#lady bone demon slayed

[cut-aare]

Traumatized protags my beloved

[ryin-silverfish]

A side-by-side comparison of Nezha's backstory in JTTW and FSYY

(Sth I've been working on for a while, as quick reference material for Nezha's story in the two novels specifically that doesn't go into the broader mythos.)

JTTW's Nezha:

-Born with the characters "Ne/Na" on one hand, and "Zha" on the other

-Has 2 older brothers and 1 younger sister: Jinzha, who worked as a guardian deity and attendant of the Buddha, Mucha, who was the disciple of Guanyin, and Li Zhenying, who's said to be 7 years old in JTTW (Chapter 83).

-There's also Diyong/Lady Earth Flow, the adopted mice sister that had eaten the Buddha's candle, was captured by Li Jing and Nezha, and spared on the Buddha's order.

-She shows up in Chapter 80, as a demoness who kidnapped Tripitaka for the purpose of marriage, and is subsequently recaptured to face celestial judgement.

-Three days after his birth, Nezha went off into an unknown ocean, stepped on a crystal palace and toppled it, and caught a flood dragon to use its tendon as a belt

-After that, Li Jing tried to kill him for being a menace, and Nezha did the "Return his flesh and bones to his parents" thing in anger

-His soul then drifted off to the Buddha's place, who performed the Lotus Resurrection Thing by reciting a mantra

-He then subdued 96 caves of demons, and went after Li Jing to take revenge for the "forced suicide" thing

-Li Jing pleaded to the Buddha for help, who gave him a pagoda with Buddhas sculptured on every level, and told Nezha to call the Buddha (on the pagoda) as his father from now on.

-The weapons he used in his Three-headed Six-Armed Form: The Demon-slaying Sword + Demon-cutting Blade, Demon-binding Rope + Demon-subduing Vajra, Embroidered Ball, Fire Wheel (held in his hand)

FSYY's Nezha:

-Is the reincarnation of Taiyi's oldest disciple, Spirit Pearl/Lingzhu Zi

-Is destined to be the Vanguard of the Zhou army in the upcoming War of the Investiture

-Has 2 brothers: Jinzha, disciple of Wenshu Guangfa Tianzun, and Muzha, disciple of Sage Puxian. (FSYY's quirk of making popular Buddhist deities into Daoist sages in a trenchcoat is at play again.)

-Mother was pregnant with him for three years, gave birth to a ball of flesh

-Jumps out of the ball of flesh when Li Jing cuts it open, wearing his Qiankun Ring as a bracelet, Huntian Sash wrapped around his stomach

-Was immediately taken by Taiyi as a disciple the next day, who told Li Jing that, born in the hour of Chou, Nezha is destined to break 1700 prohibitions against killing

-A 6 ft tall 7-years old (FSYY's sense of scale is really weird, like all old novels)

-Asked to go out and play in the river during summertime, unknowingly created a shockwave in the water with his sash that shook Ao Guang's palace in the East Sea.

-Ao Guang sent a Yaksha to check it out. Nezha sassed the Yaksha, who attacked him in a fury and got insta-killed.

-Ao Guang's soldiers reported the Yaksha's death. Ao Bing overheard the whole thing, asked to go deal with this random brat, and was granted permission by his father.

-Ao Bing rode out of the waves on his steed, and went "Who are you, sassy lost child, and did you just kill my Yaksha?!" And Nezha was like "Yeah, so what? Talk shit, get hit."

-Ao Bing charged Nezha with his weapon in a fury, got dragged down his steed by the sash, and was promptly bonked on the head by the Qiankun Ring, which reverted him to his dragon form.

-Nezha then pulled out his tendons to make a belt for Li Jing's armor and returned to Chentang Pass. Furious, Ao Guang hurried his way to Li Jing's mansion and accused him for the whole multiple homicide thing.

-Li Jing's first reaction was "My kid's only 7 and never goes out of the door, he can't possibly kill yours!" Then, when he indeed asked Nezha, Nezha flat-out admits it and went out to meet Ao Guang like "Yeah, sorry, doesn't know that's your kid. Anyways, here's his tendons, undamaged and untouched."

-Ao Guang, unsurprisingly, did not take it well and stormed off to press charges to the JE. Faced with his angry crying parents, Nezha also knew he had fucked up, and went to his master Taiyi for help.

-Taiyi's advice? Go ambush the dragon king on his way to complain to the JE and beat him up, mobster-style. Which Nezha promptly did, forcing Ao Guang to turn into a little snake and stay in his sleeves, to be carried back to Chentang Pass.

-The beatdown does not convince Ao Guang not to press charges. In fact, he said he'd get the other dragon kings of the Four Seas to press charges together. Li Jing raged at Nezha again, who assured him that it was alright, like, his master said he was destined to assist some Sage King and stuff.

-He then wandered into the back garden, picked up the Qiankun Bow and Sky-shaking Arrows of the Yellow Emperor that were, uh, just kept there in the family attic, and decided to do some archery practice.

-Sadly, he didn't know how far that arrow would go. It flew all the way to the White Bone Cave, abode of Lady Shiji the Rock Demoness, and went straight through the throat of one of her two disciples, the Verdant Cloud Boy.

-Since Li Jing also carved his name onto the arrow (…), Lady Shiji headed immediately to his place and whisked him away with her treasure, the Eight Trigrams Hankerchief.

-At her place, Li Jing pleaded that he really didn't do it, since the Qiankun Bow was a mystical ancient weapon no one could use in a long, long time, and Shiji released him back to Chentang Pass to find the true culprit. At which point he put two and two together, found out it was Nezha again, and told him to go answer to Shiji together with him.

-Nezha, who did not think this was his fault, smacked Shiji's other disciple, the Colored Cloud Boy on the head with his Qiankun Ring, when he came out of the cave on his master's orders. Shiji was even less happy about that, took his weapons away with a single swipe of her sleeves, then chased him all the way to Taiyi's place.

-At which point Taiyi was like "Well, if you want Nezha to pay for his crimes, how about we go to the Jade Emptiness Palace together and let my master (Yuanshi Tianzun) sort it out?" Shiji refused, stating that he was just using his master's authority to lord over her and unfairly protect his disciple.

-Taiyi then revealed the Chan-Jie division that would later become a huge thing in the War of Investiture, and basically went "Sorry that your student died in Nezha's archery accident, Lady Shiji, but it is literally Fated to Happen, which means you totally shouldn't be mad at me or him."

-Shiji did not buy that explanation at all, and they fought. Taiyi blocked her hankerchief when she tried to use it, then threw the Nine Fire Dragon Bell Cover over her head, burning her to death and reverting her to her true form——a rock.

-Taiyi then informed Nezha that with JE's permission, Ao Guang had gathered the other dragon kings to go after Nezha's parents. Nezha begged him to save them, and his advice was...well, "kill yourself and the dragon kings will let them go". Literally.

-So Nezha did, which was very graphically described in the novel, after which his soul drifted off to Taiyi's place.

-Taiyi told him to go to his mother and tell her to build a temple for him at Mt. Cuiping. He did, and Lady Yin woke up from her dream crying.

-Upon learning the reason why, Li Jing yelled at her for crying after Nezha had brought all these troubles upon their family. Nezha's soul then haunted her in her dreams for a week or so, until she finally relented and built him a temple in secret.

-Half a year later, Li Jing found out about the temple while Nezha's soul was out and away for some unknown reasons. In a fit of rage, he smashed Nezha's statue and burned the temple down (I talk about how this resembles the destruction of 淫祠, illicit cults in IRL history here).

-Nezha returned to his temple only to find it in ruins, at which point he went back to Taiyi, who did the Lotus Resurrection thing and gave him back his weapons, together with a new spear, the Wind-Fire Wheels and a golden brick.

-Nezha immediately rushed back to Chentang Pass to take revenge, stating that after the whole "returning his flesh and blood" thing, they were basically unrelated and didn't owe each other anything, so he was perfectly justified to go after Li Jing for the destruction of his temple.

-They fought. Li Jing, quickly exhausted, turned tail and fled using the Daoist arts of Earth Travel, at which point he ran into Muzha. While they were talking, Nezha caught up with them.

-Muzha was like "How dare you!" and Nezha replied with "Who the hell are you?" Only after Muzha said his name out loud did he recognize his brother and recount the whole story.

-Muzha retorted that "Parents can do no wrong". Nezha pointed out that after his suicide, they were no longer father and son, and told him to stand aside.

-Muzha whipped out his sword to fight him. Concerned that Li Jing might get away in the meantime, Nezha threw his golden brick at Muzha, hitting him in the back and knocking him down.

-The chase continued. Li Jing, knowing that he couldn't run away forever, was ready to commit suicide instead of facing the disgrace of being struck down by his son.

-However, Jinzha's master, Wenshu, suddenly showed up to rescue him. Nezha demanded that Wenshu release Li Jing from his abode, and if he didn't, he'd poke three holes in Wenshu instead.

"And who are you, to make such claims?"

"I am Nezha, disciple of Master Taiyi!"

"Never heard of you. You can throw a tantrum elsewhere, but not here, and if you keep this up, you are in for a spanking."

-Nezha attacked him. In return, Wenshu unleashed his treasure, the Flying Dragon Pillar, tying Nezha onto it. He then summoned Jinzha, handed him a walking stick, and told Jinzha to give him a good whipping.

-Then Taiyi showed up to rescue him, telling Nezha to bow to Wenshu, his Daoist uncle (Context: Taiyi and Wenshu are both among the 12 Immortals of the Chan Sect), and scolded Li Jing a bit for the temple-burning thing.

-Then he told the two to get along and go their separate ways. Nezha was delighted, seeing it as basically a free pass to resume his revenge the moment he was out of his master's sight, and indeed, he did.

-Then Sage Randeng (also of the Chan Sect) showed up, gave Li Jing a buff, and told him to fight Nezha again. Nezha, having witnessed the whole thing and reached an impasse in the fight, attacked Randeng in an attempt to disable the buff.

-Randeng was not happy about this "unprovoked" attack on an innocent bystander, so he dropped a pagoda out of his sleeves and onto Nezha, trapping him inside.

-On Randeng's command, flames ignited inside the pagoda. At last, Nezha pleaded for the sage to release him, under the condition that he'd call Li Jing father (grrrr grrrr) again.

-He was planning to pull a second "resume patricide arc" the moment Randeng left, until the sage gave the pagoda to Li Jing and told them to go back to Chentang Pass and Taiyi's place respectively, to wait until the War of Investiture formally began.

-And they did: Nezha was sent to rescue Huang Feihu during his escape from the Five Passes in Chapter 34, while Li Jing only showed up much later in Chapter 64, to kill a fleeing Luo Xuan after he got all of his fire-based treasures neutralized and taken away by Princess Longji.

-I will not do a full campaign-by-campaign summary of Nezha's performance in the War of Investiture proper, for this post is already long enough.

-The broadest overview: together with his senior Daoist brother Yang Jian, Nezha was one of the biggest powerhouses on the Chan/Zhou side.

-His total kill count in the novel (only counting the named/deified ones) is 15, which is actually more than Yang Jian's (12-13).

-Much like Yang Jian, he was often the one who survived lethal attacks and AOE plague spells while the others were taken out. His lotus body also made him impervious to spells and treasures that work directly on the soul, usually by pulling it out of the body.

-After suffering an injury from the Blood-melting Knife of Yu Hua/his master Yu Yuan, Nezha was given his final power-up at Taiyi's place via three cups of wine and three "fire jujubes", enabling him to transform into his Three-headed, Eight-armed Form.

-At the end of the novel, Nezha, together with Li Jing, Jinzha, Muzha, Yang Jian, Weihu and Lei Zhenzi, became "Sages in Flesh"——which I understood as "a better sort of gods/immortals that don't receive their godhood via death and deification".

-The 6+ weapons he has: Qiankun Ring, Huntian Sash, Fire-tipped Spear, Golden Brick, Wind-Fire Wheel (in its most popular "hot wheels" depiction), Yin-Yang Swords, Nine Fire Dragon Bell Cover

[quitealotofsodapop]

Who is The Mayor? Theory

Me and some guys on discord talked about a joke theory that I must share:

The Mayor is Hou Yi aka Chang'e's missing husband.

A former Celestial hunter turned mortal, forever separated from his true love due to mistakes.

Specifically, he's Hou Yi driven to desperate means after being separated from his wife and barred from the Celestial Realm.

We know that the Mayor has been alive since before the Pilgrimage and perhaps maybe even beyond. He also didn't drop dead the second LBD took away his powers, meaning that some other force was keeping him alive.

So imagine Hou Yi: left immortal and trapped on an Earth he cannot leave. He attempts to do some good with his limitless time. Becoming a loyal soldier and later Chief of War to a mortal Emperor - only to find himself disheartened by the imperial court's similarities to the one he was cast from. Then he meets an Ivory Lady that reminds him so much of his wife...

Comparison; painting of the Ivory Lady vs Chang'e as seen in a memory Tang jumps to.

Hou Yi!Mayor: "I miss my wife..." Ivory Lady/Lady Bone Demon: "Best I can do is destruction of this current world to make way for a clean slate" Hou Yi!Mayor: "...ok, that might make me feel better."

When the Mayor is cast aside by LBD during her fight with Sun Wukong, he doesn't seem betrayed by her disloyalty, not even disappointed. The greatest emotion he gives to the Monkie Kid gang is hysterical laughter combined with annoyance at being captured. Not to mention that the gang just sorta... leaves the Mayor tied up at the temple and he never appears again. What happened to him after that?

With the Lady Bone Demon's constant talk of others being pawns in her game, it would be equally amusing for her to be barely a rook on the board.

If the Mayor turns out to be the same person in S4 who stole the Scroll of Memory - Hou Yi would be somebody with person beef with the Jade Emperor.

According to some versions of "Hou Yi and the 10 Suns/Sons", the Jade Emperor/King Yao gives Hou Yi the (unclear) order to "take care" of the 10 rowdy sun gods. Hou Yi (an archer/hunter) naturally assumes that his order is to shoot them down. It's only after 9 are killed that he's stopped. After this, Hou Yi and his wife Chang'e are banished to earth. Later they obtain the Elixir/Pills of Immortality from the Queen Mother after Hou Yi slays many a celestial beast threatening the mortal realm. Chang'e then (whether accidentally or to prevent Hou Yi's student/Hou Yi himself from taking it) consumes the dosage meant for Hou Yi and is forever cast into the sky.

Imagine being Hou Yi in this situation. Betrayed not only by the Celestial Realm, but also by one of your closest companions. Forever alone because he were just following orders. You'd want to take a shot at the person most at fault for your pain. And like Hou Yi, the Mayor ends up with nothing for his loyalty.

It also continues the theme in LMK of people being separated/sealed away. Perhaps even a parellel to Princess Iron Fan and Demon Bull King. A married couple torn apart and separated for countless years.

Also I think it would be funny if perfect Cinnamon Roll Chang'e's true love turned out to be a man with the personality of a cat about to knock a glass off a counter.

[imminent-danger-came]

tbh you are so real for talking about the misogyny targeted to mei & other women in the lmk fandom. in general its like people only value mei as: a: the wingman to some basic mlm ship or b: macaque 2.0. its honestly crazy how so many male side characters overshadow her in the fanbase despite not even having a FRACTION of her screen time. idk chat i feel like the reason people dont care about mei but care about some random male side/background character is less because they're inherently more likeable but because some of you view women as inherently less likable. and everyone is always like "mei is so girlboss pussy cunt slay shes the only reason theyre still alive because she keeps them safe from their silly boy shennanigans shes their ultimate wingman shes so badass shes their lesbian best friend i totally paid attention to her when i watched this show LOL" and even ignoring the obvious misogyny here (ie. how people reduce her to being the male characters babysitter) its like... okay... i know mei is cool & badass already... could you name literally ANY other character trait she has. like people just value her as being "the braincell" who can get red son and mk together or something stupid and its like are we having fun still is this still fun. literally every day i go into the mei tag its like "look at mei shes red sons wifey and shes vaguely in the background of this drawing of red son and mk staring into each others eyes #trafficlighttrio am i right oh look shes macaques niece now this post is about ao lie why is it in the mei tag"

and thats literally JUST talking about mei and it doesnt even begin to cover the other female characters. chang'e constantly gets reduced to being red sons aunt/mom/big sister despite them like. not having any actual interactions in the show. lady bone demon constantly gets overshadowed by her minion who has like 2 seconds of screen time, or she gets made into a cartoonishly abusive madwoman who people call lady bitch demon. just in general people act like shes a horrible person for like. being a villain. liks yeah the trying to destroy everything was bad but also she was an antagonist and thats what antagonists do LOL. spider queen gets completely ignored. princess iron fan gets made into a cartoonishly abusive mother so that way red son can have a poor angsty backstory and some male character (usually nezha, macaque, swk) can take care of him.

(also theres just a great deal of ethnocentrism in the lmk fanbase? like im white so take what İ say here with a grain of salt but so many people will misconstrue aspects of chinese culture for their own personal hcs. people will say male characters are transfem or nonbinary while completely ignoring the time period/culture their from where thats the norm. like yippee youve implied that an east asian man is feminine/emasculine because he has long hair. how do you not see the negative connotations with this. people also turn pif (& lbd to an extent) into a dragon lady which obviously has negative racial connotations lol.)

anyway this is where my unhinged rambling ends have a good day have a good night İ had more to say here but İ reached the text limit. İ dont see a lot of people talk about the misogyny thats prevalent in the lmk fanbase so İm glad youre pointing it out lol.

Yeah, I totally hear you. The lmk fandom has plenty of issues with misogyny and, like you said, ethnocentrism. It's definitely something worth having a discussion about, along with these issues in fandom as a whole.

[debbeh]

can u give me a guide to the six idiots :33 like maybe with a picture of them n their names n who they play in the Big Three shows :33 pwetty peesse :33

UM YES!?

ok, you saw me earlier trying to format all the images so it's gonna be mostly my (ehhhh) descriptions of the characters and you gotta guess what they look like 😈

Ben Willbond

Yonderland:

Elder Vex (above): the one who says Deb-beh and has the coziest looking outfit I NEED IT RN PLZ and the Tom Cardy- esque hair and earring

Nick: the stick. Grumpy all the time cuz he's a stick >:(. Is also a portal between dimensions but whatevs

Horrible Histories

Mike Peabody :historical news reporter that wishes he were anywhere but here rn

King Henry, Alexander the Great: SkINy MaNdRiA, excellent hair, sniffed a guy

Ghosts

The captain: AKA James, makes a lotta noises, if you ever hear me going weeeahhhhhuuuueeeaaaaaahhhh, I'm referencing him, the gay one<3

Martha Howe-Douglas!

Yonderland!!

Debbie.

Debbie's evil twin sister (bossy boobs)

I just googled it: Rita, the Negatus simp AKA us, the demon that looks like how female animals are protrayed in Barbie movies

Horrible Histories!!!

Boudica (look up the song, it's rlly good), Cleopatra, every female historical figure

Pirate lady....<33333

Ghosts!

Lady Button (present day): Old disgruntled lady that pouts all the time and falls out of windows

Lady Button (flashback)

Mathew Baynton!!!

Yonderland!!!

Oracle: weird blue blob guy, Nigel, Darling

Nanny la roo: NUM NUMS!!!! - nanny that is also a kangaroo

Admiral Anous: Voldemort mf I hate him bc he hates Negatus>:(

Elder Choop: Croissant hair mf, says, "IDK WHY DON'T WE ASK UR MUM??"

Le Fox: French

THE BIRRDDDDD: AKA Thomas Payne, Batman but cooler

Oh yeah, and Elf: the elf shaped one, full name: Grintallin Gobscrew Crotell Fashanu F’naw Goplatz Holla-Holla, has multiple wives apparently and is in debt to the mob

Horible Histories (look all of them up, they are all hot)

Dick Turpin: play the song >:333, shot not one but two men dead!

D.I. Bones: the whakkus bonkkused

King Charles II: absolute party-er

Ghosts

Thomas Thorne, shot, dead! Absolute poetic simp for Allison, drowned himself in the lake ;( -cannot drown-

Jim Howik!!!

Yonderland

Elder Pressley: looks like Elvis, eats christmas tree ornaments

Crone: A sLaPper *wink wink*, has apparently gotten with everyone, goes eeeerrrrrrrrrrr all the time- sounds like a doorhinge, she is amazing

Neil: lhe most normal of the demons probably

Horrible Histories

A SHOUTY MAN!!! :does all the infomercials, will try to sell you piss

King George VI (above) : "oh yesss, dad's dead, I'm king..."

King Richard III: a sweet little guy<3 -according to the song, get's attacked by whasp

Ghosts

Pat Butcher: Greatest DJ in the AAARRREEEEEUHHHHH, killed by a child, AKA Pete in the American version

Larry Rickard

Yonderland

Detective Mounteback: very dumb detective with very large hat

Elder Ho Tan: trans Icon, doesn't like loud noises, absolute baby<3

Sue: above, the lady with the gun from the episode I showed you

Horrible Histories

Bob Hale: weather report, needs a hellicopter and a nice cup of tea, basically Bill Wurtz

Lol knight with shit on head, Aztec guy, George III friend who slays so hard; "ConGRatu-VerY-LaTiOns your... *MAgEsTy*"

Ghosts

Humphrey: keeps getting left on roofs and shelves, does NOT know French smh

Robin: 5,000 yo ghosts, once saw a cool butterfly, KNOWS FRENCH! Got stuck by lightning and now he can turn on lights

and finally... the moment you've been waiting for...

Simon Farnaby!!!

Yonderland!!!

Negatus<333: Silly guy try to take over Yonderland but is just a lil guy, has an evil lair, uses The Font of Orris (cauldron thing that lets you see everything) as a hot tub, get's bullied by all the other overlords, wears pjs with houses on them.

Elder Flowers!!!: Long hair and lack of shirt, vegetarian hippie of the group, wants his clothes to be veGONE, "all you need is love, brothers... oh, and food"

Horrible Histories

Emperor Caligula: the wakkus bonkkus guy

Marcus Licinius Crassus: Knockoff Bassline Junkie song

Ghosts:

Jullian!!!: Died conducting an affair with his secretary!!!, is eternally sorta drunk, does the hand thing, only ghost that can interact with stuff, makes silly EEERREREEEEE noise when he's trying to move something, his name is Trevor in the American version, sad when there's no porn on da TV ;(, has no pants BTW

Thanks for coming to my TEDTALK!!!

Lemme know if I missed anything!

[mint-is-here]

ep 5 thoughtsss part 2!!!

LADY BONE DEMON WHAT THE HECKKK

alos the mayor was there

wah

also

chang'e?? is that you???

also NEZHA??? BUDDY PAL FINALLY GOT TO SEE THE ACTUAL YOU THIS SEASON HUH

ao lie is so stupid i love him

MO

TF IS HE DOIGN THERE

damn peng is buff ,,,,a bit ,,, i guess

AO LIE DONT DIE PLS I LOVE YOU

"oh sorry, i just thoguht it was the right time to be careless" slayyy

literally, slay that guy his design is cool but he killed a lot of people and he was goign to kill you

just got reminded of "you dont use the weapon, you are the weapon!"

macque my beloved

AO LIE YOURE SO COOL

oooo mk is getting immortalitly traininggg

i thinkkkk

maybee

anyway i think we're currenlty when wukong is stuck in the celestial furnace??? timeline wise??

also wonder why the curse acted up

like theyre sort of following the book story line

wait no, ao lies comes first and then zhu bajhe(??)

so maybe thats why???

wait no htat doenst make sense

idk why the curse acted up just now actually so letme just fear for the future of the characters:,)

[legend-collection]

Onibaba

Kurozuka ("black mound") is the grave of an onibaba in Nihonmatsu, Fukushima Prefecture (previously Oodaira), Adachi District or the legend of that onibaba. It lives in Adachigahara (the name of the eastern shore of Abukuma River as well as the eastern base of Mount Adatara) and it is told in legends as the "Onibaba of Adachigahara." The Kurozuka is actually the name of the mound in which this onibaba is buried, but nowadays it can also be used to refer to the onibaba as well. Also based on this legend are the noh titled Kurozuka, the nagauta and kabuki performance Adachigahara, and the kabuki jōruri Ōshū Adachigahara.

According to the Ōshū Adachigahara Kurozuka Engi published by the temple Mayumisan Kanze-ji near Adachigahara, the legend of the onibaba is told as follows.

It was a year of fire tiger in Jinki (the year 726). A monk from the Kii Province, Tōkōbō Yūkei was journeying in Adachigahara when the sun was about to set, and requested to be allowed to stay in a cave for lodging. An old lady lived in that cave. The old lady who seemed to have kindly let in Yūkei then left the cave telling Yūkei that there was not enough firewood and she needed go outside to get some more but that during this time Yūkei must not look further in the room. However, Yūkei opened the shutter out of curiosity, and when he peeked inside, there was a mountain of human bones piled up inside. Dumbfounded by this sight, Yūkei recalled a rumor of an onibaba at Adachigahara who would kill travelers and devour their blood and meat, and he got the feeling that this old lady was the rumored onibaba, so he fled the cave.

After a while, the old lady returned to the cave and noticed Yūkei's departure, whereupon her appearance transformed into that of a fearsome onibaba and then started to give chase at a furious speed. The onibaba caught up and was right behind Yūkei. In this time of desperation, Yūkei took out his statue of Nyoirin Kan'non Bosatsu (a form of Guanyin) from his pack and started to desperately chant a sutra. As he did so, the Bosatsu statue started to dance up into the sky, forming a shining demon-slaying pure white bow and a vajra (indestructible substance) arrow that shot and slew the onibaba.

Though the onibaba lost her life, she was able to go to peace from the guidance of Buddha. Yūkei buried the onibaba in the vicinity of the Abukuma River in a place which from then on was called the "black mound" or "Kurozuka." The statue of Guanyin that led the onibaba to enlightenment was from then on called the "Shiromayumi Kan'non" ("pure white arrow Guanyin") and is said to have received deep faith afterwards.

Furthermore, though it was not in the Jinki era (the early Nara Period), Yūkei was a person who did actually exist in the Heian Period, and in publications like the Edo meisho zue, he is written about under the name of "Tōkōbō Ajari Yūkei" and is written to have died in 1163 (in the years of Chōkan).

There are certain variations on how the onibaba story played out.

From the power of the Guanyin statue, there was a thunderous roar and a lightning strike that killed the onibaba.

The onibaba was not actually killed, but was reformed by the high priest and returned to the ways of Buddha.

Yūkei desperately ran from the onibaba, and when dawn came, he was able to lose the onibaba from pursuit.

There is also a legend where Yūkei did not happen upon the onibaba by chance, but came to Adachigahara with the intent to slay the onibaba, as follows:

Yūkei received an order to exorcise the onibaba that has been assaulting travelers on Adachigahara and headed immediately towards Adachigahara. However, he was one step too late and the onibaba had fled to the north. Giving chase, Yūkei eventually caught the onibaba at Oyama (now Kakuda, Miyagi Prefecture) and slashed at the onibaba. However, the onibaba was only slightly wounded and thus fled, so Yūkei constructed a building there.

About 3 years later, a certain traveler caught sight of the onibaba, and hearing of this report, Yūkei immediately went to go slay the onibaba, and after he chased and caught the fleeing onibaba, he was able to achieve slaying the onibaba. The head of the onibaba was stored in the building that Yūkei constructed, and the body was buried at a certain hill in Oyama, and as a memorial service for the onibaba, a cherry tree was planted there.

The temple Tōkō-ji where the onibaba's head was stored later became abandoned, and the skull has been passed down along Yūkei's descendants, the Adachi family. The name of the family, Adachi, also comes from Adachigahara, and there has been none of the name Adachi that has been confirmed to be near Oyama. Also, the cherry tree that was planeted where the body was buried later was said to have grown into a splendid big tree that blooms beautiful flowers each year.

Near the aforementioned Kanze-ji, there is a jizō statue named Koigoromo Jizō and it is stated to deify a woman who was killed by the onibaba, Koigoromo. As the origin of this jizō statue, there is the following legend concerning how the onibaba was a human transformed into an onibaba.

In the past, there was a woman called Iwate who served as a nurse a kuge (aristocratic) estate in the Kyō no Miyako (capital of capital). However, the princess that she cherished had an incurable illness since birth and was unable to speak even at the age of 5.

Iwate, who doted on the princess, wanted to save the princess somehow, and believing the words of a fortune-teller who said that liver from the fetus with the womb of a pregnant woman would be effective against the disease, she left her daughter who was just born to go on a journey.

Arriving at Adachigahara in Ōshū, Iwate found lodging in a cave, and awaited for a pregnant woman to target. After long years and months, one day, a young couple requested lodging inside the cave. The woman was pregnant. Just at that moment, the woman started going into labor, and the husband went out to buy some medicine. It was the perfect opportunity.

Iwate took out a knife and assaulted the woman, slicing open her belly and took out the liver from the fetus. However, at that moment, Iwate caught sight of the protective charm that the woman had on her, giving Iwate a great surprise. It was the very same one that she left for her daughter when she left the capital. The woman she had just killed was none other than her very own daughter.

Overwhelmed by what just happened, Iwate's became mentally unhinged, and from then on was said to have assaulted travelers and suck their blood and liver, eventually becoming an onibaba that would eat human flesh.

Also, the "kuge" that Iwate served was a word used starting from the age of buke, but the Jinki era when the Heian capital has not even been built, so there is also the contradiction that in the era in which Iwate served the aristocratic family, her place of service, Kyō no Miyako, did not even exist. Also, the name "Iwate" was a made-up name from a play titled Iwate, so there is no way a person named that could have really existed. For these reasons, this legend concerning the onibaba's origins is seen as a tale that was made up afterwards as a means to try to fill in the gaps.

Also, in the Aomori Prefecture, there is a different legend concerning the origin of the onibaba:

It was the era of Emperor Shirakawa. A warrior who was a vassal to Minamoto no Yoriyoshi received a request from Yoriyoshi to sneak into the enemy territory of Mutsu, and he took along his wife named Iwa while entrusted his young daughter to a nurse as he headed towards Mutsu, but he was slain by the enemy and lost his life. Iwa couldn't bear leaving her husband behind in another land to return to her homeland, so she decided to stay right there in Mutsu. Several decades later, a traveling young couple requested lodging at the hermitage where Iwa was living. The woman was pregnant. As someone who wanted to return to her homeland but couldn't, Iwa, upon seeing how happy a couple they were and how they were about to be blessed with a child, awakened to feeling of murderous intent against them, and finally took the woman's life with a knife. However, after that Iwa found out that woman was none other than her own daughter, and after crying for all of 7 days and 7 nights, she became mentally unhinged, and became an onibaba that would assault travelers.

In a place called Asamizu in Gonohe, Sannohe District, Aomori, there is a waterfall told to have been where the onibaba would wash the knife after she killed someone, and the place called Asamizu (meaning "shallow waters") is also said to come from how those who go to Adachigahara would be killed and not see the morning after, or "Asa-mizu" (meaning "don't see morning").

It is said that near Kurozuka, Yūkei built a temple to deify Guanyin, and in present-day this is considered to be the Mayumisan Kanze-ji in the city of Nihonmatsu. In the grounds of this temple, other than a statue of the onibaba, there is also a grave for the onibaba, the cave where the onibaba lived, and the pond where the onibaba is said to have washed the blood-soaked knife, and there are many visitors to this temple. It is said that even after such a long time after the time of the legend, it continues to inspire fear and sorrow in people's hearts, and the haiku poet Masaoka Shiki also visited this temple, writing "Suzushisaya/kikeba mukashi wa/oni no tsuka" (this coolness.../if you ask, it was in the past/the mound of an oni). Also, in the womb of the Nyoirin Kan'non Bosatsu at Kanze-ji, the Nyoirin Kan'non Bosatsu statue that Yūkei used in the slaying of the onibaba is buried within, and it has been open to the public for about 60 years.

In the tourist attraction building "Adachigahara Furusato-Mura" in the city of Nihonmatsu, and other than the "Kurozuka Theatre" re-enacting the legend of the onibaba, there is also the mascot character "Bappy-chan," a deformation of the onibaba into a figure with two heads for wiping away the creepiness of the legend, among other creations. The Kurozuka Theatre uses a shōji instead of a curtain in front and behind it, and the story is told by an elaborate robot in the shape of the onibaba, and it was performed in the style of having two stages where midway through the guests would turn around 180 degrees for the performance to continue on the other side, but ever since the "Furusato-Mura" has been open to all free of charge, the Kurozaki Theatre has closed and it is now no longer possible to see it.

One of the Thirty-Six Immortals of Poetry from the Heian Period, Taira no Kanemori, wrote:

I heard that Kurozuka in the district of Natori, there were many young siblings of the Shigeyuki family, so I went there (Natori-gun Kurozuka ni Shigeyuki ga imo amata ari to kikitsukete ihitsukashi keru)

Is it really true as they say, that in Adachigahara of Mutsu, oni lurk there? (Muchioku no Adachigahara no Kurozuka ni oni komoreri to ifu ha makoto ka)

in the Shūi Wakashū, volume 9, second half. This was a love poem sent by Kanemori to the younger siblings of another of the Thirty-Six Immortals of Poetry, Minamoto no Shigeyuki, who lived at Kurozuka. To call those sisters "oni" was a joke about how young girls in the neighboring country of Mutsu were kept in seclusion as they were raised and thus hidden away to never show themselves.

It is sometimes said that the legend of the onibaba existed before the time of Kanemori, and Kanemori was simply writing a poem about that, but there is also the theory that this poem existed before the legend, and that this poem was later interpreted literally to mean that there was an onibaba living in Kurozaka, giving birth to the legend.

There is a similar legend told in Saitama, Saitama Prefecture about the legend of an "Onibaba at Kurozuka." A chorography of Musashi Province from the Edo period, the Shinpen Musashi Fudoki Kō, states that Yūkei was the one who lifted the curse of the evil oni at Kurozuka in Adachigahara in an eastern province and names him Tōkōbō, additionally stating that this was all within the aforementioned tanka by Taira no Kamemori. An inscription on a bell at the temple Tōkō-ji also says that what was once the old tomb called Kurozuka in Adachi District was the place where Yūkei defeated a suffering-inflicting yōkai with the miraculous power of Buddha. In the Kanpō period book titled Shokoku Rijin Dan, this legend was the original, and before the Shōwa period, Saitama was a more famous place owing to its greater proximity to Tokyo, so there were many who supported the view that the one from Saitama was the original. When the kabuki Kurozuka is performed, sometimes the actors would make a pilgrimage to this place.

In the beginning of the Shōwa period, there was an outbreak of controversy over which onibaba legend from was the original: the one from Adachigahara in Fukushima or the one from Adachigahara in Saitama. Here, the folkloricist Masayoshi Nishitsunoi stepped in and argued "to say that our lands was where the onibaba originated is pretty much to advertise our land as an undeveloped, savage land, so it'd be better to give up our claims" towards those on the Saitama side to convince them to give up on it, ending the debate. The Tōkō-ji that was once at Kurozuka was then moved to Ōmiya-ku in Saitama, and the place that was Kurozuka was later developed as residential lands, so there is no sight left behind to see.

In the southern part of Morioka, Iwate Prefecture at a place called Kurikawa, there is also a legend of an onibaba at Adachigahara, and the true identity of this onibaba was considered to be the daughter of the mid-Heian period general Abe no Sadato. There is a similar legend in the Uda regions of Nara Prefecture, and the Asajigahara no Onibaba from Taitō ward, Tokyo is also the same kind of legend. In the Ansei period yōkai emaki, the Tosa Obake Zōshi about Tosa Province (now Kōchi Prefecture), under the title "kijo", there is the statement, "to speak of Adachigahara, there is this."

According to a book titled Tengu Research (Tengu no Kenkyū) by the Tengu researcher Kōsai Chigiri, the "Tōkōbō" in "Tōkōbō Yūkei" comes from the name a place that served as base of the Kumano region shugen practitioners called Tōkōbō, which was the top of the Kumano springs, and as the yamabushi went around various lands in their training, they all called themselves "Tōkōbō Yūkei of Nachi," so it can be seen that all those yamabushi who called themselves Yūkei was the origin of all these onibaba legends, giving birth to onibaba and Kurozuka legends in many different parts of Japan.

There is also a theory that the aforementioned Onibaba legend of Saitama comes from a misreporting of how the shinshoku of Hikawa Shrine would cover and hide their bare faces with masks whenever they try to break their prohibition from catching and eating fish or birds.

The Onibaba has the appearance of a shriveled old woman. Some of her more distinctive features include having a disheveled, maniacal appearance, wild-looking hair, and an oversized mouth.  She is sometimes depicted with a kitchen knife or sitting with a spool of thread. She often conceals her demonic appearance in order to put visitors into a false sense of security.

The woman from whom the Onibaba originated is said to have lived in a cave or small house in Adachi-ga-hara (安達が原, lit. the moor of Adachi) and died close by, in a place called Kurozuka. There is a small museum in Adachigahara that is said to hold her remains as well as the cooking pot and knife that she used on her victims.

Onibaba has many stories behind her name.

One version of the story of the creation of the Onibaba involves the baby girl of a wealthy family in Kyoto. Although already five-years-old and otherwise healthy and happy, the child had not uttered a sound since birth. Worried and desperate, the family consulted doctor after doctor with no success until they came upon a fortune teller who told them that the cure was to feed the girl the fresh liver of a living fetus. This gruesome task was passed on to her nanny who set off on the search after leaving her own similarly aged daughter an omamori, an amulet for protection. The nanny's search for a woman willing to give up her unborn child's liver lasted for weeks and months before the nanny, tired and weary, reached Adachigahara, where she decided to stay in a cave to wait for pregnant travelers to pass by. Years passed before a lone pregnant woman approached her cave. Desperate, the nanny jumped upon the woman and retrieved the fetus' liver. Only after accomplishing her goal did she realize that the woman was wearing the omamori she had given her daughter many years ago. Driven insane by this realization, the nanny became a yōkai and from then on attacked passers-by and ate their flesh.

In another version of the story, the nanny goes on the trip because she loves the child she is nursing. In this version, the nanny has no daughter – the cure is a pregnant woman's liver instead of the fetus' liver.

There is a Noh play by the name of Kurozuka that tells the story of two priests who stop by the hut of the Onibaba in Adachi. The Onibaba, in her human form, kindly lets them in and speaks to them about her loneliness while spinning thread. Later, she leaves to gather firewood, but tells the priests not to look into the inner room of the house. Curious, the servant disobeys and the priests find that the inner room is filled with the bones and rotting corpses of people. They realize that the woman is the goblin of Adachi. As they are about to run away, the Onibaba returned, outraged, and in her demon form. They were able to escape through the power of their Buddhist prayers.

In 1964, Scriptwriter and Director Kaneto Shindō made the film Onibaba based upon an old Buddhist fable by the name of "A Mask with Flesh Scared a Wife." The fable tells the tale of a woman who, jealous of her daughter-in-law, dons a mask and tries to scare the girl and stop her from meeting her lover. The woman fails because the daughter-in-law's love is much stronger than her fear of the supposed-demon. As punishment from Buddha, the mask permanently bonds to her face.

In stark contrast to the original portrayals of the Onibaba, the Onibaba has undergone a few striking transformations. One example is that of Bappy-chan, the Onibaba mascot of the Adachigahara Furusatomura Village, a tourist destination in Japan depicting a replica of a traditional Japanese village that lies on the Onibaba's stomping grounds. Unsurprisingly, Bappy-chan has horns and fangs, sports an angry face, and is posed in a fashion as if she were about to chase after viewers. But controversially according to her original image, she is drawn in a super-deformed fashion that gives her a harmless, cute, and loveable appearance. The Village sells merchandise featuring Bappy-chan and even offers a virtual Onibaba for download on their website.

Another example of the transformation of Onibaba is the anime and manga Kurozuka. In this series the Noh story of the Onibaba is portrayed, with the Onibaba masquerading as a beautiful woman with a slender body and long dark hair and with powers similar to a vampire. The difference between the Noh story and the series is that instead of the two priests escaping, one of the men, a feudal lord, falls in love with the Onibaba in her beautiful form and is transformed into a vampire by the Onibaba and her vampiristic powers.

[ladyhindsight]

although the tsc books are a source of comfort for me since i’ve been 13, i’ve really been able to see the flaws in cc’s writing over the years.

one thing that i feel like she could have expanded on was how their education works. i know she mentioned how hodge taught the nyc kids geometry in coa, and in lady midnight the LA kids need to do “clave testing” to see if they are up to standard. however, i think it’s just odd that clave testing was never brought up in tmi. do jace, izzy, and clary even have homework? from my understanding, after hodge they didn’t even have a tutor, so how were they learning?

something else that bothered me was that new york is hub for people, so i would presume quite a few shadowhunters lived there. it’s just unrealistic to me that no shadowhunter other than the main characters seemed to be training/getting educated at the institute.

lastly, i know you’ve touched on this a bit but i just feel like it is so unrealistic that clary never ever struggled with abandoning her old, mundane life at school for the shadowhunter world. i feel like cc could have fleshed out her character so much more if she added clary’s thoughts about struggling with completely changing the direction of her life. there’s a brief mention in cohf where she’s like “how did i even get here. i thought my life would be normal, i’d go to art school,” and her only explanation to jace as to why she chose this new life is because it brought her the people she loves. as a 16 year old, clary should be able to have complex thoughts about how she has abandoned everything she knew. i feel like showing her struggle would have given cc the opportunity to expand on clary’s backstory and the people she was once close to (other than simon, jocelyn, and luke). maybe throw in a scene of her running into someone she knew at school? i don’t know. i feel like she did a much better job at showing this struggle in simon’s independent story.

bonus: i enjoy clace under the suspension of disbelief, however, what do they even have in common other than being into each other. clary likes art, manga, and anime. jace likes… weapons, books (what kind?), and classical music?? literally what do they talk about after the main conflict is over? jace literally seems to know nothing about mundane culture and i feel like that should be important when dating someone who grew up as a mundane. cc could have included scenes about jace feeling insecure that he didn’t fully understand clary’s world but i guess that would have portrayed their relationship as strained for an actual reason and not just because one of them is possessed

Admittedly there are great many things Clare could've expanded upon. They really have no real standards for education, no educational system to ensure that the Shadowhunters are reasonably educated to do their jobs and not just die. No failsafe to ensure the Shadowhunters are reasonably trained in order to upkeep the peace, the law, and slay demons. I guess part of the learning is field work, but why they are allowed to patrol on their own? Is there a training period where a tutor/a teacher accompanies the younger hunters? Hodge let Jace handle Clary on her own and he wasn't even what Shadowhunters consider adult.

It could be argued that the lack of Shadowhunters in New York, especially in the New York Institute, is because of their waining numbers and the fact that many in the city seem to live somewhere else other than the Institute that is habitated mainly by travelling Shadowhunters and the heads of the Institute (and their families). But New York is such a large city that even the Conclave being like dozen or so people seem unrealistic. What especially seems unrealistic, as you said, that there is no other young Shadowhunters getting their education, and the biggest reason I would attribute this to is the lack of world-building because City of Bones, in its infancy and thus excluding later additions and revision, didn't even do the bare minimun, nor is the educational system ever brought up or explained in later books either.

When it comes to Clary, her life seems to only begin when the story begins. Only things she recalls back on is Jocelyn, Luke, and Simon—the people that still remain in her life and unchanged. There is no random boys or girls she went to school or art classes with, nothing but the sole isolation that even to the extent that Jocelyn tried to protect Clary still seems incredibly unlikely. She never thinks back on her life and reminisce things she lost or had to leave behind when she enters the Shadow World. I agree Simon's character is better with this because he had other friends and "girlfriends" and a mundane family—all sort of a by-product of his existence so it would be weird if none of that was addresses. Clary's character was created to leave that mundane existence (or never having truly belonged to it to begin with) so Clare didn't bother to write Clary having any meaningful existence with the outside world similar to Simon.

Jace falls in love with Clary for no reason, and Clary falls in love with Jace because Jace is handsome. There is no substance ever to their relationship, and even though in QoAAD they play chess all unbothered and cool, it's so hollow. Jace (or any other Nephilim for the fact, as a baseline) knows things about mundane culture that Clare herself values—art, literature, poetry, and classical music. Hence the innumerable art references that serve nothing. It's weird to me that the relationship the Nephilim have developed to some aspects to the mundane culture is never really explained in depth because at the same time they refuse many other aspects of it, but have nothing of their own to substitute any of it.

I don't remember where or which character said that the Nephilim aren't artists and their society doesn't really courage to create art (though it doesn't really discourage it either since Clary, Jocelyn, Julian, Jace, or Jem are not looked down upon for their skills in art and music). There are many aspects so off and lacking and inconsistent in the Nephilim society, but it's really always coming down to how little Clare cared to create the world instead of using it as a fantastical backdrop to a hollow romance.

[shiroi---kumo]

Character Flaws || Accepting

Anonymous asked:

👾 - what was my muse’s childhood bogeyman?

This is going to be really horrible in the aspect of fantasy racism but the Demon Gunman and the Windarians in general were his greatest fears. The Misterican Church did an extremely thorough job of spreading hatred of the Windarian people and the Demon Gunman through the populace and getting it to the Child of White was no exception.

It was believed by the Prophecy of Tiamat that the Demon Gunman, or Lord Bahamut's vessel was known to them to be the vessel of the devil himself. (Misterican's knew Bahamut as The Dragon Lord as well). It was within this prophecy that they believed that Lord Bahamut's vessel and the vessel of Lady Tiamat (or the Child of White) would clash to decide the fate of the war that had been raging between Misterica and Windaria for Millennia, and it was also heavily believed by the Windarian people that the Demon Gunman would slay the Child of White in this battle and that Windaria would see victory once it came to pass.

The people of these two worlds hated each other and Misterica's Church only perpetuated that hatred in any possible way they could as the only Mistericans have had contact with Windaria was the Royal Family and Soldiers. Worse yet, the government is split in power between that of the Religious Council and the Royal Family so, one young Valkoinen Pilvi had to have meetings with the Piipsa, Hopea Sumu - the leader of said council, often.

It was ground into his head from the very beginning that this Demon Gunman was highly likely to kill him in battle - a battle he did not even want to take part in - and that if he were to ever meet a Windarian he needed to be on his guard and aware of his surroundings at all times because they would kill him on the spot.

It was well known because of the war, that the Windarian people were torturous with the Misterican POWs and this information was spread through the Misterican public like wildfire thus only establishing fear of them even worse. Windarians were known to have killing blows designed just for Mistericans and the delicate nature of their chests. Ways to end their lives in an instant and with the way a Misterican dies - body fading out and the lack of leaving a corpse - death was something highly terrifying to any Misterican.

Especially a young boy who had the fate of the world dropped on his shoulders.

Far as Pilvi was concerned, the Demon Gunman was a man as tall as a building with hair made of fire who used the bones of the dead as ammunition. He was a literal demon of a man, and if you stared into his gaze for too long you'd go insane.

Those were just a few of the rumors that made it back to the prince and they made it exceedingly hard to sleep at night.

[japanscoffeecup]

“Destiny has many paths, mortal..”

I HAVE HAD AN AU IDEA THAT HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY HEAD FOR FAR TOO LONG.. I PRESENT TO THEE.. Lady Bone Demon Wally!

This is a concept, he’s probably gonna go thru a ton of changes just to make him look less girl slay and more boy slay. This was screenshotted bc I got too carried away on a doodle page and made a full piece soo.. I’ma try and scramble my way outta that so I can get a better quality version— but ngl I love the tiny Home pendant/button and the dress like RAHHHHHH

[mentality-of-wukong-au]

Hey mow can we show them

The video?

Oh, sure!

Macaque: Ugghhh Wukong’s line is so cheesy…

Macaque:…

Macaque: Uh-…HUH??? Wait who’s speaking for me?!

MK:…Yeah I definitely see myself doing that…I’m bad at flirting…

Mei: Sweet! Now I have a punchline if I ever get a crush!

Red Son:…*Tsundere blush*

Sandy: Dawww that’s cute.

Mo: (Damn big guy you’d get all the ladies especially since you’re physically their type and a good man overall.)

Syntax:…

Huntsman: PFFFT HAHAH! YOU DATING?! HAHAHAH

Syntax, Shut up you oaf.

Huntsman: Hmm…

Syntax:…

Syntax: Aren’t you gay or something?

Huntsman: I don’t know am I?

Goliath: I will always protect someone!

Macaque: Lady Bone Demon?

Macaque: SERIOUSLY?! And The Mayor?! Those two don’t give a SHIT (No offense to those who simp for them)

Azure:…

Azure: Sorry, but isn’t Chang’e bound to her husband?

Azure:…

Tang: Hm…Well at least she got what she deserved.

Azure:…yep that’s a lie.

Peng: HEY HEY HEY, WHEN WAS I CHEESY?!

Yellow Tusk:…

Yellow Tusk: Slay.

[raevenlywrites]

Aiden explained his situation over ridiculously delicate tea cups. This man was supposed to be a demon – one of the first-- but he had a well appointed drawing room and fine china and an honest to god ascot.

“You know those won’t be in fashion for another several centuries?” Aiden remarked calmly, holding his tea with all the delicate poise of a fine lady. He too knew what it was like to be untethered from the flow of mortal time.

“Are you here to critique my fashion choices or beg a boon of me?” Shadriel asked lightly, unbothered as he sipped his tea.

Aiden nodded. “You’re right. Far be it for I to comment, when what I ask is so much more against the natural order than a small asynchronous bubble.”

The monastery – not yet built, let alone not yet abandoned- had been made over into something of a manor house, with thick plush rugs and thick plush chairs and wooden tables polished to a mirror-like shine. Outside, the world toiled in stick and mud, but inside, a cheery fire roared behind a delicate grate done to look like a pair of phoenixes. It made the hollow, holy places inside his Benevolent bones itch.

It was hardly noticeable over the screaming of the blood on his own hands.

“As you noted, I’ve not had much luck trying to bring Death to me. I…” He broke off, watching the rings rippled across his tea from his shaking hands. He set the cup down, drew in a deep breath, and let the story fall from him as he gazed into the middle distance.

“I am the Pale Horse the Lady rode to war on. Our old kin came down from their high places and settled that one quite nicely, except for those of us who are left to live with it. They stripped me of my name, my memories-- and then some damned faery brought them all back.”

Aiden felt his teeth crack with the force with which he clenched his jaw. Small crescents of blood opened in his palm beneath his nails.

“I don’t know how they meant to use me. I don’t care. They’re all dead, by my Benevolent hand.”

Aiden had been tethered to this world with the essence of kindness, peace, mercy. It literally went against his very holy nature to slay another, unless that ending was an act to end greater suffering. Every life he took was in pursuit of ending his own suffering, to be reunited with his beloved. But the essence of Benevolence didn’t care about his own aching heart; he had been made to serve those around him, to ease their burdens. No one came to tend to his.

So he was helping himself.

Shadriel was quite for a long moment, letting the Benevolent before him work through his grief. He could taste it in the air, like the perfume of a fine wine, delicate and layered. He could sip that grief if he wished, but it would bring him no sustenance. Only that of his own kin, demon or earthen made, would fill his empty places. But Shadriel had no such hunger within his bones. He was well off, well sated. Unlike this poor wretch before him.

“So you’re tearing yourself apart,” he said at last. “To what end? Are you trying to corrupt your uncorruptable nature, or…?” He trailed off, giving the other man room to speak.

The eyes he met Shadriel’s with were the clear blue of frozen winter skies, and just as cold.

“I am trying to bring back what is mine. Death was my lover, before the Lady War bound us both. I want him back. I deserve that much after what I’ve been through.”

NaNoWriMo Day 1

Aiden gestured to the blade protruding from his chest. “As you can see,” he said with a sort of “viola” motion, “I seem to be bad at dying. Hence…” He gestured to the pile of bodies around him.

Shadriel was unimpressed.

“I still fail to see your point,” the demon said flatly.

Aiden pulled the blade out and offered it back to the demon’s guard. The griffin took it with an unhappy sound and began dutifully cleaning it. Aiden sat down and waited for his wound to heal.

“You’re a demon,” he said bluntly. Shadriel made an equally blunt noise back, unimpressed. Aiden took of his shirt before the wound could close around the fabric. “Physicality is your specialty. I want you to fix whatever’s broken in me.”

“Whatever is broken in you,” Shad said, “is a myriad and many, and probably better suited to an Anima or Mente. You’re a serial killer.”

Aiden shrugged. “I’m seeking Death. One particular death. He keep eluding me.”

Shadriel gave an arch look that said “so I see” and “that’s fairly obvious” and “I still think you’re nucking futs.” Shadriel could say a lot with just looks.

Aiden returned a look that said nothing but held ages, too many lifetimes spent wandering, searching. Alone. Shad sighed.

“Why don’t you come in for a cup of tea and we’ll talk – assuming your innards are healed enough to hold it.”

[zuala-bear]

So... I saw this "LBD be like" plushie video on Twitter and thought of this thing-

[sketching-shark]

does sun wukong kill children?

He sure does! Well, to be fair the only act of Monkey King child-murder was actually done by all three of the pilgrims. To quote the Yu translation, this started when Sun Wukong was trying to find a way to beat the Yellow Robe Demon when he found two boys of around 9 and 10 years playing field hockey outside of the yaoguai's cave:

"As they were playing, [Sun Wukong] rushed forward and, with no regard at all for whichever family they belonged to, grabbed them by the tufts of their hair and picked them up. Terrified, the boys began to brawl and scream so loudly that the little fiends in the Current-Moon Cave ran to report to the princess, saying, 'Lady, some unknown person has carried off the two young princes.' The two boys, you see, were the sons of the princess and the monster.

When the princess heard that, she ran out of the cave, where she saw Pilgrim holding the two boys. Standing on top of a cliff, he was about to dash them to the ground below. 'Hey, you!' screamed the horrified princess. 'I have no quarrel with you. Why did you take them away? Their old man is rather mean, and if anything happens to them, he won't let you get away with it.' 'You don't recognize me?' said Pilgrim. 'I'm Pilgrim Sun Wukong, the eldest disciple of the Tang Monk. My younger brother, Sha Monk, is in your cave. You go and release him, and I'll return these boys to you; two for one, you're getting a bargain already.'"

And then after Sun Wukong, Sha Wujing, and Zhu Bajie are reunited, this is the plan the monkey king comes up with:

"'Each of you take one of these boys and go into the Precious Image City to provoke the fiend to come here, so that I can slay him.' 'Elder Brother,' said Sha Monk, 'how do you want us to provoke him?' Pilgrim said, 'The two of you should mount the clouds and stand above the Palace of the Golden Chimes. Don't bother about the consequence: just hurl the boys down to the ground before the white jade steps. If anyone asks you whose kids they are, just tell them that they are the sons of the Yellow Robe monster caught by the two of you. When the fiend hears this, he will certainly want to return here. I don't want to fight with him inside the city because our battle will scatter cloud and mist, throw up dirt and dust. The officials of the court and the city's whole populace will then be disturbed."

And so:

"We tell you now about Eight Rules and Sha Monk, who took the two boys to the Precious Image Kingdom and dashed them to the ground before the white jade steps. Alas! They were reduced to two meat patties; their bones were all crushed and blood splattered all over."

Later on in the journey Sun Wukong does save like over a thousand kids from getting killed by a king who wanted to make a medicine out of them, and I think I remember reading that based off of that the Monkey King has a reputation in some quarters for being a protector of children. But yeah, at least in the earlier days of the journey this overpowered simian had 0 problems in killing heavenly soldiers, human bandits, and children alike if these deaths furthered his goals. It's one of the reasons who some people have called Sun Wukong Journey to the West's first actual villain.

[starlightcleric]

What Flavor is Your Soul?

Saw Seren do this quiz again for her Pathfinder ladies and decided to do it for mine too :3

picrew here

Lorraine Summerglen, Mythic Angel

rosemary

ah, the old soul, nice to meet again. the time of ages is etched into your bones, you see clearly. you've watched the heartache in this realm and sworn to solve it. but kindness without limits is self destruction. oh little leaf, strong and wise, you seek to bring peace with your presence. I'd be wrong to say you fail at this effort, but you mustn't set yourself on fire to keep others warm. you wish to please everyone, to protect them all. but if you shield the saplings from the sunlight they will never grow, and you one day will wither. protect yourself too. you know there are no happy heroes, so don't be one. be a friend. your loved ones will not forsake you for not being perseus slaying all their demons. you have your own monsters, why not meet them first before you conquer anyone else's nightmares. oh true-hearted paladin you are brave, and you are good enough. you know that right? be true to yourself, one cannot do anything saintly if they did not tend to their own wounds first.

Poetry, Mythic Trickster

mint

oh spry little dryad, spinning sprite, you drift through life as light as lion down. you are the chimes of churchbells and the laughter of faeries. gossamer and spidersilk shine from your ribs. life is fleeting, you more than anyone should know that. something we love today may never see tomorrow's sun. you pride yourself on skipping through moments, soft and merry. but you do not let your soul be tethered. is it for freedom or fear, sweetheart, that you do not let yourself be tamed? you are as fresh as and wild as bluebirds in snow, you smile at your problems before dashing away. hoping they will never catch up to you. but even nike can't run forever. you have been hurt before. but that is life. you wish to never feel that way again, but regretfully I must tell you that is nothing short of impossible. life is but part sorrow part sun, you cannot have teacups until they are burned by the kiln. oh I see the scars child, they shimmer down your chest, I see the pain in your eyes. but I also see the stardust. keep smiling, but allow tears also. you do not have to be solely wonder, fear, you are allowed to be bitter. so bite, and scream, and laugh, and love. that is what makes life worth living.

Ophelia Negrescu, Mythic Aeon

lavender

oh moon child, restless sleeper, tell me what it's like to dream? you float along the margins of reality, picking up the pieces of fallen memories to sculpt into your own realm. you are searching, but your tongue is quiet, quiet, quiet. open your mouth and sing my dear, silence only does you good for so long. and here you planted roots in the darkness, where not even the moon can reach your leaves. there is such a thing as being too practical, for you sail your ship on perpetually calm waters, and never have you spotted land. your mind has wings, uncage them! allow yourself to dream, you are not too far gone. there is no such thing! trust in yourself dear.

Layla Aldori, Mythic Demon

salt

ah little kraken, bold are you. restless sailor, dauntless fighter, lower your sword, let me see your shield. ah, of course, they are but the same object. oh wave-tossed ruffian, lend me some of your mettle would you? you have been struck by the sharpest of spears yet you still stand here proudly. but off your guard, elsewhere of the battlefield, you will find your spirit can parch others. your words are but weapons crafted from your soul. little lion, sheathe your claws, or the ones you love the most will suffer. you do not have to be strong all the time love, there's nothing wrong with being soft. vulnerability is not weakness, and if it were, what's wrong with that? strength is not always your greatest tool, your heart is good. put down excalibur, and use your words. you'll find they will carry you much farther. not everything in life is a battle.

[jenny-bridget-writes]

The Dragon Who Doesn’t Want to Keep the Princess Locked Up In His Tower

Arkhon the Great Unknowable Wyrm Beneath the Mountains Great and Vast, Vast as His Hoard of Gold Upon Which He, Arkhon the Great Unknowable Wyrm, Slumbers, was an average ordinary dragon. He was an introvert, preferring the company of his libraries and his piles of treasure to that of humans or other dragons. He had a wicked look, with glimmering blood red scales and a pair of jagged horns atop his head. His lungs could shoot gouts of liquid flame from the top of his mountain keep all the way down to the forests below.

Except for one thing. Arkhon had a burden. A loathsome, pink-clad, eighteen-year-old burden.

A regal young lady with eyes of emerald green and skin of almond brown. Hair like waves of dark water spilling forth from… something or other. She was a human, a mere hors d'oeuvre by size, and just as short-lived in the face of the Unknowable Wyrm. Princess Jahanara from the kingdom of Quambley had been imprisoned in the tower above his cavernous lair. He didn’t know why, but someone had paid him a hefty sum of gold to keep her locked in the tower. With his eyes full of gold and his brain full of wonder at all the shinies he could collect, he agreed to the deal without quite thinking it through. After all, how hard could it be to keep track of one human? All she could possibly need was water and sunlight. Or was it food and water? Maybe still some sunlight? 

But then came the whining. Every day without fail, Princess Jahanara would sit by her window, singing woeful songs, reciting -mediocre- poetry that she must have written herself, or just thinking out loud as hard as her singular brain cell would permit. By the gods, princesses were just as bad as princes in that respect!

“Oh how I long for a brave knight to rescue me from this tower and sweep me off my feet!” she said, “Oh how I wish someone would slay this beastly dragon and free me from this prison!”

“Have you tried sending a carrier pigeon?” Arkhon asked in reply, his voice a bone-shaking bass, “They can travel farther than your voice. And they’re wonderfully silent.”

“You don’t understand me!” Jahanara shouted, “Nobody does! Not you, not my parents! And not that damned vizier!”

“Is that why nobody’s come for you?” Arkhon said with a taunting flick of his head, “Because of your insufferable personality?”

“They will come!” Jahanara stamped her foot. “Knights from all corners of the globe! … Eventually. Look! There’s one now!”

Arkhon looked down the mountain. At the gate of his keep stood a knight in shining steel astride his faithful steed. He had no helmet, and instead let his long blonde hair blow in the cold breeze.

“Hie, foul devil! Hateable demon! Beastly worm!”

“It’s Wyrm, you amateur,” Arkhon said with a growl.

“Belial, Behemoth, Beelzebub! Asmodeus, Satanas, Lucifer!”

“Arkhon,” Arkhon corrected him, “What are those names?”

“I come to slay thee, beastly beast!”

“Are you even listening to me?”

“Your intimidation shall not stay me, Archimedes! I come seeking the hand of the fair Princess Jasmina!”

Arkhon raised a scaled eyebrow. “Oh… Oh honey, your princess is in another castle. I’m keeping Princess Jahanara, and she’s more dark-complected than fair.”

The knight shrugged. “That will do. Nonetheless, I must slay you, beastly beast of beastfulness!”

“Why do you keep calling me beastly?” asked Arkhon, “I’m certainly more well-read than you, you country bumpkin-looking child.”

“You are a foul beast!-”

Arkhon leaned down toward the knight, so close his nose almost touched him. The knight’s horse reared back and fled.

“You will be more creative with your vocabulary, young man,” demanded Arkhon, “Call me beast one more time and I shall crush you with my pinky claw.”

The knight, sufficiently frightened, continued his stupid little speech. “You are a foul bea-… um… devil! And it is my duty as a knight to vanquish you and free fair lady Jonathan!”

Arkhon’s eyes grew distant as the pieces of the puzzle finally clicked together for him.

“I’m not a character,” he said, “I’m a roadblock. An obstacle for a young, hot hero to overcome. Is that why a princess was locked in my tower? So some sniveling brat like you can prove themselves by murdering me?”

“That’s,” the knight said, “that’s sort of the idea, yes.”

“Well, I’ll have no part in your foolish games. You want the princess? You can have her. Frankly, you two seem perfect for each other.”

“Hiya!”

Suddenly, Arkhon felt a sharp pain in his foot, like he’d been stung by some sort of insect. He looked down and saw the knight trying to pull his embedded sword out of the dragon’s foot.

“Ow!” Arkhon cried. He reflexively brought his foot up and stomped down on the knight, as if swatting a mosquito. He took the longsword between two claws and pulled it out. Princess Jahanara wept as Arkhon picked the oozing pieces of the knights body out of the cracks in his scales. “Terribly sorry, child. I sincerely didn’t mean to do that.” He covered the body as best he could with a handful of rocks, and stuck the sword into it as a sort of grave marker. The poor child was foolish, but he deserved some dignity in death.

-------------

Another long week passed. Arkhon kept the princess fed with meals of mainly roasted meat. Every day she’d protest, saying “I’m a vegetarian! My faith doesn’t permit me to eat this meat!” But she eventually caved. Arkhon felt bad for making her break her religious vows, but he was no chef. Nothing grew this high up in the mountains! His hands were too large to work a stove or boiling pot! He had no way to feed her fruits and vegetables, and he certainly didn’t want the poor girl to starve!

But another week passed, and the girl was still alive. Arkhon slunk up alongside the tower one day and peered through the open window.

“Princess?” he asked carefully, “May I ask why you are here?”

At first, the princess seemed in no mood to talk. She was curled up in her bed, with her knees drawn to her chest and her head hung low. Her curly hair stuck out in all directions. She didn’t sing, or recite poetry. She didn’t even whine anymore.

“I’m here,” she said finally, “Because I refused to choose a suitor.”

“You used to sing every day about wishing to be rescued by a brave knight,” Arkhon said, “And yet you tell me now that you refused to choose a suitor?”

“Men and women from the four corners of the globe sought my hand,” Jahanara said.

“Actually, a globe has no corners… nevermind… continue.”

“But they were all twice my age! Middle-aged women and men with gray beards! I didn’t want to marry and become a trophy in some duchess or viscount’s bed! I want to sing! I want to travel the world and sing of its many beauties!” She blushed a little. “And… meet its many beauties.”

“Why not just run away, then?” asked Arkhon.

“My parents would not hear of it,” Jahanara said, “Instead of choosing a suitor, they had me imprisoned here. Then, whoever slayed you and ��won’ me would be worthy of my hand. I’d fall in love with them for their good deed of rescuing me. And it would have worked, too! I would have been enthralled by my savior for at least two months! More than enough time to entrap me in an unbreakable marriage!”

Arkhon paused for a moment. “I… understand how you feel, Princess. I too have never chosen a mate. I’ve never seen a need to. And I-”

Suddenly, something tapped the side of Arkhon’s head. He looked down toward the castle’s gate. A helmeted knight slung a bow over their back. Their armor was unpolished and smeared with dirt. They said nothing as they approached the gate.

Arkhon leapt from the tower, landing with an earth-shaking thud at the gate.

“Her Highness is not seeking any suitors right now,” he hissed, “Leave if you wish to keep your head on your shoulders.”

The knight said nothing. They looked up at the dragon through the shadowed slits of their helmet… and bolted for the gate! Arkhon swung his heavy claw down, but the knight pulled their sword off their back at just the right moment to deflect it. Arkhon stumbled. He stumbled! That was certainly new. The knight ran onto the stairs that wound up the side of the keep and into the tower. Arkhon tried to smash the knight against the wall, but they were too nimble, and leapt between his great fingers. He spread his wings and rose into the air to get a better shot at them. He opened his mouth, and felt his fire breath mixing in the back of his throat. Like bile and saliva gargling together. A stream of liquid flame spewed forth from his mouth. The knight raised their shield, covering most of their body. The flames stuck to the wall and the shield, which the knight had to discard after getting some of the sticky flame on their gauntlet. They were almost to the tower. Once they got inside the door, there would be nothing Arkhon could do. It was nothing but a well-protected spiral staircase all the way up to her.

The knight stopped at the door. It was locked. Aha! Arkhon had them now! He gargled another glob of fire breath. Right as he let fly his blazing saliva, the knight moved out of the way of the door, letting the fire breath break it down for them.

“NO!” Arkhon roared. He had failed to protect the princess. He soared up to the top of the tower, where Jahanara had been watching the whole fight. “Princess, I’m sorry. I have failed you. The knight! The suitor! They’re coming up the stairs!”

“You let one get through?!” Jahanara gasped. She paced around the room. “Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no. They’ll send me back to the castle. I’ll never see freedom again! My life is over before it’s even begun!” She sank to her knees and began to sob.

Just then, there came a banging at the door. Jahanara grabbed the most weapon-like object she could find: the fork that she used to eat her heretical meats.

“Oh, the key’s right there,” came a voice from the other side of the door. The knight threw open the wooden door and raised their sword to the window where Arkhon was. Jahanara stepped in front of the knight.

“Stop!” she cried, “Stop right there!”

“Woah, woah!” The knight sheathed their sword, “Princess, I’m here to rescue you!” The knight took off their helmet, revealing a long braid of auburn hair. The knight was in fact a woman. Her tanned face was lightly dusted with freckles. A scar split her left eyebrow in two.

Jahanara faltered for a moment. Arkhon saw the enamoration on her face. But she held up her fork again. “I’m not going back to my kingdom.”

The knight shrugged, still holding her hands up in surrender, “Uh, okay. Can you offer me some sort of compensation? I’m getting paid a lot of money to rescue you, but I’d happily drop you off at the port if the big guy can spare some gold from his hoard.”

Arkhon and Jahanara both looked this woman up and down. Her armor was not of this region. In fact, is was a mismatched monster of different pieces. A samurai’s lacquered shoulder pauldrons, a knight’s steel breastplate, the leather greaves and bracers of some pit gladiator. Was this…?

“Are you… an adventurer?” asked Jahanara.

“I prefer ‘hired help’ when working with royals,” the adventurer said, “But yeah, I’m an adventurer.”

The fork clattered to the ground.

“Do you…” Jahanara stammered, “Would you, perhaps… need someone to… um… sing, um… of your exploits?”

“Sure, that’d be nice,” the adventurer said, her cheeks turning a touch red, “I’ve never had anyone sing about me before. But I also want money.” She looked to Arkhon. “Hey, you’re Arkhon, right? Arkhon the Great Unknowable Wyrm Beneath the Mountains Great and Vast, Vast as His Hoard of Gold Upon Which He, Arkhon the Great Unknowable Wyrm, Slumbers? That’s you?”

Arkhon was absolutely smitten. If Jahanara was his to give, he would give her to this adventurer right away.

“You know my whole name,” he remarked.

“Know your enemy,” the adventurer replied with a wink.

Jahanara stumbled back as if struck by an arrow. She and Arkhon exchanged a look.

“Yes,” Arkhon said, “Oh, yes… you’ll get a portion of gold, my dear. Just enough to set you on your way, pay for a new shield, and a nice dinner at the port.”

The adventurer gave Arkhon a thumbs-up. “Sounds good to me!”

Arkhon held up a claw. “You can start toward my hoard. I’d like a word with my prisoner.”

The adventurer shrugged again. “Okay.” She headed for the door, but turned quickly before leaving. “Don’t. Kill. Her.” Jahanara nearly fainted. The door remained open as the adventurer made her way down the stairs.

Jahanara went to the window where Arkon peered in. She placed a hand on his scaly skin. “Thank you for protecting me.” She gave him a quick kiss on his snout.

Arkhon smiled. He himself didn’t wish for such things as romance, but seeing it in other people brought such light into his otherwise dark and miserly life. “Thank you,” he told Jahanara, “for being my prisoner.”