#she would still be forsaken like that’s a canon event for her lol | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

an-android-child · 7 months ago

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I HAVE PERMISSION TO INFODUMP ABOUT BRUCE'S CHILDREN LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO I'm procrastinating so hard but what else is new

Ok so in favour of this being an honest and fair comparison, I'm only gonna talk about real children (so no hallucinations or dreams or Alfred fanfics) who have interacted with the main universe, be it because Bruce or someone from the main earths has met them in their universe or because they went to our main universe (so no elseworlds or imaginary stories), AND who have been legally adopted or are bio children (so no mentees or emotionally adopted children). I'll also mention foster children.

Let's get this started!!!

Dick Grayson (adopted)

First appearance: Detective Comics (1937) #38

Date of first appearance: April, 1940

No need for presentations I'm sure! The one and only first boy wonder! The mold where all child sidekicks came out from, and the first canonical (depends so much on the author lol, I have a whole meta here) son of Bruce Wayne.

Lance Bruner (adopted)

First appearance: The Brave and the Bold (1955) #83

Date of first appearance: May, 1969

Another child officially adopted I wished we'd seen more of. His personality is super interesting to me, from bad boy badly grieving to someone full of regret and self-sacrifice. I wished we could see more of the official first dead Robin lmao.

Enoch and Roger Jr. Birnam (adopted as godsons)

First appearance: The Brave and the Bold (1955) #98

Date of first appearance: November, 1971

This comic run really liked the idea of Bruce adopting children. Such a shame they're mostly one-shot kids. In this story, Batman (not Bruce, Batman) is the godfather of both children of the late Roger Birnam, who he promised to protect along with their beautiful mother after the man died. The thing is, Batman doesn't know there are two kids, because one has been hidden since birth by their evil witch mother, and that's because Enoch is a satanic cult leader. He's also six or less. It doesn't matter anyway because the wife and evil son die, so Batman is left to take care of the good son, Roger Jr., because that's how morality works! You're born good or you're born evil and we don't need to think about that anymore because Roger Jr. vanishes forever either way! Aren't comics great.

But now fr, I wouldn't mind a modern re-telling of this story that is a little bit deeper and complicated. And also wouldn't mind seeing Roger Jr. back.

Bruce Wayne Jr. (biological)

First appearance: World's Finest (1941) #215

Date of appearance: January, 1973

Okay, seeing as there are a bajillion Bruce Wayne Jr., I'm gonna count the Super-Sons computer shenanigans one as its own character, because the other one, whose mother was Kathy Kane, was very clearly an imaginary story. The computer one with no mother is a simulation that becomes alive and almost destroys the world before sacrificing himself (and also Clark Jr., who is also there, does the same of course). Some of the stories haven't aged really that well, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't find enjoyment in some of them.... When the time period allows it (you have to read this comics with a detached mindset, or else the racism and rampant misogyny can get... Way too much). The first story is still my favourite, and so is the forsaken son one. Wouldn't mind seeing more of him and Clark, baby, in the future. Also look at his cute bathrobe.

Helena Wayne (biological)

First appearance: All-Star Comics (1940) #69

Date of first appearance: December, 1977

Just like Bruce Jr., there's a bunch of Helenas who have interacted with the main universe. The first iteration ever created was named Helena Wayne, daughter of Bruce Wayne and a reformed Selina Kyle. A lawyer by day and a vigilante by night, she's a full-time resident of Earth Two, where the Golden Age stories took place. Thanks to her, we have the vigilante mantle Huntress. Sadly, the multiverse as we knew it would eventually be destroyed during the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths, and within it so was Earth Two. And so, this lovely Helena would meet an untimely demise later on, even though she was able to escape to Earth One and not be destroyed with her original universe. Also, she used to call younger Earth One Bruce "uncle Bruce", and I think that was super cute of her.

Jason Todd (adopted)

First appearance: Batman (1940) #357

Date of first appearance: March, 1983

Once again, just like Dick, depending on the source he would be adopted or a legal ward or whatever. Who knows! (In the Dick meta I mentioned before there's a great reblog that expands on Jason's place in Bruce's life, here's a link to that) But I'm weak so I'm gonna go with adopted (I love the child custody battle with Natalia Knight, one of my favorite Batman arcs just because of how bonkers of a premise it is). I love his pre-crisis Robin run, and combined with his post-crisis origin it makes for a very solid character. I love him as the cautionary tale and then, once back from the dead, as the self-made tragedy. He's fascinating I'm gonna eat him alive.

Damian Wayne (biological)

First appearance: Batman: Son of the Demon

Date of first appearance: December, 1987

Another child that doesn't need an introduction! He has a very convoluted origin story with some misses down the way, but he has gone through major character development and I really do enjoy him a lot. He's fun, he's great, he deserved his own spotlight. Tomasi's run is my favourite no doubt.

Talking about spotlight, this guy has.... a lot of clones. Be it "defective" ones living on a paradise island or fetuses in glass bubbles, this kid has clones for days. Well, more accurately, test tube siblings with similar genetic makeup. Hell, he's a test tube baby himself I believe. Depending on how you want to count the NUMEROUS clones/siblings of Damian made with Bruce's and Talia's DNA, the number of Bruce's children can get exponentially huge fast. But just in case, I'll refrain from counting all of them and just focus on the one that most people remember.

Hank and Jenny Watkins (fostered)

First appearance: Batman (1940) #423

Date of first appearance: September, 1988

One of my favorite Batman stories! The way his humanity is shown, his soft spot for children, aughhh it's so beautiful. I wished this children would have stayed a little longer lol. Also hilarious story in hindsight when taken into consideration what issue comes next.

Tim Drake (adopted)

First appearance: Batman (1940) #436

Date of first appearance: August, 1989

Another child that I believe requires no presentation. Temporarily as a foster while his bio dad was in a coma, tried desperately at first to avoid adoption after a traumatic experience turned him into an orphan, even getting to the point of falsifying an uncle. But he ended up giving in and becoming a Wayne with pride. He's a fascinating character, and his relationship with Bruce is way more interesting than fandom seems to make it out to be, but that's for another post lmao.

Cassandra Cain (adopted)

First appearance: Batman #567

Date of first appearance: July, 1999

Cass my favourite Batgirl my favourite character, she's so amazing she's a tragedy she's hilarious she's so like Bruce she's so different from him, she's a weapon she's a hero, her father loved her he never showed her real love she doesn't know what's wrong with shooting at your own daughter, Cassandra Cain-Wayne i love you so fucking much, I would kill for you and you would hate me for it. No flanderization or bad fanon take will eever take away the experience of reading Batgirl 2000 for the first time and seeing shrimp emotions. I literally cannot recommend it enough.

Heretic (biological)

First appearance: Batman and Robin (2009) #12

Date of first appearance: July, 2010

The most well known clone of Damian Wayne, an adult body with a baby face version of Damian with mommy issues to boot. Oh, and also brutally murdered Damian. How could I forget. Not to worry though, death never sticks in comics.

Helena Wayne (biological)

First appearance: Huntress (2011) #1

Date of first appearance: December, 2011

Enter Earth 2! Not to be confused with Earth Two, of course.

Following the events of Flashpoint, for the first time since Crisis on Infinite Earths, a new multiverse was created, resulting in the creation of a new new Earth 2. She would be, once again, Batman's and Catwoman's daughter, and was even Robin for a little in her childhood. Instead of seeing her mom die, this Helena sees her father die instead. She and her best friend Supergirl (more well known later on as Power Girl) entered a Boom Tube (don't question it) in pursuit of someone they thought was Darkseid, and ended up in another universe. You won't guess which one.

Stranded on Prime Earth, Helena and Kara adapted to the new world remarkably well. Helena, leveraging her knowledge of Wayne Enterprises, siphoned funds to help them settle. Initially, they sought a way back to their Earth, but with no success, Helena pivoted to crime-fighting. She stayed covert, frequently changing identities, notably as (you won't fucking guess) Helena Bertinelli. And you'd ask, what happened to our Helena Bertinelli, while all this shit was happening. Well... She was presumed dead for unknown reasons. And got her identity stolen in the meantime. Fun!

Funded by discreet withdrawals from Wayne Enterprises, she became the vigilante, Huntress, going after global crime syndicates for five fucking years. Without our Batman noticing a thing. She would eventually meet him, of course, and even her brother Damian (before meeting her own father she met her brother, which is fascinating to me) and also she ended up returning to her original Earth, even becoming Batman there with her own Robin (Dick's son, John Grayson).

Duke Thomas (fostered)

First appearance: Batman (2011) #21

Date of first appearance: August, 2013

Following a plot of the Joker to recreate Bruce's most traumatic night, Elaine and Doug (Duke's parents) were permanently jokerized and moved into a facility on the Wayne estate. Head of the We are Robin movement (run I super recommend) and later known as the meta hero Signal, whose powerset is as confusing to the reader as it is to the writer apparently, because no one seems to agree on what his powers are. What is well-known though is the fact that Duke moved into Wayne Manor to begin his Batman training and was temporarily fostered. Depending on the author the relationship with Bruce changes dramatically: from mentor-student, to colleagues, to father-son like, to friends, etc. (where have I seen this phenomenon before I wonder....) Even so, before his mother got cured he did live at the manor and was officially fostered, so I'm counting him. I love him dearly btw, he's such a fun chatacter, with a strong personality that I wished writers played more with. His run with the outsiders was very fun, if a bit cliche, and his "Robin" run is amazing.

Thomas Wayne The Second (biological)

First appearance: Detective Comics (2011) #27

Date of first appearance: March, 2014

On the anniversary of his parents' deaths, Bruce is visited by the Phantom Stranger, who teleports him into an alternative reality where, instead of being killed, Thomas Wayne gets shot in the arm and punches the wannabe mugger in the face. He is shown later on to have lost the arm, but he's alive and happy, and so is Bruce. With living parents, a beautiful wife (Natalya Trusevich, that ukranian main continuity gf that didn't last long), and their son, Thomas Wayne, they're the perfect family. Of course, without Batman, Gotham is overrun by crime, Gordon is quadriplegic, Ra's al Ghul is in the process of conquering Europe, and Dick has been put on death row after murdering Tony Zucco. So, all in all, not the best of times to not be Batman.

Bruce says goodbye to his nine year old son (pictured above) and begs the Phantom Stranger to send him back to his own reality, with the knowledge that sometimes sacrifice is a necessity. A grim reminder, if I've ever seen any. Also kind of a dick move for Phantom Stranger.

Jarro (adopted)

First appearance: Justice League (2018) #10

Date of first appearance: December, 2018

Jarro my beloved Starro cloned in a Jar. I love him so much, he has such a cute and vibrant personality. I unironically miss him and want to see more of him. He calls Bruce dad that's his BABY!!!!! Bruce told him he was proud of him!!!! He's so damn cute and small I'm gonna eat him alive

Kull (biological)

First appearance: Dark Nights: Death Metal Trinity Crisis (2020) #1

Date of first appearance: November, 2020

Kull was the daughter of a Batman and Wonder Woman from a world of the Dark Multiverse. Her mother trained her in the art of Amazonian combat and she was also trained by her father. A bunch of Earth 0's heroes, including our Wonder Woman and Batman, tried to sneak into Castle Bat (who was a giant Bruce Wayne who had been fused with Gotham City or something??? I don't really remember but whatever). Kull and some others were ready for them, and as Wonder Woman struggled against her, Jarro separated the bad guys from the heroes by controlling the mind of Castle Bat (don't question it). I don't think she survived, but it's always fun to see wonderbat children in the wild.

Saif, Taj and Janan Al Ghul (biological)

First appearance: Batman/Superman (2019) Authority Special #1

Date of first appearance: January, 2022

Children of Bruce and Talia al Ghul from a reality in the Dark Multiverse where the Empire of Shadows has taken over the world and some alternative universes. And Bruce is evil, because of course he is. They were able to open a portal that allowed Janan and Saif to go to our main earth so they could conquer it, and that's when they met our Batman and Midnighter. Meanwhile, our Superman and the authority went to the other evil dimension to fight the third brother, Taj, which is great for me because it means all three siblings have interacted one way or another with our Earth 0, so I can count them all for this list lmao.

Janan would later cross over to our main earth once again and become a Superman villain, so you may know her from that. She underwent an extreme makeover though (pictured below).

Helena Wayne (biological)

First appearance: The New Golden Age (2023) #1

Date of first appearance: January, 2023

Infinite Frontier confirmed that all of Pre-Crisis Earth 2 history is now part of Earth 0's canon after the events of Dark Knights: Death Metal. It's unclear whether this applies to Helena's story or not, but everything we've seen of her indicates this is a brand-new version of Helena, so I'm counting her as a separate character.

Helena Wayne is once again the daughter of Batman and Catwoman from an averted future where her father once again was murdered, this time as a result of the schemes of the time-traveling Per Degaton (don't question it). She would never become Robin, because the moment she discovered her father was Batman (after stabbing him in the kitchen) Selina forced Bruce to retire. Also, unrelated but in this averted future the JOKER'S SON WAS A ROBIN?? Nothing is explained about that, but it's such an interesting idea and I'm so mad we're never gonna expand on that (pictured below the only moment this is ever mentioned, in this Helena's debut issue. I'm so mad).

Moving on, she then joined the Infinity Inc. and the JSA as the heroine known as the Huntress. As a temporal remnant of a future that is no longer possible, she exists as a living paradox. Or something along those lines.

This future would have been main continuity if she hadn't gone off and told Bruce about his untimely demise. Right now, she's lost in time in our main dimension. She also hasn't met Bertinelli, nor given a reason for her chosen vigilante name, nor done anything worth mentioning aside from that time she hugged our main continuity Bruce. Our Buce has decided to keep Helena at arm's length, setting her up in a penthouse he owned up in New York City, rather than allowing her to stay in Gotham, and also giving her the cover story of being his cousin rather than daughter. He did offer to revise the arrangement and have her come to Gotham, but after all the ordeal had been done. She rejected the offer, knowing that, if the current iteration of the timeline was anything like her own, Bruce and Selina were about to have something of a a major disagreement. But who cares abour Gotham War any of this am I right.

All of this happened in November of 2023. And yet, nothing of worth has been done with her. I guess we'll still have to wait and see what will become of her.

Terry McGinnis (biological)

First appearance (in main universe comics): The New 52: Futures End FCBD Special Edition (2024) #1

Date of first appearance (in main universe comics): June, 2014

I owe my life to @momachan for helping me find the comic where this two meet in main continuity, making it possible for me to count him. I don't think he needs any presentation. Like Damian, he's a test-tube baby but. Even more complicated because Timm. I adore him I love him he's the only one who can inherit the Batman mantle. Love him to bits

Bruce (Zur-En-Arrh's clone)

First appearance: Batman (2016) #147

Date of first appearance: July, 2024

Okay this one is complicated. Buckle up, this is a wild ride.

Bruce's stereotypical evil alter created this clone to be the first in a long line of expendable robins. He gave him all of the original Bruce's memories but partitioned away any that could cause him to develop a conscience or question him and also deliberately engineered him to rapidly age and have a short lifespan. Also he programmed him to see Zur as his father. And because Zur is basically Bruce with another personality... yeah. I'm counting him tentatively.

He died of old age almost immediately because this is DC and Gd forbid we do interesting things with new characters.

Ok, so in total we could say that our Bruce from main continuity has a whopping of 21 children who have interacted with him, between adoptive and biological. If we count the temporarily fostered ones, the number rises to 24 children that Bruce has had custody over throughout the years. AND if we wanna count only the children that come from our main universe, we have 15 children he has had custody over, 13 of them officially adopted or biological. Damn, indeed.

Okay so if I've missed anyone please let me know!!!! I love learning stuff!!!!

BONUS

Danny Benson (Statue Father?)

First appearance: Batman (1940) #107

Date of first appearance: April, 1957

Ok, so, I know I just said I'd only talk about official children.... but man, some of this kids deserve a bonus mention, not because I'm gonna count them for the list or anything, but because how crazy fascinating their stories are.

Okay so in this case, in true Golden Age fashion, this premise is bonkers: basically this kid is lonely cause his dad died and his mom works all day so... he has decided to adopt himself a father. A statue father. A statue father of Batman (this is literally the premise, btw. The story is called The Boy who Adopted Batman and like, what a title). Batman gifts the boy a bike and everything, and the kid helps solve a case with it. Just... what a fascinating idea, man.

Allie (Maybe? Let me explain)

First appearance: Batman (1940) #577

Date of first appearance: May, 2000

Here's the thing: this little girl only appears in one story. She's a blind girl who ran away from an abusive foster home at the age of seven and also has a psychic link to crocodiles. She lives in the Batcave's rain gutters. Bruce never takes her to CPS, but makes sure her abusive foster parents are put in jail, and also gives her and her crocodile "siblings" free reign to be in the Batcave. She protects the cave from intruders trying to get in through the sewers in the only issue she appears in, and Bruce is very clearly adamant on wanting her living a normal life outside of dirty sewers. But also, we never see her again. At all. I'm putting her as a maybe because Bruce doesn't deny the "adopt all of us" request, and also doesn't try to make her go away from the sewers. But also, I wanna see more of her cause. What the fuck? What a fucking interesting chatacter? Lmao?

Once again, I'm not gonna count her as an official child or anything, but I still wanted to mention her because I love her and I miss her and she deserves a good home and more people need to know about her. DC let me write the comics I'm begging you

BONUS SUPER SERIOUS TOTALLY LEGIT MENTION: The whole JLI

First appearance: Justice League (1987) #1

Date of first appearance: May, 1987

The JLI lineup with Batman is one of my favorites, even if it's short-lived, and when I tell you all of this grown ass people are children. Bruce needs to come back to help J'onn coparent because that martian's SUFFERING. The way he literally quits because he can't "babysit them anymore" is so funny to me. This beautiful post made by @apopcornkernel shows a compilation of out of context images dnsjcknjd enjoy

superman has like 13 kids compared to Bruce's like 6

#SORRY HIT POST WAY TOO EARLY MY BAD #augh Tumblr app my beloathed #dc meta #dc #this post took me SO LONG #AND I'M FINISHING IT TODAY BECAUSE I HAVE A TEST TOMORROW AND IM PROCRASTINATING #SOMEONE FORCE ME TO WORK

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dinner-djarin · 4 years ago

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dar'manda (Mando x f!reader)

Chapter 1: The Only Way Out is Through

Summary: Things have been quiet since The Mandalorian's disappearing act on Nevarro. However, things change quickly at his sudden return, and the changes are sure to impact your own life. That is, if you don't screw it up for yourself.

Warnings: Canon typical violence, yearning/awkward flirting/reader doesn’t know how to act around Mando, Cara Dune lol (I feel like she needs a warning)

Word Count: 3.8k

Prologue - Next

In the weeks that the Mandalorian had been gone, things on Nevarro had taken a turn for the worse. Ever since making his grand escape, remaining Imperial officers seemed to get word of a Mandalorian bounty hunter gone rogue. He took some sort of “package” right out of their hands, and they really didn’t like that. So, they sent out every bounty hunter idiotic enough to go after a Mandalorian. And to double their efforts, they effectively made Nevarro their new base.

Well, that probably wasn’t exactly accurate, but either way it seemed like every stormtrooper left was sent to keep watch in case their prize ever returned.

You could not imagine that anyone would be stupid enough to come back to the place where they so flagrantly disregarded every rule of the Guild, and yet – there he was. Walking into town at the side of his...former boss. As he approached however, you noticed he probably wasn't there by choice. His hands were bound in front of him, and a muscley looking woman, with a very large gun, was not too far behind them. Well then, you think to yourself, I guess no one crosses the Guild, not even Mando.

Just as they enter town you being to consider the precarity of your own situation. With the town being occupied by stormtroopers, times are tough. Curfews have been put in place and wandering through town is highly discouraged. The marketplace has turned into a ghost town as people have become less and less inclined to spend time outside of their homes. They might come by for the basics, but business is definitely not what it used to be. So, you often find yourself with “free time” – moments you should realistically be working – where you instead spy on the invaders who have ruined your already unpleasant life. Basically, the exact thing you were doing in that very moment.

It's a matter of fate that he showed up just as you made your way to the town entrance. Even more so when you overhear a conversation between the Guild leader and the Mandalorians captor.

“Things got really heated once Mando crashed the safehouse” you hear the Guild leader say.

“Slip him his blaster” whispers the woman. These words bring you utter confusion. Did she mean slip Mando his blaster?

“Not yet,” he says under his breath.

And suddenly you are more confused than before. Why would she say something like that? How did any of this make sense? You’re thankful you were not seen as they pass by you, but you think you perceive a subtle change in the reflection from the shiny metal helmet that your eyes have been locked on to. His gaze fell to the metal orb that was trailing the trio through the city centre. When he looked back up however, he did not return his gaze to the direction he had been looking previously. Now you think, and you know it’s completely self-centred of you to do so, but you feel like he is staring straight at you. You don't think he would be able to see into the shadows that were providing your cover, but something about the angle of his visor as he walks by sends a shiver down your spine.

The three of them and the metal orb enter the cantina and you adjust your position in attempt for a better view. Only a few minutes later does a blaster shot eviscerate the long transparisteel window on the front wall of the building, allowing you a glimpse of the chaos inside. A plethora of various blaster bolts ricochet through the building, evidence that the situation was drastically more complicated than you initially observed. However, the next events prove that things could still get worse for the group inside.

From the safety of your hiding spot, you see the scene unfold. The entire courtyard of the village is filled with stormtroopers in seconds, and then you hear it. The unmistakable screech that has haunted you since you were young. A sound that would forever be branded into your head, as it signaled the end of your childhood. The last time you heard that sound was the last time you saw your father and brother.

The Tie Fighter lands right in front of the cantina, completely blocking your view of any further events. You take that as your sign to get the hell out of there, knowing the level of destruction that is sure to follow. Even with the high amount of adrenaline pumping through your veins, you manage to keep a level head and find your way back to the marketplace, where most other citizens are gathered.

You quickly alert everyone to the impending danger nearby, and although some are slow to react, they begin to gather their belongings and search for safety.

Luckily, you recall a nearby alley that would lead to the part of town furthest away from the calamity, and you tell them all to make their way there immediately. Once you were sure that no one was left behind you head towards the alley only for an explosion to go off somewhere near the cantina. And although the source of the blast is far enough away not to injure you, the shockwave ripples through a one of the buildings, whose integrity was already questionable, causing it to crumble and block your previously secure exit route. With your mind in panic mode, you glance over to a spot which had caught your eye a hundred times before, a spot you kept noticing the Mandalorian disappear to.

You quickly run for cover hoping no other buildings decide to fall apart in the meantime, and you find the passageway was actually concealing a staircase which led to the sewers. Unsure of where to go next, your adrenaline high mind keeps you moving fast, taking random turns, having no understanding of where the tunnels lead to and where the safest exit may be. It wasn't until you rapidly took a corner and ran straight into an armoured chest plate that your mind stopped running wild.

A few second too late you realize it wasn’t the armour you would have hoped to see. The Mandalorians captor stands in front of you, with a package wrapped in her arms. Beside her is the Guild leader. You stand there dumbstruck and panting, unsure of what move to make.

The Guild leader approaches you, but you recoil, stepping back.

“What did you do to him?” is all you can think to growl at them.

“He’s just sleeping.” She attempts to assure you, “Wait how do you know the kid?” the woman asks, evidently confused by your accusation.

“What kid? No, the Mandalorian. You captured him. I saw you two walk in to town with him handcuffed”

“Young lady, I think you are confused. Please allow me to explain our situation.” the leader states, taking another step closer to you. This time you stand your ground, making clear you want answers.

He explains his name is Greef Karga, and the woman is Cara Dune, an ex-rebel shock trooper. And despite walking into town with Mando handcuffed by their sides, they were actually all in on the plan together. However, it seems that once they got inside things went south, a habit Mando seemed to be making for himself. It turns out that this elaborate scheme was set in place in an attempt to save a tiny green baby from the Empire, which now rests in the woman’s – Cara’s – arms.

You have no idea what to think. There's no way any of this can be true. Although, you then recall the conversation you overheard as they entered the town, and everything else seems to line up with your own experiences of the past hour.

You also realize that the Child must be the reason Mando went rogue in the first place. And after sneaking a peak at his resting wrinkly face, you completely understand why. After only one look, you’d probably jump in front of speeder for that little guy.

But before you can make up your mind on whether to believe Karga or not, Mando rounds the corner being supported by a very tall, very thin droid that you recognize to be an IG unit. As they approach, Cara hands off the baby to the droid and attempts to support Mando, and for some maker-forsaken reason you decide to help too. As you slide your arm under Mando’s shoulder and rest your hand on his back you feel him tense – you know you’ve made a mistake. But it’s too late to turn back now, so you carry some of his weight and continue on down the ominous path. The only way out, is through.

Your mind is running at 100 parsecs per hour. This is the closest, physically, you’ve been to anyone in years, and if that weren't enough you seem to be in the middle of both your wildest dream and worst nightmare. You can’t remember the last time you were tucked under someone's arm, and pressed up against them so tightly, if you ever were. And in your panicked state you start to realize you’ve basically been holding your breath this whole time, making your heart beat erratically and your head throb. But just as you think you might pass out from your stupidity, the Mandalorians voice shakes you back to reality.

“Stop.” His word sends you into a new panic. Were you thinking out loud? Could he read your heartbeat through his helmet? Did he know what a complete mess you were at his touch? “I can stand,” he says, finishing his thought.

Oh thank the gods.

He lets go of you and switches something in his helmet to look for tracks, and you allow yourself to finally take a deep breath.

“We’re close,” he states. After a moment of stabilizing your heartbeat and focussing on your breath900, you quicken your pace, subtly placing yourself just behind Mando’s left shoulder as he leads the group through the tunnel. You’re close enough to catch when he mumbles, “I know you.”

“And I know you,” you respond playfully, disregarding the severity of the situation you’ve found yourself in. You’re not quite sure how Mando’s mere presence can affect you so brutally, to the point of forgetting how to act like a normal human being.

“From the market.” He doesn’t ask.

“That’s me, good to see you in one piece. I was worried when I heard about the stunt you pulled. Crossing the guild...not sure I've ever heard of anyone getting away with that.” Oh man why are you talking so much. You just need to shut up now. Literally no one wants to hear-

“Worried?” a hint of genuine curiosity hidden in his question. Well of course he found the one word in your entire sentence that incriminates you. There’s no way he doesn’t know about your crush now.

“Umm well of course, I think everyone was. It’s all anyone could talk about for weeks. Nothing that exciting has happened around here in a while,” you quickly blurt out. He turns his head for a moment and examines you.

He is silent, evidently noticing the way you awkwardly avoided his question. You stare at him trying with every muscle in your face to remain composed. You know he sees right through you – must be that bullshit reader – but you think if you maintain eye contact long enough, he’ll just move on from your stupidity. And he does.

“How did you get here?” He returns to his task of following footprints. The question and abrupt change in topic jars you, although if you had to guess, you think he must have picked up on your complete awkwardness, possibly confusing it for suspicious behaviour. You hope he doesn’t think you untrustworthy because if it.

“There were explosions, and I tried to help everyone out, but the path became blocked and the only way out was some curtain hiding a staircase.” Your explanation, you realize, now sounds completely ridiculous, especially in the flustered manner you are depicting it in. Even so, you continue, “I went to hide but it turns out it led straight down here. So, I tried to find an exit, but I bumped into them instead,” you finish, glancing behind you towards Cara and Karga.

“If you came in from the market you should have passed the covert,” Mando stated almost accusingly, increasing your worry over whether he thought trusted your story.

“I’m not sure I didn’t really see any-” but his question is immediately answered by the pile of discarded Mandalorian armour in front of you.

The Mandalorian stops, and you can see just how suddenly his body language changed. Even injured, he looked deadly as he led you through the tunnels, but at the sight of the remnants of his clan, he is weak. You can feel the sadness, remorse, and pain emanating from him all at once. And as you stand beside him you barely realize you’ve gently reached for his hand, gripping it tight and squeezing it to convey your condolence for his immense loss.

But after a moment, he moved forward and away from your grasp to kneel at the sight of his fallen brethren. Cara suggests the group leave, but he won’t. He will not leave the armour in its discarded state.

Suddenly, the mood shifts, and you see the Mandalorian transform before your eyes. He storms towards Karga, accusing that he and the Guild members must be responsible. Karga denies, but you think Mando might be on the verge of strangling him when suddenly another modulated voice fills the tunnel.

A golden warrior stands before you. Her presence shocks you. It reveals some element rooted deep, a feeling you can only describe as warm… or familiar? She explains, as she gathers the scattered armour, how revealing the covert brought the presence of Imperials. When Mando offers her to join him, she rejects, maintaining that her place is to gather the remains of her people.

You all follow her into a small room with a forge in the centre of it. “Show me the one who’s safety deemed such destruction,” she demands.

“This is the one,” Mando responds. Gesturing to the baby that was wrapped tight to the IG unit’s chest.

“This is the one that you hunted, then saved?” she asks.

“Yes. The one that saved me as well.” And with that statement you find both an answer, and more questions. That baby saved him? How the-

“From the mudhorn?” she asks.

“Yes.” he responds, making you even more confused than ever. The baby saved him from a mudhorn?

“It looks helpless” she states.

“It’s injured, but it is not helpless. Its species can move objects with its mind.” As if this conversation could get any weirder. Move objects...with its MIND.

The Armourer begins to detail battles between Mandalore the Great and some species of wizards; the species this child belongs to. She also tells Mando that he is now responsible for the baby – his foundling. And finally, she tasks him with finding these sorcerers and returning the baby to them. When Mando questions the outrageous turn of events the woman has only four words in response:

“This is the Way.” Suddenly that warm comfort you felt before resurges, but only for a moment, as Cara reminds the group of the urgency of their situation. You need to find a way out before Imperials catch your tracks. The Armourer then suggests the group find a river of lava that will lead all of you out of the tunnels. Right…

River of lava, or Imperial Troopers. What the heck did you get yourself into? Either way it seems you don’t have much of a choice. After receiving a mudhorn signet on his pauldron, the Armourer pronounces that he and the child are bound as father and son; a clan of two. Cute little family they’ll make. When the droid gets ready to defend the group from incoming Imps, it hands Cara the child who looks very uncomfortable with it, so she passes him to you.

Stunned and confused you look to the Mandalorian who shows no sign of discomfort with you holding his now adopted son, not that you’d probably be able to tell. Either way, it seems you’ve acquired a new responsibility.

Blaster fire rings just outside the room as the woman hands Mando some flying contraption, and your group decides you might need to get a move on.

You approach the lava river, only to notice the boat has melted to the docking point. Karga and Mando struggle to free it, but Cara just gives you a smug look. “You boys mind getting out of the way?” she warns only to blast the points where the boat was attached, successfully freeing it from its molten chains.

The boat quickly begins to drift from the dock, but just as you start to lift your foot over the edge to make your way inside, you feel a strong hand against your lower back, guiding you the rest of the way. Once you steady yourself on the boat you glance up at the visor which is pinned straight ahead, unwavering and unwilling to meet your gaze. His seemingly disinterested reaction makes you anxious to know the true intention of his touch. He must just realize your safety is attached to the bundle you are currently cradling against your chest. Obviously, he is only looking out for the child, you just happen to be the person responsible for his transportation. If Cara were the one holding his son, he’d probably be helping her instead. Right? Simple as that.

Even so, you can't help but notice the way his hand flexes after it returns to his side.

For just a moment your mind slips, and you let yourself think that there might be something there. That the short conversations and fleeting looks shared all those weeks ago might have held more weight than you believed. That when you were admiring his head-to-toe armor upgrade, he may have been examining you back. That he might have actually liked the fact that you worried about him in his absence. You allow yourself to think that underneath that metal, stands a man who might be gentle, and kind. A man who helps you into a boat when he himself is injured. One who is willing to leave behind everything he knows in order to ensure the security of a child.

You snap back to reality, however, when Karga notices the light at the end of the tunnel. But just when you think that your journey is almost over, Mando informs you otherwise. A battalion of stormtroopers line the edges of your only exit route. No one in your group can come up with any satisfactory solution, until the IG unit comes forward.

“They will not be satisfied with anything less than the child. This is unacceptable. I will eliminate them, and you will escape.”

Mando is quick to point out that the droid would never make it past the troopers, but the droid insists. Apparently, his manufacturer's protocol dictates that he cannot be captured and must self-destruct. He asks that Mando look over the Child once he is gone, and you swear you can hear a hint of sadness through his filtered voice. Your hypothesis is confirmed by the IG unit, and your heart warms slightly for the metal man. The droid reaches over to say goodbye to the child for the last time, patting him gently on the head, then steps into the lava river and heads down towards the mouth of the cave. You all stare silently as you watch him approach the troopers when suddenly-

Fire consumes your vision, and it overwhelms your senses. Not having actually seen an explosion in your life you seem to be the only one on the boat who is at all fazed by the sudden wall of heat and deafening boom created by IG-11’s sacrifice. In the process you cover the child with your body and wince back into the hard wall behind you. Cradling the child and shielding yourself, you almost don’t notice when the wall grabs your hip and steadies you in front of it.

Suddenly, you’re flushed with embarrassment, realizing all at once the wall was the Mandalorian and both of his hands were still gripped onto you, holding you tight against his chest plate.

But your shock only lasts a moment before the unsettling screech of a Tie Fighter pierced your ears for the second time that day. And before you could process, the Mandalorian was using his body as a shield, protecting you and the child from the blasts, and simultaneously shooting at the new threat barreling towards your group.

Will this day ever end, is the only thought in your head before Mando is flying through the air using the jetpack given to him by the Armourer only minutes ago. However, you distinctly remember her saying he would need time to get used to it before it would ‘listen to his commands’. Nevertheless, he jerks through the sky in a desperate attempt to bring the Tie down.

You watch as one of the wings are ripped off by an explosion and the tie crashes to the ground. The Mandalorian lets go just in time and falls quickly towards the ground, igniting his jetpack at the last second to make a rough landing right in front of you.

The child squirms in your arms at the first sign of peace so you set him down gently. He awkwardly runs over to Mando and hugs his leg, creating possibly the cutest sight you had ever seen. Again, your heart can’t help but melt for the new little family, and you wonder how these two are going to get by. A child with magical powers, and a father who’s built to kill. Not a pairing you would bet on.

Cara and Karga then try to convince Mando to stay on Nevarro and help the both of them sort out the aftermath of today's events. But the Mandalorian insists on sticking to his mission. The child is now his first priority and finding a group of near-extinct ancient sorcerers does not sound like easy work.

“We have a long road ahead of us, but the journey is necessary. I must return him to his kind, no matter how long it takes.” You hear him reason with the pair, refusing their kind offers to remain on the planet with them.

If you know one thing about the Mandalorian it's that everything he does is completely intentional. No one could force Mando into something he doesn’t want to do. If he is sure of this path, he will follow it through till the end.

And from your short interactions, you know he spends time forming his thoughts in order to get his point across. Each sentence is carefully crafted so that they are clear and concise. You know he means every word.

Maybe that's why the next words out of his mouth come as a complete shock to you.

“Would you like to join us?” he asks directly to you.

What the kriffing heck did he just say? You're so taken aback that you embarrassingly bark out your response, your brain evidently getting no time to process the question, so instead if vomits out the first word it can think of: “No”.

You follow it with polite ‘thank you’s’, hoping to erase the awkward tension in the air, and the Mandalorian jetpacks off with the child leaving you to dwell on your utter stupidity.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 2

Notes: Honestly, I hate this chapter too wow. I really spent so long trying to edit this into something I could bare to publish, but I still really hate it. I did not want to write a chapter like this, but I also needed a way to put the reader into the story and the only way I could think to do that was by using an existing episode. So here we are. But I SWEAR, after this it gets good. Like not only does the story get good, but so does my own writing (relatively) so if you just bare through this, I think you’ll enjoy the rest.

Taglist: @peppywitch @tobealostwanderer @thecraftyartist

If you wanna be included in the tag list let me know! The next parts are gonna get great. I hope

#mando x reader #mando x you #the mandalorian #din djarin #din djarin x reader #mandalorian fanfic #mando fanfiction #pedro pascal #mando #din #the mandalorian season 1 #the mandalorian x reader #the mandalorian x you #din djarin x you

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katieskarlette · 4 years ago

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Shadows Rising: A Reaction Post

Short, mostly non-spoilery version: I liked it overall. I give it a solid B, maybe a B+.

I was disappointed in how little Nathanos and/or Sylvanas content there was, but I think proclamations of the ship’s doom are premature.

I’m intrigued by the first rumblings of new character development for certain characters, especially Anduin, Alleria and Turalyon.

I was rooting for Talanji so much. She’s great. Zekhan is a cinnamon roll too pure for this world. Sira was kind of boring. Fairshaw is so darn heartwarming I can’t stand it. I like Bwonsamdi more now. The lack of Wrathion is unsurprising but unfortunate. Nothing new with Tyrande but she’s already poised for major development in Shadowlands.

Much longer, spoilery version below.

This ended up being more of a ramble than an essay, but there’s a lot of disjointed thoughts pinging around in my head, so let’s dive in.

Overall, I enjoyed Shadows Rising. Was it the best book ever? No. Not even the best Warcraft book ever. But it was an enjoyable read. It’s always a treat to get into the heads of characters we mostly know in passing from in-game events. There are internal, emotional beats that cannot easily be explored in the game, and the books are a way to build the world and the characters in a more introspective, slow-paced manner. I like that. (That’s not to say there are no action scenes, because there definitely are.)

Talanji, Jaina, Zekhan, and Anduin were all written well and sympathetically. Maiev’s only in a couple scenes, but she felt off to me. Nathanos was very in-character, in all his snide, sour glory. Flynn and Mathias are great together.

The pacing was fine. The descriptions were good, and it all felt grounded in the game world (i.e. landmarks, ambiance, the ridiculous amount of stairs in Daz’alor...) Each of the Horde leaders got a moment or two in the spotlight. Despite a fair amount of chapters about Anduin, Alleria, Turalyon, and Jaina, it still felt like a Horde-centric book to me. Not that that’s a bad thing.

Prologue: Gayness detected on page 8! And it’s even something I kind of inadvertently predicted. In my reaction post for Before the Storm I wrote, “ In this book alone, it would have been so easy to have that blacksmith bringing a helmet as a gift to his long-lost Forsaken husband instead of friend.” That’s basically what we have here. I don’t know if they were married, and neither were blacksmiths, but the Westfall moonshiner describes one of the Forsaken slain in Arathi as “the best man I ever knew and loved.” Tada! See how easy it was? Add Jago x Wilmer to the growing list of LGBT rep in Azeroth. (Even if they’re super minor characters in the long run, it’s still great to see.)

There might be some kind of parallel to be drawn between Alleria failing Anduin (by not finding/killing Sylvanas) and Nathanos failing Sylvanas (by not killing Bwonsamdi) but my brain is too overloaded from binge-reading to articulate it right now. Both failed their king or queen, but both were also given nearly impossible tasks.

Alleria and Turalyon are definitely being set up as antagonists. We are clearly supposed to side with Jaina on this, and be uncomfortable (if not outright horrified) at their torture methods. It’s especially disturbing how they use their respective void and light powers to accomplish their goals. I mean, on one hand it’s great that both sides of the great cosmic divide can work together, and their marriage seems stronger than it was for awhile there, but yeesh...can you not torture people? I know, ends justify the means, slippery slope, greater evil, blah blah, but still...that’s not okay. It’s yet another sign that the Light is not necessarily good (or the void necessarily evil).

I welcome conflict within the Alliance, though. That’s been the Horde’s thing for long enough. Time to see how the blue side deals with its rifts.

In chapter 2 Nathanos is annoyed when a dreadtick flies by his head. What, was it too similar to a bird for his liking? Heh.

All that time in Nazmir, and we didn’t get to see a single crawg! Harumph.

It took three chapters and 39 pages to finally get something from Nathanos' perspective, and he was much more scarce going forward than I had hoped. The bits we did get from his perspective were great and in-character, but I wanted to get into his head more. Most of his scenes were from the POV of Sira or the troll villain instead, and while Apari was a good character I find Sira to be pretty one-dimensional.

I kind of got paternal vibes from Nathanos toward Sira, though. He was like, “I’ve been undead a lot longer than you; I know how to handle the bloodlust and such. Get it out of your system at appropriate times but learn to control yourself. There’s more to (un)life than slaughtering people.” She herself, though, was just “Rawr, I hate everything and want to kill anything that moves.” I mean, I get that she’s been through some traumatic stuff, but I didn’t find myself invested in her at all.

Page 42, as a bunch of trolls are about to be slaughtered: "Hungry birds circled, expectant of a big meal, and Nathanos so hated to disappoint." WHAT? Nathanos wanted to do something nice for BIRDS? I know, the phrasing fits with his dry, sarcastic sense of humor, but considering the running joke about him hating birds, it still made me go, “Huh?”

Chapter 5 (and later on, as it turns out): Zekhan having a soft spot for kids is too precious for this world.

Page 51: Thalyssra's eyes were "sparkling as she gazed across the room at Lor'themar." Awwwwwww. There was a surprising amount of ship fodder in this book overall, with Lor’themar x Thalyssra, Turalyon x Alleria, Fairshaw, and Zehkhan x Talanji all getting a moment or two (or more.)

Chapter 6: Anduin says, "Turalyon, take Alleria Windrunner and investigate these deaths." You know, Alleria...YOUR WIFE? I don't think you need to say her last name there, genius.

While I’m being snarky about the editing, there were at least two times where the word “grieves” was used instead of “greaves.” I spotted a couple other little things that a better editor (or one with more time, maybe it was rushed, I don’t know) would have caught.

Chapter 7: More matter-of-fact LGBT inclusion for minor characters, this time a lesbian troll couple who want to marry. Yes, thank you Blizzard, keep it up.

Chapter 8: If you’re going to make the “Zappy Boy” nickname for Zekhan canon, having Bwonsamdi be the one to wink at the camera and use it was a great decision. I can totally imagine him saying it.

We learn the name of Varok’s wife/Dranosh’s mother: Remda. Although I read elsewhere that the vision Zekhan saw of the Saurfang family in the afterlife was just Bwonsamdi’s B.S., it was still cool.

Chapter 13: Nathanos wearing cologne? Love it. And it’s not even to cover up the rotting smell, because apparently his new body doesn’t stink like some undead; it just doesn’t smell like a living person, either, and some find it unnerving. So he wears cologne. That’s such a delightful little detail, and surprisingly considerate of him.

Sira complaining about bugs: "We'll be eaten alive." Uh no, you'd have to BE ALIVE for that to happen. Tsk.

Nathanos being called "the pale rider" makes me think of old cowboy movies. Like, “You greenhorns better clear out; the Pale Rider is comin’ to town and there’s gonna be trouble. Go wake up the sheriff.”

Sira says that while on the voyage to Zandalar the dark rangers liked to tell the tale of how Nathanos was promoted to Ranger Lord by Sylvanas. I'm surprised he lets them gossip like that! His quests in vanilla made it seem he wanted to keep those parts of his past on the down-low, at least from the player.

Chapter 14: Thrall's second kid is Rehze. *blink* Reh-zee? Rez? Ruh-zay? I guess she’s not named after anyone. After he named his son Durak (sort of after Durotan) I assumed he’d continue the pattern with kid #2. Maybe she’s named after one of Aggra’s relatives. (Later I read on Wowpedia that the author actually said she dislikes the “fan service” trend of naming children after other characters so she just picked a random orcish name. I don’t think it’s fan service, because lots of real-life people do it, but okay. Fair enough.)

Speaking of orcish names, there’s an orc page helping out the council named Gunk. Like, what you clean out from under your fingernails after gardening. Gunk. LOL

Aww, that’s no fun...Maiev's wearing a cape trimmed in white fur, not daggers. What happened to her impeccable/deadly fashion sense?

Chapter 16: Zekhan starting to clap at Talanji's speech and then stopping and shrinking back when he realized no one else was applauding was so freaking adorable.

Chapter 17: Fairshaw, full steam ahead!!! Their chemistry is everything I hoped it would be. Learning a little about Flynn’s tragic past was both fascinating and heartbreaking. (We learned his mom’s name: Lyra Fairwind. R.I.P.)

Chapter 18: Proodmoore keep has a gallery with floor to ceiling oil paintings of the Proudmoore family, extended family, and beloved friends. It now includes Anduin. I can’t help thinking that, in a different timeline, Arthas’ portrait would have been there.

Will wonders never case? Ji Firepaw actually gets to do stuff!!! GASP!

"Thrall understood that to other humans Wrynn was said to be pleasing-looking, but to the orc, Anduin simply looked like a small, pink boy swallowed by clunky armor." So it’s canon that Anduin is good-looking in-universe. But LMAO at Thrall’s description.

Chapter 22: From Shaw’s POV, "These odds ranked pretty low... Maybe just above the time he had relied completely on a shoddy network of spies embedded in a cheese business." OMG leave Elling Trias alone! He did his best! LOL

Shaw wanting to hang out in a mountain meadow and whittle bird calls (perhaps even with a special someone) was so touchingly normal. That’s the kind of characterization that the books are so much better at than the game.

I actually like Bwonsamdi more after reading this. Not that I disliked him before, but I didn’t have a strong sense of him due to not playing Horde as much in BFA. He’s a well-done gray character: not good, not evil, insightful but a smartass, part of the great cycle, out for himself but also taking his duties seriously (saving troll souls from the Maw.)

I’m not entirely sure that we needed as much from Thrall’s POV as we got. I mean, sure, he’s a familiar character with ties to a lot of others, so it was easy to drop him into situations, and his ties to Jaina made cross-faction communication easier, but he didn’t seem as relevant to the lore of Zandalar and the Shadowlands as some other characters.

Maiev seemed OOC, especially in the Stockades scene. I know one of the themes of the book was “people change,” and I suppose I should be happy that she has a more moderate viewpoint nowadays, dialing back the Lust For Vengeance Meter from eleven to maybe a five or a six, but it didn’t feel like Maiev. Especially because her message of “maybe don’t go overboard with this vengeance thing” was aimed at Tyrande, of all people, someone who Maiev has had quite legitimate reasons to dislike for a very, very long time. I could see her maybe mellowing out a little in front of fellow Wardens, but Tyrande? Eh, it didn’t feel right to me.

No surprises from Tyrande in this. She’s still steely cold, vengeance-obsessed, consumed by anger. Not that I blame her, but it’s not healthy. I know we’ll be exploring her situation more in Shadowlands, so this was more of a reminder/reinforcement of where she is right now. It was kind of funny how Thrall, Baine and Calia tried to talk to her and she just gave them the stink eye and the silent treatment, though.

I’m fine with Anduin exploring his dark side a bit more, as long as they don’t go overboard with it. I like him as an earnest, good-hearted character. It’s only natural to test your limits, though, especially in times of crisis. Power corrupts, and he’s got plenty of it, both politically and magically, so I can understand Jaina and Mathias being a bit uneasy. Add to that the increasing themes about the Light not being as benevolent as we originally assumed, and there’s potential for interesting plot there. In the end I want Anduin to stay firmly on the side of good, empathy, compassion, etc., but a deviation into the shadows along the way isn’t a bad thing for the story.

I imagine every single person who read about Anduin sneaking off to the Lion’s Pride Inn in Goldshire smirked about that place’s reputation on certain RP realms. I was surprised he didn’t find scantily-clad elves and draenei dancing on the furniture. And then it turns out Jaina was there, too. Awkward!

Why, oh why couldn’t we have had a scene with Anduin and Wrathion hanging out (incognito, of course) in a tavern? That was their thing in MoP, and now with Anduin desperately wanting to get away from his duties for awhile and soak up some tavern ambiance it would have been perfect. Let Anduin show off the best taverns Stormwind has to offer. Even though Wrathion was as much a guest at the Tavern in the Mists as Anduin was, he acted like he owned the place and Anduin was his guest, so let them turn the tables and have Anduin play host. There could be jokes about how he better not punch Wrathion again or they’ll get kicked out for starting a bar fight. They could have still seen the young recruits, ran into Jaina, etc. But Anduin really needs a buddy to hang out with right now.

And you can’t tell me after Nya’lotha fell Wrathion just disappeared again and never at least visited Stormwind to tell grandiose tales about how he stabbed an Old God, it was so heroic, and he wasn’t scared at all, and those mean adventurers were so quick to believe he’d been corrupted, but he hadn’t, and did you know Azshara was there? And then N’Zoth almost won but KERPOW LAZERS and oh Anduin you should have seen it, etc. etc. etc.

I should be used to being disappointed about Wrathion’s absence by now, but there are SO MANY MISSED OPPORTUNITIES!

Sigh. Moving on.

Being exposed to spoilers meant I wasn’t fooled by it, but it was still a deft bit of writing to have the dark rangers drink poison when cornered by Horde soldiers, then mention Nathanos having a vial in his coat, which he drinks when defeated--making the unspoiled reader assume he’s killing himself--only for it to be a kind of liquid hearthstone attuned to Sylvanas. Had I not known that he survived the book I would have freaked out there.

So, like, was Bolvar just sitting there on the ground awkwardly eavesdropping while Sylvanas and Nathanos talked/argued? Or did he use that time to sneak away unnoticed? LOL

Which brings us to the epilogue that’s caused so much hand wringing and wailing from my fellow Blightrunner shippers. It wasn’t the openly sentimental interaction between them that I had hoped for, but I honestly didn’t read it as the doom of the ship. A bump, at worst.

[If you’re not interested in the relationship between Nathanos and Sylvanas, or if you’re one of those people who simply hate his character, you can skip the rest of this post.]

First of all, Sylvanas had just broken the Helm of Domination. That was a hugely significant thing to do, both for her personally and in the cosmic scheme of things. Her state of mind at that moment had to have been in a turmoil. So if she was a little distracted and tense, I think that’s quite understandable.

Second, I saw other fans being upset that she threatened/wanted to strike him. That’s not how I read it at all. “Sylvanas could strike him, scream and hollow out his soul, but it would not correct the failing.” She’s not saying she wants to do that, just that she could. The instinct to lash out in violence is ingrained in all the undead; death knights have to do it or they go mad. So for her mind to go there in a moment of high emotion seems natural to me. She doesn’t actually attack him or verbally/physically threaten him. People say things like “I could have killed my brother for eating the last slice of cake” or “I could’ve strangled my co-worker when she spoiled the ending of the movie” and it’s not literal.

Third, she doesn’t say “go away, I never want to see you again.” She says “Go where you will, Nathanos, but do not be idle” and “I expect you will return to me with means to prevent [Bwonsamdi’s] meddling.” So essentially she’s saying, “Fine, go home, regroup, come up with Plan B, and if it’s not possible to destroy Bwonsamdi at least concentrate on countering him.” Also note that she still considers the operation to be theirs, not just hers: “This was a blow, but one she felt sure they could overcome.” That tells me she expects to work with him in the future.

Fourth, and granted this is before she learns of his failure, but she’s clearly happy to have him there when he first arrives. “’My champion,’ Sylvanas purred. ‘Your timing could not be better. Tell me of your victory as we take these first steps together.’” She wanted to cross into the Shadowlands with him at her side. Hell, that’s bridal imagery...crossing the threshold together, and all that. The only reason she tells him to go is because his work isn’t done and she still needs him on Azeroth. But she explicitly says “I expect you will return to me.”

Fifth, in the line from her POV about how “the unjust ladder of their lives must be dismantled,” the “they” she’s referring to is all of the denizens of Azeroth, true, but I think there’s also a tinge of bitterness there as she looks back on her own life, and her life with Nathanos. Destiny has not been kind to either of them.

Sixth, she says “My path lies ahead” as she prepares to cross into the Shadowlands. It’s a reminder of the scale of the forces she is trying to manipulate. When faced with the potential fates of all the souls in the universe, her own regrets are insignificant. She can’t stay on Azeroth any longer, even if some part of her does want to just chill out on a beach somewhere with Nathanos and watch his blighthounds chase seagulls. She thinks “It would not be easy, but then, her mission required great sacrifice.” Like leaving him behind.

Even this part can be interpreted different ways: “She heard the note of hope in his voice, fragile as a fledgling dropped from the next.” Putting aside the humor of comparing bird-hating Nathanos to a fledgling, we don’t get a value judgment about the comparison. Sylvanas doesn’t think about him sympathetically, wanting to protect him in a vulnerable moment, but she also doesn’t think, “Geez, what a pathetic weakling.” It goes back to that bit in Warbringers about how she can’t kill hope. And she can’t. Here, again, no matter how bleak things are, no matter how displeased she is at his failure, he still has hope. And she needs that, whether she believes it or not.

When she “flicked her fingers, as if ridding herself of a speck of muck” that can be interpreted as her thinking of him in a derogatory way, but she was also talking about Bwonsamdi in the same breath so I can choose to believe that’s who she was being dismissive of.

I don’t know. I get that some of the language is discouraging. She describes him as having “blubbering lips” and she’s definitely not happy with him. But these two have been through a lot, and their bond has remained strong. I’m sure this isn’t their first fight, or the first time he’s disappointed her. This isn’t the end for them. Just another bump on a very long highway they’ve traveled together.

...

OMG this has turned into a monster of a post, rambling all over the place. I hope it’s coherent enough to follow. I’m just in lore overload at the moment (and enjoying every second.) I know I’m forgetting things I wanted to talk about, too, but I’m going to go ahead and post it as it is.

#shadows rising #shadows rising spoilers #bff princes #sylvanas x nathanos #rambling about wow

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airanke · 6 years ago

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Actually I have some ideas (?) I wanna’ discuss-- it’s mostly Amita story stuff, but for Legion and Battle For Azeroth stuff (so I’ll put everything under a cut because... I already accidentally spoiled someone on what happens in the Zuldazar raid and like I feel horrible =_=;;; ).

But yeah it’s just points that I want to see if they make sense, because obviously Amita’s story is going to fork off completely from Legion (the biggest two factors being that Vol’jin AND Varian don’t die, because I have a really good idea for Varian that forces him off the throne and puts Anduin in his place and wow amazing it doesn’t involve his death I never knew that was possible wow).

Okay, onwards! I also apologize in advance it gets rambly and long but I have a lot of ideas and I need to make sense of them all :C

First I’ll briefly mention Warlords. I feel like Blizz wanted to put player characters into the forefront more and that’s why Vol’jin “didn’t do anything”. One major thing that happen in Lascivious Ophidian (from here on referred to as LO) is this:

Jaina and Vol’jin tag-team to kill Garrosh. This is proper poetic justice for both the Bombing of Theramore, the Divine Bell incident, the attempt on Vol’jin’s life, and the attempt to wipe out the Darkspear tribe. Remember when Vol’jin tells Garrosh that he’ll get an arrow through his black heart? Yeah.

Anyway, moving on to Legion:

Sylvanas was more than capable of taking out the fel guard before it hit Vol’jin, and so, she does (keep in mind I personally characterize Sylv as being empathetic and deeply caring - perhaps, somewhat compassionate - but she masks it all under anger and indifference. Broken Shore actually supported this and then... BfA happened smh).

Vol’jin and Varian end up fighting the fel reaver together while everyone else gets their shit together and Sylv / Jaina provide long range support, though the latter is considerably mana depleted. Vol’jin still breaks a tusk and ends up losing both.

In the retreat, both Varian and Vol’jin are injured but Vol’jin still manages to shoulder Varian anyway and carry him to Jaina, then he collapses and Sylvanas picks him up and sounds her horn to call her Val’kyr. Horde and Alliance soldiers alike then find themselves either scrabbling onto the Alliance gunship or scrabbling onto the Horde boat. Sylv and Geblin are helping to pull soldiers onto their respective ships.

Slightly off-topic, but an Alliance Paladin and Horde Death Knight (and probably a few other hero / champion aka player characters) stay behind on the shore to prevent demons from pursuing their leaders. They die, of course.

Vol’jin, being a troll, recovers from his critical injury (not sure what it is yet, but trolls are well known in lore from being able to recover from anything, plus in that short story Judgement Vol’jin regenerates his thumb). Varian, on the other hand, is not so lucky, and ends up paralyzed from the legs down. Geblin of course builds him an incredible wheelchair. He begins to mentor Anduin in kingly duties (see? Can “take him out of a story” and not kill him and still have Anduin become king and not have Anduin SHOVED into being a king. Wow. Amazing. Didn’t realize that was even remotely possible).

What events lead up to Amita actually ending up in the Dreamgrove are up in the air, but she does becomes the Archdruid of the class hall in it’s entirety (I need this to be canon to set up BfA events). Thrall also does not disappear, and instead stays at the Earthern Ring to continue mentoring shaman (and passes on the Doomhammer to another shaman as a result). I’m actually not sure if Aggra will even be IN Amita’s story, as she... is literally unimportant and has virtually no impact on Lore as it currently is, except for Thrall’s personal story (I am also Thraina trash, because have I ever told you that Thrall x Jaina was legitimately my first ship before I even knew what shipping was? Yeah. Exactly).

I have no thoughts yet on whether or not I will have Ysera still die in Amita’s story, but we’ll see. This is mostly because I’m still debating on having Amita be nightmare infected in canon (currently it’s just an AU idea I have), but either way, There Will Be A Dragon Fight.

Okay here’s perhaps the most important point. I’m still considering having Vol’jin pass on the mantle of Warchief, but it won’t be to Sylvanas. It will be to Baine - or rather, Vol’jin makes Baine acting warchief in his absence. I remember reading somewhere that the original plan for Vol’jin disappearing on BS was that he “needed to go talk to someone” and then made someone else warchief in his stead so that he could have the freedom to do that. In this case, I’m going to have Vol’jin make Baine acting warchief, and Vol’jin goes to scout out the Zandalari islands, which is where he ends up learning that Talanji and Zul have gone missing, which will of course lead to the infiltration of Stormwind yaddayaddayadda because yes Teldrassil still burns.

Okay, Battle for Azeroth:

I think everyone collectively agrees that the War of the Thorns stuff was horrible because it’s the same old story that everyone is tired of hearing. Anyway. After the Legion’s defeat, Azerite still poses a problem (resource war. I’m going for a resource war). He agrees that taking Teldrassil would be strategic, so War of the Thorns kind of proceeds as is, but he’s THERE, and lets Sylv go after Malfurion.

Horde gets Teldrassil. Baine tells Tyrande to evacuate her city because the Horde will be occupying it soon. Dead are given proper burial rites because Baine is a tauren and Saurfang is an orc and that’s honourable. When the Horde get to Teldrassil, they find siame-quashi crawling all over the place but they soon disappear into the shadows, but Baine knows his brother well enough to be aware that Vol’jin has been in Teldrassil long before they arrived.

Genn incites the burning of Teldrassil - and no, not because he’s malicious and petty but because it makes sense as a war strategy. Yes he knows people are probably going to die, but he corners a Forsaken soldier and pins it on the Horde (the Undercity will also still be blighted into oblivion, and Idk it makes sense to me for the Alliance to make a move like burning the tree if it means taking away a strong foothold from the Horde - or at least, Genn does, but no one finds out that he was the one who started it until Zuldazar Raid stuff. I’M GETTING THERE I PROMISE). Anyway, speaking of that, Vol’jin watches Genn do all of this and then of course has to book it the fuck out of there because no thank you. And he’s not sure how to process the information so he tells Baine to help evacuate the tree as much as he can before yeah they’re forced to leave (also hey the Alliance has shamans too, and if Genn mother-fucking Greymane tells you to do something I’m p sure my scared ass would listen).

Debating on if Sylv starts shooting civillians who can’t make it to the portals / are stuck due to the fires because “killing them with an arrow through the eye is more humane than letting them burn to death”. Compassion, but twisted in a sense. Horde / Alliance mages though try to teleport as many people as possible and both sides suffer some significant losses.

Instead of Legion BS being the reason Jaina becomes furious with the Horde once again, the burning of the tree is. She gets so angry (understandably, plus I can imagine her and Tyrande being rather close as some of the few female leaders in the Alliance) and it’s like an extra blow because Jaina’s already lost Theramore. So then she leaves on her little soul-searching expedition and Thrall wants to go after her but because none of them know how to bring up the news that Greymane was the one who started the fire they kinda go “well shit” and do nothing (which of course bites them in the ass).

Undercity proceeds practically identically to in-game however the comment Sylv makes to Greymane while sitting on the throne is more in-line to “oh yeah you mean the throne you abandoned when you built ur wall and let the Lordaeron citizens - who are basically the Forsaken, btw - die to the scourge you uh. You mean that throne?” obviously way more eloquently but you get the idea.

Amita is coaxed into being under human guise (and goes by the name Juliet, which is also one of Jaina’s nicknames for her) because Jaina decides that she needs the emotional support from her good friend as she goes to Kul Tiras because this has now become a resource war with both Horde and Alliance furious over losing two major important cities respectively. Horde of course infiltrates Stormwind and gets Zul and Talanji out (I’m actually not sure what happens with Saurfang but I think I can still have the event with him facing the Alliance leaders alone happen but more as a “SYLVANAS YOU NEED TO PREPARE EVEN THOUGH I DONT’ AGREE WITH WHAT YOU’VE PREPARED I’LL HOLD THEM OFF” instead of “RAGRGARGR I’M SO MAD HOW DARE U” so Baine is like “I’mma finish evacuating you get yourself ready for the confrontation”).

Lots of shit happens but I’m gonna’ skip to Rezan stuff. Mostly because Amita kills Yazma so I’m not sure how the corruption thing happens, but I’m still going to have him die (perhaps while trying to face off against Mythrax? Translating some raids / dungeons into story points is pretty tough so I haven’t really gotten to that point yet... I’m totally not avoiding it LOL). Either way, whether or not Rezan lives or dies (because that’s important to the story Blizzard wants to tell, but not important to the story I personally want to tell), something does happen that causes Rastakhan to still rapidly age (could easily be something like Bwonsamdi messing around with the connection between Rezan and Rastakhan, after all, Bwonsamdi reeeeeeeeeally wants Rast’s soul).

Oookay so... Siege of Zuldazar:

Amita is in Boralus when the Alliance is planning this. Yes amazingly still no one in the Alliance is aware of what Genn has done (lets just say that he dealt with anyone who tried to let Anduin and Varian know). She ends up ousting herself and Jaina tries to calm her but she ends up furious enough to say “if you march on Zuldazar, the Dreamgrove stands against you. Remember, I am the Archdruid now”. And then she leaves because you don’ fuck w/ a dragon.

So the Dreamgrove of course ends up sweeping into Zuldazar to stop the Alliance in their tracks, and then the Earthern Ring shows up because Thrall is like “I stand with you, Amita”. Amita’s priority is keeping Rastakhan alive so she has Hamuul and Thrall take him and his council to a safe place, and then instructs the druids and shamans to evacuate / protect the civilians, in a sort of “let the alliance and the horde come to blows, I don’t care, just get as many civilians to safety as you can” (wait.. I don’t know if I made it clear that Amita is Champions of Azeroth / Khadgar / Neutral aligned. Okay. She is. Okay back to my rambling).

Basically there are vines everywhere.

Now I still don’t know how the raid ends (like if it ends with a huge naga / old god thing or what, but I’m gonna’ tentatively roll with the idea of Azshara forces rolling in like “durrhurhurr heeellLO LANDWALKERS”), but I know how it ends in LO. Vol’jin confronts Genn in the throne room or... wherever it is that the Alliance confronts Rastakhan, and he and Genn basically have this duel where the whole time Vol’jin is like “why don’t you tell them, Genn, why don’t you tell them who REALLY burned down Teldrassil? Haven’t you told them about how you shoved a torch into the hand of dead forsaken soldier? What about those shamans that were at your side when it happened, what’s become of them?” etcetc which leads to a break in the Alliance’s resolve and they retreat out of Zuldazar because honestly Anduin doesn’t know how to handle this information and I wouldn’t blame him. Neither does Jaina.

As the Alliance is falling back, however, the naga are like “EEEEYY LANDWALKERS” and the Dreamgrove / Earthern Ring come to the rescue with Jaina and Thrall tag-teaming to beat the fuck out of either an Old God herald or a huge Naga mmyes. I will have my Thraina. And the mages show up too because Ollwen is a good friend of Amita’s and she brings the Kirin Tor to HELP. This also saves the Alliance time cuz then they just teleport all the Kul Tiras boats and shit back to Kul Tiras and... then Anduin has to confront Genn. And Tyrande can still become a night warrior lmao don’t worry (as much as I apparently... dislike her???), because even if the Horde wasn’t behind burning Teldrassil, they were still very much behind everything that led UP to burning Teldrassil.

Rastakhn therefore lives but only solely because I want to write him sucking up his pride and stepping down from the throne to let Talanji lead with him as her mentor for at least a year before he finally passes away quietly in the night. Not all deaths have to be blood and glory on the battlefield to have impact. A quiet death is just as impactful (and honestly I have some experience because of how recently I lost my grandfather. Death hits hard regardless of how it happens). So my plan is to have Rastakhan pass away quietly and Talanji goes to greet him in the morning only to come across his cold form. Yeah. The ouchies are still there.

Annnnnnnnnd we’ll see how I decide to proceed from there. Yeah. Wow thanks for reading all the way if you did LMAO?!?!!? You are literally a trooper.

I guess you can tell me your thoughts?? //cries softly.

#Air's antics #BfA spoilers #Battle of Azeroth spoilers #Please don't read if you don't know datamined stuff because EUUUGEUHGHGHGUEH

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