#the paradiso saga

[the-bats-who-simp]

Upon Holy Ground

Chapter 1: Magnolia

A Bat Coven LLC Production

Co-authored by @the-bats-who-simp and @alwaysyourshenry

Warnings: Very light smut (kissing, titty touches, etc.)

Ajax rubbed his back, sore with old age as often happens. He looked sightlessly out on the town fondly, feeling the chill on his face that almost felt like an old friend at this point if not for the small freezing bites it gave him. He remembered his mother, one of the very last women to give birth during the last summer. Her face was always clear in his head, even if the background faded away with the years. His memory could only do so much good. His hair and beard were streaked with silver, his eyes wise and as blue as the summer sky he was born under.

On his back he carried his granddaughter, too young to wear the heavy snow shoes they all had to wear to get around the town. In front of him, sled dogs, happy and rolling around in the snow. For as long as he could remember, it was his job to help distribute food amongst the town. It was a group effort, of course, everybody helped out where they could all things considered. It was in their nature to be considerate and selfless, part of the teachings and values they’d been raised by. Helping those in need, treat others with respect and you’ll receive respect in return. That is, of course, not to say hedonism was frowned upon, far from it. One could indulge and be selfless at the same time. Those two things weren’t mutually exclusive.

Ajax now carried the last of the bread. His grandson, Everest, had made it in the bakery in the middle of town with the last of the ingredients from the last excursion beyond Paradiso’s borders. Not even the cold could get rid of the warmth of a freshly made loaf, perhaps through divine intervention or the insulated carriers he used.

The Preacher and the head of the town, Jamie, was currently out gathering more food though. They always timed it so that they’d always return with fresh supplies the moment the last load had run out. They made sure to make every scrap of fabric and bit of grain worthwhile, not a single bit was put to waste. This time, Jamie left with three of his witches. Eva, Theresa, and Mars. They each had their own specialties that helped the gathering of food, medicine, and other supplies, which was why they were often the ones to go on these extensive trips.

Sometimes other witches would go instead of those three to have time beyond the perpetually frozen stretches of land and time. They’d pile into Jamie’s beat up old truck from the early 1970s with burlap sacks that could carry more than they appeared to and leave for a week or two depending on the necessity. It only happened at most four times a year; Jamie was always very good about cataloging exactly what was needed and how that supply could be made to stretch. It wasn’t the perfect living like the name of the town suggested it would be, but they made it work. In Jamie’s stead, Nora became the new head of town as the oldest official witch amongst them.

Nora always stood at the helm of the ship, so to speak, and now led with great confidence and wisdom. Her eyes glowed golden with divine power, a remnant of the blazing hot sun that used to threaten to burn their beautiful Paradiso to the ground, beautiful pastel shotgun houses and all.

Ajax’s granddaughter, Vivian, named after her godmother, covered Ajax’s snow blind eyes. He had never seen her beautiful face, nor that of his wife, daughter, and grandson. The eternal winter had taken more than just heat and carefree mobility from the villagers over the decades. Back in the beginning, snow came to Paradiso only rarely and only for short periods of time. Nobody knew what the proper steps to take were, so several people suffered. Frostbite, chill-borne sickness, and snow blindness. It saddened Ajax that his children and grandchildren had never known life before. He wasn’t sure how many of his line would never see summer blooms and greenery, if they ever would again. Everyone prayed daily that the summer would someday come back, but as of now, it showed no signs of its return.

Vivian (the Younger, as her godmother and namesake had called her) giggled, sitting high upon Ajax’s back as he climbed up the tall walk to his small, shotgun house, painted a nice robin’s egg blue with white trim. The paint was peeling and the wood was slightly bloated with years of gradual water damage. Even if Ajax couldn’t see it, he knew it was there. It was part of the house’s charm, he said, every single scar bearing a story as they often did. From outside, he could hear the laughter of the town's children, whom his beautiful wife, Athen, often babysat. She had always loved children, and even at her age, she could keep up with the young ones with ease save for the occasional crick and pulled muscle. Other symptoms of the oncoming twilight years of life.

As soon as Ajax walked in, the horde of children scurried over to meet him. They called his name, grabbing his hands and pant legs and dragging him over to a plush rocking chair in the corner.

“Please,” one of the children called, “tell us the stories!”

Ajax could feel the heat emanating from the lightbulb in the tall lamp behind him, reminding him of the stories his mother would tell.

“It was a long time ago,” he started, feeling their eyes on him as they all sat around his feet, “The sun was blazing hot. Everyone in town had sweat creeping down their brow. My mother, Harlow, was one of the very last to give birth before the snow fell. She said that it was so hot in the house that she gave birth to me in an ice bath.”

The children ‘ooed’ and ‘ahhed,’ fascinated by someone who wanted to be cold. They shivered, even with the heat all the way up in the tiny little house. Many of them wore hand-knitted jumpers made by their god parents. The cold was always there, always permeating. It was hard to escape, but they made do. By now it seemed normal.

“And tell us about Jamie!” One girl from the back smiled, clearly having a little childhood crush on the town’s beloved Preacher. Many did, regardless of age or gender. He was a charming man, bearing hair of spun gold and eyes of ocean blue. His smile was the closest thing to sunlight many of them saw most days.

“He was a different man back then, from what I gather.” Ajax said, remembering the blazing heat of the last summer five decades past. The coven had always tried to be transparent about problems in the spirit of integrity and also understanding the villagers weren’t stupid. The flock could always tell when things were going sideways and it was better for everyone to remain honest and maintain that trust. “He has changed a lot for the better. Did you know, Auntie Lili used to be one of his wives?”

All the children gasped, some even pretended to faint. Paradiso’s children tended to have a flair for the dramatic; most of the witches did anyway and that was a behavior very easily replicated.

“It’s true. Then Jamie’s brother came to town and Lili fell in love with him. You know how we’re always taught that love can happen at random with anybody? They’re a testament to that fact.” Ajax continued.

“We all thought that their squabbling was the cause of the Long Winter, but the longer it stretched, the less we were sure that’s what it was.” Athen put in, wiping her hands dry with an old green dish towel. Dinner would be ready soon, the smell of the roast starting to permeate through the house. It made it seem a little warmer inside.

“It caused the heatwave for sure, though.” Ajax added.

“So why is it always cold?” Vivian the Younger asked.

“We don’t know.” Athen said, shrugging her shoulders and sitting on the armrest of Ajax’s chair. “The witches have been trying to figure it out for years with no luck. Mother Juliet willing, someday they’ll figure it out and be able to bring summer back. It’s tragic you children don’t know the joys of swimming in the lagoon or enjoying a sunset in a fully bloomed flower field. I’m even surprised I miss sunburns and sweating during service. It all seems so long ago now.”

“I’m sure someday you’ll see the sun again, darling.” Ajax said, reaching for her hand and squeezing it gently. She squeezed back, resting her body up against his shoulders. Athen looked out the window and let out a great sigh as her husband continued monologuing. Fresh flurries had started floating their way down as the sky grew darker. Night was approaching. She missed the sun, missed when the moon wasn’t just a pale blur in the sky. She missed a lot of things. It was important to be grateful for what they did have, though. Their health, a wonderful horde of children to care for, grandchildren, a place to live, the protection of their witches…

Just not summer.

***

“Viv, hold still, you’re making the line work shakey.” Lili said, using her arm to keep Vivian’s right calf pinned down in her lap, very carefully dragging the thin green Sharpie marker along her skin, now covered in a coil of ivy wrapping all the way around multiple times.

“But I have to move! It’s getting uncomfortable!” Vivian protested, stretching her arms out at her sides, one resting against the back cushions of the sofa they were sitting on.

“If this was real, there’d be no taking it back. You want tattoos, you have to learn to sit still.” Lili chastised, completing the outline of another leaf.

“I’m pretty sure you’re allowed to take breaks when getting tattoos. Besides, Jamie won’t get us ink, so it’ll never be permanent for the foreseeable future.”

“And for good reason, it’s a luxury we shouldn’t waste our resources on when we have a village to feed and clothe, and he knows we’d all start putting half-mad scribbles on ourselves.”

��Yeah because he knows he’d start doing the same thing.” Vivian sat up, yet kept her leg on Lili’s lap. “But I want my roses!”

“You’re such a child, you’ll get your roses when we can afford the ink… and the patience to put up with your hyperactive ass.” Lili waved the marker in Viv’s face as if that proved her point. Vivian put on a mask of indignance as she took the marker out of Lili’s hand.

“Excuse me, Lili, I can sit very still when I know it’s actually a life or death situation. You’re using markers, not needles.”

“You think tattoos are life or death?”

“Not literally, I’m just saying when I know moving would be a bad idea, I can hold still. Sharpie is hardly a permanent decision in comparison.” Vivian let out an impish grin as she shifted her grip on the uncapped marker and drew a green heart on Lili’s cheek. The other witch balked, snatching the marker back.

“Viv! What the hell?” She snapped, wiping her cheek in vain in hopes it would get the marker off. All it did was smudge the ink, making the mark worse. “God, you’re so insufferable sometimes.”

“You love it though.” Vivian said, grinning triumphantly. Lili scrunched her nose in annoyance, getting up close to Vivian’s face with a glare.

“It doesn’t look professional.” She protested.

“Who even cares, we’re not holding service. It looks adorable… and it’ll wash off.”

“I swear to god, one of these days, I’m gonna–” Lili started before she was cut off by Viv lunging forward, kissing her hard. Startled, Lili let the momentum push her back against the sofa’s armrest, Vivian refusing to break away. She only kissed Lili harder, pinning her down with her body weight as one hand gripped her jaw, the other holding Lili’s hip. She felt the whine escape Lili’s lips, making her smirk as she pushed her tongue past Lili’s lips, deepening the kiss. Lili’s arms came up, wrapping around the back of Vivian’s neck to pull the blood haired witch closer to her. The lip colors they were wearing began to smear against each other, a mix of Vivian’s bright red with Lili’s dark plum shade.

“I’m surprised you didn’t pounce sooner…” Lili said breathlessly as Vivian briefly broke the kiss for air. Vivian smirked down at Lili, snaking her hand underneath Lili’s sweater to teasingly caress her breasts.

“I did say I could hold still if I wanted to.” She purred, pulling the sweater off and kissing down Lili’s neck, her teeth gently scraping against the skin. Lili sighed, tangling her fingers in Vivian’s hair the lower the other witch’s mouth went. She had to give credit where it was due, Vivian was notoriously bad at restraining herself from physical pleasures. Her drive and stamina had been the source of many jokes and gentle jabs at her expense over the years. She chose to wear it like a badge of honor, having come from a repressed upbringing that forbade even thinking about anything of the sort. Lili couldn’t find it in her to shame her for it, especially not when she was particularly skilled at what she did.

Vivian’s mouth reached Lili’s breasts, giving a gentle kiss to each one before shooting back up to resume kissing Lili, the open mouthed kisses hot and heavy. Lili moaned against Viv’s lips, her leg moving to wrap around Vivian’s waist and pull her closer. Vivian just smirked, her hand starting to snake down between Lili’s legs. Her fingers ever so gently brushed against the wet mound, searching for the elastic band of her panties to play with.

“Oh… oh, Vivvy… you–” Lili moaned breathily before being cut off.

“I should know by now to not leave you two alone with each other.” A deep voice spoke up, knocking Lili out of her blissed reverie. Her head turned, seeing Alexander leaning on the doorframe of the living room with his arms folded, an amused smirk on his face. Vivian paused her movements, pouting.

“I can’t help it when she looks so tempting!” She protested. Alex just chuckled, approaching the pair with a teasing smile.

“You think everything’s tempting, little rose. You’re almost worse than my brother. Now, would you kindly let me have my wife back?” He said. Vivian paused before smirking, reaching back down and pulling Lili’s damp panties off in a swift motion. She held them between two fingers almost triumphantly for Alexander to see, an impish grin on her face.

“I would, but look at that wet spot my girlfriend made because of me.” She said. Alexander snatched the undergarments away, towering above Vivian with his own smirk.

“You forget I can do the same thing to her… and you, little rose… In fact, if I recall last night correctly…”

Vivian flushed. “You know that just means that Jamie’s going to go extra hard with ‘reclaiming’ me once he gets back… as he usually does.”

“I know, and that’s clearly why you do it.” Alexander chuckled, picking Lili up in his arms and sitting her in his lap, pulling her sweater back over her head and letting her rest her head against his shoulder. Vivian folded her arms and pouted petulantly next to them, although she had a hard time keeping her face straight.

“I’m a ravenous woman.” She said, toying with Lili’s ink black hair, which had grown out long. Lili giggled, burying her face in the crook of Alex’s neck. He smiled, wrapping his arms around her tenderly and planting a small kiss to her forehead.

***

The old model, faded-red pickup truck was heavy with supplies as it made its way back into the town border. One moment, the path was full of trees, the next, an empty vast wasteland of white. It filled him with the same dred as a blank white page does for an artist with no inspiration. He rolled up the truck windows, Mars and Eva sang together to the truck radio, their voices lilting together in an enchanting harmony. Jamie smiled, his partners always sounded so beautiful together.

He shifted the truck into four wheel drive to climb up the snow covered hill. He looked over at the new passenger next to him, her hair a mix between honey and strawberry blonde. Her eyes an enchanting blue just like his. But, her eyes reminded him of flowers, almost the exact same shade as a cornflower.

He smiled at her, her cornflower eyes were wide with wonder as she looked around at all the snow. He could tell how desperately she wanted to play in it, not yet understanding how cold and biting the eternal winter was. He drove for a while, glancing over at her every now and then. Taking in the wonder in her large sad eyes. The old red backpack in the back of the truck held everything she owned. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and took a selfie with Jamie, tilting her body so he could still focus on the road.

“Smile!” she said enthusiastically.

And so he did, he put on one of his most charming smiles, turning away from the road for a second so she could snap the picture before he turned back. She set the picture as her phone lock screen before putting her phone back in her pocket with a smile.

With some effort on the poor truck’s part, Jamie pulled up to the church on the top of the hill. He’d put chains on the tires to help with traction, but in his mind he knew he would need to replace them soon. The tires too, perhaps. Nothing here was necessarily built for the snow, let alone for as long as it had endured. Plants couldn’t grow, the animals burrowed where they could… the feel of an eternal summer had long since eluded them. They all spilled out of the truck like water, taking in the surroundings. He saw the young woman pull her– his– jacket tighter around herself as the chill started nipping at her face.

Her name fell from his beautiful pink lips so easily, like it was the most natural thing in the world, “Magnolia? Would you head inside the church please? There is a surprise waiting inside for you.” He couldn’t tell if the red in her cheeks was from the cold, or reacting to his cadence.

So Magnolia obliged. She carefully walked up to the big sodden church doors and pulled against them until they unlatched and swung open. Inside were three people. Two women that looked reasonably close to Magnolia’s age and a man that bore a striking resemblance to Jamie even through his beard and wire glasses.

Not the surprise she was expecting, certainly, but they smiled at her, pleased to see her. Almost as if they had known her for years, as if they loved her. If Magnolia was put off by it, she certainly didn’t show it.

She smiled back, “Hi, I'm Magnolia!”

The man spoke first, “I am Alexander,” he introduced himself before he gestured to Lili and Vivian, “This is my wife Lili, and that’s Vivian. We are so glad to have you here with us, Magnolia. Welcome to the coven.”

“Coven? Like…witches?” Magnolia asked, her head slightly cocked to the side. Jamie saw Vivian furrow her eyebrows in a similar expression of confusion. Apparently he hadn’t done much explaining before claiming this new girl, bringing her to the town she’d now call home.

“Yes, exactly. Witches. Just like you.” Lili smiled warmly, contrasted by her eyes glowing mysteriously. Entrancing as always.

[givingairtomymouth]

Please tell me I'm not the only one who sees this!

Ditemi che vedete anche voi la somiglianza!

[canmom]

авантура Цанмома у Београду

avantura Canmoma u Beogradu, or, the adventure of canmom in Belgrade

it's another one of these 'travels of canmom' posts! last time we went to Gamescom in Germany. this time I went to Belgrade for a company event.

I can't actually talk that much about this one because the main thing I was doing was cooking up game pitches for what we might work on next (kind of like a game jam but just for concepts), and while that was very interesting and I learned a lot about how to get ideas across in limited time and make judgements about what videogames might sell and how long they'd take to make and such... it is however probably not something I can talk in too much detail about yet, because we might end up making these games, so I can't be like 'the theme was x and we pitched y'.

so instead I will mostly talk about Belgrade! and show some of the photos I took that don't have game developers wandering around in them.

that's Nikola Tesla airport. did you know that Nikola Tesla was from modern-day Serbia (at the time, the Austrian Empire)? I didn't but I do now!

most of the week was spent in this fancy villa...

...which is called the Villa Saga Paradiso. it must once upon a time have been some stinking rich family's holiday home, because it's a super weird building, with such features as a pool table, swimming pool, tennis court, library, and even a weird kinda stage thing on the top floor. definitely full of weirdly shaped rooms and interesting old furniture, it felt kinda like a place a moomin might hole up. so here's some pics of the place.

also the view was kinda insane...

also! here's a pic of a Serbian snail that came out rather nice:

anyway on Saturday we went into the city centre to do some more touristy shit. I went to the two places in Belgrade that presumably everyone goes, namely the Fortress and the Temple. but I also got some shots of the city centre...

(also a tram shot for the trams girls in the audience)

so as you can see, the vibes of central Belgrade are p Southern European sorta architecture, lots of pale stone walls and tiled roofs and the like. but you also have these crazy cool looking tower blocks from the communist period...

...which were unfortunately quite hard to photograph out of a moving car window.

But yeah, we were on our way to the fortress.

Belgrade Fortress has a pretty storied history. At one point it simply was Belgrade; even after that, it's been occupied by variously the Byzantines, Turks and Austrians, who all made various additions and modifications to the fortress, and sometimes accidentally blew it up. Nowadays it's become a kind of park and tourist area, surrounded by the river, and thus some pretty impressive views...

as well as various things that tourists might like to look at, like statues of dinosaurs and tanks, and people dressed Historically.

apparently you're only allowed 30 images in a post, so let me make another one for the Temple, which was the craziest building I saw, and the butt statue...

[vvviktor]

I need to fucking CHILL i need to CALM DOWN i CANNOT read again the PJ/HoA saga RIGHT NOW in the middle of my most stressful school year (fucking liceo classico i swear to god it wants me dead) I HAVE SO MUCH TO STUDY but. But. If i dont draw parallels between Jason Grace and the og myth Jason (medea story aside cause jj grace would never) i WILL SCREAM AT THE SKY. BUT I CAN'T. BUT I WANT TO. But i have the entire Paradiso (Dante's) to analyze for NEXT WEEK. BUT JASON I WILL NOT FORGET YOU JUST YOU WAIT. IM GOING TO TAKE YOU AWAY JJ.

[arachnopoda]

Introduction To My Page!:

Hi, I'm Erik! (otherwise known as Arachnopoda)

I got Tumblr as a means to just dump as much shit I have brewing in my head about all the media I'm into- and maybe to even yap about film (considering I'm hoping to get into that field)!

So just thought I'd put in a few bits about myself as kind of an introduction? Thing? Something like that:

I am part Canadian, Indian and Armenian (a mix) and go by any pronouns (I’m genderfluid)! I am pansexual as well (so there'll probably be a lot of queer related-content I'll be posting/reblogging about)! I also speak English, and Russian (I can understand Russian almost fluently- however I have difficulty with speaking, and writing- but I'm relearning those aspects!)

Currently, I am trying to become a concept artist! So hopefully I'll be posting some concepts of characters, environments, and all that here! I'm hoping I can get into the film field ideally, but I'm really just along for the ride at this point :)

Some of my favourite films (at the moment) are: Parasite (2019), Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022), Hotel Paradiso (1966), Dead Poets Society (1989), Puss in Boots: The LAst Wish (2022), Nimona (2023), the Spider-verse Saga, and pretty much anything made by Christopher Nolan and Damien Chazelle!

As well as films, here is just the dump of media I'm currently obsessed/adore/give me inspiration (so feel free to reach out to me to yap about any of these)!:

Arcane, Slay the Princess, Mouthwashing, Good Omens, D&D, Detroit Become Human, Stanley Parable, Six of Crows, Bad End Theatre, Omori, Inscryption, Knight, Fleabag, Iron Lung (both the game and Markiplier's soon-to-be-movie), and Faith: The Unholy Trinity-

And a bunch of others (that I cannot remember currently). I tend to also create and obsess over a bunch of OC's which I hope to post a bunch about here!

I'm into a bunch of music artists as well (to name a few: System of a Down, James Marriott, Lemon Demon, Chappell Roan, Glass Animals (really I can't stick to a single genre)). I also love writing in general! Anything from poetry and just creative writing stuff! It usually sparks from whatever books I’m currently obsessed with.

Anyways, I hope this introduction helps people understand what this page is about- and (once I get into the swing of blogging things) I'll be more than happy to dive into a bunch of shit with people! Although I can be a bit on-and-off sometimes, I'm excited nevertheless!

Hope you enjoy my shit! :)

[thetentaclecommander]

The Sacrifice of Devils

TSoD (part 3 of the Devil's Saga)

((Header Pic for the series done by Lil-Chilo)) The Sacrifice of Devils Rated M; has adult/heavy themes Fandom: Resident Evil Main Ship: Nemesis/Jill Valentine Side Ships: Chris Redfield/Sheva Alomar Chapters: 12/12

CW: graphic depictions of violence, psychological trauma, implied medical torture, implied/referenced torture, major character death (full tag list on AO3) Summary: "But already my desire and my will were being turned like a wheel, all at one speed, by the Love which moves the sun and the other stars."

The third arc in the Devil's Saga.

Based off of Dante's Paradiso: reflecting reality and the backlash of the real world.

An AU fic set 8 years after the events of RE5 and 7 after Teaching and Slumber. After the events of Teaching, Jill decided to leave the soldier's life, not just for her sanity but for the unexpected result of her misjudgment with Nemesis.

But cracks are below the surface - intentions, especially in Chris' case, are not completely clear, and Sia...isn't always as cute as her smile. And do not forget, that shadows from the past have a way of resurfacing...one way or another.

One such shadow will return - with a vengeance.

This fic will explore darker themes and topics: it will basically not shy away from nor sugarcoat the violent or suggestive situations within. Events from pre-mansion, RE1, 3, and 5 will be revisited (or taken liberty with). ________________________________________________ Excerpt from TSoD: Prologue-

Why? Was it desperation? Was it desire? Was it loneliness? A last ditch effort to control him? Love?  No. No? …I … I…don't know.

Her trust in humankind was shattered. Day in day out seeing people fight for little things; power, money, war. Things that brought out the worst in people, changed people destroyed them pushed them into man-made monsters. She saw it break apart good men like Chris, and saw it change those that already held evil inside into things beyond hellish.  The years of torment with Wesker broke what little faith and trust she had left. The nightmares still come but rarely now; they mix with dreams, dreams of an event that should have never been. The result of that stared back at her with innocent blue eyes years after.  As she sat years ago with a test in her hands, the unpleasant thought of what to do ran through her mind numerous times. She was reaching 30 at the time; she discarded the idea of a family when she joined the BSAA and then after breaking it off with Chris found that to be another dream to be put aside. But it sat in her palm reading in no uncertain terms proof of pregnancy. Something that never occurred, no never seemed a possible option on the table.  He who never had the option to be human, nor the comprehension to do the crimes of a man – but as all abominations of Umbrella was at one point created or cloned from one – still had the desires of one. She wanted to berate herself for her foolish moment of action, acting on such base motives…but in truth how could she? It wasn't forced, wasn't taken…she freely gave and he responded in kind. No…it was more she told him to, manipulated him using him for her own fucked way to grieve. But was that wrong? Wrong to have a creature made for the express purpose to kill, to destroy to be used for that? Was it wrong to have command over such power? To have that power lay hapless under her? Wrong to desire such power between her legs? Wrong to not expect the same comfort from a human? A deeply hidden feeling rose from within, this feeling she hid from the others, this feeling she had kept to herself as the years passed and her life started anew.  It wasn't all about her anymore. (Continue reading the prologue of The Sacrifice of Devils on A03)

[grlbts]

alcune volte mi capita di leggere storie di cronaca sui giornali partendo però dal terzo o quarto capitolo della saga perché per qualche motivo i primi me li ero persi mesi fa, e l'effetto è sempre abbastanza straniante.

Così mi è capitato per esempio con la vicenda di Giovanna Pedretti, e ricostruendo un po' dagli articoli di questi giorni mi sembra comunque tutto assurdo, o per essere terra terra difficile da capire.

Ieri leggevo commenti e dichiarazioni sul fatto che fosse comunque importante e dovuto 'indagare' su di lei perché la notorietà, i like e i follower apparentemente non erano 'meritati'.

Quell'aggettivo lì, meritati, mi ha fatto davvero sorridere in mezzo a tanto sgomento, se Selvaggia Lucarelli avesse tempo per pensare un attimo di più a questa sua visione del mondo sprofonderebbe in un baratro filosofico, certo non credo ci sia grande pericolo che questo accada.

C'è comunque una buona speranza che la nostra sorella Selvaggia non veda mai neanche da lontano i cancelli del paradiso, questo mi sembra abbastanza chiaro dalle carte.

[bookofsand123]

La saga Malaussène

Récemment, j’ai commencé à lire la saga Malaussène de Daniel Pennac. Malheureusement, j’ai lu d’abord le deuxième livre (“La fée carabine”, “La fata carabina” en italien) tandis que le premier, mais maintenante je suis en train de lire le premier livre: “Au bonheur des ogres” (en italien “il paradiso degli orchi”).  

Ces livres sont des romans policiers avec protagoniste Benjamin Malaussène. Il a environ trente ans et travaille dans un grand magasin comme bouc émissaire. Cet-à-dire, que si les clients ont des réclamations, il dit toujours qu'il est coupable, le patron fait semblant de vouloir le virer et alors le client retire sa plainte, prend pitié et demande un remboursement moins important. Dans cette façon, le magasin économise beaucoup d'argent. Benjamin est talentueux dans cette profession et apprécie par son employeur.

Dans “Au bonheur des ogres”, il y a beaucoup d’explosions dans le grand magasin de Benjamin et le police ne savent pas qui est le responsable, tandis que dans “La fée carabine” des vieux personnes âgées sont tuées par un mystérieux personnage et pour des raisons inconnues. Toutes les histoires (au moins, dans les deux premiers livres) se déroulent à Paris, dans le quartier de Belleville.

[forzadiavoloale]

☕️ libri in generale. Consigliaci qualcosa, parlaci dei tuoi preferiti, o di quelli che pensi non leggerai mai insomma carta bianca!

Uno dei miei argomenti preferiti!

Allora i libri che preferisco sono quelli che anche dopo che li ho finiti continuano a farmi pensare. Esempi di questo tipo che ho letto recentemente sono La trilogia della città di K di Agota Kristof, Verso il paradiso di Hanya Yanagihara, Piranesi di Susanna Clarke e Espiazione di Ian McEwan.

Una saga YA che è molto sottovalutata secondo me è quella di Hunger Games, perché spesso viene ridotta alle ship, team Peeta o team Gale. (E se si è letta e capita la saga la risposta non può che essere team Peeta).

Una scrittrice italiana fantastica di cui sento parlare troppo poco è Alice Basso, che è anche la persona più divertente del mondo e ha scritto due saghe spassosissome (una ambientata ai giorni nostri nel mondo dell'editoria e l'altra ambientata durante il fascismo).

Ah, e ultima cosa. Se tu che stai leggendo il post non hai ancora letto L'ombra del vento di Zafon, è il momento di farlo.

send me ☕️ + [topic] and i’ll tell you my opinion on it!

[anketsu]

SERIE DEL GIORNO 👉 Inferno & Paradiso

Oggi vi consiglio uno dei battle manga più famosi dei primi anni 2000.

Una storica saga del mangaka Oh Great! che vi mostrerà uno scorcio sulla vita delle gang che serpeggiano tra le strade del Giappone.

Per gli amanti delle storie crude, arrabbiate e con una buona dose di fanservice.

🔻🔹️🔻🔹️🔻🔹️🔻🔹️🔻🔹️

Seguimi

➡️ @anketsu

➡️ #Anketsu

Il mio Sito Web

➡️ www.Anketsu.com

🔺️🔹️🔺️🔹️🔺️🔹️🔺️🔹️🔺️🔹️

Tag

[spritzapeiron]

Bene e male in quel di Hyrule

L’eterno ritorno del male

Bene e male sono gli opposti di una narrazione che dura da migliaia di anni, da quando l’uomo si rifugiava nella caverna quale luogo sicuro, lasciando la propria traccia sulle pareti, le prime pagine di una storia lontana. Bene e male sono appartenuti alle memorie di chi ha calpestato la terra di questo piccolo globo, tramandando leggende di eroi che il male hanno saputo affrontarlo. Religione, letteratura, cinema ci hanno raccontato un’idea di bene, un’idea di male, le loro differenze e i loro antagonismi, lo scontro fra un qualcosa che è di natura opposto a qualcos’altro: una dicotomia che non può essere spiegata facilmente senza il contrasto dei due termini che la fondano. Il perseguimento del bene parzialmente disinteressato come quello religioso, la promessa di un paradiso dove vivere in pace il resto dei tempi, a patto che si abbia agito secondo un ethos stabilito dall’interpretazione giusta del divino, è soltanto un esempio di quanto l’uomo si sia storicamente dibattuto nel cercare di comprendere questo istinto primordiale, perché forse di istinto si tratta, rispetto alla benignità o malvagità delle cose che lo circondano. Come detto sopra, a soffermarsi su questi due concetti così umani sono state spesso proprio le numerose storie figlie della nostra civiltà. Questo perché i racconti hanno una funzione fondamentale per l’uomo, in quanto gli offrono una chiave di lettura della realtà alquanto accessibile, suscettibile di essere appunto raccontata, trasmessa e appresa da intere generazioni. Le storie sanno semplificare la realtà, o perlomeno toccarla da vicino. Ma c’è n’è una in particolare che racconta l’eterno contrasto tra il bene e il male. Si tratta di una leggenda, figlia di una saga videoludica che ha appassionato milioni di giocatori in giro per il mondo: The Legend of Zelda. Noi autori da bar siamo particolarmente affezionati alla saga in questione, e per questo vogliamo trarne uno spunto per riflettere: la famosa chiave di lettura che solo certi racconti ci sanno offrire.

La leggenda di Zelda va ben oltre il racconto tradizionale dell’eroe che deve salvare la sua principessa, seppur tra Link, il giovane ragazzo dentro la tunica verde e Zelda, principessa dispensatrice di saggezza, forse un po’ di amore c’è stato. Questa storia racconta il destino di una terra immaginata, Hyrule, che ciclicamente viene afferrata dalle grinfie del male, sottoforma di spirito o essere malvagio che vuole farla sua, sprigionando il proprio potere a tal fine. Sia questo male Ganon, Ganondorf, Vaati, Zant poco importa: sono solo nomi che mascherano ciò che è malvagio e ha come unico scopo quello di estinguere ogni forma di bene. Ciò che rende unica la storia in questione è la semplice ma lucida visione di questi due dualistici concetti. Quando il male comincia a dominare e consumare tutto ciò che gli si oppone, l’eroe del tempo si reincarna per porre fine a questo processo di distruzione, esorcizzandolo, ma badate bene, senza mai annichilirlo totalmente. La saga firmata Nintendo, infatti, è figlia di programmatori e autori nati ad oriente, culturalmente perciò vicini a una certa filosofia, in buona parte lontana dalla nostra visione occidentale del mondo. La saggezza del pensiero del sol levante emerge qui dalla sua accettazione dell’incompiuto. In poche parole, il male non potrà mai essere definitivamente sconfitto. Link dovrà personificarsi eternamente nell’eroe prescelto che non estingue ciò che è malvagio, ma lo tiene a bada, scacciandolo. Non a caso, una volta che i giochi di questa saga vengono terminati, si riparte quasi sempre dal salvataggio che precede l’ultimo atto. Di conseguenza, il giocatore sarà costretto a sfidare nuovamente nel duello finale il grande antagonista, oppure ad accettare il fatto che il male non si dissolverà mai del tutto, ma farà ritorno, e così la sua nemesi, l’eroe che lo esorcizza. Un’esperienza che potrebbe sembrare spietata nei confronti di bambini sognanti che hanno stretto tra le loro mani almeno una volta uno dei videogiochi più famosi della casa produttrice giapponese. Ma è forse questa un’alternativa interessante all’educazione tradizionale sulla millenaria tematica affrontata brevemente in queste righe, un approccio convincente a una questione che tanto ci tocca. Non importa che a raccontare di ciò siano creature bizzarre, grottesche, o belle principesse, perché bene e male sono un qualcosa di molto umano, che abbiamo necessità di comprendere per meglio vivere la nostra sempre incerta esistenza. Il male di Hyrule, in fondo, non è che qualcosa di molto simile al male che noi crediamo di conoscere, ma di cui non comprendiamo un aspetto fondamentale, ossia il suo ciclico ritorno, almeno finché l’uomo abiterà questo mondo. Il male è un qualcosa che chi è buono può soltanto allontanare, come una fiera feroce che viene respinta da un fuoco abbagliante, una luce non necessariamente celeste. E all’oscurità seguirà la luce, e poi ancora l’oscurità, finché un eroe tornerà, a Hyrule o chissà dove. La leggenda di Zelda non fa altro che raccontarci un qualcosa di molto semplice. Ma è proprio la semplicità che sfugge spesso agli occhi di noi uomini e donne d’occidente, troppo impegnati a trarre conclusioni, senza prima capire che certe storie non hanno e mai avranno una fine. Finché a Hyrule regnerà il bene, il male non potrà fare altro che tornare a bussare alla porta del regno. Saremo allora pronti ad accettare di brandire la spada che esorcizza il male pur sapendo che esso non avrà mai fine?

Tommaso Mosole

[the-bats-who-simp]

Upon Holy Ground

Prologue

(All credit to GIF owner)

A Bat Coven LLC Production

Authored by: @the-bats-who-simp

Warnings: None

Once upon a time, centuries ago, the moon fell in love with the sun.

She tempered his fierce heat, he brought light to her surrounding darkness. Their love was pure and passionate, yet entirely forbidden. The moon, Juliet, was a goddess, well loved and respected. Her and her sisters, the stars, guided mortals even in the darkest of nights. The sun, Solaris, on the other hand, was of demonic descent. His light was too powerful, his heat too intense, a false mercy humans worshipped. The sun blinds, burns, and dries, too few seemed to understand that. Juliet didn't care. His love for her was stronger than all of that, and hers for him equal in intensity.

They met in secret, allowing their love to flourish through lies and deception. A goddess should be too good for a demon, a demon too evil for a goddess. In truth, Solaris never wished to cause harm, only to guide mortals in the absence of Juliet, help their crops grow. Juliet thrived in darkness, her light not as pure as some may think. Their imperfections matched together just as well as their divine perfections.

Until, one day, a jealous past lover of Solaris', a demon, went poking about in search of her precious sun, the one she so desperately craved despite him not loving her in return. The demon found Juliet and Solaris entangled with each other and made it known to her fellow demon thralls. Word spread to the gods as well, and the lovers were brought before their superiors. It was decreed that they were to never see each other again, regulated to their respective domains, unable to occupy the same space at the same time.

After begging and pleading, one mercy was granted to the lovers. Once every several years for a single day, they were allowed to meet and converse. Separation cannot totally destroy true love, and thus, on their first meeting after separation, the solar eclipse was born.

On that very first day when the moon and the sun birthed the eclipse, the twins were born. Two sons, each half god, half demon. A personification of the balance between the good and evil in the world, the boys were allowed to live so long as their mother was the one who raised them. The demonic blaze of their father could only be handled in small doses. Eclipses not only became the days the lovers would reunite, but they became the days the boys could see their beloved father. Even if the gods couldn't see it, Solaris was the least evil of the demons, a truth only Juliet and her sons knew.

However, it is said that one day, the twins of the moon and the sun would enter a thousand year quarrel, influenced by their latent demon natures, only concluded once one took the other's life. In congruence, a coven of Moon Blessed Witches will be formed in order to right the balance between the darkness and the light...

And it is they who will be the defense against the true enemy, saving this coil from total destruction.

[sunseekerdeluxe]

Monday Muzaks 10

Also heard this week:

Blackfinger - When Colors Fade Away Castlevania Sound Team - Castlevania Requiem Soundtrack Selection Dream Theater - Falling into Infinity Demos, 1996-1997 Dream Unending - Song of Salvation Faceless Burial - At the Foothills of Deliration Kayo Dot - Blue Lambency Downward King Buffalo - Demo King Buffalo - STB Records Split The Lord † Petra Haden - Devotional Luzifer - Iron Shackles Marillion - Afraid of Sunlight Marillion - Live at the Ahoy Pale Divine - Thunder Perfect Mind Phantom Spell - Immortal’s Requiem Rage - Avenger Revisited Rage - Seasons of the Black Saga - Steel Umbrellas Thought Industry - Songs for Insects Toto - Toto XX (1977-1997) Van Der Graaf Generator - Live at the Paradiso Warforged - I: Voice Wytch Hazel/Spell - Chain Yourself/New World

Backlog: 175.

[chickensswim]

Hey!! 

OP here, I am actually French (although studying English-speaking AD lol). 

France has got quite a bit of an audio drama scene! Which is partly the subject of my PREVIOUS masters’ thesis so here it is: 

- State funded radio drama, which you can find on Arte Radio and France Culture. They make some very cool stuff (especially Arte Radio which is a bit edgy, they like making more innovative and funny stuffs). It’s not really popular (radio drama is way more popular in the UK, as an example). 

- The legacy of saga MP3. Saga MP3 was SO IN in the 2000s, with a very popular AD called Le Donjon de Naheulbeuk. Kind of similar to some of the current AD’s in the style of production, meaning produced by one guy who did everything, all of the voices and the editing and the music and everything. Cheap to make. It’s a parody of D&D, geeky. Saga MP3 has lost its popularity since, but there are still people who make some. It is however “amateur”, as in people are not trying to make money out of it. There is still this legacy of parody, but some people are trying to get out of it and produce more “serious” sagas. Check out Team Javras. 

- The fairly recent arrival of American-inspired big companies, who mainly produce non-fiction podcast, but sometimes produce some. We can compare them to QCODE, Gimlet, Realm...  Ex: Paradiso Media. (if I can however advise one of those bigger-budget podcasts: Le Nuage, by Nouvelles Ecoutes. It’s great, female main character. Think : the equivalent of Chernobyl in France, due to climate change)

- And perhaps even more recently, individuals that have experience in the cinema/acting field, and who are producing their own AD themselves, inspired by radio drama & saga MP3. They produce great quality content, and we should definitely look out for them in the future. Look up Medhi Bayad. 

The great thing about France is that we have a rather good support system for artists and creators; lots of funds that creators can apply to. There aren’t a lot for AD right now, but I am sure that as podcasts are becoming more popular, there will be more sprouting around everywhere ! 

Hey #audiodrama team !

I have been writing a masters thesis for the last few months about the arrival of bigger companies (QCODE, Gimlet, & co) in audio drama, monetisation of AD, and its potential consequences on independent producers.

I have recently realised that an important part of this subject is about the audience -what they listen to, what their role is... Therefore I come to you with a favour and a link: could you please reply to this form?

Thank you so much !

[shadow27]

New (comic) book day Barriers, Saga comic book, Paper Girls (all by Brian K Vaughn), BPRD, Star Wars, Darth Vader, Oblivion Song (the new Kirkman title) and Paradiso which I know nothing about other than it looks pretty. Picked up an Umberto Eco I haven't read and a vintge hardcover Mona Lisa Overdrive. Unfortunately I now see I already have a HC MLO, which makes me wish I’d followed my instinct and grabbed VURT instead.

Shade

[letterful]

friends, do consider this delightfully eccentric syllabus that i’ve stumbled upon in Steven Moore’s The Novel: An Alternative History (& that was built around the unorthodox masterpiece that is Rabelais’ Gargantua and Pantagruel):

“With the motto "Do What You Will," Rabelais gave himself permission to do anything he damn well pleased with the language and the form of the novel; as a result, every author of an innovative novel mixing literary forms and genres in an extravagant style is indebted to Rabelais, directly or indirectly. Out of his codpiece came Aneau's Alector, Nashe's Unfortunate Traveller, Lopez de Ubeda's Justina, Cervantes' Don Quixote, Beroalde de Verville's Fantastic Tales, Sorel's Francion, Burton's Anatomy, Swift's Tale of a Tub and Gulliver's Travels, Fielding's Tom Jones, Amory's John Buncle, Sterne's Tristram Shandy, the novels of Diderot and maybe Voltaire (a late convert), Smollet's Adventures of an Atom, Hoffmann's Tomcat Murr, Hugo's Hunchback of Notre-Dame, Southey's Doctor, Melville's Moby-Dick, Flaubert's Temptation of Saint Anthony and Bouvard and Pecuchet, Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Frederick Rolfe's ornate novels, Bely's Petersburg, Joyce's Ulysses, Witkiewicz's Insatiability, Barnes's Ryder and Ladies Almanack, Gombrowicz's Polish jokes, Flann O'Brien's Irish farces, Philip Wylie's Finnley Wren, Patchen's tender novels, Burroughs's and Kerouac's mad ones, Nabokov's later works, Schmidt's fiction, the novels of Durrell, Burgess (especially A Clockwork Orange and Earthly Powers), Gaddis and Pynchon, Barth, Coover, Sorrentino, Reed's Mumbo Jumbo, Brossard's later works, the masterpieces of Latin American magic realism (Paradiso, The Autumn of the Patriarch, Three Trapped Tigers, I the Supreme, Avalovara, Terra Nostra, Palinuro of Mexico), the fabulous creations of Severo Sarduy and Reinaldo Arenas, Markson's Springer's Progress, Mano's Take Five, Rios's Larva and otros libros, the novels of Patil West, Tom Robbins, Stanley Elkin, Alexander Theroux, W. M. Spackman, Alasdair Gray, Gaetan Soucy, and Rikki Ducornet ("Lady Rabelais," as one critic called her), Mark Leyner's hyperbolic novels, the writings of Magister Gass, Greer Gilman's folkloric fictions and Roger Boylan's Celtic comedies, Vollmann's voluminous volumes, Wallace's brainy fictions, Siegel's Love in a Dead Language, Danielewski's novels, Jackson's Half Life, Field's Ululu, De La Pava's Naked Singularity, and James McCourt's ongoing Mawrdew Czgowchwz saga.”

(+ it seems that someone has even gone out of their way to combine all of these into a goodreads list, if that’s your cup of tea!)