#Reaper Cycle

[jbk405]

I very much enjoy Mass Effect 3, but there's no denying that it plays pretty fast and loose with the worldbuilding and continuity established in the first two games in order to set up its main plot.

The idea of a Lost Superweapon that is passed down from cycle to cycle is in direct contradiction to the original establishment that there is almost no information passed between the cycles. In the first game Liara is an archaeologist who hasn't even heard of the Reapers despite 50 years of study. Not even as a conspiracy theory that she has dismissed due to lack of evidence. The complete lack of surviving knowledge from the preceding cycle is its own clue that Something Else Is Going On. The idea that the Mars Archives include detailed data on how to build the Crucible makes no sense if nobody else in the galaxy even found a single scribbled note "Giant machines from before time killed us!"

Plus the Reaper invasion during the Prothean cycle started at the Citadel, as it did in all prior cycles, which cut off all communication and contact between different sections of the Prothean empire through control of the Mass Relays. Each small section could only communicate and travel to areas within normal FTL range. The idea that Protheans in the Local Cluster (Earth), the Exodus Cluster (Eden Prime), and the Athena Nebula (Thessia) could all have current information and data about the project is laughable.

The original message in the beacon on Eden Prime that we discover in the first game was sent by the Protheans from Ilos after the Reapers had completed their harvest of the Prothean civilization, reactivated the Mass Relays, and returned to dark space. It was a last-ditch effort to contact somebody -- anybody -- who had survived the slaughter, and was sent out when there were no Reapers still here to interfere. There was no active galaxy-wide Prothean defense or plan during the war itself.

What I think they should have done in ME3 was excise the idea of the Crucible as a Pre-Prothean device completely, and had it be a modern-day invention.

Based on recent breakthroughs in dark energy research, the Citadel Council has already begun work on a theoretical dark energy manipulator. It's intended for...I dunno, faster FTL travel through areas that don't have Mass Relays. Whatever. But it works with fundamental energy sources, and at previously-unheard-of power levels. Since the writers decided to ignore the dark energy foreshadowing from ME2 as the source of the Reaper cycles, they could use it for this.

Once the the Reapers invade at the start of ME3, the Council desperately tries to turn any science research already underway into a new weapon against the Reapers. This dark energy device is just one of a dozen projects all running concurrently, since they don't know what's going to work.

Our initial missions are running around trying to get them all up and running, gathering resources and defending against sabotage. One by one the other projects are either destroyed by the Reapers (or maybe Cerberus), or are abandoned by the Council once it's obvious that it won't be effective. The situation gets more and more desperate as the options dwindle.

Eventually, the idea comes to hook up this dark energy device to the Citadel, since we know that it is the control system for the Mass Relay network. And this device, which at full power may be enough to destroy a Reaper, now has the magical ability to deliver that energy across the whole galaxy at once.

"But if it is so easy that we can think it up, why wouldn't any previous cycle have managed to defeat the Reapers on their own?"

We have the advantage of the warnings from the original beacon on Eden Prime, and the delay to the start of the invasion courtesy of the Protheans from Ilos. The simple fact that we have any knowledge of the Reapers is more than the preceding cycles ever had. The Reapers were also prevented from decapitating the galactic civilization all at once by invading the Citadel first. Starting at the edge of the galaxy and spreading out from there gives us time, and prevents them from locking down the Mass Relays to isolate every different cluster.

This can still be credited as a Pan-Cycle victory, since without the extra time and advantages we got from the Protheans we would have died like all preceding cycles. But it doesn't magically give us a ready-made solution in defiance of all previous games.

[cmdr-rey-shepard]

and then they lived happily every after :)))))

[callofthecorvus]

Connected Timelines Ramble: Backing off my previous 'Geno has an ex' headcanon, what if Dust happened to be that ex? I can see them bonding over shared trauma: surviving a genocided timeline and losing their brothers.

So when Dust eventually came clean about his past, that he genocided his own timeline [and others under Nightmare], even if he felt guilty and wanted to change, the heartbreak and betrayal Geno would have felt was devastating.

Even if it was originally done to stop Chara, the fact that he continued to genocide other timelines was despicable in Geno's eyes. Dust became the very same person he hated, and all Geno could see when looking at Dust was her. He broke it off instantly and Dust respected his decision and never contacted him again.

Given that Nightmare and Dream have now been at peace for decades, they're often invited to the same get togethers. They've never told anyone else about their previous relationship, so they act all awkward around each other and nobody knows why.

[yourartmatters-itswhatgotmehere]

i love you forever Ness Arroyo and Wylan Van Eck, i love you forever queer boys who spat in their abusers/fathers faces and used their mothers' surnames, i love you forever boys who survived hell but remained good and kind, i love you forever boys who know the feeling of living without their moms only with their monster fathers. i love you forever boys who find love and fight for it. i love you forever boys who can put on a performance and lie and win when they need to. i love you forever boys who survived abuse and refused to die or be killed, boys who fought to stay alive. i love you forever hurt boys who managed to find love and happiness after all. i love you Ness Arroyo and Wylan Van Eck, two of my favorite boys from their respective book series.

.

.

PS. if this type of character is your comfort character as well, know they are also Aaron Warner from Shatter Me Series, Jude Duarte and Cardan Greenbriar from The Folk Of The Air Series, Henry DuBois IV and Evie O’Neill from The Diviners Series, James and Lydia Beaufort from Maxton Hall Trilogy-Save Me Series, Sydney Sage and Adrian Ivashkov from VA-Bloodlines, Maxon Schreave from The Selection Series.

.

-show fans are never going to know who wylan van eck actually is. they’re never going to know his true last name, the weight it carries. they’re never going to know that he grieved a woman who wasn’t even dead for years. they’re never going to know how strong he is, the abuse he endured. they’re never going to know that he survived a murder attempt ordered by his own father. they’re never going to see him tailor himself to look like someone else because he wanted to be someone different so badly. they’re never going to see him slowly work past his shame. they’re never going to see inej tell him that he wasn’t his father. they’re never going to see kaz tell him that not being able to read didn’t make him weak. they’re never going to see jesper call him a genius. they’re never going to know that the crows were wylan’s first friends, his only friends, and even if he had a pick of a thousand companions, they would’ve been the ones he chose:https://yourartmatters-itswhatgotmehere.tumblr.com/post/770359780895260672 &https://www.tumblr.com/yourartmatters-itswhatgotmehere/770359780895260672?source=share

[shsl-fander]

Being obsessed with a series that is an extremely underrated book series is so painful bc i can't even edit it because theres no movie or show clips so ig i could use my fancast but it's not popular enough for anyone to understand rhe fancast and also no one to talk about it with😭😭😭

[bragganhyl]

once again I lament that Sovereign's "we are each a nation" line ends up being kinda meaningless bc there is no real difference among the Reapers

[inkdragon1900]

ANYWAY I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE LIFE/DEATH THING BETWEEN JAYCE AND VIKTOR . yall are getting the written meta in a few days (also Mel is 100% limbo i thought so but i needed more proof and now i have it)

[entering--hyperspace]

Leo's Necromancy is, if you haven't guessed, centered around Mexican beliefs on death! Rather than Necromancy being something considered Dark, scary, or otherwise unnerving, it is a love letter to the deceased, in keeping memory and treating the dead with respect. Leo loves being a Necromancer, communing with spirits is an integral part of his character, he loves them and is loved in return by them. I also hope to add more color going forward bc we usually include so mamy vibrant colors just as part of Day Of The Dead as a whole! I want to put my own cultural spin on necromancy as our unique celebration of death and memory is something I dont get to see explored in fantasy very often...leo means a lot 2 me because of that

[necer0s]

I didn’t realize the first time I played that the ME1 starting screen music is also the Ilos music. It adds to the feeling that it’s your destiny to end up there. Just like the arrival of the Reapers, the passing down of hope to the next generation is also a cycle.

[rebelcracker-s]

(opens document to start a new writing project) let's go gambling! (starts writing infinity cycle post-canon longfic) aw dangit (writes another chapter) aw dangit (comes up with plot on the fly) aw dangit

[azurecanary]

Aight mutuals and any Adam Silvera fans, i need your help

Adam Silvera (my favourite author) has his conclusion to his trilogy coming out, and i need help deciding which set to buy

The classic covers:

The new covers:

They both look so good!!!!! (I have the first of the classic set, but i LOVE the look of the new set)

[seratlantisite]

mass effect 3 is fantastic specifically because every plot point in it is a thread from the first two games. they weave together in incredible, creative, hard hitting ways that leave you gutted but my god is it satisfying to see everything pay off

which is why the starchild thing is so bad

who the fuck is this kid get him out of here

[baroueman]

Reaper from Mass effect.

In Mass Effect, the Reapers are a fictional fleet of sentient starships that serve as the main antagonists. The design of the Reapers was inspired by H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos deities. Within the series, the Reapers cause galactic-level mass extinctions every fifty-thousand years. Artist: SteelJoe on DeviantArt

[i-love-deh-lets-be-friends]

My thoughts on Infinity Cycle by Adam Silvera

Spoilers ahead (mainly for Infinity Kings)

“It gets better after the 3rd book/season/x amount of episodes”

That phrase turns me off from whatever form of media is being recommended. However, I am very glad I continued reading the trilogy after the (imo) bore fest that was Infinity Son

Infinity Kings was by far the best and I devoured it. Infinity Son bored me, Infinity Reaper held my attention, and Infinity Kings made me feel things

I started out hating the majority of the characters except for Emil and Ness. And honestly, Infinity Reaper just solidified my hate for Brighton. This isn’t a bad thing. I actually like that I hated Brighton. The scene in Kings where he slaughtered those Halo Knights and phoenixes made me genuinely angry and it was that scene I knew Brighton wouldn’t be redeemed, and I loved it.

Honestly, I’m surprised Silvera didn’t kill off Brighton or Emil permanently considering his older books.

I still dislike Maribelle but I no longer hate her like I did in Infinity Son. I really liked the enemies to lovers to friends thing she and Tala had.

Speaking of romance, I’m not a fan of love triangles and I really wished the series ended with Emil, Ness, and Wyatt getting together.

Here are my final ratings for the books and the trilogy as a whole

Infinity Son - 2/5

Infinity Reaper - 3/5

Infinity Kings - 4/5

Trilogy as a whole - 3.5/5

[books-to-add-to-your-tbr]

Title: Infinity Cycle

Author: Adam Silvera

Series or standalone: series

Publication year: 2020

Genres: fiction, fantasy, LGBT+, contemporary

Blurb: Growing up in New York, brothers Emil and Brighton always idolised the Spell Walkers, a vigilante group sworn to rid the world of spectres. While the Spell Walkers and other celestials are born with powers, spectres take them, violently stealing the essence of endangered magical creatures. Brighton wishes he had a power so he could join the fray; Emil just wants the fighting to stop. The cycle of violence has taken a toll, making it harder for anyone with power to live peacefully and openly. In this climate of fear, a gang of spectres has been growing bolder by the day. Then, in a brawl after a protest, Emil manifests a power of his own...one that puts him right at the heart of the conflict and sets him up to be the heroic Spell Walker Brighton always wanted to be. Brotherhood, love, and loyalty will be put to the test, and no one will escape the fight unscathed.

[shsl-fander]

My Fancast for Infinity Son by Adam Silvera (under read more)

Emil: Omar Rudberg

Brighton: Roshon Fegan

Prudencia: Xochitl Gomez

Atlas: Aaron Taylor Johnston

Mariabelle: China Anne Mclain

Iris: Vanessa Morgan

Eva: Amanda Stenberg

Ness: Reiky de Valk

June: Jenna Ortega

Wesley: Tom Holland