#lord dianite

[grailknightmonty]

misc arts from the past few days, ft. mumbo's forest, courtroom ethubs (cant wait for etho to start flirtin with the judge) sausage shenanigans and a wholesome moment from Mianite RPG this past weekend C:

[coolcattime]

Safety [Mianite Oneshot]

Relationships: Captain Capsize/Lady Ianite

Characters: Captain Capsize, Lady Ianite, Lord Dianite, Skipper Redbeard, Jordan Captainsparklez, Tucker Jericho, Tom Syndicate, Sonja Firefoxx, Lord Mianite

After so long of being imprisoned in the Nether, cold air feels like heaven to Capsize. It’s such an overwhelming relief that it takes her minutes to even consider the implications of feeling it.

When she finally does, she opens her eyes to find herself in a cage floating in the sky somewhere in the farthest reaches of the End. Lady Ianite greets her, an elation overtaking Capsize to see her goddess freed. However, quickly she questions as to why she remains imprisoned. Questions with painful answers, even if the only ones she hears are false.

AO3 Link

The first thing that Capsize noticed was the cool breeze hitting her, as pleasant as it was painful. After the never-ending heat of the Nether, she couldn’t help but bask in it even as it began to feel like needles digging into her skin. It was still the nicest thing she had felt in weeks. She just lay there for minutes, nearly crying in relief that she finally felt cool air again. Until the impossibility hit her.

If she was still in that cell in the Nether, the only thing she should be able to feel was that sickening supernatural heat. She supposed it was possible that she was so close to death that she had begun hallucinating, but her thoughts all felt her own. If anything, she felt stronger than the last time she was awake, not weaker. So, what precisely was going on?

Acknowledging the first difference in sensation opened up her thoughts to begin noticing the other ones. Soon enough the oddities and impossibilities were piling up in her mind. The first one was that she realised with a start that she was no longer shackled. No longer was tight metal pushing into her skin. It seemed her limbs were free to move as she wished them too.

Of course, her body still ached. Though she did not feel nearly as beaten down as she had in her last moment of wakefulness. Despite how it certainly was not possible, it seemed that she had been recovering.

She almost didn’t want to believe these feelings. No… No, she desperately did want to give into this new reality where she wasn’t stuck in that tiny cell in a hellish dimension. But she couldn’t afford to build up hope. It would just shatter her if she awoke from this dream.

It was painful to admit, but she was so tired. She was meant to be Lady Ianite’s messenger, a person looked to for guidance. Instead, she was a worn-down prisoner terrified to even risk hope. She was utterly ashamed of how badly she had fumbled her mission. If anyone from back home could see her, they’d tell her what a failure she had turned out to be.

In a moment of spite, she huffed. What good was berating herself actually doing? It was just as bad as lingering in a dream would be. She needed to actually do something. Though entirely exhausted and frankly still terrified learning she was still in her cell, she forced her eyes open.

What she found before her eyes left her just confused. She wasn’t in the Nether. She was no longer in that claustrophobic cell. However, she also wasn’t free.

Immediately, she tried to sit up. Tried being the optimal word. A sharp pain shot through her stomach as she did. With a cry she was sent back to her starting position of laying on the cold stone.

She tried to breathe through the sudden shock.

Had she been stabbed? It was the sort of injury that she’d associate with this type of pain, but she didn’t recall anything of the sort. She’d have thought even in her less than responsive state that she would’ve been woken by such an attack.

At the very least, she could tell that the injury was recent. It had to be with how painful it felt, but as she carefully ran a hand over where the pain was coming from, she didn’t even feel a cut. She desperately tried to make sense of it, trying to bite back fears of it being something far worse than a stab wound. However, as she continued to lay there, she was stuck staring at the bars above her that separated her from the sky. She couldn’t remain doing nothing. She needed to know why she could see the sky at all.

She was more careful in sitting up than she had been in her first attempt. Though her gentleness did little to ease her pain. She had to grit her teeth as she still very much felt like screaming. However, without the aspect of it being unexpected, the pain was at the very least management.

Once she was sitting up, it was far easier to get herself to her feet, even if her body whined and complained at the process. Now that she wasn’t shackled and restrained, now that she could move, she was going to make sure that she did. She needed to explore whatever she could here before her movement was restricted again.

She was in another prison. Though perhaps that was overselling it a little. It was a cage. A giant cage of iron bars completely open to the air. It wasn’t the most confined she had ever felt. She doubted anything would ever compare to that tiny cell she had been imprisoned in until now. A place where she had been shackled and restrained left with nothing she could even possibly do but await her own death. However, she was not about to be grateful for a prison just because it was nicer than the last. There was still the tightness in her chest from the feeling of being confined. There were still the ever-present thoughts reminding her that she needed to escape.

She needed a focus to stop such thoughts from overwhelming her. So, she settled on the most basic. Where exactly was she? Given her capacity to feel cold and the presence of a sky, she was clearly no longer in the Nether. However, that wasn’t exactly an answer to her question. The sky that surrounded her being lit up by a bright purple aurora did give her a certain assumption. One that made her stomach twinge uncomfortably. However, there was little point dwelling on assumptions. After all, this prison came with a view, she could see for herself where she was.

Despite the dread building within her, she forced herself to one of the cage walls. Her movement was slow, her limbs aching after so long of being stuck in one position. She could see her surroundings quite a while before she actually reached the bars, but still she forced herself all the way. Despite the illogical hope she had tried to hold, the view didn’t change when she reached the edge of her confinement.

She was, as she feared from the look of the sky, in the End. So Dianite had managed to force his way into some of Ianite’s realm despite their efforts to strengthen her. However, it was far worse than just that.

The cage she was in was built on a tiny floating island, high above the other far larger landmasses that surrounded it. All that could be between herself, and the endless void was a layer of stone bricks and a shallow amount of end stone. The landmasses around her were far enough away that, even if she did somehow manage to break free of these bars, she would never be able to reach them. Even if she did, for as far as she could see it was just an endless forest of chorus trees. She seemed as if walk through them forever and never reach their end.

She just stood there, leaning against the bars, realising that she was just as trapped as she had been in her previous cell. Her shackles had been replaced by an endless landscape that she would never be able to reach anyway. It was suffocating. But unfortunately, she couldn’t show it. Not when the bastard god who had trapped her was here watching.

She was sure that he was. While she might not entirely trust herself, she still trusted her senses enough to believe them not to be lying about the presence behind her. And if there was a presence, it had to be him. Who else would it be?

She remained still, as did he. Both were waiting for the other to acknowledge them first. He liked when she acknowledged him, whether she cowered or stood strong, it always left him with a horrible mocking grin. She wasn’t going to this time. If he wanted to play this game, she wasn’t turning to look at him and giving him any sort of victory. She could hold strong. She could—

“Capsize,” Her eyes widened as she heard that sound voice and realised just how completely and utterly wrong her assumption had been.

She turned, fast enough that she wanted to scream, but no pain was enough to stop her from whipping around with tears brimming just as a smile was breaking onto her face. The only fear left in her mind was that this was somehow her imagination.

“Ia!” The moment she saw her, she melted into elation. Standing before her was Lady Ianite. Not a flickering image or a voice in her head. Her goddess was actually physically stood before her. Ianite had been freed.

Even with the terrible situation she was still in, that fact was enough to break through her dread and distress and have her laughing in relief. Even if she hadn’t been the one to do it, Ianite was free. She was stood before her, smiling. Though, strangely enough, the goddess’ expression was not one of happiness as her own was. Though it was, at least as far as she could tell, a genuine smile, it seemed as though it was just there to conceal pain. The smile you’d give to someone on their deathbed.

And that, well, Capsize knew that it should give her chills. That she should stop and worry. But she was face to face with the person that she had been fighting for so long to save. How could she focus on anything else but how much of a relief and victory that was?

“You’re safe!” She said. Then she couldn’t hold back. Even with her aching limbs and the terrible pain in her midsection, she rushed to her. Though her joy wasn’t enough to actually keep her upright. She ended up stumbling, being caught in Ianite’s arms.

The goddess pulled her close as she wrapped her own arms around her. She could only describe it as an embrace, as the sort of thing she had been dreaming of for so long. The sort of hold that she wanted to melt into and never leave. It had been weeks since she had had any non hostile physical contact, she wanted to cry as she felt Ianite’s hand running through her hair. She never wanted this to end. She could fade away right now in this moment and be truly satisfied with her fate.

However, despite her own desires, she knew that she couldn’t stay like this. As intoxicating as being held by Ianite was, there were still so many questions that she needed the answers to. Even so, it took more strength than she’d care to admit to break away. As if being inches away from her goddess may kill her.

“Are you okay?” Ianite asked as she did, leaving her feeling all the worse for ending the moment. Especially as she could not answer the question positively. Beyond her physical pain, there was the question that she needed to ask that she knew could only lead to more pain. Unfortunately, she could not leave it unspoken.

“Why am I still imprisoned? I… I thought that when they freed you, that I would also…” She didn’t know how to finish her sentence. It felt wrong to imply that her friends may have just given up on saving her, but what else could she think given her surroundings?

Ianite looked down, squeezing her eyes shut. Capsize felt a pit beginning to form in her stomach. Had it not already been obvious, it was now painfully so. Something had gone deeply and terribly wrong.

“That was the plan, for the champions to travel to Aethoria and free us both. Unfortunately, my brother couldn’t take a loss.”

⚖ ⚖ ⚖

“Come on then,” Lord Dianite invited the champions to attack him. To his absolute disappointment, not one of them made a move.

They really were all cowards. It seemed that they really had been hoping to skirt by and ruin his plans without any resistance.

He understood his own champion not making the first move. Even if he was a turncoat and a liar, he was still the champion that he had cultivated. The fear would still be there. So, it was no wonder that he stood on the edge of the makeshift arena hesitating to come any closer.

What Dianite, however, couldn’t understand was why the others were being so cowardly. They had wanted to defeat him, hadn’t they? So why were they all waiting on him to make the first move? Perhaps they thought they had time to dawdle and strategize. Well, he wasn’t going to allow them such a boon.

“Perhaps you all need a little more motivation,” He laughed with a horrible mocking tone. He brought his hands up, in one summoning an impossibly sharp sword. It was crafted from a dark metal, one that none of the mortals before him had ever seen before.

He grinned and for a moment it seemed like he was going to lunge at one of them. However, the person he attacked would not be any of those before him. Rather she appeared in his other hand, already barely conscious.

“Capsize!” Her brother screamed in horror as every soul in the arena rushed towards the horned god, each desperate to stop the attack before it occurred. Even the fastest of them could not reach him before he stabbed his weapon into her gut.

⚖ ⚖ ⚖

“He stabbed me?” Capsize questioned. The idea left her cold and numb. It wasn’t unbelievable. In fact, if anything it was extremely believable considering that she did believe that she had been stabbed and Lord Dianite made the most sense to have done such a thing of anyone. But the fact that she believed it to be true didn’t rid of her the numbness at once more being used as a prop to hurt other people.

It was the reason Furia had attacked her too. It had nothing to do with who she was. It was just to cause Redbeard pain. She wasn’t important at all. Just the way her hurt made other people feel.

She didn’t know what was more pathetic, that fact itself or how sensitive she felt about it. Her silence must’ve stretched a little too long as Ianite took one of her hands. She gave it a comforting squeeze. The tiny smile on her face was enough to spread warmth back through her body. She took a breath and managed to speak again. “I don’t remember any of it.”

There weren’t exactly flaws to pick at in the story thus far. While she could ask how Ianite knew what had happened, she assumed that she had simply been watching from afar. She always could watch her own domains and cities. Given that the fight was in Aethoria, she was probably watching the whole thing. Her thoughts twisted at that. Ianite had had to watch her get skewered.

But there was such a gap in her memory that it was difficult to believe anything could’ve happened beyond her being moved from her previous prison to this one.

“I don’t think you were awake,” Ianite spoke quietly. Capsize could hear what remained unspoken, that she hoped that she wasn’t awake. Given how pained her expression was, Capsize herself felt glad that her memory seemed to be failing her. “You haven’t been responsive for almost a week now. Even with our connection, I could barely sense you. I was starting to fear that you might have…”

Again, her fear was left unspoken, though this time because her voice broke before she finished her sentence rather than by choice. However, this time Capsize found the strength to give a comforting smile.

“Hey. I ended up surviving, didn’t I?” She said, laughing as best she could. Though, she couldn’t sound nearly as confident as she wanted to. There was still something deeply wrong here, the questions about it threatening to some to the surface, but even if she was imprisoned, she was okay. She wasn’t dead or dying. So, she could comfort and reassure Ianite that she did not need to linger on such fears. “And you’re clearly fine too. So, I assume Dianite isn’t a worry anymore.”

“No, he’s…” Again, she watched Ianite hesitate. Though she didn’t wear the same pained expression as she did previously. “He’s dead. All the heroes fought him, but ultimately Syndicate dealt the final blow.”

“Oh gods…” Capsize felt her throat go dry. It was as if the world completely froze.

Now, Capsize certainly wasn’t going to mourn the bastard god after everything he had done. In fact, she would be lying to say anything but that she was glad to see him gone. However, it felt so incredibly unfair that Tom had had to kill his own god. She couldn’t imagine a crueller fate for a champion.

She almost asked if he was alright, only stopping herself because she knew he couldn’t be. The most that she could wish was that he wasn’t grieving alone. None of the champions would have any more reason than she did to mourn the devil, she knew. But with how close friends they were, she hoped that they’d have the sense to offer him at least some comfort, even if just a shoulder to cry on. Once she was out of here, she certainly would. It was the least she could do for a friend.

However, with that thought, another struck her with all the gentleness of a falling brick.

Dianite had released her. Released her to kill her, yes, but had he sent her back to a cell again Ianite would’ve mentioned.

But here she was in a cage.

She had been freed. Dianite had been slain.

So why was she once again imprisoned?

She looked at Ianite, the obvious question on her lips. However, she couldn’t ask it as she was met with a look so haunted she doubted she would ever forget it. Purple eyes bore into her, a broken look that did not belong on a goddess piercing into her very soul.

“As I said though, my brother couldn’t take a loss.”

⚖ ⚖ ⚖

All four champions ran ahead of him, Jordan leading the charge, as Redbeard did his best to run without disturbing Capsize’s wound. A futile task given that she had been run through. The fact that she was still holding on was only not a miracle due to the excessive number of healing potions that Foxx had thrown onto her. Even with their best efforts to heal her though, his sister was still bleeding out in his arms.

A curse on Lord Dianite’s sword, he was sure. That was why she wouldn’t stop bleeding. A curse so he could get the last laugh even after his own defeat. But Lady Ianite would be able to heal her. She had to be able to heal her. They’d come so far.

Capsize was in his arms. She couldn’t die now.

“Dianite’s dead. So, she should be free already, right?” Tucker asked as they ran through the gate. The temple was in sight now, towering over them as a beacon of hope.

“Yes! We’ve freed her! I can feel it!” Jordan said in response, confident and completely elated.

Redbeard wished he could share such a celebratory tone. He should be able to. The mission was complete. The evil god was defeated, and their goddess freed. But this wasn’t his mission. He was no hero. He was a desperate man who could feel blood seeping through his sleeves and staining his skin.

She couldn’t die here. This had been her mission. Sparklez could claim it as his all he wanted, but she was the one who had sacrificed everything to make sure that the mission could be completed. This was Capsize’s mission, her victory to celebrate. She couldn’t die without even being awake to acknowledge it.

He knew that she would say she’d give anything for Lady Ianite. As much as he tried to ignore it, he had always known that included her own life. If he was being completely honest, it had been a terrible fear of his that they would make it to this moment, to this victory, and he would see Capsize sacrifice herself for it. But at least he would’ve known that was her own wish. That would’ve been so much easier to stand than the death he was currently trying to prevent.

This was the furthest thing he could think of from willing self-sacrifice. This was her dying to hurt other people.

She’d been imprisoned to hurt him. Dying and being captured due to an attack from Furia that he knew he would’ve been able to prevent if he had just tried. Dianite was only able to attack her because she had been imprisoned. If she died here as a culmination of that capture, her death would rest surely on his shoulders.

But she wasn’t going to die. He kept trying to reassure himself of that as he shook and stumbled. They’d enter the temple. Lady Ianite would greet them as heroes. She’d heal Capsize of this cursed wound. Everything would be fine.

Everything had to be fine.

Those words kept repeating in his head as he entered the temple. They were his only focus beyond keeping Capsize steady. Perhaps that’s why the scene before him dawned so slowly.

The champions had frozen, the previously jubilant energy dead and rotting into a horrible dread. An altar made of obsidian sat in the centre of the room. A bubbling potion sat in the middle of it. Though he had no idea its effect, Redbeard knew just from looking at it that it was wrong.

Then there was what he realised last. Or maybe he had noticed it first but had been such a horrible twist of the knife that his mind had elected to ignore it.

Before them was an image of Lady Ianite, flickering to make it horribly clear that she was not there with them in the flesh. Shackles still bound her wrists. As she looked at all of them, she was barely holding back tears.

“My heroes,” She spoke with the heavy sorrow of one about to watch an execution. “I’m afraid one more sacrifice is needed.”

⚖ ⚖ ⚖

“Dianite placed a binding curse on my prison. In order for myself to be freed, another would have to take my place,” Ianite spoke gently, though each word held a profound grief. Worse, each word brought a dawning realisation to Capsize about the only reason she would be saying them.

“No,” The noise that escaped from her was hollow. Less a word and more an attempt to desperately claw her way to better reality that was quickly spilling away from her. There was only one reason why she would be in this cage and Ianite would be saying these words to her. And it absolutely couldn’t be true.

They couldn’t have done this to her.

“Capsize,” Ianite said, squeezing her hand as if that would in any way soften the blow of what she was going to say next. “This was my prison. You replaced me as its prisoner.”

“No!” She repeated as if being louder would make it have more meaning. She ripped her hands away from Ianite and stumbled away only to feel her back hit the bars. They pressed against her skin, feeling worse than the physical restraints had. She started to feel her breath being ripped away from her. “They wouldn’t have done this to me! They... they can’t have.”

Her own voice betrayed her as it broke and cracked. Reality was as terrible as it was obvious. Still her thoughts rushed to deny it. They can’t have condemned her to this fate. Redbeard wouldn’t have let them. Tom wouldn’t have let them. Hells, all of them had acted like they had cared about her. How could any of them have inflicted such a terrible fate on her when she couldn’t fight back or advocate for herself?

This had to be a test of some kind. She couldn’t understand why Ianite would test or try to trick her like this, but it being a cruel test would still be better than this being her actual reality. So that had to be what this was.

“It was not exactly a unanimous decision.”

⚖ ⚖ ⚖

Jordan stood frozen in horror as he stared at his Lady, still imprisoned. Suddenly what was meant to be his victory was an absolute nightmare.

It felt like a terrible joke. That after all the work he had put in, suddenly there was one more insurmountable hurdle.

Furia was dead. Dianite was dead. He was stood in his Lady’s temple. And in order to get to their final victory, they were going to have to sacrifice someone.

“So, to free you, one of us needs to drink that potion,” He said as if repeating his Lady’s words back at her would somehow reveal another option. There had to be another option. The solution couldn’t be that one of them had to be left behind, sacrificed to reach their greater goal. What kind of an ending was that?

Despite what he had been desperately trying to wish into reality, his Lady nodded.

“Yes, and they will replace me in my prison,” She said, mournful for a sacrifice that had not yet happened.

Jordan, for the first time since declaring his loyalty to Lady Ianite, felt utterly lost. He knew that ultimately this choice fell to him as her champion, but he had no idea where to start. He had to make this decision. It was his job to save his Lady and this was what needed to be done to save her. But it was an impossible burden to bear.

“Isn’t there anything we can do to break the prison’s enchantment? Tom’s Dianite now, surely, he could just turn it off!” Tucker beside him fumbled for another answer. He sounded just as desperate as Jordan felt, offering hope that he could cling to. But he knew that he couldn’t, it would only make his decision even harder.

That was until he saw the briefest hint of light in his Lady’s eyes.

“Yes! Maybe. If we could prepare for a few hours, then perhaps—"

“We don’t have time,” The defeated voice of Sonja cut through his Lady’s words and all the hope they had given it. His thoughts berated himself for even daring to have the tiniest fragment. His body felt rigid as he turned to her, just feeling all the more numb as he saw her gripping an empty bottle in blood covered hands. “I’m out of healing pots. If we don’t free Ianite now, Capsize is going to die. No matter what, we’re going to lose someone.”

“Wait! I’ve got a couple pots,” Tom said, quickly slipping back to the dying woman. Jordan felt the briefest pangs of jealousy as the questions pressed in his head of why Tom would’ve brought healing potions when they don’t work on him as an undead creature. But he pushed it down. They didn’t have time for the petty drama.

How could he even think about bringing up their romantic tangles when Redbeard was lowering his dying sister to the ground with a darkened look in his eye. There was only reason he would be letting her go right now. Though he certainly didn’t want to hear it, Jordan knew precisely what the man was going to say before he said it.

“Give me the potion, I’ll drink it,” He spoke directly to Jordan, as if knowing that this was his choice as champion. Or perhaps he was just scared to pick up the bottle himself.

The latter seemed to be closer to the truth as the pirate was shaking. It was truly like looking at the condemned. It was impossible to believe he truly wanted to make this sacrifice.

“Please,” Still though, he begged to be handed the potion. “Capsize has given up so much for this mission. If making myself a sacrifice lets her live through this, I can happily do it.”

His tone didn’t match his words. Rather he sounded seconds away from breaking completely. His attention turned to Lady Ianite.

“You’ll be able to heal her, right? Once you’re freed you can heal that cursed wound.”

“Yes! Yes, of course, Skipper. Your sacrifice won’t be in— Captain, what are you doing?”

As Redbeard and his Lady were speaking, Jordan took the potion from the altar. Just as looking at it, holding it felt completely wrong. As if it could drag him into the darkness at any moment. But grave as it may be, it was just a feeling. He could push past it, and he needed to. He had to focus all his resolve on doing what he had to do.

“Captain!” His Lady yelled. Though the fear laced in her tone hurt him, it could not dissuade him. He did however turn briefly to look at her.

“I’m making the only right choice. She’s dying anyway,” He said simply. As he turned away from her, back to the woman dying on the floor, he saw the briefest glimpse of dawning horror on his Lady’s face. He forced himself to ignore it.

The decision was painful, yes, but it was the only logical one. If someone had to suffer in that prison, it should be the person who would have to suffer for the shortest amount of time. She wouldn’t even know.

“No!” He heard Redbeard scream behind him. Apparently, the man was going to try and insist on being the hero he wasn’t.

There were rapidly approaching footsteps, the pirate trying to rush him. However, any attempts to wrench the potion off her were swiftly stopped when he threw his elbow back. His diamond armour hit soft flesh, and there was the sound of the man falling back. He forced himself to ignore the yelp, to ignore the painful coughs that quickly followed.

“What the hell, Jordan?!” Tucker demanded from behind him. That was fine. They could judge him and treat him like a villain all they wanted. None of them wanted to make this decision either so why should he care if they judged him.

He needed to save his Lady. So, he needed to make the hard choice.

“Please just give it to me! I can’t lose her!” His voice was weaker, hoarse now. Jordan desperately tried to ignore the voice telling him that was because of the damage he had just done. This was the right choice. He had to hold fast and make it.

“You’ll lose her either way! You won’t have your sister when you’re stuck in a prison for the rest of your life! At least this way she won’t suffer!” It was the kinder option. Either way one of the two siblings would have to live knowing the other had been sacrificed for their Lady. But if Redbeard was sacrificed, Capsize would have to live with the knowledge that he was alive and had given up everything for her. Meanwhile she barely had a few minutes left. Redbeard could live in the knowledge that at least she died none the wiser. It was just kinder.

“No! This place needs a prisoner! It’ll keep her alive!” His Lady cried.

Jordan hesitated, his throat feeling dry. He could so easily pretend she was lying. She had been so close to Capsize, of course she would lie so she wouldn’t be imprisoned. But even with all his rationalizing, his brain wouldn’t accept that.

What it could accept though, was that they couldn’t know how much it would heal her. It would keep her alive, yes, but that didn’t mean she would ever wake, that she would ever realise her situation. Better than any of them who were awake and aware being saddled with this fate.

That, and even if she was fully healed, Capsize was like him. She’d give up anything for Lady Ianite. Give up anything for this mission to save her. If she woke up there, she’d understand that her fate was necessary to save their Lady.

Now steadfast in what he needed to do, Jordan kept walking forward. He could ignore all the cries and yells behind him. Though he did find one more obstacle. Tom stood between him and Capsize, his sword pointing squarely at Jordan’s chest.

“You’re not giving it to her,” Tom spat, snarling as if he was ready to bite like his undead brethren. Jordan squared his shoulders, ready to fight if he needed, though he certainly didn’t have time for one.

Why was he still acting like this? Had he not done enough damage to the mission already? Jordan couldn’t even tell if he was still trying to stake a claim on his girl or just acting like the villain for the sake of it. The sword pushed against his armour. “I’ve already lost Dianite, I am not losing Capsize too!”

“You lost your god because you chose to follow a villain! If you wanted the reward of being a hero, you should have actually been one! Because villains don’t get rewards, and they certainly don’t get the girl!” He yelled. There was a painful silence.

Tom looked at him as if he had physically struck him, just complete and utter shock. He loosened his grip on his sword.

In the brief moment of Tom being distracted, Jordan shoved past him.

He knelt by Capsize, quickly uncorking the potion. He allowed himself the briefest pause, running a hand through her hair.

“I’m sorry, my Capsize,” He whispered before tipping the potion into her mouth.

⚖ ⚖ ⚖

As Ianite fell silent, Capsize sat blinking back tears as numbness overtook her. She couldn’t deny the truth anymore. Every doubt she had tried to cling to had been sunk by Ianite’s full explanation. Never had she faced such a bitter truth.

Sparklez had done this to her. He had chosen to sacrifice her all the while acting as if he was making the honourable decision. She wished so deeply that she could say it was expected, that learning he had done this didn’t hurt. But she would be lying to herself if she said that. Even with just how little she had expected from him, with how little she could say she respected the man, this still felt like an impossible betrayal.

Maybe this was just karma for disliking him.

“I—” As she tried to speak, she found herself unable. Her voice cracked and immediately she broke into tears.

She was stuck here, nothing more than a tragic sacrifice for Sparklez to look back on and lament. His first love lost too soon.

She could have forgiven him for stealing her present. For appearing out of nowhere and stealing her mission and Ianite’s attention. But now he had also stolen her future. Anything she had planned to do was now impossible and all she was left with were shattered dreams. With Ianerea destroyed, she may as well have no past. All that was left of her was a legacy that he was free to weave however he wanted.

In the end, she was nothing.

There was nothing even to fight. Her fate had been sealed hours ago, completely out of her control. She was stuck here, a prisoner of a cursed cage that would never let her leave and not even death was an escape from. Surrounded by a completely unchanging view that mocked her with just how impossible escape would be if she even tried. She couldn’t even gather the strength to be angry, every ember of it already extinguished by cold hopelessness. All she could do was sob.

She sobbed as every sacrifice and defeat hit her at once. They were meant to be worth something in the end. She had given up everything and lost even more. There was meant to be some sort of reward in the end. Instead, she was left with nothing but a complete and hollow emptiness.

Warm arms wrapped around her. She ended up sobbing onto Ianite’s shoulder. Despite how earlier being held like this overwhelmed her with elation, now it barely even gave her comfort. One arm was stretched across her back, Ianite holding one of her arms in her hand and the other in the bend of her arm. The goddess’ other hand rested on her head. It felt protective and warm and she never wanted her to let go. But still, it wasn’t enough to stop her from sobbing.

“I would have— If I had been awake, I would’ve,” She couldn’t complete her own sentence despite desperately wanting to. The meaning of it just felt hollow. It was impossible to rid herself of the bitter numbness the betrayal had caused. But she knew that had she been awake and aware, she would’ve willingly drunk the potion and taken Ianite’s place in this prison.

She didn’t know why it mattered to her. Why she wanted so desperately to make clear to Ianite that she would’ve truly given up everything for her had she been given the opportunity. Maybe just as some kind of trick, to convince herself to stop crying. If she would’ve chosen this fate anyway, then she didn’t need to feel so broken that it had been forced upon her.

“I know, Capsize,” Ianite said softly. She stroked her head, the repetitive motion actually managing to break through her horrible despair and actually give her a tiny bit of comfort. “But that doesn’t mean this isn’t a wrong to be righted. I promise you. I will keep working until I can break this curse my brother put on this place. I will free you.”

Capsize listened to her words, hearing her own resolve from the very start of this mission echoing back at her. Despite how she had never been in a worse place, she had never felt safer than she did right now in Ianite’s arms.

⚖ ⚖ ⚖

Night had fallen now, not that that was a particularly easy fact to acknowledge in the End. However, the bright purple aurora had dimmed, and now the only light in the cage was a lantern summoned by the goddess who still sat by the now sleeping prisoner. Despite Capsize’s insistence, she had used what strength and power she had to summon whatever she could to make sure she was comfortable. The light by her sleeping form. The simple bed that she slept on. Enough blankets and furs to make sure she wouldn’t feel the cold air.

Ianite sat by the sleeping pirate just as she had stayed with her the whole time since had awoken. Even now, she was focused on a task, stirring through her dreams to quiet any nightmares. After how long she had sobbed for, she deserved a restful night's sleep. She did not need any reminders of the betrayals she had suffered, nor the pain that Dianite had inflicted on her. And if Ianite banished away dreams where she was getting a little too close to the champions for comfort that was just a happy bonus.

When finally her dreams settled into something preferable, Capsize’s form relaxed. She seemed so peaceful despite everything. And now Ianite allowed herself to smile. Guilty though she felt for the amount of tears that she had caused, she was glad that it had all worked out.

Admittedly, she had been worried at points. Jericho had immediately questioned why Capsize wasn’t also free when she had greeted them alone in her temple. Absent as her brother may have been as a guiding force, it seemed his champion was still chosen wisely. He had questioned after she had summoned her puppet too, asking after the possibility of a cure. He could’ve so easily ruined all of her careful planning.

Her brothers’ other champions had also posed possible complications. She had at least expected something from Syndicate given his closeness to Capsize. Thankfully his actual ask had been easy enough to shut down. After all, she had no idea what she would’ve done had the champions all agreed that they ought to take the undead puppet with them in the void.

Foxx had blended into the background so often that she hadn’t even noticed that she wasn’t keeping her distance from the puppet like the others until she was far too close for comfort. Yes, she found it admirable that she had cared enough for Capsize to attempt to heal her, but still it had sent waves of panic through her when she had heard the smashing glass and since just how close she was standing to it. What would’ve happened if she hadn’t made it lunge at her to chase her away? How close had she come to seeing the imperfections in the illusion?

But thankfully all her fears had been for naught. Her own followers had played their parts perfectly. Jordan had never doubted a word she said. What a good and loyal champion he was. Even if Redbeard did doubt her, he was never going to allow his sister to suffer. Admittedly, her plan may have pushed him a little far. The man appeared broken by his grief and the mercy killing he believed he had bestowed. As much as Jericho has been a thorn in her side threatening to reveal her lies, she had been so thankful to see him drag the Skipper out the water.

How would she have ever explained to her treasure that her brother was dead on top of everything else she had to tell her?

As it stood, the man was still deep in his own grief. Completely expected, given all he had been through today. Perhaps she could fix it eventually. A little memory manipulation to have him remember things the way Capsize believed they had happened. It may prove useful someday down the line. For now, though, she was content to just let him mourn.

Once the champions had left, he had requested to be alone. She was, of course, keeping an eye on him to make sure that he did not try anything drastic again. But she had been more than happy to give him the time he wanted. After all, there was someone far more important she wanted to focus on.

Capsize had still been unconscious when she had first arrived in the cage. The enchantments on it were already doing their job and healing the damage inflicted on her by Dianite’s prison and general treatment of her. Though, it had been quite the shock to see the bloodstain on her shirt and the worryingly large pool underneath her. Apparently, she had underestimated just how connected the original and the puppet were.

Thankfully, despite her initial panic, the wound had been mostly healed already by the enchantments. She knew it would hurt for a good while but Capsize was not at risk of dying. After all, the goddess had designed this place to make sure that its occupant couldn’t die. She was just so thankful that it worked in practice as well as theory.

She had erased the blood puddle to make Capsize’s awakening at least a little more pleasant. Then all that had been left to do was wait. Wait until the captain had recovered enough to regain consciousness, all the while weaving her story to perfection. She couldn’t afford her to question. If she didn’t truly believe that she was stuck here, she would never stop trying to escape. Thankfully, her messenger had never been one to doubt her. And her dislike of her champion gave an easy person to stick the terrible deed squarely on.

Yes, it had hurt to see her tears, to hear her broken thoughts. But beyond all her guilt, Lady Ianite was overwhelmed by relief. Finally, she had her messenger away from anyone who could possibly harm her. Finally, Capsize was safe.

At first, she had thought it would be enough to keep her safe from Dianite and his servants. The people who wanted her dead or at the very least suffering. She had thought that her brother being defeated would be enough for her to be protected.

However, the more she had watched Capsize from afar, the more she had discovered the sheer amount of people she needed protecting from. She saw her on Ianerea, doing everything she possibly could to assist and to give answers that she didn’t have. And what had its people done? Doubted her. Acted as if she was some struggling child that they could belittle and ignore and lecture. Watching that had made her realise just how many people she needed protecting from.

Watching the way the champions treated her only cemented her decision. Her own champion had bickered over her like she was a prize to be won. The others joined in as if it was some funny little game how uncomfortable they could make her. All the while they had left her so unprotected that she had fallen into her brother’s clutches.

And so, she had realised that there was only one way to protect her. To keep her away from everyone and everything. Now, she would never be harmed again. Now, no one knew where she was, so she was finally safe. Besides herself, of course.

Well, actually she supposed there was one other person.

“I know you’re watching, Mianite,” She said in a soft tone as to not wake her companion. For a god that remained so absent from the action, he was certainly nosey. She could almost feel the judgement in his stare. As if he had any right to judge how she treated her follower. “I will not allow you to interfere. She is my messenger. I can keep her safe however I want.”

“This is cruel and possessive,” He said coldly. She almost laughed.

Who was he to judge cruelty? He had been perfectly content to allow her to suffer as Dianite’s prisoner until Jordan came along and remembered her.

And possessive? Keeping someone precious close to you and away from others who would hurt them wasn’t possession, it was just logical after everything. He had never liked the idea of getting attached to mortals, so he just couldn’t understand. “You can’t imprison her and let the world believe that she’s dead.”

“I can do whatever it takes to keep her safe. And it is absolutely none of your concern,” She said, running a hand through Capsize’s hair. She looked so peaceful.

Mianite stopped staring. Of course he did. She knew he was still judging her, but he could not interfere in her realm. The only way he could possibly try would be via a champion and unfortunately all of them had disappeared who knows where. It was unlikely that the void would give them back anytime soon. He could not steal Capsize away from her even if he wanted to.

No matter what he thought, Capsize was safe. Safe and hers. He could call her possessive all he wanted, but who wouldn’t be when the one that they loved had come so close to death? Finally having her any from all of that, it was such a weight off her chest. Her beautiful Capsize was safe at last.

Soon enough, this place would be a home to her. There would always be the lingering sadness, yes, but Ianite would fill that with hope and anything she could possibly request or desire. She would be just as satisfied here as she could be anywhere else. They would be happy together, just as they were in the dreams that Capsize so often had. She would have no need for anything else.

And if the world proved safe enough one day, she could miraculously figure out how to break Dianite’s curse on this place. How elated Capsize would be when that day came.

With a bright smile, Lady Ianite softly kissed the sleeping woman, only feeling brighter as she smiled in her sleep.

“I promise you, my Capsize, I’ll never let anyone hurt you again.”

[kiwibirdlafayette]

i hope that one day, the sun will rise on you again my lord.

Finally finished my first build video (and first vid on the main channel in ages orz) for a lore build I did on the MianiteRPG server :D It was a fun little project to give myself a break from art for a while, and while a bit challenging, was honestly worth it

Feel free to check it out, it would mean the world :D Also rbs much appreciate

[richardazer]

Pocket tech support

A little thing I did a while back and just posted on Twitter. I like the idea of X33n being godless but also being in charge of tech supplies in the temples

Dianite has taken a liking to the little man that makes cat paintings move teehee

[clay-core]

fic. new yes. art soon.

diasparklez enjoyers eat up https://archiveofourown.org/works/46238566

[theminecraftgay]

Lord Dianite, god of chaos!!!

✩ ☆ Commission Me! ☆ ✩

[syn4k]

tucker: but right now you're just lord voldemort episode 1 harry potter backpacking off of dianite's head. he's using you and you don't even see it. tom: he isn't using me! why would he do that? tucker: yeah, does he not tell you stuff to do? tom: yeah? tucker: yeah, but lord mianite never tells me, always gives me the option if i want. tom: but if i don't do it, he'll kill me tucker: yeah. lord mianite? won't kill me.

tom's response to that was "pussy bitch." and they both cracked up over it but STILL HOLY SHIT

[divine-swag-summit]

Round 1 Summary

Round 1 is over, folks! Thanks so much for voting!

I'm not gonna lie, this tournament has been kind of a hassle to set up, but seeing your propaganda and your comments in the tags have made it so worth it! Seriously, y'all are hilarious.

I won't be listing the results of every matchup here, you can look at the round masterposts for that, but I will highlight some of the more notable matches.

Closest Matches

Behemo Barisol vs Crimson: 50/50 Somehow, we ended up having a perfect tie on Round 1-A of the Higher Bracket! That's only the first day of voting! Isn't that amazing? Behemo and Crimson will both move on to round 2 and will go against The Forest Spirit in a three-way poll!

The Smiling God vs Saiki Kusuo: 49.1/50.9 With just a .8% difference, Saiki K. managed to pull through! And on the Night Vale website no less! Great job Saiki! Your friends are probably very proud, though you probably don't enjoy all this attention,,,, sorry!

Mare Incubus vs Mianite: 50.4/49.6 Would ya look at that, Mare Incubus made it to round 2! I honestly didn't think he would get this far, considering the fact that he's the protagonist of a Norwegian book series that had never been translated to English. All that propaganda certainly paid off! Great job, Mare!

Jake English vs Mythra: 49.5/50.5 I honestly didn't think this match would be so close! I'm not sure who I thought the favorite would be, but I certainly didn't think they would almost tie! Sorry Jake, looks like your Hope powers weren't strong enough to get you the win. You still have a long way to go on your journey, young Page. As for Mythra, well, I don't know much about Xenoblade, so here's what my friend has to say about her win: "I see mythra won and therefore everyone is correct"

Biggest Sweeps

The Great God Om vs Feena: 86.8/13.2 I'm so sorry for this matchup, Feena. I genuinely underestimated how popular Discworld was! Feena will have another chance at victory in the losers bracket. Maybe this time, she'll have a fair shot at victory.

Rosalina vs Scaramouche: 81.1/18.9 As a Genshin fan, I think it's very funny that Scaramouche lost this hard. I'm glad we can all agree that he's truly a small, sad little wet noodle. Also, fun fact, I beat his boss fight first try. Get rekt you pathetic little man.

Shade Lord vs Ozpin: 80.8/19.2 Ya know what, I get it. Shade Lord does look pretty cool. Perhaps this was an unfair matchup. To be honest, I kind of thought RWBY's popularity would make this unfair for Shade Lord.

Dianite vs Alecto: 18.6/81.4 Yeah, I should've seen this coming. Once again, I didn't know how popular The Locked Tomb was when I made the bracket! I'm so sorry Dianite, but you still have a second chance in the losers bracket!

Anoia vs Xanu: 80.3/19.7 RIP Xanu, I'm not caught up on Fool's Gold so I don't know what your deal is, but you will be missed.

Four vs Alter: 18.8/81.2 I just wanna say, every single picture of Four I found was absolutely hilarious. I've never seen Battle for Dream Island, but I can tell that Four would probably be my favorite character if I did. Well, see you in the losers bracket, Four!

The Prophet's Personal Highlights

Bill Cipher vs Madoka Kaname: 35.8/64.2 Honestly, it was so funny to see everyone rooting for Madoka to beat Bill's ass in the tags. In other, unrelated news, Bill Cipher was found dead in Miami. Oops, I wonder who could've done that!

The Glow Cloud vs Q: 70.4/29.6 I honestly thought this would be closer, considering how popular Star Trek is. This matchup definitely surprised me. Also, my mom was very upset about Q's loss. She's very disappointed in you all.

Venti/Lord Barbatos vs Void Termina: 32.9/67.1 Alas, my poor blorbo! As poll runner, there was nothing I could do to sway opinions in Venti's favor, for I must remain impartial! It hurts to see my favorite silly little guy lose, but at least we still have the losers bracket.

The Harvest Goddess vs Hanyuu Furude: 51.2/48.8 Yet another blorbo, gone too soon! Hanyuu, you're the best in my heart. Unfortunately, this match was too close to allow Hanyuu to qualify for the losers bracket, so this was her only chance. Hanyuu, you will be missed.

Starclan vs Featherine Augustus Aurora: 67.4/32.6 I've never played Umineko, but I have some friends who have, and, well. We all voted for Starclan. To think, Starclan is so powerful that even Umineko fans voted against Featherine. Ah, well. She still has another shot with the losers bracket.

And that's it for the round recap!

So, what now? Well, on Thursday I will start the Losers Bracket! Tomorrow I'll release the bracket so you can get your propaganda ready.

[licantropa]

Click. Click. Click.

Mot gets progressively more agitated with his now out of fuel lighter. He had just wanted a smoke. Seems like that was too much to ask for, apparently.

He keeps clicking it. He knows there’s nothing left, it had taken too long to light the last time he went out here, but maybe…Nope. Nothing. The last few clicks happen in quick succession with no result, leaving him hunched over miserable in an alleyway. Now he’s walked all the way down here for nothing. Fantastic.

“Need a light?” Familiar hands come into view holding out to him an already lit lighter. Oh his sweet savior, come to Mot in his time of need to feed his addiction. He leans into the flame, already chosen to sacrifice the few minutes of alone time he would’ve had out here, doesn’t take much for the cigarette in his mouth to light. Inhaling, standing up straight, and exhaling the smoke right into his lord's face. “How rude.”

Instead of an apology, Mot leans against the building and begins to enjoy his break. He takes his time, savoring what little he has of it. The motion of breathing in, holding, exhaling, then repeating has a calming effect on him, that’s of course not taking into account the copious amount of nicotine. Dianite has joined him against the wall, he has left but the smallest space between them.

Mots almost halfway through the cigarette before getting the idea to offer one. As he goes to remove the cigarette from his lips, it’s taken from him, now resting in between Dianite’s index and middle fingers. “You should really quit these, they’re not good for you. And I want you here for as long as I can have you.”

His lord proceeds to blow smoke right in his face after that, payback for his ‘thank you’ earlier, he’s sure of it.

You know, Mot probably would believe that statement to be true, had he not eaten a stick of dynamite and been completely fine after the fact. He highly doubts smoking is going to be what does him in.

There’s a question he’s been meaning to ask all morning, but between the excessive amount of paper needed to be filed and the ton of meetings he knows his god has today, it was going to be difficult to pin his lord down. He supposes, there’s no time like the present.

“I want the weekend off.” He doesn’t fear getting a ‘no’. Not because it’s him asking but because it’s “For Alyssa’s birthday.”

That gets Dianite choking on smoke. Badly too. Seems Mot’s caught him by surprise with that question. “No. No—that’s two weeks from now-”

“Yes. And so is the end of the quarter. Wanted to celebrate early, so I don’t feel guilty about working overtime during it.”

Dianite’s calmed his coughing down. Gone uncharacteristically quiet. Most likely mentally going over the work schedule to see what will work. The cigarette nearly finished.

“Suppose…three days won’t kill me.” More than what he’s asked for. Nice. Although the thought of leaving his lord without protection leaves him uneasy.

“It better not.”

“You almost sound worried.”

“How can I not? You get an attempt on your life almost every other week. It’s like you have it penciled into your fucking schedule.” A bit of an exaggeration on his part, but he hopes it gets his point across.

“I was here in this realm before you, and I will continue to exist long after.” Seems like his point was essentially ignored. Which, alright fine, suppose his lord has a point there, that doesn’t mean Mot enjoys the possibility of something awful happening. Though, if he says something now he might get a rant on his pessimism, the last thing he wants. “But, I do enjoy having you watch my six. It’s nice.”

“Not a bad view either.” Mot really can’t help himself sometimes.

“Careful now. Someone less dignified than me might mistake that for a flirt.” Dianite throws the cigarette down, extinguishing it. He throws an arm over Mot’s shoulders bringing him in close, and leading him out into the street. “Now come along, let’s grab lunch.”

His breaks’ been extended too. Nice.

The next smoke break he takes, Mot will find Dianite’s lighter in his pocket. Intricate patterns engraved onto it, that he’ll trace over and over trying to make sense of what they are.

Mot will also find that in his ten years in another realm, the lighter never fails to provide him a flame. Even when he runs out of cigarettes. And patience. In the worst that winter has to offer.

The lighter never fails him.

[delugedecade]

OC Muses

Deluge Decade: A Mistral born Huntsman in who’s semblance can manipulate the state of matter of dust between liquid like and solid. (RWBY oriented)

Clef: One of the last members of the werewolf subspecies, the Aervulf, differentiated by their Avian plumage.

Shizen Arashi: A Weilder of the forbidden fruit and controller of the Garden of Lust A Former Mistral prince reborn a Grimm lord. (RWBY oriented)

Jade Ivy: Lamia Demi-Human Doctor, Reptilia Specialist at local hospital. Wants to sleep

Jenova Kitian Lyndvyrm: Former Morlock Monster, Unsealed by Mystic Force Rangers and new Red Mystic Force Ranger (Power Rangers oriented)

Hyouga “Holden” Azayaka: A Spider-Man also known as Frost Web, Bitten by genetically modified spiders designed to produce thermal silk, gains cryokinetic webbing. (Marvel Oriented)

Kirei: Slime Girl Maid of unrecorded origin. Type: Cleaner Slime for Hire

Jaden Dianite “JD” Opals Kangaroo Faunus and Huntsman. Watch out for The Three Sisters (Sheila, Kiara and Luna)

Keppel Kikyo-iru Elusive and Secretive Huntsman, First capable user of The Dust Driver

[transandor]

The comments that would be made about Jordan and Ianite or Dianite by the Hats. Good Christ

lord............. god

[grailknightmonty]

the keeper of balance | the hidden giant | the exiled : meet the gods of the Realm of Aitheaca

the champions

[coolcattime]

The Price of Loyalty [Mianite Oneshot]

Relationships: Tom Syndicate & Captain Capsize

Characters: Tom Syndicate, Lord Dianite, Captain Capsize

As often happens, Tom is doing a job for the criminal lord he calls a boss. Digging a shallow grave in the middle of the night isn’t the worst thing he’s ever been asked to do, but there’s a certain nervousness he can’t shake off tonight. His gut feelings turn out to be vindicated in the worst possible way when it’s revealed to stay loyal to Dianite he’ll need to leave his friend to an unimaginable fate.

AO3 Link

Tom tried to ignore the lingering unnerving atmosphere as he continued digging. His shovel pushing through the dirt was the clearest noise hitting his ears, and the only noise aside from the idling truck a few feet away and the occasional disconcerting thump from whatever object was in the covered bed. There was a lantern at his feet, allowing him to see his progress on the task set for him. Anyone who happened to see the scene would almost certainly set off running, hoping to whatever gods that were listening that they had not been seen. Here Tom was, an hour’s drive outside the city, digging a shallow grave in the middle of the night. The only reassurance he had for his own thoughts on the task being that he knew it was not for him.

He had certainly done worse things in his work for Dianite. The man was the head of a criminal syndicate and had long ago taken Tom on as an apprentice of sorts. It was a fact he was more than appreciative for. He had been in a terrible state when he had originally been found by the man. He was almost certain that death would’ve taken him had he not been taken in – housed, fed, and trained. And yes, he was in a life of crime, but that was far better than death and now he was making his own living. He could’ve only dreamt of that before. If the price of that was committing crimes for Dianite, who was he to question? He owed the man his life, he could do things he found questionable. However, tonight there was a certain level of nerves that he just couldn't shake.

“Are you nearly done over there?” Dianite called over as he climbed out the truck. He was only half illuminated by the torch he was carrying. The shadows over half his form made him look more intimidating than usual, his eyes seeming to almost gleam in the darkness. It was odd for the man to come and observe whatever he wanted Tom to do. Clearly whatever was being buried was important to him. Somehow that made the thumps from the object all the more unsettling, but Tom knew better than to ask questions. He might’ve only been asked to dig the grave but if he questioned his benefactor when he was in a mood like this, he might end up in it.

“Yep! Should be deep enough,” He called over, attempting to keep up a facade of his usual attitude. He wasn’t nervous. There was no reason to be. He just had to bury whatever the hell Dianite wanted buried, and he’d be back in his bed in no time. The crime lord walked over to the hole, peering into it for a good few moments. Tom stood by with a lump in his throat that he tried to reassure himself was just from not wanting to disappoint the man, and not because in the quiet he hears another thump from the truck bed. He just didn’t want to dig for another hour, that was all. Finally, Dianite looked up.

“It’ll do. Help me with the box,” He said, turning without expression. Tom stuck the shovel into the dirt, quickly following after the man. Dianite put his lantern on the vehicle’s roof as he pulled the sheet from the back. A cold chill ran through Tom’s body as box was certainly the wrong word for the object. It was a coffin, plain and simple. A wooden coffin held shut with a glowing padlock. Perhaps he should’ve expected as much. He had been digging a grave, what object would go in there but a coffin? However, there was only one conclusion to come to from thumping coming from within a coffin. Tom found himself frozen, until Dianite slapped him on the back. “Go on, you know what to do.”

Scared of what his voice would sound like if he spoke, Tom merely scrambled up to the back of the truck as was expected of him. He took a hold of the furthest side, trying to ignore how the weight seemed to be shifting inside of it as Dianite helped him lift it and they carried it towards the grave. He’d been asked to bury things in the middle of the night before, to make sure that certain pieces of evidence would never come to light. Hell, he was sure that he had buried a body, but this felt completely different. Whoever was in here was so obviously alive and struggling. If Dianite weren’t so steady, Tom was absolutely sure he would’ve dropped the coffin with the amount they were struggling and trying to escape. He knew the job, knew that as they placed it by the hole he was meant to go back to the truck and get the ropes to tie to the coffin so they could lower it down. However, he couldn’t keep himself from asking a few questions.

“Sir, did you find a traitor? Is that who’s in there?” He couldn’t think of anything else. He could understand if it was a traitor. You needed to make an example of such a thing. Dianite chuckled, a smile growing on his face. Tom had no idea if that was a good or a bad thing.

“I forgot that I hadn’t told you yet. Here, I’ll show you the prize I got a hold of before we bury it,” He pulled a key from his pocket, glowing as the padlock was. As he knelt to unlock the coffin, Tom felt his heart thumping. The way he was talking, it wasn’t a traitor. He wanted to look away, knew that he did not want to see whoever was in there. However, he obviously couldn’t draw his eyes away.

The moment he laid eyes on the person in the coffin, he felt his entire body go completely rigid. They weren’t a traitor. They weren’t even a member of Dianite’s organisation. Tom knew both of those facts for certain, because he recognised her. He struggled to keep his face neutral as he found himself staring at Capsize, gagged and her wrists and ankles bound. She was struggling as best she could, this clearly having been the cause of thumps that he had been hearing. She shrank away from Dianite, looking around rapidly, but she froze upon seeing Tom. She stared at him with wide eyes and tried to say something that was transformed into quiet whines. He wanted to say something back, but he knew he couldn’t in front of Dianite. He had been about to bury his friend alive.

“I believe you’ve met my sister’s fiancée,” Dianite said, instantly letting Tom know what he had meant by prize. He didn’t want to believe it, that this was being done just to get one over on Dianite’s sister, but Tom absolutely knew that the man was that petty. It seemed basically every task Tom was given was meant to somehow harm one of his siblings or their businesses. The tasks were always easy enough. Even if they made his friends mad at him, he was always happy to do them and please Dianite. Capsize, however, she didn’t really get mad at him. It was odd, by all logic they should hate each other, but they didn’t. They had fun, they were chaotic together in the best possible way. She had gone missing two weeks ago. He’d been helping look for her, because she was his friend, because he hated the idea of her being hurt. She must’ve been in Dianite’s manor the whole time. So close and he hadn’t noticed. “Furia managed to grab her. I had been trying to be a good host, but she just wouldn’t shut up. So, I thought if she didn’t want to stay with me, she could have her own private space.”

“Sir, not to question, why exactly are we doing this?” Tom made sure to ask his question cautiously, knowing he couldn’t appear to be going soft. He felt Dianite’s gaze on him, the man waiting for him to continue. He smiled, looking at him as if this situation was any other job, as if his friend wasn’t staring at him with terrified eyes that he’d never seen from her before. “Shouldn’t we be ransoming her off? I mean, she’s Ianite’s fiancée. You could get a fortune off her.”

“That’s precisely what I’m doing, my boy. I’ve sent my sister my demands, it’s hardly my fault that she chose to ignore them. Seems that she cares about Sparklez more than she cares about you,” Dianite knelt down again to deliver the last sentence, eyes boring into Capsize as his tone turned mocking. Tom watched with a growing lump in his throat as a few tears ran down her cheeks. Was it true? Did Ianite know that Dianite had taken her and not tell him? He could’ve helped her. He could’ve stopped this. Instead, he was stuck here watching as Dianite lent closer to Capsize who couldn’t get away no matter how she tried. “I made it very clear to her, you know. I told her straight that you’d be returned safe and sound if she just gave me Sparklez. She’s the one that refused. Don’t worry though, she’s still got time. This coffin has a statis enchantment. As long as you’re locked in there, you’ll remain alive and in your current condition. There’s all the time in the world for your fiancée to realise she wants you back. I’m sure she won’t leave you here forever.”

Capsize sobs. It’s the only response she could possibly have. She’d been struggling for so long that she knew it was futile. She was going to be buried alive. She was probably going to be stuck alive for the rest of time because there was no way that Ianite was ever going to give her brother Jordan. That fact wasn’t one she would be angry at if she wasn’t so terrified, but she was facing a fate worse than death and she wished she could hand Jordan over herself. Even in the darkness, she could see the entertainment on Dianite’s face at her fear. What she didn’t see, and neither did Dianite, was Tom’s movements.

He was so quiet. He could barely be heard despite the quiet of the night. Despite this, he barely thought before he moved. It was instinct. It was the only thing he could think to do to stop something beyond horrible from happening to his friend. It was an action he both regretted and didn’t. Tom pulled the shovel from the dirt and swung it into the back of Dianite’s head.

The crime lord collapsed on top of Capsize. She flinched in fright, before quickly struggling under the weight. Neither Capsize nor Tom fully believed what had just happened. This situation was always going to end with Tom doing something he would regret; a decision bore out of loyalty. However, not a soul would’ve believed he would’ve betrayed his boss, the man that took him in and raised to where he was, for his loyalty to his friend. Not Dianite, who certainly wouldn’t have turned his back on the other if he suspected betrayal. Not Capsize, and certainly not Tom. Tom believed his actions so little that he stood completely frozen, grip still on the shovel as he tried to process what the hell he had just done. Then the moment passed, and he rushed to help Capsize.

“I’m sorry. Oh gods, I’m sorry, Cap,” He said as he finally pushed himself into moving. He haphazardly pushed Dianite off her, his body landing with a soft thump in the grave. Tom was beyond happy that he always brought a knife with him as he saw how tight the ropes were. But she was shaking. He was so scared he was going to hurt her. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “I’m gonna cut you loose. So just stay still, okay. We’re gonna get out of here, you’re gonna be okay.”

Capsize couldn’t do anything but give a shaky nod. She trusted Tom. Right now, she trusted him more than she trusted anyone in the world. So, somehow, she managed to hold herself still as he brought the knife under the rough gag and sliced through it. As soon as it was away, she coughed and choked. She felt disgusting. She wanted to sit in a shower for days to wash away the disgust she felt. She wanted to completely be away from her own body. But she couldn’t do either of those things. So instead, as Tom began to cut the ropes from her limbs, she just sobbed.

“I thought-- I thought I was gonna,” She could barely form sentences as every moment from the past two weeks hit her at once. From the moment Furia had grabbed her, she had been terrified, but she had tried to push it down. She had done everything she could think of to try to escape, every method proving fruitless. She had tried screaming, even as she’d been threatened by Dianite and Furia to shut up, because she knew there was the chance that Tom would hear her. She’d believed that someone would find her. She’d believed that Ianite would do anything to rescue her. And though she had been saved, suddenly she was realising that maybe she just wasn’t actually okay. Her brain wanted to be away from it all. So desperately that she asked the last question that Tom expected to hear from her. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, of course I am. You don’t need to be worried about me,” His tone wasn’t convincing. Obviously, it wasn’t, he wasn’t okay. He had no idea what he was meant to do. He’d nearly buried his friend alive. He’d killed Dianite. There was no possible way he was okay, but he absolutely did not want Capsize focusing any concern on him. It wouldn’t be fair. She was the one right now that should get to be not okay.

Soon enough, Tom would cut through the ropes and pull Capsize up from the coffin. She ended up leaning on his shoulder as they walked over to the truck. Neither was okay, they wouldn’t be for quite a while. Neither wanted to go home. Tom couldn’t face Dianite’s empty manor house knowing the man was lying face down in the dirt. Capsize didn’t want to face Ianite or Jordan, which she would inevitably have to do the moment she went home. They sat in the idle truck for quite a while, as if the solution would come to either one of them. Eventually, Capsize spoke.

“Do you wanna get a drink?”

“Yeah, I think a drink sounds great.”

Tom started the truck. They drove back towards the city, uncertain of what would come tomorrow. Tonight though, a drink shared by the two friends sounded better than anything.

[kiwibirdlafayette]

Horror warning for the first image!

and for a full 180 from my last art post, a bit of sketch concept work for some other designs in Aitheaca LMAO ft. ideas for Merina’s eldritch form and an early draft of Mianite, the keeper of the refuge and Dianite, the banished god :D

+ Bonus initial sketches for Mer! I feel like I can be looser with pencil than in digital so a lot of my design work usually starts off on paper before i do a digital version. The main thing I wanted to get was the many eyes motif I see in a lot of the watcher!grian designs i was inspired by, and I landed on the notion that maybe the scales turn into eyes? Idk

[richardazer]

Anyway no one except Ravi wanted to talk to me about what kind of bugs the boys would be

So tumblr gets this because I sad

Brainworms with HK lore for nerds like me below + a silly ship sketch

So a bit of lore, technically the setting is in the middle of HK playthru yk?? But it's also on its own kinda?

The hive is opened after many years, there's a lot of commotion and infection and obviously the king is no more sooooo

3 pretty pale siblings come through the world searching for followers, all three are wyrms but they take on forms of different bugs

Ianite is a mantis

Mianite is a wyrm (kings mold kinda build?)

Dianite is a moth (Grimm type heho)

Sparklez the mighty ant

Born and raised in the city of tears (don't ask me where the rest of the ants are, we're all waiting for silksong lol)

He wanted to become a city guard but did not make the cut because of his size and species, seeking to become worthy he travels outside the city later to train with the nail masters and meeting Ianite and the Mantis Lords.

His charms are Nailmaster's Glory (for obvious reasons) and Mark of Pride given by the Mantis Lords. + unbreakable strength

He spends most of his time in the Colosseum of Fools and has become a valuable champion

The deepnest pretty boy aka Peter 'za' hhutt

He's the Midwife's precious son, he gets his hunger from her. Pete found the Wayward Compass charm and quickly became an expert in the maze that is Deepnest making him the most dangerous predator. He has never left the nest, didn't need to. Bugs would come wandering in, traitors and weaklings would be thrown in by the Mantis Lords. Plenty of delicious food keeping him fed and sane.

The other charms he's given by Sparklez when they meet. Sparklez loves exploring, taking on any battle he can. Pete puts up a great fight. The spider isn't used to pray fighting back so vigorously so he lets Sparklez go. Meeting a worthy opponent Sparklez offers companionship since the deepnest is a tough place to traverse.

Quick Slash and Dashmaster made Pete more of a beast but he's no longer fueled by hunger because Sparklez consistently brings him dead bugs from the coliseum fights to feed Pete.

Fuzzy bee X33n

He's just a Hivelink, some of them patrol outside the hive but Xeen never been outside. After the hive was forced to interact with an outsider X33n musters up the courage to go explore. He missed his exit at the Ancient Basin because the infected bugs there scared him. But the first time he goes to explore he ends up in Deepnest.

Poor bee gets chased by a hungry spider and ends up running into an armored ant hehoo

Sparklez saves X33n from hungry Pete and they sit down to talk about the hive and how a bee got lost so far away from home

X33n's charms are Hiveblood (obviously, he's a bee it comes with the Xbox!) Thorns of Agony and Heavy Blow to help him against the infected bugs

The ship silly for anyone who is nerd enough to read through all this

"fed a stray cat now he loves me" VS "how can I NOT want to eat him he's so plump and fuzzy!!"

[motherianite]

(Tumblr doesn’t let me reply so I am reblogging idfk how to use this app)

BUT YES ISLES IS A PREQUEL… honestly it’s kinda good … really mid ..peak literature but also it’s bad…

It would def be better as a random spin off because it does not smoothly transition to season 1 and it would’ve been easier for the writers to do something fun and not make up lore

There was fun side characters like lord hermod, ianite was so cute here and she had pet foxes. We got to see Dianite slowly turn red!! It should’ve been something fun and self contained . But I still have one episode to go let’s see how it ends 😭😭

so ianite knew she was going to be captured by dianite and tried to avoid it? that’s why gandus had dirt on her?