#this is what i spend like half my braincells reserved for worldbuilding

[viridiave]

octoparallels

My brain refuses to work in 37 degree heat so this is me retaliating and now it’s gonna be EVERYONE’S problem as I spitball themes and parallels with the Octogang

Massive spoilers incoming by the way

OPHILIA and CYRUS (For Meaning) - The Transience of Life - Both of their final chapters feature themes of everlasting life in two forms. Mattias promises functional immortality in bringing the dead back to life, and Lucia has synthesized a blood crystal that would enable her to live forever. Ophilia fights against Mattias's promises, because the transience of life is what makes it worthwhile instead of worthless. Lucia is proof of the converse of this argument, when she had planned to become immortal and consume knowledge to hoard it for herself- a motivation that Cyrus finds hollow and unfulfilling.

OPHILIA AND PRIMROSE (For Family) - Family and Faith - Ophilia and Primrose's families are fundamental parts of their lives. The love that Ophilia experienced with Archbishop Josef and Lianna pulled her out of the darkness that came from losing everything at a young age, meanwhile Primrose's love for her father was what kept her from falling into darkness when she dedicated her life to avenging him. If faith is Primrose's shield, it is Ophilia's spear. They have shared faith in what their fathers have taught them, with Ophilia depending on it to save her sister and Primrose drawing strength from it in order to finish her journey.

OPHILIA AND H'AANIT (For Life) - Life, Death, and The Cycle - Ophilia and H'aanit have both lost their birth parents from a young age, and have both gained a father figure who would teach them meaningful lessons about loss and the nature of life. It is from Z'aanta that H'aanit has learned all she knows about the cycle of life and its importance- where every living creature returns to the soil eventually, and in this lesson H'aanit finds peace. The beasts that become her quarry are treated with the utmost respect, where the rule of the forest is to waste nothing and live on lest the life of the slain beast is wasted. Ophilia has a similar lesson on death, learning that living in memory of those she has loved and lost is the greatest gift she could grant them.

H'AANIT AND TRESSA (For Legacy) - The Storytellers - H'aanit and Tressa are both people who find joy in and are inspired by stories told of great people and their exploits, and are partially motivated by the thought of telling a story all their own. It is in this pursuit of a personal tale that they learn and grow stronger, earning their experiences and the retelling of it all. They follow their trade in earnest, hoping that one day they'll be able to tell stories just as great as the storytellers before them.

OLBERIC AND PRIMROSE (For Acceptance) - Revenge and Redemption - Olberic and Primrose share common themes in the pursuit of revenge- Olberic for his fallen kingdom and Primrose for her late father. But while Primrose is looking to avenge her father and fully intended on staining her hands with blood, Olberic sought answers instead- and in the end, doesn't spill blood in his search for meaning. Therion shows concern for both of their quests for revenge, often expressing doubts in their place about where this bloodlust would leave them after all is said and done. Olberic found acceptance and meaning after confronting the source of his grief, and Primrose is in the process of doing the same after her own tale- though it is left ambiguous. - Erhardt is the what-could-have-been for them both- left hollow and listless after he achieved his goal of taking down Hornburg.

OLBERIC AND CYRUS (For Future) - The Future of Mankind - Olberic and Cyrus share in the ideal of a better future. While Olberic's past may haunt him it is a lesson that he keeps going forward- pushing him to resolve to do better. Cyrus analyzes and studies the past with fervor in order to better serve the future in a similar fashion. They both acknowledge their strengths and aim to use it in order to protect and breed new and better generations to succeed them, with Olberic offering his sword and Cyrus offering his knowledge. Their promises are made to the present in pursuit of the precious future, believing that no one should be left behind. - Their final chapter bosses Lucia and Werner both ask them to abandon their ideals and to join forces in vain, not being able to understand that what they view as Cyrus and Olberic's weaknesses are where they draw their strength from. Cyrus does not give up on mediocrity. Olberic is insistent on standing by those he swore an oath to protect.