#WHICH IS WELL ESTABLISHED TO HAVE GIGANTIC MONSTERS

[spooky-activity]

local warlock drinks legendary potion of gigantification to save friend from eldritch horrors who live in The Mists

[nectardaddy]

aftermath - higuruma hiromi

cw: blood, death, homicide, manga spoilers (I mean, if you know who tf he is you're fine tbh), language

notes: established relationship, gender neutral, inspired by if I killed someone for you by alec benjamin (was gonna put the song in but I refuse to put the gigantic eyesore that tumblr auto gives me and idk how to fix it)

synopsis: how should one react when their lover shows up on their doorstep covered in blood?

You didn't mean for your breath to hitch in your throat so violently, creating an audible gasp from the air that lodged itself. Your fingers gripping the edge of your opened door with a grasp so desperate your hand already began to ache. Nails digging into the hard wood as you tried to decipher the pressing image before you.

"Hiromi-" you choked out. Voice wavering as his presence alone was enough to make your knees buckle. Dark, unwavering eyes boring into you. Seemingly nothing within them but a glimmer of something primal, macabre, and- desperate. You weren't a stranger to the unyielding looks, always transfixed on something well beyond his reach, but this was different. A look of a monster, and his attire following suit.

He was usually a well dressed, dapper man. But as he stood upon your doorstep, your opinion flipped instantaneously. A ruffled, crumbled suit jacket littered with dark blotches around the cuff, his white shirt underneath being the tell tale sign of what the mysterious blots were. A stark contrast, red on white, staining the previously ironed shirt right down to the threads. Cheeks splattered with the same red, a large spill just under his eye, like he had tried, unsuccessfully, to wipe his face. "What have you done?" You whispered, speaking softly as if it would untangle you from seeing him so heinous.

"Can I come in?" A gruff, almost uncaring, voice in comparison to your own. You didn't know why you hurriedly nodded, why you shifted out of the way for him to enter your home, why you thought letting this man back into your home was a good idea. It was against your better judgment, but you wracked your brain about the thought of 'there has to be a good reason.' This was the man you loved after all, not a cold hearted killer, or so you came to believe.

Hearing the door click shut and the lock engage, his eyes scanned his surroundings before returning to you. Tired eyes once again looking into you, almost trying to see through you with the intensity of it. "I killed them," he said bluntly, without regard and without further context. His words made your shoulders slump, your body creating shivers as his words hit you so profoundly.

"Who?" Was all you managed to ask, the word escaping your lips so quietly you hoped he would be able to hear it at all. Not asking why, not asking where or when. Who.

"The retrial was today," he said simply. It was all you needed, an impactful statement to which your eyes widened and your mouth opened. Quickly shutting it as no words were found on the tip of your tongue, your throat suddenly dry at the revelation, you could only stare. Looking over him to find any sort of answer, your eyes stopping at the collar of his suit jacket. There once was a small sunflower pin on the lapel, one you had gifted him years ago to replace the former. It was gone. It came off. Could the man you love really be so violent? So much so his beloved pin was ripped from him in the heat of the moment?

You couldn't say what had possessed you to step closer to the man, your lover, the murderer. Each step becoming easier as you neared him, stopping just before him and looking up. So close you could smell the gruesome, irony twinge mingling with the scent of his cologne. It made you nauseous, wanting nothing more than to spill your guts right then and there. But you swallowed hard and forced yourself to look upon the man who had sworn he'd love you to the end of his days. "Are you alright?"

A man of his situation might have said no, should have said no. "I've never felt better," he answered honestly. Looking down at you with a ghost of a smile, a mind fraying image now engraved in your psyche. Your fingers reached for his shoulders, letting out a shaky breath as your hands came in contact with him. It was damp.

"Oh my god," you spoke, forcing yourself to close your eyes at the sensation. You feared to lift your hands to what you would see on your palms, subconsciously pushing down the thoughts to the deepest part of your mind. "Oh my fucking god," you repeated, unable to form a single coherent thought as you couldn't stop yourself from circling back to the feeling.

But the hand, drenched in the same crimson, that gently touched your cheek made your eyes snap open and you inhaled sharply. There was blood on his hands, staining his fingers in sin so much so it was under his nails. That blood was now on you, ripping your stomach right out of your body as you wanted to heave. Desperately searching his features for any sort of answer, but only coming to the same conclusion.

The man you loved killed two people - and liked it.

oh I'm definitely making a part 2 are you kidding??? I wrote this shit in an hour that's a new fucking record for me

[ranticore]

Hi has anyone ever told you Ice Storm Over Kosa has impeccable vibes and feels incredibly innovative and fresh!

In terms of the towns and communities, what types of infrastructure connects them? What kinds of technologies are common vs cutting edge in the setting’s different time periods?

hehe thank you.. i really like how the setting tag is just one of the character's names so it looks like you're saying He has impeccable vibes

<3

So there is a huge huge almost insurmountable limiting factor when it comes to the growth of towns and communities, which is that large aggregations of living creatures will attract the crawly beasts and they pollute the earth, make crops wither and die away, kill livestock, kill people, etc, and humans can't even touch them with protective gloves on since the crawlers' fluids eat through leather

humanity (and monsters) were forced to spread out over a larger surface area. villages and settlements are small and have to be actively defended almost nightly. there has been a slight stagnation of the march of progress, as just fighting off this threat takes up so much of everyone's resources, and forbids institutes of learning and the like from forming. so most of the technological advancements we see, they are in the field of long-range communication, weaponry (falconry too), and material technology that might repel crawling beasts

in prehistory, the land now called "the Ama plains" hosted a gigantic city with a hundred thousand people living in it, called Amphora. it was very advanced for its time period, with working plumbing, hot and cold water even, mass production of cloth and food, etc (not to mention the magic). Amphora no longer exists and most of its innovations were lost.

in the early time period after the arrival of the crawling beasts, humanity and monsterkind are scattered. the only established settlements are those guarded by wyrms, but it took many centuries to reach that point. human towns are ruled by small feudal lords who may form loose alliances with one another but typically rule their land as if it's a lone island in the middle of a vast sea. this is the time of Revelation's march. the most established settlement is the city of Onozar in the far west of Ama, which is ruled by a king who has a hold over many of the neighbouring towns and lords, by virtue of Onozar's size and relative safety. technology levels are low; no firearms, trebuchets and crossbows are cutting edge.

in the time of Twist and Flicker, there is an age of unprecedented cooperation with monsters (Revelation's march might have had something to do with this change). This means that towns and villages are now usually protected by something other than a wyrm - this ranges from willing cooperation to cruel self-styled 'monster tamers' who force monsters to do their bidding. This is the dawning age of harpy falconry as described in the lil story i wrote about Ice Storm of Kosa himself, though back then the old method was to make a contract with an adult harpy and cooperate that way. The infrastructure is still not very advanced; they're still struggling with plumbing and sewage systems, because crawlies come out of the ground and their poison can seep into aquifers. Anyway communication between towns is usually done by pigeon (or pigeon harpy). The ground is not a safe place to be, so houses are typically built on short stilts, or at the very least, residential rooms are upstairs. Water supply is often provided by elevated aqueducts; wells are a last resort, but often the only choice for impoverished villages. There is a culture of fear surrounding large gatherings and groups - sometimes it's unavoidable, and human/monster nature, but that anxiety is always there.

With this increased cooperation between humans and monsters, people are able to gather in larger groups. this enables more learning, more apprenticeships, more farmlands, and a more rapid development of technology. It also means a more centralised ruling system begins to form; it takes a lot of resources to supply a pack of wolfmen or a harpy flock to defend a town, so small towns must make petitions to their more prosperous neighbours, and this develops into a Government of the entire region. firearms develop in this time as a means to kill crawling beasts; they are not that successful, and it takes a while before people realise you can use firearms to kill other things, too.

A century later, developments are progressing well enough. Firearms are still rare but starting to spread. Harpy falconers have developed a new, effective technique for their art, it's called "kidnapping"; steal an egg, and raise the chick to imprint on its human parents. that way it won't want to leave. There is a sense of teetering on an edge; humanity leaning more into forcing monsters to help, instead of cooperating. But this is not the progression; the success of the Kosa flock helps convince many falconers that the kidnapping method isn't the best after all. technology is still uh bad, but this is an era where writing materials are finally becoming more mainstream, literacy rates are slowly rising. the printing press is the hot new thing. they have water towers now to provide the plumbing at a safe elevation. communication between villages is still very dove-based, since flight is the safest method of travel.

fire is the only thing that both kills and neutralises the poison of a crawling beast. by this time, progress has been made to develop "automatic fire machines". so all the R&D people put into guns in the real world was put into flamethrowers instead. it's easy enough to rig up a system that pumps out burning oil, but these devices are usually stationary, heavy, and fixed at the gates of the various more prosperous town walls.

[eldritch-spouse]

Going out for ice cream with Obie and having him feed you the ice cream knowing FULLY WELL this is going to end with you cleaning the mess off his fingers with your mouth (of course there is intense eye contact, that's a given). I need to bother this man so he's steaming in public but unable to do anything about it ‼️ raaaaugh!!!

[Reader is implied fem, but can be read as neutral.]

TW: Semi-public; Foodplay; Unsanitary.

You've always been a bit nervous about taking Obie out to eat anywhere.

Meals are important for gluttons, which means that, to many of them, which restaurant you choose to have your dates in and what you order can be the decisive blow to a newly blossoming romance. Even if the mid-ranker who has his eyes on you doesn't exactly seem to be the snobbish type, you can't help chewing your nails in dread that you somehow fuck up and take Obie to the worst lunch date of his entire life- Getting brutally dumped in the process.

He laughed when you brought these concerns up, straight up telling you he'd eat off the floor if you wanted him to -Something that honestly made you worry for his sanity back then- That the mere act of trying to feed him meant everything to the glutton.

And for as much as you want to believe him, you always hesitate to make a decision, constantly fearing the worst no matter how unlikely it is that your choices would be that disastrous.

Seeing this, Obie often decides to take pressure off your shoulders by suggesting your next meal-date locations himself. And it does kind of make sense that a demon of his type would know all the best places. You just wish he'd stop recommending establishments in the Gluttony ring.

You're very scared of visiting Hell in general, it's not a place for humans, you don't care how many of them like to gloat that they set foot there and came back unharmed- You don't buy it! There's always a price to pay for dwelling in the sins. And even with a mid-ranker who was born and lived in the Rings for a good portion of his life to protect you, you're just not ready.

Obie laments this, though the demon has admitted it's clever of you to want to stay away. You're too soft, whatever he meant with that. Still, since you can't visit his favorite ice cream establishment in the Hells -That so fabled Sorbet Sabbath he's mentioned more than a few times- He's finally taken you to a surface alternative he deems decent enough.

It's nothing special, he said, as he handed you the most massive ice cream cone you've ever seen in your entire life. Three fat scoops of absolute sugary goodness staring at you with different toppings and syrups, appetizing enough to have you swallowing your own drool back up. Obie spotted that hunger immediately, beaming with that bear trap of a mouth, proud of nailing your tastes once more.

" What do you mean, nothing special?! " You nearly shout as the two of you pick a more secluded table to enjoy your treats. " This is gigantic! "

The demon wheezes, brows raised at you as if waiting for the other shoe to drop. " Dude please, this is a robbery, in Gluttony I'd pay basically the same and the scoops are double this size. "

" Fuck off. " He's joking. He has to be.

" No, for real! "

When you're both seated, you finally glance at your boyfriend's choice of treat. Your eyeballs nearly fall off their sockets. He's got like five scoops poorly balanced on that thing, there's so much syrup and sprinkles on it, you have no idea how the cone he clutches isn't disintegrating. He's going to make a mess, for sure. There's no way any person can eat that without making a fool of themselves, that little plastic spoon sticking out of the mountain of sweetness is borderline hilarious.

The yellow monster notices the staring, broken tail wagging. " Want some of mine? "

" Ah- No, no thanks. " You're pretty sure you'd have a heart attack.

Perhaps because he knows letting the thing sit for too long will end in disaster, Obie is quick to forgo conversation and focus on his ice cream. And by that, you mean he unhinges his jaw to python-like proportions, glittering rows upon rows of teeth connected by strands of hungry drool right in front of you.

An equally wet tongue slips out from its cavern to wrap all too easily along the length of the frozen delicacy, clutching it with a dexterity you've both coveted and lusted for several times, before it reaches the cone and swiftly sucks it into Obie's maw. Like a vacuum cleaner on steroids. If you blinked, you would have missed it. When the two of you started hanging out, you'd see the glutton eat this fast and you wondered if he even tasted anything he put in his mouth- You know better now.

Because after his throat bulges obscenely with the size of his meal, he licks his lips and lets out that content rumble you've grown ever so fond of. He tasted it alright, licking his lips and choppers for any trace of goodness he didn't miss.

It's an embarrassing amount of time until you tear your gaze away from him, eyes busy scrolling his form from top to bottom with an intensity that might make the hellfire creature burn alive. You could watch him for days.

You could watch him eat for days.

Damn you and your stupid fucking oral fixation.

" Hey uh- Bonbon, that's melting. "

Snapping into attention, you follow the direction of that lazily pointing claw to find that, indeed, part of your ice cream is already losing shape, dripping onto itself and nearly coating your fingers.

In the panicked pause you take to decide how to prevent the inevitable, Obie has already taken action. Bigger fingers than yours reach out to collect the stray trails, collecting the more melted sections too so that they don't start dripping immediately afterwards. You relax slightly, a ghost of a smile on your features as you expect him to shove them into his mouth and be done with it.

And yet, the demon hesitates, gaze veering from his hand to you in the sliver of a second.

" Hey now, that's my ice cream. Not fair. " You jest softly, far from expecting him to crack a toothy grin in reply.

" Oh? Yeah sure, don't let me stop you then. "

And, much to your chagrin, the glutton presents his sweetened hand your way, resting his chin on the other as he silently dares you to follow through.

Fortunately for him, you're stubborn sometimes.

There isn't a single thought resembling common decency in your mind when you lean forward and steal a quick lick of his finger tips, darting back into your seat as soon as you realize what a gross act that was to do in public.

Obie's perpetually squinted gaze widens the smallest amount, he exhales in amusement at your five seconds of bravery and his grin quickly acquires a tone befitting of his nature as a spawn of Hell.

" That's it? " He tilts his head.

" Obie, we- "

" You barely even tasted it. " That hand edges forward more.

" We're not alone! " You whisper-shout.

The demon laughs openly, clean hand gesturing to the surroundings. " Yeah? You sure? "

Your own curiosity betrays you, hues flickering all across the place and spotting only vacant tables, save for two other people seated a considerable distance away, not even facing the two of you. For all intents and purposes, you could get away with a lot. But like Hell you're saying that to his smarmy face.

" Fine. "

If his grin got any wider, it would escape his face.

The next time those fingers wiggle in your direction, you catch two between your lips, smiling as you thoroughly begin cleaning them. At the first rush of your tongue working, Obie appears to visibly shiver hard, a hint of color to the glutton's cheeks causing his shit-eating smirk to grow crooked.

Very satisfied with yourself, you leisurely pop off his digits.

" Is it any good? " Obie teases.

" Mmm. But I think you might just taste better. "

Oh.

Oh that got him revved up alright.

You gloat inwardly at knowing how to properly bother your glutton.

" Why not test that theory? "

He has the nerve to reach for your cone again, collecting more recently melted stray trails and making more of a mess than before.

After some paranoid glancing around, you decide to start with his palm, a flat and honestly less impressive muscle flattening itself against the soft creases of his skin. The quiet gasp that erupts from him only serves to further stroke your ego while you isolate one digit and thoroughly suck it clean.

" Hhn fuck. "

Your muffled giggle is almost mean-spirited.

Perhaps against your better judgement, you don't release Obie's hand, moving to the pinkie and offering it the same hungry treatment, going as far as to lick between digits before swallowing his ring finger and moaning around it.

Obie has been increasingly quiet and still throughout all of this. And even if it's always been very hard to kind of guess how much attention he's paying to something or where he might be staring, you know for a fact his attention blazes on you, rapt and unfiltered. Something that might be sweat condenses on the left side of his forehead and a faint sheen of drool coats his bottom lip. You only wish you could look beneath the table and check if there's anything going on. The possibility of Obie having popped a boner from this alone thrills you immensely.

The moment you start pulling back, the glutton jolts into movement, suddenly shoving his pointer and index into your mouth, your eyes widening like dinner plates.

" You're not done. "

That wasn't a tease anymore.

It's your turn to shudder, an almost violently quick outbreak of goosebumps raising your hairs when the very tips of his claws sit placidly on your tongue. Your shocked stillness doesn't halt Obie, whose breathing comes out in hot, barely muffled pants.

Without an inkling of shame, his digits glide on the flat of your tongue, a slow back and forth, coating themselves in your drool as he casually plays with your mouth. Your cheeks are catching up with his in terms of heat.

" Suck. "

You nearly choke.

You can't really turn your head to check anymore, so you simply pray that no one is looking when you do just that, enjoying the way he gulps and straightens. Obie's legs part the slightest amount, and you know exactly what he's trying to accommodate, the flames of your aroused confidence stoked to brand new levels.

The mid-ranker is an iota of carelessness away from cutting into his own lip while he essentially finger-fucks your mouth, humming every time you have to swallow the excess saliva or try to use your tiny tongue to lap around his digits. You know there's a myriad of nasty things going on inside that head, because you yourself are getting a few less than innocent ones. Lords know he's the kind of guy that would coat his dick in syrup in try to get you to suck him off the same way you're treating his fingers.

And the worst part is that you'd probably agree.

Maybe on purpose, or perhaps because he's getting too into it, Obie slips his digits too far down your mouth and triggers a gag from you, the sound and look of it making him growl loud enough to have you sliding down in your seat a bit from sheer embarrassment.

You're released from that lewd torment however, searching for a napkin to wipe the spittle from your lips, wondering just how much of a show an onlooker could have gotten just now. Obie feels no such pressure, playing with the strands of drool connecting his fingers while his clean hand dips to squeeze at something out of view briefly.

" I can't wait to put that little throat to use. "

He leers, grin sloppy and heated, chuckling when you lightly kick his leg.

" I guess... W- We should go home then? " Because really, he's not the only one left surprisingly turned on by this.

The glutton raises a hand. " Finish yours. Can't leave yet... "

When the demon makes a vague gesture towards his lower body, you can only snicker, nodding.

It's a bit hard to eat properly when you're aware Obie is lazily studying every lap and bite. And, at this rate, you just hope he has enough restraint not to push you against the closest conveniently placed wall...

[readreactrant]

Hi...Do you know what anime you'll watch this season?

My top 3 fav this season are :

- Tadaima, Okaeri (wholesome BL, also one of my comfort read)

-Black Butler : Public School Arc (yes the ship is problematic but you cannot deny the shipper when you watch it. I'm not shipping SebasCiel but I'm not anti too. Their canon relationship is complicated but great story)

-Wind Breaker (bucchigiri but way better and loveable mc)

Hope you'll like them.....

Hey hey ( ◜‿◝ )♡, Literally following all of these already.

Black Butler was definitely a must, since the announcement dropped sometime last year I've been unable to keep it out of my mind. It's understandable not everyone will ship them but I personally have missed Sebaciel shenanigans so much and seeing favorite characters like Soma (although with less melanin than I remember lol what =_=) in the recent episode just made me so happy.

As for Tadaima Okaeri, I was looking forward to it for a long time, so far I'm not disappointed and it's definitely so fucking cute. All I'm saying is...if any country needs to push baby making propaganda they should go for this instead of the trashy het stuff, I don't make the rules.

I have almost no thoughts on Wind Breaker. It's definitely an upgrade but after the disappointment that was Bucchigiri, I've began to keep my expectations for Delinquent shows low (Tokyo revengers and IWGP are yet to be topped for me). It's not bad but do feel like it's lacking substance in some areas and trying too hard. The main character isn't a bitch tho so I know there's hope for it yet.

To me this year's winter season had way more exciting stuff but there are a number of other anime I'd love to recommend for this spring.

Karasu wa aruji wa Erabanai (The Raven does not choose it's Master) Is almost like the apothecary diaries, but with magic, and without the herbs and medicine...but it has the court politics so yay (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧ taking place in a world where people can turn into three legged ravens called Yatagurasu, Yukiya after causing some trouble for his family is taken to serve the most special of specials crown prince who is to become the next Kin'u after picking a bride from the four daughters of the clan heads sent to him. So basically every gay historical romance Wattpad story lol. Unfortunately this isn't a bl and though you can probably tell the prince will get married in future episodes, from these three eps, I think it establishes the focus will be on him and Yukiya, which, I couldn't ask for more.

Another Recommendation is Kaijuu no. 8, I have no words (in a good way). Just spacial forces slaying gigantic monsters while the main character suddenly becomes one of those monsters and has to still join the special force that at some point will kill him if they find out, or if they have found out they realize he's different from other monsters and can help them win the war for humanity *aot flashbacks ಥ‿ಥ* What I'm trying to say is that... it's good. I think it's funny with characters that have to potential to reel you in. I've been told the manga is pretty average tho but we'll see.

Touken Ranbu Kai is...something, I don't watch anime just for pretty boys but even if I didn't like the plot of this one I'd stick with it just for the guys. Beautiful character designs, the lore feels very fresh and intriguing and as well. There's a lot of philosophical topics I think the show has potential to dive into and I'm excited to see where we go moving forward from the three eps out currently.

Last but not least, there's Sentai Daishikkaku (Go Go Loser Ranger) I really don't want to spoil anything but let me just say, it's a brilliant subversion of the Power Rangers narrative. The sound track is fun while also hitting hard, and the characters definitely leave you wanting to know more about them and the world they're in. Definitely give it a try, I don't think you'll regret it.

Got a bit carried away with this one hahah, welp that's all my recs for now. Aside from my shipping stuff I'll probably talk about any of these every now and then, my top three right now tho are definitely Black Butler, Sentai Daishikkaku and Karasu wa aruji wa Erabanai. Anon has amazing taste but I'm a very big action and supernatural fan at heart so I'm based.

Depending on how disappointing or exciting things get along the line this list might change but unfortunately my feelings don't help the state of my FAL ranking so yeah wish me luck (〒﹏〒)

Feel free to leave YOUR current top 3 for this season in the comments, or if you joined FAL like me or just what you think of any of these of you're already watching them (◍•ᴗ•◍)❤

[dyrewrites]

from the fantasy ask game

Unicorn and magic pretty please!

~(=^･･^)_旦~ teaful day to you good sir [gender neutral]

What a delightful kitty! And I will take your sir! (you can call me anything, I am a cup)

UNICORN - What makes your WIP and your writing stand out?

Ooh, these always throw me.

Um, well, Pale Blood's cyberpunk with monsters thing isn't really new (I mean it's basically Shadowrun, isn't it) but I think the world itself might be? Morne is a misshapen ball of a planet held in the claws of a gigantic wyrm. Som, said wyrm, holds the sun in his belly and lights the world with it by way of opening and closing his eyes. So...that stands out, maybe?

For the writing itself, you got me. I mean I'm not trying. I'm told it's poetic in places, lyrical even, which is always the best compliment. I am hopeful only that it is fun to read and recognizably mine when it needs to be.

MAGIC - What is your magic system?

This one is fun! It doesn't come up too often in Pale Blood, in the rough draft anyhow, but it will as I revise things.

Witches are the only ones with what we would consider 'magic', and they obtain it by being born to one who is already a witch. Their bloodline traces them back to a Goddess (of which there are three; Mother Night, Daughter Dusk and Sister Twilight) and that determines the 'type' of magic they have access to--and the rites and rituals required to use it on a grander scale, or strengthen it.

However! All of the magic is interpersonal. It is rare that they can use their magic on something inanimate (one would assume the net/internet inanimate but this is incorrect and important to be aware of). It is 'cast' via establishing a connection of some sort to the one they're using it on, but once a connection is made it takes genuine effort (or a dead witch) to sever. It can be skin to skin, emotion to emotion, thought to thought, even voice to voice if she's powerful enough (they are always she's, even if Mother Night has to twist some organs around to make the she in question's body match in order to get her witch).

Each Goddess rules her own domain and her witches have access to those domains, and can use them to manipulate the world around them. Once the connections is established, they have carte-blanche, basically, to do with it what they will (and what their own bodies, minds, spirits, can handle).

Mother Night’s witches, known as Children of Night, have perception and alteration. // they are the most mysterious, and calmest of the three, sullen perhaps, but terribly difficult to rile...and fearsome when they are.

Daughter Dusk's witches, known as Sisters of Dusk, have suggestion and divination. (one of the MCs is a Sister of Dusk) // they are largely tech-based witches, responsible not only for the net and the netlinks that allow everyone access to it but the barrier that separates the Wylds from the city

Sister Twilight’s witches, known as Daughters of Twilight, have manipulation and dominion. // the city as a whole is run by Twilight's Daughters, whether anyone knows it or not, as every seedy bar and brothel in the slums and high-class hotel and escort service up in the gilded towers of Upper Dolor is run by a Daughter...they've got their hot little hands in everyone's pants

This is already so long! I hope that was an answer. >.<

[sinosauropteryx--prima]

Life in the Carboniferous

(first row: Diplocaulus, Lepidodendron, Arthropleura; second row: Meganeura, Hylonomus, Walchia, Pulmonoscorpius; third row: Tullimonstrum, Calamites, Edestus; fourth row: Pederpes, Eryops, Stethacanthus)

Art by:

Pederpes - Ntvtiko

Lepidodendron - Richard Bizley

Calamites - Jonathan Hughes

Walchia - Dinoraul

Arthropleura - Vladislav Egorov

Meganeura - Walking with Monsters

Pulmonoscorpius - Plioart

Hylonomus - John Sibbeck

Diplocaulus - Sergey Krasovskiy

Eryops - mmuyano

Tullimonstrum - Nobu Tamura

Edestus - Julio Lacerda

Stethacanthus - Ja Chirinos

It‘s the age of giant bugs!

But before I get to talk about giant bugs, we have to take a moment and appreciate the real stars of the Carboniferous: The plants! The whole reason it is called Carboniferous (“coal-bearing“) is because of them. The forests of the time got flooded repeatedly, decayed, rotted and over the ages have turned into coal deposits that we use today. So whenever you hear people talk about fossil fuels coming from dinosaurs you can “well-actually“ them and talk about ancient plants instead.

During the Carboniferous earth was a warm, humid place with lots of tropical swamp forests. Some of the plants you would have seen there are roughly familiar to us today, like ferns. Similar looking were the seed ferns, which are extinct today. They reproduced by making seeds (shocking, I know), unlike “regular“ ferns, that reproduce via spores.

In some cases the plant groups are still around today, but they look nothing like their Carboniferous counterparts. Calamites for example was a horsetail that grew into more than 30 m high tree-like structures. Closely related to the small modern clubmosses were the Lepidodendrales (“scale trees“, named after their bark, which looked like scaly reptile skin). Lepidodendron could grow up to 50 m tall and would have spend most of its life as a single unbranched stem, which definitely added to the weird alien feel of Carboniferous forests. A more familiar sight were the earliest conifers, like Walchia, which lived during the late Carboniferous. Many other modern plants including grasses, flowers or hardwood trees, like maples or oaks, weren‘t around yet and wouldn‘t be for many millions of years.

Now that we have established that the forests of the time were strange and alien filled with plants of all kinds of weird shapes and unusual sizes, let‘s look at the bugs, which were also having all the wrong sizes:

Among many others there was the dragonfly cousin Meganeura with a wingspan of more than 70 cm, Pulmonoscorpius, an about 70 cm long scorpion and Arthropleura, a truly gigantic millipede, more than 2 m long. It was comparable in size to the biggest sea scorpions and one of the biggest arthropods that ever lived.

The questions is of course, why were insects and other arthropods this big? The main answer is oxygen. Insects have a very different breathing system than we do and it doesn‘t scale well with size. Because of that they have a size limit. At some point, they just can‘t get enough oxygen into their bodies (thankfully, because I don‘t need giant spiders or mosquitos or whatever). During the Carboniferous however, there was a lot more oxygen in the atmosphere than there is today, so the arthropods could grow much bigger than they do today.

Another reason for the giant bugs might be, that they didn‘t really have a lot of competition. There was nothing to keep them in check, so evolution just went wild with them. You have to remember that, while insects were already taking to the skies, the proudest accomplishment of our tetrapod ancestors was crawling from one puddle to another. To say that arthropods had a head start would be an understatement. So for future references, remember that every time I mention a cool thing any vertebrate does, there probably was an insect that did the same thing millions of years earlier.

But speaking of the tetrapods: They were getting better at crawling between puddles. We get the first true amphibians like boomerang-headed Diplocaulus and the giant Eryops, one of the biggest land animals of the time (you know, roughly milliped-sized). Maybe even more exciting was that during this time we see the first amniots! That‘s right, there are animals that lay eggs now. Real, actual eggs, that can survive without water. These lizard-like creatures (they aren‘t actual lizards, those will take a lot longer to evolve) can finally leave the puddles and rivers their amphibian cousins have been bound to.

It‘s probably a good thing, that they can leave the water behind, because there was some very weird shit going on in the oceans. After the placoderms went extinct during the late Devonian mass extinction (rip), a lot of bizarre shark relatives showed up, like Stethacanthus with its anvil shaped dorsal fin or the absolute horror that is Edestus.

But the weirdest thing of the Carboniferous (maybe one of the weirdest things ever) has to be the Tully monster (btw, not really a monster, only about 35 cm long). I mean, just look at it. It has a mouth that is separated from the rest of its body by a proboscis. It has stalked eyes. It is weird as fuck. We also have absolutely no idea what it is. Science agrees that it is an animal, and that‘s about it. There are arguments for it being a vertebrate, an arthropod, a mollusc, a worm and pretty much anything else you could think of. Honestly I just love it because of how strange and fake it looks.

[paperanddice]

Gigantic snakes over 60 feet long with iridescent black scales, the andrenjinyi are a select few children of one of the spirits present at the start of the world. Born from scales cast off of the great Rainbow Serpent, these lesser nature spirits hold sway over the land in several ways. They represent the sky, rain, and quite often have an interest in birth and fertility.

They might as well be gods to many regular people, with their power over nature and weather in particular. One that establishes itself in a region can influence those who live nearby in immense ways, and often nearby people wind up offering it ritual and obedience in exchange for benevolent use of its power. As a guardian the andrenjinyi can assure the safety of the community, as few creatures will dare challenge it, but it sets specific edicts with harsh punishment for failure, a hanging blade that could fall upon the people depending on it.

One particularly interesting feature of the andrenjinyi is its gullet. Creatures it swallows are transformed into beasts, which the andrenjinyi then releases to populate the area surrounding its home. A lake with a menagerie of unusual creatures (often in mixed gender pairs) may mark the presence of one of these great serpents, and approaching closer without the proper rites and offerings could be quite dangerous.

With their low numbers, each lost andrenjinyi is irreplaceable. As such, they have become more cautious with this new world, only living in isolated regions beyond the reach of the major powers, and if severely injured by an actual threat they will attempt to use their rainbow arch to escape to safety rather than fight to the death.

Originally from the Tome of Beasts 1. This post came out a week ago on my Patreon. If you want to get access to all my monster conversions early, as well as access to my premade adventures and other material I’m working on, consider backing me there!

Pathfinder 2e

Andrenjinyi Creature 15 N Gargantuan Monitor Amphibious Perception +28; darkvision, tremorsense (imprecise) 120 feet Languages Common, Celestial, Jotun, Sylvan Skills Arcana +26, Diplomacy +27, Intimidation +29, Nature +26, Religion +30 Str +9, Dex +4, Con +8, Int +5, Wis +7, Cha +8 AC 39; Fort +29, Ref +23, Will+26; +1 status to all saves vs. magic HP 282; Immunities mental; Resistances acid 20, electricity 20, fire 20 Speed 60 feet, burrow 20 feet, climb 20 feet, swim 60 feet Melee bite +30 (magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d12+15 piercing plus Improved Grab Melee body +29 (magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d6+13 bludgeoning Divine Innate Spells DC 33 ; 8th dispel magic (×3), hydraulic torrent, sudden blight; 6th flesh to stone; 4th shape stone (at will); 2nd speak with animals (at will); 1st create water (at will); cantrips (8th) spout Divine Rituals Spells DC 33 , 8th control weather, reincarnate; 6th commune; 4th plant growth; Rainbow Arch (2 actions) (divine, teleportation); Requirement The andrenjinyi is touching a pool of fresh water large enough to hold its entire body. Effect The andrenjinyi can teleport up to 1 mile to another body of fresh water it knows of. For 1 minute after it uses this ability, a ranbow manifests between the origin and destination point. Swallow Whole (one action) Huge, 3d8+9 bludgeoning, Rupture 25 Thrash (2 actions) The andrenjinyi makes a Strike against each creature within its reach. It can Strike up to once with its bite, and any number of times with its body. Each attack counts toward the andrenjinyi's multiple attack penalty, but the multiple attack penalty doesn't increase until after it makes all the attacks. Transmuting Gullet (free action) (divine, polymorph) When a creature ends its turn swallowed by the andrenjinyi, the andrenjinyi casts baleful polymorph on that creature (save DC 33).

13th Age

Andrenjinyi  Huge 8th level spoiler [beast]  Initiative: +11 Great Maw +13 vs. PD - 50 damage Natural Even Hit: The target is swallowed if it’s smaller than the andrenjinyi (see below). Miss: 25 damage. C: Thrash +13 vs. AC (1d3 random nearby enemies) - 30 damage. Miss: 15 damage. Limited Use: The andrenjinyi can make this attack as a free action if it has no enemies swallowed after using its standard action during its turn. Swallow Whole: While a creature is swallowed, it is stuck, hampered, and unable to attack or affect anything outside the andrenjinyi’s stomach (and vice-versa). The andrenjinyi makes a transmuting gullet attack against any creature that ends its turn swallowed. There are two ways to escape. Cut Yourself Free: If a creature inside the andrenjinyi makes a single attack that deals 40 or more damage, it can climb free. All weapons are reduced to d6 damage dice if they were higher. Crawl Out: When the andrenjinyi is staggered, you can try to climb up the andrenjinyi’s throat as a standard action. Roll a hard save (16+), on a success, you crawl into its mouth and it spits you out somewhere nearby. When the andrenjinyi is reduced to 0 hit points, all creatures it’s swallowed can climb out of its stomach as a move action. [Special Trigger] Transmuting Gullet +13 vs. MD - The target transforms into a tiny animal until the end of its next turn. While in this form, the target is weakened, hampered, cannot cast spells or use powers, and deals half damage with all its attacks. Natural 18+: The transformation is permanent, until removed by a ritual or other powerful magic. Burrow, swim, and climb walls. Rainbow Arch: As a standard action, the andrenjinyi can teleport to a nearby or far away source of fresh water. It may attempt to teleport to a similar spot up to a mile away, leaving the battle entirely. It rolls a hard save (16+). On a success, it immediately leaves the battle, carrying any creatures in its gullet with it. AC 24 PD 21 MD 19 HP 410

[hrodvitnon]

Some More Abraxasverse Headcanons (2/2), about the Scarred Ones and Zohar's consequences

5. Because of 4. in the previous post, Mothra is fiercely no-nonsense about anyone deliberately messing with the natural Zohar in the Realm Below.

6. Maybe yet another last straw or next-to-last straw which makes Godzilla decide to do a hard reset on civilisation in the Genocide Route is because humans in that route started messing with the planet’s Zohar in the Realm Below again, after Apex’s actions and after the war against the reemerged Scarred Ones.

7. As much as Kong finding the Scarred Ones and slowly learning the truth about them is yanking of the dog’s chain, he might get a slight silver lining at the end of the resulting conflict. Kong’s influence, the Scarred Ones’ losses past and present, and the Scar King’s ongoing decisions might eventually lead to a minority of Scarred Ones defecting to Kong’s side against the Scar King and his loyal majority.

8. After the war against the Scarred Ones, any future antagonistic human factions or organisations trying to use the Zohar for their own ends and unleashing a new Titan threat in the process, instead of tampering with the Realm Below’s natural Zohar, use synthesised Zohar like Apex did; taking advantage of the readings that Apex Cybernetics’ drones originally took from the natural Zohar, which have unfortunately gotten out into the world after Apex’s downfall despite Monarch’s best efforts, as well as gathering whatever top-of-the-line lab resources Apex originally used to do the physical synthesising.

8.5. Ooh, now there’s a dark thought. Half a decade or more after the war against the Scarred Ones, there’s a new high-end black market trafficking synthesised Zohar, the stuff that can make Titans… :O

---

Synthesized Zohar on the black market has the potential for some crazy shit happening in the AbraxasVerse, and I am HERE for it... also, I don’t know how familiar you are with the Xeno Meta Series (Xenogears, Xenosaga, Xenoblade), but let me tell you something that is serendipitous as HELL.

The idea of synthesized Zohar is actually kinda funny considering where the naming inspiration for it came from... it’s also from Xenogears, but for those who haven’t played Xenosaga, there’s the Original Zohar which was discovered on Earth and is probably older than the Big Bang, and twelve Zohar Emulators that have been used in experiments that... end about as well as you’d expect. Like, “an entire planet and 1.5 billion people vanishing and turning up again as a gigantic alien monster thing” well. Just touching an Emulator even while wearing protective gear can cause you to vanish from physical space. Factions across the ‘saga ‘verse have been scrambling for control of them for a long time.

And much like how the Scarred Ones use pieces of the AbraxasVerse Zohar to empower their weapons and themselves, or synthesized Zohar could power Mechagodzilla (and Kiryu I think? Time to reread The Clash of Silver), the Zohar of Xenosaga has been used to power “Relics of God” (like giant super-powered mecha). The really funny part about this, though? It’s established in Xenosaga Episode III that a certain “People of the Zohar” protected the Zohar and the Relics of God for generations and arrived on a certain planet after a long journey. The planet has a new name thanks to galactic government nonsense, but its real name... is Abraxas.

Intentionally or not, all roads lead to Xenosaga, it seems!

[aeoki]

SHINSEKAI - Magicians of ES: Chapter 1

Location: SHINSEKAI Control Room Characters: Sora, Natsume & Tsumugi

< One week later. In the “SHINSEKAI” control room in the Tohoku region. >

Tsumugi: I suppose this would be their limit.

Natsume: YeAH. It’s possible to sustain them for this long due to the latest equipmeNT, but there is a limIT. Their bodily functions will be badly affected if they were to be logged in for a long period of tiME.

It’s the same as a trip to spaCE. If the human body is in an environment different to where it’s normally supposed to live in for a long tiME, it’ll start to break doWN.

So we’ll log out the players as plannED. And we’ll let them rest for a few days in the real worLD.

By doing that, we should be able to relieve any issues the body hAS. That’s the sort of experimental data we’re seemingly gettiNG.

Tsumugi: Well, it’s the latest technology that we’re unfamiliar with, so we should be careful. Our contract with ES does state that they will take full responsibility, though.

But if victims do arise, we wouldn’t be able to sleep very well at night.

Natsume: Speaking of victiMS, “Valkyrie” are just victims who got dragged into thIS.

We’re doing this because we received orders from the higher-up to do sO, but I felt sorry for them in the beginniNG.

Tsumugi: Ahaha. I’m sorry, it’s all because I’ve been ordered to not go against what they tell us to do…

But if things take a turn for the worse, I’d ignore the “order” and save them, though.

Natsume: YeAH, I have no objection to thAT.

Sora: Sora, too! That’s because Sora and the others in “Switch” are not “evil magicians” ♪

Natsume: YeAH. Ultimately, not having the liberty to do whatever they please within a great government or religion is what magicians aRE.

Unlike “Trickstar” and “Crazy:B”, we have no intentions of recklessly going against the higher-ups, thouGH.

We bear different positions – different identitiES. We’ll use our methods to etch our ideals in ink and to take hold of our dreAM. …I won’t let anyone make complainTS.

Tsumugi: Fufu. Everything is going smoothly right now, so we can breathe a sigh of relief. I hope things will continue this way, though.

Sora: HaHa~♪ Sora is also doing his best alongside Senpai and Master~ to ensure a happy ending!

Natsume: YeAH. Compared to “Valkyrie” who are struggling against heavy odds in-gaME, it’s rather easy for us as all we have to do is simply watch over thEM.

Sora: Actually, Sora wanted to play inside “SHINSEKAI”~ It’s a bit boring just watching.

Tsumugi: I’ve said this a few times before, but we’ll take care of what needs to be done, so it’ll be fine for you to play in “SHINSEKAI”, Sora-kun.

Sora: No, no! Sora isn’t a child who will push his work onto the adults and play around innocently!

Tsumugi: Right. We’re counting on you to do your part too, Sora-kun ♪

Natsume: In reality, after Sora became the focus of our activitiES, “Switch’s” reputation has skyrocketED.

We only achieved that because you held our hands and pulled us aloNG.

But at this point in tiME, we’re lacking in achievements to our naME. We can’t say it’s better compared to before and leave things theRE.

We need power in order to change the worLD and in this industry, ES single-handedly shoulders thAT.

They lay low after they were established for a little whiLE, but ever since “SS” began, ES started genuinely baring their fangs as the gigantic monster they aRE.

We “Switch” will smoothly manoeuvre around that and create even a fraction of a world where unhappiness and sadness do not exiST.

The testing conducted in this “SHINSEKAI” which utilises “SSVRS” is that very first stEP.

“SSVRS” is a device which allows unparalleled dreams in the world to turn into a reality and its profits are immeasurabLE.

We’ll make it an exclusive patent from our agency and it’ll be a huge commercial produCT.

We’ll change the world with new technoloGY. Just like how the internet and smartphones dID.

Tsumugi: Ahaha, Our agency never has the money nor the power, so it’s nice that we’re able to attain a large source of income like this.

It’ll be a great help in terms of managing the agency in the future.

Natsume: YeAH. Within the four great agencies, apart from the huge RhyLin, StarPro and CosPro have millionaires supporting thEM.

I say the four great agenciES, but there is a clear disparity between our economic power and theiRS.

Tsumugi: It would have been great if Suou-kun could support us, though.

Compared to Eichi-kun and his group, they almost seem poor and it seems they’ve run into some trouble at home as well…

Sora: Yes… Sora often chats with Tsuka-chan on “Hallhands”, but it looks like things are really bad right now?

Natsume: YeAH. In reality, we can’t continue to keep relying on “Knights” even though they’re a unit with steady populariTY.

But with this “SSVRS”, we can shrink the gap between us and the other agenciES.

Even without assistance from other agencies or “Double Face” having to come in to keep things in cheCK, we should be able to boldly and freely hold our activities in the futuRE.

Tsumugi: Yes. Justice without power is powerless and power without justice is violence. Let’s work hard to use the power we’ve gained righteously and act appropriately.

So we no longer bear any regrets.

Natsume: YeAH. We don’t know what will happen in the futuRE, but let’s stop watching on the sidelines without doing a thiNG.

Complaining from the inside won’t change a thiNG. Let’s get ourselves involved in the stoRY.

This time, truly, to reach a happy endiNG.

Sora: …………

Natsume: ? What’s wroNG, Sora? Sorry, we ended up talking between ourselves agaIN…

Sora: HiHi~♪ Sora loves watching that more than playing video games ♪

Oh, not that, Sora felt something weird when Sora looked at the in-game data…

Natsume: Felt something weiRD?

Sora: Sora can’t explain it very well but it feels like someone else is trying to overwrite the story we’re trying to write out…?

← Previous Chapter ᠂ ⚘ ˚⊹˚ ⚘ ᠂  Next Chapter →

[gomamonday]

Gomamon Day is THIS FRIDAY! GET HYPED!!1!

I originally established Gomamon Day back in 2017, I wrote a small FAQ about it back then: https://tumblr.com/gomamonday/168174866156/gomamon-day-2017, here's an updated version:

Why a digimon?

I’ve seen a few days for celebrating other digimon (Flamedramon, Renamon), as well as days to celebrate pokemon (such as 7/28 as Popplio Day), and figured it would be nice to celebrate a specific digimon species; not necessarily “Jo’s Gomamon”, although that is the one that most digimon fans are familiar with.

Why Gomamon?

Many years ago, along with Patamon and countless virus types, he was established as one of my favourite digimon. I quickly got tired of the Adventure anime and am mostly familiar with them through the old PS1 games. Over a decade ago I decided to begin collecting digimon merchandise, with a main focus on Gomamon and Patamon. Over the years more recently, they appear to me as a sort of embodiment of positivity and happiness, and have helped me get through a lot of negative or otherwise not-so-great times in my life. So for me personally I think having one day to celebrate them would be great to show others how awesome this underappreciated digimon is!

Why December 9th?

December 9th is the day I got a special Gomamon custom-made plushie of my own; in fact, he’ll be 9 years old this year! His name is Natticus, and you can follow his cohost once he decides which username to use (Natticus or NatticusTheGomamon on cohost) or check out his old tumblr archive @natticusthegomamon​. He was made by magnastorm on DeviantArt and is one of the most popular “Gomamon” art submissions there! The date also correlates to the same month Gomamon was first revealed in the Digimon Pendulum Version 2 (Deep Savers) in December 1998.

How do I celebrate?

You can draw or write about them, take some photos if you have a collection (no matter whether it’s gigantic or just one plushie), make a photo story of your own Gomamon’s adventures, livestream a digimon game (Gomamon is obtainable in Digimon Survive, Cyber Sleuth, Hacker's Memory and Next Order!) or just reblog some relevant posts~ Make a Gomamon OC (or ask an OC owner to draw theirs!) You’re free to @ or submit posts to this account anytime from now until then, or you can make your own post(s) and tag them with at least one of these hashtags below so I can find them to reblog here!

#gomamonday #gomamon day

Any rules?

No negative/hateful posts about anyone or mon; we can all love Gomamon without being mean to other monsters right? While I'd like the day's celebrations to stay SFW, if you do make other content (NSFW or "SFW fetish" content) please do not directly tag it under #GomamonDay, use something different like #GomamonDayNSFW instead. Late posts are okay, I’ll likely be celebrating at least all weekend long!

Feel free to ask/message me if you have any other questions, ideas or suggestions! Thanks!

[red9]

/leans in and taps the mic/ i would love to hear what you think might have happened storywise and onward had luis survived in resi4 instead of the fate he has in the game. would he continued to work towards atoning for his sins or even a happy ending to his own story? i have a feeling you have a lot of thoughts on the matter.

              This question took me a while to get to simply because I have so many different thoughts and possibilities for what could have come postgame for Luis. Some of these of course will be the basic what Capcom would have done versus fun things in terms of AU's I would enjoy to explore. So forgive me for all the rambling I’m about to do.

              In terms of gameplay and story wise, I feel like if by some means where was a way of keeping him alive, realistically Capcom would have pulled what they do with any side companions in these kind of games. Like Sheva, or Carlos for instance, that stereotypical thing the company does. Maybe he got what he wanted, in a perfect world he somehow got to drop off the radar. If we kind of follow the end game post credit scene with Ada having that discussion with Wesker, she changes course with the amber and what would be Luis. Maybe she keeps their side of the deal, maybe she just drops him off somewhere and says see ya, giving him a chance to get away from that life. Because I have no doubt in my mind if she went back to Wesker there would be no way in hell they’d just let him go. 

              The more they’ve elaborated and changed Luis’ lore it’s very clear he is a powerful, knowledgeable person. We all know by now he worked for Umbrella, helped create Nemesis, assisted Saddler in the study of Las Plagas, after the incident in Raccoon City he was literally being hunted by the government to be taken in as a bioterrorist. He is very educated on the genetic research and modification of Plaga, capable of injecting and removing it from the host, etc. So a man who can make Nemesis, El Gigante, Regenerators- you name it- I don’t see Wesker as someone who would just let him walk. Be it by force or offer, I don’t think Luis could ever fully run from his past and get off scot free. By this point in the timeline it’s established that Wesker is working alongside Excella, who as we all know is the CEO of Tricell and the chief of bioweapons development. And you know who would work very well with her? Luis. This is where I can go into a whole alternate universe bad timeline for Luis where he ends up being a part of the plot of Resi 5, even if it’s against his will. This man knows so much about Plaga research he could have been recruited into their B.O.W. trade ring with Ricardo, a man who is capable of creating all these horrendous monsters that get shipped out around the world. He could have easily been a hand in the Uroboros Project, even met Jill and been forced by Wesker to create her chest device, she also has the T-virus in her which makes for interesting research- would he feel good about any of this- no, but if he had no other choice he’d do what he had to in order to survive and find means of escape all over again. Anyway we all know what happens in 5 and that’s a rant for another time so I’ll backtrack to other possibilities. 

              There are lighter happier endings that are so far fetched but I feel like I want to include them anyway because it’s what he deserves. If he was wounded, or didn’t give the sample over to Ada and escape with her I imagine if he wasn’t critically wounded, there’s that chance that he’d be able to escape with Leon and Ashley. Things are about to get real cozy on that jet ski but they make it work. There’s the ‘yay he got to escape with his friends’ factor, but in all reality if Leon didn’t drop him off somewhere before they were picked up from the extraction point he’d be sent back to America with him. Realistically, he’d be taken in by the government since he’s a wanted man. They wouldn’t let him go after being on a hunt for so long. And with Leon’s reports on what happened during his mission, they’d probably just lock him up and we’d never see him again. 

              However this is where fun little AU’s come into play for me so while you’re still reading this bear with me. Leon makes some deal with the government, in some magical world they listen to him and take his word. Luis once recovered, being forced to become some kind of field agent and get training. He’s the brains, Leon is the brawn, whenever Leon is sent out on a mission he takes Luis with him. He can clearly hold his own, even more so with training, and encountering any sort of B.O.W’s he’d be able to take samples there on the field and give direct feedback to whatever HQ. Would be a fun little thing to consider, he and Leon still get to see Ashley from time to time, he lives a life on a ball and chain but at least he’s not dead or in a jail cell for life. 

              I’ll stop here for now but as you can see I have many different thoughts, possibilities, and AU’s to cater and cope with the fact that he’s dead. In a perfect world he’d be able to run off and live his quiet life, but we just know that in this universe no one is ever truly able to have a happy ending. Thanks for the question!!

[tokiro07]

Huh, apparently I never shared my thoughts on Luna since their introduction, and if I did, I can’t find the post (Undead Unluck 127 spoilers)

[War of the Gods]

127 confirms that Sun and Luna are BOTH God, though whether they’re separate Gods or offshoots of one entity, I don’t know

What we do know is that they’re in competition to determine the final state of their ideal world, which I guessed from chapter 95 when Juiz said that giving her points to Fuuko to help her to survive her wounds would work in Luna’s favor

I THOUGHT I’d talked about it at the time, but I guess it was just in my head

Anyway, I originally thought that “God” was pitting the UMAs against the Negators just for fun, but knowing that there’s a UMA faction and a Negator faction specifically in contest to determine the outcome of the world makes a lot of smaller inconsistencies make more sense

We’re told that Artifacts are weapons made by God to kill God; now we can interpret that as weapons made by Luna to kill Sun

Quest rewards not necessarily being to the advantage of the Negators, such as the unification of Language or the addition of Ghost? Well they’ve gotta be to someone’s advantage, and it’s probably Luna’s, especially if the punishments are in Sun’s favor

The mere existence of the Negators in the first place suggests that they’re generally meant to be the representatives of Luna to fight against Sun’s UMAs; the God of Men vs. the God of Monsters, so to speak, which is reinforced by Luna appearing to be a human obscured by light and Sun being a gigantic, living eruption

Not to say that Sun can’t create Negators, we know that they can from Ruin bearing their mark and from Ruin’s dialogue

I’m unclear who gets to decide who becomes a Negator when; Akira becoming Unknown at the moment that he picked up G-Liner suggests that Sun was trying to keep the reward of Information out of the hands of Luna’s side, but Mui getting Untruth at the moment of Shen’s death suggests that Luna believe Mui to be the optimal choice for keeping Untruth in play

Perhaps they both have some say depending on the circumstances? Or perhaps Sun only agreed to allowing the Information reward on the condition that Unknown be afflicted onto the one who found it? Or did Sun and Luna establish a set of parameters ahead of time for Negator selection so neither of them would have that power except for the creation of the Regulators? Or does Sun have power over both UMAs and Negators in exchange for Luna having dominion over the Artifacts?

There’s lots of ways this could go, and I’d really love a chapter or two dedicated to breaking down the rules of engagement, even if I’m the only one who would

[eldritch-spouse]

Pinnie - or, if you're truly fine with it, Mommy cause you radiate that energy tbf - does Zizz like getting spanked?? Cause one thing that sounds really fantastic is tying a big monster boy up, head down ass up and spanking him until he's begging me to fuck him stupid X)

[I thought it'd be a little obvious I enjoy that title. FUCK YES THOUGH, I love the sound of that for Zizz. Fem reader.]

TW: Spanking (reader has to use a flogger this man is huge).

Being the wife of an Icon of Hell isn't always as bleak as you thought it'd be.

Sure, you didn't come into this willingly, and the first months you spent with Zizz certainly can't be called a walk in the park by any stretch of the imagination, but you count your lucky stars that it wasn't worse. That your initial expectations weren't met.

That he doesn't hurt you. That the demonlord actually made, and continues to make, efforts to turn this into an acceptable arrangement for you. You're not excusing any of his actions, but you've allowed yourself to feel glad for the way things have turned out, with a more or less loving dynamic established. You're not sure you'll ever match his frankly intimidating intensity, but... You're fond of Zizz.

And he's been happy with that so far, which means you've been steadily introduced to a lot of Zizz's duties as King of Sloth. It's actually quite surprising, the amount of work he gets done during the brief episodes wherein he's fully awake. Zizz is a bright demon, in spite of initial appearances. He's organized Sloth in a way where his trusted servants can pick up work perfectly when he inevitably falls onto a dead sleep at his desk. He's got alarms set up for very specific hours and manages to schedule things in a way where, almost magically, Sloth still functions. It's impressive.

He says having you around has been very helpful as well, since you apparently prove to be a very effective source of motivation for the demonlord to remain awake and complete tasks, so he can spend more time with you. You recall the way he purrs whenever you bring him a cup of coffee. Not that it does anything to him physically, you're sure it must be nothing more than a placebo effect paired with joy that you bother to do such for him in the first place.

Nonetheless, one of the facets of Zizz's professional life you've been involved in occasionally are the so-fabled "Icon meetings". It's... Well, they're shitshows more often than not, you kind of understand why Zizz dozes off early on. Usually, there's bickering going on, and it hardly ever involves the Sloth lord himself, so being awake is a waste of time as far as he's concerned. Clever thinking. Though it does make you feel slightly unsafe that he's willingly going unconscious while you're surrounded by other huge demons, who sometimes give you strange looks.

You're sure the gigantic snake woman is going to eat you one of these days, Livius is constantly glaring at you two, Cero has a disgusted look on his face whenever you meet his eyes and Rinx glances over everytime some gold trinket in your outfit jingles. You won't even get started on the Wrath lord's dreadful volume. Vesper is apparently one of the friendlier ones, it seems. He still gives you and Zizz lecherous glances, having blatantly propositioned the demonlord to let him sleep with you two at several points. While it scandalized you at first, you soon realized it was just in his nature to behave that way. Still, when he's not actively trying to get you horny, he's not bad company, and you've had quite a few pleasant conversations so far.

One such is what planted an idea in your mind.

If you recall correctly, it was at a meeting a couple of days ago, nothing too eventful was taking place, the Pride lord and the Greed lord were arguing heatedly about the state of cross-ring resource importation and some manner of "unreasonable inflation", it didn't matter. Vesper was sitting next to Zizz, who was predictably in a dead sleep in spite of the commotion. He had you trapped in his arms, which were crossed over his chest. You had been about ready to take a nap yourself when someone tapped your shoulder.

" Don't snooze just yet, darling, I'm terribly bored. " It was the Lust King, of course, flicking his lashes and pouting.

" Mmn, whaddya want? "

Vesper snickers. " Oh, humor me just this once? "

" 'M not going to have sex with you. " A muscle memory response by then.

" Yes, a shame. " He paused. " But, I actually want to know about your sex life with Zizz. "

You had popped an eye open there, not exactly amused.

" See, I spoke with Zizz when he was still single, and I know for a fact he's into a number of things... " Those sharpened teeth took on a perverted, pleased grin. " Have you two been exploring that? "

Had you? It was odd, aside from somnophilia and lazy sex, maybe a couple of slightly risky escapades, things hadn't really gotten spiced up. But then, you had only recently began getting sexually comfortable with Zizz, maybe he didn't want to jeopardize everything by introducing something hard into the bedroom. Vesper took that silence as an answer by itself, tutting softly.

" W- Why do you care?! " Why wouldn't he care? He's a huge whore, it's what he does.

" I just hate seeing potential go to waste, dear. " The Icon then murmured. " I can give you some hints, hm? "

The suggestion had given you pause. Indulging in Zizz's kinks... In your captor turned oddly-lovable demon's kinks. What had your life come to... But then, it'd be a lie to say you disliked the idea. The morality of it is frivolous, you're here now. There's no way out, you thought maybe you should lean into what amount of happiness you could reap from this situation. And maybe, just maybe, getting Zizz hot and bothered made you happy.

" U- Uhm. Okay... "

Vesper perked up, head tendril curling. " Perfect! I'll send you a little something something. You're a smart girl, you'll get the idea. " And he winked, letting the conversation die there.

A day later, one of the head imp servants approached you specifically with a delivery from Lust. A mysterious black box with a stupidly fancy bow on top. You opened it in your shared bedroom, coming face to face with a long silicone... Flogger? Paddle? One end featuring a pretty pastel pink heart shape while the other had feathers of the same hue. It clicked then. Spanking. Zizz was into spanking. How innocuous, you expected something a little more menacing. Included in the box was also a pair of handcuffs. The symbols on its sleek padded purple design made it obvious that it was enchanted with something. Though it was the size of the item that gave you pause. It was far too big for a human. For you. These cuffs were made for demons the size of Zizz.

Meaning you will not be the one getting spanked. The Icon of Sloth is.

That alone had taken you by surprise, though a knowing smirk quickly crawled up your cheeks while you pondered. It made sense. Zizz is a lazy demon, for sure. Sex with him usually has you doing most of the work, though he has proved to be an efficient pleaser when challenged before. Point being, Zizz's lack of energy makes him come off as submissive... It was no wonder that he'd enjoy taking the role of a spankee.

You liked that idea. A whole lot actually. A plan began formulating in your mind...

Which leads you to today!

Tonight actually.

You can't sleep. How could you?! You're going to spank your big goof of a boyfriend. King, actually. You're going to spank a King. Oh ho ho, if this isn't some power trip.

The room is dark, aptly dark for someone as light-sensitive as your partner, only some dim LED lights scattered around. You're once more trapped between a mountain of plushies and the demon's annoyingly tight grip as he lays on his side, chin plopped on top of your head. Zizz has recently taken to sleeping without his veil, perhaps because he trusts you not to peel the curtains open in the morning and blind him. Eitherway, that leaves the big lad in nothing but plain black underwear, overly hot body glued to yours. It's unpleasant to always wake up vaguely sweaty, but you've resigned yourself to it by now, it's part of this new life.

Alright. Step one is wiggling out of your prison.

Kicking and shoving stuffed animals aside sounds easy, and it really is, unless you're drowning in them, in which case you might as well be doing jack shit. Because everytime you push a shape out of the way, another fluffy thing will take its place, like quicksand. Eventually, with enough effort, you manage to create some vacant space in the bed. Good. Now comes the hard part.

Getting Zizz to let go of you.

You've been practicing. After all, he's done this since day one, and many were the times where you woke up in the middle of the night on emergency mode with a full bladder. Calling his name is fruitless, the demon will grunt or mumble at most, maybe whine. Taps and straight up slaps to his bare skin won't do anything either, he just shakes like jelly and snores. You've learned, through experience, that gentle attention is usually what gets Zizz to move.

Squirming to at least face the huge demon, you look up and frame his dark face. Soft, so weirdly soft. This part of him is as odd as it gets. He's like... A matchstick, featuring this charred-black head bleeding darkness into his neck. You'd figure such a part of him would be rough, but it's almost like a cloud. Grabbing those smooth cheeks, you place gentle kisses all over his face and exposed teeth, making sure to nuzzle your nose on him. Zizz faintly starts purring and readjusts his neck to be closer to you, but his arms remain firmly locked around your torso and waist, not even twitching. Tsk.

With a huff, you resort to more insistent tricks, tickling at his neck and trying to do the same to the parts of his tummy you can reach. That gets him to groan something nonsensical out, limbs jerking and tail swatting at the sheets. Yet still not enough. Fine then. Far from deterred, not only do you hasten the pace of your digits, you blow air onto his face periodically.

Finally, that appears to bother Zizz enough to slacken his hold, one arm raising to rub his features.

Knowing a golden opportunity when you see one, it's a matter wiggling insistently and tapping at his loose arm to finally, finally- Break free! Victory. Aha!

The demonlord very clearly notices the lack of heat and pressure on him, growing distressed ad grumbling amidst a deep slumber. It's almost cute, the way his tail thrashes in indignation.

That's step one. Step 2 is breaking out the nice stuff, conveniently hidden inside the closet you share with your King. It's not like he looks at it anyway, his servants basically do everything for him. And you. But it's okay to be a little pampered, right? The contents of the box are removed and tossed onto the bed after you clear it of excess pillows and plushies.

Step 3, the most difficult of them all. Rolling this fucker onto his stomach.

But how?

Hm...

Impact. You need to throw yourself. Though it could backfire and make him fall on you. Here goes nothing! With some momentum, you roll onto the bed and slam against a hard grayish body, mostly not achieving much beyond stunting yourself. But hey, you did wake him up slightly.

" Mmmr, whas' dat? "

Zizz rumbles out, a deep, slurred sleepy tone that always makes you shiver. " Hey... Roll onto your stomach? " Worth a try.

He sighs, and after a couple of seconds, basically flops onto his front like dead weight. Hah! You're not sure how awake the demonlord is right now, but it won't stop you.

" Zizz? " You try after getting back up, receiving no response from the static monster. Yep, he's out again. Truly remarkable.

No time to waste! Grabbing the cuffs, and securing the key somewhere of course, you drag his hands together, looping the toy around one of the top columns of this ridiculously large bed. The cuffs glow a slightly pink hue once locked. He didn't twitch a muscle through this... Sometimes you worry for Zizz's safety.

There! Now, onto the good part.

Having the large demon rolled over, you giggle to yourself in pure satisfaction and eye his plain boxers. It's funny, you have more than confirmed he doesn't use underwear with his typical garbs, but he puts it on to sleep. How odd. Climbing behind the large monster, you take a moment to appreciate his behind. Zizz is huge, and what's more, he's also on the curvier side, you're sure he's the softest demon out there. By virtue of the former, he also has a pretty fat ass, if you do say so yourself.

A cute, round, perfect ass.

Lips curled up, you drag bare palms up the Icon's legs, making sure to cup the fat of his heavy thighs before resting them on those fine globes. For someone who likes to call you "pillow" so much, you sure as Hell just found a perfect headrest right here. Your attention is caught by a periodically swaying tail, that pretty thin thing with a tip very similar to his horns. It looks like a half-moon. Your arm extends, grabbing the length of it much like a cat after a thread of yarn. It bats aimlessly in your grasp, until you peel it out of that special band in his boxers.

You're no angel, you're purposely giving yourself a titillating show when you grasp the hem of his underwear, dragging the fabric down slowly and biting your lip the moment it rests on his thighs. Perfect ass indeed. You could just bite him.

Instead, you pick up the long flogger Vesper generously gifted to you, choosing the feathered end to start your torture. Sitting cross-legged between the massive demon's legs, you start feathering at his limbs.

" Ziiizz... "

Nothing, predictably. The ministrations move higher, zigzagging playfully, resting over the crux between those thighs. " Zizzy. " No response.

Your notions become insistent, tickling at the expanse of skin between pucker and slit, occasionally rising to tease the root of his tail before dipping back down. Laughter rings out when the demonlord does move, shifting his ass and twitching his legs. The most you get out of him is another caveman grunt.

Tut tut.

Alright. No more playing around then.

Readjusting the toy, you quickly swat it against the meat of his left cheek.

Finally, the Sloth King jolts, making a much more sober sound. You can hear the rustling of those fancy cuffs against the bed post while Zizz gradually processes the situation.

" Mmn did... Did you just hit me? " He slurs, bright white eyes staring back at you from the relative darkness.

" Me? " You start innocently. " With these little hands? " As if to emphasize the point, you splay said feelers against his rump, groping to your heart's content, drumming on his rump a bit. He shudders when you lean in to plant a kiss on the spot you just swatted. " You wouldn't even feel it, right? "

Before the demon can answer, you grasp the cute flogger again and swipe it across his right cheek. Zizz instantly shudders, muscles tensing. Hm, Vesper wasn't kidding, this does work. Good.

" M-Marshmallow? What is that? " His tone is breathy, that doesn't sound like a complaint to you.

" Don't worry about it too much. " And just because you like seeing his buffer jiggle, you lash it again, a little lower, a more tender spot if your research is correct.

Zizz chuffs something incomprehensible. The sleepiness apparently leaving him steadily at this turn of events. " Am... 'M I being punished? " He murmurs, legs spreading ever so slightly.

You take the time to think about it while you remove his underwear fully. Are you punishing your King? You could, by all means, you're still essentially a captive, even if you've decided to make the most out of it. Why not spin this in a different direction?

" I don't know Zizz, do you want to be punished? " The question hangs thick in the air while you play with the rubber tip of the toy, waiting.

His brain might not be fully back online, because the demonlord makes a confused sort of "Hhrn?" noise. The next swat has some heft behind it, actually making him arch!

" Words. "

" No... " He finally squeezes out.

You laugh. Yeah right, like he hasn't been pushing his ass up this entire time. You're willing to bet his slit is already wet. " Then what do you want? "

Zizz makes a drawn-out purr, trying to look back at you from his awkward position while his tail dances. " Mm, I want you to suck me off- "

CRACK

" Selfish! Mutt! " Each word punctuated with much harder swats. " Unbelievable... " Zizz pants now, actually pants. " Get on your knees. "

When he takes too long to obey, he's rewarded with yet another lash smack dab on the same side. " We don't have all day! "

" Owww f-fuck- " Doing as told, a clear string of viscous precum connects his slit to the silken sheets beneath him, making you just about steam alive. " You're so mean. "

Rolling your eyes yet smiling wide, you point the feathered side to his dripping entrance and tease it thoroughly, laughing when Zizz squirms in frustration, never getting decent stimulation no matter which way he leans. It only succeeds in making him wetter. " And you're hopeless, my lord. " Switching ends, you allow him direct contact with the pink silicone heart, something the horny monster greedily accepts, rocking against it like an animal, trying to hump the thing.

It's a lecherous show, a sight that just about has you salivating, your pussy seeming to jolt awake as you consider getting beneath the cuffed demon and letting him rut at you. No, not so fast, not this time. The more he huffs and rolls his hips, the less mental fortitude you retain, so you cut the scene short by harshly and suddenly slapping the tip against his slit. A bit cruel, admittedly.

Zizz jerks forward, a loud pained whimper followed by horny little gasps as he buries his whining face in pillows and instinctively bucks against nothing, tingles of pain and pleasure working their way through his body. In a matter of seconds, that gorgeous purple cock is slipping out to play, more than teased and ready. You lick your lips, considering doing just what he wanted for a sliver of a second.

Instead, you snicker and brush his length with the same fluffy feathers. Zizz actually tugs at the cuffs this time, head rising. " Please! "

" Already? " Your brows rise, but it's not much of a surprise at all. It's not hard to make the demonlord beg, he gives in easily, because it takes less effort. You suspect a part of him enjoys feeling powerless anyway. " Tsk, come on, at least try. "

Zizz groans. " Mmh please please please please- "

Figures. Slut.

Your response is to crack that flogger several times across both sides of his ass, hard enough that it does start leaving heart-shaped imprints. And... Aw, it's adorable! You just have to see more of those pretty deep blue hearts on his ass. So pretty...

In a lustful stupor, enamored by those lovely hearts, you keep lashing the thing on several spots, ignoring the way the demonlord howls and trembles, even going for his thighs. He's a big boy, and strong at that. He can deal with a bit of thigh flogging. By the time you've calmed down, breathing heavily, his lower half is peppered in cute little hearts, sore, some spots starting to bruise in even prettier colors. But most importantly, Zizz is sobbing.

You hadn't even heard him.

Whimpering and moaning softly like some sort of overwhelmed animal. You wonder if maybe you've gone too far until you see his cock throbbing repeatedly. Then again, if he really wanted to stop this, he could have by now, you don't believe the cuffs would be an issue given what you've seen Zizz do before.

" Do you think you can come just from this? I think you can. " You half-mock.

The King of Sloth makes a pathetic little noise betraying some great exasperation. " No! No no nn- Please- Please, I'll take anything jus' make me come please- " You wonder what it says about yourself that his sobbing voice makes you heat up like a furnace, shuddering.

The next thing that connects to Zizz's ass is neither the paddle nor the feathers, but your small human hands. He twitches regardless, more than sensitive enough to wince from something as simple as a gust of wind. " Alright, but only because you took it all like a champ. "

Gentle lips peck and smooch around the places you thoroughly abused, a spare hand snaking to his front so you can grab his weeping girth and treat him to generous strokes, not enough to let him orgasm yet. No, you want to take your sweet time, swiping your tongue from the bottom of his slit, all the way up and over his hole. The other moans out, audibly splintering something in the bed post so he can press harder against your flat tongue.

Your chuckle vibrates against his skin, and as fun as eating him out could be, your goal is that appendage thrashing and thumping around. A brilliantly devious idea has you catching the thing with your teeth, nipping at it at the same time your pumps increase in pressure.

Zizz somehow manages to melt more into the sheets, trembling like a leaf. " Hhrn- Don't stop don't stop donn- Ah! " And you don't. Offering the massive monster one last, thunderous clap to his ass the very moment he starts coming.

It's a spectacular show. He comes hard, whining out like a needy harlot, grinding deep into your hand, shooting thick ropes all across it and the bed. Enough in quantity to make you titer. Cooing and swooning, you make sure to milk everything out of Zizz, hearing him huff out in complete euphoria. You only stop when his trembling becomes pained hissing, quickly moving to remove those cuffs while he sags onto the mattress like an emptying balloon. Atop a small pool of his own seed, ew... It's funny, he didn't even pull that hard at the cuffs. Sure, the bed post is visibly damaged, but he behaved fairly well, all things considered!

This was a great test run.

It's not too long before you hop into bed, on top of Zizz's spent body and blowing raspberries on his back. The Icon chuckles tiredly.

" You should see your ass right now. " You smirk.

" You ruined it. " He laments, sighing.

Laughing, you give him a soft kiss and massage his sore wrists. " You did very well, my King. Maybe you should tell me more about your tastes in the future, hm? "

Zizz snorts after a couple of puzzled seconds. " It was Vesper, wasn't it? "

" We're gonna thank him tomorrow. "

Although Zizz makes a disgruntled noise, you catch the very same tail you bit on wagging.

[a-safe-and-quiet-place]

Anzu

Anzu

Description

Few non-divine characters are so pervasive across Mesopotamian mythology as the Anzu bird. For millennia, this part-lion-and-eagle demonic creature appeared in countless stories, some of which have survived to the present day in written form.

But what – and who – is Anzu, anyway?

Let’s take a closer look at some of the characteristics of this frightening monster and the many functions it serves in myth, as well as where Anzu fits within a broader, more comparative perspective.

Who Is Anzu?

Like so many mythical figures, it’s difficult to pin down the details of what or who exactly Anzu is and isn’t; its traits depend on the specific myth, inscription, or art piece it’s used in. That being said, there are some universal qualities that it possesses, including:

A fearsome physical appearance – oftentimes depicted of a lion-headed eagle

Great supernatural power

It was born from the primordial waters known as Apsu

An association with weather phenomena, like thunderstorms and strong winds

To that last point, Austrian Assyriologist Gwendolyn Leick suggests that Anzu’s primary role in various Mesopotamian mythologies was to represent these weather events’ powers to personify them. In other words, Anzu gives a horrifying face to these unexplainable elements of nature in myths.

Leick goes on to explain that, in literature and art, combined creatures like Anzu are meant to designate “manifestations of demonic forces, which are dangerous but not necessarily evil.”

Demons in Mesopotamian mythology don’t have the same connotations as in more contemporary religious systems, like Christianity or Islam. Instead, they’re more like nature; they are dangerous, but it does not mean they are evil.

Anzu in Mythology

This dynamic can be seen in Anzu’s recurring role in Mesopotamian mythology and epic poetry, especially in his earlier appearances (that we know about, at least). Sometimes Anzu leans more toward transactional benevolence, and sometimes it’s preferred to be evil; that’s just the way it goes.

In terms of source material, three stories warrant a closer look:

The Sumerian epic of Lugalbanda and Enmerkar – the episode in this poem involving Anzu is sometimes known simply as Lugalbanda and the Anzu Bird or Lugalbanda II

The Journey of Ninurta to Eridu,  Another Sumerian myth.

The Babylonian Myth of Anzu and the Tablets of Destiny, which is Anzu’s most well-known appearance in Mesopotamian mythological traditions

Let’s now briefly walk through these myths to see what Anzu is like in each of them.

Lugalbanda and the Anzu Bird

Lugalbanda was a Sumerian king of Uruk that turned into a god. He was likely a historical figure, but his adventures in stories most definitely didn’t happen. No gigantic demons live in the remote mountains of Iraq and Iran, where this myth takes place.

Lugalbanda is hopelessly lost in the Zabu Mountains when he decides to visit Anzu and his family to sing their praises and get something in return.

Lugalbanda climbs to the mountain’s peak where Anzu’s chick is nesting and heaps luxuries onto the young monster. Anzu, meanwhile, is out hunting herds of wild bulls.

Upon its arrival, he sees what Lugalbanda has done, for which it is so grateful it bestows great magical power on the king — such as the ability to travel at great speed — but not without the guarantee that people will establish a cult in his honor in Uruk.

The Journey of Ninurta to Eridu

Anzu’s place in this Sumerian myth isn’t as central as it is in the previous one, although it fulfills a similar purpose. Here, a young Anzu leads Ninurta, a god of agriculture, healing, and war, to Apsu, and tells the god his fate. In return for its services, Ninurta promises to create a cult dedicated to Anzu, finished off with a beautiful statue in its likeness.

The Myth of Anzu and the Tablet of Destiny

There are many different versions of this Babylonian myth. Scholars categorize each version chronologically and linguistically; Old, middle, and late Babylonian texts cover roughly 1,000 years.

The story, however, follows the same general plot in each version. The narrative conventions and some of the motifs were influential on later Babylonian mythology, like Enuma eliš, as Assyriologist Selena Wisnom argues in a recent article.

The Standard Babylonian Version begins with Anzu spying on the great god Ellil/Enlil bathing. As soon as the latter is relaxing in the water, Anzu steals away the powerful Tablet of Destiny, which contains Enlil’s power.

The despondent gods chatter frantically amongst themselves to decide who will take on Anzu, ultimately settling on Ninurta (or, in the Old Babylonian version, Ningirsu), who was much more oriented towards war in the Babylonian pantheon.

Ninurta raises an army to take on Anzu and its forces and equips himself with enchanted weapons. At first, nothing works; Anzu uses the Tablet of Destiny’s magical properties to dismantle each of Ninurta’s weapons. Eventually, though, our hero can tire Anzu out enough to cut his wings off and deliver the killing blow, restoring order to the cosmos.

Fragmentary copies of the myth, most of which follow the Standard/Late Babylonian version, have been discovered not just in Babylonian sites but also in former Assyrian cities like Nineveh (present-day Iraq) and Sultantepe in southeastern Turkey.

The Anzu Bird: Its Many Moral Shades

As can be seen from these myths, Anzu ranges from good (in Lugalbanda and the Anzu Bird and the Journey of Ninurta to Eridu) to sneaky and evil, as it’s depicted in the final myth.

It’s tempting to look at the cultures from which these myths came from and say that Anzu’s morality in mythology follows a neat historical trajectory, getting meaner and more wicked with each passing civilization. Sure, that might be true — judging exclusively by these myths, that seems to be the case — but there must be more to it than that!

It might be helpful to refresh our memories concerning the major Mesopotamian civilizations and see whether Anzu is a microcosm of the cultural and societal evolution of the area.

Sumerian: existed c. 3500-2400 B.C.

Akkadian: existed c. 2350-2150 B.C.

Old Babylonian: existed c. 2000-1500 B.C.

Middle Assyrian: existed c. 1500-1000 B.C.

Neo-Babylonian and Neo-Assyrian: existed c. 1000-500 B.C.

Anzu appears in both the mythologies and religious systems of each of these different civilizations, as well as their iconography. Perhaps not surprisingly, Anzu is used and understood very differently depending on each distinct culture.

We’ve already seen that, in the extant Sumerian texts, Anzu is more like a terrifying but reasonable force of nature. In contrast, as Gwendolyn Leick explains, Anzu’s evil and threatening side is emphasized in Akkadian art.

In truth, we probably can’t say for sure where Anzu’s morality lay for ancient Mesopotamians. It’s likely (as is the case for most ancient mythologies) that only a tiny fraction of the stories in which we encounter Anzu is available to us.

Some Sumerians might have thought Anzu was an evil demon, not just some manifestation of natural phenomena. Conversely, maybe some Babylonians thought the Tablet of Destiny myth made Anzu look bad and that it was a scary face given to wind and thunderstorms.

Anzu is more complex than what the physical record shows, and, as we’ve progressed into the digital age, this is reflected in forms of media popular today.

World of Warcraft players might recognize the name by an artifact you can find in the Spires of Arak, suitably called the Statue of Anzu. In the game, Anzu serves a different purpose than in mythology. It’s purely aesthetic — a scary eagle sculpture with no real character to it. However, Anzu has clearly never left our collective mindscape.

Anzu and the Comparative Scope

For diehard global mythology fans like myself (and you, hopefully), Anzu might constitute a class of archetypes known as mythological storm birds.

These are large birds — normally predator birds, like eagles, falcons, or hawks — imbued with some kind of supernatural power, usually linked with something to do with storms. This kind of mythical bird appears in mythologies across the world.

Anzu might be considered in this perspective: it is a frightening mix of two dangerous-yet-awe-inspiring animals. However, it seems to exhibit more qualities of an eagle (it flies, lives on mountaintops, has a nest, etc.) than a lion. There is something inherent in an eagle that evokes a healthy dose of fear and respect in so many different cultures.

In this sense, is Anzu the cousin of the Thunderbird from Indigenous American mythologies? Or is Anzu related to griffins from Greek and Roman myth? These are questions that might pop into our heads if we take a comparative approach to Anzu.

We can look past some of the particulars if we decide to go this route and instead focus on the universal characteristics of storm birds worldwide.

PS: Btw it really sucks that tumblr doesn’t let people upload gifs with less than 10mb, makes us optimize our gifs and even then it optimizes them even further in theyr servers to 3mb i believe

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

"GIGANTIC DRIVE TO CREATE WORK," Kingston Whig-Standard. May 14, 1934. Page 15. --- Re-establishment of Credit and Stability Helps Government ---- WINNIPEG - Papers are being shuffled in relief department pigeon- holes and preliminary plans checked in preparation for monster drive by the governments of western Canada. Work schemes, carefully fyled away during a period of financial stringency are receiving fresh attention in the face of a better budgetary outlook.

Proposals are being re-examined that will bring workers back to the land, encourage home crafts and local industries, revive building activity and encourage agricultural development. Special attention will be paid to waterworks projects in rural areas in view of the disastrous effect of the recent drought.

Approval of the government's relief bill which ear-marked $50,000,000 for a public works program across Canada provided the spark which set provincial machinery humming for the benefit of thousands of unemployed.

Proposals for housing schemes are being studied by a score of cities. Winnipeg has under consideration several plans including the construction of a community centre, to cost $1,700,000. Other preliminary projects in Manitoba include work at the International Peace Garden and Riding Mountain National park, extensive river works to prevent floods and develop the northern mining industry, government and small public buildings at various points..

Public works in 'Saskatchewan include construction of government buildings at Regina to cost $750,000 and a number of post-offices throughout the province. Construction of airports in the north and a general program to stimulate industry is also planned.

Several cities have indicated a willingness to launch their own recovery program and pay the full cost of labor involved in return for inter- est-free loans. It is believed the Dominion government will encourage such schemes which are well thought out, and justified on their merits. Lethbridge in Alberta, seeks a loan of 500,000 on these terms for an extensive building and paving program.

The proposed British Columbia program includes innumerable public buildings, sewer, water and road works, post-office and bridge construction. Erection of a huge stadium, grandstand and auditorium at Kitsilano Indian reserve would cost $2,000,000 and employ 600 men for one year.

In addition federal machinery is being set up to secure rellef for agricultural communities. Powers of the Federal Farm Loan Board will be enlarged to permit of debt adjustment. Arrangements will be made to loan money to wipe off existing debts up to two-thirds of the value of land and equipment.