#the updated codex

[megsdoodletag]

yes ok I have been asked about the updated codex let’s talk updated codex

So. Post Plague-Wars. Ultramar system. Guilliman and Yvraine have a strong alliance, and in completely and totally unrelated news have a daughter named Juno Vaeyncaria Guilliman.

MEANWHILE…

on the other side of the Imperium, the Emperor is given a Text-To-Speech Device. Now the original ITEHATTSD obviously happens prior to Plague Wars so while the basic framework is there (kitten exists, magnus is back, dorn and his Boy are there, etc.) it’s obviously a lil different. Through a series of convoluted events we don’t need to discuss at this point, Magnus accidentally pokes the timeline in a weird way and pops the dead primarchs back into existence. They remember everything just fine! They are just. no longer dead. and now in 42k.

This brings us to what I’m affectionately calling ‘2012 Avengers Tower Imperial Palace.’ All the known primarchs are active, though some are still running around 'lost-ish' in the warp. Most of the previously dead primarchs are ‘recovering’ in their former residencies alongside the TTS crew, seeing to what’s left of their legion and figuring out what the hell is going on with. whatever is happening in M42.

Horus in particular is in a weird spot. first, of all the returnees, he’s alone. Ferrus makes up with fulgrim pretty immediately, sang is permanently covered in various marines of his geneline, konrad’s having a Great Time Actually (we’ll get to that later). but nobody seems to like horus much, a position he’s never been in, and this includes his legion which is entirely under abaddon’s control and not going anywhere in the near future. so he does what any guy going through a midlife crisis does and gets himself a hobby.

See, two supposedly dead primarchs remain unaccounted for after Magnus’ spell, namely the two original Lost Primarchs. by logic this means they must still be alive, somewhere. everyone else is unbothered by this, as Malcador’s memory spell disallows any concentrated thought of the two, and even though the primarchs are aware they had more brothers, to their knowledge dad went out to meet with them and something Went Wrong 🤷🏻‍♀️ and then he came back and retired shortly thereafter. weird! oh well.

but horus was not just killed, he was Unmade. when he was reconstituted it was as though he was new, without the stain of chaos.

and free of malcador’s influence.

while ostensibly crashing on dad’s couch, Horus throws himself into finding out what he believes is the key to all of this, the thing that poisoned the imperium before even the Heresy, the original Deviation from the Plan: whatever actually happened to the two lost primarchs?

Ok it’s later now. Konrad Curze always believed in fate. He followed it dutifully into its darkest depths, to his own grisly death.

And then he came back! He never saw anything about that! He figures that, having lived out his fate to its completion, he’s now free of it entirely. Oh he still has visions, but he’s much more lax in interpreting them, and thinks himself above their dictates besides. So. He still likes flensing people and thinks fear makes a fine method of control and hes still got…issues…but he’s not quite as stuck and he's having a wonderful time about it. and he’s also hanging around the palace bc he’s also got very little contact with his legion, which is either scattered or under Sevatar and/or whichever NL prophet we're on now.

So he gets roped into fucking around in emps’ restricted history section with horus! yippee!

The two actually work really well as a buddy-cop kinda pair, with horus slowly repairing his relationships where he can while konrad trails him and learns how to be alive outside of the narrow scope of his futuresight. Magnus inevitably sticks his nose into things and gets to work undoing the mind-block on the rest of them. Alpharius gets involved because it turns out one of the lost legions might actually still exist. and even lion and leman join the hunt cause honestly they're really curious at this point.

Eventually the uncles drag their niece and her friends into the whole ordeal, in part because she happens to have a particularly strong psychic presence that attracts lost and dead marine souls in the warp. Like a cooler, named character version of the Legion of the Damned. Usefull when trying to gain accurate historical info.

oh yeah and emps gets off the throne at some point. he’s not bothering with the Mystery Gang because he’s too busy being one half of a political deadlock with guilliman, where it’s very clear gman does not actually trust him to lead the imperium anymore and is essentially running his own show off-leash from ultramar, but neither of them are remotely willing to like, discuss this. in any way. so instead they’re just stuck awkwardly across from each other, guilliman never offering control of the imperium back to his father and emps never reaching to take the regent position from him and i think if he stopped to think about it this is bc emps would be. a little nervous about resuming full command back from guilliman. because he’s not sure guilliman would give it to him. and he’s not sure he’s in a position to handle that. again. but emps is allergic to being emotionally competent so his brain skates over that thought, unable to confront it directly with any introspection, and instead he just. doesnt mention it! and guilliman doesnt mention it and emps sits in the wreckage of the dream he accidentally set on fire himself while his son methodically does the work to put it out and they won’t look at each other and its fine its all. fine.

and that’s the Updated Codex! 👍🏻 feel free to ask more

thanks to @wolf_feathers12 for the chance to give my ted talk, and tagging @thisuserissilly for lore posts (tm)

[wonderful101gecs]

Found a fantastic academic paper on game design which really gets to the heart of a lot of what I'm trying to say in the Haruspex video yet for the life of me I couldn't find anything recent from the author no matter how hard I searched until I found another paper written by a woman who had the exact same email address as the author but a very different name then I finally realized what had happened.

[sotc]

FINALLY. A LIL NOD TO ZEVRAN!!!!!! AHHHH !!!!!!!!!😭😭😭😭😭 THE BAREST CRUMB!!!!! I was helping my friend find the outfit and totally glossed over the flavor text until they pointed it out and I LOST MY SHIT!! AHH. So credit to @uldren-sov for sharing this w/ me <33 !!!!

And of course it's the flavor text to the sluttiest crow outfit that Zev would totally wear lol:

[lucaanis]

Summary: After exploring the Crossroads and making contact with the Shadow Dragons in Minrathous, Lleyth contemplates the needs of the team, and dreads returning home to Antiva.

codex series / part one / part two / [part three]

Thanks to Bellara, we officially have the Vir'Revas operating at its full capacity. It turns out that there's even more to this part of the Fade beyond the Lighthouse than I'd realized, and all of it is as foreign as it is fascinating to me. All my life I'd never dreamed that the world could look like this; Pocket dimensions seemingly endless in all directions, Eluvians in the hundreds, or even thousands? Leading to all kinds of places around Thedas. How is it that this place— the Crossroads— can even exist? How many other places like it in the Fade exist alongside this one, all of them islands with their own infinite reach?

And this is why I leave the magic to the mages. If I think too hard about it, all of the questions swell up in my head like a balloon and I think I'm going to be sick. I'm torn between a desire to explore and a deep unsettling fear that I'll get myself lost— or worse.

We've also met a spirit that appears to be bound to this place. Or maybe "bound" is the wrong word. More like a part of it? They call themself The Caretaker; While I don't know the full extent of their purpose here, their influence feels intrinsically woven throughout the Lighthouse and the Crossroads. There was very little alluding to them in the writings I found while digging around (or were these notes always here on my desk? I can't remember. I suppose it matters little), but what I could find seems to suggest this "Caretaker" spirit may be a spirit of Need. It would make sense, considering the very doors and halls of this place seem to shift whenever we, well, need them to.

Repairing the Vir'Revas seems to have called them here. It's strange. I was not aware of their presence before, but now, when I search for it in the back of my mind, I feel it. It's like the Lighthouse was sleeping before, and now it's awake.

I would've expected setting up camp in a forgotten ruin with a spirit for a groundskeeper to feel like living in a haunted house, but their presence almost comforts me as much as I find it unnerving. Like coming home from a long journey and discovering the hearth is already lit.

All that aside, getting the Vir'Revas up and running is a hell of an improvement. With access to the Crossroads and other Eluvians restored, we can get around much easier— which means we can also start making semi-regular supply runs. Good. The Lighthouse is certainly defensible enough to serve as our temporary base of operations (with the added advantage of being obscured from our enemies by existing within this part of the Fade), but in its current state, it's… quite barren. Not only do we need food and medical supplies, but we need basic comforts. And furnishings. Some blankets to sleep with would be a good start. I've taken the initiative of keeping a list of things we both want and need by the pantry. Might as well, right?

It's a little silly when I think about it. We're out there against impossible odds hunting down blighted gods, and I'm still sat here making grocery lists. Some things never change, I guess.

That reminds me. We're not exactly strapped for coin at the moment, but we should still keep track of our spending where we can. Unless the world intends on paying us by the hour for trying to save it, we should try to conserve our resources and keep a record of our expenses. I'll start a ledger.

I'm actually a little excited to properly go grocery shopping. It's been over a year since I've had a stationary address. Lace's Ham & Jam Slams have been the only thing keeping me somewhat afloat for the past few days, and fuck, I swear I'm suddenly always starving! Maybe the stress is starting to get to me. Fucking up my appetite. Stranger things have happened.

We should be able to find basic staples in Minrathous— fresh fruit, vegetables, and bread would be a good start. We can start planning proper meals later.

Luckily there's plenty of fish to eat in Dock Town. Nothing beats the smoked swordfish they sell by the docks in Salle, but hot, fresh, fried mackerel on a skewer is still fine by me (I may have sampled a few. Or five) and I don't think my stomach can handle another one of Lace's mystery stews. I may have become desensitized to the taste of deep mushrooms over the past year, but I'm afraid my digestive system has never fully recovered. Some fresh fruit and vegetables and cured meats that will keep are a welcome addition to the little pantry we've started putting together. Once we get the kitchen in good working order, we can start planning some proper meals.

(Note: Does food spoil in the Fade? I suppose there's only one way to find out.)

Enough about food. I'm going to make myself hungry again.

Met some of Neve's contacts in Minrathous today. Shadow Dragons. Turns out we may have a common enemy— Venatori working for the gods? Of course they are. But if they're organizing already, and the gods are making waves this fast in Tevinter, then this is bad. Worse than I'd hoped. How many times can I say that before the words become meaningless? This is bad, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad. [Phrase repeats several more times, but crossed out] Approximately four.

Having contacts in Minrathous helps. We now have eyes we can trust on the ground, tracking the gods' movements now. It's not much, but it's a start.

Unfortunately, this means we'll likely be moving forward with Neve's plan of getting help from the Crows. I suppose there's no other way around it— I'm going home. Lovely.

The irony of it is not wasted on me. A year ago, I would have given anything to see Antiva again. Now? All I feel at the prospect of heading home is dread. I didn't exactly leave Treviso on good terms. Solas was supposed to be my chance to un-fuck everything, but now it's fucked worse than it was before. The law is clear— my failure to neutralize Solas means my life is already forfeit, and that was true without all of the other shit that shouldn't have happened.

For now, the threat of the gods being in leagues with the Venatori has bought me a very small window of immunity, so at least there's that. Even the end of the world can have a silverite lining, I suppose. Like it or not (not) the Talons will have to hear me out before they can kill me. I hope. Whether or not they'll actually listen to what I have to say, though, is less certain.

Family. What a joke. This wasn't how I pictured having my friends home for dinner. Whatever. It is what it is.

And there's the other thing, (The Demon in the room? No? Bad joke. Don't say that.): The Demon of Vyrantium.

Lucanis Dellamorte. I never knew him personally. Heard of him? Sure. I'd imagine most of the Crows have unless they've been living under a rock or in deep cover for the past few years. I do, however, know his cousin, Illario. A lot of words come to mind, none of them very polite. And of course I know Caterina Dellamorte. She scares the shit out of me, as she does mostly everyone. Even the back of Viago's neck gets sweaty whenever she shows up.

I don't think she ever liked me very much. I don't think anyone back home will after this.

But he's dead. Or he's supposed to be. Teia's letter was intentionally vague enough to give me pause. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

Suppose that he is alive and willing to help us— I can't say I'm enthused by the idea of working with any of the Dellamortes, let alone a famous one, and the grandson of the First Talon herself. Surely we have other options, other people who can kill mages, right? I'm certainly no Demon of Vyrantium, but I've hunted plenty of mages myself. What's a few more? You'd be surprised how many contracts the Crows take on mages. They have a tendency to piss off a lot of powerful people. I can't possibly imagine why.

And I'll admit, the idea of working with another Crow is… frustrating. The last thing I need is some overzealous idiot fresh from their fledglinghood trying to undermine me and flaunt their wings. I dealt with enough of that already back home. They all got what they deserved— the swift crush of reality, of course— but it didn't make it any less annoying to deal with.

Pride is something the Crows know well, and could use a lot less of.

But there's no more running. It's real. It's happening. I'm going home tomorrow.

Fuck.

At least I might be able to take some of my old things and move them in here. Like my alchemy kit, for starters. And if I find out Viago sold it or let it rust away to nothing in my absence, he'll wish he would have killed me when he had the chance. Rompicazzo.

I wonder if Paschal still sells that Rivaini incense down by the docks? Oh, and the tea. I haven't been sleeping much the past few days, and the relatively few hours I manage to get have been... less than ideal. Maybe it's the stress, maybe it's this place, but I need my dreams to be quieter.

— R.

Today's expenses:

— 25g, fish market (most of it was mine…)

— 130g, apothecary (herbs. should keep us stocked for a while)

— 14g, cheese stall

— 53g, cool statue (useless)

[midnightwind]

Clipped Wings

Summary: Bringing home the Demon of Vyrantium was supposed to be a moment of triumph, but with the Cantori Diamond in shambles and the First Talon likely dead, the victory is bittersweet. Recruiting her fellow Crow was not supposed to go like this…

Word Count: 4845

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Chapter 5: Blood on the Doorstep

Getting back to the boat had been… interesting to say the least. Renn had gently flailed in the water upon finding herself spat out a few strokes from the vessel, giving the Crow that was holding out an oar to her a dark look as the woman suppressed a laugh poorly. The trio spilled into their seats, soaked, but Bellara and Renn were all smiles as they set off. All things considered, it had been the smoothest any of their jobs had been so far. No random monsters, sudden dire collapse of the location, or unexpected twists. The mage was actually looking forward to giving her report for once. The job didn’t go off the rails so Viago couldn’t yell at her for the next hour about it.

She had turned to start asking Lucanis more questions, but the words seemed to die on her tongue. His gaze was fixed on the city drawing closer. There was a mix of disbelief and joy, trepidation and hope, in his eyes. She imagined he must feel a lot like how she did on her return. A year away from home without knowing what to expect when you got back… So she stayed quiet, busying herself with wringing her leathers and hair out over the edge of the boat. When they bumped to a stop in the canal, she stepped off quickly and turned to help Bellara out. Lucanis was a bit slower and she offered her hand to him as well. 

He stared down at it for a breath before taking it, letting her haul him to solid ground. She gave the Crow mage a brief word of thanks before waving, leading them into Treviso proper. As they climbed back to the rooftops, she wondered if it all felt the same for him. Occupation aside, had the city changed much? She started trying to follow where his gaze fixed along the route, to identify if he was finding old haunts or favorite stalls still running. What would Treviso look like through his eyes? What secrets would only someone who was raised in its streets know?

As they approached the Cantori Diamond, she was a half second too late to move her gaze away from him. Caught, she offered up a sheepish grin and he surprisingly met it with his own small smile. There was a note of genuine hope in that look and it made her heart flutter. Stripped of the awful events, the political mess, their standing as Crows, he was just a man finally coming home. If he decided he didn’t want to take on the contract for the Evanuris, she wouldn’t even be mad. If nothing else, this was good. She had done a good thing today.

That warmth in her chest almost distracted her enough to miss how empty the Diamond was as her feet touched down. She took three hesitating steps away from the zipline before her mageknife was pulled from its sheath. Something was wrong. With a hand held behind her in warning to Bellara, she crept silently up the stairs. Lucanis was a dark shadow behind her, his daggers glinting in the light. She had made it one step through the doorway before a flash of silver had her lunging forward. Every instinct told her to avoid that blade no matter what and she tumbled into the room. The clash of metal rang out behind her and she spun on her heel to see Viago crossing daggers with Lucanis. Both looked surprised and she let out an annoyed groan.

“Maker’s breath, Vi, what the fuck?” She snapped. “Why do you give the worst welcomes-”

She stopped short as she took in the rest of the Diamond. The collection of tables and chairs that had hosted countless Crows mere hours ago were in disarray. Upended, knocked over, smashed to pieces, the floor was littered with debris. The little sitting room where the First Talon had given her a contract was the worst, signs of a struggle evident. Several bodies still remained, the telltale robes of the Venatori obvious. Teia and Illario were righting a table just for the latter to brace himself against its surface afterwards.

“We hosted some unwelcome guests, as you can see.” Viago answered stiffly, eyes glaring at Lucanis as the two slowly sheathed their weapons.

“How did they get in?” She breathed, stepping further inside to survey the damage.

Teia piped up for that one, a fury simmering in her voice. “We’ve known there are traitors in our midst, but this… this was bold, even for them.”

“It was a message.” Illario's quiet voice slipped along after the Seventh Talon's words, like a knife lovingly placed between the ribs before he slammed a fist against the table, anger igniting. “From Zara Renata.”

That… that didn't feel right and she glanced quizzically at Lucanis. “For the break out..?” But even as she voiced the thought, she knew it was wrong. They'd barely been out for an hour, the attack was too recent for the news to have reached the magister. To hear about the jailbreak, plan the attack, and manage the raid? There simply hadn't been enough time.

Illario finally turned to face the group and as he caught sight of his cousin, she watched a flurry of emotion wash over him. “Lucanis,” he breathed, disbelief plain as a smile pulled at his lips, “you're home.”

He closed the distance between them and placed his hands on the Mage Killer's shoulders, seemingly a moment away from pulling him into a hug before the other man furrowed his brow. “Where's Caterina?”

“The Venatori,” Teia started with a wobbling voice, “they got her in the confusion.”

Illario scowled. “I get one of you back just to lose the other.”

Renn swayed on her feet, seemingly kept upright by Bellara's steadying hand on her arm alone. The First Talon was dead? She'd been back in Treviso for a handful of hours and they'd suffered a heavy blow. For a single moment, the dark worry that somehow this was her fault came unbidden to her. Her gaze flicked to Lucanis, watching the grief wash over him in a cold wave. He shut his eyes before he squared his shoulders, a sharp edge to voice.

“I need to work.” He ground out.

“Are you sure?” Teia's voice was so soft in comparison.

“You just got back.” Illario added, an almost pleading note to the words. “And already you want to leave?”

“Caterina gave me a contract.” Lucanis wavered and he blinked a few times as if fighting off tears before the steel was back in his voice. “I'm not breaking the last deal Caterina ever made. Once my contract with Rook is finished, I'll come back.”

Renn forced a bright smile to her lips. “I'll try to make it a quick job.”

“Cousin…” Illario started, but Lucanis held a hand up to stop him.

“Zara won't get away with this. I'll make sure she pays.”

Viago seemed to bristle at that. “We can't hunt down a rogue Magister while the Antaam occupy the city. We need you here-”

“No.” Teia cut him off sharply, fury bright in her eyes. “Zara came into my House. She took Caterina from my House. You find her, Lucanis, and you cut out her heart.”

Illario gave them both a sharp smile. “I'll start looking for her trail while you hunt the gods, Cousin. When I find her, though, I want, no… need to be there when you kill her.”

Lucanis seemed to sigh ever so slightly. “Illario…”

He held his hands up in a placating manner. “She took from us both. I want to help on this one, okay?”

“I'm not sure how helpful your way of doing things will be.” The Crow muttered, but he didn't outright turn down the other man and that seemed good enough for him.

“Teia, could you perhaps catch Lucanis up on what he's missed in his year away?” The smile that Illario had been wearing seemed to disappear as he grew somber. “I… I need to deal with the House now that…”

“Of course.” Teia placed a hand gently on his arm before beckoning the other assassin away.

Renn gave him a reassuring smile as Illario made himself scarce before she glanced at her own Talon. Viago jerked his head, the minute motion summoning her to one of the many alcoves. Her shoulders slumped as she cast Teia a begging look. The Seventh Talon merely shrugged. Resigned to her fate, she trudged after her Talon, leaving Lucanis and Bellara to the mercy of Teia. Viago waited for her with his usual cold glare, not moving an inch until she slotted herself into the corner. He boxed her in, voice low.

“What happened.”

She almost groaned. All the theatrics for a simple report. What was a world shattering attack on their inner sanctum and the loss of their head Talon compared to a boring report?  “Broke into the prison, killed a bunch of blood mages and demons, freed Dellamorte, killed his target, came here. Perfect mission. Do I get a gold star?”

He raised a single brow, eyes looking down with purpose. She followed the gaze, unable to school the grimace that leapt to her lips. He had a dagger pressed flush to her hand, blood beading at the edge. She didn't feel it.

“You used too much magic. Again.” He snapped, flicking the dagger out of sight. “I could see it in how you walked. Steps too heavy, too slow. Renn, you can't keep-”

“What do you want me to do? Retire?” It was her turn to snap, voice hissing and angry. “I do good work, Vi, better than a lot of Crows. You can't afford to sideline me, and I wouldn't listen anyways. I need to keep moving. I can either do that under your direction or my own, but I can't do nothing.”

He rubbed a hand over his face. “Mirenna…” For a moment, a deep weariness cut through his usual sharp edges. He looked exhausted. “I need you to take care of yourself. This isn't a normal job, you're chasing gods.”

“Ancient mages.” She offered unhelpfully, guilt twisting her stomach. “Which is why I have Lucanis now.”

“You have the Mage Killer and it feels like you're forgetting you are a mage.” His paranoia was twisting his words half an octave higher.

She gestured vaguely back the way they came. “Weren't you guys, like, friends? Or whatever approaches a friend for you. And unless someone takes a hit out on me, I don't see Mr. Model Assassin doing anything to me.”

Viago's gaze flickered to where the other Crow was standing. Lucanis seemed almost lost, staring at the upended tables and chairs. He absently pushed debris away with a boot, as if the shards of wood and dust were hiding answers. He was a shadow of the man who had left on ‘just another contract.’ It didn't fill the Fifth Talon with confidence.

“He did good work. But that was a year ago.” He shook his head, rounding back on the elf. “His family is trouble, has always been trouble. The First Talon lost almost her whole family to a raid. Then she lost her favored grandchild a year ago. Now, she's lost her life. Who's to say Lucanis and Illario are not next? You could get dragged into that mess if you bring him on.”

She narrowed her eyes, tucking away the information. “Is that why you never wanted to bring me along when you had work here? Were you scared I'd get embroiled in, what, a family curse?”

His concern melted into bland annoyance. “No, I didn't want you to pick up their bad habits. You have enough of your own already.”

She blinked in surprise, trying to stifle the laugh that bubbled up. She failed. “Again, Mr. Model Assassin. I'd have thought you'd want me to pick up some habits from the First Talon's prodigy.”

Viago scoffed. “I saw the actual reports from his jobs. I didn't need you gaining an extra layer of absolute chaos or a softer heart than you already have. And I absolutely did not want you within a mile of the other Dellamorte.”

Her head tilted in curiosity. Soft heart? That didn't seem to fully track with what she'd seen from Lucanis, but Crows weren't always the same when off the job. Another little note she tucked away for later. “Illario? Lucanis said he has a similar style to Teia…”

“Hence why I left you in Salle.” He pressed a hand to his temple, massaging it and sighing. “Tell me about the Ossuary.” She hesitated, a faltering in her breath he didn't miss. “Renn,” his voice had a scolding edge, “what were they doing in there? What did they do to him?”

She chewed her lip, gaze skittering to the side. “Nothing good.” She finally said. “He's had a rough year.”

His voice was low, quiet and sharp. “Is he a danger?”

She stared at Lucanis as the man nodded numbly along with whatever Teia was saying. “No more than any other Crow.”

“Trouble.” He muttered.

“That's the job.” She shrugged. “It'd be better to ask him for details. We found him mid escape. Took out five mages without any help, so I think he's still perfectly capable.”

“Why does it sound like you're covering for him?” There was a dark note in his voice, a concern she hadn't heard since she was a teenager.

She rolled her eyes. “It's not like that, Vi. The place was already a mess when I got there. I can hazard a guess at what was being done, but Lucanis would actually know.”

“Give me your guess.”

She rubbed her hands over her face, letting out an exhausted sigh. “The Venatori were fighting a bunch of demons. The place was falling apart and overrun. Could have been the usual blood rituals, demonic research, or they looked too deep into an Elven Ruin. I don't know. Ask him for his report.”

Viago's stare was sharp and judging, but she just met it with her own bored look. She wasn’t exactly lying to him, but she was withholding information and that sat uneasily on her shoulders. It just… felt wrong to talk about Spite without Lucanis knowing. If she learned more, something substantial, then she would tell Viago. They stood like that for a long minute before he broke, a frustrated sigh escaping. His hand disappeared into his pocket, pulling out a tightly wrapped parcel. He offered it to her with two fingers, pulling it back sharply as she reached for it.

“These are potent, Renn. Use a light touch. If anyone at your little base steps out of line…” The threat hung in the air.

She snatched the gift and stowed it safely away. “You made me a care package, that's so sweet. I'm not poisoning my team, though.” He opened his mouth to argue, but she just grinned up at him. “Five second warning.”

All the concern and annoyance was replaced with alarm in an instant. He managed to take two rapid steps backwards before she surged forward, a crackle announcing her magic boosting her. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a crushing hug. He was stiff at the contact, as usual, all discomfort and unease. It caused a suffocating wave of homesickness to wash through her.

“I missed you, Vi.” She whispered.

He was quiet for a long moment before the ghost of a touch brushed against her back. “You survive this, Renn. You come home.”

“Or you'll come after me in the Fade yourself.” She laughed, finally releasing him. “Keep me updated on things here and let me know if you need help, okay?”

“Your current contract-”

“Has long periods of waiting for information. I can do sanctioned work here in the meantime, if you let me know.”

It was his turn to rub at his eyes. “Fine. But no hero business this time.”

She slipped past him, a skip in her step. “Haven't you heard? It's all hero business now.”

The look of pure exasperation he cast after her put a wide grin on her lips. She and Teia exchanged a quick hug, hands trailing in a lingering embrace as she hummed her way back to her party, the Talon sidling up next to Viago. Lucanis was casting her a curious look as she led the duo back towards the mirror.

“I don't think I've ever seen anyone touch Viago without falling to the ground convulsing afterwards.” There was a note of almost awe in his voice.

“No one else can call him big brother without getting a knife to the gut, too, if you want to keep being amazed.” She tossed a grin over her shoulder to him. “It does help that I was raised on his best concoctions, though.”

She massaged her jaw as a phantom ache shot through it, but the motion was lost as she stepped through the eluvian. The Fade dragged lazy fingers through her soul before she popped out into the Crossroads. The rush of raw magic that filled the place chased away the pins and needles from her fingers and she flexed them gratefully. Moving to the side, she waited for the assassin to step through, trying to smother the wide grin of anticipation pulling at the corners of her mouth. She saw his gloved hand poke through, the tentative first touch against the glass, before the rest of him followed. The Fade trailed after him with a ghostly purple hue, like tendrils of smoke spiraling off him. He shook his head, brow furrowed, before he ran a calculated gaze around the collection of mirrors. Check every corner and do it fast. She almost laughed. Crow training at its finest.

Bellara was a step behind him, bouncing through happily and extending a hand in front of herself. “Welcome to the Crossroads! A sort of safe space for us mortals.”

“Sort of?” He questioned softly, a hand resting on a dagger hilt.

Renn did grin at that. “The Evanuris are trying to break in, so sometimes we have to deal with their goons. We cleared out this section a while ago. There’s even a market up ahead, though only one of the spirits accepts gold.”

“Oh, speaking of,” Bellara turned pleading eyes on her, “can I do a little shopping before we head back?”

“For a few minutes.” She laughed, tossing over the little bag of the curious green substance that passed for currency in the Fade. “Try not to buy anything too weird.”

“Thanks Rook!”

And then the elf was gone, leaving the two Crows alone. Renn folded her hands behind her back, all smiles as Lucanis simply took in the area. She watched him do a little circle around the mirror to Treviso before he glanced at the other towering mirrors.

“So, all of these…?” He trailed off, blinking in fascination.

“All potential doors! They’re not always open, we have to sometimes find the connections before they work. There are other islands like this one with more eluvians. Sort of divided up by area. Like, this island has mirrors for Treviso, Minrathous, and Nevarra.” She counted each location off on a finger. “The neighboring island leads to Arlathan and… somewhere else! Haven’t figured out where yet. There are still parts of the Crossroad we haven’t explored either.” A note of frustration entered her voice at that. “The Caretaker thinks it’s too dangerous or unstable for us.” He cast her a questioning look. “Oh, they’re a spirit. They look after the Lighthouse and Crossroads, a relic from Solas. Seems friendly enough. You’ll meet them soon.”

“Alright…” He cast one last look around the area before falling in step at her side. “Wish I had a network like this for my contracts.”

She grinned as she led him towards the market. “Maybe the Caretaker will let us use it after we save the world.”

He hummed a little laugh before falling silent. When next he spoke, his voice was quiet. “You didn't tell the Crows about… about Spite.”

“Were you eavesdropping?” There was no malice in her tone, no accusation.

A heavy sigh caused his shoulders to sag. “I was trying not to, Spite had other plans.”

“The Diamond was built to carry sound.” She waved off his worry. “But it’s not my secret to spill. I’d be a hypocrite, I think…”

That caused him to miss a step, almost like he wanted to put distance between them suddenly. She didn’t miss how his hands twitched near his weapons and it caused her to laugh. There was barely a note of earnest amusement in the noise, a cold edge that hung between them. She was all smiles.

“Lucanis, dear, I’m not an abomination.” She placed a hand to her chest, dipping her head for a moment. “I’ve nothing against them, where it concerns present company, I simply have a situation that borders upon the same idea. When we interrupted Solas’ ritual and he got stuck in the Fade, he made an annoying little connection with me. So now he gets to whine and complain in my dreams whenever he wants. I wasn’t going to tell Viago any of that, so why would I mention Spite to him? The man already yells at me enough as is.”

“You’re not worried?”

“I’m worried about a lot of things, but you and Spite? Low on the list. That’s kind of the thing about Crows. If you were going to kill me, I wouldn’t have made it out of the Ossuary. We could have a fun game of trying to kill each other once we reach the Lighthouse, but you don’t strike me as a man who plays pointless games like that. You said it yourself, you prefer the direct approach.” She shrugged, pressing herself up against the archway’s pillar to watch Bellara flit among the stalls.

“You trust me.” The weight held by that single word could press diamonds into shape. “But you're ignoring the demon.”

A little whine escaped her as she folded her arms across her chest. “I mean, sure. Maybe Spite is a problem, but they seem fine right now? I don't know, I'm not an expert on spirits and demons. We have a Tevinter mage back at base, maybe Neve will have a better understanding about what they did to you. But in the meantime? So long as you don't explode into a demon, we're good. Okay?”

She could feel the stare he turned on her and she shrank ever so slightly from it. An abomination did make her uncomfortable, she was a mage. They were a boogeyman trotted out any time someone got spooked by a spell. But freaking out or blaming the assassin wasn't going to fix it. It helped that he was a Maker damned legend to her, but it was also the decent way to act. She wasn't going to give up whatever scraps of humanity she had left.

When she did finally tip her gaze back towards him, he had mirrored her somewhat on the other pillar. His arms were crossed, head tilted slightly. He fixed his dark eyes on her, brow furrowed, and his mouth had a slant to it as he thought. She shivered, almost withering as the silence stretched between them. This was a tactic that Viago had weaponized against her countless times: simply waited for her to incriminate herself in a panic just to hear a noise. She still wasn't very good at not doing exactly that. Facing it twice in one day felt unfair and she almost let out a cry of gratitude when he broke the silence for her.

“I imagine you have questions.” There was a deep apprehension nestled in the words.

She barely contained the relieved wheeze that tried to jump free, turning it into a breathless laugh instead. “Oh, loads! But more about your time as the Demon of Vyrantium and less about the actual demon.” She shook her head, holding a hand up. “But for another day. You've had… I mean, calling it a rough day is an understatement. You didn't get to really agree to this contract, so are you okay? With hunting some elven gods?”

He shrugged. “When your Talon gives you a job, you do the job. Especially when your Talon is Caterina.” A weak laugh shook his shoulders before the smile fell.

That almost made her wince. “They’ll suffer for it, Lucanis.” She promised darkly, her usual warm features turning sharp. “However I can help, you'll have it.”

“She wasn't even your Talon.” He offered up quietly, confusion obvious.

“Being a Crow is cut throat, but only another Crow gets to cut that specific throat.” Her hand flexed into a fist. “Zara just turned the whole flock on herself and we have just enough Crows to make it a murder.”

He huffed a laugh. “We only have two.”

“You weren't in the Ossuary by choice. Was Spite?” She cast him a sharp grin.

“We are not making him an honorary Crow.” He snipped dryly.

She sighed heavily. “Fine, we at least have Teia back home. Not as fun, though.”

“Why would you want a demon-”

“Maybe the demon is fun! I don't know, I've never met a demon that couldn't possess me if they wanted to.” She pressed a hand to her temple, flustered suddenly. “I’m trying to find silver linings here. Spite wanting Zara dead too seemed like a good starting point.” A growing sense of mortification was dawning on her. Why was this how she spent the first 24 hours with her assassin idol? “I- Listen, shit’s weird for everyone. Gods are running around blighting everything, Venatori are popping up everywhere, what's one little demon in all that?”

“But you invited the demon home.”

“I invited you home-” The thought ended in a little squeak, her cheeks flushing. She cleared her throat awkwardly. “I hired,” her voice shook slightly, “the Mage Killer to kill some ancient mages. Demon or no, I do need you.”

“I’ll honor the contract.” If his voice had a hint of laughter, she tried to ignore it.

“Good!” She offered brightly, just a touch too loud as she took a bounding step into the market. “Great, awesome. Let's grab Bellara and get you settled into the Lighthouse.”

If Bellara noticed how red her face was when the Crow latched onto her arm, she didn't say. The Jumper was happy to be led away, holding up her finds for Rook to nod or “ooh” at. She tried not to prickle at the stare boring into her back, tried to ignore how it made the hair on the back of her neck stand up, to smother the shiver it sent crawling up her spine. Instead she poured her focus into staring at the weird crystals Bellara was holding up to the light, letting the assassin watch her with dark eyes as they walked home.

~◇~

Observation Log 1

The elves appear happy enough, considering the circumstances. Neither seem upset by Spite, just wary. The dwarf is more hostile about her feelings. The Tevinter mage… is hard to read.

Bellara

Veil Jumper (look into more)

Investigate elven ruins (explains the scent Spite found)

Very happy to talk about the Jumpers

Seems nervous all the time?

Lot of energy, easily baited into talking

Hard to direct subject once she starts (relics and elven lore are her favorite)

Asks a lot of questions about assassination…

Seems genuine, a bit blunt, excitable

Keeps looking at me with pity

Does most of the cooking

Ask about the party meals so far

Mage? (Uses a bow…)

Harding

Ties to the disbanded Inquisition

Still working for them?

Functioned as a scout

Actively hostile about Spite (finally one person makes sense)

Has an arrow just for me now (see above)

Seems fairly skilled with a bow (watch back)

Otherwise friendly and genial

Do not let her cook, apparently (?)

Do Not Let Her Cook

Archer

Neve

Tevinter mage

Not a magister, claims not a Venatori

Don't sense blood magic (be wary)

Has dealt with Venatori a lot

Might know about the Ossuary?

Likes to prod

Asks a lot of question

Bellara says she's a famous detective (Be Wary)

Doesn't seem hostile

Might have ties to the Threads or Shadow Dragons

Hoping it's the Dragons

Mage

Rook

Actual name: Mirenna de Riva

Trained directly under Viago

Watch food and drink carefully

Teasing and bright (how are she and Viago related…)

Likely a front, seems to drop it suddenly when work comes up

Unnerved by Spite but hiding it

Plotting or genuine?

Asks a lot about previous jobs

Probably just Crow fascination

Has Dalish markings, but talks about growing up with Viago

Look into clan, if possible

Watch her carefully

Traveled with Varric Tethras for a year

Was chasing Solas, elven apostate turned elven god

Mage (close quarters)

Requested Tags: @weaponizedvirtue

[thefandomexpert]

there’s something really striking in the way guilliman takes the most umbrage with emps’ lying and carefully crafted image/the deliberate choice to allow the primarchs to treat him as a father because it made them more pliable, and the way the first thing his most politically-minded primaris picks up upon seeing his genesire in a statesmanship context is the way guilliman is doing the same thing to ply the factions in ultramar, including the marines and the ecclesiarchy. something about guilliman making rules and breaking them as soon as he’s backed into a corner. something about guilliman being the only one to ever understand ‘the dream.’ do you see it.

[msommers]

did you mean: blorbo with eternal anger issues

[templates: 1, 2]

[act-iv]

More pages and excerpts from Suzerain: A Memoir. You can see the overall context and the annotated version on ao3 here.

[wanderingibon]

won't say much abt it but i definitely am a bit disappointed in regards to the limited world state options, i get that theres not much we can do about it at this point- but admittedly it has very weird implications for lore, because for example who became divine affects what happened to circles, who drank from the well determines who's linked with mythal etc etc

but on the flip side im just trying to look for any positives like at least we got a da4 to begin with 😭could you imagine if this was still live service with microtransactions

[megsdoodletag]

Oops second ask related to your au. What do fulgrim and ferrus get up too in their down time? Hehehe.

Im imagining konrad falling from a hole in the ceiling mouth stuffed full of gigantic rats landing right in the middle some celebratory luncheon that malcador has tried to organise.

never apologize for oc/personal au asks this is like me catnip.

going to do these backwards:

this sounds completely plausible (konrad does pop up in places he is absolutely not supposed to be frequently and with great enthusiasm)

except malc isn’t around (yet). however, there is another hooded perpetual with weirdly strong psychic powers wandering the palace. this isn’t great for emp’s mental state but who said any of this was great for emp’s mental state.

now that first question. the short answer is ferrus and fulgrim at least start the au by being firmly On Vacation

ferrus and fulgrim, once they’ve spent some time working things out between themselves generally just kinda. hang around? they’re slowly working on undoing the damage they did to their respective legions, kind of leading the charge for emotional rehab here like ‘ok there’s got to be a way to learn these lessons without Dying Horribly. right.’ they are preoccupied with this for much of the plot, in part because unlike most of the other Primarchs, Fulgrim in particular (and Ferrus by virtue of sticking close by to him) is Not Allowed to interact with Juno. At All.* (*until she’s older). In fact he’s top of The List (which is a thing that does exist). (this could be the subject of a whole nother post however, so i digress)

Fulgrim is actually quite upset by this; he’s put some degree of effort into repairing his relationship with Ferrus, and wishes gman would afford him the same opportunity. gman said i don’t owe u shit, which he’s right about, and though fulgrim understands this that doesn’t mean he’s happy about it. especially when it means he’s effectively out of the running for ‘baby niece’s favoritestest coolest most spoil you rotten uncle’ like forever (don’t feel too bad fulgrim. you’ll never guess who juno’s favorite is. none of you ever stood a chance.)

luckily fulgrim has other children to occupy his time.

N’kari was really important to fulgrim post-fall, as a touchstone and companion. The two were still very close even though they had not seen each other for some time at the start of this au, so when N’kari has an unsanctioned hybrid clutch with a khornate daemon and is panicking about it he goes straight to his bestie who uses his imperial-green-card-by-marriage to shelter him from the two angered deities.

So aside from their legions, Fulgrim and Ferrus’ downtime is largely occupied with assisting N’kari and Skarbrand raise their menace twin girls: Deimos and Phobos! They are somewhere between 7-10 years younger than Juno, and idolize her greatly, though she mostly knows them as these annoying kids who follow her around while she’s exploring the warp in her early twenties. Anyway that’s where all of Fulgrim’s ‘childless lesbian double income auntie at christmas’ energy goes; he spoils those brats rotten.

[fadetouchedsilk]

i know in my soul the solavellan pandering is about to be off the Charts but im wondering if it'll even be enjoyable for them lmfao

[spearminthe]

hi... sorry if this is weird but I've sort of been studying your hades sona to help with making mine ^^; not only bcs the art looks so much like it's from the game but the backstory info you put on your edits works so well. I wanted to ask if you had any tips at all, for both making your art look like the game art style and coming up with a backstory that fits... your ship is so cute btw I can't wait to see more !!

Waaa thank you so much, it's not weird at all :D I'm flattered that ppl still enjoy Minthe's sprite even if the art is several years old now fnfhnd, I've been wanting to make an updated h2 sprite but keep putting it off 🧎

In terms of how I came up with ideas for them, the pieces honestly fell together relatively easy once I started doing rudimentary research:

I knew I wanted an artist stand-in that would stay within the House of Hades, and if I could find a way to make them a little offbeat or morbid, all the better — As somebody with an interest in the funeral industry and different cultural funerary practices, I looked into the rituals that were conducted during Greek antiquity. That branched off into reading up on the uses of mint as part of the practices, and subsequently the role of the nymph Minthe in the mythology

Mint is one of my favorite flavors...my nickname already is "Min"...I enjoy minty greens and teals...I like Funeral Stuff...do some smushing and adjusting around and it only made sense to incorporate mint into their design, and later on I just decided to co-opt the Minthe namesake without making them the nymph herself

Their general appearance is largely a 1-for-1 depiction of how I usually draw myself, with the exception of the lack of glasses. I value my long hair and just decided to push it to that much more of a self-indulgent fantasy length, and dressed them in an approximation of something I would've liked wearing in that kind of setting (though maybe do a little more research into actual garment builds than I did lmao, I'm still working around how to explain away how they wear a "modified peplos" due to the sleeve and the high neckline kek)

If you're struggling with coming up with ideas, just find something simple that you think is neat and build from there! Really if you break Minthe down to their base essentials, they're just "mint artist" and that's it lol

Posing came from how I knew I wanted them to look like they correlated with Orpheus' sprite! :D He played a part in their design philosophy as well due to having green in his palette and leafy motifs, and I picked and chose some other aspects from other in-game sprites, particularly Nyx/Meg/Hypnos.

And for the art itself, make sure to use a hard brush with little to no pen pressure! The crisp lineart, black shadows, and the high contrast cell shading is ultimately what'll really sell making it look JenZee-esque. And ofc those funky little multicolor highlights.

Now if you're looking to make a dialogue edit...

Dialogue Box template | Fonts

That part is at least easy enough once you have the right fonts. I wanted to be certain that the screenshot I used was in the exact location I wanted, so I just ported one over from my Switch and worked from there!

Hopefully the art breakdown is helpful enough, I really love seeing Hades OCs to this day so don't be shy to share with me if you come up with something,, 🫶🥺

[thefandomexpert]

if perturabo ever had a kid it would be like that one parks n rec opening. you know the one.

[lieblogger]

more fandoms!!! should have codexes!! i want all official art and text in the world!!!

[thenevarranaccord]

Antiva

In the rest of the civilized world, it is common belief that Antiva has no king. I assure you, gentle readers, that this is untrue. The line of kings in Antiva has remained unbroken for two and a half thousand years--it is simply that nobody pays any attention to them whatsoever.

In truth, the nation is ruled by a collection of merchant princes. They are not princes in the literal sense, but heads of banks, trading companies, and vineyards. Their power is conferred strictly by wealth.

But Antiva is not primarily renowned for its peculiar form of government nor for its admittedly unparalleled wines. Antiva is known for the House of Crows. Since Antivans are well known for being good at everything but fighting, it is more than a little ironic that Antiva possesses the most deadly assassins in the world. Their fame is such that Antiva keeps no standing army; no king is willing to order his troops to assault her borders, and no general is mad enough to lead such an invasion. The attack would likely succeed, but its leaders would not see the light of day.

-From In Pursuit of Knowledge: The Travels of a Chantry Scholar by Brother Genitivi

[partystoragechest]

To celebrate Unwanted reaching 1,000 hits on AO3, I put all the Addendums on there. At once. I don't even know if 1,000 is good. I just got excited.