#Viktor Talking Machine

[orangechickenpillow]

Every time I think about machine herald Viktor happening in the arcane universe my body vibrates at a frequency that could shatter glass

[sparrowposting]

Thinking abt body horror as romantic. Body horror as intimate recognition of the self and the other and the other as the self. Body horror as an encounter with the divine.

[ree-duh]

I love you viktor arcane running past the boat scene

[mollysunder]

Shimmer & The Glorious Evolution: A Love Story

We can see how a specialized high quality strain of Rio's shimmer can alter the biology of living organisms to make users produce their own shimmer, as is the case with Jinx. So what will happen now that Rio's specialized shimmer has been exposed to an artificial life form, i.e. the hexcore?

What Has the Hexcore Done Without Shimmer?

Prior to the hexcore's exposure to shimmer infused blood we've only seen it capable of releasing short bursts of massive energy when Viktor experiments with it.

When exposed to human blood the hexcore reacted by "consuming" a drop of it. The blood effected the entire magical dimension the hexcore connects to by turning it to a shade of purple similar to the plants found in Singed's cave.

Later we see that this newly blood infused hexcore's magic turned purple and is able to not only react to organic matter such as plants, but stimulate their growth in turn (not for long of course). The affected plants also take on the purple tinge similar to the hexcore's magic.

What Have We Seen the Shimmered Hexcore Do So Far?

Once Viktor exposed the hexcore to his shimmer infused blood it was capable of producing a longer lasting stable state with its test subject twice. Initially, what exactly happened to Viktor's leg was up to interpretation, but later on animators in Bridging the Rift confirmed that Viktor's new leg and hand are made of metal.

This means that the hexcore took Viktor's flesh and shimmer infused blood (more than the first time) and exchanged it for an arcane/shimmer configured metalic replacement. His skin is gone and we're looking at what his muscle has been converted to.

The transmutation of Viktor's hand and leg into metal could have only been facilitated through the use of shimmer. It was likely the remaining shimmer in Viktor's system that prevented him from being absorbed into the hexcore. Without a sufficient amount of shimmer, a regular human hand does not equal a shimmerized arcane metalic hand. The flesh, bone, and blood of an entire adult woman and a pitance of shimmer is worth the hand it provides.

What Will Happen Next Season?

The further the hexcore directly interfaces with organic matter the more similar it becomes in appearance and ability to shimmer. Where it improves health and strength at increasing biological costs. Once Viktor realizes that he's missing the "Inspiration" rune, the rune matrix will finally be complete and reach a "stable" state.

A "stable" state could mean the hexcore could reliably interact with and alter organic matter like Rio's shimmer is capable of. Based on the notes Sky left behind, her research focused on plant biology. In theory, a "perfect" hexcore could not only stimulate plant life to grow impressively, they could be durable enough to survive in extreme environments like Zaun.

While there is evidence that shimmer and its byproducts can enhance plant growth, especially in Zaun, there is a catch. Any plant affected by a hexcore corrupted by Rio's specialized shimmer would be altered in a way that makes them capable of being producing shimmer independently.

Just from Viktor's experiment with a hexcore exposed to a single drop of blood, the plants began to glow purple like the plants Rio would eat and break down into shimmer. Except, like Jinx the hexcore would pass down its own strain to the plant subjects that's compatible with the hexcore's "exchange" requirements.

But why would Viktor want to create plants capable of producing MORE shimmer for Zaun. Simple! Without shimmer you can't get... The Glorious Evolution. It's already been mentioned that Viktor's limbs have become metal, and to make his transformation complete he'll need more shimmer. For others to become like him, he needs more shimmer.

but...

Who Would Be Willing to Follow the Herald's Path?

Shimmer addicts like Huck and those who live in the sump with dying flesh and residual concentrations of shimmer in their bodies could be "healed" from their state of deterioration through the hexcore.

In Bridging the Rift we actually saw an unfinished clip of Viktor reaching his metalic hand to reach out and grab the face of a shimmer addict. Upon further inspection of the unidentified character's scars, we can guess this is Huck.

There's also the underlying culture of flesh sacrifice in Zaun, which is actually in the same vein as the Church of the Gloriously Evolved. In League, specifically through Camille's lore, the Church of the Gloriously Evolved actually exists outside of and likely before the Machine Herald came to the scene. The Church's roots even stretch into both Zaun & Piltover.

They believe that you must sacrifice something close and dear (like diseased flesh) with the faith that something better will take its place. Splinters of this organization likely made Silco an object of worship admiring his power and assuming the shimmer he brought was the miracle they sacrificed so much for already. Without Silco and his shimmer, Viktor and his hexcore would become the Church's new object of adoration as they bring shimmer AND immediate transmutation.

Finally, there's Sevika. In the tarot seen, Sevika drew a winning hand with a pair of card, Death and The Magician, that resemble Jinx and Viktor respectively. The scene may foreshadow that Jinx and Viktor will be the trump cards to win her Zaun's independence. But How will that work with Viktor?

You could argue that Sevika could bring Viktor in to repair her arm, but there's an entire industry backed up by a chembaron, Smeech, to fulfill that need. Viktor's going to need to bring something new to the table to be brought into the fold, and that could be shimmer infused plants and the "healing" properties of the hexcore. And I'm sure Sevika's pragmatic enough to know that for Zaun to survive Piltover's retaliation she'll need to bolster her resources in manpower and shimmer... lots of it.

Whether Sevika will be able to handle the cult of personality around the Machine Herald, especially if Jinx ends up siding him is a whole other discussion.

[junorpheus]

vikjayces that make me want to get CO2 poisoning

[vhvrs]

sparkle on its monday

[binghe-malewife-goals]

Me, an intellectual, scoffing at the theories for arcane s2 bc no one seems to understand the characters

[sup-honey]

Merry Christmas @PhoenixTheThief /twitter

They had such cool prompts for their #JayvikGiftExhange2022 gift, I had to do them all!!

Prompt 1: Pinning

Prompt 2: MH pinning Gio against a wall

Promot 3: Desperate member grinding (covered)

[dastardlydumb]

redesigning Viktor

how to go about it? as i'm drawing up body shapes and silhouettes to use in a fun little attempt at redesigning a character such as viktor the machine herald with a more modern take or just a bit of a character update in general. at first i thought perhaps giving him a bad posture would be a good idea to use to accentuate the fact he carries a giant hand laser on his shoulder and give him a bit more of a feral vibe by essentially stretching him out like you see with most tech priests from warhammer since that's his original inspiration. but then i start to think it might go against his personality and character to be seen as something with a bad posture. plus if you were to put him besides singed their character silluhette would be far too similar which wouldn't be ideal in a character lineup.

so then a more tall and regal yet a bit inhuman stretching of the character seems a better choice. and i think it'll be what i end up landing on were it not for Jhin who could be seen similarly even with the weird pauldron on the side. but Jhin is very lanky and thin so if i give Viktor a bit more of a buff with his chest armor it shouldn't be a problem in a character line up.

then there's the question of whether or not to keep his hood on or off. if he has it on he sorta runs the risk of looking to similar to other hooded caped character which mostly include Ashe Xayah who both have feminine figure so maybe he won't run that risk too much. giving him a hood would arguably make him seem more shepherd or herald like befitting his title. the spiky mess of hair can just be underneath it the same way he hides his unaugmented parts of himself with a shawl/cape.

having his pauldron jut out and be kinda flat would separate him from getting confused with jhin who has a very tall upright pauldron. i am aware that their pauldrons are on the opposites sides but that hardly matters in terms of confusing their silhouettes.

arguably his claw is his most distinguishing feature if you were to put him in a character line up. tho making that work for him in terms of aesthetically pleasing character designs could prove to be difficult. but it's one of those curve balls you just have to roll with and try and see what works and what doesn't.

he's a spellcaster/scientist with a staff and with that comes the opportunity to display his aesthetic and personality through the object with which he does all his zappy science magic stuff. i'd say that keeping the wires but making them a bit more visible and overall giving the staff the appearance of some sort of container for the hexcore is a good idea unless i was to decide that the hexcore/his ult ability "chaos storm" actually remains in his chest and he just throws it out whenever he uses the ability like in his battlecast skin model. either way, i think the staff should look almost like a lightning rod with a container for the crystal or hexcore at the head of the staff. you could also implement some aesthetic choices of his cane from arcane into the design but i'm currently focusing on his league design. otherwise i'd say it would be a great idea to almost show signs of it being capable of somehow collapsing into a crutch or a cane with the push of a button on it somewhere, or just having it be able to double as a crutch.

i would like to incorporate more bronze or design choices that ties him together to his creation blitzcrank. it would only make sense that they would look similar to show Viktors style in engineering and making their lore connection a bit more recognisable despite their design differences. blitzcrank is very friendshaped but i think that generally making viktors armor somehow more angular and a bit more like scraps of metal welded together would accomplish this.

Viktor is a scientist who looks like a mage, or to use his original concept title he is a "hexmage" and in the league universe that's almost the same as saying he's an artificial mage made through or powered by hextech. but more so than that he is a leader type of character, in fact most of his the skinlines that he's in, he has to fill the role of villainous leader. admittedly in his league lore its a role he has very little interest in, aside from maybe using it as an opportunity to educate people. but it's a role league seems very intent on him filling somehow. And with that being the case then it's the most natural choice to give him a design the exudes some sort of power and authority or perhaps even charisma that people from zaun would see and think yeah i wanna follow that guy into a revolution.

with all that and a bit more in mind it's easy to see how difficult it is to actually redesign this guy. but fortunately his design is so very old that quite literally anything would be a step up from his current messy design (which i still find adorable in its own right but by god please this man needs an update)

[luixiv]

I have been thinking again about the one image of The Machine herald from Bridging the Rift. And I'm going little bit isane over it. Over him. He is so TALL and BIG. Just loomig over himself. Taller than Jayce and I think even taller than Vander was. Aaaaaa I mean look at him. Look at the man. He is gigantic. He probably has to bend, when he wants to go through doors. Absolutely insane. My god. My brain can't. I'm so giddy. I want to see more of him. Why would they tease us like this and show so little. So cruel of them. Like go on, show us more, don't be shy.

I don't know what will I do when S2 comes out. I'm already going crazy, chewing at the walls, running in circles and all we have seen so far is ONE blurry image and close up of his hand and staff. I will go feral when we see MH in all his glory. Like run into the woods to be never seen again type of feral.

[infinitelystrangemachinex]

what you see in season 1:

what I see in season 2:

hope this clears some things up

......oh god

and no I am not some kind of coward

i do not care how deep into Greek tragedy season 2 strays, they are setting up this layup too perfectly and Mel and the Machine Herald together in the same room would descend into the most hilarious negging and banter the world has ever seen GIMME

[giohexora]

i love jayce giopara x jayce talis x machine herald, because yes, talis gets to be sandwiched sometimes, but. but. have y'all ever thought about how much of their shit talis has to deal with on a daily basis.....

[ricky-olson]

my toxic gifmaker trait is starting big project after big project without finishing the last and it rots in my drafts <3

[geek-antic]

I feel like artists (including myself) have to hold up a picture of their fan art side by side with the original character and think to themselves… Is this the same character? or have I just made an oc based off of them?

Because at some point you have to realize that you’ve just made an entirely new character purely by projecting

[falling-heights]

Yandere Viktor x Sick Reader

"We're all killers.

We've all killed parts of ourselves to survive.

Something somewhere had to die so we could stay alive."

He won't let you die.

Whether it be his unshakeable determination to save you, or because he just can't let the one person to ever understand his condition go. However, his idea of salvation is far from kind. A machine keeps you animated.

A liquid diet of nutrients driven into your veins daily. Synthetic air forced into your lungs, a thick, rigid tube shoved into your mouth, down your throat. It was calibrated, exact, like a ticking clock, never off for a moment.

You had memorized its rhythm for a long time now, there was little else to think about anymore.

This existence is beyond any imaginable pain or remorse. Nothing should be forced to live like this, not when you should have died so long ago. And yet he will not accept it; he robbed you of your very right to die.

He's taken away your ability to beg, with that horrible pipe. You supposed he preferred your silence if you would not ask him anything more than to pull its plug. Or perhaps, that you might even thank him one day if he were to ever 'cure' you. Until then, the only noise you could emit was the regulated gasps that were exhaled out of your chest with every forced compression of the machine.

You could not even will yourself to rip the tube from your throat. It was attempted only once, and your hands had been tied to the edges of the bed since then. Regardless, you didn't think you had the strength to lift them anymore.

What was left of your muscles must surely be atrophied after laying on this bed for what must be months. You weren't even sure how long it had been since he brought you here, he never said.

Has he even realized what little is actually left of the person he loved so dearly? How desperately you yearn for him to stop, to allow you to leave. How could he imagine that what he's doing to you is worse than if he had simply let you die as nature determined?

Viktor visits you every day. Usually to take care of you, to talk to you as he always did when things were more innocent. Oftentimes, he cuts into you during these one-sided conversations, speaking to you about the most ordinary things while he operated on you like you were some sort of experiment.

You didn't know why he did it, what he was looking for, or what he was planning. He spoke about the human body as though it were a machine, something with parts and systems, and you feared that one day he would begin to remove the things he cut into.

You feared what he may turn you into.

You were the one person he ought to love the most, but he seemed to have lost himself after witnessing you fade little by little. So lost in his resolve to fix you, he had forgotten any sense of morality or humanity. It didn't matter what he had to do or what would happen in the end so long as he could make you better.

And my dear, he will fix you. Even if he has to replace every inch of you.

Just realized this is the first Arcane content to be posted on this blog. I have another blog with a lot of Viktor stuff, i didn't even realize that he had never been posted here until now.

[froot-batty]

Gods worst friend group !

I'm excited to finally be able to talk about them. Venture down there if you beware

These guys are pretty entwined, so just like in the Twobat backstory, It'll just be one big thing. BIIIIIGGG thing, sorry

Viktor Fries was born in Denmark, an only child to two very loving parents. He'd always had a love for the cold, which grew into a love for winter, which grew into a love for cryogenics. His parents couldn't get him enough books or research papers written about the subject, so his eventual decision to pursue it in higher education came as no surprise. At the time, Gotham University and WayneTech were the leading institutions in cryogenic research, so Viktor packed his bags and ventured off to America.

Kirk Langstrom was born a sickly little baby at Gotham General. He was born with Chediak-Higashi syndrome, which not only caused his albinism, but made Kirk very prone to bacterial infections, especially when he was younger. It would also cause motor issues as Kirk aged, resulting in the need of mobility aids like canes or a wheelchair. As a child, Kirk was teased for his appearance, likened to a vampire - or, on one occasion, an albino bat another kid had found and presented to him. Instead of being offended, this moment was what kickstarted Kirk's love for bats, and eventual pursual of chiropterology.

And for Hugo Strange....well, no one really knows where he came from.

The three met when they were all in college, and they became friends almost instantly. They were three smart outcasts who had little to no real friends before this, so naturally they latched onto one another. Hugo a little more than the other two, but I'll get into that.

For the time they were in college, they were good for each other! But as most things go, they drifted a bit after college ended. Viktor by now had fallen in love with Nora and gotten his job at WayneTech, and Kirk had gotten the opportunity to take a research trip to study Bracken Cave (which is where he'd meet his eventual wife, Francine). This left Hugo mostly to his own devices, which he put towards his career at Arkham Asylum and eventually becoming the head of it.

When Kirk eventually returned from his trip, they reconnected with one another. Now here's where I'm gonna talk individually about what happened to Fuck These Guys Up.

Chronologically, Nora getting sick and Fries' accident is what happens first. When Nora started getting really sick, Viktor and her had no idea what it really was, only that it had the potential to kill her if they didn't find a treatment. Viktor's desperation to find it would eventually lead him to Hugo, who agreed to assist Viktor in his research. When Viktor and Nora mutually decided to freeze her to give Viktor more time, Hugo allowed them to build the machine that would freeze her in an abandoned room in the basement of Arkham (which Hugo was using for his own experiments).

Viktor panicked during the process of Nora freezing, and went to turn the machine off in the middle of it, not fully thinking through what he was doing. It caused the machine to malfunction and the chamber (with Nora in it) to explode outward, releasing everything that had been meant to cryogenically preserve Nora out into the room. The injuries and exposure to chemicals should have killed them both, but the temperatures (and medical assistance) managed to preserve the both of them, though it left Viktor as a living but slowly rotting corpse, who is both being killed by the cold and needs it to keep living in whatever state he's in now.

Hugo was actually the one to find the both of them. Though he had personally never cared for Nora, he followed the plan she and Viktor had laid out, making a new chamber to preserve her while he had a suit specially made for Viktor in order to keep him alive. With a tracker installed inside of it so Hugo could know where he was at any time.

This is probably a good time to cut and explain what's wrong with Hugo. He is...insanely devoted to both Kirk and Viktor. They were both his first friends and he loves them very much and he will Keep Them at Any Cost.

So after Viktor awoke, and realized that Nora had been preserved (even though part of him didn't want that anymore), Hugo instructed him to begin working on a cure for her. Hugo couldn't care less if she died he'd get Viktor to himself then, but Viktor had grown dangerously depressed after the accident and the thought of one day being reunited with a cured Nora was the only thing motivating him to stay alive.

Because Nora's chamber is in the basement of Arkham Asylum, Hugo has control of when and for how long Viktor can visit her. If he doesn't make sufficient progress on her cure, he isn't allowed in.

Now, onto Kirk. He had no idea that was all happening, as their contact with one another had been limited, even after reconnecting. One day, though, Kirk had mentioned his interest in changing his current study to focus on his condition, CHS, instead of his bats. Mostly because he was worried about progressing into the accelerated phase, as most people with CHS do. But Hugo suggested instead that he could figure out some sort of treatment for Kirk - and don't worry, you can just go back to your bats! I promise it'll work; in fact, it'll have you feeling like Batman!

So Kirk, suffering from chronic pain and various disabling motor issues, agreed happily. He visited Hugo's lab when the "treatment" was finished and received two injections in the neck, which turned into those two scars. When it didn't work after a couple of days, Kirk was disappointed, and was ready to tell Hugo that he needed to try something else when something...happened.

Kirk blacked out for a couple of hours and woke up shirtless, covered in blood in an empty alleyway. And, strangest of all, he wasn't in pain.

And this kept happening. Every couple of nights he would black out and return home bloody. He attempted to hide this from his wife, but something like that can't stay under wraps forever, so when she found out she urged him to talk to Hugo and figure out what the hell that "treatment" did.

So he did (rather angrily, of course). Hugo would explain that the treatment was actually an experimental chemical he'd developed to be able to turn humans into animals, specially developed for Kirk to turn "at will" instead of being stuck like that permanently. Because of Hugo choosing a vampire bat as the animal for the specific "treatment" developed for Kirk, he would need to feed on blood while in bat-form, thus the reason he was bloody every time he awoke from his blackouts.

There was only one bonus to the transformation. The concoction was, actually, a sort of cure. The bat form didn't have the same chronic pain or issues that Kirk's normal body did. But it came at the cost of being a mindless, bloodthirsty monster.

All he needed to do, Hugo said, was figure out how to become the bat instead of letting it take over, and then he'd practically be the perfect creature!

He would have to keep coming to Hugo for regular injections, though.

Kirk initially, obviously, refused - he wasn't a monster, and he didn't want to hurt anyone or anything just to help himself. But he kept thinking about it. And thinking about it. Could he really tame the bat, and live as something powerful and strong? Something he'd never been?

It weighed on his mind so much that he inevitably returned to Hugo, just to try it. What he didn't know at the time was that the injections were purposefully addictive, growing worse and worse the more he returns to take them.

Hugo Strange friend of the year everybody