#salay cosmere

[gal-palanaeum]

Trillium by Truthwatcher_Vez

Rated Teen, 1000 words, Ann/Tress/Salay Salay prepares for an espionage job, and reflects on the precious people in her life.

Salay lets herself in to the posh suite located on the top floor of the premier hotel of the Core Archipeligo.  Ann is settled on a couch in the main room, three guns disassembled onto the coffee table in front of her, the parts lovingly organized in neat rows.  She notices Salay, and lowers the piece that she’d been meticulously polishing.  “Any luck?”

Salay nods.  “Right where the informant said.  Third floor of the embassy, hidden away in the study.”

Ann smiles in delight.  “The job’s a go, then?”  She looks fondly at the rows of tranquilizer gun pieces.  “Better get these babies reassembled and ready for action!”

Her enthusiasm brings a smile to Salay’s own lips.  She crosses the room and bends forward to exchange a quick kiss of greeting with her trigger-happy lover, then turns towards the entrance of the adjoining room of the suite.

A line of silver foil has been laid across the threshold.  Salay steps over it and into the other room.  Here, a portable worktable has been set up by the window where the light is best, near the foot of the room’s single king-sized bed.  There was a time that Salay wouldn’t have dared cross the boundary of silver into a space where a sprouter is working.  But Tress is nothing if not meticulous, and it’s been ages since a single spore has escaped the raised metal sides of her sprouter’s bench. 

Tress is absorbed in her work, and so Salay clears her throat to give warning as she approaches.  She sees Tress bob her head in acknowledgement, swinging closed the compartment of a needle-like device that contains a tiny pellet of sunlight spores.  She half-turns to look at Salay, pushing thick goggles up on her head and removing her leather work gloves.  “Back so soon?”

“It didn’t take long to confirm the location of the safe.”  Salay nods to the device in Tress’s hands.  “That’ll be enough to melt the lock?”

“That’s the idea.” Tress looked over the device with a critical eye.  “It’s done well in all of the initial testing, at least.”

Salay looks over towards the armoire, where three cocktail dresses hang in a row in contrasting yet complementary colors.  Their target is confirmed, their preparations complete.  Now all they have to do is attend the ambassador’s party, sneak into the study, and find evidence to verify that one of the dukes is committing treason by selling state secrets.

After all this time working together, the three of them function in beautiful harmony.  Salay works point.  Ann is the lookout.  Tress is their sprouter and mastermind.  If someone had told Salay at this time last year that she would be working with one of the King’s Masks, she wouldn’t ever have believed it.  Her life now is so, so much better than it was all those many long months ago.

Keep reading

[lamaery]

Here is my take on the most of the non-Doug characters for Tress of the Emerald Sea. It was really fun to try a more shape based approach again and I am very happy with how everyone turned out.

Which side-character did you like the most in the books. I really enjoyed Ann.

[starling-illu]

cosmere inktober 15: moon

[jewishicequeen]

Some Tress of the Emerald Sea character concepts! I loved this book!

[cosmerelists]

Cosmere Characters Play Charades

As requested by anon. :)

Ah, charades. Where you have to act out a word or phrase without speaking and have your team guess what you are. What would happen if Cosmere characters played this game?

1. Jasnah (the clue is "investiture")

Jasnah: [Holds up one finger...then four fingers] Renarin: One word...four syllables... Jasnah: [Holds up one finger] Adolin: First syllable! Jasnah: [Cups one hand, and then points into it with the other finger] Shallan: In! Jasnah: [Nods; holds up two fingers for "second syllable;" begins miming a sleeveless garment on her upper half] Adolin: Havah! Inhavah! Shallan: In-shirt! Renarin: In...vest? Jasnah: [Nods firmly. Holds up three fingers for "third syllable." Hesitates. Hesitates for longer. Sighs. Points at boob.] Shallan: IN-VEST-TIT-TURE! Jasnah: I'm both impressed...and somehow disappointed.

2. Tress (the clue is "pair of gloves")

Tress: [Points at Charlie] Ann: Uh...man? Ford: (writing): Transformation? Salay: Love? Charlie: P-Pair of gloves!!! Tress: Yay you got it! Ann: ...What

3. Zahel (the clue is "parrot")

Zahel: [flaps his arms as if they are wings] Shallan: Chicken! Zahel: [Shakes his head. Continues to flap his wings] Kaladin: Uh...sky eel? Zahel: [Makes "talking" hand motion in front of his mouth. Goes back to flapping his arms] Adolin: Talking...chicken? Zahel: [nods impatiently] Adolin: (whispering to Shallan): What's the special name for talking chickens? Shallan: I'm pretty sure there isn't one! Zahel: ...I hate this stupid planet.

4. Vin (the clue is "tin")

Vin: [Cups her hand to her ear as if trying to hear something. Shakes head sadly. Mimes drinking something. Puts her hand to her ear again and gives a thumbs up] Ham: Eavesdropping! Kelsier: Spying? Vin: [mimes drinking something again and points at the imaginary vial in her hand] Spook: Oh! Tin! Vin: Yes! Vin (glares at Ham & Kelsier): Spying & eavesdropping were your first thoughts??

5. Syl (the clue is "shardblade")

Syl: [Looks at clue. Makes disgusted face] Kaladin: SHARDBLADE! Syl: N-No fair! I didn't even get to act anything out! Kaladin: (smugly) You always make that face when shardblades come up. Syl: I GET ANOTHER TURN

6. Marasi (the clue is "Ironeyes")

Marasi: [mimes plunging something into both eyes] Wayne: Stabbing! Violence! Police brutality! Marasi: [mimes plunging something into both eyes; makes "spooky" motion with fingers] Wax: Blindness? Steris: Sixth sense? Marasi: [lies down with her arms crossed over her chest] Wayne: Dead? Death? Wax: Oh! Death Ironeyes! Marasi: Yes, thank goodness! I was about to try to mime someone leading me into an alley! Steris: ...what?

7. Shallan (the clue is "Ghostbloods")

Shallan: [Stares at clue. Looks around suspiciously] Shallan: [Slowly draws three interlocking triangles in the air, all the while looking carefully at the audience to see if anyone reacts] Adolin: Ge...ometry? Shallan: Ha ha yes! Adolin: Really?? Wow I'm amazing!

8. Nomad (the clue is "May-Adolsinium-Yet-Have-Pity-On-Our-Souls-As-They-Wander-Far-From-Home”)

Nomad: ... Nomad: Really? Rebeke (very excited to be playing a game): Come on! How many words?? Nomad: TOO MANY

9. Painter (the clue is "ronin")

Painter: [looks at clue and nods decisively] Painter: [Stands and gazes off into the distance, his gaze pensive, eyes full of a noble sadness. For a second, wind nearly seems to ripple his hair. He rests his hand on his hip, as if resting it on the hilt of an imaginary katana. After a moment, he strides off, full of determination and yet, somehow, also regret] Yumi: A TRAVELING CARNIVAL GUY WHO MAKES FUN CARNIVAL SNACKS!!! Painter: ...I don't want to play anymore.

[curlytale]

Cosmere Inktober day 16: Sailors

Realized there are actually quite a few sailor characters in the Cosmere so I wanted to draw just a select few of my favorites: Salay from TotES, Rysn from Stormlight, and Allik from Mistborn Era 2.

[rhetoricandlogic]

Book Review: Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson Overall ImpressionThis was a fun Sanderson novel. It has a fairly simple premise, but in typical Sanderson fashion it quickly spirals into some very cool moments and, as a Cosmere novel, offers some tantalizing information for those curious about the great web connecting many of his novels. Character-wise I liked Tress, but felt that she became a tad generic in spite of her strong introduction. I liked the illustrations, though my kindle showed them only in greyscale.PlotThe plot of this book is fairly straightforward, though it takes some interesting turns. The chief premise is a bit of a damsel-in-distress rescue mission. I don't want to spoil any of the major events, so I'll just say that it moves quite fast throwing ever greater challenges to Tress and her friends.CharactersCentral to the story is Tress. She starts off as a small town simple girl and initially gave me some Auri vibes with her unusual fascination on cups (from Rothfuss's Name of the Wind); however, she quickly grows to a more standard Sanderson heroine- an adventuring scholar. While she's great, it does seem Sanderson gravitates to that archetype very often so I felt she lost a bit of personality when leaning heavily into that. In addition to Tress we also have Huck, a talking rat; a bunch of pirates including Fort, Ann, and Salay; and of course- Hoid. This is a Cosmere novel so Hoid is present and up to something.Setting / World BuildingLike a lot of Sanderson's novels, exploring the setting is an integral part of the experience. Tress lives in a weird world with several moons hovering in the sky and raining down spores. These spores form the seas in which boats navigate but are dangerous in their own right. The spores activate in the presence of actual water and can have devastating effects. This however, makes things very interesting as you can start piecing together how to solve problems by using the right combinations of spores. We don't get to see all of the world, but enough to give us a taste for what is possible there.This is a Cosmere novel, which means it is in the same grand universe as other novels and series like Elantris, Mistborn, Warbreaker, or The Stormlight Archive. If you've read some of those, you may encounter some brief moments where a character or concept from those is mentioned in passing. One aspect I'm not 100% sure off, however, is the timeline between all of them. Naturally, Hoid can't be everywhere at once but some aspects of technology and presumably major story events have already taken place in these other worlds. Regardless, this isn't important to enjoy the story, but it gives an extra depth for those who are Sanderson fans.Final ThoughtsThis was a really fun, short novel. A bit of a romantic adventure, but with classic Sanderson world-building and quirky characters. You can certainly see some of the covid influences, from the fear of airborne spores to tablet communication devices. The plot is straightforward and told in an interesting style with a whimsical narrator that talks to the reader and frequently drops fascinating Cosmere links or foreshadows story events. Overall this was a good book and a great start to the year of Sanderson. Tress of the Emerald Sea is the first of Sanderson's "Secret Project"- a set of four novels written during the height of the covid pandemic and being independently published. As a Sanderson fan I had to sign up for them since I knew they would be fun reads and indeed the first hasn't disappointed. Plus as a Cosmere novel it connects to his grander universe. I look forward to seeing what the other 3 will be.

Book Review: Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

Overall Impression This was a fun Sanderson novel. It has a fairly simple premise, but in typical Sanderson fashion it quickly spirals into some very cool moments and, as a Cosmere novel, offers some tantalizing information for those curious about the great web connecting many of his novels. Character-wise I liked Tress, but felt that she became a tad generic in spite of her strong introduction. I liked the illustrations, though my kindle showed them only in greyscale.

Plot The plot of this book is fairly straightforward, though it takes some interesting turns. The chief premise is a bit of a damsel-in-distress rescue mission. I don't want to spoil any of the major events, so I'll just say that it moves quite fast throwing ever greater challenges to Tress and her friends.

Characters Central to the story is Tress. She starts off as a small town simple girl and initially gave me some Auri vibes with her unusual fascination on cups (from Rothfuss's Name of the Wind); however, she quickly grows to a more standard Sanderson heroine- an adventuring scholar. While she's great, it does seem Sanderson gravitates to that archetype very often so I felt she lost a bit of personality when leaning heavily into that. 

In addition to Tress we also have Huck, a talking rat; a bunch of pirates including Fort, Ann, and Salay; and of course- Hoid. This is a Cosmere novel so Hoid is present and up to something.

Setting / World Building Like a lot of Sanderson's novels, exploring the setting is an integral part of the experience. Tress lives in a weird world with several moons hovering in the sky and raining down spores. These spores form the seas in which boats navigate but are dangerous in their own right. The spores activate in the presence of actual water and can have devastating effects. This however, makes things very interesting as you can start piecing together how to solve problems by using the right combinations of spores. We don't get to see all of the world, but enough to give us a taste for what is possible there.

This is a Cosmere novel, which means it is in the same grand universe as other novels and series like Elantris, Mistborn, Warbreaker, or The Stormlight Archive. If you've read some of those, you may encounter some brief moments where a character or concept from those is mentioned in passing. One aspect I'm not 100% sure off, however, is the timeline between all of them. Naturally, Hoid can't be everywhere at once but some aspects of technology and presumably major story events have already taken place in these other worlds. Regardless, this isn't important to enjoy the story, but it gives an extra depth for those who are Sanderson fans.

Final Thoughts This was a really fun, short novel. A bit of a romantic adventure, but with classic Sanderson world-building and quirky characters. You can certainly see some of the covid influences, from the fear of airborne spores to tablet communication devices. The plot is straightforward and told in an interesting style with a whimsical narrator that talks to the reader and frequently drops fascinating Cosmere links or foreshadows story events. Overall this was a good book and a great start to the year of Sanderson.

[starling-illu]

[gal-palanaeum]

Cosmere Femslash Fest Fic List

Here’s a list of all the fics submitted to Cosmere Femslash Fest 2023, organized by rating. Check out all the ones that interest you, and please do comment and give kudos if you like it–it means everything to a fic writer, and we want to encourage as much femslash as possible!

General and Teen

Hypnotic, takin over me by Hazekiller16. Venli/Leshwi, General. Bonus fic!

Steel Lovers by Stingythefish. Mistborn OC/`OC, General

Different As Can Be by LuxViolet. t4t Vin/Shan, Teen

Trillium by Truthwatcher_Vez. Ann/Tress/Salay, Teen. Bonus fic!

Harmony of Scholarly Concerns by TrishHankins. Rushu/Venli, Teen

Never Had by BlindRadiant. Kalami/Navani, Teen

Sweetness by Milk. Navani/Ialai, General

Thinking, Overthinking, and a Pile of Letters by bridgeboy. Khriss/Design and Cord/Rysn, General

Sick of crying for blue eyes by Zvarrklingreputation. Navani/Evi, General

Metamorphosis by Truthwatcher_Vez. Masaka/Izzy, Teen

Voice by aluminumoxynitride. Leshwi/Venli, General

Warmth by Thirstspren. Yumi/Akane, General 

You'd be stars by SapphicSpren. Shallan/transfem!Adolin, Teen

All's Fair in Games of Love and War by Macro_Scenery. Lyn/Laran, Teen

A Change of Plans by Faithfully_Queer. MeLaan/Steris, General

Mature and Explicit

Learning Curves by sir_not_appearing_in_this_archive. Akane/Yumi, Explicit

Of Me by cosmere_play. Evi/Sja-anat, Mature

A Study in Worship by Naaru. Jasnah/Shallan, Mature

This Is How You Grieve Your Lover by LunaEarnshaw. Shallan/Tyn, Mature

stay on the phone (just to hear me breathe) by gabrial. Yumi/Akane, Mature

Questions for Later by BlindRadiant. Navani/MeLaan, Mature

Not the quitting kind by catharsisnt. Shallan/Tyn, Mature

A Breath of Understanding by cosmereplay. Azure/Jasnah, Mature. Bonus fic!

[cosmerelists]

Randomized AUs for Cosmere Femslash Couples

Femslash feature requested by @cosmereplay

Cosmereplay asked me to write a list promoting Cosmere Femslash Fest 2023, which is a fic exchange event YOU can participate in focused around femslash ships.

In honor of this event, I decided to do the following: I made a list of femslash ships and a separate list of AUs, and then I randomly paired them. Let's see what results!

And if any of these randomized results actually look like a fun thing to write or draw, please feel absolutely free! 1. Sports AU: Marasi & Moonlight (Mistborn Era 2)

After chasing down a purse-snatcher on her roller skates, Marasi catches the eye of Roller Derby team captain Moonlight, who wants Marasi to join her team, the Bleeding Ghosts. As Marasi is drawn into the world of Roller Derby, she finds herself being drawn to the mysterious Moonlight as well.

2. Mermaid AU: Lewshi & Raboniel (Stormlight)

As captain of her ship, Lewshi knows to beware of the dangerous but beautiful mermaids who inhabit these waters. But after nearly drowning in a shipwreck, Lewshi is revived by the mermaid Raboniel, a creature so dangerous yet so alluring that even the other mermaids fear her.

3. Pop Stars AU: Shallan & Tyn (Stormlight)

Scam artist Shallan needs to pretend to be a popstar for one easy con. But things go awry when she catches the eye of actual popstar Tyn, who is impressed by Shallan's talent and eager to teach the up-and-comer the ropes. Now Shallan needs to keep the popstar con going...or does she just want to spend more time with Tyn?

4. Boss & Secretary AU: Navani & Raboniel (Stormlight)

When Navani is hired to be Raboniel's secretary, she is overwhelmed by Raboniel's harsh standards and demanding attitude. But Navani's keen intelligence quickly impresses her boss, and now the two of them are growing closer than ever...

5. Teacher & Student's Parent AU: Vin & Shan (Mistborn Era 1)

Vin is a young and overworked elementary school teacher, and Shan Elariel is the imperious and demanding mother of one of Vin's students. They immediately butt heads, but as sparks begin to fly, something more begins to develop between them.

6. Soulmates AU: Lyn & Jasnah (Stormlight)

The first thing your soulmate will say to you is printed on your hand from birth. But Lyn was tired of being lonely, so she's dating a boy named Kal, despite both of them knowing that they're not soulmates. But when Lyn attends a lecture by the preeminent scholar Jasnah, she is shocked to hear Jasnah begin with words that Lyn has long been waiting to hear.

7. Coworkers AU: Lewshi & Venli (Stormlight)

(Ha ha this one is just canon!) It started out as just bitching together about their terrible boss. But now Venli is sensing that there might be more between them...but she doesn't want to make a move until she's sure.

8. Succubus AU: Jasnah & Shallan (Stormlight)

Shallan knew that summoning a demon was risky, but she was willing to try anything to save her family, even if that meant trying to bind a demon to steal its power. She was not prepared for the demon she summoned to be a succubus, and she was not expecting to find this demon Jasnah's presence to be so...alluring.

9. Bodyguard & Client AU: Salay & Ann (Tress of the Emerald Sea)

Ann loves being a bodyguard, even if she's, well, terrible at it. Ann has been given one last chance to not fuck up an assignment: guarding businesswoman Salay, who is searching for her father.

10. Coffee Shop AU: Siri & Blushweaver (Warbreaker)

Siri is a young woman out on her own for the first time, working at a local coffee shop. Blushweaver is the beautiful, flirtatious customer. But is it Siri's imagination, or does Blushweaver flirt more with her than with anyone else?

11. Star Trek AU: Cord & Rysn (Stormlight)

Cord is Security and Rysn is the Captain, and they are Starfleet Officers on the same starship. They've been sent on an away mission to investigate the mysterious planet Akinah, where a great treasure is said to lie hidden...

12. Detective & Art Thief AU: Steris & Ranette (Mistborn Era 2)

Detective Steris has been hunting renowned art thief Ranette for years, but the thief is always inventing new devices and weapons that allow her to escape the law every time. Steris can't deny that she's maybe getting a little obsessed with this woman...

13. Tattoo Artist & Flower Shop AU: Marasi & MeLaan (Mistborn Era 2)

Marasi runs a flower shop, and MeLaan runs the tattoo shop next door. Do I need to say more?

14. Neighbors AU: Jaxy & Ranette (Mistborn Era 2)

Ranette likes her space--that's why she bought a small cottage way out in the countryside. But now a new woman has moved in down the road, and for the first time in a while, Ranette is wondering if it wouldn't be nice to have someone else around the place...

15. Vampire AU: Vin & Allrianne (Mistborn Era 1)

Allrianne is the rich, well-dressed, and the undisputed queen of her high school. Yet there's this new girl, Vin--pale, keeps to the shadows, never seems to eat...and keeps looking at Allrianne with those predatory eyes...

16. Knight & Queen AU: Jasnah & Azure (Stormlight)

(Ha! This is close to canon too!) Lady Azure is a knight, and she's extremely good at her job. She has been promoted to guard Queen Jasnah, and when Lady Azure swears her undying loyalty, she means it. Deeply.

17. Nerd & Jock AU: Lyn & Laran (Stormlight)

As captain of their college basketball team, Lyn has the popularity and the swagger. Yet she finds herself strangely drawn to that nerdy math major, Laran. Despite her teammates' ribbing, Lyn thinks she might just shoot her shot...

18. Fake Dating AU: Shallan & Vin (Stormlight & Mistborn Era 1)

Shallan MAY have been lying to her family about having a girlfriend to keep them off her back. But now her family is insisting on meeting her girlfriend at the next family reunion, and Shallan needs to think of something FAST. So she puts out an ad offering to pay someone to just pretend to be her girlfriend for a few hours, and who should answer but this girl Vin...

19. College AU: Navani & Evi (Stormlight)

Navani and Evi meet through their college boyfriends--brothers, in fact, brothers who are always so busy with their business majors that Navani and Evi often find themselves alone. Together. Feeling something grow between them...

20. Sugar Mama AU: Yumi & Akane (Yumi and the Nightmare Painter)

Yumi is a struggling artist; she works harder than ANYONE yet can't seem to make ends meet. So when she's contacted by the mysterious Akane who offers to be her sugar mama, Yumi jumps at the chance. It doesn't hurt that Akane is an actual goddess in terms of looks... Happy Femlash Fest 2023, everyone!