wolfgirlfloof

[wolfgirlfloof]

A Kazdelian Rescue and Furnace-side Fables aren't out on Global yet, so I don't know quite how it continues and ends, but there's something really fascinating about how the actions of Dublinn and the Military Commission, Nezzsalem specifically, parallel each other.

Before getting into the themes, it's first just spectacular, the visuals of it and of a lot of the fighting around Silverrock Bluffs, between Dublinn and the Nachrezer you have like these two 'Evil' (visually, if (debatably) not morally) armies squaring off against each other, you've got super flame necromancy and shadow operatives versus floating sword wielding regenerating mummies commanded by the King on his Deadwood Throne, and then zoom the camera back some, across the entire Victorian front, you've got artillery bombardments and tank brigades squaring off against things like mobile witchcraft altars and death devouring immortal 'devils', while in the sky above, a massive reanimated flying dead-whale-skeleton performs boarding actions against a state of the art but-also-ghost-controlled combat airship. Chapter 14 very much makes the point that 'war is hell' (understatement) but. god. if it doesn't look cool as hell too.

But anyway! The Duke of Wellington! and Nezzsalem! Both rather equally meeting their match in each other, both quite literally described as feeding off of death, the end of Chapter 13 describing the Iron Duke as already having an Ursus Tsar, Herkunftshorn 'the Witch King', and Fantasy Napoleon in his 'belly'. And meanwhile you have Nezzsalem literally feeding off death, powering his soldiers, powering his witchcraft, healing his wounds, as he also has raised and tutored some of the strongest warriors Kazdel has ever known, the likes of Patriot, Theresa, and Theresis. Wellington vs Nezzsalem, very much a match made in Hell.

But Nezzsalem actually ends up being a little off base in his assessment of Wellington, thinking that he desires war for war's own sake. "The Victorians zealously chase after the phantom of victory while never understanding why we crave war in the first place." Because while Wellington is very much into that, war and conflict itself, Eblana herself sees the fire burning in his eyes, Wellington does also know when to pull back, which is also what Nezzsalem does at the end. Wellington lets the other ducal forces go into the meat grinder, then points his guns at the other Dukes as he unfurls the banner of Tara. They have to listen to him, and the upcoming nation of Tara, now.

Which is also what Nezzsalem says at the end. "From death comes new life" (fitting with him and the Nachrezer's tree and plant theming). Like Wellington and Dublinn, this war will also serve to bring new life to the Sarkaz and Kazdel. It very much did not end in a decisive Sarkaz victory or the like, but the long oppressed and scorned Sarkaz managed to bloody the nose of one of Terra's most powerful empires, and return home, not with their tails between their legs, but in a tactical retreat, and now in possession of hypothetical Weapons of Mass Destruction. The military victory that Theresis has wrought (while Theresa delivers a 'spiritual' victory for the Sarkaz over 'fate') is to ensure that there will never again be an omni-nation crusade against the Sarkaz race, never again will Kazdel fall, because now all nations will have witnessed the power of a unified Kazdel, and no nation should be willing to take that risk of going up against the Sarkaz again, with what Kazdel is now capable of. This is why Nezzsalem also says that, at the end, that he is 'sated' (paralleling the belly and hunger speak also used about Wellington), this war against Victoria had a purpose, and that purpose has been seemingly achieved, both in the strengthening of the Sarkaz's geopolitical position and in Theresa's victory over 'fate' and the release of the myriad souls.

You can very much see here that both Wellington+Tara, and Theresis+Kazdel, are practicing very similar forms of gunboat diplomacy, leveraging their partial military successes in order to exert power over the other nations of Terra and strengthen their long-oppressed yet budding nations.

This ties in with something really interesting that Hoederer said in Chapter 13, that this Londinium Crisis can't end simply end with Theresis' death, as W plainly wants, because that would just show to the world something along the lines of: "Sarkaz rabble banded together to attack Victoria but killed their own leader and fell to internal conflict, as the Sarkaz always do", and this weakness would invite retribution not only against the nation-city of Kazdel, but against Sarkaz populations across the globe. As much as Hoederer, and even W, want this war to end, it can't end on those terms, and it actually needs to end in a Sarkaz victory in order for Kazdel to survive; even Manfred, high ranking Military Commission man that he is, views the Lifebone project he (basically) helmed as a tool for the Sarkaz to return home, rather than merely a weapon of war.

(I haven't fully parsed out what exactly is going on now between Reed and Eblana, but I can't help but think it might be something similar, that neither could (even if they wanted to) dispose of the other because in doing so, it would invite other powers to weaken or fully discredit the Taran cause as a whole, if their just seen as another rebel force fighting among themselves.)

Anyway, Theresis might be one of the most talented military minds of our generation.

[wolfgirlfloof]

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radian & pith

[wolfgirlfloof]

“We decided to set up some recreational sports facilities for team building because as you know, several of our personnel want to Straight Up Murder each other”

[wolfgirlfloof]

w-whoa! who's this cool cat...?

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cc14

[wolfgirlfloof]

Kafka & Snowsant MC | #3

Cobblestone generator successfully made!

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cider

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after a bath, dont forget to also clean your sword

[wolfgirlfloof]

Paprika is adorable and I love that you can tell she’s wearing a knit shawl, headband, the sleeve on her left arm, and her bright red pouch at her hip

we know her Nana made her shawl, and I’d guess probably her headband, too based on the neatness of the pattern. she tells us herself in one of her voice lines she made her pouch, so I’m gonna say she made her sleeve, possibly as a way to test out or practice color work

anyway I love how much detail about a character you can get from just the default base art. for Paprika’s E2, they use something like an openwork knit shawl which I think is an interesting way to represent her chain heal

[wolfgirlfloof]

Yep! This comes up early on when she’s harassing RI and proceeds to get curb stomped by Kal and Red, if I remember right her originium infection is in the mouth/throat and she breathes out the mist when using her arts

Which is Sick As Fuck

Also I’m happy to see she got a mask upgrade that is ~~hot~~ pretty stylish AND seems to have vents built in on the sides to better control and facilitate her arts

So it is in fact a muzzle tailor made for use with her arts!

[wolfgirlfloof]

MA'AM IS THE HIP WIGGLE TACTICALLY NECESSARY

[wolfgirlfloof]

theresa if she were big boss in mgs

this is a metal gear solid reference