#Universal Language of Symbols and Terms

[zarnzarn]

lamb who kills the one who waits when the time comes to decide, furious and betrayed at being asked to lay down their life after everything they'd done, after-

they kill him, and don't stop to see what happens to the body, carried away by their celebrating followers. They rejoice the whole day, of a final victory against evil, riling each other up to the heights of joy and mania until late in the night.

And then Lamb goes to bed and blows out the lamp and the their decision finally sinks in.

what have they done.

they wake the next day trembling from forgotten nightmares, overheating as they make their way through the day's chores, blank-faced and numb. the call to sermon is waved off in face of a headache, as they try not to think about how much of what they preach no longer is relevant.

the week passes in a haze- they unthinkingly leave offerings in the wooden chest until they rot in the summer noon; call out the rituals in Narinder's language and pretend the power isn't fainter than usual, go on a crusade to get their mind off things- except the last is the worst of it all, because the crown's eye is pale pink, pupil fat with power, instead of the crimson cat-eye that Lamb is used to, and there's no getting away from the fact on how silent it is when no one is watching behind it.

how silent it is because no one is there.

yet somehow worse still is-

"hope you feel better soon, leader!" a younger follower says, tucking a camelia into their wool. they know they've been distant lately, avoiding worries left right and centre. "praise the one! he'll make everything alright."

it's like a hammer to the chest, leaving them breathless and stunned, to realise- they never commissioned a statue of Narinder, after all these years. so stubborn in only leaving the crimson eye scratched around the cult grounds as his symbol until he found an artist worthy of Lamb sharing the image of the god of death, that-

no one else except the lamb knew what narinder looked like. they had no idea whose defeat they'd celebrated.

no one but Lamb remembers their god.

..

it gets harder after that.

Lamb isn't sure how many people have left the cult by the time the Mystic Seller's demand comes through, to save what's left of the Bishops from endless purgatory, before their violent shadows disrupted the fabric of the four realms.

They stare, speechless and disbelieving, at the outrageous ask, before it suddenly sinks in that-

The bishops.

The bishops.

They run through the lands once more with eagerness, sword slashing harder each time, ruthless and relentless in their kills. They reconquer Leshy and Heket brutally, curtly setting out the terms when they are diminished back to mortal and forced to stay in the cult. They agree, and agree to keeping their peace as well when Kallamar and Shamura join them, surrounded by a cult that's flourishing once more, waiting eagerly for a familiar stranger. Lamb tells stories around the fire about The One Who Waits, watches the smiles on their followers' faces reappear, the ones who had fled their anger and depression slowly making their way back to the flock, and the cult grows back to its full potential once more.

And then Lamb runs up the stairs when it's all ready and beautiful and welcoming, beams at the Seller as they wait for their instructions.

The Seller frowns. "Yes?"

Lamb tilts their head, rusted bell on their neck tinkling. It had broken the day after Narinder's defeat, the collar finally fluttering to the ground in tatters like a cloth of eighty years should; but Lamb had repaired and maintained and polished it until it wrapped proud around their neck once again. Their heart is beating in their chest, excitement running through their veins. They'd forgotten how it felt to be on the cusp of going to meet the One Who Waits.

"The last bishop still remains," They laugh, joy spreading through them. "I have to go get him too, yes? For the good of the universe and all."

The Mystic Seller... is silent.

"Narinder was not a Bishop," It says finally. Lamb's smile drops. "The Three-Eyed Cat had completed his ascension when he mastered the resurrection ritual. He was a God."

Lamb's heart drops to their stomach, stumbling like they've taken a hit. "What? So what? Can't I bring him back?"

The Mystic Seller tilts their head. "No."

"What do you mean no?" Lamb's nostrils flare, red crown sparking as they take a step closer. "I brought all those others back, why can't I-"

"They were the pillars of the very order of the world-"

"They were fucking MONSTERS!" Lamb shouts. "And what, death isn't?"

"It is," The Seller says, unaffected by the screaming. "But you are the Bishop of Death now. The cycle has begun again."

Lamb feels like they've taken an arrow to the chest. They stumble forward, and then to their knees. "No," they whimper. "There has- has to be some way to bring him back."

The Mystic Seller stares at them. "You were the one to kill him," They point out, and Lamb feels bile rise in their mouth as their breathing gets faster. "Why would you want him back? A thriving cult, an usurped crown, his spells in your hand-"

"Shut up," Lamb hisses.

"-you have all the power you could ever want, little sheep. Your revenge against the murder of your people."

"He wasn't the one to do it!" They shout up at the Seller, despite the hypocrisy- it had been part of their thoughts when they'd raised the axe again and again and again; the resentment of if it wasn't for you-

"No, no, no, no, no," They whimper, holding onto their biceps and shaking. "Narinder."

It is the first time they have said his name in five years. That realization is what makes the tears finally fall.

Their throat is hoarse when they finish, eyes swollen and blood pooled around them, skin already healing back to perfection where they had clawed through. The Mystic Seller stares at them and sways, silent.

"No," The Lamb finally says, and gets up, determined. Walks past the Seller, to the door behind, leading to the Gateway.

They wonder how they never realized. Or maybe they did, and were just lying to themselves that they didn't.

Lamb reaches the crater, with the rusted chains and wooden crucifixes rising out from the fog around it and comes to a halt.

Narinder is exactly where they left him.

Bones only now. Blackened by all the rituals he performed, he'd told them once; perfectly placed, like he had just fallen.

Lamb still has the ointment they made with their first cult sitting in the back of their cupboard, back when they were naive enough to think it would only take months. Ointment spelled to help grow back the fur on his rotting arms, worn to nothing by a thousand years of pulling at the chains and them tightening on him every time he moved in response.

The skull could be anyone's, now.

Two ribs are broken, where Lamb's axe went through. Straight to the heart.

Lamb exhales and shakily kneels to the ground, lowering himself to Narinder's side, careful to not dislodge a single bone out of place, and molds their body around the skeleton in a perverse mockery of a lover's embrace. Violently, abruptly, they want that, so much it burns- Narinder's arms holding the close one last time. It feels unbearable, to have- to have him lowered to meet Lamb at his level, to have him attainable instead of a towering, unreachable, terrible eldritch horror, and for him to be dead.

Oh, Lamb thinks, shaking as tears form in their eyes. Oh, I loved you. I love you.

"Darling," They choke out, tracing one cheekbone. "My baby. My one. My death. Come back, will you?"

Narinder opens his eyes and shoots them an unimpressed look. Lamb sobs, shoulders heaving, gasping as claws embed themselves in their throat- whole, complete, strong, paw soft as a cloud, faint markings on the fur Lamb never knew he had now drenched with blood.

They laugh, smiling through the tears as they push forward into the claws, flesh ripping and tearing as they push their mouth closer to Narinder's.

"I am sorry," They whisper. Narinder growls. "i love you."

"Traitor-"

"Fuck the crown," Lamb breathes back, moving to straddle Narinder to interrupt him, keeping the weight on their own knees to not damage his healing ribs. His claws are still in their throat, tangled in their stitches. "Fuck the power. Fuck the cult. Fuck religion. I only ever wanted you."

Narinder stills, looking up at them with sharp eyes. Lamb laughs around his beloved's fingers. "I only ever want you. What is life without you, Antim?"

Narinder studies them. Lamb waits, bloodied and grinning, patiently waiting, smitten to have those beautiful trifecta eyes upon them once more.

"I promised you," They whisper. "I promised to break you out of here. Let me, my one. My only one, who has waited so long."

Narinder takes a breath, tilting his chin down and then up. His claws twitch in Lamb's vocal chords, drawing them down closer to him.

Lamb whoops in joy and reaches up to toss the crown to the side, fitting their hooves to the last chain wrapped around Narinder's neck, binding him still to the Gateway, and splinters it into a thousand pieces, never to hold anyone ever again.

"Come," The Lamb whispers finally, moving back and gathering their lover up in their arms, still pressing their mouths together. "Let me take you home, Narinder. Mere jaan. Meri mrityu. My one."

Narinder sighs and buries his face in the crook of Lamb's neck as they start to walk away. "Turn back around, idiot. We cannot leave without the damned crown. And I am picking out the wedding decorations."

"Of course, my love," Lamb coos, and leans in again to kiss their greatest mistake.

[theresattrpgforthat]

Hello!! Do you know any TTRPGs surrounding translation or languages? 😊 (thanks for all your work btw!!!)

THEME: Language / Translation Games

Hello friend! As someone who studied linguistics in university, I absolutely love talking about all of the funky things languages do! I hope these recommendations tickle your fancy!

Dialect, by Thorny Games.

Dialect is a game about an isolated community, their language, and what it means for that language to be lost. In this game, you’ll tell the story of the Isolation by building their language. New words will come from the fundamental aspects of the community: who they are, what they believe in, and how they respond to a changing world.

Dialect uses a deck of cards to help minimize the amount of choices you have to make in character creation, by dealing three cards to each player and having the players choose one from just those three. You track the change of your language over a series of turns, using prompts to help you navigate the conversations that arise in your community as the world around them changes.

Dialect has been very highly regarded as a game that really delivers on the experience that it promises. The grief that accompanies language death really shines through this game, so if you want to combine the wonder of creation with the pain of losing something so integral to your sense of being, this is the game for you.

Tiny Frog Wizards, by @prokopetz

You have mastered the secret arts of sorcery

The very primordial energies of creation and destruction are yours to wield as you will.

You are two inches tall.

Tiny Frog Wizards is a game about tiny frogs, wielding magic using the power of words. When you want to do something magical, you will roll somewhere between 1-3 dice, and use the values of your rolled dice to determine how the range, magnitude, and control of your magic.

What’s important in terms of this game recommendation is the Control aspect, because how well you are able to wield your magic depends on how many words you are able to use to make things happen! It’s a lot easier to use a spell with precision if you have enough words to detail where you want a magical pen to write, or what you want to throw a tiny magic missile at. Not enough words? Then the GM has license to cause some humorous side effects, or, if you roll poorly enough, cause your spells to really go off the rails.

If you like games where you need to choose your words carefully, Tiny Frog Wizards is worth checking out - especially since it’s in free playtest!

Xenolanguage, by Thorny Games.

Xenolanguage is a tabletop role-playing game about first contact with alien life, messy human relationships and what happens when they mix together.  At its core, you explore your pivotal relationships with others on the mission as you uncover meaning in an alien language. The game gives a nod to soulful sci-fi media like Arrival, Story of Your Life and Contact, but tells its own story. It’s a game for 2-4 players in 3-4 hours.

In Xenolangauge, you play as a group of people bound together through a shared past with unsettled questions. Your task is to understand why the aliens have come and what they are trying to tell us. You will soon discover the key to understanding lies in your memories together.

This is definitely an in-person game, as it is meant to come with a modular channeling board that will provide you with alien symbols that you will use to help you interpret messages. This is more than a game about language, it’s about relationship, shared memories, and connection.

Xenolanguage was kickstarted at the beginning of this year, but you can check out the above link to pre-order the game if this sounds interesting to you!

Star-Spawned, by Penguin King Games.

One unearthly night, a ray of colourless light descended from the stars, and under its warping radiance, creatures unlike any the world has ever seen were born. They do not know the world, and they do not know themselves. Unfortunately for the world, they're quick learners!

Star-Spawned is a GMless, oneshot-oriented tabletop RPG in which you don't know what your own traits do when play begins. The names of each group's stats are randomly generated using morpheme chaining, and characters are created while having absolutely no idea what they mean; figuring that out forms the greater part of play.

Star-Spawned is more about self discovery than it is about language, but the use of morpheme-chaining in character creation is intriguing to me. You will randomly roll three pieces of a word, and then chain them together to create a unique Facet, available to the players as stats. These Facets don’t have a meaning when the game begins - you need to play to find out what they mean. If you like playing around with semantics - the meaning of words - this might be a game for you.

Degenerate Semantics, by Mikael Andersson.

Degenerate Semantics is a role-playing game for 1-5 players and one Game Master (GM). The players will each portray a character who live in Emmaloopen's poverty-stricken lower city. They are young, wild, ambitious, and independent. This way of life is threatened by other factions, and the players will need to have their characters work together to survive and thrive.

In the process of playing the game, the players and GM will define and flesh out a language called Bandethal. A collection of street terms and slang, Bandethal is used both as a way to talk openly about illicit activities without alerting authorities and to establish street cred. The terms are liberally mixed in with plain English, or when the language is mature enough, can be used entirely on its own. The characters' success is in large part based on how proficiently the players wield the language.

A friend of mine ran this game for me three or four years ago, and it’s been sitting in the back of my head ever since. Degenerate Semantics was created for a Game Chef competition in 2014, and has remained in the same state since then. I don’t think there’s any more work being done on it, but the game is there for anyone who wants to give it a go - and while there’s a setting that comes with the game, that setting is highly flexible, depending on what your group is interested in. Our group decided to use a lot of gardening metaphors, and undertook a plant-based heist as our act of rebellion! If you want a game about the power that language can give a tightly-knit group, this is the game for you.

I've Also Recommended...

DROWWORD, by Ursidice.

[sweetflanfiction]

Asymetrical Symphony - Part 17

Universe: Arcane (LOL)

Pairing: Viktor x reader

Summary: You had been on the rooftop with Jayce and the Herald and somehow you were sent to a place where things can be different with your help

Disclaimers and Warnings: If you want me to tag you on the chapters let me know! Also leave a comment with your thoughts :D Not finished, not proofread. English isn't my 1st language. All I know about LOL is from google and all I know about Arcane is taken from the show, so inacuracies will be plenty. I have a sort of idea on how to I'm gonna go with magic and runes, so bear with me. The reader will be written as GN (going by they/them) to get everyone involved, but if you see any discrepancies let me know.

Part 1 • Part 2 • Part 3 • Part 4 • Part 5 • Part 6 • Part 7 • Part 8 • Part 9 • Part 10 • Part 11 • Part 12 • Part 13 • Part 14 • Part 15 • Part 16

• ··········· • ············ •

After some long minutes of silent work, Viktor placed the goggles on his forehead again and turned his face to your almost sleeping figure.

"Wake up." He threw a small piece of pink chalk at your chest.

"Is it finished?" You blinked away the sleepiness and chucked the chalk back to him.

"No... but I am cross-eyed looking at the thing." He took the goggles off his head and swiveled the bench to you. "Have you tried the new suffix I showed you?” 

The night of the dinner, he had sent Jayce a note with a new symbol to add to your runes. It was disappointing that he had come himself to give you the thing, but you knew how much he hated these events. 

You were certain that, in every universe imaginable, Viktor, co-creator of Hextech, would not be caught dead in a room full of Pilties unless under threat. And Jayce wasn’t about to threaten his life for a two-hour dinner, mostly because if your mother knew, she would threaten Jayce’s life in return. It was a give-and-take with these two.

“Yes, I did.” You turned on the couch so you were fully lying on it, drawing runes in the air.

“And…?” He leaned his elbows into his knees.

“I had to explain to my mother why my bedroom was in disarray after a whirlwind went through it.” You looked down at him, watching his warm eyes widen. “And then I had to explain to Voltaire why all the lights in the house went out for the whole day."

“The rune I gave you was how we… well… in simple terms… solidify the hex gem light into a laser.” He made a gesture with his hand, like a claw coming from his back. “Those results are unexpected. What runes did you speak for them?”

“The move made the whirlwind and the starlight made lightning, but��”

“Lightning?” Viktor was already opening and closing drawers, trying to find his notebook.

“Yup…and--”

“The solidified state of your move rune is a whirlwind, and the starlight is lightning. I need to write this down.” He interrupted, his words coming out as quickly as the lighting from the little marbles of light.

“I already did…but—

“Good, we should try it again in a more... secure place.” He finally found the book with a little 'aha' sound and opened it.

“I’m not going back in the broom closet.” You quickly added to his speech. “Neither of these two runes makes me comfortable in an enclosed space.”

“Understandable.” He nodded after a while of consideration.

“Anyway…what shined was the mending rune…”

“How so?”

Getting up from the couch, you walked over to his desk, intent on grabbing the closest piece of chalk on the table, but Viktor’s hand appeared, palming his pencils and pulling them away from you quickly.

You leaned your hip against his table, crossed your arms, and raised an eyebrow, your face a mask of inquiry.

“There are disposable pencils in the first drawer.” He said, motioning with his chin to the place he mentioned.

You opened the drawer, and six, somewhat new, charcoal pencils were stored. You frowned and took one out. They hadn't even been sharpened yet.

“These are brand new.” You showed him the pencil, and he nodded.

“Yes, and they are also Jayce’s…” You saw the mischievous grin on his face and shook your head.

“For your information, I was going to do this with chalk.” You broke the pencil in three places.

“That would be even worse!" He quickly placed all his writing utensils in a mug with Jayce's face on it. "Do you know how much I have to defend the use of colored chalk? I feel like I’m arguing my thesis…” 

“What's with the Academy and not giving its scientists what they need to survive the grueling task of mathing?” You joked and threw him the middle part of the pencil, watching him fumbling to catch it before it hit the floor.

"Would you like to do math? Because I can play the piano. We can switch one day. See who lasts longer." He jokingly pointed to the arachnid-looking machinery.

“Are you done with the pity party?" You asked, grinning at him, and he nodded brightly.

"Yes, go ahead." He stretched his leg in front of him as he grabbed the edge of the table.

"I've also been managing to speak the rune with fewer movements every time.”

“Abbreviations of words are very common.” He looked at the ground and tilted his head. "Once you become accustomed to speaking a word, you can simply say its condensed form, and it will be understandable."

Viktor gently pushed himself along the table to roll over to where you stood, the last push a little too strong as he came bumping into your side. You grabbed his shoulder to keep both of you from falling to the floor, and he instinctively moved an arm around your waist. You looked down at him, and he up at you. 

You both stood there for a while, and your hand moved closer to his neck, stroking it for a couple of seconds. He moved away and made a little laughing sound. You tilted your head to the side, raised your eyebrows, and didn't again.

"No." He moved away laughing, his hand dragging behind you, leaving a cold trail on your lower back.

And it was then you found out that this Viktor was ticklish. And that little childish detail, the way his eyes instantly filled with laughter, made you extremely happy. Viktor deserved to feel joy and happiness.

With a cough to clear your throat and get back to the present, you took the pencil and placed its pieces a little further apart than the last time, the middle part that you had discarded, missing. As you spoke the rune, you added the sustain and solidify symbols at the end. 

The tendrils came out of the rune and found the intended target, touching the two parts of the rough snapped wood and then solidifying around it until it had the consistency of a paste. After a second the paste started to grow, the tendrils now coming out like gravity-defying candle wax from both sides. They met in the middle, forming a bridge of a blue, slimy material. Once the missing part of the pencil was filled, the paste started to harden, becoming a blue, shimmery shape that connected and glued both parts together.

“It connects what's missing now.” You whispered, trying not to startle the enthralled scientist.

Viktor grabbed the pencil and looked it over from every angle against the light, even tapping on it with his nail. It was slightly translucent, and the noise resembled knocking on a piece of thick glass. He wrote with it, and it worked as it should.

“It is a solid shape, yes, but I believe it’s not a replica of the pencil.” He said, chewing the inside of his mouth. His eyes lifted for a moment, and he went to grab his crutch.

Autumn was around the corner, and the temperature change made his bones and muscles ache. He had told you when you widened your eyes at his crutch and leg brace that when the cold seasons come, he uses them more often to help him. You didn't need to touch his back to know the back brace was there too. 

The Viktor in your dimension had the same problem in his better days. Any weather change would bring his pain level up. He once told you it felt like his bones were grinding on his other and that his muscles were made of fire. It didn’t stop him from coming to the lab. 

It didn’t seem to stop either of them.

You hadn’t questioned him using the brace on the hex leg, but you’d assume it would help stabilize it and even out its weight. 

You were snapped out of memory lane when Viktor sat back down with a ‘humph’ on the stool. He quickly grabbed the screwdriver and started to separate the top side of the crutch from the bottom. In between them, there was a small mechanism. He grabbed that and showed it to you.

“This makes me able to readjust the height of the crutch. This spring makes this pin go into that hole and makes the crutch adjustment secure.” He told you and waited for a confirmation that you understood.

“Alright.” You nodded, confused, your eyes shifting from his to what was in his hand.

He took the spring out, and it left a space in the mechanism.

“Fix it.” He told you and gave you the broken thing.

Without questioning him, you made the rune and waited. The gooey magic substance attached to where you saw the spring start and where it ended, but it didn’t make the shape of the spring. It just connected those two pieces the same way it connected the pencil: with a solid blue cylindrical shape.

"Sorry." You told him, afraid you had broken his walking aid, but he shook his head.

“Interesting…” He grabbed a small hammer he had on his table and hit the new blue piece softly. “It creates new forms but not specific ones.”

“I just learned to speak it. Maybe it comes with practice.” He hit it again with a bit more force, and it broke. "It would be good to be able to actually create new forms."

Viktor nodded as he grabbed the old spring and set it again in its rightful place. He redid the aid, tried it a couple of times, and after he was satisfied, kept it between his knees, leaning his chin and his hands on the middle handle.

“I may be able to help you with that.” The scientist smiled and got up from the table, his leg brace whining at the movement. He went over to the hex core storage and came back with a small thing in his hand. 

“It’s a panel with a missing gear.” He limped back towards you and threw himself on the couch, motioning for you to do the same.

You did, your knees touching as he showed you what he had in his hand. It was a small copper panel with two gears on each side, an empty spot in the middle, and a switch. He touched the switch, and one gear moved, but without the middle one, the last kept still. He stopped off the switch and moved his hand, a gear appearing between his fingers.

“The shape.” He turned the loose gear over to you and pointed a finger at the panel. “The place."

Understanding what he meant, you nodded and grabbed the panel gently, turning it over in your hands.

“Yes, Professor.” You noticed his hand squeeze the gear quickly and then let go. You looked up at him and watched as his usually caring golden eyes turned into something fiery, like hot coals in a fireplace. You saw his gaze quickly shift downwards to your mouth and then up, and as quickly as it came, it was gone.

“Hum... Good luck." He awkwardly got up from the couch and sat back down on his stool, quickly grabbing his goggles and placing them over his eyes.

There was a heat behind his eyes. A small flash from your dimension told you exactly what it meant. There were some things Viktor would enjoy, and when he threw those glances at you, you could pinpoint what they were. It would mostly end up in something that both enjoyed. 

But your Viktor had been stubborn, and although you knew his feelings for you matched your feelings for him, there was always that little ‘I am dying’ detail that, no matter how much you told him you didn’t care, he didn’t forget. And you didn’t—couldn’t—blame him. 

In the end, the only thing you could do was respect that. 

You stayed in the lab with Viktor, trying to make a little gear out of the goo. You’d managed to make some shape out of it, but the gear was proving a little too difficult, and you could feel the tingle in your hand fade as you kept using it.

At some point, Jayce had joined in on the two of you, mumbling something about the council and their demands. Viktor had looked at him and simply passed him another part of ‘The Reader.’. 

For a few hours, you forgot this wasn’t where you belonged. These weren’t your old friends. For a few hours, this was just a normal day of yours. After leaving the orchestra, you’d come by and idly sit by them, listening to them tinkering and reading a book about whatever subject you felt like. Sometimes you’d bring a guitar or some of your father’s records.

You felt the couch sink next to you, and you tucked your socked feet under the leg of whoever had sat down, your back leaning into the arm of the couch. It was muscle memory. It wouldn’t be strange for Jayce to lean against you when he sat; his big shoulders and torso were most likely to be used as a pillow, or for Viktor to place his legs on your lap gently, the pain becoming bearable when he stretched his muscles after being sat all day.

“Oh!” 

Immediately you looked up and saw it was Viktor who had sat down, and clumsily you moved your feet away. Only to be stopped by a hand on your knee, a tired smile on his lips.

“There is no need to move.”

He moved his leg, so you could place your feet back where they were under his thigh, and then he rested his arm on your knees. Viktor leaned his back and shoulders against the couch, his neck stretching back and his long legs sprawled on the floor.

For a while, the only thing heard through the lab was Jayce’s angrily muttering against whatever he was welding. Whatever the council had asked him, he was not happy to comply.

“How is your gear making?” Viktor asked, turning his neck to look at you.

The board now was not as pristine as it had been. There were small pieces of crystal that you could get detached with the small hammer Viktor had provided. The best shape you could make was a splatter sort of circle, connecting the dents of the two other gears.

“Well, good news, bad news. Which one do you want first?” He showed you two fingers in the hand that had wrapped around your knees, indicating the second choice. “I don’t think this rune is made for creating shapes.”

“I was thinking as much. But I was hopeful it could take different paths to mend things.” You gave him the board, and he grabbed it, turning it around near his face and inspecting the blue goo on it. “The good news?”

“I can abbreviate the rune.” You smiled when he looked at you, eyebrows raised, impressed and proud.

The sound of a metal tool falling to the ground, followed by a curse, was heard on the other side of the room, and at the same time, a knock on the door. 

Viktor groaned and clumsily got up, using the arm of the couch, your knees, and then the table to get himself upright while you sat up to a less comfortable position. 

You quickly hid the small powdery leftovers of your tests and placed the glove on your hand. Even though it wasn’t as bright as before, it was still glowing. 

Jayce grumbled as he got up to open the door.

“Hello,” the bright young voice of Sky echoed in the lab. “The council has given me some more project briefings…”

“Great…” Jayce threw whatever tool he had picked up from the floor on his part of the table. Sky flinched at the sound. 

“Thank you, Miss Young.” Viktor grabbed his crutch and limped towards her, trying to appease the girl. “Is there anything else?”

“Hum…yeah…yes…” She looked at Viktor and smiled. “The council wants them reviewed right now.”

Jayce turned to look at Sky and was about to open his mouth to contest, but Viktor took several quick strides towards the woman while throwing Jayce a look you couldn’t see but that shut him up.

“Thank you. You can wait here if you want.” He pointed to the couch you were sitting at, and you gave her a quick wave.

“We’ll give them back as quickly as we can.”

She looked confused for a while when she saw you there but quickly gave you a quick smile and nodded at Viktor.

He looked back to watch her make her way to you and then smiled softly when your eyes met.

“Hello.” Sky said, sitting down next to you, her hands on her knees. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here after your appointment.”

“Hi!" You shrugged and rolled your eyes in an exasperated manner. "The gadget didn’t work properly, and Viktor is making some adjustments as he goes. Saves me the trips and the rescheduling.”

“Ah…yes…makes sense. More efficient that way. It's strange to have to add a planner to the multitude of other things we have to keep in check.” She pushed her glasses up and smiled, her expression showing her distaste for the added unnecessary work. “Oh, congratulations on the orchestra seat.”

“How…?”It took you by surprise that she knew about this since it only happened two days ago.

“Oh…My father works at the printing house, and the orchestra is doing the flyers and posters for this season. I saw your name on the roster.”

“Ah! It’s your father…of course.” In your world, her sister worked in the printing house. “The first winter show is right around the corner. Are you going to go?”

She looked at her hands and shook her hand.

“The tickets for the season's first shows are always too expensive. We’ll probably go later in the season.” 

“Let me rephrase that…” you grinned at the girl. Much like any other person you’d met in this timeline, some of their traits and likes probably still happened to their counterparts here. And you knew Sky enjoyed music. You had invited her several times to watch the orchestra rehearse in your time. It was a free concert for her, and it was worth it to see her just ramble about it afterwards. “Would you like to go to the first show of the season?”

Her eyes brightened up, and you smiled, but her elation stopped short, and she shook her head, sighing.

“There’s no need for you to trouble yourself.” She smiled sadly.

“It’s no trouble. I have 2 seats always reserved in my name. It’s a thing they do to their musicians. My mother and Willah have their box; these two have the Academy’s ticket and will likely be invited. I don’t mind giving you the seats; you can take whoever you want…maybe your sister could come…” Her face lit up again as you realized what you just said and quickly corrected. “If you have sisters…maybe a date…I don’t know…”

“Yes, my sister would love to go. Maybe my mother…I’ll ask…” She adjusted her glasses. “Are you sure? I truly don’t want to impose.”

“It’s no imposition or trouble. I would rather you have them than for them to be empty.”

“Thank you! You’ll be at the piano, right?”

You nodded, and the conversation rolled out easily. Talking about music and compositions and favorites. Sky had always been easy to talk to. She was a genuinely nice person. Had a huge crush on Viktor, which you teased him about, but unfortunately for her, the feelings he had for her didn’t reach those heights. When he became the Herald, he told you she lived in the astral world, always there in the core helping him navigate his new circumstances. He told you she was a friend; you knew she was his guilt.

A high-pitched sound was heard from somewhere in the lab, and both you and Sky looked at each other in silent confusion. It sounded like a kettle ready to boil over.

“Do you hear that?” She asked, looking around, and you nodded, looking around yourself.

She got up from the couch and took a step forward towards the two men sitting at the end of the table. The noise grew louder.

“Vik…” Sky started but was interrupted by a small explosion and three wheezing sounds coming from Jayce’s work table.

You ducked your head as three bolts carved themselves like bullets on the wall behind you. Viktor called your name, and Jayce ran to his station, turning off his still-working welder. You, however, were watching as three red stains appeared on Sky’s uniform.

You rushed forward as she fell to her knees, grabbing her just in time for her head not to hit the ground. She groaned and touched her hand in the three small holes in her abdomen.

“No, no, no.” You chanted, grabbing the blanket from the couch and putting pressure on her wounds. “Get someone!” 

Viktor limped his way to both of you and awkwardly plopped down on the floor, the brace on his leg making it difficult for him to sit down.

“Jayce! Get the enforcers we need to get her to the hospital.” Viktor shouted back as well, and you heard Jayce’s footsteps hit the ground running.

“Ouch,” Sky winced weakly, looking down at herself. “I hate blood.”

“We all do, dear.” You placed a bloody hand on her forehead. “You got to breathe and be calm. Help is coming.”

She nodded, and you looked at Viktor, a bloody pool starting to form at his knees. Both your hands were now holding the thick blanket to her midsection. You kept checking her breathing and making sure she was conscious, but the minutes seemed like hours.

In a moment of silence, you heard the sound of a crackling fire, an orange light shining above you. Craning your neck up, you saw the ceiling crack and move apart. Not like the glass shattering, but a slow movement as the ceiling pieces moved away. The crackling sound mixed with a slow bubbling of liquid. It reminded you of when your mother would boil caramel and condensed milk for her dessert. 

The mix of sounds and the slow movement of the cement was mesmerizing. Then a drop of a bright, hot, sizzling orange substance fell right into your gloved hand. For a moment you thought it would burn the leather away, but it simply got absorbed. It looked like a pebble hitting water, making small rounded waves. Before another drop fell, you quickly ripped the glove from your hand and caught the orange drip. Same effect, but before the little waves stopped, a bead of bright blue shot up to the ceiling. 

In the distance, you heard Viktor call your name, but you were far more interested in the liquid within the cracks going from red to blue.

You saw more tears of blue hit the ceiling as the sound of bubbling and crackling grew louder in your ears. Every time a drop landed, the cracks moved in a different direction. When it stopped, you saw a rune. A new rune.

Unlike the purple one, this one also had an urgency but not a devouring need to be spoken. It was more than the hunger to use it; it was the urgency of the situation. Like the arcane was telling you to trust it. It was still strange to have this outer pull to do something. The other runes didn’t have it.

The whole rune appeared, and you blinked, searing it into your memory. And when… whatever it was… knew you were gonna trust it, the world spun.

Your glowing hand was almost out, but it still had a bit of magic left, and it moved on its own. Speaking this rune was unlike any other; there was no intention, no need to flick it. You spoke it, and your hand snapped to the blanket. With a swift movement, you pushed the blanket away, blood gushing out of the wounds.

You, or better, whatever was moving you, turned your head to the wall in front of you, staring at the three little dots on the wall like there was nothing else more interesting in the world.

Your body worked on its own accord like you had felt in the council room when you wrote the runes on the ground. Sky’s blood felt warm against your hand for a few seconds, until you felt that same warmth drag up from your hand to your elbow, to your shoulder.

“What are you doing?” Viktor half shouted, his bloody hand grabbing your forearm, but when your gaze snapped to him, he quieted down with a gasp. 

You wanted to watch it happen, but whatever will you had to move had been sucked out, and you found yourself staring unemotionally at your friends' worried golden orbs. 

You felt a warmth go up your arm, into your clothed shoulder, as it traveled down your torso until it reached the mirrored spot Sky was hurt. 

And then the warm feeling became a searing, white burning pain. 

You’ve been punched in the gut several times. By Vi, by an array of Noxus soldiers. Even by a beautiful white and gold construct, that one hurt more feelings than flesh. It wasn’t pleasant; it made the air inside your body come out in a huff. It was painful, but it wasn’t this. 

This was like someone took a hot knife and was carving something into your flesh. You could almost smell the burned skin.

Viktor shouted your name, but there was nothing you could do to snap out of whatever trance that rune got you into. You wanted to scream in pain; you wanted to ask for help, but nothing came out. You kept your eyes focused on your friend at his concerned gaze, trying to convey the pain you were feeling, but you weren't sure he understood it. You didn’t feel any muscle on your face move, and for a moment you panicked.

Was this what the hex angels felt whenever Viktor took command of their bodies? Was this it? This lack of control over your body as your mind screamed in pain?

You felt your body fall to the ground with a thud, your heartbeat quickly drumming in your ears. You heard Viktor shuffling to your side, but the world was quickly becoming black. As your vision faded, you saw Sky's teary eyes blink as life crept back into her.

• ··········· • ············ •

@marshy-moo @victormydarling @blueesmiski @th3stup1dcat @22carolina08 @httpstes @that-one-shitty-blog @disa-pointment @sseleniaa @moons-lighttrail @aysluxe @fae-doodle @kitewa @local-mr-frog @bakusquadobsessed @cherry-cola-100 @optimistic-but-very-realistic @seeksrsnn @thecordelialetters @notsaelty @lansy-4 @ayupfrogg @sammypotato @wnbrw @lucycarlisleswife @noxturnalmoth @ren-ren23 @furblrwurblr @kapitankarate @mynicknameisgasoline @octo-octopie @birbwithhat @kneelarmhstrung @dedicated2viktor @elvishstudies

[drphonestre]

Jimmy | Psychological analysis of Mouthwashing's protagonist

Reminder: this analysis is based on my knowledge of psychology and on the sources I have seen in my studies (Psychanalytic and Clinic) at university. I apologize if my English isn’t perfectly understandable as it isn’t my primary language. Thank you for reading and feel free to express your POV, but also to share my post with credits (Phonestre).

Note: studying Jimmy’s personality and psychology isn’t an easy task as his anamnesis cannot be done completely, but only theoretically. Psychoanalysis isn’t much translated and possess mostly French and German terms. I have tried to translate them the best I could when I couldn’t find official translations.

Theory: Jimmy has BPD (borderline personality disorder) I will prove my point by evoking the symptoms from the clinical and psychoanalytic perspectives.

Psychanalytic perspective

First of all, it is highly noticeable that Jimmy is presenting symptoms of psychosis. Theses symptoms are a part of the borderline personality disorder (which is equivalent to the “trouble de la personnalité limite” which translates to “Limited personality disorder) in which we can find, as well, symptom of neurosis.

In Jimmy’s personality, the symptoms of neurosis which are the most noticeable are the need for control and the fact that he sets himself high standards. He needs to be the best and to succeed and tends to beat himself if he cannot be as good as he wants to be (saying that Curly is a way better captain than he could ever be, for example, and his mental breakdown after he realizes it).

We can also notice the Foreclosing (Forclusion in french) in Jimmy’s behavior and especially in his hallucinations : every mistake he make, every wrong step causing negative consequences ends up haunting him in a symbolic way, through visual and auditory hallucinations (for example : getting hunted by Polle which seems to be representing his culpability, the accumulation of his mistakes, and his possible unborn child with Anya. Each mistake from Jimmy only makes his hallucinations worse).

“The foreclosed symbolic will be brought back into reality through visual, auditory, etc. hallucinations. Delusional ideas can appear linked to sexuality, to the body, to love, or even to sexual intercourses.

There is a form of breach when it comes to the Other (with a big “O”, the unfamiliar individuals, the foreign), which makes building relationships or even having acquaintances difficult”

His only close friend seems to be Curly, in which he seems to recognize himself (the other with a small “o”, the familiar, the mirror).

In the limited personality disorder, there is a noticeable instability in the relation to others (with a small “o”), switching between idealization and depreciation.

In his friendship with Curly we clearly notice it :

Idealizing Curly as the best captain, the best version of himself, his best friend, the one he wants to be… (IDEALIZATION)

Raw hatred, feeling as if Curly was abandoning him, and that Curly was self-centered, egocentric, arrogant… (DEPRECIATION)

And yet, we can indeed acknowledge that he identifies himself to Curly (other with a small “o”), as he keeps switching between viewing Curly as the captain, then viewing himself as the captain, and showing some confusion about who really crashed the ship (thinking it’s Curly’s fault, then acknowledging it’s his own fault at the end, struggling with denial).

He wanted both: to have all that Curly had (job as a captain, success, and a form of social recognition) and to be Curly himself (getting a promotion from the company and starting a new life without difficulties, not ending up at the bottom again).

The imaginary registry will then be of major influence, causing paranoia with the persuasion of knowing what the others had planned and what they thought : persuaded that Curly wanted to abandon them and start his new life, that he didn’t like them and felt as if he deserved better than being with a bunch of “failures”, but also thinking that Swansea was keeping the cryo for himself, and that Anya was going to kill Curly when she locked herself in the medical room.

This is something we also find in the jouissance without limits (Lacan), he is persuaded that others will want to hurt him in one way or another and show a high instability in life (difficulties on earth, probably linked to having the past of a criminal).

“Jouissance causes an absence of phantasms at times, which is shown by a lack, or instability of personal goals (personal projects, professional, instable and/or that keeps changing) and irregular symptoms”

His relationship with others is driven by aggression (tendencies to yell on others, try to intimidate them, using his impulsivity to gain control on others by fear and authority) or erotism (for example: joking about being attracted to cartoon horses to Anya, SA…--> Inappropriate sexual behavior)

“The subject being stuck with difficulties to differentiate himself from others will stay in an erotic or aggressive attitude toward others.”

Jimmy seems to present a certain dysfunction in the symbolic registry : indeed, he seems to take idioms literally, for example “climbing at the top of the ladder”, needing to climb down to climb another ladder, saying that he keeps climbing even if Curly doesn’t. (Climbing at the top of the ladder means getting higher and higher in their profession in that situation).

Jim also seems to be attached to Curly, because he represents who and what he wants to be from one hand. It’s an attachment based on identification. The only moments where he seems to be friendlier and warmer with Curly is when he relates to him, or recognize himself in him (Before the crash : when Curly felt down and that they were both going to be in troubles, wanting to “fix” the situation for both of them. After the crash : realizing that they both failed when they tried to do their best, realizing ONLY when he ended up In a similar-ish situation)

“Most of his relations are empty of any warmth, and that most of the emotions are expressed in a formal way, the personal feelings entirely included. The identification seems like a solution.” (Deutsch)

Jimmy ended up identifying his job at pony express as his own life, so when he lost his job, he felt as if he lost everything. If he doesn’t identify himself as his role (co-captain, that gives him a sense of control), nor as Curly, he is nothing. He doesn’t have any particular hobbies out of weightlifting with Curly (source: devs), so everything seems to revolve either around Curly and or his job. This identification allows him to ignore his past filled with difficulties, which give him a sense of worth when it comes to his existence.

Clinical Perspective

For that part, I will use what I’ve learned from the DSM-5, for the Borderline personality disorder. Most of the things described as symptoms are fitting for Jimmy and what we can observe from his behavior through the game.

Unstable vision of himself and his identity

Unstable self-confidence, setting high standards toward himself (and others…) Ex. “I need to do everything myself” Dissociation under stressful events Hallucinations (Polle, Curly) Seeing himself in Curly

Unstable visions of his goals in life

Ex. Feeling like he lost everything because Pony Express doesn’t exist anymore, making him lose his job that gave a meaning to his life. Difficulties in the past with a noticeable demotivation (Ex. Curly had to motivate him to join the job, source : how fish is made)

Difficulties to understand and recognize the emotions of others with an interpersonal hypersensibility

Focus mainly on his own feelings and perceptions, which makes him have high expectations toward others and lack empathy

Perceptions of others based on negative aspects

Focused on what he thinks about others, points out everyone’s flaws : Seeing Swansea as a liar and useless, seeing Anya as useless and whiny, seeing Curly as self-centered and hypocrite, …

Intensity and Instability in relationships

Ex. With Curly --> strong bond but that keeps switching between “you’re the best” and “I hate you”

Mistrust toward others with suspicions of hidden intentions

Ex. Persuaded that Curly wanted to get rid of him and move on, that Swansea was trying to save himself, that Anya didn’t want to take care of Curly…

Needs of validation from others

Jealousy toward Curly, angry and annoyed whenever he hears about Curly being an excellent captain, wants to be him instead and getting the praise, doing his hardest to be called as captain

Anxiety toward abandonment (real or imaginary)

Saw the end of Pony Express as an abandonment from Curly which caused an episode

Unstable attachment pattern

Insecure Ambivalent. Ex. Sometimes, he listen to Curly expressing the way he feels, and does the same (trust), and at other moments, he doesn’t even want to hear him say anything and turns abusive

Negative affects

Anxiety, depression (with suicidal thoughts, ex. The crash), feeling of emptiness

Disinhibition

Impulsivity and risks taking (the crash, his behavior toward Anya and Curly, bursts of Anger…)

Antagonism

Hostility (always into conflicts in a way or another, with a passive-aggressive, sarcastic behavior, tendencies to victimize himself)

In men, BPD shows itself in a rather different way than in women. We can notice more : moods swings, difficulties to regulates own emotions, fear of abandonment, outbursts of anger or rage (resulting in violent behavior and more impulsivity), episodes of dissociations.

After all, his job brought him a sense of stability, of control… Something he seemed to not be able to achieve due to his “difficulties on earth”.

The loss of his job and the feeling of abandonment seems to have caused an episode, and even a “split” in the way he views Curly. The crash of the ship is nothing but the consequence of impulsivity, caused by the emotional despair. After all, we don’t really know… what if Anya didn’t hide the gun ? maybe he would have used it immediately to end himself. After all he could easily get the code to gain access to it.

The fear of what could happen once back on earth accumulated with all the negative, stressful feelings contributed to his impulsive acts. He knew he would end up “at the bottom of the ladder” again because of what he did to Anya (and that she was pregnant). He was probably fearing to get abandoned by Curly, who seemed to have done a lot to help him get through the difficulties of his past, since he helped him to get his job and become co-captain. Curly seemed to be his main source of recognition and pride, since he always pointed the positive in Jimmy, and believed in him. (Curly could be what we consider the “favorite person” of Jimmy, which is quite common in patients with BPD).

“I hope it hurts”

“pain is how we know we're still living”

From Jimmy perspective, it could be linked to him feeling constant pain, which is common in BPD. “I hope it hurts” could be seen as  “I hope you can get in my shoes”, or could simply being hope that Curly survived. I don’t think the second sentence was meant to be mean, but more of a fact that he relates, in a way.

“You are what you eat”. I think this popular sentence works well to talk about the scene where he cuts and eats Curly’s leg. Cannibalism is a metaphor I often saw in patients with bpd, and it’s true that the barrier between hate and love (whether it being friendship, romantic, etc.) is incredibly thin. So, it tends to mix together. I think that Jim might have craved being Curly, the captain, so badly that he ate a part of him to become him. I mean, in the end, he made Curly eat a part of himself, as if giving him back the role of captain, and right after that he apologized and took responsibility.

Psychosis allowed him to adapt post-crash, making reality more acceptable through delusion and hallucinations, so he doesn’t snap and kill himself. (ex. Victimization, feeling of persecution and fear of abandonment, pushing him to blame others for his own mistakes and misery).

This is why at the end, when he realizes that he is the culprit (since there is no one else but him and Curly, confronting him to reality), he ends up killing himself and saving Curly (since he still cared about him and genuinely felt sorry, after all, he thought the crash would kill them all, not only put Curly in such a state).

Indeed, people suffering from psychosis tend to snap and make a suicide attempt when they are confronted to raw reality, that is often unbearable for them if filled with guilt.

[theressaicon]

m!Alien x gn!reader part 1

Made out story about gn!reader living with an extraterrestrial after it's not safe anymore to live on Earth. Gradually, they get to know each other's races and become closer...Make time to read the whole story, it is quite long.

It's interesting to realize that you're an endangered specie. It's incredible how 8.2 billion people have become four thousand individuals.

It lasted 2 years. There was an electric charge in the air with radioactive radiation that shook the atmosphere so intensely that it caused the worst diseases in most people, leading to deaths.

The government had already admitted the existence of aliens a few years ago, it wasn't a new topic. Although as a civilian you didn't have enough information... So you were quite confused when they took you to a constructed platform with inhuman machines.

✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋

„What happens to the animals?" A little elementary school boy asked you while holding your hand. „The animals from Earth are already loaded onto the big ships that will be taking off." you explained, trying to stay as calm as possible.

The machines around you were silent, the only noise being the human voices of the group you stood in. „And when will we take off?" he questioned again. „When they tell us, they'll take us to one of those ships too. I don't know when that will be."

Tall figures in armor marched from station to station, chattering in a language you didn't know. You couldn't see a bit of their skin, they looked more like androids. Their protective suits were white with black parts. They reminded you a bit of Ironman's suit in terms of design.

A huge flying disc, emitting purple light, flew over the group of people you were standing in. It was once again silent, but its majestic appearance left everyone speechless.

You were sitting on the ground, some were having a conversation, others were quiet. The little boy played with your fingers while telling you about his interests, which helped you think about anything other than the fear of leaving the planet.

„...but the Mosasaurus is the biggest, that's why I like it the most! I have a lot of toys at home and I have about three mosasauruses. I got one for Christmas and my mom and dad bought me the other two." „Wow, you have good knowledge!" You praised him.

You were never drawn to children, but when they put you in this group and he was the only little child there, you wanted to keep an eye on him.

"I wonder where they are now. I haven't seen them in a long time." Your face turned a little sad because you knew the truth, but you didn't have the heart to tell him. "But I'm sure they're okay! Dad always protected mom and me, he'll take care of her." he said optimistically and you had to hide the tear that started to flow down your face.

✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋

„Group twelve, the ship is ready, I ask you to follow me." A robotic voice, sounding similar to Google Translate, came from the helmet of a tall, armored extraterrestrial. The conversations fell silent and everyone followed him (?).

The large gate led into a massive extraterrestrial spacecraft that must have been at least half a mile squared. „I beg for your attention, humans." the translatoric voice began.

„You are one of the last humans in the universe, we cannot afford any losses." Another figure pointed to a device they were holding in their hand. „You will be marked with this device before you board." The group began to chatter in disbelief again, before they were silenced. „It's painless, it works similarly to a human barcode."

They shone the device on the back of our necks and a tattoo with strange symbols appeared there. They weren't lying when they said it was painless. You looked back at the landscape of your home planet for the last time. You tried to soak up the image of green trees in the distance that you might never see again in your life.

When the gate closed, a wave of mixed emotions swept over you. You suddenly realized how lost everything was and how afraid you were of the unknown. You didn't know what was waiting for you. All you knew was that the extraterrestrial community was evacuating the few people left, including you.

After you boarded the ship, they planned to put you in individual pods for who knows how long. Before leaving, the little boy waved goodbye to you. That was the last time you saw him.

The last thing you remember is being given a small capsule that you swallowed. And then emptiness. Nothing, just a blank mind. At least for the moment, those unbearable emotions left you.

✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋

'Is that light?' you asked yourself. A gentle voice spoke to you in an unknown language. Their tone was reminiscent of a person greeting their cat after returning from work.

When your eyes started to function properly, you saw a tall being in a white uniform and a light in her hand, that had three long fingers. You assumed it was a woman. She must have been examining your condition after you woke up. She had dark blue skin with white dots around her ear area, however she didn't have any earlobes.

She played a recording from a player in her other hand announcing that you had arrived at the location. „Before disembarking, I will ask you to consume this." it continued as the woman handed you a plate with a funny looking white puree. It didn't look appealing.

But for some reason you were terribly hungry, so you ate the food, even though it didn't taste nicely.

Without further explanation, she led you to a small, colorless room with only a strange chair. When the automatic door closed behind you, you felt the room move with you, it seemed like it was used for transportation.

You sat there for a long time, your only companions being your thoughts. You had so many questions that you didn't know the answers to, maybe you didn't even want to know them.

It seemed like an hour, you were bored and anxious. You explored the entire room, hoping to find a button, something, anything, even just a discarded hair tie, to keep yourself busy and distracted. However, you ended up huddled in the corner of the room, where your eyelids started to droop again.

Before you could fall asleep, the automatic door across from you opened. It signaled you to go outside of it, but something inside you prevented you from doing so, the room was safe after all.

You stayed in that corner for a moment before you gathered your courage and stood up. The path led to a white hall, where there was nothing. You finally got to the end of it and waited to see what would happen next.

Sensors appeared from the ceiling and walls, scanning you with red light. It made the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Another door opened in front of you, leading to a room with a high ceiling.

The room was no longer lacking colors. The space reminded you of a dining room thanks to the square table in the middle that looked like it was made of acrylic or a similar material to a bathtub.

A tall extraterrestrial walked in from another room. Very tall. Taller than the figures who helped you board. No wonder the place had such high ceilings.

Their size scared you a little and you took a step back. They squatted down and smiled as they showed you two small devices. They had placed one of them where their earlobe would probably be, but instead they only had a hole like a reptile.

The second one was handed to you. You understood that you were supposed to put it on too. When you placed it behind your ear, it gently installed itself. You silently looked back at the 'person' who had given it to you.

„Greetings." He said invitingly in a male voice that sounded more human and not like a cheap translator. You stood there in front of him with your eyes wide open. „Heh, could I ask you to say something? I need to see if the translators are working." With a swallow you answered him. „Uh yeah, sorry."

„Wonderful! I'm glad that there won't be any language problems in communication." What a cheerful alien. Even though the alien here was you. You didn't know what to call his race, so you stuck with that term. He stood up and placed his hand on your back to guide you.

„Come on, let's sit in the living room, it'll be more comfortable there. I'm sure you have a lot of questions, you can ask me anything without shame." He sounded so excited.

The next room truly looked like a living room, just in a modern style. What caught your attention the most was the huge stylish couch that was the same color as his skin. The color was a pale blue to grayish, and somehow it had a calming effect on you.

It took you a little while to climb onto the couch next to him, after all, it was made for his size. „Well? You can ask ahead now." hr reminded you. „What now?" The smile on his face dropped a little as you continued. „What will happen with me now?"

When he finally understood your question, he started smiling widely again. „Of course, so... We cannot have your species in one place, each individual will be distributed across half of this planet individually to different homes, where we will take care of you until your reservation is complete."

Gulping, you stared at him like he was talking without a translator. „Reservation?" „Mhm, a place where we'll let you evolve for a few more hundred years so you can finally join our community."

„Um.. That sounds like you're treating us like rabbits." Ah, forgive me, but my translator doesn't know the word 'rabbit' because it has nothing to associate it with, in other words, this term doesn't exist in our language." Don't they know rabbits? Well, you should have expected that they wouldn't have the same animals here as on Earth.

„However... You can compare it to children treating. We just have to let you grow up, let you take your first steps. We can only interfere with that slightly. But the disaster on Earth spoiled our plans a little." His comparison didn't sound so bad anymore, you accepted it.

„So I'm going to live here with you now?" you guessed out loud. „Temporarily, until they relocate you" he replied. You were swaying in place with nervousness. Despite the explanation, you were still feeling uneasy by the whole situation.

„Hey, don't worry, I've read a few books about humans, I know the necessary things, I'll take a good care of you, you can trust me." You licked your dry lips and mumbled. „I think I need some peace and quiet now, I feel.. overwhelmed." „I understand. Can I perhaps show you your room?" he offered and you simply nodded.

It was a spacious apartment, you noticed a lot of differences from a apartment you considered normal. Besides the high ceilings and strange furniture, you noticed that none of the rooms were separated by doors. You wondered why, so you asked him.

"And why do YOU have doors?" he asked you back. "Well, for privacy and... security." "You're not in any danger here, and as far as privacy goes, I'll give you as much space as you need." His kindness relaxed you more and more.

You reached the room where there was a huge round bed with a blanket and a large pillow with interesting patterns on it. Spiral decorative formations resembling plants hung from the ceiling, and on one side was something like a wardrobe you assumed. Although it was still unfamiliar, it was the least alien room you had been in all day.

„It's all yours here, if you want to add anything, just say so. I want you to feel comfortable here." You took a deep breath and exhaled. "Thank you... for being considerate." „Of course, don't mention it. I'll leave you alone here, you can even fall asleep. If you need anything, you can find me in the room opposite yours, it's my room. Also, feel free to wander around if you'd feel like it. You're not here as a visitor, we're more like roommates now."

He was about to leave before you asked him the last question. „How should I call you?" „My name is Lissinlaciss, but you can call me by a shorter nickname... Like Lissin or Laciss, it's up to you, I'll answer on both."

Nodding, you told him your name in return. Before he left, he reminded you to take off the translator so it doesn't bother you in your sleep. Then he gently tapped twice on the wall and the light in your room went out. After you took off your translator you lay under the blanket, which was unexpectedly heavy, but pleasant to the touch. The pillow was fluffy and the mattress soft. Your whole body relaxed and even though you were afraid of the future, you really felt safe.

✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋

Despite your constant efforts, you couldn't fall asleep. Was it the new environment? Was it the light coming from the hallway and the room opposite? But that would be absurd, you couldn't fall asleep in your own home without a night light.

Your goal was to get some rest and organize your thoughts, which you did. So you decided to climb out of the bed and check your surroundings.

You went to look in the room at the end of the hall. It was dark, so you tried tapping on the wall like... he did. Damn, you forgot his name. The tapping worked, the lights actually came on. You assumed it was the bathroom.

It was a little unusual, but the toilet looked... like a toilet. At least something. There was no toilet paper in sight, you'll have to ask him about that.

On your way back, you peeked into the room where your tall pale blue roommate was supposed to be. And there he was. He was sitting in something designly similar to a dentist's chair. He was looking at some hologram and making strange gestures with his hands, maybe that was how he controlled it. You didn't need anything yet, so you continued exploring.

You walked through the living room to the dinning room, where you first appeared. Those were all the rooms that were here. Where was a kitchen in that case? Is it possible that he has his meals imported? You wanted to test if tapping on the wall worked for all the lights. And yes, the lights did indeed turn off and after another tapping you turned them back on.

'Interesting', you thought. What if you tapped somewhere else? Maybe on the floor? You knelt down and did it. A lot of things started to emerge from the walls, including kitchen utensils... Knives, spoons, weird shaped frying pans, probably a teapot and so on.

It startled you a bit, you started tapping on the floor again to make it all hide again. It stressed you out when a lot more things started to appear. You stood up in panic and grabbed your head. „No, no, no, no!!.."

You turned around with the plan to tell the alien, but instead you saw him standing where the door would normally be. Giggling, he observed you with amusement.

You flinched when you heard his suddenly deep voice in another language. You touched your translator in confusion, thinking it wasn't working... But it wasn't there! You forgot to put it back to your ear when you got out of bed. You glanced up at him only to see him handing it to you. Damn that's a bit embarrassing.

When you finally put it on, he repeated what he said, this time in that sweet human voice. „Is there anything I can help you with, Y/N?~" his tone teasing. You stammered as you described to him what you were doing.

„Nothing's wrong, don't worry. Come on, I'll show you how to hide it." You two walked over to the kitchen counter and he ran one finger over its surface twice. Then it all got into it's original place. „I assume you have it a little different on Earth, am I right?" Lissinlaciss asked.

„We have to control it manually... Do all apartments have this type of controling? Like the tapping and... you know." „Everyone has it set up a little differently, but almost everyone use the same technology."

You stood there in silence for a moment until he decided to speak. "I need to finish something, if you wait a moment, I'll get to you right away." You didn't want to be a burden, so you protested that you would just go back to your room. "No, no, we'll have to buy you some clothes anyway, what you're wearing might attract too much attention. You can come with me, I'll show you my room."

After the incident in the kitchen/dinning room, you preferred to avoid touching anything, including walls, not wanting to accidentally trigger something again. Lissinlaciss sat you down on his bed with the same blanket and pillow as yours.

You scanned him as he sat in that strange chair again, gesticulating with his hands. On the hologram in front of his face, it looked like he was writing, only it was in a slightly irregular style; not left to right, not right to left, not bottom to top, or vice versa. You couldn't understand the system.

After a moment, he sighed and turned off the device by tapping it twice again. "I was sending an administrative message saying you arrived safely." he explained to you. „I see." „..." „..."

„..Okay, let's go pick out some clothes for you." And with that you reached a wall, which he placed the back of his hand against, and the wall disappeared pixel by pixel. You couldn't help but be surprised yet amazed. When you went out into the hallway, the wall appeared again behind you.

You stepped onto a platform that took you three floors down. You passed through a gate and saw a street where various creatures were moving. Some were similar to Lissinlaciss, others were completely different in shape and color.

Your translator was able to translate everything you heard. The speech didn't match the movements of their mouths, but you understood their conversations. The path was made out of the same material as the floor in Lissin's apartment. That is, Lissin's and yours. You couldn't avoid the looks from the other people, but they didn't look at you with disgust, just interest. Despite their curiosity, they quickly minded their own businesses.

„There is no need to be nervous, Y/N. I read that your race is very judgmental, you won't find much of that here." He told you, noticing your stiffness. With that, your anxiousness faded away.

Lissin walked slowly so you'd keep up with him, considering that you were half his size. The street you were walking on didn't have the racket you were used to in your city. It was a pleasant change.

After a few minutes of walking he says; „They make custom clothes here, there are more shops, but I doubt they'd have anything in your size." Without your response, you walked inside and were immediately greeted by a woman of the same species as him. Slightly shorter, her skin with a darker blue yet stile pale to grayish. „Lissin, greetings! What can I do for you?" 'Right, his name is Lissin- something.' you said to yourself hoping to remember his name this time.

„Hello, Misxi'de, I'm here today with a new being who needs something to wear, I thought you would be the best choice." Lissin announced back, pointing at your small form. Waving, she smiled at you, squealing with joy.

„Would it be inappropriate to say you are adorable???" It was hard for her to hold back screams. „Um.." You've somehow lost your words. „Come on, I'll measure you." She stated as she stood up and motioned for you to follow her. Lissin walked beside you for your comfort.

She stood you on a line etched into the floor. You expected her to pull out a tape measure, but instead, a light began to flicker from the line below you. "Done, you can go sit down." She said calmly and went into the next room.

Lissin watched you try to climb onto a chair in the waiting room. Although it was comical, he held back his laughter and, with your permission, picked you up to help you sit on it. „Thanks." You mumbled ashamed.

"I'll get you some stools for our apartment so you don't have these problems at home." He smiled at you and put on a bracelet with strings attached to the pads of his fingers.

You were very inattentive today and only now did you realize that Lissin has seven fingers. Light shone from the strings, forming a hologram above his open palm. With gentle movements of his fingers, he controlled what was displayed on it.

A white stool in 3D began to be projected, which he gradually rotated. „What about this one? It doesn't look bad." Then he showed another one, a dark one with various ornaments. „This one is also stylish." He glanced at your shocked face. "You probably don't know this device either, do you..." You looked away from the hologram and answered. "I only know touch devices, we call them phones. Or we use computers..." You chatted while Lissin projected different stools on the hologram. "I know the term 'computer', it's used in travel devices like flying discs."

You liked a pale blue stool that was shown after a while. "I like this one." you admitted, pointing at it. "It would go well with your apartment in terms of color." "You're right, it would go well with OUR apartment." He corrected you. "Right..."

At that moment, the tall woman, Misxi'de, came back and told you to go see her again. Misxi'de pushed back the collar of your shirt a little and placed a small round button on your chest. You had no idea how it stuck to you, almost like a magnet on a fridge, but you almost didn't feel it, it didn't hurt.

„I ask you to go to the cabin and take off your clothes." Your cheeks turned red. „A-all of my clothes?" you asked, unsure. „Of course, when you're naked, you'll press the button on your chest and it will starts to project on your body how new clothes would fit you.

You crawled into the cabin and did everything as instructed. The hologram on you was not even recognizable, you just didn't feel any substance on you. You slowly showed up with clenched fists, still feeling uncomfortable without the feel of your clothes. It showed how you would look like wearing something similar to a tent dress.

They observed you curiously and nodded their heads. "Yeah, it suits them, it doesn't even need any adjustments." She said and Lissin agreed with her opinion. "Please press the button again so we can see another." She continued and you obeyed.

There was no glitch between the projection changes, you breathed a sigh of relief. Now it was showing a sleeveless chest covering with pants that looked like they were made of plastic. You looked at yourself in disgust and Lissin commented. „Looks like you don't like this one.." Misxi'de turned to him. „And you do!? Boy, I thought you had a little bit of sense of style!" „Heyy..." „Next one!" You pressed the button again.

This time it looked identical to the type of clothes Lissin was wearing; a collar over the shoulders covering the chest and a long loincloth reaching down to the floor. You felt a little too exposed for your taste, but it suited you.

„Ooo now that's what I'm talking about!" Cheered Misx'de at the sight of you. Lissin on the other hand wasn't saying a thing. He just stared at you, lips slightly parted, mesmerized. She snapped her fingers in front of his eyes to get a reaction. „Ah, yes... This one is good." He stated and scratched the back of his neck.

„Good?? They look stunning!" She corrected him and turned her attention back to you. „What about you, how do you like this style, dear?" You swallowed and looked at yourself again. „Well, it's a bit revealing, however I saw a few people in it on the way here, so I have nothing to be ashamed of. I like it."

„I'm SO glad you like our cultural clothing!" Misx'de blurted out. So that was the reason why this clothing was so common... It's quite possible that you'll fit in better because of it. You chose more different outfits together and then Misx'de... went to make them for you? You didn't know if a machine 'sewed' them or she did, but that didn't matter.

You two thanked her for her services and she wished you a pleasant stay on their planet. 'What a kind extraterrestrial.' you thought for yourself as you walked out of the store with the identical clothing Lissin had.

The looks from passersby were smiling, and even though you were showing more skin than you were used to, you weren't worried at all.

You walked back to the building you had your apartment in. Inside, you met a gentleman of a different race than Lissin. „Good afternoon, Lissinlaciss, where are you coming from?" the red skinned alien with white dots all over his body asked. Lissin exclaimed an answer.

„We were just at Misx'de's, choosing new clothes for Y/N." The red one, as tall as Lissin, lowered his gaze and looked at you. „Ahh, you must be the human Laciss wouldn't shut up about! I wondered how you'd look like." You glanced at Lissin for a moment and noticed him looking away.

„Anyway, my name's Bah'rah, nice to meet you, lil human." He put the back of his hand to you. It was a strange action, you didn't know what to do or how to react, so you gently squeezed his four-fingered hand and shook it.

The two of them looked at you in silence for a moment, and then Bah'rah burst out laughing. You felt a little embarrassed, but then Lissin placed his hand on your shoulder. „Sorry, I probably should have taught you some basics, but don't worry, we'll catch up to that together."

When Bah'rah finally stopped laughing, he wiped his tear and grabbed your hand. „Look, like this;" He placed the backs of your hands together. „Ah, I see... apologies I didn't know." you admitted and laughed nervously. „Naah, you had no way to find out, that's totally fine!"

After the boys did the same, you said your goodbyes. When the platform took you to the third floor and you came to the wall with a strange mark on it, Lissin drew a cross on the wall with one finger and finally placed the back of his hand on the wall. The wall disappeared pixel by pixel and you walked inside before it reappeared once again.

Lissin handed you the bag with your new clothes and went with you to your room where he showed you how the wardrobe works.

„Nothing complicated, you just draw a tiny circle onto the surface. Go ahead and try." You walked closer and made that little circle on the wardrobe with your index finger. A short high-pitched sound was heard and the wardrobe opened in the same way as an automatic doors in supermarkets would. After tiding up your clothes, all you had to do was press the display inside it at your face level to close the wardrobe again.

He awkwardly asked you if you were hungry, to which you admitted that you were a little. It was almost dinner time, so he suggested that he'll prepare the food while you clean yourself up.

The shower in the bathroom worked differently than you were used to. He stood you in the middle and showed you how to control everything. Instead of water, your body would be covered in mist, which would then evaporate.

„Then you walk over here and place your palm on this touchpad. Warm air will blow on you, which will dry you. But don't worry, it won't be too hot. It will stop by itself when you're dry, and then you can put on the clothes you have over there." „I think I understand."

„Okay, I'll make dinner. If you need anything, shout, I'm sure I'll hear you since there's no door. But fear not, I won't come here unless you call." You smiled in confidence and he then walked away, leaving you to the mercy of the bathroom.

You undressed and placed both palms on the wall next to you. A mist began to appear, clinging only to one part reserved for the shower. The mist was getting into your mouth and eyes, which bothered you a bit, Lissin probably didn't have a problem with this considering he was twice your size.

After about two minutes, the mist returned to where it came from and you touched the touchpad for it to dry you. The warm air felt so nice on your body, you almost didn't want to leave. But then it stopped and you were forced to go get dressed.

The dining room turned into the kitchen, where Lissin was preparing the promised meal. He wrapped a mixture of various plants, probably vegetables, into a transparent dough, which was then pressed out by an automatic machine. In the end, it looked like a fresh spring roll that was half a meter long.

„It looks delicious." you announced, startling him slightly. „O-oh... Thank you, I hope you'll like the taste as well." You noticed two soft balloons that were part of the floor placed by the table.

„You can sit on one of the damig'hen" He said the strange word in a deeper voice. Your translator probably didn't have a suitable translation for it. It sounded slightly creepy in his own voice, but you shrugged it off snd sat on one of the balloons and tried to repeat its name.

„Damn..ing.. han.?" you repeated in a low whisper. „Ah, did it not translate?" „...No." „I was talking about those white things, although you understood well." Lissin cut the roll in half and put each on the table for the both of you. Without plates. Without cutlery.

„Ahh, I'm not sure I'll eat it all, there's a lot of it." you confessed at the sight of the portion. „That's fine, eat as much as you want, no need to overeat yourself."

You both waited for the other to start eating. You sacrificed yourself and started. Grabbed the roll in both hands you bit into its edge. Your eyes lit up at the delicious taste. „Oh my gosh- I have no idea what it is but this is the most delicious food I have ever tried! Fuck..."

Lissin was shocked and silent for a moment. „F-fuck??" he repeated in question. „OH- I'm sorry, forgive me, I shouldn't have cursed..." guild and shame washed over you. „No! No, no, Y/N, that is absolutely okay, I curse as well! It's just... that I have never heard someone use coitus as a curse word before."

Was he serious?

„Oh crumbs... Still, it was inappropriate. I apologize." „Worry not." Then you started to eat again. The thing troubling you was that Lissin was still having his eyes glued on you. 'A bit disturbing' you thought. „Are you not going to eat?" you decided to ask. „...I am." Chewing another piece, you stared back at him.

Lissin shifted in his seat petitely. His body language showed discomfort. It was strange to think so, but it seemed like he didn't want to eat his food in front of you. You put your roll back on the table. "Are you done eating? Already? Won't you be hungry?" Lissin asked worriedly. "I'll start eating when you start."

Now his eyes were fixed on the portion in front of him. "My race doesn't eat like yours." He mumbled. "I just don't want you to feel... well... I don't want you to lose your appetite." He admitted defeatedly. You didn't understand his concerns.

„Are you really that uncomfortable eating in front of me? ...Would it help if I went to eat somewhere else?" „WAIT NO! That would be SO rude from my side- No. No please don't." He raised his voice in fear of you leaving. „Well unless it's you who wishes to do so." Lissin added.

„Enlighten me then." you told him confidently. After gulping, he started looking in your direction again. „Humans use... their mouths for various activities." You gave him a side eye for starting a sentence like that. „...By that I mean breathing, previously used as self-defense, taking in water and.. food." „Mhm.. right." „Did I miss something?" „Nahh..." you lied.

„Meanwhile innyli'sez, my race, uses upper mouth just for breathing." „Okay, I understand that so far." You tried to keep your attention on Lissin, despite the urge to dig into that delicious roll again.

„I guess it would be better.. and easier- if I just showed you..." He straightened his back and knelt on the pillow balloon beneath him to raise himself a little higher. The edge of the table was at the level of his lower abdomen.

The straight line that was carved horizontally into his stomach began to open up. You had noticed the line before, but you didn’t want to mention it for fear it would be a sensitive subject for him. „..I thought it was a scar?" His stomach opened up completely and teeth started to protrude.

„Didn't you notice when we were outside that all of my race had this?" He asked confused. „You see, I was just looking at the ground out of nervousness. Not at people around." You were fascinated by his open toothy organ and leaned in to get a better look.

„Aren't you disgusted? Aren't you afraid?" Lissin carried mixed feelings. „Actually, no... I find it cool." Relaxation crept over him at your positive words. You sat back down in your seat and continued eating your dinner.

„Okaaay, now we can eat together, so bon appetite." you stated. With a warm smile he moved the roll to his lower mouth and started eating too.

With a giant mouth like his, it was clear that he would finish it first, even though he started eating after you. And when you said you probably wouldn't eat it all, you were right. You had a lot left, but you were full and satisfied. He had the rest of the roll preserved with another kitchen gadget that you also didn't know how it's being used.

✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋≬⊑⊱✣⊻⋋

Lissin also used the shower and showed up in a cloth that was white, like most of his clothes. He noticed before you did, how you started to yawn. „Let's go to sleep, what do you say?" He offered. „Is it dark outside already?" you asked. „Well, here the planet is never completely turned away from the star, and there is almost never light on the opposite sides of the planet."

„So there are no windows in the apartments here so you can sleep well at night?" „That may be one of the reasons." He walked you to your room and instead of tapping the wall twice to turn on the lights, he began to gently drum on it repeatedly with all seven fingers, resembling raindrops. Your room began to glow with a faint orange light. "That's nice..." you faintly said. "I figured the warm light would be more bearable for your eyes."

You crawled under the covers and yawned again. „I hope I can sleep this time, I couldn't this afternoon." Lissin knelt by your bed and leaned on one hand for support. „I'm not surprised you didn't fall asleep, as you slept the entire way here, which took 13 kar'jevics." The translator couldn't find a suitable translation again and his original voice rang in your ears again. „Umm... how much is 13.. kar- that thing?" „Let me calculate... Hmm, yeah.. Something around two months."

„WHAT!??!" „...What?"

„I thought I slept for like... a day! How could I sleep for two whole months!?" You didn't expect this information before going to bed. „Well, it wasn't two whole months... More like 55 days or so." „That's not any better!" you argued.

„You know what? I have an idea." Lissin stood up and came to the center of the room. He stomped his foot on the floor four times and a strange sound began to echo from all corners of the room. It scratched your brain so well- It was way better than a white noise.

Your body completely shut down and you closed your eyes due to the heavy eyelids. Lissin gently and carefully removed your translator from your ear and turned off the light. Before he left, you heard him say something in his own language in a weak voice. With the last of your strength, you opened your mouth and whispered "Good night to you too." He chuckled because you were perfectly right with your answer, because he indeed wished you 'good night.'

Illustration of your first meeting :3

part 2!

[ephemeralinstance]

Lavellan's arc

Beyond the connection to Solas, there's another reason why the Inquisitor should have been the protagonist of the next game.

For a Lavellan Inquisitor specifically, they have this complex and fascinating journey with respect to being elven. They are separated from their clan (at least to some degree against their will) and pressured to become the symbol and leader of a religion which has done terrible things to their people in the past. Then there is the Temple of Mythal, which shatters some of their illusions about elven history. And of course in Trespasser they learn even more difficult things about elven history. They may also learn about the story of Ameridan and his own struggles as an elven leader, and/or have to make a choice about what to do with their vallaslin. 

The problem is that this journey feels very unfinished, for reasons which actually have nothing to do with Solas. We leave Lavellan at the end of Trespasser, after all these huge revelations shattering their view of the past, and we never have a chance to see this arc resolved: there is no opportunity on screen for them to process it, to be reconciled with their people and their culture, to decide how to go forward as an elf with this new knowledge, to decide how much they should share with other elves. Given that there is so much focus on elves and elven history in DA4, allowing people with Lavellan Inquisitors to have Lavellan as the protagonist of the next game would have offered an opportunity to resolve all of this. 

Obviously, I appreciate that not everyone has a Lavellan Inquisitor, so this is not a universal issue; but for everyone who does, Trespasser is a really frustrating place to end Lavellan's story, regardless of how they feel about Solas. And it is the case that their story is effectively ended there, because Lavellan's brief appearances in Veilguard offer almost nothing in terms of how they have evolved in their relationship with elven culture and history, so this arc is never resolved.

I did appreciate the fact that the Solasmancing Lavellan is shown to be fluent in elven. Personally I did not interpret that as being to do with their relationship with Solas specifically, but rather as a gesture at Lavellan's evolving relationship with their culture - it tells us that they have deliberately sought out more knowledge of the elven language and elven history, they speak the language proudly, they have presumably made some kind of peace with all these revelations. I wish that evolution had been left more up to the player or shown more explicitly, but I like the fact that it's there. Still, I think it's a real pity that for all the Lavellans who didn't romance Solas there's no sense at all of any culmination to this part of their journey. 

[mirror-and-mind]

Why is the 2000s Kusuriuri called Ri and the one in the latest movie called Kon?

I watched the series before and recently finished the movie, I know that Kon mentioned the 64 guardians so I get that the story has more guardians who do the same job besides him, but I still don't know why those are their names? Is it fandom's names or Canon?

Overall I love Mononoke and I'm so glad for the Movie!

The short answer is that the director of both the series and the movie released a YouTube video and story bible pages, and in those, he revealed that the first Medicine Seller's sword is named Ri and the second Medicine Seller's sword is named Kon (or Kun). The fandom has effectively named the Medicine Sellers after their swords.

Here's the long answer:

The system of the Medicine Sellers and their swords is based on an ancient Chinese text called the I Ching, or the Book of Changes. In the I Ching, the elements of the world and the changes that take place in it are defined by eight Trigrams (the bagua) and 64 hexagrams. The eight Trigrams are represented by three lines each, hence the name "Trigram." Here are the eight symbols:

☰ ☱ ☲ ☳ ☴ ☵ ☶ ☷

The solid lines are "yang" lines, and the broken lines are "yin" lines. In the order shown, the Trigrams' names are:

Qian (Heaven Trigram)

Dui (Lake Trigram)

Li, or Ri (Fire Trigram)

Zhen (Thunder Trigram)

Xun (Wind Trigram)

Kan (Water Trigram)

Gen (Mountain Trigram)

Kun, or Kon (Earth Trigram)

The Fire (Ri) and Earth (Kon) Trigrams are the swords of our two Medicine Sellers. In the movie, the second Medicine Seller introduces his sword as Kon:

Obviously, this is not the translation Netflix provides, either because they couldn't correctly translate the terminology or because they chose not to. I modified these subs to use more accurate language based on a translation provided by @kastellaran, who also translated both of the story bible pages Director Nakamura released. [page 1] [page 2]

[Note: The term "Shuuga" is not from the I Ching, and seems to be something Director Nakamura invented specifically for the Mononoke universe. The second story bible page explains more about it, but you don't need to grasp it to understand the I Ching stuff.]

The "64 guardians," or the Medicine Sellers, are the 64 hexagrams in the I Ching. Each hexagram is created by stacking two Trigrams—hence the name "hexagram"—yielding 64 recombinations. For example:

䷃ ䷎ ䷛ ... [Wikipedia has a complete list.]

In the I Ching, the entry for each hexagram describes changes occurring in the lives of human beings and how to respond to them. Those descriptions are the basis for the text's traditional use in divination practices.

So, in short, the Medicine Sellers and their actions are metaphors for how the I Ching describes the 64 hexagrams, and their swords are metaphors for the greater forces (Heaven, Earth, Fire, etc.) that make up the hexagrams and are represented by the eight Trigrams.

But all you really need to know is that the swords are canonically named Ri and Kon, and the Medicine Sellers are referred to by the names of their swords. :p

[delawaredetroit]

Re the league not having an ideology: i think what's frustrating is that they were perfectly capable of synthesizing an ideology if horikoshi had like 1 let them and 2 treated their ideologies like they were something beyond just a personal worldview.

USJ Tomura gets a lot of flack in universe for not having an ideology beyond wanting to do violence but he's not really wrong in his talking points either. Hero Society condemns violence but some violence is a celebrated spectacle (ie the State (hero society) via Heroes committing violence on who the State/ Hero Society labels a Villain or Criminal) Tomura's ideas at that point weren't the most sophisticated but he was onto something. Historicallly States used language to justify violence all the time. For example: Texas Rangers in the 1910s often accused Mexicans in border communities of being bandits or bandit sympathizers to justify seizing their land or extrajudicial violence. More modern examples like the concept of the "super predator" the way politicians use the term "illegal alien" to both criminalize and dehumanize the undocumented, there are plenty of examples that sort of prove Tomura's early ideas had merit and could have become a fleshed out ideology if given the chance.

But the narrative sort of treats them as stupid or empty justifications and then stain gets involved and I feel like stains ideology sort of collapses without All Might, it isn't the most sound foundation to build a movement off of and centers all might too much. horikoshi wasn't unaware of the flaws in his system and the villians are pretty aware themselves it really feels like he just didn't want to give them an ideology or he was too afraid to make them too right in my opinion.

See, here's the thing. I don't think Horikoshi declined to give the League an ideology to discredit them.

If BNHA is any indication of Horikoshi's politics, he strikes me as a guy who thinks of himself as non-political/non-ideological. For someone with a worldview like that, believing in the status quo or in just "common sense" reform isn't ideological. Deeply held ideology would be alien and unsympathetic to someone like that, but personal grievances with the system due to personal tragedy could be humanizing.

There have also been other folks here that have suggested that the League is modeled after terrorist groups in Japan like the Japanese Red Army and Aum Shinrikyo, which also have rather inscrutable ideologies, cult-like tendencies, and a history of organized violence.

The problem with USJ Shigaraki was that he was completely disingenuous in that critique. Shigaraki had no prior negative interaction with the state itself at that point; he spent most of the previous fifteen years in All for One's basement. He just wanted to destroy things for his own enjoyment that early in the manga. Everything else was a rhetorical exercise he probably picked up from All for One. The manga treated these arguments as stupid and empty justifications because in the context of Shigaraki that's exactly what they were.

It's not that it wasn't an interesting argument about the use of violence by the state in hero society, but Horikoshi didn't introduce any characters who could make that position sincerely. Horikoshi would have had to introduce a different faction of villains or vigilantes to honestly address these ideas.

You're not wrong that Stain's ideology falls apart without All Might. However, Act One Shigaraki's modus operandi also falls apart without All Might. In Act One, Shigaraki was under the impression that hero society would fall if just killed the Symbol of Peace. He clearly had a tough time getting his footing again after Kamino partially because he was proven wrong in that assumption until the plot came looking for him.

[explorastro]

THE SPIRITUAL MEANINGS BEHIND QUINTILES AND BIQUINTILES :

Did you have a quintile or biquintile in your chart ? Or your solar return ? Find out that it is present in every spiritual awakenings.

Theirs orbs are respectively 72° and 144°, so they’re hugely spiritually powerful, explanations :

For the same reasons as 12, of which it is a multiple, 72 has greatly inspired mystics and is therefore also :

Five quintiles around a circle form a five-pointed star or pentagram, among the oldest magic figures. Five-pointed figures often symbolize Man.  A pentagram drawn with a single point upwards is a symbol for humanity's higher aspirations: the composer or scientific genius. The reverse pentagram with two points projecting upwards and one downwards is a symbol of humanity's lower aspirations towards harmful/demonic activities.

The 72 names of God in Jewish tradition -> the Schem-hamephorash.

The number of languages spoken at the Tower of Babel according to the Bible, Babylon also being surrounded by 360 ( 72×5 ) towers.

The total number of books in the Catholic Bible (which can also be counted at 73), if we consider the Book of Lamentations as part of the Book of Jeremiah, as is common practice.

The number of translators of the Septuagint, according to a widespread legend, and the number of days they took to translate it together, according to the same legend.

In the Gospel according to St. Luke, chapter 10, verses 1 and 17, the number of disciples sent by Jesus is either 70 (Codex Sinaiticus) or 72 in certain codices of Alexandrian and Western tradition. This number would symbolize the universality of the sending to all known nations or for all spoken languages. Luke X, 1: “After this, the Lord appointed another 70-72, and sent them before him, two by two, to every city and place where he himself was to go”. Usually, it's said that he sends them on a mission. In the following verse, he sends them out to harvest. "Luke X, 2: "He said to them, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.“”

In the Muslim faith and according to certain hadith, the number of Houri one encounters after death. The term Houri is indefinite, but translated by the adjective virgin in Western languages.

For the Gnostics, in the Gospel of Judas, the 72 stars which themselves brought forth three hundred and sixty (72 × 5) stars.

The number of nations in a Yezidi prayer.

The number of Stūpas in the temple of Borobudur, linked to Buddhist cosmology.

In ancient times, the fraction of each day of the year taken by a god from the Moon, to recover the five leap days of difference between the 360-day calendar (72 × 5) and the 365-day calendar.

For the 144 :

There are the 144,000 Elect and the Angels holding back the Winds. The passage that evokes the 144,000 is in the Apocalypse of John: 7:1 - Then I saw four Angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind should blow, neither on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

144 is a sacred number referring to the 144-cubit high heavenly Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation.

According to studies by Stefaan Van Liefferinge (University of Georgia) and Stephen Murray (Columbia University), 144 is a reference number used in the architecture of the cathedrals of Amiens and Beauvais, which measure 144 Roman feet and 144 feet of King under vault respectively. 

There are 144000 petals of chakras and nadis linked trough it.

144 is a Fibonacci number plus the double of 72, quadruple of 36 that is the number of decans.

THE YOD OF QUINTILE/BIQUINTILES IS A SIGN OF BEING FATED TO SPIRITUALITY AS ALLY OR ADVERSARY, BUT ALSO TROUGH PAST LIFES !

I hope this thread has helped you to be more creative with astrology and to enjoy more your birth chart, have a good week ! 😊

[bumbled-bees]

Would you describe Lily Orchard as Pseudo-Intellectual or Anti-Intellectual?

Both.

Lily demonstrates clear traits of both pseudo-intellectualism and anti-intellectualism, though they manifest differently in her public persona versus her genuine behavior.

Lily’s Pseudo-Intellectualism

In her public persona — particularly in her video essays and commentary — Lily consistently presents herself as someone with a deep understanding of media analysis, social issues, and psychology. She uses jargon, references theoretical concepts, and adopts an authoritative tone to create the illusion of expertise. However, when you break down her arguments, it becomes clear that she often lacks the fundamental knowledge necessary to support her claims.

Key Traits of Lily’s Pseudo-Intellectualism:

Surface-Level Analysis: Lily frequently critiques media without engaging with deeper themes, metaphors, or symbolic storytelling. As we've discussed before, she takes narratives at face value and disregards subtext — such as her criticism of Steven Universe for "locking Ruby and Sapphire inside Garnet," ignoring that Garnet is the metaphor for their relationship.

Misuse of Concepts: Lily often invokes psychological and social terms incorrectly to bolster her points. Her warped understanding of “boundaries,” for example, allows her to frame innocent interactions as violations to justify her own hostility.

Overconfidence in Shallow Knowledge: Lily presents her surface-level observations as definitive truths. Her approach is less about curiosity or engagement and more about asserting dominance in a conversation — something she relies on because she struggles to defend her ideas when challenged.

Performative Intellectualism: Much of her discourse relies on the assumption that her audience will trust her assertions without verification. Since she actively discourages her viewers from seeking outside perspectives or questioning her conclusions, she’s able to maintain an illusion of authority.

This pseudo-intellectual persona allows Lily to position herself as someone “in the know,” especially among viewers who may be less familiar with the concepts she discusses. By cloaking her ideas in intellectual language, she lends credibility to her shallow insights and manipulative narratives.

Lily’s Anti-Intellectualism

When Lily isn’t trying to perform as an “intellectual,” her genuine behavior reveals a deep-seated anti-intellectual mindset — one characterized by hostility toward learning, refusal to engage in critical thinking, and active discouragement of curiosity.

Key Traits of Lily’s Anti-Intellectualism:

Refusal to Learn or Improve: As seen in her Dragon Age videos and other content, Lily routinely skips over important information, disregards context, and refuses to engage with material in a meaningful way. Her tendency to button-mash through dialogue, then critique the narrative based on her incomplete understanding, speaks to her disinterest in actually learning.

Contempt for Expertise: Rather than acknowledging her own gaps in understanding, Lily often ridicules or belittles those who provide informed perspectives. This is seen in her infamous claim that media creators should "just fight back" against studio censorship — an assertion that reveals her ignorance about how professional industries work, yet one she stubbornly stands by.

Aversion to Recommendations: Lily’s hatred of audience recommendations ties into this mindset. Whether it’s fear of feeling ignorant, anxiety about stepping outside her comfort zone, or simply laziness, Lily resents being asked to engage with anything she didn’t choose for herself.

Encouraging Ignorance in Her Audience: By discouraging her viewers from verifying claims, cross-referencing sources, or exploring new ideas, Lily fosters an echo chamber where her word reigns supreme. Her aggressive stance against “debating her critics” stems from this as well — since allowing her audience to hear other viewpoints risks exposing her contradictions.

The Intersection of Both

Lily’s reliance on pseudo-intellectual tactics enables her to create an aura of authority, while her anti-intellectual mindset ensures she’s never challenged in meaningful ways. She weaponizes intellectual language to sound credible, yet actively rejects the principles of critical thinking, open dialogue, and evidence-based reasoning that true intellectualism requires.

This contradiction ties back into Lily’s impulsive nature and short-term thinking. Rather than genuinely engaging with ideas, she defaults to whatever tactic best serves her immediate goal — claiming to be informed when it makes her look smart, yet retreating into dismissiveness or hostility when faced with criticism or inconvenient truths.

Conclusion

Lily Orchard’s behavior blends both pseudo-intellectual and anti-intellectual traits. In her public persona, she leans on surface-level rhetoric to feign expertise and control her audience’s perception of her. Meanwhile, her genuine mindset reflects hostility toward learning, growth, and self-improvement. This combination allows her to maintain power over her community while avoiding accountability for her contradictions, misinformation, and manipulative tactics.

[persianflaw]

Hi! What do you mean when you say assyrian? Like what is your cultural heritage like? What facets of historical assyria do you currently imbibe/try to emulate? I'm a bit of a history nerd and saw your rice post, so i thought i'd try and get some first person perspectives on this for a pet project of mine. (Anoning coz my main is a hornyblog)

hi, anon! assyrians are not just a historical empire- we are a contemporary ethnic group!

the assyrians are indigenous to the mesopotamian area, and are descended from the original assyrians with whom you are likely more familiar. however, the the assyrian genocide or sayfo that began in 1915 (connected to the armenian genocide + the greek genocide) caused many people to flee to other countries, including my mom's family, so there are more assyrians in the diaspora than in the "homeland" these days.

you may also see us referred to as syriac (with a C, not syrian), which some people prefer because it is a clearer differentiation between ancient assyrians and modern assyrians/syriacs. there are a few other terms like nestorian, aramean, chaldean, but not all of those are in common use these days either and mostly have specific use cases when it comes to language or religion (ex. nestorian mostly refers to members of the assyrian church of the east, but in some older texts it's used to describe assyrians regardless of specific church affiliation). generally people just identify as assyrian.

we did descend from ancient assyrians, and modern assyrian languages (suret) did come from old aramaic, but for me that connection has a pretty negligible connection to modern life, aside from occasionally pointing at assyrian statues in museums and saying "lol look it's us" to my brother. not sure if that's the case for other assyrians, but it isn't something i've seen personally.

if you've got an interest in history, however, you may enjoy our flag!

i swear i'm not mad that i spent ten minutes writing out my own description only to find that the ACF already had this nice helpful diagram my only addition is that the gold part of the symbol in the center represents the sun and the four-pointed star represents land, with the light blue representing tranquility. also that i could have SWORN there was something representing martyrs but apparently not lol. the one assyrian cultural artefact that doesn't reference martyrs i guess.

you can also find variants of this flag with the ashur emblem either outlined in gold or colored in with gold and blue, but afaik there's not a significant symbolic difference there

this flag was designed by george bit atanus as part of a competition started by the assyrian universal alliance in 1968, and adopted some time in the early 70s. i should note that the presence of ashur and shamash on this flag are more of a tribute to ancient assyrians as part of our history as opposed to a current religious reference, as assyrians are overwhelmingly christian.

i ended up writing a lot more for this than i thought i would and now i don't know how to end this post lol. uhh take this screenshot from the "assyrian people" wiki page that always makes me laugh a little bit

like yes we have been persecuted enough for it to be a whole section on our wiki page ✨ #flex #winning

[guardianspirits13]

Watching The Punisher because I heard it was good and need to fill the time before the next Daredevil episode... I don't know what I was expecting but I was a little taken aback that they made a pro-gun control senator look like a bumbling idiot.

Like I know the MCU has a contract with the US Military to loan out equipment for their franchises in exchange for a favorable portrayal.

I also know that it would make much more sense for citizens to have guns in the Marvel universe where there are like 10+ super powered individuals operating out of NYC at any given time and yet somehow there is more (violent) crime there on a daily basis in NYC than there has ever been IRL, almost as if they by their very nature invite opposition to challenge them (as it was argued in Civil War) and/or they inspire copycats.

Karen Page, of all people, deserves to have a gun because of all of the targets she has placed on her own back either because she's sticking her nose where it doesn't belong (affectionate) or because of the company she keeps (close friendships with BOTH Matt and Frank). If you want to piss off half the vigilantes in Manhattan, she's the one to aim for. So like, in this fictional scenario, she is well within her right to carry a handgun.

Having said all that, all of the language surrounding guns and glorifying the military makes it very easy for me to understand why conservatives have co-opted the Punisher's symbol. He takes pride in having been a Marine despite having committed war crimes during classified missions. He views himself as an executioner and feels like bombs are cowardly because they hurt innocent people and don't require the same willpower to shoot someone dead on. Not to mention how he's the perfect traditional "family man" and makes a point to protect women and children.

Needless to say this is all very idealistic and as Matt argues he has no right to determine who deserves to die based on his own subjective and often hypocritical terms. His argument is that he only kills bad people and even if every person he targets truly is as evil as he believes, only in a superhero world would he somehow never kill or hurt anyone innocent in the crossfire.

I'm having a hard time finding the words to distinguish his justice from that of corrupt cops or other "bad guys with guns" other than the fact that he is not state sanctioned and miraculously never targets anyone who "doesn't deserve it". I think season 2 of Daredevil did a MUCH better job of portraying the grey morality of his actions and painting him as an anti-hero with severe mental health struggles.

Maybe it's because he's the protagonist in his own show, but there's much less of a seed of doubt as to whether he's in the right. I am only 9.5 out of 13 episodes into season 1 so this may change, but the second they introduced the gun control senator I'm consuming the show a little more critically.

If anyone has finished the series or especially if you'd read the comics, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

[cucumberteapot]

I feel like people aren't as open to discussing E-42 Prowle because there is so much about the character we don't know or the films haven't explicitly told us yet. However, I'd like to think writers have presented us with enough information that we can make a strong assessment as to not to what kind of role they'll serve (I think it's fair to say Miles G is going to be an antagonist later-turned hero or anti-hero in BSTV), but what kind of character this is and how they challenge Miles as the main character.

I'd like to discuss one crucial aspect of piece of body language and physical characterisation. This right here:

This is our first proper shot of E-42 Prowler and it closely parallels Aaron Davis in then first movie when he's watching Miles run away.

Now I want to pay mind that in deliberately holding off the plot twist of Aaron being the Prowler, the audience is given no key identifiers as to the Prowler's true identity. He doesn't even have any lines of dialogue until Miles is hiding in his apartment and we after we get the reveal. In every sense of the term, Prowler is a gun for hire. Except he doesn't use guns. The point is he is a hitman. He consistently does what he's told by Kingpin - "You can count on me, sir. I don't ever quit." But then when he's confront with the reveal of the kid he's been hunting is his own nephew and he must choose between his identities as Aaron and as Prowler, that loyalty is severed and it costs him his life.

Which leads us to this specific visual of E-42 Prowler dangling from the rafter before dropping down to face Miles. The camera doesn't cut away from how he drops. Instead we're put entirely in Miles' perspective as to this guy's every move. Between us and Miles, the crew don't want us to miss anything. So what are we seeing here?

Well firstly I think it's clear this is something the Prowler we know wouldn't do because this is a merge of personas of Miles as the Prowler and as a 15-year old. This reads to us as something a lanky kid would do on a jungle-gym, and the fact E-42 Prowler doesn't take his eyes off Miles not only demonstrates curiosity but almost an invitation to play. Not literally, but I believe this Prowler is someone who likes to toy with their victims (which he see a bit of towards the end). And in this case, Prowler is definitely testing Miles from the moment he starts talking about ideas counteractive to his reality - That Aaron Davis could be a "good guy" and that the Prowler identity is something detrimental to the E-42 dimensions' existence. Granted, Miles is speaking from the experience of someone who's Prowler didn't provide income for their family and represent a symbol of strength like the Spiderman identity, so it's a no brainer E-42 Prowler views Miles as antithetical to his state of being. Another thing is that this is how Miles hangs from his webs throughout the movie (under the clocktower, before going through the portal to mumbattan, etc.), so it's a nice consistent characterisation between the two.

But that only leads us into what separates them. After keeping their focus directly on the other, they have their first exchange:

Prowler: Your dad is still alive? Miles: What? Prowler: Your father... You said he's still alive. Miles: Yeah. Prowler: Oh.

Okay, let's dissect this. Specifically Miles' confusion at to why Prowler's asking this because the audience is in the same boat but for very different reasons.

Now I don't want to make assumptions but even before Prowler unmasks, Miles already knows it's his counterpart and his question isn't so much as not knowing but a request for confirmation. However the reason why Miles is confused here is because he expected that same curiousity about identity from his counterpart - not about relatives. Prowler doesn't ask who Miles is even though he doesn't really know, and when he gets his answer that, yes, Jefferson is alive in the other universe, his reaction is played off as dismissive, separating his identity and priorities from Miles. Whatever it is, considering it's the first thing he's asks, this is a vital piece of information for Prowler but his reaction removes any possibility he can be negotiated with... which Miles continuously fails at.

Miles: Who are you? Prowler: My name is Miles Morales. But you... You can call me the Prowler. Miles: If I don't get home, our dad is going to die. Prowler: Your dad. Miles: Please... You have to let me go. Prowler: And why would I do that?

That then leads us on to Miles' question because he's not only asking for his kidnapper's name, he's asking for who this person is. And in turn who we see isn't particularly angry or vindictive - we'll get to that. Instead, Prowler's expression is complete desolation.

It's only when Miles further insinuates they are the same by referring to Jefferson as "our dad", does he shoot back with "your dad". It's quick because this Prowler is still separating himself from this version of himself and the idea he could or would've been or had anything like his life. Finally Miles accepts that they are separate and ask Prowler to let him go, but Prowler has another rhetorical question which implies although he considers this Miles separate to himself, he still has use for him somehow. Which honestly if you had this strength-is-all mindset, it might feel rewarding to have captured this part of yourself that you considered weak - which for all Prowler knows, Miles is just this inferior version of himself who got decked in one hit.

And then lastly we have these two shots here where Prowler raises his "claw" beside Miles' head and sizes him up.

If Aaron can scare Miles by punching the sand out of a boxing bag while Prowler only has to put his fist on it, you tell me who's more terrifying?

But truthfully this last non-conversational exchange before Miles stares Prowler back down is evident that not only is Prowler going to beat the shit out of Miles, but that Miles' "flippy, little sassy jokes" as Spot puts it, is not going to help him here. Because if he wants to survive, he's going to have to match Prowler's energy. This film has a bittersweet ending not because Miles is captured but because Miles has internalised what he's been fighting against the whole movie - The emotional desolation of being Spider-man that lets them deal with or appear indifferent to the harm or death of people around them and it's exemplified when he applies Peter's first lesson of being Spider-man:

"Don't watch the mouth. Watch the hands."

[demonslayedher]

Nerdy cultural details about the word "Hashira"

Some details can be hard to pick up without context or in translation. I recently went over a few details about the Hashira's names, Breaths, or symbols, but today I want to focus on the word "Hashira."

To get this out of the way, I use "Pillar" all over this blog because I thought that's what they were called. I was astounded that phrase was not translated, as it is a (somewhat rare) case of a one-to-one translation equivalent. They are the pillars that support the Demon Slayer Corp, after all. The kanji for it (柱) very literally means "pillar" in any modern day Japanese to English dictionary. But since you all know the word "Hashira," let's climb up and see where it takes us! First, the kanji itself (brought over from China and given the Japanese pronunciation "hashira," based on the existing spoken Japanese language), is composed of 木 for "tree" and 主 for "master" or "main/principal," among other semi-literal or more widely applicable possible meanings in modern kanji dictionaries. However, Prof. Owada Tetsuo, a retired university professor who published an unofficial book of his own Kimetsu no Yaiba interpretations based on Japanese demon slaying folklore, points out that 主 can also be interpreted as a still flame atop a candlestick, and that 柱 (hashira) is a tree that cannot be moved. (I'll continue to use a lot of Prof. Owada's details in this explanation, as well as details I have picked up in other research.) That makes 柱 closely associated with holy trees found in, or treated as, Shinto shrines throughout Japan. As Shinto is a nature-based belief system, trees are often something that a kami (deity) will inhabit. Keep Shinto in mind, because we're going to focus on that a lot.

Before that, let's finish up with the kanji 柱. According to the first official fanbook, there is an upper limit of nine Hashira because there are nine strokes in the 柱 kanji. (See this dictionary entry for a breakdown of those nine strokes.)

Now that the easy official tidbit is out of the way, back to the Shinto fun stuff and conjecture! We need to dive a bit more into the spoken Japanese language, from which a lot of Shinto terms derive. For starters, the Japanese language uses counter words for when you say a certain number of beings or objects. You could think of this as "a sheet of paper" or "three rolls of tape." It is an annoying part of starting out your study of the language because there are a lot to memorize based on sizes, shapes, types of animals, etc. Deities also have their own counter word: 柱 (hashira). This goes to show how the Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corp are something more than human, what with how much power they possess.

Now if we think about the pronunciation of the spoken Japanese word from long before a Chinese written character was assigned to it, the "hashi" of "hashira" is a "bridge." Clever ones among you might know that "hashi" also means "chopsticks." But even chopsticks have the same effect as a bridge! They serve as a connection, bridging the gap between you and what was another living thing, that which will become a part of you as your sustenance. "Hashira," as pillars, are likewise something that serve as a connection, in this case, a vertical one. They are that which connect us with the heavens, or in the case of the Demon Slayer Corp, they bridge the gap between the limits of human strength and the inhuman strength of demons.

As another Shinto tie, one of the connections that Prof. Owada and I both made was that there are nine pillars that support the main sanctuary in shrine architecture like that of Izumo Taisha Grand Shrine. Or rather, in the case of at least one of the historical iterations of Izumo Taisha, there were nine groups of three massive tree trunks each, resulting in a shrine over 48 meters in height (see here for photos of how big the remains of those pillars are and how exciting the archaeology is). These pillars give you a sense of awe for just how powerful pillars can be, especially when you have a spread of nine to distribute the weight. Now, there's more that Prof. Owada and I would both say about how Izumo Taisha also ties in with the "Ubuyashiki" surname or the "yakata" title by which the Hashira address him, but that's a dose of nerdery for some other time.

[girl4music]

I love the contrasting colours and tones and textures in Arcane for Zaun’s Undercity and Piltover’s Topside.

Zaun is Cyberpunk. It’s all technicolour and neon.

(Cold colours and tones and textures)

Piltover is Steampunk. It’s all pastel and metallic.

(Warm colours and tones and textures)

It demonstrates visually very effectively the colossal stark and striking differences between the twin cities. The political ideologies and economical environments its people live in and by and the laws they all adhere to.

Topside is posh and prestigious but it all feels fake. No one says what they mean and means what they say and the population would sell each other out in a heartbeat.

Undercity is violent and dirty but there’s solidarity here and the people stand by each other as if they’re family because they know how hard it is to survive in the pits.

Undercity is constantly ravaged by terrorism, plague and addiction due to the poor financial climate and Topside have so much of everything they could ever want but they’re just throwing it away as if it means nothing. It’s a really honest depiction of segregation.

And don’t think I missed the fact that most Zaunites are minorities like Black/POC, queer or disabled. That must be intentional because it’s something I realized quickly because even though our protagonist Zaunites that are human are white (Jinx and Silco’s grey coloured skin tones notwithstanding) most of the ones you see really struggling are not. And the rest of them aren’t human.

And then on Topside, you do see some Black/POC, queer and disabled characters but they’re not native to Piltover. They’re either a Zaunite too who got a lucky break or they’re from some other city in the Universe.

It REALLY stands out what they were trying to do here and yet this show is popular with both conservative watchers and liberal ones. That’s a really good thing because it means both sides of the coin are privy to the intentional division and corruption of political and economical warfare that’s so boldly painted in Arcane from what you see in the visuals alone, never mind plot.

And it’s really clever because there’s no labelling on it.

There’s no contextualization of what’s Right or Left, Blue or Red, Republican or Democrat. There sides but there’s no relation contextually to real life terms and definitions other than the subjective experiences and observations that are the symbolism for those things.

And why would there be? It’s supernatural/fantasy.

None of it is the reality. Yet it is resonant, is it not?

Well done animators! I picked this up quickly but I’m not the intended audience that really needs to see it because I already know and understand this shit well. But you can see that it is intentional that they did this.

They showed you the poverty and they showed you the wealth and they let you decide on which you want to root for. But if you’ve really took the show in visually and thematically, you naturally would root for both cities. You’d naturally want both to prosper and be at peace because you can clearly see that both have severe problems and are very unhappy with the civil unrest regardless of who has it better or who has it worst.

Bringing magic and the supernatural in general into the mix all the more just proves that this is a piece of TV art/entertainment that knows how to use metaphor and symbolism to great effect because it resonates well. Art will always resemble real life and real life will always resemble art because all we’re doing is just telling OUR stories but leaving out the lexicon of language that only ever distorts, distracts and deceives from experience.

It doesn’t matter what you call it or how you define it - you see it, you hear it and you feel it. You experience it.

Arcane is exceptional storytelling and representation because it resonates enough with us to make us move the obstacles that get in the way of being only human.

TV art/entertainment of the supernatural/fantasy kind always has a reach that no non-supernatual/fantasy art/entertainment ever can and it’s because we use it for escapism from our reality. We use it as our hideaway. Only to find that all it’s doing is recontextualizing it, subverting it or even outright parodying it. We’re not escaping reality. We’re just learning to tolerate what frustrates or even torments us because it’s more fun when it’s not us - not our world - not our people that has to face the drama. But at the end of the day, the only reason why we love it so much is because we self-insert it. We subconsciously look for characters, themes and narratives that relate to and resonate with us. That represent us as expressions of who and what we are - what and who we most care about, what we aspire to - what drives us as a human being on Earth right now.

The most successful TV art/entertainment does this intentionally but they do not let on as to why they do.

Your job as the observer is to find out the why as you watch it, report - and the cycle repeats all over again.

That is how art/entertainment is and always should be. If it isn’t, then give up on it. They’re not doing it for you.

But you’ll add to their sales week revenue regardless.

It is EXTREMELY RARE nowadays to get both great storytelling and great representation in one creative product or project. Don’t take Arcane for granted and do what you can to make sure it continues to provide and deliver the quality that it has done for 2 seasons because Netflix are fucking ruthless. They’re the type of network/streaming service company that believe if they don’t see insane immediate numbers - then they’ll axe it and pretend as if it never even existed in the first place. But Arcane is worth the effort. If both its creators and viewers are adamant enough, we will succeed at keeping it going for at least 1 more season. We need it.

[pervitinprescribed]

The Nazis Obsession with Magic, the Supernatural, and the Occult; A Long Blog Piece

INTRODUCTION

This is something that has always fascinated me ever since I was younger. Why were the Nazis so obsessed with the supernatural? The Third Reich's fascination with the supernatural represents one of history's most disturbing marriages of political power and mystical belief. Far from being merely a cultural curiosity, the Nazi regime's deep engagement with occultism, paganism, and supernatural mythology played a crucial role in shaping its ideology and actions.

In Eric Kurlander's book "Hitler's Monsters: A Supernatural History of the Third Reich," he examines the often-overlooked relationship between supernatural beliefs and Nazi ideology. While popular media often sensationalizes Nazi occultism, Kurlander takes a more nuanced approach, analyzing how "the supernatural imaginary" genuinely influenced Nazi thinking and policy.

The supernatural was not uniquely German—occult and mystical beliefs flourished throughout early 20th century Europe. However, Kurlander argues that in Germany and Austria, these ideas became distinctively politicized and racialized. While countries like Britain and France also saw movements like theosophy, these remained largely confined to drawing rooms and literary circles. In Germany, however, supernatural beliefs became entwined with political ideology.

As Kurlander notes, "In Germany, so many of the people who joined the Nazi Party or supported it are using language and ideas directly borrowed from these occult and border scientific doctrines." This relationship was so prominent that both Hitler and Goebbels acknowledged in the 1920s that "folkish (völkisch) thinkers" were the people most likely to join the Nazi Party.

The Nazi Party actively sought to replace Christian traditions with what they considered more "authentically Germanic" spiritual practices. In December 1920, they organized a Winter Solstice festival that explicitly invoked Nordic mythology and pagan symbolism. Party leaders like Anton Drexler described these events as representing "the return to German thought," connecting modern National Socialism to ancient Germanic deities like Baldur and Siegfried.

This was no mere cultural posturing. Heinrich Himmler, Reichsführer-SS, established a "Special Task Force on Witches" that collected nearly 30,000 historical documents on medieval witch persecutions. The purpose was to reframe witch trials as a Catholic conspiracy to eradicate the "dominant Aryan-Germanic religion of nature." Through this historical revisionism, the Nazis attempted to position themselves as the rightful heirs to an ancient Nordic spiritual tradition that had been suppressed by Judeo-Christian forces.

Border Science vs. Mainstream Science

Kurlander makes an important distinction between pseudoscience, which attempts to operate within mainstream scientific frameworks (however erroneously), and what he terms "border science," which works from a fundamentally different, faith-based epistemology. The Nazi embrace of border science represented not just scientific error but a rejection of empirical methodology itself.

The regime's enthusiastic support for "World Ice Theory" illustrates this dynamic. This theory, which proposed that the universe originated from colliding ice moons, aligned conveniently with Nordic mythology. Despite being dismissed by mainstream scientists, it received official backing from the Nazi regime. By 1939, adherence to World Ice Theory had become rigid orthodoxy within certain Nazi institutions, with Heinrich Himmler establishing a dedicated division for its promotion.

When confronted with scientific criticism, the Nazi leadership did not engage with the evidence but instead marginalized dissenting voices. Though they didn't necessarily imprison mainstream scientists who rejected these theories, they systematically denied them resources and platforms while elevating border scientific thinking.

What This Meant for the Jews

Perhaps most consequentially, Nazi racial theories were profoundly influenced by supernatural and occult thinking. While Nazi eugenics borrowed terminology from mainstream biology, its core concepts were deeply rooted in occult doctrines like ariosophy, theosophy, and anthroposophy.

Unlike other Western eugenics movements (which, however flawed, still sought legitimacy within biological science), Nazi racial thinking embraced mystical concepts about "monstrous" Jews, "sub-human" Slavs, and allegedly superior "Indo-Aryan" civilizations.

Among the most disturbing aspects of Nazi supernatural thinking was the portrayal of Jews as vampiric entities. This wasn't merely metaphorical language—Nazi propaganda explicitly framed Jews as supernatural monsters with preternatural powers. In Hitler's "Mein Kampf," he repeatedly described Jews as "vampires," "bloodsuckers," and parasites who "never cultivate the soil" but instead exploit and destroy their host societies.

The 1943 Nazi pamphlet "The Jewish Vampire Brings Chaos to the World" exemplifies this thinking, claiming Jews had "propagated political and economic black magic for three millennia." This supernatural framing did more than just dehumanize—it positioned Jews as powerful, otherworldly threats that could only be eliminated through extraordinary measures. By casting Jews as immortal vampires who would simply arise elsewhere if not completely eradicated, the Nazis established a conceptual foundation for genocide that went beyond typical colonial racism.

While vampires represented the Jewish "other," werewolves symbolized Germanic power and resilience. Hitler's headquarters in Ukraine was named the "Werewolf" compound, and his East Prussia base was called "Wolf's Lair." Nazi folklorists explicitly distinguished between the "evil" Slavic vampire and the noble Germanic werewolf, describing werewolves as "dogs of God" protecting the people against evil.

This mythology became especially significant during Germany's decline. "Operation Werewolf" represented the Nazi plan for guerrilla resistance against Allied occupation, with Himmler declaring that Germans would "constantly spring to life again, and, like werewolves, death-defying volunteers will damage and destroy the enemy from the rear." The werewolf thus became both a cultural symbol and a literal military strategy.

As Germany faced defeat, the Nazi leadership increasingly embraced a narrative drawn from Norse mythology's Ragnarok—the apocalyptic "twilight of the gods." This concept of a final cataclysmic battle, central to Wagner's Ring Cycle (Hitler's favorite music), provided a mythological framework for understanding Germany's dire situation.

In the Norse legend, key gods die in battle, but the world is eventually reborn. Similarly, as the Third Reich collapsed, supernatural thinking offered Germans a psychological framework for processing their impending defeat. This apocalyptic mindset helps explain the regime's irrational focus on fantastical "miracle weapons" and its determination to fight until complete destruction rather than surrender.

CONCLUSION

The Nazi embrace of the supernatural was neither incidental nor mere propaganda. This supernatural framework provided justification for conquest, genocide, and ultimately self-immolation as the regime collapsed.

SOURCES

Slate

Wikipedia

National WWII Musuem

Documentary

<! I do not support Nazism or Antisemitism! I just like to write and learn about history !>