/Pinceones/Flora castoffs: Those things that trees and shrubs drop are especially potent in winter as well. A weathered stick, a prickly pinecone, even some nuts and seeds are cast off during the fallow season and can be used in spellwork. These tend to be good for intentions relating to growth, protection, spirit work, psychic prowess boosting, and creativity as well as associations related to the plant it came from.

Cold weather Flora: Evergreens, hearty flowers like heather, and witch hazel, and early flowers like snowbells or daphne; there are still some plants that thrive even in chilly temps or fallow growing periods. Keep a sharp eye out in your local area for what remains or becomes vibrant during your winter and you can incorporate it into your spellwork. It would have the attributes of that plant, but “jazzed” up a bit during the season of winter when it remains strong amongst other flora that wait for spring or summer.

Citrus/Spices/Seasonal kitchentry: Despite it’s bright sun and summer associations, most citrus fruits are winter growing and this is an appropriate time to incorporate them into drinks and foods to bring some sun into your fallow period. It can help with healing (anti-depression especially), inspiration, solar magic, and creativity. There are also the warmer spices like those used in mulling ciders and wine that are good to use during this season to inject warmth and power into your spellwork. Take a look at what might grow or be commonly used in cooking during your area’s fallow period and incorporate them into your kitchen work in drinks, food, even baking!


Now to build spellwork and crafting ideas. The following are from my own grimoire that you may use or be inspired by!


Snowmen poppets: draw or write a taglock on a piece of paper and put it into a snowman! The intention of the spell takes effect on the target as the snowman melts.

Snow cleansing baths: put a bit of snow in your bath for a soothing ritual bath. Imagine all your worries falling away like a gentle snowfall drifting from the sky.

Winter Jar of Dirt: collect some winter dirt into a special jar, leave a bit of room at the top and put in scraps of paper that outline things you need to have growth or be more stable throughout the year. Feel free to double down by drawing some sigils on the jar for growth and stability.

Create a tool: use a winter stone or collection of them to create a tool for your practice. This can be a divination set, a spellcasting battery, an enchanted focus stone, even a painted offering, etc!


Use that crockpot or bake!: This is the time to do something warm and slow. A soup in a crockpot, a slow roasted dinner, those favorite cookies or brownies you remember from days of yore. You can also focus on a warm drink recipe; chocolate, cider, tea, coffee, wine, etc! They all can be made intentioned with spices and flavoring additions while they warm up to toasty soothing temps!

Room and floor sprays: use a bit of snow or ice, added to standard water, along with winter focused herbs and spices infused and put in a spray bottle for room spray or fl oor wash. You can focus the intentions as needs but a good one would be a pre-cleansing treatment for that “spring cleaning” physical cleaning many do! Or an energizing or inspiration spray to keep out seasonal blues and lethargy.

Enchant a blanket: Take a favorite blanket and enchant it with comfort, warmth, and peace for you to cuddle with during chilly evenings. You can do the same with a favorite towel for after warm baths or showers!


The methodology in creating crafting and spellwork ideas is to think about that fallow period and what you can “harvest” from it; whether it being something directly like snow or dirt. Or something indirectly, like the quiet, the introspection, or even the longer nights to do more lunar focused magic. Spirit work is another strong association in winter months. The slower and quieter season allows for easier connecting often to those not of physical form. Trying visiting a graveyard, park, or museum during your fallow season and seeing what you are able to sense.

Winter is also the time to take stock of your own life and spirituality- just like the earth does during its fallow period. Catalogue and cleanse your tools while you consider if there are any more you need or any you might pass along because you no longer use them. Clean and reorganize your storage and altars or shrines. Spend some time adding to your grimoire or journal those entries you’ve been putting off. Do some shadow work or divination. Write down some clear spiritual goals you’d like to focus on this year (good to put in your Jar of Dirt 😉 ) Do extra research on that area you’ve been debating on delving into.

However, don’t let yourself become too isolated. It’s normal to want some additional space in fallow periods, both personal and seasonal. But it’s important to still have some regular times that you get out of your own headspace. Set reminders for yourself to reach out to your favorite people to at least have a chat even if you don’t have the ability to get out of the house. Connect with online friends and community. Share ideas, thoughts, stories. Go see a movie or to a museum.

Letting winter into your bones doesn’t have to be chilling- it can be like that first breeze when you step outside. A surprise, maybe you gasp for a moment. But it’s exhilarating and revitalizing and reminds you of the beauty and wonder of nature. Even when nature is quiet and stark, she’s there. Just waiting for you to reach out and find her secrets and power to lend you. Go forth and Do the Magic.

Orriculum’s Winter correspondences: https://orriculum.tumblr.com/post/153243108238/winter- witchcraft


Some other Winter inspirations:
 https://ofcloudsandstars.tumblr.com/post/153908846876/゚-winter-witchy-things-to-do

[emsartwork]

Magic Masterpost

ok this is gonna be super long so under the cut

OK so these are the main four types of magic, magic can mostly be categorized into these four types but there are some exceptions that don’t fit the mold but there are still sciencey things we cant explain so (ball lighting, the 9th planet etc) so whatever. 

Core Magic is like another organ that belongs to individual beinigs that have a certain level of consciousness (humans, merfolk, elves, pixies and sprites, leprechauns, dragons) some beings that don’t have core magic, but do have the same level of consciousness as humans are discriminated against (trogs, vampires, ogres, trolls etc). Animals and plants do not posses core magic or the consciousness level characteristic of core magic users. They do sometimes have magical abilities but this is thought to be a side affect of either wild or natural magic sources.

Natural Magic is magic that is found in plants, minerals, water, and other non-conscious things. Usually is centrally localized and flows outward like a stream. has a large area of influence and natural sources can interact with each other with minimal conflict. good examples are the Tree of Magic(birthplace of the pixies and sprites and is linked to the core magic users in the universe), the Second Sun of Solaria(a source of warmth, solar light, and growth on Solaria), the pillars in the Infinite Ocean, Tir Nan Og and the sources I talked about with the earth fairies. Planets have a lot of natural sources and locations with out natural magic are rare(the wildlands in season 2 are unique to Magix and have a special magic suppressing aura)

Wild Magic is connected to natural magic but has its own unique section because its effects are so extreme. Natural sources can become wild sources in a defense mechanism, and some natural sources have a dependable cycle between wild and natural(ex. zenith’s core). Otherwise Wild sources are centrally localized around the same objects natural sources are, but can transfer to spirits and animals as well. Wild magic has a much smaller area of influence, and most animals will clear out of a place with a lot of wild magic because their instincts are like “danger????”, there are rarely multiple wild magic sources in the same area, and if there are they don’t interact well. Wild magic sources are a necessary part of nature, functioning like volcanic eruptions or geysers and relieving magical pressure on the planet. If a wild source isn’t treated with respect and is messed with (ex kalshara) it becomes severely unstable and instead of a potentially dangerous source in small doses it become a downright hazard with far reaching bolts of magic. This is the only reason Fractix exist lol. 

Ethereal Magic is something you do not want to mess with. It’s basically the most powerful type of magic, and is theorized to be the actual creative force behind the universe. The great dragon and the shadow phoenix used up most of their ethereal magic creating the universe, other ethereal magic holders didn’t participate much lol

This chart says human but really its the development of any creature with a core magic. Babies have zero magic but needs ambient magic (a mix of all the magics just kind of around) in order to develop further(0-10). Children will start to develop their magic in short, unpredictable bursts, its normal for their signature color to shift a lot in this stage, they can begin to learn magic theory but their magic isn’t firm enough or powerful enough to produce any results when spell casting (10-15). Young adults are fully developed magic wise (generally they are still younger age wise and not as practiced but their Core is the same as any adults) their core and signature color are set and don’t really change(exceptions to that below) this is usually when a person begins to practice their magic.(16-25)   

Ok so here are the basic differences between female and male magic. female magic stays within the core and body, only reaching outward when directed by the person. Male magic absorbs ambient magic, processing it through the core and letting it flow outward. Female magic users need to learn how to direct their magic outward in order to use it. Male magic users need to learn how to contain their magic in order to use it. its really easy to overwhelm female magic users and fights between two female magic users are either over v quickly, or have a TON of dodging. A fight between two male magic uses is dependant on how much magic the two already have stored (stamina kind of) and how much they can force themselves to absorb from their surroundings(ex, Nabu was naturally more resilient to absorbing and channeling magic than the rest of the group which is why he volunteers to close the black circle, unfortuntely the wizards had packed SO MUCH magic into their circle that when he did manage to close it, his core was overwhelmed and he died :( if say, aisha had volunteered to close it, her core would have been overwhelmed more quickly and she would have died with out closing it. 

Intersex peeps!!! ok so, just as a disclaimer, I’m not intersex, if you wanna talk to me about anything I say here feel free to send and ask for direct message!! it would be really easy to align Core magic with sex organs, but because one is more “spiritual” an the other is physical its a little different. Intersex people are Intersex from birth, but Intersex Magics only manifest at magic puberty(the child stage in the previous chart) and varies a lot from person to person. An intersex person could have either classically female magic or classically male magic or any of the four examples in the image, but any number of manifestations are possible. So I know Intersex people are subjected to unnecessary “corrections”, but i want to make it clear that Intersex Magic is ONLY changed if it is actually causing harm to the person. The painful and dangerous examples are life threatening in the long term, and usually begin as one of the healthy examples. Being able to produce and absorb, but looping the two into each other is unsafe because the core is literally eating itself(eventually resulting in death). Being to absorb but not expel is dangerous because the magic buildup can cause pain and eventually crack the outer membrane of the core resulting in death.

Trans peeps!! again as a disclaimer, I’m cis, if ur trans and ya wanna drop me a line about any of this please do! So Trans dudes and trans ladies have to wait for their core magic to grow in naturally before transitioning(some trans peeps are cool with not transitioning their magic obvi)  but they would see a magic medical person, receive “hormones for magic basically” and begin transitioning. The whole process can take about a year but only about 4 months of that leave the person with low magic and physical weakness, and even then it depends on the person.  

So these are the traditionally masculine magical practices. Unlike witches and fairies they don’t decide their practice until they’ve gone through basic training (the white, grey and black stages) and it most depends on what magic the person likes to absorb and where/how they store collected magic. Male magic users can use fairy transformations, but they have to be much more prepared and keep a lot of stored magic on them. 

The fairy and witch paths are traditionally feminine, but the labels can be used by any gender obvi(same with the masc magic user labels). The witch path has two stages before deciding their profession, and the outfits are just uniforms or items associated with the profession. The fairy transformations are outfits specific to the transformations and are linked together in a way that makes it necessary to earn certain transformations before others, where as witches can jump professions as much as they want lol. The purple transformations here are the ones the trix used, and while they aren’t fairy(because no wings) they aren’t witch either because the transformation actually generates the outfits, they’re kind of shunned among both communities even though they have tremendous potential and should be explored. Reaching Enchantix can only take 3 years at the shortest, but a lot of fairies prefer to spend 2 year reaching charmix, and then 3 years working up to enchantix(so a total of 5 years is an alfea norm). Witchcraft takes a lot longer to learn and doesn’t have the instant power boost fairycraft has, so each of the first three stages take 2-3 years(6 to 9 years is a cloudtower norm) this time frame also applies to the masculine magics, but usually the last half of it is the specialization(ex, nabu spent three years in white/grey/black and then was in his second year of specialization as a magician when he was introduced into the series.)

So because magic is being pushed out of the core for female magic users, it shows up physically on the body in a way that doesn’t seem to happen with male magic users. For female magic users who DON’T use fairy transformations this generally shows up in color around the eyes or hands. which is generally where most of the magic flows from. for fairies, wings marks are present on the back and are more individualized pattern wise but more natural color wise than witchmarks.

Fairy wings are solid/rubbery, and are the physical manifestation of a fairy’s core looping in on its self(think of a car battery). Once initiated, the fairy can stay in transformation for a fairly long time, but does eventually tire out, and the loop dissolves. However if the loop is broken too abruptly or by an outside force there can be negative results for the fairy(namely pain and magic blockage preventing transformation for a couple months to several years depending on how bad the break was). The wing retains its shape for about 24 hours, and then dissolves into ambient magic. If a fairy breaks her wings by a freak accident she can combat some of the magic blockage by eating her own wings(kind of gross sry lol). If however some one else eats the fairy’s wings they gain a magic boost and can unnaturally extend their life/keep their youth full looks(ex. the wizards of the black circle did this)

one of the manifestations of mer core magic is Morphix (yes aisha has this too) while it is considered a magic property, its technically a physical substance that conducts magic EXTREMELY well. Merfolk are usually not allowed to go to the surface until their morphix has grown in, and people with high levels of merblood in them often have to be in a very humid environment or literally spent most of their time in saltwater until their morphix grown in(ex. aisha had to have salt water baths every couple hours as a kid.)  

Elves are another notable difference in core magic in that they are all linked to eachother. While this doesn’t transfer individual thoughts or damage or anything, it does allow individual elves to pull magic from elves who aren’t currently using their magic for more powerful spells. Elves can also sense large scale events that happen to the elf community as they happen but rarely are they clear on specifics(ex. when the ancestrals pulled all of domino into oblivion, the elves on other planets could feel the sudden disappearance) as a result Dominian elves are basically a seperate group now. Earth elves still have a loose connection to the elf community at large, and as earth enters into the magix dimension again they should strengthen it as elves marry and have offspring.   

Pixies, Hobkies, and Sprites! So because i detailed intersex magix, I also wanted a companion species that represented intersex peeps. Pixies are born from the blossoms of the tree of life, Hobkies are from the trunk and somtimes branches, and Sprites from the roots. Hobkies used to just be called Sprixies, but people are pushing to have that changed as its just a combo of sprite and pixie and not unique to the species. Their wing and tail sizes are varied, but they usually have both, sometimes the wings are fleshy insect style wings, and sometimes the tail is made of the same stuff as magic.  

Each species goes through a similar cycle, when a person is born a corresponding spot appears on the tree of magic, as the person grows their magic levels the spot gets bigger, once a certain level of magic is reached the companion is officially born. This happens for fairies at their first transformation, but depend on routine practice for everybody else. 

One of the unique things about Natural magic is that people can actually bind their magic to it. Female magic users reach out with their magic and “tie” it to the magic thats stemming from the source. Male magic users form a loop with the source pouring magic in and absorbing magic out. forgot to draw it but Intersex peoples would use about the same techniques, it would just depend on what they leaned more toward/what they were more comfortable with.

Animals, having no core magic, are able to metabolize and evolve with exposure to wild magic unlike humans who’s core magic either flushes the wild magic out like a toxin or breaks(killing the human in the process). Kalshara is actually quite a revolutionary because she figure out a way to inject the human body/core with wild magic, with out her dying or the wild magic dissolving. but she’s a dick and didn’t respect people so her project never got financed or peer reviewed lol 

ethereal fairies technically have a core, but because its made of ethereal magic they’re put into their own separate category. They seem to exist outside of time and space, and it’s unknown if its because of their nature or because they can wield ethereal magic. Ethereal fairies usually appear with a humanoid body and spears of light off their backs, which is why human fairies are even called fairies, but ethereal fairies come in a lot of different forms(they’re basically a cross between gods and high high fae). The three gifts can be used every 300 years, and are little bursts of ethereal magic that layers over whatever magic the recipient normally uses. It is unknown if the gifts grow somewhere, or if they are crafted by the ethereal fairies. Really powerful magic users sometimes get chosen to join the golden kingdom (whether they want to or not) usually these are “good” aligned people but some villains are theorized to be there too. The general consensus is that the golden kingdom is like a pet palace for the ethereal fairies who think the people people the put there are interesting little creatures. The ethereal fairies use to interact with people more frequently but have backed off in the last couple 1000. Fairies who have completed the Elementix can ask the ethereal fairies to give them Nymphix, but honestly there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme of reason to whether or not the ethereal fairies grant it or strip the person of their magic completely . Ethereal fairies also grant their power to non-fairies but it doesn’t manifest into a transformation. and usually the term “Ethereal” is put before their title (so like Griffin would be an Ethereal Sorceress.)

not much to say about these things. A long long time ago a massive dark spell was cast and created both Obsidian and Realite(i got tired of the “ix” so its “ite” now) Two pocket dimensions. Realite was originally the greater threat because it was just spewing magic everywhere so it was locked with the codex. Obsidian was originally thought to have only sucked magic in, but there have been some long term consequences that weren’t expected, one was the mutation of a dominion noble into Lord Darkar, the other was the slow death of planet Omega and the radiation effect on the three ancestral witches who were born there. (realite was locked so fast it didn’t have time to get any long term damage out in the world but its just as powerful)  

so the dragon and the phoenix are *kind* of still ethereal which is why they’ve persisted as a power source and taken to specific bloodlines, but they aren’t anywhere near the full ethereal ones anymore.  Dragon fire and Phoenix fire are two sides of the same coin, they kind of function as the equal opposite rule but not really. Their equal opposites are the water stars and the earth hearts respectively. The dragon flame bearer usually has light and creation powers, Bloom generally channels the fire aspect of her dragon flame, like hardcore. Daphne, when she held the dragon flame was less heavy on the flame and more on the creation side, she was especially good at summoning items and had a decent healing talent. The shadow flame bearer has been lord Darkar for..... a very long time lets just say that. But the Phoenix deals with shadow and destructive magic. Stealth, spell breaking, and straight up carnage are all possible magic focuses for a phoenix bearer (the shadow phoenix isn’t necessarily bad, just like the dragon flame isn’t necessarily good, they are attributes that change with the people they are tied to). The water stars were collected and stored in the golden kingdom a long time ago and as such don’t have a ton of lore. Bloom CANNOT touch them with out feeling at least mild pain and weakness. The water stars have incredible containment powers, being able to hold things within individual stars, and restrain a full powered dragon flame if used all together in a binding circle. The Earth Hearts are still in nature somewhere, buried deep in the ground. There are some theorized locations but they’re harder to get at than the water stars and as such no one has collected them all yet. Earth hearts are good for dispersing magic and breaking it down to bite sized pieces. Both Earth Hearts and Water Stars are technically destructible, but they will always “grow back” and regenerate in new locations and cannot be eradicated completely.

[saltwater-maple]

it’s time for... CHARACTER SHEETS. the more i think about these two the more i think i might end up making some sort of... comic or Something for them.

my handwriting is Bad so an actual readable version of their info so far is under the cut!

Lydia Bellman

she/her | undead

-died in an accident on her 16th birthday -brought to unlife by a novice necromancer who was plotting to make money off of “reviving” people for their grieving families, without telling them the spell only lasts a day -absorbed said necromancer’s powers 3 hours later after a 2nd attempt at creating another zombie failed spectacularly, basically vaporizing the necromancer

Abilities -basic necromancy, but has no real control and no idea how to use it anyway -can see, communicate, and physically interact with ghosts/spirits/etc. -doesn’t need to eat, sleep, breathe... -can’t get sick or be poisoned; doesn’t feel pain -can remove limbs at will and retain control over them

Weaknesses -vulnerable to extreme cold, even if she can’t feel it--it renders her immobile -fire... bad -can be possessed more easily than living beings

Avaline Forest

she/her | ghost

-died at 18; her family was unknowingly caught in the middle of a long rivalry between two powerful families and she was an unfortunate victim -was unable to pass on due to her anger at her unfair death and fear for her family's safety -still can't pass on, however, though it's been YEARS, and she doesn't know why -due to her cause of death, she's terrified of large bodies of water

Abilities -can control her intangibility. however: undead, holy, and unholy beings are able to bypass this -able to manipulate water, despite her fear of it -can't be seen or heard by living creatures, with the exception of animals, part-animals, and holy + unholy beings -doesn't need to eat, drink, sleep, breathe -can possess people and objects

Weaknesses -can be exorcised just like other spirits -will "die" if an object she's possessing is completely destroyed -daylight (severely dampens all her abilities)

[intrvso-archived11821]

Meranni is a two-handed warrior–so her specialty is greatswords, axes, and mauls. Great weapons that require both hands to lift them and often cause those that do not wish to have larger weapons trouble lifting. Her specialties were, but not limited to Berserker, Reaver and Champion. These will both be covered in this post. Due to her specialties, however, she is left vulnerable to magic attacks. This is part of why she does her best not to anger mages, though is not the reason she sided with them.

Berserker Abilities

Berserk– The stench of blood and death drives the berserker into a willing fury, providing a bonus to damage. Rages incur a penalty to stamina regeneration, however, which Constraint reduces. Resilience adds a bonus to health regeneration in this mode.

Resilience– The berserker can now focus the power of rage more effectively, gaining a bonus to health regeneration while Berserk is active, as well as a bonus to nature resistance that applies at all times.

Constraint– The berserker has learned to retain control during rages, reducing Berserk’s penalty to stamina regeneration.

Final Blow– All the berserker’s stamina goes into a single swing. If the blow connects, the attack inflicts extra damage proportional to the amount of stamina lost.

Reaver Abilities

Devour– The reaver revels in death, absorbing the lingering energy of all nearby corpses, each of which partially restores the reaver’s own health.

Frightening Appearance– This talent focuses the Reaver’s unsettling countenance into a weapon, making a target cower in fear unless it passes a mental resistance check. Frightening Appearance also increases the effectiveness of Taunt and Threaten.

Aura of Pain– Radiating an aura of psychic pain, the reaver takes constant spirit damage while this mode is active, as do all enemies nearby.

Blood Frenzy– Driven by pain, the reaver gains larger bonuses to damage whenever health decreases. Because this mode also incurs a penalty to health regeneration, the reaver flirts with death the longer the frenzy persists.

Champion Abilities

War Cry– The champion lets out a fearsome cry that gives nearby enemies a penalty to attack. With Superiority, nearby enemies are also knocked down unless they pass a physical resistance check.

Rally– The champion’s presence inspires nearby allies, giving them bonuses to attack and defense while this mode is active. When coupled with Motivate, the attack bonus increases.

Motivate– The champion inspires allies to attack with renewed vigor. The Rally talent now increases attack, in addition to its defense bonus.

Superiority– The champion is so fearsome that War Cry now knocks nearby opponents off their feet unless they pass a physical resistance check.

Bonuses

The specialization is useful for granting extra buffs to the party. War Cry is useful for reducing incoming damage, causing enemies who fail its check to take penalties to hit. After learning Superiority the attack penalty is augmented by a knockdown, which is useful for crowd control. At the same time the bonus defense from Rally grants extra damage resistance to allies. When Motivate is learned an attack bonus is added to Rally. When used to its full potential the Champion is a great asset to any party.

[threadsketchier]

Whumptober #31 - Embrace

oH mY bEAnS I can’t believe I actually did this whole frickle frackle month

Yet another future draft scene from LTE, after Luke and Leia have spent time with the Naberries and eventually take a trip to the mountain village where Padmé was born.  Notes to follow.

Luke drew up the hood of his cloak and gathered it around himself against the chill of the mountain’s night air.  The only clouds to be seen were the mists of his own breath, letting the arm of the galaxy sprawled across the sky be resplendent in its full glory, even with the light of two moons.

He let his eyes adjust to the soft darkness before carefully picking his way through the rockier terrain past the village’s outskirts.  He could let the Force guide his steps, but he still preferred to challenge himself daily with keeping his own balance and coordination.  That didn’t mean he was trying to risk a trip and fall if he could help it, though.

Glimmering star and moonlight showed him he’d reached the stream’s edge.  Luke sat near its bank, adopting a cross-legged meditation pose.  Apart from the cold, this was an ideal place to submit to the Force - placid and natural, scarcely touched by sentience, suffused with organic beauty.  More significantly, these were the places Padmé had enjoyed in her childhood; her purest joy had dwelt here.

I have no memory of my mother.  I never knew her.  The latter statement could no longer be true in a loose sense, but all Luke had were the memories and records of others.  He’d seen her face now many times, but not while she lived.  All he had was impressions, little more than what Leia had managed to salvage from infancy.

Luke knew even less of the mysteries of life beyond.  As his skill and connection to the Force had grown, Obi-Wan had become more and more tangible to him, until he seemed nearly as real as any other living being.  But was that his own perception or another secret of the Force he had yet to uncover?

His only conviction was that death was truly not the end.  Perhaps all he would accomplish here tonight was a dashing of his hopes, but nothing could be discovered without a first attempt.

Luke breathed in deep, slow waves, focusing on the gentle burble of water and letting himself sink into the Force as though he was slipping into the stream itself.  His physical self dissipated like froth and his substance communed with the life surrounding him until he was as much a part of it as another blade of grass, another small insect, a humble bacteria traversing the soil.

But he went deeper, seeking the Force’s own eternal currents transcendent of the ephemeral world, recalling and visualizing every aspect of his mother that he had received and absorbed.  If she had once lived, then she was not gone, not entirely.

The Force was pure light, a radiance so profound it was like looking into the core of a star, but it did not burn him.  At first the light was featureless - not nothing, not an absence or white void, its collective existence was too vast and abundant to be empty, the sum of all life that ever was and is and will be, escaping and returning in its eternal cycle - and then somehow he perceived a surface rippling and parting like that of a lake.

From the Force’s depths she emerged, its light coalescing into her form.  At first Padmé gazed at him, taking in the sight of him, then broke into the broadest smile, taking his face in her hands.

“Luke.”  There was so much bound in that single syllable, a lifetime not shared, a heartbreak endured, and a hope realized.  As one they fell into each other’s arms and clung tightly; she was warm and solid and real, everything Luke could have wished for.

He didn’t know what to say.  Too many things, and he knew he couldn’t linger here.  He was afraid to let go, thinking she would vanish the moment he did.

“Luke,” she whispered in his ear, into his soul, “don’t be so eager to join us.”

He faltered - of all the things she could have possibly said, he hadn’t been expecting that.  He pulled away slightly, studying her face and the beatific love etched there, and he was mute in bewilderment.  She brought his head down gently to kiss his brow, then began to retreat, melting back into the ocean of the Force.

Luke kept hold of her hands until they slipped away.

Coming back to himself felt like falling through the entire universe.  His eyes snapped open and he gasped as if he’d been holding his breath, his heart skipping a couple of beats before resuming a slightly uneven pounding, and he started to shake.  A sudden grip around his shoulders nearly made him jump.

“It’s all right, Luke, it’s me,” Leia said.  When he registered her face, he saw concern in her eyes.  “Are you okay?”

“I...yeah,” he croaked, “I’m okay.”  He took another breath to steady himself, and he felt the familiar tingle of the scrambler mitigating the triggering of his damaged nerves.  “I was just meditating.”

“I gathered that.  I’d never seen you look like you weren’t breathing before, though.  I almost couldn’t feel your pulse, it was so slow.”

He stared at her, taken aback.  Had he literally drawn himself so close to the edge of death in order to accomplish what he’d just experienced?  That certainly hadn’t been his intention.  Did that have anything to do with what Padmé had told him?

“Leia...I saw her.  I saw our mother.”

She accepted that information cautiously, hesitant but not wanting to dismiss him outright.  “How?” she asked, not in dispute but seeking an explanation or description.

“I thought...being here, where she grew up, if I could reach through the Force, I might be able to find her…”  His throat tightened.

“Oh, Luke.”  Leia put her arms around him, and a sob escaped him as it freshly brought to mind the sensation of Padmé embracing him.

“And I did,” he said into her shoulder.  “I did find her.  Or maybe she found me.”

A/N: I have...Opinions™ about non-Force-sensitive spirits, because as much as I want everyone to have their happily ever after, I also prefer the universe to have rules along the lines of what’s already established for the Force.  For my purposes, the souls of beings who were not Force-sensitive do “disappear” into the Force completely; they can’t retain their individual consciousness.  However, a Jedi or a Force-sensitive who knew them has the ability - whether through training or sheer instinct - to summon them out of the collective Force and give them a sort of individual existence again, temporarily.  That experience is tied solely to the person calling upon them, hence why Padmé doesn’t make mention of Leia or anyone else.  These spirits are unable to observe or know anything about what transpires after their deaths, but they’re able to communicate and take in new information if they interact with a “summoner.”  Because they once lived, they can’t be entirely erased from existence, but they can only become whole and tangible again in these specific circumstances.

When a Jedi/Force-sensitive who manages to retain their consciousness after death joins the Force, they will be able to find their loved ones in the Force again in the same manner if they so choose.

[nessie-rp]

PHOENIX.

The phoenix, in its many forms and with its many names, is a spirit creature of which very little is known to the common person, even in supernatural spheres. Conflicting stories of their origins abound — that they are born when a falling star passes over the birth of only the purest of souls, that they existed before the earth was separated from the sea and will exist long after one reclaims the other, that the dragons breathed life into ash and from those ashes rose the first phoenix, and so on. None but the oldest phoenixes themselves know the truth of their origins, and even then it is rare that a phoenix will experience the memories of their first lives — rarer still for them to share such an intimate reminiscence.

Mythological touch points include: the Greek phoenix, Egyptian benu, East Asian fenghuang/hō-ō, Chinese Vermilion bird, Slavic firebird, Iranian huma and simurgh, Turkic konrul, Arabian anqa, the figure/iconography of Garuda in South/Southeast Asia, Chilean alicanto, Mayan Vucub-Caquix

HISTORY.

Mentions of a winged spiritual being with some mastery over life and death stretch back to 3000 BCE (see: Herodotus’ writings on Heliopolis, the then-capital of prehistoric Egypt). The ancient Egyptians even believed that the gods Atum and Re would occasionally take the form of a benu, a type of phoenix-creature.

This was not the last time a phoenix may have been worshipped as a god. Taking on an aspect of divinity allows for more influence over the moral leadership of a society, which is a phoenix’s ultimate goal.

It is said that phoenixes show themselves to mankind at important moments in history, but their reclusiveness in recent centuries has made such sightings scarce.

IN LYONESSE.

The phoenixes have no official position on the Hallowed Council, preferring to keep to themselves and work outside of politics. Their presence has been felt in Lyonesse for at least five hundred years, though it's likely they've been in and out of the city since shortly after its founding.

FACTS.

A common symbol of life, death, and rebirth, phoenixes are linked inextricably to this cycle. only under strict and often fatal conditions do they break it. They are among the most powerful, ancient, and secretive species of the supernatural world.

All phoenixes typically find a moral purpose to serve in their early lives, some kind of mission, and attempt to serve that purpose in all their subsequent lives. It is unknown whether phoenixes are compelled to choose a cause due to their nature or if their attempts to shepherd the mortal world come from a dictate of the first community of phoenixes. Many simply continue the cycle both because it has been so as long as the world can remember and as a way of coping with endless resurrection.

General characteristics of phoenixes include:

Reincarnation and pseudo-immortality.

While they are essentially the same being in each of their lives, the "mortal" lives that phoenixes live before awakenings affect their personalities, interpretations of the world, memories, and sense of purpose so they remain highly mutable beings. Phoenixes may not always take the same form in each of their incarnations. It’s common to find a phoenix that strongly resembles or evokes one of their past forms, but much more difficult for them to preserve their physical appearance exactly from life to life.

Phoenix births are extremely rare, as they can only be born from the union of two phoenixes.

Phoenixes age at a normal rate in each of their lives until the point at which their past lives reassert themselves, at which time aging slows or stops completely. They then then experience extended lifetimes of between 90 and 200 years, but remain mortal.

When phoenixes "die," their last breath is one of fire. Their mortal shells are consumed and their immortal soul, the firebird, seeks a suitable host to birth their next incarnation through a process of metempsychosis.

Absolutely adore sunlight.

Skeptical of reptilian creatures, including dragons.

Quite fond of greenery, very good at caring for plant life.

AWAKENING & AVIAN FORM.

Phoenixes reach a point in each life where their memories of their past lives resurface violently — this is the point at which phoenixes are the most vulnerable, as they experience breaks between reality and their memoryscapes and their other powers slowly reawaken. After their awakening, they have access to their avian form. These feathered creatures seem to be made of flame and plasma, though they are solid and interact as a normal living being would with the world. The fire of this form will only burn if that is the intention of the phoenix. Seeing a phoenix in their avian form can sometimes be interpreted as an omen of death.

When in this form, a phoenix leaves its human, corporeal, and mortal body behind, leaving itself vulnerable to attack as the absence of the spirit in the body would prevent them from acting to defend themselves. The bird rises from the body and can move without a tether; should the body die the avian form will not also be extinguished. This form is incredibly fast and strong, and has some control over natural energies, including heat, magic, and electricity.

ABILITIES.

ENERGY MANIPULATION. Even in their human forms, phoenixes have the power to control energy in various states, mainly through pyrokinesis, thermokinesis, and electrokinesis. Though phoenixes are not prone to using these abilities offensively, they can prove extremely powerful in a confrontation and are not to be underestimated. This ability is innate, but does not manifest until after the awakening in each life.

HEALING. Their tears have immense healing properties and are extremely sought after by magical healers. They also have innate touch-healing magicks, but the most potent healing ability comes from their tears. These healing abilities do not apply to their own injuries/ailments.

MEMORIES. Occasionally, when a phoenix encounters the same situations in different lifetimes, they'll get a very strong deja vu type feeling that may trigger flashes of that situation happening in the past and, occasionally, in the future. It is the only known instance of phoenix clairvoyance.

IMMUNITIES. Phoenixes are completely fireproof and impervious to mind-reading and glamours. They are also much more resistant to human diseases.

WEAKNESSES.

MORTALITY. A phoenix can be brought to a true death by another phoenix or if they die while submerged in water. The killing of a phoenix marks the murderer for the rest of their lives and beyond. Other deaths can come about by any means, but they will always trigger the rebirth as long as the fatal injury/sickness/etc. is persistent enough to overcome their healing abilities. Magical practitioners have tried to interfere with the life cycles of the phoenix before to catastrophic consequence.

MAGIC. They are highly susceptible to witchcraft in their humanoid forms. Phoenixes who are cursed in one life may carry the curse to their next life, depending on the strength and conditions of the curse (i.e. if the witch was trying to kill the phoenix, the curse would not continue past that first death). They have no way of knowing that they are cursed until their memories reassert themselves with the awakening.

CONTAINMENT. Their avian forms can be caged or held prisoner if confined within/with metal forged in either phoenix or dragon fire. The latter is much more common than the former, though still uncommon. If the avian form is kept away from the mortal body for too long, the mortal body will die but the creature will continue to exist, in a limbo of sorts within their reincarnation cycle until they are freed from the cage and able to seek out a new host.

DARK PHOENIXES.

Those phoenixes who fail to find a purpose, who do not make a positive change in the world, or who are more self-centered than selfless are said to have gone “dark.” Committing an act of true evil will also sully a phoenix, i.e. killing another phoenix, sexual assault, murder of an innocent, etc.

SPECIAL CHARACTERISTICS.

Burning contaminated firewood will result in atypical flame colors; similarly, the impurities in a dark phoenix's soul will be displayed in their avian forms as their coats will be striped with uncommon colors such as green, blue, and white.

Dark phoenixes undergo much harsher awakenings than their purer counterparts. Their memories are often much more intense and violent, therefore much more difficult to manage reliving. They are considerably weakened by their first few transitions into the avian form and may even be unable to access this form for a considerable amount of time after regaining their memories.

Dark phoenixes are volatile and very powerful, burning hotter than their counterparts in their avian forms. However, this means that they tend to have shorter lifespans because they “burn themselves out,” so to speak.

ORGANIZATION & SOCIETY.

Phoenixes do not tend to congregate or have any kind of species-wide organization. Due to their rarity, natural secrecy, and the unpredictable nature of their awakening, they are usually solitary.

Though they do not have a typical family structure but, on occasion, they can be mated to a member of another species and absorbed into their own group structure. If this is the case, they tend to gain more sociability and become less guarded because they have the added protection of a mate.

They strictly forbid writing down direct accounts of their lives, though there is no organization charged with enforcing this. Many suspect certain phoenixes have made this their moral duty, so as to preserve the balance, but no records of such a person/group exist, perhaps because they do their work efficiently.

INTERSPECIES RELATIONS.

Many phoenixes keep their identities secret from the world, masquerading as humans or witches. Reclusive by nature, the only species they generally mistrust are dragonkind.

Their feathers retain magical energies if removed, but it is considered bad luck to trade in phoenix feathers, no matter how powerful they can be for witches. Some groups consider them sacred. Phoenixes shed feathers naturally when in their avian form for long stretches.

To vampires, their blood tastes like ash and they smell faintly of burning carbon. However, it is a little-known fact that drinking the blood of a phoenix allows vampires to walk in the sun for a short period of time without facing any of its ill-effects.

MYTHS.

These things do not apply:

They have only an avian form. Through magic, they can access this bestial form, but they are born with human forms and the magical ability to flit between forms.

They rise from ashes. Would be cool.

Bathing in the blood of a phoenix can reverse the aging process. As yet uncomfired but likely untrue.

[muses-of-ideen]

Angora Canon

On Nocturne Species Pt 1

Ignatians

Ignatians are the Nocturne species born to serve the Phoenix- The Guardian of Flame.  They retain quite a bit of their human appearance, however are most noticeable by the feather-shaped tattoos on their bodies.  These tattoos, often along with the streaks of red in their hair, erupt into feathers of flame, giving them the appearance of a fire-bird.  They have a high heat tolerance and have been known to, on occasion, summon magma from beneath their feet.  Their blood is mineral-rich as the water they drink wells up from natural, sulfur-rich hot springs, and its believed that this may contribute to their feathers’ appearance.  Ignatians can have a variety of fire plumage based on what minerals their body absorbs better, but many have a very typical red/orange flame.

Boreans

Boreans are the Nocturne species born to Serve the Golem- the Guardian Spirit (Earth-Class) of the Wastelands.  Boreans, like Ignatians, appear mostly human aside from gemstones that grow out of their skin.  The stronger one’s magic, the faster they grow, and it isn’t unusual for Boreans to see ‘carvers’ to get their gems carved off if they get too long.  It’s much the same as getting a haircut for them, and having gems that are too large can be cumbersome.  It’s a tradition that one proposes to their intended with a band or bracelet cast from their own gems, so Boreans with rare or valuable gemstones are thought of as attractive.

Levitians

Levitians are Nocturnes born under the Leviathan- The Guardian Spirit of the Great Ocean.  While on land, they look relatively human with the exception of scales running across their arms, legs, and back like armor and the gills positioned in their rib cage and neck, but underwater they transform into elegant sea serpents (albeit with arms) and they’re unmatched in battle in the sea.  Unlike their land ‘counterparts’, the Fallium (who are also a serpent-based species,) the Levitians all have very smooth features- little to nothing about their body-types could be described as ‘rugged’ or ‘chiseled’ and most have relatively small frames.  To adapt to the intense pressures at the bottom of the sea, they are more reptile than mammal; the women lay eggs and thus have little to none of their mammalian ancestor’s cleavage.  Males and female heights still see the range of variety of human bodies, some growing even taller (although individuals over 6′ in height from head to glamourized toe have intense difficulty functioning on land) however their unusual bone structure gives them a somewhat uncanny valley appearance the taller they get since their bone structure is so thin and they have difficulty building any significant bulk.  Although their bone structure is thin it’s also incredibly dense and that, paired with their armored scales helps them survive the pressure at the depths of the sea where their colony resides.

Fallium

The Fallium are Nocturnes who serve the Dragoon- Guardian Spirit of Atmosphere.  They take the shape of feathered lizardmen and are among the least humanoid Nocturnes having the heads of snakes, feathers coating their entire bodies like scales, large, rending claws that are said to be able to even cut through air itself, and a sizable tail.  Along with being one of the least human in shape, they are also one of the most fanatical races; saying even a word of insult towards their Master warrants an immediate duel to the death.

Peacemakers

The Peacemakers are Nocturnes who served the Parvana, the Spirit of Order.  Even among Nocturnes, they were renowned for their beauty and dangerous disposition.  While their colors varied wildly, their skin, hair, and butterfly-esque wings were said to have hues and textures beyond what the human eye could perceive.  Some resembled the unending night sky, some a bank of unrelenting fog, and others were said to reflect light like crystal.  Regardless, they all, irregardless of Priestly status, had the ability to control others with their words.  Their specialty was ‘Words of Power’.  No one is certain if it was Order Magic or if they were simply a race that had an innate talent for Spoken Magic, but regardless, their word was law.  They were charged with keeping the world balanced in the wake of the Actias who would incite ‘chaos’ of various forms to prevent entropy.  Their kind mostly died out after the Parvana was hunted and killed to create a Magus’ relic.  The most notable descendant, named for the Spirit her people once worshiped, is an atavist who serves the Angoran King.

Actias

The Actias serve the Luna, the Spirit of Chaos.  They have an even less human appearance than the Peacemakers, and whether they can be called ‘beautiful’ or ‘ugly’ is up to the subjectivity of anyone who meets one.  Their heads are more insect-like than their butterfly counterparts and their colors aren’t as vibrant, but they are often very fluffy or furry.  Contrary to their alignment, they are not an evil race.  Their job i incite ‘chaos’ in the form of adventure, spontaneity, and creativity across the world.  Sometimes the ‘chaos’ they create can lead to tragedy, but they are most likely to be found in places where a quiet, normal, everyday life had settled in, where monotony ruled.  In these places, they act to incite change.