#im getting that fucking namecard one way or another

[three-bunnies-in-a-trenchcoat]

Fucking Cocijo, man...

[narwhalandchill]

(4.7 TCG leaks but Big Lore Implications? Maybe)

Well. This is (was) certainly an interesting Moment.

See. narwhal coming in TCG right? i obviously lost it we are all aware. so i was checking that shit out Instantly the second it was uploaded onto hakushin to see the kind of playstyle theyd given my beloved

but there was something else. see. tldr the narwhal starts at only 5hp but it basically eats all your discarded cards to increase its own max hp and dmg dealt (also takes into account the dice cost of the discarded cards). which i Love its so on brand and lore accurate. but anyway. its ult is to summon the electro dude whose dmg and duration is also affected by the cards eaten and their dice cost. such a cool kit right?

But then i saw what they Call the knight summon guy in the first uploaded version of the card kit in ENG

...SHADOW OF THE ANCIENT WHAT NOW????

and like. okay. okay. thats pretty fucking insane this is why i was looking so forward to the narwhal getting a card bc . sometimes tidbits like these just. Happen thru TCG. just casually like that (like parsifals Curiously Familiar Appearance for another relevant one).

bc like. an ancient nemesis huh. on one hand could reference surtalogi since the descriptor for the phantom in 4.2 patch previews in several languages (not sure what the in game stuff says these days) did have some similar wording to surtalogis CN title. also obviously fuels my personal foil hat agenda of surtalogis whole "keeping this very much sentient cosmic being as a Pet TM" being something that from the narwhals POV is very much like. a demeaning act of imprisonment and being used against its will as a pawn (im such a surtalogi hater dude. i Dont trust him). so like thats one option for the. whos the nemesis whose shadow is summoned. its surtalogi. but also ancient is a funny wording for when the guy is very well around to this day so

then theres the other option. bc the narwhal 4.6 namecard speaks of ajax intent on challenging the narwhal again and references hunting for the same whale the "third time" which like. most simple route u could just be seen as. okay despite just freezing up during their 1st encounter at 14 and doing jack shit to "challenge" it he still considered that the "first" hunt, fontaine was 2nd and next is 3rd.

but theres also the. what if the first hunt was the historical ajax of the myth? whose reincarnation our ajax may be? bc if His destiny was also to oppose the narwhal back then in celestias grand plan and possibly had the same constellation tying him to it too. would THAT be the ancient nemesis the knight in the narwhals stomach is the afterimage and shadow of? hmmmmm.

like dude i was. Actually losing my fucking mind bc this might be THE closest thing to a direct confirmation that If ajax has reincarnated over the samsara/cycles whatever . if That is the case. then this "ancient nemesis" being og ajax would then Very Much Imply that both his and Our Ajax' destiny in all incarnations has Always been tied to the narwhal in some way and that his "role" and "duty" in celestias decreed fate is to be its counterpart and opponent (read: tragic soulmate) . of Some sort. like yes inconclusive still but this couldve been such a massive fucking deal dude

Anyway .

then they removed that descriptor in the next update to the beta info on the new TCG cards 😭😭😭😭

so now its just called a dark shadow whatever 😔😔 this is So Sad. but. i have Witnessed the original so its not getting out of my head. what does it meannnnn

why would the narwhal be emulating its nemesis as the force that protects the source of its power that lies within it (like. we Had to be eaten in order to get close to that source in the AQ fight)??? did it eat that doomed soulmate nemesis (og ajax moment Surely) in the past and is now carrying its remnants and constructed shadowy afterimage within itself?? or does it represent some sort of control/power source surtalogi (if hes the nemesis) has inflicted upon the narwhal in order to keep it weakened and/or sufficiently subservient to be kept as a "pet"???? MANNN

obviously. since this was a clearly incomplete beta version text (like the narwhals kit was unfinished in ENG during this part) that was Very swiftly deleted (whacking myself over the head for not checking what CN said while this version was still up) its not like. something that can be referenced as legit confirmed canon lore for the narwhal since its not making it to live. but im just. Curious. like. even if its outdated text that was removed. Surely there HAS to be a Reason that description was originally written to describe the dark shadow summon.

so is this a case of. its no longer meant to represent an ancient nemesis, that was old ass lore for the phantom knight dude thats never going to happen and thats why they cut it. like fair enough it happens. old pre launch beta genshin stuff was directly a honkai sequel/spinoff but they changed that. it could always just be that

ORRRRR then. hear me out. that its STILL true but that the writers simply realized they dont want to reveal their cards (ha ha) on the subject just yet??? they dont want to leak this potentially Massive lore drop through a random TCG update?????? we arent meant to know the meaning behind the shadow just yet????????? 🤨🤨🤨 Surely

anyway. forever mourning shadow of the ancient nemesis as a descriptor . but i Have to post it here so that yall can at least know. this existed. this WAS a thing. so whats it mean...

(also if this turns out to be all legitimate and og ajax Was the ancient nemesis. Possibly the funniest way my original "who the fuck even thought the purple dude in the whales stomach was going to be childe" take from way back could be Technically proven wrong JSJAISJSJSISKD . if it was ajax. but just not. this one)