#Strato-Flight | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

underground-monarch · 1 year

Note

maybe a ficlet based on this? hehe

Jimmy’s hands balled into fists as he glared at the latest surprise addition to Tumble Town. It was unquestionably another gift from that big-headed mightier-than-thou “god”, attempting to damage the Sheriff’s reputation.

He wouldn’t put up with it any longer. He’d had enough of being the punch bag, the joke of the empires. He’d had enough of attempting to stand up to the other leaders, only for them to laugh him aside as though he had all the intimidation of a cooked noodle.

He tried to be a diplomat, a cool calm and collected face of the Law. But now the time had come to prove to them, to all of them, that the Sheriff could be a real threat to those who disrespected him.

And where better to strike first than at the heart of the resistance?

Pausing only to grab the entire remaining stock out of his wagon and a flint and steel from one of his chests, Jimmy launched himself into the sky with a burst of sparks, his shadowed eyes glinting as red as the TNT in his inventory.

When Stratos came into view though, every single thought of revenge was dropped from his mind into the rushing wind of his flight path behind him, and his jaw fell open in awe.

The quartz shone pure white in the early-evening light, its pristine purity combining with the Upper Kingdom’s gravity-defying posture to give it a truly ethereal sense of wonder. The gold accents glinted in the sun, beautifully complimented by the teal. The very air itself around the whole empire seemed to hum with mystical energy, a song of love and joy and glory.

Jimmy had never looked at it like this before. He had only ever seen it as the lair of his nemesis, tainted by the mocking presence of the Toy Barn, an ego-boost for a man who already thought everything of himself.

Reluctantly, Jimmy finally realised that maybe Joel deserved his pride in his empire.

The Sheriff’s hands unclenched around the explosives.

Jimmy landed on one of the floating walkways, stumbling a little as his neck craned upwards to admire the nearest buildings. He stepped up to the banister, leaning over to admire the view of the golden-hour light bathing the village below.

Stratos really did feel like the home of a god.

“Hey, toy boy!”

The Sheriff’s hackles instinctively raised at the sound of Joel’s taunting voice, but he forced himself to relax. He wasn’t here on a hostile mission. Not anymore. He quickly tucked the TNT from his hand away in his inventory, hiding it just in time as the God of Stratos glided in on angelic wings and landed beside him with a subtle but nonetheless intimidating shake of the floating walkway.

“What are you doing so far from Toy Town, eh?” Joel leaned casually on the banister next to Jimmy, a smug smirk on his face.

“I’m not here for mocking comments, Joel.” Jimmy gritted his teeth and took a short calming breath before turning to look at the god. Even regardless of the height of the man before him and the surrounding buildings scaled to match, Jimmy suddenly felt like a very small fish in a very big pond. He glanced around at the view again. “You’ve done a really good job on this place, you know.”

Something in Joel’s expression changed at that: while his smirk didn’t move, his eyebrows furrowed slightly, betraying his suspicion at Jimmy’s compliment.

“Uh, yeah, I know!” Joel gestured to himself, “I’m so sexy and awesome and good at everything, obviously!”

Jimmy closed his eyes in exasperation at Joel’s pathetic self-aggrandising in what he was trying to make a sincere moment despite the tension of their rivalry. “I’m serious, Joel. Stratos genuinely looks incredible, you’re really good at building.”

For a second, Joel didn’t react. Jimmy could feel the god analysing his expression, searching for any hint of mockery or deception, but Jimmy kept his face relaxed and soft.

Eventually Joel moved. He twisted away from leaning on the banister and having to look at Jimmy, one hand rising to rub at the back of his neck. “Um… thanks, I guess.” He paused, unsure. “Y’know, I’m… I try.” He glanced back at Jimmy. “D’you really mean that?” he asked, a faint accusatory defensive tone in his voice.

“I really mean it.” And he did.

Joel nodded once, jerkily, avoiding eye contact again. “Well… yeah. Thanks.”

The two men stood in silence for a few minutes, the tension of their rivalry between them slowly dissolving.

“So, um… was there anything you needed from Stratos?” Joel asked, his voice unusually amicable to Jimmy’s ears.

The TNT weighed a little heavier in his inventory.

“… No, I don’t need anything. I was just passing through.”

“Ok. Well, um… see ya, then.” Joel spread his wings and hurriedly launched himself into the air, flying off towards the centre of Upper Stratos.

Jimmy watched him go, and then quickly flew back to Tumble Town.

When he stepped outside the next morning, he was surprised to see his empire looking remarkably normal: all the Toy Story pranks had been removed overnight, and when he opened the chest that had appeared on his porch it contained a single diamond surrounded by gold blocks.

Jimmy grinned, glancing up at the sky to see a distant hovering figure of an oversized humanoid, who promptly disappeared from view over the mesa mountain ridge in the direction of the sky kingdom.

sorry for taking so long to get to this, but I finally had an idea for how this concept could play out so here ya go at last :] also putting it up on ao3

#omg what #ky's actually answering prompts from nocir ask box #maybe someday i'll get back to those scenery painting prompts that have been in there for like 6 months or something as well #empires smp #empires smp s2 #jimmy solidarity #joel smallishbeans #empires smp fanfic

120 notes · View notes

muuum-am-i-adohhhpted · 2 years

Text

Stormy Weather (Empires SMP)

summary: hermes is stressing out about the future where he'll eventually have to choose between his papa or his dad's empire to rule. this causes him to secretly weigh the pros and cons of each empire and try to sit in on meetings. at his week in sanctuary, hermes realizes he might be able to control the weather which is another thing to worry about. all of this stress cumulates to one evening when a powerful storm hits sanctuary.

ao3 link

word count: 3659

warnings: light angst, mention of bungee jumping, worries about the death of a friend, reference to running from a threat, unconsciousness

~~~

"Since you’re the son of two empires, which one do you think you’ll rule when you’re older?" It was a throwaway question from one of Hermes’ classmates but it was one that stuck with him long after he had presented his "All About Me!" presentation.

He went back home to Stratos with new eyes. The floating islands were dangerous for regular people (Hermes’ winged shoes made it easy for him to get up there but they were unique since they were a gift from his dad). The buildings were delicate—filled with rare and breakable vases and gold flaked art pieces. His dad wasn't any kind of art person, but he was very intent on keeping "the vibe" of Stratos. And that meant Greek and kinda-Greek decor all around the floating islands and in the village below.

And yet…the open air. Relentlessly, it called to him, tugging at his soul to lift off right now or else. The wind running through his purple chiton, through his fluffy brown hair. Being in the air was nothing like being chained to the earth. He could go wherever he pleased, not bound by mortal laws. He could fly with the birds, give himself a beard of clouds and pretend to be his dad. ("I am tall. I am handsome. Lore, lore, LORE.")

In contrast, Sanctuary was friendly and homey. With colourful buildings of terracotta and brick, Hermes played tag with the other kids when school was out and helped care for the animals in the barn. He didn't have to care about breaking things—he could just let loose and race his friends up bamboo stalks. His papa would take him fishing and sneak him cookies and, in certain moments, he could forget the longing to take flight in his dad's winged shoes.

It didn’t take long, though, for the need to fly took him over and he eyed his winged shoes on the dresser. But flying in Sanctuary was a hard task in general. The bamboo made for hard obstacles. In the night, they were nearly invisible. Not to mention the thick jungle. On top of that, his papa always seemed hesitant to let him fly. On the rare occasions Hermes was allowed to, his papa was always right there, glancing around like, at any moment, something might jump out from the jungle trees and swallow them whole.

"Anything on your mind there, son?" Hermes' dad asked at the other end of the long dining table up in Stratos. His dad took a couple of grapes from a nearby bowl and popped one in his mouth. He looked at Hermes curiously.

Hermes had to hand it to his dad, he could really pick up on what a person was thinking or feeling based on their face. Perhaps it had to do with all the looking in the mirror. Either way, Hermes felt his face flush and he shook his head. "Nothing. Just thinking about…stuff." He tried to come up with a sufficient lie but couldn't think of one.

Hermes' dad awkwardly coughed and ate another grape to busy himself. "Your papa and I were talking the other day. He told me he took you fishing. I was thinking…while there are no good fishing lakes near Stratos, what if I took you bungee jumping?"

Hermes sat up a little straighter. "Really? Papa wouldn't mind?" Hermes' dad often called his papa a "safety rabbit". Papa wasn't just a little strict about flying, he often wouldn't let Hermes near average-sized cliff sides or allow him to partake in water skiing without intense, and often embarrassing, amounts of supervision. On their fishing trip, Hermes was forced to wear a life jacket and floaties around his arms. Not to mention the dozens of whistles attached to his person.

Apparently, the only way papa would allow Hermes to spend time in Stratos was if Hermes was given some kind of flight tool in case he managed to fall off one of the floating islands. And that was how Hermes' winged shoes came to be.

Hermes' dad gave Hermes a conspiratorial look and winked. "He'll never have to know. So…what do you say? It'll have to be tomorrow sometime, though. I have a meeting with my advisors tonight."

"What will you be talking about?" Hermes asked slowly. "Could I join you?" If he was to choose which empire to eventually rule, he would have to learn the inner workings of each one if he was to make an informed decision. And it would all have to be done in secret. Hermes would feel bad if they knew since this choice might be seen as him choosing a favourite parent.

His dad raised his eyebrows slightly. "Really? You've never really been interested in government before."

It was true. And Hermes still wasn't all that interested. But a future emperor had to make some sacrifices. Besides, maybe when he was older he could get someone to do that job for him. Plenty of people would love to be a stand-in ruler. "So, can I come?" He didn’t know how to explain his change of heart to his dad.

His dad shrugged. "Of course. We aren’t talking about much—it's mostly going to be about the new building I want to build." At this, Hermes’ dad’s eyes lit up. "We've got the new island up and running so now it's just a matter of what to put there. What do you think we should build?"

Hermes gnawed thoughtfully on his lip. The new island wasn't the largest one they had in Stratos but it was a nice shape. It wasn't too perfectly round or had weird long parts that would be impossible to build on. He thought for a second longer and was highly aware of his dad watching him with interest.

"I—I don't know," Hermes finally said with a sigh, slouching in his chair. He cast his eyes downwards and could feel a stinging behind his eyes. Don't cry, he told himself and he reached over for a slice of bread and some jam to hide his excessive blinking.

How could he ever become a ruler if he couldn't even decide what he'd like to be built on an island? Rulers had to make hard decisions almost daily. They had to take into consideration every angle of every issue and had to make what they thought was the best decision even if others didn't believe so.

"It's okay, kid," Hermes' dad said. "That's why we're having this meeting." He stood up from the table and gestured for Hermes to do the same. "C'mon, let's head out."

Hermes was hoping the meeting would be somewhat interesting. And it very well might have if he had understood anything they were talking about. The meeting quickly spiralled into arguing between Hermes' dad, his multiple advisors, and a couple of citizens from the village below.

Their sharp voices overlapped and moved from one argument to the next way too fast for Hermes to keep up with. How Stratos managed to get anything done was beyond him.

Eventually, as they finally decided on what to build (was it a church dedicated to his dad or a hotel?), everyone's voices died down and Hermes unknowingly fell asleep in his chair.

~~~

Hermes was grateful for the week to be over as his dad brought him to Sanctuary. After sitting in another boring meeting, he was looking forward to a change in pace. He could already smell the masas de cerdo frita his papa always made when he came back from Stratos.

"Hermes!" His papa exclaimed, running towards him, picking him up, and spinning him around. "Welcome back!"

"Papa!" Hermes laughed before his papa placed him down.

"How was your week at Stratos?" He asked, glancing over at Hermes' dad.

"Good, good," Hermes said, glancing back at his dad with a small grin. While the meetings had been a bust, the bungee jumping hadn't. They had dropped off of any possible high up building: the Stratos Sphere, the fountain, the new island where a Church of Joel was currently being built.

His dad gave a discreet wink in Hermes' direction.

Laughing, his papa patted his shoulder. "Alright then, start unpacking. I'll be there to help you in a bit."

As Hermes' dad and papa walked off for their weekly parenting meeting, Hermes rushed off to his bedroom in his papa's house. He greeted Eddie who was hovering in the kitchen, his rabbit ears pulled back with a bandana so no hair would get in the food.

Hermes was nearly unpacked when his papa poked his head through the door. "Need any help?" He asked.

"Sure!" Hermes exclaimed. "How have you and Eddie been?"

"Doing good, we're all doing well," his papa responded but Hermes could hear the familiar strain in his voice. Hermes wished he knew what was constantly causing his papa stress but, no matter how much Hermes prodded, his papa would always reply that it didn't concern him. Even Eddie sadly shook his head when Hermes asked about it one day.

All Hermes could do was try his best to keep his papa's spirits up whenever he was in Sanctuary.

"Can we go fishing again sometime this week?" Hermes asked as he set his winged shoes on the dresser. He had really enjoyed the last time they had done it. Just he and his papa on a little boat. The waters had been peaceful and Hermes had never seen his papa look so carefree than when he had been focussed on catching fish and treasure from the bottom of the ocean.

Hermes' papa grinned and messed up a bit of Hermes' hair. "Of course."

"It'll have to be in the next few days," Hermes said, the words almost coming out of his mouth without his permission. "A storm's coming." Hermes clamped his mouth shut in confusion.

His papa stared at him, equally as confused. "How…how do you know?" He asked, eyes wide. Hermes could practically see the cogs turning in his head.

"I—I don't know," Hermes murmured. "It's kinda like a feeling. It's going to be bad, too. It's going to last for three or four days."

"It must be some of your dad's magic within you," his papa said in awe. "You'll have to tell your dad next week. Maybe you can learn to control the weather."

"Control the weather?" Hermes repeated. "You think I can do that?"

"It's entirely possible. I guess we won't know unless you try." Hermes' papa smiled and then clapped his hands. "Alright, well, you hungry or what? We'll finish packing after supper. I'm starving."

As Hermes and his papa made their way down into the kitchen, the table in the corner was set for three. Eddie entered into the kitchen from the side door, his brows furrowed. "Sausage," he said in a slow voice, giving a pointed look towards Hermes, "Alejandra just came by. She told me that they're having an emergency meeting tonight."

Hermes' papa and Eddie seemed to have a conversation just with their eyes. Hermes glanced between the both of them, trying to decipher what was going on. Eventually, Hermes' papa nodded, his shoulders tense at his sides. "Okay."

There was a long period of silence which Hermes broke by asking, "can I join you?"

The two adults looked at one another again. Hermes already knew what his papa would say before he said it. "I'm sorry, Hermes. Your dad did tell me you've grown an interest in government and sitting in on meetings, but this one," he shook his head, "it's…it's not for kids." He shared another look with Eddie.

Hermes did his best to smile. "It's okay. I understand." Throughout the meal, Hermes used all his willpower to keep his tone upbeat until Sausage and Eddie left for the emergency meeting, leaving a farmer, Jorge, to babysit Hermes.

Jorge stayed on the bottom floor which Hermes was grateful for. The villager wasn't within earshot to hear Hermes curl up in his bed and begin to cry, his curtains drawn.

A future emperor and now he had the burden of being able to control the weather? What would happen if he couldn't learn to control the weather? What if he accidentally started a drought? His empire would starve to death without any food. And what about flooding? And snow storms? Hurricanes? He could wipe out entire empires with or without trying. Hermes had to get his powers under control as soon as humanly possible.

On top of all of that, what if he couldn't mediate between arguments outside and within his own empire? He could start wars and civil wars and it would be entirely Hermes' fault. There would be no one else to blame except the person making all the decisions—him.

It was all too much in such a short period of time. Not to mention he had to choose his dad's or papa's empire before ruling anything in the first place. How could he ever learn all he needed to know in time if his papa wouldn't even allow Hermes in on whatever secret he had? He needed to know. He could handle it, he was sure.

CRACK. THUD.

Hermes was up out of his bed and he pulled back the curtains. The sky was a dark grey, menacing clouds hiding the sun and sky. Bamboo stalks and jungle tree branches alike were blowing aggressively in the wind and, in the middle of town square, a large jungle tree lay in the path. Thankfully, it looked like no one was hurt except a couple of barrels and a cart of wheat.

Still, Hermes burst into more tears. This is my fault. He had to stop this storm before anyone got hurt. What if the tree had landed on a house? What about the meeting room where his papa and Eddie were? Hermes' heart pounded as he flung open his window and crawled out of the house, careful to stay away from the windows where Jorge could see.

The wind snapped at Hermes' clothes and hair, loose debris flying around in circles before being thrown to the side. And that was when the downpour began. Fat droplets of rain began falling from the sky, instantly turning everything slippery. Dusk was beginning to settle into Sanctuary, the already hazy visibility turning even worse.

Hermes ran to his papa's favourite fountain. He didn't know much about his papa's past but he did know that the fountain reminded his papa of the hometown where he grew up. He climbed to the top of it, a small square platform that just managed to have the space for his two feet, and raised his hands above him. Hermes wasn't exactly sure how to stop storms, all he knew was that it had to go away.

"Leave!" Hermes shouted, his voice instantly taken by the wind. "Settle down!" He bellowed with even more intensity. The wind grew even more powerful, the raindrops now pricking his skin. "Stop! Please!" He begged, his voice cracking, soaked to the bone but he could feel new tears forming in his eyes in desperation. Hermes' arms dropped to his sides, his hands turning into fists. I can't control it. His entire body drooped, exhaustion finally taking over as the fight left his body.

An especially forceful gust of wind nearly knocked Hermes off his feet and he quickly tried to right himself by stepping his left foot backwards but there was nothing there but air. He tipped backwards and it felt like he was falling in slow motion.

"Hermes!" The wind carried his papa's voice and it was the last thing Hermes heard before the world went dark.

~~~

"I—I think he was trying to stop the storm," a voice wept, sounding like it came from Hermes' left.

"Shhh, shhh," another male voice said, gently. "If anything, you should blame that horrendous babysitter you hired. He should have been keeping a better eye on Hermes. Here, drink this."

There was the sound of slurping and then the clink of some kind of ceramics or glass. "But I was the one who told him he could probably control storms. If I hadn't said anything, maybe he wouldn't be here."

~~~

"I'm afraid the tyrant king has killed Araceli and consumed her power. She used to have the gift of weather and I met with her a couple of years after I fled my hometown with Bubbles." The voice that was speaking was quiet—just above a whisper. "She didn't live very far from our village and I think the king might have found her and used her powers to send storms our way."

"I can ask around about this woman, if you'd like. I know plenty of smaller weather deities." The second voice went silent before saying, "if you think it would be best to leave…"

"No, I can't do that again. I can't leave my family again. I just found Eddie. We have Hermes to care for. If the king manages to find Hermes—"

"What about you?" The other voice raised just slightly. "What do you think your king could do if he could converse with animals? What if he respawns the Ender Dragon and convinces her to destroy our world? It would be like the Rapture all over again."

"The Rapture? But that's just an old folktale."

There was some awkward laughter. "Of course, I'm just saying it could be like the Rapture again. End of our empires and terrible earthquakes and all."

~~~

"You'll have no choice but to leave if your king gets too close to you, you know. I can take Hermes in. The king wouldn't try to kill a god, would he?" The voice was slightly joking, as if trying to lighten the mood.

There was a too long pause. "I don't know anymore."

~~~

Hermes peeled his eyes open and he instantly closed them again, the light too bright. "Ugh," he groaned, trying to bring his arm up to block the light still breaching his eyelids but his arms felt as heavy as lead.

"Hermes!" His papa and dad exclaimed, jumping up from their spot in the corner of the room. They were instantly at his side, worry etched on both their faces. They were all in the Sanctuary infirmary. He could hear no wind or rain—just how long had he been out for?

"Are you feeling okay?"

"The doctor said you thankfully didn't break any bones but you've got a pretty bad bruise on the side of your right arm."

"Don't you dare try that again! You should've known the fountain would've been slippery in the rain!"

"I can help you with your powers if you'd like. It's difficult but I know you can do it. Well, after you rest and all."

Hermes burst into tears, trying to hide his face under the blankets in shame. "I—I'm so sorry," he blubbered as his papa gently pulled down the covers. "I didn't mean to bring the storm, I was just feeling frustrated about everything."

Hermes' dad was sitting on the edge of the bed, playing with Hermes' hair and scratching at his scalp like he would a cat. "You didn't conjure up the storm, Hermes." His dad smiled down at him. "To put it bluntly, you'd need to train a lot more in order to create a storm of that size. Don't worry, it's not your fault."

Hermes took in his dad's words and breathed a big sigh of relief. "Really?" It's not my fault. It's not my fault.

His dad nodded.

"What were you feeling frustrated about?" His papa then asked.

"I'm going to have to choose between the two of you when I grow up!" Hermes finally exclaimed.

The sentence hung in the air. Both Hermes' dad and papa glanced at each other, their eyebrows drawing down. Hermes' dad was the first one to break away from the gaze. "What on earth are you talking about? You go to each of our empires every week. You hardly have a choice in having us as your parents."

Hermes' papa glared over at Hermes' dad. "Shhh, Joel." He then looked down at Hermes. "Please explain what you mean. Why will you have to choose one of us?"

"When I'm older," Hermes said. "You're both my parents and you both rule empires. I'm going to have to choose which one to rule eventually and I don't want to choose between the two of you. I don't think I even want to be an emperor."

"Oh, Hermes," his papa said with a little chuckle. He kissed Hermes' forehead. "You don't have to rule anything. We aren't going to force you to take that burden if you don't want to." Hermes had fuzzy recollections of his dad and papa speaking about…something while he was going in and out of consciousness from the fall from the fountain, but he waved it off for now. He'd ponder on that later when his memory was sharper. "Your dad and I wouldn't make you choose between us and, even if you did, we wouldn’t blame you for choosing the other. That would make us awful parents."

Hermes felt like a massive boulder had just been lifted off his chest. He took a big breath and a large smile grew on his face. "I don't want to become a ruler of any empire."

"Great!" His dad exclaimed. "You'll have less grey hair than your papa."

"And hopefully less ego than your dad," his papa said with a playful glare.

Hermes settled into the cot he was laying on. His eyelids began to grow heavy and, after a second, his eyelids fluttered closed. Dreamland was calling and Hermes was more than happy to go. "I love you," he said through a long yawn.

"Love you."

"I love you too."

#empires smp #empires smp fanfic #empires smp fanfiction #hermes #hermes (empires smp)#empires smp hermes #mythicalsausage #smallishbeans

96 notes · View notes

cannedcrow · 2 years

Text

I’ve recently been rewatching Game of Thrones and was inspired to do some sigils for each Empire in Empires SMP. Let us start with the illustrious JOEL.

• House Stratos •

Words: Taller Than Clouds.

Meaning: Firstly in reference to Joel being the tallest, but also regarding the Stratosi attitude of superiority. They live among the clouds and are farther than any in the academic studies of the physical and magical world.

Sigil: a white and silver gryphon crowned with a laurel wreath. One foreleg rests upon a gold armillary sphere upon which is engraved the Latin phrase sub divo, which translates to ‘under the open sky’.

I chose a gryphon and laurel wreath because of its basis in Ancient Greek and Roman myth, and of course, flight. The armillary sphere symbolises House Stratos’ reverence of and command over the celestial sphere, while the golden claws and armillary sphere indicate love of gold and wealth.

House Dawn, House Tumbleton,

Maybe reblog if you like my art? (´,,•ω•,,)♡

#empires smp #empires SMP Joel #empires joel #esmp joel #esmp 2 #esmp s2 #empires smp fanart #empires fanart #smallishbeans #crow draws things #empiresblr #mcyt #sigil #game of thrones sigil

108 notes · View notes

mindfeelscom · 1 year

Link

36 notes · View notes

1five1two · 1 year

Text

And barbarians were inventors not only of philosophy, but almost of every art. The Egyptians were the first to introduce astrology among men. Similarly also the Chaldeans. The Egyptians first showed how to burn lamps, and divided the year into twelve months, prohibited intercourse with women in the temples, and enacted that no one should enter the temples from a woman without bathing. Again, they were the inventors of geometry. There are some who say that the Carians invented prognostication by the stars. The Phrygians were the first who attended to the flight of birds. And the Tuscans, neighbours of Italy, were adepts at the art of the Haruspex. The Isaurians and the Arabians invented augury, as the Telmesians divination by dreams. The Etruscans invented the trumpet, and the Phrygians the flute. For Olympus and Marsyas were Phrygians. And Cadmus, the inventor of letters among the Greeks, as Euphorus says, was a Phoenician; whence also Herodotus writes that they were called Phoenician letters. And they say that the Phoenicians and the Syrians first invented letters; and that Apis, an aboriginal inhabitant of Egypt, invented the healing art before Io came into Egypt. But afterwards they say that Asclepius improved the art. Atlas the Libyan was the first who built a ship and navigated the sea. Kelmis and Damnaneus, Idaean Dactyli, first discovered iron in Cyprus. Another Idaean discovered the tempering of brass; according to Hesiod, a Scythian. The Thracians first invented what is called a scimitar (arph), -- it is a curved sword, -- and were the first to use shields on horseback. Similarly also the Illyrians invented the shield (pelth). Besides, they say that the Tuscans invented the art of moulding clay; and that Itanus (he was a Samnite) first fashioned the oblong shield (qureos). Cadmus the Phoenician invented stonecutting, and discovered the gold mines on the Pangaean mountain. Further, another nation, the Cappadocians, first invented the instrument called the nabla, and the Assyrians in the same way the dichord. The Carthaginians were the first that constructed a triterme; and it was built by Bosporus, an aboriginal. Medea, the daughter of Æetas, a Colchian, first invented the dyeing of hair. Besides, the Noropes (they are a Paeonian race, and are now called the Norici) worked copper, and were the first that purified iron. Amycus the king of the Bebryci was the first inventor of boxing-gloves. In music, Olympus the Mysian practised the Lydian harmony; and the people called Troglodytes invented the sambuca, a musical instrument. It is said that the crooked pipe was invented by Satyrus the Phrygian; likewise also diatonic harmony by Hyagnis, a Phrygian too; and notes by Olympus, a Phrygian; as also the Phrygian harmony, and the half-Phrygian and the half-Lydian, by Marsyas, who belonged to the same region as those mentioned above. And the Doric was invented by Thamyris the Thracian. We have heard that the Persians were the first who fashioned the chariot, and bed, and footstool; and the Sidonians the first to construct a trireme. The Sicilians, close to Italy, were the first inventors of the phorminx, which is not much inferior to the lyre. And they invented castanets. In the time of Semiramis queen of the Assyrians, they relate that linen garments were invented. And Hellanicus says that Atossa queen of the Persians was the first who composed a letter. These things are reported by Seame of Mitylene, Theophrastus of Ephesus, Cydippus of Mantinea also Antiphanes, Aristodemus, and Aristotle and besides these, Philostephanus, and also Strato the Peripatetic, in his books Concerning Inventions. I have added a few details from them, in order to confirm the inventive and practically useful genius of the barbarians, by whom the Greeks profited in their studies. And if any one objects to the barbarous language, Anacharsis says, "All the Greeks speak Scythian to me."

Clement of Alexandria

#quotes #clement of alexandria #ancient history #history

21 notes · View notes

lafflanes · 2 months

Text

been thinking abt some toontown au ideas with my toontown ocs, one of them is a superhero au and i decided on which kind of powers my main toon ocs would have, some are a bit unconventional but it still works lol

strato: cosmokinesis, oneirokinesis caradog: fire, ferrokinesis/metal manipulation meowdus opurrandi: electricity, telekinesis/psychokinesis agnes: flowers, poison + venom elouise: slow + quiet music, paint manipulation orinthia: earth + plants, botanilingualism sprinkle medley: sweets/candy manipulation interrobang: fast + loud music, lasers, flight, super speed blue raspberry lemonade: water jillian vermillion: dark magic/darkness prof. petunia riddlepop: words alabaxter: ice, glass

interrobang would have the most superman-like powerset out of everyone, and since theyre already a superhero buff normally, they would be the team leader. agnes, jillian and petunia would still be villains in this au, but they would still be at odds with each other along with everyone else just as much as they are in the main story

#ocs #oc chatter #strato #caradog #meowdus opurrandi #agnes #elouise #orinthia #sprinkle medley #interrobang #blue raspberry lemonade #jillian vermillion #prof. petunia riddlepop #alabaxter

2 notes · View notes

far-side-skies · 2 years

Text

And here we go! Naius Casaury, my character for this month's challenge, based off the cassowary!

Thanks to all the peeps in the Discord server who helped me brainstorm this guy together.

Name: Naius Casaury Age: 25 Occupation: Explosives specialist, Special Ops member of the Nightcrawler fleet Species: Nightcrawler/elf-Merb Hybrid Home Terra: Merbia

Naius Casaury was born to a merb mother on Terra Merbia. Due to his hybrid status and the general paranoia of merbs, he grew up socially isolated and struggling to make friends.

He did, however, find a friend in a younger cousin of his named Stork (yes, that Stork), who was more interested in his ability to fly and learning how to make traps than figuring out where his loyalties lay.

At least until Cyclonia invaded. During the chaos, he was separated from his cousin and got caught up in a fire that took his wings. Afterwards, no doctors on the Terra were willing to treat him, leaving him desperate and afraid for his family. When he heard Cyclonia was recruiting though, he enlisted immediately in the hopes of reuniting his family and getting medical help. He was assigned to the nightcrawler ranks and started the search for his cousin.

Years later, he's elated and surprised to find that Stork found salvation on the Condor and is now a Storm Hawk. Unfortunately, his cousin is... less excited to meet him again.

More stuff under the cut because I went in deep with this one. Including a lot of lore headcanons.

I turned elves into bugs and nightcrawlers into elves. They're actually related to the strato elves in my headcanon

All night elves have wings, but if they lose their wings, they're known as nightcrawlers. Cyclonia often employs nightcrawlers in exchange for giving them flight aids.

Night elves often live in hives run like beehives, lead by a singular queen who lays all the eggs.

Albino night elves are the subject of numerous superstitions.

Naius-specific:

Due to being the product of two highly social species, Naius is incredibly sociable and is prone to overstepping boundaries in his attempts to make friends with everyone around him. He's working on it.

While his traps did occasionally have explosive elements to them, he didn't gain prowess with proper demolition equipment until he joined Cyclonia.

This boy looooooves Halloween (or the Atmos equivalent of it) and can be found preparing for it months in advance. His Halloween parties are a favourite among Talons.

He can 'purr' by vibrating the hair-like structures on his neck at high speeds.

20 notes · View notes

24-hours · 1 year

Note

hello mod boo! would it be alright if we requested some names and neos for both an osmp!tommy fictive relating to air, birds , wind, and playfulness? and the same for an osmp!wilbur fictive with themes relating to darkness, rain, flight, phantoms, and mischief? thank you so much!

Hello! You may indeed have some names and neos, but next time remember its one request per ask! (/nm btw) I did label the sections but uh Tommy’s names n neos are bolded and Wil’s names/neos are in italics. I tried my best to clearly separate them without having to make a separate post since I like avoiding that with the queue and all… I don't like someone’s req going up hours after their ask has been answered.. -MB

Names

Tommy

Baron

Maverick

Wright

Jet

Aeolus

Aether

Notus / Eurus

Jay

Robin

Phoenix

Callum

Puck

Flynn

Pan

Felix

Wilbur

Nox

Kieran / Keir

Tynan

Donovan

Tempest

Ciel

Casper

Aero

Donnelly

Amon

Foley

Reynard

Rogue

Specter

Geist

Pronouns

Tommy

fly/flys/flyself

sky/skys/skyself

cloud/clouds/cloudself

stratos/stratoself

gust/gusts/gustself

wind/winds/windself

bird/birds/birdself

feather/feathers/featherself

caw/caws/cawself

chirp/chirps/chirpself

wing/wings/wingself

fun/funs/funself

silly/sillys/sillyself

goofy/goofys/goofyself

play/plays/playself

Wilbur

dark/darks/darkself

night/nights/nightself

dusk/dusks/duskself

rain/rains/rainself

storm/storms/stormself

zephyr/zephyrs/zephyrself

wing/wings/wingself

ae/aer/aerself

cloud/clouds/cloudself

ghost/ghosts/ghostself

haunt/haunts/hauntself

soul/souls/soulself or spirit/spirits/spiritself

trick/tricks/trickself or scare/scares/scareself

fun/funs/funself

prank/pranks/prankself

#boos requests #name reqs #pronoun recs #osmp fictive #origins smp fictive #tommy fictive #wilbur fictive #osmp tommy fictive #osmp wilbur fictive

12 notes · View notes

gijoe-forever · 2 years

Text

The best secret agents in the world work for private corporations as industrial spies simply because “big business” pays better than any government. Cobra can attract some of the best pilots from all over the globe to join the air wing of the Cobra Legions, known as the Air-Vipers, by doubling and tripling their salaries. Air-Vipers are formidable opponents but the STRATO-VIPERS are the “crème de la crème.”

To qualify as a STRATO-VIPER, a candidate must first be an Air-Viper with 1,500 hours logged in flight time. He must have a fixed-wing rating up to four engines, combat experience, an impeccable security clearance, and be willing to undergo the surgical procedure necessary to make him more resistant to hypoxia, hyperventilation and other decompression sicknesses that can affect a pilot above Armstrong’s Line (63,000 feet).

Featuring Virginia member Mike R. of our Capital Defense Regiment!

#thefinestcc #cobra #stratoviper #gijoe #yojoe #nightraven #capitaldefenseregiment

#cobra #strato viper

10 notes · View notes

rhapsoddity · 1 year

Note

Who are the confirmed people in your vigilante AU? Doesn't matter whether they're heroes, villains, vigilantes, civilians, or whatever.

I have a lists, some may be subject to change cause I didn't expect the AU to pop off but uh

some have names and some ive yet to develop enough

-Heroes- Stratos - joel - super strength, flight Sanctuary - sausage - nature manipulation, enhanced hearing Pyrolisk -tango - fire manipulation Hotguy - scar - enhanced aim, flight (vex wings) Cuteguy - Grian - flight (bird wings), energy manipulation (can make aura blade shit for close combat)

-Vigilantes- The Sheriff - jimmy - understands animals Shelby - flight, but only hovering. uses potions to fight. Katherine - super strength Orion - Oli (labelled a villain) - power replication (weaker than the OG power bc his body isn't made for his body) Apollo - Bdubs - light manipulation

-Villains- Joey - water manipulation (only bodies of water, cant control stuff like the tiny water in ppls bodys or smth) Styx - Cub - vex magic, infected by skulk, fog is for theatric effect :D Hephaestus - Fwhip - night vision, enhanced hearing. Fights using tech. Spectrum - Scott? - colour manipulation, used for disorientation, disguises and hypnosis Mumbo???? Permhaps??? - redstone manipulation Empires False - idk yet, but I wanted a girl villain, hot woman go brrr

-Civilians- Pearl (ex hero) Eddie (aids Saus) Lizzie (is Joel's wife??? For taxes ig?? Ig either they're poly or besties idk in every universe theyre married ig) - always lands on her feet, cat characteristics Gem (she may change spots I'm not sure yet) - butterfly characteristics Pix (he may change spots I'm not sure yet) Most of the hermits ngl, hermit!False is def a civilain

#vigilante sheriff au #ask #anon

243 notes · View notes

stellarcat52 · 2 years

Text

A Shift Occurs (p2)

An ESMP season 2 Hybrid hunter au (part 2)

As hunters push their luck and rulers curse their boundaries, a draconic Scott is captured by the ones in Chromia. Who will find him first, and will they be too late?

Pix sent a link to the ruler’s chat, “I think it’s best if we avoid large meetings while there’s a passive threat in the area.” The link led to a document, which had an amount of information that would have been surprising if it came from anyone else, that held information on the hybrid populations of each empire.

Animalia had the highest population, with everyone either being a hybrid or fully animal, then Gobland with an entirely goblin, which weren’t technically hybrids but definitely weren’t humans, and pig population, Tumble Town was next with nearly everyone being a cat or reptile, then Sanctuary, Dawn, and finally the Eversea. The Evermoore and False and Pix’s areas were relatively empty, Chromia was only Scott and a bunch of llamas for the time being, the village below stratos was entirely humans, and even Pix wasn’t certain of what category Joel fell into.

Pix admitted in the notes of the document that he wasn’t very familiar with modern hybrid hunting practices, but if older practices were still in effect that Scott and Shelby would both need to watch out because magic wasn’t exactly left alone either.

Joel probably only scanned through Pix’s notes before joking about Tumble Town being at extreme risk because their Sheriff is a toy, which temporarily made The SHERIFF forget why he hid his rattlesnake scales before Pix’s document reminded him.

It was true, in Tumble Town and the surrounding areas most native inhabitants were desert hybrids. Still, the population wasn’t quite dense enough that nobody questioned him parading as human. He was human enough, the patches of scales were few and far between for the most part, but he was still a hybrid.

Maybe he had forgotten the treatment hybrids got when making the rules, because he forgot to make what the Hybrid Hunters did illegal, unless they started stealing mounts. If he suddenly changed it, it’d seem like they couldn’t deal with the hunters in any other way. He was in a similar situation to Sanctuary, who offered a safe place for everyone, unless they made the first move nothing could be done without harming the pride of not only the rulers but the law abiding citizens as well.

He sent another message to Scott, who would surely get mad at the number of messages when he actually got around to reading them. “What could possibly be more important than at least responding while there’s an empiric crisis happening?”

And he got no response.

–

Scott wasn’t sure what happened to his communicator, or his clothes and inventory, when he became a dragon. He was sure even if he still had anything, the hunters would have taken it from him when they wrestled him into a cage and covered it with a thick canvas. Scott wasn’t used to fighting on four legs, or without arms, and with no weapons or armor.

Normally he didn’t have much nervous energy but now, in a cage and a new form, he wanted nothing more than to pace. The cage didn’t leave enough room for that though, only enough room to rub his sides along the bars and peel away layers of dull gray scales that should’ve been shed years before. Scott hadn’t gotten a good look at his new appearance, but he knew his feet were dappled in grey and black like ashy cobblestone. From that and the coloring of his shed scales, he feared he had lost his interesting, colorful exterior in the shift.

It must have been the dragon’s stronger sense of hearing that Scott seemed to now possess, but after what felt like forever he heard the sounds of rocket propelled flight from far off. He knew a good amount about hunters, from a previous profession, so he knew it was rare for them to wear the false wings of adventurers. But he did know a number of people who required them. Jimmy, Joey, False, and Pix. It felt strange for him to hope that one of them may be nearby, but he did. He was, although he wouldn’t enjoy admitting it, scared.

He would grow even more scared for his own well being when the cage he was in started to be moved, and eventually they settled into the steady pace of a caravan.

–

The hunters often traveled across the sea, Joey had seen his fair share of them. He half expected to see Skeletron’s men working with them, but instead it seemed his enemy was keeping his crew away. Still, Joey wasn’t going to waste this opportunity. Despite the danger, Joey wouldn’t ignore this chance to find his missing crew mates. Everyone aboard his ship had been hybrids, including Joey himself who hid a pair of leopard ears under his bandana.

He had a map of the empires out, probable entry points were marked down and Sanctuary was circled. He had already paid a moonlit visit to Sanctuary to check for familiar faces, but that group didn’t seem to carry any living cargo.

Dawn seemed like another prime spot for arrival, and so he marked it down before taking to the skies on his elytra.

–

This all would take place the day after Hunters were found in Sanctuary, and therefore the day after Scott had his own encounter. Joey would circle above Dawn looking for anyone who wasn’t supposed to be there, and spy a caravan heading towards the coast. Specifically, a small hunter caravan heading from Chromia to the coast. No hunters traveled in such a small group, so he knew they weren’t it, but it also meant something had split them.

Perhaps a special cargo that wasn’t worth the risk of continuing on land for long traveling periods.

It was no secret that Pirates and Hunters sometimes crossed over in one line of work, bounty hunting, and Scott’s sketchy past wasn’t exactly unknown either. If anyone from Scott’s past had put a claim on his head, well, he would be considered important cargo.

From the skies, Joey couldn’t tell who or what was being transported, but he could tell they had come from Chromia. He was wrong to scout out Dawn though, they had docked somewhere nearby but unclaimed.

He landed on their ship, the Vanquisher prepared for battle, but he met no resistance. The ship had not been abandoned, he found evidence of a battle below deck, but nothing alive remained. What did remain, however, was an all too familiar calling card.

A skeleton flag hanging above the captain’s door. He had never been happy to see one before, but on an enemy’s ship he wasn’t disgusted by the sight. It did mean that his enemy got the goods before him, but it also meant for once Skeletron and him had a common enemy.

He remembered something from Pix’s document saying that magic wasn’t liked very much, and acknowledged that a necromancer probably wasn’t appreciated either. Harder to sell a beast’s hide when it was trying to kill you.

#hybrid hunters au #empires smp #empires smp season 2 #esmp2 #empires scott #empires jimmy #empires smp fic #shapeshifter scott #dragon scott #empires joey #a shift occurs #word count:1168 #school started so expect more (maybe)#(probably)#I create skeletron is a simp propoganda so prepare for that #:)#tw death mention #i guess #I'd rather be too safe

13 notes · View notes