#it’s half because he thinks regis has good taste in weapons and half because it’s a way to be closer to him when they’re apart :)

[kaidanalenkosprmanager]

My great friend @clericofshadows was beyond super kind enough to give me a blend file with her Shep, Regis, in it and give me permission to make a render and a poster of him to add to the mix with all the others, since he is also a part of Soph's canon! :) Regis is Soph’s Butcher of Torfan, an instructor at the Villa, and he’s also married to Zaeed in her canon. Since I usually give little nods to him in the rants I do with Zaeed posts, I thought I'd repost them back next to each other! ;)

MEET THE CREW OF THE NORMANDY SR-2 (2185)

Overseen by Admiral Steven Hackett, the undercover operations undertaken by the Normandy crew in 2185 are sponsored by the Alliance Shade program following Sophie Oliveira-Shepard's coup from Cerberus after her resurrection. The mission? Traverse the Terminus Systems. Collect intelligence on the thing that killed her in 2184. Save the galaxy by any means necessary. The only issue? The darker secrets lurking under the surface. Like the machinations and strings being pulled by someone behind the scenes that seem to keep dragging old crew members into new dangers. And the old enemies... wearing familiar faces. MIRA'S MORE CANON MASS EFFECT 2 AKA: The actual, canon crew of the Normandy SR-2. ;) Mass Effect 2: Legendary Edition (2021) Rendered: Blender Eevee

[promptistrashqueen]

A Royal Commission 19

Short (I’m sorry) but sweet The rest is HERE

@fleetstreetfatality

The wind is stronger now, the waves on the lake large and the water gone dark, like the sky overhead. There’s no rain yet, but Prompto can practically taste the electricity in the air and he sighs, hoping it’s just because it’s so early that everything seems so bleak out.

Cor doesn’t waste time, just greets Prompto with a nod and steps off the porch, leaving Prompto to glance back inside where the living room is still disorganized from the night before. He rolls his shoulders and follows the marshall.

“I want you to try to summon your weapon.”

Prompto blinks and then smiles a little, “I can’t summon things.”

Cor just stares at him for a beat and then turns back toward the house, “Stay here.”

Prompto shifts, uncomfortable, but does as he’s told. The morning air is chilled enough that he jogs in place a bit to stay warm in the breeze coming off the lake, even still it’s lovely and he feels a pang of sadness that they have to leave tomorrow. He wonders, in the moment alone, if Noctis and the others ever wish that this was their life instead, here in the house by the lake, fishing and just being normal. He knows that they’re all proficient hunters and he’s sure they could do so many other things, if birth had been kinder.

Prompto starts to realize that maybe his common status is a blessing, even with the shadow of his past growing longer with each passing year. He’s pulled from the dark thoughts by the telltale sound of Noctis grumbling.

He turns with a grin tugging at his lips in time to see Cor half-pulling the Prince, still in his PJ’s with hair a mess, across the yard.

“You brought it on yourself. You gave Prompto a weapon and brought him close to you and didn’t think to give him access to the armiger. Maybe think ahead next time and I’ll let you sleep.”

“You said people hadtabetrained.” Noctis yawns the last bit, mushing the words.

Cor just looks unimpressed and Prompto pats his shoulder, “Buddy, you’re not awake enough to argue, just do your thing and go back to bed.”

Noctis makes a noise that Prompto takes as agreement because the next moment he’s got an armful of Prince and Noctis is kissing him sloppily, making soft noises and Prompto’s blushing a bit because Cor is right there. Before he can be too mortified Noctis pulls back and speaks something softly in old Lucian and then kisses him again and there’s power, a fissure in the air that Prompto knows is all Noctis and then it’s in him too, running under his skin. A livewire of power laces into his bones and they part. He looks down and finds the blue energy wrapping around them both before it sinks into Prompto’s skin and Noctis gives him a smug sleepy smile and stumbles away with a half assed wave to Cor.

“Tell Gladio an extra hour of training with you for the week after that display.”

The Prince just gives Cor the finger.

“I’m guessing he didn’t kiss everybody else then?” Prompto says it more to ease his own embarrassment than anything else and Cor just shakes his head.

“Drama Queen.” They both say and Cor’s eyes sparkle a moment, leaving Prompto to wonder what kind of mischief might be held back by the Marshal’s seriousness.

“Now then. Summon your weapon.”

Prompto’s brows draw together and he hold out his hand, fingers flexing. He feels stupid when nothing happens and is immediately reminded of the scene in the first Spider-Man when Peter makes a fool of himself trying to figure out the web. The difference is plain, one of them has an audience. Cor’s expression doesn’t change though and Prompto shakes himself.

He tries to focus on the magic in him now and goes with what feels right, tugging his hand back as he pulls on the energy. He feels something in his grasp and excitedly moves to aim only to realize….

“Uh...ebony?”

Cor raises an eyebrow at the can of coffee Ignis has a taste for held in Prompto’s grasp and the blonde blushes brightly shaking his hand and sending it away, reaching again and being careful to feel out something that when he touches on it feels his mouth with the taste of hot metal.

This time the motion is rewarded and he holds the pistol Noct gave to him when Ardyn came, it’s beautiful and idly he thinks he should add it to his tattoos as he flicks off the safety and takes aim at the target Cor set up the day before.

He squeezes off a shot and the glass bottle erupts, making him crow triumphantly. Cor smiles at him wanly and then he’s summoning a sword.

“Hitting targets is good, helps keep your eye sharp but when you’re shooting to protect yourself it’s harder. I’m going to attack you in a moment, first load these.” he tosses Prompto rubber shots, “and do me a favor, don’t aim for the head.”

Prompto flops on the couch beside Noctis, burying his head in his boyfriends shoulder, “I’m a bruise. A very tender bruise.”

Noctis just snorts and pushes at him until they’re settled against each other comfortably, “I peeked out earlier, you got a few good hits on Cor.”

“Tell it to my bones.” Prompto mumbles into Noctis’ shirt even as Iris bounces on the couch beside him, making him groan as it shifts him around. Cor had only hit him with the flat of his blade but that had been enough and his arms and legs throbbed, a nasty purple likely hiding just under his ribs too.

“Uh-oh, sorry Prompto! It’s too dreary out to go outside, should we watch a movie?” Iris’ cheer wasn’t dampened by the two bleary boys and Prompto offers a quick thumbs up as Noctis answers, “You pick.”

The memo must get around because a few minutes later everyone is seated around the living room, Regis and Clarus taking the armchairs as Ignis and Gladio seat themselves on the floor and Cor sits on the footstool, leaving the other three on the couch. Ignis passes out bowls of fresh popcorn as Iris presses play and the rain that starts is a nice background to the film. It’s an animated story of a girls adventure, a story of growing up and being yourself in a charming style.

Prompto sniffles a little at the end and Noctis gives his hand a squeeze where their fingers are tangled, looking around Prompto see’s that he’s not the only one affected as several others are heavily glassy eyed and Ignis surreptitiously wipes at his eyes.

As the credits roll and the room is deathly quiet so he clears his throat, “Hey! Let’s watch Emperors New Groove!”

There’s an enthusiastic agreement and Regis, his voice grating and high yells, “Pull the Lever Kronk!”

It makes him feel less heavy as everyone seems to warm to the idea and Ignis gets up to make more popcorn.

“I told Gladdy he should be Kronk for Halloween.” Iris pokes her big brother with her toe and Prompto laughs as Noctis rolls his eyes, snuggling into Prompto’s side more.

“Only if Ignis is Yzma.”

The dignified choking noise from the kitchen answers that suggestion.

The last night at the cabin is bittersweet, they roast s’mores over a flame that Regis produces and controls in a bowl. Prompto laughs as Noctis makes a mess of himself and even Ignis has marshmallow smeared over his cheek.

Regis takes great joy in smashing a warm piece of marshmallow into Clarus’ face when the shield tries to talk about the meeting the next day and they take turns trying to catch pieces of graham crackers that Gladio tosses in their mouths.

“I must say Prompto, it’s been lovely having you along. I hope that you’ll be with us again for next years outing.”

Prompto turns to look at Regis as a piece of cracker pelts his cheek, blushing, “I hope that I will too sir. It’s nice to be together like this, like a family. It’s not something I’m used to and uh, it’s really great that you’ve got this sort of thing, especially with Insomnia and Lucis and uh...everything.”

He doesn’t know if he can actually blush anymore than he already is but Regis is smiling at him warmly and Noctis leans into his side and a glance shows Clarus and Cor both looking warmer.

“You are right in thinking it’s a hard thing to have, when we are men overwhelmed too often by our duties. I believe our children have had a great deal of influence in this and I am proud of them.” Regis pauses and looks around the table as Clarus adds, “not as successors, or rather, not only as successors, but simply as our family. I too am very proud of you all for remembering the things that are important outside of your duty to the crown.”

The table is silent for a moment and then there are grins and Gladio snorts, “You know that might’ve been more weighty if there wasn’t still marshmallow on your nose.”

Prompto decides, right then, that he never wants to go back to being alone.

[the-sapphire-general]

My Thoughts and Feelings About Ardyn Izunia

Hey guys! After finishing up my last post of "My Thoughts and Feelings About Sephiroth", I pondered over whether or not I should do the same for another character. And I said yes. So I chose Ardyn Izunia from Final Fantasy 15, the latest installment in the main series. I am pretty nervous about this because I believe my friend would do a much better job with Ardyn. She is passionate about him as much as I am of Sephiroth and it would just be beautiful to read in my opinion. Sephiroth is my main man, not that Ardyn isn't a character I'm passionate about as well, and I do hope I can do justice for him. Now there will be major spoilers, so if you haven't finished the game or haven't played it yet but you want to later on, read this after you play the game. Or if you don't mind spoilers, then go ahead. Either way, it's your call if you continue reading.

This post (and future parts for this mini-series) is dedicated to @cellarhapsodos.

Ardyn Izunia, Chancellor of Nifelheim, at your humble service. He is the main antagonist of Final Fantasy 15. He is polite, a bit flamboyant, sassy, and downright charming and amusing. Like any villain, however, it's all a mask to conceal his true colors. Character-wise, he's well-written. Like his voice actor Darin De Paul said, the writing is phenomenal. I don't care if some might say it's an exaggeration and that Ardyn really isn't well-written, and that he simply a heartless bastard who did nothing but make everyone suffer. This is where I come in to analyze him. I did this for Sephiroth, so I will do this for Ardyn. At first glance, you get the impression that Ardyn is just an eccentric man with a unique taste in clothing and an alluring appearance to go well with his rich and seductive voice that makes me melt whenever I-Okay, I better cut it out before I lose my train of thought. He is not your typical middle-aged man (I'm just guessing that's the age he appears to be), and he isn't just a guy that stands out from the crowd and it's not just because of his clothes and red-violet hair. He's got sass and is dramatic and mysterious, but he's not just a peculiar person. He's broken, cunning, vengeful, sadistic, and freaking terrifying when you look past his sassy smirk and pretty much his good looks (something I should bring up like I did with Sephiroth). How did Ardyn get this way? Well, he is immortal. He has lived for ages. How is he immortal and why is it bad? It all happened 2,000 years ago. Now according to the main game and the DLC, his real name is Ardyn Lucis Caelum. He was a healer. I'm not sure if that would make him an Oracle like Lunafreya, but I think it does if I take the FFXV lore under consideration. Back then he was chosen by the Crystal to become the first King of Lucis. He did whatever he could to protect his people, and from what I heard, Ardyn was nothing like the way he is during the events of the game. He was kind and sweet, though he might have been still sassy and dramatic. He would do anything for his future Kingdom, and even went so far as to absorb the Starscourge. Unfortunately, his act was greeted with ingratitude, disgust, and betrayal. His brother, now confirmed to be "the jealous king" Ardyn mentioned during Chapter 13, (Izunia, unless Ardyn threw us off since he didn't directly state his brother IS named Izunia), did not like that Ardyn was destined for something that he coveted. Therefore, with help from the Astrals, who were responsible for punishing Ardyn after being rejected by the Crystal, Izunia banished his own brother and was deemed the Accursed. I have a feeling that people might say that what Ardyn did was stupid, but to be honest, I can't take sides because we don't know his past well enough. What he did was selfless, even if it meant it would harm him. I don't know! There's still plenty of answers that we all need, answers that can shed light to how these events played out, so I am really looking forward to Ardyn to see what he was like before he became a twisted and maniacal villain who was misunderstood by everyone else and betrayed by those he had loved millennia ago.

Think about it. He was cursed to be immortal just because he did what he believed was the right thing to do for the sake of his people. He could never die. Ardyn wanted to protect his people only to have them turn against him, and he was considered unsuitable to become the True King. I have a feeling Izunia sabotaged Ardyn's goals. Maybe Ardyn never knew that absorbing the Starscourge could damage not only himself but his whole life. There was no way he could have known about the consequences. Perhaps Izunia knew and out of jealousy, he kept this critical information to himself and let Ardyn do what he could for his people. Note that we still don't know the name of Ardyn's brother, so some might say Ardyn just got it from somewhere considering his hint from the game. But it's damn obvious it's Izunia. Unless Square Enix has something up their sleeve and Izunia is the name of someone else Ardyn knew?? I still believe his brother's name is Izunia. Why he used it as a last name is odd to me if that's the case. Why use the name of someone you loved but now despise as a false surname? It's like me disguising myself as someone named Sarah (after my false friend). I guess Ardyn did it to never forget the one who wronged him. It makes sense right? 

And there's a possibility that Izunia is Ardyn's twin. Now Ardyn did not state this, he just referred to him as his brother. Now if he was a twin, then the entire scheme to snatch the throne and cast Ardyn into exile would lead to Izunia pretending to be Ardyn. Let's say nobody knew he absorbed the Starscourge. The Astrals and the Crystal reject him, and he was exiled and he was supposed to get killed, leaving Izunia an opportunity to take his brother's identity. It's complicated to describe, but I hope I did a decent job. It is likely Ardyn was kept in Angelgard, and from the fanart I've seen, I'd hate to see that in his episode.

Moving on now. All of these events took a psychological toll on Ardyn, and 2,000 long years just made it worse and worse as the years passed. He waited until the True King of Light would emerge, aka Noctis Lucis Caelum, son of King Regis. In present time, he becomes the Chancellor of Nifelheim and was responsible for the creation of Magitech troops and the attack on Insomnia. Yes, everything that occurred in the movie and game was pretty much his doing. Ardyn sought for revenge all these years, and carefully planned out all his moves, which I am real impressed. Revenge is a common goal for villains, so Ardyn fits under the category, but remember when I said he's immortal? Immortality is not a blessing for him. It's just not. Living for eternity is one thing but not being able to die and join everybody else in the afterlife is disturbing in my book. How would you feel if you were unable to die and all your loved ones died and you couldn't join them? You would feel lonely forever, and would find it meaningless to get close to anyone knowing that you wouldn't join them in the afterlife. Now this is heading towards theory territory, but I want to point this out regarding Ardyn's immortality. Again, we don't know much about his past, but I'm positive he had loved ones. His brother was one of them until that asshole took away what was rightfully his and drove him to madness and vengeance. Perhaps like Noctis and Regis, he had close friends! His own Shield (like Gladio), his own best buddy (like Prompto), and his own advisor (like Ignis). He must have known people that knew him real well because he was supposed to be the Founder King. I will not speculate on him if he had a girlfriend or wife or family. Maybe he did, but it kind of ticks me off to imagine that. lol Petty jealousy aside, Ardyn used to have a normal life and would have been destined for great things if it weren't for his brother, and most of all, the damn Astrals (Wow Ardyn would be so proud of me for saying those few words). All the events that occurred in the game was because of them.

The Astrals let everything happen all because Ardyn absorbed the Starscourge. Because of all the daemons inside him, they exiled him and allowed Izunia to take his throne and possibly tried to get his brother killed and take his identity. 2,000 years later, Ardyn causes so much to happen:

He gives Verstael the encouragement to create Magitech troops (MT)

He plays a part when Nifelheim attacks Insomnia

He deceives Noctis, Gladio, Prompto, and Ignis (the Chocobros) by pretending to help them only to then manipulate them

Kills Noctis's betrothed Lady Lunafreya

Threatens to harm Ignis (you can cross out the idea of Ardyn being the direct cause of his blindness now, his involvement was partial *in the normal ending of Episode Ignis*)

Follows the boys on a train to screw them over by disguising himself as Prompto while making the real Prompto look like Ardyn (causing Prompto to fall off the train)

Leads Prompto to where he originated, thus screwing him over, and later kidnaps Prompto to lure Noctis

Takes away Noctis' ability to summon his weapons to make him feel weak and separating him from his friends during the trip to rescue Prompto

Kills Ravus and turns him into a half-daemon monster to fight the Chocobros

Causes all of Eos to endure ten years of darkness, so daemons appeared at all times, resulting in so many people being killed or turned into daemons themselves

You might be thinking Ardyn is a pure evil bastard who deserved nothing but to suffer and die. My answer is no. If you didn't take note of his backstory, then you are missing the point. This isn't just about revenge. In reality, Ardyn did all of this to lead Noctis into becoming the True King of Light. I doubt Noctis could have become the True King without Ardyn doing all of this. So Ardyn pulled the strings throughout all of this because it was the only way to reach for his actual goals: to end the Lucian bloodline and to finally die. Noctis had to become the True King of Light for only he would be the only one to stop Ardyn once and for all, and therefore...kill him, ending his immortality, at the cost of Noctis' own life.

I'm not saying any of his villainous actions are justified. No, they are not, but you can still see why he did what he did. Ardyn lost everything millennia ago, and has suffered so much not just because he couldn't die, but because of the Starscourge. Pain, vengeance, rage, they all boiled inside him and gradually grew. He became insane, dark, and twisted, not just because he had a lot of daemons inside him, but because of what he had to deal with all his incredibly long life. and he wanted all of this to finally come to an end. My friend, the one I mentioned in the very beginning, speculates that his daemon-infested body drove him mad. She said something about hearing voices or having nightmares, and I do remember her saying this affected Ardyn's body temperature (why he wears a lot of clothing). She also stated that it caused his hair and eye color to change, therefore red-violet hair and amber eyes aren't his real hair and eye color. Wait...amber eyes...Then what about Gladio's eyes?? I don't believe any of this, but I will keep it in the back of my mind because it does make some kind of sense. Except the one about him wearing all those clothes. I just believe he likes to stand out from everyone else. And I believe his hair is dyed. As for amber eyes, I'm not really a fan of that point. Seriously, Gladio has amber eyes and he doesn't have daemons inside him. We don’t know what was in Ardyn’s mind this whole time. We have no idea if absorbing the Starscourge resulted in other effects besides his daemon appearance. I can agree that it did mess with his mind, but to what extent (such as my friend’s theory), I don’t know.

Ardyn is a complex villain, one of the most complex I've seen so far. I don't know a lot of villains who have many layers like he does. He and Sephiroth are a few of them. Ardyn Izunia...No. Ardyn Lucis Caelum may come off as pure evil, but if you look past the darkness, dive into his backstory, and realize everything he had to endure to seek peace within himself, you'll see a sympathetic man who was wrongfully mistreated and separated himself from everyone, thinking that he had no one. He took advantage of the people he knew as opposed to becoming close to them just to further his goals.

Alright, I think I wrote enough for this part, so anything that I still wish to say will be saved for the next parts. I admit this post took a huge turn since it wasn't intended to become this serious, and it was going to include my comments on him my opinions on the headcanons and such, but that will have to wait.  So I hope I managed to make this first Ardyn post just as powerful as my Sephiroth posts, and I will see you in the next one. I promise the next one will not be too serious because there’s a lot of fun things that I want to say regarding Ardyn.