#like it's not reverence of a God

[xstarlightxstarbrightx]

thoughts on how the Liyue Archon quest went [5]

Bolai: so what kinda silk flowers u guys want Paimon: uh. the good kind? Bolai: Zhongli: lists the flowers Bolai: oh i see, u three must be this fine gentlemen's servants then! please refrain from contributing further! Kaeya: Lumi: ???? bro. Bolai: anyway!

i love how, immediately after, Zhongli just,,, yaps about flowers. he's so silly, and he yaps so much. and also Kaeya and Lumine are just like "oh,,, he's so knowledgeable,,,, and also his voice pretty,,,,,,,,"

and then immediately it's followed up with "oh do you have any mora to pay for these flowers?"

anyway, the Traveler Trio go off to get the flowers turned into perfume after the whole thing, while Zhongli goes and waits by the Statue of the Seven. while i am focusing mainly on Lumine and Kaeya rn, i do think that currently, Zhongli's just,,, burdened by such a heavy weight? he's probably still thinking about this decision he's made, and is probably consistently thinking of the outcome it'll have. he's a God of Contracts currently thinking heavily about this Big Ass Contract(tm) that he's got rn. so it makes sense that he kinda just,,, stops to stare at this Statue of his Divinity.

meanwhile, with the Traveler Trio goes off to like,,, talk to women abt perfume.

Paimon: [in reference to some NPC i forgot] Paimon remembers she smells pretty good! Lumi: Lumi: we barely spoke to her when we first arrived here, why are you SNIFFING PEOPLE, PAIMON Kaeya: even by Lumi's standards, that's weird.

anyway, Lumine gets a Weird Vibe(tm) from Ying'er and Kaeya, meanwhile, is personally very concerned and disturbed by the,,, innuendos that Ying'er uses when chatting with them.

on the way back to Zhongli, I like to imagine that Lumi tells Kaeya about her theory while Paimon is charging ahead. she's incredibly adamant about him being the Geo Archon, but Kaeya's not convinced. the current belief he holds is that Zhongli is more likely an adeptus of some kind—because Zhongli's DEFINITELY not human. but the God of Commerce not knowing about Mora??? pleaaaase.

and while Lumi's like 100% sure, Kaeya makes the joke that 'maybe Zhongli was just a simp for Rex Lapis before he died or something, lmao'.

and then they walk in on Zhongli staring at the Statue and kind of being Zoned Out(tm) and Kaeya's just like "hmmmmmmmmmmm"

[dykealloy]

this will never not be hilarious to me

[artiquar]

father and son

[y-rhywbeth2]

Watching Gortash and his decidedly un-Banite desires to have his authority questioned, valuing and desiring the esteem of another, wanting the Child of Bhaal to step on him: having my Durge rub their bloody little hands over him while looking Bane dead in the eye as they - the barely-divine progeny of his inferior/subordinate - taint his investment/property with disloyal desires and feelings:

Does This Bother You, Lord Bane?

[stuckinapril]

No shade to Jeremy Allen White or Jacob Elordi but I’m genuinely tired of the media trying to tell me that average looking white men are the hottest thing since sliced bread

[backpackingspace]

I mm. I don't really like the last song of the vengeance saga. I know it makes sense narritive wise that odysseus would 1. Beat posiden and 2. Torture him into giving in. But like the way that yanked me out of the story? Because a mortal? Beat? Posiden? I just. Not a fan.

That being said there ARE some absolutely banger lines. 'How do you sleep at night?' 'Next to my wife' I DIED. That's such a good line. And the way posiden slowly goes from the ruthlessness is mercy to mercy ??? I'm going insane!

[i-mybrunettelady]

it is an ancient ascalonian belief that lighting candles invites the favor of the gods. in every proper home of the ascalonian rites, one is lit for each of the six; as long as it burns, there is hope for that home and for ascalon. candles also invite the spirits of long gone warriors to protect and inspire ; for world is loss and grief, and faith and hope, as balthazar's scriptures teach us. so take heart, o' heretical daughter of ascalon, o' vain godkiller, and rejoin the war eternal. light a candle for those you've lost; say your prayers to the gods you still believe in. and say a prayer to yourself, as you know that death is not the end, but the end of the beginning. did your little adventure to the domain of the lost teach you nothing, after all?

[curiositymemes]

STICK SEASON: WE'LL ALL BE HERE FOREVER.

taken from the 2023 album by noah kahan. trigger warnings for mental illness, trauma, medication, references to suicide, and the exquisite agony of life in rural new england. feel free to change wording and pronouns and provide context as necessary. do not add to this list.

northern attitude.

how you been? 

you settled down?

you feelin’ right? 

you feelin’ proud?

you settle in to routine.

what does it mean? 

i’m not how you hoped.

you’re gettin’ lost.

scared to live, scared to die. 

you’re feelin’ lost.

stick season.

you must’ve had yourself a change of heart.

now i am stuck between my anger and the blame that i can’t face.

it’s half my fault, but i just like to play the victim. 

i’ll dream each night of some version of you that i might not have but i did not lose. 

i thought that if i piled something good on all my bad i could cancel out the darkness i inherited from dad. 

i miss the way you laugh.

you once called me forever now you still can’t call me back.

that’ll have to do.

my other half was you.

i hope this pain’s just passin’ through, but i doubt it. 

all my love.

how have things been?

well, love, now that you mention it.

i’m sayin’ too much, but you know how it gets out here.

now i know your name, but not who you are.

it’s all okay, there ain’t a drop of bad blood.

you got all my love.

if you need me, dear, i’m the same as i was.

what i’d give to have you out of me.

i still recall how the leather in your car feels.

and at the end of it all, i just hope that your scars heal.

i swear i was scared to death.

i smiled stupid the whole way home.

you said, ‘i’ll never let you go.’

she calls me back.

there was heaven in your eyes. 

everything’s alright.

look at me and don’t you lie.

don’t you hold your head up high.

for bullshit, i do not have time.

do you lie awake restless?

why am i so obsessive?

this town’s the same as you left it.

the radio is taunting me.

i don’t get much sleep most nights.

i’m seeing you in every dream.

if only i could fall asleep. 

i’ll love you when the oceans dry. 

i was too afraid of living life in your footsteps.

come over.

it was there when we got here, will be there when we leave.

you won’t have to guess who they’re speakin’ about.

i’m in the process of clearin’ out cobwebs. 

i was takin’ the wrong meds; feels good to be sad.

my house is just barely big enough for my family.

my mouth was designed for my foot to fit in it.

i promise you, darlin’.

you won’t ever go back.

i know that it ain’t much.

i know that it ain’t cool.

you don’t have to tell the other kids at school.

someday i’m gonna be somebody people want.

new perspective.

makin’ me nostalgic.

we were kids; but that don’t make this less hard.

if i could fly i doubt i’d even do it. 

i’d probably get high and crash or somethin’ stupid.

gave me your word.

i can’t pronounce it.

no thing so sure that i can’t learn to doubt it.

everywhere, everything.

would we survive in a horror movie?

we trust everyone we meet.

we’re littered with scars from our preteens.

i wanna love you ‘til we’re food for the worms to eat.

‘til our fingers decompose, keep my hand in yours. 

i know every route in this county.

maybe that ain’t such a bad thing.

i’ll tell you where not to speed.

it’s been a long year.

orange juice.

honey, come over.

it’s yours if you want it.

we’re just glad you could visit. 

feels like i’ve been ready for you to come home for so long.

i didn’t think to ask you where you’d gone. 

why’d you go?

my heart has changed and my soul has changed.

you just asked me to hold you.

it made you a stranger and it filled you with anger.

my life has changed.

the world has changed.

don’t you find it strange that you just went ahead and carried on?

are we all just pullin’ you down?

strawberry wine.

darling, speak to me.

don’t you say a word.

you thought you were cursed?

i’m in love with every song you’ve ever heard.

if i could lose you, i would.

all the time we used to have.

the things i miss but know are never coming back. 

no thing defines a man like love that makes him soft.

growing sideways.

finally found some middle ground.

i said, ‘i’m cured.’

i divvied up my anger into thirty separate parts.

i’m still angry at my parents for what their parents did to them.

it’s a start.

but i ignore things and i move sideways ‘til i forget what i felt in the first place.

i know there are worse ways to stay alive.

everyone’s growing and everyone’s healthy.

if my engine works perfect on empty, i guess i’ll drive. 

i forgot my medication, fell into a manic high.

now i’m sufferin’ in style.

why is pain so damn impatient? ain’t like it’s got a place to be.

if all my time was wasted, i don’t mind. 

i’ll watch it go.

it’s better to die numb than feel it all.

halloween.

the dawn isn’t here, the sun hasn’t rose.

they got money to make and children back home.

i worry for you, you worry for me.

the bridges have long since been burnt. 

i’m leavin’ this town and i’m changin’ my address.

i know that you’ll come if you want.

i’m losin’ myself.

i’m seein’ my life on a screen.

i know that you fear that i’m wicked and weary.

i know that you’re fearin’ the end. 

i only tell the truth when i’m sure that i’m lyin’. 

homesick.

are you bored yet?

the weather ain’t been bad if you’re into masochistic bullshit.

this place is such great motivation for anyone tryna move the fuck away from hibernation. 

time moves so damn slow i swear i feel my organs failing.

i stopped caring ‘bout a month ago, since then it’s been smooth sailing. 

i would leave if only i could find a reason. 

i got dreams, but i cant make myself believe them. 

i’ll spend the rest of my life with what could have been. 

i will die in the house that i grew up in.

i’m homesick. 

still.

i don’t wanna say goodbye.

it only falls into place when you’re fallin’ to pieces.

you miss something that you can’t place but you can’t deny it. 

you can’t stay here.

it’s hard to face and it feels too ugly.

it’s like i’m still here with you. 

can i fix what is broken?

the view between villages (extended). 

for a minute, the world seems so simple.

i am not scared of death.

i’ve got dreams again.

there is meanin’ on earth. 

i feel so far from it.

it’s all washin’ over me. 

i’m angry again. 

the things that i lost here, the people i knew.

they got me surrounded for a mile or two. 

i found a town big enough for anything i want.

i’m not a city girl, by any means.

it still has a lot of meaning to me.

i grew up there. 

your needs, my needs.

you ain’t gotta tell me what it means.

i promise to be there this time. alright? 

you were a work of art.

that’s the hardest part.

i’m naming the stars in the sky after you.

dial drunk.

i promised to forget you.

i ain’t takin’ any fault.

am i half the man i used to be? i doubt it.

forget about it, whatever.

it’s all the same anyways.

i ain’t proud of all the punches that i’ve thrown. 

for the shame of being young, drunk, and alone.

i gave your name as my emergency phone call.

i’d die for you.

from charmin’ to alarmin’ in seconds.

i’ll let the pain metastasize.

i beg you, sir, just let me call.

let’s wait, i swear she’ll call me back.

son, are you a danger to yourself?

fuck that, sir.

son, why do you do this to yourself?

paul revere.

this place had a heartbeat in its day.

nothin’ was the same.

it just ain’t that simple, it never was.

one day i’m gonna cut it clear.

i’m not from around here.

i’ll leave before the road crew’s out. 

i’ll turn up the music and i’ll forget.

i’m not ready to let go yet.

i’ll just pretend i didn’t hear.

it’s typical, i fear.

folks just disappear.

if i could leave, i would’ve already left.

no complaints.

i thought i had something and that’s the same as having something.

i get mad at nothing.

i pull no punches, then feel bad for months.

thought i was raised better, tried to fake better.

now the weight of the world ain’t so bad.

i saw the end, it looks just like the middle.

i filled the hole in my head with prescription medication.

who am i to complain?

now the pain’s different. It still exists, it just escapes different.

yes, i’m young and living dreams.

i’m in love with being noticed and afraid of being seen.

call your mom.

oh, you’re spiralin’ again.

don’t you cancel any plans.

stayed on the line with you the entire night ‘til you let it out and let it in.

don’t let this darkness fool you.

i’ll drive all night.

i’ll call your mom.

oh, dear, don’t be discouraged.

i’ve been exactly where you are.

if you could see yourself like this.

you’dve never tried it.

stayed on the line with you the entire night ‘til you told me that you had to go.

throw a punch, fall in love, give yourself a reason.

don’t wanna drive another mile wonderin’ if you’re breathin’.

won’t you stay with me?

you’re gonna go far. 

this is good land, or at least it was.

it takes a strong hand and a sound mind.

it makes me smile to know when things get hard, you’ll be far from here.

pack up your car.

put a hand to your heart.

say whatever you feel.

be wherever you are.

we ain’t angry at you, love. 

you’re the greatest thing we’ve lost.

the birds will still sing.

we’ll be waiting for you, love.

we’ll all be here forever.

we spent so long just getting by.

that’s the thing about survival; who the hell likes livin’ just to die?

you told me you would make a difference.

it won’t be by your own volition if you step foot outside this town.

it’s all we’ve had for always.

you’re gonna go far.

if you wanna go far, then you gotta go far.

forever.

let’s drive for no reason.

you look fine in the evening.

honey, it’s starting to storm.

used to wish i meant anything to anywhere, to anyone.

i’m glad i get forever to see where you end.

i won’t be alone for the rest of my life.

i’ll meet a girl in the heat of july.

i’ll tell her so she knows.

i’m broke, but i’m real rich in my head.

when i hold her close, i might loosen my grip, but i won’t ever let her go.

[gay-artificer]

I was talking a bit about this but I think part of the reason iterators are designed as these small little doll-like puppets is both to humanize and dehumanize them by the Ancients. The puppet, at is core, is a means for communication with a great biological machine- to give it a face and features and ground it as you ask its advice or it's progress. This massive, world-altering creation simplified down to this little thing that had all the features of a person. But its also small, cute, Ancient-like but clearly not an Ancient itself. They're colorful and simple, like a toy for children. And I think thats largely how Ancients saw them- often not as a person with desires and opinions but as an extension of the Ancient's work, a personalized character that represented their cities and people, whos citizens could like them and were comprehensible to their children, but was not them- and would not reap the reward of being them when a solution was found. Each one pretty and unique to make them individuals, but not seen- truly- as individuals by many- just as parts of their cities, something under the Ancients. Like if every town had its own personal My Little Pony they could ask advice on where the next community center should be built.

[fxvixen]

the audacity of Xie Lian in the first book to say "I'm afraid you don't know how to paint the Prince of Xianle, am I right?"

Hua Cheng had to have been thinking ".................while you were scrap-collecting, I studied the blade brush"

[bunnihearted]

ཐི ₍ᐢ. ̞.ᐢ₎ ཋྀ

[sinfulsunni]

anyyywayyysss. totally unrelated to any previous posts or potential current WIPs (lie) I have a headcanon that izzy is like. ridiculously loud during sex. and I don’t just mean like, moaning and whimpering (which he does do) but like,,, have you heard how much that man swears? and how LOUD he can swear?? his unchallenged yelling prowess? you can NOT tell me that my man wouldn’t be the most noisy ass bottom alive in bed but in like the most aggressive way possible. if it almost sounds like he’s angry with you then you’re doing it right. just raging lustful screaming echoing for ten miles in every direction like “FUUUCKKKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK OH FUCKING SHIT - NGH - FUCK - DADDY - FUCK - JESUS FUCKING BALLS FUCKING HELL ED. 💖EDDIE ED EDEDEDDIEOHEDFUCK - NGHHH SHIT - AH-” etc etc you get the picture. the crew of the queen anne have never known a full nights sleep in their entire lives.

[itissadbutitsmy-artblog]

truly and literally obsessed with how advtime civilizations see their ancient founders as glowing angels

[overly-hubristic-mad-scientist]

One thing about Dr. Daniel Cain is that he’s gonna be positively shit at his job

[blazingstar24]

What is the most interesting is that this story was buried. This version, this truth of history wasn’t the one told. Not even a half truth of this, like the Betrayers got a hold of the weapon so the Primes had to strike the city down. Not even something like that.

The version that is told and written about is one that shows of the might and wrath of the gods. Painting the Aeorians as this monolith of evil hubristic mages. When none of that is the truth. There are half truths in it, the gods were mighty and were wrathful that day. There were shitty evil mages in Aeor and yeah the city sucked ass. But not one word is written about the way the Everlight and the Dawnfather tried to find another way. Not one word is written about Cassida and her group who were only trying to help, who risked their lives by being faithful in a city that kills you for that. Not one word about Aeor consisting of refugees who had no clue about the Factorum. The idea that both the gods and Aeor were more than just good guys and bad guys, more complex than that is lost.

Why? There was nothing preventing them from telling this tale. Nothing except the gods’ self-imposed needed projection of themselves. The very thing both Cassida and the celestials call them out on. Brennan in cooldown points out the hypocrisy of the gods telling them that they are these ineffable beings and they can never hope to understand them and their ways. And yet also coming to them and asking to be understood as a person who just loves their sibling, as someone who doesn’t have the guts to pull the trigger. Because you can’t have it both ways. They cannot flip flop on being human and still claiming to be so far above them the mortals can’t understand them.

Because yeah this story does make them sympathetic. It also shows off their worst sides too. So why isn’t this story the one told? Because it makes them human, it makes them just as flawed the children they claim to be so far above. And they don’t want to be seen that way. They can’t be vulnerable and they can’t commit to just being an avatar of a domain. So of course this story stayed buried. Of course the history books erase both the gods’ humanity and Aeor’s humanity.

Because as much as the gods claim to be these unknowable complex beings, as much as they protested against the line of good and evil, they very much want the world to be that way. They want the world to be black and white by their standards so they don’t have to deal with the complexities of it all. They want to be just one happy family again. But Asmodeus is right, they can’t go back to that time. But they want to, everything was easier. And it’s why they impose that onto the mortals, onto the celestials. “Ignorance is bliss”. Make them good. It hurts to deal with a world that isn’t black and white.

So why not give them the story without the complexities? They think they are sparing the mortals of the pain of learning the world isn’t black and white but they aren’t. What they are doing is robbing them of the tools to come to terms with that and figure out where they stand. So when the mortals do have to grapple with it all, it results in black and white solutions to the gray. It results in “we made this weapon to kill the Betrayers, to help you.” It results in Ludinus and Predathos and the solution of killing the gods.

[disasterbiwriter]

I know we've all experienced the "I want someone to write the fanfic I want to read and I don't want it to be me" phenomenon, but it feels extra pathetic when it's a fic from your VERY SPECIFIC AU/canon.