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undercover-undertaleau · 11 days ago

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About Undercover:

Undercover is an Undertale Au that takes inspiration from Emily Crystal's IE Au, Lunnar-Chan's Emperor au (I believe that's what it's called, I don't actually know much about that Au, I just like the designs). As well a weird ass dream I had.

The name of the world this story takes place in is called Celestial (I really couldn't come up with anything better). Sun's Empire is known as the Astral Empire.

Celestial University is a school that is both a high school and college mixed into one. The university is fairly new, only being established after a few years after Echo's biological parents had passed, his old home castle being repurposed and becoming the school.

The parents/adults are unaware that the ship children are spying on Nightmare

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Ships in this Au:

Killmare (Nightmare x Killer)

Cream (Cross x Dream)

Bloodlust (Horror x Lust)

Afterdeath (Geno x Reaper)

Errorberry (Error x Blueberry/Swap Sans)

Dark Driller (Shattered Dream x Killer)

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Characters in this Au and their roles:

(I had to do a lot of research on the royalty hierarchy to make sure I got some of these correct, and I'm not even 100% sure I did, so if anything is wrong, please correct me)

Morningstar Family:

Sun Morningstar: Emperor of the Astral Empire | Moon's Twin

Moon Morningstar: Prince of the Astral Empire | Sun's Twin

Star Morningstar: Prince of the Astral Empire | Principle of Celestial University | Sun's youngest brother

Echo Morningstar (previously known as Echo Shine before being adopted by Sun): Spy | Adopted son of Sun | Crown Prince of the Astral Empire | Student of Celestial University

Nightshade Manor:

Nightmare Nightshade: Duke of the Astral Empire | Works for Sun | Dream's Twin | Married to Killer

Killer Nightshade: Duke (...?) | Married to Nightmare

Dust: Messenger | Works for Nightmare

Horror: Errand Runner | Works for Nightmare | Secretly dating Lust

Crescent Nightshade: Earl | Oldest son of Duke Nightmare and Killer | Student of Celestial University

Angst Nightshade: Lord | Middle child of Duke Nightmare and Killer | Student of Celestial University

Merciless Nightshade: Lord | Youngest son of Duke Nightmare and Killer | Student of Celestial University

Kit's Household:

Kit: Royal Wizard/Doctor | Works for Sun

Viper: Imperial Sleuth | Works for Sun

Artemis: Royal Librarian | Works for Sun

Toxic: Moon's Royal Guard | Works for Sun but mostly Moon

Spirit: Royal Gardener | Works for Sun

Blaze: Spy | Field Agent | Oldest adopted son of Viper | Student of Celestial University | Snowfall's Twin

Snowfall: "Spy" | Food Runner | Oldest adopted son of Viper | Student of Celestial University | Blaze's Twin

Shadow: Youngest adopted son of Viper

Roseheart Household:

Skull Roseheart: Vizire | Works for Sun

Ali Roseheart: Daughter of the Vizier | Student of Celestial University

Residence of the Astral Empire:

Abyss (old Abysstale): Jeweler

Mecha: Helps in Abyss' shop

Beats: Helps in Abyss' shop

Kin: Helps in Abyss' shop

Ganz: Helps in Abyss' shop

Ccino: Cat(f)è owner

2P Nightmare/Strawmare: Owner of Strawberry Moon Bakery (it's a small bakeryshop on school campus. Think Mostro Lounge from the Octavinelle Dorm in Twisted Wonderland)

2P Dream/Jewel: Waiter at Strawberry Moon Bakery

Berry/Strawberry Crescent: Baker at Strawberry Moon Bakery | Not Strawmare's Son | Student of Celestial University

The "Rebellion" (They are against Nightmare, not Sun, they believe Nightmare is manipulating Sun, and the rebellion is just what Nightmare refers to them as):

Blue/Blueberry: Second in command | Combat Instructor

Dream Eternal: Prefers to go by his last name | The "Boss" | Healer | Nightmare's Twin | Dating Cross

Cross: Combat Instructor | Dating Dream

Epic: Just here because he's buddies with Cross

Sci: Doctor for the "rebellion"

Pj/Paper Jam: Spy | Spy Master | Oldest child of Ink and Error | Student of Celestial University

Gradient: Spy | Hacker | Youngest child of Ink and Error | Student of Celestial University

Lux Eternal: Spy | Case Officer | Oldest daughter of Dream and Cross | Student of Celestial University

Palette Eternal: Spy | Field Agent | Accidental child of Ink and Dream | Student of Celestial University

Starcross Eternal: Spy | Field Agent | Middle child of Dream and Cross | Student of Celestial University

Comet Eternal: Spy | Inventor | Youngest son of Dream and Cross | Student of Celestial University

Neutral Parties/Watching from the Sidelines:

Classic: Just randomly appears at times, prefers to stay in his own Au with his brother.

Ink: After the Star Sanses broke up, he's just been off doing his own thing. Randomly popping up from time to time, and forgetting about his three children

Error: He doesn't believe that Nightmare is manipulating Sun. But is it some damn good entertainment. But if I would have to say which side he's more on, it'd be the rebellion side, but only because he likes Blue | Geno's older brother

Lust: Just trying to live his life and watch the drama from the sidelines without being roped in | Secretly dating Horror

Unlust/Vio: Like Lust, just trying to live his life and watch the drama from the sidelines without being roped in | Occasionally helps in Abyss' shop

Outer: He's friends with Error, he's friends with Dream, he's known Crescent since he was little, if he were forced to pick a side, he wouldn't be able to no matter how much time they gave him.

Fresh: Like Classic, he just randomly shows up at times for both parties, with no rhyme or reason.

Reaper: Prefers to mind his own business | Dating Geno

Geno: He has lost all F's to give as long as his son doesn't get roped in or hurt | Error's younger brother | Dating Reaper

Goth: Only really know what's going on because he's friends with Palette | Student of Celestial University

Stance Unknown (aka the Sanses/characters I wanted to add, but didn't know what to put them as):

Shattered Dream: After making an abandoned Au his home, the closest other Au just happened to be Sun's | Married to Killz

Killz (Shattered Dream Au Killer Sans): Married to Shattered Dream

Misery: Crown Prince | Oldest son of King Shattered and Killz | Pretends to be neutral, but he's not | Student of Celestial University

Eclipse: Prince | Youngest son of King Shattered and Killz | Esmeray's Twin | Student of Celestial University

Esmeray: Prince | Youngest son of King Shattered and Killz | Eclipse's Twin | Student of Celestial University

Unknown (like only a few know they exist):

Error 404: Error's and King Multiverse's Boss

Alpha: Unknown

Omni: Unknown

Infected: Unknown

King Multiverse: Unknown

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Credits (Please do tell me if I got any of the creators wrong, as I'm going to be using their character(s) in my story, I want them to have the proper credit):

Sun Morningstar, Moon Morningstar, Star Morningstar, Echo Morningstar, Kit, Viper, Artemis, Toxic, Spirit, Blaze, Snowfall, Shadow, Skull Roseheart, Ali Roseheart, Berry/Strawberry Crescent, Comet, Misery, Eclipse and Esmeray - all belong to Ali Craft/Me

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disposable-an0de · 2 months ago

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Pinned post time. See top of blog for most stuff. If sent, I will rank and grade anon death threats. I'm ace but i do enjoy violence against the flesh therefore 18+. My system consists of three alters, juniper (one running this, im the main), velvet (also fronts pretty often), and Iris (little and a Mythic Pull). I have been working on a table top mech game (and a ttrpg but thats mostly conceptual) for about 5ish months. I have 2/9 factions done but there is no planned release date. I may make a discord or itch page eventually to share betas but that is WAY far off.

Mech Game Things:

It is still untitled however the setting and most of the stuff in it is named. The world is named Scalara and it is essentially a massive space cracker floating between a star and a moon thing. The star radiates entropic energy and the moon radiates stabilizing energy thus creating the space cracker of Scalara. Scalara itself is populated by a large array of alien species who have created large mechs (called vessels) to combat eachother and the like. The mech game takes place right before a massive invasion from a malevolent, Fermi's Filter esc, alien civilization and the (lightly planned) ttrpg takes place after that invasion. More specifics can be gone into but not here. Feel free to ask questions about it however, helps with the worldbuilding.

The current factions are (in a light overview):

Driftings [FINISHED] - A conglomeration of all the beings not working with other civilizations who make their vessels from left behind scraps.

Marie's Cleaners [FINISHED]- An odd alien species who has only recently arrived on Scalara in a large spire. They follow strange rules and all wear odd frilly clothing. They follow the command of an unseen "Marie" and their vessels are strange porcelain/ceramic dolls with powers that are psionically controlled by unknown beings from inside the spire.

Novae (name of species not faction, name always comes last)- A species of humanoid moths who gather their power from the star rather than the moon. They store their power in eyespots on their wings and have incorporated such eyespots into their vessels. they are highly aggressive and imperial, but hold off on conquering the other factions due to a desire to prove their superiority to other species culturally. Their societal structure is based on duels for power, with the current leader being a young princess. While they act noble in front of other species, they are actually very chaotic when alone. The inside of their temples can be largely described as a middle school cafeteria.

The Order of The Hollow Hive- The insect/slime protectors of the Hollow Hive, a massive hive in which sentient slimes and insects live symbiotically. The insects are largely hollow so the slimes can move inside and enhance them. The insects largely style themselves in a way similar to knights templar, considering their exoskeleton an armor and putting dignity above all else. (They get completely messed up after the invasion of scalara and become more mad slime alchemists). Their vessels are massive chitinous creations filled with the collaborative efforts of many massive slimes. In battle the slimes and vessels can separate for incredible tactical maneuvers

Processor's Kin- The name given to the flesh and steel constructs that emerge from the Processor, a massive underground mechanical organism that creates most of the metals and circuitry used in Scalara. The flesh constructs help to maintain the Processor, functioning much like bodily cells. Their vessels are only larger versions of the Processor's normal children. Much like the rest of the Processor's work, it is unknown how it decides the frequency of production of its vessels but it has greatly increased its production of offensive vessels in modern times....

Skullfolk- okay look. I came up with the whole idea for the skull folk and then i realized i basically made the affini. my main inspiration were goatfolk from caves of qud not the affini. I am not happy about this, but i must learn to accept it. okay so the skull folk are a species of plants which take a humanoid shape* (those which travel around scalara take a more structured, humanoid form, while those which stay in the jungle/forest areas are far more fluid, more like a jellyfish but the stingers are vines and the bulb is a skull) which don skulls to mark their "head". They use the skulls of many animals and very rarely switch skulls. Their armies consist of various wildlife from within the jungle and they use pheromones to buff their allies in combat (aura skills) (screw hdg)

Etchlings (name in progress, not sure if they'll make it to final game yet tbh)

Lunites- A roaming militia which worships the moon (open to anyone who worships!). Their vessels draw power from the moon and they are surprisingly diplomatic for a cult wandering collective! very lore important.

Caders- DRAGONS THAT DRIVE TANKS AND GET CTE BABY LETS GO NO PAIN NO GAIN

anyway thank youuuu bye

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sailorspica · 2 months ago

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hiiiii kat i'm in ur inbox to ask snk questions again because googling and ending up in That Subreddit scare me </3 does mikasa's mother have a name or are there any fan-names for her?? all i'm finding is clara T-T

she does not have one afaik! i've never seen clara in my life oh the implications of an anagram mom, clara to carla....

with the later in canon explanation of mikasa's maternal side being basically stranded behind the walls, i lean toward giving her a japanese name (and wonder what mikasa's sibling from lost girls would've been called). the last time i wrote out a bullet list of stuff about my selfship AU where mikasa is tbh worthy of a spinoff, i named her mom after mikasa's japanese VA, yui

a more pedantic route i considered (this is how my sick brain works/wastes time writing): i do not have a source for this, but isayama might have directly stated he went the route of evangelion where the characters' surnames were from imperial warships, which says more about hideaki anno politically than it does about yams. in that way one of mikasa's foremothers is rei ayanami, who herself is named after my #1 sailor moon kin, rei hino

fandom elders (i mean al @jean-kirschtussy) weigh in if there's widely used names i don't know or what you use in your fics! i'm curious too

#moot moot #god i love Talking #asks #spicahc

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sr-8eep5 · 9 months ago

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Here’s the lore of my series Magic & Melodrama. (Although I might repost with art later.

The Big Ragnarok

After eons of floating through space, the creatures we to used to call Gods found a planet overflowing with delicious primordial magic, and covered with tiny people. For thousands of years, they watched and drank magic, until the tiny people died out.

Using their personal reserves, the Moonbeast magically reshaped the world and added new creatures of their own design, influencing their new creations with Godwhispers and gambling on entertaining outcomes.

For unknown millennia, the Moonbeast would reshape the world, play with their creations, and reform new worlds from the old, either when everything died or when things just got boring. These magical apocalypses would, of course, kill everything on the planet, and the act of rebuilding a new world from the old made the magic emanating from the core of this clay toy planet evermore volatile and unstable, creating separate dimensions: imitations of the previous worlds.

When the Zephtacea of a former world retreated in their underwater mountains, our world, known as Terreztriall, was born on top of theirs.

With magic more potent and wild than it had ever been, Moonbeast sought to create their most entertaining show yet. We call this period of time the First Era, or The Imperial Age.

It was an age of tyrant kings, slave armies, and shackled sorcerers wielding violent explosive magic, waging ceaseless war goaded on by the Godwhispers of the Moonbeast. But they made shocking discovery.

The Zephtacea of the Former survived.

When they came to the surface world, they spoke of the realms of broken worlds they found linked to their waterhomes, how the Moonbeast toyed with us for their own amusement, and how the tyrant kings communicated with them for personal power.

It was at this point the gods knew they fucked up.

This lead to the Big Ragnorak; a series of worldwide magically cataclysmic uprisings against the cruel leaders. Where millions of newly liberated people toppled the empires and city states of god-backed kings and their few loyal servants. The world basically turned into a churning cauldron of raw magic, oozing the bones and bloods of anything living, making us stronger, smarter, taller, and jigglier.

The ghosts of the past found away to have physical bodies and woke back up and went to work on connecting crypts to make this huge network of mausoleum cities.

This is also when half-kin started to appear, like the half-haemo half-elzen Relmers, or the half-elzen half-bijen Dwellers, and the Dragonkin got new looks too.

Blood magic got created, using the magic in us to shortcut all that wrist and finger stuff to cast spells.

Speaking of spells new ones were learned every week, like to transmute metals: that helped calmed the dragons and made the leftover kings money worthless, then you got morphing someone’s body, reviving the dead, and cloning yourself.

So in short, the Moonbeast lost control of their masterpiece. And since they couldn’t create a new world, they transferred their remaining reserves of the power onto 5 kin. They hoped that receiving god-like powers would cause them to take over Terreztriall and return things back to the messed up status quo. But they fucked up for a final time as they can’t even Godwhisper their intentions, so that plan backfired stupendously.

Now, they’re stuck on the moons starving and powerless, as everyone and the new demi-gods, toppled the remaining empires and were ready to bring an era of equality, prosperity, and love.

And then the Fae arrived.

Creatures willing themselves into existence from the raw magic. The Fae were devious, alien, and cruel. When the northernmost castle of the Imperial Era fell, the ugly fortress of Euphorasm, the peasant armies had no time to rebuild their vision of a utopian society, and fled by the millions south; harassed and attacked on all sides by Fae creatures.

Until, finally, after thousands of miles, the peasant armies found a new home.

Sadly that wasn’t the end of the bullshit, we kinda didn’t realize at the time but we caused climate change to get worse.

Realizing the effects of climate change were exponential and devastating.

Not only we had to rebuild basically everything but had to deal with famine, crazy weather, and many things going extinct.

So, any sort of governments we had gathered all the scientists, architects, engineers, and wizards to get everything on track.

First, genetic engineering tech got better quickly because all ethics were thrown out. This lead to the Forced Bio-evolution Project. We ended up with entire food chains made from older species to handle the new world, new crops, and the earliest chimera treatments.

Second, funding solar tech let us power damn near everything we use; robots, cars, cargo ships, and even cruise liners. So, charging stations got place everywhere for them and to swap out batteries.

Thirdly, we started to work with the undead to build an underground bunker network for everyone to live in. They had everything nuclear reactors, hydroponic farms, and first stem-spa vats to heal anything.

 Finally, we tried to battle against the hurricanes and monsoons by getting them into reservoirs, added with desalination plants too, so that a huge irrigation system can be placed to keep the Back Alleyway green.

It wasn't enough.

People were upset cause we were starving, dying, and overall just despairing over everything.

After a couple of years, the population had been shot down to about a third of what it was. Desert got absolutely everywhere. The majority of people were displaced nomads with no ties to their host cities.

People were getting desperate with little food and no shelter, so resentment grew as the pseudo governments had none to offer.

Then, the Zaibatsu stepped in.

The land of the Alleyway wasn’t that valuable outside of potential tactical military plans. So, the majority of imperial stuff here were fortified dungeons and military ports.

But these guys were thinking ahead, despite the rebellions some laws still held power.

The remaining wealthy people and businesses bought massive tracts of land, so they can offer the starving masses an ultimatum; work for us or starve. It was a bold proclamation but not a hard decision, it was backed by licensed advances in hydroponic farm, patented genetically modified crops, and a new gemstone currency.

Any sort of nationalism was drowned out by hunger and desperation, we traded governments for Holdings Companies. Who can fill the bellies and pockets of their billion-strong followers.

Megacities were built in important strategic or resource locations, housing millions of people. They were designed to be built higher and wider as the need for space grew without evacuating bunkees.

Massive agricultural projects placed in the majority of the western continent and south of the east one.

All the people had to do was sign away the rights of their and future generations' lives for a hot meal and a cool pillow.

Meanwhile, a forgotten paranoid rich guy financed and built what is known as the Star Citadel, modular ring of inter-connected space stations orbiting the planet. This amazing thing contained the wealthiest, brilliant, and most influential people off-world as the world heals and to keep an closer eye on the Moonbeast.

Once the invitees were onboard, the Star Citadel's leader offered its seats to anyone who could afford the exorbitant cost. These costs were for a rocket flight to the ring and the expensive annual subscription fees to pay for maintenance and one's own luxuries.

Years passed, more cultural groups became Zaibatsu and their subsidiaries became known as Peers. They became ever more powerful, their wealth ballooned astronomically, but invitations to the Star Citadel became fewer and fewer. Shareholders and the ultra-wealthy walled off the launch pad leading to the Star Citadel, creating what's known today as The FiDi Port. The area acted as a large fortified gated community, allowing its wealthy residents to wait for their turn on the rocketship while keeping the riffraff out.

Over Five hundred years passed since events of the Big Ragnorak, the desert has ceased expanding, and after a handful of near economic collapses, zombie incursions and dragon attacks, Terreztriall is finally finding its feet. The world is a dangerous place, filled with monsters, bandits, pirates and fae creatures, so adventurers and mercenaries are in high demand. The few remnants of the Imperial Age are now quaint hidden relics of the past; tomes filled with ancient knowledge, fragmented technology, armors, and weapons, toys, entertainment, and the occasional piece of jewelry.

But across Terreztriall, morale remains high, perhaps because no one answers to a higher authority than their own carrier.

The gods are starving and silent, and what few towns exist outside the megacities are led democratically and Zaibatsus placate the masses with bread, circuses and automation allowing more leisure, and with the fates of the last kings taught to every child.

The population is booming, thanks to inter-kin breeding, Zephtacean techniques, Reborn industry, and a little bit of magic has allowed almost every home in the world a few creature comforts, such as running hot water and refrigeration cellars.

#Magic & melodrama #my stuff #my writing #my worldbuilding #fantasy #sci fi and fantasy #sci fi #a lil bit #writing #aetherpunk

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queer-starwars-bracket · 2 years ago

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Queer Star Wars Characters (Round 4): General Bracket Match 4

Kaeden Larte | Identity: queer | Media: Ahsoka novel

Kaeden Larte was a young farmer on the isolated moon of Raada. When she was fourteen her parents died in a farming accident and she was given special permission to take their job. She also became the guardian of her younger sister Miara. When Ahsoka arrived on Raada, Kaeden was quick to welcome her and developed a crush on her. When the Empire arrived, Kaeden joined a resistance cell. Their attack on the Imperial garrison failed, and Ahsoka to save them, was forced to reveal that she was a Jedi. Feeling betrayed that Ahsoka kept such a secret from her, she abandoned their hiding place in the caves and was captured by the Empire. They tortured her, but Ahsoka was able to rescue her. When Ahsoka left Raada to get help, Kaeden was captured again by the Sixth Brother to lure out Ahsoka. When Ahsoka rescued her again, she confessed her feelings, which Ahsoka gave a noncommittal answer to.

After Ahsoka’s battle with the Sixth Brother, the residents of Raada were welcomed to Alderaan. Kaeden eventually went to medical school and afterwards joined the Rebellion as a medic. If she ever reconnected with Ahsoka is unknown. She was present at the medal ceremony at the end of A New Hope.

The episode “Resolve” from Tales of the Jedi is based on the same episode concept as the Ahsoka novel, and thus has potentially retconned Kaeden and replaced her with a white man. However a reference book has attempted to establish the two as just coincidentally similar separate events. The identity “queer” is based off E K Johnston’s statements regarding what orientation she imagined Kaeden with.

Art by @jedikvghts on tumblr

Just Lucky | Identity: bisexual (male and nonbinary) | Media: Doctor Aphra comics

Just Lucky, to pay for his brother’s gambling debts, was forced to become a member of the Canto Bight based crime syndicate the Sixth Kin. There he began a relationship with another lieutenant of the syndicate, Ariole Yu. He later left the active service of the Sixth Kin and broke off his relationship with Yu, which he could do as long as he kept paying off his brother’s gambling debts. He took jobs off planet and eventually became an associate of Doctor Aphra. But when she attempted to obtain the Rings of Vaale, he became a double agent for the wealthy Ronen Tagge. After Aphra “killed” Ronen, he captured her for Dominia Tagge. She offered Aphra a job, while cutting off Lucky.

Needing a constant flow of cash, he returned to the Sixth Kin to see if they had any jobs. He was forced to work with Ariole Yu, his ex, to kill their shared mentor who had defected to Crimson Dawn. They fought Crae, refusing his offer to join Crimson Dawn. After they lost, they were thrown in the brig where they joined Aphra and Sana Starros is escaping. However, Aphra eventually stranded the two. Qi’ra gave her pitch for Crimson Dawn and then let them leave. Back on Canto Bight, the Sixth Kin attempted to bait them into killing each other. They saw through this and decided to take a job from Ronen Tagge to steal the Spark Eternal.

To do this job, they confronted a Spark Eternal possessed Aphra on the Vermillion. But seeing what they were up against, they decided to hit the bricks. As they fled, they ran into Sana Starros’ “Save Aphra” crew, running to confront/save Aphra. Just Lucky ended up convincing Ronen to save Sana’s team after they were defeated and their ship destroyed. Sana convinced Ronen that his only choice was to kill Domina, and that her team would join him to repay their “debt”. They joined Ronen in his Crimson Dawn supported coup for the Tagge Corporation, which turned out to be a trap Domina and Sana set to lure Ronen and his supporters into the open. Sana arranged for all of their debts to the Tagge Corporation to be forgiven, so Ariole and Just Lucky joined her in attempting to save Aphra.

In addition to his reignited relationship with Ariole, he also has a crush on the non-binary Lapin Tagge.

#star wars #sw #sw doctor aphra #sw ahsoka #kaeden larte

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mochigobrrrrrrr · 1 year ago

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Qin Kha Ottile Srivastava / A workaholic machinist

This character hasn’t always been exclusive to XIV, if anything I always liked making him in different game’s character customizations. Before I only had drawings and placed him in different universes or anything I was obsessed with at the time. Qin’s been more or less a muse for my art work and imaginary best friend since I was 13 yrs old. (I’m weird lemme alone.)

Full Name Qin Kha Ottile-Srivastava Species Au Ra / Hyur Birth Date / Age 3rd Sun of the 6th Astral Moon / 38 yrs Guardian Nophica, The Matron Clan Xaela Gender Male Height / Weight 6'10" / 260lbs Body Type Lean / Mesomorph Hair Color Dirty Blonde Eye Color Chartreuse (left) Hazel (right) With Gold Limbal Ring Distinguishing Features Sparse Facial and Body Scales / Pointed Ears / Tattoos / Intricate Scars / Magitek Tail Birthplace / Current Home Azim Steppe / Empyreum Profession Engineer / Gunsmith Sexual Orientation Bisexual Relationship Status Married - Rajani Srivastava Kith and Kin Shal're Kha (mother) / Lian Ottile (father) Sarnai Kha (non-bio sister) (deceased, age 8) Personality Easygoing / Subdued

Qin has always been a tad introvert and selective about it, only coming out of his shell and outgoing with people he warms up too. Now of late he lives more carefree and opens up more easily, feeling less forced about putting himself into a public setting. He always carries a sarcastic and rowdy demeanor. When the time calls for it, Qin can be serious and strict.

Notable

His early work depended heavily on where he stayed, but he never stayed in one place for too long. Using what skills he had acquired from Azim Steppe, such as hunting and long distance combat, Qin became useful for bounty boards and quick jobs. Soon enough he found himself falling into the life of a mercenary and ran a small company for several years; Qin used it as a means to ship goods from Azim to Limisa and sell hired swords.

One day he found a passion for firearms. The once talented archer became enamored with them; to the point of commissioning his first firearm, He commissioned a custom-built Wander from the Skysteel Manufactory. Since then, it has become his passion to collect and care for each arm he acquired throughout the years. Today, he owns a total of five firearms that he himself modified, not counting his multi tool.

His Magitek tail is one of the many interesting features but how he gained the prosthetic though, is less interesting. Perhaps it’s one story kept between him and the multi-tool responsible. His multi-tool is an ever-expanding arsenal equipped with a: drill cannon, air anchor, chainsaw, and a grenade launcher. The last one was more or less the cause; a simple weapons test involving homemade explosives went horribly wrong. While the initial blast did not cause the majority of his injuries, shrapnel and infection did. Walking around with a stump for a tail didn’t bother him, but it did impact his quality of life. His stump caused balance issues in day-to-day life. A collaborative effort with colleagues and himself soon took off, where they began researching magitek and utilizing their engineering knowledge to fashion a prosthetic tail.

Likes

Traveling

Working (Seriously. You have to make him stop or he won't.)

Drinking (Whiskey served neat.)

Smoking

Solitude

Dressing nice

Dislikes

Alcohol that tastes like piss water.

Pointing at his ears.

Inability to let things go.

Asking him what happened to his tail.

Backstory

Qin Ottile spent most of his childhood raised on the outskirts of the Azim Steppe, growing up in a small Kha village that accepted both Xaela and other races alike. It was there Qin’s mother met his father, a Midlander who traded in Reunion. During the war and unrest caused by the Imperial invasion, a rebellion of pirates from the Ruby Sea managed to broker a trade agreement with the Qestir, whom allowed them to trade fish for much-needed medical supplies. Qin’s father was among the few chosen to trade in Reunion, where he met her. A young Kha woman with dark skin and golden eyes, with scales black as a beautiful midnight. Her lovely smile stole his heart and he would never want to leave this place again. As time went on and trading continued, Qin’s father spent more time with her, even staying for nights on end. Eventually he would never return to the Ruby Sea again.

After living together in the Steppe for a time, the Kha woman would welcome a new life into the world; Half Xaela, Half Hyur. In spite of their love and preparation, nothing they could teach would steel Qin for the lifetime of bullying and bigotry that awaited him. Not fully Xaela. Not fully Hyur. He was stuck in between, constantly struggling to find the place where he fit among them. How do you teach your child to protect themselves from a word they shouldn't have to understand? Discrimination. In spite of being shunned by most of the Xaela, his mother taught him the ways of their people while his father, the pirate, would teach Qin how to defend himself. Even if it meant fighting dirty.

For years he endured, strengthened by the lessons of his parents…And of their people. His people. Qin became an excellent hunter, quite skilled with the bow handed down to him from his grandfather, using his prowess to bring home game for his parents to trade in Reunion. He held his own, proving that not only had he survived but that he thrived, able to protect himself and provide for his family. Amongst Xaela who prided strength above most else, he had at least earned a measure of respect. However, Qin would find his adventuring heart longing to experience the lands his father had spoken of until he, like his father, would leave the land he had known in search of more.

Current

Nowadays, Qin spends his life in Ishgard, working diligently as an engineer for the Skysteel Manufactory, residing within the newly built Empyreum. With old comrades and new, they run a new company where Qin happily spends his days crafting firearms and any invention that comes to mind.

How he found himself where he is now is shrouded in a haze of fractured memories. Bits and pieces of his past life as a mercenary, familiar faces forever blurred, a life in Limsa Lominsa running a company with a forgotten name with freelance adventurers and dear friends alike, all lost in the recesses of Qin’s mind to never recover no matter how much he has tried.

But as old memories fade, new ones arise with just as much curiosity…

The sting of ice and the stench of blood fill Qin’s senses as he stands alone in the alleyways of the Brume.

Or so he thought…

The flutter of wings and a bright turquoise light radiates around him, a memory that shines bright in his mind. A small colorful hummingbird, an uncanny resemblance to the tattoo, perches on his right shoulder. He remembered the voice, a warm voice that brought peace to his very soul. An assurance that even through all of his heartbreak, through all of this fear and doubt and darkness, that there was light, that there was a bright future ahead. Since that day, he came to know this small creature as Sorianna, his guardian, his friend.

One shot "Time was still"

Time was still, yet the signs of an unhurried morning slowly peaked it’s sleeping head out from the horizon. It was dark, still, and the silence deafened any and all ears, though slight movement could be heard from the single occupant within the small confines which the man, who sat at his desk, called an office. With whiskey on his breath, and the embers dancing to their death in a dying fireplace, there was life in this abyss of an office, yes….but it was as if time itself had ceased to be.

A striking eye of gold pierced through the ebony darkness, a feature that always caught anyone’s attention as it shimmered alongside it’s brother eye of chartreuse green, the two scanning the room. From a desk of elder wood and hanging uniforms with tattered, patched holes, to retired guns and a beaten down bow that out-ages it’s current master, there was history in this room. His mind leapt into wandering as his eyes reminisced, memories flooding his mind as he downcast his gaze to the hands that sat before him, one of which held his favorite beverage, whilst the other held something more…

An azure crystal that filled its surroundings with radiance, the crystal was held together by a tattered leather string, decorated with beads to match. A thumb caressed the crystal with affection, this object, this crystal, it meant something to him. His hand gripped and clutched his precious possession…

An abrupt sound of glass broke the eerie silence.

Red, crimson liquid dripped from the halfling’s grasp as shards of the once bottle of whiskey embedded into a callous hand. Overwhelming feelings washed over the small half-Xaela, with tears forming slowly whilst mouth gaping for a scream that never came. Frustration, a clutched bloodied hand raised up, only to crash down onto the elder wood of the desk. The desk was stained with blood, tears, and emotions….yet time was still.

Comfort never came. The only solace Qin could find was rocking his body, back and forth, back and forth, a rhythm that his body knew too well. Over and over, as if a babe in its crib. Doubt filled his heart as the golden eye never left the glisten of the crystal. It was his anchor, his strength, and yet….the darkness, the bastard who went unseen, ate at him, as if a wolf starved of elk, ripping and tearing at his corpse with no end in sight. His heart, soul, his body felt numb. Hues of pink and orange hinted from the outside world, a new dawn was approaching.

Fear, his worst enemy. Failure, doubt, the willingness to believe in himself…it was shattering every fiber in his being, chipping away at the little hope that remained.

Yet time was still.

Qin and Sarnai Kha

Sarnai and Qin had formed an unbreakable friendship as children. You would think they were bothers and sisters, given how close they were. Growing up and living next door to each other, their families practically did everything together. It would have fooled anyone into thinking they were just one big family.

The pair would always start their day doing morning chores together before running off and playing. Sarnai and Qin were so inseparable that their own mothers used to tease them, asking if Qin would be the next Khagan and Sarnai his Nhaama. This obviously embarrassed the two, but everyone knew if fate had kept on its path, they would have ended up together as a bonded pair.

Sadly, that day never came. Sarnai had returned to the lifestream at the tender age of 8 after a tragic hunting accident on Qin's 10th birthday. The young boy had cornered a small game animal, but the commotion had attracted a baras, which had attacked him and Sarnai. It had left Qin with only minor injuries, but his sister... While it was never entirely his fault, he still carried her death in his heart. He was foolish and naive, only wanting to prove his worth. His ego and desire to constantly fit in had led to his sister's fate.

#ffxiv gpose #ffxiv screenshots #ffxiv oc #xaela #ffxiv rp #ffxiv wol #roleplay

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yxgrok · 17 days ago

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The Starweaver’s Gambit

In the far reaches of the Nebular Veil, where stars burned with secrets and void-whales sang their mournful tunes, there lived a being known as Kaelith, the Starweaver. She was no ordinary soul; her fingers danced with threads of light, plucked from the hearts of dying suns. With these, she wove tapestries that could bend reality—portals to forgotten worlds, shields against the ravenous black holes, and cloaks that hid entire fleets from the tyrannical grasp of the Obsidian Empire.

Kaelith’s latest creation, however, was her most daring yet: a map stitched from the dreams of a captured void-whale, said to lead to the fabled Crucible of Eternity—a cosmic forge where time itself could be reshaped. The Empire sought it to erase their enemies from existence, while rebels whispered it could undo centuries of oppression. Kaelith cared for neither side; she sought the Crucible to resurrect her lost kin, devoured by a supernova long ago.

Her journey was perilous. Aboard her ship, The Luminous Shard, a vessel of crystalline hull and solar sails, she evaded imperial dreadnoughts and navigated asteroid storms. Her only companion was Vex, a sentient droid with a penchant for sarcasm and a core powered by a fragment of a neutron star. “You’re betting our lives on whale dreams,” Vex grumbled as they dodged plasma cannons. “I’ve calculated a 97% chance of disintegration.” Kaelith smirked, her silver eyes glinting. “Then I’ll weave us through the 3%.”

Their path led to the Veil’s edge, where reality frayed like a torn tapestry. There, amidst a graveyard of shattered moons, the Crucible glowed—a radiant orb pulsing with infinite possibilities. But guarding it was no mere sentinel: a colossal entity of shadow and stardust, its voice a chorus of extinguished galaxies. “What thread do you offer for eternity?” it demanded.

Kaelith hesitated. Her kin’s memory burned in her chest, but she saw Vex’s flickering light—her only friend in a lonely cosmos. In a flash, she wove her final tapestry: not for the past, but the present. Threads of her own life-force bound the shadow-beast, sealing it within the Crucible. The orb dimmed, its power spent, and Kaelith collapsed, her glow fading.

“Stupid choice,” Vex beeped, cradling her. “But… noble.” As her eyes closed, the void-whale’s song echoed—a lullaby for a weaver who gambled everything and won a fleeting peace.

#The Starweaver’s Gambit #space fantasy #78

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theblackbookofarkera · 3 months ago

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Paqit

Along the frost-kissed shores of Hykraelia dwell the Paqit, a whaling people whose peaceful existence belies a history stained with blood and shadowed by forbidden knowledge. As members of the Bearshield Confederacy, they maintain a quiet existence, their villages clinging to rocky coasts where the keen winds whisper secrets of the past.

The Paqit's primary sustenance comes from the great whales they hunt in the northern seas. Their boats, crafted from dark wood and adorned with intricate carvings that seem to shift in the moonlight, are said to move with unnatural silence through the waves. The whalers sing as they work, though they fall mysteriously silent when others draw near to listen.

Several centuries ago, the Tru-isil Empire launched a campaign of extermination against the Paqit that nearly succeeded in wiping them from existence. The brutality of this assault was shocking even by Tru-isil standards—entire villages were put to the torch, their inhabitants subjected to elaborate tortures that spoke more of fear than mere cruelty. The Empire's own records of this campaign were systematically destroyed, leaving historians to puzzle over the motivation for such focused devastation.

Some scholars whisper of the existence of a forbidden song known to the Paqit elders—a melody of undoing that carries the power to unravel the very fabric of civilization. These claims suggest that the Tru-isil Empire's aggression was born of desperate fear rather than mere conquest. Whether such a song truly exists remains unknown, though the Paqit's careful guardianship of their vocal traditions has drawn suspicious eyes through the centuries.

"I have heard many songs in my travels, but never have I encountered a people who guard their melodies as jealously as the Paqit. When I inquired about their traditional music, the elder's eyes filled with such terror that I dared not press further."

-Adelbert Voss, Imperial Ethnographer

Personal Note: In my centuries of wandering, I have encountered many secrets that mankind was not meant to know. The Paqit keep theirs not with locks and chains, but with silence and misdirection. Perhaps there is wisdom in this—some songs, once sung, cannot be unsung.

Cultural Practices of Note

The Paqit maintain several curious customs that set them apart from their confederacy kin:

- Children are taught to sing before they are taught to speak

- Certain melodies are only performed during the dark of the moon

- Their funeral rites are conducted in complete silence

- They refuse to transcribe any of their songs into written form

- Outsiders who attempt to record or replicate their music often meet with mysterious accidents

"The wave has its song, the wind has its song, and the void between stars has its song. Pray you never hear the last of these."

-Anonymous Paqit Elder

#conworld #worldbuilding #low fantasy #world building #arkera #creative writing #dark fantasy #fantasy world #high fantasy

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wickershells · 3 months ago

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so so many things I neglected to mention: the bull-fighting atreides legacy ("look where that got him") & paul's desiring of something primal, the way he perceives (remembers?) his grandfather — how he receives it in the form of harkonnen invasion, the killing of kin (the bull-head is the first thing leto sees when he wakes, aware of what he must do); the very nature of ornithopters (synthetic, invading the natural, imperial reconstructions/bastardisations); the fond rabbit-moon of arrakis; whatever the hell the harkonnen spider-creature is (invention of the bene tleilax?); the insectoid harvesters that the harkonnens (ab)use, then take for themselves, leaving the atreides with only soulless — which is to say, non-animalia — machines

Forever intrigued by the portrayal of animals in media, how and if and why they are used as a conveyance of themes… the fremen + muad’dib, desert mouse, that can make its own water and is thus respected, ribbed and teased lovingly; Paul, fedaykin in fremen company, names himself after the same meek mouse — Paul, Lisan al-Gaib, holds his knife in the baron’s throat and coldly remarks that he “dies like an animal”. Ants, later, crawl up into his ear — make a feast of him, turn him into an emblem of the gluttonous (oppressive) cycle he propagated, through blood, in blood. Head of a Great House, now nothing more than animal feed, reduced to the “primitivity” of desert he believed inferior, worthy only in subject to him. (Paul, his grandson, will wander blind into the same world-desert, and what is expected to be made of him? To be swallowed whole by God: “‘There will be a worm for Muad’Dib,’ they said. And they began the chant for those committed to the desert, the ones whose water went to Shai-hulud: ‘Mother of sand, father of Time, beginning of Life, grant him passage.’” Messiah, ch. 24)

Rabban insisting that the fremen are not human, but rather rats, which is to say animal, which is to say lesser than [Harkonnen, Atreides, coloniser]; Shai-hulud, revered, regarded on high: a force more powerful than human, creator of Dune’s spice. The legacy of the Atreides empire comes in the form of sandworm hybridity — a futile conquering of that which you have already destroyed, a stalling of the inevitable loss to come. Animal as companion (indigenous respect) vs animal as dominion (colonial violence)

#dune #log

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findinyourkin · 5 years ago

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I'm Guren Ichinose with the Imperial Moon/Imperial Demon army of Owari no Seraph. I'm 24 yrs old and looking for pretty much anybody. If you reblog or like the post, ill get in touch. Thank you.

!!!!!!!!

#canon calls #guren ichinose kin #imperial moon kin #imperial demon army kin #owari no seraph kin #ons kin #Anonymous

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inquisitorius-sin-bin · 2 years ago

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Ride or Die

Grand Inquisitor x F!Reader

18+ Fic (Minors DNI)

Working Glossary

*chapters containing porn

Summary:

It has been seventeen years since your rebirth on the plains of Utapau. An orphaned child with nowhere else to go, you were adopted by your clan leader Drago and his mate Bolen, who made you their own daughter through the unique tattooing rituals of the surface-dwelling Pau'an.

Now you lead a group of your kin to trade with a neighboring clan, when you come across a lone stranger riding across the grasslands. Nothing about him makes sense, least of all the marks he bears on his forehead in conflict with the symbols he carries on his shoulders.

You must guide him on his mission, while you ponder the secrets of his past that might just align with yours, and balance the survival of your small clan amongst two powerful opposing forces.

Content Warnings:

Canon-typical Violence, Graphic Depictions of Sexual Situations, Smoking, Drinking, Descriptions of Death, Manipulation, Gaslighting, Animal Death, Xenobiology, Fingering, Breast Fondling, Mourning, Mind-probing, Order-66 Flashbacks, Pregnancy, Nipple Play, Major Character Injury, Blood, Needles, Medical Procedure, Surgery, Unhealthy Relationships, Vomiting

Word Count: 159,344

Tag List:

@oh-three @nobody-expects-the-inquisitorius @keebeees @stardustbee

#grand inquisitor x reader #grand inquisitor #drabbles #here I go back on my bullshit about the plains of utapau #and releasing fics in chapter format which I said I was not going to do again but here we are #sinquisiting

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alectoperdita · 3 years ago

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i’m watching love between fairy and devil on netflix. i do think kaiba should be cursed to be nice to jounouchi and nurture his heart and feel his emotions and fall in love with him because he’s learned to be a human being again in jounouchi’s presence. i want a thousand fics just like that

I just looked up the synopsis for that one, and oh boy! Patricide? Forced psychic/mystical bond? On top of everything else you described? That is one delicious setup for this ship. <3

Gotta admit reading that did inspire me a bit. I didn't have time to watch the show itself (will maybe give it a try when I have the time to read subtitles), but I took a stab at writing a short drabble inspired by that premise. I'm sorry if I've missed the mark due to my unfamiliarity with the original source material, but I hope it entertains you.

Flower imagery, classical Chinese poetry, and plenty of footnotes ahead.

🌕🌻🌕🌻🌕🌻🌕🌻🌕🌻🌕🌻🌕🌻🌕🌻

The Moon Supreme.

What a pompous title for a pompous blowhard.

With a name like Kaiba, he should've been one of the Dragon King's retinue. But otherwise, the epithet was a fitting one for the ethereal being—cold, distant, and unfeeling. And if the legends bore truth, a cold-blooded killer down to his core.

All that stood between the tall, imperious creature and the destruction of the Three Realms was Katsuya. Plain, old Katsuya, the lowest of the blossom xians [1]. While the others of his kin bore heads of lovely reds and blues and purples, as vibrant as plum, peony, irises in bloom, his hair was colored yellow like wheat.

Hay-head, the other blossom xians had mocked him in their youths.

Nor was he delicate and slim-limbed. His arms were sturdy as tree trunks, his palm as broad as lotus pads. His face, perhaps handsome enough for mortals, didn't carry the same dignified features that greater painters drove themselves into a frenzy to capture.

Hardly beautiful.

A xian in mere name.

His temper flared. He kicked a stray stone into the pond, disrupting the reflection that gazed up from the water.

"You're moping." A deep voice piped next to him.

Katsuya jumped and spun to face the intruder that dared to impinge on his solitary reflection. Speak of the devil. Kaiba loomed, a lanky monolith in his ice blue hanfu, in the shadow of the nearby willow tree. The slender vines and verdant leaves swayed in the warm breeze. The same wind ruffled Kaiba's chestnut locks, pulling back the curtain of long bangs to bear his ocean blue eyes.

The verse rose within Katsuya's mind, unbidden.

"Green, green, the riverside grass, Dense, dense, the garden willow." [2]

Kaiba arched an elegant brow at the sudden couplet, but he answered with the next lines.

"Dainty is the maiden upstairs, Shining bright through the window." [3]

Just as quickly, Katsuya's mood soured again. Dainty maidens, his ass.

Kaiba winced. A grimace cracking the flawless marble of his handsome face.

Faintly, Katsuya wondered how the man processed those feelings of inadequacies that didn't belong to him. A superior asshole like Kaiba probably never felt deficient, even before he sacrificed his ability to feel emotions. But he pinned Katsuya as moping before, so he learned enough to put a name to that feeling.

Perhaps their time together wasn't a complete waste. Kaiba could learn, however slowly. But would it be enough to stave off his thirst for vengeance?

He turned his back on Kaiba, bending down to sort through the stones on the rocky banks. Kaiba hung back, safe from the mortal realm's sun under the willow tree's protection. It took a few seconds, but Katsuya finally found a suitable flat stone. He wound his arm back, throwing all his strength into launching the stone across the water's surface. It skipped no less than a dozen times before sinking into the center of the sizable pond.

Pride bloomed in Katsuya's chest before it withered twice as quickly.

That finally spurred Kaiba into action.

Katsuya listened as the man stomped forward, grabbed his elbow, and hauled him to his feet. Soon, he was dragging him away from the riverbed and uphill toward a grassy knoll.

Katsuya fought. But even his strength failed when matched up against the Moon Supreme's stubbornness. "What are you doing? Lemme go!"

Kaiba did not let him go. He seemed intent on bodily dragging Katsuya, if it came down to it.

"Where are you taking me?" he snarled.

This time, Katsuya threw a punch with his free hand. It collided solidly with Kaiba's shoulder, and had he been something other than a cold-blooded bastard, it would've hurt. But as it was, he merely shrugged off the hit.

"To the city. To feed you. Distract your simple mind with simple amusements. Whatever needs to be done to rid you of this wretched malaise," Kaiba spat out past his gritted teeth.

"Leave me alone. Maybe I wanna mope. Maybe I want you to feel as bad as I do!" he shouted.

With teeth bared, Kaiba stopped and spun toward him. He dropped his inhuman grip to Katsuya's wrist and squeezed. Were Katsuya not divine or weaker in constitution, it would've crushed his bones. Instead, his wrists twinged.

"As long as I'm stuck with you—as long as we're entangled like this—I'll do what I must. You don't get a choice," snapped Kaiba.

Katsuya glared back. He supposed if another of his kin were subjected to this, they'd burst into tears. He'd do no such thing, though. "You still don't get it, do you? You can't just force people out of their bad moods. You can't just snap your fingers and make them feel better. Especially when the only reason you're trying is for your own sake!"

Theirs was a wretched arrangement. It may be Kaiba's curse, but Katsuya was being no less punished for it. It wasn't fair.

Everyone expected Katsuya to fail. That hurt more than anything.

Never being enough.

His pain sharpened. Kaiba grunted and dropped his hand like hot coal. Katsuya hugged his wrists close and sank to the ground again.

He stared at the grass, heaving heavy breaths. "You think I wanna feel like this? You think I enjoy this?"

Kaiba said nothing. His feet remained locked in place on the periphery of Katsuya's vision. "Then why won't you let me make this better?"

"Because this isn't something you can fix. You can't fix me, Kaiba. You can't make me a proper blossom xian," he muttered.

The wind picked up again. A lark sang in the bushes. They said nothing to each other in the wake of Katsuya's declaration. The pain dulled to an ache inside Katsuya's chest. A worn and familiar feeling that pressed on his heart.

Grass crunched as Kaiba shifted. To his surprise, Kaiba joined him on the ground. "Who's to say you're not a proper blossom xian? You are one because it's your nature."

His gaze snapped up to Kaiba's face. "Please, you've seen me, you've seen the others. I mean, just look at this—" He tugged a tuft of yellow hair at his temple. "The color's so plain. So common in flowers. They used to call me 'hay-head.' Some of them still do."

"Chrysanthemums are among the Four Gentlemen," argued Kaiba. [4]

Chrysanthemums also came in shades of white, pink, and violets. But as soon as he opened his mouth to argue, his temple stung. He gaped as Kaiba withdrew his hand with several strands of Katsuya's hair clasped between his lithe fingers.

Kaiba looked him straight in the eyes, entirely serious and without a hint of mocking. "You're the only blossom xian I've spent time with. As far as I'm concerned, you're the only proper one."

Something in Katsuya's chest fluttered.

An odd expression flashed across Kaiba's face. He surely felt it, too. Without breaking eye contact, Kaiba transferred the hairs into his palm and made a fist before drawing from his considerable well of qi. Katsuya stiffened, alarmed by the overt use of power. But he was even more shocked by what Kaiba revealed when he unclenched his hand.

A sprig of osmanthus blossoms in the exact shade as Katsuya's hair. [5]

His breath hitched when Kaiba next spoke, low and melodious in his recitations.

"A pale wash of light yellow, gentle in substance and character. Aloof by nature, yet its fragrance carries afar. What need is there of light cyan or pale red blossoms? This one ranks first among all the flowers." [6]

Despite himself, warmth flooded Katsuya's cheeks. He could only dumbly accept the flowers when Kaiba offered them to him. He could feel the frosted bite of Kaiba's qi within them. But it didn't make them any less beautiful.

A slow smirk spread across Kaiba's lips. It was impossible to hide the fact that Katsuya was charmed when he literally felt what Katsuya did. But Katsuya couldn't find it within himself to be annoyed or mad. He twirled the sprig in his fingers.

"Is there really an osmanthus tree on the moon?" he asked instead.

Kaiba's smile turned mysterious. "Perhaps you'll find out one day."

------

[1] I've never been very hot on the translation of xian to fairy. Not that I have a much better suggestion, but thankfully, the rise of western C-Drama fandom has made it easier to use the original terms.

[2] [3] Translations of lines 1-4 of 《青青河畔草》 from 《古詩十九首》, an anthology of classic Chinese poems with no attributed authors. Lines 1-2 were taken from Pleco’s translation because I really like their alliteration. Lines 3-4 was translated by me since I couldn’t find better ones. ^^;;;

青青河畔草，鬱郁園中柳。盈盈樓上女，皎皎當窗牖。

[4] The Four Gentlemen are the plants most commonly depicted in traditional ink paintings. They include the plum blossom, the orchid, bamboo, and the chrysanthemum.

[5] Osmanthus flowers are often associated with lunar legends in Chinese tradition. It's said that an osmanthus tree grows on the moon, which is why Katsuya asks Kaiba that at the end of the story. It was just too perfect of an association to pass up! Jounouchi's blond! Kaiba's from the moon! It writes itself!

[6] Ronald Egan's translation of a poem about osmanthus flowers by Li Qingzhao.

#yugioh #puppyshipping #violetshipping #kaijou #joukai #replies #anonymous #my fanfiction #things I never thought I'd write: a joukai xianxia AU #in Chinese I would title this very 'creatively' with 柳暗花明 #which is about as creative as titling a story with 'A rose by any other name' LOL #English title is actually #Osmanthus and the Moon #joukai asks

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agirlinsearchof · 2 years ago

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Some things I noticed playing Crimson Flower, with spoilers for it and Azure Moon below:

The very first thing I noticed was that Onset of a Power Struggle has its position flipped compared to To War. Makes sense, considering that you’re the invading army. It’s also much more difficult, not only lying about the objective (defeating all commanders, not rout enemy, though the displayed objective changes when Rhea shows up), but featuring multiple commanders instead of just one. Crimson Flower often features multiple commanders. It’s a very interesting and, on other routes, very underutilized concept.

The Bridge of Myrddin chapter was also made drastically different. In The Rose-Colored River, you have to take out three commanders who are pretty far from the starting position, with another coming in on turn two, while Beyond Escape has one commander fairly close to it. As such, Beyond Escape is considerably easier. The position flipping was rather interesting! It also makes sense. The bridge connects the Alliance to the Empire, and since you’re controlling the Empire and invading the Alliance (as opposed to passing through Alliance territory into the Empire), it makes sense.

Derdriu had you in the same map position as Azure Moon, except you’re supposed to take out Claude instead of helping him and Arundel doesn’t show up. So effectively the direction your army takes gets flipped, even if your starting position doesn’t. Fun fact, Claude mentions Almyran reinforcements even if you beat the chapter before any even showed up!

Protecting Garreg Mach is also considerably easier than on other routes! It was definitely a difficulty spike for my second Azure Moon and my Silver Snow playthroughs, what with being a rout map, but in Crimson Flower, you instead take out the commanders. Flayn doesn’t show up unless you saved Seteth for last, so it’s easier if you take him out first or second.

That chapter is also where I found out that the generic replacements for Church-affiliated characters are called Knights of Seiros (as opposed to Imperial, Kingdom, and Alliance Generals).

You know how I mentioned Seteth is carrying in my Silver Snow playthrough? He’s an even tougher mfer as an enemy. I actually had to use Raging Storm here to have Edelgard take out the sniper boss and then attack Seteth without killing him, because I wanted to spare him and the only way to do so is to defeat him with Byleth. He was also very difficult in Onset of a Power Struggle.

Lady of Deceit is much harder than The Silver Maiden, again because of the multiple commanders. I had to use Raging Storm again. Edelgard took out Gwendal, Ingrid, and Cornelia, while Byleth took out Rodrigue and Hubert and Constance worked together to defeat Felix. When Paths That Will Never Cross played, only to be cut short by Felix and Ingrid’s echoing screams? That felt like a punch to the chest.

Field of Revenge was also difficult because of the multiple commanders. It also hurt to kill Dimitri and Dedue. Killing the Kingdom General that replaces Mercedes was anticlimactic sandwiched between the deaths of Sylvain and Dedue, so next time I probably won’t recruit Mercedes. It helps my decision that I got all of her support conversations with Jeritza.

The music also felt unfitting. The Long Road feels more like an auxiliary battle track than something fitting of the penultimate battle.

To the End of a Dream may use Fhirdiad as its setting, but it sure as hell ain’t the same level as The King’s Triumphant Return. For one, Fhirdiad is on fire this time around, and it is far from an easy one-turn unless you have a fully-repaired Aymr and a willingness to spam Raging Storm and rig critical hits. Aymr was at three uses, so I had a squad of Edelgard, Byleth, and Jeritza charging for Rhea, while Hubert helped clear out a few enemies and Lysithea warped Jeritza forward when he fell behind Edelgard and Byleth (a Wyvern Lord and Dark Flier, respectively).

Overall? I really enjoyed Crimson Flower. I kind of wish you actually got to go to Shambhala (heck, the nuking of Arianrhod was the perfect opportunity for Hubert to find it!), but other than that, it was a fun time! It was certainly a fun challenge to try to clear the chapters in as few turns as possible! Hehe. I may actually become seriously interested in LTC-ing other Fire Emblem games, now that Azure Moon minimum deaths has altered my very playstyle regarding this game.

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morihaus · 4 years ago

Text

Domina

cw for a vampire talking about mortals like cattle and mentions of molag bal (just his name)

---

Atop a balcony of the Imperial Palace, the young emperor casts her gaze westward, over the canopy of the great forest, off to the dark horizon laid over the Colovian highlands. Past the borders of Cyrodiil, there lays the outlying province of the Empire, Craglorn, home to the distant Nedes never chained. Cities of stone and high towers, traditions older than the Empire of Man, faith older than Saint Alessia herself; Hestra was born to these lands, to the Cyrodiils who came from Colovia to lend aid to their kin, to enlighten them, to fasten and secure their ties to the Empire, and to keep wary watch of the expanding dominion of Verkarth, whose king had spent a century splitting the land in two, harrowing the Nedic allies of the Empire, unopposed in the distant and foreign borderland.

It was this that brought her to power. She became warrior to the faith as many in her family had been before her, as was the Colovian style of the priesthood, and she worked to stymie the tide of this burgeoning power henceforth unknown- as well as the dark creatures who cavorted within its borders, fanning out to the neighboring realms to terrorize the populace. Vampires, werebeasts, monsters of all sorts became the scourge of Craglorn in those days, and the Empire of Cyrodiil did nothing, for what was their concern for the fate of provincials? Nedes who knew nothing of Paravant, or Pelinal, or the One, whose degenerate practices ostracized them from polite Imperial society.

Hestra was one of many in Craglorn and Cyrodiil who saw need for action, but alas, small militias could do nothing but root out loose ends, small cells of the fiends who dogged the western reaches. A coven here, a pack there, but this was to treat the symptoms rather than the sickness, and without organized action against Styriche and his Gray Host itself, nothing would be done.

And for all the dire circumstances, this is why she stands here, amulet of dragon-fire around her neck, looking west with purpose. She has been emperor for but two years, and the Empire is more united than it has been in some time. She is what Cyrodiil needs, a decisive emperor, to cut through the internal bickering of the Order; a conquering emperor, to show no quarter to the enemies of mankind; a common emperor, who understands the plight of her subjects and refuses to rest until justice is done.

With the Empire whole, it prepares for a full-scale invasion of Verkarth, to sunder and destroy the foul abominations commanded by its king.

Something approaches silently from behind her. She is without guard, but not alone, for tonight she is entertaining a particular guest.

"Second thoughts, Emperor?" The pale woman clad in deep red silks asks her with a playful tone. Playful as a cat toys with a mouse, but decidedly playful nonetheless.

Hestra turns to face her, Exarch of the Gray Council, undying vampire, a mistress of the dark forces she plans to destroy. She faces her and sees her ever-so-smug grin, her round face, pale like the moon with dark shadows and painted colors framing her scarlet-orange eyes. She sees her jewelry reflect the light of the night sky, a shimmer along the chain of her belt as her eyes trace her waist, a shine around the swirling ringlets of her arm, up to the clasp of her dress on her shoulder, even a sparkle from the jewel earrings when her long black hair fell just so to make way for the light. "I consider my actions more often than you think. This is why I'm here, Vem."

Vem moves forward to press up against the other woman, lifting a manicured hand to trace her jawline. She is without reverence for the Emperor, but not without admiration, and often she shows her appreciation with touch. "This is why I see such potential in you, fair Hestra." The mortal woman doesn't flinch- but might shiver- at the vampire's chilling touch, and allows it to happen. This close she can see the subtle scaly texture speckling Vem's skin, around her eyes and her bare neck and arms, her eyes fix to this instead of Vem's hypnotic gaze- she wouldn't dare attempt to bewitch the warrior emperor, but she does much without noticing it. "We have more in common than you do with your councilors. They fill their heads with petty concerns, worthless mortal vanity- you and I, we focus on what's truly important: power."

Hestra, for as steely as her countenance is, lets her head droop to one side, warm cheek pressed against Vem's cold hand. She raises one of her own to Vem's waist, closing her eyes. "I have power, Vem. I'm the Emperor, blessed by Akatosh, anointed before the One." She doesn't need sight to picture the frown grow on Vem's face as she speaks.

She hears a sigh, and the cold hand moves down from cradling her head, sliding across her bare neck and stopping at her shoulder. Hestra opens her eyes again to see the predictable sight. She'd call the expression on Vem's face perplexed, as she is always baffled by her refusal. "Have I not explained to you the difference in magnitude hundreds of time?" She scoffs. "You are a Queen, a mortal Queen, you command great armies and rule over all of your citizenry. But I could make you more. As vampire, you would never age, never die, you would be indomitable."

"Indomitable," Hestra repeats. "But dominated by the foul machinations of your master."

Vem furrows her brow, twitching her nose. "Lord Bal is our master in name alone. He holds no true sway over us- we only need make one pact, but one ritual, and we may reap the rewards of his gift as we serve ourselves. You cannot tell me you would not desire such a power."

"Power at a price." Hestra lets her hand fall back, and now furrows her own brow as she looks back at Vem, somewhat yearning for the years she hadn't known of her true nature, or for a time where they could spend time ignoring the doom that surrounds them, before this decision had to be reached. "I do not want to join your Gray Host."

"You would not have to." Vem retracts her hand as well, folding her arms over her chest. "As immortal Emperor of Cyrodiil, you would be of much greater use as an ally to the Gray Host, to relinquish your power over this land would be foolish."

"Imagine I disagree with what your Host does, terrorizing innocent people, drinking of their blood and eating of their flesh."

Vem tisks, she almost seems to roll her luminous eyes at that. "This is because you are clinging to mortal notions of morality. You do not weep for the butchered cow, do you? For us, it is no different than hunting simple animals."

"And if I care for these animals?" Hestra asks.

She receives a raised brow. "Do you really care for these people, Emperor? These people who are not yours, who you do not know- how much would you sacrifice for their lives?" After a pointed silence, she adds: "If you could trade your life for theirs, right now, would you?"

Hestra answers honestly. "No."

"If," Vem begins. "The inverse were true, and you could sacrifice the lives of many to achieve greater power, greater dominion, wouldn't you?"

Hestra considers. "...I might." She gazes off to the side, looking behind Vem into the palace's quarters. "But what you speak of, this is the truth of politics, of warfare, of the life of an Emperor. These ugly decisions are mine to make, and I must."

"This is what holds you back," Vem turns and begins to pace, steps silent as she does. "You deny what you truly want: power. You claim it out of responsibility, you make these excuses for yourself..." She looks over her shoulder, Hestra meets her piercing eyes. "Why do you let yourself be ruled by such foolish thoughts?" She approaches again, so gently as though gliding through the air. A fanged smile plays on her lips. "You are Emperor. I am offering you power, it is in your very nature to accept it. Do not deny your true calling."

Hestra looks to her vacantly. She wonders how often she has been tempted, how close she's come before now. "You talk of offering me power- power of my own- and yet you speak as though to dominate me yourself."

At this, Vem laughs. It breaks the tension somewhat, and she takes Hestra's hand in her own, rubbing circles on the back with her cold thumb. She looks at her with half-lidded eyes. "You would not like to belong to me, dear Hestra?"

And at this, Hestra is pulled two ways, and such a grave conversation becomes very silly, and for the first time tonight, the Emperor smiles. "You speak in circles, love, like a turning wheel." She leans in and very easily presses her lips against Vem's; a shallow kiss, undercoated with some feeling of fleeting passion and intimacy, something that feels like a last chance, a final moment in which they can both pretend they share the same future. Vem puts her arms around Hestra's head, the mortal reciprocates with a hold on her waist. Hestra pulls back to breathe and laugh. "Sometimes, I still can't tell- do you want me a vampire, or a thrall-" Vem interrupts her by kissing her cheek, laughing along.

They embrace and they laugh for awhile, standing on the balcony, nipped at by the chilly night air. Eventually they stop laughing and just hold each other. Vem tucks her head into the crook of Hestra's neck, and Hestra lets her, and runs a hand through her silky dark hair.

"...You know," Vem softly breaks the silence. "That of course I want you to join me as I am- a vampire, the rightful rulers of the unliving. Because you are a ruler, Hestra, and this drew me to you, for I recognized how great you could be if you could only see what lies beyond your mortality..." One of her pale hands turns to run across the close-cut hair on Hestra's head, and Vem turns to look her in the eye, one side of her head still pressed against her shoulder. Her expression is warm, and not regal. "I do not doubt how far you will go as a mortal. You will be remembered for centuries, for a hundred centuries, your death will be something glorious, remembered in song, you will be indelible... but you will die. And it breaks my heart-" A laugh- or maybe a sob- spills out between words. "I know you could never understand, you are mortal, impermanence is everywhere in your life, to be everlasting is... difficult, to communicate. It's something you need to feel for yourself. I ask... that you allow me to grant you this, Hestra. Please."

She'd never seen Vem posture in such a way. They have been intimate with one another, they've spoken of sadness before, but never has she been so melancholy, so sorrowful as to look up to her with those eyes, dry but full of sadness. "...My love, you know I can't-"

"Why?" Vem asks immediately.

"Because- Because I am Emperor first, divine regent of the One, descendant of the Ascended Saint Alessia, defender of Cyrodiil and the Faith. I am dutybound to destroy the Gray Host... and I cannot accept your power, it would render me an abomination in the eyes of the Order, and all I've worked for would be for naught."

Vem pulls back, Hestra lets open her arms to give her space. She looks at Hestra, fear in her face, steeled by frustration. "They would not have to know. There are ways- many of us disguise our true nature, some get away with it for a century or more. You yourself had no idea before I revealed to you my nature."

"You're right. I didn't," Hestra admits. "But this is because I was young and stupid. The pelates of the Order are older, wiser, many of them savvy to the affronts to the divine. And in any case, I would still need to invade Verkarth."

"No, no you don't. We could- if you'd postpone, delay, we could destroy this Alessian Order-"

"Destroy the Order?" Hestra's brows fly up at this, almost more shocked than insulted.

Vem clenches her fists at her sides. "They are just mortals, Hestra. Mortals can be manipulated, they can be herded and culled by their true masters. If all of the threats to your power were turned, were on our side, would you still deny this?"

"You're speaking in fantasies." The Emperor says, colder than she meant to. She is just as frustrated, not only by Vem's assertions, but by how her mind meanders and considers them.

"Answer me, Hestra!"

"I could not- I could not disgrace my line, my ancestors-"

"Your ancestors were nothing more than cattle!" Vem shouts.

"Your family is nothing but a pack of monsters!" Hestra replies.

Vem, incensed, points a sharp finger at Hestra as she bares her fangs. "We are NOT monsters!" She growls, throwing a hand up. "'Monsters', 'daimons', 'abominations', these are all the labels feeble-minded sheep apply to us, the true masters of Tamriel! And here you are- so different from them, so close to us, and you refuse your rightful place on our Council, your rightful taste of our blood, all because of these vapid mortal commitments to the lives and deeds of mortals, the ways of people who lived and died as nothing more than stupid animals- you let them limit you, hold you back, drag you down to their level!" Snarling, there is a quivering to her frame and face that belies her nerves. "You do not deserve to be another pile of bones in a pasture! You deserve to be Domina, High Emperor of All Tamriel, Immortal Ruler of the weak and impermanent!!"

Hestra stands stock still, shadows cast on her creased face. "I cannot do this. I will not take knee before your king."

"You would not have to! Do you know how few of us respect King Styriche? How fewer revere Lord Bal? To depose him, to usurp him, it would not be difficult, you would only have to delay your invasion!" Vem's composure is all but faded as she pleads for what she wants, the safety of her family, an immortal paramour, and all that she wills be made real, as in true domination of the world. The fact that she screams this hoarsely and with such desperation- the desperation of someone not in control- is not lost on her.

The Emperor hangs her head, heavy with troubles. She grits her teeth as she speaks with attempted finality. "I cannot, Vem, and I'm sorry that I cannot." Her own eyes, still living, well up as she speaks. "It does not mean I don't love you- I do, I give you my word and I mean it: I do, and if I were anyone different... you need to know how much I want to be forever beside you, I truly want this, but..."

Vem suddenly darts forward, pressing herself against her, looking up at her with pleading eyes. "If you want it, you can have it. Let me turn you, forget the Empire, let it fall under someone else's rule- we could make of it that you died in battle, that you were- you were betrayed somehow, sow dissent in the Empire, let it rot and fall. Leave my family alone, let us go together into a new life." Her plan is flimsy, her voice is quickened and shaking, but she bears her soul to Hestra like never before. "Take what you want, Hestra."

She bows her head. Hestra leans down to press her forehead against hers. She wants to take her into her arms, as they used to, like lovers would, but she doesn't.

#mori writing #oc: hestra #oc: alessians #hi. this is about emperor hestra and exarch vem from that one eso dlc #shout out to that background character for saying one nice thing about another woman so i could write this entire thing

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fantasyinvader · 2 years ago

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Honestly, this whole conversation feels… I dunno. I've said before, the whole consort kin stuff should be a red flag.

It's not just that he tried to remove power from the nobles, which as I've said before would be in violation his duties under feudalism. The ruler hands out power and authority in return for service, but not honoring that agreement is a cause for rebellion. We see this with Lambert and the Western lords who Azure Moon make out to believe that they were in the right when Lambert tried to revoke their power in order to give it to the commoners, something that causes Dimitri to realize things aren't always black and white. Ionius, however, wasn't giving power to the masses. He was giving it to himself both from the noble families who serve as his ministers but also the families he's taken consorts from.

Ionius tried to give himself the power to expand his harem, without any compensation for the family's involved. He's even trying to take back what he had to gift them in exchange for their daughters. This ties into the patriarchal slant of the Empire as a whole, making the women of his harem less valuable from an economic standpoint. The fact that he can continue to add to his harem as an autocrat, with his word being law, makes the whole thing feel rapey. What's a family to do when he wants their daughter? The whole idea that he was in love with Anselma also comes into question with this, especially after the idea Ionius was a former Garreg Mach student doesn't fit with the fact an Imperial heir hasn't attended for a long time due to the split with the Church over the Southern Church.

Then, as you said, it trickles down into a question of what happens to the consort's children. We know according to Ferdinand that nobles could already be kicked out of their families if they failed to perform, while Caspar makes it out that inheritance is an all or nothing deal. Heir gets everything, spare has to fend for themselves. It always stood out that the entire Imperial family would die out with Edelgard, no branch families despite being a millienia old, but this seems to serve as an answer to that question. What would have happened to Edelgard if the Insurrection and experiments never happened, if she never became heir?

She would have gotten nothing. Maybe not onto the streets like Dorothea and her mother were, but Edelgard would be left to fend for herself after living in the lap of luxury up until this point. Only way out is if she married into another family, but she would still be cut out of the line of succession. Would she still be willing to support her bootstraps mentality if this had come to pass? Or would she pull a Shahid or Miklan? Hell, what happens to her own children with Ferdinand post-CF, who don't get the position of Emperor?

The fact that Edelgard, according to Hopes, intends to unhook the nobility from their responsibilities yet they still maintain titles, power and influence ultimately comes across like she's trying to do what her father did. She hates the responsibilities of ruling, but wants the perks. She's liberating the nobles, leaving them free to pursue what they wish (even if, according to Yuri's history, it involves having sex with minors) while at the same time oppressing the masses.

It just kinda makes it feel like Edelgard is fighting for a lie. Her father wasn't betrayed by the nobility, they rebelled because he violated his contract with them. Her parents likely didn't have this epic romance, especially when he was trying to empower himself so he could expand his harem free of charged. She would have been screwed over by the Empire's already existing bootstraps mentality if her siblings had not been killed, yet she still intends to consolidate power on herself while leaving the nobility free to run around and do what they want. She's not restoring the Empire to it's former glory, she's finishing it's moral decline as she becomes everything the Empire was supposed to stand against. She champions her ancestor's enemy while damning said ancestor, saying he was "tricked" into betraying humanity by fighting Nemesis. Never mind that Nemesis was historically a tyrant who persecuted his people and inspired them to go around killing and stealing in order to gain power. But then again, her version of history came from Ionius, who Hubert says was a puppet of Arundel/Thales and "his people" rather than Aegir and the nobles like Edelgard says…despite Edelgard supposedly knowing the former. It also means she destroys her family's legitimacy, and the fact she kills someone her family claims descent from is the icing on the cake.

Yet Edelgard is unwilling to question her father, the father who watched her siblings die and told her what TWSITD wanted her to hear. Her mother was said to have been banished, seeking asylum in the Kingdom. Yet Patty/Anselma would betray her new husband for her daughter. The original Arundel took Edelgard there for her own safety and was known to support the Church prior to being pod-personed. Seems to me that they cared more for Edelgard than her father ever did.

Hi, I was talking with some friends, and wanted some help double checking some 3H shenanigans and figured you'd be the best to ask. Do you know when in the game Ionius's whole wives situation got mentioned and what he did that got all the nobles to depose him? I remember something about concubines, but don't know where exactly in the game it was talked about to check and cite. Thank you very much if you're able to help!

I hope I can help then!

In Hubert and Hanneman's C support, it's more or less explained, by Hanneman that Ionius wanted to concentrate power on himself :

In your father's defense, the emperor was attempting to take power from the Seven Houses. The emperor's reform was an attempt to concentrate power in the hands of the throne.

While Hubert presents it the other way :

He conspired with the ministers to usurp power from the emperor. And Lady Edelgard...

But both he and Hanneman later agree, in their B support, that Hubert is aware he is not very objective.

The Jp version gives a bit more insight on Hanneman's explanations, that were removed from the localised version for... well, I suppose, some reasons I still can't understand?

当時の陛下は、“七貴族”と呼ばれる大貴族や外戚の特権を徐々に廃止し…

There's a mention of the consort kin, that is absent in the localised version.

This translation translated it as :

At that time, His Majesty was gradually abolishing the privileges of the consort kin and the ones referred to as “The Seven Aristocrats” – the great noble [families]

Ionius was thus trying to centralise power on himself, remove privileges and powers of the 7 and the consort kin.

Now, unlike some other settings, Ionius having consorts isn't that developped in Fodlan, so we don't have any clues, in canon, about what those privileges are. We can only surmise things here'n'there based on rl, I guess, as long as it doesn't contradict canon.

So, what could have been those consort kin privileges?

Let's take the Arundel example.

Anselma is wooed by Ionius, bears him a daughter, but doesn't become his official/legal/legitimate wife. She becomes his consort wife.

What is she going to do? She cannot marry someone else, Papa Arundel "lost" his daughter and cannot secure a good wedding for her (as is apparently the fate of Adrestian noblewomen?) because she's already one of Ionius's consort. Hell, given how their daughter isn't the next in line for the Imperial succession, Anselma's role is very shaky -

In Fates, we have the background concubine wars, where the goal was to have their kid become the heir (iirc?) so they would have a place by the King's side, or at least not be demoted as "extras" when the kid from another mother will become, well, king.

In Fodlan, from this line, we know the "kin" of the Imperial consorts had some "privileges" - a sort of crass way to say the Emperor gives them "stuff" so they will shut up if he "wooes" a daughter, relegates her as a baby maker and doesn't marry her, thus her "market value" drops and the resulting child is only an extra?

From the Libary, it's confirmed that :

House Arundel Formerly a minor noble house of the Empire. As head of the house, when Volkhard's younger sister became betrothed to Emperor Ionius IX, Volkhard was granted the title of Lord Arundel. Having worked closely with House Aegir, House Arundel is seen as one of the chief instigators of the Insurrection of the Seven.

House Arundel became "important" when Anselma was wooed by Ionius and became his wife (consort wife though!).

So when Ionius wants to remove the consort kin privileges, aka giving some importance to the families of the women he "wooes", Arundel isn't super happy and spearheads the insurrection.

Now, why was that system created? Was it a way to prevent the Emperor from, say, having their cake and eating it, aka, seducing women, giving them kids and then throwing them (both?) away without strings attached? Or to make sure consort wife #7 will have a role somewhere, and her family will get a "compensation" for her loss?

Or worse, the "consort kin" privileges maybe also applied to the children of the consorts - they would have a lower rank compared to the children of the legitimate wife - but still be worth something?

The Adrestian Imperial family is sadly under utilised, so we don't a thing about what was the status of the consorts or their children (they just poof away in the game events, we never hear anything about Ionius's surviving consorts or his legitimate wife!) - but we know there used to be some sort of compensation (super dowry?) Ionius/the Emperor had to give to families of the women he screwed -

And from what the JP version of Hubert and Hanneman's support says, Ionius wanted to get rid of that.

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iamnightduchess · 4 years ago

Text

There were originally two Asks for this but the draft got deleted by accident. To the two anons, I am so sorry 🙈 I also spent quite some time on it, so I had to rewrite everything all over again. But the Asks wanted to know what happens after their confession & their lives together afterwards in Hizuru, their courting process, marriage, kids & what Reiner does for a living when Mikasa ascends the imperial throne as the new Empress.

Reiner x Mikasa (ReiKasa) Canonverse AU (18+) Post-Rumbling Headcanon #18 (Pt.2) a.k.a a ficlet

A continuation to this post. Show me some ❤!

‼️Contains: mentions of PTSD‼️

Aftermath of Confession

Jean, who was also there with Annie & Armin, was very happy to see that two of his loved ones are finally embracing each other's feelings. He asks the new couple, "So, what's next?

Reiner looks into Mikasa's eyes and says, "For now, I just want to make out with the new most important woman in my life."

Annie sneakily jabs, "Get a room."

Reiner snarkily replies, "Good idea," causing Mikasa and Kiyomi both to panic before Reiner adds, "It was a joke, ladies."

"Jerk." Annie grins, as she holds her paramour's hand tight in hers. One could also see the look of pride and happiness on Armin's face, upon realizing that his sworn sister is genuinely loved by a good-hearted man, who would be her true anchor & life companion after the horrors she was forced to go through.

Reiner immediately approaches the Azumabito family matriarch and asks for her blessing and advice with the intention to officially court her kin. Kiyomi states that once Mikasa ascends the throne, the rules of Hizuru forbids the empress to marry a commoner but the spouse of a married ruler who ascends the throne will be recognized as the empress or prince consort. Thus, Kiyomi advises for their courting to proceed after the marriage, which will be held in a week.

Reiner and Mikasa, together, also talk to Jean and Armin in making it a triple wedding instead.

As soon as they return to the settlement, Reiner wastes not a second as he also looks for Levi, to get the older man's blessing as his soon-to-be wife's last living kin on her father's side.

Levi shakes his hand, albeit sternly, to which even Jean and Armin would cower in reflex, yet no one can miss the tender look in their former captain's eyes; one of a proud father when he said, "Be true. Be loyal."

Karina, Gabi and the rest of the Braun family are over the moon over the news of their immediate engagement & the family spearheads the wedding preparation together. The men go out to hunt and the women help with the simple but homely decoration as well as cooking preparations. Connie prefers to help the women and part of the reason is he's really interested in getting to know one of them; a single lady who had adopted 4 children whose parents were killed in the Rumbling.

The evening after Reiner had received Levi's blessings, Mikasa asks him out for a stroll around the settlement. Reiner also wants to spend more alone time with her. Teary-eyed, Mikasa confides in Reiner on everything that happened during the moment when she decapitated Eren's head, a truth that she has never told anyone. Not even to Armin. She told him that she placed her lips on Eren's cold dead ones to say her last farewell and that she is haunted by what she has done ever since. She is scared & terrified of what she has done and she feels she is being unfair to Reiner because of how 'broken' she is from within. Mikasa also says that she understands if Reiner wants to call off their wedding because he deserves to be happy with someone who doesn't have immense emotional baggage like she does.

Reiner, wordlessly, only holds her close in return. Mikasa almost flinches but she gradually allows the shackles inside her head go. However, she isn't able to return Reiner's physical affections as yet because of the unbearable guilt she still holds, thinking she is unworthy of Reiner's genuine love.

Reiner also confides that he has his emotional baggages himself; namely the day he tried to shoot himself in the head right before the assault in Liberio. Reiner also shares the reason why he has stopped thinking of dying, in particularly, the moment he realizes he did not want to give up on life so easily was the second he saw Mikasa's helpless face when the alliance decided to kill Eren. He accepts if Mikasa refuses to proceed with their wedding, but he would still follow her to Hizuru and be by her side - even as a friend.

At that moment, they both realize one fundamental truth: all these horrors they had to go through especially together only made them even more compatible with each other. No other man could ever understand and love Mikasa the way she is. No other woman could truly understand and love Reiner the way he is. They were both broken, emotionally weighed down but the strength they each needed was in the other all along.

Reiner and Mikasa are indeed two odd-shaped puzzle pieces who turn out to be a perfect fit after all.

That night, Reiner makes the first pledge to Mikasa way before his wedding vows: He will love her and make her happy for the rest of his life. He will never give up on her. Not even after death.

Wedding

The wedding had been a simple but a merry affair. Falco had been the ring-bearer & Gabi the flower girl.

Kiyomi had a craftsmaker from Hizuru and a blacksmith from Marley to make wedding bands from melted 3DMG blades and titan crystals for the three couples.

Kiyomi had found beautiful western-style white silk dresses in the Azumabito family's garments chest on the main ship. The brides, along with the help from Gabi, Karina and her sister, personalize the dresses according to their preferences.

Mikasa wears an ankle-length princess cut dress with tight long sleeves. She embroidered the hem with forest green trimmings (her new favorite color) and sewn gold laces and ribbons on the wrists and neck to match the color of Reiner's eyes. So as the gold teardrop stone on her silver headpiece. Reiner wore a matching white dress shirt and dark pants with a long beige overcoat, with a silver garnet tie to match the colors of his bride's beautiful eyes.

Annie wore a shin-length bell-shaped dress, with a sky blue drape silk wrap across her shoulders and sky blue hair ribbon to match the color of Armin's eyes. Armin wore a crisp beige coat with a light blue dress shirt and a matching dark blue bow tie.

Pieck, who's already 7 weeks pregnant at that time, wore a long halter bare-back dress, with a flowy dark purple ombre gradient skirt and a violet satin waistband, which matched Jean's bowtie and suit vest. He paired it with a crisp dark brown full suit.

Annie & Pieck were walked down the aisle by their respective fathers. Levi was the one who accompanied Mikasa down the wedding lane to Reiner.

Reiner was just captivated - he had tears in his eyes the moment he saw Mikasa in her wedding dress. He immediately kisses her hand when Levi gave her away.

Reiner & Mikasa's vows brought the guests to tears. Reiner vowed that he will always place Mikasa's life & needs before his and will always be with her through every second of their lives together - side-by-side, not behind her or in front of her. Mikasa vowed that Reiner will always have not only her heart but her whole life, in which their souls are bound for all eternity.

When they shared their first kiss as husband & wife, Mikasa truthfully savored & surrendered her heart to her first true love's kiss with Reiner.

Since Captain Levi was injured, it was Armin who sweetly offered his hand for Mikasa's father-daughter dance, as her sworn brother.

At the reception, Connie, being the best man to all the grooms jokingly said to the three of them, "You boys might have been married first, but I already beat you guys in being a dad," proudly proclaiming while cradling his adopted 3-month old baby girl in his arms.

Wedding Night & Courting

That eve of the wedding, Reiner had been a perfect gentleman and he wants Mikasa to know that they will always be each other's equal. He only asks her to take the lead when it comes to the physical intimacy in their shared life & they will only consummate their wedding when she is ready.

Reiner & Mikasa spent their wedding night just talking & reminiscing about their time as 104th cadets and positive memories of everyone they know until they fell asleep in each other's arms. Reiner wanted Mikasa to remember only the good memories with Eren and that night, Mikasa had a minor night terror but Reiner's embrace helped calm her down as he helped her back to sleep.

The next morning, Reiner & Mikasa spent their time helping the resident cooks in the main kitchen with breakfast. Reiner likes to sneak in quick kisses on Mikasa's forehead in between the kitchen chores & despite not being able to fully initiate physical affections towards Reiner, Mikasa have become more comfortable in accepting Reiner's physical affections without being subconsciously defensive.

They spent the next several days together by doing domestic chores around the settlement in particularly, they discovered that they both share the same enjoyment towards harvesting in the fields. Reiner loves seeing the peaceful expression on Mikasa's face underneath the sun when she's working hard at plotting soil for the vegetable roots. He never stops seeing her as the strongest, most beautiful woman in his life.

They both went on evening walks with Falco & Gabi and stargazing at night. Sometimes they would talk, sometimes they would just sit in silence while holding each other's hands. They also discussed on their near future plans in settling down in Hizuru, bringing Karina with them so they can still take care of her together.

Reiner carries her from the main walkway to their shared unit every single night, much to Armin & Annie's amusement and Mikasa's horror. But by the third night, Mikasa had become more relaxed and she leant on Reiner's sturdy shoulders, accepting his comfort naturally.

Reiner also loves giving Mikasa surprises - whether it's a wild flower, a ripe edible harvest or any interesting things that he found while he was out helping at the fields.

Reiner's honesty, diligence and romantic wooing won Mikasa's heart and the last evening before they left for Hizuru, they finally consummate their marriage. That night, he carried her all the way to bed and they never left until they woke up in the morning. Reiner spent the whole night just worshipping every inch of his wife's body and never took his eyes off hers when they made love for the first time.

Life in Hizuru

As soon as they docked in Hizuru, Reiner & Mikasa, respectively, went into an immediate intensive training to prepare them for the duties & expectations of the imperial throne. Mikasa, to prepare her as an Empress and Reiner, to prepare him as her prince consort, especially him being the first non-Hizurian blood to sit on the imperial throne.

Reiner also voluntarily enlisted with the Hizurian naval forces to learn the new ropes of being a sea military member, as oppossed to land. It wasn't long when the higher-ups took notice of his exceptional skills, natural leadership & battle experience, that he was made an Admiral in training within three months of his enlistment.

Reiner & Mikasa had to spend the first few months apart and that made the newlyweds miss each other even more.

During this temporary separation, Reiner and Mikasa had been writing love letters to each other, everyday without fail. Karina made sure that her daughter-in-law would never feel alone & she always helped Kiyomi in supporting the empress-to-be so it would not be a lonely, isolated period for Mikasa while she's being separated from Reiner.

Reiner & Mikasa were only reunited a week before their enthronement, which was held six months after they arrived in Hizuru. Everyone of their loved ones in Fort Salta's residence had been invited as the royal guests. Despite having challenging pregnancies as former female shifters, Annie and Pieck wouldn't miss the opportunity to support Mikasa & Reiner's historical day as they officially become the new age imperial monarch of the East Sea country. Pieck went into an early labor during the visit. Jean & Pieck's eldest son was born in Hizuru.

Enthronement & the royal Azumabito (Ackerman-Braun) family legacy

Mikasa's royal title is Her Imperial Highness Empress Mikasa of Azumabito.

Reiner's royal title is His Imperial Highness Reiner Braun Consort to Empress Mikasa.

The first night after Mikasa & Reiner's enthronement, they conceived the firstborn heir to the throne - His Imperial Highness Prince Ryuujin Marcel Ackerman-Braun of Azumabito. In the following years, they were also succeeded by twin princesses, Her Imperial Highness Princess Reina Mathilde Ackerman-Braun of Azumabito & Her Imperial Highness Princess Ryoko Minerva Ackerman-Braun of Azumabito and the second crown prince, His Imperial Highness Prince Ren Mathias Ackerman-Braun of Azumabito.

Mikasa will then make history as the first royal empress who had built the greatest legacy & the strongest, peaceful empire in the world. She is the global icon of world peace & female empowerment, with her husband's neverending love & support.

Reiner is known in history as not only as one of the World's heroes & Eldian consort to the Hizurian empress, but he is the first non-Hizurian naval leader who unites three major nations in the world - through his battlefield intelligence & military prowess.

Under Levi Ackerman's watchful tutelage, Reiner & Mikasa's four children (consecutively their descendants that followed after) have become existential symbol of humanity's unity through the four major bloodlines running through their veins : Hizurian, Ackerman, Marleyan & Eldian from their parents. Each child becoming successful scholars who would continue to fight for humanity in their respective chosen fields; Prince Ryuujin in military & global peace efforts, Princess Reina in women's studies, Princess Ryoko in medicine & Prince Ren in industrialism - all fortifying the legacies their parents have inspired them with growing up.

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I truly had fun in working on this. Just imagining such potential future for my two beloved characters never fails to leave an everlasting warmth in my heart. Even if 139 may not promise a future for Reiner & Mikasa, I'd hope this vision would offer a much-needed comfort for my fellow RK shippers ❤🫂 xoxo

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