#there's another reason God gave this specific time limit

[aro-in-danyl]

Alastor as a "Gift from God" AU part 2

I'll have you know it is very difficult to write from the POV of God so you get Roo instead. I had to look up bible verses for this.

PART 1 here.

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

On the day of the first extermination cleanse.

When the first sinner was slain, Roo felt the soul attempt to rise. A fruitless endeavor, for their sinful deeds in life and in death ensured her roots bound the severed pieces of the soul to her.

Foolish angels, in culling the herd and stifling even the thought of rebellion, they only made her stronger. Roo tightened her vines around the soul and attempted to drag it down, down through the 7 rings, and to her.

Attempted, because before she even got past the Pride Ring, a stronger force yanked the soul upwards. Enraged and in disbelief she tightened her hold around the other souls being slaughtered by the dozens, but each and every time they were ripped from her grasp.

At the end of the day, when the exorcists were flying up and away from the slaughter, the portal to Heaven opened and Roo latched onto the connection and demanded an explanation.

"Have you gone back on your word?" her tone was taunting but her desperation and anger festered, "These souls are mine. Their punishment is meant to be eternal!"

Roo did not expect a response, God had not spoken to her since The Beginning, and God had no foothold in hell - usually. Today, apparently, was an exception.

God spoke to her, "My creations all return unto me in The End regardless. You know I cannot bare to be separated forever."

Roo did not buy this, "What ever happened to 'Depart from me, you who are cursed' was that not written?"

"Said by a King, not I." God refuted.

"But within your holy text." Roo sniped, "You reward their sin, their rejection of you, by accepting them back with open arms?"

"If you think that is what will happen to those who reject me twice, you know me not at all." And perversely, Roo felt relieved at this admission. "The righteous will have eternal life, the sinful - upon second death - nothing."

"And keeping them from me was merely a happy coincidence?" Roo felt emboldened, God must see her as a bigger threat than she thought, "To twist the meaning of your eternal punishment to exclude me, why I'd almost call that a quality worthy of a demon."

The portal, which had only been open seconds, pulsed with the force of God's anger.

Roo laughed. "You fear me enough to risk your angels falling into my grasp once again. Do you think this latest stunt of yours will keep me weak forever?"

"My angels have learned to evade you since then."

"Careful there." Roo feigned concern, "Anymore hubris and I'll have to save you a seat in Pride. I could put you next to your favorite child, wouldn't that be nice?"

God ignored the taunt, "I know your roots grow stronger on Earth. More fall to you everyday. Faster than even my best angels can catch them."

Roo smiled at the admission. To have her work acknowledged by the being who created everything, everything that would someday be corrupted and belong wholly to her.

God continued, "It is a testament to your strength that The End may be sooner than I thought."

Roo stopped cold. Her strength came from corrupting the creations of God, but if there was nothing to corrupt...

Ah. She thought. Nothing truly is an eternal punishment.

"Unless," God hedged. "We come to an arrangement?"

Suddenly the reason for God's desire to converse with her made sense. Here she was, weakened from the loss of over a hundred damned souls, from an event that would become a yearly occurrence. Here God was, with the threat of The End poised upon their fingertips, attempting to force her compliance.

And it was working.

But God had shown their hand too early, "How utterly demonic of you! You want to compromise with me? To reason with me?" She used her roots to trip a flailing exorcist trying to remove its spear from a corpse just because, "What can you offer me?"

"I will not hasten The End before its time." God stated, as if the threat of nothing was enough now that she knew God wanted something from her that they could not get themselves.

"You do not want to destroy everything you've created; you want it even less than I do. What is it you desire?"

The last few exorcists were getting ready to return via the portal, their clothes splatted in shade of red and an abundance of gore. They had yet to develop a tolerance to the violence they were perpetuating. Roo knew, just as God did, that many of the angels after slaughtering their first few sinners, had ripped their helmet off and vomited in disgust and despair.

Roo could feel their shock, their inner turmoil, their sense of righteousness, their loyalty to heaven. With time, and more exterminations cleanses, they would learn to enjoy the bloodshed. Or they would break. Such was the way of war.

"I wish to create a gift for Lucifer," God began, "A gift that will challenge him, embolden him, and remain by his side."

Lucifer! Why did it always come back to him? Around them, the corpses of the damned littered her domain never to rise again, God's angels grappled with the weight of their heavenly duty, and her influence weakened for the first time in decades. And yet it was Lucifer that made God lower themselves to speak with her!

Roo reigned in her rage, "And what does that have to do with me?"

"I am creating something unlike anything I've ever created before." God directed her attention back to the weak angel who'd finally pulled their spear from a corpse, "Immune to angelic destruction. Stronger than a thousand sinners, with the potential to stand against my Archangels, capable of vengeance and retribution."

Roo salivated. "And you're sending it here." Roo let the last of the shattered souls in her grasp go, not even paying attention as it shot upwards and away. "You'd create such a thing and put in my hands the instrument of your demise?"

"Which is why I appear before you. You know sin more intimately than I. So I implore you to cast off a piece of yourself for this gift and I shall do the same."

"And what is this gift?" The exorcist was attempting to clean the gore from the spear and failing. "And why should I give you anymore of myself when you've already taken so much?"

"A human soul."

"You intend to create a soul destined to hell before its first sin and gift it to the being who prizes free will above all else. Do you imagine he will thank you?" Roo didn't care about Lucifer's feelings regarding this gift, she couldn't wait to see the fallout actually, but she couldn't help but point out the obvious.

"No," God said, "he will not. As for you, this soul will bring a new age upon your realm. They will be The Avenger of the worthy. And a nightmare to everyone else."

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil," Roo quoted. "Is that why you need me? You want to avoid going against your own words, so you seek to blame me instead."

She did not give God time to respond, "But you still haven't told me what I gain. What do I care for this promised 'new age' or so-called Avenger when I am still trapped?"

"And that is my bargain," God attempted to comfort one of the angels weeping over a small sinner's corpse but their touch fell short. Seems they did not have power over anything in her realm but exorcised souls, she mused.

"With a piece of us both, this soul will have a direct link to us in a way no fully mortal being has before."

Roo would've gasped if she was capable of breathing, "Speak plainly!"

"They could free you."

"What's the catch? Why would you give them this power?" She could hardly believe it. It was too good to be true.

"You have the chance to be free. But you must convince this soul to do so of their own free will, knowing fully the consequences of your freedom." Roo dismissed this, she was The Root of Sin for a reason, and this soul was destined for her realm anyway.

"You are forbidden from interfering with their life before hell. And you must find this soul yourself once they fall."

A minor setback, but the call of freedom was strong. Still, she was not so blinded by this opportunity that she wouldn't ask, "And what, do you, The Almighty God, gain from this bargain?"

"A hellborn will become your greatest adversary, they will attempt to redeem sinners and remove them from your grasp." The portal to Heaven began to close.

"And should they succeed, your chance to convince The Avenger will begin to close. And you will never know freedom."

"A time limit!" She should've known they wouldn't play fair, "How long?"

They turned her attention to the newly built Tower in the center of the Pentagram. The timer below flipped through the numbers at record speed until it hit 365. "Seven full moons after the clock strikes zero for the last time. Do we have an agreement?"

God's voice was strong as ever, but the portal was now only the size of a quarter. Roo knew manipulation and this reeked of it, how clever of God to wait until the last moment to share all the details when she had so little time to think of it.

"When in hell, you use the proper term." Roo pretended to scold them. She reached out to the fading tendrils of God and sunk her thorns in as deep into the connection as she could.

"We have a deal."

[ssentimentals]

seventeen members as love tropes: jeon wonwoo

best friends to lovers

'and i was so scared to destroy it that i forgot that destruction leaves the door for something new to be built'

'okay, let's go over the list again. phone chargers and headphones?'

wonwoo tries and fails to act annoyed; he's mostly endlessly endeared by your love for all kind of check lists and your diligence in going over them at least three times. he doesn't even try to point out that bags were packed under your supervision yesterday - he's not strong enough to withstand your pouty face and he also knows how restless you get if you don't check everything again. so, he bites inside of his cheek to prevent himself from smiling like a fool and declares: 'chargers and headphones are here. what's next?'

wonwoo indulges you for the next twenty minutes, checks every single item from your list and doesn't look even a tiny bit mad when you two finish. his patience towards you has no limits, just like his desire to soothe your worries and help you feel peaceful. he zips both bags, when you sigh in relief and plop right next to him on the ground, leaning on his shoulder casually. 'thanks, woo. i know it must've been annoying, but i was anxious.'

careful not to disturb you, wonwoo moves closer to the wall to lean on it. 'it's nothing. if to ease your anxiety i have to pack and repack these bags ten times, i'd do it, you know it.'

there's a beat of silence and then your hand wraps lightly around his. 'yeah, i know.'

and you do know. it's probably one the most amazing feelings in the world - to be this assured in another person. you cannot bet on yourself, but you can bet on wonwoo when it comes to being your best friend. he's your pillar of strength, your constant support, your closest person. you never thought it's possible to be this sure in someone and yet. you never question wonwoo because he never gave you reasons to; his loyalty to you is like a pledge he wears on his skin proudly, shows it off to everyone if they ask. earth is round, sky is blue and jeon wonwoo is always there for you. it could've been so, so good if only it didn't make you want to cry.

'hey, don't fall asleep on me. you know your neck will hurt and i didn't pack that gel which always helps ease up the stiffness,' he says gently.

wonwoo is always gentle. it's not really in his nature, but by default it's how he is with you. how can he not be? you're a flower in his eyes and only gentleness and care will help you flourish (which is the only thing he wants for you). his fingers itch with desire to hold you gently as well, to cradle you in his arms and keep you safe and loved but he ignores it. wonwoo is really good at ignoring a lot of his feelings towards you, because flowers can only take gentleness and there's nothing gentle in his feelings. no, his feelings for you are close to forces of the nature in their strengths: unstoppable, uncontrollable, all-consuming. wonwoo is so gentle with you, how can he let you know that his chest is doing a god's work every time, not letting his feelings slip? they can come out and envelop you whole, leave nothing to anyone else and he.. is not like that. can't be like that with you.

'you also started getting neck pains?' you ask, lifting your head from his shoulder. you look worried, searching for something on his face.

'no, i usually carry that gel for you.' wonwoo answers easily, shrugging it off. 'just like other bunch of stuff.'

silence settles again. lately, silence started to settle much more often between you two and while usually it's a good companion, this specific kind of silence hangs heavy. this silence is filled with unspoken words and hesitance, it's charged with tension which none of you dare to break. everything always comes to its' boiling point and you can't help but think that your friendship with wonwoo is hanging by a thread and you can't tell which way it should fall: to the left, where everything will be left exactly as it is right now or to the right, where you'll be in the new territory of confessed feelings? and wonwoo feels it too, can barely sleep this last month due to this heaviness in his heart, which refuses to carry the weight of unspoken love anymore. it's funny how he never really looked for love; when you came, he also didn't look for it. but then time passed and he realized that he's not looking for love anymore not because he's not interested, but because he found it long time ago.

'will we...' you start, taking a deep breath. god, if there's anyone for who you are ready to fall, it's wonwoo. '...talk about it? about this elephant in the room?'

wonwoo's breath hitches. seconds tick away and they last for eternity, making you think that time stopped at some moment. overthinking spiral starts to draw you in, when he voices out: 'which elephant in the room? the one about me being in love with you for longer than i can remember or the one where you never gave back any of my hoodies?'

wonwoo watches as your eyes widen and how your mouth opens and then closes in shock. he watches how you collect yourself, internally applauds himself for not freaking out and keeping that beast called love inside of his chest for now.

'i- the first one.' you mutter, shaking a little. 'definitely the first one and you can also add info on why you never said anything.'

will you understand? will you get that he was actually trying to shelter you from his selfish side? will you accept that his love is too big, too real, too much for someone as delicate as you? that he held himself back for your own sake? his hesitance spurs you to take his hand in his and squeeze it gently. 'tell me. i will understand. you are my best friend, woo. first and foremost - you are my best friend.'

'and then?' he grunts, barely forcing his tongue to move.

you smile and hope grows in his chest. 'and then my boyfriend. my one and only. do you like the sound of that?'

does he like it? god, do you even know what you do to him? beast inside doesn't roar to his surprise; no, it curls up in satisfaction instead, finally calming down. oh. oh. 'i like the sound of that very much,' he musters the courage to say.

maybe he was wrong about his beast all this time. maybe his feelings never meant harm, maybe they can not only destroy, but plant something else instead. you lean in and oh, wonwoo gets it. his feelings were meant to plant more flowers, pretty flowers. just like you.

a/n: if you think that this somewhere along the way turned into something else then you'd be right, but i couldn't stop and i'm posting this anyway. let me know what you think! - nini

my other works are here

[not-xpr-art]

Len and Tommy's life told through nine photos ~

A fanart based on the Inside no 9 episode 'Bernie Clifton's Dressing Room' because I loved it so much!

(09/2024)

See below for close ups and unnecessarily detailed explanations of each individual artwork lol

First wanna say that I spent wayy too long on these (like 25+ hours), especially trying to make them look like actual old photos lol... also trying to get their likeness right for the various ages was really bloody hard lol, but hopefully each photo has the essence of each character even if it might not look 100% right pfft...

Second thing is that the dates & locations are very much my own subjective thoughts on their life and not particularly rooted in the canon of the show lol

Also I did go really heavy with the colour symbolism lol...

Ravenhill School, 1965.

The year they met, both are around the age of 10 (give or take). Len is 3 from the left in the top row, Tommy 2 in from the left on the bottom row (also I tried to include references to the other 2 League Of Gentlemen guys... Though I think the only vaguely recognisable one is Jeremy pfft)

Also shout out to @lapis-lazuliie for the idea that they met at school!

(side note, this is the least detailed of all the paintings not just because I was too lazy to render all those children's faces pfft but ALSO because of the significance of them being less recognisable or prominent in each other's lives in this point...)

I was planning on making another childhood/early teen photo but couldn't really think of any good subject matter that could also fit thematically with the episode (also the fact both are coming from poor families who would have had limited access to cameras in this era means we can just pretend that there are just no photos that really exist of them at these ages pfft...)

Photo booth in Leeds, 1974.

Both in their late teens, they'd (well, mainly Tommy) gone to a photo booth in Leeds with the intention of getting some professional looking photos only for Len to immediately make Tommy laugh once they got in there lol

The middle photo is covered in lines as Tommy had planned on throwing it away, only to find he couldn't bring himself to do it in the end... Is it platonic? Romantic? Both? Who knows, you decide lol! I mainly wanted it to be a candid moment between two people that love each other lol

(final one is them play fighting because that's kinda just what 19 year olds are like pfft... also I think photo booths technically gave you 4 photos? so let's pretend there was another photo that they did throw away for whatever reason lol...)

Rehearsals, 1979.

Deep in the midst of practising their routine for some of their first performances!

I'll admit this photo was mainly me wanting to include something more episode specific lol and also to get in some much needed heavy handed symbolism (the crease in the photo separating them, the bottle in front of Len's face, etc)

Polaroids taken at Tommy's flat, 1985.

In-between shows the two often spent a lot of time at Tommy's place (featuring that god awful sofa the previous home owner had left). I did originally plan to have them in the sofa shot together, but was finding it hard to figure out who would have been taking that kind of photo so figured it made more sense to make it shots they took of each other.

Also marks the beginnings of Tommy's weariness (& Len's over drinking...)

Outside the Glasgow Pavilion, 1988.

The morning of that fateful performance...

Ok not much else I wanna say about this other than the reference I used for the pose had Reece sorta awkwardly clasping his hands in front of him which I really liked but unfortunately in my art it just looked like he was trying to cover his crotch so I had to change it pfft...

Tommy standing at Len's grave, 2024.

The sixth anniversary of Len's death, and the sixth time Tommy has travelled across from France to lay flowers at his grave. Photo taken by Leanne from the inside of a taxi (I'd like to have had more references to her in these photos but was unsure of dates/ages where it would have fitted...)

She couldn't get her phone to not focus on the raindrops on the window as she tried to take a picture of Tommy at her father's grave but then realised that she actually liked the pathetic fallacy and had it made into a print anyway lol (look I'll be the first to admit that this is the least 'realistic' in terms of a photo that people would take, but I couldn't resist the symbolism of it lol...)

There were a lot more ideas for photos I wanted to do but for obvious reasons had to keep it to just 9 lol

Also will be posting these on my ao3 with snippets of stories to go with each photo so keep an eye out for when I share that link!

[reveriememory]

⭐️ °. • Thank You Neil • .° ⭐️

I pushed myself to finish this in time, and I did! I met Neil, and gave him a physical copy. Till this day, I just freak out when I remember… I really admire him! I’ll talk about that and this art piece after the Read More if you’d like to hear about that.

This art piece started in October, last year as an Astarion fan piece, but overtime I realized I wanted to do something more meaningful. I’ve known of Neil since DBH, so why not create something for him? So I added in Neil, and then I left it alone for months. Didn’t really think anything of it since usually all my art follows this treatment. I focus on it for a whole two weeks and then it fades into the background. However, I got word that Neil was coming to my area, and that’s when I started freaking out. Like, oh my god, I need to finish this… can I give this to him? I’ve never gone to a convention before… what am I gonna do?

So I kept debating to finish this, because I didn’t know what was allowed, and if I could even finish in time, how would I even print this? I mean, I can just finish it at my own pace and tag him or something. In the end, I decided that it’s more important to me to get it to him in person, that way I can also get my copy signed. I had to plan this all out, and long story short, I rushed it in a week. I pulled two all-nighters, and just REALLY rushed on poor Gavin in the background. Gavin was actually a last minute decision! I would’ve added Kamski, but he’s literally just a face copy of Neil so I decided against that, and Gavin was the close second. The reason I chose DBH was because that’s where I first discovered Neil. I was a fan of this game when it first released. Heisenberg was another option, but I never got to his part of the game so I felt it wasn’t a good pick since I was going under personal limitations. Not to mention, really low on time. However, I added some references on the wall, specifically the ones where it was games that I had played! I could’ve added more, but again- time. I drew them in a motion capture studio, because I envision Neil practicing and performing with the characters he had worked on. I just felt like It was a cute little idea, and I admire Neil for his motion capture the most. It’s something I’m trying to get into, or some form of it at least.

Then. The Day.

AHHHHHH. I was starstruck. I’m just going to sum it up and talk about this specific moment. I’m next in line and I just blurt out, “I’m trying really hard not to get starstruck!” But I’m already shaky and half my memory gone. I was so anxious, trying to get through the moment that I didn’t really get to enjoy the moment, but man, am I still happy. I tell him about the piece and he’s like oh, what have you been working on? The drawing got jammed in its protector, so I was just struggling with it. “OH, sorry, it’s stuck!” And he thankfully found it funny. Gave it to him, got my copy signed and perfect. But AHHHH, I’m anxious right? I ask him if he could sign the back of it, because I was worried I’d cringe at the piece in the future. I normally don’t call my art cringe but why, why was I THAT honest—

He’s so quick to reply, super sweet man, just tells me no, don’t cringe. He also asked me about my focus in motion capture, but that’s another post for another day. I have something in the works for that!

Look, in my defense! I RUSHED the piece, so I knew I’d get a bit irritated in the future seeing my art and knowing I had the time to really do a beautiful job! I just meant that knowing how much potential I had, had I taken advantage of that, it would have turned out so much… not better, but to my liking. I’m content, considering the limitations, but… y’know? Anyways, I still wanted to look at his signature and proudly display that, like aye, I got to meet him!

Considering that I rarely draw real people, I’m definitely proud with how Neil turned out. Just like Neil told me, and many others, can’t be too harsh with myself. When working on this, I was super excited and actually thrived while working on it. Yes, under pressure, but dedicated. I can’t remember the last time I ever fixated on an art piece like this. With that said, I definitely want to try again in the future and get better at drawing semi-realism. And Neil is coming back to my area next year so… ideas.

Anyways, thank you for reading my little journal entry! Back to work I go~

[dullgecko]

Back on the graveyard bullshit, couldn't last a day with this thought that has been bouncing in my head like those super bouncy balls.

I can't get the thought of an old Fabian visiting the Riz’s statue. (Maybe with one of his (potential) warlocks observing)

(This is your fault)

It was mostly kids who visited the statue in the late afternoons but they were aware there were a couple other people who came by occasionally. It was an unwritten rule that you had to leave and give them space when they came, mostly because the goblins responses would get shorter and more annoyed looking if you didn't.

You were usually able to spot them coming before they got close, giving you time to pack up and get out of the way before they arrived. Today it looked like it was the elderly half elfs turn, he was certainly old but he still had a build to him that gave away years of intense training. The pair of students sitting at the base of the monument packing up their things and moving to another spot in the cemetery to wait for him to finish his visit.

Fabian paused and leaned on the polished headstone for a moment once he finally reached it. A large coffee carefully placed next to one of the statues hands before he crouched and started looking for the hidden switch on one side. The half elf pushing aside a coffee cup and old jacket that had been hidden inside the monument when he managed to get it open in order to grab one of the dozen or so scrolls hidden at the back. The coffee had vanished by the time he stood back up after closing the hatch.

"Oh good you're there. I was worried you might be out." Fabian flicked a leaf off the top of the statues head before he unsheathed his sword, burying it point down halfway up the blade in the soft dirt in front of the monument. "Give that to one of your kids."

The half elf stretched, looking around the cemetery and noticing the two students still watching from a ways away. There was no one else around and he was sure Riz wouldn't mind being spotted by a couple of 'his' students so he unfurled the scroll clutched in his hand. Ripping it in half to activate the spell Adaine had inscribed on it before they were locked away inside the monument for safe keeping.

There was a burst of light, arcane and celestial sigils overlapping in the air for a moment before a very surprised goblin landed in a crouch on the grass. His eyes wide as he reached for the arcubus holstered against his front while scanning for whoever was attacking them. He relaxed after a moment, weapon getting reholstered as he stood up out of his defensive crouch.

"Fabian what the fuck." He gave the half elf an exasperated look, turning to face him once he was sure they were safe. "You can't just summon me for no reason i only have a half hour time limit. Those are specifically for life or death situations."

Fabian just laughed, wandering over to his own statue and carefully sitting down on the grass at the base. Waving Riz over to sit with him once he was mostly comfortable.

"Oh I'd say this counts, technically." Fabian sighed, grabbing Riz by the wrist and pulling him into his lap when he got close.

Riz let himself get pulled down and shuffled around until his back was against Fabians chest, face bearing a puzzled expression for a few more seconds before it clicked. "OH... shouldn't you be at home? Or at the hospital."

"Tsh, gods no. They kept giving me pitying looks and asking if I was comfortable." The half elf pressed a kiss to the top of his captives head, shutting his eyes and giving a content sigh. "A hospital is no place for a Seacaster to clock out. At least this way I can say I died grappling a celestial in a graveyard without lying."

Riz snorted at that, settling in and holding one of Fabians hands in his lap. Stretching his wings out so they flopped at an awkward angle over the half-elfs arms as he fiddled with the hand nervously.

"Should I..... be doing something? I mean, didn't really plan for you to go out from old age. Kind of figured you'd get in a big fight with someone and i'd have to go hunt down your remains after the fact."

"Well don't go blocking everyones memories and run off doing reckless shit until you get yourself killed, that would be bad."

"Oh come on I did that once."

"And I get to use it as ammunition until something finally wipes out the universe."

"I mean right now. Is there something I should be doing right now? It feels weird just... sitting here like I'm waiting for a timer to run out."

"I mean, you can stab me if you like but I'd have to let go first." Fabian sounded tired, muttering the sentence into the top of Riz's head.

"No I meant like... should I call Adaine?"

"No. Do not. I was getting annoyed by all the pitying looks and hers would be the worst. Just put me in the chamber under the statue when i'm gone and i'll see her at the next meetup at Figs." The half elf gave Riz a squeeze when he made a concerned noise. "I'll apologise to her later.... you could talk to me though. Tell me about.... them"

Fabian gestured vaguely in the direction he knew the students were hiding, they definitely weren't rogues that was for sure. Riz glancing in that direction and thinking for a moment before nodding and settling in to talk.

"Oh those two? The girl is a bard in the dance classes, she's pretty good. She didn't come here initially to study she was researching you for a paper, she still has one of your old photos on her binder.... I think she thinks you were handsome."

Fabian snorted at that, lifting his head to look at her before plopping it back down onto Riz's. "Good. Make sure she gets the sword then."

The students were still watching, a little shellshocked by the fact that the statue was of an actual celestial and not daring to move in case they interupted them. They continued talking like that for a while, nearly twenty minutes passing until the goblin stopped and wiggled his way free of the half elfs grasp. A hand checking his pulse for a moment before he pressed a kiss to the top of their head, held onto their shoulder, and disappeared with them for a breif moment.

Only the angel returned alone a full minute later, wandering over to his own statue to wrench the sword out of the ground. Wiping the blade clean before he turned to scan the cemetery until he spotted his audience and gestured for them to come closer. When they did he flipped the sword around so that he was holding it by the blade, offering the hilt to the bard and smiling when she tentativly took it from him.

"Fabian wanted you to have it. You should thank him later... but give him a few days." Riz glanced down at his watch, giving the two kids a fond wave as it started beeping and he disappeared in the same flash of light that he'd first appeared in exactly thirty minutes beforehand.

[makingspiritualityreal]

Nakshatra Gana - Deva, Rakshasa, Manushya

According to Vedic Astrology, Nakshatras all possess a temperament, that is translated to Divine, Human or Demonic. These names however are clichés, and have a deeper meaning and application.

Deva, besides the direct translation divine, also means "amongst the gods". The true meaning of these Nakshatras is "blessed because of their higher nature, that allows them to dwell among the gods", and as a result, blessings come into physical life.

Manushya doesn't mean just human, but also "part of humankind", emphasizing the collective aspect of these Nakshatras of contributing to human achievement in various fields. Even the other word used for that Gana, "Nara" means "of the people". Yet again, the aspect of belonging and contribution is emphasized.

Rakshasa, although scary sounding, doesn't mean that the person is an incarnated demon. It's translation is more akin to "demon abode" or "infested by demons". This is a soul, that picks up a heavy load of karma in specific areas, that only flourish and progress, after these "demons are expelled" = karma is dealt with. This progress translates to a high level of achievement, mixed with feeling enormous spiritual relief. Rakshasa souls are daredevils, not afraid to undertake such a challenge.

The most complicated aspect of analysing results of Gana in a horoscope, is that people are a mix of all 3 Ganas. Classical Vedics swear by doing most predictions based on the Moon Nakshatra, but when your Dasha periods change, different planets will activate, and a different side of you will come out. You’re gonna find Gana themes mixed in a personality, and planets will indicate the precise colour of that personality, as to the areas of people’s problems.

The popculture examples that I give below are clichés, designed to help you understand each Gana in stark contrast. You will feel the description matching you the strongest, if you are a very clear cut type chart-wise, for example sun, moon and ascendant all in one Gana.

Deva

Are unconditional givers because they don't understand human limitations, and as a result they get cheated, bullied and taken advantage of. Their task in this lifetime, besides using their luck and gifts to create and spread abundance, is to learn how to place boundaries with other Gana types. When they're born, they start off as naïve, not really caring about human concepts, and as a result they're often misfits in social environments. They’re typically born into some form of privilege, even if it's just emotional. They are raised already in a place that was good for them one way or another, gave them some long lasting worthwhile characteristics they will take forward in life. There is an element of comfort in their existence. Their basic impulse is truthfulness, innocence and straightforwardness, because they simply want to pour out and consume higher vibrational energies. As a result, they're interested in higher concepts that help them manufacture these sensations. The most abstract of all, loves discussing theoretical, spiritual concepts even if they're based on science (Neil deGrasse Tyson, theoretical physicist, Bjork, abstract artist). They want to bring heaven on earth and have an easiness in manifesting the physical means to realise their larger vision for the sake of higher vibrational sensations, or creativity. They are protective and carry other people a lot because of their blessings, since they consider that they should share what they have. Over time, they learn that if they don’t channel themselves into their creativity and higher pursuits, they attract a lot of difficult types that they end up “saving” at their own detriment. They are always looking for abstract solutions and more expansion, and are disinterested in the mundane, physical world, looking for a more grandiose purpose. Even if they do pursue physical things, it's for an abstract reason, like feelings or atmosphere.

Rakshasa

They either become perpetrators, if they fail to tame their own transformative power, or they are people that empower themselves through overcoming perpetrators. Fierce, seeking power and dominance, energetically ladder climbing. Example in pop culture - Katy Pery, Vishakha Moon creates inspirational music videos, where she joins the military or becomes jungle queen, after dumping an abusive partner and suffering a lot. The theme of this Gana is self destruction or self empowerment. Unlike Deva, there is no inherent comfort given at birth, but a fight for survival and achievement for one to be able to express oneself and their gifts. That is for a reason, as these types are most prone to being destructive and blind in their pursuits or restless without an outlet. They have a hunger in themselves, that needs challenges and obstacles to overcome, so that they can feel like they're climbing, and as a result they often start at the very bottom in the planet area dominated by Rakshasa energy. Deep down, these people want to prove themselves and feel satisfaction from the process of purification. They are either completely misunderstood by other types and vilified by them, or extremely charismatic and gifted at attracting a following of people, who admire their challenging journey. As much as Manushya types are interested in science of psychology, and Deva may use spiritual concepts to share higher sensational pieces of self expression, Rakshasa people are those who need spirituality the most for the sake of healing. They need to truly understand and apply these concepts in order to be able to survive their journey at all, as their inner demons and traumas go deep, and without self awareness they have no chance of success.

Manushya

Concerned with refining human societal concepts and achievements. Psychology (the scientific practical variety), technology, social rights, women’s rights, activism, feminism, economy. Deep analysis of the human condition and its animal impulses. Interest in humanity for the sake of humanity itself. Down to earth, detail oriented, interested in mundane challenges that bore the other two types. Involvement with institutions, attachment to these institutions, contributing to them. Morality is wavering and relative here, as they are not as fierce as Rakshasa, but they are prone to pettiness, being so absorbed into the human world makes them prone to human flaws. They are not strictly immoral, but more expedient and result oriented. Example - Bharani Moon Demi Moore in "Striptease", her character suffers from money problems, child custody problems, government sourced problems, as she explores themes of objectification and female empowerment. These natives are prone to status and wealth comparison, and as a result are also most prone to being shallow and judgmental on that basis, they simply don't bother to try to look at people from a deeper perspective, because the surface practicality is their area of interest. They learn everything by comparing themselves to the external world. To them, society is their parent and measuring stick.

[tired-reader-writer]

Because the AO3 author's note box has a character limit and my author's note was way too long even when I split it into two (honestly crying right now like literally I'm legitimately distressed), here's the full fucking thing in all its glory.

This is the fic it was supposed to be attached to.

Sooooo, yeah! This is the first chapter of what will be a longfic following Hoshiori— it's functionally a prologue I realize but I didn't want to name it a prologue because I didn't want to deal with the thing where it turns out like “Chapter 2: Chapter 1” because it hurts my delicate sensibilities, LOL.

Many, MANY thanks to my dear friend wolfghost who kindly agreed to beta this fic… *checks time-stamp* six entire months ago! Oh wow I really took forever in actually delivering the chapter to you, my fucking god.

First things first, I would like to say that the worldbuilding here might be very unfamiliar to y'all because of how much it departs from other fics— heavily inspired by wolfghost's Drag My Dark Into The Dawn series (please do check it out, it's very good, realistic exploration of war and trauma) the dynamics between civilian and shinobi are… well. It'll get explored in more detail in the future, please look forward to it! I will note that this isn't supposed to bash civilians. I know they're causing problems right now and will continue to, at least some of them (a specific subset of civilians), but I want to give the civilians a proper chance in this fic because they rarely do ever get the chance to shine! In a similar vein, I seek to not bash any character in this fic (well I think it's impossible to truly bash Hiruzen because man's just That Bad from the outset but I digress), not Hashirama, not Tobirama, not Madara, not even Jiraiya, no one, even as they have caused problems and will continue to cause problems down the line (particularly with Jiraiya). The choices they make will inevitably impact someone in a negative manner. The narrators will end up disliking one person or another. It will happen. I just hope y'all enjoy this absolute hot mess of a web.

Marigolds symbolize… a whole lot of things, both positive and negative. I felt that they were a fitting flower for many reasons which I won't state here because I want to hear you guy's thoughts! I will give you a hint in that “万寿菊” consisting of kanji for thousand, longevity, and chrysanthemum respectively, means marigold. Let me know what you think they represent here!

As for the name Uzunoshima… well, the island had to have a name before it became Uzushiogakure, before the Hidden Village system was established here, and I decided on this name to imitate Japan's island names such as Tokunoshima, Tanegashima, Kagoshima, Hikoshima, Kamishima, Tomogashima, almost said Hitogashima before realizing that's a fictional island but it *is* based on a real island, specifically Tomogashima, so yeah! Funnily enough, I originally wanted to name it Zokunoshima meaning “island of thieves” because the Uzumaki were originally pirates and that just sounded like a name the rest of the world would give them and the Uzumaki would have their own endonym for it but I feared it might've gotten too confusing for my readers, so I decided against it.

Toyonabe and Niezaki are, of course, not names or places found in canon because I guess I have to do all the work establishing place names here. The name Toyonabe consists of the kanji 豊 (abundant, lush, bountiful, plenty) and 鍋 (pot), because it's a bit of a melting pot port city situation, and the region it's in, Niezaki, consists of kanji 沸 (to boil, to cook) and 崎 (peninsula). It was originally part of Yu no Kuni who trades openly with Uzunoshima despite everybody else being afraid of the Uzumaki, before Hi no Kuni would eventually annex the area. They still bear the name. I also like to think that the region has volcanoes and the hot currents from the region meet the colder waters from other places and the temperature shenanigans gave the Sanzu strait its signature whirlpools along with some quirks on the ocean floor probably, but it's not important so I didn't mention it. Just a fun thought.

My sincerest thanks for my good friend reipastuminen on ao3 for helping me name Niezaki and Toyonabe. Truly, you were a godsend.

As for the Sanzu strait, it's named for the Sanzu river in Japanese Buddhist belief, one that souls of the dead must cross to get to the “far shore” (Higan) aka the afterlife. Why do you think I named it Sanzu strait? Tell me about it!

Imo-mochi is a type of mochi made of potatoes.

I headcanon that Tobirama is an albino man rather than it being just Anime Logic™, and so I ended up incorporating that headcanon into the fic. Yes, his eyelashes are black, but everyone has black eyelashes in Naruto, I think it's just the artstyle. It's a bit of an unusual headcanon, I know, but please don't try to pick a fight with me over it. I've already seen people try to discredit the headcanon and it's exhausting.

The Natsuboshi festival is… about four celebrations rolled into one. The Tanabata festival, of course, and the Bon Odori festival, also the celebration of the ocean, and the Shichi-go-san celebration. Shichi-go-san because it just felt appropriate to smudge it a little for the seventh year ceremony for children here, and ocean day because it happened to be in the same month as Tanabata (July), and Bon Odori because… Actually, it's interesting how Bon Odori and Tanabata were originally the same celebration historically in Japan, held in the seventh month of the traditional Japanese calendar, but eventually drifted apart because Tanabata moved to the western calendar's July, and Bon Odori stayed in its original month which was the seventh month in the Japanese calendar but fell on August. Some places in Japan do celebrate it in August still, though. And since I decided well there's no reason for there to be two calendars I just smushed the two festivals back into one. I've already cried bitter tears wrangling calendars in my other fic, Winds of Wolfsong, if I have to do it for this fic too I will start to cry. The name of this festival consists of the kanji 夏 “summer” and 星 “star”.

The tale of Orihime and Hikoboshi will be symbolically important for Hoshiori!

Uzunoshima has two time systems, the 24-hour system for everything else, and the traditional Japanese time system (which has varying hour lengths according to season) for the shrine, just like how many cultures today have a western calendar and a traditional calendar, just on a smaller scale. The hours were counted from nine to four, backwards from noon until midnight, and the numbers one, two, and three were not used because those were the times used for Buddhist monks to call to prayer. Uzunoshima is primarily Shinto though, but I wanted to keep this irl Japanese tradition. Dawn and dusk are marked as the sixth hour in this time system. Each hour is assigned an animal from the Japanese zodiac as it is irl, and I won't go into detail but the two hours mentioned in this chapter were: usagi-ji (hour of the rabbit, dawn, six strikes), and tatsu-ji (hour of the dragon, five strikes). Now I have no proof the hours were called like that irl, I just wanted to do this because I found it neat.

The bell strikes would come from the island's shrine here, and Kazuma compares the prayer voices to the tremor of the tsurigane, which are also called oogane irl but I realized, hey, the “tsuri/釣” in the word means “to strung up/to fish” and Uzunoshima is an island, it felt fitting so I went with the term tsurigane.

The gods Fuchi-no-Kami and Uzu-no-Mikoto aren't irl Shinto deities, obviously, I found that the gods from the usual pantheon didn't click with me, and in Shintoism which is an offspring of animism, a mountain can be a kami, a tree can be a kami, a rock can be a kami, almost anything can be a kami, really, so I felt comfortable in just making new gods up. Fuchi-no-Kami is the goddess of the sea (only to the Uzumaki though, Susanoo fills that role for others which makes up for funny religious conflict as the Uzumaki insist Susanoo and other such ocean deities are actually Fuchi-no-Kami's children LMAO) and Uzu-no-Mikoto are her daughters, representing the whirlpools. Uzu-no-Mikoto's name is pretty self-explanatory, but the word “fuchi/淵” means abyss/depth/deep pool/deep waters and I thought it was appropriate for both the sea between the Kiri archipelago and the Continent. Also yeah the archipelago is named Kiri for the mist that envelopes all its islands, Mizu no Kuni as a collective has not been properly established at this point in time though it will start to do so eventually.

The Shinigami… actually, it's quite the interesting case. I always did think the term Shinigami sounded odd for a single deity, it sounded plural, so I looked into it and… yeah! Shintoism does not have a singular death deity, and historically, Shinigami were depicted as many death gods or as youkai-like vengeful spirits who possess people and drive them to suicide. Obviously, the Naruto world seem to have a singular death god, so I kept it that way, but made a small nod to the historical portrayal of Shinigami as vengeful spirits via the detail of ayakashi (phantoms) serving him. And since the Shinigami mask came from the Uzumaki in canon, I thought why not, and made him the consort of Fuchi-no-Kami. The ayakashi… their name can be translated as “strange phenomenon of the sea” and they're said to be phantoms who appear on the water's surface, and there are many types. Though interestingly, the ayakashi in Noh theater where their name is written in kanji (the non-Noh ones are written entirely in hiragana, I know, it's confusing) 怪士 meaning “strange warrior”. I decided to stick with the sea phantoms interpretation for my sanity's sake.

Though a lot of the Uzumaki's faith is a certified me-original (as is their matriarchy, I know canon featured a dude next to Hashirama, shush, if Kishimoto can retcon his own stuff I can retcon his stuff as well), the belief that a child is not fully human until the age of 7 and “belongs to the gods” is not! It's a belief found in Japan's history, where they had a practice called “mabiki/間引き” meaning “thinning out an overgrown garden” which is slang for… infanticide. Yeah. It was such a common practice, too. I'm not putting it in the story, though. Other such beliefs will be making an appearance in the future as well, particularly with the Hyuuga. Do look forward to it!

Both miko and kannushi are women here, they can marry, miko can become kannushi on Uzunoshima. No, it is not how it works irl, but I'm doing this to simplify it and keep my sanity. The prayer chanted during the ceremony is based on what little I could find of Shinto prayers called “norito/祝詞”, also the beginning of one of the poems “divine gods noble and fearsome” is also based on my feeble attempt at translating the beginning of a norito addressing the gods. AGH! I'm not gonna go into the kagura dance because this author's note is unmanageably long already.

Chitose-ame (千歳飴, thousand-year candy) is given out to children at the shichi-go-san celebration, meant to symbolize healthy growth and a long life. The bags typically have cranes and turtles on them, two animals which will be important to Hoshiori. The lines “A thousand years for the graceful cranes, ten thousand for the gliding turtles” are based on a saying “鶴は千年、亀は万年” (cranes live for a thousand years, turtles live for ten thousand years).

The civilian-shinobi relations on Uzunoshima are decidedly less well-defined and distant compared to their mainland counterparts, mainly because the Uzumaki did not regard themselves as shinobi in the first place and did not see fit to adopt those labels before the reforms, but also because they are a small island nation and so relations are gonna be more intimate whether Kokuen likes it or not. Mainland relations will take on a slightly different flavor. You'll see.

The fuuinjutsu rankings are based on the Japanese martial arts “dan/段” ranking system, going from shodan (first dan, lowest) to juudan (tenth dan, highest), and the Uzumaki wear these waist sash tassels to signify what rank they are. The ornaments are jinbu, an actual accessory seen with Chinese hanfu garments.

I am aware hanafuda refers to the cards and not the game, you can play many games with those cards, I just didn't feel like specifying a particular game. Also, the symbolism in those cards… yum.

I ended up inserting little poem snippets between scenes, this is my first real attempt at poetry, and I do not think I can keep it up for other chapters, so it'll have to be a prologue-exclusive! They're not based on any Japanese poetic structure, as I am not learned in that area (my Japanese is barely N4! I can't even keigo! 😭) The first one and the last are based on Japanese songs I've heard, though! Keep an eye on the mention of yorimashi, human vessels that attract the kami and allow the kami to dwell in them for rituals and ceremonies. Doesn't it remind you of… jinchuuriki? 👀

And, yeah, this fic is absolutely infested with OCs, and that's a feature not a bug because Kishimoto did not see fit to give us Uzumaki characters and so I have to fill in the space myself. Let's talk about their names!

Hoshiori: 星織, “star-weaver” or “to weave the stars”, a direct reference to the folktale figure Orihime

(Senju) Kazuma: 和守, 和 meaning “harmony, peace, concord, sum/add” and 守 meaning “protect, defend, obey, guardian”, together it can mean something like “to protect peace”. It just sounded like something Hashirama would name his child.

Tsurue: 鶴衣, 鶴 meaning “crane” and 衣 meaning “clothing, garment”, and so her name is a reference to The Crane Wife folktale

Tsurue and Kazuma's names represent… aspects of their daughter.

Kiho: 祈帆, 祈 meaning “prayer” and “帆” meaning sail, so her name would mean “prayer to sail”

Haine: 波音, meaning “the sound of waves”, it's a Summertime Render reference

Kofune: 小船, meaning “small ship/boat”, also a Summertime Render reference

Kokuen: 黒炎, meaning “black flames”, a recycled Magi OC LOL

Gyokuen: 玉炎, 玉 meaning “ball, sphere, jewel, gem” and 炎 meaning “flames”

Mana and Shinpei's names don't have kanji, sorry kids I kinda gave up (Shinpei's name is a reference to Summertime Render. Again.)

Unusual though the worldbuilding choices may be, I *am* basing them on the little snippets we got in the Chuunin exam arc, such as: this, this, this, this, this, this, this and this

Also recommended is The Weaver by concernedbrownbread! The politics in that fic takes a very different flavor from mine and wolfghost's, but captivating nonetheless! Please give both a try, I promise you it is very worth it.

[alls-fair-in-pride-and-prejudice]

Weaving Constellations pt 8 - The Wizard's Dilemma

Part 7 / Part 9 / Part 1

This is an ongoing story of Gale and my warlock Tav building off canon. If you'd like to be added to the tag list to get notified of new parts you can go here.

A/N: We're in Gale's POV (or technically, still 3rd person limited but his thoughts are the focus) for this part for Reasons That Make Sense (it's what got me out of the block I was having). I did make a poll about how aware Gale is of his developing feelings and the final results did lean on the more aware side, but at first the results leaned more oblivious and that's what I ended up writing. I feel he has specific circumstances that hinder his connection to his own feelings - this is a willful denial sort of situation. Also I can't believe how much easier Astarion is to write when he's not the love interest, all I have to do is make him a little shit. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

@vespaer77 @lalectricedumonde @odd-dragon @aylin-the-barrel

As a promise to Lae'zel, everyone agrees to stop by the nearby creche before making their way into the underdark.

It goes… poorly. Yes, poorly is the apt descriptor there.

All that effort and all they get for their troubles is the ire of a lich queen and a relic that Gale can't even study. He supposes it is only fair, given what has happened to other artifacts under his touch, but to his mind Shadowheart is being particularly greedy with the Blood of Lathandar, especially considering the god of the dawn is rather the antithesis of her lady of darkness. Nevertheless, such a religious relic is best held in the hands of a cleric, he agrees. It will certainly aid in braving this shadow curse Halsin spoke of.

Gale is… concerned. On several fronts. This quest of theirs is proving to be more fraught with dangers by the day. Lae'zel's tent is pitched the farthest from camp, and were she even slightly more inclined to opening up to Gale, he would check on her. Defying one's goddess is something he is intimately familiar with, though he feels his past failures would only serve to make Lae'zel feel worse, so he allows her the space she needs to process.

With that, he turns his concern to Lyra. She went in alone to speak with their so-called guardian. Gale has already gathered that the guardian's appearance changes depending on whom they are speaking to, perhaps a side-effect of meeting in dreams as they had. After all, there is only one guardian, yet everyone described a different figure. Gale himself had mistaken the dream figure for an avatar of Mystra. Fool that he is, to think she would ever speak to him again. He wonders what Lyra saw.

Lyra sits by the fire, stroking Scratch’s head, seemingly lost in thought. He approaches carefully, sitting next to her. Scratch nudges his leg with his nose, asking for even more pets. Greedy little pup, two hands are not enough apparently. Gale rubs the dog's ear. “You have seemed particularly pensive this evening. Copper for your thoughts?"

Lyra chuckles dryly. “It'd be better spent using it as the material component for a detect thoughts spell. Perhaps you'll have better luck sorting through my thoughts than I am."

“An experience I am quite familiar with, and one I often found was alleviated by sharing the tangled web of my ideas aloud to another.”

"I…" she sighs, finding her words, hands pausing their job of scratching the snowy pup to search the air for the proper phrases. “I am coming to terms with the fact that Midnight may never come back. The first day, well, that was part of my punishment. The next, okay, he's being petty. The third, the fourth, the fifth, time works differently for fey, maybe he didn't realize…” She rubs at her eyes. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be telling you this.”

Gale's brow furrows in confusion. "Whyever not?”

Lyra smirks and raises her brow at him, as if she's doubting the sincerity of his confusion. "Because I know you, and I know you feel guilty that I gave you that artifact, and if I tell you about all my heartbreak and stress and worry because of it, you're only going to blame yourself more. And you don't need to do that." 

She's right, the guilt is so ingrained in Gale now that it's just a constant background hum. Not solely for the artifact, of course, but for failing Mystra, for being such a burden upon these (mostly, Astarion is a toss up) good people, for hiding the truth of his condition for so long. It eats at him just as much as the orb does and he supposes it will be just as much a constant companion for the rest of his days. "I fail to see why I should not, for if I had only held out or-”

"If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't change a thing,” Lyra interrupts, resting her hand over Gale's. "I made my own choice, and now I'm facing the consequences.”

"It's hardly fair. If it were solely a business transaction perhaps I could understand, but…you were- are?- in love. To throw away that affection and relationship for one act of defiance?” Gale swallows, suddenly feeling as if he has said something transgressive. “Mystra I could understand.” He says, words spilling out as if to cover up his slip. "I defied her desire to protect me from dangerous magic, and out of a selfish and hubristic search to prove myself. But you? Your act was selflessness alone. You hardly deserve to be punished for it." There's an old familiar tugging in his chest and he shifts to put a little distance between them. His gaze falls on her face, the stray dark curls that frame her face, the way the golden light of the fire sets her violet eyes alight like the glow of faerie fire.

Lyra brushes back her hair a bit, her gaze fixed on the campfire rather than Gale, which he is grateful for. “I feel…guilty,” she says, finally. "Not, of course, for what I did for you. But more that… I don't miss him like I thought I would. Right now, I'm more concerned with whether or not I can adapt these sorcerer powers to our needs. Being a warlock, I know that. I can use that to survive…this is different. This is much more uncertain at a time when we need to cling to anything certain to have a chance at making it through this alive." She leans back, looking up at the sky. “This isn't the first time he's left me on my own, but before I was…” she chuckles, ending it with a heavy sigh, "a mess. I'd constantly be wondering what I had done wrong, how I could keep his love, what I would do without him. Now…” Lyra shrugs. "Maybe I just have more important things on my mind. Maybe the threat of death or ceremorphosis has made me more practical. But I can honestly say I'm hardly concerned with whether he still loves me or not. That I can survive. I'm just not certain whether I can survive what comes next. Am I terribly cold and callous for feeling this way, do you think? For caring more about the powers he gives me than our relationship?”

Gale shakes his head. "You're pragmatic, and you have every right to be, given the forces we are up against. It is only right that you should be more concerned with your continued existence than the outcome of a romantic entanglement.” He opens his mouth to continue, then hesitates, wondering if it is his place to say anything. "And… if you felt continually unappreciated, if that, indeed, is what you are suggesting and I have read that correctly… perhaps it is only natural that eventually, you would grow tired of striving to be enough for him.” And if he could not see what a fantastic woman he had in his arms, then more fool he.

Lyra reaches out and squeezes Gale's hand. "Thank you for listening.”

There's that tightness in his chest. He can feel the magic humming in her blood, in her bones, in her soul. He wants to get closer, absorb her essence through touch, he wants and it is eating at him how much he wants to devour her. 

Gale yanks his hand away, pulling it close to his chest as if she had burned him. "I- I must- lovely conversation but I should go.”

He dashes to his tent and shuts the flaps tight behind him. He tries to steady his breathing, excitement makes it worse, after all. "You can eat every magical item in the realms," he grits out, "you can drain the weave from every last precious artifact on toril, no matter how useful. But by the gods, you will not touch her.”

—

The Underdark is beautiful, that much is true. The bioluminescent mushrooms and the Myconid colony are wondrous in particular, and Gale is quite looking forward to investigating that tower Omeluum mentioned. Yet, for all its beauty, the Underdark presents him with a continuous sense of malaise. Gale can feel the ceiling of rock overhead at all times, an oppressive sort of presence cutting him off from the sky. From what he knows of Lyra, and her love of the stars, he suspects she would feel the same way.

It is difficult to avoid someone when you’re traveling with them in such a small group, but Gale makes do. He keeps his nose buried in a book, not to be disturbed. He keeps his focus on anything but her, and distractions abound on such a perilous journey.

There is but one problem: he promised Lyra another magic lesson. There is only so long he can make excuses and put it off. Truthfully he does not want to put it off. She has a natural inclination and a clear passion for the subject that he is delighted to share. Yet, every night she approaches his tent, he finds a reason that he cannot grant her that second lesson: he has to cook food for the camp, he’s still feeling the effects of that poison arrow that caught him, he exhausted his magic reserves for the day.

She will probably stop asking soon… is that what he wants?

He has to keep his distance. It is one thing if he is reduced to sneaking off with an artifact in the middle of the night. Everyone would be displeased with him, but provided he keeps to the least valuable of the items, he could be forgiven. With Lyra’s sorcery unlocked, however, magic flows through her veins, and should he hurt her, nevermind what the others would think, he would never forgive himself.

Gale rubs his temples, pausing the pacing he has only just realized he was doing. He’s being ridiculous, he can keep the orb from devouring the very artifacts he wears into battle, and should the hunger grow too much he can sacrifice those to keep the orb from feeding on Lyra’s magic. Why is this any different than the restraint he has exercised for a year? If he thinks of her channeling magic his usually disciplined mind runs off with thoughts of grabbing her arm, pulling her close, and devouring her. The way his face grows hot with something more than shame does not entirely escape his notice, but he pushes those thoughts aside. 

With the orb hungering for Lyra’s blood, Gale supposes he’s no better than Astarion, now.

That is a thought. Perhaps Astarion would have an idea or two about resisting that hunger.

Absolutely not. As far as Gale has fallen, he has not fallen so far as to go crawling to that arrogant bloodsucker for advice.

Gale’s thoughts are interrupted by Scratch barking. He goes to investigate only to find Lyra playing with the dog and the owlbear cub. They leap up into the air, trying to chase the dancing lights she has conjured. There is such joy on her face as she plays with them, and Gale is impressed at how quickly she has mastered so many spells in the short time he has known her. She catches him staring and smiles brightly at him, the multicolored lights she conjured illuminating her face.

Gale goes to Astarion’s tent.

“Well hello, wizard,” Astarion croons, tilting his head in a way Gale might mistake as flirtatious if he didn’t know any better. “What can I do for you, my friend?”

“I have… a question, or rather, several questions. Purely academic curiosity, of course, regarding your condition, if you’ll indulge me,” Gale answers, pushing past his hesitation.

“My condition of being hopelessly beautiful? It does help when one is eternally young, but I suppose I can offer you a couple of tips.”

“Astarion, I have come to you for assistance, and I would appreciate it if you could drop the sarcasm.”

“And I would appreciate it if you would be clearer. I assume by ‘condition’ then you do not mean our shared parasite problem. There’s no need for euphemisms, dear wizard, everyone in camp is well aware I drink blood.”

“Yes, quite right, that one, the exsanguination issue, I- um-” Gale searches for the proper words. “I read a book once that devoted a chapter to vampires. It described them as in a constant state of unsatiated thirst. If that is indeed the case, then it must be torment the likes of the fabled punishments enacted upon the poor souls in Dis, to be surrounded by a feast in which you cannot partake.”

“Get to the point, wizard.”

“How do you resist?” Gale finally asks, words a bit rushed. “How could you possibly keep from drinking any of us dry in our sleep?”

Astarion puts a hand over his chest in exaggerated offense. “Why I am shocked, Gale. All this time I have kept my pearly whites far from your neck and yet you still don’t trust me!”

“This question is not asked out of suspicion, Astarion, it is academic-”

“Purely academic curiosity, so you said, forgive me if I find that excuse a touch flimsy.” Astarion sighs in that melodramatic way of his. “If you must know, I didn’t… completely resist. You’ll recall the morning the news of my nature broke. Lyra assured everyone she gave her blood willingly, which she did before you hurl a fireball at me, but… I may not have asked at first so much as she woke up to my fangs a few inches from her neck?”

“You what? You absolute- you- how dare you. You could have killed her!”

“But I didn’t. Besides, it’s all water under the bridge now, don’t make such a fuss.” Astarion looks away from Gale, huffing. “Your book wasn’t entirely wrong, but the implications are a nightmare. I am capable of feeling satisfied, mostly. There’s always that little nagging, but ever since that night I’ve been keeping myself well-fed on animals, which is certainly easier now that I don’t have to worry about hiding the evidence. It hardly compares to the blood of thinking creatures, though, and for that our resident sorcerer has been keeping me very happy.” His eyes meet Gale’s again, and the bastard smirks.

Gale processes what he’s saying. “You mean, it wasn’t just that one night?”

“Oh not at all, I just visit her bedroll after everyone else is asleep. She offers me a bite roughly every other night, particularly if we’re preparing to go somewhere she knows my skills will be needed. I need to be at my best, don’t I? You of all people should know how generous she can be, since she’s been doing the same with those artifacts you need.”

Perhaps Gale simply thought he was special. He pictures Astarion visiting Lyra in the night, leaning down over her like a lover, his hand gently tilting her head to expose her neck to sink his teeth into. The thought of it makes his blood boil, but he forces himself to take a deep breath. It is her choice after all to put herself in the hands of a vampire, even if he wholeheartedly believes it to be a foolish choice.

“When she unlocked her latent sorcery, did-” Gale stops himself from finishing the question on the tip of his tongue. Did she taste different?

Astarion cocks a brow at Gale, eyes flicking between him and Lyra. “If you’re so worried about the two of us, she already turned down my gracious offer to show her a night of passion.”

“I wouldn’t- that is certainly none of my business, what the two of you get up to, or don’t get up to rather. My concern for her is completely practical. While you may benefit from the arrangement, I just hope she is maintaining her health. I am unsurprised, though, that she turned you down. She seems the loyal sort, and she does already have a lover.”

“Ah yes, that is a good point. She hadn’t brought him up when I first suggested we indulge ourselves, so I hadn’t thought of his role in the rejection, but now he has conveniently abandoned her. The poor dear is probably in desperate need of some comfort, perhaps she has changed her mind…” He looks over at Lyra, who is now scratching Bite the cub on the head, and there is an unmistakable predatory gleam in his eyes.

Gale swallows. After all Lyra has done for him, it is only right that he should repay the favor and make sure her vulnerable emotional state is not taken advantage of. “Ah, well, perhaps another night. I was only stopping by to satisfy my curiosity before I gave Lyra that magic lesson I promised her. Speaking of which, I should get on with that. Thank you very much for your - ahem - illuminating dialogue.” He gives a slight bow of his head before hurrying over to Lyra.

Astarion stifles a chuckle. “Tch, too easy.”

[dailycharacteroption]

Roleplay Ramblings: New Elements part 5

(art by bachzim on DeviantArt)

Outro

And so now we come to the end of this little dive into the new elements of Pathfinder, two new entries into the lore that help differentiate it from D&D and even real-world elementalism, creating something with it’s own unique identity, which isn’t to say it was boring before, just more derivative.

But before we end things off, let’s talk about some final thoughts.

Back when the kineticist was first introduced in First Edition, it was decidedly categorized as an occult class. Sure, there were lots of vibes of benders from Avatar, but also they were leaning into elemental psychokinesis: your firestarters, telekinesis-focused psychics, and so on. While most may not have actually used their mental stats for their powers (barring archetypes), they were categorized as a type of psychic.

However, the kineticist in Second Edition focuses more heavily on the elemental gate within, making their powers seem more primal than occult in nature. Because of this, I feel it’s very unlikely we’ll see the aether or void elements return to the kineticist, since they’re not true elements. However, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. After all, a planar portal that lets one draw energies from another plane doesn’t have to draw specifically from an elemental plane.

Now, I’m sure that somewhere out there are some purists that decries these new elemental additions for any number of reasons, some with more legitimacy than others, but their arguments might consist of things like “metal is just a part of earth” or “plants can’t be their own element” or “the four elements are how things were intended to be by D&D’s creators”.

To the first and second argument I say that All classical elements break down conceptually in a setting where atomic chemistry ostensibly works similar to our own. Heck, Fire isn’t even technically a form of matter, it’s just energy (or perhaps plasma at best), and these elements no matter which model or culture they are drawn from is based on the limited understanding of the time. Heck, the dichotomy of earth/air and fire/water itself is just as artificial. Just because water can snuff out most oxygen-based combustion doesn’t make it a polar opposite to all combustion. Anything that is non-reactive and can displace the oxygen can do that.

Meanwhile, in the case of the third, Gygax and Arneson were not gods, nor were they the final arbiters on what you should have in a game about creativity and storytelling. They threw the elemental planes and elementals into the game because the two of them basically grabbed every concept from fantasy, sci-fi, and real-world mysticism and threw them in without regard for how it would all fit together until much later. (Not to mention some of their decisions are not something one would wish to emulate.) The point being is that elemental planes and magic are in the game for fun, not some rigid thing set by writers who maybe didn’t always handle certain ideas well.

On a slightly different tack, I do enjoy that the Rage of the Elements book has made efforts to re-build the association that certain elements have with different types of energy damage, something that the Core Rulebook of pre-Remastered Second Edition and other prior products worked hard to eliminate despite being a thing in 1st edition. While acid is still firmly outside of the purview of earth for now, cold and electricity have returned to water and air respectively, though still with the flexibility so that novel uses of those energies can still be found in other elements.

I think that’s all I can come up with for this week but thanks for reading, and I hope I gave you inspiration for adding these new elements to your first edition games, as well as some food for thought with the systems no matter which you use. Tune in next week for more archetypes and options!

[catflowerqueen]

Been thinking of doing a 5+1 fic about the Lamb worshipping Bishops of the Old Faith, since there are, conveniently enough, five of them.

At the very least I did an entry for Leshy.

...Instead of working on the fic I said I was going to work on.

Anyway. Might edit and post this on AO3 later if I get around to doing the other Bishops, but please enjoy Leshy's part in the meantime.

(And please let me know what you think!)

Chapter 1: He of Havoc

For the briefest time after hearing the proclamation, you feel betrayed. How could your Lord order such a thing?

To demand the deaths of lambs unaffiliated with the Old Faith, sure. That was only proper, since they did not give fealty that the Lord of Chaos deserved and, thus, were like an underbrush to be burned away, creating rich soil where a verdant garden could grow, and the decimated remains could battle for dominance—like weeds against camellias. Even the lambs in the cults of His siblings you could understand—for what better way to sow some much-needed chaos and familial drama to shake things up a bit than to target a specific species of followers, for seemingly no reason?

But all lambs? Even the most devoted among His own flocks, who would never dare to turn on Him in service to another, inferior god? You could not fathom such a thing.

…At least, not until you saw true chaos with your own eyes. Friends and family turning against each other as resources and hiding places grew scarce. Paranoia at every sound and looming shadow. The growing fear and confusion, not knowing where to run next, or where to hide, or what would become of the friends who didn’t turn on you when winter came, and there was no more wool with which to knit warm mittens and sweaters for that extra layer of protection against freezing to death.

Only then did you understand: your beloved Master was playing the long game. Chaos untold, as the links in the chain collapsed and there was a scramble to see who or what could fill the empty niche. The unknown effects far, far down the line as sacred knowledge was lost to time, right when it was needed the most.

And, above all else, the chaos and bloodshed that could only occur when god battled god for dominance, and the entire structure of society was upended to make way for the new.

That it took so long—one or two days after the proclamation, when you witnessed your cousin misjudge the distance of a leap in his bid for safety from the blade of his former best friend, only to land on the ill-maintained, thatched roof of a storage shed and inadvertently start a massive fire that ate through multiple buildings when he took out a lantern on his way down—was just proof of why you had only made it to the lowest rung of acolyte status before the kill order was given out.

You wept at your inadequacy, your lack of faith, and vowed to do better. To be truly devoted. To see your Master’s plan to their end, and receive your just reward—whatever form that might be.

You were tested—oh, yes, you were tested. Pushed to your ultimate limits as you fled, playing the long game yourself and surviving as long as possible to sow maximum chaos in the chase. To sow maximum panic and fear among the inferior believers of the other three remaining Bishops of the Old Faith.

And your hard work and devotion paid off gloriously as you stood, bound in chains before your god, the ultimate sacrifice. Last of your kind, destined to free Death itself and bring forth a new, glorious era of chaos to the world as the very laws of reality itself became upended.

You heard your god speak words meant for you, and you alone, not once, not twice, not even thrice, but five whole times!

You witnessed such glorious devotion of your fellows as they, too, gave their lives in sacrifice to secure Him even more power—and then feeling such power firsthand as He struck against you again and again, killing you by His own jaws!

You tasted His very essence when you rent His heart asunder between your jaws once you finally bested Him in battle and had to honor of seeing Him off to the new chaos Death had become!

Your devotion was ever pure, your duty clear, when you fulfilled the prophecy… only to then turn its intentions on its head, in true chaotic fashion, by freeing the One Who Waits wholly from his role and ripping apart the very institution of the pantheons of Faiths even older than the Old one. The birth of beautiful chaos ever-present in the new—new rules, new states of reality, new opportunities for a new god to explore.

Then… oh, the most divine of glories! The chance to offer a forest of new chaotic potentials with the resurrection of your Lord—the chaos that comes with mortal life. With losing control of the future. The surprises—both good and bad—which sneak around the bend so easily. Hunger, sickness, thirst… and the ever-changing journey to overcome such states.

And, best of all, the drop in your stomach and the dizzy giddiness that comes with falling in love… and the rumbling purrs that come along with it, if that love happens to be feline in nature—a pleasant surprise, and further proof of why you were right to worship this god, since He has such good taste in partners.

Gratitude and devotion unending to He of Havoc, that you were allowed such honors.

The chance to worship Leshy.

-----

Mystic Seller: Hey, you really messed up the fabric of reality when you killed all those gods.

The Lamb: All according to the Great Leshy’s plan, I’m sure.

Mystic Seller:

Meanwhile, in Purgatory…

Leshy, re-experiencing death for the millionth time: Why do I suddenly feel a huge spike in devotion??

[samueldays]

I've been really fascinated by what you have to say about magic as animism, as pacts with supernatural beings, magic as intercession, and many other things you've had to say on the topic

You gave me words for this thing I've been longing to put into my crearive work (mostly just rpg campaigns), this vibe I was in love with, but struggled to actually pin down

That being said, for all my love for it, as someone who grew up in a firmly post-DnD cultural landscape, it's been real hard to actually get into this way of thinking and make something of my own with it

May I ask you to help me work through an example I am grappling with right now, so that I can hopefully bounce off that example and keep thinking on my own?

There's RPG I wanna run called "Band of Blades". One of the facts about the setting is that all magic there in some form or another comes from gods. One of the two biggest forms of it is binding yourself to a god, which comes with costs all of its own. But, e.g., sweating yourself to a goddess of mercy can grant you some healing powers. Other big one is Chosen, which is basically when a willing human gives themselves up and essentially suffers an ego death to become an avatar of the respective god on earth. Most magical artifacts in the setting is items crafted by Chosen. Animal eating dead bodies of Chosen can produce magical beasts, or their remains can be made into reliquaries that can ward off malignant magic, etc.

At a glance, that seems to me like a setting that can be readily run as this sort of, as you put it in one of your posts, "only intercession is magic" manner. In a way, it already is - you have to make a pact with a deity to have magic, after all. For normal mortals sworn to gods then, it's fairly straightforward from here - their magical powes are limited by when the god views interceding on their behalf as worth it; a ritual to achieve a powerful effect basically amounts to asking the deity really really nicely instead of normally, and hoping they respond, etc.

But what about the Chosen? Specifically the question I had in mind is - if there is some kind of dramatic magical effect they can't achieve by just waving their hand, how would they go about empowering it? A mortal bound to a god could hold a ritual asking for intercession harder, as mentioned above. But since the Chosen is already an avatar of a god, they can't exactly ask harder because that would be basically asking yourself. But having supernatural acts only fall in two buckets of "can do on the spot" and "can't do at all" seems rather boring, too.

So what kind of "extra effort" options could make sense here? What would be the non-DnD way to think about this problem?

I'm going to reiterate that TTRPG format constraints were good reason for them to locally strip out the animacy, this is going to be a tricky place to put it back. Good luck!

Your second problem is the character who suffered ego death and is now a vehicle for an NPC. This is a cool storytelling device and also very tricky to run in a TTRPG!

So this is a hard problem. Also I am unfamiliar with Band of Blades.

Still, the first idea that comes to my mind is that dramatic magical effects taking more effort also take more time. The Chosen can't just wave their hands, they need to keep waving and ensure both that the body doesn't tire and that the god can keep uninterrupted attention on this specific avatar. (How many Chosen does a god in this setting usually have? How much multitasking power do the gods have? Are IC scheduling conflicts going to be an issue?)

Closely related is continuously channeled effects. The Chosen perhaps can't simply cast "Cure Frostbite" or "Craft Sword" as a one-off, but can sustain a power which generates immense heat for as long as the Chosen concentrates, warding off frostbite and enabling smithing without coal.

Or you could go with stress on the avatar.

Mutants & Masterminds has an action option literally called "Extra Effort" that you could take inspiration from. It raises one of your stats or alters one of your powers to do something that isn't on the short list of 'main' character superpowers, but the effort incurs a stack of fatigue. The first stack of fatigue is mostly free, only reducing your movement speed until you rest. The second stack of fatigue makes you exhausted, reducing movement speed and penalizing all rolls. The third stack of fatigue makes you pass out unconscious once you're done with the heroic effort.

Extra Effort is designed as a regenerating resource that the players can use frequently, and I've observed that they still hold back, because even though it costs no money and the uses recover every day, there's always the "what if I want it later?" factor on anything with limited uses. :P

Depending on setting details, the avatar character might want or need to do certain alterations to the landscape, physical or social, to make it more favorable for their god before trying to pull miracles. Draw friendly sigils, smash enemy sigils, gather diplomatic support, pick an appropriate spot on high ground or near a river or atop a spire or whatever. An extreme form of this is miracles that can only be done in a church or on consecrated ground. A lesser form might be that the healing powers of the goddess of mercy restore a number of hit points equal to 1d6 + number of people singing the praises of the goddess of mercy there at the time, up to some limit of diminishing returns.

On the one hand, this might get a little silly if the players have economistbrain about the stat bonus and decide to hire a band at all times to buff their miracles.

On the other hand, if the characters are committed enough to hire a troupe to follow them around and constantly sing praises of their gods, maybe that's exactly the kind of devotion you want to encourage. Emphasise that this is not a floating abstract +3 magic, it represents people doing something in the world.

[rainbowangel110]

Horizons Episode 33!! Wow this was a good one

AMETHIO!!!!! He's back :D and apparently they're following Rayquaza and found it! Looks like he's going it alone, Zir and Conia are on standyby in case anything happens. And looking back at the previews.... somethings gonna happen. He's going in with just a Corvinknight and a Ceruledge. His ass is not surviving.

A cool shot of the RVT and Rayquaza. Arcues he's huge. This is not a fight you want in on. And it's still got it's tera form on, what is up with that (can it mega evolve with it or no???)

Roy no-

Well okay it's his dream to catch it again cuz well... it did come out of his pokeball that his grampa gave to him. If I had a unique legendary come out of mine I'd be down to catch it again so really I can't say much.

On the other hand, Terapagos is making some noise too and now Liko is getting nervous which I can't blame her. Rayquaza is one of the stronger legendries out there so you really don't want it's full attention on you. And it appears to be angry af so uhhhhhh maybe we should, ya know. Run?

Haha. No :) I highly doubt it.

Oh that cannot be good.

Again, bro is fighting this bitch with nothing more than a Corvinknight and a Ceruledge. You are not surviving this Amethio, chill. Have you even looked at the type matchups? Geez kid.

But again, he's like.... very much looking for validation in the Explorers after not managing to get the pendant, and now they've shifted to Rayquaza cuz well.... bigger target and also very powerful, one of the Siz Heroes of Lucius (who I still suspect was killed by one of them long ago (seriously if it isn't what happened I'll eat paper))

Also btw the music was fire this episode, love what they had going on.

Oh he is not that far away from them okay.

Sequences that make me wanna scoop these kids up (specifically Roy) in a blanket and just get outta here.

He's really pushing it now, Rayquaza has been his whole goal this whole way. It's the reason why he even joined the Rising Volt Tacklers, and by god he's gonna get that fucking dragon back no mater what.

On Liko and Diana's side of things, they realize that Terapagos it trying to talk to the giant angry dragon but it won't fucking work cuz well it's a tiny little turtle with no powers of it's own here and well, as Diana said in the screenshot, it's just too riled up to notice Terapagos.

Also there's so much that y'all are missing here cuz I cannot take that many screenshots or even make gifs so uhhhh watch the show trust me there's a lot going on.

Speaking of moments that would be so enhanced with gifs....

HOLY MOTHER OF GOD THAT CERLUEGDE IS FUCKED.

So Amethio realizing that attacks from the ground just aren't working on it and Rayquaza can just dodge them easliy, deicded to get Ceruledge to hop onto Corvinknight and LAUNCH ITSELF onto the dragon to get a hit in at the least.

Only for Cerulegde to go from "Swords of Regrets" to "Face of Regrets" as it realizes that move did fuck all and then the poor thing gets thrown onto another rock outcropping.

AND THIS FUCKING DRAGON BEAMS THE GUY MULTIPLE TIMES GOOD LORD CHILL MY GUY.

And Amethio in a panic just hops onto Corvinknight to check on his Pokemon, who is most definitely out of the fight now.

I see why Kyogre and Groudon decided to retreat instead of fighting back in the games now. Homie does not hold back.

And apparently there's an image limit of 30 so I'll brb with a reblog oh god this episode was PACKED

[luxrayz64]

okkkkk i just beat echoes of wisdom. assorted thoughts (some spoilers ahead)

gameplay:

once youre past the first or second dungeon, it gets really fun

this could be because i was immediately primed against any kind of open design by how hard totk disappointed me

in the end, I had loads of fun with this game. there are more limits on zeldas gameplay than it appears

there is no one answer to every puzzle. there are a few echoes that will solve most puzzles. but they throw a wide variety of puzzles and enemies at you, and you will have to change your strategies at times

i still really fucking hate the ui for the echoes menu. being able to pin your favourite echoes (or at the very least delist certain ones) would have been nice. I still don't know how we got this dogshit menu twice in a row

not every echo is built equal. you do not have to pick up everything they give you. do not pick up that second or third pot variety no matter how hard they try to make you

it is a completion requirement. but complete it at your own risk

completion also doesn't look fucking insane from where im sitting. the might crystals will probably get fairly tedious but this is not a game that expects you to spend 200+ hours on it. the map is nowhere near as big as botw/totks and honestly Thank God

also i dislike the smoothies for much of the same reason I dislike the cooking mechanic in botw/totk; making them is tedious, most of your rewards from chests etc are smoothie ingredients, there's 0 point in buying a red or blue potion for 50 rupees when you can chuck some milk and nectar in a blender for 10. at least cooking food was charming and gave more variety.

so so so happy that empty bottles returned. why can they only hold fairies. nintendo you are limiting yourself. obviously fairies are the correct thing to hold onto but it made for fun inventory management and was useful for sidequests. still a very good reward to get

overall 👍 i had a lot of fun! please hire a new ui designer though

dungeons:

WE ARE SO FUCKING BACK

stellar improvement on just about every fucking front here

eight (8!!!!!!!!)dungeons to complete. complete with minibosses, bosses and small keys

i have genuinely nothing but good to say about the dungeons in this game. it was playing through my second dungeon that convinced me the game was good. do you know how much i MISSED this. finally some good fucking puzzle solving

the dungeons are fairly long and big, with three exceptions, each of which I can forgive for one reason or another

the first dungeon was fairly disappointing imo. both the boss and miniboss are barely a challenge, just summon some enemies and stand in the corner and it's literally fine

every other boss though? requires that not only does zelda need to run and dodge the bosses attacks, but you'll also need to use the swordfighter form.

i wont get too into it but i loved almost all of the bosses. I found just about all of them to be challenging in figuring out which echoes would be most effective and how to use them

the puzzles are also really well designed. while there are usually a few different echoes that can provide the same solution (ie any fire producing echo can light a torch) some are better at the job than others

the first, fourth and eight dungeons must be done at set points. the second/third and fifth/sixth/seventh can be done in any order. you must complete the fourth dungeon to access the following three

doing them in different orders of course affects which echoes you'll bring in with you - something that'll be very noticeable in the latter half of the game as you unlock more elemental echoes

exploration will also net you some of the more powerful echoes, though you'll get plenty of strong ones just by doing the story. I still dont know where the lynel is but I know it exists

i only game over'd at specifically the fourth dungeons boss. mostly because i brought barely any healing items in with me. fourth dungeon also comes like immediately after your third with barely any time in between so the pacings a little off in this spot especially but it was still really engaging. it was more combat focused so it was still a nice change of pace

i really really fucking love the dungeons in this game dude we are so fucking back. if they can translate any of this to a 3d game it might restore my faith in the dev team. (nintendo side. grezzo is doing great)

ok this is a spoiler so idk dont read this one i guess but I forgive eldins dungeon for the sin of being really short and straight forward VOLVAGIA IS THE BOSS. just straight up volvagia of fire temple fame. I screamed I spent the entire fight incoherently yelling about her being my sweet baby. I love her i am so fucking happy to see her again

story:

no notes cute as all hell

i am so fucking happy about deku scrubs and river zora returning. theyre so charming in this art style!!

(minor spoilers zone)

the deku scrubs are so fucking funny. only locale besides the castle to have a jail. obsessed with the latest trends. they get mad at you for fixing the rifts because the rifts spawn spiders who spin webs and the latest trend? eating spider webs on a stick

they call you a bumpkin because you dont want to eat spider webs. youre all insane i love you so much

sad theres no deku royal family but happy to see them at all. also I think they may all be genderless at least one of them got they/themed

LORD JABU JABU IS FUCKING BACK LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO

the zora leaders are both very fun. they are extremely petty but its nice to watch them put that aside in crisis and come to a new understanding

the hebra region does return AND IT HAS YETIS AGAIN!!!!!!!! or like, at least one. condé is carrying on yeta and yetos legacy of being the sweetest fucking characters you'll ever meet

its really fascinating seeing the other side of the story. hearing second hand about link from other characters - it's such an interesting perspective into his life

it's also very sweet how much everyone in the castle town adores zelda

finally, a king of hyrule who is a good father

general wright and minister lefte did make me giggle

very important to me that zelda is both a horse girl but also has a cat!!!

(MAJOR SPOILERS ZONE)

null. helloooooo

really really interesting villain lore wise!!! ALSO FUCKING PHENOMENAL BOSS FIGHT

actually this is the spoilers zone that last dungeon, while short is really really cool. fighting ALONGSIDE LINK!!!!! is so fucking awesome even if i did wish i got to use zeldas sword fighting form again

THE RETURN OF THE TRIFORCE I CHEERED. they keep calling it the prime energy and i DONT know why. if it looks like a triforce and acts like a triforce it's a triforce

the golden goddesses are also given way more relevance here. besides a single statue in the castle im not sure that hylia is even mentioned once

my guess is this game takes place before the triforce is given that name..? maybe in memory of tri and the tris (it wouldn't be a zelda game if your companion didn't have to leave you by the end of the game)

null taking on the appearance of a giant tri is . i dont know what to think about it but its very cool

given what i know about null (very little) i dont think it feels right that theres not a single other entity in hyrule who values power more than a being which just wants Some Fucking Peace And Quiet but I'll allow it.

END OF MAJOR SPOILERS ZONE

anywayyy. yeah 9/10 it has some problems and I could probably bitch about them some more but the entire rest of the game is so fucking good i dont care. im not just a hater for being a haters sake totk genuinely sucked and this game is awesome.

maybe my only other complaint not mentioned here is very little of the music really stood out to me? I liked the dungeon music for holy mt lanayrus dungeon. not a lot of Bangers though

i love you zelda i love you. so much. really good game please play this game if you've only touched botw and/or totk this is a great way to experience Actual Zelda Gameplay in a familiar way.

[quibbs126]

So I didn’t actually mean to do the whole page, just River so I could ask about his name, but then I just decided to continue with who I remember was supposed to be there, and so here we are

I don’t really remember how I formatted these posts, so I’m just gonna go one at a time

So River I already told you about. Protector of important tree or whatever. I should probably expand more on his island and people this time around, and also give him a role other than just “guardian”

I should probably explain the tree, since it does have significance. It’s part of the whole Ralia creation story, but to sum up, the tree was originally the creator of Ralia who got turned into a tree by one of his creations, aka the betrayer and evil, and also would later become the actual big bad of the story when he returns. You know, that standard stuff. I think the tree is also supposed to be sealing the evil guy away? (His name was Adamik by the way) Not sure, but I do also know that the seven elemental gods, aka the people who give Ralians their elemental power, were also sealed away in seven spires across the world. The tree is technically also one, but more important and doesn’t have an element limitation

I don’t know, I just know I was definitely ripping off Zielo from The Murder of Me, a Sonic fancomic I was reading at the time, when it comes to Adamik. And probably also Giratina, because there’s also creation, time and space guys too

Although actually, I went and found my old Ralia creation story, since I knew it was on my phone and I wanted to double check, and apparently Adamik was defeated by a demigod who became the leader of the island of tree guardians. So there’s something interesting I could maybe work with

But yeah anyways, back to River, he’s pretty generic. From an ancient tribe protecting something of big importance to save the world, angry and stubborn guardian, all that jazz. If I’m to spice him up, I think I need to spice up his people and island too. And probably change the mythology

They’re also Ralians like everyone else (nondescript anthropomorphic mammal), they just have specifically black fur with white stripes and hair that matches an element. Not sure if I’m keeping them having elemental powers though. Also fun fact, River was originally a honey badger

There actually is another special people in Ralia, and they were based off of deer, so maybe they’ll get horns or something. I don’t really know their place in the lore other than being able to teleport around the world at will

Maybe they should just be a separate race from Ralians entirely, but I don’t know what entirely to make different about them. Eh, I guess I’ll figure it out

Anyways, I’ve talked too long about River, let’s get to the others

Next we have Marina

Full disclosure, I also didn’t know what to name her, or what her original name was. Probably Diamond or Jewel or something (she was the Rouge adjacent). I gave her the name Marina because I was thinking while drawing her that she looked kind of similar to Marilyn and maybe they could be related, and also because I was listening to Marina and the Diamonds during the latter half of drawing. So her name may be subject to change, but for now it’s Marina

So as Marina is our Rouge adjacent, she was some sort of treasure hunter, and her purpose was to show up on River’s island and have their storyline happen. I don’t really remember much else, just imagine Rouge the Bat in her place, because that’s about as far as I got with her

I’m not sure if I’m keeping her being a treasure hunter, but she does need a reason to go to River’s island

I have worked out some things about her personality, namely that she is far more bark than bite. She makes herself appear all suave, confident and competent, but when she encounters actual danger, her actual, far more cowardly personality starts showing, and you realize she doesn’t actually know what she’s doing at all. She’s the type to lie about her credentials, and then desperately try to keep up the lie so no one suspects her, until someone has her pretty much confronted with it all and she starts begging to just sweep it all under the rug. If any of that made sense

So yeah, she’s gonna be competent for a total of probably 5 minutes on River’s island, and then her actual self is gonna start showing

But despite all that, she isn’t entirely self-serving. She does have an amount of goodness in her, she just finds it easier to lie and pretend she knows what’s going on, or just defer to someone who actually does know what they’re doing

I’d say she has the most wiggle room as a character, but she also has nothing to do with any character other than River, so I don’t really know

Anyways, so she was the character that made me make that post about needing my Prismacolors, because she had brown fur and I didn’t want too many characters with that specific color. But I ended up with this dark brown, and I kind of like it. Her hair was always purple though

I also added on the markings because she was originally a raccoon, and I thought she should have some. I ended up with that gold color for her other fur since I didn’t want to use white again, and I eventually put them under her eyes, and I think it looks good there

She also originally had longer hair, but I think the shorter hair works better with her front swirl

Anyways, now I’m done with Marina, let’s talk about Autumn

I remember saying constantly that I planned on drawing her, but never did, so now you get to finally see her

Now Autumn here is part of Mercury’s story, and the other main character of it. In her original story, she was the lost princess of their kingdom, after it was overthrown by a group of evil people when she was a child. Her parents died, but she managed to survive, and later strove to get rid of those usurpers, and did so by dressing up as a vigilante called Firebrand. Mercury being a soldier would meet her, find out her identity, and eventually help her overthrow the government, and she took back the throne as the new leader, and then she got together with Mercury

This is another thing I mostly stole from a Sonic fanfic/AU, this being similar to Athena’s backstory in LiyuConberma’s Cosium world. So I feel like changing some stuff

One thing I think I mainly want to change is whether or not she’s correct in her goal. In the original, she absolutely was, and I think the story was more generic for it

Also, if this happened when she was a child, that means plenty of the characters, or at least their parents, were around when this originally happened, and apparently none of them have done anything about it and have been going about their lives perfectly fine, which doesn’t make much sense to me. But also, the way I have everything, I feel like a violent overthrow of the monarchy doesn’t really fit in with what I’ve made with everyone else, so I don’t really know if I should keep it. But also at the same time, it’s incredibly vital to Autumn’s backstory, so I can’t just take it out, and I like her too much to delete her entirely

But if I want to keep the overthrow of power, then basically she is incorrect in wanting to overthrow the new one, since things actually are better under the new system and there was a reason for the original overthrow. She just doesn’t really realize it because she’s been away from society since then and also because the old rulers were her parents, so she has a biased view of it all. She isn’t bad, but she’s uninformed and in the wrong, and probably letting her trauma inform her decisions instead of rational thought

Also another way I can keep this going, Firebrand technically is a separate entity from her. The persona comes from a living mask who was sealed away inside said mask, and it temporarily takes over the body of whoever puts it on. I think they and Autumn were supposed to have some conflict originally, but now I can ramp it up by saying Firebrand is playing off her feelings and basically manipulating her so that they can have a body and cause mayhem, while she thinks it’s all for the best

But yeah, basically what I want to do for Autumn and Mercury’s story now is that it’s basically about Mercury helping Autumn realize her quest for revenge is ultimately wrong, even if it was terrible what happened to her, and then saving her from Firebrand and helping her be free. It’s just the details I need to work on

And also with this new story, I’m really wondering if I should keep the romance between her and Mercury. I kind of want them to end up together, especially since they always were supposed to, but with how I have the story now, Mercury’s more trying to get her out of a bad situation and likely into therapy, which probably realistically shouldn’t intermingle with romance. I’ve also been debating aging Autumn down to a teenager, since she’d be more impressionable due to being younger, but if I do that then they’re definitely not getting together, because I’m making Mercury an adult, among other reasons

But yeah I have some ideas on what to do with Autumn, but also I don’t have ideas in other places. I’ll have to work on that

What I do know is that she has pink flames, and she always has. And I don’t care if I’m changing the magic system, she’s keeping it because I think it looks cool

Anyways, that was longer than I was expecting, especially considering only one of these characters has real substance to me, but yeah, here’s this

[silvesi]

⬇️ TODAYS VICTIM ⬇️

A while ago I wrote [this post] about Dralsin. It is a brief introduction to his backstory. It is also completely wrong! I accidentally made the sylvari version of the astral ward before I met the astral ward.

Readmore for SOtO spoilers btw!!(Not including into the veil! (ﾟωﾟ)

SO, ATTEMPT 2:

Dralsin isn't from the pale tree, and doesn't remember anything from his earlier life. He lives in Lions Arch at the start of the personal story, which is where he meets, and eventually begins dating Fedarys. (Their relationship is an entire issue for another post)

I drank all the juice that SotO gave me and decided that he's from one of the fractals. How did he end up in this specific tyria? NO CLUE. Also tempted to make him limited to one singular timeline somehow.

SO

Fedsy kills him in HoT. We can ignore that issue for a moment, it's relevant only as it tells us: That Boy Is In The Mists, and he has a Difficult Time.

We now know the astral ward was watching a lot of what was going on. I like to think they're watching him like THATS OUR GUY!!! WHAT THE FUCK IS HE UP TO NOW!! He's breached containment...AGAIN? IS HE DEAD OR NOT? (゜_゜)

He learns how to function in the mists surprisingly quickly, I've not pinpointed specifics but I do have him as a revenant.

He ends up back in contact with the ward after a while. Of course, he thinks they're supreme arseholes. But ultimately, he's never felt like he belongs anywhere and really craves that family- so he does try so, so hard to fit in once he realises they're not gonna just try throw him back in a fractal (not even thought about the implications of THAT yet).

He reasons with himself that he's helping from behind the scenes, especially with Fedarys - him being more useful with the ward is a bit of a lie, but ultimately, spending time there does settle him down.

He eventually ends up back in Tyria during PoF. Unsure quite when, but- the ward is watching the commander, and although Dralsin has been trying to help- there has GOT to come a point where you're about to see ur ex who isn't really ur ex(???) Get WRECKED by a god and can't not do something.

Drals is sickeningly loyal and would without a doubt willingly sacrifice all he's learnt to go back to Tyria and punch Balthazar in the face, and I think this is exactly what he does.

I can't decide if I'd want him back just before Feds dies, or after- both are compelling.

This is why he's angry as shit during PoF even if he doesn't realise why. He starts to assume its the dragon champion stuff with Feds, almost goes down a bad path there. Not that Feds is being particularly normal either. They do not have a healthy relationship during this time!!! But Dralsin does not remember what he did!! That he went BACK for him!! They are fools!!!

... it also means that when the two of then reach SotO, Dralsin turning up clueless and the ward bitching about him would be very very funny. 2 me. I like to bully him, u might be able to tell 😔

Also if you read all of this holy shit hi, have the best screenshot I've ever taken of the boy

[starryeyedreviews]

Little Chef - Full Review

Author’s note: ok so i know i had just listed down games i was gonna review and this isn’t one of them, but i saw Rock Paper Shotgun (shoutout to them! one of my favorite curators for sure) talk about this and gave it a try and it was SO cute ✨

Warning! Very minor spoilers in the screenshots, so if you want to play the game completely blind maybe don’t focus too hard on the background haha

Little Chef is a 2D physics-based game where you can mix ingredients to figure out different recipes. It takes place in an adorable little kitchen with objects you can interact with, allowing you to pick them up and drop them in the pot to cook. You can take the time to experiment with different combinations of ingredients, or get hints from the names in the recipe book you’re given.

The ingredients you have to work with are pretty common, so it’s not too difficult to figure out which to combine to make which food. Recipes range from needing 2 ingredients up to 5, making the latter recipes a little trickier to get. Successfully making a recipe results in lovely golden smoke from the pot, with your finished product popping up on screen, and the corresponding recipe unlocked in your book.

The book also includes a section for “failed” recipes, which you can also try to complete. A few of them require specific ingredients, while the others are just happy accidents from mixes gone wrong. Finding all of the recipes in the book, including the failed ones, gets you a congratulations screen, calling you a Master Chef! Perhaps a little reminder that your failures are part of what makes you successful 💜 (or that being a completionist pays off, haha!)

Surprisingly, the things you can place in the pot aren’t limited to just the edible. Most of what you can find in the kitchen can be moved around, and some even picked up, so it’s inevitable that a lot of us will try tossing those in the pot as well. This mechanic makes for some funny interactions and captions in the recipe book, giving you all the more reason to try and find them all 💫

The captions are another part of what makes this game such a treat to play. Each recipe gets its own caption, lovingly written like a slice of life. They make the game feel so much more personable and charming, and were what enticed me to get every single recipe just to see what the character had written.

As the game is free, it still has room to grow and be fleshed out. I’m sure if given the chance, the devs would add more recipes, and maybe some audio. Currently the entire game is silent, but in my opinion it would benefit from some ambient noise, maybe little bits of sound design like a “plop” when the ingredients are dropped, or a “ding!” when the food finishes cooking.

Little Chef reminds me a lot of Little Alchemy with the way you experiment, but shorter and much cozier. On the Itch page (which I’ll link below), the devs cite Potion Craft, Bartender: The Right Mix, and Doodle God: Alchemy Simulator as inspirations, which I could very much feel throughout the game. I really hope they continue developing this game, and as always can’t wait to see what they’ll do next 🌠

Short but sweet -- I give it 5 stars out of 5! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Play Little Chef for free on Itch here!

If you have any questions/suggestions for me, please let me know! My asks are always open ✨

~ Gabi 🌙