#Servare Solem

[turbo-toast]

⭐star⭐

Tell us about a part of your fic that you’re proud of!

Spoilers for Servare Solem, my Skyrim fic below!

There is a part in Servare Solem where Helreca, our bounty hunter protagonist, accepts a bounty to track down a miller's missing son. While investigating where he disappeared to, she learns that he has been made addicted to Skooma, a highly addictive drug, by a gang of vampires holed up in a den not far from the mill, and encounters armed resistance there.

A fight ensues during which she's bitten and stabbed through the back, and if Hermaeus Mora, a daedric prince, didn't show up, that would've been the end for her.

Instead, she is transported to Apocrypha, Mora's plane of Oblivion, and left to figure out how to get out of there.

I'm really proud of that sequence because Apocrypha is a creepy, gross and otherworldly place full of eldritch monsters and slimy muck and I think I really nailed the vibe there. On top of having to find a way out of there, Helreca's body is also changing during all of that, turning her into a vampire, which I've peppered in little hints towards. Think your tongue snagging on your canines all the time suddenly, your wounds healing abnormally quickly, heightened vision and hearing - but not being able to investigate any of it because Apocrypha is constantly keeping you on your toes.

At the end, after fighting off Apocrypha's horrors, she finds a Black Book that transports her back to the vampire's skooma den, in the middle of a group of her attackers. As a newborn vampire, she is *hungry*. And she snaps, slaughtering them all. When all the fighting is done and she can finally leave the den again, she catches her reflection in the nearby lake and *then* it sinks in for her what she's become.

I had a ton of fun writing that part. The frantic action, the horrors of Apocrypha, the changes to her body creeping in, a first demonstration of the sort of power she's been given and what it demands - and then her shock and despair of becoming the very thing she was fighting.

[moriche]

Helreca, @turbo-toast‘s amazing OC. Main character of the excellent fic

>> Servare Solem Fineliner and polychromos pencils.

[tafferling]

I’ve been *gasps* tagged! Thank you, @turbo-toast :> :> AND OH GOSH, your words about Monsters, We. I weep. I WEEP. This is me. Weeping. (good weeps)

Imma tag @canonicallymoriche @johnnyy-guitarr and @pandanivanson (no pressure anywhere!)

1) Describe one creative WIP project you’re planning to work on over the summer.

I hope to finish Aphelion’s first book this summer. Which should be 100% doable, since I’ve got it all drafted and now only have to write it out. That’s four chapters! Deep breaths... I can do this... I can do this...

If there is still some time in the summer after that, I will rewrite Reluctant, my Second Person Dying Light fic. I want to turn it third person and make it 🌶️ :3

2) Rec a book:

Hmmmmmm. I’d like to rec the Otherland series by Tad Williams today. Science Fiction/Cyberpunk. 250k+ on each book (there are four of them), with one of the most memorable casts of characters I have ever come across and a fantastic mystery to unravel. Plus, the world building is gorgeous.  

3) Rec a fic:

I cannot decide so I am going for a fandom and recing two. Is that cheating? Maybe.

Here’s two Elder Scrolls fics I am following a little obsessively:

Servare Solem by @turbo-toast

Do you like vampires? Do you like saphic vampires? Do you like it when one of a pair is delightfully clueless and has you go feral over waiting for the italicised Oh? 

On top of that, we’ve got competent heroes, fast and easy to follow action, and lovely, lovely prose.

Fear in a Handful of Dust by @canonicallymoriche 

Hold still my wildly beating heart. Veryn, Moriche’s dunmer, has me root for him beyond my normal rootings. There’s a character who starts beyond rock bottom, with everything he’s had taken from him, including his dignity; and who I cannot wait to see carve out a new life for himself. 

4) Rec music:

I’ve been listening to a lot of synth wave/dream wave and would like to recommend The Midnight and their album Heroes. 

5) Share one piece of advice.

Remember that you leave footprints in people’s lives all the time. Every interaction that you have with someone (a family member, a friend, a coworker, a stranger) has the potential to make a difference to them, even if you may not think so.

[homertuber-blog]

Four stages of happiness

A paucis mensibus ante diem natalem pars ab amico tuo veni. Nos have multus of fun. Coctum, Curabitur et tabula ludos ludere. Cumque reversus vidi virum dixit ei amet nocte. "Quod cum per dies aliquot paucis oppressus.Realization quod est maxime movit, illud fuit quoddam diei momentum consumere me per multos annos sine temporis sui. Erat indurescit, dolorque modo vivendi.Neque enim aliquid de te vivere in praesenti nunc quam ut scirem? Et habebant

male/female tutor for SAT in Lahore

officium novo incipere. Et ego nesciebam unde procedat, scilicet? Sic ego eram occupatus worrying praemisit in omni tempore. Per buried frui profunda layers of animus. Denique animo meo ut curiose intellegerem quod per buried beatum rideat, requirit decederetur de via, quam ego obliviscar te.Credo quod ego non sentire sola usque illuc. Sere momento committitur ut risus vel nisi affectum ne forte satiatus venter non respicit adeo ut stiparer horis omnibus diligenda tellus. Puto quod dolendum multi nesciunt esse omnibus liberis In casu aliquo, quam ut expendas diebus nostris sentire, aut de hac potestate quam habemus ad eum adulta mutare. Et surrexit itaque dicite mihi, ut et ego emere faciens fuco colorem omnium animos tempus terere post meridiem Kreyons.Qua frui te facitPrimum autem oportet ut instar sicco quod vos es comfortable cum frui? Ridiculum autem quod intellegi debet eam sensi nesciebat?Et veni ad toy copia. Ingressus es ingressus bibliothecam copia liberorum copia articulo. Ubi filii vacare et videre quid tibi ut appellationem infra implebit. Im 'non suggerentes ut vos emere aliquid ex toy copia. Vide tamen paululum, et nota interesting ut nota eorum quae habes. Cum autem hoc primum habuit et emit sidewalk Creta. Solum versus est vos, tibíque reddunt suggessit de eo videbunt et vos facite illis quae novis rebus frui. Ut mihi, volo ut frui legere. Cum iunior fuerunt, tunc omnia quae facit frui non possit cogitare de illis. Fac a album de eligere vestram narrando revocare.Intra quod temporis ludens in fastisUt vos postulo ut ludere tempus quis est? Vestrum hoc non placuit paucis horis singulis sabbatis amet felis. Et hoc modo novi quod tempus posuit formamque et admonuit quid a me ut vere ludere. Hoc ipsum temporis commitment. Et levare innixi discere et ludere est ad aperire ostium ad operativae, illis in quibus non potest esse nec umquam admiratio quam illud. A ludum quod est mirabile. Nos creverit non magna pecunia accepta fiat in tempore.Nolite facere incipit agere partesHoc cogitans ut veniat tempus ludere hoc facis? Ut invenias ut vos mos animadverto quod aliquis vult? Sum Sententia, ut sciat me: quia quando Sol sidewalk Creta erat, et sedebat secus viam et flores. Sed puto vos iustus de te ipso. Si vero aliqui ex eo, quod erant 'propellentibus populo. Atque ego flores in solem, is vultus pulchellus fun de multis dicitur. Servare ludens. Clamor oblivisci temporum in suis actionibus frui. Si aliquid est fun, alterum experiri unus ex album.Alii enim inviteDelectatio non est aliquid vos iustus have ut custodiant quae te. Share cum aliis eam. Quod est ipsa voluptas. Natura sum in introvert, tot tempora multa te solum amo. At cum id facit ex toto intra partum expressions consurgens. Veni new ideas. Develops aliquid de amicitia frui simul. Adolescit mutua fiducia. Docete omnes in vita praesenti.Qui fecit mihi, et ego vivo res cognita. Discere ludere, ut amicorum didici facilius scire et sentire magis comfortable in dextra sua. Ego ego ipse mente suscitate puer magis intra plene, sentio magis sanctorum. Mirum est quod latet, non quae aetas est. Lang::Latin

[turbo-toast]

To the Serana enjoyers

Uh, hi there! I thought I might capitalize on the hype too - I do occasionally write, and one of the things I write is an interpretation on the Dawnguard questline with an OC protagonist -- which happens to rather prominently feature Serana. My protagonist is a demisexual dunmer lady who stumbles into the whole vampire thing, and decides that the sun should keep shining, thank you very much. I like writing it a lot, even if I'm rather slow with updates - but if you're patient and you like that sort of thing, I'm happy to share.

It's rated E for gore (for now).

SERVARE SOLEM

Rating: E (gore, maybe smut later) Pairing: Serana/female OC (not the LDB) WORK IN PROGRESS, PLANNING COMPLETE, 11 chapters posted Summary:

As a bounty hunter, Helreca's life was fairly stable. There would always be bandits to hunt down, bringing a steady stream of coin into her pockets. As long as the gods didn't intervene, she could live like this. This life agreed with her. But then the nightmares started.

[turbo-toast]

Servare Solem - Chapter 12

With her face buried in her hands, Helreca tried adding up how many days had passed since she’d tried to rescue that poor miller’s son. If she hadn’t passed out for several days… “It’s been just over a week, I think? Either way, what are you talking about, sera — I’m not pure-blooded, I don’t think.” She looked up at Serana again, who was staring at her with her brows drawn together.

“I know I’ve been locked in that crypt for a very long time, but if this is a practical joke, it’s not very funny,” she said.

I updated again!

[turbo-toast]

👀 Servare Solem for the ask meme!

From her seat next to the rock, Helreca counted four, no, five people, engaged in a heated conversation. As they came closer and closer, Helreca could make more of what they talked about.

The word ‘vampire’ fell.

Helreca drew her brows together. Had she kicked in a shalk burrow somewhere, so now everywhere was just swarming with the bloodsucking buggers?

When the group was almost there, Helreca pulled her scarf over her nose again. She’d rather not have to kill several innocent strangers just because they discovered what she was.

“Stendarr’s Mercy be upon you, stranger!” one of them called out, raising a hand in greeting. The two on horseback dismounted.

Ah. Vigilants. How did one greet them again?

“And upon you,” Helreca guessed.

The one who had called out to her nodded contently. She’d guessed correctly. “What’s a lass like you doing out here all alone in the cold?” he asked. His voice was rough, and he smelled of soot. All of them did. Helreca smelled it even through the smoke of her own fire.

“Tracking a bounty towards Dawnstar, ser,” she lied, without looking up at him. Couldn’t let them get a good look at her eyes, not in the dark.

“Ah, came from Morthal then, eh? Say, lass, you haven’t come across any vampires lately?”

Saints, had she.

[turbo-toast]

I updated again \o/

Have some more Skyrim vamp shenanigans.

[turbo-toast]

WIP Wednesday i guess i do this now

26 minutes left of Wednesday. @dumpsterhipster tagged me! Uh. I shall see what I can procure.

This bit's from my Let's Make a Snarky Dunmer Fix Dawnguard fic, aka Servare Solem, which is on AO3 (where else).

As the night crawled past, hour by hour, Helreca grew restless. Her tears had dried on her cheeks, and the ceiling didn’t budge, no matter how much she stared at it. So she sat up and collected her thoughts in her journal. Well, at least she tried to. That line she wrote, a few nights ago, was a slap in the face now. Cure for vampirism, Mage, Morthal. With shaking hands, she added Mage scared of me; fled underneath.

What about her made a man like him turn tail? If his reputation had spread as far as it did, he had to have seen some things in his lifetime. Something he had seen in her eyes must’ve terrified him — but that wasn’t useful information, was it? He wasn’t going to come back and explain. And it wasn’t like she could ask anyone else.

All that was left was to try and not get a mob after her for the rest of her life. No pressure.

Up until now, she’d always been well fed too, not that she’d really ever intentionally bitten someone. Who knew what the hunger would do to her. She noted that down too.

The rough log wall of the room dug into her back, and as she shifted her posture something crinkled in one of her pockets. It was that letter she had picked up in Movarth’s lair, the one that told of an ominous prophecy to darken the sun. The one that mentioned Dimhollow Crypt.

Anyone got some writing de-ruster? Thanks for reading! Uh, tags. @tafferling, @fbcbreakroom, @einsesk

[turbo-toast]

3, 24 and 34 for the writing asks!

3.: What is your writing ritual and why is it cursed?

Okay so first I have to fight all the Distraction Demons™, then put on some music trying not to get sidetracked there, and then I guess I write? It used to be I couldn't even sprint whatsoever, didn't work, because I used to put every word on a pedestal even if my skill didn't warrant it. So I guess it's "cursed" because I gotta fight distraction and perfectionism *actively*.

24.: How much prep work do you put into your stories? What does that look like for you? Do you enjoy this part or do you just want to get on with it?

It depends on the story, and also on my expectations of myself I think. I started Nightmare not planning anything at all, then my ideas grew faster than my skill and now here I am with a sort-of outline. The Racing!AU isn't really prepped at all, I just have a rough idea and go from there. Servare Solem I try to plan a bit more carefully because I have a canon to work with so to keep up suspension of disbelief and to keep it grounded in Skyrim, I need to look through wikis and ask people more knowledgeable than me and study maps and look at screenshots and then piece together scene-by-scene bulletpoint outlines to guide myself.

Now, however? I have an idea for a Mass Effect Andromeda fic, and that thing warranted buying an A5 notebook I can collect my thoughts in. It doesn't have a plot or even a name yet but it's the sort of thing bullet points won't suffice for.

I enjoy it, yes, but it can also be very frustrating, especially once you notice you put more work into fleshing something out than canon did.

34.: Thoughts on the Oxford comma, Go:

Yes.

I love my parents, Lady Gaga and Humpty Dumpty.

vs

I love my parents, Lady Gaga, and Humpty Dumpty.

[turbo-toast]

WIP Game

Rules: Post the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it! and then tag as many people as you have WIPs.

@tafferling tagged me! Thank you!

They Made Their Own Nightmare

Overwatch

Race Into My Heart

Overwatch/Need For Speed

Servare Solem

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Through Ocean Eyes

Control

I'm gonna taaag... @dumpsterhipster, @fbcbreakroom, @sneezewizard and @raunchyandpaunchy