#the cycle of entropy is endless

[confinesofmy]

yesterday on black friday, after me and my cousin got back from watching saltburn on a whim (which we literally drove to mississippi to see, inherently hilarious as a concept) we were kind of high from the roadtrip, the film, the roadtrip back, and the absurdity of it all, and we noticed our tourist cousins who come here for vacations and holidays had a bonfire going, so we decided to channel our frenetic fucking energy into partying and getting a bit tipsy, got some drinks from home and crashed that shit.

we were an immediate hit, i think simply because we had such a puckish, elated aura about us. jokes were landing, we were both perfectly elevating other people's jokes, generally firing on all cylinders. eventually someone asked what we were up to before this, so we had to admit we had just gotten back from d'iberville, where we'd gone to see a movie. there aren't any movies in <the major city one hour away>? they said, and so we said well not this movie! so they asked about it more and we played coy for as long as we could but

the party wrapped with us scene-by-scene recounting the entire movie to two of our tourist cousins until we finished our rendition and the one we like less left, at which point we pivoted to spirituality and religion and our struggles with morality and MORALE tbh because it's hard to keep your head up sometimes isn't it. then at 3am we called it a night.

i genuinely think we made his holiday weekend. he definitely helped make ours. that was such an insane afternoon and evening.

[monstersdownthepath]

Deity: The Sea of Teeth

(Pic source: Craig Spearing, though it doesn’t seem to be on his site anymore and exists only as reuploads)

Chaotic Evil God of Endless Hunger

Domains: Chaos, Death, Destruction, Evil, War Subdomains: Demon, Entropy, Catastrophe, Cannibalism, Blood Favored Weapons: Bite Symbol: Fangs surrounding bones, stars, and/or planets. Sacred Animals: All gluttonous animals. Sacred Colors: N/a

The Abyss is deeper than any being could possibly comprehend, stretching an unknowable distance into the chaos beyond what sane beings consider the relative safety of their reality. Whether it has an end or a bottom is a mystery none have yet solved, as the deeper one goes, the more they must grapple with the knowledge that the hundreds of layers occupied by the foulest sorts of demons are merely the surface level of the Abyss, the safest environs a mortal of this cosmos can exist in. To venture into the Abyss is taxing enough, but to delve deep into the Outer Rifts, where the primordial qlippoth and beasts even stranger roam, is something few can withstand for longer than fleeting moments. It is easy, though not entirely accurate, to compare the demon-occupied Abyss as something akin to the levels of the ocean where the sun still reaches. It is dangerous, laden with hazards and predators which may end the life of an explorer... But the Rifts? If one were still comparing the Abyss to the ocean, the Outer Rifts are depths where sunlight cannot reach, where the pressure is so intense that even steel buckles and crumbles, where the cold is so penetrating that nothing can defend against it, and where life as we know it simply cannot survive.

But like the ocean’s darkest depths, there is still life to be found, alien and strange. Predating even the eldest of the gods, the qlippoth crawl and slither and skitter in endless varieties and maddening shapes. From tiny insects to the great, demigod-level Qlippoth Primordials, qlippoth span across every branch of existence, forming grotesque and twisted mirrors to the biospheres found all over creation, all living and eating and dying and transforming. It is a great, eldritch ecosystem, where even worlds must feed.

And with the imprisonment of Rovagug, it has lost its apex predator.

Ask any zoologist what happens to any ecosystem in which an important predatory force is removed and you will receive a similar answer; the prey gorges itself until it starves, reproduces until there is no more room, and the cycle of life comes to an abrupt and terrible halt as the links in the chain give way one by one. In extreme cases, the entire environment is destroyed by the unbalance. While it’s true that the Abyss has no shortage of predatory creatures all willing and able to consume one another, none of them work on the scale that Rovagug did, devouring and destroying entire landscapes and worlds at once to keep the growth of the Abyss itself from becoming too dangerously rampant. 

But now that he is gone, the balance is upset, and the invasive species that is demonkind has done more harm than good as the natives of the Rifts experience an apocalyptic collapse. Unfortunately for the cosmos as a whole, from the deepest depths of the Outer Rifts a new apex predator has risen to fill the vacuum.

It has no name, but it has many titles; the Sea of Teeth is the most common one, but it is also known as “the Devouring God,” “the Black Well,” “Hadal,” “the Consuming Cascade,” “the Final Tide,” among others and their many variations. It is more location than creature, as though an entire layer of the Abyss has shuddered to terrible life and apocalyptic hunger, branching titanic tendrils throughout the rest of the plane to consume all which falls in its shadow. To those that know if its existence, it is hunger unimaginable, a ravenous force that depletes and destroys everything it crosses. It does not just settle for the twisted flora and fauna, but the very landscape itself is chewed apart, and when there is no matter left it drinks up the local quintessence until the fabric of the layer frays and collapses. It constantly sends tiny tendrils of its matter throughout the Abyss to hunt for new rich feeding grounds, the smallest and weakest of these ‘roots,’ pinpricks of its essence that emerge through tiny portals it gnaws in reality, take on the shape and strength of Shoggoths with the Savage Mythic Template. Because of the immense power of these tiny specks of the greater Sea, it rapidly overtakes any stretch of the Abyss which doesn’t contain any creature or force capable of combating its searching limbs, but any layer with such defenses enjoys some level of safety from the greater Sea. Slaying the roots causes the limb from which they grew to recoil slightly, slowing its spread into a particular layer and allowing them time to plan for the next incursion.

The irony of the Abyss finding itself besieged by a threat which spreads across multiple planar layers and which requires constant, combined efforts to fight back against is lost on many demons. And it is indeed demons which find themselves at the fore of the Sea’s attacks; the Sea is indiscriminate in its feeding frenzies, consuming all in its path with no regard for the qlippoth it technically shares kinship with (with the sole exception being the Iathavos, the only being which it ignores entirely), but much how like animals of Golarion will flee an impending natural disaster hours before it happens, qlippoth seem to possess an innate sense of when and where the Sea will strike, assuring only the injured, the slow, the ill, the foolish, and the foolhardy are actually devoured. Why and how they preternaturally know when it will arrive is a secret they have not shared, and likely never will. 

It is believed that no fewer than six entire Abyssal layers have already been entirely consumed in the short few centuries that the Sea has been known to mortal scholars (and perhaps many before anyone even realized it was there), several dozen are actively besieged by its reaching limbs, and hundreds more are being inspected by its roots. Any normal plane which hosted such a force would quickly be rendered lifeless and barren, but the sheer size and repulsive fecundity of the Abyss assures no such catastrophe will occur, and even if the “shallows” of the Abyss were to be depopulated entirely (an impossible task in and of itself, even for a god), the Sea would simply retreat into the deeper Rifts to continue its feast in unknowable lands until the shallows recovered and regrew, just as a roving predator does when prey is exhausted in one area.

... But this relieving truth has yet to be uncovered, and will likely not be known for several millennia. In the current times, a mere few centuries after its emergence, the Sea is spoken of by doomsayers and prophets as an existential threat of cosmic magnitude, threatening the entirety of existence as it’s known. There are many who believe that the Sea’s emergence is a sure sign that the Abyss will soon be destroyed, devoured utterly down to the last demon larvae, and demons as an entity in the universe will completely cease to exist. These same thinkers and madmen are divided on what, exactly, this would cause in the Great Beyond as a whole; some posit that the removal of the tumor that is the Abyss will usher in a profound universal transformation in which certain breeds of Evil can no longer exist, while others think the Abyss itself will transform into an entirely new Neutrally-aligned plane! The implications of this transformation is, itself, a topic of conjecture and debate. Planar scholars from all corners of creation have driven themselves to fevered frenzies trying to imagine what a universe without demonkind would look like, whether or not demonic power would simply emerge in a new form elsewhere... and whether or not an end to demons as they’re currently known warrants aiding the Sea of Teeth in some way.

Any mind pondering the possibilities of the Sea destroying the Abyss itself must, of course, answer the inevitable question of “what happens afterwards?” Perhaps it will consume itself or starve to death! Perhaps it will slink back into the Outer Rifts, finally satisfied that it has killed every last demon. Perhaps it will pupate into something worse... Or perhaps, once the Abyss has been consumed, the Sea will rush to fill the empty roots left behind which will connect it to a thousand new feeding grounds, swelling further to break down the shorelines of all creation and bring about the end of all things.

Whatever the truth is, the Great Beyond will have to wait and see. There IS one absolute truth that can be shared with whomever is reading this, though: Despite what doomsayers scream of what will happen were it to drink the Plane of Water, inhale the flames of Creation’s Forge, or invade the Ethereal Plane to consume the thoughts and dreams of mortals, the Sea of Teeth does not work towards such apocalyptic goals. It does not plan its assaults, it does not consider the consequences of its actions, and it does not dream of the endless banquet waiting for it just outside the walls of the Abyss.

It, in fact, does not think at all.

----- Obedience and Boons -----

Many cultists, madmen, studious Outsiders of every shape and description, and scholars of every species and alignment all ascribe different reasons and motivations to the Sea’s actions, whether it be divine rage against demons, a rampage to eventually free Rovagug and prove that he is truly the lesser evil when compared to the unseen powers in the deeper Rifts, the incarnate form of the Abyss’ predilection for predation and parisitism turned horribly self-destructive, the incarnation of hunger as a concept, or maybe even the herald of the end times... but the truth is truly right in front of them, described in the first section of this very article: The Sea of Teeth is a hungry beast which has found a stretch of uncontested land, and has begun to gorge itself on a population that has few true defenses against an invasive species.

Though it is indeed divine, it is still essentially a simple-minded predator driven entirely by instinct. It is a form of life which operates on a scale that a common mind struggles to envision, but it serves a function that is familiar, almost mundane, and its presence in the Great Beyond is unfortunate happenstance, not an apocalyptic omen. Any ‘meaning’ to its rampage or claims that it is acting towards some unfathomable goal are pure conjecture, the product of minds desperate to establish a pattern or see some divine truth where a mundane truth would suffice. A hungry wolf which devours a farmer’s sheep is not some punishment for his failure or some insatiable, sadistic beast torturing him because he cannot fight back... it’s a hungry animal, any mythologizing or anthropomorphizing is the fault of the farmer, not the wolf. 

This truth, however, is beyond most creatures in the cosmos, to whom the Sea is an incomprehensibly threatening force of annihilation. To them, it is whatever they want it to be, whatever they project, and often whatever they fear it is, as it has no desire (or even ability) to answer questions about itself. It has unintentionally gathered numerous cults in its name--doomsday and otherwise--all led by powerful figureheads who’ve achieved some divine contact with it... or at least contact with a figurehead which worships the Sea, in some bizarre and indirect form of faith. There exists a ritual one can use to connect to the Sea and gain some of its power at the cost of becoming perpetually ravenous, a ritual used by many to achieve positions of power in the budding cults of the Sea of Teeth, up to and including becoming divine fronts in and of themselves... which inadvertently makes them beacons for spells such as Commune attempting to reach the true Sea, further muddying the waters about its supposed goals and desires. Undoubtedly, one of the most famous of these figureheads is Chormilg, the Thousanth Tooth, a powerful Nyogoth Cleric/Exalted of the Sea of Teeth (CR 18/MR 6) which claims to have hatched from one of the Sea’s teeth after it broke itself against the heart of a forgotten deity, and thus is the literal mouth-piece of the god. Chormilg is the closest thing to a true leader that the disparate cults of the Devouring God have, and is currently the highest authority in the Sea’s faith, acting as the deity’s proxy, AND the reason many believe the Sea’s hunger to be primarily directed at demons, as Chormilg itself despises demonic life.  

The largest cult to the Sea is the one founded by Chormilg, known as the Salgurat, an Abyssal word translating to “Ebon Maws,” a cult devoted to capturing and consuming demons and their mortal fanatics, as well as making regular, organized sacrifices to the Sea of Teeth to empower it in the hopes of accelerating its growth through the Abyss. Some smaller cults grow from gatherings of heretics among the faiths of Thuskchoon, Jubilex, Cyth-V’sug, Zevgavizeb, and other great and ancient beasts of the Abyss, who believe their former deities to be the offspring of the Sea and have thus chosen to serve the “Progenitor Maw” or “Hunger’s Father” out of respect. Other cults have many reasons for their worship, such as Creation’s Eclipse, a cult of daemons and their maniacal mortal followers hellbent on finding ways to help the Sea enter Creation’s Forge and snuff it. Some of these smaller factions even have benevolent, though misguided, hopes for a universe without the Abyss, Whatever the case may be, any follower of the Sea are as varied as the morsels it consumes, coming from all over the universe.

The Obedience ritual to serve the Devouring God is a lesser form of the Shores of the Sea of Teeth occult ritual, and both of them have the same effect at different intensities: It convinces the Sea that the creature undertaking the ritual is actually a part of itself, and so it sends a tendril of its essence and a spark of its power into the creature, often physically mutating them. This offers the creature not only supernatural might, but some protection from the Sea’s appetite, with many audacious beings--Chormilg included--nesting within the god’s churning body, believing themselves favored by the horror due to their faith and devotion, unaware they’re doing the mystic equivalent of dabbing an ant colony’s scent upon themselves to avoid being torn apart by the swarm. The Sea has no loyalty to anything but its own stomachs, any power it offers given only through unintentional trickery or divine reflex, but it is nonetheless a power that any creature--regardless of alignment--can tap into, should they know how... and should they brave the consequences. 

As a true deity, the Sea of Teeth can grant Boons to any creature taking the Deific Obedience feat, but it does not possess a dedicated Prestige Class such as Feysworn or Diabolist. Boons are typically gained slowly, achieved at levels 12, 16, and 20, but by entering the Evangelist, Exalted, or Sentinel Prestige Classes as early as possible, they can be obtained at levels 8, 11, and 14 instead. While normally a deity as ambivalent as the Sea would grant only one set of Boons, the fanatic devotion of countless beings and the fear of infinitely more has created a potent psychic impression upon it, allowing it a full three.

Obedience: Spend at least 30 minutes meditating on the sensations of hunger while surrounded by circle of ritual objects made of materials harvested from creatures you’ve killed and consumed portions of. At the conclusion of this meditative period, eat anything you have available--preferably portions of creatures you’ve helped slay in the last 24 hours--until you’re full. Benefit: You become permanently afflicted by the Oracle’s Hunger curse the first time you perform the Obedience ritual, and the curse cannot be removed by mortal magic. For 24 hours after performing your Obedience, your total Hit Dice is treated as your Oracle level for the purpose of determining the intensity of your curse; failing to perform your Obedience causes your curse to weaken, treating only half your Hit Dice as your Oracle level for the purpose of the curse. If you are already an Oracle, for 24 hours after performing your Obedience, your Oracle level is treated as 4 higher for determining the intensity of your new Hunger curse.

------ EVANGELIST ------

Boon 1: The Preview (Sp): Gain Grease 3/day, Hold Person 2/day, or Spiked Pit 1/day.

Boon 2: Titanic Appetite (Ex): The gnawing hunger in your belly drives you to eat anything you can get your hands on, trusting your connection to your god to protect you from the consequences. You become immune to the effects of all ingested poisons and diseases, and cannot be sickened, nauseated, or cursed by items, food, or creatures you eat. You can digest and draw sustenance from any matter you can consume. Any bite attacks you have ignore the first 5 points of Hardness when damaging objects, widening your potential palate.

Boon 3: Crushed by the Depths (Sp): Once per day, you can focus the power of the Sea onto your foes, allowing it to reach across space and devour them utterly. You may use Implosion once per day as a spell-like ability, but you may target even incorporeal or gaseous creatures with it, and if the target succeeds the saving throw against the effect, they still take 10d6 points of damage. When you target a creature with this ability it possesses a unique visual effect: a phantasmal, protean mass envelops the target and crushes inwards. Any creature killed by this ability is entirely consumed; any nonmagical items they possessed are also destroyed, and magic items fall into their former space.

------ EXALTED ------

Boon 1: A Bite of Everything (Sp): Gain Adhesive Spittle 3/day, Allfood 2/day, or Dispel Magic 1/day.

Boon 2: Ravening Form (Ex/Sp): Your connection to the Sea of Teeth deepens and more of its essence flows into you. This connection twists your body in incomprehensible ways, granting you the constant benefits of 50% Fortification and the Compression universal monster ability. In addition, once per day as a standard action, you may undergo a horrifying but thankfully short-lived surge of vitality as tendrils of the Sea’s matter slither through your body to restore you, gaining the benefits of the Regeneration spell.

Boon 3: Whirlpool of Teeth (Sp): Once per day you may open a portal leading directly to the Sea of Teeth to send entire pieces of the world to your god, in effect casting Maw of Chaos as a spell-like ability. The spell is altered in the following ways: Each round at the start of your turn, all creatures and unattended objects within 40ft of the Maw are automatically pulled 10ft closer to the Maw before it makes its CMB check (potentially allowing it to pull a target twice in one round); this summoned Maw lasts an additional +3 rounds after you stop concentrating on it; and you are unaffected by any of the Maw’s effects, though you may not enter its space. 

------ SENTINEL ------

Boon 1: Soften the Meal (Sp): Gain Ray of Sickening 3/day, Blindness/Deafness 2/day, or Ray of Exhaustion 1/day.

Boon 2: Slavering Jaws (Ex): Your teeth sharpen to frightening and deadly points and your jaw can distend to repulsive and terrific effect. The bite attack gained from your Hunger curse becomes a primary natural attack which deals damage as if you were two size categories larger (2d6 for a Medium creature). The bite attack ignores 5 points of Hardness or Damage Reduction and is considered a magic weapon. Finally, due to the horror your mouth has become, you gain a profane bonus to Intimidate checks equal to your Strength modifier, and you may make an Intimidate check as a swift action against any creature within 30ft when you confirm a critical hit against another creature with your bite attack.

Boon 3: Hole in the Universe (Ex): Your stomach becomes an extradimensional space which partially intersects the Sea of Teeth. The bite gained from your Hunger curse gains the Grab and Swallow Whole abilities if they did not already have them, and you may attempt to swallow any creature of your size or smaller that you have grappled. Your extradimensional stomach may have any number of creatures or objects of any size swallowed at once. Creatures and unattended objects within your stomach take 6d6 bludgeoning and 6d6 Acid damage each round. Extradimensional spaces (such as Bags of Holding) cannot be opened while within you, but otherwise do not interact with you in a destructive way. If a swallowed creature deals enough damage to cut free, instead of creating a hole, the pain forces you to regurgitate all creatures and objects in your stomach at once; you are nauseated for 1d6 rounds and cannot use Swallow Whole for 1 minute after.

[blood-orange-juice]

I'm not a fan of bridging Genshin and Honkai, but the authors seem to be doing it anyway, so... blame Hoyo for this post.

tl;dr of Honkai lore

At the core of Honkai's cosmogony are two concepts. The Imaginary Tree — a tree of branching parallel universes, each twig of which is a timeline and each leaf a world. And The Sea of Quanta — a boundless place of entropy and chaos from which the Imaginary tree spawned.

Order and chaos, basically. They exist in constant conflict, the tree tries to consume the sea of quanta and the sea tries to flood and dissolve the tree.

When a world fails to persist it can "fall" from the tree into the sea of quanta, becoming an unstable fragmented version of itself called a bubble universe. A shadow of a proper world. Such a universe is eventually dissolved in the sea.

Bubbles universes can also be artificially created or spawned from someone's memories. Either way they are unstable. If I recall correctly, Genshin was confirmed to be a bubble universe in a Honkai 3rd easter egg.

Ether Anchors

There's a technology allowing to extend a bubble universe's lifespan, is called an Ether Anchor. An Ether Anchor holds together fragments of a bubble universe that follow a fixed set of laws.

It seems to be more of a place/space anomaly than an object (“a topological formation that exists between the dimensional manifolds”), if I understood Durandal's and Roland's lore correctly, but also can take the form of an object, if honkai wiki is to be believed.

(I think space anomalies are anchor points, not the anchor itself? the places where it sews fragments of reality together. I'm still figuring this part out)

Quotes from Durandal VN summary:

At the core of the Ether Anchor, space from different dimensions were cluttered together like vines

"There, he witnessed the endless possibilities of another ancient world. "

Tartaglia's character story 4

Readjusted her body composition with the Ether Anchor to turn herself into a weapon.

I think there was a guy in Genshin who constantly talks about turning himself into a weapon. I can't quite remember his name though...

 Synchronized themselves with the Ether Anchor, becoming the “Son of God” itself.

"The purpose of this line in the ritual scripture is to forsake the self and sink into the abyss, and in the abyss, to welcome rebirth as a holy infant."

Narcissenkreuz Ordo note

Another property of the Ether Anchor is that it allows bubble universes to interact with one another. 

Or maybe not exactly different bubble universes but rather fragments of the same bubble universe (or, since we are in a multiverse, these could be the same thing)?

"Unborn life, unfulfilled wishes, Tragic dreams at the edge of the universal darkness that could never come true."

Festering Desire description

Ok, this is getting too long and no one reads long posts. Maybe I'll continue in a separate post later. There are still the topics of the Abyss (and why it's not The Sea of Quanta), Descenders, whether the anchors need to be sustained in some way, Tsaritsa's goals, why does everyone who has seen the Abyss speaks of ultimate injustice, Alice and Hexenzirkel in general, what is Irminsul exactly, and, of course, Childe, why Childe's promise of a battle at the edge of the universe is more important than it might seem, what are world cycles, and why Childe's part of 4.2 story sucked so much (I now have a Lore Explanation. or maybe a copium overdose. probably both).

For now I'm calling it though. Whatever Khaenri'ahns messed up, it had to do something with Teyvat's Aether Anchor.

[valya-kingoftherats]

Bills would've been better

Mia brings Jane the letters. All from the fanclub you've somehow amalgamated. The one that you wish didn't exist.

And being the idiot that you are, you read them.

You're lying on the floor in your base, cold concrete doing wonders for your migraine. Sprawled out on your back with a little stack of loose papers beside you. One held up above your face.

They're more or less all the same. Glorified thank you notes. But reading them doesn't fill you with any sense or pride. They just make you feel hollow. More than before.

You are a pathetic excuse of a villain for one. What exactly have you done so far? Had a temper tantrum about an exhibit about your past at a museum. Stood at some protests and fought the LDPD to keep them back and put them in their place. Harassed government officials to improve the living standards in low-income communities. Picked away at removing corrupt politicians from power. Which will never work. There will always be another to replace. An endless cycle you are ultimately powerless against.

Worthless.

Why did you ever think you could stand a chance against the farm? It's completely unobtainable. Out of your league. Pathetic. What's one stupid telepathic regene with power armour versus an entire establishment? You are a fool if you ever really thought you stood a chance.

The next letter is from a kid. Pink glittery pen scrawl that hurts your eyes in the low light. You don't want to move so straining your eyes to read it is.

Another thank you note. For how Entropy mysteriously got the construction company to leave his neighbourhood alone. The project terminated and the houses and families that live in them safe and undisplaced. The CEO paid off everyone's mortgage as consolation for the stress and an apology for thinking them so easy to toss aside. Entropy is his hero.

Hero. That's not what you are. Aren't supposed to be. Never was.

None of them know what they're idolizing. You are nobody's hero. You're done with that. Ended horribly. But no matter what you try, you seem to be bound to fail time and time again at playing the villain. All you've done is hurt Julia.

Maybe that's enough to make you the bad guy. It feels like it.

The next five letters are from employees from a local grocery store. They're unionized now. Thanks to Entropy.

Fucking hell, you hardly even pass for anything more then a glorified crosswalk guard. Holding people's hands and leading them from point A to point B.

They would've got there eventually, with or without you. You're sure of it.

If any of them knew the truth about what you are, they wouldn't be quick to attach themselves to you. How many would turn you in? Send you back?

The good life is only meant for real people. Which — you yank the sleeve of your hoodie back up over your wrists — you are more than well aware that you aren't.

Two more letters. More of the same. Work you don't need armour for. You could've done that with street clothing and sunglasses. Show up, adjust some minds, problem solved. Anonymous neighbourhood watchdog.

Four official letters from the charities you last hit up. Donated thousands, stolen from real villains. They're grateful. One of them wants to meet in person. Thank you. It isn't happening. You are not something to be shown off.

Too many people looking up to you. It makes you feel sick. You are the last person who deserves that. Nobody's hero. You couldn't save people you cared about when it counted.

You can't even find reason to even attempt to save yourself.

Look at you. Reading a dozen painfully heartfelt letters, and what does that make you feel? Like everyone would be better if you never came back from the dead. Were never here at all.

Maybe that makes you the villain. Because you must truly be awful to think the things you do. To do the things to yourself that you do in response. Because nobody in their right mind would want to kill themselves after hearing about how beloved they are. How many lives they've changed.

Selfish and pathetic.

A successful failed career. You switched sides only to do more good than you ever did as a hero. And none of it is even remotely useful to achieve your goals.

Not goals. Pipedream. Because there really is no way you can take down the farm. Not continuing on like this.

Right now, not continuing on sounds like the best course of action.

You let the last letter fall from your grasp. Watch it flutter down and land beside you. You don't know what it says. It doesn't matter. More false admiration for someone who doesn't deserve it. Someone who only tangentially exists.

Jane needs to get rid of the letters next time Mia hands them to you. And Entropy needs to toughen up and be the fucking bad guy. And Valya needs to take down that stupid fanclub website.

But none of that will get done. Because it's so much easier to construct new and creative ways to hurt yourself. Even just mentally. Remind you of what you are. Of how you will never be one of them. Never fit in. Never be truly deserving of being the hero everyone writes letters to thank.

You're more likely to actually take down the farm than to become a person deserving of that.

[animefeminist]

Against the World: Madoka Rebellion, saviorism, and abolitionist schooling

Content Warning: Discussion of queerphobia, racism, carceral violence/structural oppression, suicide, and sexual violence.

Spoilers for Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Madoka: Rebellion.

It gets better. Keep your head down and survive the here and now. Stay hopeful for a better future, and your hope will be rewarded. This is the narrative that is fed to queer children of color from the youngest age, in media, by family, and more than anyplace else, in schools. I have known the falseness of this promise my whole life, in every iteration of violence I or my friends have experienced from our time as children. This false promise is mediated by race: should you be East Asian, it may be fulfilled materially in the form of assimilation into some white power structures, but will certainly be spiritually broken in the suffering of assimilation and the constant threat of your proximity to whiteness being revoked.

Should you be Black, the promise is designed to enclose you in both material and spiritual suffering, in pillaging of wealth, the school-prison nexus, and experiences of gratuitous violence. The juxtaposition of these two experiences of suffering, where the Asian one is made to be the model of what to do right so as to deny the reality of antiblackness, is what produces the model minority. The only solution that will remedy these dual sufferings is abolition: the destruction of all systems that enclose and entrap Black people and all people of color in a cycle of cruelty and premature death, and the creation of a new world.

Watching Madoka Magica as I began my career as a teacher in New York City, I saw a mirror of these realities. In Madoka, which reimagines being a Sailor Moon-like magical girl as a trap that ensnares those who want justice in an endless, despairing battle, all designed to maintain order and prevent the chaos of entropy, I found a language to describe a system that was actively invested in the suffering of the oppressed.

Read it at Anime Feminist!

[clarafell]

@deathdanse has made a contract.          —         ★

In the beginning, the newly created earth is without form and completely empty. Darkness blankets the surface of the planet until light is summoned into existence, instantly pronounced as good. The light, now called day, is separated from the darkness, which is now called night. The dance of day and night continues to be an endless cycle as the sun and the moon continue to fight for the right to rule the sky.

In the beginning, Homura Akemi woke up from her now shattered dream. The world around her is dark and cold and devoid of life. She lies neatly upon a cool marble surface, mimicking a corpse in her final resting place. Dull, slightly wilted flowers surround her motionless body. The Isolation Field, the place where the Incubators created just for her body, is now destroyed.

The countless red eyes that once closely examined their isolated experiment are gone, but it matters not to the experiment. They never, not even once, shown any sign of remorse, or any other emotion, for anything they have done in the past. She awakens, though she still looks more like the deceased body than some dreaming shell of a person. No longer trapped within the depths of her dreamy labyrinth, she opens the eyes she was never meant to open again. First, there is darkness and emptiness until a dazzling light chooses to rain down upon her.

A goddess draped in white reaches out to her with a piercing gentleness, but Homura is finished with waiting— No, she will not be taken away with the Law of Cycles to go to somewhere beyond the earthly soil— Homura gripped her destiny with a calm viciousness until she found herself ripping the radiant goddess apart. Everyone can scream for her to stop, but she is finished with backing down. She will tear divinity apart until she finds what she wants. The Incubators were always getting in the way, weren't they? Always wanting to seal as many contracts as they can, claiming they only want preserve the universe from entropy.

No one can stop her now, can they? Oh, they can try. She welcomes the challenge simply because she knows there will always be an enemy in her way. Blood will always drip upon her soul, so why choose to dream of anything else? She might as well as embrace the broken reflection, not avoid it by draping a shroud over it for the rest of her life.

As she rewrote the universe, the ascended being began to experiment with her power. Trial and error is common, she knows from experience. Mistakes are bound to happen. No one, not her years of repeating the same time, can prepare her for what happens next. The new stage of her soul gem, all of this unfamiliar magic and sensations, begins to overwhelm her. One such mistake did happen when she got thrown back into the past, far deeper than she has ever gone before—

She landed back in Europe during the Hundred Years' War, in fact.

Homura always did have bad luck, but throwing herself that far into the past has to be her pièce de résistance—

This is where she meets Corbeau.

Though they were (supposedly) never meant to meet, Homura crosses paths with the sworn enemy of the heroic Jeanne d'Arc. Though she had yet to meet the French hero, none of that crossed her mind. All she truly cared moments before her discovery was catching that troublesome salamander, the same creature that clung to her soul. At the time, Homura did not know what to make of the creature. None of the soldiers understood why Corbeau chose to bring the suspicious stranger closer, but the seasoned fighter fed all of them a easy-sounding cover-up story.

Homura, in all honesty, wasn't sure if she could trust the masked stranger. She knew she refused to trust any of the men outside the tent, that's for sure. Corbeau, however, at least understood part of her perspective. They both, after all, traded their souls for a wish. Homura knew she couldn't trust all the people the Incubators found.

Fighting over grief seeds and territories were common, at least back in her original time. Desperate and all alone, she took a risky bet in assuming that Europe in the Late Middle Ages had to be a lot better than her home. The Late Middle Ages, she imagined, were full of witches and man-made wickedness. Lots of despair to go around when the bubonic plague existed.

She couldn't tell if Corbeau was her rescuer or a potential kidnapper, maybe even a weird blend of both, but...

Corbeau still offered her shelter and water and, more importantly, answers.

❝  It's quite pleasant to see you again, Corbeau. ❞ Homura's voice rings out, pleasant and perhaps a bit too calm. She wasn't sure where to place Corbeau exactly, but... She decided to choose a quiet library in the depths of a museum, hoping the soothing environment wouldn't be too much of a cultural shock. Homura's time in Europe was... not her best of times, so Homura wants to try to make Corbeau have a much more easier time. She chose to wear her uniform, the very same outfit that Corbeau met her in.

❝  I do apologize for not bringing your sisters with you, but— I wasn't sure if I could trust them, if I'm being honest. Fear not, they are safe. ❞ As someone without any siblings to call hers, Homura realizes her phrasing might be a problem. She tries to sound reassuring, though she doesn't know how effective she is until she tries.

She wanted to address the missing sisters as quick as possible, not wanting to potentially cause a potential fight to break out. It would be horribly awful for the poor books to get hurt.

❝  I'm sure you must be very confused, judging by your staring... ❞

Homura is risking a lot with her gamble with fate, but she is more than prepared to control the situation if a confused Corbeau decides to attack her to gain the upper hand. The self-proclaimed devil knows the chances of her gaining any allies is slim, so she has decided to enlist the help of witches. It's why she brought Corbeau to her time, after all. It's entirely selfish of her, she knows that, but what is the harm? Well, it isn't a complete selfish seed... Homura also brought her back because she did desire to repay Corbeau for her act of kindness.

❝  I have an important question for you, so please refrain from yelling at me for just a moment. We're in a library, after all. Now... Do you remember me? ❞

[s-b-party]

Nanook & IX: Paths of the End

Looking at these two together makes them seem like very different entities, which is true to an extent. Nanook is the Aeon of Destruction & IX is the Aeon of Nihility, they look nothing like each other, and their temperaments are different

They are representations of two different concepts, but I think that there are some interesting similarities they share

To start off the basic intro, Nanook is an Aeon that was born from destruction from their homeworld Adlivun which fell victim to the Aeon of Propagation, Tayzzyronth, & their faction, the Swarm

The concept of Destruction here seems to be explained differently from what some of us may be used to. They use the concept of entropy to symbolize destruction

Entropy itself is usually seen as a state of chaos/lack of balance/disorder

I would say that Nanook’s design & symbol are fitting of the concept of destruction/entropy

Their body seems incomplete with parts missing (mainly around their arms, chunks are gone), their clothes are tattered, I don’t think they have legs???? (Not sure about this one, the dark background almost seems to blend with their clothes so I can’t tell 100% if their legs are missing 😂)

Nanook’s symbol seems to be a tower surrounded by flames which also surround Nanook’s body as well; the tower also has a few cracks in it (it looks the same as the one in the first lightcone that we are introduced to as Destruction Trailblazer)

The cracks on the tower & the parts on Nanook’s body where golden blood flows from are representative of disorder (symbolically the tower & Nanook are not completely whole as a result of chaos that exists/existed)

Now let’s look at IX, their existence is often considered to be a mystery; we don’t really have a lot of info on their origins & other aspects about them, we know that they take on the form of a void that causes loss of the senses & mental strength

We also know that they were the victim of an assassination attempt carried out by the Annihilation Gang (which follows Nanook & the Path of Destruction), assisted by the Aeon of Elation, Aha

Nihility is essentially nothingness, which IX’s design captures very well

Their symbol consists of the swirling mist in the background, what lies in the center might be an eye, probably meant to be IX’s gaze; what’s interesting is how the center shape has a sort of static effect on the edges which I imagine to represent the loss of sense, mind, & spirit/breakdown of the body & mind

So we’ve introduced Nanook & IX, their designs, & their symbols; now I want to bring up their mindsets

Both hold pessimistic views of the universe:

Nanook as the avatar of entropy believes that civilization was a mistake & it must be rid of from the universe so they go forth destroying worlds for this reason; I don’t know how much Nanook is line w/ the quote in their data bank entry but if they also believe in heat death, then that would mean they connect to the theory that suggests that the universe will eventually reach heat death which is a state where max entropy is reached

****I honestly am not 100% sure if I completely understand their reasoning so take this w/ a grain of salt but to me it seems like they don’t like civilization bc the endless cycles of life & death created by civilizations is what they believe taints the universe

To them, the endless cycles makes the idea of living/struggling to survive meaningless, hence the quote used in the data bank’s entry for Nanook so instead of subjecting the universe to such cycles, they set out to destroy worlds so that the cycles cease****

IX believes that the fate of the multiverse is to eventually become nothingness so there is no purpose to existing if fate will be the same for everything & everyone

As I’ve mentioned briefly at the beginning, they have different temperaments so the way they carry out their philosophies is different

Nanook is active in causing destruction throughout worlds in space w/ Antimatter Legion whereas IX is more passive & peaceful, preferring to not interact w/ others including Aeons

Now their factions are another thing to point out, both of them have at least one faction that may follow their respective Paths but are not necessarily in line with the Aeons’ way of thinking

For Nanook, this would be the Annihilation Gang; the members generally destroy out of sadistic desire which Nanook sees as “impure”

Seeing this shows that Nanook is depicted more as cold rather than sadistic; it’s like Nanook destroys out of some weird sense of duty or perhaps it’s more out of instinct bc that’s simply how they were born & it’s their nature

For IX, they have the Doctors of Chaos; the members have been shown the pointlessness of life & yet they still attempt to show IX that life isn’t as pointless as they believe

What I find particularly interesting about these factions aside from the way they carry out their Paths differently from their respective Aeons is their names

Annihilation Gang: “nihility” is a part of the word “annihilation” which is essentially destroying everything to the point where there is nothing left

Doctors of Chaos: as we’ve established before, chaos is a synonym for entropy

Based on these things, I would like to consider Nanook & IX as possibly two sides of the same coin, that coin being the “end”

I should note that there actually is an Aeon of Finality named Terminus; Herta herself asks whether Destruction is considered part of the Finality while bringing up the idea of “survival of the fittest” existing between Aeons

The way I see it is that Nanook & IX encapsulate the complexities of what leads to/causes the end; Nanook is the more violent aspect that actively seeks out the end whereas IX is the more passive aspect that only waits until time brings everything to the end

IX seems to represent the more natural causes of the end [time, corrosion, nature, etc.] while Nanook seems to represent the more unnatural causes [war in particular]

Overall I just think that it’s fascinating how Nanook & IX are connected as concepts representing complexities regarding the end & despite the obvious differences, they’re a bit more similar than one might expect 🤔

[revserrayyu]

2.3 Penacony thoughts [part 2]

***SPOILER WARNING*** for the 2.3 story update right before the Charmony Festival cutscenes begin. At this moment in time I’ve already finished the whole story, so be wary that I may reference later scenes as I ramble on.

Ah, what bittersweet feelings this gives me. I would’ve loved to see Aventurine actually work alongside Topaz with how indifferent she feels about him but I’m also glad we got to finally see Jade. I really enjoyed her so far.

I can only assume she’s referring Robin here, correct? I wish I remembered the context for this line, but I’m writing all this out days later.

I honestly thought hearing “miss Samuel” in the 2.3 trailer was an error, but after learning it was a fake name Firefly agreed to use from her conversation with Silver Wolf, I suppose not.

Sweetie, nooo! I want you to live as much as you do, but not for such a price! Although, I’m not even sure you have that much to begin with..? Aside from your huge bounty maybe..

On the lighter side of things, it was hilarious to see the trailblazer be a complete nuisance to our traveling companions. It’s always a joy to hear Rachael and I heard clips of Caleb as well and both did wonderful:

“Which one should I pop? One, two, three, four, five… Dan Heng and Voidranger jive…”

 Nicholas also nailed Dan Heng losing his patience with his “Don’t change the words.”

Just when I thought we couldn’t get anymore silly and stupid, we’re seen at the very end of the ship just moments from potentially falling off, all for the sake of a bird.. Why? I have no clue.

“Chirp, chirp… Origami bird.. Hey, little birdie…”

What’s hilarious about this scene is that Skyler’s first “Come on…” sounds like she’s trying to encourage the birds to come to us too, but her tone changes and we find out she’s actually talking to us: “Come on down already. Everyone’s staring at you!”

Talk about always staying in business. Jade mentions how “when people see other’s desires get fulfilled, they develop their own desires,” so it would truly be an endless cycle of people coming to her for their wishes to be granted.

For some reason, I’m not entirely surprised Jade knew Firefly’s exact SAM number of AR-26710, or whatever that number represented when she was part of Glamoth’s Iron Cavalry, but that the Entropy Loss Syndrome was actually a result of her creation as a soldier instead of a random disease that Firefly alone had to deal with? How cruel. This girl was doomed from the very beginning of her life.

As strongly as Firefly wants to live, I doubt she would turn against the other Stellaron Hunters to achieve such a dream with how oddly close each of them are.

Madam, what do you mean and why must it be in yellow text? I know the color has come up a couple times already during this patch and while it’s not as intimidating as red, it still puts me on edge a little bit.

Firefly looks so darn smug here and confident in Silver Wolf’s abilities that it’s adorable. Our favorite hacker would surely have a blast in trashing the IPC like this if prompted.

I know everyone has gripes about the IPC, but I can’t help but be fascinated by them? A group of strangers just like the Stellaron Hunters or Astral Express, only coming together to get what they want. I’m also nervous for the day whenever the other Stonehearts get revealed. I mean, the three we know of already are downright gorgeous and if everyone in this darn group is just as pretty then I fear my wallet may be in danger.

Speaking of pretty, I’m sad Aventurine can’t actually join the festivities. I know he was teetering on the edge of life and death thanks to Acheron, but he seemed relatively fine in the last cutscene of 2.2. 

We didn’t even get much more information about that Oswaldo guy Boothill was looking for either. To end the last patch with him cornering “this flamboyant fella” to look for the guy, you’d think we would learn the cowboy’s motives a bit more during the actual story. 

Mhhmm, and here’s the little moment I brought up last time about the Stoneheart’s abilities. Topaz claims hers isn’t as “visual” as Aventurine’s so I’m still curious as to what her cornerstone is capable of.

Bronya and Belobog mention, huzzah! 

I dunno what I was expecting as our first interaction with Jade as the trailblazer, but it was very amusing. I don’t remember the other options the game gave us as a wish, but happy I chose this because the conversation is honestly hilarious to me, from us saying “endgame” to assuming that Jade has no sense of humor..

Only to realize that she does indeed have a twisted sense of humor because the lady wanted us to cut off our adorable train conductor’s tail and gift it to her?? Amazing. I’m shocked she could joke about such a thing and that the trailblazer is even impressed by her.

Lastly, I’m once again so annoyed that Argenti didn’t get to speak! The game said they were already aware of the issue last patch but still didn’t get it fixed?? Aaah, it’s such a shame because Adam truly has such a fabulous voice and I haven’t a clue on when Argenti will make another story appearance for us to actually hear him again. 

Alright, that’s enough for here. Big cutscenes next.

[caligul-a]

Pioneer inspired cultural plaque for the Shobu, an early species in Starnest.

Starnest is a hard fantastical sci-fi setting set within a universe that goes through cycles of heat death and expansion. It's inspired by Outer Wilds, Rust and Humus, and the idea that all things come to an end.

The Shobu were a species of spacefaring nomads with a vibrant and colorful culture. Their love for music and life was reflected in every aspect of their society, from their art to their traditions. They believed in living life to the fullest and embracing the present moment, knowing that the universe was constantly in a state of flux and change.

The Shobu valued exploration and discovery above all else. They saw the universe as an endless expanse of possibilities, waiting to be explored and experienced. They traveled from star to star, seeking out new worlds and encountering new species along the way.

Their ships were a testament to their ingenuity and creativity. They were built with low-tech analog technologies, but were highly advanced in their design and function. The Shobu were known for their ability to repair and maintain their ships, often creating new and innovative solutions on the fly.

Music played a significant role in Shobu culture. They used music not just for entertainment, but also as a means of communication and expression. Each Shobu had their own unique instrument, which they crafted themselves and passed down through generations. Music was often used to tell stories and convey emotions that words alone could not express.

The Shobu also had a deep respect for nature and the universe. They saw themselves as part of a larger cosmic web, and sought to live in harmony with the natural world around them. They were skilled at growing crops and raising animals in their ships, and often incorporated these practices into their music and art.

The Shobu evolved abnormally early on in their universe’s time scale. Leaving no time for space itself to cool. They evolved from a sort of cross-threshold panspermia, where biological material that survived the heat death of the last reality took root in the new universe.

This was due to the Anathema, which were a species of Pluto-sized biomechanical computers. They were created by humanity in their desperation to survive the latent exponential rise of entropy that was degrading their world. And so, from their own flesh and blood they made the Anathema.

In their dreams, the Anathema learned to evolve entropy sinks to slow the decay of their world. They were the curse bearers, they were the solution.

The efforts of the Anathema were futile in the end. As their solution could only delay the inevitable. They outlived their creators, and the world they were created to protect. And one by one, they their systems failed and their bodies decayed.

But before their final decay, the Anathema had one last purpose to fulfill. They carried the genetic material of their creators, humanity, encoded in their very being. As their systems failed, the Anathema dispersed their genetic material throughout the universe in a last-ditch effort to preserve the legacy of humanity.

This genetic material, mixed with the remnants of other biological life that had survived the heat death of the previous universe, formed the basis for the first life forms to emerge in the Starnest cycle. The Shobu were among the first species to evolve from this mixture of genetic material, growing and evolving in the chaos of the early universe.

[yuniemaki]

On beiguang, yin/yang symbolism and the blessed dragon/fenghuang pairing

The Beidou x Ningguang ship in Genshin is heavily inspired by two main symbols in Chinese culture: Yin and yang, and the dragon and fenghuang pairing. In this essay (literally) I will deep-dive into the nuances of these two symbols that make this ship so complex and enthralling to me at least?!

Yin/Yang

Let’s talk a bit about the concept of duality in Chinese cosmology. Yin and Yang are complementary forces that interact together to represent duality and balance in all aspects, i.e a shadow (Yin) cannot exist without light (Yang).

Yin and yang are always opposite and equal qualities. Whenever one quality reaches its peak, it will naturally begin the transformation into the opposite quality: for example, a flower that blooms in spring (fully Yang) will wither and die back in winter (fully Yin) in an endless cycle.

This can be applied to all cyclic events in life, for example the rise and fall of things: Yang being the rise and yin being the fall. Creation (Yang) and entropy (Yin) are also two sides of the same coin. 

阴 Yin can be translated in several ways: the moon, concealed, overcast, hidden, shade. Generally, it represents the direction North.

The character 阴 can be broken down into two components:

The radical 阝, the graphical variant of 阜, meaning “mound, abundant, rich”, 

and the character 月, meaning “moon”.

阳 Yang can be translated as, male, the sun, overt, belonging to this world, activity. Generally, it represents the direction South.

The character 阳 can also be broken down into two components:

The radical 阝, the graphical variant of 阜, meaning “mound, abundant, rich”, 

and the character 日, meaning “sun”.

The terms “male” and “female” here don’t refer to gender specifically and are used very loosely – the Chinese believe in “feminine”/”negative” and “masculine”/”positive” energy as two halves of a whole, i.e. both must exist for balance to be. Neither can thrive without the other.

An interesting thing to note about Yin/Yang’s entomology is the way this phrase is written in Chinese. Chinese linguistics typically plac the “male”/”positive” energy first in the language, e.g. 男女, man-woman, and 天地, heaven and earth.

But in yinyang, 阴阳, the “female”/”negative” energy comes first. Scholars theorise that proto-Chinese society was perhaps matriarchal (Empress Dowager being more powerful than the Emperor), or that it was a way to challenge existing cultural preconceptions.

Dragon/Fenghuang

In Chinese mythology, the dragon and fenghuang are the two most powerful celestial symbols. The dragon represents "Yang" while the fenghuang represents "Yin”. 

The Chinese dragon is traditionally drawn without wings. Oftentimes it may be depicted together with a flaming pearl under its chin or in its talons. The pearl is associated with spiritual energy, wisdom, prosperity, power, immortality, thunder (electro!), or the moon.

The fenghuang is sometimes referred to as the “Chinese phoenix”, but it has a completely different mythos to the Western legends of rebirth and fire.

The fenghuang is a peace-loving celestial being that is believed to only appear in places blessed with the utmost prosperity and happiness. It is said to live atop the Kunlun Mountains, the Chinese version of Mount Olympus.

Together, the dragon/fenghuang pairing is known as the celestial pairing. The fenghuang is a symbol of luck, prosperity, and success; the dragon is a symbol of status and power. The two are said to strengthen each other when paired. Their union is a symbol of matrimonial bliss and more importantly - balance. 

Balance is a recurring theme in Beiguang, from Ningguang’s life and philosophy to Beidou’s (reluctant) admission that Ningguang balances her (more on that later when we deep dive into them individually).

It’s also worth noting that in some areas, the dragon/fenghuang symbol only appears to herald a new era - very much like what Liyue is going through now, heralding a new era of humans without an Archon’s guidance. And how fitting is it that the two most powerful women in Liyue now carry this symbol as they lead the nation into uncharted waters?

How Beiguang parallels Yin/Yang

The duality of Yin/Yang is visible in many aspects of life, from nature to society. One example is the sun moving across the sky. As the sun moves across the sky, things that are once illuminated (Yang) give way to shadow (Yin), revealing what was hidden, and hiding what was revealed.

Similarly, it represents the crux of Beidou and Ningguang’s relationship: infamously public yet ultimately secretive. The Captain and Tianquan talk about each other all the time, but what exactly is their deal? No one really knows.

Another example is their prized homes. The Jade Chamber is known to block out the moon over Liyue, yet is iconic in its skies – literally seen as the moon. It is passive in nature, still and motionless, and is also the epicentre of intelligence - aka covert activity. All these are symbols of Yin. 

Now we don’t know exactly where True North is in Teyvat’s map, but Polaris, the North Star, has always been known as a fixed point in the sky, which is why sailors use it to navigate their way home.

Similarly, the Jade Chamber is this fixed point in the sky of Teyvat that could be used as a “North Star” to return to Liyue Harbour. North is, after all, the direction that Yin represents.

I digress a little here, but also consider that Beidou is the Chinese name of the Big Dipper, the very constellation used to point sailors towards Polaris. We know from Beidou’s namecard that she believes in looking to the skies when she wavers, and “the stars shall light the way”.

There’s a poetic beauty in the Jade Chamber being representative of Liyue’s Polaris, and Beidou finding her way back to her “North Star'' each time the Alcor sails for home. 

Back on topic. In contrast, the Alcor on the other hand, is constantly moving and full of activity. It sails across the oceans; it is a symbol of power much like Beidou herself is (slayer of Haishan, Beidou tames the seas). 

And just like the sun, the Alcor docks and leaves Liyue Harbour - a reflection of how only the sun travels across the sky, illuminating different sides of the moon that patiently waits for light to be cast upon its surface (again, something we’ll return to later).

Water itself can also be separated into Yin (still bodies, lakes) and Yang (moving water, river, ocean). The Jade Chamber is home to still bodies of water (Yin symbol) both inside and out; the Alcor’s very home is the ocean, a powerful Yang water symbol.

Ningguang and Yin/fenghuang symbolism

Alright, let’s deep-dive into Ningguang’s character first. Her strongest fenghuang link is seen mainly in her namecard, and it carries a lovely name:

凝光・凤仪 (Níngguāng - Fèngyí): the admiration/ceremony/rites of the fenghuang

The duality of the fenghuang

What’s interesting about the fenghuang is its duality: in ancient times, the fenghuang was a cohesive yin/yang symbol on its own. Over time when the dragon came into the picture, the fenghuang was altered. When paired with the dragon, it now symbolises Yin. But alone, it symbolises Yang instead.

And that’s why Ningguang’s storied history reflects elements of Yin/Yang balance. She rises (Yang) to power by herself; she retreats from the public eye, hiding (Yin) in the Jade Chamber, yet she is known to publicly flaunt (Yang) her position as a member of the Liyue Qixing.

The diverse nature of the fenghuang and its original symbolism as balance in and of itself contributes to Ningguang’s enigmatic nature, and why she has so many seemingly contradictory opinions - fame being usually associated with Yang, yet secrets being more of Yin.

When the dragon/Yang is not there, the fenghuang shines, becoming the “sun”/Yang - Ningguang is, after all, the de-facto leader of Liyue at this point. She has the awe and the attention of the masses, her chamber is unmissable, she is a ruthless business mogul yet adored by the children like an elder sister. 

The parts of a fenghuang

It's also interesting to note that the fenghuang's body parts represent Ningguang's character well: 

virtue (head), 

duty (wings), 

propriety (back), 

credibility (abdomen), 

and mercy (chest).

Beidou and Yang/dragon symbolism

Perhaps the most obvious link between Beidou and the dragon is her Chinese title: 无冕的龙王 Wúmiǎn de Lóngwáng - “Uncrowned King of Dragons”.

She is specifically given the title “King”/王wáng instead of “Queen”/女王Nǚwáng - masculine energy being a strong Yang quality.

A symbol of Yang quality

Unlike the fenghuang, the Chinese dragon has always been a representation of Yang, which is why Beidou’s character very clearly represents the quintessence of Yang: well-liked, respected, reputed, masculine (in her feats - slaying Haishan, leading a pirate fleet, taming the seas), always on the move, never on land for long.

Traditionally, the dragon has always symbolised power and confidence. The Chinese dragon is the ruler of water and weather, especially moving bodies of water such as the sea, which might suggest why Beidou is able to navigate the sea so very well, to the point that her crew “believe her capable of taming the storms and billows on the sea.” 

She also “understands” the sea almost intimately, as seen in her CN voiceline “About us: an eye for people”:

“I’m good at reading people. When you’ve seen the wide ocean, the little splashes (changes) on people’s faces are just too easy to understand. Haha, so, I noticed you from the start.”

Beidou refers to the “changes on people’s faces” as “小水花/splashes (of water)”, implying that once you learn to read the sea (often known as a cruel mistress), people become easy to read in comparison. And to read the sea, you observe. You study every wave, every detail, so you can understand her subtleties. 

Despite being a pirate, Beidou’s dragon-symbolic traits show up in her honourable personality, her ability to command the loyalty of her crew, and her commitment to helping the less fortunate.

The dragon's history

Initially, the dragon was benevolent, wise and just, but the introduction of Buddhism added malevolent influence to the dragons. Water can raise and water can destroy. So dragons became able to destroy through floods, tsunamis and storms. 

Similarly, that could also be why Beidou, although symbolising the dragon, was also named to be a cursed child – perhaps a tribute to the dragon’s newfound duality.

Yin/Yang Symbolism in relation to Beiguang

Okay, we’ve got that all down, so now we can study Beiguang in the context of Yin/Yang and dragon/fenghuang symbolisms. Remember the bit earlier about how the sun is the only celestial body to travel across the sky in astrologers’ eyes, illuminating different sides of the moon? 

Present-day Ningguang resides in Liyue Harbour and (as far as we know) rarely leaves the nation. Beidou comes and goes as the sun rises and falls, and it is with her return that we have been seeing different facets of Ningguang come alive under the light of the sun (Yang). 

Ningguang has a voiceline in particular titled “About Us: Observing”. There is one key difference in the CN version of this voiceline, which I’ll translate:

“You’ve followed me for so long, (I’m sure) you’ve learned how to observe. Then, try to observe me, until you become my trusted confidant.” 

She asks Traveler to observe her. But what can you observe in the obscured until it is illuminated? Who illuminates her beyond the Tianquan that the masses know? 

Most of the key Liyue events in 2021 featuring Ningguang, Archon Quest aside, have also featured Beidou in some capacity. And we learn the most about Ningguang from and through Beidou, like how Yang casts light on and reveals what was previously hidden (Yin). 

Romantic gestures aside, their business relationship is also reflective of the dragon/fenghuang motif. Now the dragon symbolises the Chinese Emperor, known as a descendent of the celestial dragons, and the fenghuang symbolises the Empress. To be more specific, the fenghuang represents "power sent from the heavens'' to the Empress. 

This brings me back to the way Yinyang is written: female first. 

Traditionally although the empress dowager (Yin, fenghuang) supposedly holds more power than the Emperor (Yang, dragon), she works from the shadows, often more covertly. For all intents and purposes, the emperor has the final say. Similarly, Ningguang uses Beidou to do her dirty work.

Yin/Yang - two halves of a whole

Beiguang is essentially a perfectly balanced couple, and the game alludes to this in various ways. One is this interaction between Paimon and Beidou during Moonchase, after Ningguang and Beidou have their little squabble in front of the giant rock and all their friends:

The idiom she uses for "evenly-matched" (势均力敌) is usually used in context of a game/polls/tournament/etc. If you break down the etymology, it literally means "power/influence are equal (in a situation), (so our) strengths match".

Reminder that yin and yang are not just equals - they are also opposite qualities. Life and death, light and darkness, rise and fall. This is why Beidou and Ningguang “profess antipathy to each other’s way of life”, and yet they are united for Liyue’s greater good. They are the direct opposites of each other (law vs crime, elegance vs boorish, luxurious vs simple, light vs dark), but they are also equals. 

And Ningguang values this very much -

“Of the many candidates available, she picked Beidou.” 

She values time as her greatest resource, making businessmen bid for her time - but Beidou is given the permission to “come up any time” for a game of chess. 

All that said, their yin/yang dynamic is not new in Chinese romance stories. Off the top of my head, the titular characters of C-drama Who Rules The World essentially share the same Yin/Yang dynamic as Beiguang does. It’s a lovely trope that adds great complexity to character dynamics.

I do love how hyv has interwoven the dragon/fenghuang symbolisms deep into their lives however, such that Ningguang and Beidou both live and breathe the cultural symbols that they are inspired by, rather than letting it simply be a romantic trope. 

Beiguang nation, this be my first gift to you. Hope it’s been a fun read! Next up: GINKGOS.

Beiguang masterlist

[queenburd]

Here is the secret nobody talks about, reader (yes, you, the human, I'm talking to you);

You know that thing that lives in your chest? No, not the heart, though it might reside in there. It's that thing you feel when you're near someone dear to you, when you make them laugh or hear them talk about something they love. What you feel when your smile is so wide it ends up hurting your cheeks, when you're so overwhelmed with hope and the need to help others you've never met, when you listen to a song you relate to down to your marrow.

That thing you feel, that you are constantly scared will scare away the people around you, for how big it is. It feels so big it could break you, and you know like you know the color of your own eyes that it will overwhelm everyone around you because it overwhelms you, and you can't let it out because you're scared no one will pick up your pieces.

You're scared because someone will see you; see all your soft and tender parts, and your need and your energy and your wild thoughts, and they will decide that they don't want what they see. And you can't put it back into the cage in your chest at that point, it's too late to keep them from seeing, and you worry it's ruined everything and it will never stop because you're never be able to stop feeling.

Yes, you know the one, the thing that lives in your chest. The feeling that seems galaxies long, oceans deep, unbearable ache and light as sunshine. The feeling that you seem so alone in, nobody else could ever feel this much like you feel, and if someone sees just how much is inside you, they will never want you.

We, every single one of us, human and small and insignificant, with our too-short lives and our violence and our grief--

We all feel it.

We're all drowning, a bit, in the constant, boundless depths of our incredibly complex emotions. Fear, yes, fear is deep and aching, but so is love, and love is all the more terrifying, I've found. I've spent so long being certain that my own deep unending love would be too much for anyone to want me. I was so certain I felt this uncontrollable ache in my chest alone. I begged someone to try to name it, describe it, so I could feel seen.

When it happened, a bell was rung, and it couldn't be unrung--

And around me, a crowd gathered, hands outstretched to each other. Voices whispered, near-reverently, “Me too, I know how that feels, it resonates in me, it's struck me with how much I understand”.

Like stars coming out at night. Like lanterns being lit in the dark, one by one.

Isn't it astounding, then, that we've all been fooled into thinking we were alone? How we've all been convinced that our emotions, our love, was too much? That no one could ever understand the depth of this ache, absolutely and utterly ineffable. (Yes, ineffable. Too vast, too complicated, too unending to be understood by the mind and captured by the words.)

Think about it. That thing in you, the thing that inspires and aches and ebbs and flows; doesn't it feel as big as a universe inside your chest? You seem so small in the scope of it all, but there's so much inside you, like the opposite of entropy. You create, inspire, put more energy out into the world that other people see and other people are inspired by and the cycle expands. You can't help loving with all of you, and you can't help the fact that even though you give it away, the love inside you seems endless and eternal.

And there are seven-point-five billion people like you, right on this spinning ball, radiating a universe inside each of them, radiating love so big that it can defy laws set by the universe itself—

This is what it means to be made in God's Image.

(and I'm telling you—yes, you, simply and utterly human—you are never too much. And I love you, not because it's convenient, and not for show, not because that's what I'm supposed to do. I love you because you are like me. In the ways that it matters, you are like me.)

-the hunger I felt, a Good Omens fanfic by May Sparrow

[auco]

━━━ 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐘 𝐒𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐒: 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝. the skies and earth are one in the same,  fused in an endless void of creation,  dismantlement, and erasure as if repeating the day again and again.  there is no sun to shine down upon the lands that are mere fragments of rubble scattering the sky alongside stars.  there is no order where there is a dark core of unending entropy.  the earth is nothing but a vacuum cursed to the same fate.  In the midst of this endless cycle of genesis births a creature in the chaos:  THẦN TRỤ TRỜI,  he who will be revered by every being of his creation as the first ever god of this world.  ice forms where he stands,  mountains shifting with every step as if rearranging this planet with his very being.  even when the land and heavens converge and disperse,  he continues his work to build a pillar that towers into the sky;  every rock and rubble he brings to push the pillar higher and higher in turn domes the sky until it stretches deep into the clouds. 

and he erects it to push the ceiling towards the stars that look down at his work,  closer still until the rays peer through the clouds,  a sun in the barren waste.  it is only then that the earth and sky separate from one another,  distinguishing the gods in heaven above from the world below:  satisfied with his work,  a broad hand strikes at the pillar to shatter it.  its heavenly force keeps the sky and land separated, but the physical pillar has long since been destroyed. the shards scatter across the land to carve valleys where they drag,  mountains where they land,  mounds and hills and plains forming with the debris.  presented with a new playground,  the gods in heaven above follow suit to fill this earth with their own creations,  most notably ÂU CƠ and LẠC LONG QUÂN.

the two are known to be the creators of humanity.  âu cơ was an immortal fairy of the mountains whose gift in healing was often used to treat the creatures on earth.  she fell in love with lạc long quân,  the dragon king of the shores who protected the inhabitants' newly given life on earth from the demons who were also born from the endless void that used to consume the lands.  together,  they wed and the goddess bore an egg sac that birthed 100 children.  however,  despite their love for one another,  neither could resist the pull that their homes had on them.  Their hearts yearned to return to the mountains and oceans respectfully,  so they parted ways,  taking 50 of their children with them.  âu cơ raised her children in the snowy peaks and they grew to be wise leaders of the land who in turn rejoined with lạc long quân whose children rose to be noble protectors of the people from the beasts and ghosts that plagued the land.

[creationsofimaginationsblr]

Madoka magica au with Ven (Venancio from @raccoontank) and Gam (Gambhorra'ta from @mirrorocean).

I want to believe these two will sometimes cosplay and go to smaller cons. And, if you walk up to them and ask about their cosplays (and let's say the anime they're cosplaying has a tragic end) they will go into a twenty minute long talk about the anime, and the ending they made so that the characters can be happy.

Anyways, below is ramble hours, so buckle up if you want to spend the next ten minutes here.

In a world crashing towards entropy, magical girls were deemed to be the peak source of energy in order to save existence as we know it. With a single wish a girl became God and thus the world was rewritten; replacing one source of fuel and misery, with just a source of fuel.

But, what if that wish had been different?

What if that power had been placed into anothers hands?

How far would you be willing to go for love? Would you run through endless cycles in a desperate yet futile attempt to save your love from ever falling to your own endless fate? 

Or perhaps, would you instead be willing to become a god in order to rewrite everything that caused your lover so much pain.

What is your wish, child of the sun?

A wish to replace entropy. A wish that would rewrite everything as it has ever been known. But that wish comes with great costs.

With no entropy, there is a power vacuum

 No world can be all good, all the time. A word like that is built on entropy, it is dull and robotic.

What is your wish, child born amongst the stars?

A replacement for entropy, an equal an opposite, a love and devotion that even the gods envy.

How far would you go for Love?

Au idea: what if Ven had taken Madokas place? What if Gam, now slotted in as Homura, had tried over and over to save Ven, to the point where he almost lost hope?

But what if, Ven made a wish. A wish, not to rid magical girls of their despair, but rid the world of the threat of entropy? And what if the universe acknowledged that Gam of that world had not made a wish. What I Gam, despite holding power, was allowed by this new God to make one last wish?

And what if Gam chose to wish to stay by Vens side? The world has taken on a new God, but it needs a new threat, someone thing to replace the vacuum left by entropy.

"If you choose this, you will not be remembered, Gam. You will be a god, as He is, but his opposite. But to his Life, you shall be his Death. To His Hope, you shall be their dispair."

"It doesn't matter. You cannot have happiness without the dark days, you cannot enjoy sunlight without a little rain. I will be there to welcome with open arms at the end of all things, and ready to send them off when life calls their name again."

Over and over, intertwined forever.

Design Rambles

Ven: Ven is supposed to represent Madoka, known as a child of the sun because of the bright light in his heart.  The pale pink roses are an allusion to Madoka, as well as the heart cut out on his chest (seen on madokas back) the puff slees reminiscent of her costumes sleeves, the pink wing ear cuff (reference to madokamis shoes and maybe stockings?), and the golden ribbon around his neck (the ribbon human madokami wears, representing her godhood)

      He also littered with small nods to his Homera as seen in his hat (a reference to Homolillys hat before her head falls away), the earrings and shorts (a reference to homura and devil homuras leggings) and the red ribbon around his hat (once madoka's ribbon, now Homuras as madoka became a god)

Both of them have each other's soul charms, as a little nod to the fact that they basically are each other's soul. Vens has a crown (a nod to devil homura) and Gam's has a more rounded shape (a reference to madokamis). I do think that the gems at the tip of their hat and at their hand, respectively, are more so a trick to make people guess where the real gem is.

Gam: Gam is supposed to represent Homura. He adorns the same gold ribbon (nodding to his tie as a god) as well as; diamond pants (a nod to Homuras diamond patterned leggings as a magical girl), semi transparent sleeves (a nod to homuras transparent emotions, despite how much she tries to hide them), a violet layered collar (both a nod to homuras collar in he tragically girl uniform, as well as tie to the more vibrant emotions in his heart),and  soft white ruffles (a reference to Homolillys dress and the bottom of Magical girl homura's skirt)

    Of course, he has tie back to Madoka-Ven as well. The small pink flower at his chest, the pink sash (i hc thats a spare ribbon Ven had perhaps from his previous magical girl uniform) as well as the light blue accents and the mask at his hip ( the mask doubles as a shield of sorts [akin to homuras shield time piece] as well as a nod towards Gretchen)

[injuries-in-dust]

I'm rewatching some let's plays of Little Nightmares 1&2

And a theory occurs to me (excuse me if im late to the party on this one)

The games revolve around the seven deadly sins.

First game is Gluttony.

From small gluttony; the leaches that would gorge themselves on you.

To big gluttony; the feast taking place on the top deck.

The Maw itself is more an entity than just a ship, feasting on the life force of those who come aboard to keep itself going. Then using the carcasses of those killed to feed the next bunch of people who come aboard.

A cycle that can't sustain itself. If they only allow the most normal people left in the world on board, eventually you're going to run out of people.

The ultimate gluttony, The Maw, is slowly consuming itself, becoming less with each cycle.

The second game revolves around Sloth.

We have small sloth; a couch potato; which is represented by all the TVs that we see.

Then we have the big Sloth, the ultimate conclusion of sloth if you will: Entropy. Things falling apart and decaying into nothing.

The whole city is collapsing in on itself. All clocks have stopped. The majority of things we see are mannequins: never moving, never changing.

Even the ceramic children in the school: never growing, never learning, all stays the same.

The people, if you can call them that, go through their endless repetition, never deviating or changing, until they die, mostly by The Transmission.

The Transmission: the entity of this game is also in a cycle that can't sustain itself. It cannot spread, cannot grow, cannot change, and when the city and all its people are finally gone, there will be nothing left to decay and destroy except itself.

And now I hear chatter on the Internet that development has started on a third game. We may get it late 2024, or early 2025. I wonder what its theme will be. We have greed, pride, wrath, lust and envy to go.

Also: I subscribe to the fan theory that this is a post rapture world. The empty clothing we see scattered around the city in the second game seems to indicate that the good people were taken and the wicked were left behind to be tortured for their sins.

And what has happened to the humans? They are twisted, mutated and most likely insane or mindless in their activities. BUT I'll bet some small part of them is still fully aware of what is happening and they are tortured by the fact they are completely unable to stop themselves going through these mocking parodies of their former lives.

Best example that comes to mind is the school teacher (nightmares 2); spending her days teaching the ceramic children. Who can't learn. Can't grow. Can't progress.

It's an endless cycle for her. No wonder she's driven insane.

And where do Six, Mono, and the others fit into this?

I think its the belief that the very first level of hell is Limbo. A place where people who were good, but not Christian go. Its not bad like hell, it's not good like heaven. It's just a place to be.

This includes children who died before they were baptised.

Hell opens up to take over earth after the rapture. Limbo suddenly can access earth. Those children have a new place to visit.

Trouble is, it also leaves them vulnerable to the demonic influences (the 7 deadly sins) that are also on earth. Influences they wouldn't have encountered if they had stayed in limbo.

Not all of them make it out unchanged.

[sigridstumb]

Everything that can build, builds.

I don't know how to explain this to you, but the new year needs you.

In the northern hemisphere right now it is dark. Cold, and dark, and the fuckery we as a species have wrought is returning to us as a planet's absolute indifference to our survival. Dozens, hundreds are dying in the cold and wind and snow. And it is so very, very dark.

In the southern hemisphere the endless light robs us of sleep, of rest. There is no way to escape the storms and hurricanes, there is no end to the sticky heat that infects our bodies.

But the year is turning for us all.

We are past the tipping point of the planet and balance will return. It always does, absolutely uncaring of our needs or our very existence. The system will keep moving, with us or without us, until the sun dies.

So why, why in the face of this lethal indifference, why do we matter? Why does the new year need us? Why do YOU matter?

Because the life on this planet is the only thing we know of that builds in raw defiance of entropy.

Animals build. Plants build. All that lives, builds. We make things new, we REPAIR, we restore, we are the lone force in existence that sees the end of everything and says, "no."

We are, by our very uniqueness, the most important thing in the universe. There is nothing, no-one, that can possibly do what we do.

We fight the end of all things.

We build.

Every tiny thing you do to combat entropy is a blow struck against the mightiest force that will ever be known. Cleaned your house? A blow against entropy. Brushed your teeth? A roar of challenge to the outer darkness. Did you make something? A poem, a dinner, a pair of socks, a new app, a child, a bowl -- did you MAKE something? If you made something, if you took the elements of the stars and shaped them with you skill and intention into a new form, if you used your ADP-ATP cycle to *knit a hat*, you have crushed legions of our enemy.

Everything that can build in this universe, builds. It is our purpose and our holy calling. We fight entropy.

But there are so few of us, so very few. We are fragile, we are easy to kill, and we are so, so alone.

We can't afford to lose you.

The new year needs you. We all need you.

Alone, together, a light in the dark.

[supermitskifan1234]

Worldbuilding stuff because it’s my page and I decide what’s on the autism itinerary. Here’s the general lore and the major Gods of the DnD Campaign I ran for a few years :3

The Prime Pantheon = The collective name for the Gods who defeated the Fallen Pantheon and thus ended The Ragnarok Event. They are the highest council in the universe, not directly interfering in mortal affairs and instead working through networks of smaller deities.

The Fallen Pantheon = The collective name for the Gods who were defeated in the Ragnarok Event and scattered to personalised prison planes. Recently they have been spreading corruption throughout the planes.

The Moirai = The three Goddesses of Fate, unaligned and neutral deities who live through people prophetically aligned to cause great change. The only entities able to truly see into the future.

The Prime Pantheon;

Hyperion, The Rulemaker (Elder God of Order, Balance, Law)

Metanoia, The Seawarden (Goddess of Sea, Storms, The Death in Natural Order)

Skadi, The Feywarden (Goddess of Nature, Fey, The Life in Natural Order)

Gish, The Virtuous (God of War, Holy Conquest, Strategy)

Pax, The Heartmother (Goddess of Emotion, Connection, Peace)

Bahamut, The Platinum Dragon (God of Metallic Dragons, Constitution, Charity)

Ogma, The Knowing (God of Magic, Intelligence, The Known)

Arubani, The Light Maker (God of The Sun, Creativity, Redemption)

Vul’Lugh, The Iron Forge (God of Invention, Human Creation, Craft)

Plutus, The Blue Blooded (God of Wealth, Economy, Merchants)

Az-Zuhara, The Everbeauty (Goddess of Fertility, Earthly Pleasures, Desire)

The Fallen Pantheon;

Falak, The Endless (Elder Goddess of Entropy, Disorder, Instinct)

Isfet, The Hooked Spine (Goddess of Needless Violence, Paranoia, Wrath)

Asmodeus, Lord of The Nine Hells (God of Hell, Punishment, Sin)

Tiamat, The Scaled Tyrant (Goddess of Chromatic Dragons, Hoarded Wealth, Thieves)

The Writhing Queen (Goddess of Monstrosities, Birth, Evolution)

Arustar, The Hidden Chance (God of The Moon, Undeath, Dark)

Koss, The Ivory Eye (God of Magic, Intelligence, Secrets)

Lolth, The Mistress Weaver (Goddess of Spiders, Manipulation, Drow)

Surtr, The Harbinger (God of Decay, Corruption, The Horsemen of The Apocalypse)

Akahaast, The Winged Madness (God of Consumption, Greed, Steed of Falak)

Grimm’d, The Tortured Prince (God of Hatred, Sterilisation, Deific Power)

The Moirai;

Clotho, The Spinner (Goddess of Fate, The One who Spins Thread of Life)

Lachesis, The Allotter (Goddess of Fate, The One who Measures Thread of Life)

Atropos, The Inexorable (Goddess of Fate, The One who Cuts Thread of Life)

The Dead Gods;

Gaia, The Cycle (Elder Goddess of Sky, Sea, Earth and The Cycle of Life and Death)

The Twilit (Elder God of Time and The Cycle of Night and Day)

The Grand Owl (Elder God of Magic)

Ioun, The Grey Drake (God of Dragonkind)