#Cecile speare

[kelbunny]

Bravely Week 2023 - Day 2 - Fan Characters

Featuring three of my fan asterisk holders drawn in the BD chibi style: Cecile Speare, holder of the Librarian Asterisk, Gamma B. Lure, holder of the Trickster Asterisk, and Elcidian Blitzgear, holder of the Engineer Asterisk

[storybursts]

The Christmas Special Day 22: Hooves of Fire (1999)

The Christmas Special Day 22: Hooves of Fire (1999)

Director: Richard Goleszowski Writers: Andy Riley, Kevin Cecil, Richard Curtis Cast: UK VERSION-Robbie Williams, Ardal O’Hanlon, Paul Whitehouse, Jane Horrocks, Steve Coogan, Caroline Quentin, Jean Alexander, Ricky Tomlinson, Rhys Ifans, Harry Enfield; US Version-Ben Stiller, Britney Spears, James Woods, Brad Garrett, Hugh Grant, Leah Remini, James Belushi, Jerry Stiller, Rob Paulsen Plot: The…

[xiathiau-myshif]

Cecil Gershwin Palmer is fucking iconic. Carlos was in town for one day and Cecil said "I am in love with this guy. We will have a summer wedding at night, my bouquet will consist mostly of irises, the song will be Toxic by Britney Spears, the guests will consist of-"

[leonvarcas]

Guide to The City: Chapter 2: Fixer Associations

A sequel to This Post where i catalogued The City's workshops, this time covering the fixer associations! Please note this will contain unmarked spoilers for Library of Ruina and Limbus Company.

1: Hana Association

Language: Korean Specialties: Fixer grading and management, threat classification, elimination of Impurities. Uniform: White and gold-trimmed long coats over a white suit with a black tie, emblazoned with Taoist trigrams on the shoulders. Equipment: Black crystalline weapons that can be reformed instantly to different forms, making Hana fixers dangerous and unpredictable in close combat. Most often wielded as Crystal Spears (Mirinae, Olivier, Hana Association Fixers) but also as a Crystal Gauntlet (Harold) Known Fixers: Mirinae, Harold, Olivier (Library of Ruina) Hana handles the grading and licensing of fixers and fixer offices, grading them from 1-9 (1 being the strongest, 9 being the weakest). They also handle the classification of threats to the city. from least to most dangerous, the classifications are: Canard Urban Myth Urban Legend Urban Plague Urban Nightmare Star of the City Impuritas Civitatis Impurities are special threats, classified by The Head themselves for immediate extermination or removal. Hana only personally fights against Impurity level threats.

2: Zwei Association

Language: German Specialties: Defense, peacekeeping, and bodyguard duty. Uniform: Blue and yellow coats and suits. Equipment: One-handed swords (Zwei Crew), two-handed swords, or Zweihanders if you will (Julia, Isadora, Walter, Zwei South Section 4 Faust, Zwei South Section 4 Gregor), and stun batons (Zwei South Section 6 Sinclair, Zwei South Section 5 Rodion) Known Fixers: Julia, Isadora, Walter (Library of Ruina), Faust, Gregor, Rodion, Sinclair, Heathcliff, Ishmael, Don Quixote (Limbus Company, mirror World of the Zwei Association) Affiliated Offices: Streetlight Office Zwei will handle peacekeeping within their territory, but don't mistake them for police, you will need to pay them for their protection. They specialize in defense, of people, places, whatever you need them for.

3: Tres Association

Language: Spanish EDIT: thank you to josieblueart, i had completely forgotten! Specialty: Testing and licensing of Workshop products Tests and approves all products made by the Workshops of The City, likely also in charge of "dealing with" any unauthorized distribution.

4: Shi Association

Language: Japanese Specialities: Assassination Uniform: Black and Red (varies) Equipment: Red katana (all) Known Fixers: Yujin, Valentin, Tenma, Thelma (Library of Ruina), Don Quixote, Heathcliff, Ishmael (Limbus Company, mirror World of the Shi Association) Affiliated Offices: Full-Stop Office Shi specializes in stealth and assassination. If you really want someone dead, you pay the Shi. Due to the nature of the job Shi is frequently understaffed, and thus terminally overworked and injured.

5: Cinq Association

Language: French Specialties: Dueling Uniform: Blue cape over a black suit, with a feathered cap Equipment: Rapier (All) Known Fixers: Don Quixote, Outis, Sinclair (Limbus Company, World of the Cinq Association) Have a dispute with someone, but you're too weak to duel them yourself? Hire the Cinq association to duel them for you!

6: Liu Association

Language: Chinese Specialties: War Uniform: Black suit with gold accents and red coats Equipment: Swords (Liu Fixers), Gloves (Cecil, Mei, Chun, Miris, Liu Association South Section 4 Ishmael), Guandaos (Lowell, Xiao), and Gauntlets (Liu Association South Section 6 Gregor, Liu Association South Section 6 Meursault, Liu Association South Section 5 Hong Lu) that cause fire via friction, requiring skill to use effectively. Also their signature red coats, made with Moonstone, singularity of M corp, that defends against psychological attacks. Known Fixers: Cecil, Mei, Chun, Miris, Lowell, Xiao (Library of Ruina), Ishmael, Gregor, Meursault, Hong Lu (Limbus Company, World of the Liu Association) Liu Association specializes in open combat, having great numbers and skilled fighters wielding fire. Liu are called in when you need to fight an army... or a monster.

7: Seven Association

Language: English Specialties: Information gathering, detection, hunting Uniform: Green coat, brown suit Equipment: Swords (Seven Association Fixers, Dante(LoR), Seven Association South Section 6 Yi Sang, Seven Association South Section 6 Ryoshu, Seven Association South Section 6 Director Outis, Seven Association South Section 4 Faust, Seven Association South Section 4 Heathcliff) and at least one bladed cane (Seven Association South Section 6 Director Outis) Known Fixers: Dante (Library of Ruina), Yi Sang, Ryoshu, Outis, Faust, Heathcliff (Limbus Company, World of the Seven Association) Han Hee-Joon (Distortion Detective) Affiliated Offices: Moses Office If you want to know something, you pay Seven Association. They specialize in information gathering, and if you pay extra, they'll also hunt down whoever you wanted to know about.

8: Eight? (Speculation based on the languages of the sinners and their numbers corresponding to the languages of the fixer associations, other instances of speculation will be marked with a ?)

nothing is currently known

9: Devyat Association

EDIT: Credit to truboo42, i'm bad at remembering limbus tidbits lol Specialties: Delivery Devyat employs courier fixers to deliver packages around The City, it is assuredly a dangerous job requiring skilled work.

10: Dieci Association

Language: Italian Specialties: Research, accumulation of knowledge Uniform: Priestly robes with a yellow sash Equipment: Gloves that somehow grant power the more knowledge the wearer has (Dieci Association South Section 4 Rodion) Known Fixers: Rodion (Limbus Company, World of the Dieci Association) Not much to go off of yet, but it seems like the Dieci specialize in accumulating knowledge, and are somehow able to use that knowledge for power. (curious why they never went to The Library, who also claimed to accumulate knowledge. perhaps they didn't want the library to have any of their knowledge?)

11: Öufi Association

Language: Swiss German Specialties: Trades and Deals Edit: thank you project moon very cool Uniform: Purple and black outfits similar in style to that worn by the Landsknecht of 15th century Germany Equipment: Ornate Halberd (Öufi Association South Section 3 Heathcliff) Known Fixers: Heathcliff (Limbus Company, World of the Öufi Association) Not much to go off of yet, but the Öufi seem to specialize in contracts and the enforcement thereof.

12: Dodeka?

nothing is currently known

And that's all, hopefully we'll gain more info later on the associations we haven't seen yet, expect future posts covering the Wings of the World and the Backstreets Syndicates!

[orangesideirrational]

randomly generated incorrect quotes but cecilos

cecil: I want to wake up with you every day for the rest of our lives carlos: I wake up at 4:30 AM cecil: cecil: I want to see you at some point every day for the rest of our lives

(insomniac carlos my beloved)

cecil: Please, I'm begging you go to a doctor. carlos: I'm sorry is this OUR stab wound? Stay out of it.

carlos, struggling to keep upright in their 1 inch heels: Yeah, I-I don’t really think heels are for me cecil, pointing at them and walking flawlessly in sparkly golden 6 inch heels: WEAK.

cecil: You fuckers don’t know about my knife stick. It’s a knife taped to a stick and it’s the ultimate weapon. carlos, not looking up from their book: Spear. cecil: BLOCKED.

cecil: Name a more iconic duo than my crippling fear of abandonment and my anxiety. I'll wait. carlos: You and me!!! cecil, tearing up: Okay.

cecil: bitches b like “im baby” but have childhood trauma and neglect like wtf do u know about being baby u were forced to grow up from an early age anyways I’m bitches

carlos: *sees someone doing something stupid* carlos: What an idiot. carlos: *realizes it's cecil* carlos: Wait, that's MY idiot!

cecil: Can you cut me some slack, carlos? I’m sort of in love. carlos: I’m sorry, but that’s really not my problem. cecil: I’m in love with you. carlos: *blushes* Oh. That brings me in the loop a little.

cecil: Okay, truth or dare? carlos: Truth cecil: How many hours have you slept this week? carlos: carlos: ...Dare cecil: Go to bed. carlos: I don't like this game.

[aqqleshiqqing-archive]

this is the greenest thing ill ever draw in forever im going to miss it (they are exes. i think that would be Highly funny)

as promised id draw him but since he lost - consider this as a consolation price because anyone against sans (except for cecil) is doomed to fail

anyways did you know hes the reason why i knew criminal by britney spears

[a-queer-seminarian]

“We do not mourn the death of Queen Elizabeth”

[ID: logo of the EFF, Economic Freedom Fighters, which shows the continent of Africa overlaid with a fist holding a spear pointing downward, a rig on the wrist and a yellow star above the fist. / end ID]

The EFF’s Statement, posted on their Twitter on September 8, 2022, reads:

“The Economic Freedom Fighters notes the death of Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor, the Queen of the United Kingdom, and the ceremonial head of state of several countries that were colonized by the United Kingdom. Elizabeth ascended to the throne in 1952, reigning for 70 years as a head of an institution built up, sustained, and living off a brutal legacy of dehumanization of millions of people across the world.

We do not mourn the death of Elizabeth, because to us her death is a reminder of a very tragic period in this country and Africa's history. Britain, under the leadership of the royal family, took over control of this territory that would become South Africa in 1795 from Batavian control, and took permanent control of the territory in 1806. From that moment onwards, native people of this land have never known peace, nor have they ever enjoyed the fruits of the riches of this land, riches which were and still are utilized for the enrichment of the British royal family and those who look like them.

From 1811 when Sir John Cradock declared war against amaXhosa in the Zuurveld in what is now known as the Eastern Cape up until 1906 when the British crushed the Bambatha rebellion, our interaction with Britain under the leadership of the British royal family has been one of pain and suffering, of death and dispossession, and of dehumanization of African people. We remember how Nxele died in the aftermath of the fifth frontier war, how King Hintsa was killed like a dog on the 11th of May 1835 during the sixth frontier war, and had his body mutilated, and his head taken to Britain as a trophy.

It was also the British royal family that sanctioned the actions of Cecil John Rhodes, who plundered this country, Zimbabwe and Zambia. It was the British royal family that benefited from the brutal mutilation of people of Kenya whose valiant resistance to British colonialism invited vile responses from Britain. In Kenya, Britain built concentration camps and suppressed with such inhumane brutality the Mau Mau rebellion, killing Dedan Kimathi on the 18th of February 1957, while Elizabeth was already Queen.

This family plundered India via the East India Company, it took over control and oppressed the people of the Caribbean Islands. Their thirst for riches led to the famine that caused millions of people to die in Bengal, and their racism led to the genocide of aboriginal people in Australia.

Elizabeth Windsor, during her lifetime, never acknowledged these crimes that Britain and her family in particular perpetrated across the world. In fact, she was a proud flag bearer of these atrocities during her reign. When the people of Yemen rose to protest against British colonialism in 1963, Elizabeth ordered a brutal suppression of that uprising.

During her 70-year reign as Queen, she never once acknowledge the atrocities that her family inflicted on native people that Britain invaded across the world. She willingly benefited from the wealth that was attained from the exploitation and murder of millions of people across the world. The British Royal family stands on the shoulders of millions of slaves who were shipped away from the continent to serve the interests of racist white capital accumulation, at the center of which lies the British royal family.

If there is really life and justice after death, may Elizabeth and her ancestors get what they deserve.”

[wolffoxnation2]

More W.I.Ps Yay

Psychopomp

Summary: Travis has psychopomp powers, Connor likely does too but no one knows other than Travis himself. Travis decides to summon Luke for some reason.

Notes to myself:

[the no good bad evil oneshot about Luke and Travis]

[Travis summons Luke]

[Make sure there has to be a lifeline that keeps Travis alive during the ritual.]

[Have his lifeline accidentally be Katie]

[Have Katie show up near the end]

[He compares the whispering to Katie talking so much, and that causes things to spitball and anchor his life]

["Great, just what I needed—Katie's voice in surround sound," he grumbled, a desperate attempt at humour in the face of the spectral onslaught.]

[Diaktoros- Guide, Messenger]

[Athanatos Diaktoros- Immortal guide]

["What are you doing?" Luke said

Travis rips the blanket off himself and throws it on the ground, suddenly disgusted by its existence.

"Don't throw my blanket".]

[Have Travis have a panic attack when Katie arrives because he's so scared of what she thinks]

[Have Travis refer to him and Katie as a demented demigod Persephone and Hades]

Small extract:

"Hey..."

"Mmm...five more minutes," I mumbled, trying to get at least a few more moments of sleep. The last few nights have been sleepless and filled with tossing and turning, nightmares and a bunch of other stuff I don't wanna talk about; sleep was something I really needed right now.

"Hey, Trav."

I shoved a pillow over my head. "Go away". I don't care if it was Cecil, Chris, or Connor—wow, there are alot of C names in this cabin. What is Hermes' deal with names that start with a C?

"Travis Thomas Stoll. Wake. Up. Now."

That wasn't even close to my middle name. I don't even think I have a middle name. But before I could even point that fact out, a small fist decided to acquaint itself with my stomach.

So it was Connor.

That little shithead.

------

2. Who is the monster? the children?

Summary: Magnus Chase/Norse myth oneshot of Loki's 'monster' children being brought to Odin. From the third person view of Hel.

Notes to myself:

[F you Odin]

[Think of a nickname for Jormungandr because I ain't calling him by his full name for the entire shot.]

[Forgot Hel was the youngest midway through this, so let's pretend Hel is freakishly (horrible phrasing) strong]

[Technically, a monster isn't a bad thing to be. It just has bad associations]

[Fun fact: Monster derives from the Latin monstrum, itself derived ultimately from the verb moneo—to remind, warn, instruct, or foretell

[höggspjót—chopping spear. It takes its name from Old Norse högg, stroke, blow, slaughter, beheading and spjót, "spear]

[They are so gonna use that on the snake :(]

Small extract:

 She assumes they must be young because they are only as big as Fenrir. Not as big as her mom or other Jotun.

Jormungandr hissed in her arms. She was playing with him when the warriors came with their pointy weapons and red faces, so he refused to let go of her. Even when the warriors pointed their höggspjót at him and

------

3. Wine Child: chapter two draft 4? Fuck what number are we on?

Summary: Percy's pov of the de aged Mr D fanfic. Hebe shows up, dumps 8yr old Dio at camp. Ruins Percy's date. Dives into Dio's demigod trauma.

Notes to myself:

[Work on chapter title]

[Dio has a sword, where does he get the sword? fuck knows. Hebe gave the 8yr old a sword for funsies]

[He's wearing a girls outfit and has wild curly hair]

[make him punch Percy in the balls]—has been changed to Will now.

Small extract:

Did I mention that she's holding a very alive-looking, violently squirming gym bag?

"Well, it's a funny story, really." She said, which meant in god language: It was very much not funny, but you better laugh or I vaporize you.

She twirled the gym bag in her hand as she talked, pulling it up by the straps and tipping it upside down like a very angry yoyo.

Whatever was in the bag really didn't like that, which to be fair, I'd be pretty cranky if some goddess shoved me in a gym bag and then started playing with the bag like a yoyo.

"What I didn't account for was how whiney he was. So then I thought, hmm, where was the best place where he could learn to appreciate youth? Nowhere else but summer camp!" 

[fallen--leafs]

Day 1

The day goes by relatively calm, all things considered. The dads and Cherry clear out what they need from the cornucopia and strike out. With everyone else fleeing from *them*, they have pretty free choice of where to go. They find a Prime Shelter spot and hunker down. Dad (Henry) starts building a shelter while Cherry and Dad (Jackie) strike out to hunt and gather resources.

The other group is me!! And Honey, and Achilles. My eagle-eyes spy a cave we can rest and recover in. Honey is kind enough to take care of Achilles’ wounds as we settle in.

Wick runs into Hubert, after they escape the cornucopia and several fighting parties. Wick, in terror, begs Hubert to just end it… He looks at his score from the cornucopia, A Shovel, and goes “With this???” and chases Wick off to find their luck elsewhere. Meanwhile, Nero proves him wrong, by indeed attacking Cherry with a shovel while he is out resource gathering. Cherry gets away though, it’s fine.

An.…. Unlikely alliance occurs. Mary, who has just lost her bishop, meets Fina… whose teammate has seemingly gone berserk. More on that in a second. The truce is… Hesitant, and fragile. But it *is* a truce. They are both, after all, ex-kindred who have not been human for quite some time.

One kind of funny scene occurs just away from the Cornucopia. The Victorian urchins struck out together, suddenly very conscious of the fact that they are in fact,,, pretty young boys right now. They grabbed some minor supplies from the cornucopia, and now Cecil is trying to spear-fish under Prince Len’s observation. Tick meanwhile uses that chance to pickpocket the Prince! Rude. But he doesn’t notice. I don’t even know what she would score at this point of the game, since everyone gets Uniforms. A nice pebble perhaps?? A keepsake?? Who knows.

There is some action, also!! Kitty has chosen violence. Escaping the cornucopia, she immediately turns to the one hunter who *hasn’t* joined the other “careers”: Alessio. She chases him down, and while he does get away… She ends up rewarded with a hatchet from a sponsor. I’m sure nothing bad will become of this.

After escaping from the cornucopia, Robbie and Duncan are exploring the arena. During his escape Robbie had a brief encounter with Mattia, getting attacked, but he manages to scare Mattia off. Learning from this, Duncan makes a spear for himself after they failed to steal weapons from the cornucopia.

There is one cannon shot, too. Ieuan reaps the rewards of their fight with Sorcha and empties out the backpack. Maybe something went Horribly Wrong, or maybe they are a little too far removed from Human to make the change back so easily… But something goes Horribly Wrong with The Eating. They catch dysentery?? And die immediately. Don’t ask me how that works. But rip Ieuan 😔

[invisibletinkerer]

Fic: Thicker than Blood

Someday, I may actually get back into a living and active fandom. Today is not that day. But I have somewhat regained my ability to write, and so written a little fic about the latest piece of media that gave me Feels:

Fandom: Final Fantasy IV Length: ~1,800 words AO3 link: archiveofourown.org/works/54783670

(After the crisis is over, Kain is not okay. Cecil goes looking for him.)

The second time Cecil climbed Mt Ordeals, it was in no sense an ordeal. Despite being alone and armed only with a single blade, the spirits of the mountain let him be. He had already been blessed by the light once, and nothing he had done since had rescinded that. The mountain welcomed him back.

He wasn’t here for the mountain, though.

He glimpsed Kain long before he was close enough to talk to, a thin silhouette against the sky, standing on one of the peaks visible from certain angles through the forest canopy. It was impossible to make out his features from below, but even so Cecil knew it was him. He couldn’t have explained how he knew, but who else would it be? If anything, he was relieved that his friend wasn’t hiding from him.

Cecil made no effort to hide himself either, but when he finally reached the peak, Kain had seated himself cross-legged on the rocky ground, facing away. He looked oddly vulnerable without his dragon armor, blond hair spilling over a worn and dirty shirt. His spear was resting on the ground to his left, and there was a tenseness in his back that told Cecil that he was expected.

“I knew I’d find you here,” Cecil said, approaching slowly. As if Kain was a wounded animal, easily spooked, and perhaps he was. He sat down by Kain’s side a few feet to his right.

“I knew you’d come,” Kain replied quietly. Too quietly. Kain had been a loud person, once.

“This is a good spot,” Cecil remarked. “The view is nice.”

Kain shrugged.

Small talk wasn’t the way to go. “You went to the shrine, didn’t you?” Kain had disappeared without telling anyone where he was going, but he’d muttered something about needing to ‘find himself’, and Cecil knew from personal experience that this was a decent place to start when dealing with an identity crisis. He’d hoped – perhaps naively – that his friend would return in time for the wedding, but he hadn’t. “What did you find?”

Kain huffed, but didn’t turn to look at Cecil. “I wasn’t turned into a paladin, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“That’s not what I’m asking. That was my journey. I’m asking about yours.” He paused, chewing on his lip. “You don’t have to tell me, but… Look, I know this is hard on you, but this silence – I don’t think you’re doing anyone any favors, least of all yourself.”

Kain sighed, but didn’t speak.

“I’m worried about you. We’re all worried about you.”

“Rosa?”

“She would have come with me if I hadn’t insisted she’d stay. We’d both hoped you’d be back for the wedding.”

Kain shook his head. “You should know better than that. I’m glad you’re married – I am. But no. I shouldn’t be a part of your life.”

“That’s nonsense. We want you to be! Neither of us blame you for things you did when you weren’t in your right mind, Kain. You’d never have hurt us if—”

“I know!” Kain interrupted with some force. “I wouldn’t have! But I did, and I wasn’t only acting on orders. You don’t get it, Cecil!” He paused, clenching his teeth and looking down at hands clawing at the fabric on his knees. “You don’t understand what it’s like. To have half of your self stripped away, leaving the dark underside that’s left to fill the space. I can’t just put a cap on it and pretend like it’s nothing. Everything I did—I was still me. All of those feelings are inside me. I don’t know why you pretend to forgive me, but I’m a monster. Cecil, I—” He glanced up and met Cecil’s eyes for a moment, then turned away with a look of anguish.

Cecil hazarded a painful guess. “You hated me?” It had certainly seemed like hatred in Kain’s eyes during the months he’d been working for Golbez. But that was over now, and things should be getting back to normal, not spiraling out of control. The fact that Kain felt so guilty about it all was in itself proof that he had not been himself, and Cecil wished he knew what to say to make it right.

“I’ve never hated you,” Kain denied. “But…” He swallowed. “Look. You were the one with the talent. The artistic one, the graceful one, the top swordfighter. The handsome and charming one. I grew up in your shadow, Cecil, but I don’t think you ever noticed. And… I met Rosa first, but you were the one she fell in love with. Of course you were.” His fists clenched and unclenched in his lap.

Cecil was struck by the quiet fervor. “I’m sorry,” he managed. He had indeed never noticed. Had Kain always felt that way?

“It’s not your fault. It’s just who you are. You’re special. Just look at you now – you’re a paladin. You’re a king. You’re a pure-hearted hero. You’re a half-blood alien from the moon!”

“I didn’t—”

“No, and neither did I! You’re… we were a team. The rest didn’t matter, because I loved you. You were my best friend, the closest I’ve ever had to a brother. And Golbez… he took that away. And that left only jealousy and resentment. Do you see now?”

Cecil nodded slowly. He was starting to. Negative feelings that had always been overshadowed by the positive ones, suddenly shuffled to the surface, leaving confusion in their wake. But even so. “I love you too,” he said. No past tense. “You’re my best friend. You’ve always been.”

“Even now?”

“Even now. If you’d still have me.”

Kain was silent for a long moment, back hunched, face hidden by his hair. Cecil wanted to reach out to him, but maybe Kain needed the space. He wished he was as perfect as Kain seemed to think he was, maybe then he’d know what to do.

“I heard my father’s voice,” Kain said eventually. “In the shrine. He told me that yes, I could do it. I could be whatever I wanted, I could surpass him as a dragoon, or even be something else. But only if I could forgive myself. And..." He shook his head.

So the mountain had withheld its blessing. It was unfair. Why couldn’t it do for Kain what it had done for Cecil? “Does it help that I forgive you?” he asked. “And Rosa, too. And Cid, and Rydia, and Edge might be blustering about it but I know that he admires you for sticking with us to the end despite everything. And—”

“Stop it!” Kain interrupted. “You don’t know half of it. It’s not just what I did—I was planning, and anticipating—you have no idea of the extent of what I’m capable of. I don’t know how Rosa could ever stand to look at me. She shouldn’t have to. And you. I would have killed you—I would have enjoyed killing you! Can you know that and still call me your friend?”

“Yes,” Cecil said plainly. “Because that’s not who you are. Golbez turned you into that by violating you. You didn’t deserve what happened, any more than the rest of us did. Everyone has dark thoughts and feelings, and that’s fine! What makes a decent person is the ability to stop yourself from acting on them, and that ability was taken from you by force. It’s not your fault. The shrine was right – you have to forgive yourself.”

Kain’s breath hitched audibly. “I…” He didn’t seem to find any words.

Cecil took a deep breath. “What can I do to help?”

“I don’t know.” It was barely a whisper.

Cecil shuffled closer, and when Kain didn’t pull away he reached out and drew his friend into a tight hug. A moment later, Kain’s arms returned the embrace with desperate strength.

They sat like that for some time. Cecil could feel Kain trembling against him. He didn’t quite cry – just an occasional dry sob – but he clung to Cecil like he was all that kept him alive. Maybe it was. Cecil hadn’t understood before now just how much Kain hated himself for what had happened. It wasn’t right, none of it was, but Cecil had his own part of the blame. If only human hearts could be healed with a simple Cure spell, the world would be an easier place to live in. Holding his broken friend, he mouthed a silent prayer to whatever gods might be listening. Help him. Please.

The trembling died down eventually, and some time after that Kain finally straightened and untangled himself from Cecil. The sky was darker than it had been. Night would be coming soon.

“Will you come home?” Cecil asked.

Kain didn’t reply immediately. After a few seconds, he sighed. “Did you notice that the second moon is gone?” he asked, ignoring Cecil’s question.

“Yes,” Cecil replied. “They left our planet’s orbit. Golbez took the time to send me a telepathic farewell.”

A small grimace. “He did, did he?”

“We never really knew him – the real him, I mean – but he was my brother.”

“Have you forgiven him?”

Cecil had to ponder the question. Saying yes would be a lie, but saying no would be hypocritical. “I’m not sure,” he settled on. “It’s complicated.”

Kain’s face twisted. “He doesn’t deserve it.”

Kain was making a point. Golbez’s position was complicated enough for Cecil himself; he could barely begin to imagine how Kain must feel about it.  But it didn’t matter now, did it? “You don’t have to forgive him, Kain. You just have to forgive yourself.”

“Aren’t those the same thing? If he’s accountable, then so am I. And if I’m not, then who do I blame? Don’t say Zemus; he wasn’t there. He wasn’t the one who drove a wedge into my mind and twisted.” He illustrated the last part with a fist against his forehead.

“I don’t know,” Cecil admitted. He wished he did. “But I do know one thing.”

“And what’s that?”

“Golbez is gone. You’ll never have to see him again. And neither do I, or anyone else who is alive today. We don’t have to deal with him anymore. This isn’t about him – I never knew him, but I do know you.”

“But he’s your brother. He’s your family, the ones you’ve always wanted to find. You can’t tell me that doesn’t matter. And if you can’t forgive him…”

“It would have mattered a lot more if things had been different.” Cecil grimaced. “And maybe, if it had been just me, I would have been conflicted about it even as it is. But no, I’m not sorry to see him gone. I’m relieved.”

“Why?”

“Because he messed with you. And if I have to choose between the brother who is a virtual stranger to me and the brother I grew up with, it’s not a choice at all.”

Kain closed his eyes for a moment. “You actually mean that,” he breathed.

“I have only one brother,” Cecil said. “Please come home, Kain.”

[wordlesslyjenneh]

Drabble prompt 16: Excuses

Descending from his Jump, Kain landed wrong, rolling his ankle. He stumbled to catch his balance, then looked up to see Cecil’s concerned expression.

“Kain,” Cecil panted, breathlessly. He lowered his sword. “Enough. There’s a storm coming in and you can’t safely Jump,”

Kain, too aware of the gray clouds gathering overhead and the wild winds that teased them, shook his head. “Excuses,” he muttered, ignoring the throbbing pain from his ankle. “Again.”

“Again?” Cecil asked, unsure, watching Kain’s movements carefully.

“Again,” Kain repeated. He lifted his spear, then smirked.

Sword drawn, Cecil charged; Kain met the dark blade eagerly.

[mannatea]

Like Starlight, a Tales of Symphonia ‘fic

Words: 5,424 words Summary: Aithra Brunel is sixteen when she accepts the oracle and her new title: Sylvarant’s Chosen of Regeneration. Pairing/Character: Aithra/Cecil (OC) Warnings: Fantasy Racism, Character Death Rating: T Genre: Budding romance, tragedy.

The title is the link to Ao3.

Notes are under a cut.

Welcome to the world of me just making up everything. We know very little of Aithra or her family aside from the fact that they know what her fate is (just as Colette's family knows hers) and Phaidra is her little sister. I imagined a secluded little life for her in Iselia.

I'm sure other branches of the mana lineage live elsewhere in Sylvarant, but Iselia is so specifically hailed as the Village of Oracles with the non-aggression treaty and the temple close by, that it feels like this has been the home of the main part of the mana lineage for at least the last 200 years.

Also, selfishly, presenting her journey in the same order as Colette's should make it seem more familiar to anyone reading.

Colette has a surprising amount of freedom in her life, attending school and having friends, so I thought about how Phaidra might have influenced that as the family matriarch. I really grew attached to the idea of Aithra being sheltered and protected, and the regrets her parents might have felt when she left to die anyway, that they had never given her any freedoms. Phaidra may have grown up knowing about these regrets, and tried to do better for her daughter, and then for Colette too.

--

Snowfeather was the name of a long-haired white cat my family had when I was young.

--

Gooseberries are great. And gooseberry jam sure is something. I think it's stated somewhere that fruit is pretty rare in Sylvarant, due to the declining mana, so I imagine berry-bearing bushes are the go-to for things like jams. Even then, nothing is in bountiful supply.

I wanted the jam to feel like a very meaningful gift. Mother knows it's her favorite and worked really hard to get enough for a little jar for her journey because it was all she could do.

I can't begin to imagine how the parents feel in this situation. Terrible, I bet.

--

Aithra is pretty tall (like 5'10''+) and athletically built.

I gave her a spear because I didn't do any research on what she might have actually used (and I like the idea that the Chosen gets to pick their weapon of choice).

Her wings being silver is because I said so, and I wanted to make sure she felt different from everyone else we know who has manawings.

--

Cecil! I put him in my modern Aselia story as an artist Aithra loved when she was younger, and I decided to stick with that idea for him here, though the world doesn't really have space for an artist.

I gave him silver hair and eyes because I wanted to give them something like an instant connection, and this allowed for that with Aithra's worry-stone and the wings she's recently acquired.

--

The history of the character doesn't really explain how he was able to sneak in with the priests and even pretend to be one, so I decided if she really saved his life per the extra material, then it's possible he joined her on her journey.

From an outside perspective it seems unlikely that he would be allowed to join them, being a half-elf and all, but Aithra is a very faithful and devout Chosen, and has never given them cause to doubt her. It helps that she only meets Cecil because he is nearly killed; it seems clear he's not a Desian spy or anything.

Also, I think there might be something to be said about her being 16 and marching faithfully toward her death that makes them loosen the reins a bit. It doesn't really matter if she holds hands with a boy so long as she fulfills her duty.

--

Trust and Obey is a popular hymn, and I very nearly named the story after it. Had I been writing a much longer version of this story, I might have used the title to parallel Aithra's trust and obedience with Cecil's lack of these things at the end. While I did cover this theme in the story, the connection isn't as strong as I might have wanted to feel comfortable using this as a title.

(Even though I no longer associate myself with the religion of my youth, I do still find some comfort and a lot of joy in many of the old hymns. This one is not a particular favorite, but I grew up singing it and for that reason alone it makes me feel something.)

For the record, having a religious background makes writing devoutly religious characters easier. I spent the majority of my life in the church, and one thing we often discussed at length was Jesus's death. There is never a point in the Bible where it is implied that Jesus goes to his death happily. In these verses Jesus goes to the Gardens of Gethsemane:

38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. 39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

I like the way the Chosen's journey sort of parallels this sacrifice for the greater good/sins of others, and while I imagine many Chosens are willing to walk the path they've been born into without outward complaint, even for the most devout there comes a time when they wrestle with the weight of the burden they bear.

--

I found it interesting that Zelos and Colette both have long hair, and so does Martel. Phaidra does too, though she wears it up. It makes me think this is an important tradition, so I used it here.

--

There is something so so awful about her losing her mind the moment she loses her sense of touch, and I like to imagine it's more than her cruxis crystal doing this to her.

And if you think losing her mind when she loses her sense of touch is bad, I don't know, there is just something so incredibly terrible about her then losing her ability to speak. I imagine she is locked up in her body fighting and afraid.

Colette says at one point she cannot cry, but I like think for Colette that wasn't a physical restriction so much as born of other issues. For Aithra, she can just keep on crying, but eventually her voice is silenced. I think it makes the most sense to only lose the ability to cry when one's heart and memories are gone; then there is nothing to remember and nothing to long for and nothing to cry about any longer.

--

Excuse me for showing that Aithra is still in there, sometimes. She understands more than Cecil even realizes. It's just that she knows how this journey ends, so his hope is overwhelmingly tragic to her and now she can't even find her voice to tell him the truth.

Anyway, I didn't want the last part of this story to feel entirely hopeless, and I wanted to foreshadow the fact that Aithra will come to his defense when she sees him fighting for her.

--

The idea of Remiel using judgment to destroy the priests and Cecil was too iconic and fascinating to not use.

--

The true tragedy of this story is that after Aithra dies, the official story that reaches the world is that she was killed by Desians.

--

If you made it through the story I would really appreciate feedback on it. This isn't the kind of thing I usually write (so I'm a little nervous about posting it).

And if I'm being honest, it made me really like these characters. If I had any drawing skill worth a damn, I'd illustrate this. Sadly (or perhaps thankfully), I don't possess the skill. So you are free from my madness for now.

Thank you for reading!

[estinininininen]

There's a bunch of reasons Final Fantasy IV: The After Years is meh but a big one is how it narrowly avoided the funniest thing possible in the setting: Dark Kain bursting into the Baron throne room, finding out Cecil is obviously brainwashed, and throwing his spear to the ground in a huff saying "well now that you're evil killing you won't be as fun anymore" >:[

This was done so Ceodore and the Hooded Man could dramatically catch up to Dark Kain at the last possible second but this ends up putting Kain's climactic redemption mirror-image battle in the fucking hallway

the fucking. hallway. lmao loser

[rockislandadultreads]

2024 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence: Fiction Longlist

Introducing a handful of nominees from the fiction longlist for the 2024 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence! To see the entire longlist, click here.

Witness by Jamel Brinkley

What does it mean to take action? To bear witness? What does it cost?

In these ten stories, each set in the changing landscapes of contemporary New York City, a range of characters - from children to grandmothers to ghosts - live through the responsibility of perceiving and the moral challenge of speaking up or taking action. Though they strive to connect, to remember, to stand up for, and to really see each other, they often fall short, and the structures they build around these ambitions and failures shape not only their own futures but the legacies and prospects of their families and their city.

In its portraits of families and friendships lost and found, the paradox of intimacy, the long shadow of grief, the meaning of home, Witness enacts its own testimony. Here is a world where fortunes can be made and stolen in just a few generations, where strangers might sometimes show kindness while those we trust - doctors, employers, siblings - too often turn away, where joy comes in snatches: flowers on a windowsill, dancing in the street, glimpsing your purpose, change on the horizon.

With prose as upendingly beautiful as it is artfully, seamlessly crafted, Jamel Brinkley offers nothing less than the full scope of life and death and change in the great, unending drama of the city.

All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby

Titus Crown is the first Black sheriff in the history of Charon County, Virginia. In recent decades, Charon has had only two murders. After years of working as an FBI agent, Titus knows better than anyone that while his hometown might seem like a land of moonshine, cornbread, and honeysuckle, secrets always fester under the surface.

Then a year to the day after Titus’s election, a school teacher is killed by a former student and the student is fatally shot by Titus’s deputies. Those festering secrets are now out in the open and ready to tear the town apart.

As Titus investigates the shootings, he unearths terrible crimes and a serial killer who has been hiding in plain sight, haunting the dirt lanes and woodland clearings of Charon. With the killer’s possible connections to a local church and the town’s harrowing history weighing on him, Titus projects confidence about closing the case while concealing a painful secret from his own past. At the same time, he also has to contend with a far-right group that wants to hold a parade in celebration of the town’s Confederate history.

The Water Outlaws by S.L. Lunag

In the jianghu, you break the law to make it your own.

Lin Chong is an expert arms instructor, training the Emperor's soldiers in sword and truncheon, battle axe and spear, lance and crossbow. Unlike bolder friends who flirt with challenging the unequal hierarchies and values of Imperial society, she believes in keeping her head down and doing her job.

Until a powerful man with a vendetta rips that carefully-built life away.

Disgraced, tattooed as a criminal, and on the run from an Imperial Marshall who will stop at nothing to see her dead, Lin Chong is recruited by the Bandits of Liangshan. Mountain outlaws on the margins of society, the Liangshan Bandits proclaim a belief in justice—for women, for the downtrodden, for progressive thinkers a corrupt Empire would imprison or destroy. They’re also murderers, thieves, smugglers, and cutthroats.

Apart, they love like demons and fight like tigers. Together, they could bring down an empire.

Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin

There are the goodbyes and then the fishing out of the bodies—everything in between is speculation.

After the last American troops leave Vietnam, siblings Anh, Thanh, and Minh begin a perilous journey to Hong Kong with the promise that their parents and younger siblings will soon follow. But when tragedy strikes, the three children are left orphaned, and sixteen-year-old Anh becomes the caretaker for her two younger brothers overnight.

In the years that follow, Anh and her brothers resettle in the UK and confront their new identities as refugees, first in overcrowded camps and resettlement centers and then, later, in a modernizing London plagued by social inequality and raging anti-immigrant sentiment. Anh works in a clothing factory to pay their bills. Minh loiters about with fellow unemployed high school dropouts. Thanh, the youngest, plays soccer with his British friends after class. As they mature, each sibling reckons with survivor’s guilt, unmoored by their parents’ absence. With every choice they make, their paths diverge further, until it’s unclear if love alone can keep them together.

Told through lyrical narrative threads, historical research, voices from lost family, and notes by an unnamed narrator determined to chart their fate, Wandering Souls captures the lives of a family marked by war and loss yet relentless in the pursuit of a better future. With urgency and precision, it affirms that the most important stories are those we claim for ourselves, establishing Cecile Pin as a masterful new literary voice.

[destinationout]

“You like to have people bow to the might of spears. I like to have spears bow to people.”

Samson and Delilah (1949) Directed by Cecil B. DeMille Cinematography by George Barnes

[6uts]

i forgot that cecil loves britney spears and it hit me like a brick in the face. mixtape of what he listens to: