#i know it's actually griffith but i couldn't resist

[nevesmose]

Ferrus asked for no pickles

[valkyurii]

You're right about Gideon. His dialogue on Miquella is 90% about him being missing. What's your take on Miquella btw?

Don't quote me on this, but apparently Millicent in JP says, "The caution she abandoned to match R*dahn." Maybe this means Malenia bloomed deliberately. Or maybe it means her choosing to focus on fighting him instead of resisting the rot. Thus, risking a bloom. Assuming the trailer plays out in real-time, the Aeonia forms so quickly it might've caught Malenia off guard. Honestly, there's so much to discuss. But like you said, it's difficult to do that. People would rather bend over backwards to invent copium takes than admit the Big Warrior Dude couldn't/didn't defeat the gangly sickly lady. I've seen someone say he actually won because she didn't kill him.

Other than the points you've made, the funny thing about being mad at Malenia for attacking us is uh.. we're not framed as the good guys here. The Tarnished obtains the medallions via the Albinaurics, listens to Albus lament how they can't journey to the sanctuary, and then commits murder at said sanctuary anyway. Then when we kill Loretta, a mandatory boss before Malenia, the game tells us that she's here as she thinks the Haligtree is a safe haven. Basically in our journey to kill Malenia, we betray the trust of the needy and trample on what they think is their hope.

I genuinely love Miquella and hope we get to learn more about him in the DLC. He’s a character that I definitely feel has more going on than people may realise. I don’t subscribe to these theories of him being secretly evil though and I honestly can’t stand all these takes of him being a Griffith knock off. Seriously these guys see ‘Guy In Egg’ and go “Holy shit just like the hit manga Berserk!!” Like I get that’s where Miyazaki gets some of his inspiration from but that doesn’t mean every damn thing needs to be a Berserk reference lmao

Anyway, to me Miquella comes across as someone who genuinely has good intentions. A lot of this is plain to see and I think trying to look for the worst in him is such a reach at times. I don’t imagine Miquella to be this perfect saint by any means, but trying to make out that he’s potentially worse than any of the others is something I just can’t get behind. It’s like people are waiting for it to turn out like “Haha! He was actually the secret villain all along!” Folks love going on about how there’s no outright good and bad in this world and they love throwing around words like morally grey, but for some reason with Miquella they want him to be the worst shit in the lands between. We know he rejected the Golden Order primarily because they couldn’t (or wouldn’t?) help Malenia, but at the same time he goes on to build this sanctuary for those turned away by the Erdtree. He was essentially offered everything on a silver platter and still turned them down because to him they weren’t doing enough. For Malenia and for others who are considered ‘different’ by the order’s standards. They may be demigods but considering so are the omen twins and look at how they are treated, it’s obvious anyone who doesn’t fit into this Perfect Order is either considered not worth protecting or is wiped out. Miquella on the other hand obviously cares enough to want to change things. The idea some people have that he brainwashes his followers, again doesn’t quite sit right with me. We still don’t fully know what Miquella’s plans are and to me at least he doesn’t seem like he’s hell bent on conquering. Why would he need to brainwash and manipulate his followers though realistically? Unless it turns out that their affection and worship is how he gains his strength (which to me sounds stupid), why would he need to force people to follow him? But then again people say the same thing about Malenia with the cleanrot knights in that she infects them with rot and they are nothing more than braindead zombies who follow her. Even though it says they vowed to fight alongside her despite the inevitable putrefaction of their flesh, and that they accepted their fate. But going back to Miquella, I’ve seen this argument that because the Haligtree is hard to find that must mean he didn’t want people to find it.

Yeah, potential enemies.

You can’t just position a sanctuary like the Haligtree in the middle of the continent with big neon lights pointing at it saying “Come here if you’re being oppressed by that ugly ass tree over there.” And expect everyone to be fine with it. The place is already quite vulnerable as it is. It’s small and it’s situated below a cliff. If anyone were to attack it from the land I doubt they would last long. Keeping the Haligtree location secret is important if they wish to keep it, and it’s inhabitants, from harm. This is why I like to believe there were people, like Loretta, who knew of the location and would set out to help guide those in need.

About the bloom in Caelid though, I personally do think she did bloom intentionally. I think she made the conscious decision, however hard it may have been, to do something to break the tie. The fact she was the one to take the initiative doesn’t mean she was losing. It just means she had the conviction to actually do something. I do think however that the rot god could have possibly used this whole situation to it’s advantage and spread the rot throughout Caelid. Sensing that Malenia was weakened from the fight and her will to hold back the rot being at a low point, it may well have seized the opportunity to act through her. I don’t necessarily think Malenia intended to destroy the region, only that she wanted to isolate it to her enemy. With all that we’ve learnt about her and how she hates the rot and wants rid of it, I can’t imagine she would take pleasure in spreading it around the world. But of course all this was still a great risk and she couldn’t have know exactly how bad the outcome would be.

I agree with what you said about the tarnished. When you look at it we really aren’t framed as a good person throughout our journey. Whatever peoples personal headcanons are for their own character, the player character is kind of an asshole. We’re not even supposed to be from these lands and yet when we’re told by some random person to go kill everything just so we can become king of the ashes we gladly do it. There are some bosses in the game that I don’t even know why we fight. Malenia being one of them. It’s not even like we need her rune as we only need two to enter the capital and then they are never mentioned again. If Malenia were someone important in our quest you could understand going through all the hassle to get to her, but in the end we kill her for what? Her sword and her outfit? I know people go and fight her for the challenge and all that, it’s just lore wise there’s never really any need to go to the Haligtree.

Again thank you anon for allowing me to rant, and once again I’m sorry I take so long to reply!

[countenanceblog]

Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Jack, Rufus and Karen stood, their hair and clothes blowing in the breeze, immediately next to the parked Interceptor. They were on the outskirts of Monolith, outside a seemingly abandoned factory complex.

"You sure this is the place? There's no one here but the lawnmower," said Rufus to his companions. Jack laughed. The three of them eyed the man tending to the property.

"Why have a lawnmower at an abandoned facility?," Jack asked Rufus and Karen. Clearwater smiled brightly.

"You're brilliant, Jack," said Karen. Rufus made an unusually unreadable expression. "Let's talk to him."

The trio approached the landscaper, a Brownsville type with shoulder-length blond hair. He had eyes that didn't match colors. He smiled at the trio, revealing silver teeth.

"Hey there," Jack greeted the lawnmower with a friendly wave. "I'm Jack, and these are my friends Rufus and Karen. We couldn't help but notice you working here. Is there still some activity going on at this factory?"

The lawnmower wiped the sweat from his brow with a gloved hand and nodded. "Yup, still some maintenance work to be done, you know how it is. I'm Jim, by the way, the resident lawn care expert around here."

Rufus leaned in, trying to be casual. "So, Jim, we're actually looking for someone. A person who might be involved with a resistance group fighting against the current regime. You haven't seen anything like that around here, have you? You know, uh, rebellious behavior?"

Jim's silver-toothed smile remained, but there was a subtle shift in his demeanor. He spoke nonchalantly, "Oh, Resistance, you say? Sorry, I haven't seen anything like that around here. My focus is on these lawns."

Karen stepped forward, her gaze piercing. "Come on, Jim, we're not here to cause trouble. We just need to find some answers. If you know anything, it could help a lot of people."

Jim's eyes darted between the trio, assessing their sincerity. "I understand your curiosity, but I don't know anything about a resistance group. My job keeps me pretty busy, and I prefer to stay out of any politics."

Jack decided to change the subject. "Alright, Jim, fair enough. How about we help each other out? You tell us what you know about the rebel leader David Griffith, and we might be able to provide you with something that David wants, badly."

Jim raised an eyebrow, seemingly intrigued. "David Griffith, huh? He's been making quite a name for himself lately. Word on the street is that he's been leading the charge against the oppressive forces in the city. The irony of course is that he used to be the top cop around town. Turncoats, they sure make for interesting characters."

Rufus couldn't help but interject, "Do you know where we can find him? Seriously, do you have any idea?"

Jim shook his head with a knowing grin. "Ah, sorry, but I don't have that kind of information. Griffith keeps a low profile, and I don't run in the same circles as him."

Karen pressed further, "Are you sure about that? You seem to know quite a bit about him already."

Jim chuckled. "I've heard a few things here and there, you know, just regular gossip around the neighborhood. But trust me, I'm not one to get involved in those affairs. My lawnmower and I are content with our simple existence – " with a flawless movement, Jim pulled a bell out from the back of his pants. He aimed it at Rufus.

As quickly as the gun had appeared, it went flying out of Jim's hand towards the grass. Karen's eyes turned sour; her gaze malevolent. Jim gasped. Jack smiled. Rufus, for his part, took a really deep breath. "By Hel," he said.

Karen leaned towards Jim. His feet lifted free from the ground. "You just pointed a bell at my brother," Karen told the man. "Do you have any idea how fucked you are?"

"Oh my God," said Jim. "They weren't lying." The intensity of Karen's brown eyes seemed to double. Suddenly Jim's arms and legs popped out of their sockets, straining to come free from him entirely. The man screamed at the top of his lungs. Jack was still smiling.

"Stop it, Karen!," shouted Rufus. "You'll kill him!"

Karen dropped Jim to the ground without ceremony. Rufus turned to look at her. She had a nosebleed. "Are you alright?," Rufus asked her. Karen nodded. Jack pulled out the Mini Bel and trained it on Jim's forehead.

"You don't know . . . you don't know who you are," mumbled the dazed landscaper. "By Hel, you're Nyx herself . . . " Jack knelt down and grabbed Jim by the shirt.

"What do you mean, she's Nyx?"

Jim swallowed. "There's a radio clipped to my belt, put it up to my mouth." Rufus shook his head.

"Why should we trust you?," he asked from over Jack's shoulder. "You were about to shoot me."

"Please," said Jim. "I have to maintain protocol. We don't accept recruits anywhere. Your friends are inside. Believe me, please, I do work for David Griffith."

Rufus snarled. Jack, pressing down the button on the radio, held it up to Jim's mouth. "This is Jim. The boys we took in weren't lying. There's a telekinetic girl here."

After a moment of silence, a male voice answered. "What? You mean it's Nyx?! She's outside?!"

Karen levitated the radio out of Jack's hand. She used her power to bring it to a standstill in front of her mouth. "I can move things with my mind, if that's what you're asking. I never associated myself with any goddesses."

Once more there was silence. Karen wiped the blood off her upper lip. "Come around back. I'll meet you," said the man on the other end.