#putrefic

[venusiastro]

In my research I’ve noticed the correlation between sun ruled nakshatras and the alchemical process of transformation. In each octave of solar energy we see a transition from each stage of the transformation into the solar expression. Krittika being the first solar nakshatra is both highly attuned but unaware. They are often fascinated with the darker aspects of consciousness and curious about the psyche. I notice a lot of Krittika natives are prevelant in the “black sun” stage in Jungian research. The tie between the dark desires of man and the concept of influence and abstinence from these dark desires while also wrestling with them, as well as the concept of God and self. We then leap into the bed of Uttara Phalguni. Both the death and rebirth. Uttara Phalguni is tied to procreation and this also shows the crowning of the consciousness. From the depths of the shadow, purified from the ashes (a tie to uttarabhadrapadas Saturnian influence in the alchemical process of transformation) and becoming both light and yellow calling in the light to shine. A newly incarnated self. And finally we are crystallized in the new of Uttara Ashada. Victorious over the darkness and completely uninfluenced by the outer world. Fully embodied in the new self and steadfast in the new consciousness. Here we see the self natural inclination toward maintaining and retaining balance, steadfast stasis in the new consciousness.

Krittika- “nigredo” the state of darkness in the alchemical process of transformation. An innate tie to the shadow, putrefication, or spiritual death

Uttara Phalguni- “albedo” & “citrinitas” the state of lightness, the white stage of the alchemical transformation. “Purification” and rebirth. The new dawn or “yellowing” of the rising Sun.

Uttara Ashada- “rubedo” the final stage of redness, or completion. The crystallization of the spiritual self. A new element of oneself from the unconscious to the conscious.

[masochist-marmot]

TMAGP Theory: Tria Prima

Spoiler alert/disclaimer: Written after The Magnus Protocol episode 34; also spoilers for The Magnus Archives

I don't know if this idea has been properly explored yet, but I have had a weeklong hyperfixation where I've delved into alchemy and tried to figure out the inner workings of TMAGP universe. This theory is half-boiled at best, and I apologise if I've misunderstood any of the basic concepts. It seems like even alchemists never fully agreed on them, so they're contradicting each other a lot. That being said, let's get into it.

Perspective Reset

First of all, I think we are collectively still too hung up on the Fears as entities or powers. It's very tempting to classify things with the same framework we're familiar with (and conditioned to), but I think it's preventing us from seeing the bigger picture. Prior to the end of TMA, it's possible that no entities ever even existed in this universe, but the incidents have been taking place for a long time. The creators have also explicitly said that they wanted to create a new rule set, and I doubt that they'd build it with the same blocks. Because of this, I set out to find a set of rules that has nothing to do with the fears.

Classical Elements (Very Briefly)

I will oversimplify this for my sanity and yours. We have the four classical elements: fire, air, water and earth. In the classical worldview, these make up everything on Earth. Each element has two corresponding properties, as you can see in the figure below (fire is hot and dry etc). The elements are in a constant process of circulating and flowing, breaking apart and coming together (sand into water, water into stone, stone into wood...), but fire and air are considered more active and volatile while water and earth are more passive and stable. The rest of the universe is filled with the fifth element, quintessence or aether. It is considered heavenly and perfect and completely unchangeable.

The Three Principles (Tria Prima)

Later alchemists made the addition of (first two and then) three principles that work on the elements and in conjunction with them. These principles were used to describe the alchemical process and its parts, but they also had more metaphysical implications. These are the foundation of my theory.

Salt 🜔: Aka. Corpus or The Body. Things that are solid and stable but also corruptible. The dust that's left behind after something is burned. Associated with earth, water and the property of coldness. In humans, associated with the physical body and therefore physical health. Salt is also associated with preservation and sometimes even rebirth. It's what's left behind after the alchemical stage of putrefication, and therefore what undergoes purification.

Mercury ☿: Aka. Spiritus or The Mind. Things that are volatile and soluble. The alchemical solvent or the smoke that rises from a fire. Considered the perfect agent because it demonstrates properties of both a liquid and a solid. The principle of flowing freely between elements and perhaps even heaven and earth. Associated with air, water and the property of wetness. In humans, it's the mind, or the intellect, knowledge and rationality of a person. Some seem to consider it the universal, platonic idea of thought, as mercury wouldn't be restricted by an individual body.

Sulphur 🜍: Aka. Anima or The Soul. Things that combust, but also the principle of combustibility. The flame that manifests when something is burned. Associated with fire, air and the property of hotness. With fire and air being the most active elements, sulphur is also the catalyst for change. In humans, associated with the soul, or the consciousness that links the body to the mind. It's the emotions, ambitions and desires that animate the body.

Why have I given you the symbols? Because they're all there on the OIAR logo:

(I also circled aether because I thought I'd talk about it later but decided not to, so you're free to make your own conclusions)

I currently believe that these three principles are omnipresent in the Magnus Protocol universe. They're just part of the makeup of the universe, causing no one harm. At least, when they're in balance.

The Theory - It's All About Balance

There's been a lot of talk about balance by now.

"The institute, alchemy, all of it. "It’s all about balance. Dua prima, four elements, seven planets, it’s all the same. You’ve got to keep things balanced. And if something is missing, if someone is misplaced, the equation doesn’t balance… and that’s when things get bad…" (Celia, episode 30)

Here Celia mentions dua prima, which (as I alluded to before) is an earlier theory surrounding Sulphur and Mercury. Salt was proposed as the third principle in a later theory, but by now the tria prima seem to be more widely accepted.

"Not that anyone cares as long as it all balances, right? Not too much mercury or the world ends, not too much sulfur or we all go mad…" (Colin, episode 19)

Huh.

So, let me lay out the actual theory.

The principles usually strive for balance, because it's their natural state. However, sometimes the balance is skewed by human action or some other unexpected force. This imbalance can happen on an individual level or it can affect objects (which then become "cursed") or locations (which then become "poisoned"). In fact, the Magnus Institute calls such poisoned locations loci (singular "locus"). I also hypothesise that this is how the OIAR categorises their incidents (1. individuals - 2. locations - 3. objects).

When there is an imbalance, the affected person/area/object starts to display an unnatural amount or lack of one principle. For example, if there's an abundance of salt, we may see people or things slow down, become passive, even crystallise. Bodies preserved despite obvious corrosion, infections that putrefy and then purify flesh into a "perfect" form. The clearest example I can think of would be episode 3, where the character quite literally transmutes into a tree. Or episode 23 where a character inserts a piece of coral under her skin and begins to paralyse as it grows out of her. If you absolutely have to compare to TMA, I'd say a lot of Flesh, Corruption or Buried statements would fit under salt. It is associated with earth, water and literal bodies, after all.

Abundance in mercury would manifest as things getting a little weird, unstable and volatile, but in a subtle, flowy way. Changing architecture, people seeming odd, things dissolving into others, time or dimensions being unstable, perhaps the limits of a human psyche being broken. I'm thinking of the liminal spaces from episode 8 or the pier from episode 33. The fog is an especially fitting link, what with fog being a manifestation of air and water. I also think the entire Hill Top Centre has been affected. And now that I started, you could easily make connections to the Stranger, the Lonely, the Spiral and the Eye. Which brings an ironic twist to Colin's statement. Too much "mercury" already ended the world once.

Abundance of sulphur would bring out more abrupt changes, it would twist people's passions into unhealthy obsessions, drive people to anger and senseless bloodlust, give consciousness to the unconscious and animate the inanimate. In fact, in episode 19, the character says of Newton's dog: "such a creature must by all natural law lack that essential and ephemeral anima." Another case of an unexpectedly conscious thing would be Liverpool (episode 32), who is coincidentally also incredibly angry. I also think Ink5oul's tattoos have an element of sulphur, not only because their first stolen design (sun with a dot in the middle) evokes the alchemical symbol for sun. In TMA sulphur would probably be attributed to the Slaughter, the Hunt, the Desolation or the like.

I have noticed that a lot of TMAGP incidents involve an unhealthy desire, passion, obsession or (literal and metaphorical) hunger. It's also noticeable that the symbol for sulphur appears on the OIAR logo four times (once in each corner of the square representing the elements). I don't know if this is a stylistic choice or if it has deeper implications. But it's there. And as Colin implies, it could be bad.

The beautiful part about this framework is that it doesn't set any clear limits between the categories, because the balance can be disrupted in many ways. Lack of salt means abundance of sulphur and mercury, and their distribution may also vary greatly. I also don't know if the OIAR ranks their incidents in these terms. They probably have some needlessly complicated system that's practically undecipherable. (I took a long time trying to figure out the DPHW and I'm no closer to solving it.)

End note

I have some thoughts about what the goals of the OIAR and the Magnus Institute are based on this theory, but this post is too long now. May make a follow-up eventually. Or procrastinate until they just tell us.

Edit: I have now written my theory posts on the OIAR and the Magnus Institute. Go read if you're so inclined.

[archaeologyprehistoricstones]

💔 Coffin Birth Phenomenon 💔

💔 Throughout history, childbirth has been extremely dangerous for many women.

Sometimes the mother doesn't survive, other times the infant is miscarried.

In the most horrible cases, both the mother and child pass.

When a tragedy like this happens, it has been tradition for the mother and child to be buried together.

Excavated tombs have found evidence of this practice being commonplace, for hundreds of years.

💔 But what happens when women perish while pregnant?

When a pregnant mother passes, sometimes her body will force the fetus out of the womb postmortem, "birthing" a deceased child.

As it turns out, babies born in coffins is a thing, and although extremely rare, it is a naturally occurring process.

💔 The phenomenon is commonly known as coffin birth.

It has been confirmed as a real phenomenon, and is one of the more gruesome and depressing facts of the dangers of childbirth through history.

If you go back a couple hundred years, in medical records you'll find quite a few accounts of documented coffin births.

💔 One 17th century text has the following quote about a woman found to have delivered after her life ended:

"April ye 20, 1650, was buried Emme, the wife of Thomas Toplace, who was found delivered of a child after she had lain two hours in the grave."

Another report from the same century, described a woman who had a baby "hanging between the thighs" three days after she perished.

These are just a couple of the numerous cases on record.

💔 One report describes a pregnant woman, who was found several weeks after she passed.

This is considered one of the most graphic depictions of a coffin birth....

"The woman was bloated, green, and a half-born fetus protruded from her body.

The fetus was confirmed to have passed, when the mother did, and there were no signs of labour prior.

The autopsy confirmed that the fetus had been

forced by the gasses building up in the mother"

💔 One of the earliest documented coffin births on record occurred in 1551, when a pregnant woman was tried and hanged by the courts of the Spanish Inquisition.

Four hours after her death, and while her body was still hanging, two dead infants were seen to fall free from the woman's body!

💔 In 2017, scientists announced the discovery of a coffin birth that dated all way the back to the 1300's

The grave was found near the modern city of Genoa, Italy.

A mother was buried alongside her children, including an infant that is believed to have been a coffin birth.

The mother and her children were likely victims of the bubonic plague, as sampling of their DNA found trace amounts of the disease in their systems.

💔 When excavating an ancient tomb, the last thing most archaeologists would expect to find, is the skeleton of a fetus half-protruding from its mother.

There have been several cases where archaeologists discovered just that, but fortunately those discoveries are helping us better understand this macabre phenomenon.

💔 Researchers believe they've figured out why coffin birth happens.

It has everything to do with putrefication, which is what happens to your body after you expire.

As your cells begin to decay, they start releasing large amounts of gasses, as a waste product.

The gasses can start to build up to the point that they need to find an escape route, which can often cause the body to burst.

This process could be the explanation for coffin birth, as the excess of gases can theoretically push the baby out, as they look for a way to relieve the pressure.

💔 While "coffin birth" certainly has more of a morbid ring to it, its proper name is Postmortem Fetal Extrusion/Expulsion.

The Tudor Intruders (and more)

💔 AllThatsInteresting.

💔 In these pictures, the chilling remains of a medieval woman found in Italy, reveal she 'gave birth' after her death.

Source: Facebook

The Tudor Intruders

[hqhifertilizermachinesblog]

Organic fertilizer, as an indispensable part of agricultural production, is valued for its multiple effects of enhancing soil fertility, improving soil structure and promoting crop growth. Large-scale production of organic fertilizer requires not only high-quality raw materials, but also advanced production equipment. This paper will discuss the raw materials required for the production of organic fertilizer and the related equipment of fertilizer granulator.

The production raw materials of organic fertilizer mainly include agricultural waste, livestock and poultry manure, organic components in urban household garbage, industrial organic waste residue and so on. These raw materials can be converted into nutrient-rich organic fertilizers after fermentation, putrefication and other processes.

In the process of Organic Fertilizer Production Line, "fertilizer granulator series" equipment plays a vital role. Rotary Drum Granulator through the rotation of the drum, the raw material in the drum tumbling, friction, the formation of particles. This equipment is suitable for mass production and can guarantee the quality and consistency of fertilizer particles.

Disc Granulator Through the rotation of the disc, the raw material on the disc tumbling, agglomeration, the formation of uniform particles. This equipment is easy to operate, low maintenance cost, suitable for small and medium-sized organic fertilizer production enterprises.

In addition to the raw materials and equipment mentioned above, large-scale production of organic fertilizer also needs to consider factors such as production efficiency, environmental protection requirements and cost control. Through the reasonable selection of raw materials and granulator equipment, the quality and production efficiency of organic fertilizers can be ensured to meet the needs of modern agricultural production. 

[honorhearted]

Caleb was a damn good storyteller. Although Benjamin knew this from experience -- when they were younger, he and Abe would eagerly await their friend to return from his seafaring adventures, if only to catch a glimpse of his colorful trips -- but hearing the truth interspersed with fiction also gave him a window into why he was such an excellent spy; and, more importantly, such a good friend. Despite the words being Hadley's, there was enough of Caleb in there that a brief swell of emotion lodged in the back of Benjamin's throat, choking him as he remained silent.

It wasn't until Edith came toward him that he spoke again, clearing his throat as he affirmed, "It's really not much of anything...just a graze. The good Lord spared me of any putrefication"

Carefully, Benjamin shrugged free of his coat with a wince, then exhaled before rolling up his tattered shirt sleeve.

With a "tsk," Edith unwove the makeshift bandage -- a neck stock, from what she could discern -- and frowned when she beheld the red, slightly swollen graze wound. It wasn't putrid, but it was a little warm.

"I once read that honey has healin' properties," she muttered, "and alcohol too...both on the in and the outside."

Benjamin offered a wan smile. "Don't let my father hear you say that...he was also a man of the cloth, and didn't appreciate when I got crawsick in the middle of one of his sermons, and all after a night of imbibing." A true story. "But yes, I've read that, as well."

To Caleb, Edith asked, "Do you have any wounds too, Mr. Hadley? No sense in hidin' them." But then, was there any sense in treating them, either?

Guilted by the thought, she dabbed a bit of alcohol onto a rag, then wiped at Benjamin's wound, who hissed and quickly schooled his features, attempting nonchalance.

"You're handlin' this mighty well for a preacher," Edith observed. "I hope you haven't been shot before."

While she dabbed some honey over the wound, Benjamin offered a tight laugh. The ghostly memory panged against his shoulder, throbbing where he knew his scar lay. "I have several brothers," he replied. "When you grow up surrounded by boys, pain is inevitable."

Edith harrumphed. "I'm an only child...but Papa had plenty to offer on that account." Anxious, she glanced over her shoulder, scanning the treeline. When would he be back? "Are you folks plannin' on staying close, Father?"

"Not sure," Benjamin carefully treaded. "Hadley and I just needed this -- maybe a bit of water for our canteens, if you have some -- and then we'll be on our way. I meant it when I said we don't need a place to stay."

Edith frowned, a soft furrow forming between her eyes. "Can you two fire pistols?" she asked. If they could defend themselves, she wouldn't have to feel so bad for what was coming...

Caleb offered Jedidiah a curt nod, a silent acknowledgment. A necessary lie, Caleb reasoned, though a pang of guilt remained. Surely, the Lord understands. Still, the tally of his sins was long. Perhaps, one day, there will be a chance to atone.

The arduous task of digging commenced. Sweat beaded on his brow, but he endured the heat, refusing to shed his belt and waistcoat. The concealed knives, his silent guardians, remained tucked close.

Edith’s arrival cut off Caleb’s reply. He wouldn’t risk Ben straining his injured shoulder. It was best to conserve his strength…for whatever might come.

He took the glass, his throat parched, and sipped slowly, buying time. “New York, originally,” he began, his voice rough. “But, I shipped out with a whaler and been out on the sea for nearly a decade. I saw too many people die out on the water, and I didn’ want the next body dumped overboard with a cannonball chained to their feet to be mine. So I came ashore down near Hatteras and been looking for work. With the war and divided loyalties it’s been hard to find anyone to take me on. So I had to resort to less.. respectable acts to eat, to live.”

His tale carried the undeniable mark of lived experience. The brutal scenes he described – the shattered limbs, the drawn-out deaths of his shipmates – were seared into his memory. His stoic expression, a testament to years of enduring suffering, was a carefully revealed glimpse of his soul, a desperate attempt to win her over so that they might move on.

“It was at a crossroads near Edenton that I met Reverend Samuel. He knew the look of a hungry man and shared what he could with me. I had forgotten what kindness and generosity had looked like, even within myself. He was traveling north to Pennsylvania to visit his family. I figured I’d travel with him, repay the debt of my body and soul, by keepin’ him safe. Well, as safe as I could.”

Edith’s mouth had fallen open slightly. Papa must be mistaken. After a tale like that, these men can’t be traitors. She felt torn, her heart wanting to tell them that they were in danger, but she respected her father and his orders. “That’s some tale. Maybe the Lord put you two together for a reason.”

A genuine smile appeared from underneath the cookie-crumb covered beard. It was directed at her, but the words were meant to reassure Ben. “I think the Lord does have bigger plans for us, as well.”

She set down the pitcher and platter, removing some linen and a vial from her pocket. “Father if you would remove your coat I’ll see what I can do for that wound.”

[favoritetab]

i just had the most fucked up nightmare i have had in a while. i was going from my dad's house to my college campus on foot and while crossing a little field there were tons of cops and it was a crime scene but they let me through anyway. there were several woman torsos in various states of decomposition most of them blue and grey, it felt like my feet were in a bog it was so hard to move, and i could smell the putrefication in the air even in my dream i could smell the death and rotting so clearly it was awful. i woke up terrified

[scartar]

hey:)

this is a no ape zone

[mellamame]

[coinandcandle]

Intro to Alchemy - Coin's Notes

This is a quick primer on Alchemy, what it is, where it came from, and how it’s used today taken straight from my notes. This will likely be a series of posts as the topic of Alchemy is vast despite it being somewhat difficult to find resources on!

What is Alchemy?

Alchemy is sort of like magical chemistry but with some spirituality added to it, to put it vaguely. It likely has its roots in ancient Egypt but spread almost everywhere and is still used today—more on that later. Sadly over time, we’ve lost a lot of alchemical knowledge what little knowledge we do have has been reimagined in a more romanticist way, causing a lot of what was known to be skewed.

The mysterious nature of alchemy is not just in this lack of knowledge, but the texts we do have are often riddled with codewords, called decknamen, that can make the text difficult to read unless decoded. Why? Think of these books as containing "trade secrets", you don't want to share those around all willy-nilly!

Famous alchemists that you may know are Isaac Newton, Paracelsus, and Agrippa, though there are many more exemplary alchemists that you can find here.

Etymology

The modern word alchemy is a bit of a mystery itself --as it comes from the Arabic word al-kīmiyā (the al- being the Arabic definite article “the”), but the origin of ladder half, -chemy, is unknown.

There is speculation that -chemy comes from the Late Greek khēmía means "land of black earth”, an old name for Egypt. Or possibly from the Greek khymatos meaning "that which is poured out”. (EtymologyOnline)

Another likely candidate is the greek cheo meaning "to melt or fuse" (L. M. Principe).

Transmutation; Lead to Gold

One goal of alchemy, the transmutation of base substances into gold—termed chrysopoeia—is possibly the most widely known to the average person. We know now that it’s impossible to transmute base substances into gold by chemical means, but not impossible by other means (scientists turn bismuth into gold using a particle accelerator). Different alchemists had their own ideas as to how to do this but of course, none of them succeeded.

That’s not to say alchemy as a whole is a failure, alchemists through the ages have made some of the most important inventions or discoveries to this day and we know of alchemy as a predecessor of modern chemistry.

The Great Work; Magnum Opus

More than just a creator’s largest or most famous piece of work, the Magnum Opus—a.k.a The Great Work—is an alchemical term for the process of working with the prima materia ("first matter”) to create the Philosopher's stone (wiki).

The Great Work of Alchemy is often described as a series of four stages represented by colors:

nigredo, a blackening or melanosis

albedo, a whitening or leucosis

citrinitas, a yellowing or xanthosis

rubedo, a reddening, purpling, or iosis

These were later expanded upon and eventually came to 12 steps/processes. The order of these steps would vary by alchemist.

Calcination

Solution, or Dissolution

Separation

conjunction

Putrefication

Congelation

Cibation

Sublimation

Fermentation

Exaltation

Multiplication

Projection

Philosopher’s Stone and Immortality

It is a common misconception that the purpose of the Philosopher’s Stone was to give infinite life, it was just meant to prolong one’s life. It was also thought to cure disease and transmute base substances into gold.

Seeking immortality is noted more in Chinese "alchemy", it's proper names being Waidan 外丹 (External Alchemy) and Neidan 內丹 (Internal Alchemy) [Pregadio].

Alchemy in a Modern Context

From my understanding, there are as many approaches to alchemy as there have been alchemists, but in attempts to make this easier let's give it some labels: there are two paths when studying modern alchemy, though these labels are loose as these paths are not mutually exclusive. The two paths are a spiritual path and a traditional path. These are not set-in-stone labels or definitions, and if either interests you then I suggest looking into them more on your own time, there are links and resources at the end of the post to get you started!

Traditional Alchemy

Some folks try to reconstruct alchemical formulas, or even make their own, either out of curiosity or as an attempt to revive the lost art. This approach takes a more reconstructionist perspective and leans closer to chemistry than psychology. That being said, alchemy was not solely empirical and there are almost always going to be spiritual aspects involved.

Spiritual Alchemy

Sometimes when alchemy is used in a modern context you’ll see it talked about in a more spiritual or psychological way. The approaches of alchemy from a spiritual perspective will vary by person, just as the scientific approaches will vary by person.

I won’t go too much into it here, but essentially spiritual alchemy is the idea that alchemical texts are spiritual or philosophical, and thus interpret them as such; practitioners of spiritual alchemy decode the texts from a psychology-based perspective and rarely, if ever, do they involve chemicals or substances in the way traditional alchemy does.

This path is usually focused on self-transformation (or self-transmutation) and doesn’t necessarily use a body of chemical knowledge to practice.

What Now?

Ok so you know the bare bones about what alchemy is and a few of its uses, so what now? Well, you could either wait until my next "coin's notes" post and see what I talk about then, or you can check out the "References and Further Reading" section and get started on your own research journey!

Enjoy my posts? Consider leaving me a tip on my ko-fi!~

References and Further Reading

Esoterica - Alchemy (playlist)

Livescience - What is Alchemy?

Sacred-texts - Alchemy (subject)

Alchemy Rediscovered and Restored by Archibald Cockren (via Sacred-texts)

Alchemy Restored by Lawrence M. Principe

The Secrets of Alchemy by Lawrence M. Principe

Victorian Alchemy: Science, Magic, and Ancient Egypt by Eleanor Dobson (via Jstor)

[all-an-act]

One Room

...♡...

One room, where the fun occurred;

Where we smiled together;

Where our laughter resounded;

Where the sugar flowed infinitely.

One room, where the truth occurred;

Where I realized I'd been lied to;

Where your treachery became exposed;

Where denial took hold.

One room, where the decline occurred;

Where innocence became guilt;

Where I was poisoned by fear and rage;

Where the sugar began to turn sour.

One room, where the tragedy occurred;

Where cruelty became top-community news;

Where my name was thought synonyms;

Where I thought the sugar would dwell.

One room, where the decay occured;

Where rot clawed at my life and took control;

Where I was taken by the impending doom;

Where sugar turned bittersweet.

...

One room, where the revitalization occurs;

Where my truths were finally seen;

Where the putrefication still heals;

Where I'm not ready for this yet.

[of-buzzing-melodies]

"Before? Oh, heavens no, I can scarcely say I have come before any of the Dread Powers." Unfortunately, it seems all Clives are masters of missing the point or taking hints.

"I have seen more of the Rot than I care for. Flesh sloughing from bone, the putrefication... eugh... the only positive it brings is that it is, by far, the simplest to study and rid its victims of."

As much as everything around him has changed, at least the park doesn't seem to be all too different. So he takes some time to break way from trying to figure it all out, just to take a little walk, maybe sit and watch the ducks.

The weather is nice, at the very least he can be thankful for that.

Orion is sitting on a bench, decidedly far from the small pond the park sports. They shouldn’t really be out here, given what had just happened. But sitting under the endless sky always made him feel a little safer.

His eyes snap to every passerby, every moving object. He’s many things, but stupid is not one of them.

And then his eyes land on Clive. Or, at least, the fuzzy outline of what looks like Clive. They can’t be sure, but not many men dress the way that man does. They tense, watching him warily from afar.

Has he come back for more?

[hamliet]

RWBY and the Philosopher’s Stone

So, I finally watched RWBY after a friend name-dropped several characters and I was like wait... those names are alchemical. I was still pleasantly surprised to find out just how deeply rooted in alchemy the story is, from its characters to its plot structure. 

Background: alchemical structure is a type of story structure that focuses on inner transformation via outward obstacles. You can find it in literary traditions across the world, from Moxiang Tongxiu’s novels to A Song of Ice and Fire to Harry Potter to The Witcher to Trollhunters. Carl Jung incorporated it into his psychology. Daoism plays heavily into Chinese alchemy. The Wizard of Oz, one of RWBY’s main inspirations, is a blatant alchemy allegory. It’s everywhere, so it’s not surprising RWBY is drawing heavily on alchemy, but it is neat to see how blatant the references are. 

Thematically, the goal of alchemy is a metaphorical philosopher’s stone. The philosopher’s stone, in legend, is said to produce an elixir of eternal life, and to be able to transform “baser” metals into gold. 

In stories, when positive, as it usually is, this usually results in a character either overcoming death (see, Harry Potter) and/or transforming the world and others around him (Harry Potter saving his friends, etc.) But the journey from how they get from prima materia (raw material) to the philosopher’s stone? Now that’s the story. 

(When reversed, a metaphorical stone results in something that can destroy everything; see: the One Ring, also Salem, because Salem’s whole thing is that she cheapened the process of life and death, while alchemy states that death is a necessary part of achieving life.)

So, mostly I’m gonna talk about the symbolism I’ve seen so far and make some predictions for what’s likely to happen next in the story, and for the characters.

Each of the four main characters has a name that corresponds to one of the four phases of the Magnum Opus. “Blake Belladonna” refers to the nigredo, or black stage; “Weiss Schnee” to the albedo, or white stage; “Yang Xiao Long” to the citrinitas or yellow phase, and “Ruby Rose” to the final stage, rubedo, or red (Ruby’s name is quite literally taken from that stage). Naming them for these stages shows a dual purpose: while Ruby is the central character, she needs her team around her, and Team RWBY will save the world together. Team JNR is also a part of the stages, but I’ll get to what they represent later on. 

Jung associated each of the major stages with a major archetype. The major stages can be further broken up into a total of seven or twelve or even fourteen stages. Most commonly you’ll see George Ripley’s Twelve Gates referenced, and I believe that’s what RWBY is referencing as well since its allusions are pretty perfect. The "gates” or stages also sometimes overlap, especially when different characters might be at different stages. 

Nigredo: Seasons 1-3 

Alchemy begins by gathering the prima materia, or raw material. The characters assembling in season 1 is more of the gathering than the actual transformative process. But once we hit season 2, we dive straight into the process. 

Calcination occurs during the climax of season 2, during the fight on the train. Season 3 contains dissolution, or the washing of impurities through the exposure of certain secrets (like the fall maiden) as well as the literal dissolution of Beacon Academy, and separation (the end of the season, when Team RWBY is scattered). 

Narratively, Jung associated nigredo with the shadow, with someone’s dark night of the soul, their low point. In historical artistic depictions, often part of nigredo is dismemberment... which happens to Yang when she saves Blake from Adam. See, Splendor Solis: 

The goal of the shadow is that it should be integrated with, accepted, rather than denied. Facing the shadow is a necessary part of growth and ultimate transformation... and the point is, through facing the shadow, hope and light come.  

Peacock’s Tail: Seasons 4-5

Okay, I lied, there are sometimes five phases in alchemy. At the very end of nigredo, just before albedo, there is sometimes a flash of light, of rainbows and colors, that give hope. It’s not quite a phase, more of a moment, but it’s referred to as the peacock’s tail. While this is less plot-related, it does make sense that this is the point in the story where Team RJNR is formed. Why? Because look at their colors:

Ruby: red, black

Jaune: yellow, blue

Ren: green, purple

Nora: white, pink, orange

Between them we’ve pretty much got the full rainbow. 

We also have, in Blake’s arc, the introduction of Ilia Amitola, whose last name is the Souix word for “rainbow.” 

Albedo: Seasons 5-7

Albedo is associated with the anima or animus, or the part of ourselves that we are lacking (it’s generally gendered as the male within a female and the female within a male, but please understand he’s not talking literally and more in terms of traditional qualities ascribed as feminine or masculine that we may repress), which more than fits the fact that this stage begins while team RJNR is literally wandering around a continent called Anima. 

Conjunction is a term in which all the separated parts that can be salvaged from the Nigredo come together. Obviously the main incident for this is the fight at the end of volume 5, but I’d argue it overlaps a bit with volume 4 and even with separation.

The characters are only able to come together again once they’ve accepted aspects of their shadows. Yang deals with hers in Raven and Blake with the White Fang. Nora and Ren’s fight at their home village represents them dealing with their shadow as well, and also relates to conjunction because conjunction is the stage where the first chemical wedding comes into play. A chemical wedding is the joining of alchemical partners, and while I’ll probably discuss ships in another post (there’s a lot of set up alchemy-wise), I’ll just reference the obvious one here: 

The fountain image and a person shooting arrows is some pretty uncannily similar imagery to the fight at Nora and Ren’s home village. 

Next up in albedo is putrefication (focus on death and rotting). We see this with the encounter with the Apathy, who look like skeletons, cause death, etc. We’re also introduced to Maria Calaveras, aka the Grimm Reaper. (Her last name also means “skull” aka the white results of putrefication). 

Congelation requires a lot of water, and we see this in the focus on Atlas, wherein snow (water) is everywhere. The point of congelation is to separate the thin from the thick, the latter of which will of course become the Philosopher’s Stone. We see this through Team RWBY’s break with the Ace-Ops (aka the Aesops), whose simplistic morality and rule-following are not going to bring about character growth or eternal life. 

Citrinitas: Volume 7-?

Citrinitas focuses on the light, or fire. That immediately after congelation, a giant whale brimming with yellow appears in the white-colored Atlas is not a coincidence. Citrinitas is associated with the sage or the wise old man/woman, so Maria and Pietro fill this role. 

The first stage of citrinitas is cibation, which involves feeding with fresh material. I’d actually say that it seems quite possible cibation overlaps with congelation, in that there is a focus on food and on training with the Ace-Ops early in Volume 7. The next phases are sublimation and fermentation. I can see potential for sublimation in that it essentially is when solid becomes air (think of the setting of Atlas), but it’s too soon to say what this means for the plot. 

Fermentation, though... well, things will get worse before they get better. :’) 

Rubedo: 

Finally, Rubedo is associated with the fully individualized self. We can assume each of the main seven will come into their own, confident of whom they are. Oscar should, as well, and probably will have fully control over his body by the end (ie Oz will likely... find rest or whatever).

The stages of rubedo are exaltation (the creation of the stone after two contraries meet), multiplication (the stones’ properties increase), and projection (the stone’s abilities are projected over the entire world, aka presumably RWBY will save the world). 

The most common way to display multiplication is through, well, a lot of couplings. It’s why the main characters ending single seems extremely unlikely to me. Even if it seems a fairy tale ending, well.... *gestures to everything about RWBY being inspired by fairy tales* Fairy tales were also often alchemy based. But ships will get their own meta, because I actually don’t really ship much besides Renora and am for once not super invested in anything, but I can see the set-up for four or five ships.

I also want to highlight the other symbolic names that stood out to me: 

Ironwood. While I know Ironwood references the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz (tin being one of seven metals associated with alchemy), his name also references a second metal: Iron. Tin and Iron are the two of the three basest metals in alchemy (the other is lead). Iron in particular is ruled by Mars, the god of war, meaning it is associated with violence. It’s not a coincidence that pretty much from the second Ironwood is introduced, the concept of war comes up, and his entire character has gone on to be the embodiment of the military and violence. 

Tai Xiao Long. His name literally means “sun,” and Ruby’s mother is defined by her silver eyes (silver being a color traditionally associated with the moon). Ruby is thus considered the child of the Solar King and Lunar Queen, two mythical alchemical figures who together create the “Philosophical Child,” or the personified philosopher’s stone.

Pietro Polendina: his name literally means “stone,” and Penny is his philosopher’s stone. Penny is arguably a reference to copper, another of the seven metals, as copper references compassion and love, which seems like Penny to me. 

Qrow and Raven Branwen: crows and ravens are symbolic of nigredo, or the black phase; death, decay, etc. However, within the story I think Qrow and Raven fulfill this role as the Jungian shadows of hunters as a whole and of Yang. 

Sun Wukong: obviously a reference to the sun. 

Emerald Sustrai: Emerald is a reference to the Emerald Tablet, which in alchemical lore is a tablet containing the secrets of alchemy, as written down by Hermes (in legend). Hermes is, of course, Mercury. Everything about alchemy stems from the Emerald Tablet, so Emerald should be important. In addition, green is the color of the prima materia, so it references Emerald’s arc in being shaped and molded by Cinder. 

Mercury Black: Mercury as the mythological god is the legendary founder of alchemy, so like, he’s important. Mercury is also the third most important metal in alchemy, after gold and silver. It is necessary to achieving the philosopher’s stone so, like Emerald, Mercury is probably important. Mercury is of particular note because mercurial characters are common in alchemical literature: they make stuff happen. Think of Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet, for example. Mercury transcends death symbolically (you can see the roots of this in Mercury’s backstory with his assassin father): it is difficult to pin down and can quickly shift from liquid to solid. Thus, in alchemy, mercury can shift between life and death. 

Mercury is also a noted servant of the white queen. I initially thought this a surface reference to Salem’s appearance, and it might be, but Salem is more associated with a black queen in the recurring chess motif, and I don’t see Mercury staying on her side (mercury isn’t fixed, after all; that’s its central tenet), so I kind of wonder if the “white queen” will be later revealed. Or maybe it just is a surface mention.

[cannibal-witchh]

"I'm No Hero, Lady"

Reader(fem) x Carlos Oliveira

Written by cannibal_witchh

Contains: Violence, gore, vulgar language, some fluff

Notes: I previously wrote a fluff fanfic about Carlos snuggling the reader in bed during a storm. The reader had a nightmare about the past which was the incident in Racoon City. This is the scenario that occurred when the reader is saved by Carlos before the end up together.

The previous story:

The city was cast in flames, the fire resembled an angry ocean of embers, quickly devouring collapsing buildings and destroyed vehicles. The decaying humans once recognizable, slowly met the fate of existing as the undead, as putrefing skin consumed them. There were several minutes of sickening screams, gnashing of teeth, buildings crumbling, and the blazing of an angry sea of heat. And the following after that was stilled silence, painful, vacant, lifeless, and numbing. The air almost seemed heavy, ears desperate and clawing for a sound to be stirred.

Several hours had past since a violent rage of a deadly pandemic disturbed Racoon City. You had been locked away in your supervisor's office at the museum, alone and terrified. You possessed no expierence in defense, you were simply a staff member of the local museum. It wasn't until an unfamiliar face offered you help, it was an incredibly risky gamble to take, but it was either be supposedly 'saved' or stay under a desk in a poorly protected office for however long.

"Y/N, I'm gonna need you to stay close to me, there's too many of those freaks roaming around, and from the little knowledge disclosed they are very contagious. A bite, maybe a scratch, will cause a nasty infection.", Carlos informed as you nervously followed closely behind. He was leading you through the south wing of the museum where the dinosaur fossils were displayed. It was eerie, the entire large room completely in darkness, and Carlos' gun light being the only illumination you both had. " Relax, I took all these fuckers out already. You're safe, lady. " he looked over his shoulder at you and gave a warm grin. It was hard to find complete emotional relief but he certainly was charming. His shaggy dark hair brushing on his forehead and above his brown eyes, his olive muscular figure, and his scruffy beard. He definitely was handsome and unusually young to be working in this field. " How many of them were there?", you whispered, darting your eyes all around the room, examining for any movement or noise.

" Maybe twenty, there wasn't too many."

" What about how many survivors you and your team found?"

" Sadly, just fifteen. Either civilians refused help and barricaded themselves in. Or they were found too late and turned into one of those monsters."

" That's awful.", you felt the sting of reality flood through your body. Just fifteen. You continued pacing attentively behind him as he held his rifle close against his chest. "Walk carefully over here, this is where I had to clear a group of them out.", he muttered as you both managed to enter the corridor leaving the fossil room. There were adleast ten dead bodies scattered along the ground. Gore staining the white tiles, the stench of expiration filling the narrow hall, and decoral tarnished and destroyed everywhere. Discomposure deluged your body, you froze, standing idle, and quivering. It was an electric feeling of absolute fear that paralyzed you. You would have to maneuver around carcuses that could still possibly be alive, and you were not in proper attire to protect yourself at all from their attacks. You dressed in a tight grey houndstooth pencil skirt, and a silk mint collared blouse. Definitely not fit for an apocalypse. Carlos turned facing you, realizing you had stopped following him. His expression was serious for a few seconds, and a few times he would glance behind him confirming nothing was there. " C'mon, Y/N, we don't have much time." He beckoned

" I can't, I'm afraid."

"I cleared all this hallway, I promise. I won't let them hurt you.'

"I'm sorry Carlos. I'm too afraid...", you admitted with humiliation.

" Lady, ugh...don't hit me ok?", he playfully smiled and swung his rifle around his back. He plodded over to you and quietly scooped you up against his chest. He let out a awkward giggle and started to regain his balance with your weight. For someone who just witnessed this horrible pandemic, killed the undead, and did this independently he sure was calm. It was comforting, though. "Sorry, but I'm not leaving you behind nor am I wasting time.", he glanced over at you, making brief eye contact. His eyes were soft, it didn't display the slightest fear, and his hair swayed side to side above his gentle eyes. For someone roaming around in rubble, blood, and sweat, his aroma smelled wonderful. He smelled of spices and his own sweat. It was strange but he didn't smell too bad. Carlos coggled back ahead, carefully stepping over corpses, and just as he promised, they really were all dead. Occasionally, he would bounce you up to gain more security when holding you. You draped your arms tightly around his neck to stay supported. His breathing was slow and quiet against your face as he carried you closer and closer to the exit. " Do me a favor, please. Please watch my back.", he requested finally making it to the exit. The exit sign flickered red, static occasionally sparking from the sign, and shimmering down onto the ground. You looked over Carlos' shoulder and with your relief, nothing was there. No rustles and no movements. Carlos was struggling to open the door, he continued to press against the bar of the wide door a few times until he finally gave up. " Fuck!", he quietly shouted as he stepped back from the door. He took a few more steps back until he had a little space between the door and him. He lifted his foot up and kicked out the door. The door rattled loudly and swung wide open. " Thank God,", he sighed in relief as he transported you outside the museum.

"OK, ok, you can let me go. Sorry, for the trouble. ", you bashfully removed your arms from over his neck, and he slowly lowered you to your feet. "Didn't like being held, huh? I'm just kidding, let's keep going.", he teased as he began walking down the alongated museum alleyway. The two of you had finally made it out of the museum, and the alleyways seemed relatively tame. There wasn't too many corpses lurking down it. And the ones that did approach the two of you, Carlos would resolve with a knife to their skull and quickly they would collapse. He tried not to resolve issues with his gun unless it was when it was absolutely out of control. A few minutes of carefully walking down the backstreet, there was an abrupt crash of shattering glass behind you. It startled you and you immediately drew your eyes to the direction of the loud sound. " C-Carlos...", you stuttered backing away in terror. The virus effected animals too. A large dog had launched itself out of the window, snarling and foaming blood from between its teeth. He stood in an agressively pose, not removing its eyes on Carlos or you. " Try staying quiet, Y/N. We don't need to attract more attention."

"P-p....please shoot it..", your eyes watered on the verge of a break down.

The dog darted forward directly at you, something yanked at your wrist pulling you backwards. Carlos had grabbed you leading you both into a full on sprint. " I don't want to fire off in such a small space. I'm not sure if other freaks are around and they'll go towards the sound. We have to be careful." He quickly clarified, dragging you by the wrist to the very end of the alley. The dog continued racing towards the two of you, snarling and barking loudly. "Carlos!!!", the dog jumped forward at you, nearly biting your arm but a bullet dove forward directly into its skull. The dog flew backwards in a pained whimper. " Shit!", Carlos cursed in frustration, he moved his head around examining all directions. " Fuck, fuck, fuck...we gotta go!", he gripped your wrist and began to guide the both of you back towards the middle of the alley. The dead had be drawn to all the barking and the gun shot. Unfortunately, a group was forming on both ends of the alleyway, and blocking any escape. " Y/N, look! ", a broken fire escape ladder hung in the middle of the alley, it was the absolute only opportunity to escape. Carlos squated down, holding his hands together to give you a boost up to it. " Go, go, go, ", he chanted trying to sound as hopeful as he could. You hoped up and grabbed the ladder, with as much strength as you could gather, you began to pull yourself up. The swarm of creatures got closer and closer and you feared for Carlos' safety. Come on climb already! He jumped as high as he could, latching on to the ladder, and pulling himself quickly up. He let out multiple gasps of air in exhaustion and then gestured with his head to continue climbing all the way up. "Let's get all the way up, away from these fuck faces!", you both felt rattling from the fire escape with each step and climb you both took. You felt unsecure having your weight, Carlos', and his equipment. Within a few minutes of climbing up very high, you both managed to get to the roof of the building. Carlos immediately dropped his gun to the ground and laid on his back. For minutes, he laid there breathing heavily as if he ran a marathon. You walked a few feet away from him, dropping to the ground, and covering your face in your palms. So many emotions churned inside your mind, you were exhausted, terrified, confused, and livid. What was going on? Tears began collecting in your eyes, you failed to suppress the tense emotions clenching your chest, your body quivering in shock, and you began to fall apart in your own hands.

"What's wrong, Y/N? Are you hurt?", a large hand squeezed your shoulder.

" No..., I just, I dont know if I can take all this.", you sniffed continuing to conceal your face away from Carlos'. You felt his large arms wrap around you, pulling you close against him, and he rested his head against your's. " I get it. I'm scared shitless too. But you know what, we aren't doing so bad. We've survived this long."

" I only survived because you decided to be a hero and save me! I would've died on my own. I'm useless!", you cried, feeling tears escape between your finger tips. "Woah, no, you aren't useless. Its not like every other day a random pandemic hits and you get used to this stuff. I've never dealt with this shit before in my life. This is new. Everyone is just trying to survive, you made it on your own for hours with no help. Don't be so hard on yourself." Carlos brushed his large hands against your arms trying his best to calm you. He wasn't exactly great with words but you could tell he tried to make effort. You lowered your hands, revealing your tired red eyes, your face sticky and hot from crying. You felt embarrassed but it was just so difficult to keep it together. " We are almost out of here, chin up.", he grinned, squeezing you against him warmly. " T-Thank you, I'm so sorry you're putting up with my shit.", you glanced from the corner of your eyes at him, too embarrassed to completely turn over to show your reddened face. " Stop. Look at me.", you obeyed his request, although it was hard, you turned to face him. " This is what I'm here for. I want to help and I am happy to help you. Its a plus that you're a cute lady running around in a pencil skirt too. " He teased patting the top of your head, ruffling your hair and giving a light hearted giggle.

Unexpectedly, Carlos' walkie talkie beeped and static flooded through for a brief moment. " Carlos, where are you? Are you alive?"

"Tyrell, I'm alive, surprisingly. I'm up on a roof across Racoon City's museum with one survivor."

"Good! I hadn't heard from you for hours wanted to make sure you weren't having too much fun. So you only found one survivor?"

"Just one. I looked in several areas in the B territory but either the survivors were barricading themselves and uncooperative or turning."

" Shit, well, the boss man says we have to make this our last run. Things are getting bad and we are borderline at max capacity. Hurry up! I will stall."

There was a beep following static and it then it ended. " Looks, like we have to go. I have to take you to the exit we made. There will be a bus and they will take you far from this city to safety."

"What about you? You make it sound like you're not coming?"

"My commands remain. I have to stay."

You felt your cheeks buzz with heat, he was directed to remain?

****

Carlos and you had waited on the roof top for adleast half an hour. He had given Tyrell an update before the two of you finally climbed down the ladder. Luckily, all the zombies had migrated else where. The two of you quietly hurried, it took nearly another fourty minutes before you finally saw a buses gathered by an exit. It was filled with a civilians, and surrounded by military workers. You felt relief hit you, as you saw other evidence of survivors and humanity. You looked over at Carlos, he turned to face you completely, and he placed a hand on your shoulder. "It was a pleasure helping you.", he smiled, squeezing your shoulder as he walked you to the bus. A doctor on his team examined you for any signs of infections before you boarded, thankfully, you were ok. Thanks to Carlos. You entered the bus and turned around to properly depart from Racoon City, and to depart from your hero. " Thank you, Carlos. You really are a hero.", you smiled displaying truely appreciation. Carlos chuckled for a second and shook his head. " I'm no hero, lady. Hopefully, I see you around. Hopefully, still running around in a cute pencil skirt! ", he winked playfully, as blush scattered across his face and your's. Was he flirting with you? "Just try finding me at museum then. Well, thank you, Carlos. Really. Thank you.", you leaned forward and pecked his cheek.

"Until then."

The bus door closed, and you moved to your seat. You watched as the bus began to leave, your eyes fixed on Carlos, as your view grew smaller and smaller of the city and him. You hoped maybe one day you would see him again. You hoped your hero would survive this. You believed he would.

[nephy-of-limbo]

*they reach into their thick robes and pull out a piece of paper, they touch their finger to it and a 2 symbol begins to draw itself*

*once it's done they hand you the paper, it has the alchemical symbols "to purify" and "putrefication"*

*there is a being of incredibly high power inside the monster section of the lab, any cameras that are focused on the threat short circuit though*

- @nephy-of-limbo

*I cautiously approach the being*

[closetchild]

so do you have a favorite diru pv? mine’s obscure and kr cube

hrmm... tbh, i rarely revisit pv's—usually only when i'm looking for screencaps to paint—so my opinion on this, too, might be outdated. but! i definitely love hagehisa to's pv. the gradual putrefication of the band members, along with the swarms of insects, i find very evocative. that, and my preferences usually lie with an earthy and demure color scheme (and with dss lol) for most things.

it's been a while since i've seen obscure; kr cube is a runner up for sure... it fills me... with transdimensional yearning...

[paintedpawcat]

putrefication purification