#thesis: complete!!!!

[addersmire-moved]

LEECHCRAFT IS A GAME DRENCHED IN BLOOD — HEALING, BINDING, & CORRUPTING.

As a plague spreads through the isolated village you call home, balance your needs as a newly-turned vampire with your duties as a healer. Leechcraft is interactive fiction with a healthy dose of role-playing, steeped in a dark fantasy world inspired by medieval medicine.

FEATURES

Over 15k words of prose and dialogue.

Heal & harm the village and those you are tasked with treating.

Playable on mobile so you can play how you want.

(COMING SOON) Illustrated companion book with stories related to the game.

Play now on itch.io

[cultofthorns]

2024 series of ultrakill bosses as mythological creatures and v1 as a… Big game hunter

[naturecalls111]

more kevaaron mermay

[why-the-heck-not]

understanding academic concepts got me blushing swinging my legs giggling

[cloudbends]

something I feel like isn't nearly appreciated enough about mob's arc in mp100 is that his background is... Completely normal. I see a lot of people interpreting mob's parents as neglectful or distant based on the few scenes we've seen of them, which greatly baffles me because their few scenes aim to establish his family life as.. completely normative. They have the normal, average quips of a normal family. And I think it's very unique and refreshing because it means mob's troubles and internal hardship isn't a product of his upbringing, it's a byproduct of a traumatic experience and of his own personality and how it coalesces with his psychic powers. And I personally think more media should acknowledge that some people, even with perfectly normative and healthy familial dynamics and circumstances, will still develop very complex internal issues and personal psychology. and on the same note, some people with perfectly normal upbringing won't feel comfortable to confide in their parents and seek an external authority figure to look up to, which doesn't necessarily mean them and their parents are estranged. I dont think mob's (or ritsu's) life have to be unhappy to legitimize or explain the fact he has the personal struggles he does. Embracing normalcy is the main theme of this series.

[poruvoron]

me and venti twinning (coming back from the dead after so long) hiiii

[nenoname]

[wizzardkisser]

"why are you all big men making all these weird speeches to me?" nott the brave simply the greatest character of all time. to me.

(love the implications of this line and the hindsight that knowing about veth gives us. nott hates herself for being a goblin, but the thing is that being a goblin gives her -in her mind- a free pass to be all the things she always wanted to be but was never allowed to. and i think a lot about how that ended up shaping her sense of autonomy and self-respect.)

[blueskittlesart]

like half of this got covered up by text but can we take a minute to appreciate the perspective. how many more shots do we think i can cram these little training dummies into

[deikshen]

What if Heavenly Demons come from being children of a ascended God with a Demon?

Of course, that would be an explanation for why they are relatively few, so powerful, and why the ones we know the most (LBG and ZZL) have their blood diluted. It is practically impossible for a pure offspring to arise between two Heavenly Demons unless it is direct incest. More than a species, they are a direct result of, who knows, a Blood Demon, where 90% of the Blood Parasites' abilities to heal or attack others could come from + the OPness of an ASCENDED GOD.

So it's not just that they've died out after a long lineage. It's that they've ACTUALLY been few and far between from the beginning. The Heavens know that even if immortality accompanies an ascended God and a demon, and even if they leave behind a progeny of, what, ten children over the course of a century?? there would be nothing but an internal war between the heavens and the demon realm to hunt them down. They have the best of both realms. They ARE part light - part dark. They can give in to the abyss in their hearts or embrace the goodness of the heavens. They can be something horrible or the best thing that ever happened to the world.

They are not the legacy of a dying species. They are not the worn-out result of what time and exhaustion do to the powerful. They are… the result of love. The result of a forbidden love that was perhaps kept secret. The result of an ascended God who loved too much, a demon who renounced the evil of their spirit, they are the children of those who betrayed who they were and who they believed for their family.

They are the legacy of something beautiful.

They are a legacy of love.

Imagine Shen Qingqiu, married to Luo Binghe, FINDING OUT ABOUT THAT.

[hauntingofhouses]

We all already know Mizu and Akemi are narrative foils. But you know what? Lemme just say it, here's what I think:

Taigen and Mikio are foils.

Not necessarily to each other as individuals in the way that Mizu and Akemi juxtapose each other, but mostly in the contrast between their relationships with Mizu.

I've covered specific parallels between Taigen and Mikio in other posts I wrote; but as the number of parallels I'm noticing between them keeps piling up, I'm compelled to just compile them all in one post. So! This is, thus, the post in question.

First of all, let's look at their similarities.

1. Their status in society is the same. They are both samurai who lost their honour and have dreams of reclaiming it.

2. They are also both diligent as they strive to achieve this goal, they both care deeply about their work, but here as they begin to contrast, as the work in question and way they go about their goals is different:

For Mikio, his work is in taming and rearing horses; in order to prove himself, he must tame Kai—a willful and strong horse—and present it to his lord. For Taigen, his work is in sword fighting and martial arts; in order to prove himself, he must kill Mizu—a willful and strong swordsman—and present her dead body to his lord.

In the parallel above, not only are Taigen and Mikio contrasting each other, but Mizu and Kai are placed in comparison as well. And of course, Kai is Mizu's horse, and represents her. Which is why, when later, Mikio sells Kai off, it represents the way he is tossing Mizu (and their relationship) aside.

From there, the rest of the details of their character begin to contrast and juxtapose each other more clearly. So let's look at those differences, shall we?

Their backstory:

Mikio was a great samurai who was banished. A somebody to a nobody. Taigen was a fisherman’s son who rose to the top. A nobody to a somebody.

2. The first time we meet them on-screen:

Mikio is an adult. An older man. Mizu's superior in age. He is Mizu's to-be husband. A love interest. Taigen is a child. A young boy. Mizu's peer in age. He is Mizu's bully. An antagonist.

3. Their maturity and growth:

Mikio is mature, but stuck in his ways. Taigen is immature, but capable of changing and learning.

4. Their overall attitude:

Mikio is generally relaxed, easy-going and unfussy. Taigen is uptight, irritable and severe.

5. How they talk to and conduct themselves around Mizu:

Mikio is aloof, soft-spoken, and serious. Taigen is obnoxious, brash, and sarcastic. Mikio is quiet, speaking only when spoken to, even when Mizu turns to smile at him and shows openness to be near him. Taigen is loud, talking while others are silent, even when Mizu turns from him and shows no interest in conversing with him.

Mikio doesn't show much of who he is to Mizu throughout their marriage, despite their growing affection. Taigen openly shares his traumas and life story to Mizu during their brief alliance, despite their mutual antagonism.

6. Their external vs internal selves:

Mikio is calm, gentle, and considerate on the outside. Taigen is hot-headed, rude, and selfish on the outside. Mikio is cowardly and deceitful on the inside. Taigen is brave and loyal to a fault on the inside. Mikio tells Mizu that he wants to know and see all of her. But he scorns and betrays her, the woman he loves. Taigen tells Mizu that he wants to duel and kill him. But he endures torture to not betray him, the man he hates.

9. Their hair, a symbol of their honour:

Mikio's topknot is untied by Mizu during their spar. This humiliation occurs in private, the two of them alone in a rural location where no one can see them. Taigen's topknot is cut off by Mizu during their duel. This humiliation occurs in public, the two of them being watched by many others in the Shindo Dojo.

10. Their power dynamic with Mizu:

Mikio believes he is Mizu's mentor. He teaches her to throw knives, how to ride and care for horses, and about the tactical benefits of using a naginata. Taigen believes he is Mizu's equal. He views Mizu as a samurai like himself who received all the same teachings he did, and who possesses the same values.

11. Their perceptions of Mizu:

Mikio sees Mizu's feminine side first. He sees her as sweet and gentle, but also clumsy and incompetent. Taigen sees Mizu's masculine side first. He sees her as terrifying and deadly, but also strong and skilled.

12. The way they approach sparring with Mizu:

Mikio only spars with Mizu once. As the fight progresses and she is beating him, he tries to put a stop to it. When she teases/provokes him, he starts taking the fight personally and seriously, finding no enjoyment in it. Taigen spars and brawls with Mizu all the time. No matter how many times Mizu beats him, he doesn't back down. When Mizu challenges him with a chopstick, he is eager to compete with her and gladly rises up to the challenge.

Mikio and Mizu's one and only spar is a friendly match; Mizu is smiling and having fun while he grows increasingly frustrated. Taigen and Mizu's last-seen spar is a playful wrestling match; both him and Mizu are having fun and laughing.

Mikio cannot deal with Mizu being better than him, so he scorns her and walks off, avoiding her thereafter. When Taigen cannot deal with Mizu being better than him, he follows her to observe her moves and continues training in hopes to eventually beat her. After being bested by Mizu once, Mikio leaves her and sells the horse he'd previously gifted to her. After many times losing to Mizu and fighting alongside her, Taigen commends her and admits she is better than him.

13. When Mizu pins them down in a friendly spar:

Mikio sees Mizu's whole face objectively. Taigen stares at Mizu's mouth and eyes.

Mikio gets angry when she kisses him, throwing her off of him and snapping at her, calling her a monster. Taigen gets aroused, apologising, so she pulls herself off of him.

14. Mizu's blue meteorite sword is a reflection of her soul. She believes most are undeserving to face it, let alone hold it. And on that note:

Mikio is the first person (chronologically) that Mizu fights against using her sword. Taigen is the first person (we see on-screen) that Mizu fights against with her sword. Mikio is the first person (chronologically) to ever hold her sword, as she passes it to him, letting him wield it. Taigen is the first person (we see on-screen) to ever hold her sword, as she passes out, and he picks it up and carries it for her.

15. Then, last but not least, in Fowler's fortress, when she is drugged and in pain, she hears Ringo's voice in the dungeon. She then follows it to an open cell:

Mizu first sees Mikio as a hallucination, the sight of him haunting her and causing her to lose her grip on reality. Her eyes glow a surreal blue to represent this. Her Mama appears then and says Mizu's name accusingly.

Mizu then sees Taigen, but he is real, the sight of him a relief and grounding her back to reality. Her eyes return to their normal blue colour to represent this. Taigen looks at Mizu weakly and says her name softly.

Then, later, when facing Fowler, her revenge awaiting her, she instead chooses to follow her conscience (represented by Ringo's voice in her mind), putting aside her vengeance for a time, in order to save Taigen.

So that's basically all the ones I've noticed so far, but even then, I feel there's already so much that forms a contrast between these two.

What makes it especially incredible about these juxtapositions is that Mikio was Mizu's husband, the man she had fallen in love with, the one person she had ever been intimate with, the man who made her begin to accept herself, to put down her desire for vengeance and instead live a life of peace and happiness.

So for Taigen to have so many parallels with him... Do you see what I'm saying here!

Not to mention that Mizu clearly already has some burgeoning attraction to him, as indicated by how she thinks of him when asked about her desires. And Taigen clearly has shown interest as well (see: him getting a boner after their spar, him holding her hand and telling her, "We're not done yet.").

And on the topic of speculating future possibilities of this relationship, this post by @stromblessed has pointed out yet another parallel between Taigen and Mikio:

Mizu promises Taigen to meet him for their duel in autumn. Mizu fell in love with Mikio and duelled him during autumn.

With all that said, I do believe Mizu and Taigen's relationship is definitely hurtling towards something. But whether they will actually end up together in a sustainable relationship and have a happily ever after? Well, that is a whole other story; we'll just have to wait and see.

[ducavalentinos]

Ladislao Reti, an eminent Leonardo scholar, acknowledged that historians of the past have struggled with how to reconcile their exalted reputation of Leonardo and the fact he worked for Cesare Borgia. This is true for both past and contemporary writers. Paolo Giovio (1483-1552), bishop of Nocera, wrote Life of Leonardo da Vinci and intentionally excluded Cesare entirely from the work, to rid Leonardo of an association that Giovio saw as a tamish on the artist's reputation. Vasari also redacts any mention of Cesare Borgia from his Vita di Leonardo. The writings on Leonardo's life by Gian Paolo Lomazzo, a friend of Francesco Melzi who was Leonardo's student and the individual to whom he bequeathed his notebooks, also offer no reference to the artist's time with Borgia. Even Martin Kemp and Kenneth Clark, both well respected leading minds in the circle of Leonardo studies, minimize the association, customarily dedicating only a surface analysis to the intensive, complicated, and formative period in Leonardo's life.The perpetual disassociation is a disservice to both the artist and his patron-the historical importance of each individual only heightens the value in understanding their relationship and its outcomes. Leonardo and Cesare probably met for the first time when Borgia entered Milan with the French army in 1499. Leonardo arrived in Milan around 1482 and quickly began his association with the court of Ludovico Sforza and in 1489-90 he began earning an official salary. Leonardo's employment in the court of Milan was very different from the time he spent with Cesare. It would be narrow to assume that Leonardo never executed for Cesare the duties traditionally held by court artists like the entertainments staged in Milan. It will in fact be argued that he did, but Cesare's treatment and utilization of Leonardo was different from Ludovico's. The Borgia ruler valued Leonardo for divergent reasons and gave him extraordinary latitude in his work. Cesare treated him as an equal, not as a possession but an asset to honor, as someone from whom he had great respect, and as a familiar. With Cesare Leonardo was given freedom, and although he was given projects, they were self-propelled and stimulating to his curiosity which had struggled to thrive in Milan. He was given the title of military or ducal engineer, one of the most sought after court positions for which an artist could earn a salary. We know from his letter of introduction to Ludovico Sforza in 1489-90 that Leonardo wanted this position. [...]With Borgia he finally held the position that he desired.

At the Court of the Prince: The Patronage and Art Historical Legacy of Cesare Borgia, 1492-1503. Elizabeth H. Bemis

[king-lena]

i just wrote a whole post on how david and roger’s perception of each other ultimately led to their downfall and it started off as like a paragraph of surface level observations and somehow morphed into an essay length analysis that i can’t possibly justify posting 😭 i did kind of cook tho ngl i’m proud of her

[xxplastic-cubexx]

i’m so glad you brought up that bit in excalibur where magneto’s ideal prison is him getting to be a husband and father again, because it’s so relevant to the idea that the house of m reality isn’t actually everyone’s ideal life, but just wanda’s idea of what everyone’s ideal life would be. all the time i see x-fans condemn magneto for house of m because his ideal world is him becoming exactly like his oppressors, but house of m isn’t actually the life magnus wants! any time magnus gets to become a political leader, he hates it. he hated ruling genosha. he hated ruling krakoa. deep down, he doesn’t want to be superior. he just wants to live in peace with the family he lost.

also, shoutout to magda and anya, who never get to be anything other than magneto’s women in refrigerators. i wish they got to be more important than that. i love it every time we see them in comics, but it’s so rare. and shoutout to magda in particular since she’s been almost completely erased from the narrative by the maximoff retcon. really hope we get a reveal that natalya maximoff was magda all along when we inevitably make wanda and pietro magneto’s mutant children again.

i honestly didnt know excalibur was a predecessor to HoM when i heard about both runs so when i saw that set of panels for the first time it really had me reconsider HoM and the 'ideal reality' bit, im surprised i dont see it mentioned more often

i really wish there were more appearances of mags, magda, and anya; if there are stories focused on them i barely see them talked about... ive heard magda is mags' best-written partner from some but i also very rarely see stories that feature her directly named, so i never get to see her beyond the few fleeting instances i just so happen to catch her. id very much like to see more of her and mags' domestic life....

i think if we find out that natalya was magda all along i'll howl: this family really Can get more complicated contrary to popular belief 💀

[abominandus]

stevensaras of the assorted variety. can anyone hear me

[erbiumspectrum]

12 April 2025

Some things I've been up to lately:

jumped on the Mieko Kawakami bandwagon at last, but it doesn't look like I'm going to become a fan

accidentally made the best eggplant stew of my life

tried to catch up on chem tech notes and I'm so sick of taking them already. Chem tech is unfortunately boring 🫥

tried studying for the upcoming crystallo test, but the professor's expectations are unclear as usual and every time I open the notebook I'm just like 🥱 nope

did some spring cleaning with my parents 🌸