#not the cat the mythological beast

[funeralprocessor]

The problem with having OCs is that you might just develop a fursona or two and not realize it.

[miaumiauwolrd]

A project for some activity in my school :p

[artadorkable]

Anastasia Josephine

i updated her design again

shes a jaguar centuar.her name is Anastasia Josephine from the movie. The older sister of bee.She's her theme is inspird by the song sex money feelings die(slowed) by Lykke Li Jessica rabbit, blue moon ice cream,fruity people pancakes ,hot chocolate,snow cabins,and sweets.Anastasia is a singer who sometimes sing at the bar Ram and Florance tend to work and hang out at.shes partners with bluebird and travel the realms with them. her younger sister is constantly worried about her.she Frenemies with Khali.Toki,Jasmine,Lily,Opal,Crystal,Huian,Antinette,Orabelle,Selene,Velvet,and Belladonna are friends with her.Shes Rams ex.her best friends is Fairy.if she not performing she’s probably somewhere crying with mussed makeup running down her face.

[paullovescomics]

Zawa + The Belly of the Beast

I loved the art, especially the coloring. It does that thing where the lines are often colors (like her hair on the cover of #5, and the hatching in the hand on #4), which always looks cool. I don't know what that's called, but i first noticed it in some French comics. It's great. Character designs are also strong. They pass that silhouette test. This story builds a cool mythology that was new to me, and that works well with the themes of consumption and power. It can be read as an adventure story and be satisfying on just that level, and you can also dig into the themes if you want to. Very good self-contained series. I'm not sure when the last issue came out, because I've been letting things pile up, but iirc the collected edition comes out in the fall.

[duatdesigns]

First Steps On This Journey

Welcome to My Art Journey on Tumblr: Unveiling the Mystical Realms of Mythology, Big Cats, and Fantasy

Hey there, art lovers and fellow dreamers!

I’m Duat Designs, and I’m thrilled to welcome you to my Tumblr page! Here begins an enchanting voyage into the world of art, where every brushstroke tells a story, and every pixel captures the essence of myths and dreams.

Exploring the Mystical Realms

From the ancient sands of Egypt to the mystical whispers of forgotten lore, my art dives deep into the heart of mythology. The gods, goddesses, and legends of ancient Egypt have always fascinated me. Their tales of power, creation, and the afterlife are rich with symbolism and intrigue. Through my creations, I aim to breathe life into these timeless stories, offering a glimpse into the divine and the enigmatic.

The Majesty of Big Cats

In my art, you'll frequently encounter the powerful and graceful forms of big cats. These majestic creatures embody strength, elegance, and a primal beauty that captivates and inspires. Whether prowling the dense jungles or basking in the golden savannahs, big cats are a recurring theme that symbolizes both the fierce and the serene.

Delving into the Supernatural

The supernatural world is a tapestry of the unknown, woven with threads of magic, spirits, and the unexplained. My fascination with the supernatural stems from its ability to stretch the imagination beyond the mundane. Expect to see ethereal beings, ghostly apparitions, and scenes that bridge the gap between our world and the beyond.

Crafting Tales of Fantasy

Fantasy is where my imagination truly takes flight. I believe in the power of storytelling to transport us to realms where dragons soar, knights embark on epic quests, and magic flows as freely as water. Each piece I create is a doorway into a new adventure, inviting you to step into a universe where the extraordinary is the norm.

Join the Journey

Your support and interaction mean the world to me. Let’s connect, share, and grow together in this artistic journey. Follow me on social media for updates, behind-the-scenes peeks, and a deeper dive into my creative process:

- Instagram: @duat_designs

-Twitter: @duatdesigns

-DeviantArt: DuatDesigns

-Facebook: Duat Designs

-Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/duatdesigns

-Patreon: patreon.com/duatdesigns

- Lemon8: lemon8app.com/duatdesigns

-Threads: threads.net/duatdesigns

- Toyhouse: toyhou.se/duatdesigns

- FurAffinity: furaffinity.net/user/duatdesigns

- Pinterest: pinterest.com/duatdesigns

Let’s Create Together!

Feel free to drop a message, leave comments, or simply enjoy the art. I’m always open to suggestions, commissions, or even just a chat about our favorite myths and stories. Thank you for being a part of this journey. Let’s explore these mystical realms together!

Stay inspired and keep dreaming,

Duat Designs

[thylacine001]

my beast

[getvalentined]

Haven't seen folks talking about this over here, but I'm in love with the detail, so I'm gonna talk about the mythology used in the new Ever Crisis event.

For those confused that Vincent's right arm is weird in his new Odin-bestowed gear, it's because it's based on Týr! Implied occasionally to be one of Odin's sons, Týr placed his right hand into Fenrir's mouth, eventually allowing him to bite it off entirely, so the other gods could bind him—hence the chains.

Fenrir usually represents Cloud in the series, which one could assume doesn't mean anything—except that Sephiroth's Odin-bestowed gear is based on Jörmungandr, the world serpent, who is one of Loki's monster children just like Fenrir.

Taking this into account, Odin appears to have cast Jenova as either Loki or Angrboða—but I'm assuming Loki, for reasons I'll explain in a minute.

So Vincent is cast as one of Odin's sons, one who threw himself into the literal jaws of the beast in order to keep the world safe, and was permanently changed as a result. Týr is also destined to be consumed by Garmr, the hound who guards the gates of Hel, at the end of the world—it should surprise no one to know that generally, Garmr is accepted as the Norse mythological analog of the Greek Cerberus.

Týr's fate comes to call all when Jörmungandr stops biting his own tail and rises up from the sea that covers the world, which will in turn free Loki from his bonds. Sort of like Vincent throwing himself into the fray when Sephiroth rises up from the Lifestream and allows Jenova to wreak havoc against the planet.

The reason I think Loki is the role being given to Jenova is because of Angeal's gear. We haven't gotten a good look at it yet, but the fur ruff leads me to assume he's being cast as one of the handful of canids in Norse mythology: either one half of the pair that is Hati and Sköll, or (more likely) Váli.

Hati or Sköll are probable enough because they're wolves, specifically Loki's grandchildren, making them one generation removed from the source, and they're a set of two—like how Angeal and Genesis are one step removed from Jenova via Gillian, and are a set of two. They chase the moon and the sun, and will consume both at the end of the world. I don't think this is quite right, though, because they're Fenrir's children, and Fenrir is very clearly associated with Cloud elsewhere in the series.

Váli, however, is one of Loki's children who wasn't born a monster. He's mentioned once, is occasionally confused with one of Odin's children, and was turned into a monster wolf before being driven to kill his brother—who also was not born a monster, and whose remains were used to bind their father. This is strikingly analogous to Angeal being brought up as a normal person, discovering that he's actually a monster, and being driven by his own honor to (attempt to) kill Genesis in order to end his Jenova-fueled war against Shinra. This would even explain the horns on Angeal's gear, because Váli is often mistaken for one of Odin's sons of the same name, and Odin also has gold horns.

TLDR: Odin has cast Vincent as his most doomed son (one permanently bound to at least one of Loki's monster children), Sephiroth as one of his weird monster nephews (the one whose return heralds the end of the world), and (hopefully, I'll be disappointed otherwise) Angeal as a different, less weird nephew who almost nobody remembers and turned into a monster at the end of his life for the express purpose of killing someone he loved.

Oh, and Tifa is...some kind of sexily underdressed gijinka version of one of the cats that pull Odin's heavenly counterpart's carriage. For some reason.

Still not sure about the thought process behind that one.

[catschimericalcreations]

Did you know:

With every donation you make at https://ko-fi.com/catschimericalcreations you can unlock one fun fact about any repurposed Beanie Baby hybrid plush beast of your choosing!

Two Headed Manticore Plush by Cat's Chimerical Creations

[literallys-illiteracy]

Project Moon Reading list

this is mt attempt at a comprehensive list of the references in Project Moon Games.

if you have any that arent listed, feel free to share them.

Lobotomy Corporation:

SCP-049 (Plague Doctor) (Speculated)

Portrait of Dorian Grey (Portrait of Another World; Mirror Of Adjustment) (Speculated)

Bible (One Sin and Hundreds of Good Deeds, Plague Doctor, Skin Prophecy, Flesh Idol, Burrowing Heaven, Express Train to Hell, Whitenight, Carmen)

Midsummer Nights Dream (Fariy Festival)

[Radio Station] UVB-76//The Buzzer (1.76Mhz)(Speculated)

Necronomicon//General Lovecraft (Skin Prophecy)

Colour Out of Space (Fragment of the Universe) (speculated; Thematically almost certainly lovecraft inspired)

The Little Match Girl (Scorched Girl)

Beauty and the Beast (Beauty and the Beast)

The Red Shoes (Red Shoes)

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Scarecrow searching for wisdom; Warm Hearted Woodsman)

Colour Out of Space (Child of the Galaxy) (speculative)

The Snow Queen (The Snow Queen)

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (Rudolta of the Sleigh)

[Opera] Der Freischutz (Der Freischutz)

Snow White and the seven dwarves (Snow White's Apple)

Alarune (Alriune) (speculative)

The Little Prince (Little Prince)

Little Red Riding Hood (Little Red Riding Hooded Mercenary; Big and Will be Bad Wolf)

Three Little Pigs (Big and Will be Bad Wolf)

The Six Swans (Dream of a Black Swan) (Speculative)

[Music] Bethoven's Moonlight Sonata (Il Pianta De La Luna, Silent Orchestra)

[Film] Spirited Away (Mountain of Smiling Bodies) (Design) (Speculative)

Wonderlab specific:

Alice's adventures in wonderland (Red Queen, Hookah Butterfly)

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Scaredy Cat and the road home)

The little mermaid (Piscence mermaid)

Midsummer nights dream (Titania)

[Conjecture/Heavy Speculation] Snow Queen or Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (Nobody Is)

Rapunzel (Tangle)

Lady in the Lake (White Lake)

Mythology and Folklore:

[Buddhist] Preta (Clouded Monk)

[Celtic] Faerie (Fairy Festival)

[German] Der Freischutz "The Freeshooter" (Der Freischutz)

[German] Doppelganger "Double Walker" (Nothing There) (thematic)

[German] Nachtkrapp "Night raven" (Big Bird) (Speculative; Personally unconvinced)

[Greek] Stymphalian birds (Punishing Bird) (Speculative)

[Greek] Pygmalion//Galatea (Pygmalion)

[Japanese] Baku (Void Dream)

[Japanese] Jubokko "Tree Child" (Grave of Cherry blossoms)

[Jewish] Kabbalah (Tree of life, Malkuth, Yesod, Netzach, Hod, Tifret, Gevurah, Hesed, Chokma, Binah, Keter, Ayin)

[Jewish] Succubus//Incubus (Porccubus)

[Korean] Urban Legend regarding "Grape Welch Soda" (An Opened Can of Welcheers)

[Norse] Yggdrasil (Parasite Tree) (Speculative: Giant Tree Sap)

[Roman] Justicia // Lady Justice (Judgement Bird)

[Roman] Laetitia (Laetitia)

[Russian]  Zhar-ptitsa "The Firebird" (The Firebird)

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

Library of Ruina:

Library of Babel

Do Androids dream of electric sheep? (Thematic, Achievement name)

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (The Adult Who Tells Lies, Scaredy cat and the road home)

The Marvelous Land of Oz (Ozma)

Town Musicians of Bremen (The Musicians of Bremen)

The Jaunt (WARP trains)

Nosferatu (Nosferatu)

Macbeth ("And then is Heard no more")

[Film] The hour of the wolf (Tanya)

[tarot] The fool (Jester of Nihil)

[poetry] Sky, Wind, Stars, and Poem (SPB&TP mili song) (thematic)

[poetry] Orlando furioso /& Orlando Innamoratto. (Roland and related cast (Argalia, angelica, etc.))

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

Limbus Company

The Divine Comedy (Dante & surrounding cast)

The Wings (Yi Sang & co.)

Faust (Faust)

Don Quixote (Don Quixote)

Hell Screen (Ryoshu)

The Stranger//L'etranger//The Outsider (Meursault)

Dream of the red chamber (Hong Lu)

Wuthering Heights (Heathcliff & Co.)

Moby Dick//The Whale (ishmael & Co.)

Crime and Punishment (Rodion & Sonya)

Demian (Sinclair & Co.)

The Odyssey (Outis, Cyclops)

The Metamorphosis (Gregor)

Limbus Company - Minor References:

Peter pan (Smee)

Sherlock Holmes: (Timekilling Time Stage Names)

Scandal in time (Scandal in Bohemia)

A Case of the Gallows (A Case of Identity) (speculative)

The Adventure of three detectives (The Adventure of Three Students)

The White Scarved League (The Red Headed League)

The Clock Tower of Fear (Valley of Fear)

The Final Problem (The Final Problem)

Midsummer night dream (Midwinter Nightmare EGO gift)

The Time Machine (Hubert from TKT) (Speculative)

The Stars (Alfonso and Stephanette)

The Old Man and The Sea (Indigo elder) (Speculative)

Murder on the Orient Express (Murder on the WARP express)

Vampire the Masqurade (Casseti) (Speculative)

The Masque of the Red Death (Casseti) (Speculative)

The one who rules (Stage name "the one who lords") (speculative)

Real People:

League of nine:

Kim Kirim (김기림) (Rim)

Yi Hyoseok (이효석) (Aseah)

Lee Jong-myeong (이종명) (Yurang)

Kim Yu-yeong (김유영) (???/ Unnamed Member)

Chi-Jin Yoo (유치진). Pen name: Dongrang (동랑) (Dongrang)

Cho Yong-man (조용만) (Aneung)

Lee Tae-jun (이태준) (Sang-heo)

Jeong Ji-yong (정지용) (Young-ji)

Lee Mu-young (이무영) (Gap-ryong)

Park Taewon (박태원) (Gubo)

Kim Hae-Gyeong (김해경). Pen name Yi Sang (이상) (Yi Sang)

Park Pal-yang (박팔양) (???/ Unnamed member)

Gim Yujeong (김유정) (Dongbaek)

Kim Hwan-tae (김환태) (Nul-in)

other(s):

Agatha Christi (Grade 1 Fixer Agatha)

Kim Sakkat (Bamboo Hatted Kim)

Alphonse Daudet (Alfonso)

Vergil (Vergillius)

EGO and Abnormalities:

Midsummers Night Dream (Midwinter Nightmare) (EGO gift)

Carmilla (400 roses Anormality) (Carmilla EGO gift)

Metropolis (Resident of Metropolaris) (Speculative)

Snow White and the seven dwarves (Ebony Queen's Apple)

Pride and Predgudice (Spider of Marrige)

Poem of a dying butterfly (no.10 Crows Eye View) (A Dying Butterfly

Rudolph the red nosed Reindeer (Sandolph)

[Religion, Abrahamic religions] (Skin Prophet) (Heavenly Executioners throne) (Sign of Roses) (Heavenly Commanders Throne) (Broken Wings) (ichthys (Headless ichthys))

[Religion, Buddhist] (Ya Śūnyatā Tad Rūpam EGO) (My Form Empties)

[Folklore, Celtic] Faeries (Fairy Long-Legs, Fairy Gentleman, Faelantern)

[Folklore, German] Der Freishutze (Der Freishutze) (Der Fluchshutze)

[Folklore, Korean] The Green Frog (Blubbering Toad)

[Folklore, Korean] Dol hareubang (Wishing Cairn) (Pagoda Veneration)

[wonderlandcrown]

Well That's a Big Cat

Hello everyone I'm very much alive, just been extra busy w/ school lately and been getting too much sleep

There's been a lot of chimera/overblot Grim on my dash lately so I'd like to contribute : Chimera Grim's Design

So starting off, Grim has a ring of blue fire surrounding his neck, much like a lion and its mane, this could either reference the chimera, or it could be referencing the King of Beasts - Scar.

Also it's interesting how the Shroudbros and Grim both have blue fire, with the Shroud family curse being that they burn away blot and how Grim has an addiction? to eating the left over Overblot stones (and seems fine after eating it) I remember seeing a theory about how Grim might've been the monster that killed Ortho, (given how Grim doesn't remember much about his childhood) Forgetting about your childhood is a actually also a sign for childhood trauma, no idea if it applies to cat-monsters though. .u.

Also, see those tentacles behind the mane? Does it remind you of someone? Our favourite octo-capitalist perphaps?

Ah yes, the snake tail. Again, this could either be referencing the chimera or the snake in the Scarabia icon. (both maybe?)

Dragon wings!!! The chimera doesn't reference dragon wings so this is definitely referencing Malleus' dragon-fae lineage. Interestingly, I don't see any references to OB! Riddle or Vil, those two could be harder to reference since they don't have a clear "animal" motif, I would appreciate it if anyone notices anything lol.

But we're still missing the goat, the chimera has a "goat protruding from it's back" but I don't see it anywhere on Grim (again, if you notice something or know someone who is better than analysing stuff pls tag me ToT)

@prince-kallisto has posted about how Twst has LOADS of religious symbolism(specifically Christian symbolism), so check them out for a clearer analysis on the stuff I'm abt to say. Goats are a symbol of Satan/The Devil in Christian mythology, and given how Maleficent(a dragon) herself has demonic symbolism the dragon wings on Grim's back could symbolise the "goat protruding from it's back".

[pico-farad]

POKEMON x GX

tomfoolery

if you think i'm wrong educate urself ↓

JADEN / JUDAI

Eevee -> Umbreon - Brown fluffball = Winged Kuriboh. He's like the Let's Go Eevee who can learn signature moves of all types, evoking the Elemental part of Judai's Heroes. Stays unevolved for a long time (like how Judai stays in Osiris Red) but evolves into Umbreon to represent Judai coming into his powers over the Gentle Darkness

Palafin - Superheroes. That's Aqua Dolphin contact fused with Neos. And his ability is like Mask Change :)

Torracat -> Incineroar - Referenced in this art I made! 1) Cats because of Pharaoh, even has the same stripe pattern 2) Big buff wrestler guy fits with the Heroes 3) Fire and Dark-type representing Osiris Red and the Gentle Darkness 4) Incineroar is stupid and OP like Judai

Hawlucha - Masked Fighting-type also very Hero-like. The green and red evokes Featherman + Flame Wingman.

Zweilous -> Hydreigon - Yubel :) 3-stage Dark Dragon. Zweilous is more similar to Yubel's two-headed forms, but Hydreigon has the terror factor of Yubel's final form.

Buzzwole - Ultra Beasts are extraterrestrial like the Neospacians. Neos (BUFF Fighting-type) contact fused with Flare Scarab (Bug-type) contact fused with Air Hummingbird (red + long beak).

CHAZZ / MANJOUME

Luxray - Electric-type for Manjoume THUNDER. Luxray -> Luxury because he's rich. Also he looks like one lmao. Its ability is RIVALRY.

Haxorus - Armed Dragon. Its ability is ALSO RIVALRY. Deals less damage to Pokemon of the opposite gender and more to the same gender. Manjoume cannot be normal about women and neither can his Pokemon.

Dragapult - XYZ Dragon Cannon. Another pseudo-legendary that probably cost a lot of money.

Scraggy - OJAMA YELLOW.

Impidimp - OJAMA BLACK.

Trubbish - OJAMA GREEN. Stinky :)

ALEXIS / ASUKA

Kirlia -> Gallade - CYBER TUTU. Fairy-type like the Cyber Angels. The fork between evolving into Gardevoir or Gallade represents Asuka being pressured to conform to femininity, ultimately choosing to evolve into Gallade which is a Fighting-type like Asuka's Warrior-type Cyber Girls, and evokes Blade Skater with the arm blades. Has the ability Justified and protects others, like Asuka

Primarina - 1) Counterpart to Judai's Incineroar 2) a singer and performer like Asuka's dancer-themed deck 2.5) Cyber PRIMA, balleRINA 3) Fairy-type 4) blue, pretty 5) I think it originally belonged to Fubuki. They have the same personality.

Oricorio (Sensu) - Dancer. Sensu variant because of the coloration and holding fans like Cyber Angel Benten

Medicham - Fighting-type. Several of the Cyber Angels draw from South Asian mythology. Mega Medicham especially looks like Cyber Angel Vrash

Froslass - Scary female Ice-type evoking her Society of Light/manga decks.

Hisuian Lilligant - Cyber Blader! Female Fighting-type gymnast/ice skater who fights with bladed arms and skates. Also I just learned this, but the Moon entry for Lilligant is "As soon as it finds a male to be its partner, the beautiful flower on its head darkens, droops, and withers away" LMAO. That's Asuka with all the men trying to date her.

SYRUS / SHOU

Revavroom - Vehicroid. He's even got the Vehicroid googly eye. Mono-Steel specialist!

Magnezone - The Vehicroid googly eye :) That's UFOroid. Also evolves by combining like Shou's fusion monsters.

Corviknight - Vehicle (Corviknight taxi service in Galar). Gets bullied.

Excadrill - That's Drillroid (and Grand Mole. Judai traded it to him)

Orthworm - Supposed to look like a subway. Expressroid.

Archaludon - Steel/Dragon representing taking over the Cyber Dragon legacy. Has an urban aesthetic and turns into a bridge; Megaroid City.

ZANE / RYOU

Kommo-o - A dragon covered with metallic plates (learns Steel-type moves too despite not being Steel-type). It seeks out strong opponents, and "after completing its harsh training, returns to its birthplace to protect Jangmo-o. However, it only watches over them from a distance." <- his relationship with his brother.

Steelix - Looks the most like Cyber Dragon

Metagross - The Steel-type pseudo-legendary. I wanted him to have a lot of grossly powerful Pokemon to match his high ATK monsters. It's also a fusion of Beldums/Metangs like his Cyber Dragon fusions, and I think Mega Metagross looks like Cyber Eltanin from the manga.

Hisuian Samurott - I initially had Empoleon for being a Steel-type with an emperor theme (complementing Ryou being Kaiser) but... yeah, Hisuian Samurott is simply the truth. Cold-hearted Dark-type who will do anything to win, unlike OG Samurott who is noble and fair. cyberdragoninfinity got it in one and I have nothing to add.

Kingambit - King. Kaiser. Dark Steel-type. A battle-hungry Pokemon which evolves by standing above all others.

Iron Jugulis - THE CYBEREST DRAGON. From the future, made of LEDs, three heads like Cyber End, Dark like Cyberdark Dragon, described as having the ruthlessness of a machine.

ATTICUS / FUBUKI

Charizard (Shiny) - Black and red for Red-Eyes. Also Charizard and Red-Eyes are both nostalgia-bait. Fubuki is both a Yugiboomer and a genwunner.

Alolan Raichu - Surfer! Raichu is also Gen 1 nostalgia.

Lapras - More classic Gen 1 Pokemon. Pokemon AU Fubuki is probably a Red fanboy. Lapras is a singer (he wants to be an idol), and an Ice-type to match his name (which means blizzard)

Ludicolo - Musical dancing Pokemon. They have the same energy.

Jynx - Dancing, singing Ice-type, who has an association with kissing and love -> the Love Magician.

Darkrai - Darkness. Casting the world into eternal nightmares.

BASTIAN / MISAWA

Alakazam - High intelligence nerd Pokemon. Also he's yellow.

Gyarados - Water Dragon. Hydrogeddon (Water) + Oxygeddon (Flying)

Dartrix -> Decidueye - The final of the starter trio representing the three dorms. In my original Alolan starters GX art I gave Rowlet to Shou (glasses lmao) but since Shou is mono-Steel this time, Misawa can have it as the "yellow" starter. I used Dartrix because it's snooty like Bastian in the dub lol, but I think evolving into Decidueye (Ghost-type) kind of evokes his Yokai deck in the manga. Also is a counterpart to Incineroar (Tania)...

Probopass - Evokes his magnet deck used against Tania and Manjoume.

Reuniclus - Made from three cells/atoms, like a water molecule -> Misawa's chemistry deck.

Porygon-Z - Tri-Attack and wide elemental coverage representing Misawa's 6 attribute decks. Another classic nerd Pokemon. Also the Pokedex entries say that its evolution is spurred by a program that allows it to travel across dimensions, which represents Misawa's research and traveling the spirit worlds.

CHUMLEY / HAYATO

Komala, Kangaskhan, Smeargle - I have nothing to add. Normal Australian Artist. Has a half-size team because he's not much of a trainer and nothing else is as fitting.

ASTER / EDO

Gliscor - Destiny Hero Plasma. Purple, bat wings, a claw pincer, spiky tail, and vampirism (Plasma's other name is Bloo-D, attacks with blood, and drains opponents' ATK points for his own). Also Edo is Batman.

Lokix - It's based on the Kamen Rider superheroes, and is Dark-type reflecting all the anti-heroes in that series, just like how the Destiny Heroes are Dark-attribute anti-heroes. 

Hisuian Sneasel -> Sneasler - ...He looks like one. And acts like one. Its claws look like Plasma's left arm and the spikes behind his head. I used Sneasel in the image because Sneasler is too tall to be Edo lmao but yeah it fits too. A Fighting-type for his Warrior-type Heroes.

Absol - Able to fortell the future referencing his relationship with Saiou and belief in Destiny, but is followed by misfortune as a result because Edo's life is suffering

Ceruledge - Edgy sword guy fueled by resentment and revenge, aka Season 2.

Lunala - 1) Another bat because Edo is Batman, and many of the Destiny Heroes have bat wings and a night motif 2) it looks like Destiny Hero Celestial when it attacks 3) Its form when taken over by Necrozma represents Plasma being infected by the Light of Destruction

SARTORIUS / SAIOU

Malamar - Very Arcana Force-coded, chthonic tentacle being. Legitimately just looks like The Hanged Man and you literally turn your DS upside down to evolve Malamar. Has mind-controlling hypnotic powers -> Society of Light brainwashing (and Saiou himself)

Xatu - Able to see the FUTURE (Saiou) by staring into THE SUN (Light of Destruction).

Gothitelle - Creepy female design looks like the feminine Arcana Forces. It can also see the future from the movement of stars (light). Gothitelle attacks by projecting "dreams of the universe’s end. These dreams are apparently ethereal and beautiful." The Light of Destruction is described as being pure entropy and akin to the heat death of the universe.

Claydol - It looks kind of like The Chariot. It was brought to life from exposure to a "mysterious ray of light." HMM.

Deoxys - Arcana Force Pokemon of all time. The tentacles, the gem cores, the spikes. It's from space like the Light of Destruction. The defense form looks like The Moon. Mutated from exposure to "a laser beam." I'm half convinced the Light of Destruction just exists in Pokemon now, and it might be...

Necrozma (Ultra) - Arcana Force EX - The Light Ruler has a dragon head. Necrozma being an extraterrestrial entity which can take over other Pokemon's bodies. Has a move called Light That Burns The Sky.

HASSLEBERRY / KENZAN

Tyrantrum, Rampardos, Bastiodon, Archeops - Dinosaur :) All chosen for looking like one of his monsters.

Arctozolt, Dracovish - Fossils made by mismatching bones, like the dino bone in his leg lol

BLAIR / REI

Mawile - Acts cute to lower the guard of foes, natural Fake Tears learner, wears yellow. Maiden in Love + Defense Maiden.

Luvdisc - Love. Hearts. Romance.

Plusle - A tag team Pokemon like the Tag Duel in Season 4, and another Fake Tears learner. Red for Osiris Red, and a positive Pokemon who cheers for others, like how she encourages Martin.

Volbeat - Sort of another tag team Pokemon! Volbeat and Illumise are also associated with mating/romance. I went with Volbeat because it's red, and Rei presents as a boy twice and uses masculine pronouns.

Blissey - Egg Pokemon like her Mystic Egg deck she used against Manjoume. Also loves taking care of others, like she does with Martin.

Dragonite - Mystic Dragon.

JESSE / JOHAN

Carbink - Carbuncle encrusted with gemstones. Ruby-sized. Rock and Fairy-type for the Crystal Beasts.

Espeon - Also based on a carbuncle with a ruby in its head, but with the coloration of Amethyst Cat! It's the counterpart to Judai's Umbreon (evolving with friendship representing his bond with spirits + sunlight like Rainbow Dragon)

Arcanine (Shiny) - Mr. Mary Sue needs a shiny Pokemon. Shiny Arcanine is yellow and striped for Topaz Tiger. It's also a mythological creature like many of Johan's cards.

Grotle - Emerald Turtle.

Dragonair - I thought Johan should still have a dragon, and this is the closest to Rainbow Dragon available. Long, decorated with crystals, wings on the head, and said to be able to alter the weather, which means rainbows. Adds blue to his team's color palette.

Ho-oh - The Rainbow Pokemon. Leader of the Legendary Beasts. A bird on the team to evoke Cobalt Eagle. And when Gale of Darkness is remade with a Shadow Ho-oh, that will be Rainbow Dark Dragon :)

ADRIAN / AMON

Altaria - Cloudian

Drifblim - Flying-type and has a cloud on its head. Ghost-types also reference how the Cloudians can't be destroyed in battle.

Cursola - Another Ghost-type. It's a Corsola that was killed by climate change (Amon) so that's Echo. Also kind of looks like a cloud.

Weezing - Because of the Cloudians based on pollution, acid rain, and smoke clouds. And his noxious personality :)

Politoed - Evolves with King's Rock and Amon is obsessed with becoming a king. Also has the ability Drizzle, which fits with his weather-based deck.

Landorus - That's Exodia on a cloud. I think all of the genie Legendaries fit super well with Amon, but I went with Landorus because it has Exodia's coloration and his signature move Sandsear Storm references Amon being from the desert.

JIM

Krookodile - Karen. Jim "Krookodile" Cook. It's a ground-type too to fit with his Earth-attribute Fossil Warriors. And it's a cool motherfucker like Jim.

Nidoking - A king for Fossil Warrior Skull King. Also looks like Fossil Dragon Skullgar.

Duskull - One red eye for the Eye of Orichalcum. The skull motif also reflects his Fossil deck (all of the fusions have "Skull" in the name) and Ghost-typing reflects how they are fused with materials from the graveyard.

Kabutops - Fossil. It just looks like a Fossil Warrior.

Marowak - More skull and bones and graveyard motif.

Rhyhorn - Rhyhorn is rideable (in X/Y) which represents the Fossil Machine fusions. He also looks like Fossil Machine Skull Buggy.

AXEL / O'BRIEN

Armarouge - Arm gun. Designed to look like a soldier (which O'Brien refers to himself as). Learns Destiny Bond too, which is like how he forces a tie against Haou Judai.

Skeledirge - A fire gator which matches Jim's Krookodile. The Volcanic monsters look vaguely reptilian too. Also I think spamming Torch Song is like the Blaze Accelerator cards. 

Turtonator - He explodes. Volcanic SHELL.

Centiskorch - I think it kind of looks like a clip of ammo. Bug-type also evokes the "ammo" Volcanics like Shell and Scattershot which have carapaces.

Alolan Marowak - Matches Jim's regular Marowak. Also a reference to his mom trauma in the duel with Trueman lmao

Magmortar - Arm cannon fire pew pew

CROWLER / CHRONOS

Klingklang - Gear.

Golurk - Ancient Golem.

Oranguru - The teacher Pokemon, signature move Instruct :)

Bronzong - Ancient Steel-type.

Copperajah - Big hulking Steel-type. I think its trunk looks like Ancient Gear Golem's fist. And elephants are maternal creatures and Chronos loves his kids <3

Meltan - I really wanted to give him Melmetal because it looks like an Ancient Gear (hulking Steel-type from ancient times made of nuts and bolts) but I avoid giving Legendaries to characters unless it fits narratively... It seems like Meltans just run around though, so Chronos can have a metal baby.

BANNER / DAITOKUJI

Skitty - Pharaoh <3 Has Pharaoh's and Daitokuji's eyes. I considered Galarian Meowth too though, for being made of metal like the Alchemy Beasts.

Cofagrigus - He's a mummy and the Helios cards are mummies and he explored ancient tombs. Cofagrigus is also made of gold (like Golden Homunculus) and evolves from Yamask (used to be human and has a kind of wimpy personality like Daitokuji, references his involvements with Fubuki and Fujiwara and the mask of Darkness)

Solrock - A sun rock for his Helios cards and the Alchemy Beasts being Rock-types.

Sigilyph - Found in the ruins of ancient civilizations.

Gholdengo - The boss of his deck, Golden Homunculus. The ultimate goal of alchemy to transmute metals into gold. Ghost-type because he's dead.

Necrozma (Dusk Mane) - 1) It's a cat 2) Solgaleo = Helios the Primordial Sun 3) Steel-type like the metal Alchemy Beasts 4) Taken over by Necrozma representing his role in the Darkness stuff with Fubuki and Fujiwara, and helping Kagemaru

FUJIWARA

Eternal Floette - HONEST. Fairy-type waiting for his master who has sunk into despair due to the death of his loved ones and brought about an entity that will absorb all life on Earth.

Yamask -> Runerigus - The Darkness mask. Yamask crying over the memories of its former life and searching for someone who remembers it -> Fujiwara's relationship with memories and fear of being forgotten. The Galarian version being a vengeful curse which takes possession of a Yamask. Runerigus matching Daitokuji's Cofagrigus in reference to his role in Fujiwara's disappearance.

Hisuian Zoroark - Normal-type representing the attribute-less Clear World cards. Persisted beyond death through its utter resentment for every living thing on Earth. Uses illusions to torment others to madness (the Darkness nightmares). Can change its form like Honest and Trueman.

Mega Sableye - Visually evokes the Clear World monsters, which are encased in that crystal.

Nihilego - Nihilism. A parasite which latches onto others to manipulate them (Darkness), feeding mostly on "those who feel intense worry or anxiety." Also white/transparent/a rock like the Clear World cards.

Necrozma - The black form of Necrozma to represent Darkness and how it latches onto and possesses others, siphoning their energy. Necrozma's relationship to Solgaleo and Lunala is a reference to eclipses, which is also how Darkness is given form.

I used this trainer card maker

[real-fire-emblem-takes]

I’m not here to discuss Fódlan discourse, I’m here to talk about something far more based: Fódlan Theology!

In all /srs-ness, I’ve been thinking about the Church of Seiros a lot and what real world theology inspired it, it’s more than just fantasy Christianity, though it very much is still fantasy Christianity given that it tends to fall into the trope of making things worse more often than better, like fantasy Christianity tends to do…

Ahem, back on topic. So people meme about Byleth being Fire Emblem Jesus, right? Well, I’m here to say, “No, That’s Wrong!” to that statement. SEIROS is Fódlan’s Jesus, given that she’s the one who’s actually Sothis’s child. And when people pray at church in Fódlan, they’re not praying Sothis and Byleth, they’re praying to Sothis and Seiros. Heck, it’s called the Church of SEIROS, just like how CHRISTianity is named after Jesus CHRIST.

Of course that leaves the question, “what’s Byleth meant to be, then?” Well, they’re the Second Coming of Seiros of course. Obviously with creative liberties taken given that Seiros never actually died in Fódlan, people were simply lead to believe she did, and nobody’s ever really discussed or believed that a second coming of Seiros was a thing, Byleth seems to be more seen in Universe as a second coming of Sothis instead, but I think that’s just a case of creative liberties being taken.

I’d like to circle back to Seiros though, as she’s not just based off Jesus, but she and her saints are based off the 4 Heavenly Kings and their Draconic Leader from Japanese mythology.

We never see Seteth and Flayn transform, but given that there are 5 of them in total and the beast forms of Rhea, Indech, and Macuil are a Dragon, Turtle, and Bird respectively. By process of elimination we can determine that the remaining two are a Serpent and a Tiger, or rather a cat in Flayn’s case.

Now some of you might be wondering why they’d have different forms despite being parent and child? It’s because we know they’re canonically different types of Dragons, the Dragon Seals that hold the power of their Crests explain as much. Seteth is an Earth Dragon while Flayn is a Light Dragon, she likely takes after her mother. Odds are if she survived, Flayn’s mother would’ve been the Tiger, but as Flayn had to fill in, and still being a child she would be a cat, rather than a grown Tiger.

As for why I know she’s the tiger and not the serpent. A: she likes fish to an almost obsessive degree. B: she once napped for centuries and cats are known for sleeping a lot. C: she dressed as a cat in her Halloween alt. And given how bad she is about being subtle, I feel like that last one is all the proof I need.

I’m sure there’s still more to Fódlan Theology that I didn’t bring up/haven’t noticed yet, because honestly the Seiros Faith is shockingly layered, which makes sense since Intsys has been writing FE for a long time so it’s not surprising that they’re gotten good at fleshing certain things out.

.

[mono-dot-jpeg]

a child and their 9ft pet - astral express crew

summary; the adventures of a 7 year old and their large mythical beast called ossy.

genre/extra tags; bullet fic/headcanons, anxious! reader, reader is connected to most animals (but mostly their companion), reader is from the luofu, i made reader a bit know it all sassy but it's okay it's only for a little bit, reader is a smart baby

[platonic] [7 year old! reader] [gender neutral! reader]

[buy me a kofi to support!]

a/n; this is the most steven universe shit i've seen /j /nm, that's what popped into my mind upon reading this ask. nothing wrong with it. just pointing it out KSDJKSJ also this is based off lion dog from chinese mythology which is what i assume you were describing from the shih tzu and also im rather familiar with the lion dog myself as someone who used to visit temples with my family (love those statues). anyways, hope you enjoy, you didn't really specify what type of work you wanted, so i did bullet fic/hcs

the crew met you when you were trying to avoid them

you're not really normal in the luofu, you were not really an anomaly but you weren't a normal kid either.

the general knew of you due to your larger than life pet.

well... it was more of a beast of mythic lore turned real but who's arguing about definitions here?

even if your pet was in a smaller form, they were still pretty big. about 4ft. maybe twice your height almost

but jingyuan let you have your pet as long as you weren't making trouble

anyways, back to the actual subject at hand.

the astral crew needed to find you since you were supposedly the young scholar of the luofu who seemed to know everything and loved learning about everything

you were almost a historian some would even say

but you didn't really like the idea of being a historian

you just like learning about everything

but you weren't the best around people

so when you met the crew .. .

you jumped right into your pet's fur, disappearing without a trace

"HUH?!"

"how did they disappear like that?"

"did they just jump into that animal's fur?"

march tries to reach out, but the dog barks angrily and backs up

"okay okay! sorry.. puppy?"

"they're not a puppy!" your voice erupts from the soft fur of the dog (?) your head pops up startling the express crew, "they're a lion! get it right!" you scolded them.

"but they don't look like a lion."

"and you don't look like a local, so what's it to you!?" you huffed. "you don't know everything about the luofu!"

"that's why we're here. we need to know more about the history of your home." the eldest man, welt yang, spoke gently. "general jingyuan sent us."

you sigh as you cuddle into your pet's fur, still leaving the crew to wondering how you're being contained in it. "okay. what do you want to know?" and you begrudgingly answer their questions. you eventually leave your pet's fur and they keep your feeling less anxious about the strangers who imposed on your reading time.

and that's it for now.

the crew is mildly concerned and curious about you\

they spot you around different parts of the luofu as they continue their adventure.

let's say that they even had more time to get to know you better. how you're kind of a wild card for the luofu cloud knights and how you'd rather do a plain hobby than fight.

but you're perfectly capable of doing so

well, mostly your pet.

boy were they shocked when they saw your already large ish lion change and grow into a true creature of mythology, and fought the marastruck with ease.

"no chewing! marastruck isn't good for your diet!" you had scolded after the fight was over. "put them down ossy!" despite their cowering size, they almost shrink at your words and remind the crew of a sad puppy or cat. but ossy listens to you and spits out the marastruck, letting it disintegrate into the air.

yeah.. the crew was even more curious after that.

trailblazer was the only brave enough to speak what they were all thinking. what is your pet and how did you get them?

and you told them the simple story that you gained them as a family heirloom and bonded a contract with them. you even formed other contracts with other animals but not as strong as ossy's contract.

ossy was sort of a present from your family as you came from a line of mythic beast tamers and now you're here with them

and after that, you visit the express once in a while with ossy by your side to get a break from the streets of luofu

you take up your other hobbies when you're in the express, often knitting or drawing and you make drawings and little bracelets from the crew. while your drawings and knitting works arent as amazing as your knowledge, you don't mind because it just means more to learn and improve on.

you love being with the crew now and you love ossy more than ever of course!

[apoloadonisandnarcissus]

"The Plague of Nosferatu": Rats, Witchcraft and Possession in “Nosferatu” (2024)

Rats were already present in the previous adaptations of “Nosferatu”. Until recently, the Black Plague (bubonic plague) was believed to have been caused by a flea found in rats, and the consensus was the killing of cats allowed “plague rats” to multiply and lead to the demise of almost 50 million Europeans throughout the Middle Ages, and is considered as one of the most fatal pandemics in human history. However, this is no longer the consensus among historians, who have found evidence of other explanations (bacteria: gerbils; lice; etc.); And for this reason, the symbolism of cats (detachment; independence and wisdom) is not connected with the symbolism of rats in this story (which is why I left the rats out of my essay on the subject).

Rats were connected to witches and sorcerers, in European imagination during the Middle Ages and the beginning of the Modern Age. In the 16th century, in England, rats infestations were abundant, and so were accusations of witchcraft. Between 1587 and 1588, witchcraft trials were rampant in Europe, still. Both witches and vermin (rats; snakes; toads; spiders; etc) were linked in European imagination at the time. Both sorcerers and rats were to blame for plagues, disease, bad crops and misfortune in general.

Contagion theories in the 15th to 17th centuries dabbled in religious and metaphysical explanations for the plague (unlike the 19th century, which began to embrace scientific views). The two main theories were of God’s punishment or wrath on a sinful and corrupted earth, where rats were either agents of witchcraft and the Devil, or God’s direct agents in punishing the very presence of sorcerers among humanity.

"Jesus Christ in heaven! This isn’t a Satanic magician, or any other humiliating fantasy. It’s no wonder you’re a laughing stock. Out! Frau Hutter is mad and should have been locked up long ago. My Anna was bitten by vermin. Rats. No more."

In 1666, William Austin, in his poem, “Anatomy of Pestilence”, argued the plague appeared after the Great Flood as a sign of God’s indignation towards a “fallen world”. He saw plague as God’s punishment for a sinful and cursed earth, infested by witches. To him, the plague was a gendered issue, as he will draw parallels with Greek mythology, of female “furies” and Pandora opening the box; and Eve from Christian-Jewish tradition. Witches and sorcerers, and their sexualized alliances with the Devil, were the cause of God’s punishment on earth; they were the direct or indirect sources of plague contamination.

"The Devil! Our cargo is cursed!"

In theological texts throughout this time period, “plague” and “pestilence” were all connected to God’s wrath: disease, famine, bad crops, animal infestations, etc. Jean Bodin, “On the Demon Mania of Witches” (1580), argued that moral corruption, blasphemy and atheism caused plague, evil spirits, wars and famine. Witches and sorcerers were morally corrupt, associated with vermin (rats, toads, flies, spiders, etc.), and were the cause: “If one lets the vermin multiply, it engenders corruption and infects everything.”

In his treaty “Contagion” (1603), Thomas Lodge argued the plague was caused by the corruption of the four humors of the human body (Humoral theory), by the corrupted human spirit and body because of “evil vapours” from breathing air (environmental causes). Edward Topsell, “Historie of Foure-Footed Beastes” (1607), calls rats “creatures of putrefaction”, and connects them with similar vermin (considered monstrous and useless animals) rats tails are similar to poisonous serpents, associated with disease.

"I will end this plague. This devil."

In the 17th century, George Wither, “Britain’s Rembrancer”, doesn’t blame the rats, but witches for the plague. He reimagines the witch as a “feminized basilisk” who infects others with “her poison”, and the plague was a sort of “airborne venom” because of witches. To this author, “pestilence” is sorcery, and the “master of all poisons”.

Count Orlok was alive during the late 16th century (1580-1590); and the plague hit Transylvania particularly harshly during the 15th and the 16th centuries. The towns and villages in the Carpathians suffered deeply with the plague in 1553-1554, with countless deaths. Between 1552 and 1554, many aristocrats died, and some territories were even depopulated due to the plague.

Here, we also find the theological explanation of plague contagion, in the midst of religious turmoil between Protestants and Catholics. The Catholics saw this outbreak as God punishment of His enemies, as divine justice against the heretics (Protestants). Protestants, on the other hand, refused the “plague” Catholic saints (like St. Sebastian) and saw hardship as a path to salvation but also as punishment for pride, greed and other sins, advising against attachment to the “riches of the world”.

Being a Count, in the face of a plague epidemic, Orlok had to work alongside religious and medical authorities to deal with the situation. However, when epidemics got out of control, physicians (doctors) could have full power of decision over the people. Several restrictions to gatherings of every kind were made during this period. Burials on churchs were forbidden. Mentions of rotten corpses and maggots were popular in religious speech to force citizens to keep the plague graveyards clean, and avoid the spread of disease. In “Nosferatu” (2024) we have allusions to all of this and even the “Death and the Maiden” motif at the end of the film.

“Plague! It’s a plague ship!”

But a Count was not all Orlok was in life, he was also a sorcerer, an enchanter, a Solomonar, a occultist warlord, worshipper of Zalmoxis, the Dacian god of life and death, and immortality. His sorcery and occult dealings were already the scapegoat for the plague in the 16th century, and he was demonized as a “Devil worshiper”. Then, he came back from the dead as a “plague carrier”, a strigoi from Balkan folklore, in the 19th century. But he did not resurrect on his own; it was an enchantress, an necromancer, Ellen, who cursed him. She’s his “affliction”, his plague, his disease. She’s the witch who infects the world with his plague.

And this is connected with another theme at play in this story, linked with the "Dracula" novel by Bram Stoker: "threat of female sexual expression", based on 1980's Feminist Literary Criticism, where the physical figure of the "sick woman" was one of the principal ways in which female sexuality manifests as a contagious disease (Lucy Westenra and her degeneration into vampirism). During the 19th century, Medicine became concerned with hygiene, pathogens and theories about disease origin from a scientific perspective. Some doctors advocated the theory of “contagionism” (disease was spread from individual to individual), while others, the “miasmatists” defended that environmental issues (polluted water, unhygienic spaces, etc.) were often crucial in disease transmission.

In the "Dracula" novel, and as a consequence in "Nosferatu" (2024), the "contagionism" and fear of contagion theories are present in vampirism and "the plague" (Count Orlok), but also on Ellen herself ("sick woman" as expression of female sexuality), as Friedrich Harding will blame her for "infecting" his wife, as he expells both her and Thomas from his household. Friedrich is “Victorian patriarch”, while Anna is the “Victorian woman ideal” (God-fearing, respectable and devoted wife and mother, living for and by her husband and children). Ellen tries to tell Friedrich: "Please, these are no troubled nerves – it is as Professor Franz described… a demon!" Ellen spend the night with his wife, and now she's sick; he blames Ellen "contagion". He represents Victorian society ostracizing Ellen, all over again, because she is a "sick woman", the embodiment of female sexuality manifesting as a contagious disease.

"I don’t know myself… I… Ellen, tell me, what is this insufferable darkness?"

This is connected to Victorian views of female sexuality: a plague and a monstrosity in need of containment (sickness, contagious, wicked, sin); women should have no sexual desire whatsoever (Ellen's shame; "I'm unclean"); married heterosexual sex was the only socially acceptable sexual expression in the Victorian era, and everything else (masturbation, homosexuality, prostitution, etc.) was considered deviant, “sinful” and “evil”; sex was a marital duty women had to go through to have children and serve their husbands (women’s sexuality owned and controlled by their husbands).

In this sense, the titular Nosferatu are both Ellen and Count Orlok, because he's a monster of her own creation, and he spreads her power (death) throughout the land. The "plague" itself is deeply connected to her, not merely metaphorically, but literally.

The "Blood Plague"

On a medical level, Dr. Sievers and Professor Von Franz enumerate the physical symptoms of the “plague” caused by Nosferatu, and identify it as a “blood plague” because of the evidence on the captain’s ship corpse: “sepsis, ophthalmic discharge – even flagrant rodent bites”, but the body is “entirely absent of blood”. This is when Professor Von Franz identifies they are dealing with “a force more powerful than evil. It is death itself”, a Nosferatu, a vampyr, a “undead plague-carrier”. The crew of the ship, on their travel to Wisburg, progressively die as victims of Orlok, and, aside from these symptoms, they are also vomiting blood (like Friedrich Harding near his own death).

This is a septicemic plague, in the sense the infection spreads throughout the body via bloodstream, leading to death. Hence the blood coughing and shortness of breath (lung infection). However, there’s no gangrene limbs nor black sores on Orlok’s victims, so this “plague” isn’t bubonic plague (hence the name “Black Plague”), it’s something else.

This “plague” is probably Necrotizing fasciitis, flesh-eating bacteria, which enters the body through a wound and targets the soft tissues, progresses very rapidly, leading to septic shock, multi-organ failure and loss of limbs. If left untreated, death is certain. This bacteria is found in corpses: Orlok, being undead and rotting, transmits it to his victims while he feeds on their blood.

But this plague isn’t merely physical, it’s mostly supernatural, spiritual. And, as shown with Thomas Hutter and the Orthodox Nuns, it can be cured with exorcism. Because Orlok, being a strigoi from Balkan folklore (with roots in Dacian mythology), it’s not blood he feeds on specifically; its his victims life energy, their souls: "The good sisters sought to nurse me back to health with their prayer."

As Orlok is feeding on his victims, he’s gradually trapping their souls inside of Nosferatu (the rotten corpse), alongside his own. This is a sort of reversed “possession”; where the victim becomes part of Nosferatu, taking residence there until Nosferatu is destroyed and the souls are set free (including Orlok’s); because strigoi are sustain by the souls of others ("I will drink upon thy soul"; "I relinquished him my soul").

And this is foreshadowed by Clara and Louise Harding (the foreshadowing devices in this narrative), who will become victims of Orlok, too: "Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep." The "Lord" being Orlok, "Your Lordship"; "Your Lord. I will be addressed as the honour of my blood demands it”; “My Lord.”

Besides the physical symptoms, there’s a notorious change of behavior on Orlok’s victims, as they experience nightmares and seem taken by madness and delirium. This is interpreted as “fever”, but it’s them having access to Orlok’s soul inside of Nosferatu, and vice-versa. He's dragging these characters into darkness (Nosferatu) alongside him, forcing his own pain and torment upon their souls.

Even after his exorcism, Thomas is weak, and drained of his life force, and seems taken by a delirium every now and again. He’s absolutely sure Orlok wants Ellen after being exorcised, because he had access to Orlok’s soul. But, as he says so himself, he’s not fully free of Orlok’ spell, because a part of his soul is still inside Nosferatu. He acts out of character during the “possession scene”, as he, quite literally, possesses her, until he becomes terrified by it, both by her and by his own action (which is the opposite to the restrained, chaste and modest Victorian love he represents in this story). Orlok cannot spiritually possess Ellen (he has no control over her soul), but he does have a degree of spiritual influence over Thomas and his behavior (Orlok shadow compelled Thomas to kick Ellen out of their bed). And so the “visit from a vampire” and the “possession” isn’t Ellen’s. It’s Thomas who gets possessed by Orlok in this scene, as he passionately has sex with Ellen.

"No! Orlok!" / "Let him see. Let him see our love!"

Thomas believes he was the one who unleashed Orlok into the world (because he sold him a house in Wisburg) and vows to destroy him. His delirium is about unbearable guilt (because he blames himself for everything that has happened), and seeks both Ellen and Friedrich Hardings’ forgiveness. He’s now on a vendetta against Orlok, driven by desire to avenge Ellen, the Hardings and himself. He wants to drive a spike of cold iron through Orlok (like he saw it done in Transylvania, bringing this story full circle) as revenge.

“He shall never harm you again!”

Anna Harding’s delirium is about motherhood; her daughters (she asks to see the girls to reassure them) and her pregnancy (it’s eating her away), but also her sexuality (as she has similar convulsions to Ellen). She laughs and cries at the same time, touching her husband’s face. It’s the burden of reproduction, a consequence of sexual activity. She says she doesn’t known herself anymore, and talks about insufferable darkness. And relates this to Ellen, asking her what is this she’s experiencing.

"I fear little Friedrich is so strong and hungry, he’s eating me weary."

Friedrich Harding delirium is about maddening grief. He’s a wealthy ship merchant, but nothing of that matters anymore. He lost his greatest treasures; Anna and their children. He blames Professor Von Franz and Ellen; and then he’ll go on to blame himself when Thomas shows him Nosferatu is real: "Anna, my love. Our son… our little son… forgive me." But, unlike Thomas, Friedrich doesn’t care about revenge. He’s already dying from the “blood plague”, and instead of using his last strength to avenge his wife and children’s killings, he goes to them, to die alongside them, and he defiles his wife’s corpse.

“Your diseased mind has brought all of this outrage– your very presence does me wrong!”

Herr Knock delirium is about wanting to die as fast as possible, seeking an violent execution, instead of being killed by the “blood plague”. Orlok fed on him (“I relinquished him my soul"), and he found out the master he has been serving has to interest in fulfilling their covenant (share the secrets of immortality with him) because he only cares about is Ellen (“his pretty bride”).

"Strike again. I am blasphemy!"

What all of these “blood plague” deliriums have in common is Ellen herself:

Unbearable guilt: Thomas blames himself for what happened to Ellen and wants to be forgiven ("Please, it is my fault! Forgive me my dear, sweet friend!” as he’ll say to Friedrich), and make amends (“I’ll kill him!”);

Burden of reproduction: Anna feels her pregnancy is eating her away, because her unborn child is hungry like their father, and asks Ellen for explanations;

Maddening grief: Friedrich Harding blames Ellen’s diseased mind for his grief.

Death wish: Herr Knock wants to be executed because Orlok broke their covenant in favor of Ellen.

All of these characters’ souls are connected to Orlok’s, because they are all trapped inside of Nosferatu alongside his. And this is no coincidence because what Orlok wants is Ellen’s soul, to be “one with [me], ever-eternally”. This is his whole motivation in this story, as Robert Eggers confirms. He doesn’t care about world domination, nor spreading his plague, not collecting random souls. He wants Ellen’s soul.

Robert Eggers says the love triangle inspired by “Wuthering Heights” by Emily Brontë, and the “demon lover story” is what interested him the most in re-interpreting “Nosferatu”, and he’s doing a subversion of every theme of the “Dracula” novel. One of the main themes in “Wuthering Heights” is the destructive power of love.

In his own essay to “The Guardian” about his “Nosferatu”, Robert Eggers writes: “what are we to make of stories like this? What kind of trauma, pain and violence is so great that even death cannot stop it? It’s a heartbreaking notion. The folk vampire embodies disease, death, and sex in a base, brutal and unforgiving way.”

And so, Orlok forcing all of these characters to relive his own trauma fits this “demon lover story” in a, indeed, brutal and unforgiving way, as he forces Ellen to confront her own power (death), destroy her Victorian self-deception (“You deceive yourself”) and for her to remember their own shared trauma, at the same time. And this fits the “Wuthering Heights” inspiration, as Heathcliff will also torment everyone around him because of Catherine’s death.

“O’er centuries, a loathsome beast I lay within the darkest pit."

Before Ellen resurrected him and cursed at the prologue, Orlok was in “darkest pit”; if we follow Romanian folklore, this is a place between life and death for tormented souls, who can’t move on to the Afterlife, due to different reasons. He calls himself a “loathsome beast”. In 16th century English “loathsome” is connected to “sorrowful”, “grievous” (grief); and “beast” to “brutish or stupid man”, “fool” or “idiot” (a “brute”).

We are dealing with reincarnation themes in this story (Orlok was no more than a shadow at Ellen’s window during her teenage years, most likely inspired by “Wuthering Heights”, with Catherine’s ghost at Heathcliff’s window). The clues to this theme are in the story itself; as Orlok says he “cannot be sated” without Ellen; “sated” in 16th century English is related to the verb “sit” as in “rest”: “I cannot rest without you”, he can’t find peace in death without her soul by his side.

And he’ll elaborate next: “Remember how once we were? A moment. Remember?” This “once” was centuries ago, because the narrative established it’s impossible for him to be talking about the 19th century. Interesting enough, “impossible” is Thomas answer to Ellen saying “he took me as his lover then” because he had access to Orlok’s soul, he knows what she’s talking about can’t possibly be about her current life/incarnation.

I’ve been brainstorming some hypothesis when the answer has been in the story itself all along, because, of course it is.

Friedrich and Anna Harding are the mirror pair to Ellen and Orlok in “Nosferatu”; and even though, symbolically, they have different meanings (society vs. nature), the “blood plague” provides answers to Ellen and Orlok in the late 16th century, and gives more meaning on why Orlok targets them, as characters (and not merely as archetypes of Victorian patriarch and Victorian woman ideal). The themes of disease, sex and death connect these characters, too. Ellen’s first words to Professor Von Franz at Anna’s funeral are also very cryptic, as he says “more will be taken”, and she answers “I know. She was with child.” Which is a odd, random thing to say in response to Von Franz observation. Unless, Ellen is starting to remember.

“I shall never sleep again. Never. Let this your tender embrace keep me now in bliss, away from everlasting sleep.”

So, indeed, what is Orlok’s dark trauma, connected to Ellen, that death cannot stop it? And the answer is on the story itself: because even though Robert Eggers won’t reveal the full backstory on his Orlok, we know he was married and had a family once, not only because Bill Skarsgård said so in an interview, but we see this in the film itself: the bedroom where Orlok attacks Thomas has a double bed (with two pillows; meant for a couple; his and his wife’s bedroom) and the multiple sarcophagi in the castle crypt.

Ellen is the reincarnation of Orlok’s wife (not only his lover or bride; like I suggested before). Which is probably why Robert Eggers wanted the marriage (wedding dress; bride and groom) at the end, between their characters.

And if the “blood plague” victims are mimicking Orlok’s dark trauma, this means 16th century Ellen had a pregnancy-related death (preeclampsia; or other health condition); which embodies disease, sex and death. Which will find parallel in Thomas, but mostly in Friedrich Harding blaming himself because of his wife’s death. Which is also expressed in Anna Harding saying their son is so strong and hungry (like his father) and it’s eating her away. Orlok’s appetite is the culprit of his wife’s death. He kills the two children as revenge for the burdens of reproduction. Like Friedrich Harding, Orlok was also an extremely wealthy man (count; ancient line of nobility; etc.) but his greatest treasure was his wife. Without her, he didn’t want to live anymore, and this will resonate in Herr Knock seeking a violent execution to punish himself. Which is probably the reason why there are legends about him in Transylvania, even thought he was dead since the late 16th century, and was resurrected by Ellen a few years before Thomas arrives there. He isn’t remembered because of his military accomplishments, but because of his sorcery, because he was a Solomonar.

And this also makes sense with the strigoi myth where “bad death”, violent, like execution (or suicide) is believed to be one of the reasons why a person becomes a strigoi after death. And this would already be related to Ellen. If Orlok was, indeed, executed, the why is related to the rats, scapegoats to the plague and connected to witchcraft. The rats are, too, a living expression of his own trauma.

The 16th century saw the birth, the imprisonment and the execution of several figures who defied the supremacy of the Church, from scientists, physicians, philosophers, occultists: Galileo Galilei; Dr. John Dee, Nostradamus, Giordano Bruno, Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa; Michael Servetus; William Tyndale; etc.

Transylvania wasn’t left out of the intense witch-hunting and trials that swept across Europe in the late Medieval ages. The fear and paranoia surrounding witchcraft and “dealings with the Devil” resulted in widespread accusations, arrests and trials of individuals accused of practicing witchcraft. Many of these trials were often motivated by political and social factors, and helped reinforce the idea of witchcraft as something evil and demonic. Both women and men were accused and executed because of witchcraft, although women were, by far, the majority of the victims.

In 1550, the “pillar of infamy” was installed in the Great Square of Sibiu (one of the most historical cities in Transylvania), and would stand there until the 18th century, as a symbol of Sibiu’s legislative authority. Here, the accused of witchcraft and other criminals were brought before the public and executed. In 1577, Transylvanian Lutheran synod threatened with execution anyone practicing magical arts. In 1578, Lutheran preacher Péter Bornemisza published one of the earliest Hungarian treatises on witchcraft and the devil’s work, “About the Temptations of the Devil”. The city of Kolozsvár (Transylvania) saw, at least, 21 witch trials between 1565 and 1593, with 15 resulting in burnings. The first known sentence for witchcraft in Transylvania dates from 1565, when a midwife called Clara Botzi was condemned to burn at the stake. In the 1580s, witch hunts and trials intensified (which is the date we have for human Orlok).

The “Ordeal by Water” (also known as “swimming of witches”) was widely used throughout Europe, including in Transylvania, in several lakes or ponds throughout the region. This test was meant to determine if the accused was indeed a witch or a warlock. These ordeals were usually based on the belief that God would protect innocents from harm, but here it’s the contrary. The belief is water rejects servants of the Devil (connection to Baptism), and so, so sorcerers were thrown into rushing rivers with a rope around their waist. If the accused floated or refused to skin, it was a confirmation of guilt (and this would be followed by burning at the stake). If the accused sunk, it was a declaration of innocence. The accused were supposed to be pulled out using the rope, but accidental deaths by drowning were common.

Orlok being declared innocent while being an actual sorcerer and his reputation as such enduring centuries after his death, might sound strange (and even ironic). But him surviving this scenario, would mean he was to be burned at the stake and his ashes put on display for the mocking public, which, obviously, didn’t happen. He was also buried in his castle crypt, in a prestigious location (someone respected his noble title), and in a very elaborate sarcophagus, filled with occult meaning (although this could have been commissioned by himself, before his death). Which is why I’m inclined to believe this is the answer (instead of him being hanged, for instance). If he had surviving family (like children), him being executed because of witchcraft would also mean the execution of his family; which isn’t far off the realm of possibility, because this would fit his killing of the Harding children, too. Drowing or hanging in an execution scenario, because of witchcraft, are most likely how human Orlok died. And the rats are a representation of this.

Death by drowning would also fit Orlok’s character and his infamous “asthmatic” speech, indicating both his airways and lungs are damaged by more than just decomposition. This would also provide a new layer of meaning to the “blood plague” symptoms of lung infection (coughing blood) and shortness of breath. Anna Harding also mentions “sinking”. Drowning is death by suffocation, which would provide an explanation for Orlok grabbing Ellen’s neck at the prologue, and why the victims of the “blood plague” slowly suffocate to death, and can’t breathe (“I can’t breathe!”; “my body sinking… sinking… The smell of rancid meat… Suffocating").

Reincarnation was one of the main beliefs in Zalmoxis worship. Death as a pathway to rebirth, reincarnation as true immortality (instead of vampirism). As a consequence, Orlok died believing he would reincarnate and find his wife in another live. Except he didn’t. His soul was deemed unworthy of entering Zalmoxis kingdom, and got stuck in the “darkest pit”, unable to move on to his next reincarnation. 16th century Ellen’s soul moved on and reincarnated in the 19th century. Their souls were separated by death, disease and sex. Which is why he calls himself a “loathsome beast”.

At the end, Ellen accepts Orlok’s covenant and allows him to feed on her soul.  Their souls reunite because of death, disease and sex. Her delirium from the “blood plague” is about love, as she’s fully possessed by Orlok, and her soul trapped inside of Nosferatu alongside his. She embraces him as they die, wants to see his face as the dawn begins to remove the decay (symbolizing the curse of Nosferatu is being removed from him). She remembers how they once were, because she sees into Orlok’s soul. And that last look of love isn’t about Thomas, is about Ellen and Orlok, like Robert Eggers says the ending is “much more about Orlok and Ellen’s relationship”, because her soul is inside of Nosferatu, alongside his. At the end, by the breaking of the curse, they are both, finally, free from Nosferatu, and ascend to the Afterlife, forever united.

[fyodorsushankaaa]

introduction post!! :3

name: olivia or any nickname you want (as long as you're not being weird)

pronouns: she/her

mbti: isfp

birthday: october 18th

nationality: turkish 🇹🇷🐺

languages i know: turkish (mother language), english

languages i'm currently learning: arabic (a1), russian (a1)

things i love: music, books, drawing, stars, cinnamon, poems, coffee, tea, milk, rain, thunderstorms, flowers (especially roses), mythology, psychology, games, guitars, violins

characters i kin: osamu dazai, ranpo edogawa, fyodor dostoevsky

fandoms i'm in: bungo stray dogs, percy jackson and olympians, gravity falls, arcane, persona 5, doki doki literature club, hazbin hotel, helluva boss, alien stage, the art of murder, the amazing digital circus, animation vs animator, animation vs minecraft, ramshackle, the owl house, hamilton the musical, lacey games, grishaverse

moots list

detailed information: https://en.pronouns.page/@olivia.charder

time zone: utc +3

strawpage: https://oliviacharder.straw.page

my favorite;

colors: purple, blue, brown

bands/singers: mitski, the neighborhood, artric monkeys, melanie martinez, indila, rebzzyx, marina, mother mother, bo burnham, billie eilish, tv girl, lana del rey, cavetown, olivia rodrigo, taylor swift, the living tombstone, halsey, panic! at the disco, palaye royale, maneskin, jann, isabel lasora, conan gray, sodikken, 6arelyhuman, roar, girl in red, my chemical romance, penelope scott, the crane wives, adele, alex g, britney spears, ic3peak, ado and more (my music taste is more complicated than my room.)

animals: cats, foxes, jellyfishes

animes: bungou stray dogs, vanitas no carte, moriarty the patriot, kakegurui, toilet bound hanako-kun, jujutsu kaisen, my hero academia, demon slayer, angel of death, death note, seraph of the end, classroom of the elite, persona 5

ships: kunizai, ranzai, fyozai, sigzai, nikozai, yosazai, atsulucy, taniatsu, akulucy, tachitani, vanoe, vanijeanne, sherliam, alcroft, satosugu, itafushi, bakudeku (after recent chapters), lawlight and more

writers: fyodor dostoevsky, osamu dazai, nikolai gogol, adora yağmur, leigh bardugo, sir arthur conan doyle, lucy montgomery, rick riardon (there're more but i don't remember rn qwq)

genre of book: russian, japanese and turkish classics, fantasy, crime, horror, mythology, action

season: autumn/fall

my other blogs;

@14yo-dazai 14 years old dazai rp

@wontbeheretilltheend beast dazai rp

@ideals-of-the-night pm kunikida rp

@kuni-in-the-water orca kunikida rp

@the-coming-storm-verlanie verlanie rp

@the-silver-wolf-in-the-dark fukuzawa rp

@lil-sig 9 y/o sigma rp

@akira-thelilone bsd oc rp

@fyodor-dostoyevsky-rp fyodor rp

@subject-fyodor fyodor rp for lab au

@olivia-charder gonna post my fics there

our little kunizai community;

https://www.tumblr.com/join/DK136ck6

𖤐⭒๋࣭ ⭑

my yt channel: https://youtube.com/@fyodorun_usankasi?si=DEK5enbPMutXkQEw

my spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/313bidxg6foc4vkgto7g57wefrfm?si=FnUV2gZETnuSWlkgUpFI5A

my instagram: olivia.charder (i'm not online there tho)

[thicctails]

I absolutely LOVE your Mythology Falls AU designs, but I’m curious on why you chose the ones that you did.

I'm so happy you like it! Let's go down the list, shall we?

Dipper: I love the Sphinx!Dipper from Nightrizer's take on Monster Falls, but I didn't want to go that route since these are supposed to be an original take on idea of everyone becoming creatures of myth and legend. The first reason I chose a Gryphon for our beloved Pine Tree because they represent traits like bravery, wisdom, and power. Obviously, Dipper isn't the strongest character in Gravity Falls, but when the chips are down, he isn't afraid to start beating the hell out of whatever is terrorizing him, no matter how much stronger they may be.

The second reason is because I wanted to do something with owls and cheetahs for Dipper. I chose the barn owl because their feathers actually do kinda resemble the colours I chose for Dipper's feathers, and also because they're my favourite species of owl. Both owls and cheetahs are nervous creatures with high pitched calls, which I think fits Dipper very well haha.

Mabel: While I like the idea of Mabel being some kind of water creature, I think her being a mermaid would cause quite a few issues with mobility. I went with a selkie because not only are baby seals fricken adorable (especially harp seals, which is what her coat is based on), but it also allows her to keep her iconic sweater look! Now she can be fashionable on land, and utterly adorable in the water. There's also the added risk of someone trying to take her coat, but when one of your Grunkle's is a dragon, and the other is a kelpie, most people get the hint not to try anything.

Grunkle Stan:

Haha, come on, you see it, right?

Really, though, while Stan may love money, and everyone assumes that he would be hoarding crisp dollar bills, his real horde is actually his house and all those within it. He loves his family more than life itself, and anyone who brings them harm is going to be getting a face full of flames. He's big, grumpy, and looks like he'd be nothing more than a dumb brute, but in reality he's a big softie who could outsmart most anyone who crossed him.

Ford: Kelpies look beautiful, friendly, and enticing, promising fun and adventure, if you only would come closer and climb atop their back. However, this is only a farce, and now you're being dragged down into the dark depths of a lake or river. While Ford wasn't drowning anyone as a human, he certainly dragged McGucket down a dark path, often bringing him into dangerous situations, and he almost did the same to Dipper, although not intentionally. However, they are not always bad, and if you can slip a bridle over a Kelpie's head and tame it for a time, they'll tirelessly help you with whatever you need.

They were also said to be shapeshifters, often taking the form of a man. Whether or not Ford will figure this out remains to be seen (hopefully no one sticks him in a cage and threatens to freeze him!)

Soos: The world's most perfect man deserves a nobel and revered creature. Qilins are gentle, benevolent protectors, and unlike unicorns, they really can see into someone's heart! I wanted Soos to have an overwhelmingly friendly and loved mythological form, so a Qilin seemed like a natural fit.

Wendy & McGucket: two North American cryptids, neither one having much to go on. I chose a Splintercat for Wendy, both because its a lumberjack legend, and because this lynx-like beast topples whole trees with ease by smashing into them which reminded me of Manly Dan, who is also a Splinter Cat.

As for poor old Fiddleford, I made him into a Glawackus because 1. tell me that name isn't something he'd say.

and 2. Glawackuses are said to have the ability to erase the memories of anyone who looks into their eyes. I made it so that the eye that is covered by his green eyeglass is safe to look into, while the other will cause memory loss.