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bouwrites · 2 years ago

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Those Warm and Halcyon Days: Chapter 77

God-Shattering Star

Ao3.

First, Previous, Next.

Story under read-more.

Two dragons, one small, then one large, come streaking out of the hole to Shambhala. Veery stands helplessly in awe as they attack the javelins of light in mid-air, forcing them to explode far above the people they’re targeting.

For a horrible moment, Veery thinks that they’re saved. Seiros, the Immaculate One, Rhea, whatever she wants to be called like this, cuts through the javelins with the destructive beam of her dragon breath. Marianne, like a hummingbird flitting around Seiros, destroys almost as many.

Seiros roars in pain as an explosion washes over her. Another javelin strikes her dead in the side. Veery feels as if the javelin has struck him, knocking all the breath from his lungs.

Seiros falls. She plummets to the earth, through the hole to Shambhala below.

The roar Marianne releases sounds almost more like one of Veery’s pitiful meows than the call of a mighty dragon. The earth shakes as one more javelin of light strikes true. Heat from the explosion washes over Veery, staggering and singing him.

This is no distant affair like when he watches the javelins fall on Fort Merceus. This is like Ragnarök in Brigid. It is not without but encompassing.

Marianne cannot defend against so many javelins, but if they strike true, Veery and all the rest of the Deer, the Lions, even Linhardt and Dorothea, everyone Veery still loves from his time at the monastery, will die.

Every connection Veery has will die along with him.

Without thinking, Veery throws the books in his hands towards Hoarvug and leaps forward, shifting and igniting his Crest’s power, all the power he’s gained from Sothis and Badb and everything coming purely from him.

He roars his intentions to Marianne. She banks through the air to fire another beam of dragon breath at another javelin, then roars back in agreement.

And Veery unleashes everything. All his power, all that makes him divine, he throws it violently outwards and flash-freezes it. Over the expanse of Shambhala, to protect the entire breadth of the city, Veery tears the air itself to drag it into a squall.

The sky darkens, ice and snow grow so thick in the air that sunlight no longer pierces it. The wild lashing of the wind along with the sleet and hail batter all who stand witness. Flashes of lightning and muted explosions both pierce the darkness only to be snuffed out by yet more howling wind and ice.

Winter envelops them all. And within it, a lone, darting bird navigates the thundersnow. Veery can see. He doesn’t know exactly how, only that it has to do with the magic and the fact this this is his domain as much as hers, but he can see every disturbance within it.

Below, humans take shelter. They do not, cannot, comprehend what they witness. Most simply hide, but some flee. The air shifts to accommodate people who were not there before, and fills in space where they once were. Above, the storm-raven, Marianne, seeks out every last javelin to snuff out their light. Veery can see the javelins, too, and nudges Marianne in the right direction, guiding the wind to assist her, ensuring that in the twisting squall she only ever faces a tailwind. He can even see lightning and hail strike at the javelins, setting them off without Marianne’s intervention.

Veery can see now what Caub means when he describes the imposing figure obscured by storm, shown only by flashes of lightning. That is all anyone below sees as Marianne carries out her task. Flashes of a silhouette, framed by explosions and lightning, swimming through the thundersnow like she’s born in it.

If Veery were not concentrating so intently on assisting her, he would take the sight in with awe.

After what feels like hours, but must be only minutes at most, Veery senses no more javelins of light. He releases his hold on the storm, stumbling when, all at once, the backlash of such overuse of power hits him.

He stumbles, but he doesn’t fall. Even he doesn’t realize until this very moment just how powerful he’s become. This storm, with fine detail control within it, sensing everything within it… the magic that requires is easily equal to or greater than Celica’s Ragnarok, which was only possible in the first place because of the extraordinary saturation of magical power in the environment.

This all comes from Veery. And it doesn’t even knock him out. He’s weak, certainly, and a bit shaky. The onset of magical exhaustion has come and passed, but he’s not completely out of strength.

Absolutely absurd. No wonder he’s going mad.

With nothing holding or feeding them, the clouds break apart. The winds calm. Sunlight pierces through once more, reflecting off the remaining ice hanging around them in a brilliant rainbow. And from up in that rainbow, Marianne slowly descends.

She lands, shifts back, and stumbles into Veery’s arms. “You did it, Marianne,” Veery breathes into her ear even as he begins using the last dredges of his magic to check her over for injury. She’s as exhausted as he is – that dragon breath is magical, after all – and she has a few bad burns from getting too close to the explosions, but nothing as bad as what Veery imagines Seiros has from taking direct hits from them. “They’re safe.” Marianne releases an odd, quiet whimper, so Veery holds her tighter and allows his hands to wander to address what injuries he can reach. “Hilda’s safe. They’re all safe. You did it.”

“Is…” Marianne croaks, “Is Lady Rhea… Is Teach…?”

Veery can’t answer her because he honestly does not know. Everyone should still be down in Shambhala right now. Seiros falls back down there. And what Veery is able to sense in his summoned thundersnow is only presences, disturbances in the flow of the air, not precise individuals.

So, instead of answering her question, he cups the back of her head. “You’ve done enough, Marianne,” he says, playing with just a little magic at his fingertips. He recalls, distantly, Sothis doing this to him long ago. “Rest now. I’ll grant you pleasant dreams.”

Weakly, she nods against his shoulder, but even that strength leaves her in short order. She falls limp, fast asleep, in Veery’s arms. Very carefully, he lays her down and sighs. Gods, he’s tired.

Two bulky, furry masses encroach on Veery and Marianne, circling them protectively and pressing against them, providing warmth against the still-chilled air. It takes all Veery has not to just lean back and fall asleep against the body behind him, but he sees Claude’s beautiful white wyvern appear and dive through the hole in the earth and knows that he isn’t done just yet.

It’s no time at all before the wyvern comes back out. Claude, on its back, is battered, tired, and bleeding, but alive and in no dire strait. Veery releases a tension he wasn’t even aware of, seeing Claude again.

“Veery!” Claude shouts. “How did you all get up here?” He jumps off his wyvern’s back, already halfway to them. “Never mind, we can talk about that after. How’s Marianne?”

Veery smiles up at Claude from his little nest between Hoarvug and Sadi. “She’s exhausted, magically and physically. Probably emotionally, too. But otherwise, her injuries are minor. She never got hit by those javelins of light like Rhea did.”

Hearing this, Claude nearly collapses into their pile himself. “Thank the gods,” he breathes. “Rhea’s still down there in Agartha. She’s in bad shape – we’re afraid to move her. Half of us are already trying to dig our way back out. The other half are staying with Rhea to make sure no surviving Agarthans decide to try something.” He shakes his head. “Wish I brought my wyvern corp. They could help fly us all out. As it is, it’s just Seteth and me, and Seteth isn’t leaving Rhea anytime soon and his wyvern doesn’t listen to me.” Another sharp shake of the head. “Anyway, how did you get up here? The exit caved in. Everyone’s trapped down there.”

Veery remembers the people he senses who leave Shambhala the same way he does, knowing that they are either hidden nearby or fleeing already. In answer to Claude, Veery says, “I got the information you wanted.”

Something about his tone must imply what he’s done, because Claude grits his teeth and ducks his head. “I won’t ask how,” he says simply.

It’s probably for the best that he doesn’t. Especially since the man who gives Veery the information isn’t even the same one he tortures. Veery will let Claude assume that Asura is the only one Veery finds. “A man named Asura,” Veery says. “He told me briefly about the structure of Agartha. That,” Veery nods to the hole in the earth, “is Area Seventeen, Shambhala.”

“Seventeen?” Claude whimpers. “There are seventeen of them?”

“No,” Veery says. “Only two. The rest are already destroyed or abandoned.”

“You’re going to be the death of me, Veery. Lead with that next time, will you?” Claude sighs. “So, where’s this second Agarthan base?” Veery worries his lip, eyeing Claude carefully. In the end, it’s Asura that gets Veery out of that cave. He gives Veery the chance to run before even turning to rescue his own students. If Veery were trapped in Shambhala and not out here to witness events, there’s a good chance Marianne’s defense would not have turned out as well as it did, too. Shambhala itself might be destroyed, yes, but also everyone inside it including most of the Resistance generals, a good part of their elite army, and all of Veery’s closest friends.

Even if it’s mostly coincidence – he doubts Asura suspects Veery is powerful enough to defend against the javelins of light even through aiding a dragon – Asura is still the reason any of them are still standing. “It can wait,” Veery says. Cutting off whatever Claude may say in response, he adds, “You’ll hear everything in the full report, but I need time to sort through some of the things I found.”

Claude eyes him curiously but nods his acceptance even before Veery decides to show him the two books and understanding replaces his blind trust.

Veery still isn’t telling him everything, and he suspects Claude knows that, but Claude is trusting him to do what he thinks is right.

Veery is surprised that, even if he would normally, Claude would trust him with something like this now that he knows of the Degradation. There’s a warmth in his chest at the thought, but also a sharp twinge.

Strange feeling in his chest, Veery tests the waters. “Asura Warped us out of Shambhala when the first javelin hit.”

Claude’s eyes go wide. “An Agarthan did?”

Veery stares him down equally challenging, nervous, and curious. Claude just searches his face for a long moment and shakes his head. “I wonder… well, I’m sure everything will make sense when you’re ready to give your report. In the meantime, what can you tell me about what happened up here? I saw Rhea and Marianne fly out to intercept those javelins of light but… then everything went dark and cold. It’s still freezing out here. I don’t think that was Marianne’s power.”

Claude isn’t at all accusatory, but it’s clear from his pointed look that he knows the storm is Veery’s doing.

“No,” Veery admits. “That was me. Marianne couldn’t have stopped all those javelins of light on her own. After Rhea fell…” He sighs. “The lightning and hail took out almost as many as she did, and I controlled the wind to help her flight. The cold… I think that’s just a side-effect of it being me.”

Claude chuckles incredulously, holding his head in his hand. “You know, Lysithea said that was the largest show of magical power she’s ever seen. Even over some divine spell in Brigid. How are you still awake?”

“Barely.”

“You really are… You know, every time I remind myself that you’re just my scaredy-cat friend I met all those years ago, you go and do something so damn divine.” He huffs. “Get some sleep, Veery. It’ll be a while before we manage to evacuate… Shambhala, you said it’s called?” Claude smiles and ruffles Veery’s hair. “Good job. And I know I don’t need to thank you for looking out for Marianne but… thanks. I’m always worrying about her. I thought now that she’s a dragon I’d have less to worry about but obviously it’s only gotten worse.”

Veery giggles, knowing Claude is only trying to ease him with humor, and follows orders. He snuggles back against Sadi and slips straight to sleep.

---

Veery wakes slowly, gently, reluctantly, and half-heartedly curls into the warmth of the fur and sunlight blanketing him rather than open his eyes.

Even sleepy and only just awakening, he takes in Sadi, Hoarvug, and Marianne’s presences with a smile. Hilda at some point joins their muddle, splayed out mostly on top of Veery and Sadi, probably to avoid squishing Marianne, though her arm and her head hang over Veery into Marianne’s space.

It’s surprising her arrival doesn’t wake Veery, honestly, if only briefly. That show of power to destroy the javelins of light must exhaust him more than he first thinks.

Sadi’s tongue on his head proves that she’s not similarly asleep, and Veery doubts Hoarvug is, either. This isn’t a secure enough location to nap so easily. Still, though he’s not shifted he leans into the pressure, enjoying for a moment the feeling of being groomed like this. When he does finally lift his head, owing to the increasing volume of the argument a short distance away, Sadi gives him a bemused look and a few more swipes with her tongue before carefully reaching over to grab Hilda’s collar in her teeth and pull the girl gently off of Veery.

That’s as good as ordering him to get up already. Fine, then. If he really has no other choice. He may as well deal with the conflict which wakes him in the first place.

“-nemies of the goddess!” Catherine shouts.

“They’re people!” Holst, of all people, shouts back. “The Almyrans were enemies of Fódlan, too, are you planning to slaughter them once this war is over?”

The surprisingly large force of Almyran soldiers behind Holst Goneril mutter their disquiet in their own tongue, glaring at Catherine and her loyalist knights.

“The Almyrans have made peace with us. We’re no longer enemies.”

“And the Agarthans have surrendered! They’re no longer enemies, either. By the Flames, woman, most of these people aren’t even soldiers! Look at them!”

Veery looks, seeing a dense mass of dark robes and pale skin and fearful expressions. Many of those eyes watch not the argument in front of them, but Veery. Almost ubiquitous, save for the odd defiant resistance, is the terror in their faces.

Carefully, Veery scans the crowd for faces he recognizes, then scents for the same. Asura is not present, and though Veery spots children and teenagers in the crowd, he doesn’t recognize any of them from his brief encounter with the group in the school. So, they most likely got away. Veery hopes they’re going to Beyul. Assuming all the information he’s given is accurate, it may help if Beyul expects him.

Of course, if that information is false, then Beyul expecting him will be a bad thing.

But Holst is right. The vast majority of the Agarthans he sees are, at a glance, civilians. Veery thinks back to that child’s letter he finds and wonders if that means anything for Shambhala. He’d gotten the impression that all adults are drafted into the war.

Then again, someone has to take care of the city itself. Even if they’re military in name, they likely have never even seen the sunlight before (and indeed, a great number of the Agarthans are standing, dazzled and stunned, by the sun above them – someone should tell them not to look directly at it) much less actually fought up here.

Aside from the Agarthans, it’s the Almyrans which notice Veery first. One of them touches Holst’s shoulder and gestures towards him and, seemingly forgetting that Veery’s ears are better than a human’s and he can hear them from here, says, “The patchwork god approaches. Perhaps his judgement can settle this?”

The patchwork god? Veery hasn’t heard that the Almyrans have given him their own titles, but though it’s still ridiculous it’s better than something like The Purifier. (He’s never going to let that one go.) Actually, considering his amalgam power from himself, Sothis, and now Badb, not to mention that Sothis and Badb themselves are merely, as Seteth calls them, patchwork imitations based on remnants of memory, “the patchwork god” is actually quite fitting.

Veery suspects Claude tells them enough of the truth behind Veery’s power for that connection to be made.

Holst looks over and snorts, though he also grins widely. “Not if what I’ve heard is true,” he says jovially. “Hey! Veery! Good to see you awake! Sorry about my sister climbing on top of you. Soon as she was sure you and Marianne were just tired and not hurt, she just about keeled over herself. We decided to leave her there. Or rather, your big cat guards decided we had no choice but to leave her there.”

He says it all with a bemused expression, eyeing the now-distant muddle of fur and bodies fondly. Veery rolls his eyes. “Wise decision. If Sadi and Hoarvug decided she was going to stay, you’re better off not arguing.”

“I’ll never understand the way you cats think, but I’m not about to question it this time.” Holst shrugs. “Hilda deserves a nap. You should have seen her when Marianne went flying after those javelins of light. She was beside herself.” He blushes and rubs his neck awkwardly. “Got to admit, I wasn’t much better. That must have been one of the scariest moments of my life, and it wasn’t even my friend on the line.”

Veery just smiles and nods, not having anything to say to that, and offers a nod to Catherine as well. “Veery,” Catherine says, polite enough for now.

“Catherine.”

“I hear that snowstorm was your doing,” Catherine says. “Marianne couldn’t have stopped those javelins of light alone. After Lady Rhea fell… I guess you saved us all.”

Veery shuffles uncomfortably under the weight of three whole groups of people staring at him and quickly changes the subject. “And Rhea? Claude mentioned she was still alive. How is she?”

Catherine shakes her head. “We’re still uncertain if she’ll survive. Lady Flayn, Manuela, and Mercedes will hardly so much as look away from her. Dorothea took charge of most of the bishops to tend to everyone else.”

Interesting that Linhardt isn’t included, but Veery assumes he’s probably somewhere with Lysithea dealing with all this Agartha business. Or better yet, asleep. Neither he nor Lysithea have been sleeping enough in their relentless search for Agartha in the first place. Now that this is over, they’re both likely to crash.

“I’ll join them, soon,” Veery offers. “I still need to recover my power, so I might not be too helpful yet, but I’ll join them when I can.”

“We’d all appreciate that.”

“Great, great,” Holst says, “but more immediately, we need to decide what to do with these guys.” He gestures to the Agarthans. “They look like mostly civilians to me, so I said we should take them back to either Ordelia or Goneril and get them set up temporarily until we can figure out a more permanent place for them, but Catherine here has… other ideas.”

Catherine growls under her breath. “These are the goddess’ most ancient enemies!” she protests. “They need to be executed at once!”

“Yeah, not going to happen, lady,” Holst growls back. “I know how the Church of Seiros operates, but we’re still in House Ordelia territory, and this is a Resistance mission, not a church operation. You don’t have the authority to order the execution of bystanders!”

“Bystanders!” Catherine scoffs. “Heretics!”

“Again, this is not solely a church mission! Whether they’re heretics or not doesn’t matter here!”

One of the Almyrans at Holst’s side interjects, “We are heretics to the church as well, are we not? Are we to be executed simply for existing?”

Before Catherine can snipe back, Veery decides to speak up. “Where’s Lysithea? As you said, this is Ordelia territory.” Heaviness in Veery’s gut warns him that relying on Lysithea’s mercy for Agarthans may not be the best way to save lives here. Even so, he is curious where she’s off to that Catherine and Holst are the ones arguing about what to do with the prisoners. And he’s fairly sure that just openly supporting Holst here will do nothing but worsen his already fragile relationship with Catherine and accomplish nothing but dragging him into the argument as well. “Or Claude? Teach? Even Seteth? They’re the present leaders of the Resistance.”

Veery can’t honestly see Claude or Teach ordering these people executed. Seteth is a reasonable man, but he’s still Nabatean, so who knows with him. And Lysithea… As far as Veery can tell, the people who should be making this decision are likely to be just about evenly split.

“They’re still down in Shambhala,” Holst answers. “Sweeping the place. Checking for survivors, counting the dead, all that stuff.”

“Leaving you to make decisions like this?” Veery asks.

“Of course not,” Holst says. “We’re just here to make sure that no one gets any ideas of continuing the battle.” With a glare at Catherine, he adds, “And apparently, to make sure that the church doesn’t overstep it’s bounds.”

“Right,” Veery says. “So, until they’re back and can make a decision, we leave the Agarthans alone. Just like we would any other prisoners.”

“Thank you! That’s what I’ve been saying!”

Catherine groans. “Have you forgotten Remire? Have you forgotten what these people do?”

Veery sighs. “I killed Solon that day.”

“What about Captain Jeralt? What about Byleth’s revenge?”

“We killed Kronya five years ago.”

“What about Caub?”

Veery’s eyes turn to winter that Catherine dares bring him up. “Cornelia suffered,” he answers.

Catherine shakes her head. “Why can’t you understand that this is about more than just individuals? Agartha has been meddling in Fódlan since the time of the Nabateans! We cannot allow them to survive!”

“We’ll see about that,” Veery says neutrally, not wanting to directly fight her on this if only to prevent her getting more heated over it. “But for now, our orders are clear. The time will come to decide what to do with them, but now is not that time. If you’re so concerned, then assist Holst in ensuring that no one escapes, so that when the decision is made, there won’t be leaks. But we don’t just take matters like these into our own hands.”

Catherine grumbles, scowling, but begrudgingly agrees. “Fine. You’re right. I’m sure Lady Rhea will convince the others, anyway.”

Veery sighs. “Thank you.”

“And thank you,” Holst says, clapping Veery on the back. “I thought I’d be here arguing all day!”

Veery offers him a tentative smile. “Glad I could help,” he says. “But if you’ll excuse me, I have some work that needs to get done, too.”

“Yeah, go,” Holst says eagerly. “I’ve got this bunch all under control now. Just leave it to me!”

Veery smiles as he turns back to his nap pile. Holst really is… endearing. Veery doesn’t talk to him much, but he always manages to leave in a better mood than he enters with when Holst is around.

…Maybe he should be concerned that a conversation mostly about whether or not to murder a bunch of refugees whose homes were just destroyed has improved his mood. Holst or not.

---

Veery immediately attempts to make progress on translating his book but is quickly interrupted by a summons from Claude for something down in Shambhala that he wants Veery to take a look at. Apparently, his “expertise in varied forms of magic” is relevant, though Veery can’t imagine how considering he doesn’t have the faintest grasp of Dark Magic at all and that’s what he’s seen Agarthans use almost exclusively.

Perhaps something to do with the magic-technology blend? But Veery knows even less about tech than he does about Dark Magic. Growing up alone in the wilds doesn’t exactly give him a great education on scientific advancements. And Lysithea and Linhardt have been studying Agarthan technology and magic every chance they get. There’s nothing Veery knows that they don’t.

Well, he can’t exactly ignore it. Or he can, but he’s not going to ignore when Claude asks for his help.

The immediate problem, however, is that Claude is summoning him to check out something down in that huge hole in the ground, and the only sensible entrance is still caved in. Which means he has to get down through the hole. Which means flying. Which is how Veery finds himself casting an uncertain look at an unimpressed-looking beautiful white wyvern.

Honestly, though he knows he’ll prefer his feet on solid ground one way or another, he suspects he wouldn’t feel so unsure about it if Claude was at least holding the reins of the beast. And Veery knows that wyverns are smart, certainly smart enough to fly up and ferry someone back without direct guidance, but… is he really expected to just hop onto this thing’s back?

For a moment, Veery approaches the edge of the hole and seriously considers whether he can safely Rewarp down. He thinks he can. Though he’s never actually tried to use it for such a distance before, and this is, uniquely, down rather than lateral distance, but he’s also much more powerful than even he really knows so he thinks it’s reasonable. But then Claude’s wyvern snorts next to him and fixes him with a glare that seems almost offended and Veery simultaneously tries to recall just how smart wyverns are while also fighting off a blushing shame at being caught by the creature.

The damn thing is playing him like a fiddle, it’s true, but he has his pride. That is a challenge if he’s ever seen one. So, fine, then. He’ll do it if Claude (or the wyvern itself?) wants him to so badly.

Veery struggles with mounting the wyvern. He watches Claude do so like it’s nothing more than steps up stairs, but doing it himself is not nearly the same. The same is true for horses, though, so Veery isn’t entirely put off by this. Still, it takes him three tries before he, very ungracefully, manages to perch himself astride the wyvern.

No sooner than he’s grabbed the horn of the saddle does the wyvern decide not to take off from the ground, but to leap bodily into the cavern. Veery’s stomach leaps to his throat at the sudden drop, then groans at the sharp catch when the wyvern spreads out its wings and he’s flattened into its back by the momentum.

Not that he really needs the experience to tell, but Veery can safely say he’s not a fan of flying.

Thankfully, the rest of the glide down to Shambhala is much less turbulent. Even the landing is relatively smooth and doesn’t bother Veery much. That doesn’t stop him from scrambling off the wyvern the moment it’s solidly on the floor, but it does give him little more to complain about.

“Veery!” Claude shouts, waiting for Veery here at the bottom. “I was expecting you to Rewarp down!” He grins, looking far too delighted by Veery being on his wyvern, and quickly coos to the wyvern, too, “Thanks for bringing him, girl.”

Veery just huffs, straightening his clothes. “She dared me,” he pouts, glaring at the wyvern.

Claude snorts. “Yeah, she’ll do that. Good job, girl.” He scratches her scales affectionately, clearly still too pleased. Conspiratorially, he fake-whispers to her, “I never thought I’d get him to agree to fly.”

“Yeah, well,” Veery grumbles, “I’m Rewarping out.”

“No way. You’re flying out with me.”

“Tried it once,” Veery says. “Not again.”

Claude pouts. “So, you finally get on a wyvern, but you refuse to do it with me? I’m hurt.”

Veery rolls his eyes. “No, you’re not. Now, are you going to tell me why I’m down here?”

“Ah, right,” Claude sighs loudly. “Well… if what we found is what Lysithea and Linhardt think they are… let’s just say we thought you’d be helpful. It’ll make more sense when you see it. Come on.”

Curious, Veery follows quietly as Claude leads him not into the city proper but towards the mostly-crumbled central building that took the brunt of the collapsing cave ceiling.

“As you can see,” Claude says, “most of Shambhala has actually survived. The quakes from the impacts that did that to the roof of this place have caused other, smaller cave-ins, including the only real entrance and exit to this place, but I’m hoping that we can get that cleared and that what remains of this cave is still structurally sound enough that most of those Shambhalan refugees won’t actually have to leave their homes. That’s… unfortunately something we’re all going to have to discuss as an alliance, though, and I’m not sure how some of the others feel about the idea.

“That said,” he barrels on, not allowing those thoughts to linger, “because we haven’t managed to come to any decision as a group yet on what to do with this place, we don’t want to dig around too much. As much as we want information on the Agarthans, these are still people’s homes, and we’re an army, not looters.”

Veery winces. “I spent most of the battle digging through residential homes,” he admits, “until I eventually found a school.”

“A school? That’s- augh, I don’t know how to feel about that, yet. I guess it’ll wait until your full report.” He shakes his head. “You know how this is different, right? One agent acting in secret during the battle versus us openly rifling through the place?”

“No, I get it,” Veery says. “I wasn’t accusing you of anything, really. Just…”

Claude sighs. “I don’t feel good about it either. And I’m sorry we put you in that position.” A deep breath. “Anyway, the one place we felt we couldn’t afford not to check right away was Thales’ headquarters. Unfortunately, it’s mostly destroyed by the cave-in. The basement, however… take a look for yourself.”

Veery follows him to a set of crumpled doors jammed half-open that he has to awkwardly climb through to get to the stairs beyond. But even up here, just looking at the stairwell through the jagged, busted-open doors, Veery knows something is off about this place.

He can see it, almost. A dark miasma pouring thickly out of the basement. He shudders to enter it but braves it nonetheless to find the source. When he does step down the last of the stairs and takes in Byleth, Linhardt, and Lysithea muttering over a blinking panel next to rows of… metal caskets of some sort? he can’t help himself but to say, “Oh, this is wrong.”

Lysithea is almost immediately upon him. “What is it?” she asks. “What are you sensing?”

Veery just gapes at her. “Are you not sensing that?” He curls his lips at the caskets. They’re practically dripping in that heady, dark magic.

Lysithea manages a half-smirk, but clearly isn’t feeling humor at the moment. “Of course, I do. I want to know what your impressions are before I bias your opinions with my own.”

Right. That makes sense. Veery takes a breath – and feels gross just breathing in this place – and tries to settle his somersaulting stomach as he approaches one of the caskets. “It’s obviously very powerful Dark Magic,” he says, earning a nod from everyone else in the room, even Claude. “So, why bring me in?”

“Because it’s no Dark Magic I’ve ever seen before,” Lysithea says. “And I don’t mean that it’s just unfamiliar. As far as I can tell, it’s a different method of Dark Magic, and you’re more familiar with differing methods of magic than even I am.”

“A different method?” Veery questions, humming as he considers it. “I see what you mean. Reason, Faith, and Dark Magic aren’t really that different, at least in terms of method.”

“Precisely. The details of how the spell matrix is shaped and what they’re capable of is different enough to justify different qualifications, but they all still start from the same basis. This, though…”

“This is just wrong,” Veery concludes. “Have you figured out what’s inside these?”

Lysithea joins him in examining the casket. “No. With such obviously twisted magic coming off them like this, and that one’s chained up for goodness’ sake, we thought it too risky to open them.”

“Good call.” Veery closes his eyes, trying to sense the magic around them. The dark miasma chokes his senses, though, and threatens to make him physically ill. It makes his skin crawl in a deeply unpleasant way that normal magic doesn’t quite reach.

As he stews in the disgusting swirl of magic, listening and feeling more than anything else, Veery suddenly gets an… impression of a sort. He can’t even identify what around him he’s picking up on that gives him the idea, but he does reliably recreate the feeling by focusing more intently on the caskets.

“Any ideas?” Lysithea prompts.

It startles Veery that he does have an idea. But the idea is so horrible that he doesn’t want to say it. Not with nothing more than a gut feeling.

It’s another long, silent few minutes there before he parses why he gets the impression that he does. The magic in the air, though slanted differently and obviously twisted beyond recognition (in much the same way as the demonic beasts?) is uncomfortably similar to Veery’s own Invoke spell.

But twisting that spell through a different method isn’t enough for this malice in the air here. No, this is caused by exactly what Veery himself is chastised for considering, and possibly only refrains from attempting because Caub himself asks him not to.

This is what, if just one choice had been different, Veery may have done to Caub in that field of flowers just after he dies.

This is raising the dead.

And once he comes to that conclusion, the identities of the ones in the caskets becomes far too clear. A quick count confirms it. There are eleven of them. Maurice, they know dies only a month back in the forest in Edmund territory to the north, but the others, the Elites plus Nemesis… In all their research to find Maurice’s resting place while looking for Blutgang, they never actually find where the bodies of the rest of the Heroes supposedly lay.

Something shows on his face because Claude and Byleth are suddenly there, gently holding him, asking in whispers what’s wrong.

Necromancy alone might not bother Veery so much, but the stories about the extinction, about the great dark dragon which wiped out most known life and altered the very land itself, include armies of risen obeying its commands. And knowing how close he was to doing exactly this to Caub makes him nearly retch.

“Veery?” Linhardt asks cautiously, eyeing him critically. “You look like you’re going to be sick.”

He very well might be!

How can he make sure these people stay dead? That determination alone keeps Veery steady and focused. “We need to figure out how to safely destroy these things,” Veery says firmly.

“What? Why?” Lysithea asks. “What are they?”

“The Elites,” Veery answers. With a nod to the chained casket, he says, “That’s Nemesis. This magic is trying to bring them back to life.”

Everyone pales when they hear that, but it’s Claude who mutters, “Shit.”

“Okay,” Lysithea says. “As fascinating as it would be to talk to the actual Elites, somehow with this magic around I doubt they’d be any more than mindless weapons. Destruction might be the best thing we can do for them.”

“There’s no question,” Byleth says. “Destruction is the only thing we can do for them.”

Lysithea appears ready to protest but quickly thinks better of it. Instead, she says, “How do we do it?”

“The magic is leaking out of the caskets somehow,” Linhardt says. “I recall Veery having a technique of turning magic within something to flame? He uses it against the titanus, no?”

“And once on Cornelia. And…” Veery shakes his head. He doesn’t need to describe using that technique to torture an unlucky schoolteacher. “Never mind.” Everyone but Linhardt seems to pick up on what he leaves out anyway and all grimace. “But cremation isn’t a bad idea, if you can get your magic into the caskets to do it without opening them. I shouldn’t – I’m still recovering from exhaustion from the storm earlier.” The more efficient Albinean method might be fine, especially considering he’s under no physical strain after the battle, but the Fódlander method is a bit too unwise until he recovers more.

“I can do it,” Lysithea says.

It takes some time and working together, but they eventually manage to locate a valve of some sort which the magic is leaking out of. Using that as an entrance, Lysithea is able to blast the whole inside of the casket with magic, incinerating anything inside.

As she works on doing this to all eleven caskets, arms wrap tightly around Veery from behind, then spin him to crush him tight once more facing Claude. “What’s wrong?” Claude whispers in his ear. Professor Byleth eyes them but stays far enough that whispers shouldn’t reach her while Lysithea and Linhardt are still talking, and those two glance over but choose to ignore them almost entirely. “This is all horrible in so many ways, but that’s not what’s bothering you, is it?”

Reluctantly at first, then simply needing contact, Veery wraps his arms around Claude, too. “Sorry,” he murmurs. “I’m trying to…”

“It’s alright. Tell me what’s wrong. Maybe I can help?”

Veery shakes his head, burying his face into Claude. After a moment of simply trembling, Veery decides to admit it aloud. “The only thing…” he says, choking on his words until he forces himself past it. “The only thing that stopped me from doing this to Caub is that I don’t know enough about Dark Magic to pull it off.”

“…Oh.”

That Veery manages to make even Claude completely speechless only makes the filthy shame in his gut worse.

“Hey… hey, Veery. Listen to me.” Veery purrs softly, trying to calm himself down. Why is he letting himself get worked up in the first place? This only ever happens because Claude decides to wrap him up like this and make him feel safe enough to do it. “Caub would be so proud of you.”

Not was, Veery knows he was. Would be. Including everything Veery has done since Caub’s death. He’s tortured a man, sure, and was perhaps unnecessarily cruel with Cornelia, and Emile’s desperation doesn’t convince Veery he’s doing anything wrong, exactly, but that doesn’t feel great either. And yet how is any of that any worse than what he’d already done? All which Caub already knew about.

But the only thing Veery really cares about, no matter his feelings on just what that apathy says about him, is not that he is capable of horrors – he’s always been capable of horrors. What bothers him is that he’s capable of committing horrific acts towards the people he loves for selfish reasons.

If Veery were more learned in Dark Magic, had the baseline knowledge to come up with the magic right in front of him, would he have waited long enough to hear Caub ask him to let go? No. Not a chance. Veery wouldn’t listen to a word.

Worse, deep inside him, Veery is angry that he wasn’t clever enough to come up with this. And then disgusted all over again with himself for entertaining the idea of bringing back the dead.

He’s at least wise enough to know that that deep longing within him is exactly why no one should have that power. Including himself.

(He’s terrified that, with all this power suddenly at his disposal, something like this isn’t completely beyond him, anymore.)

Veery squeezes Claude tight when he whispers back, “He shouldn’t be.”

Claude is just on the wrong side of tense, like he’s actively trying to relax but isn’t quite managing it. “Veery… No. No, there’s nothing wrong with wishing he was here,” Claude says. “Most people… When we lose people, and we so desperately don’t want to let go, most people don’t have a choice. I think, if anyone had the kind of power you do, they’d be tempted to do something horrible with it, too.” He sighs and holds Veery closer. “I know I have. I’ve done absolutely terrible things, Veery. Things even you don’t know about, because I usually don’t bother you with the details of the war. And many more horrible things that you were right there to witness.”

“Do you remember when we went on that mission in Abyss?” Byleth asks softly. “You were in the infirmary for most of it, after we found Flayn, but I know Claude told you about it.”

“I remember,” Veery confirms. “Some sacred cup that brings back the dead with sacrifices?”

Byleth nods. “I was tempted to use it. More than I’d like to admit. Sothis talked reason into me, but… I wanted to use it.”

“We all did, Teach,” Claude says. “I don’t think there’s a single one of us who was down there that didn’t consider using it before the whole mess with Aelfric and the Wolves happened.”

Byleth shakes her head. “Not before that,” she says. “I wanted to know my mom, yes, but not so badly that I’d use something like that even before we knew the price. After.”

“…Your father.”

She nods. “I argued with Sothis about it for days. For just… just a moment, I didn’t care that people I care about had to die to use it. Then I thought I’d use some workaround. With Sothis’ magic and maybe some bandits to sacrifice instead. Then I thought I’d do it anyway and spend time with Dad and just reverse time to before the ritual if I have to, so that technically no one had to die.” She shakes her head. “Just the idea of having that kind of power tempted me to kill my own students. I hate that. I hate that I even considered that. I still despise myself for it, and I still don’t know how to handle that.

“But I have to borrow divine power. Technically speaking I think if Sothis really needed to, I might be about as strong as you, maybe even a little more powerful, but that power is sealed within Sothis, not freely available to me. You, though… that’s just your own power. I don’t think I’d be strong enough to handle the temptation to use it, and not just for reviving the dead.”

It sounds nice when she says it like that, like he’s doing something respectable. But he’s not. Veery is afraid of his power, plain and simple. The reason he doesn’t use it is almost always because he either does not know how, or because he has no need for it. Not because he resists any temptation to use it.

Lysithea interjects suddenly with, “I wasn’t originally an only child.”

Linhardt adds, “Everyone has lost people they care about. Everyone would be tempted to do something about it. If Caspar wouldn’t despise me for it…”

“Come on, Veery,” Claude says. “It’s not like you to get upset over decisions you didn’t even make.”

It really isn’t. Claude has a point. It’s in the past. Veery never actually crosses that line. He’s terrified he will, with his increasing power and decreasing mental stability, but for now… for now he’ll be okay.

“Why don’t we get you back out in the sun?” Claude asks. “The others can finish up here, now that you’ve figured out what we’re dealing with. Come on.”

Veery allows Claude to drag him out of that miserable basement, out of the sickly dark miasma coating the place, before he can find it in himself to smile. But with Claude smiling gently, encouraging, smile he does.

(And, still not feeling quite at top form, he has to admit that riding Claude’s wyvern with him is the safer option over Rewarp. Veery nuzzles into Claude for the ride, and it’s not nearly as bad as the descent.)

#write #fanfiction #fe fanfiction #fire emblem three houses #fe3h

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desperatehousewitches · 2 years ago

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randomnameless · 2 years ago

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I thought about magic too during the lockdown so it's not up to date but in general,

I find it fascinating how, from the golems to magic, Agarthan, uh, magitech seems to be inspired by the Nabatean one, but is ultimately more refined (Titanuses look more sturdy and modern than Rhea's golems) and Dark Magic, as opposed to White (faith) or Black (reason) magic is something of an Agarthan exclusive branch of magic (where they focus more on the "science" aspect of magitech?).

Also, there's this line Macuil mentions in his paralogue :

Have a taste of my power...

My bad, the non lolcalised line :

魔道の起源たる力、とくと味わうがいい……！

Birdie roughly saying something like (mechanical translation'n'all) eat my power that is the origin of magic

But Nopes created tomes (which is wtf) and more importantly, gave Macuil's sacred regalia a name, in the localised version it's "Wind Caller's Genesis" which is noted to be, in the jp version, called Origin if the Wind-Calling.

Now, we know Macuil is supposed to be known for his magical abilities and how he "pioneered" magic studies, but I don't think the dude himself is the "origin" of magic.

Maybe he wasn't saying he - himself - was the origin of magic, but his power comes from this origin, aka Sothis.

Sothis, the origin/source of magic in Fodlan, created Nabateans, that's why Macuil claims his power is the source/origin of magic, since it comes from Sothis herself?

Nabateans being "magic" beings also comes from Linhardt's mention, in the last chapter of CF, where he calls Rhea's roars (the one she uses to boost her golems) "unadultered magic" - Nabateans can use raw/unadultered magic (or just magic by roaring), but humans need formulas and whatnot?

Tl;Dr : Sothis landed from the Blue star, and taught tech and magic to humans (agarthans). Agarthans "refined" the magic Sothis taught them with maths and created some sort of magitech, then warred against Sothis and lost.

Later on, Nopes reveals that Agarthan magitech isn't able to fight/face/defend against one of Sothis's kids firing her laser (that's how epimenides dies for the first time!).

-> Rhea's laser > maths

Fodlan Magic

Alright what I've found:

Faith/Reason

Faith (white) and Reason (black) magic are different in practice. Faith is powered by... well, faith, whether that be in a higher power or someone else. It can also be used for healing. Two examples of this are closing up wounds faster and raising a body's vital energy.

Reason magic is far more offensive and involves the manipulation of different elements. You do not need faith to use Reason magic, although Lysithea does hypothesize that reason, while necessary, cannot result in true understanding without a little faith... whatever that means.

Both of them are things that you have to study. You can have a talent for it, but Annette's support with Sylvain tells us that there are formulas involved.

Despite all these differences, Faith and Reason both have the same magic circle.

Class Change

Caspar getting blown up

As you can see, there is text on the outer ring. If I am correct, this text says:

"The goddess always lives in heaven and Fodlan. She is watching over us. As the mother of all living beings. As support of all mindful things."

It is also unlikely that this text was created by the Church of Seiros. An amnesiac Sothis in the beginning of the game will have the exact same text on her own magic circle, but that could be an oversight.

The words on the ring below appear to be Binah, Netzah, Keter, Gevurah, Yesod and Tif'eret. These are sephiroths on the kabbalistic Tree of Life.

Keter = Kether, Netzah = Netzach, Gevurah = Gebuhar, Tif'eret = Tiphareth

The symbols on the larger circles are are Uranus (♅), Jupiter (♃), and Mercury (☿). Uranus is Daath, Jupiter is Chesed, and Mercury is Hod.

They show up when you are showing off a crest.

Interestingly, they do not show up when Edelgard reveals her Crest of Flames.

The user's crest will show up in the middle of the circle. If the user has no crest, it will be empty.

I'm not sure if this is supposed to reference the symbols between each sephiroth

The symbols in the smaller circles are the Sun (☉︎), Moon (☾) and Venus (♀). The Sun is Tipharet, the Moon is Yesod, and Venus is Netzach. They are connected to form a triangle.

The only sephiroths not accounted for are Chokmah (Neptune) and Malkuth (Earth). The absence of Chokmah might indicate a lack of wisdom, while the absence of Malkuth could mean that the magic is more connected to the divine than to the physical world.

The text talking about the goddess, and the abscence of Malkuth (the physical realm), could all mean that Faith/Reason directly originates from Sothis.

Dark magic

Dark magic is very different from Faith and Reason, to the point that it has its own magic circle. Finding clear pictures of this is nearly impossible, but this is what I have been able to get so far:

Three Hopes: Azure Gleam Ending cutscene

Three Hopes: Opening cutscene

I have not been able to get a full view of the text on the outer rings, but it seems to be a mathematical formula.

The circles containing the symbols are all the same size, unlike with Faith/Reason magic. The symbols are letters in the Greek alphabet:

Delta (δ): the 4th letter, representing change and difference.

Theta (Θ): the 8th letter, which is connected to thought, intellect, reasoning, and mental processing.

Xi (ξ): the 14th letter which... doesn't seem to have a specific symbolic meaning. It can be used in mathematics to represent a variable or unknown quantity.

Chi (Χ): the 22nd letter, symbolizing life force, energy, and sometimes vitality. Xi (ξ) which doesn't really have a symbolic meaning.

Psi (Ψ): the 23rd letter, associated with psychology and spiritual matters.

Omega (Ω): The last letter, symbolizing the end. The Alpha, or "beginning," could be Sothis.

In the middle of the circle there is a triangle with an eye over it. It looks similar to the Eye of Providence or the All-Seeing Eye.

This eye shows up in Thales's design as well.

The earring looks like a simplified version of the dark magic circle

It also shows up on Solon's robes!

Mini dark magic circle with the eye under it

You might've recognized the Eye of Providence as the symbol for the "Illuminati," but it actually finds its origins in Christianity, where it is a symbol of God's omniscience and providence.

The Agarthans may not worship Sothis, but we know they had their own religion. Their book talks about Thinis, where the old gods were supposed to dwell. The wording implies that Sothis awakening there was a betrayal, as it went against their religion. Perhaps this eye is connected to those "old gods."

All in all, dark magic seems to originate from the Agarthans. They are supposed to be technologically advanced, so their magic having tons of mathematical formulas makes sense.

TLDR: Dark magic = math, Faith/Reason = our lady and savior

Feel free to point out things that I might have missed!

Edit: Mixed up Daath and Chokmah. This is why I need to proofread something at least twenty times before posting!

#deathbirby #that's the only acceptable conclusion #humans tried to refine the tools sothis gave them and created dark magic #but it's still no match against Sothis's own magic or even her kids's #maybe that's why they decided to build nukes later on #even if one of Sothis's kids can eat 5 nukes and survive after a short nap #macuil brags a lot about magic #i joked earlier that magic was his dinosaurs phase but he never grew out of it #maybe he was the one who gave the formulas and praise sothis circles to humans for them to be able black and white magic #idk #FE16 #3 nopes #Monica could have taught us more things about Macuil but no

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randomnameless · 5 years ago

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Thinking about magic in FE16, thanks to a SF post :

The TC in that post went by the basis that Archanea/Jugdral/Valentia mechanics about magic applied to Fodlan, which I personally don’t believe.

In the Naga verse, magic is tied to spirits/faeries living in the land.

However, in FE16, I think it is tied to Sothis and Nabateans.

Macuil’s bio hails him as a pioneering figure for and master of the magical arts. Does it mean that before Macuil, no one knew how to use magic in Fodlan ? Or they might have known some stuff, but Macuil theorised it.

Still, Morfis is known around as being that “metropolis of magic”. Did they learn their own way to perform magic, using another source? And yet, the Morfis squad we can recruit wears the traditional agarthian get-up (iirc?) so Agarthians went there to build their city or, the devs forgot about coding a specific get up for some battalions (kuddos for the mittelfrank one though i love it).

Or maybe their knowledge of magic predates the Nemesis era, and one random Nabatean, just like Aubin who went in Dagda, decided to form a colony in Morfis and teach humans about magic. Maybe that random who went in Morfis was Macuil, idk.

Bar Morfis, we do not know if any other places outside of Fodlan developped magical arts, and if they developped it on their own or were helped, at the foundation, by a Nabatean.

Back to magic, the SF topic went on a recurrent take, saying that people who sucked in the Faith branch of magic didn’t have any attachment to the Church or didn’t believe in Sothis.

However, while I don’t know and can’t say why this branch of magic is called “Faith”, Linhardt, in his Flayn support, actually calls is “white magic” (idk how it is called in the jp script though!)

Linhardt: You are quite skilled in white magic, yes? My understanding is that you have a very high affinity for the art. Flayn: Yes, I do. I am confident in my abilities. I am glad of my abilities, for it is a way in which I am able to help others.

White magic is, per Flayn, a magic able to help others, or to support them. I know we have offensive white magic spells, but they kind of suck compared to “reason/black magic” ones. Maybe because the basis of white magic is to support, so using it to attack is a sort of failed hybridization of white and black magic.

It is also interesting because Linhardt, nerd as he is, knows that “Faith magic” is the same thing as “White Magic” and calls it by its name “white magic”.

So while “white magic” was turned into “faith magic”, someone’s proficiency to “white magic” isn’t really based on “Faith” or if you really love the Church and believe in the Goddess - else you’d have to make a case that Seteth doesn’t really believe in his mom because he doesn’t have “Faith” proficiency while Flayn does.

In Annette and Sylvain’s support chain, we see how Annette learns magic through formulas, and when someone uses magic (white and dark), we can see a weird vertical (?) circle, with I suppose, those formulas, being cast. When someone uses dark magic, the circle appears too, but on the ground, circling the caster, not in the air.

Dark Magic being associated with Agarthians, it might be a remnant of the good’ol days where Nabateans and humans worked together, they taught Agarthians how to use magic, and those guys customized it (to use the more powerful dark magic).

(Funny how one can suppose that if FE16 mages don’t use tomes, maybe in the other verses the formulas are inscribed on tomes?)

Agartha uses of magi-tech (some sort of magic + technology) is also shown in the Titanus who, despite attacking on physical defense unlike their Nabatean counterparts, also have an Aegis shield to reduce ranged damages (a more practical version of the anti-magic armor the Nabateans equipped their golems with). With magical basic teachings provided by Nabateans, humans managed to develop their own brand of magic.

Following this, it means that without Nabateans/Sothis and her lizards, there’d be no magic in FE16 (or in the Fodlan world)?

As I pointed out above, Morfis is a big question mark, and given how Nabateans scattered around the world per the devs, I cannot affirm that humans managed to discover/find/use magic on their own or not.

Still, we have two instances where it is suggered that Nabateans have a special relation to magic and/or are pure magical being.

First, in CF’s last chapter, again with one of Linhardt’s comments:

Linhardt: What? Her howl as unadulterated magic. I didn't know such a display of power was possible.

Rhea’s roar is “unadultered magic” meaning 1) Linhardt thinks magic exist in both forms, adultered and unadultered, the adultered version is the one humans use? He thought it was impossible to “display” this power, unadultered magic + 2) if a roar can covey “pure” magic to golems, either Nabateans can master magic very well and this was the only way Rhea found to power up far away golems, or, most plausible, a Nabatean is a magical being, its roars are pure magic and its blood is a catalyst to enable people to use magic?

Which brings me to the second point, Hanneman (Linhardt’s teacher!) and Alois’ support convo:

Hanneman: Well, if I'm completely honest, you're less of a student and more of an experiment. You have no Crest, but you might be able to learn magic... despite our early results. And the potential magical ability of those who lack a Crest is precisely what I hope to research. Alois: That's a surprise. A Crest scholar researching people without Crests? Hanneman: When studying Crests, it is also important to understand the effects of their absence. After all, the very reason for all of my research is to grant the power of a Crest to anyone who desires it. If it is in fact possible to increase the magical potential of people lacking a Crest, then I find myself one step closer to my goal. Hence my experiments with you are quite valuable to my research. Alois: Ah, that's wonderful! What a great man you are, Professor Hanneman. Truly, a man among men! Why, if I could prove it's possible to use magic without a Crest, what an honor that would be! Please, use me as you see fit! I won't let you down, I promise!

Crestless people have more difficulties to learn magic to the point where Alois claims that he’d be honoured to demonstrate that it’s possible to use magic without a crest.

It’d go with Macuil and the Nabateans’ motto of helping humans to use magic - for every humans, not for the few ones they blood-bonded with (I don’t think they were expectig a Nemesis and his Dudes to happen).

And yet, after the Nemesis incident, people with crests became a common-ish occurence in the world, so the paradigm shifted - magic wasn’t thought as something everyone could use, but something only crested people could use because it’s easier for them to do so because they have Nabatean DNA/blood.

Meaning that being part Nabatean, Full-blooded Nabatean or even having a drop of their blood impacts one’s ability to use magic - it’s usage isn’t exclusively granted to crested people, but damn if it isn’t easier to use it with lizard genes. I can only hope Morfis’ people were badass normals who mastered magic without using some kind of shortcut like the people of Fodlan did.

Do we know what is the source of magic in Fodlan? Nope. I can only suppose it is tied with Nabateans, and Sothis herself.

We don’t have any clues or evidences of magic existing in Fodlan before Sothis’ fall, but we don’t know a thing about that time. Magic is used in “foreign” countries, Morfis is an exemple, but it might have been influenced by a Nabatean.

Still, given how Nabateans are “magical” beings of blood and flesh, having been created from Sothis’ own blood, Sothis herself might have been “full” of magic and magic is implicitely tied, in the continent of Fodlan, to Nabateans.

Tl;Dr : In FE16, magic comes from space.

#FE16 #fodlan stuff #how does magic works no one knows #Lizards gave basics then humans are supposed to work from here?#why white magic was changed to faith magic?#to better blend with the church thing?#Magic existed before Saint Macuil but maybe he made magic available to random peons and not only to humans who knew/interacted with a lizard #idk #maybe he vulgarized magic?#'how to cast in 10 lessons' instead of reading a thesis or smthg like that #the morfis guys were stuck with the thesis version and yet managed to build their city of illusions #Rhea's roars are magic #Indech make a magical mist in his chapter #magical mist is also used by a random in the lonato chapter #you can a lot of things with magic in this world tbh #headcanon : Cethleann' AoE healing that put her to sleep was also unadultered magic

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aurheatum · 3 years ago

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Challenge: Elite Four and Champion Rhea (Team 8 Bronze Round)

@aubins @lockpicnic@pridelessdaydreamer @hresvelged

Rhea’s investigation into Rusalka had been so far, well, less than ideal. She refused to believe that knights under the church’s banner would simply walk away from their duties - beautiful surroundings or no, but neither did she wish to think ill of the locals.

Still. It became difficult to doubt the involvement of magic when upon falling into slumber Rhea finds herself not in the sweet embrace of dreams but in a humongous coliseum the likes of which she has never seen.

(At first, she thought it a dream of the past. A dream of Adrestria. But no the architecture and atmosphere her is all wrong.)

Across from her stood a fiery beast, an opponent she would be less wary of if she did not then notice the other challengers at her side. They were all students - Empress-to-be Edelgard and her fellow classmate who bore Ceathlean’s crest, the young Yngvi of the Golden Deer, and Yuri Leclerc; and while she knew them all, she would not say she knew them equally.

She had no time to learn of their individual talents but It mattered little. They were under her protection, and so she would lead them to victory.

“Stay behind me, all of you,” she tells them, raising her sword (strangely not her Seiros sabre), “this will be a testament of what you have all learned this last year. But I ask you be cautious for this is certainly not an Academy ordained event.”

Rhea attacks Volcano Beast with Shadowkiller. Roll 1d20 -> 5. Hit! Weapon’s special ability: If unit lands a hit, guarantees critical activates. -2 HP. Volcano Beast at 8/10 HP.

Rhea launched herself forward, for unfamiliar sword or no she knew her foil work. The blade is dull, however, and unwieldy in her hand so it takes a precious moment to right her stance but when she does the cry of pain that erupts from the monster plays like a beautiful melody across the coliseum.

Volcano Beast counters! +0.5 damage to attack now that it is down 2 HP. Roll 1d20 > 10. Hit! -3 HP. Rhea’s HP: 7/10

The melody turns against her, however, pain shooting through her as the notes of the giant’s roar turn cacophonous. She lets out a harsh breath but does not stagger.

“It is no creature of the goddess but its strikes are true. Please, all, remain prudent!”

#thread | Challenge: Elite Four and Champion Rhea (Team 8 Bronze Round)#tba #((tehe thanks for this thread title yall))

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americanoddity · 4 years ago

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Planetary Orphic Hymns

Manifestation order: Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon

Please only use these Hymns if you’re ready. Jupiter is incredibly expansive, Mars incredibly defensive, etc. All planets need to be worked with before ever thinking about prayer to Saturn, and when Saturn is worked with, you need to keep Solar influences heavy.

*astrological conditions matter

Formal wear

Storax, basil, frankincense

Hymn to Jupiter

O Jove much-honored, Jove supremely great,

To thee our holy rites we consecrate,

Our prayers and expiations, king divine,

For all things round thy head exalted shine.

The earth is thine, and mountains swelling high,

The sea profound, and all within the sky.

Saturnian king, descending from above,

Magnanimous, commanding, sceptred Jove;

All-parent, principle and end of all,

Whose power almighty, shakes this earthly ball;

Even Nature trembles at thy mighty nod,

Loud-sounding, armed with lightning, thundering God.

Source of abundance, purifying king,

O various-formed from whom all natures spring;

Propitious hear my prayer, give blameless health,

With peace divine, and necessary wealth.

Any attire

Frankincense, cinnamon, dragon’s blood

Hymn to Mars

Magnanimous, unconquered, boisterous Mars,

In darts rejoicing, and in bloody wars

Fierce and untamed, whose mighty power can make

The strongest walls from their foundations shake:

Mortal destroying king, defiled with gore,

Pleased with war’s dreadful and tumultuous roar:

Thee, human blood, and swords, and spears delight,

And the fire ruin of mad savage fight.

Stay, furious contests, and vending strife,

Whose works with woe, embitter human life;

To lovely Venus, and to Bacchus yield,

To Ceres give the weapons of the field;

Encourage peace, to gentle works inclined,

And give abundance, with benignant mind.

Clean, nice clothing with a sense of modesty

Frankincense

Hymn to the Sun

Hear, golden Titan, whose eternal eye

With broad survey, illumines all the sky.

Self-born, unwearied in diffusing light,

And to all eyes the mirror of delight:

Lord of the seasons, with thy fiery car

And leaping courses, beaming light from far:

With thy right hand the source of morning light,

And with the left the father of the night.

Agile and vigorous, venerable Sun,

Fiery and bright around the heavens you run.

Foe to the wicked but the good man’s guide,

Over all his steps propitious you preside:

With various founding, golden lyre, ’tis mine

To fill the world with harmony divine.

Father of ages, guide of prosperous deeds,

The world’s commander, borne by lucid steeds,

Immortal Jove, all-searching, bearing light,

Source of existence, pure and fiery bright

Bearer of fruit, almighty lord of years,

Agile and warm, whom every power reveres.

Great eye of Nature and the starry skies,

Doomed with immortal flames to set and rise

Dispensing justice, lover of the stream.

The world’s great despot, and over all supreme.

Faithful defender, and eye of right,

Of steeds the ruler, and of life the light:

With founding whip four fiery steeds you guide,

When in the car of day you glorious ride.

Propitious on these mystic labors shine,

And bless thy supplicants with a life divine.

Something that makes you feel good about yourself

Frankincense, rose, honeysuckle, sandalwood

Hymn to Venus

Heavenly, illustrious, laughter-loving queen,

Sea-born, night-loving, of an awful mien;

Craft, from whom necessity first came,

Producing, nightly, all-connecting dame:

Tis thine the world with harmony to join,

For all things spring from thee, O power divine.

The triple Fates are ruled by thy decree,

And all productions yield alike to thee:

Whatever the heavens, encircling all contain,

Earth fruit-producing, and the stormy main,

Thy sway confesses, and obeys thy nod,

Awful attendant of the brumal God:

Goddess of marriage, charming to the sight,

Mother of Loves, whom banquetings delight;

Source of persuasion, secret, favoring queen,

Illustrious born, apparent and unseen:

Spousal, lupercal, and to men inclined

Prolific, most-desired, life-giving, kind:

great scepter-bearer of the Gods, tis thine,

Mortals in necessary bands to join;

And every tribe of savage monsters dire

In magic chains to bind, through mad desire.

Come, Cyprus-born, and to my prayer incline,

Whether exalted in the heavens you shine,

Or pleased in Syrias temple to preside,

Or over the Egyptian plains thy car to guide,

Fashioned of gold; and near its sacred flood,

Fertile and famed to fix thy blest abode;

Or if rejoicing in the azure shores,

Near where the sea with foaming billows roars,

The circling choirs of mortals, thy delight,

Or Beauteous nymphs, with eyes cerulean bright,

Pleased by the dusty banks renowned of gold;

Or if in Cyprus with thy mother fair,

Where married females praise thee every years,

And beauteous virgins in the chorus join,

Adonis pure to sing and thee divine;

Come, all-attractive to my prayer inclined,

For thee, I call, with holy, reverent mind.

Scholarly or what you work in

Frankincense, rose, honeysuckle, sandalwood

Hymn to Mercury

Hermes, draw near, and to my prayer incline,

Angel of Jove, and Maia’s son divine;

Studious of contests, ruler of mankind,

With heart almighty, and a prudent mind.

Celestial messenger, of various skill,

Whose powerful arts could watchful Argus kill:

With winged feet, tis thine thro air to course,

O friend of man, and prophet of discourse:

Great life-supporter, to rejoice is thine,

In arts gymnastic, and in fraud divine:

With power endued all language to explain,

Of care the loosener, and the source of gain.

Whose hand contains of blameless peace the rod,

Corucian, blessed, profitable God;

Of various speech, whose aid in works we find,

And in necessities to mortals kind:

Dire weapon of the tongue, which men revere,

Be present, Hermes, and thy suppliant hear;

Assist my works, conclude my life with peace,

Give graceful speech, and my memory’s increase.

Something comfortable, flowing that isn’t constricting

Jasmine, lavender, willow, copal, opium

Hymn to the Moon

Hear, Goddess queen, diffusing silver light,

Bull-horned and wandering thro the gloom of Night.

With stars surrounded, and with circuit wide

Night torch extending, thro the heavens you ride:

Female and Male with borrowed rays you shine,

And now full-orbed, now tending to decline.

Mother of ages, fruit-producing Moon,

Whose amber orb makes Nights reflected noon:

Lover of horses, splendid, queen of Night,

All-seeing power bedecked with starry light.

Lover of vigilance, the foe of strife,

In peace rejoicing, and a prudent life:

Fair lamp of night, its ornament and friend,

Who gives to Natures works their destined end.

Queen of the stars, all-wife Diana hail!

Decked with a graceful robe and shining veil;

Come, blessed Goddess, prudent, starry, bright,

Come moony-lamp with chaste and splendid light,

Shine on these sacred rites with prosperous rays,

And pleased accept thy suppliants mystic praise.

Solemn, black or grey clothes, on the formal side of things

Myrrh, poppy seed

Hymn to Saturn

Ethereal father, mighty Titan, hear

Great fire of Gods and men, whom all revere:

Endowed with various council, pure and strong,

To whom perfection and decrease belong.

Consumed by thee all forms that hourly die,

By thee restored, their former place supply;

The world immense in everlasting chains,

Strong and ineffable thy power contains

Father of vast eternity, divine,

O might Saturn, various speech is thine:

Blossom of earth and of the starry skies,

Husband of Rhea, and Prometheus wife.

Obstetric Nature, venerable root,

From which the various forms of being shoot;

No parts peculiar can thy power enclose,

Diffused thro’ all, from which the world arise,

O, best of beings, of a subtle mind,

Propitious hear to holy prayers inclined;

The sacred rites benevolent attend,

And grant a blameless life, a blessed end.

#planetary worship #hellenistic polytheism #hellenism #planetary magic

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agent-cupcake · 4 years ago

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Cupcake!! Do you listen to music while writing? If yes what kind?

Yes! I absolutely do! I really love music, I’d say it’s secondary to literature as far as my choice of creative input so this is also just my personal recommendations regarding music as a whole with explanations and unwanted commentary because I’m dumb and this is one of my favorite things to talk about.

Firstly, my ongoing(ish) story Beastie and the Bard is musically driven so here are some songs I have on my playlist for that. I tend towards pieces that are melancholy but melodic. Entrancing, perhaps.

Lolita by Ennio Morricone - Contextually, I realize this is a bizarre (even tone deaf) pick given the source material, but... Whatever. This song, in general, just reminds me of Dimitri. Although a heavy, militaristic march might suit him better, the heart rending sound of this song just works for me when I think of him. The piano sets the tone immediately, lingering on some notes in a wistful, sad way. And it is sad, the cello and flute join in to make that clear. But, at a certain point, the instruments begin to dance around together, opening up and almost seeming like they want to resolve the song and create something happier, or at least something bittersweet, only to be drawn back into the uneasy tragedy of the main motif. I dunno, for me, it just absolutely aches like betrayal.

Shallan’s Lullaby by treefin / Black Piper - This music box rendition of Shallan’s Lullaby from Stormlight was the melodic inspiration for my bootleg lullaby that reader writes for Dimitri (perhaps not the first part as much as the way it shifts around 1:07). It’s haunting.

Isabella’s Lullaby from The Promised Neverland - Pretty self explanatory, I think. This one hits the sweet spot of beautiful and sad, from the harp to the vocals it just fits.

Howl’s Moving Castle Merry Go Round of Life original and the cover by the Grissini Project - Both versions are incredibly special pieces of music and I’d be surprised if you hadn’t heard this theme before, very good for the more whimsical parts of the story (not that there’s gonna be any more of that).

Shadows of the Lowlands from Xenoblade 2 - While I’m about to recommend this entire soundtrack, this vocal piece is stunning. This guy’s vocals, no joke, sound like a Tolkien Elf. We Are the Chosen Ones is done by the same vocal group and soloist so it’s also making this list although the tone is def a bit different.

Okay now I’m just gonna point out my favorite soundtracks. For all of these, I have COMPLETELY LEGALLY downloaded most of these from other sites, I’m linking youtube just based on superficial searches to hopefully give you a taste and maybe encourage you to NOT BREAK THE LAW and acquire these soundtracks on your own

Fire Emblem Three Houses - This is obvious and I’m sure you’ve all heard it, but go have a listen if you haven’t. but first, is anyone else disappointed about the Three Houses official release soundtrack? Considering the delay I guess I kinda expected more. Granted, the soundtrack IS phenomenal. Not so much in its entirety, which is emblematic of the game as a whole in some ways, but the set pieces? Unforgettable. This soundtrack is a case study in how powerful a small pool of musical motifs and set-up/pay-offs can be. The little promise of God Shattering Star at the very beginning of the game, Those Who Sow Darkness giving a taste of Shambhala, and then the use of the main melodies of Season of Warfare (Main Theme) and Song of the Nabateans. For the most part, both melodies are used in dramatic songs, creating this unbreakable musical connection between Edelgard and Byleth. Or, if you think about it, Edelgard and the Rhea. For example: the thunder version of Funeral of Flowers doesn’t have the game’s theme, but the rain version does (those two songs were WRITTEN to be layered I stg). And then there’s that somewhat bastardized version of the main theme in At What Cost, highlighting the intended twisting of the usual heroic take on that melody. I do have a potentially unpopular opinion, however. The Apex of the World is boring and tonally dissonant with the final battle in Azure Moon. A lot of people really like Edelgard-Dimitri likes Edelgard! There’s very little heroism in that mission, at least to me, and a song like At What Cost would have fit SO MUCH BETTER. I mean, that is also Edelgard’s theme so hearing that being twisted up into this decidedly more dark song would be thematically appropriate to her ultimate choice. The title also just seems like it suits her and Dimitri. Edelgard claims that she has weighed the cost of war, she believes she is capable of taking on the cost of victory without really knowing what it would be. Dimitri's whole story was him trying to find revenge no mater what the cost and now that he has it, he’s fully understanding what it will cost him. I understand why they would use the traditional hero song to cap the route, but it seems weird that they’d be willing to subvert so many other aspects of tradition while holding to that for a song that, in my opinion, is the least interesting of all the final battle songs. As you can probably tell, At What Cost is a song that is very tonally inspiring to me. I also love Funeral of Flowers (Thunder and Rain separately and layered together), The Long Road, and Roar of Dominion for getting hyped to write.

Final Fantasy VII Remake - Ever since I got this soundtrack, I’ve been addicted. I really don’t have much to say on this one other than just to recommend you give it a listen if you’re even passingly interested in orchestral video game music. There’s some misses for me (specifically the Wall Market stuff and anything that gets into the weird electric guitar/techno stuff) but it’s overwhelmingly fantastic and can work for active listening music and for background music while you write. I’d follow up recommend you get ahold of the Acoustic Arrangements soundtrack. I can’t link you on this one but it’s worth the extra legwork to procure it COMPLETELY LEGALLY.

Final Fantasy Distant Worlds - I was actually able to see the Distant World’s tour when it swept through Houston and at that point I had no idea what the fuck a Final Fantasy was. At all. However, seeing One Winged Angel live is not something I will ever forget. Ever. This soundtrack is great for some background listening and although it is often too upbeat for my usual tastes, it’s good when I need something easier. Okay. Real talk. I was about to recommend to you a bunch of FFXIV music (the MMO), choice selections from FFXV, and try and dig up some songs that are only available in live recordings. If you like Final Fantasy music, I recommend all of these things. The games are a clusterfuck but the music is even moreso and it’s worth your time if you like this kind of thing.

Xenoblade 2 - See? Told you I was gonna recommend this. Actually, ranking wise, I would say that I like it more than Final Fantasy. This soundtrack is magical. I cannot stress that enough, there is a level of whimsy and beauty that went into this soundtrack that all at once draws upon the genre and being it’s own thing. Like, I get it, there’s a lot of misses. The electric guitar is jarring and annoying. Listen to Sea of Clouds, like, actually listen to it. Listen to Desolation. Pay attention to the motif used in connection with Elysium and then the other songs that its used in. The Power of Jin. This is a sometimes sad but mostly beautiful and whimsical soundtrack that is good for listening and for using as background music.

Xenoblade 1 - I don’t have as much to say about this one, I don’t feel as if it’s as emotionally resonant as my other recommendations. BUT it is gorgeous. The area themes are wonderful and perfect for setting tone.

Hollow Knight - Hollow Knight’s soundtrack takes one step back from the drama of the others and revels in its depressive simplicity. There are songs with a more cheerful tone, and the magical whimsy of Xenoblade 2 is very much brought to life in many of the pieces, but for the most part the soundtrack is as gorgeously melancholy as the game itself. One of my favorite things in music is when songs are given new life through new context and the White Palace --> Pale Court transition is haunting.

Diabolik Lovers - OKAY I KNOW I KNOW hear me out. This soundtrack has no right to be as gorgeous, emotional, or quality as it is. This song, Lovers, is the younger sibling of Lolita’s theme, okay? Thematically, that’s kinda hilarious, but I mean it. If you like that song, give a few of the songs from this OST a chance.

BioShock, BioShock 2, and BioShock Infinite - BioShock 1&2 are different from Infinite. A lot more grungy, a lot more angry and discordant, the strings buzz and there’s a lot more horror to it all. Infinite, on the other hand, is very pretty. Infinite’s soundtrack is about the characters and their journey and feelings. The first two game’s soundtracks are about the ruined city of Rapture. It depends on what you’re in the mood for. I write using Infinite’s music more often, but there’s pieces in the first two that capture this empty, yearning feeling that is good for setting mood.

Pathologic - “Half Life’s soundtrack directed by Genghis Khan.” It’s bizarre. It’s grungy.

Void (Typrop) - Basically the same deal. I dunno man, I like being inspired by horror.

Outlast - It’s an orchestral horror game soundtrack. Like the game itself, there’s a lot of horror movie inspiration.

Dishonored 1 and Dishonored 2 - This is mostly background music. It’s a stealth game so it’s kinda uneasy, but I think there’s something really unique. Maybe the instruments? There’s a lot of weird sounds used.

Higurashi - This is a compilation of horror themed songs from the anime soundtrack, but the VN soundtrack and the non-horror stuff is pretty good, too. Michishirube is my favorite.

Madoka Magica Rebellion - The main anime soundtrack is gorgeous. The bells, the strings, the drama... I’m recommending Rebellion specifically because it’s the more cohesive and story-driven soundtrack. This one is not as horror-ish and weird than the others, it is very beautiful and nice to listen to. Sad, in some parts, too.

Code Geass and Resurrection - Brass? Got it. Dramatic strings? Got it. Bombastic set piece songs? Triple got it. This soundtrack oozes style. In some ways, that makes it not good for writing, but in others it can. Depends on what you’re writing. I think the melodrama can be incredibly useful for getting my mind in that frenzy state.

Okay I’m done. Thank you for bearing with me.

If we’re talking what songs inspire specific things, the Ferdinand piece was accompanied by a lot of the Diabolik Lovers soundtrack and Final Fantasy. When I wrote my sad Felix piece, it was all about Hollow Knight with a spot of Bloodborne and Dark Souls.

#personal #wow it's four pm and i have done nothing with my day #what a distraction #i love music

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thecelestiallegacies · 3 months ago

Text

Sunset in Sulani – The Kava Party pt 1 The invitation had gone out. Rhea had spread the word to the Procrastinators and other close friends, telling them to meet her in Sulani for an extravagant kava party her father, Cliff, had arranged. A weak attempt at reconciliation, but if her father was good at anything, it was throwing money at a situation and hoping it would go away. A lavish beachside feast wouldn’t change how she felt about him, but she wasn’t about to turn down a night of celebration with her friends. Independence was hers, whether Cliff liked it or not. The rain had hit before they even set foot on the island. Sulani’s tropical storms rolled in thick and heavy, the sky an endless curtain of gray. Rhea glanced at her best friend, who already looked miserable. With a smirk, she lifted the conch shell from her belt and blew a long, resonant note. The magic rippled through the air, parting the clouds and sending the rain retreating beyond the horizon. The skies cleared, revealing the golden glow of sunset over the ocean, and the party truly began.

TW: Teen drinking under the cut.

Cliff played the role of a gracious host, chatting with guests and making a grand display of his generosity. But as the sun dipped lower, the adults made their exit, leaving the teens to their own devices. The bonfire roared to life, crackling beneath a sky full of stars.

Laughter echoed down the beach as music played and feet kicked up sand in wild, uninhibited dances. Kava bowls emptied, then filled again. The night stretched long and joyous.

Rhea was committed to staying out until sunrise. Peter, never one to back down from a challenge, matched her bottle for bottle, the two of them howling at the horizon between bouts of laughter.

youtube

Start The First Gen Start This Gen

#the sims #the sims 4 #my sims #sims story #ts4 #sims #sims 4 #simmer #nebulalegacy #simblr #planetarylegacymarsgen #Youtube

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theofficersacademy · 4 years ago

Photo

Days grow ever shorter as the cold deepens across Fódlan, sprinkling the first powders of hoarfrost from its icy hand. Roaring fires become the eye of every household, a halo of red to match that which cloaks the silhouettes of wolves under the growing moon. Their distant howls strike fear into the hearts of shepherds in the dark.

The north winds of Faerghus bring not only the promise of winter, but whispers of concern surrounding a particular Kingdom nobleman. Rumor has it that this man has been acting strangely - erratic one day and lethargic the next, occasionally mumbling gibberish under his breath. His sudden disappearance has resulted in calls for the Church to investigate. After the fiasco in Leicester, however, those who are called to look into the matter have been ordered to shed their uniforms and make their identities a secret. As eastern Faerghus settles in for an impending snowstorm, no one will bat an eye at travelers searching for warmth and shelter.

Golden Deer Mission: Investigate Duke Philip!

GD Mission Board

Faerghus' winter storms come early this year. The bone-deep chill you feel as a strong wind blows through your group is worse than the priests back at school forewarned. Unless you're planning to become a popsicle, you should do as the Faerghans do and try to build yourself some shelter.

You stick out like a sore thumb in your school uniforms, and they're not quite enough to keep you warm either. On your travels, you come across a ransacked village, scorched and trampled... it's an opportunity to find more appropriate clothes, even if you're mixed on the idea of becoming a second group of bandits. What’s more, the destruction seems fairly recent...

Ill-prepared for the weather as you are, you manage to get lost in the forest just outside of the location you’re supposed to be investigating. Part of your group builds a fire to stay warm as the sun begins to sink, while the other sets out to regain their bearings. It’s just as dusk sets in that the trees come alive with low moaning and the sound of something being dragged through the leaf litter. You brace for a monster, but instead you find humans - around half a dozen - with ashen skin and their eyes rolled back into their heads. One swings at someone in your party and sends them flying into a tree, but unfortunately your attacks aren’t so potent. Standard weapons bounce right off of these things. Fortunately for you, Nessie of the Knights of Seiros is with you, and one strike from her gauntlets reveals the monster’s weakness: Relics. [Grants +1 Reason or +1 Brawling]

With Nessie’s help, you make it to the village at last. There seems to be some sort of ritual or festival going on - one that doesn’t correspond to any holiday you’ve heard of. Not to mention that decor seems half-rotted already, and the houses look to have been neglected for weeks. There are people in dark cloaks, their faces concealed, shuffling in between crowds of those same corpse-like monsters you fought in the forest. Except Nessie recognizes a handful of them by name, and you come to the cold realization that these are people. Dressed in robes yourself, you go unnoticed by whoever is leading this strange ritual. Try to keep a low profile as you observe. [Grants +1 Faith]

You’re on the lookout for a Duke Philip - the man supposedly in charge of this village, and the one whose report you initially received. There’s a house at the far end of the village with doors and windows both completely boarded up. But through a hole, you manage to see a glimpse of a shadow pacing back and forth at all hours of the day. The cloaked figures in the village also seem especially interested in this place, as there are often three or four patrolling the area at any given time. Make too much of a commotion and your mission will be in jeopardy.

NEW ! As time goes on, you begin to notice a pattern. Occasionally one of the villagers will be called to the house on the far end of the village. Some never return. Others return more irritable and irrational, similar to the people you discovered in the forest. It's reason enough to try investigating the building more thoroughly. You find a way in through a trap door, where stairs lead you down into a basement, dark save for the familiar glow of magical energy. It's hard to comprehend what half of these contraptions are for, and even harder to make your way around the room. Your foot catches on something, and clanging metal precedes a strange "beeping" sound that comes from a tall tower-like object in the center of the room. You already have a bad feeling about this, and the bolt of thunder magic that shoots from the tower only confirms it.

NEW ! Over the past few days, the buzzing noise in your ears has gotten louder and louder. It breaks your focus and deafens your thoughts, and as your friends approach you and voice their concerns, your only thought is to push back against them and shut them up. Perhaps permanently. As your mind begins to fray under whatever has been influencing the villager's, can your friends bring you back to your senses?

NEW ! It started with only a few to begin with, not enough to prove conspicuous. But as the month drags on, there's no two ways about it: the shambling villagers going through the worst of this curious blight share at the least one thing in common. Each of them bears a lance, all the more suspicious for how normal the weapons appear at a glance. A closer look may reveal more to the puzzle, though that will first involve prying a villager from their prize - an endeavour that will require planning lest you bring the horde of them upon yourself. [Grants +1 Lance]

Non-Mission Tasks

The local cats and dogs of the monastery have been anxious recently. One of the students, who had been known to play with them and leave them food, has recently gone missing. Your investigation into the matter leads you behind the abandoned cathedral, where you find a giant Demonic Wolf crouched over her body. As it licks her hands, growling and whining, you spot a bright pink ribbon tied around its neck, nestled in its matted fur. The wolf takes notice of you, steps forward protectively, and growls low.

As the days grow colder, students balk at the idea of walking around outside in the cold, especially late at night. Whispers of a shortcut quickly spread through the student body: if you're coming from the library, you can go through the gallery hall to get back to the dorms. It's not long until this path is marred by rumors of an armored thief stealing people's books and essays late at night. There's a reward if you unmask the criminal, but soon enough you find out that there's more to this criminal than you thought. Too bad the realization only comes when one of the armored knights on display is magically brought to life, brandishing its sword at you. [Grants +1 Sword]

Cold weather is on the rise, and the students are eager for new games to entertain themselves with. Luckily for them, the mage club has been happy to provide! Inspired by the visiting wyvern flock last moon, they have devised a new contraption: the magicanical bull! Combining magic and mechanical parts, this faux bull does its very best to throw its rider off its back. The name of the game is to last as long as you can! How long can you hold on before you fall? [Grants +1 Riding]

The staff of Garreg Mach are calling for volunteers! On a nearby snowy mountain sits a large, abandoned tower from days long past. Lady Rhea wishes to bring this building to this century and create a recreational space for the students. There are floors to sweep and beds to make, but the discovery of a large hot spring tempts you to play hooky....

With only weeks to practice for the White Heron Cup, students busy themselves by ordering their ball attire and practicing their dance moves. Even the stodgiest grump can't help but feel energized by the excitement in the air.

NEW ! A recent snowstorm at the base of the Oghma Mountains has blown a group of lumberjacks into Garreg Mach's castle town. The Society of Axe Personnel (proudly referring themselves as "SAP") are grateful for the assistance that the Church has offered, and in return they decided to put together a lumberjack skill competition! Practice climbing trees, logrolling in the fishing pond, and carving wooden statues with your axe! [Grants +1 Axe]

NEW ! Strange magical happenings are a dime a dozen these days, and the administration has taken notice. For the students' safety, the faculty have devised a new winter session course in defending against magical attacks, geared towards those with little resistance. If the sight of heavy armor and broad iron shields doesn't earn a groan from the students, the words "mandatory for all Officers Academy students" in the course description certainly will. However, the talented mages in the student body have some tricks up their sleeves. One morning you arrive at class with the armor already in use, the students using their shields to bash at a flaming ball of magic and bring it closer to the goalposts on one side of the field. One of the players notices you and calls out. They just invented this cool new game, do you want to play? [Grants +1 Heavy Armor]

Frequently Asked Questions

How does the divided task board work?

This season’s mission is assigned to the Golden Deer. Therefore, tasks from the ‘GD Mission Task Board’ must be undertaken by someone that is affiliated with the Golden Deer.

Tasks from the ‘Non-Mission Task Board’ have no house restriction and can be undertaken by anyone.

These aren’t the only threads I can do, right?

Of course not! These are just prompts to help give some ideas of possibilities. You’re always free and encouraged to make up your own threads. You’re also more than welcome to worldbuild on your own, using these prompts as a base.

How do I claim the skill points?

In order to qualify for the skill point, the thread must clearly allude to the listed task and preferably feature the task being completed; however, the point can still be claimed even if your muses narratively fail the task (failure is sometimes just as fun to write as success, after all). You do not need to message the masterlist to claim your skill point.

Can I only do one task?

Nope, you can do as many as you’d like with as many different partners as you’d like! You can do the same task with more than one person! However, you can only claim the skill point for each task once.

What if my partner leaves or drops a skill point thread?

If the dropped thread has at least 2 notes (not counting likes, only reblogs with replies in them) and you have hit at least 400 words on your end, you may still claim the skill point.

Remember to use (and track!) the #toa open tag for any open threads, and you can also post a link to your open thread on the appropriate Discord channel! If you have any other questions or concerns, shoot us a message through the masterlist or on Discord!

#toa mission #mission: incognito

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