#but I'll do what I'm asked when I can muster it and respect their beliefs

[darrowsrising]

Dumblr lost the Silenius' Stiletto ask, so I'm making a post about it.

Silenius' Stiletto is a concept, mostly a political one - Silenius had to to find a balance between tyranny and anarchy, because once given dominion, his fellow Golds, who fought with him, named him Sovereign and conquered Earth, started to do as they pleased, regardless of the common good (as good as fascists can muster). So he had a galaxy brain moment and decided that he will not be a tyrant, but he also won't allow his ArchGovernors to do as they pleased. It was a dangerous game to play, he couldn't push and pull at the people who put him in charge for too long or too much, but he also couldn't stand and take it, when they stepped out of line. You have to hold ypurself to a sufficient stardard at all time, which is by no means easy.

What Virginia took from Silenius is that balance is key, no matter what system you have. You have to firm and fair, compromising, but unwavering. Again, not easy. It's like walking a tightrope, one mistake and you're done. And that's teh last thing the people need - instability.

This Lysander's interpretation of Silenius' Stiletto. It's a more practical one, but still close to its original intent - Lysander sees that his presence in the Core is a threat for Atalantia and an opportunity for other ambitious Golds. He will have to choose a side, they'll make him, and whatever side he decides to be on, it will shape and control him. That is why he has to navigate this tightrope, he'll have to do things his way, in a way that is true to his purpose - unite Core and Rim - without causing civil war and without having him killed off.

Virginia has to navigate her Stiletto daily, though. She has to always find the legal means to move things and not abuse her power. That doesn't stop Dancer from abusing his own powers - Senators have no right to meddle in diplomatic matters, that's the Sovereign's attribute. But she will not do what Dancer did, she will walk the Stiletto and if she wants more decision making power, she will legally gain it. Because that's what a demokratic Sovereign should be like - steady. Because if she does not respect the laws she put in place, she'll slip and then demokracy is in danger. In this particular case - as shown above - Virginia has to navigate the Syndicate and the kidnapping of the children, getting troops to Mercury and finishing this bloody war once and for all, legally, and the people who keep being a burden to those plans. Sevro and Victra negociating without Virginia's consent (they were too stubborn to understand that Virginia too would give anything to save the children, half of Mars was reasonable enough in her opinion, as she understood why the Obsidians wanted a place of their own) was bad enough, but going rogue against thr Syndicate really complicated things.

Virginia is at the end of her Stiletto - she is conquered it, now she has Imperium. Lysander, has barely begun it. He has even more to navigate, starting with his own fucked up brain and beliefs and ending with the Golds who want to use him and discard him at their earliest convenience.

So, in general, the Stiletto means to steadily endure and navigate problems carefully as to not disturb the balance and solve them so that you do not slip and die. Its key is patience. Becayse the more people coerce you in one direction, patiently going your way and dodging them is garanteed to gain you success. But that isn't easy or pleasant. It's a stiletto - it cuts. But the cunning behind is what wins. You walk your way and survive, you manage to shut down the problems and mantain the balance.

Those are my thoughts at least. I wrote way more, but dumblr fucked it. I'll add some more thoughts when I remember the rest. Thank you for waiting, though!

Howl on!