#parsing & elitism from me | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

janichroma · 7 months

Text

🎉Q/A Answers!🎉🎉

There's a lot to parse here! Warning that there are some spoilers of current content in here! So please tread carefully!

Q1.) I'm very curious about Death Wings. Do all of them exist in a similar state to Robo-Ren, where their true bodies are asleep and they pilot a mechanical suit, or is there something that differentiates them?

Ren is an exception. He's the only one who pilots a separate body. The others are in their own!

Q2.) Which Rejuv characters would be most likely to start a podcast together?

Adam and Valarie probably have a lot of deep 3 am conversations so with a little help from Saki, those two would def make a podcast. Other highlights are Saki+Erick and maybe Texen by himself because he just talks about how women are objects or something i dunno.

Q3.) Are you absolutely sure this is a good idea? Are you being held hostage?

I deadass thought i was gonna get 10-20 questions at most..... So yeah its a good idea.

Q4.) So, half servants. They’ve been so confusing to me. Until 13.5 I was just under the assumption servants were just infertile lol. So, do half servants like…. Inherit any powers or anything from their servant parent? Like, the ability to teleport and things like that.

Servants cannot reproduce when they're first created/in their generic form, but when they transform into their own person they gain a soul and they are then able to reproduce because they're just like any other person. It's just that their origins are different. Servants can still use their magic, but their children cannot. Although, I bet their children -do- inherit some traits from their Servant parent. Probably like just having above average strength/speed etc. That's not universal, though.

Q5.) How come Tesla doesn't let Amber bring us to the villa after the gym battle now?

Well... When two people love each other very much...

Q6.) Do the executives of Team Xen and most importantly Ren have the green gem somewhere on their body that marks them as members of Team Xen?

I wonder...

Q7.) I know in the past, you said that you haven't seen any correct guesses as to the identity of Madame X. Has that changed since the release of 13.5?

Pretty close, but no cigar.

Q8.) would crescent like yuri/gl

I banish you to the hungry worm dimension.

Q9.) i know that some characters, namely tesla (and maybe jolene?) call themselves "honorary" members of the elite 8. is there any specific reason for that? also can roboren run doom this is important.

There's no specific reason other than it soundin' fancy. Roboren can run tetris so maybe!

Q10.) What are the perks/ benefits of joining Team Xen? ( asking for a friend )

Amazing health care, and amazing investments in your 401k.

Q11.) I wanted to ask, which character has, for you, the most chance to surprise us in future updates? Be it badly or greatly.

i can't answer this because it gives too much implicit information!!! Sorry!!

Q12.) what pokemon teams (or just ace pokemon) would characters you don’t ever battle have? for example, volta, eizen, martin, rune, eden, etc? will we ever fight any of them?

I don't want to answer this either because we will probably have an opportunity to fight -most- of these people here, but for Rune it's already established to be Rapidash (Ace), and Eden would probably have a Blissey somewhere.

Q13.) How close of friends are Amber and Crawli? I wanted to ask since they're both Gym Leaders of Terajuma and around the same age, especially when Tesla and Amber moved to Telia after the incident.

They're not too close. They know of each other, and have spoken, but it's mostly a "friendly landlord" kind of relationship. They only talk when it's necessary... Not that Crawli is a landlord, or has any bearing on Teila.

Q14.) Hihi, what are somethings that have changed from version v12 (and also v13) that you really like/are proud of? And are there things you miss from previous versions, but you had to get rid of for any reasons? (I'm personally absolutely in love with the redone Terajuma stuff and especially Crawli, and also the redone Ryland scenes but that's because I'm biased.)

Terajuma 100%. I LOVE Terajuma now. I used to really despise it, evidently. But I think it's so fun and has a lot of nice moments. Valor Mountain still sucks, though. I have a huge urge to simplify that place, but then i'd have to redo a certain scene later and i dont wanna bc it's already perfect. Suffering from success... As for things I miss from previous versions... I can't think of any right now because I love where we're at rn so I guess I don't miss anything? There are certain scenes like Melia with her long hair flowing, but outside of small instances like that, nah!

Q15.) If in the nightmare school "Jean" was able to manifest flora's explosives from the dreams of GDC's citizens... Where could he have manifested A Gun from??

Probably the police station, tbh.

Q16.) What's your personal favorite part of the game thus far?

Honestly Chapter 2 -> to the end of Terajuma is so much fun to me. Not that the other chapters aren't, but that part is comfy. I also love Renegade Route chapter 0.

Q17.) Now if I'm remembering correctly, you mentioned that Venam was supposed to be just a side character at first. What made you decide to change her role into such a major one? Also how did the Melia/Venam come about?

Yeah so, Beth was actually in Venam's spot if you can believe that. Yes, the same one that sells Moo-Moo Milk. We already had a prominent blonde character and Beth wasn't boring or anything, she just didn't add a fun dynamic with Melia. Although back then the formula was more rebornified. Meaning characters rarely traveled together and they kind of just showed up when they needed to. Now characters are constantly always traveling with you and stuff. Not that the old format is bad, it's just a different take. I brought Venam back because she's Melia's best friend and it felt real weird that she was not involved -at all- compared to her and Ren. Their relationship came about because.. Well, I kinda just knew. Venam was always a lesbian in my head, and Melia is def the character that would love anyone if they gave her the chance to love them. It just felt right?

Q18.) 1) When was Eizen conceptualized? 2) What is one funny story about developing v13.5 that you can share? 3) Were there any pieces of media you took inspiration from while writing Renegade(mainly Central Tower)? 4) Do you have any plans of making more games after Rejuv?

Yall are cheating with the multiple parts!! Anyway, Eizen was conceptualized sometime in v13's development, but he... she.. they... were just a concept at the point. (stick a pin in that) 2.) A funny story? Hm... I honestly can't remember anything rn. Probably just some bug that caused us pain and it was super simple to fix. 3.) To be honest, I didn't take any real inspiration for Renegade. I actually went into doing that route without knowing exactly what I wanted from it. But the pieces sorta fell into place and im in love with it lol. M2 was always going to be a character in the game, it's just that she was never named M2 and was more tragic than unhinged. M2's personality was altered slightly because I wanted Renegade to have SOME sort of a balance, and a partner in crime (sorta) felt appropo. 4.) Yes, I have original games in the works AND plans for at LEAST 1 more fangame after this. I'd like to start from scratch with all the knowledge I have now. Though, it wouldnt be nowhere near as long as Rejuv. I'm talking like 4-5 releases. lol.

Q19.) Wanted to ask how renegade!MC perceives Clear/Kieran, the 3 choices we have to respond to Clear asking us to go see Clear all seemed cold towards her. I guess they aren't a potential new friend group?

They are a means to an end. The MC is not close with Clear or Kieran at all. They barely even talk outside of the instances we've already seen. Maybe that'll change?

Q20.) This has been a matter of contention between some friends of mine and I. How old is Odessa? I'd assumed she was below 18 as she's not taken the throne so she might not be an adult and her dad's in charge until that happens, but they think she's an adult. For something less serious, who in Rejuv's most likely to start a ponzi scheme, and who's most likely to buy in.

Odessa is likely to be around 25-ish. She's a legal adult, and is in line to be Queen of Kristiline, but their family line already holds so little influence and power that Aquis just makes her a figurehead and manages things on his own. Kind of a Cinderella of situation? More similar but not 1:1. To be honest? I figure Aquis hopes Kailani to return one day and assume her duties because he likes her more (Even if he abused her the same way he did Odessa.) As for the ponzi scheme... I feel like Thomas Jr would make one and Texen would fall for it.

Q21.) Who is the hardest character to write consistently?

Honestly? Melia. She's given me the most trouble despite her being so prominent. Im good at it now I think, but before I never knew how to write her because anything I did came with criticism lol, and still does, but now I don't really give a shit. Amber's a close second.

Q22.) When Crescent fell down the cliff, did she get the interceptor contract then was asked to become a storm chaser? The events seemed to have happened close to each other. Curious since the hags serve Variya, so only 1 of the 2 parties could've asked her both, but that wasn't the case.

Yes it was shortly after she fell. To be clear, the sparkle the protags saw was the sparkling of water from the moonlight above. So they knew it was "safe" to push Crescent. She could have died but she had a chance to survive a situation where the alternative meant certain death.

Q23.) Will the Elite 8 even be able to be battled on Renegade? I imagine Karrina would replace Karen if Karen dies on Paragon, and Karrina doesn’t get pushed, but she eats the Deletos on Renegade if you don’t push her in Castle Zygara, and it made me wonder.

The members of the Elite 8 may be battleable, but not in an official league format. That's all I'll say on that.

Q24.) I'm still really curious about emma, things that come up in my mind a lot is the part where she looks to be used by variya to speak to melia during the part where amanda knocks her out, and during pearl route when we see the note signed by someone with the same name- emma. because of this, I've been pretty curious about this disguise thing the space hags gave melia. did they- or variya gave them orders to- pull the appearance from the deceased emma? does this mean ... they're the same person?

The name part is merely a coincidence and acts as foreshadowing. Melia reads the note and is like "Emma...?" and wonders if she would share the same fate as the ones written on the notes, and then lo and behold she has the same condition.

Q25.) This question is regarding Renegade route: Do the 6 years that M2 and our chosen host were lost in that alternate world match up with a version release that is outdated, or is an in-universe timer that we shouldn't overthink that much?

Honestly, that wasnt the reason for 6 years but now I wish it was that's rad as hell. But no the 6 years isn't even 6 years. It's an unspecified amount of time that passes that she perceives as 6. They both couldve been down there for a million years and they wouldnt know. The area they're in is similar to the chasm where it wears down your mind after long exposure. Maybe that's how Melia could take such a bad turn in life. The protags are always optimistic to escape though so they are able to hold onto their mind.

Q26.) #1 spector fan here asking questions about him since he probably won't get much spotlight outside of one quest... what was his life like before taking on the reserve leader role (other than what we already know, like where he lived,) and what are his interests outside of the paranormal, if any? thanks for the opportunity! love this game a lot :^)

Spector is a history buff and loves to do Goth Gf things like take strolls in graveyards at 3 am 🥰🥰. Probably spent most of his time in the District of Hope. He also likes exploring ruins and abandoned buildings. Not limited to Aevium tbh.

Q27.) I know Eizen seems to be a strictly side quest character, but have K/C or the hags ever tried contacting him for recruitment? His research seems too valuable to go unused for them.

Eizen has absolutely no interest in either of those groups. If they even tried to do anything he'd noclip out of the room and fall out of bounds and then die half life 1 style.

Q28.) :3c what are some characters that are trans if i may ask?

Ryland - FTM Party Girl - MTF Alain - NB Aero - NB V - Genderfluid Eden - Genderfluid

Q29.) would angie still possess alice in renegade? :0 super curious about it hihihi

Whatever happened passively in Paragon (Meaning Cera being abandoned, Alice getting possessed), STILL HAPPENS IN RENEGADE, we just don't see it because the trail of events that led to us seeing them in Paragon do not happen. So... in Renegade, that means Alice is still...

Q30.) How did the aftermath scene from defeating the hags on renegade come to be? I'm very curious

i assume you mean the Tera Raid parody? Well, it came up on my playlist on the train and I was feeling chaotic. what if in rejuv but deadly ?

Q31.) who's the shortest character (excluding the younger kids >>)

Probably either Cera, tbh. She's a short lil one. I don't have canon heights for characters outside like an estimation. But in my head Cera tiny.

Q32.) Hello! I would like to ask, Did the interceptor, before the SS Oceana be attacked, have fake memories of a life alongside Nancy? Since Crescent wanted the MC to have a normal life, I always wondered If she created new memories to make this easier And if I can ask another question. What is/was the criteria to someone see the MC appearance correctly? Huey and Lavender saw two different ones, while Aelita saw the correct one(in my case she saw Alain when asked)

Crescent did not create memories for the player. They just started acting weirdly and stopped talking to her. They then started to behave the same way you, the player, does. Believing that what is happening is real and has always been real (Because this is all the information you have right now), so Crescent takes this opportunity to try and let go by giving you a better (but fake!) life. It's why she sorta distances herself a bit (but not too much) so that you could integrate yourself into that delusion. We love being neuro <3.

The criteria is pretty ambiguous intentionally, but for me it has to do with personality and connection. Aelita always sees who you truly are because shes so close with the player + she has envoy shenanigans going on. If you would get along with Alain the most, the player would show themselves as alain etc.

Q33.) Any disclosable reasons why the rift dex now only has 2 remaining entries instead of 3 like in v13?

It's probably just a discrepancy that happened due to shifting over code bases. The number of slots left is not indicative of anything.

Q34.) hello jan!! hope you’re doing well :D is there any more information or random various facts about the androids (clear/kieran/eden) that can be said that ISN’T spoilers? it’s ok if not! i’ve just been curious about them all lately, especially in regards to how eden’s powers with emotional manipulation work.

Nothing too interesting about Clear or Kieran that isn't spoilers and isnt known already, but as for Eden... Eden was eccentric and had a personality thats real close to prince peasley from superstar saga LOL. I feel like Eden would have a catch phrase like "Mon Cherie", and flip their iridiscent hair in mockery. Eden's manipulation was very devastating. You would feel an immeasurable amount of joy when inflicted that you would give over any information because youre... happy to! But it was also very deadly. If exposed to it for too long you become way too happy to the point where you lose the ability to function normally. You'd fall into a happy-apathetic state and collapse and just lay where you fell until you starved or died in some other way. Because you're happy to! Everything in moderation, guys.

Q35.) Hi jan!!! quick question — why do you hate me why did the renegade route do that /real/ question though…. My buddy found some like… older stuff about Eizen in v13’s files. Something about a girl named Ærika?? (Idk if thats even connected but whatever) How did Eizen come to be? What was the process?

Hi remember the pin I stuck earlier? Ok we're unpinning that now. So, Eizen was originally a woman (So happy for his transition), And her name was Ærika. But we already had so many girls in the game and I wanted to create more male characters so then Eizen was born. I'm glad for it too because Eizen is way more interesting than Ærika. Eizen/Ærika came to be when [redacted]. I can't explain his origins quite yet, sorry! But one day you Will Realize.

Q36.) Hi Jan, thanks for the amazing game! In Alamissa, before we get yeeted into the past by Kieran, when Ren gives us sylveon and, um, Nancy’s remains, he mentions that he has stayed (even after breaking off with crescent) with xen for an important reason… but won’t specify. Later, he says the reason is because he wants to help nastasia. But the alamissa convo happened before ren met Anastasia (baby version). Did ren want to help nastasia before he met her past version and learned that she was…

Ren didn't know who she was at that point, but Ren has seen Nastasia in vulnerable points (that we havent seen... yet?). She has discussed with him that shes looking for someone prior to Alamissa, but she was very vague about it, and still is, but she's opened up a lot to Ren over time.

Q37.) This is probably a weirder question but will all of the main leaders, even the ones we battle outside of their gym duties have custom moves? If not, would it be safe to assume the main leaders use the moves of their reserves?

All leaders have custom moves. Reserves use the move the main leader does! They have TM's for these, but they aren't allowed to give them out to winners. At least, at the moment!

Q38.) what was your favorite part of 13.5's development?

Making Renegade Route lmfao. It was so much funnnnnnn. I cant wait for the rest.

Q39.) what’s the EoN experience like for someone going through it? If that’s too spoilery, what was the most surprising part of people’s reactions to .karma content?

You're getting scrubbed. It looks painful, but it's painless... and seamless! You literally cannot process what is going on. As for most surprising, I was surprised people loved M2 so much. I mean, I had a feeling people would like her, but she really took off and that makes me happy bc shes so fun to write.

Q40.) Hi Jan! My question is this: Will Melia and Venam get back together somewhat in the future? Or will they just stay friends? (Paragon route)

Who knows...

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

An extra question im throwing in here because ive seen a lot of talk around this character.

Q1X.) What inspired M2? M2 was conceptualized to be more of a tragic character, but I felt like Renegade needed some balancing out mood wise, or else it was too much of a drag. M2 was inspired by an insecurity of mine, actually, or I guess less so an insecurity and more of a question a lot of us ask ourselves. What if? What if I did this differently? What if I was born elsewhere? How different would I be? When Covid first started running about and I thought the fate of our lives was about to be cut short potentially, I started thinking about how I lived my life and how much I missed out on certain things. M2 is that. She gets a second chance at life and decides she wants to be everything but Melia because she's already lived that life and it turned out poorly. Hence the name M2. The second version of herself.

A song that inspired me is Immaterial by Sophie (Rest in peace)

2:03 is important

youtube

Now that I have a second chance at life, "I'll be anyone, anything, any shape." I mentioned before that your archetype powers manifests as your deep inner desire, and since M2 wants to be everything she couldn't be, it turns into her creating alternative selves through clones made of light. Another point of inspiration for her forms is actually Barbie of all things. Not the movie, although the movie takes advantage of the same principle, that Barbie can be anything. A doctor, a lawyer, life guard, a government official etc. M2 is everything always and forever, and she's also nothing at all. Which one is the real M2?

#pokemon rejuvenation #Rejuv Q/A #Spoilers!#Youtube

140 notes · View notes

yeetmeoutthewindowdaddy · 10 days

Text

A deep dive into Zevlor's devotion (Part 2) Elturel's history and culture, the Hellriders, and Zevlor's paladin oath:

THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR BG3.

These series of posts were originally one loooooong post— but apparently Tumblr has a character limit, and I found it; so now it's been split into several parts/posts.

(Part 1) Everybody hates tieflings, and how discrimination impacted a young Zevlor

((Part 2, this post, is for providing historical and sociological information on Elturel, paladins and their oaths, and the Hellriders. The third part is where the meat of my Zevlor analysis is.))

(Part 2.5)

(Part 3) Zevlor's actions during Act 1, an analysis of a man who is barely holding on.

(Part 4) Zevlor's actions during Act 2, an analysis of a broken man.

(Part 5) Zevlor in a romantic relationship.

(Part 6) Zevlor's actions during/ after the epilogue, not all endings are happily ever after— especially not for a tiefling.

(Part 7) Zevlor in a romantic relationship.

I don't think many bg3 players understand just how dedicated and loyal of a person Zevlor is. This ADHD hyper-fixation fueled multipart-thesis is meant to show how Zevlor's past is as tragic as any of the origin characters'/ Durge's. It's meant to show how horrifically broken Zevlor was when he "betrayed" the other tieflings. It's also meant to show that our beloved blorbo would probably be fervently obsessive if he was in a romantic relationship.

Most importantly: It demonstrates how our favorite man Zevlor was most likely a fanatical religious zealot my dudes. He was (probably) a part of the Faerûn equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition lite.

I have kept this as factual as I am able to. Please keep in mind that Baldur's Gate 3 plays it fast and loose with the DND/ Forgotten Realms canon and lore, on top of DND/ the Forgotten Realms itself regularly disregarding and changing it's own lore and canon. DND lore and canon as a whole is a mess. It has multiple universes that sometimes interact and are maybe separate from each other. Full disclosure; I've mixed 1e-5e lore together FUCK 5.5e, because parsing through what is currently considered canon is a nightmare. As far as I'm concerned, as long as a piece of lore was canon at some point in the past 50 years— it's fair game. @y-rhywbeth2 in this post has a more in depth disclaimer. Also please check out their headcanons and lore breakdowns, they're so good.

THIS PROJECT TOOK ME OVER A MONTH TO WRITE. I've tried to find all grammatical and spelling errors. I've tried to ensure that I've cited the correct sources in the correct places.

Before reading this way to long of a post please check out (the much more succinct) @gortashs-skidmark history of Elturel and Zevlor headcanons [alt].

______________________________________________________________

● (Part 1) Elturel's History and Culture:

[A/N: I refer to Elturel as a city, a city-state, and a realm. They don't mean the same thing, but I've used them interchangeably here because Elturel is simultaneously a city, a city-state, and a realm (known as Elturgard). Kind of similar to how the UK, England, and Great Britain are all used to describe the British Isles.]

Elturel was a port city located in the Western Heartlands along the Chionthar River.

"The river linked it... to Baldur's Gate on the Sword Coast... it was a center for agriculture and trade in the region, and was renowned for its elite mounted defenders, the Hellriders."

All Elturians were horse girls loved horses. Just as every child in Waterdeep leaned how to swim, every child in Elturel learned how to ride a horse.

"Elturians were practically raised in the saddle, learning how to ride and growing familiar with how horses behaved in any situation, even those that never became Hellriders. The downside was that, rightly or wrongly, some folk thought Elturians always smelled of horse."— https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Elturel#Culture_&_Society

Elturel claimed ownership over nearby cities and lands by declaring themselves their "protectorates"— thus becoming the realm Elturgard. (In other words they were holier-than-thou and patronizing in their attitude towards the cities they took over.)

"In the late 15th century DR, it was the capital of the realm of Elturgard... through a variety of excuses, Elturel had laid claim to the lands of its neighbors, placing them within "Elturel's Guard" as they called it... with the aim of bringing righteous judgment to all the Realms and "setting Faerûn aright"..."

Elturel was an authoritarian theocracy which was so pious that you could get into trouble for cursing in public.

"Elturel was known as a holy city... and it was ruled by its high priest, the High Observer of Torm… Even bad language and irreverent humor could draw the ire of authorities. Elturgard's laws were rigid, intolerant, and persecuted evil with inquisitorial zeal..."

Saying they had inquisitorial zeal was not a figure of speech, they actually had inquisitions.

"They ensured the city and countryside remained safe and well-policed... [through] rigid laws, intolerant attitudes, and inquisitions circa 1479 DR... Just rumoring about a possible band of thieves was enough to see one interrogated by zealous Hellriders."

Elturel had a 3 strike policy, where upon the 3rd strike a criminal would be sent to the mines— which never had a shortage of prisoners. (By reading between the lines, I'm assuming that the law did not have much nuance or account for the severity of a crime. i.e.: Littering 3x would get one sent to prison along side murderers.)

"Those who broke the law three times were sent to the Dungeon of the Inquisitor... they were punished and set to work mining tunnels. The inmate population was always being replenished."

They were even willing to risk a loss of trade revenue if it meant that outsiders wouldn't bring their immorality into the city.

"After the founding of Elturgard, the port officials who handled trade in the city... were overly righteous and handed exorbitant taxes and penalties to traders who showed even the slightest impiety, even banning them from setting foot inside the city. The caravans and riverboat convoys now feared to pass through..."

The official religion of Elturel was Torm, but almost any good or neutral aligned god was allowed to be worshiped.

"In the late 1400s, the city's official faith was in Torm the True, the state religion of Elturgard. However, the people commonly worshiped Torm, Helm, Lathander, Amaunator, and Tyr."

Baldur's Gate was a rivaling competing port city and moral antithesis to Elturel, who they were constantly on the verge of war with.

"Its chief rival now was Baldur's Gate... Elturel regarded Baldur's Gate as lawless and corrupt, and disapproved of its religious tolerance... There was much animosity between them… [but] neither was looking forward to an armed conflict."

Along with the city guard (more like a military than a city guard, but I digress) every citizen swore a magically binding oath, the Creed Resolute, to defend the city.

"...He [Thavius Kreeg] eventually made all Elturians swear the Creed Resolute, binding them by oath to defend the city... The Creed Resolute was a set of oaths and maxims sworn by the paladins of the Order of the Companion of Elturgard and the Hellriders of Elturel, and eventually all Elturian citizens... Citizens who were old enough to read were required to put a hand on the Tome of the Creed Resolute and recite the oath. Once done, their name magically appeared in the book, thus recording all those who'd sworn to follow the Creed."

Elturel's primary city guard/ military were known as

● (Part 2) The Hellriders:

Training started as young as 12. (Which is how old Zevlor was when he enlisted.)

"Enlistment and training could begin as young as twelve. People came to Elturel from other lands just to join the Hellriders."

They swore an oath not only to the defend the realm, but also uphold its moral codes of conduct.

"...Hellriders followed the Creed Resolute... This had them swear to serve the High Observer and the greater good, uphold Elturgard's law, and permit no difference in faith to come between them... among other codes of behavior. If a Hellrider overstepped the limits of law or proper behavior, their comrades would admonish them to "recall the Creed"."

Hellriders were revered— and as the protectors of Elturel they were held to an even higher moral standard than the average citizen. Children dreamed of becoming a Hellrider, but it was difficult to actually become one.

"It was said that every [child] of Elturel and the lands around dreamed of being a Hellrider some day. To call such a child a 'hellion' was... a compliment, marking one as having the courage and drive to ride the Hellriders' destriers...the Hellriders and the Companions were held in highest regard. Both inspired the people to be devout in both their faith and the pursuit of justice."

Hellriders were not only revered in Elturel, but in many other places too. They were more powerful than some other nations entire armies.

"...an elite cavalry unit who acted as the primary armed force of the city of Elturel in the Western Heartlands...The Hellriders helped Elturel establish and maintain civilization in these harsh lands. They were one of the most renowned and well-regarded military forces... For a city guard, they outmatched the armies of whole realms."

The Hellriders were named as such because of their loyalty to one another. They were family. **insert Fast and Furious family meme**

"The warriors were close-knit and exceptionally loyal, both to each other and to their commanders... It was said that a company of Riders had once ridden into the Hells themselves— namely Avernus, the first layer... to rescue one of their own, such was their great loyalty to each other... and from this story, the Hellriders were named."

Becoming a Hellrider was for life. They were the literal definition of ride or die.

"To be a Hellrider was a job for life, no matter how short it turned out to be... In the mid-1360s DR, there were no living ex-members of the Hellriders—too many had died in battle."

The only way to resign from the Hellriders was to be sent on a suicide mission. If they somehow survived the mission then they'd be publicly known as a deserter, considered a heretic, and subsequently banished from Elturel without a pot to piss in.

"Those determined to resign were given a final mission involving very difficult tasks, and even if they succeeded, and survived, they were stripped of their gear, exiled from the city, and named a heretic in the eyes of Helm, God of Guardians, for abandoning their post."

These are merely the conditions for an average Hellrider-- we haven't even touched the diehard paladin sect known as

● (Part 3) The Order of the Companion:

Before Zevlor's time in the Hellriders there weren't many paladins in their ranks.

"There were few paladins in the Hellriders. However, in the late 1400s, members of the Hellriders could aspire to join the Order of the Companion, a paladin knighthood..."

But by the time Zevlor joined there was the Order of the Companion. And they were religious fanatics. They didn't just swear an oath to the city. No, they went the extra mile by swearing an oath to Elturel/ Elturgard on their personal patron god.

"...A well-armored mounted knighthood of paladins who defended the city and wider Elturgard, swore oaths to the realm and shared its goals, even if the members did not all share faith in Torm. Courageous, righteous, and zealous, they were proud of their dedication to the cause of good, their clear morals, even their intolerance... Although the state religion of Elturgard was that of Torm, and they all swore oaths to the realm, the Companions themselves followed various different gods...Many of the Hellriders now aspired to join the Companions."

The Order of the Companion, despite being newer and thus having less established prestige than the Hellriders, were revered with an amount of reverence similar to the Helriders.

"In the late 15th century, Elturian citizens still often dreamed of joining Elturgard's paladin knighthood. This time, many succeeded. Inspired by the Hellriders and the Companions, the folk of Elturgard were typically devout in both their faith and the pursuit of justice. Both troops were loved and respected by the people... The Companions were seen as the undoubted champions of the people of Elturgard, with even the lowest-ranking ready to sacrifice their lives to protect them, and in turn the people adored them. Disrespecting the Companions and their Creed would incur the rage of the common folk."

I'm speculating here, but I would imagine that the former head Hellrider being a vampire lead to the Hellriders losing the people's unwavering trust. The Order members did not have this mark against them. Their PR was also probably boosted because joining the Order was easier than joining the Hellriders.

(They were maybe racists? Interestingly, on the wiki for the Order of the companion only humans are listed under the race(s) of those who are members.)

Also they were fascists. [A/N: In Faerûn choosing a patron deity is akin to choosing a political party.]

"The paladins swore to follow and uphold the Creed Resolute... {A/N: the same creed the the Hellriders later adopted and (along with citizens) swore to.} If one of the Companions... even questioned the policies of the realm (such as exactly why there was a temple to Bane in Soubar), their comrades would admonish them to "recall the Creed" and the matter was resolved."

The Hellriders and the Order of the Companion were not one and the same-- but they often overlapped (so much so that I have simply given up in trying to parse which is which), in a similar vein as the army and the marines. This reddit user described it best:

"Order of the Companion are Paladins. Hellriders is a general name for the Elturel cavalry. The Knights of the Companion are all Hellriders, but not all Hellriders are Knights of the Companion. It's a club within the club. Previously, Elturel was ruled by a "High Rider" who was the highest military leader of the Hellriders. After the Companion arrived, rulership changed to a "High Observer" who was the leader of the Church of the Companion..."

You may be wondering; what in the sweet hells is

● (Part 4) The Companion:

~50 years before the game Elturel was being swarmed by vampires after it was found that the (now former) leader of the Hellriders and the city itself, the aforementioned High Rider, was a vampire.

"...the High Rider himself was discovered to be a vampire, with a vast network of vampire spawn, charmed minions, undead allies, and sycophantic collaborators that surprised even the Hellriders. Now exposed, the undead infested Elturel..."

The Hellriders could do little to tide the flow of the undead.

"...and whatever victories the Hellriders won during the days, they lost sorely in the nights."

A priest of Torm (and later the ruler of Elturel) would perform a "miracle" and summon an entity known as the Companion.

"...Thavius Kreeg, then a priest of Torm, pleaded to any power to save his city, and... his reckless prayer was answered—by the archdevil Zariel with a deal to which he hastily agreed. Though the city would receive its much-needed aid, it would last but fifty years, after which Zariel would take the whole city and its people. Thavius also swore to serve her in all ways for all time..."

And so Zariel created the Companion— which was actually the Solar Insidiator that would cause the city to fall into Avernus (Hell).

"The Companion, also known as Amaunator's Gift, was a magical second sun that hovered over the city of Elturel in Elturgard… It was the symbol of the realm and of its defenders, the Order of the Companion. However, it was in fact the Solar Insidiator, a device created by Zariel, archdevil of Avernus, as part of a plot to trap and steal the city away to the Nine Hells."

The Companion was basically a 2nd sun that always shone in Elturel.

"The light of this second sun illuminated the land day and night, and suffused all of Elturel... it produced no heat. Creatures and things vulnerable to daylight in some way, or... destroyed by it, were... vulnerable to the Companion's light. Thus it prevented darkling races and monsters from assailing the city. Undead of all kinds found it painful or were even burned by it, while creatures of darkness could not even bear to look at the city."

Don't feel too bad for Kreeg here, he's not like Wyll who made a selfless deal with a devil to save his beloved city and people. Kreeg was corrupt. He was why the people of Elturel unknowingly swore their souls to Zariel by having all citizens swear to the oath of the Creed Resolute.

"Taking the credit, Thavius was acclaimed as the savior of Elturel, and few would doubt his goodness or his intent. Only he knew the true origin of the mysterious second sun... [From this] Kreeg was raised to the position of High Observer himself some years later, following a crisis of leadership in Elturel and the unexplained but convenient disappearance of the likely successor, and his rival..."

Go read the wiki page on Zariel for her backstory and connection to Elturel and the Hellriders themselves, it's very fascinating.(LINK) Long story short: Fallen angel turned archdevil is salty about the Hellriders. She needs more souls for more power, and wouldn't you know it— there's a whole city that she already has some beef with she can claim from a desperate priest who's all to willing to sign it, and its people's souls, away to her.

That's it for part 2, I made (Part 2.5) Zevlor's Paladin Oath (link): because this post got too long.

Link to the other parts:

A deep dive into Zevlor's devotion series (master list)

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #zevlor #zevlor bg3 #bg3 zevlor #zevlovers #zevlor nation #bg3 headcanons #bg3 spoilers #baldur's gate 3 headcanons #baldur's gate 3 spoilers #paladin #elturel tieflings #descent into avernus #hellrider #long post #bg3 meta #bg3 analysis #bg3 lore

14 notes · View notes

snakeassassins · 7 months

Text

Pokemon Theory: Hassel, Drayton, and "Sinister Hands"

Hey guys! Before the pokemon presents starts tomorrow, I wanted to hash out some observations I’ve made on the scarvi dlc and the implications they have on pokemon lore as a whole. I don’t have much of a big hook to draw anyone in, though, so let’s just jump into it.

Hassel is only one of two characters in all of gen 9 who is left handed. The other is professor turo, who does so to symbolically mirror sada. Through this, I don’t think it’s hard to say that Hassel’s left handedness is also something designed to mirror someone else.

A lot of people have already pointed out that Hassel and Drayton have a lot of mirrored animations.

As such, I don’t think it’s much of a stretch to say that they are the big foils here.

There’s a bit of a snag, though.

With Sada and Turo, it’s obvious that this right/left theming is in regards to the past/future, but it becomes a bit murky if you attempt to apply this to Drayton and Hassel.

If anything this theming is reversed.

Drayton’s supposed to match Sada’s past, but his ace is the futuristic Archaladon.

Similarly, Hassel is supposed to represent the future, but his ace is Baxcalibur, who is themed around dinosaurs, much like past paradox pokemon.

The major exception to this is their signature moves. Electro shot takes a turn to fire, while Baxcalibur takes double damage after using Glaive Rush. Drayton’s ace’s weakness is the “past”, while Hassel’s ace’s weakness is the “future”.

So… how are we supposed to read this exactly? It’s an intentional contradiction —a paradox, if you will—but one whose intent is hard to parse.

Something else has been nagging me about Hassel’s left-handedness: it’s an anachronism.

See, given the name, Baxcalibur is designed to be a medieval weapon. In which case fighting with it left handed would be considered a major taboo for that time period. Swordsmen of that period were trained exclusively with their right hand, which meant fighting with your left was considered to be inherently underhanded.

This bled into a lot of the language and culture at the time. The word “sinister” itself literally means left in latin, we just use it to mean evil in modern times because those were the traits associated with left handed people back then.

It was a common trope for duels to be won unfairly by having the perpetrator fence with their right hand, only to stab their opponent with a hidden blade in their left. A left handed fencer in most medieval fiction is almost inherently duplicitous.

Another one was for left handed fighters to be masters attempting to hide their true strength by using their non-dominant hand to fight. A more benevolent form of trickery, but deceitful nonetheless. Maybe it’s a sign that Hassel is pulling his punches, given how low “elite four member” is compared to the multiple dragon tamer champions we’ve had?

youtube

You can see both of these tropes being invoked by this scene from the princess bride. Both opponents intentionally start with their weakest hand before switching to the right, but it’s a double entendre also meant to show that neither is as bad as they appear to be either, a fact made even more obvious by how honorably they fight.

To be honest, I was a bit concerned I could be grasping at straws with these comparisons, given that Baxcalibur’s Japanese name doesn’t even refer to a sword, but then it hit me

Its signature move is it literally backstabbing you. That’s the pun.

Which leads me to what’s been nagging at me here: why is one of Hassel’s major character motifs centered around him being a traitor if he never once betrays anyone in the story? If he was built from the ground up to be our metaphorical Brutus, then who is Caesar?

I think the obvious guess of who Hassel is a traitor to would be the dragon tamer family he seems to have run away from.

He tells us why he left, but his explanation is more than a little vague. Why did he stop being a musician and join the elite four? Why is he so necessary to his family’s hierarchy that they are willing to fake his father’s illness to get him back, even after all these years? There’s more to this story that Hassel is either downplaying or straight up not telling us, and that makes it the prime suspect for Hassel’s “traitor” status.

However, as we are in Unova for the dlc, my inner fan theorist can’t help but also point out the faction actively themed around medieval knights.

Especially when their boss is yet another blonde-ish lefty with swept back hair who is, frankly, more than a little ceasar coded himself.

Hassel’s backstabbing is probably a good thing for us either way tbh

Drayton’s the right hand man, however, and as such we can assume that he is aligned with whatever Hassel is against, willingly or otherwise. The Mark Anthony to our Brutus, if you will. The responsibilities of which he is likely dragging his feet on by staying in school as long as possible. Which actually brings us back to the original right hand/left hand dichotomy.

I think the big difference between the Sada/Turo dichotomy and the Drayton/Hassel dichotomy is that Sada and Turo are defined by a relentless pursuit of something. Drayton and Hassel, on the other hand, are defined by avoidance.

What’s important to the symbolism isn’t that Drayton is using his right hand, it’s that he isn’t using his left. He isn’t someone pursuing the past like Sada, but using his obligation to the school as a way to avoid the future.

Similarly, I think it's safe to say that Hassel is using his teaching position to escape his past moreso than he is looking to his future.

Because of this I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to say that Hassel’s past and Drayton’s future… probably coalesce in the same place.

What this actually implies is a question that will probably only be answered by our inevitable black and white remake, but I am curious about it nonetheless. I’ve got a bunch of extra comparisons to make between these two that didn’t quite make the cut here, so feel free to add your own observations and theories if you come up with anything.

#my personal headcanon is that hassel is the descendant of one of the heroes of unova #and that's why everyone wants him so bad #but I don't have much evidence for that one #pokemon #pokemon sv #pokemon hassel #pokemon drayton #pokemon theory #indigo disk dlc

22 notes · View notes

finalaudreythespiritswithin · 2 months

Text

increasingly feel like professional or "elite level" sports are just a bad idea. i get the conceptual appeal of wanting to watch someone do some crazy shit with a basketball or whatever but idk how you divorce the entertaining or enjoyable aspect from the part that wakes up the little fascist inside people. just seems the bring the worst out vis a vis like parsing bodies. however if you like sports and find this objectionable you can twist my arm really hard and make me call myself a faggot, i don't mind

10 notes · View notes

hurgablurg · 8 months

Text

it's weird looking at the content warnings for Helldivers 2 on steam and seeing the dissonance between warning players about depictions of gun violence and gore while in the same breath extolling the fun tools players get to use to "exterminate the alien forces" and "rid the galaxy of the rising alien threats".

It's extremely confused is what I'm saying.

And I can't parse whether they decided to put the gameplay blurb IN the content warning or they forgot to turn off the kayfabe for the OOC stuff.

And as a side note, I'm starting to get worried that they're just going to skip over the Starship Troopers-style parody of fascism and so-called democracy that was so crucial to the goofy tone of the first game. I'm worried they are going to try to play it straight.

The background of the first game is that Super Earth, despite calling itself a democracy, is a capitalism-enabled fascist state where a citizen's vote is decided for them by "a computer", oil is still the fuel of choice even for starships, and the so-called glorious "elite" Helldivers are the only infantry available and are laughably expendable to the point that it's almost impossible to go a single mission without accidentally dropping requisitions on your teammates, or even crushing a fellow Helldiver with your own respawn drop pod.

The lore entries are all framed as propaganda and it's explicit at the start and end of a War that Super Earth struck first in every single case and by the end of a successful campaign the casus belli is quickly swept under the rug as Super Earth has acquired whatever resource they wanted from their opponents and regained imperial dominion. Until the next War breaks out in the same exact way, with the exact same historical figures, and the exact same casualties.

(God forgive me for linking a Fandom Wiki.)

And if Super Earth is destroyed? They just designate a new Super Earth. And considering the game's lowering player count inevitably causes wars to be lost constantly, they've probably gone through hundreds of "irreplaceable homeworlds" by now.

And all that, mixed with the dissonance of the triumphant, heroic presentation of the players who being obliterated by their own autonomous autocannon because there is no Z-axis, creates a very obvious satire of militant societies. It's positively delicious.

And yet. The IGN trailer even has some generic pop-rock instead of the blaring patriotic brass of the previous game's soundtrack that reminds you it is supposed to be over the top. Like a AAA game. The Steam page is a standard feature blurb instead of a stylized despotic news reel. That has me slightly worried.

At least the announcement trailer got it right, but that was also 7 months ago. A long time in game dev and marketing terms.

#helldivers #helldivers 2 #super earth #steam #gaming

24 notes · View notes

threemouthedcanine · 4 months

Text

Me b4 going in2 the dunmeshi tags: i sure love dungeon meshi fanart <3 i wanna see falin and marcille :)

Me after going in2 the dunmeshi tags: Every anime fan besides a small elite circle are fucking insufferable fanon brained sticky ipad children who would struggle 2 parse a legible theme from picture books

#talk tag #anime quarantine tag

9 notes · View notes

renewedmotionforjudgment · 9 months

Text

I’ve had multiple posts here about my annoyance at cnet discourse on line delivery, specifically about the supposed “proper pronunciation of standardized mandarin” and why it’s such a thorn on my side, and after reading a very thoughtful post by @romchat on the cdrama subreddit, it boils down to the following and I’m linking this very good article for context:

- to me, it is almost impossible to divorce that standard from the Han nationalism promoted by the communist government, see above article for context. CCP has literally banned people in workplaces from speaking in dialects, is actively trying to suppress dialects of minority groups, and has “mandarin monitoring committees.” Given that, can the critics and acting professors really say anything contradictory?

- there is also a lot of classicism and elitism (which is not new to Chinese culture) in this discourse that’s not parsed out. Listen, I am neutral to Wang Hedi at best and dropped Only For Love after the first episode. But I think the idea that WHD’s sichuan accent (which TBH isn’t that strong to my ears) makes him sound like a person who sells things under the bridge as opposed to a CEO is a simple regurgitation of a stereotype without examining why we associate CEOs with certain regional accents and street vendors with another.

I also fine the whole “if x actor has a slight regional accent (which honestly, the variations are slight and everyone is speaking mandarin; no one is speaking true regional dialects) then the broad audience can’t understand” to be a self fulfilling prophesy. A population who is only exposed Standard Mandarin as sanctioned by the CCP will of course lose the ability to understand regional accents. Frankly, I’ve never really had difficulty understanding the variety of “problematic” mandarin line delivery, but I also spent most of my life in a Chinese diaspora in the Bay Area where I’m exposed to a variety of accents.

#cdrama #thoughts

17 notes · View notes

allgoldenelite · 1 year

Text

idk if this makes any sense, but.

so recently, i've seen the following interpretation floating around: whenever kenny talks about don being family in his promo and stuff, and whenever he makes it clear that BCC crossed a line now because they hurt somebody who can never reasonably consent to what the elite is used to, he is in reality not talking about don at all, or at least, the work is commenting on kenny lying or using don as a sort of mental scapegoat for the people he actually cares about [insert names here, in this case from most people i have seen it being hangman], because this is juxtaposed with kenny accepting the screwdriver from matt (who says "for hangman?").

and it made me think.

because a) there's precedent for this: especially as a heel (right now i'd say the elite are in the process of being faces again), kenny has a tendency to avoid (especially the names of) people close to him, or transpose the pain or caring he associates with those people onto something else (championships, matches, other responsibilities). everyone remembers "AJ styles, prince devitt, and who?" but there are a couple of other examples. notably, as the collector, he put so much emphasis on him and don; it was always "me and don, we are family", "don this, don that", instead of mentioning or talking what was really going on (his tensions with the bucks). later this would even spill onto other characters (saying that him and the good brothers make a really good trio/team, which is just explicit enough to pass as commentary on kenny's avoidance of the bucks at that point).

and b) i feel almost like if this were another medium, like a theater play or a book, there could very reasonably be a twist that don isn't real. that his existence is a product of kenny's psyche as he tries to avoid confronting reality (sort of like some apparitions in silent hill). that by focusing so much on don, it's easier for kenny to blend out the things that would cause him to otherwise shatter into a million pieces. he always styled himself as an "unstoppable android", and a machine needs a version of reality parsed through its OS that allows it to march on in spite of how frightening the actual happenings behind the veneer of said OS are. in a way, it could be said that don is kenny's OS rn. don is still his own person who does things kenny wouldn't do or doesn't do things he would do, but it would imo fit with kenny's arcs that often thematically feature isolation and self-hatred, to "invent" a companion who has totally always been your bestest buddy since you were 6 years old and played the invisible strings to help you be where you are now.

don entered the stage as a true character in the elite's story around the jericho feud back in new japan, but it wasn't until the collector that he was heavily cemented by kenny as an important existence, someone whom he had secretly plotted with "for years" in order to orchestrate his belt-hunting run (among other things), and by then he began interacting with other characters in way that deviated from our then current understanding of kenny's morals and ideas, despite how close the two claimed to be. i've written before about how to me, the collector is a paradoxical being and the final manifestation of all the ugly and dark parts inside kenny that he couldn't exorcise, "much, much worse" than the cleaner could ever be. think if the cleaner is a juvenile street thug, the collector is the boss in his penthouse making a fortune off of people's suffering.

but, it's important to remember that kenny isn't fundamentally evil. he has gone on record in character to state that it was his own fear of confronting his darker feelings about ibushi that pushed him towards joining bullet club and turning into the "pitch-black devil" he became. heartbreak makes a villain, etc. it's not that boilerplate simple, humans are complicated beings even (especially) in wrestling, and that is also true for kenny's story in AEW, which started to take a turn for the worse as soon as he started tagging with hangman. the collector is paradoxical because he both wants to and doesn't want to exist, because he thinks the things he's doing are necessary and cruel at the same time, because he desires what he fears and fears what he desires (finding true fulfillment in tagging, hangman becoming champion, corrupting the bucks, the list goes on). it would make sense to me if such a being required a mental shield to focus on and withstand the pressure of the two sides of the paradox constantly pulling at your psyche, threatening to destroy it. as it fits within his own machinations, don is the perfect candidate for that.

now, this isn't to say i think kenny is going to turn heel again because there is an increased emphasis on him and don "being family" again. it's just a piece of the text that i find interesting to analyze. even if kenny doesn't turn, in order to inflict upon BCC the brutality that they inflict on people you care about, you have to go to some pretty dark places. and every time kenny does go to such places, the past has shown that he pushes others away so that his true feelings—kindness, compassion, an arrogance that's more a beautiful sibling of pride than an ugly child of hurt—do not get in the way. it just depends on how he emerges on the other side once said brutality is inflicted.

either way, i have to imagine that under normal circumstances, when/if (?) the thing happens that finally tips the bucket over and causes kenny to shake off all that hair dye from 6 years ago and see don for the fucked up manipulator of himself and his friends that he is, it's going to deal a pretty heavy blow to him. it's not too dissimilar to an abusive relationship: from the outside it's so easy to see and go "oh this guy is a grade a asshole, they need to dump him already", but when you're in it, it's everything but easy.

i say normal circumstances because i have a feeling that the way this is actually going to be resolved in the work is going to involve some kind of hook that if not fully, at least partially avoids such shattering of the mind. that could be a number of things: the "betrayal" (really that's been going on for years, but see above) being so brutal and surprising that kenny's mind snaps right from heartbroken into justified, or the situation involving a bright light that makes it much easier to bear. i'll leave it up to you to decide who or what that's gonna be.

thanks for coming to my ted talk ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#/joesays #/text #/long #im sorry this is what it's like to be severely mentally ill and a wrestling fan #this is unrefined af just take it #kenny omega #don callis #rasslin #somehow we're all wanda #big love to mikey for helping me brainstorm this

32 notes · View notes

swagtastic-bougie-pompadour · 1 year

Text

Clive Update: Pride Edition!

'Sup', everyone! First off, the Naranja-Uva Kpop Dance Team asked me to tell you all they have a Pride performance today in the Schoolyard, where they plan to drop free swag! Sounds "dope", so check it out, yo!

Secondly, I've got our very first Pride Feature today: our very own professor of art and head of the Elite 4, Hassel!

Though he looks "rough and tough" in battle, any of my fellow students could tell you about the beautifully sensitive art and music Hassel creates and guides his own students to! Without further ado, a short interview with Hassel!

Thank you for agreeing to be our first feature, Professor Hassel! You're quite popular with the students, so I'm sure they'll be excited to see you here. Hello, er... Clive! It is a pleasure to be on the blog of somebody so "hip with the times". Personally, however, I would suggest that my students enjoy Professor Gible's teachings a bit more than my own! Ha, who could compete with such an esteemed professor? I have heard your class described as "gas" many times, however. Is that good...? I believe so. Anyhoo, on to our first question: What does "Pride" mean to you? Pride, to me, is a feeling of warmth. A sort of "you made it", if you understand? Some of my students may know this already, but I come from quite the tightly-wound family of Dragon Tamers. My path was quite clearly laid out for me--and then I ran away, saying I was going to make a living from music, of all things! And that freedom saved me. I certainly wouldn't have met dear Brassie without it! So I'm proud to be in a place where I can be myself, whether that's artistically or in love! How expressively put! Though inquiring minds wish to know: how long have you and Brassius been together? Roughly five years--which is more recent than some of you may believe, I am sure. However, even for the most artistic of us, matters of the heart can be difficult to parse! I still tear up a little, remembering that... wonderful time in muh laifh... Ah, wait, Hassel, I don't have any tissues here--aaand it appears I've set him off. Before I cut the interview, do you have any last comments, Hassel? I'b... goimg to pull it together... Right. My apologies. To my wonderful students: chase your dreams! Not a single day in my life have I regretted my decision to do so, even without my family's support! And remember: there is someone out there who loves you for exactly who you are!

#clivespiration #pkmn irl #pokeblogging #clive update

18 notes · View notes

banannabethchase · 2 years

Text

After Mox is injured during the Hangman match, Wheeler has to use to use some of the powers he's hidden for years. He's not able to hide it from Mox, though, and the reaction is far from what he expected.

Me like 2 weeks ago: I hate writing noncanonical supernatural elements I suck at it and it's the worst I'll never do it again.

Me today: ?????!!!!?!?!???

Title from Sub-Radio's "King Of My Heart", which is so poppy and delightful it makes me happy dance. Prompt from @sarahcakes613 "Demon gf who makes people make a pact for every little thing." I - it technically works? The prompt ended up flipflopping a little weirdly, but I think I made it work.

Mini Playlist: King Of My Heart - Sub-Radio Like an Animal - The Donnas Motivate - Little Mix Animal - The Cab

Wheeler fidgets as he watches Mox in medical, getting checked out all over. He keeps asking, “What happened?” He looks panicked.

Wheeler thinks back to the ring, where he leaned in and did what he always said he never would.

“You can walk out of this ring,” Wheeler had said, using a muscle he hasn’t touched in years, stretching something he’d hoped to keep locked away.

“I can walk out of the ring,” Mox said, leaning on Wheeler. And he did. He walked out the ring.

But not because he really could.

Because Wheeler used his power on him.

They make it back to the hotel he’s sharing with Mox, and he’s able to stand now, for real. Without any outside force compelling him to do so. His eyes have cleared, his body more steady. It’s a sprain, somewhere in his knee, but it should heel soon, Doc had said.

“Babe, I’m fine,” Mox says, collapsing into bed with a smile. He looks cozy and calm in his sweatpants and hoodie, but it took a hell of a lot of help from Wheeler to get him showered and changed back in the arena. “I can, like, feel your stress. Come sit.”

Wheeler knows Mox can’t know what he’s done. No human would ever imagine this to be the reality of, well, everything, because demons are phenomenal at PR and, also, mindwipe powers. And verbal subconscious insistence, which is what Wheeler had done earlier that day.

Mox sits up, staring. “Did I say something when we were out there? Was I a dick?” He stares at Wheeler, concern in his eyes.

“I have to tell you something,” Wheeler says. He sits on the edge of Mox’s bed, but he can’t make himself meet Mox’s eyes.

“What’s up?” Wheeler can feel the way Mox’s eyes burn into the side of his face. “Hey, Wheels.” He puts a finger under Wheeler’s chin, turning his head so Wheeler has to look at him. It hurts. “Baby, what’s wrong?”

He has to say it, doesn’t he. “I’m a demon.”

Mox’s face collapses into a laugh. “Oh. Cute. Seriously, what’s going on.”

“I told you!” Wheeler says. “I’m a demon. I’ve been manipulating all of you.” He steps away from Mox’s touch. “I’ve been lying.”

“Wait, hold up.” Mox waves off Wheeler’s words. He gets closer to Wheeler, leg stretched out behind Wheeler’s back. “Are you alright? Like, are you okay right now?”

“I would be,” Wheeler grumbles, “if you believed me.”

Mox studies his face in that way of his, eyes locked and loaded, parsing through every thought that’s ever passed through Wheeler’s mind. “What the hell are you talking about, kid?”

It takes over an hour to convince him. Mox keeps interrupting, of course, to check if Wheeler’s having some sort of mental break or something, and he’s not. He’s just trying really hard to tell the man he loves that he himself isn’t a man at all, and Mox is convinced he’s lost his mind.

“A demon, though?” Mox asks. “You? Really? Come on. I’d guess that of, like, Bryan, or maybe MJF. But you?” He cups Wheeler’s cheek in his hand. “You’re the sweetest on the whole roster.”

“Demons can be good! We just have to work at it,” Wheeler replies, and he realizes very quickly that folding his arms across his body and pouting probably isn’t making his point. “You know how you got out of that ring today?”

“With your help, and Paul’s.”

Wheeler shook his head. “What did I say to you, right before you stood up?”

Mox frowns, searching. “Um. You told me…you said I could walk out of the ring.”

“And did it feel like how I normally talk?” Wheeler asks. He hates doing this. He hates having to sit here and watch someone learn that he’s been a fraud his whole life. He’s only done this once before. It was a mistake.

Mox’s face practically clouds over, and Wheeler knows that look. Mox is getting it. “It wasn’t,” he mutters. “I – I’d fallen over before that.”

Wheeler nods. “Your leg wasn’t working.”

Mox stares at him, comprehending, finally. “You made me walk out of there.”

Wheeler nods. “I did.” He waits for the inevitable. He waits for the reaction he’s gotten in the past.

He doesn’t get it.

“Holy shit, can we try that in bed?” Mox asks, looking positively gleeful. “I love that.”

“You what?!”

“You, making me do whatever you want…” He spaces out, clearly watching some vision of Wheeler he’s never seen before. “Oh, I like that.”

“Mox!” Wheeler has to straight up snap at him to get his head back on straight. “What – you like that I’m a demon?”

“I like you,” Mox says, shrugging. “And if you’re a demon and you can, like, get into my head during sex or, fuck, even matches! That just turns this to eleven, baby. I’ve got so many ideas.”

Wheeler flops back onto the bed, careful to miss Mox’s knee. “All this time,” he grumbles, “and you’ve just got a demon kink.”

“I’ve got a you kink,” Mox clarifies. “The fact that you’ve got demon powers or whatever just sweetens the deal.”

Wheeler rolls himself off the bed and onto the floor, where he lays, silent, for at least a full rerun of CSI that Mox talks through.

“Hey,” Mox says, striding into the kitchen like he hadn’t just gotten his knee taken out by an angry cowboy the previous week, “I got an idea.”

Wheeler pauses. “An idea?”

“Yeah, don’t look so shocked.” He reaches for the fridge and pulls out the gallon of milk, drinking straight from the container. Wheeler rolls his eyes as Mox wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. “We could, like, add your weird voice power to do stuff around the house. Make things more fun.”

“Is that the only way I’ll be able to convince you to stop using bleach on every surface?”

“Screw you, it’s a good cleaning method.”

“It smells bad.”

“It’s clean,” Mox argues, kissing Wheeler’s nose. “The goal is clean, not lemon scented.”

“We could do both – anyway, that’s not the point.” Wheeler turns back to him. The dishes from his breakfast can wait. “So your only reaction to me being a demon is to get horny and household about it?”

Mox considers, then nods. “Yeah. Knee’s ready for vigorous activity, if you want to try it out.”

“You are incorrigible.”

“Yeah, and you love it.”

“I do,” Wheeler relents, “but still. You don’t even know how my powers work. I could be convincing you to be with me this whole time. You might not like me at all.”

To Wheeler’s surprise, Mox laughs. “I can tell the difference from the way you talk normally and the way you spoke that other time. Come on, I can prove it.”

He considers it. Technically, he’s not doing anything wrong if Mox is asking for it, right?

“Fine,” Wheeler says. In his normal voice, he says, “Put the dishes in the dishwasher.”

“Nah.” Mox grins at him.

Wheeler rolls his shoulders, puts some power behind it. “Put the dishes in the dishwasher.”

Mox’s eyes glaze over a little, a dopey smile playing on his lips. “Sure, baby.” And he does it. Without an ounce of complaining, he does it. Wheeler’s not sure if he needs to stop or tell Mox to do something else. He may continue to put dishes in the dishwasher until there’s no more room.

Mox puts the last from the sink in the washer, puts in the soap, and closes the washer. Wheeler watches his face, and it’s like he can see a veil removed as Mox comes back to his sense. “Whoa.”

“I know,” Wheeler says, wincing. “I’m sorry. It takes all your autonomy away.”

“No the fuck it doesn’t,” Mox says, looking positively giddy. “I knew what I was doing. I just…I wanted to do it.” He licks his lips, moving into Wheeler’s space. “I wanted to do what you wanted me to do.”

Wheeler huffs as Mox goes for his neck. “I should have known you’d be into this.”

“You shoulda,” Mox confirms. “Big ol’ monster fucker, me.”

“I am not,” Wheeler says, and he tries to put in a lot of force behind it, “a monster!”

Mox pulls away, grinning. “Aw, no?”

“Monsters have a much harder time pretending to be human for years and fooling everybody around them,” Wheeler argues. “Demons are much better at disguising themselves to live among the mortal.”

Mox leans in, so goddamned close. “Love when you talk demon to me.”

“You are the weirdest person I’ve ever met,” Wheeler says, and he slides his hand up Mox’s body, gently curling it around Mox’s throat. “Tell me what you want from this.”

“Anything,” Mox says. “Legit, just…whatever you want.”

Wheeler sighs. “I could make you sign a pact with me to give me your soul.”

“Deal.”

“No!” Wheeler laughs. “You – no. Stop it. This is serious.”

Mox licks his lips. He crowds into Wheeler’s space, presses a leg between his thighs. “Want you to fuck me and tell me what to do during.”

“Using the powers?” Because he has to check. He has to make sure.

“Yes, Jesus, how many times do I gotta tell you?” Mox huffs.

“Be nice,” Wheeler snaps, with just a little power behind it.

Mox’s eyes glaze over, smile on his lips. “Yeah,” he says, sounding far away. “Yeah, like that. Thanks, baby.”

“This is ridiculous,” Wheeler grumbles. “You horny bastard. Tell me exactly what you want.” He puts the power behind it.

“I want you to fuck me against the sink,” Mox says. “I want you to make me beg for it. I wanna beg for it.” He turns his eyes on Wheeler’s, spaced out, but knowing. “I want your cock.”

Wheeler sighs. “Well, since you asked so nicely.”

“I’m so nice,” Mox says, voice a little weird. “You want me nice.”

“I do.” Wheeler thinks for a second. “Hold onto the sink. And don’t move.”

“Okay.” Mox shoots him an absolutely radiant smile before he turns around and grabs the sink. Wheeler had been thinking Mox would face him, but this works.

“I’ll be back in just a second,” Wheeler says. “Don’t move.” He considers. “Um, unless there’s, like, an emergency. Also, you can breathe and body stuff. And if something is wrong or – yeah, just don’t let yourself or anyone else get in danger. Otherwise, stay just like that. You understand?”

Mox doesn’t answer.

“Mox?” Wheeler peeks around him to see Mox with his entire body held stiff. “Oh, shit! Yeah, you can talk, that’s fine.”

“I understand,” Mox says. “Hurry up, though. I can only be nice for so long.”

Wheeler gives him a kiss on the cheek, because Mox is obnoxious and charming all at once, and rushes up the stairs. He grabs lube, and, just for fun, a vibrator, and hustles downstairs. “You good, Mox?”

“Impatient,” Mox says. “Trying to be good.”

“Aw,” Wheeler says. “Not exactly what I meant, but okay.” He fumbles a little, trying to set everything on the counter. He pushes away the clutter, because he has a feeling he might need something to grip onto. “Any reason you want me to fuck you in the kitchen?”

“Never done it before,” Mox answers. “Adds a little spice to it.”

“Oh, because your demon boyfriend fucking you under a weird demon power isn’t spicy enough,” Wheeler grumbles, but he reaches around for Mox’s belt. “Tell me what you want.”

“I want you to fuck me,” Mox all but whines. “I told you already.”

“You’re getting kind of bitchy,” Wheeler says, unbuttoning Mox’s pants. “I don’t remember telling you to be bitchy.”

“Didn’t tell me not to be,” Mox singsongs. “Maybe you should give me a specific instruction.”

“Ugh, fine, be a bitch, whatever,” Wheeler says, getting a hand around Mox’s cock, “but if you’re too mean, I stop.”

Mox whines, hips twitching. “That’s a very fine line for me to tread.”

Wheeler hums a little, hand still as Mox squirms under him. “Better tread lightly, then.” He lets go, drizzles some lube on his hands, and strokes gently. “Don’t move.”

“Oh, fuck off.”

“I said you could be a bitch,” Wheeler says, stroking slowly, “not be mean.”

Mox lets out another whine, his knuckles turning white as they grip the edge of the sink. “You’re the one being mean.”

“I’m allowed to be mean,” Wheeler says, finally getting a little fun out of it, “you asked me to make you beg, right?”

“Yeah.”

“So, this is me, trying to make you beg.” He keeps stroking Mox with the lightest, gentlest grip, being as infuriating as he can muster, all while Mox is making this high pitched whine that makes Wheeler feel a little giddy. “I have an idea.”

“Yeah,” Mox says, “give me anything. Anything you want. Tell me to – ”

“Quit that!” Wheeler says, and he lets go of Mox’s cock, steps away from him.

“No,” Mox says. “What the fuck? You’re the worst.”

“Again, you told me to make you beg,” Wheeler says. “If I say you can move, are you gonna be good?”

“Yeah,” Mox says, “I will.”

“Then, you can turn around and let go of the sink,” Wheeler says, “and that’s it.”

Mox spins so fast it almost makes Wheeler dizzy. “Hi,” he says, little smile playing on his lips. “Fuck me now?”

“You haven’t begged yet,” Wheeler says, “and that was a specific request.” He reaches over, grabs the vibrator. Mox’s eyes get comically wide. “Yeah, I thought you might like this.” Wheeler turns it on. “Any requests?”

Mox closes his eyes, breathes deeply, then looks at Wheeler. “Uh.”

The vibrator’s a little thing, really, and Wheeler knows Mox likes it as sort of an extra while they’re fucking, likes Wheeler to feel it on the outside of him while Mox can feel Wheeler inside him. But he wants Mox to say it.

“Want you in me,” Mox says. “And want that on – anywhere.” He squirms. “Kiss me?”

Wheeler leans in like he’s the one being voice commanded, kissing Mox with the power of the whole world behind him. He drops his hand and lets the vibrator drag along the length of his cock. Mox moans into his mouth, desperate, hands reaching up to grip Wheeler’s hair.

“Like that,” Mox says, “fuck, baby, like that.”

“Good to know. Now you want me inside you, huh?”

“Fuck, yes, oh my god,” Mox throws his head back. “God, you’re the fucking worst. If you don’t get inside me now, I’m going to die, you fucking monster.”

“Demon,” Wheeler replies primly. “I thought I told you not to be mean. Maybe I just walk away.”

Mox’s eyes meet his, and they aren’t as glazed over as they were before. “Don’t you dare,” he says, and it would be a little more intimidating if he wasn’t half pouting. “Come on, please?”

“You called me a monster.”

“It’s a compliment,” Mox snaps, and Wheeler laughs.

“Well, in that case.” Wheeler grabs Mox’s hips and turns him around, pressing up along his back. He shoves down his own sweats to his knees, finally able to admit he’s as impatient about this as Mox is. He slicks up his cock with one hand while teasing Mox with the vibrator. And he’s struck with an idea. He trails it down behind Mox’s balls, holding it right behind them. He starts without the powers, wants to gauge how Mox reacts to it. “Hold the vibrator. Right here.”

“Hmm?”

“You want the vibrator?”

Mox nods. “Yeah, yeah.”

“Then you have to hold it,” Wheeler says, power behind it.

“I’ll hold it,” Mox says, and he does, taking it from Wheeler’s grip. He shudders, a whole body thing, and Wheeler lets himself admire the masterpiece in front of him, the thumbtack scars, the proof of the way Mox is willing to let his body suffer for his art. It feels like an honor to be the one giving Mox a little pleasure when all others only get to cause pain.

He rubs the head of his cock between Mox’s cheeks, just a little.

“Now, please,” Mox demands.

“Oh, please?” Wheeler asks. “That’s new. Glad to know you can beg. No, Mox, I gotta open you up first.”

And it’s so easy, isn’t it, the way Mox shifts his legs and the vibrator at the same time to accommodate one, two, then three fingers. He takes Wheeler so well, every time. “You’re so good at this,” Wheeler says, watching a little as his fingers disappear into Mox, as Mox pushes back on them. “Tell me how it feels.”

“Not enough,” Mox gasps.

“Turn up the vibrator, then.”

With a whine, Mox does as Wheeler commanded, and that full body shudder hits again. “Oh, Christ fucking god, Wheeler, if you don’t get in me right now...”

“I am in you.”

“You know what I mean,” Mox growls, and it’s close enough to begging that Wheeler relents.

The first slide into Mox’s body feels like coming home, and Mox reaches a hand back to grab at Wheeler’s hip. “Fuckin’ finally,” Mox says on an exhale. “Come on, start moving. You’re takin’ too long.”

“I – what – turn up the vibrator again, you insufferable motherfucker,” Wheeler grumbles. Mox does so, and, fuck, it hits Wheeler like a train. He can feel everything, he supposes, more than a human, but this is a whole new level: the vibrator, the way Mox eggs him on, the way he can really slam into Mox’s body from this angle. He lets himself get a little distracted, loses track of time and space and sense. He feels drunk with it, obsessed, and he bites at Mox’s neck a little too hard, with the wrong teeth. He tastes pennies.

“Shit,” he says, pulling back. “Mox, I’m sorry, I –”

“Again,” Mox says, “oh, fuck, yes. Do that again.”

“You and your stupid pain kink,” Wheeler mutters, but he relents, pressing another biting kiss to Mox’s neck, a little more controlled this time, sure to leave a mark but no punctures. Mox grinds down onto his cock, twisting.

“Close,” Mox says, voice hardly more than a whisper. “Wanna – wanna come, please, wanna come.”

“Turn the vibrator as high as it’ll go,” Wheeler commands. “And hold on onto the sink again.”

Wheeler practically sees stars and the vibrator goes full blast, and he thrusts into Mox. He wraps an arm around his waist for leverage. “Good?” he asks Mox. “Tell me what you want.”

“Harder,” Mox whines. “Don’t stop until – until you come inside me.”

Wheeler’s the one whining at that, and he follows Mox’s demands. He wraps a hand around Mox’s cock and it’s seconds, really, that Mox is coming all over himself and Wheeler’s hand. He’s shaking.

“You can move the vibrator,” Wheeler says, chasing his own orgasm.

“No,” Mox says. “K-keeping it – until you – ” He cuts himself off with something akin to a wail.

Wheeler ramps up the pace until he’s coming hard, teeth sunk into the back of Mox’s neck. Mox slumps over the sink, dropping his hand. When he gets a little more sense back in his body, Wheeler eases the vibrator out of Mox’s hand, turns it off.

“Okay, breaking the control,” Wheeler mumbles, lips against Mox’s back. “Formally rescinding all verbal subconscious insistence. Not sure what I have to do to make sure it’s gone.”

“It’s gone,” Mox says. “Oh, fuck.”

Wheeler pulls back a little, pulls off his shirt to clean Mox up a little. “Are you okay?”

Mox is quiet as he pulls himself full to standing, and a wave of anxiety crashes over Wheeler. He shouldn’t have allowed this. He should have stopped it.

The wave disappears when he sees the grin on Mox’s face and in his clear eyes. “Oh, fuck, so much better than okay.” He laughs, rubs a hand over his head. “We’re gonna have so much fun with that power of yours and those, uh,” he touches gingerly at the bruises along his neck, “are those demon teeth?”

Wheeler grimaces. “They are.”

“Hot,” Mox says, nodding. “Yeah, break those out whenever you want, baby.” He takes the t-shirt from Wheeler’s hands, wipes off his body and hands where Wheeler missed. “Not sure how I feel about the kitchen bit, though. Worked in the moment but…” He trails off, gesturing to the mess they made across a few cabinets and in the sink. Mox pulls up his jeans, but skips the belt. “We’re gonna have to bleach this shit down,” Mox says, hands on hips, frowning.

Wheeler groans. “Not the fucking bleach again.”

“Gotta,” Mox says, with his best imitation of a pout.

“Fine,” Wheeler decides, “but we’re making a deal.”

Mox lights up. “Like a sexy demon deal?”

“No, fuck, fine! We’ll do – every time I agree to your bleach-related cleaning requests, I get a kiss.”

Mox nods. “I can work with that.” He leans in, kissing Wheeler gently.

“What was that for?”

“Prepayment,” Mox says, giddy. “This’ll be fun.”

#Wheeler Yuta #Jon Moxley #Yuta x Mox #in which Sara writes #sarahcakes613 #wtf i like wrestling now???#I DON'T KNOW IT JUST OKAY

19 notes · View notes