#the red path spoilers

[preserves42]

Just finished reading Star Trek: The Red Path and I've just got to share some of my favourite moments from it.

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR IDW STAR TREK VOLUME 2 THE RED PATH BELOW

Go read it if you haven't already

We get off to a good start with Quark suffering, as he always should (affectionate)

Continuing strongly with one of the cheesiest lines ever (also Barada Damar actually has great hair I'm jealous)

In good comic book tradition we receive two excellent onomatopoeia one directly after another (com badges sure do go bdledoo)

Tom Paris should never be allowed to design starship controls for anyone but himself (affectionate)

Who gave red ghost Dukat permission to serve this much cunt? (derogatory)

Shax is a badass as expected

Lieutenant Descheeni is also a badass and becomes my new favourite recurring secondary character.

Lily Sato is such a badass that she stuns Shax into silence

Beautiful interaction between Data and Spot. Perfectly in character.

I appear to have hit the picture limit so I will reblog with the last few

[arthursfuckinghat]

"Saw a deer today, it stopped right in front of me.

Maybe it was a trick of the light or the way it moved,

But for a moment, I swear it was you.

I won't say I miss you, I've said that too many times,

But you're still my brother.

My brother under the same endless sky."

[ohnonotthehorrors]

I love the fact that everyone being so accepting of everyone else’s task related quirks is coming back to bite them.

Lizzie couldn’t get a single person to accuse her! Not a single one! And Of Course they didn’t, because they’re trying to help. Just below the surface they want to help Lizzie, or at least not hurt her, so of course they wouldn’t call her out and risk causing her problems.

And Jimmy! In his own words “people were so accommodating” to the point no one would kick him out! Everyone respected weird behavior as ‘being a task’ so no one tried to kick him out. They were literally too nice.

And can I just say how genius those tasks Are? The game is literally punishing people for… being too nice, for working together.

These are tasks that are perfectly reminding players “no, you’re enemies, you’re not supposed to be nice” by twisting that kindness against the person they thought they were helping.

When Grian said ‘okay, no more helping people’ the world decided to Mean It.

[mitskiluvr]

“akechi doesn’t like joker!!! he tried to kill him!!! he doesn’t like him!!!” okay AND??? obviously YOU don’t understand the homoromanticism of killing the person you’re in love with … don’t make that MY problem

[dabidagoose]

Ok but with ylfa's backstory it's just. There's a wolf who can take people's skins and mimic their voices? So there have been many ppl who have gone into the woods, been attacked by a wolf, and then what's returned has looked and sounded and hell maybe even acted like them! But a bit more monstrous. With hair on their hands, and a low snarl, and sure they sound like our dear loved one and they look like them but they're scary. They're scary, and they've changed, and shouldn't they be dead?

And maybe if they're scary they aren't our loved one - they're actually just the scary thing in disguise yes of course! Cause they would never scare us like that. They could never be transformed like that. So it's not them, so they're dead.

[starliteonearth]

"Jayce ruined everything" and thank fuck he did because in case some of y'all forgot, a cult is NEVER a good thing. The idyllic scenery, softspoken voices, and pacifist ideals are fooling y'all bad. Did we learn nothing from Midsommar??

[what-plant-metaphor-am-i]

Chapter 129 vs chapter 135 - A threat to his path

[stolen-wolfbread]

My prediction for the Robin Lives storyline: Jason will find out about the Lazarus Pit, and try to use it to heal his trauma.

That obviously will not work, so he'll go on a journey to find himself.

By the time he goes back to Gotham, Bruce will have taken on Tim as his protégé and given him an oracle-like role so he's not on the frontline. Jason, thinking that he's been replaced, will get pissed and take on a new persona, one that represents his greatest fear.

He'll become the Red Hood.

[pocketmolly]

If you don't like Genshin PLEASE scroll. Guys I'm sorry if this is cringe but the bats and their visions stories.

Case #0: Batman

Batman has no vision.

Case #1: Nightwing

Dick Grayson obtained his vision at age ten, two years after Batman took him in. His intense feelings drove him to go behind his mentor's back, tracking down his parents' killer and hatching a plan to eliminate him.

As he stood over the cowering man, gun in hand as Zucco begged for his pathetic life, his finger tensed and relaxed over the trigger of the gun. A purple glow shone. Till now, he does not know if it was an appeasement or an order from the gods.

A few moments later, Batman arrived to find his ward with a gun and vision in his hand. Despite this, Tony Zucco was still breathing.

Case #2: Red Hood

Jason Todd was captured and tortured in a warehouse in Qurac by Joker. After sustaining severe injuries, he was tied up and left with a ticking time bomb beside him.

Perhaps, as the bomb ticked to its final second, Jason had thought that Batman had forsaken him. That he had lost his father. However, even the bright cyan energy that suddenly emitted could not save him from his fiery fate.

Jason Todd was buried with a grey anemo vision.

Case #3: Batgirl

Cassandra has no vision. Perhaps she might have had one before, David Cain was never a big fan of magic given by the gods.

Case #4: Red Robin

Tim Drake had been training under Batman to take the mantle of Robin. It was a late night, Batman was out on patrol and Tim was burying himself in case files. Unfortunately, he had fallen asleep in the mess.

When Batman returned, he was greeted by a green glow and it was then that he knew Tim was destined to be the world's greatest detective.

Case #5: Spoiler

Stephanie Brown was young when she acquired her vision. She had walked into one of her father's nefarious crimes. Of course she was afraid, it was only natural.

But as she sat in her bedroom in the quiet of the night, she swore to spoil her father's plans. The next day, she found a glowing purple jewel under her bed along with a purple hood.

Case #6: Robin

Damian Wayne was stubborn, naive and... forgiving. In the end, it was his love for his mother that ended his life. Not many understood but Batman did.

That was why he was so enraged when he found Damian's letter, it was lit by a cold blue light. The cryo vision was dim but not grey, almost mocking him with his son's death.

Rage bubbled inside as Batman took his frustrations out, it was only overtaken by guilt at the sight of fractures in the precious ornament. The light flickered before extinguishing.

Little guide for non-genshins

Visions are little charms given to people to grant them the ability to control their element in times of need

Purple is electro (electricity) and is given to those seen as different or abnormal.

Cyan is anemo (air) and is given to those who have lost someone close to them or on a journey for freedom

Green is dendro (grass) and is given to those in the pursuit of knowledge

Blue is cryo (ice) and is given to those who feel unloved or abandoned

[prismatic-starstuff]

miquella get behind me.

[fissure-creature]

The latest from Her <3

[djsherriff-responses]

Nevermind Alex and Rayman, You know who actually looks incredibly sketchy (at best) with the new information we have that Dolph was a toddler trained in the military?

This guy

[darrowsrising]

Sevro has nothing to fear from Victra and his kids' reaction and it was heart-breaking af to see him becoming self-distructive over a rejection and a repudiation that exist only in his mind, when we, the readers, know the truth.

The truth is he should actually fear and be scared of Screwface 🤭. Jk, but there is drama there. Good drama, hopefully.

[arthursfuckinghat]

After chapter six, I swore off killing any deer because I was afraid it could be Arthur.

That's what this game does to you and it's fascinating, or maybe I'm just superstitious :')

[sarcastically-dead]

There are many reasons I appreciate the Red Rising series. At first, I enjoyed it because it cured my boredom. Then, I was thankful for it because when some people got too loud, I could elect to read a fantastic book instead of throwing rocks.

And then there's everything else, really. There's wayyyy too much to spell out coherently. Jumping between one reason, and then having some god give me a divine boon in the form of yet ANOTHER reason why RR is the most underrated gem I've ever come across.

But right now, after finishing Lightbringer (literally today on the way home from a lecture) the thing I appreciate most about RR is its narrative on strength? And how absolutely soul touching it is?

Like. Pre-Book 1 and during book 1 is just survival mode. You've gone semi-emotionally numb with the strain of just. Getting Through The Bad Times. Darrow has somehow survived the mines, and it took so much out of him that I don't think even he really realised. And then Eo. And then the revelation. So now he lives and pushes through with rage - like a helldiver. It's all he has, along with a goal, so it's gotta be enough. There's no other way.

And then Books 2-3 are, through insurmountable setbacks, even through outgrowing your original goal, which fueled his spite entirely, he rises. He can no longer just be angry, even if its still in grasp, even if it's his oldest friend. He has other things he's discovered - his own abilities, a support network. The mantra 'Stay Strong or Die' continues. And even if it is aided by things other than single-mindedness, it is upheld. Darrow is the strongest he's ever been end of Book 3. He chose option 1. He can take on the world, and then another, and then another, and then all of them at once. It was hard but he stayed strong, so he will be strong.

And then the second part of the series. Um. Well. It does not go well for him exactly. You see, he has been in the mindset of survival for so long- as long as he can remember, really. He believes its natural for him. Its not, its learned, but it hasn't really had a chance to distinguish himself. He severely underestimates exactly how much prolonged service of his mantra takes from him - but at this point, can he even create another one? It's all that's gotten him to this point (not necessarily true), it's his oldest crutch. When in stressful situations, we do not rise to the occasion nor to our ideals, but rather we fall upon our base training. And anger is at his core.

You can see things slowly loosen themselves around him - the Vox, Mercury (Jesus, everything that happened with Mercury). Stay Strong or Die is unravelling at the seams. What do you do when your basic, core tennate, the thing which kept you from falling, the pillar on which you balance to spin various dishes, wobbles?

Darrow comes crashing down, and for once, anger isn't what leaps forward to catch him. In fact, nothing catches him. Instead, he lays, and is blanketed by tiredness. He stays there awhile.

He's not Strong.

He's not strong.

Hesnotstronghesnotstronghesnotstronghesnot

There are two options. If he's not the first, the second one follows, no?

No.

By pure fucking luck, happenstance, or whatever benevolent God saw the absolute shitstorm that was going on with Darrow, clutched their pearls in shock, and with trepidation waved whatever blessing they could Darrow's way, Darrow does not die when he is not strong.

Because that blessing, what used to come second to him whenever his rage bullied itself into the forefront, stays when his rage leaves just as fast as it came.

Eo. Sevro. Virginia. Electra. Orion. Cassius. Ragnar. Alexandar.

Pax.

His strength leaves him, but it is replaced with something else.

Death begets death begets death.

Love begets love begets love.

Begets strength.

[swordmaid]

I like the idea that if shri’iia turns into a spawn, her hunger over everything multiplies up to 100x. like she’s so hungry all the time..!! and she’s an absolute glutton for blood, and she craves affection so badly like she’s already quite needy but she gets more needy and more overly jealous and protective that if astarion (inevitably) looks for another lover she’s already barking and howling and she’d probably kill and eat them. like shri’iia’s turning into an absolute dog when she gets turned into a vampire spawn…!!!!! bc in that route, the worst traits about herself has been amplified and validated. and I think astarion would be so amused at first because he already thinks she’s degrading herself to be with him, and now she turning more feral he’d probably be fascinated about her on a sick way. but then eventually the amusement wears off and being around her is so exhausting and he’s tired of her face and he’s tired of her being so needy and he’s tired of her always asking attention but isn’t that what he wanted when he promised her they’ll be lovers for eternity? and then he realises that was a mistake and he should’ve gotten rid of her earlier and he’d rather remember her as the one that gave him everything (who sadly went away) than the obsessed craved dog she’s become. like the former paints a prettier picture and he always preferred more beautiful things so the vampire lord is now planning to get rid of his spawn 🥰 and he’ll make another one later 🥰 but then she’s like ? u wanna get rid of me? that’s not gonna happen 🥰🤭 and she makes her own plan to forever trap him with her and for the first time in her wretched eternity she’s actually having fun