#triton kin

[aurils-blesstide]

🔮 [ X X X ] [ X 🌌 X ] [ X X X ]🔮

✧･ﾟ:* — STIMBOARD FOR A TRITON MONK [D&D]

Including: Imagery pertaining to opals, sea creatures and the sea.

[justonemorechapternicercy]

Day 1 of @hadesxpercy-events

“Ask me for sanctuary. I’ll protect you.”

Everything was in ruins. After all these years, after all these quests and battles in the name of the gods, they betrayed them. Their children. Their faithful soldiers.

They mercilessly killed all those, who stood up against the god's enemies, who slayed Kronos’ and Gaia’s armies. In the end, Luke had been right.

The younger kids were killed at first; those deaths seemed like accidents. Injuries too severe from the fights against monsters, car crashes, parental abuse… they all seemed - ordinary, for the lack of better word. Normal, for demigods. Then, the Stolls died. People could say anything about them, but they were no idiots. They were taught by Luke, they were battle-hardened and crafty. There was no way a mere boar could defeat them.

Chiron closed off the borders, trusting the gods, who said that there was a great evil working against them - greater than any previous enemy. Dionysus stayed, drinking himself into stupor. But he stayed, even when Zeus called him back to the Olympus. Percy had to admit - in the end, the old drunk was better than any other god.

Annabeth had been staying with her family - Percy was visiting Nico at the Underworld. They didn't hear about the devastation, only after it happened.

Then, the Romans were the next. They had more time to prepare against the gods. Percy was with them; the Huntresses too. Yet, not all gods could be defeated, and in the end, the demigods failed.

They said, the Roman and Greek demigods brought their demise on their heads. They said, it would have always ended like this. It was just the way the world worked.

Not all gods were like that. Triton - not Poseidon. Not that god - had died to protect his, their, baby sister. A baby sister Percy never even knew about, and now, he would have no opportunity to get to know her. Apollo and Artemis were a terrifying duo, but then they disappeared. Nobody knew what happened to them, and their group. They just disappeared.

Hades didn't fight against them either - but he didn't do anything at all. He just closed off the Underworld, not allowing anybody in, nor out. Not Nico, nor Hazel - nobody could leave, no contact was allowed. Percy didn't know what had happened to them.

One would have thought that the demigods, especially with the Roman's strategies and preparedness, could win. But, they didn't count that the other gods outside of the Olympians would join. That they, too, felt threatened by the demigods, they wanted to protect the status quo. With more gods and goddesses - many of whom were once demigods themselves - on one side, and the currently alive demigods and a small handful of gods at their sides, the defeat was unavoidable.

Betrayed by their own kin, they had fallen one by one. Desperation and exhaustion weighted heavily on them, on Percy especially who had been tasked to shield the remaining group, and before he could stop himself, he prayed. Not to anybody - those who could aid him were the ones he was fighting against -, but it was a desperate prayer nonetheless.

“Anyone… anyone who can help me… help…” he sighed. He didn't offer anything, he didn't pray to any of the gods, yet-

From the shadows, a figure emerged, familiar in its danger. He approached Percy with a predatory grace, looking every inch the godliest god Percy had always thought him to be, a smirk playing on his lips.

“Ask me for sanctuary,” Hades’ voice was a silken whisper, dark and seductive, wrapping around Percy like a velvet shroud. “I’ll protect you.”

Trusting a god was always a mistake. Always.

But…

Percy didn't see any other choice. His eyes met with the god's gaze, determination meeting with intensiveness. A shiver ran through his spine, the predator in Hades had always thrilled Percy, ever since the first time he had seen the god. He was afraid of him, but he was attracted to him - a dangerous combination, especially at that time. Trusting a god…

“Why?” He asked, standing tall and proud. If it was only to keep him as a trophy, he'd rather die. His still living brothers and sisters counted on him. He couldn't fail them like he'd failed many.

Hades’ fingers brushed lightly against Percy's cheek, leaving a trail of cold fire in their wake. “Because it's you. Because now you can finally be mine. Because what my siblings are doing is madness.”

“Why didn't you help us?!” he demanded. It would be one thing that the god wanted him - but another that he was against the “cleansing”.

Hades' eyes darkened, his voice hardened. “Don't presume you know everything. If you wish to know, my annoying little nephew and his smarter sister and their group of ducklings accepted the sanctuary. We keep safe those we can. Openly turning against my siblings now would be suicide, but in my domain, I can hold them back. After all, people will always believe in Death. So, come, and you and yours will be safe.”

Percy hesitated. Trusting a god was foolish. But he couldn't help it. He'd always been impulsive; he nodded.

“You must ask for my protection, Perseus. Will you?” A cool finger traced his lips, burning Percy's skin.

“Yes. I'm asking for Hades, the Lord of the Underworld to provide me and my people sanctuary.”

Hades' eyes darkened, a flicker of something possessive appeared in their depths. “Good boy,” he purred, his voice dripping with satisfaction. “You're mine now.”

A shadowy mist swirled around them, and before Percy could assume betrayal, he found himself, and his group of demigod in the familiar halls of the Underworld palace.

“Perseus Jackson,” Hades stepped closer to the young man, tracing a finger down on his spine. “You are bound to me now. In return of keeping you and all of those who need it, safe, I only need you to become mine.”

Percy faced the god, their eyes locking in a heavily charged moment. Ultimately, Hades was a god.

Trusting him might have been a mistake, but-

For now, if the only thing he had to do to save as many demigods as he could, to become the cherished possession of the God of the Underworld, there was nothing he would do more gladly.

And so, Percy did. He surrounded himself to the dark, alluring god, who had offered them safety.

[dailycharacteroption]

Kraken Slayer (Paladin Archetype)

(art by Fran-Hdez on DeviantArt)

I can’t remember how many times I’ve said it, but I don’t get how D&D and Pathfinder did krakens as a concept.

Giant predatory squid that attacks ships? Check.

It’s also a fully intelligent creature and is almost always a tyrant monster that enslaves and rules over smaller aquatic beings, conjures storms to bring trouble to surface mortals, and so on…. Ok? Why??

Intellectually, I understand, D&D needed a giant monstrous threat underwater which could be like a dragon in not just power level but scheming, but they had already made the classic chromatic dragons all terrestrial, leaving only the bronze dragon, a metallic dragon, as the only one of the core 10 that live in the ocean. (Also, they probably were at least a little influenced by Cthulhu, but were not keen to make a tentacled monstrous overlord too close to it while Chaosium’s Call of Cthulhu RPG had the rights to use those monsters directly.)

But the fact that kraken are such powerful and typically evil aquatic monsters alongside the alghollthu means that to the aquatic peoples living below the waves, they fill much the same role in their folklore, as great evils that heroes must arise to slay on occasion.

Enter the kraken slayer, a form of paladin seen among aquatic cultures that seeks to protect others from the depredations of the evil that lurks in the depths, be they krakens, alghollthu, cults of monstrous underwater gods, and so on.

The tradition originated among the tritons, those goodly aquatic folk that originated from the Plane of Water, which does have it’s own kraken problems on occasion. However, it has since spread to other goodly peoples beneath the waves, (and in theory, above the waves as well, assuming that such heroes have a method of consistently surviving and moving freely underwater.)

As is fitting of their focus, these divine warriors alter their smite slightly so that it is aquatic and water-based evils that particularly suffer when they unleash their divine wrath upon them.

They also gain immunity to poison in addition to disease, useful given how many toxic foes there are beneath the waves.

Their divine bonds also vary, with those that bond with their weapons eschewing elemental damage to instead improve their weapon’s performance in water. Meanwhile, those that choose a mount must bond with a creature suitable for the waves, big enough to cling to while it swims, though they thankfully do not limit you on this as long as it makes sense.

Krakens, like their mundane cephalopod kin and many other creatures, use grappling and constriction as weapons, and so their aura blesses them and those nearby with the ability to slip free of grapples with surprising ease.

With no ability to magically grant freedom of movement, this archetype is pretty much exclusive to the aquatic playable ancestries unless you’re willing to invest a lot in magical solutions. That being said, it’s a pretty good way to alter the abilities of a paladin to better serve being underwater. Definitely consider it if you’re playing both an aquatic ancestry and a paladin, and if the campaign takes place at least a considerable bit underwater.

The lore for the archetype states that these warriors must balance hunting the monsters of the deep with protecting their people from them, but I find that’s primarily what the paladin experience is like: remembering that you are a defender of the people first, and not abandon them to chase down the wicked out of bloodlust and zealotry.

The southern part of Malgalos Rainforest opens up into a river delta where the massive mangrove trees rise out of the silt, and the waters run deep indeed in places. Long have the vanara of that region held alliance with the tritons of the deeper water, and a few have even learned a few arts from them, using magic to join them as defenders of the continental shelf, fighting off creatures from darker waters.

Though he dislikes the facility on principal, the kraken slayer Shophis has agreed to attend the grand opening of Balkas the Inscruitable’s underwater palace, which comes complete with a menagerie with simulated environments where monsters from around the world are kept, such as bloodbrush from the Sanaan Desert, and so on. However, Balkas’ underwater jewel has raise the interest of several underwater powers that seek to either destroy it, or worse, claim it for their own.

For generations, the kraken slayer order of the merfolk city of Angilas has only been so in name only, being no krakens sighted in the region for nearly two centuries. However, just because they are not seen does not mean they are not present, and the recent arrival of a group of adventurers may force the hand of the clandestine cephalopod that has been manipulating their society from the shadows.

[wealmostaneckbeard]

D&D World Building

The Continent is split between The Iron Oligarchy, Tribes of the God-Corpse Woods, and The League of Pact-Cities.

The Iron Oligarchy

A dwarven-giant industrial/trade conglomerate. Their territory covers the tallest mountain range in the Continent, Vulkan's Gift, as well as large swaths of the Underdark. Profits are split 50/50 between small and big kin, as the ancient contracts dictate (Which must never be violated lest ruin come to all who signed it). Big Kin are fire, stone, cloud and thunder giants, as well as their Goliath servants. Small kin are Hill, Mountain, and Deep Dwarves as well as Rock/Deep Gnomes. As their name implies, most iron goods sold across the Continent are produced in their forges. The Oligarchy use their wealth to maintain a professional army supported by mercenary auxiliaries. Standard oligarchy army formation consist of one or two giants hurling projectiles over slowly advancing shield-wall fighters commanded by war-priests of Vulkan. Mercenary Goblinoids and Drow provide much needed fast/stealth attack power. Experimental clockwork fighters and (slightly) more reliable Golems are kept in reserve for special occasions. These forces are necessary for the defense of the Oligarchy's forges, mines, and trade convoys against raiders as well as more disturbing threats. Soldiers who have earned many honors might be invited to serve at the Oligarchy's Planar Gate. These honored champions may go on expeditions to the elemental planes of fire and earth where rare materials can be extracted.

Tribes of the God-Corpse Woods

It is said that long ago a deity was killed in a particularly gruesome fashion, it's remains scattered across the Continent. From it's dismembered flesh a great and resilient forest grew up. Tribes of Humans, Orcs, Elves, and Forest Gnomes patrol this forest alongside Ents/Dryads, Lycanthropes, and Fey guardians. While the tribes can unite together against common enemies they are divided by beliefs regarding the future. The Singers of Spring believe that The Deity will be reborn from the earth and bring about a new evergreen age. These followers prosthelytize for the protection of the woods, the benefits of having a connection to nature, and the arts of druidic magic. The Zealots of Summer cite numerous blighted grounds within the forest where the undead rise as evidence that The Great One was undergoing some dark corruption and had to conflagrate itself before it was too late. These followers are militant slayers of evil but are willing to make sacrifices and compromises for the greater good. The Revelers of Fall believe that there is a Coming Pantheon of Gods waiting to be summoned if the right conditions are fulfilled. The Revelers search for mana infused places across The Continent where they perform experimental rituals ... which have been responsible for one demonic outbreak, two separate births of benevolent small gods, and an islet tainted by The Far Realm's influence. The Prophets of Winter believe that the God-Killer is still out there somewhere, sated for now but could be roused to destroy the world if someone does something REALLY foolish. The prophets give orders to assassins to ensure that the only one who knows how to awaken the God-Killer is the soul-scrap of the Nameless Dead God that the prophets secretly commune with. A single Tribe of the God-Woods can have many members of different races and beliefs, making the whole Tribe seem highly unpredictable to outsiders in both combat and diplomacy.

The League of Pact-Cities

This alliance consists of 5 diverse urban centers linked by magical infrastructure and political ties. Serendipity is the nominal capital of the League and home to a large population of Githzerai and Flumphs who draft works of arcane legislation. Kraken's Bane is a half-sunken port kept busy with sustainable fishing/trade (and an occasional monster hunt) that's inhabited by various oceanic races such as Tritons and Sea Elves. Drakkenhope is a holy city for Dragonborn and Kobolds, where priesthoods of Tiamat and Bahamut see to the needs of the masses as well as blessing delvers who search the Ever Shifting Catacombs for dragon eggs to return to the surface for hatching. Recurrent Wing is a flying city filled with Air Genasi, Aasimar, and Aaracrocka residents who work at yards where skyships are built and maintained. The city of Harvestville is (obviously) the bread basket of the Pact, home to Goliaths, Humans, Halflings, and Earth Genasi who work their supernaturally fertile crops year round. The Pact-Cities rely on four tiers of Security Teams to deal with threats of escalating proportions: Beast Control Teams are locals equipped and trained by the Pact to handle outbreaks of hostile creatures. Anti-Brigand Teams take down corrupt officials within city boundaries and criminals that retreat outside them. Combined Arms Teams are highly trained casters and warriors, deployed via magic anywhere deadly precision force is required. Finally, Massive Crisis Teams can fortify locations and prepare citizens quickly for the onset of military invasions or planar incursions. Teams are encouraged to recognize each other's authority, knowing when to step in and help, or step back and ask for help.

[calciumsoda]

OK OK OK OK OK I KNOW I WAS SUPPOSED TO WRITE THIS UP DAYS AGO BUT SHUT UP IM DOING IT NOW

So

As is hopefully obvious from my blog and just the way that i am

I am insane and also a massive D&D, Cosmere, and Wheel of Time nerd.

So of COURSE when you put me in a D&D west marches server I'm going to get way way way too into dming massive absurd plotlines that require 10-15 people to sort out.

This one is currently in the works and I'm so so so excited to run it SO you all get to hear about it because splattering my brain patterns on this hellsite is going to help me organize the plotline as it exists thus far.

Anyone from a discord west marches server with a red and black icon and a setting full of oceans and islands, stop reading now. Spoilers below cut. Also, extremely sorry for long post nobody cares about.

IT ALL BEGINS in a port city full of pirates. The world is mainly oceans, with countless small to medium to small continent sized islands in it, largely disconnected from each other. This is only relevant because the main city the game takes place in is a port city whose trade routes are 100% by ocean and nothing else.

In this lawless pirate city, there are a few noble families, one of which is named the Bearingtons. Several of them happen to be Werebears, and there are differing opinions on whether this happened before or after the name came about.

The Bearingtons have always been... power-hungry. Of course, noble families are rarely particularly well-off in pirate cities of all places, but they've managed inexplicably to maintain some sort of hold on their riches and power (mostly because the majority of the family lives in an isolated manor far away from the actual city). This is, aside from Count Bearington, an estranged cousin to the rest of the family who was cast out over some scandal or another years ago and lived alone (with servants, of course) for years in a slowly-deteriorating manor in the city. The Count was bitter about his disownment from the family, and wished to make things "right" by whatever means possible, beginning to research the means to summon and control devils to bring literal hell upon his family.

Elsewhere, a Triton wizard, having by various less-than-ethical means lived far past the 200 year limit on most tritons' lives by now, is busy making horrific amalgamations of elementals and fiends, creating fiends with the powers of lightning and frost out of those which had before been mere imps. They are also, out of desperation to extend their life a little longer to see their work complete, investigating means to become a Lich using elemental souls rather than human ones. However, for the time being, they have made the phylactery... and are unsure how to activate it, as they are too busy trying to stop their monstrosities from killing more travellers on the roads past their tower. Eventually, the city proper catches wind of these murders and foul experiments, and a party is dispatched to kill the wizard and their experiments.

The Wizard is killed, their body rapidly aging upon their death as the magic that had kept body and soul youthful drains... into the phylactery, inescapably dragging their soul into the trap they made themself. After several weeks, they manage to gain some small measure of control over the base elements surrounding their corpse, and successfully create a rudimentary, part-elemental part-undead body to make their way to the city and find a cleric to end their existence. The hells themselves would be better than this...

In the city, they hear tell of another who works to summon devils. The Lich goes to the place rumours speak of, and finds Count Bearington's manor, entering and desperately trying to convince him not to do this. The Lich does not realize that, by now, the Count has already met with several fiends and promised them his family's estate, hells, even the whole *city* if they will help him to get his revenge on his kin.

The Count convinces the Lich that, should they help with a ritual to summon a stronger devil, and bind it to his bidding, then he will aid the Lich in finding some way to destroy the phylactery. The Lich agrees, desperate to be free of this prison before their mind rots entirely, and pours immense magic into a circle in the basement of the Count's manor, succeeding in summoning stronger fiends than before. The Lich, however, does not realize just how much they've put into it, nor the effects that will have... and, shortly after the Lich is given directions to a cleric who owes the Count a favour and leaves, the circle begins to expand, transforming from a mere summoning circle to a planar gateway to the Hells, beginning to corrupt the earth around it and blur the line between the Material and the Hells...

Days later, the Count is found dead, disemboweled and impaled on the steel gates bordering his manor. Investigation inside the manor finds powerful fiends within, tearing the place apart and eating his few remaining servants, but does not locate the hidden trapdoor that hides the true measure of the disaster about to unfold. Devils are not mindless brutes, however... they have waited millenia for the opportunity to wage war through such a portal, but one small entryway in the middle of a city would be impossible to maintain a full scale assault through.

The devils, however, have other tricks in mind. The seas all around the city are home to thousands - tens, hundreds of thousands - of evil sea-dwelling lifeforms, largely Sahuagin and Merrow, who are eager for a chance to slaugher the pirates of the city who so often deny them the treasures carried on their ships. The devils approach these sahuagin, making deals with them - promising great power, the power to wipe this city from the surface and drag its treasures and residents below the waves for themselves. The sahuagin are more than happy to oblige to the devils' demands, and begin amassing an army...

The devils do not rely on sea creatures alone, of course. Others are sent to meet with humanoids both within the city and without; deals are struck between powerful fiends and the leaders of several of the most powerful bandit groups in the city and its surrounding isles, promising each that they would be granted their wildest desires, if they only carried out a few important missions... destroy a temple here, burn a small sacred clearing there, weaken the influence of the gods such that the fiends might meet no resistance when they arrive in force to raze the island in flames and turn it into a tenth Hell, as they were promised by the Count.

Other fiends - a shape-shifting Succubus, mainly - return to terrorize the Bearington estate, attempting to kill the Emperor of the nearby sea elves to weaken any support that might come from other ocean races against the Sahuagin. Word slips out that the other Bearingtons may be in trouble, however, and a group of adventurers manages to save the Emperor, if not the Lady Bearington who was killed and replaced by the succubus to get close enough to him.

Another party is summoned by the frantic messages of a minor deity of nature, pleading for their aid in preventing the destruction of her ancient, forgotten temple, and they find an "archaeological" group (read: bandits in disguise) preparing to destroy the religious symbols within and claim the building as their own, an operation which only their leaders know is ordered by a devil in exchange for magical weapons and control over any who come too close to this temple. The first group of bandits is cleared out by these adventurers, but more are quite possibly on the way, as the deity of the temple personally thanks them for their aid and asks that they call on her whenever they require hers in return. One party member begins worshipping this deity, becoming her one and only priest (in a setting where having temples + priests dedicated to you is how you become and remain a god, this is wildly important to the deity, who would have outright died if the temple were destroyed).

Elsewhere, dragons are stirred from the homes they have held for centuries, and begin claiming new territory, forcing younger, weaker dragons to migrate towards this island due to its lack of major draconic presence. A pair of injured Sapphire dragons are driven from home after home, eventually finding refuge with the deity in the woods, but they are nearly overrun by further bandits, not even able to spare the energy to send a message to those who had helped previously with clearing them out...

And this is where the quest begins. Sahuagin and worse are assaulting the ports and any ships that try to enter or leave the city; multiple instances of intelligent and dangerous fiends have been spotted in various parts of the city, and a portal to the hells themselves discovered in the manor's lower floors; and bandits swarm the roads and holy places outside of the city, defacing and destroying important locations, all while a lone, desperate Lich-thing tries to right the wrongs they caused by recruiting any aid they can, disguising however they can to avoid this body being killed and their soul abandoned to the Phylactery once more.

There will be 1 party of adventurers sent to handle each of these major issues, the final total of players being between 10 and 15, with all 3 storylines converging into one at the end, as the players must either convince each side being manipulated by the devils to turn against them, or face an army of unimaginable proportions with the aid of whatever pirates the city can provide.

Anyway im fucking vibrating in excitement for when i get to run this quest i wanna run it so so so so so bad but i have more encounters to do before it starts. And i need to nail down more details. But. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

[mommy-medusa]

All of a sudden, the grove lit up in a flash of golden light. Apollo was standing there, a look of panic on his face.

“You’re needed on Olympos,” he said to Artemis, his expression grave. “It’s Athena.”

No other words were spoken as the twins both vanished from the grove, leaving Teddi and the other huntresses behind in confusion.

It wasn’t until much later that they returned, when the sun had already left the sky. The huntresses were already tucked up in their burrows, and the grove was near silent.

“I swear, at this point, he’s doing this just to spite her,” Artemis said, her voice the growl of a bear in the dead of night.

Smiling ruefully at her side, Apollo said, “No, yeah, that is exactly what he’s doing. A few months back, she finally came outside again, and he loudly made some snide comment that had her turning around and marching right back inside before she even left her courtyard.” He took a moment to try and smooth out his chiton, which was torn up around the edges and looked slightly singed. Artemis’ clothing was the same. Both twins smelled strongly of lightning, too.

When Apollo failed to fix his clothes, he dropped his hands and sighed. “I just can’t believe he brought up Pallas.”

Artemis nodded with a grimace. “And what he said about her maidenhood?” Deep disgust flashed across her features, and Apollo set a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“We should have let her maul him,” Artemis said mournfully.

“Agreed,” Apollo said.

The twins shared a moment of silence before Apollo took a step back. “Well. I better go check on the damage done. See if I can treat ‘Thena’s burns before she goes back into hibernation. And if she’s already in her sadness coma, then I’ll just do it while she’s asleep. If anything, it’s easier that way.”

“Need any help?” Artemis asked.

Apollo shook his head, waving a dismissive hand. “No, I’ve got her. Hera already offered to aid me.”

Artemis’ eyebrows raised in surprise. “Look at you two.”

“I know right? We shall bond over our mutual concern for the owlet.” He smiled softly. “Goodnight, my starry night.”

“Goodnight, my sunny day. If you need me, call upon me again.”

“I will.”

After bumping his forehead with Artemis’, Apollo disappeared in a flash of light.

The moment he was gone, Artemis released a large sigh. She rubbed a tired hand over her face sluggishly.

“You can come out now,” she said. “I know you’re listening.”

Teddi’s head, along with several others, popped out of the hollows in the great tree. Artemis turned to all of them, smiling slightly.

“I can’t possibly blame any of you,” she said. “Is there anything more interesting than the divine drama of the gods? I’m afraid that’s all for tonight, though.”

The audience mostly dispersed, but Teddi climbed down from her hollow to confront Artemis.

“You were talking of Athena?” she asked.

“Indeed,” Artemis answered.

“Is she…alright?”

To that, Artemis hesitated. Then, she beckoned Teddi to follow her away from the prying ears of the huntresses, and Teddi did. Chrysaor flapped after them, while Pegasus remained soundly asleep.

“I don’t know how to answer that, but my best guess is no, she is not alright,” Artemis finally said. “She has not been close to ‘alright’ in quite some time. I haven’t seen her this distraught since Pallas died.”

“Pallas?” Teddi tilted her head.

“Oh, you don’t know? Then again, I’m not surprised that it’s been buried in obscurity. It’s a rather tragic tale,” Artemis said. “Pallas was the daughter of Triton, who was the son of Poseidon, and was Athena’s greatest and closest friend. Those two were like Apollo and I—they practically kin. The Athena with Pallas was much different than the Athena we have now. She was less stressed, less stoic, less—and I mean this in the nicest way possible—uptight. But she was also still very young, even when she was born fully grown. By all accounts, she was a child—or as close to a child she could be considering, again, she was born a fully grown adult. She was an owlet, if you will, as Apollo and I affectionately refer to her as.” She paused for just a moment. “Ah. Do not— do not call her that to her face. She will probably smite you. But Pallas was her childhood friend.” She then laughed as she seemed to recall something. “She couldn’t walk when she was first born.”

“What?” Teddi said.

“You didn’t hear this from me,” Artemis said, “But after springing out from Zeus’ head, donned in full war gear and wielding a spear, she took a long look at all the gods gathered around her, very regal and mature, took one step forward, and WHOMP, fell flat on her face.”

Teddi couldn’t contain her giggles. “Really?”

Laughing, too, Artemis said, “Really! Just picture a baby horse trying to walk for the first time- that was Athena for at least an hour after she was born. Apparently, the heads of baby owls are too heavy for them to hold up, so, naturally, Ares, Apollo, and I kept making jokes about that. All that wisdom was just too heavy for Athena.” She tapped her temple with a chuckle.

“Wait,” Teddi said. “You were around when Athena was born?”

Artemis gave her a confused look. “Yes?”

“Oh,” Teddi said. “I always assumed that—”

“She was the oldest?” Artemis finished, and Teddi nodded. She chuckled again. “I don’t blame you for thinking that. She certainly asserts herself like she is the eldest of our kin. But no, she isn’t. The little owl is actually the third youngest out of the main lot of us, if you will believe it. She’s only older than Hermes and Dionysus. You have no idea how many ‘I cannot believe you are all older than me’ comments I have had to endure from her.” She then waved a hand. “But I’m getting off topic! Back to the matter at hand, Pallas was Athena’s greatest friend, and the two of them were trained in combat by Triton. They were raised beside each other, as close as sisters. And then, without warning, tragedy struck. Pallas was killed at Athena’s hand in an accident during an athletics festival. Stabbed through the stomach with a spear. Athena remained on this beach for several days until Hestia and Demeter, our aunts, came to retrieve her, and they found the same spear impaled through her stomach, like she had tried to make away with herself. When she was brought back to Olympos by the two of them, her gut gouged open and spilling ichor everywhere, Zeus just— he just sneered at her. As though he was more concerned with the pavilion getting dirty from her gore rather than his own daughter being badly injured. And he said, where everyone could hear, that she was acting like a child. He humiliated her. And I suppose Athena took his words to heart because, after she had recovered, she was different. Steely, jaded, calm. Whatever playfulness she had was now locked up somewhere inside of her. And Zeus was so pleased. He now had the perfect dog to lick all over his boots. I’m sure you’ve heard that Athena is his favorite out of all his kids?” When Teddi nodded, Artemis went on, “I do not envy Athena’s status. I would rather live in the shadows than stand in the light if it’s Zeus who casts such a glow. And yet, somehow, with Zeus’ spotlight constantly shining down on her, she’s become a shadow herself. She is constantly thinking, planning, scheming. All of us are, in some way, but she is the only one who acts on it. She is the only one who is constantly at work. She is the only one who takes the consequences. She barely ever stops to rest, and there are times where I don’t see her for an entire year because she’s rushing around all of Greece, aiding mortals in any way she can. And that’s—” She sighed, rubbing her forehead with two fingers, and Teddi could tell this was something she had discussed several times before. “That’s fine. Really, it is. If she finds joy in helping mortals, then who am I to tell her that it’s wrong? The thing is, I don’t think it brings her joy. Not exactly. Maybe it does, sometimes, but I feel like it’s just a way to make ends meet. A way to distract herself. Or maybe it’s just her feeling the constant pressure put upon her by Zeus, so she’s desperately scrambling to try and claw her way up to his unreasonably high expectations for her. She hardly trusts anyone at all, doesn’t talk about her problems, doesn’t even have her mother to turn to because Zeus ate her! Medusa was the first time since Pallas that Athena well and truly settled down enough to make a relationship with someone, and that was taken from her. She’s alone, and that is not a good place to be when you’re immortal and live forever.”

“Because of how lonely it can get?” Teddi said.

“Precisely,” Artemis confirmed. “The novelty wears off after a few decades—and that’s usually before you even reach the centuries. Why do you think I make it to where my huntresses don’t age or can’t die from natural causes? It’s a vain attempt to keep other people around. Because, after they die, there’s a good chance that I will never see them again. And when I saw what Pallas’ death did to Athena, I was afraid of going through the same grief. Unfortunately, not even my divine protections can stop whatever the Fates have in store for my pack. If they are meant to die, then there is nothing I can do about it.”

Chrysaor lifted his snout to nuzzle his nose against one of Artemis’ hands, and Artemis smiled softly, giving him a pat on the head.

“But at least I have them,” Artemis went on. “Athena… Athena doesn’t really have anyone. However…” She crossed her arms firmly over her chest. “I suspect this goes deeper than even Medusa and Pallas.”

“What do you mean?” Teddi questioned, tilting her head.

“Athena has always been walking over hot coals,” Artemis said. “As the years went by, she became more and more frustrated with everything, but especially Zeus. Never had the courage to actually make a stand against him. Until the day Medusa died, of course. I wasn’t present for the battle, but Apollo told me it was terribly destructive. Lightning, fire, ichor spraying everywhere. And after it was over, she went into this ‘dormant mode.’ I think she finally realized the futility of it all. She had spent so long bowing beneath a man who could care less about her, and everyone she has loved has died brutally, so she just…stopped. Now, she just exists in this state of nothingness. And she’s so scared, I think.” She shook her head. “We gods are not good people, Teddi. That much you must understand about us. None of us are good.” She paused. “Well— slight addendum to that, Hestia is good. I don’t think she’s ever done anything bad in her entire life. But aside from her, none of us are good. Our morality is entirely ambiguous and constantly fluctuating, and we only act civil because we choose to, not because we have to. I’m not going to act like I’m innocent. I’ve done terrible things that I am not proud of, and there are even more terrible things that I am proud of. But Athena… Athena, at the very least, tries. She tries to be good. If there is anyone who does not deserve this cruel hand that has been dealt, it is most certainly her. I just hope that, one day, she will learn to forgive herself.”

[chimerical-waters]

Wait, you're the last Triton?? What happened?

"This was a long time ago, mind you. It's...hard to remember. I've searched for more of my kind but most of what I know is from recovered artifacts and texts I've found in the ruins along the seabed. Some of it feels right but others, I'm not sure. Trying to force myself to remember doesn't work, it just gives me a headache. ...But I've never found any trace of any of my kin. Only ruins and bones older than anything on the surface. They wouldn't have just abandoned everything... Whatever did happen, as far as I know...I'm the last."

[nothymetospeak]

Luke Triton is the kin

[funkyfunkyyeet]

and a poor little boy who predicts where the giant spectre will appear...

[citizenoftmrrwlnd]

fashion for : luke triton (professor layton) with cute, academia-inspired clothes that are fit for summer without glasses, beanies, or masks

shirt | cardigan | shorts | shoes

suspenders | t-shirt | hat | socks

[kin-forest]

Luke Triton (Professor Layton) Stimboard for @fluffveebee with typewriters, stuffed animals, and plants!! I hope you like this luke I care you so bad - Mod Kris

x x x / x x x / x x x

[kinsonas]

★ Luke Triton★

academia ; gardening / plants ; small animals

[fairytalefragments]

🏳️‍🌈 HEADCANONS FOR PRIDE MONTH 🏳️‍🌈

↳ DAY 22 ; PROFESSOR LAYTON

Bi Ace Hershel Layton - Trans Bi Claire Foley - Trans Luke Triton - Trans Flora Reinhold - Lesbian Emmy Altava - Agender Aurora -Gay Randall Ascot - Pan Katrielle Layton - Ace Lesbian Emiliana Perfetti

[pl-ship-confessions]

luke is bisexual and nothing and nobody can convince me otherwise

A lesbian with her asexual father and bisexual uncle <3 

[servingcocoa]

Genderfluid and asexual Luke Triton icons

[kincalling]

hello!! i'm luke triton from the professor layton series! looking for any sourcemates, doubles included (let's start an army, other lukes /j). i'm currently in the middle of playing diabolical box as i type this and haven't yet played past that but i know enough from tumblr and reading the wiki, as i got impatient. i'm 16 and would prefer no one younger than 15 responds! you can find me at @anxiousapprentice ! :]

🐛