#delphi core

[deckofmanyaces]

My best shot at Delphi's truly horrendous tattoo!

oh god that is so cursed... I will show it to Eiriol immediately

[ocherednoe-dno]

coolest Forge World (less prominence round)

major Forge Worlds have already been covered in polls, such as here. please reblog to spread

[novafire-is-thinking]

Medic, Maverick, Maniac, Murderer: Understanding Pharma

First thing’s first: I love Pharma, dearly.

In all the time I’ve spent evaluating his character, I’ve mainly focused on what can be worked out about who he is as an individual: his core sense of self, psychological drives, subjective worldview, etc.

When all else is stripped away, who is Pharma?

This treatise is the product of obsessing over Pharma, analyzing canon (and extras), and reading as many different perspectives on his character from fans across the fandom as I could find. The post is long, so for those of you who balk at the thought of reading a shortfic’s worth of Pharma thoughts, feel free to read the TL;DR (Conclusion) at the end and then decide if the full read is worth your time. Also, a premium reading experience is available in the form of the original Google Doc version.

As you read, keep in mind that this is primarily a mix of psychoanalysis, evidence-based examination, and speculation—not moral, ethical, or sociological commentary. The goal is to examine Pharma’s psychological drives and core values, and each of his appearances in the context of those. All other types of evaluation are up to readers.

Now, take your victim blaming-allergy meds (just in case); remove your black-and-white thinking caps; and leave your personal morality lenses at the door.

Psychological Drives & Core Values

Why does Pharma act the way he does? What gives him a reason to keep living? What are his personal priorities?

At the beginning of the Delphi arc, First Aid establishes Pharma as a “control freak” and someone who “thinks he’s an expert on everything.”

Now, First Aid has a habit of complaining about his bosses, but on both points, there’s canon evidence to back them both.

Expertise and Intellect

Throughout the Delphi and Luna 1 arcs, it’s established that Pharma is a skilled and brilliant doctor.

He once performed a 4-way fuel pump transplant, donating his own fuel pump in the process. (see above panel)

Later, he invented a soundbomb that left an echo laced with a virus and invented an antidote to that virus:

And on Luna 1, he was on the edge of finding a cure for Cybercrosis, based on the fact that Swerve was able to formulate a cure from his notes.

More than being a doctor, Pharma lives for intellectual and scientific achievement as a physician scientist. He feels most alive when he’s able to solve complex medical problems, and when his achievements are recognized by those whose opinion he considers important.

This is Pharma’s 'why.'

And even though he’s arrogant and enjoys praise, it’s not his primary motivation. He doesn’t need it in order to set his mind to whatever he’s interested in, although he’ll seek it from those he values most (i.e. Ratchet).

Pharma sees himself as less of a doctor, and more as a scientific innovator or medical maverick. The practice of medicine is primarily a catalyst for his creativity and intellect; it’s not an end in and of itself like it is for someone like Ratchet or First Aid.

First Aid’s observation of Pharma can be better phrased as, “[Pharma] thinks he’s an expert on everything medical”—because he’s not so driven by achievement and admiration that he’ll grovel at the feet of strangers and get good at something he doesn’t personally find interesting. The only time we see him express a desire for praise is when he’s around Ratchet—someone he holds in high regard for both personal and professional reasons. This makes sense since Ratchet is one of the only people who can give Pharma any kind of competition within what he considers to be his area of expertise.

“Each day we go to our work in the hope of discovering—in the hope that some one, no matter who, may find a solution of one of the pending great problems—and each succeeding day we return to our task with renewed ardor; and even if we are unsuccessful, our work has not been in vain, for in these strivings, in these efforts, we have found hours of untold pleasure, and we have directed our energies to the benefit of mankind.” —Nikola Tesla

Ego

Without question, Pharma has an inflated ego, but having an inflated sense of self doesn’t automatically mean a person is a full-blown narcissist or that they are totally uncaring.

Every personality trait exists on a spectrum. Yes, Pharma is arrogant, but the presence of arrogance doesn’t automatically and completely cancel out all “positive” traits. (For fun, check out studies on Dark Tetrad and Light Triad personality traits.)

People are complex. Arrogance can coexist with genuine kindness, ruthlessness can coexist with deep compassion, etc.

Whether Pharma exhibits genuine kindness is up to each reader’s interpretation of what little canon material exists, but the point is: Pharma’s arrogance doesn’t automatically rule out the possibility of authentic “positive” traits.

Controlling Tendencies

Pharma is comfortable pulling the power card and using it to dump what he sees as uninteresting parts of medical practice on those below him:

“So Fisitron’s writing about the Wreckers’ elbows now, is he?” said Delphi’s Chief Medical Officer. “Come on, First Aid - get to it. You’ve got a Fader in Row 2 downstairs.” He squeezed the air with his finger and thumb. “He’s about this far from shutdown.” —from Bullets by James Roberts

However, there’s nothing in canon indicating he’s power-hungry in a megalomaniacal sense. He’s not Starscream or Megatron; he doesn’t seek political or social power. In fact, he seems perfectly happy hiding away in a lab or medibay by himself so he can direct all his energy toward solving issues and achieving the so-called ‘impossible’ within the field of medicine:

The ways in which Pharma exercises power and control are through his expertise, and his administrative/management skills. That’s it.

Self-confidence

Pharma’s arrogance and controlling tendencies don’t seem to be a mask—like he’s trying to compensate for some sense of lack (in those areas). Yes, he fears failure, and yes, he displays some insecurity when Ratchet questions his competence. But at every other point and in every other way, Pharma is unapologetically self-confident. He’s fully self-assured of his intellectual prowess and problem-solving capabilities; he knows what he knows, and he also knows what he doesn’t know.

Pharma’s arrogance and desire for control don’t stem from a hidden lack of confidence or a hunger for power on its own. They stem from the fact that he genuinely sees himself as the best person for the work he does. He trusts himself above anyone else to solve problems that come his way—medical or otherwise (within limits).

Elitism vs. Superiority

I’ve always read Pharma as having an elitist attitude, but not in the social stratification sense:

elitist (adj.) relating to or supporting the view that a society or system should be led by an elite.

There’s no evidence that Pharma believes an elite class of people should hold the most power. Instead, Pharma’s “elitism” is actually an individualistic sense of superiority. It’s centered on him alone, and is tied to his capabilities as a physician scientist and surgeon.

Pharma sees himself as the best of the best and makes sure everyone knows it—sometimes through his words, but mostly by his conduct in the field of medicine. This, paired with Pharma’s natural temperament, doesn’t exactly make him socially popular—inside or outside of medicine:

One could argue that the “personality” Lockdown is referring to was a result of all Pharma had suffered at Delphi and Luna 1, but just as easily, one could argue he was always a bit difficult to get along with, and that his traumatic experiences merely magnified his already-present psychological patterns. Personally, I like the latter interpretation because it’s a flaw that makes Pharma a more interesting character no matter his mental state.

Everyone reacts differently to real and perceived social rejection. Some are so concerned about it that they’ll try anything to belong; others genuinely don’t care, and they continue as usual; and still others cope by shifting their mindset and developing a sense of pride in being an outsider.

There’s no evidence for this in canon, but I believe it’s within reasonable characterization boundaries to headcanon Pharma as being in the second or third category.

With either of those two mindsets, a sense of superiority can develop, or even be an inciting factor. Either someone sees themselves as genuinely superior to the majority and doesn’t mind when this alienates them from people, or they convince themselves they’re superior because the pain of accepting they were rejected for who they are is too much to handle.

Whatever the case, the point is, having an “elitist” attitude isn’t necessarily rooted in a sociological or ideological belief. Sometimes, individuals just see something in themselves that—to them—justifies a sense of personal superiority. A quick glance at Pharma’s canon appearances makes it clear he holds such a view of himself, at least to some degree.

Morality and Compassion

When Pharma first shows up in canon, he’s working at the New Institute. A lot of questionable things took place there on a regular basis—things Pharma would have been aware of, to some degree. However, his presence at the Institute doesn’t automatically mean he agreed with everything happening. Depending on how strongly someone feels about something, some people are content to disagree in silence. Not everyone who seeks employment considers it a priority that the establishment they work for aligns perfectly with their moral values. After all, there are other reasons to take a job: financial benefits, exclusive educational and career opportunities, pure convenience, etc.

I’m not here to say either way whether Pharma’s willingness to turn a blind eye to the events at the New Institute was wrong or right; that’s up to each reader to decide for themselves. However, Pharma’s choice to remain employed at the Institute for some time can say something about him as a character: his priority as a doctor and person is not to take care of everyone he encounters, or to act as some kind of moral or ethical authority.

This isn’t to say Pharma won’t ever stand up for something he regards as right or push back against something he sees as wrong, “off screen.” It’s just that everything in canon points more to a tendency to choose his battles instead of acting immediately on any moral sense the way someone like Optimus or Ratchet might.

This also isn’t to say Pharma doesn’t care about saving lives, but from what little is shown of him before Delphi, it’s hard to say how much he cared. Ratchet confirms later that Pharma was an excellent doctor for most of his life, but all that tells us is he was an excellent doctor; it says nothing about his internal attitude toward his work or patients.

However, inferences can be made based on doctors in our own world:

Being a doctor—especially one in trauma care—is far from easy. It takes a lot out of a person, and there are very few people who last in the profession for a long time. Most medical professionals fall into one of the following categories:

People possessing a strong will that’s coupled with an unwavering passion for taking care of others (the public’s favorite)

People who naturally have, or develop, an ability to switch their empathy off and on at will, or build walls around it—also possessing a strong will (the ideal)

People who naturally have a limited capacity for empathy (the one the public hates to acknowledge)

People with a strong social and professional support system (the necessary, but underutilized and underappreciated factor)

Of course, even if a person has one or more of the above, burnout can and does still happen, but individuals who have at least one have the best chances of surviving and thriving amidst the demands of the majority of medical professions.

As far as is shown in canon, Pharma never had a strong support system—either circumstantially or by choice—so something else was keeping him in medicine.

Pharma shows concern for both Tumbler (Chromedome) and Hubcap:

But even though he obviously cared enough to step in, neither instance makes a strong case for a capacity for empathy beyond the “average” or “norm.” Performing a job well is a lot different from being personally invested in the work.

Based on everything up to this point, and this later comment from Pharma, about Ratchet…

…Pharma has probably never shared the same I-care-about-everything-and-everyone view of the world. Instead, it’s more likely that Pharma holds a more rational view of his work and patients.

One of the first things learned in medicine, especially in trauma medicine, is that you can’t help or save everyone, and to hold yourself to that standard can destroy you quickly if you have a certain temperament or lack healthy boundaries for your empathy.

“There are times when it may seem as though I view sick or injured people not as living, breathing humans with feelings and emotions and people who love them, but simply as cases, as problems to be solved. And that is absolutely true. It's not that I don't have empathy, but the hard fact is that as a doctor, and especially as a trauma surgeon, too much empathy can get in the way of your job and cause you to make decisions based not on sound medical judgment but on your own emotions. Sure, I've seen things that even years later can still make me choke up when I think of them: a little girl shot and killed, a shattered young Marine who shouldn't have died but did. But you can't choke up in the ER or the operating room. To be effective as a trauma surgeon, you have to put a layer of Kevlar around your heart.” —Dr. Peter Rhee, Trauma Red: The Making of a Surgeon in War and in America’s Cities*

Pharma may have learned this difficult truth earlier than Ratchet and developed a practical way of managing his empathy that comes across as “cold.” He may have always had an ability to put up walls around his spark. Or, he may have always had little to no capacity for empathy.

The fact that the morality lock on Tyrest’s portal prevented Pharma from passing through proves he felt guilty for what he’d done, and JRO confirmed this. Therefore, it’s safe to assume Pharma had some level of empathy for his former patients, suffering moral injury when he felt he had no other option but to start killing them.

Still, looking at Pharma’s psychological drives and his behavior throughout canon, it’s clear compassionate care and morality are subordinate to his other values and interests.

*I highly recommend this book, and learning about Dr. Rhee in general. He’s a huge inspiration of mine, and one of my main sources of inspiration when writing Pharma. Level-headed and capable, strong-willed, selectively empathetic, an excellent scientist, etc. He lives for the thrill of practicing medicine both on the floor and as an expert in his field who pushes trauma medicine to new heights through his research. He also takes great pride in his hands. Seriously—the man spent an entire paragraph and a half talking about his “good hands” and how they were one of two reasons he decided to go into trauma surgery. The other reason was that he “liked action and excitement, liked the feeling of being able to walk into a tough situation and take control.” (Sounds familiar…)

Delphi

First thing’s first: we don’t know how much Pharma did or didn’t know about the DJD before agreeing to take the Delphi assignment.

That far into the war, he would have known something about the DJD and their ways of terrorizing traitors and Autobots, but for whatever reason, he took the assignment anyway. Perhaps Prowl assured him the situation on Messatine would be monitored and that the security team would be enough. Perhaps he underestimated the DJD’s capabilities, or scale of territory, and thought he would be able to handle things on his own. Perhaps Prowl gave him no choice. Maybe it was all of these and more.

Whatever the case, according to JRO, Pharma didn’t hate Delphi before the incident with the DJD.

Word of god remains a touchy subject in fandom, but in this case, it’s important because it says two things:

The DJD left the Delphi medical team alone for some time.

Being on the edges of DJD territory didn’t automatically mean isolation and harassment by their hand.

On the second point, First Aid was free to come and go from Messatine as he pleased, seeing as he attended a medical conference at Kimia five years into his assignment at Delphi:

Five years ago [mid-Delphi assignment], the leader of the Wreckers had cornered him at a medical conference at Kimia, the space station that doubled as a weapons research facility. —from Bullets

And five years after that, he was able to not only contact Springer without delay about one of Agent 113’s bullets he’d discovered in an Autobot badge…

He raced upstairs to his computer terminal and typed in a certain frequency code for the second time in his life. A face appeared on the screen and grinned. “It’s me,” said First Aid. “And you're never gonna guess what I’ve got for you..!”

…but he was also able to meet up with Springer to hand off the bullet:

“Your friend has a funny way of making contact,” First Aid had said when he’d got in touch three days earlier, and he was right.

It’s not known if this handoff happened on or off world, but either way, the DJD didn’t interfere.

At some point, Tarn set his sights on Pharma and the Delphi team. Knowing the DJD, one can only imagine what Tarn used to show off his team’s capabilities and convince Pharma the best option was to cooperate.

In striking a deal with Tarn to keep the DJD away from Delphi, Pharma established his territory and ensured his continued security and the safety of his staff. As long as Tarn got his T-cogs, Pharma could continue on in relative peace. He could work his magic on bots that ended up at Delphi, carry out his management duties, and work on whatever projects or research he may have been conducting in his free time.

For whatever reason, after he first came into contact with Tarn, Pharma didn’t call for help. Communications were still operational, as Pharma wouldn’t have suggested contacting High Command about the Duobots if the team was aware of any comm malfunctions:

Also, First Aid later confirms that communications were fine until the Big Bang (soundbomb detonation):

It’s always possible the DJD was monitoring the radio waves, but secure subspace frequencies exist, such as the Datalog Network First Aid used to send the datalog containing the death statistics:

Speaking of which, assuming First Aid sent the datalog with the statistics right when things started to get ‘weird,’ and before the Big Bang shut down comms, it only took—at most—a few days for them to reach Ratchet and Swerve on the Lost Light:

But back to Pharma not calling for help: for all of Prowl’s intel, contingency planning, and fretting over the security of Autobot territories, I find it hard to believe he would have stuck an Autobot medical team on the fringes of DJD territory without giving them some means of securely contacting the outside in case of issues.

But even if Prowl didn’t give Pharma a secure way to contact him or anyone else, and even if Pharma was convinced the DJD was monitoring regular communications, there were other ways he could have reached out for help. After all, the team wasn’t alone on Messatine. Like Pharma said, Prowl continued to send bots to defend the nucleon mines:

The Autobots had been mining nucleon for millions of years at this point, so I doubt the mined nucleon was just sitting in storage on Messatine; shipments of the stuff would have been sent off-world to wherever the Autobots needed it. Why not send a message for Prowl with someone leaving with one of those shipments? A message meant only to be sent over a call when absolutely certain they were out of range of the DJD’s potential monitoring.

Or, why not order in off-world medical supplies and send a message back with the delivery bot(s)?

There are two possible answers to this. One takes into account JRO’s word on the subject; the other is more intricate and speculative on my part, but it leads to the same place. So whatever your stance is on the validity of word of god, there’s an answer for you.

Answer one (word of god)

Simple as that. Pharma was aware of the scope of the DJD’s capabilities and relentlessness, and determined he was trapped prey.

Answer two (no word of god)

There are a few possible reasons Pharma didn’t call for help right away:

He was convinced all his other options would take too long and/or would still lead to him being put under suspicion. After all, being found to have harvested even a single T-cog from an already-dead patient for the DJD could have raised concerns that would lead to Pharma being investigated and/or having a mark put on his record.

He underestimated the severity of Tarn’s addiction, and was certain he could keep up with the T-cog demand without resorting to other means of harvesting, not realizing Tarn’s quota would increase later on.

He was already paranoid as a result of whatever mind games Tarn had set in motion at their first meeting, making Pharma think escape was futile.

Word of god or no word of god, there are clear reasons as to why Pharma ended up trapped. Most likely, it was a mix of all of the above.

Whatever was going on in Pharma’s mind before, he ended up in deeper trouble. Tarn increased his demand for T-cogs, and Pharma couldn’t keep up. By the time this happened, even if he had wanted to call for help, it was too late to do so without implicating himself. He reasoned his only option was to start killing patients to harvest their T-cogs.

Soon, Pharma was so consumed with fretting over whether he’d be able to meet Tarn’s next demand that he didn’t have time or freedom to do anything else except worry and feel guilty. His whole life revolved around Tarn’s addiction; he was no longer in control, and could no longer enjoy whatever it was about Delphi he’d previously enjoyed. Perhaps the facility itself enabled Pharma to research cures and perform scientific miracles of medicine.

Being at the mercy of Tarn—convinced the DJD would find him no matter what—would have been pure psychological torture on its own, but also knowing that any small chance he did have of getting help would end in him losing everything would have added to his suffering. Pharma became desperate to reclaim control over his life and began planning an escape.

Now, JRO has said that Pharma didn’t originally plan to use the rust plague on the DJD…but canon says otherwise:

Of course, Pharma could have been lying to make himself look better in Ratchet’s view, but based on everything he’d been through up to this point with Tarn, it’s more likely he was telling the truth and had tried to eliminate the source of his suffering first. After all, wiping out the DJD would have been the simpler, cleaner option.

When the Duobots refused to detonate the soundbomb near the DJD, Pharma’s objectives shifted. He had to get Delphi shut down in a way that would:

Convince the DJD the shutdown was legitimate.

Pharma knew chances of escaping the DJD at all were slim to none, but he was desperate. Getting Delphi shut down would cut off Tarn’s supply of T-cogs and allow Pharma to escape Tarn’s immediate control, but the shutdown had to be “legitimate” to prevent Tarn from retaliating and hunting him down later. Leaving Tarn even the slightest chance of regaining control was too risky, so Pharma had to make sure his plan was as airtight as possible. 

Cover up the patient murders.

If the truth got out about Pharma killing patients, he’d lose his medical license and most likely be put away for life. Being cut off from the practice of medicine and his intellectually stimulating work as a doctor would mean losing more than a job and a reputation. It would mean losing everything in which he’d anchored his sense of identity and life’s meaning. His refusal to consider any other options wasn’t just about ego and preserving his image as an excellent doctor; it was about preserving any kind of meaningful future he saw for himself.

Pharma needed a plan that would fulfill all of the above. Turning the engineered virus on the medical facility was the most effective and efficient solution. Anything else would have made him suspicious in the view of either Autobot High Command or the DJD, and neither of those would have ended well for him.

Because of his goal to preserve his reputation and future in medicine, he couldn’t even risk revealing anything to First Aid or Ambulon, who would have seen to his ruin. They became nothing more than loose ends that had to be tied up, and based on the fact that Pharma only prepared one vial of the vaccine, his original plan involved him being the only survivor:

He probably would have had no problem making more of the vaccine for anyone else who survived, but he wasn’t counting on it. He wanted a totally clean slate; in letting his staff die with most of his patients, he would be getting rid of any and all evidence and reminders of his failures. He may have cared about First Aid and Ambulon before things got bad, but somewhere along the way, he decided either it wasn’t worth it to go through the trouble of finding a way to save them without raising suspicion, or he didn’t want to risk them putting together the pieces later on.

Of course, when Ratchet showed up, plans changed.

Ratchet

Ratchet is not the kind of person who seeks first to understand or be understanding. He’s inclined to trust what’s in front of him over anything abstract, and tends to look at the results of someone’s actions over trying to find any kind of ‘why’ behind them. Also, unlike Pharma, he operates from a strong moral sense, and reacts quickly and strongly when something or someone goes against that internal moral sense.

Ratchet’s reaction to finding out what Pharma did may seem hasty and harsh, but it makes perfect sense on a human level. There is no such thing as unconditional love; everyone has personal and moral lines (boundaries), and they’re different for each individual. When the most rigid of lines is crossed, that’s it; walls go up and the offender is cut off, no matter how strong the relationship may have been.

Ratchet obviously knew Pharma well enough to think he could try talking some sense into him, but then Pharma revealed that he’d crossed one of Ratchet’s lines: murdering patients. Any willingness Ratchet may have had to try to understand vanished. By the time Pharma started trying to provide a ‘why’ for his actions, Ratchet’s moral judgment had already shut down any chance of understanding what could have possibly led Pharma to kill patients. It didn’t help that Pharma seemed totally unapologetic and outright proud of his plan. For Ratchet, the ‘why’ didn’t matter anymore. What he saw was what he trusted, and what he saw was a friend who’d become his idea of a monster.

Now, Ratchet and Pharma’s relationship is one of the most confusing IDW relationships I’ve had the pleasure and pain of dissecting.

It is notoriously difficult to determine the depth and strength of a relationship from the outside. However, I’ve decided to go ahead and address it anyway because it has the potential to provide insight into Pharma as an individual.

If I were to sum up Pharma and Ratchet’s relationship in a single word, I would use “ambivalent.” The first time I read MTMTE, the thing that stood out to me most about their relationship was the drastic differences between how they each perceived the relationship.

In one sense, there’s the idea of Pharma basically being Ratchet’s crazy stalker ex, which is tossed around in fandom a lot. While I personally dislike seeing it regardless of context (yes, even as a joke), I do see how JRO’s writing choices set things up in a way that makes it easy to superimpose that trope.

In another sense, there’s the idea that Pharma and Ratchet were always close friends, and that what happened at the end of the Delphi story was a betrayal of both sides that came out of nowhere and whose consequences were taken too far.

I disagree with both. Personally, what I see at the end of the Delphi story isn’t an obsessed ex gone mad, a sudden betrayal, or a badly executed backstabbing. What I see is a breakdown of an already-complicated and poorly-maintained relationship: true feelings being revealed, long-repressed bitterness being forced to the surface, carefully-hidden cracks being split wide open.

Most people don’t have an accurate understanding of how much or how little they truly know the people in their lives, often overestimating how well they know a person until something surfaces and blindsides them.

According to JRO, Ratchet was oblivious to Pharma’s romantic interest, and throughout canon, it’s easy to see Pharma was more invested in the relationship than Ratchet ever was.

The question is, did Ratchet ever care about Pharma at all? And if so, to what degree?

Yes, Ratchet calls Pharma “buddy” and “friend,” but the former was sarcastic, and the latter means something different to each person. Also, in light of the circumstances, Ratchet could have just been saying “friend” in response to Pharma saying it—an emotional appeal more than anything.

However, Pharma must have been aware of Ratchet’s lack of relational investment because during the confrontation at Delphi, Pharma’s first reaction wasn’t to appeal to their friendship (ex: “But you know me!”). Instead, he appealed to their shared profession:

Then there’s the exchange of insults: 

This is what I meant earlier by “true feelings being revealed.” Ratchet may have just been trying to match Pharma’s insult, but it’s unlikely it was merely reciprocal because while Ratchet is snarky at times, he’s sincere in that snark. There’s almost always some truth in his verbal jabs no matter how unserious they seem, and he’s never cruel for cruelty’s sake.

So, if Pharma saw Ratchet as an inferior doctor, and Ratchet saw Pharma as an inferior Autobot…it’s reasonable to assume there was always some deep-rooted competition and conflict preventing them from being super close.

Possible suspicion surrounding Pharma’s conduct as an Autobot paired with a tendency to misjudge the nuances of relationships could explain why Ratchet was so quick to decide Pharma was a lost cause. Maybe Pharma’s actions at Delphi confirmed something from the past that Ratchet had brushed off for whatever reason.

In any case, Ratchet seems to have been largely unaffected by the Pharma he found at Delphi. While leaving Messatine, he emphasizes that he’ll miss Pharma’s talent.

Not “who he used to be.”

Not “what we used to have.”

Just…“his talent.”

Later, on Luna 1, Pharma mentions that he and Ratchet were inseparable, but that could mean a few different things:

Best case scenario: Pharma and Ratchet sought each other out on equal terms.

Worst case scenario: Pharma followed Ratchet around.

Somewhere in the middle: the job forced Pharma and Ratchet to work in close proximity most of the time, and while Pharma intentionally ran into Ratchet more often than necessary, Ratchet also sought out Pharma every now and then.

Whatever the case, working with someone every day doesn’t tell you anything about who they are as a person, and the amount of time spent with someone doesn’t automatically correlate to how deep the relationship is or how well the people know each other. It’s not like either Pharma or Ratchet are shown to be good at expressing their personal feelings outside of extreme circumstances. 

Ratchet does bring up late-night conversations of the past:

But while this indicates there was something deeper between him and Pharma, because neither of them were ever shown to be super open with their true feelings, it’s unlikely the conversations were full of touchy-feely talk. In all likelihood, the conversations were mostly medicine and war-related, with the rare spark-to-spark talk sprinkled in. Also, considering everything up to this point, one has to wonder if those talks ever meant anything to Ratchet, or if he was just digging for something that might stall Pharma’s torture.

Maybe those late-night conversations did mean something to Ratchet, but whatever the case, Pharma didn’t take the bait. He knew Ratchet was trying to stall by making an emotional appeal, and perhaps he was convinced the conversations hadn’t meant that much to Ratchet.

Looking at all of this, it’s hard to believe Ratchet ever cared about Pharma as more than an interesting work friend. But even if he had cared more than he let on, it wasn’t enough to overcome the doubts he had about Pharma’s character.

As for whether Pharma truly cared about Ratchet, I’m convinced he did, but in a mostly unhealthy way, and with a strong undercurrent of one-sided rivalry. At some point, Ratchet had been an equal and a source of challenge, and he probably listened to Pharma pretty often. It’s reasonable to assume Ratchet was one of the only people—if not the only person—able to handle Pharma’s intense temperament and challenge him in a meaningful way, providing some semblance of friendship for Pharma.

However, one last thing that stands out is that, when telling Ratchet why he’s torturing him, Pharma didn’t say anything like, “Because you hurt me” or “Because you turned against me—your friend.” Instead, he said it was for “ruining things at Delphi” and because “you declared war on my body.”

Either Pharma wasn’t being entirely honest, or Ratchet’s friendship didn’t mean as much in the first place as he’d previously implied. It’s possible the ‘Because you hurt me’ was implied in “for ruining things back at Delphi,” but why not say it outright? Perhaps it was a fear of vulnerability and admitting there was ever a relational need at all.

At the end of the day, it’s difficult to say for certain how close Pharma and Ratchet were, but it’s clear they were never on the same page and there were always barriers between them.

Luna 1

Revisiting the matter of Pharma’s morality taking a backseat to other priorities, his time on Luna 1 further underscores this. Again, Pharma chooses his battles and is unwilling to put himself at great risk for the sake of others, but a closer look at the situation with Tyrest reveals there wasn’t really anything he could have done for the Cold Construct population even if he had wanted to. It would have been him against Tyrest, an army of Legislators, and a bunch of Decepticons. Pharma knew his limits, and seeing as his goal was self-preservation, it was perfectly rational for him to go along with Tyrest’s grand scheme.

Besides, it doesn’t look like he was given much of a choice:

Although, knowing Pharma, he still would have demanded to know beforehand what he would get in return for the pain, and evidently, Tyrest held up his end of the deal since Pharma had access to the Luna 1 tech collection.

As for Tyrest’s plan to wipe out the Cold Construct population, there’s nothing indicating Pharma’s decision to turn a blind eye to it was rooted in malevolence or bigotry—just rational apathy: ‘I can’t stop Tyrest, so why concern myself with the outcome?’

Again, you can’t save everyone; Pharma had all he could do to save himself.

But it wasn’t all horrible. I would even go so far as to say Pharma found some happiness on Luna 1. Tyrest didn’t care about him, but he didn’t need Tyrest to care. Everyone else there hated him, but he didn’t need to feel like he belonged or was admired. At this point, Pharma’s only interest was Tyrest’s Luna 1 tech collection, and that meant playing nice so he could keep his reward. Back at Delphi, he probably assumed he’d never again practice medicine the way he’d loved; being brought to Luna 1 was an unexpected, yet welcome, second chance.

Even so, Pharma had his moments of cruelty. Back at Delphi, he had easily-identifiable reasons to kill patients—both the ones whose T-cogs he harvested and the 20 more he tried to kill when he shot the life support machine. But on Luna 1, he had no reason to be cruel, yet he chose to be. By this point, he’d mastered the ability to almost completely ignore or subdue his conscience.

In the case of Ratchet’s torment, one could argue Pharma only drew it out for retaliation purposes; it was personal for him.

As for cutting Ambulon in half, it was obviously meant to be as gruesome as possible, yet also quick. But personally, I don’t think it was about Ambulon; it was more about hurting Ratchet. Due to the fact that Ratchet’s identity is wrapped up in his compassion and his ability to be helpful as a doctor, one of the most effective acts of revenge would be to do something that makes him feel utterly helpless.

Also I wonder if, subconsciously or consciously, Pharma was attempting to recreate the sense of helplessness he felt back at Delphi under Tarn’s watch: “Do you see, Ratchet? Do you now understand how it feels to have control ripped out of your hands? To be totally helpless?”

Next, for some reason, Pharma was invested in the promised execution of Getaway and Skids:

He had no personal connection to either of them that would give him a reason to be interested, so maybe Tyrest told him he could perform the execution and/or have the corpses for medical experimentation. Either way, Pharma would have had a chance to use some of the tech in Tyrest’s tech collection, possibly explaining his excitement.

Of course, any chance of an execution disappeared when the final showdown went wrong.

When Pharma tried to escape to Cyberutopia and discovered he couldn’t pass through the spacebridge forcefield, he gave up. He’d been caught; he would no longer have access to Tyrest’s tech collection; Ratchet and every other self-righteous Autobot would never forgive him; and the morality lock prevented him from escaping. By all appearances, he would never again be able to engage in that which gave him a sense of meaning. He had shrunken his world down to his obsessive interest in a specialized field and one significant, yet unrequited relationship. With both of these lost, his world collapsed. 

Yes, guilt played a part in Pharma’s despondency, but because he seems to have been in denial of said guilt, it’s more likely his despair was primarily due to the fact that he saw no future for himself. He had nothing left to live for.

In light of this, Pharma’s flippant comments to First Aid make sense. He wasn’t being insensitive as much as he was goading First Aid. Pharma’s not stupid. First Aid had a massive rotary cannon on him, and Pharma knew exactly which emotional buttons to push to get him to pull the trigger.

Pharma wanted to die.

Adaptus

First, let me emphasize that Adaptus did not take possession of Pharma’s body. Instead, Pharma was the unwelcome guest:

How Pharma ended up in Adaptus’ new body is a mystery, but whatever the case, Pharma didn’t pass on to the Allspark. Whether or not he had a choice can only be speculated.

First Aid had blasted Pharma’s head clean off, so whatever happened must have been related to the spark. Perhaps some residual spark energy was trapped in a body part that Adaptus repurposed, leaving Pharma tethered to the new body unwillingly.

Still, Pharma managed to assert his will and override Adaptus for a brief moment. Considering Adaptus was basically a god, this is impressive.

Based on Adaptus’ surprise at being interrupted, it seems he didn’t know Pharma was there. Why Pharma hadn’t tried to assert himself sooner is a mystery. Maybe Adaptus’ scheme was entertaining; maybe Pharma actually liked the company; or maybe he’d been waiting for an opportunity to get revenge on Tyrest for everything done to him back at Luna 1.

Sure enough, just like with Ratchet back on Luna 1, Pharma’s vengeful streak came out as soon as there was an opportunity.

Unfortunately for him, this left him vulnerable, and Tyrest took advantage of the confusion:

Conclusion

When someone reduces their world to narrow personal interests and one or a few very special people, their grip tightens around what little they have. They often become obsessive and possessive of the few things that make them feel alive, and their view of the world becomes increasingly more subjective and detached from the outside world. Pharma seems to have fallen into this trap.

Even so, in the context of the circumstances, several of the decisions he made were rational—even if coldly so. Oftentimes, “extreme” rationality and self-preservation are villainized in fiction, and characters like Pharma who don’t automatically put themselves at great risk for anyone and everyone are villainized, or at least looked down on. Their choices are often regarded as less human, but rationality and self-preservation are just as human as compassion and self-sacrifice.

Ultimately, Pharma was trapped and pushed over the edge into “insanity” by Tarn’s cruelty, but his own choices made from a place of pride determined how he fell, and how far he fell. It was a perfect storm of Tarn’s mind games and Pharma’s intellectual arrogance, excessive self-confidence, obsessive nature, and stubborn grip on the kind of future he wanted for himself.

Pharma is yet another Icarus who flew too close to the sun and paid dearly for it, and while JRO/the narrative could have given this Icarus better wings, that doesn’t change the fact that he chose to fly so high.

***

Many thanks to anyone who made it to the end of this monster of a post.

-tosses a Rodimus Star at you-

[ladylaviniya]

Devotion Under Duress Part 2

Part 1/Part 3

Story Synopsis: Ever since Apollo made you his bride, you have been at odds with the jealous Hyacinthus. Apollo decides that his lover and his wife need to make amends. He commands you both to have sex with each other while he watches and guides.

Word Count: 4k+

Pairings: Reader X Apollo X Hyacinthus

Story Warnings: 18+ Dead Dove Do Not Eat, Dubious Consent, Vaginal sex, Oral sex (both m and f receiving and giving) Humiliation, Enemies to Lovers Cunnilingus, Ancient Greek God Mythology., threesome, hate-fucking.

Author Note: If you practice Hellenism, please know this writing may not be your cup of tea and you may feel a misrepresentation of the gods you might follow/show reverence for. I am writing this from the perspective of *Blood of Zeus Characters.*

Hyacinthus reached up, slowly, his hands flexing slightly as he unpicked the golden broach that held the fabric at his shoulder. The toga loosened, slipping from his hips to his feet. He removed his shoes. The only thing that he refused to remove was the emerald-jewelled necklace that hung around his neck and chest...it was a gift from Apollo. As far as you had been told and taught in the delphi temple, once Hyacinthus was a spartan prince who had suffered an accident in discus. Apollo saved Hyacinthus, healed him and fell in love, he offered the emerald necklace as a gift of proposal to join him in Olympus and live in immortality.

How ironic that Hyacinthus prince of Spartans looked down upon you for once being a pythia of Apollo in Delphi. 

You sat up slowly and cocked your head to the side.

It was then you realised you had never seen Hyacinthus so nude before in such clear light. When they made love besides you, often you rolled over, not interested to watch; that would’ve added salt to the wound of insult.

Hyacinthus’s member stood proud and erect, flushed a deep rose colour that darkened to a rich purple at the swollen tip. It curved slightly upward, thicker while shorter than Apollo's, you unconsciously noted.

His balls hung lower and heavier than the sun god's. You had expected something smaller if you were being honest. What struck you, though? He was entirely hairless to you.

Pre-cum beaded at the slit of Hyacinthus’s cockhead, a pearlescent drop that clung stubbornly to the tip.

He was hard...oh...he had enjoyed eating your pussy.

Hyacinthus’s breath stuttered, but it wasn’t awe that trembled through him.

His body stood bare before you, smiling tightly, his pride hadn’t been stripped so easily. Not yet. His fists clenched at his sides, knuckles pale with the effort not to lash out with words, to retreat behind his flowery thorns.

You studied him. You saw him...

Not as a lover.

Not quite yet.

But a beast, craving the battle. Like a lion in the gladiators ring just awaiting for the doors to open. He wanted to tear you apart- again- it was not awe that made him tremble as he stood naked in front of you nor humilation...oh no, no, it was rage restrained. You knew it, you sensed it; he wanted to hate-fuck the ever-loving life out of you. Apollo was your only protector.

It shook your core as you stared at those hardened violet eyes.

Apollo cleared his throat, “Pythia,” he said, his golden eyes were hot for the stench of sex, “touch him.”

You didn’t move. You glared. Apollo’s face turned to you. You weren’t typically disobedient…

Hyacinthus scoffed, his lip curling as he turned slightly from you. “She won’t. She’s too afraid. Or too proud.”

“No,” you snapped, rolling your eyes. “I just don’t touch things that resemble a feral fucking animal.”

You felt Apollo’s sharp inhale. That made Hyacinthus look at you, really look, with eye contact. Those violet eyes, like the lion of your thoughts, were still filled with baited violence beckoning to you.

“Then maybe,” Hyacinthus said, stepping forward until the heat of his bare skin radiated against yours, “you should learn how to tame me, or maybe go back home if I scare you so, little Pythia.”

You raised your chin, hand lifting deliberately to press against his chest, palm flat, fingers splayed, not in affection, but in challenge. His heart was pounding. So was yours. 

“I don’t need to tame you,” you whispered. “Just outlast you. I wouldn't dream of running away.”

His breath caught. he bit his bottom lip, his eyes fluttered as he chuckled a groan, "Is that right? And why is that do you think?"

Apollo watched, silent now; this was no longer his scene. It was yours and Hyacinthus’s. A reckoning written not in blood, but in the friction of breath and need and begrudging recognition.

Your hand moved lower, slower now, sliding down the length of Hyacinthus’s chest. He didn’t stop you. Didn’t flinch. But his jaw was tight, every muscle beneath your touch taut with restraint. When you reached his cock, he gasped, just once, as if the sound had slipped through his pride. You grabbed him, rubbing up and down.

"Because I am not a fucking coward, I just know when to bide my time, when to be patient."

You didn’t smirk. You didn’t tease.

You met his eyes. 

“I should hate you,” you said, your voice shook as you swallowed, “I still might.”

He was so intimidating as he stood above you.

“Good,” he said, his voice rough, desperate, “because I still hate you too.”

But then he leant in.

And kissed you.

It wasn’t gentle.

It was punishing, teeth and breath and war. A kiss from someone who didn’t know whether they wanted to conquer you or fall. His hands cupped your neck and jaw, it was like he was begging, or was he just trying to overpower? you'd never truly know...

You kissed him back anyway.

Not because he deserved it.

But because you needed it.

Because whatever was between you had always been more than rage. It was a building fire and fury, yes, but fire could warm as easily as it burned. You were the match, and Hyacinthus had been spreading the dry leaves for weeks before Apollo could light it all up.

Hyacinthus broke the kiss, breathing hard. Your hand was still on him, picking up the pace and squeezing him tighter.

And neither of you had moved away.

And maybe, just maybe, something had begun.

Not love.

Not yet.

But the battle was changing.

And gods have always loved their chaos wrapped in passion.

Your breaths mingled, heavy with the weight of words unsaid. His eyes burned like twin pyres, and yours matched in kind. Not yielding. Never that.

But curious.

And willing to play with the hungry lion.

Apollo’s voice wove through the space between you, velvet and unyielding. “Now,” he said, from where he lounged like the sun itself incarnate. “Pythia. On your knees.”

Your breath hitched, not from fear, from the sharp click of your pride being tested.

Hyacinthus chuckled, “Of course. Make her kneel like a servant and call it divine love.”

Apollo’s eyes flicked to him, not angry, but cool. “Still so loud, my flower. She kneels not for you. But for me,” he said to you. “But make no mistake, Pythia. I do want you to suck his cock.”

You met Apollo’s gaze for a long, brimming moment. You sighed defiantly as you sunk to your knees.

You heard Hyacinthus’s breath falter again.

He hadn’t expected you to obey.

You tilted your chin up, looking at him from beneath your lashes. “This doesn’t mean I don't hate you,” you muttered, your fingers curling around the base of his shaft, "I am just not a coward."

He swallowed hard, a shiver running through him as your touch tightened. “I’d be disappointed if it did. I like putting you in your place.”

Your tongue flicked out, just barely tasting him, and gods, he was sweet. Clean, divine, like something grown in perfect sunlight. His cock jumped in your grasp, and for the first time, his pride seemed to waver. You licked again, this time slower. From the base, dragging all the way to the flushed tip where pre-cum gleamed like salted nectar. When you swirled your tongue over it, his thighs tensed. His breath was ragged and shallow.

Apollo hummed behind you, a sound of pleased indulgence. “You see, Hyacinthus?” he murmured, his voice like a kiss of sunlight. “See how she worships and loves me as she sucks cock. She learns. She submits. Not to you, but to me, through you. How does she feel in her worship?”

Hyacinthus groaned, head tipping back. “Fuck… she’s… she’s good.”

You smirked around him, lips wrapping tighter as you eased his cock into your mouth. Inch by inch, you took him deeper. It wasn’t about pleasing him; it was about commanding the moment. About showing him that even on your knees, you had power.

Hyacinthus' hand slipped into your hair, tentative and soft. You grunted and slapped it away.

“I didn’t say you could touch me, filth,” you said, pulling off with a wet pop.

Hyacinthus blinked down at you, flushed and disarmed. “You’re insufferable.”

You smiled sweetly. “You’re welcome.”

Apollo chuckled low in his throat. “Now, now,” he said, “be generous, Pythia. Finish what you started.”

You met Hyacinthus’s eyes again, both of you locked in that tension, that threadbare truce born of lust and lingering venom, and then you took him back into your mouth with slow, exacting purpose.

Hyacinthus moaned.

Not in triumph, oh but in surrender.

And it sounded a hell of a lot like defeat finally starting to taste like desire.

Hyacinthus’s breath stuttered in his chest, uneven and sharp, as you took him deeper into your mouth once more.

Your lips parted with practiced control, stretching wide around the thick heat of him. You felt everything: the twitch of his cock against your tongue, the faint tremble that travelled through his thighs as they tensed, and the quick, shuddering way his abs tightened every time you hollowed your cheeks and drew back with maddening patience.

You were merciless.

Not cruel. Not rushed.

Just deliberate, in the way he had been between your thighs. Hyacinthus looked down at you, his face caught between disbelief and desperatation. Gods, that was satisfying.

And then, Apollo moved. You hadn’t heard him. There was no sound. No shift of cloth, no footfall. Just presence. Apollo’s hand slid up to grab at your hair. You did not smack him away like you did to Hyacinthus.

he was not forceful, never that. It was commanding. He wrapped his fingers around the base of your skull, to dominate, to anchor you, as if to say, ‘Remember who watches, remember who commands this.’

He guided you, not with brute strength, but with an unbearable gentleness. Just a shift of pressure, just enough for you to take Hyacinthus deeper, until your throat clenched around him and he let out a broken, half-swallowed moan that felt like triumph.

You gagged only once.

“Good,” Apollo murmured above you, his voice thick as honey poured over fire. “Very good, my Pythia.”

His other hand followed, trailing over your back. Down the length of your spine, over the curve of your hip and thigh, until he found what he sought. Your warm and weeping little cunt. His fingers slipped between your thighs like they belonged there, like he already knew the shape of your want, like he’d memorised every shiver you had given him as his sweet pythia. You whimpered around Hyacinthus’s cock, and the vibration pulled another gasp from his lips.

You heard him curse under his breath, Fuck, and his hips twitched forward despite himself.

Apollo chuckled, fingers circling your clit with deliberate patterns.

“Shhhhhhh,” he whispered, pressing his mouth to your temple as his fingers dipped to tease your entrance. “You’re doing beautifully. But I want you to feel it, too.”

You moaned around Hyacinthus, your body trembling with the dual burn of giving and receiving. Of being used by a god and still choosing to make your enemy fall apart in your hands and mouth.

Hyacinthus’s fingers twitched at his sides.

Then, hesitant, he reached out. When his hand brushed your cheek, you didn’t flinch. You didn’t swot him away again this time. And that felt like victory to the flower god.

Apollo’s breath ghosted over your ear. “Look at you,” he purred. “So pretty when you stop pretending you don’t want to just fuck each other. You wear hate like armour, both of you. I have been watching you for weeks, just begging each other to fuck without realising it.”

Your brows narrowed, taking him down your throat. What did Apollo just say? Hyacinthus wanted you too?! But he had been so cruel, so jealous… You had been so timid and envious…

Hyacinthus whimpered. “She still hates me.”

You whined, your eyes watered. Hyacinthus was just as raw. Like he didn’t know whether he wanted it to still be true or not.

“She might,” Apollo said with a lazy smile in his voice. “But she’s sucking your cock while I finger her. That’s not hate, my flower. That’s devotion under duress.”

your mind thought about it for a moment, he had still made your life a miserable hell...Nope. You couldn’t admit it. No. You were too stubborn. After everything Hyacinthus put you through, you couldn’t just forgive him. You pulled back with a wet gasp, spit connecting from your lips to Hyacinthus’s cock in glistening strands.

Your nose flared, your voice came ragged, and your body felt impossibly hot, “I still fucking hate him. Fuck you, you flower prick...”

You turned your head slightly towards Apollo, meeting his gaze, those golden eyes that burned like judgement and summer. You gulped and leant back into him. He smiled again, slow and pleased, fingers slipping deeper into you with an elegant curl that made your hips jerk.

“Good,” Apollo purred, licking and sucking on your neck, below your ear, “Hatred makes the surrender all the sweeter.”

He didn’t chase your climax. He built it. Stroked it like a fire that should never burn too fast, like a prophecy that needed time to bloom. He was master of both things. 

Hyacinthus moaned, and this time, this time, his hand stayed on your hateful face. Not to guide. Not to claim. Just to feel. He didn’t fish his cock back into your mouth; he just let it hang, hard. It twitched. He wanted to rest, except Apollo hadn’t granted him the release.

And you, helpless in the hands of gods, let yourself moan into the curve of his thigh as your body trembled.

Between the three of you, this was no longer punishment.

Only transformation.

And none of you, none of you, would leave it unchanged.

Apollo, ever the conductor of chaos, was not finished.

“Enough,” he said softly, but the word cracked like a whip in the air. Fingers slipped free from your heat, and you whimpered at the loss, thighs twitching as slickness dripped down your legs. “You don’t get to release yet.”

“Lie back, my flower,” he said, no louder than before, but suddenly impossible to ignore. His hand slipped from between your thighs. He brought it to Hyacinthus’s chest, pressed it there, and pushed.

Hyacinthus stumbled back a step, frowning, confused. “What?”

“On your back,” Apollo said again, firmer now. “Now.”

And to your surprise, Hyacinthus obeyed. Not immediately, not without a scowl, but he lowered himself to the ground, propped on his elbows, legs spread, cock hard and aching against his stomach. His eyes found you again, dark and unreadable. Still defiant. Still proud. But waiting.

Apollo turned to you next.

You barely had time to catch your breath before his hand curled in your hair again, firmer this time, a silent command that made your spine straighten instinctively. “Get on top of him, little oracle. Face him.”

Your pulse stuttered.

You hesitated. Just a beat. Enough for your pride to whisper no, but not enough for you to listen. Because something in Apollo’s tone made resistance feel foolish and utterly futile.

And besides… part of you wanted this, now.

Not to submit. Not to yield.

But to confront. You obeyed.

You moved forward, straddling Hyacinthus’s hips, your knees on either side of his thighs.

Apollo crawled closer, not to touch, but to loom, to remind you both who ruled this altar of surrender. His heat radiated down on you like a second sun. You glanced up, expecting Apollo to claim you from behind, but he didn’t move forward. Instead, his gaze shifted, lazy, golden, and imperious, to Hyacinthus.

Apollo clarified, unbothered. “You’re going to ride him, and you are going to fuck up into her while you look at each other.”

Hyacinthus’s exhaled sharply, you did too.

“I want to see what hatred looks like,” murmured the sun god, tilting his head, “when it’s forced to watch itself unravel.”

Hyacinthus hesitated, pride, fury, and confusion all warring on his face. His cock was still hard, still glistening from your mouth, and yet… he looked like a man being dragged to the edge of something he couldn’t name.

You arched an eyebrow down at him. “What’s the matter?” you asked, voice raw, sweetly cruel. “Afraid to face me now? Is it you who should be branded a coward?”

That did it.

His eyes locked onto yours. That storm was still there: spite, shame, desire, and need. So much need it made your breath catch.

“Don’t think this means any fucking thing,” he said.

You reached up, fingers curling into the hair at the back of his neck, he groaned and bit his lip as you brushed your lips over his. he tried to kiss you but you pulled back with a smirk. Got him.

You hissed, "Then don’t look at me like it does.”

His cock brushed against your inner thigh, hot and needy, and you both hissed at the contact. You reached between you, lined him up, and sank down slowly, inch by inch, breath by breath, never breaking eye contact.

Hyacinthus’s head fell back with a choked sound.

You didn’t close your eyes. You watched him as he slipped inside you, watched the sharp inhale, the faltering exhale, the way his lashes fluttered, and his hands clenched into fists in the sheets trying not to just grab your hips and slam up into you like you knew he probably wanted to.

You hissed and moaned while he groaned beneath you, his head falling back against the pillows, eyes squeezed tightly, his breath sharp and uneven. But Apollo wasn’t having that.

“No,” the god said, fingers curling in Hyacinthus’s hair, yanking his head back just enough to make him see. “Eyes on her.”

Hyacinthus obeyed.

And you? You met his gaze without flinching.

Because, gods, it was intimate.

He lifted his hips, fucking you deep, up to the sky. You gasped. Not from pain, not even from pleasure. From vulnerability. From the terrifying realisation that this wasn’t a power play or a battle anymore, really.

This was exposure. a scheme by Apollo at his finest. 

Every time Hyacinthus moved inside you, your bodies shuddered in tandem. Every sound you made, he swallowed with his eyes. And every twitch of his hips only drew you closer to some brink neither of you could deny.

“That’s it,” Apollo whispered. “Look at her while you break.”

Your hands rose to Hyacinthus’s shoulders, nails digging in, not to hurt, but to just hold on steady. His rhythm faltered, his hips stuttering just as you both felt like the commanded eye contact was too much. Too real.

You licked your lips, panting. “St-still think I hate you?”

Hyacinthus’s expression cracked, just for a moment. “I hope you do,” he whispered back. “Because if this is love, I won’t survive it.”

You almost smiled.

Almost.

"Good, c-cause I do!"

He grunted and slammed up again, “Doesn't matter, because this doesn’t mean anything,” he growled. “You’re just a Pythian slut; I am a master of you and a humble servant to Apollo.”

You tried not to laugh.

You leant forward, bracing your hands on his chest, his emerald necklace threaded between your fingers, “Keep telling yourself that,” you whispered and winced, “Maybe you’ll believe it.” 

You were growing tired; you couldn't keep riding. You took a deep breath.

Apollo’s hands ghosted along your spine again. One settled on the nape of your neck, the other at your hip, steadying you, guiding you. He balanced you when your thighs grew weak before continuing.

“Good,” he murmured. “Just like that. Eyes open. Keep them on each other.”

And you did. A small pause helped you gain a second of energy.

You rolled your hips, slow and deliberate. Hyacinthus’s breath caught in his throat, and his hands finally, finally, grasped your waist, unsure if he was grounding you or himself. You moved in slow, grinding circles, drawing moans from both your mouths.

Apollo sat behind you, the ever-watchful god, radiating control without lifting his voice. He didn’t need to touch you now. He owned the moment with presence alone.

“Look at her,” he said to Hyacinthus. “See what a good little bride I have, and you want me to send her away? Don’t you feel that pussy of hers, Hyacinthus? Don’t you love it?”

Hyacinthus’s eyes locked with yours. He didn’t look away. Couldn’t. Not when your breath stuttered, not when your lips parted in pleasure, not when your body clenched around him. There was no mask left on either of your faces now. Just breathe and sweat and be honest.

“I…I am not supposed to feel like this,” he said, voice broken. “Not with you.”

You smiled then, small, pained, and victorious. “What? You don't hate me anymore? pity.... we might be even.”

Apollo’s hand slid into your neck hair again, curling there like a necklace of light.

“Now,” he groaned, “show him what it looks like when you worship me… Remember our nights in the temple?”

Your body surged into motion, no longer slow, no longer shy. You rode him with purpose now, hips snapping, thighs quaking, moans falling from your lips without shame. Hyacinthus held on, eyes wide, mouth open, cursing and gasping beneath you as his composure shattered.

This was no longer an argument.

It was a surrender you both swore unspokenly that you’d never give.

And Apollo watched, like a god surveying an altar drenched in sweat and sacrifice.

Because this was worship.

Messy, furious, inevitable.

And soon, one of you would break first.

The rhythm built, tight, punishing, all-consuming. Every thrust made Hyacinthus shudder beneath you, and every grind sent sparks shooting through your core. Sweat slicked your bodies, moans tangled in your throats, and still you kept eye contact like it was a duel.

“Ha! Pathetic!” Hyacinthus gritted his teeth, hands locked around your hips like he couldn’t decide whether to pull you down harder or push you away. “You’re going to release on my cock first,” he rasped, his voice fraying. “I can feel it; you’re already close.”

You arched your back, meeting each movement with sharp, deliberate force. “In your dreams,” you bit out, breath catching. “You’re twitching inside me like you’re about to lose it.”

“You wish,” he growled, but his voice cracked halfway through the sentence. “You’re clenching around me like you’re begging for it.”

You narrowed your eyes. “I’d never beg an animal like you.”

“Good,” he snapped. “Because I’d never give it to you, even if you did.”

“Please,” you sneered, grinding down harder, lips parting in a moan you tried to bite back. “You’d give anything to watch me fall apart; your pride is so obsessed with my downfall.”

“Well, yes, maybe I would give it to you," he chuckled, licking his bottom lip, "but only if I got to break you first.”

“You couldn’t.”

“I will. I was close at dinner; I was pretty fucking close when I ate out your pretty wet cunt, I think.”

You gasped as your clit dragged against his pelvis, your thighs trembling. He cursed under his breath, eyes locked on your face, jaw clenched so tightly you thought it might crack.

“Enough.”

You both froze.

Apollo stepped forward, his gaze cool and commanding as his fingers slid into your hair, tugging your head gently back so you had to look up at him.

“Neither of you,” he said, voice rich with quiet power, “gets to release until I say so.”

Hyacinthus’s brows furrowed. “What?”

Apollo raised a brow, as though mildly bored with your foolishness. “You heard me. You’re so desperate to win, to be the last one standing, yet neither of you has done the one thing that matters.”

His hand slid from your hair to your throat, not squeezing, just resting there, a warm, firm promise.

“You haven’t begged me, impressed me, or devoted this act to me- not truly.”

You and Hyacinthus went still beneath the weight of that command. Breathing hard. Muscles locked. Caught between fury and need.

“No,” you said, through clenched teeth. “I’m not going to beg to release, not until he has first.”

Hyacinthus echoed you immediately. “Fuck you. I’m not begging for anything!”

Apollo sighed, exasperated, almost fond. “Stubborn little things,” he said, tracing your collarbone with his thumb. “So willing to tear each other apart just to prove who lasts longer. But neither of you will get what you want without me.”

He leant close, his voice brushing the shell of your ear. “You serve me with your bodies. You bare your pride and your venom, like offerings on an altar. But until you submit, until one of you asks permission of me, there will be no release.”

You felt Hyacinthus twitch inside you, involuntarily. He groaned, head falling back, dragging in a breath like it hurt. You clenched around him in defiance, but the ache was unbearable. Your orgasm coiled, demanding, right there on the edge, but Apollo’s words had chained it.

And neither of you would say it.

Not yet.

Not him.

Not you.

You stared down at each other, sweaty, slick, furious, undone. Neither moving. Neither blinking. Still fighting with every breath.

Apollo just smiled, settling down behind you again, utterly calm. “Very well, then I suppose we wait.”

And you stayed there, locked together, trembling, denied, while the god between you wielded silence like a leash, and the only thing more unbearable than the pleasure was your shared refusal to break first.

The silence between you stretched thin as spun glass, trembling on the verge of breaking. Every breath was a battle. Every second, a war of restraint. You could feel the sweat dripping down your back and could hear the ragged breath Hyacinthus dragged in through clenched teeth beneath you. His chest stuttered against yours, skin hot and heaving, his cock still buried inside you like a taunt neither of you could take back.

And yet, you didn’t move. Not forward. Not back. Not even to ease the unbearable tension in your shaking thighs.

Apollo sat just above, carved from shadow and gold, lounging like the most wicked of kings. A god without mercy, without time to waste on mortal pride, but endlessly entertained by it.

“So much noise a moment ago,” he mused, his voice low and sweet like venom, fingertips grazing your spine. “Now look at you. Silent. Trembling.”

You gritted your teeth and lifted your chin, but it did little to mask the tremor in your limbs. You were still clenching around Hyacinthus, around your pride, around every humiliating ounce of need Apollo had conjured and refused to let you resolve.

Hyacinthus’s breath ghosted against your collarbone. You could feel the tension in his jaw, the fury in his stillness. You refused to look down at him. He refused to acknowledge how close he was, too. But you felt it, every twitch, every involuntary pulse. He was just as wrecked. And still, he hadn’t begged. Neither had you.

“Still so defiant,” Apollo murmured, pleased, drawing closer, his lips brushing the shell of Hyacinthus’s ear like a secret. “You’ll break first, beautiful boy. Look at her,” he said, eyes sliding to you. “She’d rather die than let you win. That’s not pride. That’s worship.”

He turned to you then, eyes sharp and amused. “But you? You’re already cracking. You’re shaking.”

“I’m not,” The denial sputtered out before it could take shape, your voice thin and unconvincing.

Apollo clicked his tongue, a sound like the closing of a cage.

“You are,” he purred, his hand ghosting up your ribs. “And I like that. I like watching pride unravel.”

Your glare turned downward. Right into Hyacinthus’s furious, flushed face. His hands gripped your hips like he was holding himself back from tearing you open or tearing himself free. You hated him in that moment. Hated the way his lips were parted, the way his gaze burned, not with lust, not only with rage, but with something dangerously close to reverence.

The pressure between your thighs pulsed, your nerves sparking with every heartbeat. You were right there, teetering on a blade’s edge, and the only thing holding you back was your fucking stubbornness. One word. That was all it would take.

One ‘please.’

But he didn’t deserve to hear it. And neither did Apollo.

A sigh echoed above you, exaggerated, theatrical, dripping with divine disappointment.

“Well,” Apollo said flatly, rising to his feet like a storm cloud about to break. “Clearly, we’re going to be here all night.”

Your stomach twisted. You glanced up.

“How utterly boring,” he added, his smile curling with cruelty.

Hyacinthus stilled beneath you. His voice was a growl. “Excuse me?”

“Oh,” Apollo said, feigning surprise. “Now you care.”

“New rule,” he declared, cool and bright as a blade. “If you won’t beg, then you’ll serve me another way.” 

His hand slipped under your jaw, fingers tilting your chin upward until your eyes locked with his. Apollo grinned at you.

“Compliment him.”

[decepti-thots]

Character ask for Ratchet?

one aspect about them i love: I really enjoy the fact IDW Ratchet is genuinely quite... maybe outright calling him 'arrogant' is overstating it a little, but you know what I mean? He's presented as having that very particular kind of 'if I can't and don't do this, nobody can and nobody will' which is both a kind of generosity (he'll go above and beyond if he thinks it's the right thing to do, without questioning whether he has to) and also very much cocky and even self-centered at times. (See: him never quiiiite getting around to handing off being CMO to First Aid, despite swearing he will, no, really...) He's so up his own ass at times, but also in that way where you can see how it stems from a very specific desire to be able to fix something. Excellent combination of traits. In a very weird and indirect way, he has just slightly more in common with Rodimus than I think he'd like to admit, in this regard, TBH. one aspect i wish more people understood about them:

Ratchet's kind of a judgey asshole with huge blindspots. Like. It's a pretty core character trait IMO! Once he forms an opinion his confidence in his own rightness makes it hard to shake him from it, and he's prone to taking his own faulty premises for granted enough that this can amplify his worst tendencies. You see it in everything from the way his self-directed insecurity over his failing hands is also representative of the fact he casually assumes his own inherent superiority as a forged medic, to the way in the Shadowplay flashback we see him be very casually dismissive of the seriousness of Drift's situation (he's very encouraging; but also very naive). And I think eradicating that tendency to see things from his own perspective (and for that perspective to be one that comes from a very specific background and experiences) from his character is really just sanding off the most fun parts of his personality. one (or more) headcanon(s) i have about this character:

He has a minor habit of being very precise and slightly obsessive about his fuel intake, because part of being a medic during the war was a combination of having to ration it out (dying patients need it, after all, and there's not much to spare) and needing to nonetheless be strict about not under fuelling to the point it impacted his ability to work. He hasn't really managed to shake the now-unnecessary balancing act post-war (because god forbid Ratchet admit he might have a problem with something).

one character i love seeing them interact with: I really do love all the times we see Ratchet and Rodimus interacting. They're like- juuuust missing each other constantly, I feel, in terms of what they want from the other and expect of them. Moments like how clearly Rodimus puts a lot of stock in whether or not Ratchet voted to remove him as captain, and how despite voting 'no' there's almost a level of respect in saying as much when given the opportunity, rather than simply walking away. Or when Ratchet tries to guess what will motivate Rodimus in that one scene towards the end of the Mederi arc and he's just not… quite right in his assessment of Rodimus and what he's like. There's a surprising level of tension there but not necessarily an antagonistic one, per se, and the degree to which Rodimus especially really wants Ratchet's respect and values it is very interesting to me. one character i wish they would interact with/interact with more: I know there's realistically not really anywhere it could be bar possibly like. The Functionist Universe's second arc or something (which I'm not fond of on the whole admittedly) but gosh, I wish we'd had just a little more of an idea of what Ratchet and Pharma's dynamic was like pre-Delphi breakdown. We get hints- Pharma clearly put a lot of stock in their friendship that he felt Ratchet didn't return (the flashback in Our Steps Will Always Rhyme showing he sought Ratchet's input on his reassignment and Ratchet ghosted him, and it's clearly something that bothers him), and there's stuff like the background cameo they do indeed get in an FU scene showing them socializing outside of work. But ugggh I want more details on what their dynamic was actually like, because they're both these very big personalities with a strong arrogant streak and it makes a lot of sense to me this would be what Ratchet liked about him and vice versa, and it would be so fun to see what that dynamic looked like in better times!

Unfortunately finding fan content about those two that isn't extremely uhhh fanonized is. Also hard. Sighs sadly.

one (or more) headcanon(s) i have that involve them and one other character:

Ratchet was the one who finally broached to Drift that they should do the rites, because he correctly intuited that Drift had convinced himself that if he asked he would be turned down and it was better to simply avoid the topic forever, and so despite Ratchet really not wanting to have to be the one to get all sappy, needs must and all that.

[house-of-hermes]

Divine Inspiration: Theia Mania

[Part 1 out of 3]

Foreword Most of present-day knowledge of theia mania (otherwise known as divine madness) in Ancient Greece specifically comes from Plato's "Phaedrus," his dialogue with Socrates. Plato especially, was an eccentric—his ideas often differed from his contemporaries. And as such, we must also acknowledge that Plato's words may not always accurately reflect the beliefs of the time¹. Scholars have long since debated whether the concept of "divine mania" (both in its entirely and specific aspects) existed in ancient Greek society, or if it was the mental creation of Plato himself.

I cannot hope to answer that. Rather, I aim to condense and highlight some of aspects of divine mania I wished people talked more about. This series will cites Yulia Ustinova's "Divine Mania: Alteration of the Consciousness in Ancient Greece," heavily, and I recommend that people interested in the topic check it out.

Plato was the first to define theia (divine) mania into what we know it now. He provided four succinct categories which highlight a wide array of situations:

Prophetic (foreseeing the future),

Ritual/Telestic (ritualistic release),

Poetic (artistic inspiration), and

Erotic (intense emotions/passion)

In order to properly understand each category of mania, we must first recognize that the word "mania," here is more akin to the word inspiration. To experience divine mania is to be divinely inspired—and the category (prophetic, telestic, poetic, erotic) varies depending on how that inspiration manifests in the real world. Terms such as "mania" or "madness" paint a picture of anguish, despair and agony which isn't always reflected in ancient depictions. Plato quotes Socrates as saying:

"It might be so if madness were simply an evil; but there is also a madness which is a divine gift, and the source of the chiefest blessings granted to men. For prophecy is a madness, and the prophetess at Delphi and the priestesses at Dodona when out of their senses have conferred great benefits on Hellas, both in public and private life, but when in their senses few or none.²"

The Pythia at Delphi and the Priestess at Dodona were known to be "mad," and yet people traveled far and wide to receive an Oracle from them. That's because their "madness" was a sign of the Theoi.

And at its core, that's what divine mania is—it's a connection with the Theoi.

Sources [1] Ustinova, "Divine Mania...in Ancient Greece," 2. [2] Plato, "Phaedrus," (trans. Jowett)

[hollowed-theory-hall]

hey! i’m not sure whether you’ve read the percy jackson books or not, but i was wondering — in which cabin would you place harry? like, which god would he be descended from?

i’m only asking because, well, first of all i’m genuinely curious, and second of all it’s become somewhat of a trend on tiktok — this thing with placing characters from different fandoms into each cabin. and many many people associate harry with zeus, i assume because of the lighting which supposedly ties in with his scar?

i mean, yes, i could see that working for harry, what with him being quite a good leader when he needs to be, the fame tied to his name, etcetera.

buuuuut i would strongly consider him as being a descendant of hades. just to list off some of their core powers: necromancy, sensitivity to death, they can sense/see someone’s life aura and there’s also a skull ring which makes the nearest dead restless upon twisting it. like come onnnnnnn

I have read Percy Jackson and the Heroes of Olympus series (though, I consider the second of these and all subsequent series non-canon, and it's why I didn't watch the new show. I just think Rick Riordan doesn't actually know his own characters. When I read HoO, Percy was just, not Percy, and it annoyed me so much I dropped the series after Mark of Athena, but I digress). I used to love the PJO books in, like, 7th grade. I was a PJO girl before I was an HP girl.

(I also reread the first 3 PJO books 4 years ago, so I remember some stuff from it. Not as much as I remember for HP, but when I was 12 I could just, recite the entire first PJO book. I can't do so anymore)

Honestly, the lighting shape of Harry's scar has more to do with Hades than with Zeus. In HP, lighting is repeatedly used as a symbol of death:

Harry's scar, left behind by the Killing Curse is shaped like lightning.

When Dumbledore is killed by the same curse, the Astronomy Tower is referred to in the chapter title as "The Lightning-Struk Tower".

When Harry describes the killing curse, it's described as "lightning-like":

“Avada Kedavra!” The green light filled the cramped hallway, it lit the pram pushed against the wall, it made the banisters glare like lightning rods, and James Potter fell like a marionette whose strings were cut. . . .

(DH, 296)

Harry's scar is lightning shaped because it symbolizes death.

Not to mention the Deathly Hallows and him being the Master of Death and an actual descendant of the Peverells who made them. Like you said, there's a lot to support that he's a descendant of Hades based on it.

Not to mention he really does feel death, or, at least the Killing Curse as I mentioned in this post:

Moody raised his wand, and Harry felt a sudden thrill of foreboding. “Avada Kedavra!” Moody roared. There was a flash of blinding green light and a rushing sound, as though a vast, invisible something was soaring through the air — instantaneously the spider rolled over onto its back, unmarked, but unmistakably dead. Several of the students stifled cries; Ron had thrown himself backward and almost toppled off his seat as the spider skidded toward him. [...] So that was how his parents had died . . . exactly like that spider. Had they been unblemished and unmarked too? Had they simply seen the flash of green light and heard the rush of speeding death, before life was wiped from their bodies?

(GoF, 216)

But, I also want to bring up the fact that Harry speaks Parseltongue into consideration.

This brings up the caduceus, Hermes' staff, which has two intertwined snakes or the Rode of Asclepius, which is a staff with one snake coiling around it — both staffs are connected to medicine and the god Apollo (Apollo gifted Hermes his staff and is the father of Asclepius). And Apollo is associated with snakes in his stories in general, so, you could make an argument for the Apollo cabin as well.

The snake specifically references Apollo's victory over Python and the establishment of the Oracle of Delphi. So the snake, as a symbol of Apollo, represents prophecy (and that's just as relevant to Harry’s life as death. Apollo as the god of medicine and plague is also associated with death, albeit from a different angle). Not to mention, Crows/Ravens as messengers of prophecy are also symbols of Apollo. Harry's talent as a flyer and his love of gold things fits with Apollo better than with Hades (in PJO, Apollo is the driver of the sun chariot, not Helios. Giving us flight and gold).

(And Harry spends so much time in the hospital wing, yk...)

Also, Harry's polyjuice potion turns gold. Gold is a color usually associated with the sun in alchemy, so it also lends itself to Apollo (and godly ichor in PJO, in general, but the series aren't working with the same rules of magic).

So, I can see an argument for either Hades or Apollo, really. (These are the two I thought of at least when I saw your ask).

Personally, I think a more distant Hades descendant on his father’s side (Peverell) and then Lily as a daughter of Apollo could be really fun for Harry. Becouse he'd be placed in the Apollo cabin but have the aura of a Hades kid (and have more Hades powers than Apollo ones. Like, he'd speak to snakes (Apollo) with no healing or musical ability whatsoever, but could sense death and have the fear aura, but not constantly (Hades)), and he'll just confuse everyone, and I think that'll be funny.

(I just want him to have both James and Lily as parents! I can't give up on either of them and make him a full demigod! Maybe they had a threesome with Apollo/Hades instead of the above, and godly genetics made it work, so Harry has three parents in this AU? Then he'd be like Gilgamesh)

[ohrudi]

Fix: Pets need less Space

TL;DR

with this mod, your pets (cats, dogs, horses) need half of the space for all interactions

this mod improves routing for your pets, escpecially for those clunky horses

compatible with “Interaction on sloped terrain enabler” by nikel23

the pets expansions is required for this mod to do anything

Installation: just put all the files in your packages-folder, the usual way, nothing special required, merging is no problem

Conflicts: highly unlikely, see below for detail

compatible with simler90's Gameplay Core Mod (Update 198 and above, since 28th Apr 2024)

Patch: v1.67/v1.69 (probably works with lower patches as well)

Here's my other big routing fix for Sims

Download

ModTheSims | Simblr | SimFileShare

Hey Simmers, Rudi has a big mod-achievement for you today: it's time for my ninth mod

Just recently I play tested my new awesome house, that's cramped up with clutter and plants all the way up to the roof. I tested the house with my pets and had to realize, that they aren't able to use many of the things I placed for them, cause the spaces are just too tight. Also whenever my familiy tried to interact with their pets, they had to walk through the entire house, cause they had no suitable space left. But no more! With this mod, those issues will forever be a sorrow of the past.

Explanation - how the mod works This mod reduces the space that pets (horses, dogs and cats) need for doing things, similar to my other mods. It does this by overwriting the jig size for each pet interaction. A jig is an invisible object that’s auto placed on the ground, while e.g. two sims are talking to each other. Other sims will walk around the other sims talking, cause the jig (placed under the sims talking) obstructs the routing-way for other sims. By default all jigs are quite big, in most cases even way bigger than they need to be. But if you reduce the jig size by a mod, than those interactions are possible even in tiny over-cluttered rooms. Here an example: Playing guitar has originally a jig, that’s 2x2 boxes/meters big, which meant sims often walk outside the house, cause nowhere is enough free space for this very big jig to place down. I solved this issue with my other mod, by reducing the size of the jig for playing guitar.

Recommended Mods, that further improve routing

Sims need less Space by OhRudi

Guitar needs less Space for playing by OhRudi

Bass needs less Space for playing by OhRudi

Interaction on sloped terrain enabler by nikel23

NRaas GoHere by Twallan

Route Fix v9 by Twoftmama (Login required)

How to install

Installation: just put all the files in your packages-folder, the usual way, nothing special required, you can merge them as well

the pets expansions is required for this mod to do anything

Technical Details

Patch: v1.67/v1.69 (probably works with lower patches as well)

this mod can’t affect animations

this mod can’t affect scripting-errors, that are caught by NRaas-Error-Trap

this mod edits the all jigs that came with the Pets expansion pack

Conflicts: only if you have a mod installed who's editing exactly this resource as well, but I assume that's highly unlikely

use delphys dashboard to check for conflicts

I dearly hope your pets enjoy their new freedom. <3

Additional Credits: A BIG THANK YOU to my lovely Beta-Testers: @SimsC, @CardinalSims and @Nemiga Sims 3 Sound Tool S3PE S3OC @you-will-never-find-me-anymore for letting me use her Bonehilda for my awesome profile picture

AND to this awesome and still alive community of simmers

Happy Simming ^^

made by @OhRudi

[deckofmanyaces]

 💛 for Delphi/Eiriol?

omg we've missed this going through our backlog now

Not sure about Delphi specifically, but Grove-folk don't have traditional piercings, instead they use ball-bearings as a kind of jewellery!

And as for tattoos... keep listening...

[amythestalithia]

Hyacinthus

Is there a canon version of Hyacinthus? I mean in Characterisation not backstory.

I have like three different Hyacinthus characters, all of them are princes of Sparta in love with Apollo but with different personalities, powers, and appearances. He always has curly hair and is the handsomest man in the world after Adonis though.

My Athenide AU Hyacinthus is the son of Clio, an archeologist and art restorer, turned god of Archeology and Antique Restoration, Apollo's almost intellectual equal (god of knowledge, education, and the arts, Apollo's highly intelligent and Hyacinthus matches him when he's hyperfixating on a topic). Art, literature, philosophy, history, anthropology, and theater nerd after being nerdy about his domains. He has blue-black curly hair in a military cut, copper brown eyes, terra cotta skin, and the most well-formed features anyone has seen. His hair turns Hyacinth blue when he ascends, and Hyacinth flowers are turned from blue-black to purplish blue by Apollo because they need to be the color of his hair. He has 5 kids with Apollo: the Apolline Muses, Hymneus, and the adopted Asklepios. He's had no demigod children of his own, because his elder sister figure is literal loyalty and she imparted her standards of loyalty to him. There's no one he's met he would upset Apollo for so he's never had to ask for permission to pursue a mortal - Apollo would wingman him if he asked but Hyacinthus knows how it would make him feel so he stays side loverless. He has a mansion conjoined to Apollo's on Olympus as his primary residence, and homes in Sparta, Hyperborea, Delos, Delphi, Iroikos ( Mount Pelion Demigod City), and Eretria in Euboea ( city sacred only to him, since Sparta is shared with Ares and the rest worship him as Apollo's consort.). Hyacinthus is a good teacher and is involved in both the Camps, and in modern times often acts as a knowledge source for demigods. He's optimistic, observant, and good at detective work, which leads him to realise Percy is Perse before everyone else. He's a spearman and was raised to be a conqueror, which means he could probably fight a war god and win if he prepared correctly. He's gentle, mostly sensible, throws away all caution when it comes to his hyperfixations, and he can and will pursue an objective incessantly. He can flirt, weaponise his beauty, and use his looks to get away with murder. Perselena's teachings taught him to be respectful and take no bullshit, which is how he stabbed a god when Zephyrus refused to stop pursuing him even after he said no. He's the one who courted Apollo and asked him out, the one who fell first and hardest.

In my AO3 fic,

Hyacinthus is Amphitrite's son, prince of Sparta and the sea, genderfluid, deity of lawyers, rain, scrying, the euphotic zone, tragic death, beauty, endurance, memory, and elysian spirits. He has teal blue eyes that reflect the Mediterranean sea, curly jet black hair, sandy beige skin, and the beauty of an oceanide. He reincarnates more than three times because Apollo blessed/cursed him with the ability when he first died by discus. So he becomes Cyrene, the daughter of a Libyan naiad, which means he keeps his teal eyes, has glossy black hair, and topaz brown skin, and also is genderfluid. Next up Hippolytus of Sicyon -not the one with a story, the other one Wikipedia has marked only as a male lover of Apollo's, which means I can make up any backstory. Hyacinthus has Cleocrocus Perseus, Idmon, Aristeus, Autuchus, Diomedes, the Apolline Muses: Nete, Mese, and Hypate, Hymneus, Asklepios, and Eriope Epione as her Greek children. Only the Roman child is Antonius Verus. Modern Era children are a Schuyler, a De Courbetin, a Dare, a Bennett, a Fierro, and Halycon Green, all of them in different lives and centuries apart in some cases. He gets a serial killer era too. His characterisation changes from body to body but core triats are: his love of justice, argumentativeness, analytical brain, she memorises the law every time, being strategic, dancing in the rain, curiousity, hyperfixating on a topic and learning all he can about it, using a spear whenever possible, and being ready to tear someone's skin off with facts. He grows from deeply respectful of the gods and almost fearful of their retaliation to getting immortals executed in the name of justice. His mental breakdowns almost always end with someone dead. She loves Apollo so much that she would murder people over separating them, which means when he's alive and dating him Apollo would never take another lover but while she's dead/assumed dead other lovers are fair game. He has a mansion in Elysium in the same street as all of her mortal/dead children, visits her other dead relatives when in Elysium, rests between lives, and then chooses rebirth. She drank from a magical lake in her 1rst life so he remembers his past lives when triggered. I have like 30 lives to get through before we even get to canon, but I really put a lot into this Hyacinthus.

I have an unwritten plot about PJO Polyamorous Soulmates ( Different from Oleander Blooms) with soulmate timers that time out when you realise you're in love with your soulmate and start counting from 0 when you first speak to them. In that, Apollo has three soulmates, Hyacinthus, Cyrene, and Percy. This Hyacinthus gets a mythologically accurate resurrection when Dionysus escorts Ariadne from the underworld in Orpheus and Eurydice fashion and lets his brother-in-law tag along like a thousand years after his death. He's the god of stories, tragic love, tragic death, and justice for those who die in the name of love. He's a huge geek about any form of storytelling: verbal storytelling, written stories, novels, storybooks, historic accounts, songs and poems that tell a story, theater plays, movies, comics, TV shows, and fanfiction. Anything, it just has to be a story. He's prayed to when you have tragedy in your relationship- for relationship drama counselling, for solace after a breakup, to get away from abusive lovers, when you lack parental approval, for finding lost loves, after the death of a lover, and when your love is going to die especially. He's a psychopomp for tragic lovers. Tragic death is more of an underworld duty, when someone's death was especially tragic as in it impacted many people or they didn't experience their full potential in life or their death was the catalyst for a huge change (ala Lucertia), he takes them to the Underworld and sets them up with a support group that he also attends. As a god of justice, when someone dies in the name of love- whether murdered by an obsessed creep like he was, killed by an abusive partner or ex, sacrificed themselves for their love, or died to join their love in the Underworld, he gets psychopomp duty and to bring justice upon the killer or instigator of their death. So he gets to murder stalkers and creeps (like Zephyrus, who gets his wings ripped off during Hyacinthus's ascension party), abusive partners, murdererous exes, the unjustified murderers, and suicide baiters. This Hyacinthus has curly (2C) cinnamon brown collarbone length hair, hyacinth blue/ blueish purple eyes, tawny skin, and the most gorgeous features possible for a European white man. He's built more like a marathon runner than a warrior and uses twin knives to fight, he dances as his fighting strategy. His sacred places are libraries, and his private residence on Delos is a library tower with the highest floor being his apartment. He's had maybe three demigods in all of history, and Agatha Christie was definitely one of them and sired in a foursome with a random couple and Apollo. His other two demigods were also sired through multiple partner sex that included Apollo. This Hyacinthus will burn down anyone who twists love into something cruel. He's kind but furious, passionate but easy going, funny with bouts of depression. He's not good at flirting, but he is good at making dramatic gestures of love. Apollo asked him out when he was 15 and was introduced to him by Clio, and Apollo fell in love first. Hyacinthus agreed to date him because he wanted to be the main character of a story like the romances he read, and fell in love harder because Apollo was pretty much the fairytale prince. He hasn't ever been disappointed by their relationship, even though his death and subsequent stay in Elysium made him realise nothing real is painless.

[ironkoalastrawberry]

Jealous Scorpius core :

I don’t know whether to high-five you or frown at you for kissing your aunt about five hundred times!

SCORPIUS appears at the back of the stage. He looks at his friend talking to a girl — and part of him likes it and part of him doesn’t.

What’s wizzo? SCORPIUS steps forward decisively.

(over-enthusiastic, trying to join in): And I’ve found our way through to the school. Listen, are we sure this will work . . .

SCORPIUS isn’t enjoying the DELPHI-ALBUS double act.

SCORPIUS looks at her and then at ALBUS. SCORPIUS: You shouldn’t come.

You’re right. We don’t need you for the spell. And if you can’t wear student robes — you’re too big a risk. Sorry, Delphi, you shouldn’t come.

You taught us how to use the Time-Turner.

She didn’t kiss me — did you notice? (He looks at his friend.) Are you okay, Albus? You look a little pale. And red. Pale and red at the same time.

Sounds like he’s found a shoulder to cry on. How many owls has he sent you now?

SCORPIUS looks up, surprised to see DELPHI has emerged behind them. SCORPIUS: Wow. You’re . . . um . . . What are you doing here?

SCORPIUS looks at his friend accusingly.

ALBUS:This concerns her too.

SCORPIUS thinks, and then nods, accepting this.

ALBUS: There’s a lot to understand. Dad’s pretty complicated. SCORPIUS: And you’re not? Not to question your taste in women, but you fancied . . . well . . .

Oh, you will, undoubtedly, probably that new smoky-eyed Potions professor — she’s old enough for you, right?

[frostyclove]

episode 5 spoilers

part 1 - the teens minus the tai/van scenes. its too long im not subjecting yall to my whole episode thoughts at once

Rabies plot still on. Ben asks about the goats mother being sick. We cant see the mouth of the goat. Akilah gonna die of rabies im so sorry guys start preparing emotionally. Plus the llama line

This scene was crazy to watch because I think we all predicted different parts. Tai being the one to weild the death after being the prosecutor ? Shauna giving the bonkers option so that everything else seems kinda normal in comparison? Nat trying her hardest to find a normal way through it? A moral way? Shauna cracking jokes about him dying of old age (shes right but its interesting that they don’t take that as a good option; shows just how quickly Shauna is gaining power; im shocked nat is still technically even in charge)

Also they now have their own rules like crazy. ‘We found him guilty it’s simple’ - it’s at this point that the truth doesnt matter. Only their perception of the truth. And I think thats going to very much matter as the season goes on 

It is a fitting death Shauna but we do not need to be that vicious babes I do love the dramatic irony but I am with nat that is torture 

Also insane that nat keeps accidentally damning coach like girl shut up 

Shauna v nat is exactly what fandom has felt like for the past few weeks love u guys 

Really curious what led van to so confidently blurt out the king of hearts bit. Theres something there and I wanna know what it is. What does suicide king mean does it have a meaning or did van just make that up

Tai looked stressed af at that. Tai didn’t like that

Intersting that van is handing out the cards. 

Should we have a whole tarot spread and what it pairs to in a normal deck and to be comping it to what card they pulled or do you think that’s doing too much because I know if I was writing it I would have taken the time to pair that all up or at least tried but idk 

Shaunas fuck ass face is saying ‘y’all wish you just handed me the gun now dont you?’

Robin is such a sweetie theres no way shes not pit girl at this point 

poor tai by baby im sorry theyre putting you through this but you did literally make this happen miss ‘ill be prosecution’ 

Shauna hat whittle scene 

Yes girl whittle away 

Melissa I may have underestimated you that line was funny as fuck nobody has a better Shauna read than you

(Guys I love Jackie too but Jackie was sometimes shitty to Shauna its just the nature of homoerotic friendships in a plane crash okay) 

Also someone described Melissa as the sheath to Shaunas knife and honestly thats such a good read on them im never unseeing that 

Cute ass gift ngl Melissa may truly be deeply into Shauna 

Also its a case of everyone knew rather than Melissa stalker I think 

Lottie/akilah/travis 

Ngl travis looks hot as hell this episode hes really finding his stride as Lottie backup 

The wrap around Lotties neck - I know it’s for the gas but it also just kinda is soooo reminiscent of the slap bracelet. There something there

Lotties so good at convincing people of things girl certainly was getting good grades in english class on those persuasive essays

Oracle of Delphi is gonna matter any smarties on that got takes on it ? 

Shes in the antler queen outfit 

Gotta use some suspense of disbelief on how theyre handling gas but thats not the biggest of issues its very subtle

Big love protective older brother travis vibe - also that haircut I need it on more lesbians its so hot 

Why’d they leave the rope ?

Lottie is mildly obsessed with timing. Curious if that’ll be expanded on

Lottie somehow still right. Somehow still effective. Travis stressed as hell. Poor guy. 

Akilah dream - cool as hell 

Ben; the bridge back to civilization ; but darkness. An unknown. A smog. Shaunas leadership time. It will be dark, it will be scary. But they will feel safe, adding onto the ‘their perception is what truly matters ; not the truth’ aspect that I think is the core of the season 

No interesting to note - they have him drawn and quartered in the dream. Another form of medieval torture. Food for thought

Misty/ben/fish/ending

Okay this goes later but it’s on my brain - ben didn’t eat the fish. I think there will be consequences for that. But I dont know what . Its got me stressed 

Bens like damn good food what are they gonna do execute me ? And misty all teary eyed is like “yeah….” Cute af if he wasn’t like dying 

I love misty in this scene , shes really grown so much 

You can tell coach is like, really frustrated that he has to comfort misty even though hes the one dying but he also just like has given up on life so he just doesnt seem to care either. Its such an interesting place for a character to be

The makeup team did so good with him

This may sound odd but this scene feels very informed by video games. Like this is the scene in any single player story game (thing TWD, TLOU, or BG3) where you say goodbye to the one helpful and soul character before everything goes to utter shit before the final act. It’s really well done I really enjoy it. 

The way he looks at her crying omg then she just says bye like… poor guy 

My poor baby 

Shauna needs to fuck Melissa some more the girl has too much frustration and im losing patience with her by the ep no reason to be doing all that hun

Poor nat. Nat giving up her power. Giving the necklace to the next chosen. Except this turn its chosen as sacrifice (well, ish)

Ben really tries to appeal to nat. he thinks nat is the one thats going to do it. shes holding the gun. He thinks shes the one to kill him. And then hes blindfolded before he sees nat hand it over to tai. He thinks his basically adopted daughter is the one who is going to execute him. I cry. 

I am misty in this scene big cry 

Even with the Lottie interruption - this is the girls CHOOSING , VOLENTARILY , to go forth as part of the wilderness. To hand over their connection to civilization. handing the power from nat (a moral and reasonable leader) to Shauna (a brutal and vicious one). This is the moment they fully cross over into, basically, wild animal territory. And id expect the party in the next episode to be a reflection of the crowing of a new leader, and thats what Shauna is so hoppy about in the trailer - being handed the power of leadership. 

First time seeing gen with a personality and I can say I dont really like her - shes another Shauna puppy it seems 

Then tai gets handed the gun, coach blinded. Great work on part of the cast and crew scene is great but Im about to focus on my love <3

Tai bawling. Tai barely able to hold the gun. No longer steady. Now breaking down. Losing it. Id bet she can hardly even see. Growing more and more stressed by the moment 

The sound work is crazy good gotta take a moment for the sound team <33

Then she shivers so hard she can barely hold the gun. And her stress has reached a high enough point. Other tai is here. Tai will be okay. Other tai will take care of her. Thank you other tai 

And van notices, the shift in physicality is obvious. But theres a relaxation there. Because tai will be okay. And other tai shoots 

And I swear in this moment I thought travis was dead. Then I remembered he died as an adult. And then I thought they were doing the killing them twice thing. But hes not hes fine. Other tai has killer aim, but luckily nobody got hit. 

Impeccably almost late timing from Lottie though

Other tai already gone though interestingly enough

No but seriously thank you Lottie good job gal theyre gonna scream at her but she did so good saving him there. Well. She tried. 

I honestly thought Shauna was gonna just end him right there. She walked onto frame and I went ‘ahh the coup its usurping time’ but no thats not what’s happening lol

Crazy parallels of her making Melissa do it. Bens screams into the otherwise quiet night. Misty losing it. I dont think the plan was exactly to cut his achilles, but since he was fighting back with it it was an easy target. I do appreciate that Shauna respects a clean knife though thanks for not crossing anybody’s blood we dont need to get blood diseases that would just make everything complicated 

Welcome to the end of their morals. They died that night. Lottie, travis, nat, Mari, misty, and honestly even kinda van all lost their power that night. It’s now Shaunas wilderness. And it will be interesting to see how that goes for them leading into their rescue (which will likely be at the end of this season) 

[leafyeyes417]

Masterpost 2

This is for all the single stories and prompts I like. I will add them slowly when I have time and patience. In no order of preference.

Keep in mind none of these posts are my works and I do not claim them as such.

*** next to a link means a really good post with lots of reblogs.

Last updated: 6-4-25

Dead on Main

Jason courting Danny with a casserole

Overprotective Fenton parents shovel talk

Joker’s kneecaps as wine cups

Jason: Ghost Summoner - Danny: Well fed ***

Dream Lover *** (Also on Ao3)

Soulmate summoning ring gone wrong

Dead Tired

Coffeeshop Accident

Dead Serious

Dead Silent

Danny kills Joker with his thighs

Demon Twins/Brothers

Damian is normal by Amity Standards

Maybe(?) his lost twin

Nyssa steals Danny

Danny Undercover in Amity

Jazz decided she wanted a brother

Danny’s Obsession to beat Damian

Tim Twins/Brothers/Clone

Half-Siblings

Danny sleep teleports to a diff dimension

Contingency failure

Brother Jason

Jason is Baby ghost, adopts babier ghost Danny***

Adopted by Bruce Wayne

Danny Distribution system

Sales Pitch to join Batfam

Not a Bio Fenton Danny

Hal Jordan’s son

Harley asks Batman to take away her son

Harvey Dent’s son

Danny in Gotham

Sleepwalker Danny

Unknowingly Fae Danny works at a coffee shop

Feral McGee

Danny only gets Vacation when in Gotham

Danny seems like an Oracle of Delphi ***

The GAV affected by fear toxin

Tucker streaming featuring Danny in the back ***

Danny is kidnapped(?) by Batman ***

Danny hired for money laundering front ***

Portal activates in Gotham, not Amity

Naga Danny

Danny adopted by Mr. Freeze

Damian hires Danny to help him keep a pet

Villain Danny

Danny’s obsession is twisted

Danny teaches heroes by being the villain ***

Summoning Danny

Not in Service

Danny: Please get Ra’s away from me

Misunderstandings that end in chaos

High Danny mistakes Bruce for his Dad

Mis-text-derstanding

Ghost King Danny

Ghost LOA

Danny on the Run

Danny gives Superman a concussion ***

Reincarnated

They wake up as Talons

Clockwork as Alfred

Miscellaneous Posts

Green Lantern & Crew stuck in IR

Danny possesses the President

Danny takes Jason’s online cooking class

Danny forgot what is regular human

Jack was a hitman named Phantom

Ghost Calls

Superman didn’t wait for the okay

Water Core Tim

Fenton Driving Curse still applies

Danny asks Wonder Woman to make him a grave on Themyscria ***

Kryptonite is trapped souls

Danny and Self fulfilling prophecy

Danny pretends to be the son of Hades

Danny gives Red Robin a gift(?)

Vlad commits greatest ghost crime

Amity put back in wrong place after PD fight

Jason involuntarily taken to ghost hospital

Danny learns Astral magic

Jazz the author

Danny makes environmental cleaning ecto-tech***

Danny gets a time amulet stuck in his chest and sleeps it off in other dimensions ***

Danny memes his way into chaotic friendship

Danny and his island

Miscellaneous Angst

DP x Marvel

Loki falls into IR and is adopted by Danny

Pure DP

Danny was Eldritch the whole time

Danny sprayed by chemical, hallucinates person he hates most

Demon AU (with Art)

[rewritingcanon]

next gen fav games:

albus: there’s two sides of him— dead by daylight (he forces scorpius to play just so he can bully the shit out of him and hear him scream on his mic when he gets jumpscared) or omori (someone check up on him maybe…)

scorpius: minecraft (he likes to be the housewife making his house look pretty whilst albus goes out and mines for their family of mushroom cows) and little misfortune (yeah he also needs a check up)

rose: sims 4 (how she deals with her god complex)

james: silent hill (says it’s because the protag is named after him but he’s actually very mentally ill and resonates with the manifestation of self-punishment)

lily: mortal kombat 11 (for the fatality, but mostly for mileena)

hugo: fortnite (bro is a toddler and likes to attend the concerts) and my singing monsters (bro was feeling… musical)

teddy: hades (local pansexual genderfluid sillyman lets himself get slain by the hot villains again) and baldurs gate 3 (for literally the same reasons except add character customisation)

victoire: cooking dash (she likes to feel stressed) and the witcher 3 (shes never played another witcher game)

lorcan: fnaf (he always thinks hes done with it and then a new game or dlc comes out) and it takes two (he forces lysander to play with him obvi)

lysander: little nightmares 2 (only game that had him shook)

fred: detroit: become human (loves story-based games and choose your own adventure) and batman: the telltale series (same reasons)

roxanne: telltale’s the walking dead (simply cant move on from any of the games except the third one)

dominique: the last of us (she’s an elitist and will yap about this game at any given chance)

louis: played doki doki literature club when he was 12 and that was it for bro (….core memories were made)

molly: resident evil 3 (she likes them all but is obsessed with jill) but also life is strange (she’s probably gay)

lucy: when asked will tell you its pathologic (which she still loves a lot and is an elitist about) but it’s secretly danganronpa (she likes feeling smart when she connects clues leave her alone)

yann: final fantasy 7 (hes obsessed with the world and its the only game he can play)

polly: amanda the adventurer (to no one’s surprise)

karl: roblox (he’s been banned on so many different servers for bullying little children and is one of the most infamous hated users in his continent)

craig: league of legends (he’s a bit of a loser) and injustice: gods among us (he needs to win the challenges and unlock the characters)

sophia: stardew valley (she wants to live in a world without conflict (she will get stressed over it anyway))

delphi: couldn’t play video games (she would’ve loved fran bow though)

alice: episode (she spends an embarrassing amount on gems)

frank: arkham knight (he’s literally batman guys) and what remains of edith finch (he has range guys)

auggie: project sekai (they need to go take a shower)

[flownwrong]

resdogs fic recs

Having gone through most fics for this fandom (or at least this ship) I could get my hands on, and encouraged by the usual gang, I bring you a few recs under cut. Might or might not find some more later.

Free Agent Orange by @nigeltde-fic

A stunningly fond look at Freddy's fuckups and fucked-up-ness. Strikes me every time how much of an unreliable narrator he is here, detached and ready to cut into his otherness while just glancing off both the soft core of himself and the spine to support it, and how, in the end, he can never be anything other than himself. Can't think of another resdogs fic that gets at the undercover of it all quite like this one.

Cut My Throat by Delphi

Delphi's Freddy is ever-watchful, aware of himself — dangerous, too, for White. Competent, but clear-eyed about turning away from duty. The perfect puzzle-pieces-slotting-together desire between them here is electrifying. That first coming-together is scorching and urgent, a perfect use of the classic shaving setup, and the second one is confused and unmoored until it finally isn't. The ending kind of kills me every time with how it both circles back and doesn't.

Already Gone by Delphi

Quiet and sweet. I think it's incredibly hard to write a truly molasses-slow, non-urgent resdogs fic — especially in Freddy's narrative voice. This one works perfectly, despite focusing on paranoia. And all fic for this ship will be, by definition, bittersweet, but this is maybe the sweetest of the lot. The last paragraph always leaves me halfway to a smile.

In Deep by veronamay

I really love a Freddy who starts off too hard in the other direction in his own head — high on getting in, high on being off the leash — right up until the moment where he's hit in the face with the fact that he is down bad, and didn't he know it all along, through all the bullshit? But of course.

The New West by gigantic

Larry is hard to write and hard to explore. I think gigantic uses second person very well here to draw a line stretching way into the past and bring it all the way back to the bitter end with a merciless punchline. Reads like a good companion piece to the first fic on the list, actually, another slightly unreliable introspection of someone with tightly-leashed hope inside.

Something Better For Yourself by ostreatus

Another Larry piece. ostreatus says in the notes they wanted "to imagine a scenario or two where Freddy is largely unreadable beyond surface reactions", and it's something I can never get enough of. They manage, too — you can gauge just how affected Freddy is, and what did it, because you have context. Larry, struck where it isn't even supposed to hurt anymore, cannot. It's hopeless and moving.

And here we have it, folks. Side-note: while re-reading my bookmarks, I became conscious of the disconnect that should've been obvious to me — the reason canon-compliant resdogs fic strikes the reader in the heart is the sense of doom, of course; but while we know the doom is utter tragedy and what amounts to murder-suicide, the doom Freddy senses is just the betrayal — yet we all seem to agree it never feels any lighter. I just think that's neat.

[allthedoorsareopennow]

ALRIGHT. LET’S INVESTIGATE THE UDAD PHOTOS. MUCH INFORMATION BELOW. SO MUCH

ok top left. brian is the oracle of delphi, of course in greek mythology the most prominent oracle

bottom left. for some reason the goddess artemis’ name seems to have been misspelled as artimes? I have no idea why. artemis is the olympian that features in actea and lyssa.

bottom right. seems to suggest marius’ lecture will take place in the aristotle institute - aristotle is a famous greek philosopher (among other things, grouped loosely as a polymath)

top right. as you likely know, these are military dog tags, usually intended to allow for the identification of corpses. an enomotarch is the commander of an enotomy, a division of 25-36 soldiers, bound together by oath. this seems to be a term originating in Sparta.

middle right. tipple seems to be a term for alcohol, consistent with the bottle top the term appears on. the toy soldier seems to have made its own liquor brand while in the city. (perhaps DB stands for dionysus bacchus, the greek and roman names respectively for the god of alcohol?)

right. a coin is shown, on one side reading ‘to speed the/journey down’. this likely is about the belief that the ferryman (charon) who takes the dead souls across the river acheron and into the underworld must be paid. virgil’s aeneid claims that if the deceased cannot afford to pay the ferryman, they must wander the shores of the styx (another underworld river, in some stories providing the same function as the acheron) for one hundred years before they are allowed to cross into the underworld. thus having this coin to give the ferryman would literally speed the journey down into the underworld in greek mythology. also depicted on this side is the logo of the acheron. on the other side of the coin is featured a headshot of ashes, with the text ‘a penny’ above (the smallest british unit of currency). I cannot discern the text below.

background. the blueprint for the aegis, which in homer’s iliad is a device carried by athena pr zeus, interpreted as either an animal skin or a shield, sometimes featuring the head of a gorgon, that symbolises protection.

the text on the left appears to read as follows:

‘…[ti]tanium…n for the…ens district…[lig]htning rod

‘spikes - they look badass

‘Durable Ti core

‘Moderator’

Ti is the chemical symbol for titanium. also depicted is a uranium fission reaction. a moderator is something else that is needed in a fission reactor core, so this must be a design for a fission reactor. ‘enriched to 90%’ refers to the uranium - uranium-235 is the most fissile isotope, so the more U-235 you have, the more fission you can achieve. for context, reactors often use uranium enriched to 3.5-4.5% - 90% is overkill by a long way for energy generation purposes. my guess is that this reactor core is designed to provide huge amounts of energy to operate sone kind of lightning device, likely intended for zeus (the god of lightning). it is signed by athena and raphaella la cognizi.

BRING FORTH THE NEXT IMAGE!

another acheron coin is shown. I'm not really sure what’s happening in most of this one.

ANOTHER!

more acheron coins and a half-visible toy soldier’s tipple bottle cap. the focus of this picture is a torn and blood-splattered coaster for Calypso’s, the bar from which the suits kidnapped ulysses.

NEXT!

now this is more like it

a zeus coin is depicted, showing five credits - presumably the official currency of the city

there is a gambling chip bearing the name hermes, perhaps referencing his role as a trickster god

the guitar pick is stamped with the name apollo, the greek god of music and song.

there is a fragment of a newspaper cover - we will get more shots of this later.

the emblem of poseidon is shown to be a trident, a weapon poseidon is often depicted as wielding, representing his status as god of the sea.

wow I wonder what name is on that card it’s mostly blocked I wonder if the next will have the name..

BEHOLD!

so that’s presumably an ID card for a security guard, whose name we can now see is Anippe ?aiad. Anippe in greek mythology is the egyptian daughter of the river god nilus, and is thus a naiad, so the name on the card is Anippe Naiad. I can find little information about her, other than that heracles killed her son.

we also get a look at ulysses here, the the text ‘//ALL POINTS FUGITIVE ALERT//‘ above their mugshot.

NEXT!

the text on the ulysses info that seems to be on some kind of old tablet reads

…1) COUNT THEFT:

…[CYCLO]PS - POSEIDON PROPERTY

…OR CAPTURE: DR-25000

…E BOUNTY

…S:

SPONSORED BY POSEIDON INDUSTRIES

CLICK TO LEARN MORE

this seems to be putting a bounty of ‘DR-25000’ (presumably a currency?) on ulysses’ head for the theft of the eye of the cyclops.

more newspaper.. shall we take a closer look?

across four different images, here is the newspaper:

TRANSCRIPT BEGINS

ALL THE NEWS ALL THE TIME

LARGEST HOME CIRCULATION

LARGEST ADVERTISING VOLUME

DELPHI 2374

The City Oracle Telephone Number

THE CITY ORACLE

IN THREE PARTS - 46 1…

PART 1 - GENERAL NEWS…

ORACLE OFFICE

292 West Hector Stree[t]

VOL. LVIII KRONOU MORNING, GAMELION 5, 12390 DAILY, 5 DRACH[MA]

OEDIPUS IN INCEST MARRIAGE SCANDAL

SHOCKING NEW REVELATIONS OVER IDENTITY OF HERO DOCTOR'S WIFE AND MOTHER

MAN WHO CURED THE SPHINX TRIES TO PLEAD IGNORANCE - WILL SEEK TO FIND REFUGE OFF WORLD

(columns on right):

INSIDE

NARCISSUS DENIES PLASTIC SURGERY CLAIMS

HERMES TO UNVEIL NEW HI-SPEED MAGLINES

FORTY DEAD IN SUB-LEVEL 54D EXPLOSIONS: WHO IS “GUNPOWDER TIM?”

TWENTY YEARS FROM ILIUM: WILL THE SCARS EVER HEAL?

Oedipus Rex, the doctor hailed as a hero after successfully curing the disease ravaging the sublevel slums, has been revealed to have been married to his own mother for the last eight years, in what is being hailed as the social scandal of the decade.

Mr. Rex previously claimed to have grown up in one of the City's most troubled orphanages. However, a source within the Acheron has claimed that Teiresias, one of the network's most trusted interfaces, revealed his true origins yesterday.

“I didn’t know,” Oedipus told The Oracle, “I’d always believed my parents to be dead. I had no way of knowing they were even alive, let alone…”

Oedipus’ wife and mother, Jocasta Rex, has been unavailable for comment. She was last seen boarding a transport line to Outer Thebes, an area known for the number of suicides it attracts.

It is known she had been married once before to Laius, Mayor of one of the Thebian districts at the centre of the Sphinx epidemic. It was repoterd that he disappeared shortly before the announcement of the cure, under circumstances described by City PD as ‘suspicious’.

CONTINUED PG.5

HERACLES ACQUITTED ON MISTRIAL TECHNICALITY

The City High Court finally came to a ruling today in the case of Heracles, the notorious figure at the centre of the murder trial which has gripped the City for the last four weeks.

Heracles, who worked for the House of Zeus as head security for fifty years before resigning under unknown circumstances last Theozenios, was found not guilty of the brutal slaying and dismemberment of his wife and two children.

According to sources familiar with the case, he was found lying unconscious in his home, surrounded by the bodies of his family, holding in his hand what was at first thought to be the murder weapon. However, forensic evidence regarding the blade was judged to have been inadmissible, and his insistence he was defending his family from an attacker swayed the jury.

Heracles has been unable to identify the assailant against which he was struggling. This is not the first time Heracles has been involved in accusations of violence. Rumours persist that he may have been the infamous “Thunderbolt of Zeus” while working with the company, despite no connection ever being proven between the Olympian patriarch and the unknown hitman.

CONTINUED PG.9

TRANSCRIPT ENDS

Delphi and the oracle are referenced several times.

A drachma is a greek unit of currency, hence why I have guessed that as the unit of price for the newspaper.

Teiresias, the one referenced as revealing Oedipus’ parentage, is a blind prophet of Apollo from Thebes, known for clairvoyance and being transformed into a woman for several years. he is referenced as being one of the first brains volunteered into the acheron in the fiction, and holds and manages all the knowledge of the acheron.

Theoxenia seems to be a descriptor for greek mythology stories in which characters show benevolence and hospitality to strangers who turn out to be disguised deities capable of reward. These stories encourage people to treat anyone they meet as potential disguised divinity.

ONWARD!

another oracle of delphi ad, the corner of the newspaper, and part of hades’ file on oedipus..

TRANSCRIPT BEGINS (pencil markings in orange)

Name: Oedipus Rex not given surname

Occupation: Doctor (Retired) Disgraced

Age: 52 No records- abandoned at birth. Estimate Height: 5’10” Weight: 132l[b]

Hair: Chestnut Eyes: N/A self-blind[ed]

District: Thebes

Abandoned by wealthy but paranoid parents at birth. Olympians secret[ly] pulled strings, used him as poster [child] for failing orphanage scheme. Notab[le] for successfully researching the cause/[…] for the Sphinx - exceptional intel[ligence] shown. Worthy candidate for "Trial [by] Wits". Currently seeking to leave T[he] City after publicised patricide and maternal relations; will likely pla[…] ball given ample funding. EXPLOIT

END TRANSCRIPT

the tab at the side reads WITS. as well as oedipus’ fingerprints, there is a dirty handprint in the top right of the document. the newspaper appears to be stained with rings of tea or coffee.

at first I thought the photo of oedipus featured in hades’ document was this one, but it doesn’t quite match. it’s a good photo anyway.

NEXT

gunpowder tim’s dog tags from earlier are visible at the base of the photo again. A different part of Oedipus’ file is shown, showing a handprint and the start of a date on the photo of Oedipus, beginning 08/12. a map is shown too, with crosses through two locations and a circle around another. from what I can see the streets seem to mostly have fairly generic names.

sadly I have now reached image limit. when I have made the next post, I will link it here.

update I realised some of the stuff guessing cut off words and such that I did is pointless because the full documents for a bunch of them are in the goddamn cd book thing. and I kind of can’t be bothered to finish cause it feels like half the stuff I did was pointless. if you would be interested say so and maybe I will do more. but otherwise. nah