#to match machina fortress :)

[nyupuun]

favourite cards

[eaglefairy]

I have no liveblog to offer this weekend, so instead please take 2000 words of Meyneth analysis because I have opinions and I'm no longer afraid to share them. Summary: According to the canon of xenoblade 1, Meyneth is either an existentially less powerful god than Zanza, or her stated morals are in direct conflict with the actions she takes within the plot of the game. I walk through the reasons the former is at most implied by the game while being contradicted by the game's events and lore and what about Meyneth's characterization points towards the latter explanation. Huge thanks to @likestoimagine16 for chatting with me about this and looking this over before I posted it, it was super fun!

(Before we begin, a note: all of the following analysis is based solely on the canon of Xenoblade 1.  I will not be incorporating any potentially relevant information from 2, Future Connected, or Future Redeemed.  Anything from after the first game is just not true to who Meyneth is or to the characterizations of the people surrounding her in 1.)

Introduction For all of her stated importance in-game as the Mechonis's soul, Meyneth really does not do a lot during the game. The sum total of her actions are as follows:

Speaks to Zanza at Prison Island, begging him to cease their war and let the living be at peace

Saves the party from Egil at Galahad Fortress

Briefly acts from within Fiora to guard the party from Gadolt after his boss fight, but does not speak

Reveals herself properly for the first time in Agniratha and exposits the history of the Machina to the party

Saves the party from the explosion and holds them in the air long enough for Miqol to catch them

Battles Zanza at Mechonis Core and dies

At first glance, this doesn't seem too terrible. Zanza also doesn't actively do a ton over the course of the game; in fact, he probably does fewer discrete actions as himself than Meyneth does. There is one big difference between them, though: Zanza is inactive because he has a plan. He's controlling the narrative via the passage of fate, making him extremely active even if the party and player don't know he's there. Meyneth, on the other hand, is almost entirely reactive to what Zanza is doing and gives us no indication that she has any sort of plan to fight him. The most she does directly as a means of fighting him is ask to talk to him at Prison Island (which Zanza immediately rebuffs) and then debate him on philosophy before dying at Mechonis Core.

Option 1: Weaker God I can see two potential explanations for this inaction.  Option one: she’s just less powerful than him, and so any attempt by her to fight him is immediately doomed to fail.  There are some things in-game that support this.  Most strikingly to me, she and Alvis never directly interact.  For a while I was concerned that they never directly acknowledge each other’s existence at all, leaving open the possibility that Meyneth doesn’t know Alvis exists*.  Alvis does have a single line of thought immediately pre-Mechonis Core where he acknowledges that it’s Meyneth residing within Fiora.  However, Meyneth herself never acknowledges Alvis.  If only Zanza has direct access to Alvis’s power in Providence, that would in fact make Meyneth significantly less powerful and extremely disadvantaged against him.

*To be clear, I don’t actually think this is the case.  Based on everything else in the game, it would be absurd if Meyneth didn’t know about Alvis.  Where else could she possibly get her divine power from?  However, I do think it’s notable that the writers didn’t consider it necessary or narratively valuable to show Alvis and Meyneth interacting as an overall indicator of her status in the narrative, so I’m pointing it out here.

However, very little else in the game supports this.  Both Zanza and Meyneth have titan bodies, they seem to be about evenly matched within those bodies given that the battle at the beginning of the game ended in a standstill draw and not Zanza winning right then and there, and both Zanza and Meyneth seem to have created successful civilizations of people on their titan bodies.  

If anything, Meyneth might have been “better” at it, as the Machina worship her directly while neither the Homs nor the High Entia know of Zanza.  The Homs do hold the Monado in reverence as the fabled sword of the Bionis that can cut through Mechon and they have their funerary rites centered on the Bionis, but neither of those require a direct knowledge of Zanza of the kind we see the Machina have of Meyneth.  The High Entia I find even more interesting; while it would make sense for them to have intentionally erased the cultural knowledge of Zanza after the first battle of the titans when they sealed Arglas and the Monado away, there’s no evidence of that cultural knowledge ever existing, considering there are multiple side quests concerning High Entian history and not a hint of Zanza’s presence as an object of worship.  (Would the Valak Mountain War God count as an aspect of Zanza in this sense?  Interesting idea to think about…)  

Additionally, Zanza says “Now that I have both Monados, I should be at one with the passage of fate,” during one of the cutscenes before the final boss fight.  That implies that Meyneth’s presence in this world as the bearer of a Monado interfered with his control over the passage of fate (which is corroborated by Shulk interfering with Zanza’s sight during the final battle).  That in turn suggests that Meyneth had some amount of power over fate as a god, if we believe control over fate to be something that can be divided as Zanza alludes to in his dialogue.  All of this leads me to believe that if Meyneth is a weaker god than Zanza, it doesn’t affect any of her actions in the backstory or during the events of the game.

Option 2: Weaker Writing That leaves the other option: a writing flaw in which Meyneth’s stated character does not align with her actions and morals within the game.  We’ve been through her actions, but what are her stated morals?  She believes in the right of life to self-determination.  She sees Zanza’s actions specifically as directly in conflict with said stated right, and potentially the existence of gods as a whole.  Most of all, she believes in peace to the exclusion of things such as revenge or justice.  She (and the other Machina) want Egil to give up his plan of revenge and live in peace with them to heal from what Zanza has done.  When she’s speaking to Zanza telepathically on Prison Island, she asks him how many more he’ll kill and then tells him she’s there to talk.  Even when they’re battling in Mechonis Core, Meyneth is more focused on arguing against his philosophy and telling him that gods should not interfere with the lives of their people.

This is the heart of the problem.  Meyneth is portrayed as an unconditionally good character, Zanza’s rival in every way who wants mortal lives to be lived in peace, not under the tyranny of gods.  However, her actions and apparent values within the game make her near criminally passive against a god who fundamentally does not care about any of that.  Zanza creates and destroys all life in order to sustain his own existence (and I have to assume also Meyneth’s?  If she’s figured out the secret to divine immortality and hasn’t shared it with Zanza to make him stop that just makes her even worse, so…).  Narrative choices are narrative choices, but that Meyneth would still be at the “I can fix him” stage after who knows how many cycles of this is a narrative choice that strains my disbelief.  

Characters choosing to adhere to their morals even when it puts them at a disadvantage against their enemies is not a bad thing; however, having her hold to pacificism to this extent just makes her seem selfish and callous.  It is simply incompatible with her stated goal of opposing Zanza when Zanza’s actions are so extreme.  And to be clear, her choice to continue to try and talk Zanza down wouldn’t be so bad if the narrative didn’t absolutely stonewall her for it.  It’s very clear that Zanza is not open to negotiation, and Shulk doesn’t win by convincing him that living beings have inherent value outside of the resource they are to him.  It just makes Meyneth look silly to keep trying to talk the genocidal maniac down from doing genocide.

Objections Before I conclude, I want to take a moment to address some objections I could see to what I’ve laid out here so far.  First, as far as her actions go, Meyneth does have Vanea place her into Fiora with the stated intent to get closer to Shulk, but it’s still unclear what the end goal was there.  Was it to counterbalance Zanza’s influence on Shulk as the wielder of the Monado?  If so, Meyneth does remarkably little towards that goal.  The party isn’t ascending the Mechonis because of anything Meyneth said to them, they’re going up to fight Egil.  They don’t even know Meyneth is there until Agniratha, and the exposition there is mostly delivered by hologram.  Meyneth never directly interacts with Shulk about anything, let alone the cycle of war, which I feel is the bare minimum action if her goal is to erode Zanza’s influence on Shulk.

Notably, there are some suggestions in-game that imply peace with Zanza could be possible.  While I wouldn’t believe Zanza’s definition of “friendship” that he says he longed for at the end of the game to be reliable or at all similar to what friendship actually is, Alvis does repeat that Zanza wanted friendship and I’m much more inclined to take him at his word.  After the final battle, Alvis says that Zanza’s future and the desires of the party (and by extension Meyneth) could have coexisted, “but that time has passed”.  However, the game doesn’t indicate exactly when the time passed; the timing certainly implies that it was Zanza’s death that ended the possibility, but there’s no reason it couldn’t have been earlier.  

In addition, we’re given no indication of how likely that event was.  Given that nothing else in the game supports Zanza’s world being compatible with the freedom of mortal lives, I find it likely that the chance was infinitesimally small, something never quite impossible but extremely unlikely nonetheless.  While this does open up the possibility that Meyneth was justified in continuing to try to talk to him, the way it’s tossed in at the last second and is only told to us, never shown in any way throughout the game (through, say, High Entian legends or any kind of relationships between Zanza and his disciples) make me more inclined to believe it’s a last-second effort to add false depth to Zanza’s character.

Conclusion Overall, Meyneth suffers from a lack of focus that is sadly common to many of the female characters in xenoblade 1.  A lack of insight as to her inner thoughts combined with her extreme pacificism make for a narratively weak character who seems to be either fundamentally weaker in-story than her sworn nemesis or so committed to talking to him and making him realize the error of his ways that it literally gets her killed.  I find it most likely that the writers simply intended for her to be weaker than Zanza for unspecified reasons: disappointing, but not surprising.

What gets to me the most is that it didn’t have to be this way.  Even if she were just as strong as Zanza and/or more willing to fight against him, she would still have a significant disadvantage against him that sets the ground for the conflict seen in the game: her care for the lives and wills of mortals.  Her care to minimize collateral damage in the form of mortal lives will always give Zanza the upper hand in battle, whether directly in the form of attacking mortals being another way to hurt Meyneth or indirectly in the fact that Zanza has no qualms about manipulating mortals to do his will, while Meyneth likely would consider such a thing to be immoral and avoid it.  That, to me, would be a far more interesting setup than what we got in-game.

If you made it all the way to the end, thanks for reading! Please drop a comment or leave some tags, I'd love to keep discussing this.

[rainwolfheart]

thoughts on absolution

it's got a similar vibe to the comics and i prefer that medium, but i like these intrigue stories they've been going for since inquisition

that said, i feel like they were borrowing a bit much from the comics. maybe a coincidence, i know shows like this take a long time to develop, but there's a lot of beats and themes that reminded me of blue wraith and dark fortress.

so many macguffins lately. there's gonna be so many items to track down in dreadwolf.

that ending tho.... her voice is so iconic. i hate her so much. i can't wait.

i fucking love that the most comic relief character of the show is a lady. we never get that. and "maker's titties" indeed. ashly burch i love you.

i also enjoyed the broody rogue protagonist being a lady. we have a few more of those but it's always nice to see more balance in that department.

wtf was fairbanks' deal though. why did they choose him of all characters to bring back for a tv show?? this had nothing to do with his plotline as far as i can tell and really doesn't make sense with his whole thing where he's about protecting orlesian refugees? he's not a thief. idk man if they really had to kill off a random inquisition agent there was probably a better choice

but i do like that he kinda looks like matt mercer. that's just matt mercer y'all.

i still don't get why the scene where fairbanks turns on hira plays out like he's the one betraying her. like yes for the drama but logically it doesn't seem to really hold up.

did hira teleport at the end there or am i missing something??? is that just a thing she can do????? on top of the tenser's floating disk trick. bioware don't go introducing new types of magic without explanation i need the lore

i am definitely a roland/lacklon enjoyer but tbh i think the buildup was a bit too subtle. if i wasn't gay and picking up on the Vibes that kiss would have come out of nowhere.

i spent way too much time looking at screenshots of the dragons from inquisition to see if the one in the show matches a known species. it doesn't. as far as i can tell its a close but not identical match to the one from dark fortress

i really hope a good chunk of season 2 takes place in kirkwall tbh. i miss that terrible city. give me a merrill cameo you cowards.

i find the writing a liiiitle lackluster in general. the dialogue is pretty predictable, but not in a fun comforting way.

as mentioned the shaky cam is really off-putting. did not like that.

i didn't find it quite as newbie-friendly as, say, legend of vox machina. idk if i'd recommend it to folks who aren't already into dragon age, there's a lot of lore to understand that they don't really explain. and yet they make matt mercer give a hokey exposition speech in episode 1 lmao.

liked it in general though! solid b+

[aeonborealis]

Movies/Shows Spectra

Cowboy Bebop FLCL Neon Genesis Evangelion Princess Mononoke Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind Adaptation Being John Malkovich Minority Report Waking Life 2001: A space Odyssey Parika The Matrix Blade Runner Alita Battle Angel John Wick 1, 2, & 3 Inception Clock Work Orange Good Will Hunting Apocalypse Now The Godfather The Dark Knight The Green Knight Pulp Fiction Fight Club The Empire Strikes Back Se7en Interstellar Spirited Away Leon: The Professional Alien Momento Django Unchained Joker Synecdoche Jurassic Park Akira The Grand Budapest Hotel World War Z The Big Lewbowski Logan Terminator Back to the Future Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse Dune PK Her Donnie Darko 12 Monkeys Ghost in the Shell Soplaris Elysium Cowboy Bebop: The Movie Children of Men Brazil Rogue One Big Hero Six Moon Serenity Predator E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial Fantastic Planet Gravity The Girl Who Leapt Trhough Time Ex Machina The Fifth Element Guardians of the Galaxy Watchmen 28 Days Later Robo Cop Close Encounters of the Third Kind Godzilla: Shin Source Code Doctor Strange Contact Total Recall Tenet I Origins Cloud Atlas Looper Limitless K Pax 2046 Pi The Shape of Water Black Panther I Am Legend A.I. Artificial Intelligence Treasure Planet Starship Troopers The Andromeda Strain Robot and Frank Dredd 9 A Scanner Darkly Blade Oblivion The Adjustment Bureau Passangers Independence Day Starman Finch Another Earth Primer Flight of the Navigator Repo Man Altered States Chappie Cypher eXistenZ Spring HarcoreHenry Venom The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Resident Evil Short Circuit The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Idiocracy Titan AE Ad Astra Space Jam Lucy Alien: Covenant The Cell Dune Solaris World on a wire Le Jetee Kamikaze 89 Liquid Sky Aeon Flux Reign the Conqueror Megazone 23 Neo Tokyo Class of 1999 Crime zone AD Police Files Circuitry Man Cyber City Oedo 808 Hardware Megaville 964 Pinocchio Until the End of the world Wax, the discovery of television among the bees Fortress Freejack Nemesis Machine Girl Mimbo: The Subtle Art of Japanese Persuassion Prototype Shadowchaser Split second 8 man After American Cyborg: Steel Warrior Ghost in the Machine TC 2000 Crystal Fortune Run Cyber Tracker Cyborg 3: The Recycler Armitage III Automatic Cyber Bandits Cyber-Tracker 2 Cyberjack Hackers Johnny Mnemonic Nemesis 2: Nebula Screamers The City of Lost Children Virtual Combat Nemesis 3: Death Angel Omega Doom Rubber's Lover Gumo My Own Private Idaho Full Metal Gokudo Gattaca Andromedia The X Files Webmaster The Thirteenth Floor I.K.U. No Maps for These Territories Thomas in Love Vritual Nightmare Avalon Electric Dragon 80.000 V Reboot: Daemon Rising Reboot: My Two Bobs Xchange Dead or Alive: final Resurrection of the Little Match Girl Returner Teknolust Natural city Paycheck The Animatrix Appleseed Casshern Cyber Wars The Bottled Fools Immortal Malice Doll Automatons Puzzlehead Chrysalis Vexille Sleep Dealer Technotise: Edit & 1 Tetsuo: The Bullet Man Tokyo Gore Poilice

[kingtheannoying]

Making an "about me" post.

I'm King! That's my name! I chose it myself! :)

Pronouns: I use it/it's, ey/em, and they/them.

Pfp by @jei-rifni and I'm matching with @low-quality-microwave

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

I am a Minor

I am asexual aromantic 

I am autistic

Some more of my names are: Ralph, Mils, or whatever nickname you choose to bestow upon me. If I'll respond to it you can call me it

I live in the cursed land of Ohio.

I get excited over little things.

Here's some things that interest me:

- splatoon

- ninjago

- clowns (tag is #love me clowns)

- stanley parable

-garfield

- raggedy ann

- sonic underground

- airplanes, boats, and trains (should be under the tag #fly me to the moon!!! Or at @guardian-teaspoon)

- digimon

- ddlc

- fish (@guardian-teaspoon)

- bones (the tv show)

- bones (the thing in your body)

- letterkenny

- kirby's epic yarn

- tuxedo sam (Sanrio character)

- dino squad

- fuck you I'm adding nutri ventures to this list

- Celeste (video game)

- bigtop burger

- the legend of vox machina

- Team Fortress 2

- and more!

It's been so long since I updated this post lol.

Last update on this post: Feb 2nd, 2024

If you have a trigger and need me to tag something, just tell me. I will tag it. 👍

I like plushies. I can and will get excited if you allow me to talk about them.

I don't know what I'm doing here.

I have overdue homework.

Look at the tag "plushie post"

Oh and, follow my art blog, @kinglikesart

Other blogs:

@kinglikesart obviously

@tumbrhowto​ don’t know how something works here? confused about a meme? feel free to ask!

[elfyourmother]

Prompt 17: Destruct

The punishing heat of the desert sun was relentless, still, even as it sank lower upon the horizon, seeming to sear the very moisture from his flesh. For one born to the heart of Abalathia’s Spine, it proved challenging enough simple to remain upright whilst encased in armor, much less to fight. Still, he soldiered ever onward, his grip upon the massive greatsword’s hilt tight as he swung it swift and sure, again and again, as though it weighed naught but an onze, to drown the hot, dusty earth in a veritable sea of Garlean blood as he carved his way through the burning capital of the Amalj'aa.

For the only thing as relentless as that desert sun was Ser Aymeric des Fortemps; so long as he drew breath, never again would Ishgardian steel be absent upon the field in defense of Eorzea, not when the land faced a most dire peril as this. And none should ever gainsay the honor of Ishgard or her knights again, not when Aymeric led them so led them valiantly, at the vanguard as always upon the field of battle, joined by his steady right-hand Lucia. That their foes were madmen tempered by a primal mattered not; though not even at the Ghimlyt Dark had Aymeric faced such twisted foes upon the field as these, replete with the enslaved dragonkin of Meracydia and magitek horrors he could not put to name. All around him they swarmed like locusts, raining wyrmfire upon the beastmen’s fortifications, choking the desert sky with thick plumes of black smoke against rich shades of russet and ochre.

The Telephoroi showed no mercy, but neither did the Ishgardians. Plunging onward through the dusty canyon, to the heart of the fortress complex, Aymeric carved a path through Garlean and dragonkin with wide graceful arcs of his blade, drawing their fire away from his small cadre of Temple Knights as he led them deeper into the burning settlement to aid the beleaguered Amalj’aa. Upon rounding a bend, Aymeric spied a quartet of the desert tribesmen—a bow-wielding female hovering protectively over three Amalj’aa younglings, harried by a pair of of aerial machina. Though she was a skilled warrior, her shortbow was no match for the rippling gunfire which sprayed the side of the building against which she and the children were pinned.

“To me, Ishgard!” Aymeric cried over the din of the fray, aiming his blade toward the skies; whilst his archers loosed a hail of stinging arrows, he charged forward, beckoning the Amalj’aa to follow him, Naegling angled across his body to deflect the hail of fire, and cover their escape.

She turned back only long enough to touch her fist to her shoulder, a warrior’s salute. “May Ifrit temper that fine blade of yours, outlander!” the Amalj’aa shouted, before leading the younglings to safety.

Aymeric smiled, with a graceful incline of his head. He quickly returned then to his men, only for his eyes to widen in horror as an incandescent blast hurtled through the dry air, sending a half dozen knights careening backward. Aymeric’s keen eyes quickly traced it back to its source: a massive suit of magitek armor, at the vanguard of a full score of tempered Garlean conscripts, wielding gunblades and hurling fire.

“Lord Commander!” Lucia shouted, racing to his side; together they stood back to back, and she raised her shield, gunfire ringing as it clanged against the steel. Furiously, his blade cut wide arcs through the ash-choked air, casting aside each of the far smaller blades which slashed at him with ease, and he mercilessly cut through his assailants one by one. But then a pair of aerial units descended, whirring blades rattling his head seemingly from nowhere, and Aymeric swore a string of colorful Ishgardian oaths as they peppered the ground in a hail of rounds.

And so together, Aymeric and Lucia stood their ground, blades flashing, systematically cutting down the tempered imperials with calculated, well-honed fury. Perhaps their saving grace was the machina’s inability to simply fire at will, given the Garlean infantry, but as the battle raged on, there were simply too many of them, and the field far too open to defend, even for knights of their singular ability.

Before him, a Garlean signifier, wild-eyed and manic, reared back with his darkly glowing staff, aether building.

“For the glory of the Emp—”

(rest @ AO3)

[kinetic-elaboration]

February 3: Mr. Robot 3x09

So this was episode was pretty different from the last!

Last week's episode feels even more like a quiet, slow respite in comparison to this one. Actually, the last couple of episodes do, because Frederick and Tanya was mostly about Mobley and Trenton. And two episodes before that was the highly stylized single-shot ep. Now we're fully back to several different story lines all up to 100 happening at once.

I like it but I cannot honestly explain what I just saw or precisely what happened, plot wise.

The Dom and Darlene scenes were among my favorites of the whole show, first because I love them both, and second because I DO ship it, even though of course it's obvious Darlene was playing her the whole time. But like... I do think she likes her also. And seeing this other side of Dom... Seeing her nervous and trying to flirt and failing, pretending she doesn't herself know what she's doing, then fighting with herself about what she wants and what she thinks is right or wrong. And the spy game stuff of Darlene getting into the safe... all awesome. And then Dom later like showing her loyalty to the Bureau—I will report my sex life to the federal government. And Santiago wanting a minute-by-minute accounting lol.

Speaking of--almost as good was how close Dom got to Santiago. Again, I am struck by how well plotted this show is. Like, this is a little more than a season away from the finale, but it could almost have been the all-too-happy, all-too-sudden ending of the whole thing. If it weren't for Santiago, if the Dark Army WEREN'T in the FBI, then Darlene could have clued the FBI into Romero's deus ex machina keylogger data, and they could 'undo the hack' and then that would be it! I mean plus all the other threads, but that could be a major part of the neat and tidy conclusion. But instead, it just sets off a different domino effect because of the presence of the well-established mole.

I didn't entirely follow all of the Elliot and Mr. Robot and Tyrell stuff. The out-of-order timeline thrown in there casually among all the OTHER stuff that was happening made it hard for me to figure out exactly what was happening there. I got that Elliot used the fake out of Stage Three to get the meeting with whiterose ('s boyfriend) and then own the Dark Army and that he was also simultaneously relying on Darlene and the Sentinel hack, that is, he would take down the Dark Army while she saved ECorp, essentially saving the day somehow I suppose. But the emotional journey of Mr. Robot I don't get as much.

I know he went to Tyrell's in order to yell at him, I guess, and then Price comes and gives Tyrell the CTO figurehead job, and schools Mr. Robot about being a real leader, and Tyrell and Mr. Robot together basically become bitter and angry? And then Tyrell tells Mr. Robot about the mole. And then Mr. Robot goes home and googles Sentinel and Tyrell and then he goes away and Elliot is back. That's all I really remember/understood and it doesn't feel very clear to me. I'm not saying that's on the show; it's on me because I just wasn't following it as well as the other story lines, probably because Mr. Robot and Tyrell just interest me less lmao, so I wasn't paying good attention. It's also possible that it just ISN'T as clear, because there is a lot of the unsaid in this show.

My mom suggested that Mr. Robot, knowing or predicting that Elliot would try to hack Sentinel, was trying to give him a message about how particularly dangerous this would be, which is plausible, especially since I think Mr. Robot knows more about Elliot (the Hacker) than vice versa, but again, the timeline is a little uncertain for me.

Angela is full on gone by now. Her sleek apartment being turned into a fortress/bunker was truly disturbing, and the most disturbing part wasn't the mess or the pictures of unknown stuff on the walls or the 50 locks on the door but how she kept all of these small objects that had been in the room with her when she was brainwashed. Like, she really doesn't have control of herself right now. She IS A puppet.

Grant is really coming into his own. That last scene with him and whiterose was very interesting. The last time I saw whiterose, I felt like it was really being revealed that she was the master all along—not locked in a match of wills with Price but always his superior, putting him into and taking him out of power at her whim, just like she does everything at her whim. Now... I don't know. I don't think this ep contradicted that reading exactly, but it did show how she is truly unhinged and starting to unravel more and more. In other words, there may not be anyone above her, but she’s certainly not in control either, possibly not even of herself. She’s not infallible and she doesn’t always, immediately, get what she wants. And so her sort of ceding to Grant at the end—and why switch to Mandarin? And make her voice softer?—don’t entirely know what to make of it or if I’m even making sense now lol. This is all a coherent thought somewhere in my brain. At any rate Grant felt like her partner more than her boy toy for the first time.

I don’t like the casual mention of ‘oh btw martial law’ just slipping into dialogue because while I love the world building on this show in general, and recognize that a lot of major aspects of the post-5/9 world are shown in bits and pieces in the background (like the whole Congo plot! Which is pretty important to the overarching narrative!), the very throwaway nature of the line made me think that actually, they’re not aware in the writers’ room of what martial law is. It doesn’t mean what you think it means. It’s not a synonym for “armed police presence” or “curfews” lmao. And frankly after last summer, which I know post-dates this show, I get more upset at the idea of the phrase being thrown around casually and incorrectly.

A few more random thoughts: I love/miss Romero and I appreciate how his character largely existed to show how everyone else in fsociety was basically just a child lol. Not literally but he WAS the adult in the room. Darlene was hella hot today. Price is THE best villain of all time I will not be taking criticism on this post. I appreciate the use of a Joey Bada$$ song in the bar scene. Leon versus Angela was a show down I didn’t know I needed but I am living for it.

Only one more ep left this season! I saw the finale but I never saw the majority of S4 because I thought I’d do a re-watch first…and it’s taken me until now to do that. So I’m pretty excited to finish this season up and see the conclusion.

[theboondogglepub]

A Land of Gardens Black. Part 1.

Far and away we travel.

To a place so strange so near. A land so close and location so wrong, it must be shared in the form of a song. A Garden now lost, a shard driven cold, a narrative so new and so old. For mirth and mire, a twisted conspire, curiouser and curiouser we hear the town crier. Until we arrive and until we see, for this is a realm that none knew could be. This is the land of Black Gardens.

    The story unfurls, and behold do we, a throne room of white and a throne shaped as a key. It is empty as yet, immaculate so, til great gates do creak and she arrives with a glow. The Queen of Pure White, divine in her light, trailed by her company of evil delight. Now bask in this tale, the alternate road, as we open to see her agent of Goad.

    “Mr. Amakelle!” The Queen cried, her most faithful subjects carrying the trail of her white silken gown behind her. The Lady’s full ivory mask doing naught to quiet or soften her screeching cry for Mr. Amakelle, if anything only emboldening the sound. The tall throne room echoed with each step of the Queen’s heel clack, her every movement announcing her presence, her importance. The chamber was adorned in draping white silks and gilded tassels, glowing braziers and blinding lights reflecting ornate mosaics high above. A singular man knelt by the tall key-shaped throne seat, and waited.

Each mosaic in the throne room told a tale of the Queen of Pure White. The largest and most proudly crafted of the throne room showed of how she arrived by boat with an entourage once upon a time to the beleaguered land of Gardens. She proclaimed herself the Botanist Queen, and brought order and prosperity. Yet the next mosaic showed her striking balance and accord with a now blackened out, burned and purple cloth draped people. Yet a third showed great prosperity, health and joy for all the peoples of the land of Black Gardens. All of the Queen of Pure White’s mosaics showed health and glory to the land...And yet… as the scene not of mosaic began to unfurl, it was quite apparent she was not happy.

    “My Queen,” Mr. Amakelle, a man dressed of velvet finery (in a shade not quite red, not quite pink) and bird-faced porcelain mask had been by appearances waiting, kneeling by the Queen’s throne. He spoke reverently, even as the Queen approached with her train of servants behind her, her tone far from happy.

    “I am to believe you have done well to negotiate with the far-landers, have you not?” Every word echoed, every enunciation bellowed in command. “I am to believe you act in my service, do you not?!” Her voice boomed with a hostile, severe intent. Behind the queen, her servants watched.

High Scriver Rosalette was immediately and to the right of the Queen, with a gilded parchment scroll trailing far behind her to the gates of the throne room itself copied every utterance of her Divine Lady. She was a Hyum, much like her Queen was, much like the Man of Goad Amakelle was. Her hat, covered with a feather from each breed and gender of and color of bird the entirety of the land of Black Gardens had from coast to coast, was the one thing Rosalette had that outshone all others. Even the Queen herself could not match the hat’s splendor.

Lord Commander Knight Arik, forever covered and hidden in platemail covered in platemail stood immediately and to the left of the Queen, standing over 10 fulms tall with a greatshield that scraped the ground with each step. His armor was severe, unbroken and never seen off his person. Rumors even put to it that it was welded to him. To wield his armor and shield, it was legend that Arik was granted a divine blessing, for none could or has ever dared to break his defenses, save one.

Mafchulu, the Royal Thaumaturge dared oft to break the Lord Commander’s armor and shield. His was a solemn task, and he stood behind Arik in the train following his Lady of Divine Light. Gifted only with the simple (and meager) abilities of a Thaumaturge however, it was Mafchulu’s constant ingenuity that ever brought him notice. Concocting potions and poisons, devious machina, and always carrying a black tome of spreaded sheets of numbers and malicious logic, Mafchulu more than earned his place… even if he was just a Thaumaturge.

Behind Rosalette walked a demure, tiny thing. Saphy, the Bunyn Knight wielded nothing but her fists, but those fists were nigh legendary. She was of the race Bunyn, and wore that badge with pride. Rumors of the Queen’s high court say of how Rosalette once taught the shy Bunyn Knight, but was quickly and soundly amazed at how the Knight advanced. Eventually there was none who could stand toe to toe with Saphy. Other rumors of course, speak of Saphy oft absconding away from the Queen’s castle to meet a paramour of mysterious nature. Were that to be true… well, only time and further narrative delivery would tell.

Finally, and clumsily at that, Jun. A Bunyn of high renown arrived and tripped over his tall trailing robes. “Oof! M’my lady! Your appointment with the Agent of Goad is… oh! Now!” Jun carried a pocket watch in one hand, and a stack of documents a fulm high in the other, with now several scattered over the white marble floor. Mafchulu sighed, and began helping his helpless cohort fix and collect the paperwork. His Queen, the Lady of Divine White, merely smirked and chuckled beneath her mask lightly.

“VERY GOOD, thank you Jun. Now… YOU.” The Lady of White stepped up to her throne and rested her heels, the clack of each footfall as always commanding attention. She addressed the Agent of Goad, a demand in her tone. The court all waited for her declaration, her words of divine wisdom. It was her place, as the center of light itself to be all things to her people, and she was that. “You say you are my agent, my ally. YET. You, Mr. Amakelle have oft recently been found in quite the heresy! Do you deny it?!”

Mr. Amakelle flustered, ever the leaning and mewling toadie, balked and began to sweat excessively. “M-m-my lady! I w-w-would never! N-never in one million years! I-er, that is to say, aaah, uuhm--” The Agent of Goad, dressed in his finery looked about the chamber for aid from the others of the court, and found none. Rosalette especially seemed to balk, and was making great mention in the royal archives of Amakelle’s incredibly poor performance. All knew of his crimes in full, and all were venomous and seething. “Wh-where is… where is the court Jester?” He asked, puzzled. “The Satirical Nightweave?” Amakelle was already patting his face down with a silken cloth.

“THAT unfunny, depressively un-charismatic statue?!” The lady seemed even more severe when addressing her former court jester. “We gave her the ending she deserved! Behold!” Mafchulu chuckled as he stepped to the far end of the court room, and pulled down in one swift stroke a velvet cloth hiding a dull gray statue of a woman, and in her stone hands was a bowl of fruit. “Look upon the so called Jester Amakelle! At least this way she’s useful for something! A fixture standing in a corner, uninteresting, uninviting, and barely capable of doing anything of value! That is a fitting fate, do you not think?!” The Queen guffawed, and the rest of her court, save Amakelle, followed suit. Arik’s own laugh beneath his heavy armor echoed like a pit 1000 malms deep and baritone.

“NOW!” The Queen silenced everyone with but a single word. “For your fate…” A deadly silence followed as the Queen of Pure White, Goddess of Botanists and lady of the Key Throne cupped her chin.

“Oh MERCY my lady! I admit it!” Amakelle fell further on his knees, crying and begging most pathetically. “I am a worm! I am a coward! I sought to betray you! To steal your houses, break your hearts and try on your clothing! I can only petition you for mercy! There is none more indignantly sorrowful than I! Mercy I beg! Mercy!”

“MERCY?!” The Queen spoke in words that near shook the very throne room. “You have sought to steal my people, destroy our Kingdom and have stolen and tried on my ball gowns on several occasions! There is no mercy for ilk such as you. Therefore I can think of only one fitting fate. BRING OUT THE PUDGE!”

Amakelle shrieked. “NOOOOOOOOOOO!” As the Agent of Goad cried and weeped, Jun (again tripping on his robes) pulled a lever next to the Queen’s throne. The floor fell out beneath Amakelle, an obvious trap for an obvious man to lay victim too, and his cry could be heard as he slid down into darkness. “OOF!” The crash of Amakelle’s fall echoed above in the throne room, and everyone smirked, awaiting what they new was to come next. From down under the traproom floor, from the dark and unseen shadows, cries of terror are heard. “S-stay back! I am warning you! S-STAY BACK! I WILL---” As he spoke, a low and threatening ‘Mrrrrrrrooooooooooowwwww’ was heard. “STAY BACK! I WILL FIGHT BACK! N-No! NO! NOOOOOOOOOO--eeeerruruugugghhghghghhhghh---” All fell silent then, save for the Queen’s laughter. Save for the Court’s laughter. Save for the laughter of all.

Now we step back, and observe the great land, our kingdom of Gardens Black. Away from a castle of the Botanist Queen, to a war mixed with soothsayers flack. We observe the middle, a kingdom locked in war where some few nurtured the middle path. A priest, a cleric, a people besieged, mercenaries fending off wrath. We observe the other side, the Catte army that bapped, and a fortress of unbreakable night. We observe it all, and will hear far more soon, when your bard comes tell of how each side brought their might.

For now let us rest, for soon we shall learn of the Catte army and who they are for. After which I’ll regale of the middle side three, then last what started this whole miserable war. The cast is yet to be unveiled, and grand it will be, familiar and yet so wrong. And tell you them all, I solemnly swear, I shall happily do in song.

Welcome I say, as your bard to this tale, this shard from Ten and Three. I hope you enjoy, or at least humbly scowl, as I welcome you finally with mirthful glee. This is our stage, I’m sure you’ll agree, is seemingly quite strange and quite cracked. I’ll spin you a tale, your narrative bard, to this place of Gardens Black.

@healeremeline @blackmagesol @everyoneelseIhaven’ttaggedyetthere’sfartoomanyofyou.

[ftalos]

Victory Rewards Day 3-4: From 0 MP to 4k MP with Nostalgic Machina Portal.

God, I haven’t climbed ladder since… Dawn of Calamity, and I didn’t reach GM then. My competitive sense and sanity are nil, but now we have a new portal skin and I’m ticket-less so I jumped into Ranked to farm some chests welcoming Gullias in my Machina Portal deck.

But first, why is it off meta? Well, check yourselves.

I know that, thanks to the Resonance package, Machina is one of the variants you could climb in ladder, and that’s the extent of my competitive knowledge previous to the additional cards. But not this deck, I’m not playing Resonance with Machina Sprinkles, I’m went full RSC by playing Machina with Rosa, Cassim and Yuwan to fix my hand and control board in case the robots weren’t enough. No Gilnelise, no Automachina Maiden (inb4 maidenless joke) and, specially, no Bahamut. I’m not here to wait until the big draggo comes to induce despair in my opponents, Belphomet and the furies were all I needed, If Gullias and a lot of wards haven’t done it before.

“How did you do it?” you ask, the answer is simple: I used Belphomet’s tentacles using his Fusion and then Belphomet himself as soon as you have 9 Play Points, the threat he provides wins you the match almost everytime. There’s little to no banish in ladder for you to worry about losing tentacles and the control tools are amazing. Fix your hand using the resonance trio and set your big wards lategame. Avoid summoning your divine treasures early, that protection is more valuable when you can play them at enhance 7.

Mulligan is easy, Belphomet, any 2 drop and Metatron going second. Your hand will sometimes get small but don’t worry, save your tools and control board.

Now, into detailed matchups.

Forest:

Control Forest: This deck does nothing but stall, and if they wanna stall you will join them. The match goes long but that’s where Calamity shines and gives you the autowin.

Tam Lin Tempo Forest: Just ward up, control early board with Gullias and Cassim, don’t let them bounce anything ang drop Shion and Enhanced (7) Treasure on curve. Belphomet ends.

Ladica Forest: Ward up, double Ladica is stoppable with Shield of Transgression, chip them and don’t let them play their combo safely or lose if you fail to set up a hard board. Yeah, it’s the closest matchup.

Sword:

Evo Sword: Hard matchup. Make them use those evo points or lose by Musketeers, clean their board entirely, Gullias’ accel > Gullias’ Fanfare when facing them.

Commander Sword: Same as above, clean their boards, set up big wards before the Fortress comes, this deck has smaller hands than Evo so it is easier.

Rune:

Earth Rite Rune: Easy win, Armored tentacle is hard for them to deal with. There are times you can play tempo-aggro and win at 7 because Riley loves to stay on deck (source: I was an ER enjoyer in GP), Shion for the ultimate win.

Manaria Rune: If you can aggro tempo, go aggro tempo, Resonance trio sets you up, tentacles and Gullias close the deal before they can drop the big spell.

Dragon:

Bahamut dragon: The hardest of all, but there’s not a lot of them so yay. They out control you and Bahamut drops too fast. Get your calamities, treasures and Wielder of the Cosmos. Godspeed.

Rush/Storm/Burn dragon: The biggest threat this deck has is not the burn but Si Long, she gets kinda difficult to kill early while saving your wards (specially Shion) to heal and avoid burning to death. Keep your health up and Belphomet seals the deal.

Shadow:

Flame and Glass Shadow: Their highrolls are impossible, but their midrolls and low rolls are usually your wins, the resonance trio carries in this matchup you so keep them alive as long as you can; same as with forest and Sword, don’t leave anything on board they can kill to gain advantage.

Burial Rite/Mordecai Shadow: It’s a back and fort that ends up on your win, lategame you’ll have beefy followers to clear their boards and get the W. Same as F&G, clearing boards > dealing damage.

Soultaker Shadow: Some players have Bahamut and some others don’t, if you can’t take them out with tempo/aggro and Gullias, the matchup becomes a war of attrition where Belphomet makes you win or lose.

Blood:

Handless Blood: For this matchup you can tech Birth of the ravenous but I haven’t seen a lot of them for me to do it. Just do the usual schtick of warding up and controlling board, but mind up healing. Rosa becomes valuable.

Mono Blood: Their lethal setups are predictable, save your wards for then, Enhanced Treasure and Shion have higher priority than Gullias.

Haven:

Skullfane Amulet Haven: Easy matchup, you outcontrol even when their Carmia Highroll because they first have to deal with your early boards.

Bellerophon Haven: This is the only matchup you should try to not rely on your tentacles as they will get banished. Resonance Package, usual Machina/Calamity Shenanigans and Shion Token are your go to. By the time of writing this, I haven’t faced a Multi Holy Saber turn so I can only hope the Shield of Transgression is all I need.

Ward Haven: As with rally sword, early board control is mandatory, untargetable cavaliers are a nuisance but nothing impossible to beat. Their late game board are annoying, but the matchup is winnable.

Portal:

Artifact Portal: The deck exists, but I haven’t found any since I started playing this. I will update later with tips but I suspect the only annoyance is Genesis Evo.

Puppet Portal: Now this is one I saw a lot. Your wards won’t keep up if you go second or they have Metatron so it’s down to how lucky you are. Their lowrolls and midrolls are your win.

Resonance portal: Same as Artifact, I haven’t seen one, but I suspect it’s a guaranteed loss with their turbo Bahamut and the same wards we use.

The deck was fun to play and got me lots of wins because my opponents weren’t expecting this build (GameWith’s Machina is different and that’s where most people take their info from, I just bamboozled them). But, as we’re aproaching day 5 and day 1 chaos is fading, the other decks are getting optimizations and the Machina Playstyle shows its age. 

This is not a deck I’d recommend spending in, but if you have the cards and got bored of the other portal decks, give it a try for a while, as a farewell.

Goodbye, Rotation Belphomet and his robots. I’ll see you in unlimited.

[thebl00dmaster]

Re:Servants part 5

This time with  Selesia and Rui’s sheet, I’m sorry if this took long to make but I had bit of difficulty writing it down something satisfying  (that and a wee bit of procrastination) and I’m not entirely happy with the result but I hope you’ll enjoy it.

Selisia Upitiria, Fiery Heroine of Earthmalia

Primary class : Saber     Secondary class : Rider

Alignment : Neutral Good

Strength : B- Endurance : B- Agility : A- Magic : C+ Luck : C-

Skills :

Mech pilot (B+) :

Replace the Riding skill. Having fought in the war against the Avalon brigade Selesia knows the controls of Vogelchevalier like the back of her hand .Her experience allows her to drive modern vehicles such as car with ease without a license.

Flight (A) :

Selesia’s magic allows her to fly around with great ease without the help of a mount or a vehicle.

Wave Chants (B) :

Special spells that can only be used while on board of Vogelchevalier that range from volleys of magical missiles to creating an infinite gate to trap an enemy in infinite corridor, however they count as pseudo Noble Phantasms.

Magic Resistance (C) :

While low for a Saber class Servant Selesia still proves to be somewhat resistant to spells.

Noble Phantasm :

Ajarakamokuren Kyuraisu, Flame of Renewed Determination [B](Anti Unit) :

A power granted to Selesia thanks to the audience’s acceptance when her creator submitted a side story and a drawing to accompany it on social media, it thus was recorded into the throne of heroes. Upon activation Selesia will take the appearance on the picture and heal every wound no matter how fatal, her sword transforms and from it she can shoot a devastating stream of flames reducing all in its way to naught but cinders. However this power is only temporary due the fickle attention of social media and the fact this was only a side story, once the time limit is reached Selesia will revert to her initial state and any wound she suffered will reopen.

Vogelchevalier, Knight of the Elemental Symphony [A+](Anti Army):

A giant made of steel and magic standing between fantasy and machinery, resilient yet remains very nimble especially in the air. Armed with saber and wielder of a great magical power, Vogelchevalier allows Selesia to use her Wave Chants to unleash hell upon her enemies with all manners of spells while she is on board. This deadly robot is purely piloted manually by Selesia moreover it’s costly to summon and maintain, slightly less Mana than having an additional servant on your side, but this is still a game changer on the battlefield. Out of battle it needs to be either stored in some form of facility (like a disused hangar or factory) or revoked in order to maintain the War’s secrecy.

A warrior with hair of fire and a determination of steel, battling to save her world from the forces of the Avalon Brigade. Selesia is kind and caring individual with an unmistakably heroic disposition; even if she has somewhat of an attitude, putting herself in harm’s way to protect others. It’s worth noting that she has a more rounded personality when compared to the other “Creation” Servants that appeared so far. Skilled in both swordplay and piloting Selesia also possess magical abilities allowing her to fly or cast her “Wave Chants” when on board the mighty Vogelchevalier, however even in the Saber Class her main strength lies within her Mech since she can’t cast spells without it moreover she’s a jack-of-all-trade when not piloting meaning she can get overpowered by more physically or magically inclined Servants though she put up a good fight nonetheless.

Rui Kanoya, Rambunctious Pilot

Primary class : Rider    Secondary class : N/A

Alignment : Chaotic Good

Strength : C+ Endurance : D Agility : C+ Magic : D- Luck : B

Skills :

Mech Pilot (A+)[D] :

Replace the Riding skill. While young Rui is an expert pilot controlling Gigas . However this competence doesn’t translate well to modern vehicles as they are too low tech when compared to Gigas Machina.

Hot Blooded (C-) :

Rui is a quite temperamental lad that can go easily on the defensive and won’t obey orders when in that state but once he calms down or if his energy is properly channeled he shows an unyielding determination. It gives him a slight boost to Endurance and Strength when active.

Hand-to-Hand Combat (C+) :

While his main mean of fighting remains his Mech Rui is still trained in CQC (if a bit unorthodox) and as such he’s able to fight off an adult sized Servant, to say nothing of a baseline human, despite his somewhat diminutive stature. He can still be overpowered by Servant with greater Strength or skill.

Noble Phantasm :

Gigas Machina, The Infinite Machine [EX](Anti Army):

A veritable Titan of steel and machinery only matched in height by buildings, this walking and flying fortress surpasses any man-made weapons to this date in term firepower or durability befitting its science fiction origin. Due to being a very advanced piece of technology Gigas Machina can be likened to a machine god but it’s both a blessing and a curse since sufficiently advance technology is indistinguishable from magic, a blessing because it gets some of the benefits of a divine artifact and while its weaponry are affected by Magic Resistance the effectiveness of the skill is halved yet it’s curse as it suffer against Anti-Divinity Noble Phantasm and skills. Gigas Machina’s psychic link functionality allows Rui to pilot it with great ease as if the Mech was his own body but this means that he gets feedbacks while he’s in the cockpit such as feeling pain when the robot is sufficiently damaged. It also possesses an auto pilot functionality.

Such power has a cost and using this Noble Phantasm will put a severe strain on the Master akin to trying to summoning three servants at once. On the bright side once summoned it doesn’t take much Mana to fuel the steel titan but the Master will have to hide the machine afterward which is easier said than done considering its’ sheer size so revoking Gigas Machina would be a more “practical” way to keep the Holy Grail war’s secrecy if they don’t own any facilities to house it.

This waif-like teenage boy may not seem like much at first and while Rui’s parameters might not peg as anything too formidable, he’s at the helm of a war machine like the world has never seen before : Gigas Machina. Piloting this titan of steel comes like second nature to Rui despite his young age thanks in part to the “psychic link” between him and his machine allowing him to control it like his own body. Fighting other Servants head on without his Noble Phantasm is ill-advised due to Rui’s rather low parameters but sometime Gigas Machina can’t be used to its full capacity, especially in heavily populated urban centers, therefore the Master would need to rely on his CQC skills or lure the enemy to a more open area.While undeniably heroic Rui is a handful to deal with because of this temperamental nature of his which can cause him to fly off the handle and go on the defensive refusing to listen to orders until he calms down especially if they go against his ideals, if properly channeled and treated Rui makes for a staunch and loyal ally.

Notes :

Rui “Mech     Pilot” rank : I put it the “Nominally high ranked skills but actually of a     lower one” category (i.e Edison’s Item Creation skill) because of the     control scheme of GM  meaning that     Rui’s talent wouldn’t translate well to driving a car the same way     Selesia’s experience of riding Vogelchevalier would.

[dancerwrites]

legacy

(spoilers for episode 104, “Elysium”)

He’s standing with the guard, as he has been wont to do since coming to Elysium, to the Dawnfather’s kingdom. It feels appropriate for one who aspired to be a voice for Pelor, a potential champion, were his life not cut short.

Vesper stands beside him - she was always more politically minded than him in life, but few care for politics in the afterlife. So she stands sentinel, alongside him, to escort any who would approach the cathedral of the Father. 

Whitney and Oliver are harvesting, finding rest together in shared purpose, and he is glad as a soul can be that their bodies are not necessary in Elysium, for their deaths were particularly gruesome in life. He does think, though, that if they had more of their physical bodies little of the Dawnfather’s harvest would be getting in the baskets, and much more of it would be all over their clothes and the surrounding trees. 

Ludwig is a waiter, a watcher. He is one of the many who stand on the parapets of the cathedral and look heavenward, and look toward the edge of the kingdom. They see the stars when the Father’s brilliance is subdued, and they know everything that goes on.

Their parents are housed within the cathedral, in the chambers set aside for His chosen few, especially those who have given their lives for His service, or for the fight against the darkness, as he had once given His freedom and connection to the Material Plane. They have no duties - they suffered enough in their last moments, and they have been granted rest eternal.

It is Ludwig who sees them first, then, from his perch.

A party approaches, from the South, comes the murmur on the wind, for souls have no need for mouths, nor voice. A large party, with the light of Sarenrae and the Raven’s champion in tow. 

There is a ripple through the souls, not just those who have been ardently watching and following the renewal of Whitestone, and he feels Vesper’s hand on his arm, nervous tension filling the air. 

Do you think?

It certainly looks like it.

They- oh hells- comes a voice, distant, but discernible. Then a second, a mirror of the first.

Sweet Pelor, brother, you were never my favorite, but you grew up didn’t you?

If eyes existed in the afterlife, Julius would have rolled them. 

It’s them? comes a voice from behind, soft and hopeful.

The twins say it’s them, Mother, he says, letting himself believe, letting himself imagine.

Oh goodness….

They wait for long hours, until the mortals tread within sight of the castle. (And the mortals do not notice the following they have gathered, the spirits that trail them through the wood.)

The party talks with Dawnfather’s trees and are greeted by the Planars. It’s the final test, which determines whether they may approach the castle, and after long minutes, they are allowed to walk past. 

If Julius had breath, it would have caught at the splendor that they carry with them. The power they radiate that is dim in comparison to the Father himself, but brighter than any mortals who have walked through these orchards, through his forest. 

Percival is near the back, understandably awed by the scope of the cathedral before them. He sticks out, with his rich blue coat, accented with Whitestone’s colors. 

It’s him, Mother, Father, he supplies.

It is his duty as the eldest to confirm the rumors.

And she’s with him.

A ripple of affirmation comes from the fortress, as well as a choked silence, heavy with the weight of joyful tears that cannot be formed, let alone shed, answers him, and he understands. 

Percival has no eyes for faceless, nameless souls, especially while approaching an audience with the Dawnfather, which is forgivable, even though Julius can feel Vesper’s silent chant at his side: Look ‘round, Percival. Look around, please. See us… (It’s because he’s thinking the same.)

But Percy, who had been so young when the Briarwoods had come… He was older now, weathered. And it is interesting to look at his younger brother and see a face that is an age that he had never reached, that he would never reach. 

And yet, he still looks so young.

Staring up at the immense cathedral, his face would seem impassive to another, but any de Rolo studying him would see the characteristic tilt of his eyebrows, and the concern in his eyes. Percy had never been one for religion, and it showed in the worry he wouldn’t let himself show. Julius almost wants to step out, to lend him a hand, but that is not his purpose, and so he hangs back. 

The woman at Percy’s side, half a head shorter than him, her dark hair contrasting his white, her scaled armor matching his locks, reaches out to grab his hand. For a moment his attention is arrested by her, his face softening, the tension in his shoulders falling away. 

Vesper does her best to poke Julius, despite the ethereal nature they share, and he scoffs. 

I know.

That she is the Grand Mistress of the Grey Hunt, is obvious. Julius had only ever met two other Mistresses of the Hunt, but this woman beside his brother had the same sharp gaze, the same regality. And there was the same look in her eyes that Julius had often seen in his mother’s while alive. A spark, a joy, when looking at him, or even around the fortress, that speaks to a special connection.

There is no way in the Nine Hells they are not betrothed, Vesper says at his side, to much discussion from the three youngest siblings. But Julius ignores them in favor of watching Vox Machina walk through the front doors, into the resplendent entryway. 

Oliver and Whitney find himself and Vesper in the crowd as the spirits start to relax, no longer standing guard quite so stiffly. They are still babbling excitedly to each other, and it is clear that the other spirits also have things to say, as the air around them feels like it’s charged with an energy they haven’t felt since the Grey Hunt. 

Ludwig sprints out of the cathedral, headed right toward them. 

You saw him? You saw him up close?

The twins let him know what he’s missed, and Julius grins at them, his attention successfully drawn from the Fortress, though Vox Machina wouldn’t be exiting for a good long while. They had never had such camaraderie in life.

(Julius supposes that is one of the best things about death - lack of sibling   rivalry.)

After a short while, two familiar silhouettes exit the golden cathedral, and the other spirits part to let them pass, giving them a direct path to where Julius is standing. The murmurs fade away around them, and he smiles to see them out and about.

(Not that they had been moping beforehand, but even ghosts can grieve the losses they suffered in life.)

Thank you, Ludwig, for the call, Frederick says, a man of as few words in death as he was in life. 

Thank you, Father.

And to see Vex’ahlia, Grand Mistress of the Hunt and his betrothed… his mother hums, her words quiet as a whisper and directed toward no single person, so they all hear it. 

Knew it, brother.

No one doubted you, Vesper, Julius points out.

It still feels good to be right.

Julius watches with the majority of his family as the light within the fortress pulses, the spirits’ whispers fading away until the only sound around them is the breeze through the trees.

They wait together, the whole crowd, for Vox Machina to leave the Dawnfather’s presence, and after a while Julius feels his father’s hand on his shoulder.

Julius turns, memories of life filling him as he remembers talks about ruling Whitestone one day and what he needed to know.

It is good to be here with so many of you, Frederick murmurs, and Julius knows the words are only between them. 

It is, Father, he agrees, looking up as the light at the top of the tower pulses brighter, and then looking around at his siblings, who also had their attentions captured by the brilliance above them. 

It is good to see how far he had come, even without the rest of them.

And as they watch Vox Machina step out of the Fortress doors, Vex’ahlia now shining with the radiance of a star as the Dawnfather’s champion, Julius watches Percival’s tread, steadier, his hand still intertwined with hers. While he knows not why their journey to Elysium was necessary, he is glad for it, and the knowledge that Exandria is in good hands.

[ajdsart]

Diamon Queen Mode Name Origin: Diamond + Queen Level: Mega Attribute: Data Type: Machine Field: Metal Empire Prior Form:Titaniomon Next Form: none

Background: Diamon, the proclaimed “Queen of the Machines”.. Is a machine digimon with a mind similar to that of a non-machine. It has evolved to fix its issues of its defenses, it is now fully armored with various alloys of all kinds of Chrome Digizoid. As the “Queen of the Machines”, all machine digimon respects it. When not active it sits within its “Machina Fort” a mobile fortress with firepower and defense that matches itself. It can slide-evolve easily between its two forms; Queen mode and Liberty mode. In Queen mode, Diamon bears the crown that could control any machine digimon. Donning a cloak that displays her absolute rule over its field. Furthermore, the defense rating in this mode is increased 10 times but its mobility is greatly reduced to ground level combat. But it makes up for that with it powerful multi-form weapon; Razrushitel. It has its own “Heart Core” that is connected to hers. Through focused magnetism this weapon is inseparable from Diamon.

Attacks: Razrushitel.Maul – This is the base form. The rocket port behind the hammer can help the hammer be swung at super-sonic speed. Razrushitel.Cannon – The hammer flips to the side of the rocket port and tilts to become a shield from the cannon port. Diamon then holds Razrushitel from the handle behind the cover. In this form Diamon can fire giant waves of super-hot energy blasts. Razrushitel.Sniper – From the Cannon mode, Diamon then attaches the Rezrushitel through an arm and uses it as Sniping Rifle. The shielding flips to the direction away from Diamon's body. In this mode, it can fire super-dense bullets made of Chrome Digizoid. Razrushitel.WarGun – Diamon detaches the gun barrel and rests it behind its back and detaches the hammer equipped forming a hand-held shield. The rest of the Razrushitel is equipped to the other hand as a hand-cannon. Similar to Omnimon’s  Garuru Cannon. In this mode Diamon can fire bombs of energy and bash enemies with electricity charged shield. Heartbreaker – Launches a missile from its heart-shaped missile silo located in its chest, whose power rivals that of Armageddemon’s “Destiny Destroyer”