#in order to break free from it

[27thfirefly]

genuinely fascinating to me how much trent reznor's works deal with constructed realities. both in terms of literally constructed as with the add violence/bleedthrough concept but also in terms of politically constructed as with the year zero concept of control of people within the state etc etc (obviously in a more liberal understanding of it than would make for GREAT media as opposed to just good but. you take what you can get.) and by genuinely fascinating i mean it makes me want to gnaw on drywall

[rustchild]

one of the wild things about people’s stubborn insistence on misunderstanding The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas is that the narrator anticipates an audience that won’t engage with the text, just in the opposite direction. Throughout the story are little asides asking what the reader is willing to believe in. Can you believe in a utopia? What if I told you this? What about this? Can you believe in the festivals? The towers by the sea? Can we believe that they have no king? Can we believe that they are joyful? Does your utopia have technology, luxury, sex, temples, drugs? The story is consulting you as it’s being told, framed as a dialogue. It literally asks you directly: do you only believe joy is possible with suffering? And, implicitly, why?

the question isn’t just “what would you personally do about the kid.” It isn’t just an intricate trolley problem. It’s an interrogation of the limits of imagination. How do we make suffering compulsory? Why? What futures (or pasts) are we capable of imagining? How do we rationalize suffering as necessary? And so on. In all of the conversations I’ve seen or had about this story, no one has mentioned the fact that it’s actively breaking the fourth wall. The narrator is building a world in front of your eyes and challenging you to participate. “I would free the kid” and then what? What does the Omelas you’ve constructed look like, and why? And what does that say about the worlds you’re building in real life?

[surreal-duck]

es rarepair week 2024 day 1 | AU/future

lil ghostic au of mine!!! yuzuru and the rest of fine are long since trapped souls in an abandoned mansion of which rst come across while looking for shelter during a storm :] it doesnt um. particularly end well

[sillygoofyqueer]

Deity Jester Wei Wuxian AU because I really like it I don't CARE if you guys have no taste (/silly). What a shit ending to that last one was though, I was obviously some form of deluded with that ending. Jesus CHRIST. When Wei Ying returns to Master, he is furious. He wants to kill him, to rip him apart slowly and remind him that although he may hold the key to controlling him, Wei Ying can still fight back. He already has, once. It was a minimal, small struggle, one that had seemed to tear him apart inside, but it was enough. A sign that he does not need to resign himself to being forced to complete Master's every whim and want. It's what fuels him to pulling the poor wood that hides a room off its metal bindings as he enters Master's space, feeling that familiar tug in his chest that usually signals a transformation, but he still can't free himself of this cage of flesh and blood so he can only growl in frustration. Master is lounging in that pathetic chair of his, obviously having been waiting for him to enter, lips pressed against that damn instrument and already playing the tune that leaves him feeling separate from his own body.

At first, he can ignore it, clinging to his body - it's so heavy to move it, so heavy in a way it hasn't been since the deaths of his mama and papa - and dragging himself forwards towards the man himself. But, there's something about this melody that feels different. It seems to echo, reverberating around the room and thudding into his mind every time it bounces off a surface; it hurts, every thud another rip in his control, until he can no longer keep himself in control. He doesn't even hear the orders that Master gives him, but can only watch and vaguely feel himself moving somewhere, doing something, but then it all goes dark. He can't think, can't move, can't open his eyes. He just. Exists. It feels almost similar to how he existed after being chased out of his home when his parents had died, hidden beneath a tree and clinging to his mama's cloak as it rotted in his hands. He wonders if this is what death is like.

Wei Ying's master, known to most as Wen Haoran, moves in to take the throne after he is sure that all other competition is gone. The monster took care of all of them, but the way it had refused to attack the children had him worried. However, they were dealt with, it was dealt with, and now he can easily take over command of the country. The commoners cannot do anything, and it is easy to pit the old court loyal to the previous crown against one another with carefully placed pieces of 'incriminating evidence' that ties all of them to him in some way or another. Rumours and whispers, letters and bribes, all linked back to him in some way or another, falsified to suit his purposes. The infighting weeds out the weak ones who come begging for his support a few weeks in, the strong ones who end up swarmed as more 'evidence' piles up against them, and the smart ones. The ones who merely pretend to bend to his will. They are dealt with swiftly, leaving his control of the throne secure.

History unfolds from that moment, time passing as Wen Haoran's rule marks the start of Wen control of the country, rules doling out to become more and more oppressive as time goes on. Nobody can explain how he gained the throne, can only speculate while he tucks away the ancient, mould-ridden text that holds a short, vague passage on the monster with the melody that summons it. While he doesn't want anyone else to learn about his methods for his takeover, he wishes to ensure that future generations of the Wen also have the knowledge in case they need to summon the monster. It's stupid enough, it won't even recognise them considering it didn't even know his name, so it can be utilised again as long as the melody is played by them. So, he creates an inner library, hidden within his chambers (the chambers of the ruler), that holds all of the secrets his family should need to know to keep control of this country, one that is finally taking shape to be a truly great place. It is a secret that is passed down from ruler to ruler at first, but one that fades with time, until eighty years have passed and Wen Haoran is long dead, with Wen Ruohan on the throne.

Wen Ruohan is unlike his ancestor in that he is outwardly cruel. He is power hungry, a maniac that cares not for appearances - the Wen have been on the throne for this long, their power is practically absolute, and everyone has grown complacent with the treatment doled out to everyone within the country. Whatever the Wen ask, you do, or you face certain death. Rumours flit around that they are using dark magic but honestly, none of the rulers are even aware of the secret room within their chambers and, even if they were, would not think to find any sort of magic present in their ancestor's work. Wen Ruohan is just evil alone, he does not need any cursed magic or object to taint his mind. A clear indicator of his cruelty is when he asks the prestigious families to send a son into the palace so they can learn their roles; they can do nothing but send them over despite their fear and mistrust of this tyrannical ruler with his equally fucked up sons.

It's not long before these boys from prominent families have different tasks doled out to them that seem to mock the individual family's greatest pride - Nie Mingjue is placed as a Duizhu (captain of a company), meaning he is working with woefully less soldiers than he usually would, an insult to his expertise of battle. Jiang Cheng is now a fisherman for the Wen, supplying them with the best fish - an insult to the family revered for their trade and control of the waterways. Jin Zixuan? A retainer for Wen Chao, who delights in ordering around a member of the family that poses the most threat with their almost natural talents of politicking and charming all those that cross them (well, until you talk to Jin Guangshan, of course). And Lan Wangji, the one to willingly go to the palace so that his brother could still be the heir of the Lan family, a scholar dedicated to documenting the illustrious history of the Wens and whatever strikes their fancy, spitting on the Lans' own well-documented, impressive history and their unparalleled scholarly arts.

Lan Wangji despises his place in the palace, forced to sit in the library every day and read through pages and pages of the Wens' lies, writing down everything that could be deemed even remotely important to the Wens so that he doesn't have to go back and read through them if he misses something. This task is not straightforward even with his length, because every time one of the royals ask him to research something else, he must stop his documentations of the Wen to learn everything about the subject asked until he has enough information written down to appease those that have asked for it. It's long and tedious enough already, and every time he has to pause, it adds more time to what he has to do. It gets worse when he realises that there is vagueness around the beginning of the rule of the Wen - something that Wen Ruohan will not tolerate if he is presented with it, forcing Lan Wangji to ask for more resources on that part of history.

Coincidentally, a servant stumbles across the secret library while cleaning the room, having done the impossible and accidentally knocked a statue resting against the untouched books in the study. They look inside, assuming this is just another part to the library of the study, and dust off all of the books - they notice two books in particular - small, handbound. 'The beginning of the Wens' and an unnamed, mould-covered book. They don't think much of it, just remembering that that blasted Lan was asking for more resources on the former subject and so grabbing that without much thought to go give it to the Lan, then grabbing the mould-covered book just because it will surely be a pain in the ass for the Lan to decipher. They leave the hidden library, being sure to reset everything after they're gone, and go to give the books to the Lan. They honestly assume that the other inner servants know about it, so they don't mention anything as they deliver the book to Lan Wangji, who practically glares down at it as he opens it for more bullshit to be delivered.

[mandareeboo]

Deltarune snuck back up on me and I just wanna say. I fucking. LOVE Susie Deltarune. I love her inherent, core design. I love how she's entirely free from us. I love how she doesn't take orders. I love how she's learned to ACT entirely free of us. I love that she hates Ralsei's philosophy of Darkners existing entirely for Lightners. I love that she teaches him to ACT (even if he doesn't want to). I love that she's learning healing magic and is, slowly, absorbing everyone's abilities to be a better Lightner. I love that she cares so much about shit being fair. I love that she pretended to be this big bully but the moment someone thought she was cool she melted. I love that she didn't bully Noelle over a fucking pencil.

What a great example of autonomy in video games. She really feels real, you know? She feels free in this game of text boxes and silly goofs. She's the greatest butch lesbian rep I've ever seen. She's not bound to anyone- she doesn't even follow the player's hand. She just loves everybody a lot, deep down, and she's not afraid to put her life on the line for someone who doesn't act like she's gonna put them six feet under, and that makes her a hero who keeps trucking right along on this path alongside the person we've enslaved.

[mageknife]

so how exactly did the evanuris bind themselves to high dragons to create the old gods. wiki says the source on this is solas during weisshaupt. i guess i need to play weisshaupt again .

[demonic-radio]

⌨️ Fears to Fathom?

THESE LOOK AMAZING.

Well, definitely not the price tag, but that's just because I'm stingy. These are incredibly cheap for standalone games. This still looks like a great series of games I'd love to play!

Alastor, I imagine, would like horror games, but definitely not the mainstream ones. He would have a distaste for the mascot horror genre specifically, and then the fact that horror games often rely on jumpscares. The fact that this series has the experience relying on true horror, things that inspire fear naturally, is something that would be a breath of fresh air for him.

Ask meme response.

[gwen-hemoxia]

Shadow Wolf Mask

dream lore in the tags if you're interested

[carlottastudios]

Every day I get closer to making an unhinged behemoth of a post listing all of the things about Kaeya and his possible connections to mythology & stuff that I notice but NOBODY ELSE SEEMS TO BRING UP IN THEIR THEORIES

(edit: OMG I reached the tag limit I'm so sorry)

[moongothic]

So the Seraphim only take orders from certain people they've been programmed to follow (namely the Vegapunks and the Gorosei), but also they do take orders from individuals who possess an authority chip. Between that and the knowledge that the Seraphim are cyborgs, it makes me wonder...

Like, do they have somekinda control chip installed somewhere in their bodies (brain, spine?) that acts as the thing that forces them to follow orders and not act (too much) on their own will? 'Cause would the existence of an authority chip, a thing that essentially "sends out orders", not also imply the existence of something that recieves the order (like other than their brain) and forcibly puts it into motion? Something similar to whatever visual scanner+database combo Vegapunk installed into Kuma that allowed him to instantly recognize certain people and whether or not they were enemies or allies to him (at least as far as the WG thinks)

'Cause if so, like. I wonder. Could you remove that chip and basically free the Seraphim from being just borderline-mindless flesh robots?

In that scenario... what would they become?

Because, like, we don't know how much Free Will the Seraphim even have, how developed their minds are? Are/would they be fully functional human beings (if immature because they're still kids) who have just had half their mind essentially turned off so they don't think about anything else except following orders? If you freed them from the WG's control would they be able to live and function freely just like Stussy's clone can? But when being under that kind of control is all they've ever known, would they know how to function? Like what do you do, where do you go, who do you become? Who are you to begin with, does that even matter? What about your relation to the person you were cloned from, what does that mean? Are you doomed (🐊🦩🦇) or expected (🦈🐻🐍🦅) to become just like the person you were cloned from? Do you even want that? What will having that kind of freedom to do and become whatever you want even mean to someone who has never known what it means to even want something for themselves?

(But also, depending on who you were cloned from, would people even trust you enough to allow you go free and live your own life, or would you be deemed a threat by simply existing because you are the clone of a horrible, heinous person?) (Of course, we know existing is not a crime, and no one is born into this world a criminal. But we also know the World of One Piece does not always think this kindly)

[ghostly-idiot]

hey splatoon fans who came across my stupid ramble post and are somehow still here

should i make a domestic au for these two enby canon-bot lovers

its gonna be like

really fluffy, really sweet, really cute

might be a bit angsty at times

might introduce 2 other characters in there (they're just normal inkfish lol)

might sometimes get writing help from yall (aka i will call upon you every 2 chapters maybe)

sorry for the shitty drawing btw i can definitely do better but apparently i regressed into my 2020-2021 artstyle for that /j

[carhartt]

my sillies

[hopkei]

Congrats on YuseKeto mag cover!!!!!!!!! We are so winning this month!!!!!!

IDK WHAT I DID FOR ALL MY DREAMS TO SUDDENLY COME TRUE?????

the way i wouldve cried just for a spread and first natsunatsu then KETOSOTA and now yuseketo on COVERS???? the magazine gods really looked at fanta (and me) and said i choose tHEM!!!😍😍😍😍😍😍

now my hopes are going go get out of hand what fanta pairing are we going to get on a cover next??? it feels like anything could happen orz

[novabun-ships]

Why can't I find the lore of Mikal and Kaden's parents? I know for damn sure I did not delete it.. I was going to use that to retcon the whole Mikal dying bit and add how he survives but still makes it a crucial turning point for Kaden (and subsequently Kaden and Kylo's relationship/Kylo himself.)

I hope it's in my external somewhere... I hope I didn't do the whole "post it directly to tumblr" without writing it up on a WordPad first.

[orcelito]

Second day of moving... done!!! And now all my furniture is in my new apartment!!! I still have a lot to do with rearranging things and sorting thru boxes and unpacking. And also going back to my old apartment to Finish packing and moving everything I didnt get to before. But it's already been pretty nice staying in the new apartment. I got the internet set up today, and it's working great! Also went to the grocery to pick up a few more essentials. Let the cats out finally, and they've been having A Time poking around and being SoScared. But they seem to be relaxing, bit by bit. Hoping they'll come sleep on my bed with me, rather than just coming and visiting.

Tomorrow, I wanna finish arranging my furniture and take a trip to my old apartment to do a carload of packing and moving boxes. Gotta pick up some more boxes first, but that's no big deal. Also wanna look for a new shower head while im there. Idk if I'll buy one yet, but I took my first shower at the new apartment today, and while I love the shower itself, I do NOT like the shower head. It's like... got a weird empty spot right in the middle??? It seems like a shower head for tall people. Not for me. But ive already been told that I can change out the shower head if I like, so I wanna see what stuff they've got at home depot...

I also wanna go bowling. It's been nearly a week. And ive been so busy and stressed. I deserve a bowling trip. Assuming my body doesnt hurt too much tomorrow for it 😂😂

[dormiloncito]

the awesome meal i'm having in the back