#the fall of the house of cabal

[wrowimages]

this is how book 5 ended, right

[surfinthehighway]

Last Cabal Liveblog/Thought Dump

I finished The Fall of the House of Cabal a couple days ago. I do like the ending a lot. It leaves enough room for more Cabal adventures (and I'm really disappointed there haven't been any more). Also, Cabal sweetheart name reveal (I was starting to think "Berenice" was fanon). And Alisha reuniting with Horst was so sweet.

Johannes has come so far from his selfish persona from the early books to someone who is not holding himself back from doing good and more openly cares about his friends. It's really neat to see. (I also can't help but think about Johannes rationalizing saving Alisha by saying that Berenice wouldn't want him to let her boil. A decade or more apart, re-kindled romance or not, I do hope that Cabal is the type of person she would still like. Especially considering where he comes from earlier in the series.)

I do like the early character of Johannes, but he strikes me as someone who was hurt by the world and put up this defense mechanism of "I don't care about anyone" despite, well, most of the things he does. Even in the first book, he has that whole rant about obliterating death which seems equal parts altruistic and egotistic-- and it seemed like he had always planned to cheat the Devil out of the Barrows' souls. (As a side note, I did not liveblog my reading of the first book, but I loved that book up until the third act. Because it seemed to me like Johannes was only ever planning to actually give the Devil the souls of the wicked, Horst's death seemed completely pointless and a result of Johannes not communicating his plan with him. There was so much baggage between those two. These last books, especially The Brothers Cabal, did so much to remedy my gripes with them lol. I can't see them being so out of sync with each other in the later books.)

That said, not knowing what happens to Berenice is going to make me insane. Also, Zarenyia and Leonie adventures will be interesting (I remember something on Twitter about a possible spinoff idea JLH had regarding this? I completely forgot about that until typing this now), but I do hope Miss Smith gets to hang out with them again. I believe in my heart she does. Also, I'm glad they're going to help Minty :)

[beedokart]

A quick silly comic of one of my favourite Zarenyia scenes. She’s good at being girls’ sapphic awakenings.

Poor Miss Smith was not ready for her, and her power to look good in lederhosen via being a 6ft1 woman with short hair.

[beedok]

I am going to hope Miss Smith is better at necromancy than Johannes is.

[magnetfamily]

Scarlet Witch & Quicksilver (2024) #3

Cover Art by Russell Dauterman

Variant Cover by Juann Cabal

Marvel Comics Presents Variant Cover by Romy Jones

Variant Cover by Saowee

Resurrection of Magneto (2024) #4

Cover art by Stefano Caselli

Fall of the House of X (2024) #4

Cover Art by Mahmud Asrar

[reality-detective]

Military Intel & Covert Ops: Celebrities, The Judges/Olu Unit, Gitmo, Diego Garcia, Pine Gap, Naval Base Guam, White House & FISA Declassification

The hidden world of military intelligence and covert ops with elite units like The Judges/Olu, Gitmo, Diego Garcia, Pine Gap, and Naval Base Guam is about to unravel. The White House and FISA Declassification hold the key to exposing the secrets that have been shielded for far too long. What’s coming next will shake the very foundations of power.

We stand on the brink of DECLAS, where FISA documents are declassified, and the secrets of the elite are laid bare. The web of deceit and manipulation that has controlled the halls of government for years is on the verge of collapse. The Judges/Olu Military Unit in collaboration with US Forces is orchestrating a covert operation, shaping a new narrative that promises civil order, but at what cost?

At the heart of it all lies the Trump Administration and the secret locations—Diego Garcia, Pine Gap, Guam, and even beneath Washington, D.C. The whispers are growing: Gitmo is overflowing with prisoners of high stature, while hidden underground facilities prepare for something monumental. The political tension is mounting, and a storm is brewing.

As Trump’s era fades, a military government is stepping in, rewriting the rules of engagement. The Judges/Olu and US forces are shaping a grand narrative aimed at transforming society. But who’s pulling the strings behind this shift? Is this retaliation for the years of slander by the liberal elite? We may soon find out.

But the plot thickens. The final stage—FISA Declassification—promises to unleash a storm that no one is prepared for. Every signatory tied to FISA warrants is under investigation. The Steele dossier will be exposed for the fraud it was, and the dominoes will fall, taking down the deep state operatives who manipulated the system.

The global implications are staggering, with UK, Australia, and key international players embroiled in the surveillance operations. The truth will ignite diplomatic chaos, as alliances tremble in the face of this coming revelation.

It all leads to this moment: the specter of treason. Mainstream media won’t tell you, but they know Trump’s return is on the horizon, and they know what’s coming with him: vengeance. The storm is here. “The Plan” is unfolding, and soon, traitors will face justice.

The US Space Force (USSF) has been quietly capturing deep state operations since 2019. The global cabal, their data, their power, all documented, all ready to be exposed. The SCARE EVENT set to erupt in 2024 will send shockwaves through the entire system.

The countdown is ticking, and the world braces for what’s next. FISA will expose the corruption, the lies, and the crimes that have been hidden in plain sight. No one is safe. The question is, are you ready for what’s coming? The storm is real, and the truth is inevitable. Get ready. Be Prepared.

If you have been doing your homework... When Trump came into office, the military more than doubled the size of Gitmo and military tribunals began around the end of 2017 early 2018. The swamp was deep, it takes time to round up over one million people for their arrest. The last I heard there were over 400,000 pending indictments and what is about to happen is near. 🤔

[billie-black]

Thread of odd connections between Ikora, Elsie and Eris

I was scrolling through concept art when I noticed that, despite not being so in-game, The Stranger's rifle is Branded as a Cassoid weapon. This wouldn't mean much, bungie tends to use decals at random, except-

The curse of osiris variant, The Machina Dei 4, is also branded with a slightly altered version of the Cassoid logo, which I think proves that it has been upgraded with components from the foundry.

But let's put a pin on that and talk about another Cassoid weapon, The Invective shotgun, Ikora's signature weapon. The Invective has an ornament called Iconoclast, a word which here means "Destroyer of images used in religious worship." This nomenclature is very similar to-

The Vex Mythoclast, a weapon which, thanks to its sister weapon, The Worldline Zero (which coincidentally also has a prophecy variant), we know to be made by Elsie Bray. Canonically, we earn the Mythoclast as part of-

the "Not forged in light" quest, which ends with Elsie gifting us the No time to explain. A weapon which eventually ends back up in her hands and she gifts to us again earlier in the timeline as-

The stranger's rifle, which hangs around until it becomes the Machina Dei 4 (later Adhortative). And the prophecy attached to the Machina Dei 4 desribes Eris Morn and the events of Shadowkeep, when Eris discovers stasis and starts using the darkness.

A charnel but effulgent orb.

beacon in a loathsome dark.

Fêted, fetid corpses rise.

a too-long-absent gibbous spark.

Now, it's generally accepted that No time to explain (and all it's variants by proxy) was created at some future point in a distant timeline, this is incorrect. Ghost specifically points out that "parts" of it shouldn't exist, because the rifle itself is a common suros frame.

Going back to The Invective, you're probably more familiar with its legendary sister, The Comedian, and its D2 counterpart, Deadpan Delivery. The Comedian's flavor text reads "A. A ha. A ha ha ha. A ha ha ha ha ha ha ha" In D1 the joke wasn't really clear, but with the addition of a lore tab in D2, the joke has become the vanguard's falling victim to a hive god's deceit. Now, let's take a little trip to The dark future.

In The dark future, Beyond light never happened, Eramis was allowed to grow her armies and master stasis, which led to a massive attack on the city by Cabal remnants, Savathûn, and the glorious House Salvation, all masterminded by Eris Morn, who up to that point was believed to be an ally, but had been corrupted by stasis and the darkness.

Coming back to our timeline, let's look at differences between our case exotics and their variants. Elsie's rifle has undergone many more modifications than Invective. Matter of fact, Invective has barely undergone any changes from its default. It's painted red, AND It has tape wrapped the handle and the grip, just like No time to explain. (I know I'm talking about grip tape right now but please don't go, it gets better, I promise)

It's a weak link, many weapons have grip tape, but I think many of these small details add up and point to The Iconoclast being one of Elsie's gifts. Let's review the similarities between Iconoclast and other gifts from Elsie.

>It's sourced from one of the city foundries and later received Cassoid upgrades (Invective and it's variants are nadir products)

>It has grip tape where the original does not.

>Mythoclast and Iconoclast are very similar terms and could point to a connection.

>It has a perpetual ammo function, like No time to explain and The Mythoclast.

But we should also look at Iconoclast within it's own context. Invective being her weapon, what does it mean for Ikora? She's never been been known to combat or really oppose any sort of religion, at least that I can find. And let's make it clear, the gun is not the Iconoclast. Just like the Mythoclast is not The Mythoclast. The weapons, in this case, are named for the wielder. You kill Atheon and so you become the Mythoclast, the gun is more of symbol. So, what religious figure is Ikora supposed to kill in order to become the Iconoclast?

Well, just this season, the hive have come out with a brand spanking new god, one very close to Ikora. Now I don't think Ikora is going to kill Eris. Eris would need to do something completely heinous for her to even consider that. Like, idk, bombarding the last city with House Salvation and the shadow legion... i. e., what happens in the dark timeline.

Look, I really don't believe Eris is going to turn evil all the sudden, that would be character assasination of the highest magnitude. But from Ikora's point of view? She has a supposed time traveller yelling at her that she's letting everything go sideways.

So my theory is that Elsie took Ikora's Invective from some other failed timeline (possibly the one where they smooch) and gave it to Ikora as the Iconoclast, along with the idea that alternate Ikora ruined everything because she failed to act and put Eris down when she could.

And this is where Deadpan Delivery comes in. You see, Ikora doesn't use invective anymore, and she doesn't use the Comedian. She exclusively wields Deadpan Delivery. Now, I know this was probably just the animators being faithful to her character, seeing how she prefers shotguns-

But the retroactive additions to the Comedian's lore, outside my crazed theories, implies a statement from Ikora. The Comedian's joke is the vanguard falling victim to a hive god's deceit, and in the dark timeline that god, the Savathûn figure, is Eris morn. And so-

By maining Deadpan delivery Ikora is subtextually saying "It's not funny. I'm not laughing. I don't subscribe to the narrative put forward by the comedian or Elsie. I trust Eris". And by rejecting the Comedian she's additionally disavowing it's older sister, The Invective, which is a symbol of the gung ho attitude which defined her in her youth. And wether my Iconoclast theory is correct or not, we can definitively say: Ikora is against what it represents , she is a guardian, and she will make a new fate no matter what.

[froldgapp]

In your timlonnie future fic where Tim goes to jail, do you have any ideas/hcs on what the final straw was that led to Tim and Kon's falling out? Tim's still talking to Gar by the time the fic starts, but I'm honestly fascinated by all the bridges he managed to burn trying to take down the main villain

Weeee! I'm so delighted you asked this, because this is a part of the greater story I'm actually really clear on! This is very long! Oops!

For anyone who doesn't know my corporate mole!Tim story, here's the original post. The sequel, which ended up being a TimxLonnie story, is here.

"...all the bridges he managed to burn trying to take down the main villain." So, absolutely this. I can't see myself mustering the energy to write the "prequel" or "Book 1" (and what was actually the original idea), so I don't mind sharing the bones here :D

Tim, in his effort to become believably repulsive enough to gain greater access to the people and information he needs, alienates the wider population, including and especially the broader superhero community. The corporate cabal start to push the narrative to the wider population that it's superheroes' fault there's no money for healthcare, no resources for schools and roads and affordable housing–in fact, why are we even letting these monsters live amongst us? Who cares if they save a life here and there–they're not natural! (A big element of allegory to all of this, naturally. <glares at current state of the world>)

Tim, as a young shill trying to prove himself, is selected as the best-placed person to be the face of this campaign. Probably with no small amount of hubris too, he believes he has enough social capital in the hero community to do this... People trust him. People trust Dick (the only other person besides Bruce* in the know). So, he makes a decision to walk this line, always holding on to the belief that it's for the greater good and that when he succeeds, he'll make amends. And it's Tim, so we know that by the time he's in his late teens, he already has a record of breaking a few eggs to make an omelette.

But, people–his friends–are hurt. Confused. Some become angry. Older heroes feel the shadow of history rise up; it's not their first time seeing an idealist tip into fanaticism and villainy. There's a lot of pressure on Dick to run interference on Tim's behalf. This puts a strain on Tim's relationship with Dick. Dick begins to wonder... Do I know what Tim is doing? The deeper Tim goes though, the bigger the act. There are times of incredible pressure when Tim must convince even himself that he is this disgusting, craven, cruel person.

But at some point, the community have had enough. Ultimately, they have to safeguard their wellbeing, so, as per chapter 4, as Tim tells Lonnie:

"I didn’t expect to be taken off the board before I had a chance to tie it all up. But Dick had a tip-off that the League was going to make a move to neutralise me: take me off-world for a while, memory wipe, something..."

So when the plan works begins to turn to if. The walls close in. Tim's hand is forced and he makes the blunder that ultimately gets him shot. Entré Kon.

Kon, who was initially trusting of Tim, and even supportive of him; defending him to everybody who tried to cast aspersions on him. He approaches Tim at one point even, begging Tim to tell him it's all a ruse. But Tim... The lie is the most important thing to Tim at that point, so he pushes Kon away. The relationship fractures. Kon feels a fool. Had he not defended Tim all these months? Was Tim just using him to keep the other heroes at bay? Very likely at this point Tim tells him, "Yes, I was. You were always easy to manipulate." Inside, naturally, Tim's heart is breaking.

So at the climax of Book 1, Tim is shot, right as he's about to dispatch everything to, let's say Lane or Gordon. I don't think he'd be stupid enough to go to the cop cops. He is so close. He just needs to get to his computer.

Kon, who hasn't spoken to Tim for weeks since the whole ordeal deepened, hears Tim's distress and appears just in time to stop the head shot that would kill Tim.

He sees Tim; writhing in pain, expensive suit bloody, shoulder pouring blood, ear ruined... A mess. In that moment, Kon sees what he's seen a million times before: another "baddie" (imagine any 90s action movie), who's been hoisted by their own petard. You know those baddies? The guys who end up dying gruesomely rather than give up their goal? But Kon feels gross that he could even think such a thing! Nevertheless, Kon still has this ugly feeling of abjection that he'd never had before.

But then he sees Tim's face. Tim is marvelling at Kon. He looks happy. His eyes are feverish and alight. Kon thinks for a moment, "This is my Tim. I knew he was still there."

But Tim is thinking, "I can still make it! I can still make it happen! Kon is here and he will help me!"

So, Tim says, "Super[whatever his name is by then]," desperation and hope in his eyes.

And Kon... He buys it. He sees all that hope in those blue eyes and he thinks, "He's come back to us."

But then Tim says, "You have to get me to the computer... I have to finish this. I have to finish them..." Maybe he's struggling to breathe, maybe there's blood on his teeth. "Please, please, I have to..."

Kon's face falls. He reaches down and gathers an increasingly weak and delirious Tim up in his arms. Tim is desperate. He knows that if he misses this chance, it–and he–is done.

Kon says, "Please don't struggle, Mr Wayne."

And as Kon carries Tim through the window, he sees Tim's eyes are still fixed–not on him–but on the silently blinking computer.

(Incidentally, this is why Tim reacts so viciously to Lonnie calling him Mr Wayne.)

.*Bruce is a problem I still have to take care of. Maybe he's started meditation since retiring and just peaces out of the mad affairs of his kids/proteges haha. A problem to be fixed were I to start the fic.

Thanks so much for the ask! <3

Also a thanks goes to @who-always-pays-their-taxes who was such an awesome support and cheerleader and co-screamed with me when I first shared the Kon element of the story. <3

[jkl-fff]

Best quote from Johannes Cabal: The Fall of the House of Cabal so far ...

"I feel no chaotic effects upon me. And for that, I am grateful and relieved. The fish business is not something I care to repeat."

"You made an adorable hake!"

"Madame," Cabal said with great dignity, "I was a halibut."

[marabarl-and-marlbara]

hi mara, the anon who liked Haunted House again, sorry i took a bit to get back to you, i wanted to find the time to re-read it and send you my favorite parts (apologies, i'll try not to make this ask a wall of sorts.) and to clarify-- yes! my favorite is the first one, it was the first piece of writing in a while that i have read and thought "wow, i really want to write like this myself." and i'll be sure to check out alice munro! im heading to a bookstore later this week so i'll pick up too much happiness.

"Lighter fluid from the outdoors-aisle were brought and doused up-on [...] I stared at him with a [...] I couldn't help but smile suddenly.

I don't think that I'd make it back [...] I had a nice time, today." and "Maybe a little silly, but sometimes I view those curses as making me an empowered necromancer-type, [...] thank you, I pray." just love your control of tone in writing :) anyways, do keep going! it's beautiful work, and i'd love to see more.

hey anonymous;

appreciate writing me back--appreciate the time, too, in re-reading that thing! I usually write this in the form of sappy letters to whomstever subs to me on substack but I really do appreciate any-one who bothers reading the stuff I write, mostly because reading is time consuming and time is valuable and every reader is a reward;

but now anonymous, I have to admit: I dislike all these quotes! I hate how I wrote here; I don't like re-reading the stuff I've written much and it always makes me fall into rewrites (one of my biggest 'issues' with editing and re-writing is wanting to make every paragraph consist of four sentences exactly and to have the sentences themselves be contained completely only multiples of four words--whenever I get to that point the project is dead, I've become the neurotic); still I'll take the compliment ^^, the necromancer one is silly to me because I've never really shaken-off something I've had since a child of being fascinated with edgy things, in-particular MTG cabal-faction mono-black necromancy--and, in a more dumb and grown version of that: all the warped expressions of 'faith' that come in dark souls 3: the cathedral of the deep, the dumb carcass arch deacon, the devourer, the sable church, even the little grave keepers that bubbled up from 2; one thing though: when writing the second haunted house I skimmed through the first one as a refresher and realized how better I wrote my own 'mindcontrol' fantasy--because it is a fantasy; it was a part of me that lately I'd been numb to ever since writing that I am not a person of integrity article and doing my dumb 'wilderness' disconnection etiquette: much ceased to bother me; back when the first was written something that I had always wished is that I could make the heat and noise and texture of people completely go flat, like corpses but instead of reeking death a constant clean 'plastic' that did not smell, rattle, rot, or think, and only move passively to my thoughts; no one would bother me, no one would touch me, no one would bleed awful skinny warmth on me, there would be no mucus, and it would just be perfectly unbothered of a world and perfectly unliving.

I think that's what I love about Boogiepop, is to me Boogiepop is the outfit and spirit, and not the person wearing; it's a shadow of a consciousness that sweeps into a person and overrides them and has with it no blood or mucus or warmth and is as mildewed as old laundry or as fresh as clean; take care anonymous.

[monocytogenes]

WIP Wednesday

Tagged by @nirikeehan! Got two recent WIPs out and have been picking here and there at the Pravin and Theron longfic project, so here's some character work with the two of them getting ready for an op, ft. Theron doing hacker shit and being the most bachelor dude to bachelor, Pravin trying to shake his stimulant addiction, a joke about the metric system, and some inconvenient Gay Thoughts.

This premise is loosely 'what if SoR but it's the Star Cabal?'; you can find some previous WIP posts here:

“Everything is fine,” he heard himself say; distantly, as though through water.

“Oh, look at that.” Theron snatched it from him. “My unused PTO.”

“Yeah, nobody’s going to notice that.”

“Alright, I’ll get that taken care of. Thank you so much for your help. ...Bye.” Theron spun in his chair with a smug smile. “Got the credentials for the comms server. I need to check to confirm, but—” “That was fast.” Pravin tossed a bag of clothing onto the bed. “Wove a great story about a side-channel attack to a low-level tech and freaked them out so bad they didn’t bother transferring me,” he explained, turning back to where his datapad was docked on a table. “Let’s see…” “I have the uniforms,” Pravin declared. “I hope I got your size right; they’re using something called inches and I had to convert.” “Okay, sure, I’ll check in a few.” Pravin wandered across the room to the kitchen. Theron’s rented flat was prefab worker housing—little more than a bedroom and a bathroom, with tiled floors and plasteel walls resembling those of a ship. It was well-insulated from sound, though, and the man had intimated that he’d sliced the exterior camera system weeks prior to make his movements more difficult to track; the latter couldn’t be said of Pravin’s hotel, so they’d mutually agreed it would be better to continue their meetings here. He set the kettle to boil, sifting through Theron’s odd collection of teas: a few herbs common in Hutt Space, something floral that he didn’t recognize, and one called yarba whose packaging assured him it contained caffeine. Doubtless better than the powdered caf the man apparently drank, which somehow managed to be worse than the shipboard rations Pravin had endured in the navy. For fuck’s sake, you’d be better off with a stim, he’d thought derisively, a notion he’d then had to actively distract himself from for the following few hours, stretching against the lingering ache in his muscles. “Sweet,” Theron murmured to himself as the kettle pinged. “I’m in. What’s the number we want to forward to?” “Great question.” Pravin poured himself a cup. “Could your people take it?” “Let me ask if they’re available, given the time difference. Darok said 20 hours local, right?” “Yeah, we’ll get there maybe a half hour beforehand to be safe.” Pravin tapped out an inquiry to Shara, then rejoined Theron, setting the cup on the nightstand. Theron pulled a uniform shirt out of the bag, checking the tags. “Bigger one’s mine, right?” “Yes,” Pravin said flatly.

Theron yanked his shirt up over his head. He had a few scars on his back—faint, uneven abrasions that spoke of a nasty fall. The SIS clearly held a different perspective about such injuries than Intelligence; back in the day, all of Pravin’s comparable marks had been buffed out via the best plastic surgery the Empire had to offer lest they prove potentially identifying. Either that, or the Republic agency simply lacked the funding for comparable care. As Theron reached for the uniform shirt, Pravin’s gaze lingered on his shoulders, the ripple of lean but defined muscle around his spine. Theron’s eyes flit up to meet his; he quickly busied himself with the tea.

[surfinthehighway]

Typing up my The Fall of the House of Cabal thoughts before going to bed. First off: it's interesting to me to see that Leonie Barrow is snarky with all Cabals haha. Like, we see her interact a lot with Johannes in The Detective and it's understandable why she is short with him there, but my dude Horst is a more normal Cabal and Leonie is not above insulting him wherever she can.

I'm assuming it is because Horst is a Cabal and not that Leonie is like this with everyone.... but I don't know that for sure. She certainly doesn't act that way around strangers, but what does that say. Am I meant to be reading Leonie as spicy to everyone once they're friends? Things to consider.

[beedokart]

My two[1] new favourite girls[2] from series I’ve read this year.

Zarenyia is from the Johannes Cabal series, a spider-y bisexual succubine who eats souls. And is ferociously inappropriate.

Warglass/Glass is from Inhibitor Phase, the 4th book in the Revelation Space trilogy. They’re part of a faction for which ‘spider’ is something of a derogatory term.

There is no logical reason to crossover both series except that I like them… and there’s arguably some necromancy in both series (though it’s technology based necromancy for Revelation Space).

[1] The two souls thing is due to plurality, so exact count is unclear

[2] Warglass is also sort of non-binary, but terms and pronouns are unclear.

[galaxyofgover]

Finished reading "The Fall of the House of Cabal" the other day, from the Johannes Cabal series. Decided to flex the fanart muscles for a quick Johannes and Horst picture.

[scotianostra]

On 24th May 1616 John Maitland, Duke of Lauderdale, Scottish politician was born.

One I missed yesterday.........

Maitland was Charles II’s deputy in Scotland, he was another in a long line of leading figures in Scotland who “bobbed” between sides, Maitland was originally a fully paid up member of The Covenanters, he even carried the cause into England when Cromwell needed the Scots help to usurp Charles I, he was present at the signing of the Solemn League and Covenant by both Houses of Parliament and the Scottish commissioners on 25th September 1643 in London, he stayed on in London to negotiate the reform of the Church of England.

Born at Lennoxlove House (then Lethington), near Haddington. He married the Countess of Dysart. He was captured at the Battle of Worcester imprisoned in the Tower of London and his estates were forfeited.

They were restored under King Charles II, who made him Secretary of State, a position in which he exercised enormous power, regarded as the ‘uncrowned King of Scotland’. He was the 'L’ in Charles’ so-called 'CABAL’ administration,(“CABAL” stood or the names of the five Privy Councillors Clifford, Arlington, Buckingham, Ashley-Cooper, and Lauderdale) running Scotland without hindrance, despite corruption and intrigue, resisting the reproach of his rivals.

Although having the reputation of being unscrupulous and crude, he was created Duke of Lauderdale in 1672, having inherited the Earldom of the same name from his father in 1645. When not in London or Edinburgh, he made his home at Thirlestane Castle, which he rebuilt and extended. He also refurbished Lennoxlove, the family home in East Lothian.

He compromised with the Covenanters while maintaining the ultimate authority of the King, but this strategy failed leading to the Battles of Drumclog and Bothwell Brig and his fall from power.

John Maitland died at Tunbridge Wells and the Dukedom ceased with him. He is buried in the crypt below the Lauderdale Aisle in St Mary’s Church, Haddington.

Pics are of Maitland, Lennoxlove House, Thirlestane Castle and his crypt at St Mary’s.

[adarkrainbow]

Spooky season fairytales (4)

This series of posts is supposed to be about movies and a few television series, but given it is about dark, spooky, creepy or eerie fairytale-inspired works, I am bound to explore some non-movie pieces. More specifically three works.

The Book of Lost Things

I talked previously about my great love for this 2006 book. John Connolly had already proven his talent at making teenage fantasy mixed with dark comedy (not to say burlesque horror) with his series of "Samuel Johnson" series, but with this book he also left his mark within the world of fairytales. Dark fairytales.

There is still a bit of humor and comedy in this book - but not much. One chapter maybe. The rest is dark, creepy, sad, disturbing... but also very touching, very poetic and very beautiful. "The Book of Lost Things" tells the story of David, a young boy living a hard life in 1930s England. He had to live with the long sickness and death of his mother, he cannot stand his stepmother and her new baby, his father is away from home due to his work involving him with the nascent World War II, the threat of said war forces the family to move to a remote countryside house with a tragic past... And David thinks he is going insane because strange things are happening. He can hear books talk for example, and a strange shadowy "crooked man" keeps appearing at the corner of his eye...

The culmination of these supernatural events results in David entering the world of fairytales, a gigantic forest filled with knights and princesses and talking animals and dwarfs and witches... Except that it is a world where fairytales went wrong. Very wrong. It is a dreadful and horrifying world where all the grimmness and terror of the original tales are played at full force, and David only has one hope to return home: find the good king's magical "Book of Lost Things"...

This book deals with a lot of serious topics - which is what makes it at the same time hard and beautiful of a read. It is a book that doesn't just twist fairytales for the sake of it (though there is a perverse game about reinterpreting the folktales in the most shocking ways). But it does so to help us, and David, explore themes such as grief, disease, war, the loss of the people you love, the desire to return to a nostalgic past... It is a great book.

(And how come I just learn TODAY upon writing these lines that Connolly just RELEASED A SEQUEL! 13 YEARS AFTER THE ORIGINAL! I'm going to buy this for Halloween)

Dimension 20: Neverafter

"Dimension 20" is a web-series by the team of CollegeHumor. In the same way as "Critical Role", "Dimension 20" is a D&D role-playing show, with each season following a campaign where the members of CollegeHumor, using their talent as stand-up and improv comedians, make their reole-playing adventure as entertaining and engaging as possible for the viewer.

Each season has a different theme, setting and universe, and the season known as "Neverafter" is, as you can guess, the "dark fairytale" season. Neverafter takes place in the world of fairytales and nursery rhymes - but things are starting to... be wrong. Happy endings go missing. Gruesome deaths spoil the magical happiness. The peace of the kingdoms is troubled by monsters popping out left and right. Armies are rising up. A storm is coming. The Time of Shadows falls on what was supposed to be a "happy ever after", and in this upcoming chaos, a group of travelers gather together to try to survive... Before discovering a cabal of manipulative fairies, tyrannical lords, creepy princesses, ancient witches and other abstract monsters trying to deal with world-threatening troubles, plunging a simple dark fantasy tale into a cosmic horror epic...

In 20 episodes, the campaign depicts the adventures of six characters. Princess Rosamund du Prix - the Sleeping Beauty princess, who had to free herself from her thorns when her prince failed to come, and is now searching for him. Ylfa Snorgelsson, Little Red Riding Hood, whose fairytale went off to a very traumatic end and left some of the wolf inside of her... Prince Gerard of Greenleigh, the prince from the "Frog Prince", who is now returning to being a frog as the love of his wife wanes... Puss in Boots, forced to return at being a scheming and scamming scoundrel after his kingdom and master were destroyed by giants... Timothy "Mother" Goose, an old man who inherited a magical book after the death of his son Jack and is haunted by a terrifying black gander... And Pinocchio, the magical puppet-boy, now a warlock who uses as a staff his own broken nose and whose patron is a disembodied and mysterious "mother" figure...

Little Nightmares

Ah, Little Nightmares... Who hasn't heard of this groundbreaking video game that marked 2017 with its unique, eerie story?

A little girl in a yellow raincoat wakes up in the dark and humid depths of some sort of industrial area, near the corpse of a hanged man... She wanders with a little light throughout pipes and cells, infested with deadly vermin, filled with the remnants of the presence of other children, overseen by mechanical eyes turning flesh into stone... And soon she discovers herself inside a nightmarish, impossible structure inhabited by child-killing giants, deformed monsters that are out to get her.

Little Nightmares is primarily an attempt at capturing and translating into a video game primal childhood fears and the type of nightmares a little kid can have. It is about a small, helpless child, confronting monsters that are grotesque caricatures of adulthood, in a world too big for her and designed to destroy her... But Little Nightmares also take a strong inspiration from traditional fairytales, making the video game a dark fairytale epic. I don't think it will be a spoiler by now due to the game's huge success but...

... A little girl exploring a dark and haunted supernatural world. A blind giant looking around for his victim using his other senses. A pair of monstrous cooks killing and preparing children for the gargantuan and repulsive feast of obese clients. An intense focus on food and hunger and cannibalism. Helpful little gnomes straight out of a children's fairy book. A beautiful but evil sorceress with a special relationship towards mirror, antagonizing the female protagonist while having some maternal untertones towards her... What if the evil queen of Snow-White was the head of a restaurant for ogres? And no need to add that the games has strong Del Toro tones evoking his fairy-related movies (Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy II), while also disturbingly twisting the Ghibli movie style, making this the horror version of "Spirited Away".

The game received an acclaimed sequel, but I couldn't see very obvious fairytale tones in this one, much more focused on a dystopian feeling and ambiance.