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transitranger327 · 2 months ago

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Foundations (Ehn’yuste Ch. 5)

Summary: To build a new Jedi order, Jetii Mando’ayust, the Wrens will need two things: a Temple and more members. They make new friends to get the former, and connect with old friends to find the latter.

Notes: A 3.8k word chapter because y’all have been so patient waiting for this (and because I wrote the beginning and the end before the middle). I’m also posting this on my fiancée’s birthday while we’re on our 5-year anniversary trip. She wants me to hurry up and post it so we can go back to cuddling.

As always, a Mando’a glossary is at the end. Read it on Ao3 or below the cut

—

One and a half years after the Ignition

The apartment door slid open. Sabine inhaled the scent of searing meat and sautéing vegetables. Her wife’s cooking skills had blossomed in the past few months, now that she was no longer constantly on the run nor isolated on a sparsely populated world. An array of spices bloomed in the pan, collected from various worlds Shin had visited. Sabine tried teasing them apart, but could only identify catabar and pepper out of the menagerie. The splattering of liquids reducing in the pan was not loud enough to keep their guests—a fair-skinned man and a darker-skinned woman—from chatting with Shin as Sabine made her way across their karyai. She embraced her beloved from behind and offered a cheek kiss, “Hey beautiful, I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” Shin replied with her own kiss, “can you grab the wine for me?” It was across the room, on the table, but distance was rather trivial when you could use the Force. As her wife offered her the bottle, she introduced the couple. “This is Tyrus Vizsla, current Duke of clan Vizsla, and his wife Mirli.”

“Tyrus and Mirli, huh?” Sabine asked, greeting the Vizslas. “Your parents were interested in the Old Republic Wars?”

Mirli was the first to speak up, “No, actually, we picked the names ourselves.”

The implication was rather obvious to Sabine. “Of course, that’s why I didn’t recognize you. Welcome to the home of Clan Wren.”

“Vor entye for inviting us.” Tyrus did his best to navigate the weird formal-informal meeting that was taking place. He was a Duke meeting with a Countess for the first time, but Sabine was more blasé than nearly any Mandalorian he had met. “Tonight was perfect, Ragnar is staying over with some of his friends from school.”

“Oh, so you’re the ones taking care of him now?” Sabine had heard the tale of Paz Vizsla single-handedly fighting Moff Gideon’s forces, and was glad to meet those that were now taking care of his son.

“While we may not have agreed with his father, he’s still a Vizsla. We don’t abandon our own.” Mirli seemed to emphasize this more than most Mandalorians, but Sabine was nodding in agreement.

—

After starting dinner and regaling the Vizslas with the Wren’s travels on Peridea, the point of the meeting came to a head with Tyrus asking “so why did you invite us here?”

The big question. Well, not the big question (that was the one Sabine was going to ask the Vizslas), but certainly a big question. So she started laying it out. “Shin and I are planning on starting a new Jedi Order. A Mandalorian Jedi Order. Jetii Mando’ayust”

The Vizslas were curious. Mirli queried, “That’s certainly interesting, but how does that relate to us?”

“Eventually, this apartment will not be big enough,” Shin continued her wife’s proposition, “We want to establish a…temple, of sorts. A place to train, offer sanctuary, and have a library dedicated to Mandalorian and Jedi knowledge.”

“We want to build it at the only place on Mandalore that’s strong in the Force.” Sabine took a deep breath, “The childhood home of Tarre Vizsla.” Mirli and Tyrus had paused eating. “It’s in a part of Sundari that’s still in ruins. We just…”

Shin saw her wife faltering, and cut in. “We wanted your permission to use it.”

There was a long pause. Tyrus leaned back in his chair while Mirli began twirling her fork between her fingers.

“That’s a big ask” was his answer. “I don’t hate it tho” was hers.

“Can you elaborate?” Sabine asked.

“Tyrus wants to keep the clan from infighting,” Mirli offered. “There’s trouble brewing between traditionalists and modernizers. Again.”

“I personally think it’s a good idea.” Tyrus’ look was difficult for the Wrens to parse. “You two have proven yourselves true Mando’ade, dedicated to us all. But I’m not sure that’s enough for some.”

Shin queried, “Is there something that would…ease the minds of everyone else?”

“Maybe,” Mirli mused, “if they knew what you were doing was…shukenla sa val.”

“Like they had a stake in what you were proposing,” Tyrus added.

The two Jedi exchanged glances. “I think I know what you mean,” replied Sabine, “and we can certainly make that happen.”

“Ori’jate,” Tyrus declared, “It’s settled then.”

Mirli agreed. “Now, how about another glass of wine while you tell us more stories from far-off galaxies?”

—

Sabine slipped under the covers next to her wife. “I’m glad dinner went well.”

“I’m surprised you wanted to ask.” Shin dragged Sabine’s arm over her chest to nestle in with her. “You’re normally the ‘forgiveness, not permission’ type.”

Sabine playfully rebuked, “This is a big deal!”

“Just think of all the problems you all could’ve solved by doing this first instead of drawing blasters.”

“What does ‘this’ mean?” Sabine quipped, “cuddling each other?”

Shin softly chuckled. “Hmmmm that definitely would solve some problems—and create a few new ones.” Her wife joined her in the quiet laughter.

—

Before they could drift off to sleep, a loud chime rang out from their apartment computer system. “Shin, honey, didn’t you turn on ‘do not disturb’?”

“Yeah, but I left on notifications for family emergencies, like always.”

Sabine was a little annoyed, but she dragged a datapad out from her nightstand anyway. A smiling icon of Omega Hazard projected onto her eyes. She opened the holo.

Sabine, sorry to bother you, but one of my best friends is missing. I think he was kidnapped by the Empire. New Republic won’t help. Meet me here soon.

A set of galactic coordinates were embedded in the message, an old clone trick to keep locations hidden from less savvy spectators.

“Forgive me, cyar, for not keeping your extended family straight, but Omega is a friend of Hera’s, right?”

Sabine snorted, “More like dated Hera.” She reminisced about the rebellion years when Omega slept in Hera’s room on the Ghost.

“And she wasn’t at the wedding because…”

“She and her wife Lyana were having a baby.”

“Right, right, they stopped by a month ago. Little baby Rex.” Shin tried to stop her wife from crawling out of bed. “Honey, we can call back in the morning.”

But Sabine was already suiting up. “I’m not gonna be able to sleep if I don’t do anything now.” She saw her Shin’s pleading eyes. “Come on, riduur, we can sleep on the Wolf. It’ll be like old times.”

“Fine, but you owe me,” Shin groaned. “Some kisses…and more when we get back.”

Sabine knelt down, and rested her forehead against Shin’s. “Gar serim, my love.” She showered her with a few more kisses before dragging her out of bed.

—

Four Years before the Ignition

“Are you sure you want to leave?”

“The Empire’s gone, Omega, we’re free to go wherever we want.”

Omega and Jax were sitting in the cockpit of Omega’s tried-and-true shuttle, the Oh-Too.

“I’m surprised you, of all people, want to stay here. You were a pilot for the rebellion, you saved the Galaxy, you should be living it up in the Core.”

“I saved the Galaxy so there would be a here to come back to. To protect my family, including you.”

“Okay, okay, I get it, family is important. But I found out that I still have family out there. I have a cousin running a small shop on Pippip 3, he asked me to come work with him. It’s my first real connection to what I lost.”

Omega finally relented, and began running her pre-flight checklist.

—

One and a half years after the Ignition

In truth, the Mandalorians didn’t sleep particularly well on the Wolf either. The bunks were a bit too small to fit both together, and they had forgotten how much sleeping together calmed their anxieties and fears.

So they talked thru the mission, planning for how to move forward after meeting Omega. Reaching out to contacts in and adjacent to the Empire, trying to figure out why Omega’s friend was kidnapped in the first place, where to eat with her once they got there. Eventually they tired out, but the sleep they fell into was the restless kind, like unaccustomed sailors in rough waters.

The ramp lowered, and the two women groggily descended. A third was waiting for them at the landing zone. Her trademark blonde hair was in an undercut, but a teal streak now lined the left edge, contrasting the bright red hair tie which kept the ensemble in place. This all, however, registered to Sabine as a blur of color charging at and hugging her.

“Thank you for coming so fast!” Her voice was ragged with concern

“Omega, I’m—” Sabine’s grumpiness abated when she sensed the genuine despair in Omega’s voice “—a little tired but we’re here for you.”

“Did you not…oh…did I call you at night?”

Shin chimed in to rescue, “Don’t worry about us or when you called, you’re on the family emergency list.”

Omega broke her long hug with Sabine, and moved to embrace Shin. “Thank you, thank you,” her voice becoming more stable.

“Can you tell us more of what happened, and who we’re looking for?” asked Sabine.

A deep breath. “We’re looking for Jax. He’s one of the kids who was experimented on at Tantiss. He didn’t show up to our holo-gamenight. Sami said that they were messaging the night before, but none of us could reach him that day. So I came here and found his house a mess.”

“Can you show us?” Shin asked.

“This way.”

As the three women walked the streets of Pippip 3’s 27th-largest town, Shin kept vigilant for signs of past struggles. Sabine, on the other hand, was trying to figure out why the New Republic wasn’t interested in helping. “I’m surprised Hera wouldn’t help you, of all people.”

“I asked both Hera and Rex to help, but apparently when they ran it up their chains of command it got shut down. Apparently there are higher-ups in the New Republic who don’t think we should devote any time to rumors of the Empire.”

“So why would the Empire want to kidnap your friend?” Shin hoped that would tell her more about how the abduction happened.

“Jax and the others in our holo-gamenight all had high m-counts.”

A “Karabast” emerged from Sabine’s lips while several more swears came out of Shin.

“Now you see why I’m so worried.”

Sabine was now fully alert. “We need to get to Jax’s house iviin’yc.”

—

Despite the untarnished exterior, the two Jedi could feel something was wrong with the house. All events left signatures in the Force, but most were too weak to be felt even by experienced Jedi. Conflict and death, on the other hand, left gashes in it.

“Give you the chills, doesn’t it?” asked Omega, as she prepared a datapad.

Shin and Sabine shot suspicious glances to each other.

“Here, take a look,” Omega held out her datapad, “the lock was sliced into, the door wasn’t broken in.”

Sabine took a look at the slicing program. “Definitely Imperial.”

The door opened, and what they found inside was nothing like the outside. The entire house was trashed. Possessions smashed, drawers rifled thru, furniture in disarray. The Force here reeked of hurt.

And worst of all, a Mirialan man lay dead, crumpled on the floor as if tossed around by a squad of stormtroopers. The two Jedi knelt down next to him, trying to understand his last moments.

Those were pure, unadulterated fear.

“That’s Jax’s cousin, Rindenn,” Omega informed the others. “He ran a tack & feed shop in this city, and Jax moved here to help him out.”

Sabine got up and inspected all the rooms of the house, trying to find any clues about the kidnappers’ whereabouts. Dropped equipment, blaster shots indicative of academy training, a stray thought in the Force, anything. She pulled out a holo-imager to record everything undisturbed.

But these Imperials were tidy. Not even a spare tibanna magazine or busted comlink could be found.

When Sabine returned to the main room, she found Omega weeping in Shin’s arms.

“I told him that we’d always watch each other’s backs.”

Her emotions washed over Sabine as she drew near and hugged both.

“This isn’t your fault,” soothed Shin.

“You did the right thing calling us,” reassured Sabine.

—

24-hour diners were a common sight on planets with lots of interstellar traffic, staying perpetually open regardless of how long a world’s local day. On an agriworld in the Outer Rim, however, they tended to be rare outside of the major ports.

The three women had managed to find the only one in the city. Not that they needed the odd hours (it was the middle of the afternoon, local time), but because Omega needed dinner and the Jedi were craving breakfast.

While they waited for their food, Shin was mainlining the cheap caf and sending messages to her old contacts in the Empire. None of them knew she had defected (whatever that means for a mercenary) to the Jedi, and she hoped that none suspected it either.

Sabine, on the other hand, was catching up with Omega. “So how’s everyone on Pabu? Well, I hope?”

“Lyana’s busy as always, lots of things to do as mayor.” She smiled, thinking of her wife, “But she loves doing it. And it gives me lots of time with little Rexy.” She pulled up a holo-recording of baby Rex, rolling round and laughing with his moms and uncles.

“He is absolutely adorable. Who did you hand him off to today?”

“Well I gave him to Hunter, but I think Crosshair will put him to bed tonight if Lyana doesn’t.”

This intrigued Sabine. “Does Hunter have something going on?”

“He plays Sabacc on Taungsday evenings.”

Their conversation was interrupted by the waiter arriving with their food: Fried Nerf Steak for Omega, Lessu Omelette for Sabine, Alsakan Toast for Shin.

As the other two began to dig in, Shin gave them her preliminary results. “It looks like the Empire has been shuttling around their best biotech researchers. Basically never keeping them in one spot for long.”

“So even if we had their location, we couldn’t scout it out beforehand.” Omega always had an eye for tactical issues.

Sabine frowned. “They would absolutely move their research if they discovered we knew.”

“And we may have tipped our hand,” Shin continued, “My high-clearance contact was very suspicious when I asked. They said it was classified.”

“What do the troopers think?” Omega asked.

“My low-level contacts all seem to think there’s a research facility in the Galactic West, the Unknown Regions.”

“Karabast. There’s no way…” Sabine trailed off, a new idea taking shape.

“Oh no,” Shin was between bites of bread, “I know that look.”

“What moonyo-brained idea do you have now?” Omega asked.

“Huyang said that Jedi used to control hyperdrives with the Force to travel to uncharted systems. When navicomputers got better, they mostly stopped except to get to Ilum.”

“Which is in the Unknown Regions.” Shin thought she knew where Sabine was going. “Except we don’t know if the lab Jax is at is on Ilum.”

“The old masters used their connection to Ilum to reach it, right? We have someone here who is connected to Jax.”

Omega tried making sense of what she was hearing. “Is that something Jedi can do? Jump to a person just thru the Force?”

Shin tried to keep Omega from getting her hopes up. “Force-assisted jumps are difficult, and they require deep knowledge of where the traveler is going. No one has ever done it looking for just a person before.”

“Just because no one’s done it before doesn’t make it impossible.” Sabine needed Omega’s hopes up. Hope is a powerful tool in the Force. “Riduur, you and I know the technique. Omega, you know the target. I can connect the three of us to fly.”

“This is incredibly reckless.”

“My plans usually are,” Sabine grinned. “But It’s our best bet.”

“Well, I’m always in to save family.”

“Omega, you said you were in a secure research facility. How many people did you need to help you escape.”

“Crosshair and I escaped alone once. But to destroy the base and rescue every prisoner, it took three of my brothers, plus my sister defecting.”

“You think a dozen Mandalorians could do the trick?”

“Definitely.”

Shin was rolling her eyes (affectionately) the whole time the others cooked up this scheme. “Fine, I’ll call up the Duchess and see if she can get a dozen volunteers.”

“Wait. Call the Vizslas first.” Sabine turned to Omega. “Go home. Grab your armor, weapons, and any object that connects you to Jax. Keepsakes, photos, tools, anything.”

—

Tyrus Vizsla was never much of a late-night guy. He preferred the cool breeze of a quiet Concordian morning to the evening events his wife frequented. A solitary stroll thru Sundari was the next best thing.

His quiet, however, was broken by an incoming call from Clan Wren.

“Su cuy'gar, Tyrus. You said that you wanted a stake in this new Jedi order?”

“Why do you ask?

“We have an opportunity for you. And it involves killing some imperials.”

—

Blind jumps are dangerous things, bordering on stupidity. Many a pilot met their end by jumping without calculation in a desperate move to escape. The Force, of course, made things marginally safer. While Sabine only knew the theory behind Force-assisted jumps, Shin had actually made a few: a short round-trip visit to Ilum with her old master (the Imperial installation there immediately sent them packing), and once when she used it to escape pirates who had destroyed her navicomputer. The whole technique was based on reaching out to a place in the Force, something so personal and intimately known that you can feel every inch of it on the back of your hand.

She’d never done one for a stranger.

They were sitting in the cockpit of Tyrus Vizsla’s Mandalorian dropship—the Buir’tra, he called it. “And you’re sure this is safe?” he asked.

“Hell no,” answered Sabine, “but when have Mandalorians ever stopped doing something because it wasn’t safe?”

He merely shrugged. “Ni vercopaani kaysh brali.”

As Shin began slipping into her contemplative trance, Sabine offered some surprisingly simple instructions. “Okay Omega, I need you to start meditating and focus on Jax.”

A holo-image of several teenagers sprang up from a comlink. Omega began twirling a lock pick in her right hand, then paused and picked up a carved statuette in her left. Shin felt Omega’s presence on the meditative plane grow.

Then Sabine joined, and their souls were aflame.

Memories, past and future, ripped thru their veins—and they witnessed.

Shin reached out, and threw them into hyperspace.

—

Baarpir bal beskar—sweat and iron. That’s how Mandalore grows.

When strangers offer theirs to work with you, Mandalore grows. When you spend yours to protect others, Mandalore grows.

They’re also the smell of preparation for the fight. Before the blood and burn and mud and mayhem take over.

Sixteen warriors had joined the three women. Two members of Clan Rook, Din Djarin, two members of Clan Kryze, and eleven members of Clan Vizsla. Tyrus was flying, while Mirli discussed the raiding plans with Shin, Sabine, and Omega.

Nineteen suits of armor. Blaster, detonator, saber. One mission.

Anti-aircraft cannons spat flak at the Buir’tra, to no avail. The Mandalorians would not be stopped so easily. Return fire cleared the perimeter of guards and damaged the defence towers. The assailants would have a clear path to all entrances.

The doors opened up beneath them, and eighteen souls dropped onto the surface. Detonators disintegrated the base’s doors. Sparks and shot filled the corridors of this secret installation. Computers were sliced into, stripping all their secrets.

Level 3, room 9 appeared on every helmet’s display.

Half the group stayed on ground level: seven to maintain their exit, Sabine and Djarin to find the base’s leader. Two more stayed in the stairwell to prevent being cut off. Shin, Omega, Mirli, and four more Vizslas descended to the final level, determined to find Jax alive.

His experimentation room was locked. Shin’s sword made quick work of the door. But what they found inside was horrifying.

Jax was on the brink of death, heartbeat weak on the monitor. Two butchers were standing over him, cruelly keeping him conscious as they extracted his spinal fluid.

These Imperial scientists were promptly shot.

Omega began removing the vertebral needles, closing up the wounds. She demanded sedatives and analgesics from the group, who began scouring the cabinets for any medications. Shin sliced all the straps off the bed, freeing the patient.

“Omega, you found me.”

“Save your strength. We’re getting you out of here.”

Omega asked if there was any synthetic blood on the Buir’tra. Orar Vizsla, a medic in training, nodded. Omega injected Jax with the anesthetics that were found, knowing they wouldn’t have much an effect until he got a transfusion.

A message from Sabine: destroy the research, all levels.

Omega and Orar moved Jax to a hover-stretcher. Mirli and two commandos began planting detonators throughout Level 3. Shin and another commando ascended to assist the stairwell crew in doing the same to Level 2.

The stretcher crew was escorted to the door. Sabine, Djarin (carrying a computer core), and the chief scientist (in binders) joined. The six made a break for the the Buir’tra, which had made another pass over the base to set down twenty meters from the entrance. None of the straggling stormtroopers dared shoot at their chief scientist.

Safely aboard, Orar began digging out the medical supplies. Omega deduced Jax would need 4 standard units. Transfusion commenced. Heartbeat strengthened. Breathing steadied.

Sabine grew impatient waiting for Shin to make it back. She stunned the chief scientist, and ran back into the compound, saber ablaze.

As she re-entered, she heard Shin call for backup on Level 2.

No time to run down the stairs, jumping is faster. The door had been sealed, but it was no match for a determined Jedi. A small detachment followed her thru the breach.

“Hey boys!”

The stormtroopers were caught off-guard. Their flurry of blaster fire was sent right back at them.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Come on, let’s go.”

Shin’s smile could be felt thru her helmet. “Waiting for you, of course.”

The excitement in the air could be smelled, a mission nearly finished. As this final group made their way out of the research station, more and more of the strike team joined them. The feeling of victory swelled as they reached their exit.

Jetpacks lit. The Buir’tra began taking off. Drop doors open, Mandalorians coming in the way they went out.

There were now twenty-one souls on the dropship.

Not a single loss.

They watched as the detonators simultaneously triggered, the research base rapidly disassembling before their eyes. Several hoots and hollers emerged from the team.

A pair of exhausted Jedi entered the cockpit, ready to jump back to the known galaxy.

—

Notes: I will neither confirm nor deny Omega’s force-sensitivity Tyrus & Mirli are T4T, Orar is nonbinary Moonyos are the monkey-like animals native to Pabu

Mando’a Glossary: Vor entye: “Thank you” lit. “I accept a debt” Jetii Mando’ayust: “Jedi in the Way of Mandalore” Mando’ade: “children of Mandalore” shukenla sa val: the true meaning is lost when translated, word-for-word it’s “partly” “as/like” “them” Ori’jate: “very good” cyar: “love” riduur: “spouse” Gar serim: “that’s it”, lit. “you’re right” iviin’yc: “fast” Su cuy'gar: “Hello!” lit. “So you're still alive.” Buir’tra: Mother Sky, tho Mando’a has no gender Ni vercopaani kaysh brali: “I hope this works” lit. “I hope it succeeds”

#star wars fanfic #wolfwren #sabine wren #shin hati #ao3 #sapphic star wars #tbb omega #tbb jax

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imaginesmai · 2 years ago

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Once upon a fairy tale - Ubbe Ragnarson (preface)

Let me know if you want to be added to the taglist!

Other parts: Once Upon A Fairy Tale Masterlist

Plot: Ubbe and you meet for the first time, foreshadowing what your relationship is going to be like.

Warnings: none

For a young kid, a castle’s worth wasn’t defined by how expensive the curtains and carpets were, how bright the chandeliers shone. It was about how many good places to climb and hide it had, and the castle of Wessex wasn’t that good. At least, that was what five-year-old prince Ubbe thought.

He missed his home, where he could climb high walls without annoying servants dragging him back to his mother. Back there, his brothers and him could hide behind the counters of the kitchen and only come out when the cooks left, to have a big fest from dinner’s left overs. He didn’t have to worry about tight clothes or protocol, he could behave just as he wanted to.

It didn’t matter if he was the eldest son or if he was the heir to the throne once his father died. He was just Ubbe, and he liked it that way.

“Stop frowning” his mother reminded him, her voice deceptively sweet. “Your father doesn’t want you to make a fool of yourself today”

“But mother, it’s tight. And itchy” he complained, not understanding the bigger picture. Not understanding anything past his uncomfortable clothes and his annoyance. “I want to go back home. Why couldn’t Hvitserk come? I don’t get bored with him”

“Shut up, Ubbe. Just be still and smile” her mother suddenly tightened up when steps were heard from across the corridor. “They’re here. Smile, Ubbe. Be nice”

Ubbe didn’t have time to say anything else, as the doors were open and his father came in. He had left him and his mother there what seemed like ages ago, but now he wasn’t alone. With him came another man, shorter than him and slimmer, laughing loudly. Ubbe guessed he was the king of the palace they were visiting, given he was wearing a crown.

His mother got up and made a curtesy bow, which he imitated. Even though he was bored and wanted to go back home, he knew he had to be polite and behave.

“Oh, my dearest Aslaug! Look at you, as gorgeous as ever” the stranger kissed his mother’s hand, and then looked at Ubbe. “And you should be the young prince, right? Don’t you look elegant”

“I’m Ubbe Ragnarson” the boy smiled widely, looking proudly at his father.

“Wonderful. I’m king Ecbert, and this is my daughter, princess Y/N” he said, although Ubbe couldn’t see any princess there. When Ecbert noticed, he turned around and dragged from behind him a girl.

You were a year younger than Ubbe’s, and if the boy was uncomfortable from being in a stranger’s castle, you were horrified at having to meet one. That morning, your father had made an effort to choose your best gowns and prettiest dress. He had told your about important guests who would come soon, but you didn’t know you had to meet them too.

Which had completely destroyed your plans of having fun, as you did every other day in a castle as the only child. You frowned at the boy in front of you, looking at his wrinkled clothes, smug smile and blue eyes.

He was disgusting.

“Come on, present yourself” your father pushed you towards Ubbe, who took a step back. “Now, darling”

“I’m princess Y/N Ealhmunding” the child tried to smile, but it came out as a grimace. “I’m four”

“I’m five” Ubbe quickly said, feeling instantly superior to the princess. “I’m older”

“And I’m prettier”

“Y/N!”

Ragnar tried to mask his amusement with a cough, and Ecbert quickly took you by your arm and told you to apologize. But you could only look at Ubbe’s surprised face, his smug smile gone, looking utterly offended. With a small smile, you apologized and let the adults do all the introductions.

While they talked, you didn’t tear your eyes away from the prince, and neither did he. He wasn’t easily annoyed – with three brothers, he was more than used to teasing. But he was also used to being the eldest, in charge of the room and game they were playing. And even if they fought and argued like any other children, Ubbe wasn’t annoyed.

But you were looking at him with that snide smile, the corner of your mouth stained with a chocolate he hadn’t tasted and that he wanted. So he tried his best to win the staring contest and let your know with just a look that he didn’t like you at all.

And that he would never do.

Want to read more? Check out my side blog @imaginesmaimasterlists, where I keep all the masterlists! Feedback is always appreciated

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last-night-is-a-blur · 1 year ago

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Vikings (the Show) thoughts

Spoiler Warning

I find Sigurd dying so early a waste. Both because he died before he managed to do much, and the viewers didn't get to know him well, and because in the tales of Ragnar and his sons, he became king and married Aelle's daughter.

It would be cool if Sigurd became the King of Kattegat (or another place for that matter), married Judith's sister and brought her to Scandinavia. Watching a Saxon princess trying to adjust to life there would have been interesting.

I also find it a waste to kill Gyda so soon. I am curious how she would have turned out. I imagine her as gentle, open-minded and curious woman who longed to explore the world and wanted to carry on Ragnar's dream of seattling in fertile land where their people could live in peace. Not much of a warrior, though she might have learned to fight to protect herself and others. More of a diplomat, explorer and peace-keeper who influences things around her without murder and warfare.

I imagine her staying with Ragnar, since Björn left with Lagertha, and Athelstan becoming like a second father to her. Since Aslaug focused mostly on Ivar, Gyda stepped up to take care of her three other half-brothers.

Someone even suggested that it could have been cool if Gyda had been the woman who "inspired" Harald to conquer Norway, since in the legends that woman was also named Gyda (though she was a daughter of a king named Eiríkur). I kind of like that.

People talking someone becoming King of Iceland is a bit funny, because Iceland has never had it's own king (just foreign kings, who annexed Iceland). For the first few centuries Iceland didn't even have a Head of State. It by several chieftains who together made legislative desicions.

#vikings #sigurd snake in the eye #sigurd ragnarsson #gyda ragnarsdottir #gyda (vikings)#sigurd (vikings)

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ermakeys · 2 years ago

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A Rewrite of S3 the Mandalorian

Full disclaimer this is just an idea since I was unhappy/disappointed with quite a few things in season 3. I tried to cover an issue of object permanence (darksaber, razor crest and beskar spear), an idea I saw talked about with the missing children that links up to the sequel trilogy, removed Din’s sudden return of droid hate (why???) and tried to avoid showing that the New Republic “failed” as season 3 seems to be portraying them. Plus the whole Bo-Katan... issue. I will note that I like Bo-Katan as a character, but I think of her an antagonist or even villain (like here). While I am not writing a rewrite of the Book of Boba Fett which is also bad, someone already proposed a very good idea of how that show could have gone! As I wrote this an OC was created and I had fun making her and I wanted to introduce the Protectors through her.

Word Count: ~7,100 words

Pre Season 3

The Book of Boba Fett needs it’s own rewrite, but for the purpose of this piece imagine that Din did help Boba. However, we never see or hear anything about Grogu and he doesn’t come back to Din (yet). Nor does Din find the Mandalorians and have his spat with Paz and the Armorer. What was he doing? Crying somewhere about losing Grogu and helping Peli fix his new ride. Also he keeps the spear because I say so. In the Book of Boba Fett, Din would also mention needing the credits to buy and rebuild everything he lost with the razor crest. So Din helps Boba, but skip 99% of what they actually showed cause ew. It’s Boba’s show and you should treat it that way!

Episode 1: The Apostate 😢

(same title ha!)

Like in the Book of Boba Fett, Din follows rumors to find his covert and tribe. (Same location) They welcome him at first until Din retells his tale and is asked if he removed his helmet. He admits he did. Paz calls him an apostate and a fight breaks out because Din could reveal their location and they can’t have that. Din is pulling his punches because he doesn’t want to hurt them. The covert wrestles him down and take off his helmet as well as his weapons. One warrior finds the darksaber and activates it. A handful recognize what it is and the Armorer inspects it, saying that the one to wield it has the right to claim leadership over all Mandalorians (or some sort). During the struggle, Din asked for a chance to redeem himself in the eyes of his people. That he will take any task. The Armorer takes him up on it now that he has the darksaber. Paz argues against it since Din’s an apostate and the darksaber belongs to him by right. The Armorer has Paz and Din duel and if Din wins, he will be given a mission to redeem himself. After some back and forth, Din manages to win and the Armorer reveals what his task will be. When the covert fled Nevarro, many foundlings went missing. The Armorer didn’t find their remains like she did the others when she remained behind. Din’s task is to find the missing foundlings. Among those foundlings is Paz’s son, Ragnar. The covert had tried to find traces of the foundlings, but only ran into dead ends. They assume the children are gone or dead and are mourning them. They send Din on this quest with the intention of him either finding the foundlings or dying honorably trying to find them. This should be mentioned in the conversation between the Armorer and Din.

Din accepts this quest and limps out of the covert as Mandalorians whisper to each other, some whispering “Apostate” as he passes. He returns to his ship and for extra emotional damage, you could have a few shots of Din staring at little children and him missing Grogu OR him taking out and staring at the little metal ball Grogu loved.

Cut to Grogu arriving at Luke’s new jedi school/temple. Some parts are still under droid construction and there are a few younglings and a handful of adults/staff. They are very welcoming and the rest of the episode shows Grogu being shown around and casual displays of the force. Could even have a few other jedi survivor cameos if you had to have them. (I certainly wouldn’t complain about Cal Kestis...)

Episode 2: The Lost ⛑️

Din returns to a flourishing Nevarro. He seeks out Karga to find out what he knows of the foundlings that vanished in Nevarro. Karga tells Din that the foundlings weren’t the only children to disappear. In the time that the imps were present, several young children went missing. He suspected the imps being behind it, but he could never be sure. Karga tells Din that his best bet would be to ask the New Republic to question Moff Gideon about the children. Karga has a contact on Coruscant that Din can get in touch with and Din travels to Coruscant.

Only to discover that Karga’s contact was demoted a while ago for accepting a bribe. The contact says they can still help, but they need Din to do them a favor first. It involves a bounty and Din goes hunting. While hunting the bounty (“I can bring you in warm or I can bring you in cold”), Din runs into Bo-Katan, Koska and Axe. He’s in the middle of a hunt, so when they call on him to stop, he doesn’t listen. So, they run after him because Bo won’t take no for an answer. They corner the bounty and Din and he demands they hand over the bounty to him since he needs it for his new quest (can even work in an “I like those odds” moment). Bo mocks him that as the wielder of the darksaber he is wasting his time chasing petty bounties in the lower levels of Coruscant for scraps. Din isn’t happy about the comment and asks what her noble reason for being here is. Bo reveals that since she can’t unite the Mandalorians without the darksaber, she demanded reparations from the New Republic for what the Empire did to Mandalore, so she could reclaim and rebuild the Mandalorian homeworld. Unfortunately, they’ve been brushing her off, saying it was the Empire that did those things and not the New Republic. In addition, the planet is known to be cursed/dead. The New Republic has other worlds with dying populations so while they would like to help the Mandalorians it is low on their priority list. She “graciously” invites him to help, Din declines and sneering, Bo demands a duel for the darksaber since he isn’t he ally anymore. Din tries to yield again, but that only makes her angrier. He refuses to fight her and after some more arguing, they part ways after mocking Din some more.

Din climbs back up to the surface of Coruscant with his bounty and looks around, wondering where he is. The bounty helpfully supplies that they are next to the old imperial palace and where the old jedi temple stood. Din stares at it for a while as it is bathed in the red sunset. It looks like it’s on fire in that light.

Episode 3: The Foundling 🔥

The jedi temple is in flames. It’s flashback o’clock baby. The sound of blaster fire and lightsabers. The cries of those being shot and the static voices hidden behind helmets of those that used to protect the temple, the planet and the galaxy. Grogu wakes up from the dream of his past. He shares a room with other younglings in Luke’s temple and new jedi training facility. Grogu climbs out of bed and steps out to look over the temple. Parts of it are still under construction. Luke (if we need to have fake Mark Hamil…) greets Grogu since he was coming to wake the younglings for breakfast and then training. Luke speaks to Grogu about his dreams and that he is concerned. Grogu is seen over the course of the day being different from the other younglings. He is seen constantly staring up at the sky (as if he missed his DAD T.T) and fiddling with his mythosaur pendant. Grogu is both the oldest and the youngest. He reacts in ways that startle the kids sometimes. He repressed his powers for so long so that when he does try to tap into them, the results can be unpredictable. Luke has a chat with him about that when Grogu has an accident. “Did you have these dreams and problems before?” “Patu (no)” “Do you think it had to do with the presence of the Mandalorian? You trusted him, felt safe with him. Perhaps leaving him is making you feel the same way as when you were ripped from the temple.” (Something to that effect.) They return to the other younglings and their training.

Cut back to Coruscant and Din. He hands over the bounty much to the delight of Karga’s contact. The contact takes Din to his supervisor who tells him that this is confidential, but Moff Gideon escaped. Din asks how that is possible, but the supervisor tells Din that it happened. The supervisor gives Din a point in a direction he can try to get more information though. The patrols of the outer rim had been reporting some missing children and one captain had been requesting an investigation and more patrols. The supervisor tells Din to try his luck with that captain.

Episode 4: The Protector 👩🏽‍✈️

A similar opening to the very first episode of the Mandalorian in season 1. Except it’s that beach bar from canon season 3. New Republic pilots are relaxing inside when Din steps inside. It’s tense at first until Captain Teva appears with a comment about meeting again. Din explains why he is here and Teva reveals that they have been trying to investigate the missing the children all over the outer rim. However, many outer rim planets don’t want the New Republic to patrol or investigate them or the inhabitants of republic worlds don’t trust them. The cries for help they do receive are scattered all over the outer rim, but there are too many to be completely random. One of Teva’s pilots went “rogue” to try and go undercover with a mercenary group he thinks could be involved. The mission couldn’t be officially sanctioned, but Teva sent the pilot on an “extended” patrol. However, Teva lost contact with her several cycles ago and is getting worried. He promises all his information and whatever his pilot found in return for Din helping him find his lost pilot. Din agrees and they fly to the moon where the pilot was last heard from.

They land near the x-wing of the lost pilot (it has a Mandalorian Protector symbol). Din and Teva begin to track towards the base where the mercenaries only for them to run into a patrol. Teva and Din fight them only to be joined by the lost pilot wearing Mandalorian armor (hers and she uses it as a disguise for the mercs). They quickly eliminate the patrol and in the fight Din uses the darksaber. Once the fighting is done the Mandalorian lost pilot points her weapons at Din and demands to know how he got the darksaber. Teva tries to order her to stand down, but she’s not having it. Din reveals he earned it by fighting in a duel against Moff Gideon and her whole attitude changes. She bows to Din and calls him Mand’alor (much to his discomfort) and that she is at his service. The pilot is the niece of Fenn Rau (young barely out of her teens) and following in her uncle’s footsteps of becoming a Mandalorian Protector and she is serving the New republic until a new Mand’alor returns. Din says he’s not the Mand’alor and Teva calls back to the present. Rau reports that she infiltrated the mercs and they had been raiding settlements and kidnapping children. She had wanted to get back to her x-wing to report earlier, but things have been tenser and everyone was being more heavily scrutinized. She reveals that her superior said an imperial warlord was scheduled to come this evening and pick up the children collected so far.

Din, Teva and Rau need to move fast if they want to save the children here now. Rau tells Din that she doesn’t know where the children are taken once the mercs hand them over to the imps. That kind of information would be found in an imp database or cruiser (hint hint Bo-Katan currently owns one of those). The rest of the episode is spent fighting mercs and freeing the children. Din and Rau take care of the close quarter fighting while Teva provides aerial support from Din’s ship and Teva’s and Rau’s astromechs fly the two x-wings. Din and Rau hijack one of the merc’s transporter ships and once they get the kids on board, they get the hell out of there. One of the kids happens to be a force user who helps them get the kids out.

Episode 5: The Challenger 🤺

The episode opens with the beach bar being super busy as kids are being taken care of and sorted. Some are already being reunited with parents that flew out to get them. Din is standing to the side and Rau approaches him with a fist over her heart and a short “Mand’alor.” He tells her not to call him that and they have a conversation about the darksaber, the Mand’alor and the Protectors. Din says he doesn’t want to be followed as Mand’alor, so she asks to join his quest. Foundlings are such an integral part of Mandalorian culture, his quest is important to her. Teva speaks with Din and Rau and says that now they have the proof they needed that imperial warlords are behind the abductions, he could leverage the support he needs to try and track them down better after taking the children back where they belonged. Din accepts Rau’s offer for help and she hands in her resignation to Teva. (Teva asks how he should explain Rau’s resignation when her uncle asked and Rau mentions he won’t because they had a spat about her wanting to follow in his footsteps) Rau mentions again they need to access an imperial database to find out where the foundlings went and Din says he might have an idea for that since he knows which cruiser probably had transported the foundlings and he might be able to gain access to it. Cut to Grogu at the temple. He’s not concentrating on his studies again and gets scolded for it. A ship arrives, drawing everyone’s attention and the force user child that helped Din is brought to the sanctuary. Everyone crowds around the newcomer and the pilot that brought them explains what happened. Grogu is super excited to hear about his DAD (<3). He lies awake later in the night, staring up through a window at the stars. He crawls out of bed and tries to hijack an x-wing (Luke’s). Luke finds him and says he thought Grogu might try to leave. He can tell that Grogu misses his father and is not ready to learn here yet. R2-D2 gets into the x-wing and Luke says to join his father. The temple would be here when Grogu was ready.

Cut back to Din as he and Rau exit hyperspace. They land on a planet where the light cruiser is stationed along with a small fleet of smaller ships. Rau follows Din and is shocked to discover it’s Bo-Katan in control of the light cruiser. She questions if she heard that right and lists several things about Bo-Katan (sister of Satine, member of the Death Watch, the one to lose the darksaber twice, etc.). A lot of things Din didn’t know. What catches his attention is her affiliation to Death Watch which Rau explains to him. He files that away for later and they approach the encampment.

Bo-Katan, Axe and Koska along with several other Mandalorians receive them and Bo says she was surprised Din asked for a meeting. Some snide comments get thrown around. These include about him being a Child of the Watch which Rau counters is rich coming from her. Bo sneers at Rau and says she didn’t ask for a little girl’s opinion. Bo also asks about Grogu and mocks Din about his foundling. Din says he needs to try and access the light cruisers old imperial files. Bo says they are encrypted and that makes them useless. Din says let that be his worries and she counters, they won’t be for free. “The way I see it, we both want something from each other. You want the data. I want a duel.” Din accepts the duel. Over the course of the duel Bo tries to goad Din about his son and being from a cult. She finally hits a nerve and Din who had considered fighting until he could pretend to yield, goes all out and stomps Bo into the ground. Axe jumps in, trying to argue that someone from a backward cult can’t be the Mand’alor and Rau jumps in before Axe can go after a vulnerable Din. Rau announces Din as the victor of the duel and there is a tense silence. Koska finally steps forward and says she will give them the data since Din won. She leads Din and Rau into the light cruiser. As they pass the other Mandalorians, some murmur “Mand’alor” as Din passes, pressing their fist to their chest. Others just watch while others go and join Bo and Axe. Koska downloads the old imperial data onto a disk and hands it to Din, saying that it isn’t easy for Bo to give up being the Mand’alor. Din argues, “I would have just given her the darksaber. I don’t want it.” Koska and Rau both say that that isn’t how earning the darksaber works. Koska adds that Bo’s family were rulers and Bo had been taught to rule her entire life. It was hard for her to be the one to lose it all. Rau pipes up by saying, “The Mand’alor was never a hereditary title.” The episode ends with Din and Rau in their ships and Rau asks how they’re going to get the data decrypted. Din says he knows someone who could crack the code, but doesn’t know how welcome they’ll be.

The Shadow Council ♟️

I liked the Shadow Council scene enough that I would leave most of it. Instead of Gideon checking in with his agent on Coruscant, Gideon is seen in an office of his surrounded by Mandalorian artifacts. He receives a notification that the Shadow Council is assembled and he does the walk over through all those silly red lasers. The council meeting proceeds as usual. Add it either to the end of episode 5 or the beginning of episode 6, depending on how long the episodes are already.

Episode 6: The Return 👾

The episode opens with Din guiding Rau to the covert. On the way to the covert Din tells Rau a list of things she should avoid at the covert (removal of helmet, saying he’s the Mand’alor, antagonizing Paz, etc.). Rau answers each instruction with a question which Din ignores. They reach the covert and the covert greets them with raised blasters. Paz and the Armorer appear and comment that Din has returned not only without the foundlings but with a stranger, revealing their location. Din introduces Rau and holds up the data disk saying he needs a hacker to break the imperial encryption. He turns to look at one of the Mandalorians holding a blaster towards them (the Hacker). Paz scoffs and asks why they should trust Din? He’s an apostate and he’s already failed to return with the foundlings and brought a stranger with him. The Hacker Mandalorian lowers his blasters and asks Din if that data disk can tell them where his child could be. Paz growls at the Hacker to hold formation and Hacker takes a step forward, repeating his question. Din explains that the data disk holds information from Moff Gideon’s cruiser and that if the information would be anywhere, then it would be here. Paz grabs at Hacker to pull him back, but Hacker yanks his arm free and snaps, “If I can break the encryption and find my daughter, I will take that chance.” Paz argues against, stating they can’t trust an apostate as much as he is grieving his son like Hacker his daughter. Hacker argues that they used to trust Din, why should that have changed? “He broke the Creed to save his son and he is working to atone for that act. The Creed should acknowledge his faith for trying to follow it and forgive him for breaking it to save his son.” “Heresy!” The Armorer silences them and asks if Hacker thinks he can do it and he says he can. She allows for Din and Rau to enter the covert so Hacker can break the encryption.

Din and Rau stay with Hacker as he works on breaking the encryption. Hacker has a workshop where he does programming and encryption for the covert. Hacker and Din have a conversation about how Din and the covert has been. Hacker shares a little about his daughter and asks about Grogu. Din shares a little and Rau asks about Grogu. Din admits to missing Grogu and his fingers are tracing the pocket where Grogu’s little metal ball is hidden.

Eventually, Hacker says he’s done as much as he can. The program just needs to run. Hacker invites Din to a friendly spar and the trio goes to an open area of the covert. Quite a few watch as Din uses his spear and then the darksaber when Hacker encourages him because he wants to try defending against it. Din wins and Paz appears making mocking remarks about Din and also Rau. Rau has listened to Din and not spoken up around the others like he’d asked, but it’s visible that she has been angered by Paz’s remarks. Din declines the spar since he just sparred and invites Rau to fight Paz instead. She is startled at first and then relishes in the challenge. “Why…?” “You’re the one who wants to protect.”

The two fight (showcasing Rau holding her own against a larger and stronger foe) and the match is interrupted by someone hurrying into the room and saying someone is approaching the covert. “Who is it? Imps?” “Unknown.” The warriors hurry to the perimeter and after a tense moment, Teva, Rau’s droid and Grogu appear! Teva explains Grogu appeared with R2-D2 and Teva tracked Rau’s droid who brought them here. Paz flips his noodle saying that Din brought even MORE strangers to the covert!!! Din says that Grogu is meant to be with his teacher, but Teva says that in the message he received that Grogu wasn’t ready. That Grogu wanted to be with his father. Din argues, reaching and recoiling from Grogu at the same time. (He knows that if he picks up Grogu he won’t be able to let him go again *sob*) The Armorer shows up and encourages Din to accept his foundling. That his foundling chose the way of the Mandalorian.

Din picks up Grogu and it cuts to Din, Rau and Hacker sitting in Hacker’s workshop as Grogu sits on Din’s lap, chattering animatedly, waving his hands around. Din answers him in a quiet voice like he can’t quite believe that Grogu is back with him. Hacker and Rau fawn over Grogu before they all check in with Rau how she’s doing after her spar with Paz. “Sore. Feels like a rancor threw me through a wall.” The Armorer joins them hands Grogu a more size appropriate mythosaur pendant (that huge thing is ridiculous. She might have had a bracelet sized one lying around) and Grogu puts it on while after a tense moment the Armorer hands him back his pendant. She says they had lost hope of ever finding the foundlings and he has brought hope back to the covert. She gives a side-eye to Rau (as much as one can wearing a helmet) and makes a comment about Din finding a protector for himself. She mentions that things are changing and Din doesn’t have a chance to say anything when Hacker’s tech chimes. The encryption is broken. They sort through the data and find out that the imps had taken the foundlings and children of Nevarro. They try to find out where and find the blueprints of an imperial facility that Gideon built. Tie fighters, droids, training facilities for future storm troopers and a… the Armorer and Rau both startle when they recognize the Forge. Hacker calls up the coordinates of the base and confirm the Armorer’s and Rau’s suspicions. The base is on Mandalore. Hacker and Din say that it’s impossible that the planet was cursed and glassed. Apparently not though and the decision is made to go to Mandalore.

Episode 7: The Fight for Mandalore ⚔️

Grogu is sleeping peacefully (probably the first time since he left Din) and Din is standing over him, just watching. The shot is so that the viewer can tell Din is helmetless, but can’t see his head. Din’s bare hand traces over Grogu’s head and ear before a chime sounds and the viewer can see Din lifting on his helmet (NO FACE). Grogu starts to wake up from the sound of the chime and once Din has his gloves on he calls for them to enter. Rau enters and lets Din know that Bo-Katan was answering the call they’d sent out last night. Grogu starts to crawl out of his bed and Din picks him up. He hesitates a moment before holding Grogu out to Rau and asks her to hold him while he talks to Bo. Rau is surprised and asks that he trusts her with his child? “I don’t need to be protected. Protect him in my stead if I can’t.” (something along those lines of her being a protector, but din can protect himself so please defend grogu instead) Din asks why being a protector is so important to Rau. She says she lost all family except her uncle and she and her culture feel so lost and adrift. Since there was no Mand’alor, her uncle Fenn hadn’t wanted her to become a protector like him, but she had defied him, making her feel a little more lost when he went low contact with her. She had imagined and hoped that a Mand’alor would give her an anchor, a purpose. “So far, I am honored to have been allowed to accompany on your quest.”

Din steps into the forge where the Armorer, Paz, Hacker and most of the covert has gathered. On a holoprojector stands Bo with Koska and Axe on either side of her. Bo is even more bitter than before but reigns in her snide comments a little better this time. She coolly asks what Din wants this time and Din announces what he found on the imperial data disk. That the foundlings and Nevarro children are being held on an imperial facility on Mandalore. Din proposes to join forces to take down the facility. Bo could claim the planet while the covert just wanted their foundlings returned. The Armorer declares that the covert intends to join Din in this quest and save the children. After some hesitation, Bo agrees to Din’s terms. They agree on a time and the Armorer orders for the covert to mobilize.

Cut to Bo-Katan sitting in the captain’s chair of the light cruiser. She is sitting there thinking while some of the Mandalorians around her are chattering excitedly. Koska asks Bo what is wrong and Bo waves her off. Bo leaves, saying she has something to take care of (~foreshadowing~).

Cut back to the covert in full chaos mode of packing up everything into boxes and onto their ships (screw not having ships like wtf was that!?). Din and Rau are helping the Armorer when the Armorer asks if Rau would call in the other protectors. Rau hesitates and says she could try and looks to Din. He gives Rau a nod and tells her to wait at her x-wing since they’re almost done. Rau goes to her x-wing and chickens out with calling her uncle Fenn. Instead, she sends him a recorded message telling him she found the wielder of the darksaber and that they are going to chase of imps off Mandalore. She asks that he join them with any protectors he has. She finishes with an “I hope the battle goes well. I will know you forever.” Din joins her and they both get in their respective ships. Grogu joins Din in his ship. They take off and meet with the covert’s ships off of the ring space station the covert had been hiding on. They enter hyperspace and in a holoprojector call with Bo and her forces, go over the plan for storming the imperial base. Covert will be ground forces while some of Bo’s fleet will draw their attention in the sky and fire relentlessly at the base, drawing their tie fighters.

The episode cuts to the ships meeting over Mandalore. This is the first real full shot of Mandalore that isn’t a projection. Rau comments that it looks nothing like the holoimages her uncle had shown her and the Armorer adds that it looks nothing like she remembered it either. Thanks to atmospheric interference they don’t have to worry about flying stealthily too much and the covert flies in.

The first part of the operation goes mostly well. (Rau and Grogu follow Din) Bo’s fleet starts shooting at the base, allowing Din and the covert to infiltrate the base. They find the beskar wearing storm troopers and while it’s unexpected the covert can take them. They train every day with each other. They know how to take down others and other Mandalorians equally. Especially losers that haven’t been wearing beskar for as long as the covert. After a while it becomes eerie with how easily they are advancing. Then the sounds of fighting outside dies down. Din tries calling Bo to no avail. They press on only to reach a large room open to the sky and the doors behind them seal. Tie fighters fly in and beskar storm troopers jetpack in and Din and the covert get pinned down. Din calls for Bo again and again, that they are taking heavy fire. The shooting pauses and Din looks up to Moff Gideon arriving in his black beskar suit (minus the horns that was a reference to maul before!!??). Gideon is also accompanied by the three members of the praetorian guard. He smiles and says, “Hello Din Djarin. I think you have gotten yourself into a rather dire situation. I think I even sense a certain amount of betrayal.”

As he says that last sentence, the scene cuts to Bo’s fleet retreating back into orbit near the light cruisers and the tie fighters breaking off their pursuit. The scene cuts again to Bo sitting in the captain’s chair with Koska and Axe standing on either side of her with confused/shocked expressions. Bo looks grim, guilty and determined as she stares into the camera before closing her eyes as Gideon says “betrayal” and that is the end of the episode.

Episode 8: The Ruler of Mandalore 👑

The episode begins with Bo-Katan watching her fleet fight the tie fighters. She gets some notification as a chime and orders her fleet to retreat. Everyone on deck looks at her like Bo has lost her mind and they’re confused. Axe demands to know what is going on. Bo doesn’t explain at first just demands that her fighters retreat back to the light cruiser or if they were defying orders. They can hear Din calling for support and asking what is going on. Koska steps forward demanding answers and Bo tells her to back off. Axe and Koska are cornering her for answers until Bo explodes angrily. (I wish) Bo goes on a rant how she deserves to be Mand’alor! She was the one who fought tooth and nail for that right! She trained endlessly for it! First her sister got to rule and now she is being denied that right by some nobody bounty hunter! “Let the empire and the cultists wipe each other out. We’ll deal with the scragglers.” Koska and Axe stare at her like she’s lost her mind. Finally Koska asks, “You want to reclaim Mandalore… by betraying our allies? Our own people?” Even Axe chimes in with, “You know I am loyal to you, my lady and I might not be fond of or happy to be working with the children of the watch, but even I can’t stomach turning on our allies.” Bo calls them traitors and draws her blaster on them. Sides are drawn and fighting breaks out. Bo is forced to retreat with a few Mandos loyal to her while Koska and Axe take over the light cruiser. As Koska and Axe regain control of the command deck, they get several notifications: One that Bo has taken a ship with those loyal to her and is flying towards the surface. Second that they have several ships on approach from outside the system. They don’t know if friend or foe.

Cut to Din and the covert cornered and surrounded by the beskar storm troopers and Moff Gideon. Gideon lords it over them that he is control of the Forge and that he will bring in a new age of Mandalorians and bla bla bad guy speech (explaining also that Bo betrayed them) and he offers them the chance to surrender. On the condition that they all yield. Particularly Din. Din is considering yielding to save the covert while Paz is arguing against surrendering at all. Rau sees a notification on her wrist brace and steps up calling that that isn’t how the darksaber can be won. Only through a duel. Gideon who wants to be acknowledged as Mandalorian and is very clever knows it’s a play for time, but he thinks with his new armor that he can best Din this time. Rau asks Din to trust her and he goes out to duel with Gideon.

Din and Gideon duel and it is very close and tense. However, the duel is interrupted by the arrival of the Protectors as they swoop in and shoot down the tie fighters hovering nearby. The Protectors use a dropship to drop several Protectors and Fenn Rau calls out over an open comms that the Protectors have arrived to help.

Chaos breaks out. The covert charges out as the protectors have broken the imperial formations. Gideon retreats away from Din who wants to charge after him to finish what they started, but the praetorian guard gets in between. Paz, the Armorer and Rau jump in to help Din with the three praetorian guards. Between the four of them they manage to take down the guards. Over comms Koska and Axe check in and announce that they are returning to the fight after taking over the cruiser. The Armorer tells Din to go after Gideon and finish the hut’uun.

Din is followed by Paz, Hacker and Rau as they chase after where Gideon was last seen. They stalk down several corridors and hallways until they find Gideon at one of the entrances to the Forge and the living waters. This entrance has a chasm with a long drop and a waterfall that crashes somewhere far below. Gideon is waiting for them in front of a platform over that chasm. On the platform are the children of Nevarro and the Mandalorian foundlings. Gideon and several beskar storm troopers are holding the children at gun point. Paz and Hacker spot their foundlings and call for them. Gideon raises a hand and informs them that if they come one step closer one of his troopers will hit a button that will collapse the platform. The children would fall to certain death. Gideon demands Din hand over the darksaber and that he be allowed to walk free. Din is willing to do that because the darksaber means very little to him compared to the lives of the children.

(Gideon has the chilren by the way because while he might look down on Hux he does think that he can use these kids and train them into future Imperial Mandalorians.)

Unfortunately, that is when Bo finds them with the handful of loyal Mandalorians she has left. She says she won’t tolerate any rivals to her rightful place as Mand’alor. Din is sick and tired of these two fighting over the darksaber and says all he wants is the children. He doesn’t care who gets the darksaber. He drops the darksaber and kicks it towards Gideon. “Now let the children go.” Bo is swearing that Din made a mistake while Gideon picks up the darksaber. Gideon ignites it with a smile and then says, “No.”

A trooper hits the switch to drop the children and Din, Paz, Hacker and Rau lunge forward, crying out. The supports of the platform are blown out and it rocks dangerously before beginning to fall.

Meanwhile Bo launches an attack at Gideon and their two sides move slightly away from the platform to engage each other.

Cut back to Din and his people trying to reach the children in time to save them. Luckily, Grogu is with them and stops the platform with the force. This gives them enough time to save the foundlings while Bo’s and Gideon’s forces fight. Rau who had been carrying Grogu on her shoulders needs to be careful so she can protect him without becoming a target for the other two forces.

Hacker and Paz move the children away and Din and Rau sprint over to take care of Gideon once and for all. Only a few are still fighting the rest are either dead or heavily injured. Gideon and Bo are fighting in the middle. Rau goes to take care of the remaining imps and to keep the other Mandalorians from interfering while Din throws himself at Gideon and Bo. It becomes a three-way fight between them. All three are tired and exhausted at this point.

Bo gets thrown back at some point and Din manages to stab Gideon with his beskar spear. Gideon can’t seem to believe it before he finally slumps over. Din starts to pick up the darksaber and ignites it in time to block Bo’s screaming attack. She yells at him that it should be hers. He doesn’t want it anyway, he should give it to her!

Din manages to defeat Bo and she’s kneeling on the ground, exhausted and beaten, tears streaming down her face (lost her helmet at some point). Din is tired and upset at this point and says this is all so frustrating. Their people should have been her focus and look at where they are now. Her people defeated, dead or splintered by infighting. The ones that entrusted their lives to her.

Din looks at the darksaber in his hand before he throws it into the chasm, saying he is returning the saber to the living waters of Mandalore. Bo cries out and crawls to the edge of the chasm. “What have you done!?” Din walks away telling Bo to think about what she’s done.

Cut to showing a wrap up of the fighting. The imps are destroyed or chased off the planet by the Protector’s and Koska’s and Axe’s fleet. The foundlings are returned to their parents while others take care of those without. Fenn Rau is introduced in person as Din, Koska, Axe, Paz, Rau Jr and the Armorer meet to discuss what happens next. No one had expected Mandalore could actually be inhabitable. Fenn asks about the Mand’alor and Din says he threw the darksaber away. That he was tired over the fighting for a weapon. Fenn is shocked and says that won’t go down well with the other Clans. (point of conflict for another season maybe?) Axe and Paz aren’t pleased either. Axe and Koska are mourning Bo-katan in a way as she has vanished. Paz isn’t happy, but shrugs it off since he’s happy to have his son back. (somewhere in the background Hacker and his daughter are reunited too) The Armorer says that the last owner of the darksaber decided that was how he would handle it and nothing more could be done. It was lost to them for now. Rau sort of sadly says that she supposes the protectors will have to disband since there is no darksaber wielding Mand’alor anymore. Fenn and Din both correct her that the protectors were more than bodyguards of the Mand’alor. Din reminds her of how she protected the foundlings.

The covert decides to set up their camp in the forge and claim this as their new home for now. Koska asks if her people could be welcome here as well. Paz argues that they don’t follow the Way. Axe starts to get bent out of shape about that, but it’s the Armorer who shuts that down. Not sure about the exact wording, but I would imagine something along the lines of winds of change, they’ve reclaimed a part of their ancestral home and have access to the living waters. They no longer need to hide as they once did. They can be more accepting of other ways as long as others can be of theirs, looking at you Axe. The Armorer looks at Din and adds that some could even learn to walk both ways. Plus it’s nice to have a light cruiser in orbit.

Fenn’s protectors leave to spread the news and discuss with their Clans and families. Rau stays behind and Fenn promises to come to her.

New shot of Din and Grogu having a quiet moment in front of the chasm where Din threw the darksaber. The Armorer joins him and Din says they have a lot of work ahead of them. She agrees, but asks when have Mandalorians ever backed down from a challenge? She says she officially welcomes him back into the covert, but with a look at Grogu says he will probably learn to walk both ways in more than one way as the father of a Mandalorian Jedi. Din asks if he did the right thing to throw the darksaber away like he did. The Armorer is quiet for a moment before saying, “The darksaber had been taken by the jedi a long time ago. We reclaimed it and then it spent quite some time in the hands of those that sought to use Mandalorians as tools for their own gains. Perhaps it was time for the darksaber to be reclaimed by the living waters.” She leaves him to mull over it and the last scene is of him and Grogu sitting together.

Epilogue 🐉

The following scene can either be an after end credits scene or follows the previous scene. The viewer sees the darksaber hit the water. It sinks quickly and far, far below the surface as fish swim by and enters the depths. It gets pushed around by currents and creatures in the water until it reaches a dark area with bubbling and glowing vents of lava. It comes to rest on the bottom of the water near a vent. The viewer then sees an eye slowly crack open and move to reveal the head of a mythosaur as one massive clawed paw reaches out and drags the darksaber into the dark. The screen fades to black to the sound of a mythosaur growling.

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valkyries-things · 2 months ago

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LAGERTHA // SHIELDMAIDEN

“She was a Viking ruler and shield-maiden from what is now Norway, and the onetime wife of the famous Viking Ragnar Lodbrok. Her tale was recorded by the chronicler Saxo in the 12th century. She and the other women of the Norwegian king’s family were put into a brothel for public humiliation. When Ragnar came to avenge the king’s death, many of the women Frø had ordered abused dressed themselves in men's clothing and fought on Ragnar's side. Chief among them, and key to Ragnar's victory, was Lagertha. Impressed with her courage, Ragnar courted her. He eventually divorced her for another woman, but after sending for Norway for support on a civil war, Lagertha came to his aid with 120 ships. Ragnar's son Siward was wounded, Lagertha saved the day for Ragnar with a counter-attack. Upon returning to Norway, she slew her new husband with a spearhead she concealed in her gown. Saxo concludes that she then "usurped the whole of his name and sovereignty; for this most presumptuous dame thought it pleasanter to rule without her husband than to share the throne with him".”

#female history #viking history #lagertha #norwegian history

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aressida · 3 months ago

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My entry: The True Legacy of my forebears - Unraveling some facts from myths. Pt 2. - Aressida. 20.9.24.

I was standing here, tracing the bloodlines from both my mother’s and father’s sides, uncovering the rich tapestry of my ancestry.

I first discovered my Viking roots last April, tracing them back to the 9th century. It all began with the legendary figures of Ragnar and Aslaug. From there, I found Ivar and his son, which led me to the beginnings of the Montgomery Clan.

My exploration took me further back to Olaf the White, a notable Viking leader known for his conquests in Ireland and the Hebrides, and his wife Aud, whose lineage ties into the saga of Norse exploration.

I eventually traced my ancestry all the way back to Ketil and Kari Fornjotur, a legendary figure said to be one of the first settlers in Iceland.

My roots run deep through Norwegian, Icelandic, Scottish, and Finnish lines, alongside connections to the Laxdaela Saga, Eyrbyggja Saga, Eirik the Red’s Saga, and Landnamabok, all of which are rich with tales of exploration, conflict, and the resilience of the Norse spirit.

When I think of Lagertha, like in the TV series Vikings, I see her as a prominent figure in the Saga of Ragnar Lodbrok. She is portrayed as a fierce shieldmaiden and devoted wife of Ragnar. I did adore her spirit. However, her historical existence is a matter of debate among scholars. While some suggest she may have been inspired by real women warriors from Viking culture, no concrete evidence confirms she was an actual person. So, while Lagertha embodies the indomitable spirit of Viking warriors, I cannot definitively claim she existed in history.

I am also diving deeper into Ivar, who frequently appears in The Tale of Ragnar's Sons and The Saga of Ragnar Lodbrok. From what I have gathered, he is depicted as highly intelligent and strategic, compensating for any limitations he faced. I see how his saga reveals a complex character, highlighting his cunning, cruelty, and strong leadership in Viking warfare. Ivar was known for leading the Great Heathen Army in England, where he played a pivotal role in the Viking conquests. That’s what I know so far.

I also traced some of my bloodlines back to Cornwall, where the Cornish miners lived, and Devon, particularly tied to the early Celtic people and the Kingdom of Dumnonia.

Dumnonia is sometimes associated with Arthurian legend and ancient Celtic royalty, even linking to Switzerland. The history of Cornwall and Devon was shaped by their resistance to Anglo-Saxon invasions, the spread of Christianity, and connections to broader Celtic and Viking cultures.

On my maternal side, the legendary Vikings primarily focused their activities in Northumbria and East Anglia, while my paternal side appears rooted in the southwest of England, where Cornwall and Devon were not part of the main Norse-controlled territories. From what I have learned so far, it seems unlikely there were close familial ties between the Norse and Celts on both sides of my ancestry. Though they interacted through trade, raids, and cultural exchanges, their connections often leaned more toward adversarial or distant.

There are some genealogical roadblocks I am facing, and I am still searching for connections further back in my family line. This means I will need to explore more resources to uncover more information.

I only began discovering these connections earlier this year, and it is been a journey filled with chaos and determination to carve out the time for this exploration. Each new piece of history I uncover adds depth to my understanding of who I am and where I come from.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

-> next for pt.3 will be about the connections between the Nazis and the Freemasonry. (My great-grandfather was a master craft 33rd degree. Yikes!) <-

#aressida #my ancestry #amazed #never stop learning #know your bloodlines #stronger than ever

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ironmyrmidon · 5 months ago

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The blood eagle, most famous for its role in the history of the sons of Loðbrók, is an interesting case of historical ambiguity. For those unfamiliar, the blood eagle was (supposedly) a rare form of ritual sacrifice where the victim has their lungs pulled out from their rib cages and splayed open to suggest the shape of eagle wings. The practice is attested only in the ritual sacrifice of nobles and only in revenge against someone who killed the father of the person performing the sacrifice, which might be why the practice was so rare. The most famous case is the sacrifice of King Ælla during the norse invasions of England.

Unfortunately, we only have records of the blood eagle from histories written a few centuries later. These were written by Christian chroniclers, meaning they shared a religion with King Ælla and not with the sons of Loðbrók, so they could be biased against the sons of Loðbrók. Descriptions of the practice are rare and ambiguous, and come from sources that blend myth and history. Perhaps the most famous description comes from the Tale of the Sons of Loðbrók, which does also contain the story of Ragnar Loðbrók killing a Lindwurm, so there are questions about the historicity of the claims made by the tale.

Interestingly, it could also be a mistranslation. It was common for the Norse to associate eagles with leadership and with gruesome deaths. It's possible that original sources evoked the symbolism associated with the eagle to describe the gruesome death of a leadership. The later chroniclers may have lacked an understanding of that symbolism, since the chroniclers were quite culturally and religiously distinct from the Norse during the reigns of the sons of Loðbrók, causing the chroniclers to miss the symbolism evoked by reference to an eagle. These chroniclers, missing the symbolism of the eagle, therefore arrived at the incorrect conclusion that the blood eagle was a distinct ritual sacrifice that bore resemblance to an eagle.

Ultimately we'll never know, but it is certainly an interesting possibility space to consider.

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medievalandfantasymelee · 6 months ago

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Submissions are closed but many of our noble and worthy Contenders still need Propaganda to aid them...

Of our 294 Entrants, the following 27 have had no text propaganda submitted

Amarendra Baahubali [Prabhas], Baahubali Series (2015-2017)

Arondir [Ismael Cruz Córdova], The Rings of Power (2022-)

Asbjörn [Tom Hopper], Northmen: A Viking Saga (2014)

Balian de Ibelin [Orlando Bloom], Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

Bjørn Ironside [Alexander Ludwig], Vikings (2013-2020)

Sir Bowen [Dennis Quaid], Dragonheart (1996)

Elrond Half-elven [Robert Aramayo], The Rings of Power (2022-)

Geoffrey Chaucer [Pier Paolo Pasolini], The Canterbury Tales (1972)

King Henry VIII [Ray Winstone], Henry VIII (2003)

Isildur, Son of Elendil [Maxim Baldry], The Rings of Power (2022-)

Prince Jingim [Remy Hii], Marco Polo (2014)

Kai [Michael Gothard], Arthur of the Britons (1972, 1973)

Sir Lancelot [Richard Gere], First Knight (1995)

Merlin [Nicol Williamson], Excalibur (1981)

“The Mute” [John Bernthal], Pilgrimage (2017)

“One-Eye” [Mads Mikkelsen], Valhalla Rising (2009)

Sir Percival [Tom Hopper], BBC’s Merlin (2008-2012)

Pero Tovar [Pedro Pascal], The Great Wall (2016)

Ragnar Lothbrook [Travis Fimmel], Vikings (2013-2020)

Richard III [Benedict Cumberbatch], The Hollow Crown (2012-2016)

Robin Hood [Tom Riley], Doctor Who: “The Robot of Sherwood” (2014)

“The Sherriff of Nottingham” [Alan Wheatley], The Adventures of Robin Hood (1955-1959)

“The Sherriff of Nottingham” [Peter Cushing], The Sword of Sherwood Forest (1960)

Syrio Forel [Miltos Yerolemou], Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

Tormund Giantsbane [Kristofer Hivju], Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

Ubbe [Jordan Patrick Smith], Vikings (2013-2020)

Wil Ohmsford [Austin Butler], Shannara Chronicles (2016)

The following 63 DO have text propaganda, but only consisting of a single sentence, (or propaganda that contains spoilers) and could use a bit more...

Aguilar de Nerha [Michael Fassbender], Assassin's Creed (2016)

Allan-A-Dale [Joe Armstrong], BBC’s Robin Hood (2006-2009)

Sultan Alauddin [Ranver Singh], Padmavaat (2018)

Amleth [Alexander Skarsgård], The Northman (2022)

Arman [Matevy Lykov], I Am Dragon (2015)

King Arthur [Graham Chapman], Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

Asneez [Isaac Hayes], Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

Ash Williams [Bruce Campbell], Army of Darkness (1992)

Azog the Defiler [Manu Bennett], The Hobbit Trilogy (2012-2014)

Ser Barristan Selmy [Ian McIlhinney], Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert [Sam Neill], Ivanhoe (1982)

Carlos I [Álvaro Cervantes], Carlos Rey Emperador (2015-2016)

Cesare Borgia [Mark Ryder], Borgia: Faith and Fear (2011-2014)

Charles Brandon [Henry Cavill], The Tudors (2007-2010)

Chu Hun [Peter Ho], Double World (2020)

Connor MacLeod [Christopher Lambert], Highlander (1986)

Prince Dastan [Jake Gyllenhaal], Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)

Dong Yilong [Henry Lau], Double World (2020)

Eamon Valda [Abdul Salis], The Wheel of Time (2021-)

Sir Elyan [Adetomiwa Edun], BBC’s Merlin (2008-2012)

Forge Fitzwilliam [Hugh Grant], Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)

Galavant [Joshua Sasse], Galavant (2015-2016)

Galessin, Duke of Orkney [Alexis Hénon], Kaamelott (2004-2009)

Gandalf [Ian McKellan], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Geralt z Rivii [Michał Żebrowski], The Witcher (2002)

Gimli, Son of Gloin [John Rhys-Davies], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Prince Hamlet [Christopher Plummer], Hamlet at Elsinore (1964)

King Henry V Plantagenet [Kenneth Branagh], Henry V (1989)

Prince Humperdink [Chris Sarandon], The Princess Bride (1987)

Ivanhoe [Anthony Andrews], Ivanhoe (1982)

Jack [Tom Cruise], Legend (1985)

Ser Jaime Lannister [Nikolaj Coster-Waldau], Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

Jaskier [Joey Batey], The Witcher (2019-)

Little John [Eric Allan Kramer], Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

Prince John [Richard Lewis], Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

Sir Lancelot [Luc Simon], Lancelot du Lac (1974)

Sir Lancelot [Santiago Cabrera], BBC’s Merlin (2008-2012)

Loial [Hammed Animashaun], The Wheel of Time (2022-)

Matrim “Mat” Cauthon [Donal Finn], The Wheel of Time (2022)

Meriadoc “Merry” Brandybuck [Dominic Monaghan], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Mikoláš Kozlík [František Velecký], Marketa Lazarová (1967)

Murtagh Morzansson [Garrett Hedlund], Eragon (2002)

Niankoro [Issiaka Kane], Yeelen (1987)

Niccolo Machiavelli [Thibaut Evrard], Borgia: Faith and Fear (2011-2014)

Phillippe Gaston [Matthew Broderick], Ladyhawke (1985)

“The Player” [Richard Dreyfuss], Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (1990)

Rand al’Thor [Josha Stradowski], The Wheel of Time (2022-)

Richard II Plantagenet [Ben Whishaw], The Hollow Crown (2012-2016)

Robin Hood [Kevin Costner], Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)

Robin Hood [Jonas Armstrong], BBC’s Robin Hood (2006-2009)

Rodrigo Borgia [Jeremy Irons], The Borgias (2011-2013)

Rollo [Clive Standen], Vikings (2013-2020)

Roose Bolton [Michael McElhatton], Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

Saruman [Christopher Lee], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Sid [Luke Youngblood], Galavant (2015-2016)

“Taunting French Guard” [John Cleese], Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

King Theoden, Son of Thengel [Bernard Hill], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Thierry of Janville [Jean-Claude Drouot], Thierry la Fronde (1963-1966)

Sir Thomas Grey [Nigel Terry], Covington Cross (1992)

Trumpkin [Peter Dinklage], The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008)

Vlad III Dracula [Luke Evans], Dracula Untold (2014)

Wat [Alan Tudyk], A Knight’s Tale (2001)

Wen Kexing [Gong Jun], Word of Honor (2021

And the following 57 have had fewer than 3 pictures submitted as visual propaganda

Prince Aemond Targaryen [Ewan Mitchell], House of the Dragon (2022-)

Ahmad [Mahesh Jadu], Marco Polo (2014)

Shah Ala ad Daula [Olivier Martinez], The Physician (2013)

Alessandro Farnese [Diarmuid Noyes], Borgia (2011-2014)

Amarendra Baahubali [Prabhas], Baahubali (2015-2017)

Amleth [Alexander Skarsgård], The Northman (2022)

Arman [Matvey Lykov], I Am Dragon (2015)

Arthur Pendragon [Oliver Tobias], Arthur of the Britons (1972-1973)

King Arthur [Sean Connery], First Knight (1995)

Sir Bowen [Dennis Quaid], Dragonheart (1996)

Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert [Sam Neill], Ivanhoe (1982)

Carlos I [Álvaro Cervantes], Carlos Rey Emperador (2015-2016)

King Caspian X [Samuel West], BBC’s Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1989)

Cesare Borgia [Mark Ryder], Borgia (2011-2014)

Prince Charmont [Hugh Dancy], Ella Enchanted (2004)

Chu Hun [Peter Ho], Double World (2020)

Connor MacLeod [Christopher Lambert], Highlander (1986)

Dong Yilong [Henry Lau], Double World (2020)

Fjölnir [Claes Bang], The Northman (2022)

Francesco de Pazzi [Matteo Martari], Medici (2016-2019)

Geoffrey Chaucer [Pier Paolo Pasolini], The Canterbury Tales (1972)

Gest [Jakob Þór Einarsson], Hrafninn flýgur (1984)

Gimli, Son of Gloin [John Rhys-Davies], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

King Henry II [Peter O’Toole], The Lion in Winter (1968)

Hugh Beringar [Sean Pertwee], Cadfael (1994-1998)

Prince Jingim [Remy Hii], Marco Polo (2014)

Little John [Nicol Williamson], Robin and Marian (1976)

Kai [Michael Gothard], Arthur of the Britons (1972, 1973)

Sir Lancelot [Richard Gere], First Knight (1995)

Lurtz [Lawrence Makoare], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Meriadoc “Merry” Brandybuck [Dominic Monaghan], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Merlin [Nicol Williamson], Excalibur (1981)

Much [Sam Troughton], BBC’s Robin Hood (2006-2009)

Murtagh Morzansson [Garrett Hedlund], Eragon (2002)

Niankoro [Issiaka Kane], Yeelen (1987)

Niccolo Machiavelli [Thibaut Evrard], Borgia: Faith and Fear (2011-2014)

“The Player” [Richard Dreyfuss], Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (1990)

Podrick Payne [Daniel Portman], Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

Rilk [Jesse Lee Keeter] JourneyQuest (2010)

Robert the Bruce [Chris Pine], Outlaw King (2018)

Robin Longstride [Russell Crowe], Robin Hood (2010)

Saburo Naotora Ichimonji [Ryu Daisuke], Ran (1985)

Sid [Luke Youngblood], Galavant (2015-2016)

Sihtric Kjartansson [Arnas Fedaravicius], The Last Kingdom (2015-2022)

Syrio Forel [Miltos Yerolemou], Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

“Taunting French Guard” [John Cleese], Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

Thierry of Janville [Jean-Claude Drouot], Thierry la Fronde (1963-1966)

Sir Thomas Grey [Nigel Terry], Covington Cross (1992)

Thraxus Boorman [Amar Chadha-Patel], Willow (2022]

Sir Tristan [Kingsley Ben-Adir], King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017)

Uglúk [Nathaniel Lees], The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

“Unnamed Elf Escort” (Alias: “Figwit”), The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

Wen Kexing [Gong Jun], Word of Honor (2021

Wil Ohmsford [Austin Butler], The Shannara Chronicles (2016)

Will Scarlett [Patrick Knowles], The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

Will Scarlett [Christian Slater], Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)

Willow Ufgood [Warwick Davis], Willow (1988, 2022)

#pre tournament #submissions #entrants #housekeeping

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wyrmfedgrave · 9 months ago

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Pics: Notes on Lovecraft's viking translation!

1. Ragnar's real name was Ragnarr ("warrior") Lothbrok ("hairy pants").

He lived in the 800s AD & became King of Sweden & Denmark.

But, most that we know about him is from Norse legends & chronicles written sometime after his death in Northumbria, England - in 856 AD?

But, there was a Ragnar who sacked Paris in 845 AD...

2. Vikings is a 'historical' Canadian TV series filmed in Ireland.

It lasted 6 seasons & has a sequel series Vikings: Valhalla.

Both series are inspired by Ragnar's & his sons's 'lives.'

3. We're lucky to have a few sculptures & other art that help us see what some of the mighty & mythological looked like in ancient times.

Of course, not everyone was so immortalized.

So, 1 of the many goals of professional archaeology...

4. When Ragnar killed his dragon, he was protected from its venom by wearing fur britches dipped in pitch ("coal tar") & rolled in sand...

5. Breeches are short trousers that reach to just below one's knee.

They were popular in Europe during Medieval times.

Now worn for riding horses or as part of ceremonial dress during certain holidays.

6. An epicedium is generally any warrior's death song.

This particular 1 was among the 1st Norse poems to be translated into English.

It's certainly 1 of the most quoted viking tales.

Archaeologists have traced this poem back to Iceland.

This is as far west as his story originally reached.

But, there's also the Krakumal or "The Lay (short heroic poem) of Kraka," Ragnar's 2nd wife.

This was written in the 1100s AD & is thought to come from Scotland.

7. Olaus Wormius's name was actually Ole ("heir of the ancestors") Orme ("worm").

He was a 1600s Danish physician, historian & antiquarian who made important contributions to medical, historical & literary writings.

HPL name dropped Wormius - as a translator of the Necronomicon!

But, Howard thought, incorrectly, that Wormius lived during the 1200s AD.

8. Gothland, Gautland or Geatland is 1 of the 3 historical Swedish lands.

Now, it's divided into 10 provinces.

Geat is Swedish for "they who pour out their seed!"

Read into that what you will...

Beowulf ("bear wolf") is an example of a legendary Geat king.

9 & 10. Oreon & Diminum have, so far, eluded my attempts at translation & my efforts at finding them anywhere that I can reach.

11. The ravenous eagle mentioned here has 2 possibilities:

A. The Jotunn ("ice giant") Hraesvelgr ("corpse swallower") who, could transform into a giant eagle.

Sitting atop Yggdrasil ("Odin's horse"), this giant creates the world's winds by flapping his wings.

Yggdrasil is the World Tree, which 'connected' the 9 worlds.

(This is thought to be the Norse view of seeing the Milky Way at night, when it appears to be a long glowing river or branch.)

But, it has a darker meaning as well.

Yggdrasil is Norse slang for "the gallows!"

Odin gained his 'wisdom' by hanging himself from Yggdrasil.

Yggr ("the terrifying one") is just a nickname of Odin's - as Lord of the Berserkers.

B. The other eagle is Odin himself! As he also has the nicknames of Orn, "eagle" & Arnhofthi, "eagle headed!!"

Woden/Wotan is just an earlier Anglo- Saxon version of "Odin." He was a War God & Protector of Heroes.

This name has been traced back to a Proto-German language, in the form of Wothanaz, "Lord of the Frenzied" & "Leader of the Possessed" - the 'mad' Berserkers again.

12. The Vistula ("slow flowing?") is the longest river in Poland & is an import- ant part of this country's cultural identity.

The phrase "Country Upon Vistula" is a nickname of Poland.

13. The Hall of Odin is Valhalla ("hall of the slain"), where heroes get to fight all day & feast all night!

Warriors where brought here by Valkyries ("choosers of the slain"), who judged which fighter was worthy of this honor.

And here they would remain, all preparing for Ragnarok ("twilight of the Gods") & its final battle - when all of creation would sink burning into the seas...

Luckily, with time, a new Age would appear out of all the destruction.

And, new Gods & mortals would awake to a glorious new dawn.

If this sounds very Christian to you, just remember that these myths were written down in the 1200s AD - 200 years after Iceland (the last holdout of the Norse religion) finally accepted Christianity.

14. The Helsingians are still around! They're the inhabitants of Helsinki, Sweden.

15. Bucklers are small, round, portable shields used as a 2nd weapon!

They were useful for 'stopping' an enemy's sword arm up against their own body!!

Or, to bloody an opponent's nose or blind an eye! It could even parry their blows & hinder their movements.

Weird Bit: The Welsh used small leather shields with a central iron spike called a boss...

How come I didn't see these in Brave- Heart?

16. Herauclus remains stubborn to find, though it sounds like a Norse version of the Latin Hercules!

'Officially,' the Norse Hercules was thought to be Magni, son of Thor!!

He's 1 of the children of Thor's 1st wife Jarnsaxa ("iron dagger") & saves his father when 3 days?/years? old!

Along with very few other Gods, Magni survives Ragnarok!!

But, there's actually a whole bunch of Norse 'men' that could stand in for the Grecian hero:

A. Barbatus, "the Bearded."

B. Batavos, "from the lower Rhine River."

C. Deusonianus, "from the town of Deuso."

D. Invictus, "the Victorious."

E. Magusanus, "the Mighty."

F. Maliator, "the Club Thrower."

G. Saxanus, "of the Mountain."

17. Scarfians originated from Skarphe in eastern Greece. Due to Roman influence, these folk moved to Italy - especially around Sicily & Catania.

From there, these families also moved out to Celtic Gaul - modern France.

There, they fought the Vikings at what would become Normandy.

Though this surname remains rare (a- round 190 people today), Scarfians have spread to the Americas as well...

18. Ragno translates as Rufus, Latin for "red headed."

However, this is not William Rufus - who was King William the 3rd & reigned til 1100 AD, some 250 years after Ragnar's time.

Genetically, red haired folk were found in Scandinavia, Mycenaean Greece & Central Asia...

19 & 20. The Indirian Islands & the Plain of Lano remain deep secrets of history.

Perhaps, in the future, such info will be freely available for comments.

21. "Balder ("hero prince") is best known for his death bringing about Ragnarok!!

But, we're after different game here.

Ragnar seems to imply that Balder is his 'father'!

Of course, this has been done since the Egyptians & Sumerians 1st started this deification & separation of our societies's leaders.

And, the idea has been tried with other Norse Gods - Odin's Volsungs, Frey's Ynglings, etc...

Of course, "Father Balder(!)" could just be a pious exclamation with no other meaning.

You be Forseti ("the presiding one"), judge of the Norse Gods & only son of Balder?!

22. Aelle/Ella was King of North- umbria during the 850s AD.

Hearing that Ragnar had surrendered at Wessex, Ella had the prisoner brought to him.

Then, Ella tortured Ragnar for days. But, Ragnar remained stoically silent.

So, Ella threw Ragnar into a pit of poisonous vipers & Ragnar finally responded - by singing out his death song...

23. The Norse Goddess of Death was usually Hela, the half dead Queen of Helheim.

But, this isn't who Ragnar wants to drink ale with!

Hela only collects the cowardly & those who didn't die in battle.

No, Ragnar is speaking about his personal Valkyrie!

These minor Goddesses of Death controlled who was accepted into the ranks of Valhalla.

The 'dead' champions were needed to help battle the Jotunn during a future Ragnarok.

Anyway, Valkyries acted as servants to the fighting souls of Valhalla.

When Ragnarok arrived , the Valkyries would join the major Norse Gods in their desperate last battle...

#hpl bio #hpl output #adult hpl #poesy #history #viking #norse myth #death song

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joncronshawauthor · 1 year ago

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Blade of Wolfsbane audiobook is now free on YouTube!

Welcome to the immersive world of Blade of Wolfsbane, a high fantasy novella prequel to Jon Cronshaw’s Ravenglass Legends. This captivating tale, now available as a free full audiobook, is an unforgettable journey into a vibrant universe filled with courageous heroes and electrifying sword fights. In the heart of the story, we meet Ragnar—a chieftain’s son yearning for his father’s respect.…