#but with the right qualifiers i would probably recommend most stuff i like

[bobbile-blog]

Okay so I've finally gotten to Jessicalter's Oprec and now feel qualified to talk about Come Catastrophes or Wakes of Vultures. holy shit. This went straight into my list of top Arknights events. Fantastic event, spoilers will be under the cut so I HIGHLY RECOMMEND reading the event first. It's really good and worth your while.

Anyway, what follows is a scattered mess of thoughts about this event and things that stuck out to me.

First off, plot stuff! I'll probably cover this when I do my next plotline recap post, but what I took away from the end is that Clip Cliff seems to want to make Blacksteel independent, or at least more self-determining than it is now. He seems to be gathering resources and assets like mobile city plates and investing in long-term infrastructure like merc training, so he definitely has a long game he's pushing for. I don't think we know enough go speculate about his goals, but we'll definitely be coming back here again. After all, Tila has an infection monitor in her art, which probably means she's going to be playable at some point in the future.

Next, having looked into this a little on my own, I was interested in some of the previous places Raythean has shown up. Specifically, the ones that stood out were the drones in the Kazimierz Major and arming Silverash's forces in Kjerag, which might be referring to the Tschäggättä. It's not just notable for their apparent level of technology, but also as a faint connecting thread between three separate capitalism plotlines. I don't know if that's going to be meaningful in the future, but I found it interesting enough that I thought I'd bring it up.

Now on to more narrative things. While I love Liskarm and Franka, I do think it was the right choice to give them less screen time in this event. They're both (for the most part) fully-realized characters who understand their own motivations and morals. This is above all else an event about Jessica learning to stand on her own as an adult, so it makes sense that they're more here to support her than they are to play their own roles in the story.

Speaking of said roles, I liked the event's commentary on cops. It pointed out an interesting distinction that I wouldn't really have ever thought of, that between mercenaries and cops. To start: cops exist to protect property, not people. The police exist to protect things and do not have an obligation to err on the side of people over things, and in fact are supposed to do the opposite. This event understands that, and that role os the core of how the bank treats the Blacksteel mercs. CV, however, raises an interesting point that mercenaries are bound by the letter of a contract and not the larger obligation to property cops are, so they can actually raise moral objections and point to their contracts, sort of a Lawful Evil/Lawful Neutral to cops' Neutral Evil. The independence of their position with respect to cops allows for more of an independent morality than you'd get in a cop story and I like that, I think it's a really smart direction to take your writing in.

On a (mostly) separate note, holy shit Arknights is really good at writing cowboy stories. Between this and chapter 9 (and I would argue An Obscure Wanderer), Arknights has repeatedly made it clear that they Do Not Fuck Around with their cowboy stories and I'm surprised I haven't heard more people talking about it. It kinda has everything:

- It takes place in a rural, working-class setting undergoing a larger imminent societal shift that can inform the larger narrative, and deals with a semi-mythologized past that is rapidly disappearing.

- It has a protagonist and an antagonist that serve as foils, both very heavily affected and defined by the (same) violence in their past that they've both had different reactions to. Our protagonist has come to terms with the violence as a tool to maintain order, while our antagonist has used it for personal gain and in some ways lost control of it.

- It's a story about community, and heavily emphasizes local and personal community over larger artificial corporate "community". That's my reading of the recurring motif of the cold btw, warmth represents the close, personal community Davistown used to have and the cold that now pervades it comes from how the bank has systematically dismantled that community.

- And, I'd argue most importantly, it understands the narrative power of a bullet. The Showdown at the end of a cowboy story is powerful because we've spent the entire runtime of our story with these characters, and they are now facing each other down with the intent to end one of their collective two stories. The entire weight of the narrative so far comes to rest on a single moment of tension. It's really hard to gather up the kind of narrative momentum you need to make that hit like it does in CV. For example, it requires a really light hand with actual action in the story, so that it really does feel like it's an even standoff between our protagonist and antagonist. On the other hand, though, you do actually have to establish the relative skill of both parties and actually sell the danger of the moment to the audience. It's really hard to toe the line between tension and actual action in a way that makes for a satisfying resolution, and CV does it extremely well.

Honestly, Arknights just seems really good at getting the vibes of American media right. This is something I noticed in DV and Lonetrail too, and I haven't really been able to put my finger on what it is about them, but the vibes are just really on-point. I want to write more about this at a later point once I actually figure out what it is that I'm feeling, but maybe it's the setting, maybe it's the cast, maybe it's the plot points, maybe it's something in between — it just seems to understand the spirit of period cowboy stories in a way that I can't describe. Good shit.

Finally, I wanna end this with where Jessica is now. The events of CV take place In between the events of Loneterail and Ideal City, so the current "now" of the story is a few months ahead. Jessica left for the frontier along with Woody, Helena, and Miles. They live together in a small new settlement, building the place from the ground up with Woody and Jessica acting as town sherrifs. At the point we're at now, rhe town is fairly well-established and Woody has temporarily left on other business, leaving Jessica the sole sherrif of their new settlement. However, she's risen to her new station, and is growing into a stronger person than she ever was before.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Quirk Counsellor Things

Cause, like, it’s still pinging around in my brain, I have more ideas!

So like. I think I said before my headcanon is that Quirk Counsellors popped up in the wake of Quirks emerging as less a “let’s help you figure this shit out” and more of a way to identify an emerging threat. All the initial Quirk Counsellors were government agents, just writing down their findings and submitting them to the government. But they couldn’t really keep up with demand, so they started hiring whoever they could find. And because the goal here is registration, who cares about credentials? Can you write? Are you capable of basic observational skills? Congrats! You qualify for the job! And while society has changed in the three hundred something years since, the job really hasn’t, which is why so many Quirks are classed so weird. These people are still using a three century old classification system, that was put together in a hurry, not to classify people, but weapons.

So, here’s a fun thing I thought of! People with mutation Quirks? They don’t usually see Quirk Counsellors! Hear me out!

So, my basic idea is, it is a government mandate that, upon manifesting a Quirk, you are required by law to have at least six months worth of Quirk Counselling sessions, let’s say one a week. That’s roughly 32 sessions. Sometimes more are recommended, if your Quirk is particularly finicky or volatile, but it isn’t required beyond the initial sessions. These initial sessions are where they are supposed to test your Quirk, find its limits, figure out if it will impact your health, stuff like that. But one hour a week over six months isn’t all that long in the grand scheme of things. That’s about a day and a Half’s worth of time. And Even with however many Quirk Counsellors there are, the good ones are overworked, the bad ones just don’t care, and again, most are government workers. They just do not have the time. And remember, no matter how much things have changed, the goal hasn’t - this isn’t “help” it’s “identify a threat”. So, how does this connect? Well, what’s an easy way to decrease the work load? What Quirks don’t really need much help being identified? What about physical mutation Quirks, that people are born with?

Cause another head canon I have is that, a majority of Mutation Quirks? People are just born with them. 

Not all! But most, yeah, I’d think they were born that way! Ojiro, Tokoyami, Shouji, Spinner, Kouda, Mina - I see them all born looking that way. And so, when they’re born, their doctors would be the ones to write it down - part of their job would be to keep track of manifesting Quirks, so you can note on someone’s medical record when said Quirk emerged. You’re mandated to go for six months within a month or two of the manifestation, but who is going to Counsel a baby? Plus, The doctors would also do all the “how this affects their health” thing already. So they are already registered as having Quirks, and are not required to see a Quirk Counsellor unless they manifest a secondary Quirk later. It might also work into a prejudice against people with Mutation Quirks! Cause seeing a Quirk Counsellor, being a government mandate, is covered by said government! It’s a form of health care, probably comes with other resources! And by saying Mutation Quirks are already registered, unless they manifest a secondary Quirk, you are preventing a bunch of people from accessing resources they might need!

So, Ojiro and Tokoyami never went to a Counsellor! For Ojiro, with his family, he did alright! His grandad helped him figure out his tail for martial arts, his family as a whole had enough money to figure out clothes and such. But CC!Tokoyami would never have gone, cause he only has the bird-head thing, right? But he has a secondary Quirk that NO ONE knows about, because no one ever felt the need to test and see if he had one! Spinner probably never went to one either, would he be mad about that?

Also! I talked before about Quirk Counsellors naming your Quirk for you? That’s another part of the classification thing! Cause like. The names they give Quirks are the equivalent of naming a weapon, or a specific type of ammunition. It’s what they write down on the paperwork they submit. The names aren’t meant to be “cool” or whatever, they’re meant to be descriptive enough to a government stooge that they can guess at a glance what they do! Like, some Counsellors these days might let the people have input, but for the most part, they have all the power there, which can be bad! 

Like, Shinso? Somebody named his Quirk “Brainwashing”, when it’s actually closer to something like Hypnosis. But Brainwashing sounds much more impressive. What do you want to bet some idiot Counsellor wanted on his record that he identified a “powerful” Quirk, when he put down that name? Who cares that the negative connotations of the word “Brainwashing” mean you probably just painted a massive target on this kid? Not like he has rich parents to sue and have the name changed!

(thought?)

-

Honestly I can go either way on how mandatory Quirk Counseling is.

Because yeah personally I think that it’d be rare for kids to really be recommended more counseling outside of the base ‘let’s make sure you can control your ability to an extent so you don’t destroy the house’.

Especially when it’s government employees more looking into ‘will this child one day be a threat?’.

Though yeah Mutation Quirks would often get jack all in terms of counseling like. Okay yeah sure you have a bird head not much to do there. Take it up with your doctor, dentist, and/or vet.

And GOD like.

Yeah the ‘Counselor’ having near total control over how the Quirk is percieved! Shinso may have had an easier time if his Quirk was called something else!

[fitzrove]

The Crown Prince Rudolf Tour of Vienna

Hey, you - yes, you! Travelling to Vienna? Too much of a hipster to want to devote your trip to Mozart or Sisi things? Or just looking to expand your horizons even while you're doing the more traditional tourist stuff? Look no further than here :D I'm going to take you through some of the Rudolf things you can do in Vienna. (And some Elisabeth das Musical things as well.)

General Tips

Stuff you may find very useful to have:

- A public transport day/week ticket for the entire time you're in Vienna. Vienna public transport is generally awesome because of the short intervals (3-10 minutes during weekdays for most lines), and you can get pretty much everywhere by bus, tram, the underground (U-Bahn) and S-train, all of which are included in the Wiener Linien ticket.

- An international student card if you're a student under 26. I have an ISIC card and in some countries it doesn't qualify you for all discounts, but in Vienna, it works everywhere. You can save a lot of money on museum and theatre tickets! There's also something you can get called the Vienna City Card which gets you discounts as well, but you would have to calculate whether it would be worth it to pay for the card (depends on how many places you intend to visit and if they're covered by the discount). I didn't get it because I was interested in a very narrow scope of things (= Rudolf).

- Change in Euros. You can pay by card basically everywhere, but for souvenirs that cost less than 10 euros, it just feels more convenient to use cash/coins (and from what I gather, a lot of people do use cash to pay in Austria compared to Finland :D)

- There are combo tickets like the Sisi Ticket (Schönbrunn + Hofburg Sisi Museum and Silberkammer + Möbelmuseum) if you want to do all of the museums that it covers. I didn't get any of those because again, Rudolf priorities, but if you do end up doing that combo, definitely get the combo ticket instead of separate ones!

Now onto the actual tour stops. We shall start from the city centre and work our way through the city from there.

1. Hofburg / Rudolf's Apartments

The whole Hofburg area is super cool and imposing, so I definitely recommend going there just to walk around - it's completely free. You can also take tram 1 towards Prater Hauptallee from the opera to the Schwedenplatz & back (which I did) to observe the palace from the Vienna Ring Road, which takes you past many gorgeous buildings, including those of the Hofburg (and the Wiener Eistraum, a famous skating rink that features in the Affaire Mayerling musical, complete with its trauma-inducing snowman). But don't only do the overview, it's really super cool to actually wander around the palace area!

The most interesting area of the palace is the Schweizerhof. When you enter the palace through the big entrance on Michaelerplatz (idk if it's the main entrance but it's probably the most tourist trappy one) and walk through the "tunnel" (my English architectural vocab is failing me) to the main courtyard (Innerer Burghof), the smaller Schweizerhof courtyard will be on your left. From there, you can enter the Hofburg Chapel / Hofmusikkapelle (which has very limited opening hours due to it being an important practice and performance site for the Vienna Boys' Choir; it's open to tourists Monday and Tuesday from 10 am to 2 pm & Friday 11 am to 1 pm) for free (once you have entered the courtyard, it will be on your right) and sit there listening to some nice choral music. It's very quiet and off the beaten path imo, so it's very nice.

But the main point of interest on the Schweizerhof is, of course, Rudolf's apartment, located on the left side of the courtyard on the second floor (I think). You can't go in because it now houses the offices of the State Monument Office (Bundesdenkmalamt), but you can peer up at the windows >:D

2. Augustinerkirche

The Augustinerkirche is a stone's throw away from the Hofburg (4 minute walk), so it's very easy to get to once you're already there. Just go out through the Schweizerhof exit (directly in front of you if you've just entered the small courtyard from the main Burghof; visible in the photo above) and exit to the Josefsplatz (the plaza in front of the Austrian National Library). Walk across the plaza, past the statue of Kaiser Joseph II, and enter the church from a door on the west side.

The Augustinerkirche is where Sisi and FJ got married, but less famously, it's also the site of Rudolf and Stéphanie's wedding. You can go in for free and guided tours are forbidden within the church, so it should be quite quiet and peaceful. Opening hours 8 am to 5:30 pm (Mon, Wed, Fri) / 8 am to 7:30 pm (Tues / Thurs) / 9 am to 7:30 pm (Sat / Sun), though be aware that the church is in active use by the parish so sometimes services may be taking place.

3. Kapuzinergruft

The Kapuzinergruft is a three-minute walk away from the Augustinerkirche. Just proceed down the Josefplatz until it turns into Augustinerstraße, go past the Theatermuseum, make a few turns (Google Maps will help you with this better than I can) and you're there. You can enter the crypt for 7 euros (student) / 8 euros (adult). The price of the ticket ensures that it's quite quiet, at least on winter weekdays - I basically had it to myself for ~20 minutes. Remember that it's a graveyard, so you should avoid making any kind of ruckus while there. You can see the graves of many famous Habsburg personalities, but what obviously interests us most is Rudolf. His grave in the Franz Joseph vault is pretty hard to miss accidentally.

Do consider bringing him something. It doesn't have to cost anything (and perhaps you shouldn't spend a lot of money given that mementos are regularly cleared away. I think pretty rocks work as well as anything), but it's a nice gesture.

4. Theatermuseum

The Theatermuseum is very close to the Capuchin Crypt, so you can easily proceed there directly if you want to. It doesn't have much to do with the historical Rudolf, but right now (Feb 2023) it has the original 1992 costume sketches for Elisabeth displayed in the Mozart to Falco exhibition. In the museum gift shop you can buy the 2004 blue Elisabeth Vienna cast album (Lukas Perman as Rudolf) for 13 euros (cheap!), as well as the 2005 Vienna Elisabeth DVD & the 2016 Vienna Mozart proshot DVD and official CD. They are quite expensive (~16 euros for the Mozart CD and 30 euros for each of the dvds iirc) and not really cheaper than what you could find while online shopping imo, so I didn't buy them.

5. Raimundtheater

We're making a pretty large jump across town :D The Raimundtheater, operated by the VBW, is the leading musical theatre venue in Vienna. In the theatre you can do the following Rudolf-related activities:

- Buy Elisabeth merch (a wide variety of things from VBW productions from the last 10 years; when I went they had the 2012 and 2019 CDs, iirc 2022 as well, and the 2012 libretto. Basically anything you can find in the online VBW gift shop will be here.)

- Buy the Rudolf: Affaire Mayerling CD and DVD (don't) (XD)

- See a show in the theater where Elisabeth 2012 happened

- As long as Rebecca is playing: Meet a Rudolf/Young Hungarian Nobleman (choose your pick from u/s Vienna 1992 and/or u/s Vienna 2012) at stagedoor 😎 You can also meet several Elisabeths and Franz Josephs and watch Mark Seibert run away from his fans at lightning speed.

You should definitely join the VBW Musicalclub to buy last-minute tickets for 22 euros (available 2 hours before the show starts), especially if you're alone. The membership is 17 euros a year but just one good last-minute ticket will make it worth it. I sat in seats worth 120 euros in the 5th and 6th rows (stalls) and paid only 22 euros each for them, plus the membership. You need a bit of luck but it's definitely worth it, especially on less busy weekdays. The visibility from category C and D seats, at least those on the balcony, isn't amazing - you miss some action even from seats where it isn't indicated that there's limited visibility.

6. The Crown Prince Apartments at Schönbrunn

The crown jewel of the experience, in my opinion. >:] Take the U4 from the centre and get off at Schönbrunn station. Once you enter the main courtyard of the castle (on which the war crime that was the Elisabeth Konzertante Aufführung was committed), head for the entrance seen on the left corner of the main facade. If you go straight ahead once you enter the building, you will find a small unassuming door. This is the entrance to the horribly kitschy Schönbrunn Virtual Reality experience. It's also the entrance to Rudolf's apartment.

Watching the 24-minute VR film is pretty okay. It looks cool, even though it's not a great film for people who already know the history. (We only see Rudolf for a few seconds on the carriage to Mayerling, and then darkness, a whisper of "mother, forgive me" and two gunshot sound effects. Gross. Lucheni has more screentime than Rudolf and he's depicted as a whistling cartoon villain living in a rat-infested apartment.) I did learn new things about the early history of Schönbrunn, which was nice. But the important thing is that after the film you get to walk around all the rooms (at least if it's not super busy) and look at Rudolf's apartment!!! Only the bedroom is off-limits. It's not known what each of the rooms' function was (except that the first room you enter was his living room), but it's really cool to look at the 18th century bird murals, which were ludicrously expensive to create and took 7 years to complete (by only one artist and then his student when he passed away). The apartments were Empress Maria Theresa's favourite part of the castle because they were hot in winter and cool in the summer.

The VR tour only costs 8.50 (student) / 9.50 (adult) as an add-on to a regular Schönbrunn ticket. Definitely do that! The regular tickets (Grand Tour and Imperial Tour, and some combos that are available in the summer) get you a nice tour of the first floor of the castle, with Sisi and FJ's apartments and the glorious Spiegelsaal. I would get the Grand Tour because it's 18 extra rooms for only a marginal increase in price. I'm too lazy to google the prices rn and they might change in the future, but it was something like 20ish euros.

After the tour you can buy merch at the gift shop. Sadly, the Rudolf merch is limited to two postcards - one a photograph of him as a young boy and another a hunting clothes portrait photo from 1888. I think the latter one is super cute so I bought it :D You can also buy a Sisi themed nail file 💀

That concludes my Rudolf Tour experience. XD There are additional things you could do that I don't have personal experience of, so I'm listing them briefly here.

Things you could also do but I didn't do (and why I didn't do them)

- The Sisi Museum / Imperial Apartments at Hofburg. I read online that the apartments aren't very different from those at Schönbrunn, and I don't have a great interest in Sisi, but you could do this if you want to. Like in Schönbrunn, FJ has pictures of all of his children in his apartment, which is cute.

- Imperial Treasury/Kaiserliche Schatzkammer in Hofburg. I didn't particularly care xD It's on the Schweizerhof so easy to pop into while going to see Rudolf's Hofburg apartment if you want. Not free.

- Silberkammer - another which is next to the Sisi museum afaik. Again, didn't care xD

- Paniglgasse 19. This is a now-random building that once contained the apartment Rudolf bought for Mizzi Kaspar, his favourite mistress. You can go stand outside it if you're in the Wieden area (underground stop Karlsplatz) anyway to see the famous Karlskirche or the VBW main office / Theater an der Wien. The latter is being renovated so there's nothing to see but I did it anyway. I didn't go to Mizzi's apartment because I found the area a bit weird to navigate and was tired at that point of my day :D

- The Museum of Natural History / Naturhistorisches Museum. The mineral collection contains some geological objects of interest from Rudolf's private collection, as does the ornithological collection. There's a pair of white-tailed eagles on display that were shot by him on Jan 22, 1889, only nine days before his death. I realised too late that I should go and missed it - maybe next time. Tickets 16e (adult) / 12e (student/reduced).

- The Hofmobiliendepot / Imperial Furniture Collection / Furniture Museum. I was going to go because they had some Rudolf stuff (... including the bed he died in, which I find a bit gauche to display), but I was too tired after Schönbrunn and skipped it. Located at Andreasgasse 7, served by the U3 underground line. Student ticket 10,50 / adult 11,50.

- The Kronprinzengarten in the Schönbrunn grounds. It's named so because it's located right outside Rudolf's apartments, so going there will give you a view of the outside of his place & his yard, basically. Definitely pop over if you can, it's very practical to do if you're in Schönbrunn anyway! The gardens were closed for the winter when I was in Vienna. You can get a Schönbrunn Classic Pass (from April 1 onwards) to do the castle Grand Tour and visit all of the Schönbrunn gardens.

Thanks for reading :D Hope you have fun and please bring Rudolf all the rocks

[mermaidsirennikita]

thoughts on vulture's "12 romantasy authors to know"? except for jacqueline carey, i feel like they missed the chance to include proper romance/erotica authors.

This list is so boring and lacks innovation or knowledge of romance novels... is my first thought.

My second thought is that it once again underscores how much romantasy is not a subgenre or genre and is in fact a bullshit marketing thing. When I tell y'all this... Trust me when I say I know what I'm talking about, lol. Even if we can trace back to BookTok or many years ago when some blogger coined the term. It's not as organic as it seems. (... very literal online marketing stuff is, but that's another deal).

My opinions on the authors specifically:

Anne McCaffrey. Never read, have honestly never wanted to read, am unimpressed with the author's squeamishness around the dragons getting it on influencing the riders getting it on (and the narration cutting away when the dragons start going at it...)? Anyway, Fourth Wing also does this, and does not cut away from the Violet and Xaden Feelin' The Dragon Love. The excerpt doesn't make me want to read these books, and frankly people I trust don't seem enthused about them; nor would those people classify them as romance.

Marion Zimmer Bradley. I have read The Mists of Avalon, and I liked parts of it (and had severe issues with others) until I found out that MZB was an absolute MONSTER. Like, straight to Hell, do not pass go, MONSTER. I recommend looking at her Wikipedia page for more, but proceed with caution if you're not familiar--CSA. So I find it pretty weird that this person even recommended her here. Like, the little note under "Controversies" is incredibly weird. Maybe just don't recommend MZB. She's not controversial--she is, was, a HIDEOUS, scum of the Earth, vile human being. We can discuss her work and its influence, but this list is positioned as a rec list, and I frankly find that pretty... questionable.

Anyway, for the rest: her books are absolutely not romance, and are actually not even really romantic...? Like, most of the physical relationships in the books are coercive, extremely taboo and forbidden, or physical without involving emotion.

Diana Gabaldon. I think Diana is a talented writer, I'll stand by the fact that Outlander is not a romance unless you stop reading at the first book (which you totally can lol it honestly stands alone), she has disdain for romance while profiting off it, and she is obsessed with SA in her work so. Probably one of the closest things to a romance author here. Also, can I say, I hate "Smut Factor". Smut is such a dumb word to me.

Jacqueline Carey. Haven't read, have heard mixed things about, every romance reader I've seen qualifies this as "it's not a romance, but" lol. Maybe I'll read someday....

Cassandra Clare. Having read a good number of Cassie's books (9, I think?) nope lol. Heavy romantic elements in her books. Not romance novels. Not even a bit.

SJM. I think SJM is again, pretty close to romance? I think she embraces it more (because she's if nothing else a smart businesswoman)? But I find her books not great, and I really do debate their status as romance novels. I mean, having just read a fantasy romance that really did feel like a ROMANCE to me... SJM doesn't seem to hit the same marks.

I will say lol. Still mad about the MZB thing. When you compare the thing under "Controversies" for her compared to Cassie Clare and SJM... I mean, they did bad things, I'm not excusing that. But when you compare them to the actual criminal acts of MZB... Lol why is she here???

Danielle L. Jensen. No complaints from me after A Fate Inked in Blood, she belongs here. Maybe someday I'll try Bridge Kingdom again? But right now, I'm on the Unfated train.

Jennifer L. Armentrout. These do sound like romances, but I've never read them so I can't judge. I hear bad things from one of my friends so I doubt I'll get into them. The one thing I do want to read about is the ritualistic hookup between the heroine and her boyfriend and his best friend...? Which is apparently straighter than it should be? I don't know, dude. That's always a disappointment for me. ALL OR NOTHING.

Scarlett St. Clair. I've read one book by her. She's romance, but I... did not like it.

Naomi Novik. I read Uprooted back in the day. Would not call it a romance, but a fantasy with a romance subplot. Wasn't into it.

Carissa Broadbent. Haven't read. Intrigued?

Rebecca Yarros. I've read Fourth Wing and Iron Flame. They don't reinvent the wheel, they have issues. They're also compulsively readable and I enjoyed them. I'm surprised there aren't any controversies listed here?

Of course. That may be a choice on Vulture's part.

[painful-pooch]

Silent Pain - An Oscar Tale

Whumptober 2022 (@whumptober)

NO. 4 - DEAD ON YOUR FEET

Hidden Injury | Waking Up Disoriented | Can't Pass Out

NEXT: A BISHOP'S AGONY

Taglist: @straight-to-the-pain, @whumper-in-training, @ocean-blue-whump, @for-the-love-of-angst, @thethistlegirl, @whumperofworlds, @poc-whump, and @hopepetal

CW: military whump, hidden injury, stab wound, blood, can't pass out, insomnia, autistic whumpee, slight ableism, panic attack, and death (not major character)

To all the haters that have pestered me before about Oscar: fuck you and enjoy reading me whumping him

PRE-MISSION BRIEFING DATE - 17MAR20XX TIME - 1057

Oscar is sitting at the conference table in an undisclosed location, watching the pre-mission briefing General Alfonso Kane, who is standing in front of the projector board and pointing out the mission objectives, has set up. He doesn't like him much, but Kane is technically his boss' boss, so he can't do anything about it, though something is rubbing him in the wrong way. It probably stems from how upset General Kane always looks. The second Kane makes eye contact with him, Oscar breaks it and stares down at his notes, trying to scrawl in what is needed while also doodling a 3D chessboard with the pieces on them.

"Mr. Cortez? Is there something you would like to add or give your insight on?" Kane's voice echoes in the room, and Oscar feels sick to his stomach.

Why me? I don't want to talk to you, but I have to anyways. Right… words. I can do this. Do I have to stand up?

Oscar clears his throat and sets down his pencil, his eyes rising slowly, ignoring the gazes of the others at the table and focusing on the screen. There is a map and it shows the route that needs to be taken in order to retrieve the intel, but he can also see where all the reinforcements could be deployed and he purses his lips. "W-Well, from what I can-"

"Speak louder, Mr. Cortez. You are mumbling again, and you know that's annoying in a brief. Also, stand up," Kane commands with a beckoning of his hand.

I was speaking fine… I don't want to stand up. I am fine in my chair. Okay, Oscar… you are a Bishop, and Kane is a… really sucky Rook. Take over the chess board. Simple. Yep. Maybe? Oh no, why do I want to cry? Wait, it's because I am here, standing in front of so many people.

Placing his hands on the table, Oscar pushes himself back a tad and stands up straight, not knowing what to do with his hands, so he keeps them at his sides. "Sorry, Sir. We are dealing with a heavily-coded and important piece of technology that's connected to a server room unlike what we have seen with unorganized insurgents." He looks down at his notes and shyly points at the screen. "You can see from where the tech room is, it's heavily guarded and there are points all over the building where insurgents can storm it and sanitize, or otherwise destroy, crucial intel." He licks his lips and swallows, catching the sight of Bruno and Valdemar putting their thumbs up and Khrystyna making a small little heart with her hands. It makes him smile and rub the back of his neck.

I kind of like it when they see me as a good member of the team. I can be good. I'm useful and stuff. They always get to do the cool stuff, but I like my office. I get to do work and get to play a new game of Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones. I still think the 3DS download for it was super cool.

Oscar snaps out of it when Kane is humming and staring at the map. "Well, you are right, Mr. Cortez. That settles it: you are getting geared up too. You will enter the facility along with the task force, listen to Captain Stenberg's commands, and make sure you get all the intel you can for us. I need someone I trust to collect as much as they can safely, and you are the most qualified man for this. Son, don't look surprised about this. Can you do this or do we need to find someone new?"

I'm… going to be a field operative?

Oscar has never thought that he would one day be recommended to be on a field team, an operative that is in the center of all the action. But that is exactly what is happening and he glances over at Bruno with wide eyes, watching as the large officer stands up.

"Sir, with all due respect, Mr. Cortez here hasn't been rated in marksmanship since his days in the service."

"Captain Stenberg, are you suggesting that a viable member of this task force sit out on a mission that requires his exact skillset?"

"I am suggesting that this mission would be dangerous to his-"

Kane slams his fist down on the table, snarling at Bruno, "Don't you dare say this mission is dangerous for him! You pitched this team to me and to General Scholtz. You said this is the best of the best. Are you saying you lied to me, Stenberg? Well, answer me!"

Oscar is filled with terror, sitting down in his chair, wincing from how loud Kane is being but keeping his hands from covering his ears. He doesn't want to be the reason they are fighting and arguing. He isn't even listening to the argument anymore, stimming with his pencil in hand. He wants to feel useful so he breaks his own silence.

"I'll do it… I'll uhm… go into the room and do the mission."

Bruno's head snaps over to stare at Oscar, but he won't look back at him. All while Kane claps his hands in mock pride. "Atta there, son. See, Captain Stenberg? Stop holding back your team and let them flourish in their own careers. He won't even be in danger as long as you do your jobs. I would still take him shooting and get him ready for the mission. You all know what to do. Meeting dismissed."

ONE WEEK LATER. DATE: 24MAR20XX LOCATION: CLASSIFIED

The sound of a gunfight echoes through the halls of the facility, the shouting of people reloading, the sound of screams as the bullets find their bodies. It was all making Oscar uncomfortable as he runs around the server room, trying his best to collect all the data he needed for the mission.

Thoughts of what he's going to do when he gets home, from playing chess to playing the new Fire Emblem game on an emulator, is keeping him grounded while typing furiously into the laptop he has connected to one of the towers. "Just keep typing, just keep typing, ignore the crazy stuff outside, just keep typing."

He has the radio that is sitting on the desk, hearing the communications between Bruno and the others, using them as a way to gauge how safe he is. They aren't in the room with him because there have been waves upon waves of attackers, swarming from all sides of the building. They have to keep Oscar as safe as possible, so they all scramble to their own points, taking out as many threats as they can.

Oscar can feel the sweat pouring down the back of his neck, the stress of the situation slowly getting to him and making him want to cry it out. Instead, he pulls out his pen from his arm pocket, clicking it again and again in a vain attempt to regain some control. He continues this broken record of siphoning all that he can from the servers and computers in the room when he hears on the door open behind him. "Whoever it is, I am almost done here, I swear. I only need ten more minutes, okay?"

"Yeah, you are almost done, alright."

Petrification takes over, Oscar staring at the loading screen for one of the hard drives and how long it would take for the transfer of data to be complete. He doesn't recognize the voice, which only means one thing: someone has managed to slip through the numerous defenses set in place. He turns his head slowly, seeing a bloody man, their arm dripping crimson red from what Oscar can only conclude is a gunshot wound from Kieran's sniper rifle or Bruno's assault rifle. His eyes lock on the knife that is gripped tightly in their hand, which makes Oscar turn fully around, seeing there is about five feet between him and the assailant. "D-don't come any closer," he warns with a shaking voice.

"Or what? You gonna kill me? You're shaking like a scared little bitch. And you are going to die like one!" The man lunges at Oscar, slamming into him and pinning him to a wall.

Oscar feels a punch right to the side, but it takes him a few moments to realize the gravity of the situation when he sees the red blade in the man's hand. His mind goes blank and he doesn't know what happened, but he has a gun in his hand and fires it as much as he can, right in the direction of the man that just stabbed him. Each bang hurts his ears and every second that passes by is more time for the ringing and the crashing waves to grow louder.

He sees the man on the floor and he doesn't notice that he still keeps pulling the trigger until an audible click click click is caught. He slides down the wall, staring at the unmoving man, the growing puddle of blood underneath him making him tremble and cover his ears after dropping the gun. He's rocking back and forth while sobbing loudly, unable to breathe and only able to focus on the smoking gun and the man. He's never killed someone before in person, and he hears the computer ping after a few minutes, signifying his completed task.

He doesn't want to move though, the throbbing pain in his side getting worse and glancing over to see a red splotch soaking his shirt. He can't let the others see that he got hurt or they would get rid of him. He leans his head back, breathing deeply and mumbling a few chess terms and strategies to get him back to square one.

He pushes himself off the wall, gasping and crying out when the radio has a voice come through. "Trigger to Bishop. Hey, Bishop, you good in there? What's your status? Over."

Oscar grabs the radio and tries to ignore the wet slaps of his boots stepping into the spilt blood puddle beside him. "B-bishop to Trigger… J-just a few minutes. Someone came in, but the th-threat was…" He trails off to stare at the man. "Neutralized."

"Copy, Bishop. We need to get to the evac point in five mikes (minutes). Understood?"

"R-roger. I'll be there, Trigger," Oscar murmurs, working on grabbing all of his equipment and putting them in a duffle bag. He turns off the radio and he makes sure he's not crying anymore. He can't let them see him like this. He can be like them too. The throbbing pain grows sharp when he takes his bandana from inside of his bag to place it over his wound, not bothering to look at it either. He then walks over to pick up the dropped gun, holstering it and making his way out of the room that he never wants to be in for the rest of his life.

When he reaches the helicopter and sees the group, he smiles and holds up the duffle bag with pride, loving the praise coming from them. It makes him feel like he's a part of the team for once and he bites the inside of his cheeks to hide the immeasurable amount of pain that is rocking through him.

A short while in the helicopter, Oscar can see that everyone minus the chopper pilot, Sebastian, is asleep. He is thankful none of them pushed to see the soaking blood in his side, his bandana probably heavy with his spilling life.

You can hide it. You can do it. They don't have to know a thing. Yeah… Think about the nice shower back home. Get clean and play fire emblem. Go to the after mission briefing… try and sleep… I can't sleep. I won't be able to.

He stands up and holds his silence, limping to the back of the chopper and pulling out the emergency first aid kit on the wall quietly, taking a peek behind him to see if anyone noticed.

But no one is awake.

He's so happy about that and he goes to take out the bandana that as offered him some reprieve, gritting his teeth and feeling tears fall down his face. He places it to the side for now, planning on discarding it once they have landed. He carefully bandages his wound all on his own, biting his lip so hard that he can taste iron.

Don't let them find out. Come on, you can do it.

When the gruesome task is over, he falls back in his seat with a pained groan, staring out at the beautiful sunset of the jungle before bursting in silent tears. He's thankful he's all the way in the back.

No one can know.

[agustdiv1ne]

i want to get into writing but have a hard time feeling inspired. i have so many good ideas in theory but have such a hard time finding the write words to use.

i guess what i am asking is how do you create the atmosphere of your fics. every time i read one of your stories i am completely immersed and am left wanting more. what inspires you to keep going?

omg hello!! first off, thank you! <3 idk if i'm the most qualified person to answer this question, but i will try my best to :') (everything under the cut bc this got a little long)

please remember that these are the things that work for me. the writing process itself is super holistic, so what works for me may not work for you,, let's get into it !

personally, writing involves a lot of trial and error. trying stuff out, seeing what resonates with me, implementing those elements into my writing...rinse and repeat, basically. sometimes, finding the words i want to use is hard; i've been stuck in ruts where i'm only able to jot down a phrase or two. at the same time, that's something to be proud of because hey, you created something! creating anything in the first place is big!! having ideas is big!!! it's good to have some grace for yourself as you write. roadblocks may arise, but try not to get discouraged by them. they're very real and normal

outlining an idea is a great way to get started. there's no pressure to write anything outstanding, so this generally helps me just get everything i want to write down on a page. from there, i may flesh out more parts of the story that i'm excited about. the "right" words don't need to come out at this time. for example, here's an excerpt of my outline for ticket to nowhere:

as you can see, it's extremely far from perfect (it's...really bad, actually), but it was a good start! my outlines are always informal as that is what flows the easiest

talking to someone about my ideas also helps get me motivated to write them. my dms are always open to anyone who would find that helpful!

as i write, i often search around for words that may lend itself well to the Vibes™. onelook thesaurus is great. it can help you find words that relate to others, as well as words that are on the tip of your tongue but can't seem to remember. a general thesaurus has also helped me out a bunch because i like using fancy words for absolutely no reason

in all honesty, the atmospheres of my fics often stem from my media consumption...music is a huge source of inspiration for me, as are books, tv shows, and movies. i often find that books help me try out new writing styles and play around with my voice. for example, after i read bunny by mona awad (insane book btw, totally recommend), i tried including a lot of imagery in ticket to nowhere !! in terms of music, i like to make playlists and listen to it while i write ^^ it helps me get into the zone for sure

the fact that i get to share my ideas and not keep them locked away in the dark basement of my google drive is probably my biggest motivator!! i'm creating things!!! i get to share them!!!! art is wonderful!!!!! it doesn't matter if it's a short drabble or a 100k word multi-chapter fic, every piece of writing that you create is something to be proud of :) it's also important to note that i have taken longgg breaks from writing throughout my time on this blog (like. upwards of six months at a time throughout 2021-22), so stepping away from an idea, even if it is for a few minutes, a few hours, a few months, etc., may help in regrouping and finding inspiration again !!

i think this is kind of a mess, but i hope it helps,,, i'm always here if you need any advice ^^

[muzdiir]

i transferred 4 times when i was working on my bachelor's (bc of crippling anxiety). it took me a total of 7 years to finally get the fucker. things i would recommend to others in the college realm:

FILL OUT YOUR FAFSA. even if u think u won't qualify for any financial aid, do it anyway! i forget what age u can do it as an independent but it helps A TON. (i'm sure fafsa may be well-known to most college-age ppl but it sure wasn't to me. if i knew fafsa was a thing, i woulda gone to college right outta high school but i didnt & i thought i could never afford it)

if u qualify for federal loans, ALWAYS choose them over private. theyve got better interest rates & terms. ur loans will come outta their grace period 6 months after u graduate; if u don't have a job/enough income to pay the monthly balance, LET YOUR LOAN SERVICER KNOW. you can put them into deferment and/or forbearance (i dont remember the exact difference rn) until you're able to afford it. even then, federal loans can (usually) be adjusted for your salary.

start off with community college, esp if you have anxiety/financial concerns. the tuition is usually dirt cheap (for US college), the admissions process is infinitely easier, you can get all your basic degree requirements done, it is completely fine & normal to only do it part time, (most) instructors are super chill, & (probably my favorite aspect) it is full of non-traditional students (ie older folks ranging from "just past ''''normal''''' college age" to "retiree just here for a good time). nontrad students are the best bc 1) they have so much real world experience that they bring to the classroom 2) they easily keep class discussions going 3) they are frequently very helpful/encouraging towards younger students 4) they genuinely give a fuck about their education & don't waste anyone's time

make sure to have fun with your electives. pick what you like but also try new things. you never know what will suddenly spark your interest & perhaps become your major.

keep your mind open irt majors. it's okay to change your mind!!! just keep pluggin' along & sticking to classes you enjoy. if it sucks, drop them! talk to department advisors about changing ur major. (i would recommend you do this BEFORE you graduate--fafsa/federal finaid only really works for ur 1st bachelor's but you can milk it if you're careful & paying attention to tuition/fees/room&board)

make sure you're aware of what help the school offers irt mental/physical/financial well-being. if ur struggling w certain academics-related stuff, u can usually find help to make it easier on yourself. (the uni in the UK i went to had this whole thing where u could get specific accommodations if u had physical/mental limitations which was Neat)

im sure i have more but i'm tired & its almost 4am as i type this lmao

[itsmetheabnormalone]

Heya, so I'm juuuuust starting to watch some stuff about F1 after previously having zero interest in the sport (I dislike most sports in general, but thats another discussion). Anyway, the friend who helped spark my interest in it offered some places to start consuming and getting a handle on the sport, Drive to Survive being one of them. I was wondering if there was any advice you'd offer to someone trying to feel out the sport for the first time. Cheers!

p.s. This friend mentioned she follows players more than teams and mentioned Lewis Hamilton bc he seems like a really cool person. I googled him and yeah, he really does and when I saw him on your blog I thought, "Nice! Maybe I should pester this person a bit about advice 😏"

Hey ☺️

Welcome to the circus!

To cut right to your questions: You got good timing coming into the sport 😊 The new season is beginning soon 🥳 Following the team(s) on IG or twitter is a good starting point to get news.

To be honest, I’m kinda divided on DTS. I personally don’t watch nor much like it, because they like to up the drama (not that this sport needs that. there’s been enough drama for centuries the last two years alone lol). Also I dislike the way they portray certain drivers at times. Generally it is a good starting point, but I wouldn’t take all my impressions from the show.

I think the best way to get into it is genuinely just watching a race, preferably with the community 😁 F1blr and F1twt both have huge followings, although Twitter is, as always, more difficult/toxic. Gotta make use of that block button. What I definitely can recommend tho are the TeamLH twitter spaces, often hosted by 7hanos876. Another account I can whole heartedly recommend is Athena (@tarmactorque).

You could also watch some older races if you want to see what F1 can be when the stars all align lol. There’s some strong contenders from the last few years alone, my absolute face as a Lewis fan being Brazil 2021, where he was disqualified in Qualifying and started last on the grid. What’s also always very emotional is first times. Every race won by someone who has never stood on the top step of the podium before is a tearjerker, no matter who it is. I recommend Italy 2020 for that, or Hungary 2021.

One silly goofy race was Spa 2021. It was a very rainy day and they postponed the race start for hours, but continued to broadcast. A lot of memes were born that day lol.

If you decide to start with this year’s Bahrain it might be good to know that there’s tracks with less racing action (which for most fans means less fun) and tracks where the talking is “done on the track”. There are strategy nerds who really enjoy the more tactical races tho. When pit strategy and qualifying position decide the outcome of the race. Bahrain is usually not the MOST exciting, but also not the worst.

Regarding the drivers, it really depends on what is important to you 😄. I’m TeamLH with my whole heart, followed by GR63. I personally don’t support racers who have publicly shown to be bigots. Idk what everyone does behind closed curtains, but if they’re comfortable saying slurs on live radio, they can’t be that great of a person (aka VER who has a long history of… well. All of that.) Personally, I’m kinda neutral towards half the grid, w my two faves and a few ones I really dislike. With interviews, social media and the reactions towards certain things (e.g. BLM kneeling a few years ago, Abu Dhabi 2021) I think its quite easy to see which drivers align with your interests and morals.

I guess I don’t have to explain where one can watch F1 but just to get it out there: Some countries have free streams, so if you have a vpn you can watch it there (swiss for example). Also F1Tv can be tricked by a vpn 😄 I normally would have to subscribe to sky here in Germany, but use nordvpn to be able to watch f1tv for a LOT LESS money.

I think that’s all I wanted to say 😁 Sorry it took me so long to answer, you probably have all that info by now but I still wanted to reply.

Again, welcome to the circus 😊 Enjoy the last few days of emotional stability before the season starts 🥲 also bc it’s practice week rn: never trust practice results 😬

[cushfuddled]

Could I ask you for advice on making YouTube videos, please? I'm thinking of making one, but I have no experience WHATSOEVER on it (and I mean, literally two days ago I googled a tutorial for editing videos to find out the name of main video editing software, I basically just entered kindergarten). So the broadest, most seemingly obvious advice would help immensely. I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing. I'm still trying to figure out if you can make a video without talking.

HIYA!

Yes, you can definitely make a video without talking. I don't watch a lot of those vids, but there are plenty of people who use text-to-speech software rather than their real voices (some text-to-speech programs have gotten really good). You can also hire someone to read your script for you...If anyone has a site to recommend (where you can hire readers), please reply!

I've heard good things about HitFilm Express. It works a lot like Premiere, and there's a free version available. You can also use whichever free movie program comes with your computer or phone, though! I know of a YouTuber with over a million subs who edits his videos entirely on his phone.

I use yt5s to download YouTube videos. I download animated shows and movies from this version of KimCartoon and download live action stuff from sites like the Pirate Bay. Make sure to install a VPN before torrenting anything, btw. Last year I got an email from my internet provider like "we noticed you illegally downloaded a film :3" and BOY did THAT light my ass on fire to hide my IP. I currently use NordVPN, but there are probably faster ones out there lol.

If you go to the YouTube Studio tab on YT, then the "audio library" page listed on the left sidebar, YouTube gives you a great selection of no-copyright music.

I don't know what type of videos you want to make, but if you're interested in making review-style content, I've noticed that videos that focus on a specific topic tend to do better for small channels than broad reviews (example: "How A Snake Ruined Star Wars" performs better than "Rise of Skywalker Review"). In that situation you can use the snake as a vehicle to talk about the whole film, but a narrower premise tends to get more clicks these days. That, or titles like "In Defense of The Rise of Skywalker" or "The Rise of Skywalker Sucked" would still fare better than "Rise of Skywalker Review."

It's true: negative reviews perform better than positive reviews. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Do what you will with this information.

The algorithm will sometimes bury your video if your title or thumbnail contains words from this list. I've had one of my videos shadowbanned because I used the word "abuse" in the thumbnail. Some people will tell you that you should avoid swearing within the first minute of your video or so (because the bots will pick up on the bad language and restrict your video)...I've never tested this out, but. Better safe than sorry I guess.

Don't worry about monetization for a while, probably? You have to reach a certain amount of watch-time before you qualify for that program. If you do want to make sure your videos are monetizable later, though...use non-copyrighted music, and cut your clips so they're under ten seconds each. Copyrighted music needs to be under eight seconds to evade the bots. YMS explains this in the first couple minutes of this video: [x]

Don't put pressure on yourself to make a popular channel right out of the gate. Sometimes people do get a lot of attention right away, but most people don't start to get real traffic for at least a year? So yeah. Try to make whatever content you want to make and not worry too much about the numbers.

[thorraborinn]

I'm reading The Viking Spirit by Daniel McCoy after being recommend it, but I'm finding myself quite disappointed with it as the author seems to often insert his own opinions and emotions, mostly without clearly stating what is his own conjecture and personal opinion and biases.

Do you know of any better books that go over the history of the religion of the Norse peoples?

Hey, yeah, I don’t recommend Dan McCoy -- anyone presenting their website as “Norse Mythology for Smart People” is trying to sell you something other than just the information you’re looking for.

I gotta admit, the longer I’ve been out of academia, the less qualified I’ve become to answer this.  Still, if I sat here for a while I could probably come up with hundreds of books on the topic off the top of my head (although to be fair, most of the authors would be listed as “I forget their name, I think they’re Danish?”). It’s a huge, multidisciplinary field. The old general introductions are all out of date and the topic has gotten so broad and detailed that a new general overview probably couldn’t possibly be written, because it would be such a massive undertaking that by the time it’s done, it would already be obsolete. I’ll give you a few recommendations though. Some of these are about narrow topics like seiðr or fate, but it’s impossible to treat those thoroughly without also digging into other aspects of Norse religion, so even those may be helpful even if those more narrow subjects aren’t of particular interest.

The best way to find good reading material is, once you have something already that you like, check out that book’s footnotes and works cited. Look into the author, see what else they’ve written and who they’ve worked with. Of course, you need to already have gotten started for that to work, so hopefully my response can help with that.

I have a lot of very well-informed followers, so hopefully some of them can add some stuff to the list too.

Most of the work that gets done in the field gets is in articles rather than books. That can be hard to break into, because most of them assume you already know a bunch of stuff that you might not. Any peer-reviewed article should be well-cited enough for you to investigate any of that, but sometimes those sources will turn out to be hard to acquire or maybe in a language you don’t know. Still, it’s not a bad idea to head to https://www.academia.edu and search for some sub-topics interesting to you, or find a paper like this one (just a random example) and check out the related papers on the right.

Old Norse religion in long-term perspectives, ed. Anders Andrén, Kristina Jennbert, and Catharina Raudvere (2006). A big collection of conference papers from a conference on this topic in 2004 by some 70ish authors, covering a huge range of topics. It’s not a general overview -- this is like going to academia.edu to look for papers but taking a shortcut by having a collection curated for you, but it’s a good collection by some of the most important authors in the field.

Thomas DuBois, Nordic Religions in the Viking Age (1999). I’ll be honest, it’s been a long time since I’ve actually read this, but it was kind of a game-changer when it was written. I found it early in my own development and it helped send me in the right direction. Once this book came out, it was no longer possible to write about all Nordic peoples having a single monolithic culture. It also takes the Sámi people into account in an actually respectful and considered way, which has become more common since then, but was a big deal when it was written.

Christopher Abram, Myths of the Pagan North: The Gods of the Norsemen (2011). This is an introduction to the study of Norse mythology, which is to say, not an introduction to Norse religion. It treats these as two distinct spheres of study with different methods for approaching them

Anders Andrén, Tracing Old Norse Cosmology (2014). This is actually about the pre-history of Nordic religions. It’s about using a dialogue between archaeology and later mythological texts to try to see what can be learned about the development of that later mythology. Andrén focuses specifically on three aspects of the cosmology: the world tree, middle-earth, and the sun.

Karen Bek-Pedersen, The Norns in Old Norse Mythology (2011) or her dissertation, which is free online, Nornir in Old Norse Mythology (2008). The most thorough source out there on the topic of the norns and of fate in Norse myth and religion. One thing that stands out about this book is just how much upheaval of old assumptions and misunderstandings it does. If you happen to be heathen yourself, that probably makes this one even more important.

Neil Price, The Viking Way (2019). An extremely dense, detailed book about seiðr, using mostly an archaeological and anthropological perspective. Definitely a must-read for anyone interested in the topic, and it’s very well-sourced and there is a great deal of text in it explaining the history of research and fairly presenting opinions of other authors that diverge from his.

And here are some more that might be useful, but should be read with a little bit of caution:

Neil Price, The Children of Ash and Elm (2020). Full confession: I haven’t read this one. It comes highly recommended from many corners of the internet. I’ve already recommended a book by the same author. This is probably something somewhat like what you’re looking for. Just, if you’re going to read it, read this review by Mathias Nordvig and keep the criticisms in mind.

E.O.G. Turville-Petre, Myth and Religion of the North (1964). This is kind of the old standard introduction. It’s quite out of date, having been written back when such a general overview was possible. While I recommend reading it with the understanding that anything in it could have become corrected, recontextualized, debunked, or otherwise made obsolete in the last half-century, it’s still actually not a bad idea to read it anyway, not only because there’s plenty of stuff that actually will be found to hold up, but also because it gives you a picture of the state of scholarship as it went into the more contemporary modes of research. Norse mythology has been studied for so long now that scholars aren’t just studying that, they’re also observing and dialoguing with Norse studies from earlier periods, and this is among the best of that. It also has the benefit of being in the public domain: https://archive.org/details/TurvillePetreMythAndReligionOfTheNorth

I hope that helps, and if you want some more, or if there are particular subtopics that you’re looking for, or if there’s anything I can clarify for you feel free to send another ask.

[obeymehasinfluncedmythoughts]

Brothers as New Parents

Featuring Poly!Mc.

Guess who decided to finally finish this oneeeeee. I used my parents for inspiration for some of these. Sadly my getting knocked out by a carpet story didn't qualify 😔

Lucifer

Despite the name and the whole demon thing, Lucifer is actually a pretty decent father.

In the beginning though, he's really lost.

Like, the only baby he's ever raised is Satan and technically that doesn't count, so he's kinda confused here. Which really freaks him out.

Things get easier once the kid can finally walk, but don't expect Lucifer to really understand babies too much, or to like them either. They're way too noisy and dirty for him to actually enjoy. 

But that doesn’t mean he isn’t a good dad.

Sure, he's not amazing, no parent naturally is, but he isn't reckless with your child and genuinely makes attempts to keep them alive. 

He just, kinda waits till the kid isn’t spitting up daily or wearing diapers to actually like their company

Before that it just feels like another job. Or like he’s watching his brothers. 

He loves his child but, uh, he’s going to be the type of dad to forget which baby is his if we’re being honest. 

Mammon

He's really good a keeping babies entertained. Like, really good.

(Who would have known babies also like shiny things that jingle?)

Also loves to spend money on them. Like, legit any baby left under his supervision will be dressed in absurdly priced outfits. It's a little frustrating to wash these clothes, especially considering how dirty kids can get.

But besides all the spoiling and the playing, Mammon is clueless.

Like what do babies do?? What do they need? Are they supposed to sleep for that long??

He regrets not reading the baby books Satan recommended.

He's extremely clumsy as a dad, but in like that way where only he gets hurt but your child never does.

(Despite being so young, you're pretty sure the kid laughs every time he face plants.)

Likes to watch TV with the baby. The kid's probably seen every action movie known to man (and demon) by this point.

Leviathan

Levi isn't good with pregnancy, but he is pretty decent with kids.

Something about his personality really draws them to him

(Which is a great examination as to why most children must have to be taught how to share. Leviathan is a bad influence)

He kinda only ever takes over the "fun" parts of being a dad. Not because he doesn't try though. He does, really, but he often finds himself at a loss when it comes to dealing with spit-up or diapers or the little quirks babies develop.

Levi's the third oldest. He didn't have to deal with that stuff. None of them really had to, as raising angels is kinda a community effort. Seeing as Lucifer wasn't exactly the maternal type, he'd spent his years with his brother watching over kids. Never being beside them.

I think he's especially freaked out if he has a daughter. Like, he doesn't know what to so for the most part with any child, but girls are even more foreign to him, seeing as he's only ever had brothers. Well, besides Lilith, but she's a different story.

It's not really bad, he's just new to everything, but you'll probably give Lucifer an earful for not at least giving more responsibilities with Satan.

Most definitely gives his kid toy weapons and costumes to play with. They can't even walk yet but he's got a chest with princess dresses and lightsabers ready to go.

Satan

Satan is pretty much the most normal dad you could ever ask for.

Yeah, a normal demon, spell-casting dad, but norm nevertheless.

He's always the one to offer to take over your shifts in the night (He will not sub for his brothers though. They can fuck right off).

Buys you your first mother's/father's/whatever you choose to call your parental title's day gift because everyone else most likely forgets amongst the stress of baby.

Most DEFINITELY tries to do that whole "all natural" baby thing, but probably realizes a few days in that breastmilk is not only hard to obtain in the Devildom, but most demons don't really give a samn about cruelty free items (Mass produced cotton included).

^Asmo and him did this together btw. But Asmodeus did it for clout whilst Satan did it for the baby's health.

He'll dress his kid up like him. The clothes are still ugly as sin.

Asmodeus

Your kid will be internet famous before they turn five months old.

Asmo does not understand the word "privacy" or the concept of "not plastering his child's life for everyone to see"

But, you must admit, he does dress your baby up in the most adorable ways.

She might just be the only person he puts above the two of you, both as individuals, and as a couple.

(^I don't think all the brother's would think this way. Some probably still internalize their angel backgrounds or have even formed their own opinions onto where a kid places in a relationship. I might get into it more if asked but I'm leaving this here for now)

He does everything with the kid, when he has them, and if the child is biologically his (which will be extremely apparent), that kid will be with him all the damn time.

He wants his baby to be beautiful like his parents, but most of all, he wants his baby to be happy.

Will most likely turn into the exact definition of "the cool mom" from mean girls but that's far off from now.

Until then, he'll just stroll around the mall, showing his baby all the sparkly things they'll eventually love.

Beelzebub

Beel would have been a pretty normal dad if not for his more older-brother mentality.

Like, the guy has never really been around kids. He's been around Belphegor. Which isn't a huge age gap but there's still that looming protective older-sibling trait there.

He kinda sees the kid, no matter who or where it comes from, as just another sibling.

After what happened with Lilith though, he's more prone to be more protective over girls. He doesn't even recognize he's doing it tbh.

(There's actually a lot of open wounds regarding Lilith that show up in his parenting skills, but they develop a lot later)

He always has to know where your kid is at, but he doesn't necessarily need to be with them.

Like, he's afraid of something horrible happening, but he trusts his brothers, and you, to be able to handle it. He just needs the constant reassurance.

Very insistent on keeping a feeding schedule through, and is known to freak out when they refuse to eat, or get an upset stomach, or something along the lines of the digestive process goes wrong.

Beel is probably the best at bath time. Man can make some awesome rubber duck voices, and the plotlines he thinks up are very interesting.

Belphegor

The one the most scared to have a baby is the one who loves to spend the most time with the baby.

Why? Because babies sleep most of the fucking day. This is a great bonding experience.

And for some reason, you suspect it's due to his powers, the kid will sleep through anything when the two of them are together.

The minute they sleep in their room, or in a cot next to your bed, they'll be waking up hourly for some reason or another.

And it's like, you can't have the baby sleep with Belphegor all the time because if the kid genuinely needs some attention, he needs to wake up and make it known.

But damn are you tired.

Like you some how think raising a child with seven partners is harder than one, because no one should feel this exhausted when they are allowed to take at least three naps a day.

Outside that conundrum, he's a very quiet dad. He'll just sit by the baby and play with them, usually via rattle, enjoying the cute little noises they make and the faces that grace their features.

He'll miss this when the baby starts crawling.

[dazaisbiitch]

Mistress Of Evil

This is a My hero academia Oc story but it can also be read as an X Reader

All credits for the plot, storyline and characters go to Kohei Horikoshi, except the parts of the story that are my own and my own original character.

WARNINGS: May include adult themes, adult activity, hard language, intense or persistent violence, sexually-oriented nudity, drug abuse or other elements

Description:

"This is where my fun begins"

That's all she said that she took one step forward and off the tallest building in the area.

Only to land perfectly on her feet at the bottom, without okay in the world.

No one will be able to stop what's coming" 

Those were the final words of the night as she slipped away into the alleyways, as the sun began to rise signaling the start of a new day in the first day that she'd finally be her true self! 

Prologue

"You have to focus Rairaku, you have one of the most powerful quirks anyone has ever seen. You need to learn how to control and harvest the full and complete power of your quirk, then no villain will ever be able to get away from you. Once you're a hero, you will quickly rise in the ranks as a pro. Your quirk will make you a great hero someday, you will be respected by your colleagues and feared by every villain, you'll be able to open an agency to teach and guide others, just like I have with you… None of that will happen though if you don't focus on your training right now!"

"Yeah whatever, you really did a number on me, what would I have done without you to turn into a freak show. Do you think people are intimidated by other people's quirks? How insecure do you have to be in your own power to believe someone is better than you just because they have a better, stronger, flashier quirk than someone else? That's not how this shit works. No one gives a fuck if you have a strong quirk, they judge you before they know you… All this society cares about is if you have a quirk or not, if you do, well you have a chance to be a hero or a villain… Quirkless people are cast aside and left forgotten… You should take yourself as an example here, you had an amazing fire quirk, a villain came along, you lost a battle and lost your quirk, how quickly did the hero commission cast you aside as less than worthless? No one even remembers you as a hero, you only still have a hero license because you know a few tricks here and there that come in handy from time to time… The reality is that they don't care, no one does… You have this crazy idea that if you push me and push my quirk to its limits until my body collapses my quirk will be this superweapon you can offer to the commission on a silver platter, so much that at this point, I don't even know what my quirk can't do… nothing surprises me anymore!"

"That's the beauty of it, there's nothing it can't do. You have no limitations, except the ones you place on your own body essentially making it weak! You keep that strong quirk of yours trapped inside that weak and feeble body of yours, but fear, not I will fix that. You'll be training five more hours a day starting now, so back to training young lady!"

It's no use… My body can't take anymore, it needs a break, but this bitch is never going to give me one… This person should have never been a mother, thank god I'm adopted! I'm so fed up with this training. I don't remember a time I was not training my stupid quirk. I don't even want to be a hero and be just another puppet for the hero commission to control, I want to be free…

This whole shit show will soon end, if it's the last thing I do I'll make it end! I have exactly one month to come up with a plan, a month before I start attending U.A high school, the best hero school in the whole country. I got in through recommendations thanks to my dear old mother.

Making the executive decision to sneak out and try to find some way or idea to execute any sort of plan, but also have fun doing stuff that I probably shouldn't be doing, but who cares? I certainly don't.

Sneaking out has become very easy, living in a fancy neighbourhood isn't all that, live here long enough though and you learn to move in the shadows, allowing myself to become one with the darkness of the night and all that just so nosy neighbours don't see me and start commenting on my "behaviour"...

It's not the first time I've snuck out, certainly won't be the last, but this is the first time that I've gone into the city. Yokohama is truly a beautiful city, especially at night. I love to watch the nightlife, it's the time when villains shine the most, but at the same time, I cannot live among pigs that think they can drunkenly take advantage of an innocent woman just walking home.

Luckily I haven't encountered anything like that tonight, instead, I'm casually relaxing on a rooftop in the middle of the city, looking down at the world like God looking down at his subjects.

"What's someone so young doing up here?" an intimidating voice calls behind me. I already knew someone was approaching me minutes ago…

"Well, if I'm being honest I would say I'm thinking about the murder of a certain ex-pro hero… But better to be here and as far away from them as possible or who knows what I'd do to that bitch… I'm so tired of her living in glory as the world pities her for losing her quirk, while behind closed doors she's an abusive piece of shit!"

"Then jump. It will end all your tiredness, once and for all"

"As much as I'd love to, especially from up here, with this view, I can't, as soon as I start falling my quirk will just levitate back up here. Also even if I could, I'd just be proving her right, proving to her that I'm just as weak and pathetic as she thinks I am, so much that I took the cowards way out. No thank you. I'd suffer a while longer and have the satisfaction of watching her take her last breath. I will not die, not until I shove all her fake heroic ideologies down her stupid throat."

"Hmph… Perhaps then you shouldn't jump… I can however help you deal with her. This world must be cleansed of fake hero pretences and false ideologies. Back to the time where people knew the true meaning of what being a hero truly is!"

"So what? You'll kill her? If so then just go ahead and do it! No one will care about her death. To her, I am just another job the hero commission gave her, one she wasn't even qualified to do. If you do it, don't do it for me and my sad sob story. Do it because you truly believe in cleansing hypocritic heroes from this world. If that is indeed what your goal is I will give you all the information you need on her and all the other corrupt heroes in this society."

"What's your name kid?"

"Rairaku Ishii, you can call me Rai though. And I'd rather for you to not say your name out loud, you never know who could be listening, but I know exactly who you are, I'm telepathic, and it's a pleasure to meet you, I must say I'm a fan!"

"Good. Now about that information, you said you'd give me…"

"First ex-pro hero Pyro, she used to be very popular as Endeavour's sidekick, but now she's lost her quirk. She's basically useless, but people still praise her for some reason. Make it slow, she deserves a slow painful death, "heroes" should never abuse their power or others!"

"Are you sure? There's no turning back after this"

"I've never been more sure of anything in my life. She has to be punished for what she has done. Starting today, I'll be the person I want to be."

"And who might that be?"

"Don't know yet! I could be your accomplice, after all, it seems we'll be seeing a lot more of each other."

"Fine, just know it might take a while, I have pressing matters I need taking care of first"

"The longer you take will just make me kill her myself"

End of the day it really should be me. I should be the one to kill her, I should be the one to do it. After everything, she's put me through? After everything, she's done to me? Killing her… Would that make me a villain? What better than that, a villain goes against every hero ideal she's ever tried to engrave into my brain…

Yes, that's it. I'll be the worst type of villain this world has ever seen.

This is where my fun begins!

[a-dragons-journal]

Hello again. This is the 5-part anon from earlier. I wrote a long response to your post and I think it’d be more convenient to dump the text in a pastebin than split it into asks. The link is going to expire in a few months, so I recommend copying the contents into its own post rather than posting the link: pastebin. com / 2r49iein

I had, sorry; you've just caught me in the lead-up to and midst of finals week, so I haven't been answering asks as quickly as usual, especially ones that will take a significant amount of time and energy xD (No worries about checking in, though, Tumblr does have a horrible habit of eating asks and it's good to check! And also my ADHD no-object-permanence ass will see an ask, go "I'll respond to that later," and then forget it exists sometimes with no Tumblr interference necessary, so good to check for that reason too xD)

Hello again. This is the 5-part anon from earlier. Thank you for your thoughtful answer. First off, I want to apologize to anyone who may have been hurt by my words on the topic of otherheartedness, copinglink, etc. I did not mean to in any way minimize the importance of these identities for others. Because I felt I didn’t have the "right" to claim a "full" otherkin identity, I felt like I had to settle for something that simply didn’t fit my experience, which led to my frustrated, generalized words.

With that out of the way, I’ve been giving what you said some thought. I have to admit I never really participated in otherkin communities, only watching from afar. It’s good to know that I "qualify" as otherkin, but I wonder if it’s such a good idea for me to identify that way. I have so few experiences in common with most otherkin that I would probably feel *more* alienated by calling myself that, not *less*. In my experience, forcing myself into an identifier that is technically correct but feels wrong/bad is not the way to go. At any rate, I’ll describe my feelings in more detail, just because I’m really curious to know if you’ve ever heard of anyone similar, or if this reminds you of anything. I apologize if some of it is repetitive or if it jumps from topic to topic without making much sense.

Some parts of otherkin… culture, I guess? Baffle me. For example, needing to narrow down one’s exact species or the cause/origin of one’s identification as nonhuman. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying it’s not valid; just that I don’t personally see the point? All the rules about who gets to call themself otherkin feel constraining to me, because I guess there’s not really any other term that fits, but even that one doesn’t fit that well, so I’m kinda stuck between a rock and a hard place.

So I’m more inclined to just say, yeah, I’m a bird. Do I behave like a bird? Do I have bird instincts? Not really, but I’m still a bird. Adopting an otherkin identity throws a wrench in that, making me feel like a failed nonhuman, because it’s *hard* not to feel invalid when everyone else seems completely different from you. If anything, I feel more valid doing my own thing! I didn’t come to this bird identity because I felt like I was Different somehow and needed to find an explanation for it (been there, done that with the autism, lol). Instead I came to it because it felt good, and right, and it made me happy.

You say since I don’t know if I chose this or not, it’s unlikely to be voluntary. I guess I just… feel weird about this? I don’t really have words to describe it. Maybe it boils down to "does it matter?". And I know when it comes to the term "otherkin", it *does* matter, which is kind of one of my problems with it.

I looked at that daemonism post you reblogged and found myself relating to the way Rook described Tukuxa: "She lacks a shark’s instincts, fears and drives - but her core is still shark." I wouldn’t say I *lack* these things, just that I simply don’t have them. Do I have a human mind in a human brain? Sure, but that doesn’t mean I have to be a human, nor does it make me any less of a bird. It makes me happy to conceptualize myself as a bird, to design my own appearance as a bird with qualities that can’t physically exist in this world, to daydream of flight. Is that such an uncommon experience?

I have a headmate who is a dragon. She was born as a dragon, she looks like a dragon, she simply Is A Dragon. She’s not dragonkin, she’s not based on any fictional dragon, she just… is. (Not to say that dragonkin folks aren’t dragons, just that she doesn’t identify as dragonkin.) But she doesn’t have any of the typical dragon traits you might expect; like me she has a "human mind" in a "human brain", and yet she’s just a dragon. I guess it’s sorta the same with me.

I just feel like it’s better for me to say "I’m [X]" and keep the specifics to myself. Despite these asks, I have no intention of holding my identities up to the scrutiny of others. If I say I’m a thing, I could mean it in a number of ways. Total or partial identification as/with, or even just a passing attachment. Ultimately, it’s my business, and trying to define it beyond just "I am this thing" or "I relate to this thing" or "This thing is me" feels sort of obnoxious? (For context, I do have nonhuman identities other than a bird, I just used that one as an example/shorthand.)

I guess that about covers everything. What do you think? If your followers/anyone who sees this wants to chime in, I’ll be looking at the notes. Thanks again!

(Regarding the 'hearted/'linker stuff, I figured that wasn't what you meant in your previous asks; I just wanted to bring it up because it's a conflation that gets made a lot, accidentally or on purpose.)

Honestly, these are all incredibly valid points, and if you just want to call yourself nonhuman or bird but not otherkin/therian then that's entirely up to you. If the label doesn't work for you, then it doesn't work for you! You are not obligated to use every label that you technically fit under (gods know I don't), and I didn't mean to imply so - just to make it clear that it's available to you if you do want it. I can see now that I probably kind of missed the point in that response.

And you're right that frankly, even though there is a wide range of experiences under the otherkin umbrella, there's also a set of common experiences that almost everyone seems to share at least a few of, and when you don't share those I can imagine it makes it kind of hard to connect with others in the community. Unfortunately, like I said, I don't know that there's a way around that other than trying to host a platform for those atypical experiences to speak, which is a good idea but probably not very effective in practice because of the sheer numbers game.

So you've decided you're probably better off not trying to make the "otherkin" label or community fit, and that's entirely valid - I guess the question is, what now? If you're wanting to find others with similar experiences to you, you still need somewhere to look, and it seems like this isn't it.

You might want to look into other nonhuman terms - "nonhuman" and "transspecies" come to mind, and while neither of these might fit you, they do collect different subcultures that might be less alienating for you or easier to find others with similar experiences within. The broader "alterhuman" label may also be useful, though that can be a bit like trying to find a needle in a haystack just because of how many things are included in "alterhuman" and I don't know that you'd have any better luck than with "otherkin".

Or you might want to try older platforms, if you haven't already - forums, IRCs if they still exist. The community wasn't always as focused on some of the things you noted as it is now (pinning down a specific species, voluntary vs involuntary, etc.), and platforms with a population that trends toward people who've been around longer sometimes still have more of that culture than Tumblr and Discord tend to, though they come with their own problems of course.

Ultimately, if "I'm a bird" is the easiest way to communicate your experiences, then that's that on that. These words only exist because people find them useful - if you don't find them useful, don't feel like you have to use 'em. As far as finding community when so much of the otherkin community feels alienating to you, I'm afraid that's all I've got - y'all got anything for anon?

[canary3d-obsessed]

Restless Rewatch: The Untamed - Episode 02

Warning: Spoilers for all 50 episodes!

(Masterpost ) (Previous Episode) (Next Episode)

Donkey Riding

way ho and away we go, donkey riding donkey riding way ho and away we go, riding on a donkey

Wei Wuxian and Apple are doing their best for the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. 

Xiao Zhan had trouble riding the donkey sitting side-saddle, so the Department of Questionable Practical Effects made him a fake leg to wear while riding regular style. 

Can you spot it? It’s very hard to spot. It is very convincing.

Simple Pleasures

Wei Wuxian takes his time wandering up the nearest mountain, and half of the cultivators in the land also wander up this mountain because...Night Hunting! The cultivators are hot and thirsty from walking because they forgot that they all know how to fly. 

Wei Wuxian relaxes by a well and listens to people stanning him. 

Also

I’m going to say it: Wei Wuxian never met a drinking vessel he couldn’t blow.

Everything is Beautiful at the Ballet

The actress who plays A-Yan is named Zhang Linran. She probably has studied dance since she was 4 and now she gets her big break which turns out to be feeding an apple to a donkey. So let’s pause for a second to look at how beautifully she moves.  

Reunions are Awkward, Part 1

Wei Wuxian meets up with one of his family members and it goes super well. 

I...like Jin Ling? He’s much less of a douchebag than his dad, his uncles Jin, Jiang, and Mo (the three stooges), and every damn one of his Jin cousins. He’s genuinely brave (his Dad’s primary good quality) and his hair is on fleek. He’s still a whiny diaper baby, but I like him. 

(much more after the cut!)

Then Jiang Cheng shows up, looking fine as hell and radiating peak arrogant-prick energy.

When he discovers that ‘Mo Xuanyu” stuck a piece of paper to Jin Ling, he tells the child to literally murder him. Excellent uncleing! A+++++ would recommend.  

“In fact, literally murder anyone who uses Yiling Laozu’s tools, like talismans, lure flags, or spirit compasses - basically murder everyone in the Lan Clan plus those other fanboys we saw coming up the hill. Then get out there and make some friends, goddamn it!”

These nets full of cultivators on this daytime night hunt are the only time we ever see anything in a net during a night hunt.  In fact dudes constantly go night hunting and the only prey we ever see is rock lady, murder turtle, and a couple of rag mops in the lake. 

You Are Not Qualified to Speak to Me

Also radiating arrogant-prick energy on this occasion is Lan Wangji. He has been using pettiness as a weapon since long before he met this Jiang Cheng turkey, and he *brings it* when Jiang Cheng tries to have a conversation with him.

Letting your eyes wander everywhere except to his punchable face while you ignore his passive-aggressive questions? Quality work. 

Dropping a silence spell on his child and then letting your own child explain it to him? Golden. 

Lan Wangji is never ever going to forgive Jiang Cheng for what he did on cliff day, and his silence here is as pointed as an ice pick. I suspect the last words Lan Wangji actually spoke to him were “Jiang Wanyin, stop it,” sixteen years ago. 

Jiang Cheng is actually the bigger person in this particular interaction, visibly mastering his temper and telling Jin Ling to take his medicine. 

Reflecting

Wei Wuxian hangs out by a beautiful river and hallucinates for a while. River Jiang Yanli is nurturing and River Jiang Cheng is pissed off, so there are no surprises there.  River Jiang Cheng thinks that Wei Wuxian is a promise-breaking douchebag. He’s not exactly wrong. 

Courtesy of convenient gossiping cultivators, Wei Wuxian discovers that the 16 year old arrogant kid from the Jin clan who his brother from the Jiang clan has custody of is actually and quite obviously Jin Rulan.

Well fuck I guess now I care about something, that’s inconvenient. 

Needing to help parent the child of the sister who parented him is what draws Wei Wuxian fully into his new life. 

As soon as he has this realization, Apple comes back from roaming around, and never gives him any trouble after this for the rest of the story. Which...probably doesn’t mean anything. 

Wen Gravesite

Does Wen Ning hang out here because it’s where he and his (dead) people came from? Oh great, now I am sad. 

Judging by all the leaves on this grave thingy I’m going to say that this grave tender dude is, ah, not very good at his job. 

Get him, Jingyi!

I feel like maybe we all focus too much on how Lan Jingyi is so hilarious and sardonic and not enough on how he is a such a biscuit. 

Soul Grass

As mentioned in the previous post, Chinese spiritual concepts don’t always translate well into English. Soul grass? Sure, why not. 

This is where Wei Wuxian’s Sherlock Holmes brain starts to work, although he still doesn’t remember really basic stuff about Dafan Mountain. Dying and changing bodies is rough on the old neurochemistry. This creates more opportunities for flashbacks, however, and if there’s one thing The Untamed deffo needs more of, it’s kissing flashbacks.

Temple Statue

Presumably grave-tender dude is also in charge of clearing away spiderwebs at the temple, because it’s not getting done. 

Jin Ling walks into the temple blaspheming at full volume. 

Since this isn’t a Greek story, he isn’t immediately struck blind for this. Then when he wishes for the statue to come alive, it obligingly does.  Everything’s coming up Rulan!

Wei Wuxian shows up to rescue all the kids by throwing talismans at the monster which does not tip anyone off to who he is. 

Baby Cultivator Babysitting

Lan Wangji chills out in the cultivators’ pavilion with Jiang Cheng and their mutual hate boners.

Meanwhile, Wei Wuxian forgets all about his nephew and turns into cool professor guy, explaining the basics of soul-eating to the baby cultivators and gleefully encouraging their fear of Hanguang-Jun’s punishments. 

Because the Lan babies are good filial children they are super respectful and engaged with this random adult who is lecturing them. They also - like their own Hanguang-Jun at their age - see and admire Wei Wuxian’s intellect. It’s easy to forget how extremely smart Wei Wuxian is, because of how extremely dumb Wei Wuxian is.

Lan Jingyi suddenly figures out Wei Wuxian is not crazy. 

Bis. Kit. 

Then Rock Lady shows up and Jin Ling sticks 6 arrows into her while Lans Jingyi and Sizhui stand around not bothering to draw their swords.

I see a lot of comments about the bad effects in the statue sequences but I think Rock Lady is all right. The figure animation is decent and the lighting is no worse on her than on everything else in the scene. Her hair is nice, for a rock person.

Admittedly I just finished watching Guardian which has CGI monsters so bad they may have injured my retinas and possibly also my DNA, so the bar, for me, is pretty low. Rock lady clears it with room to spare.   

Note: Wei Wuxian’s flute playing does zippity towards controlling the statue. Not sure what his plan was here.

Wen Ning Kicks Ass

Now we get to meet Wen Ning, who appears to be a stone-cold badass. Later we will discover how hilariously inaccurate that assessment is. 

While all versions of Wen Ning are delightful, this version of Wen Ning is also...strangely attractive? He’s got a Patti-Smith-Horses-Era vibe here, instead of his more usual lost-baby-dork vibe. And his dreamy “I have nails in my head” expression is intriguing. 

I mean, he’s not a total snack like zombie Song Lan or pre-zombie Song Lan or blind Song Lan or post-zombie Song Lan, but this look is a good one for Wen Ning, is what I’m saying.

Reunions are Awkward, Part 2

Lan Wangji, who has 99% already recognized Wei Wuxian because of the haunted sword and the fierce jawline and beautiful neck and tiny tiny waist, is summoned by his flute playing as inexorably as the Ghost General was. 

Jiang Cheng also recognizes Wei Wuxian and goes into full beatdown mode, thwarted (silently) by Lan Wangji. Wei Wuxian attempts to preserve his incognito by sassing Jiang Cheng in as sibling-like a manner as possible. 

Hanguang-Jun’s Pro-Ghost Agenda Has Been Clear for Some Time

This Jiang/Lan fight is hilarious when you consider the implications.

Macroexpression vs. Microexpression

Mo Xuanyu brought Wei Wuxian back using sacrifice summons, a dark ritual invented by Wei Wuxian that he, most likely, did NOT show to Lan Wangji back in the day. So it’s a pretty safe bet that Lan Wangji doesn’t know that Wei Wuxian was gifted a body, rather than stealing one.

when your brother turns around, you must whip him you will never live it down unless you whip him

When Jiang Cheng lets loose with Zidian, it’s not just because he’s angry. He’s using purple power to force Wei Wuxian’s ghost out of the body he’s apparently possessed. And Lan Wangji instantly STOPS him from doing that.

Clan Leader Jiang: this person has been possessed, against their will, by an evil ghost

Future Chief Cultivator Lan: Counterpoint: I am banging the ghost

Flashback Time

Welcome to your 30-episode flashback!

Once I used to join in Every boy and girl was my friend Now there's revolution, but they don't know What they're fighting

Let us close our eyes Outside their lives go on much faster Oh, we won't give in We'll keep living in the past

Road Tripping to Summer School

Gosh I’m looking forward to younger, kinder, more relatable Jiang Cheng.

...prick. 

Incidentally, until now this episode didn’t know that Jiang Cheng has smile muscles, and neither did the person who glued his wig on for him.

I Like Rabbits

Here we have our first rabbit in a large collection of rabbit iconography that appears in The Untamed. 

Instead of sending everyone to the Wikipedia page for Tu'er Shen I’m going to take this opportunity to rec the short film Kiss of the Rabbit God by Andrew Thomas Huang (tw: blood, tw:body-mod cutting) which you can read about and watch over at  Nowness.com 

Particularly if you are a queer person of Chinese heritage, check it out. 

So. What the fuck are these? Are they food? 

Are they made from wax? Or corn starch? or pig intestines? 

Wei Wuxian runs off to get laid drunk and Jiang Cheng grumps about it. Jiang Yanli reminds him that being free is a Jiang Clan Rule, so really Wei Wuxian is following the rules by not following the rules. Does that mean he’s not free? My head hurts. 

Jiang Cheng: yes but grump grump grump

Jiang Yanli: Nothing bad will ever happen because of A-Xian’s choices, trust me

Outro

Wei Wuxian faint tally: one  Caught by: the cold hard ground

Soundtrack: 1. Donkey Riding by Great Big Sea 2. Living in the Past by Jethro Tull 3. Whip It by Devo

Fic prompt:  Lan Wangji’s internal monologue while he sits in the pavilion with Jiang Cheng 

If you write a fic from this prompt and want to share, please post a link in comments!

Bonus: Wang Zuocheng, macro-expression king

Episode 03 Restless Rewatch coming soon!

[icasttourniquet]

Common Misconceptions: Raising the Dead (CPR)

Let's start with the bad news: basically all the CPR you've seen in movies and TV shows is performed terribly.

Here's the good news: most CPR is performed on dead patients, which means even bad CPR is better than nothing.

What is CPR?

CPR stands for (googles hurriedly) Cardio-Pumonary Resuscitation. It has two parts: 1) chest compressions and 2) rescue breaths. Here's a video in case you're still confused, but most people have seen CPR performed a ton of times during the climaxes of medical shows. It comes right before either a) the nurse yells "Clear!" and the patient comes back to life or b) the EMT says "I'm not losing you" and injects the patient with adrenaline right to the heart, and then they come back to life.

Raising the Dead

CPR is generally performed on dead patients. That is, patients without a pulse. In the first responder business, the situation doesn't really get worse than dead, so it provides a unique opportunity for authors because you can't really get it wrong.

Here are some questions I've heard people ask while learning CPR:

Should I perform CPR on pulse-less patients who have chest wounds?

Can I continue performing CPR if I break a rib?

Should I perform CPR on pregnant people?

What if I can't give rescue breaths? Should I still give CPR?

My patient has a lot of broken limbs. Should I fix those before performing CPR?

My patient was electrocuted. Should I give CPR?

Here's the trick to answering all your CPR questions. Is my character dead (no pulse)? Does performing CPR put a) the first responder, b) another patient, or c) a bystander in danger?

If you can answer (yes) (no, no, no), congratulations! Your first responder can perform CPR, even really crappy CPR, even CPR that is ineffective, for as long as the plot requires (ModN's WFR instructor tells the story of a 6-hour CPR session on a dead patient during a journey to care that included a toboggan ride).

(NOTE: there's actually one solid contraindication: if the patient is severely hypothermic, their heart rate may be so slow and weak as to be undetectable. In this case (and pretty much only this case) chest compressions may actually do more harm than good. Other than that, obvious signs of death like decapitation or rigor mortis indicate you don't need to start resuscitation, but there are still plenty of compelling interpersonal reasons to do it – at that point you're doing CPR for the responder and survivors rather than the patient.)

Otherwise, your character should go for it!

The bad news about CPR

Time for the bad news (other than you having a dead character on your hands). In general,* CPR is not enough to bring someone back. Its role is to continue circulating oxygenated blood while you wait for a defibrillator like an AED to arrive. The AED or manual defibrillator is what actually convinces the heart to stop fluttering/beating erratically, and allows it to resume something like a normal rhythm. That means that in the wilderness, CPR is almost never going to work. That said, ModN's WFR instructors had a couple tales of AEDs falling from the sky (via helicopter, not under their own power), so it's worth trying regardless.

* The exception: lightning-struck patients can at times restart regular rhythms with just chest compressions. This leads to interesting triage considerations when dealing with the aftermath of lightning, but that's a subject for another post.

How to perform non-crappy CPR

There are a million videos on YouTube that can talk you through every sort of CPR. Keeping in mind, of course, that some CPR is better than nothing on a pulseless patient, here are some quick tips that could indicate your character has some training:

Your character distinguishes between adult and pediatric CPR. Because children don't tend to get heart attacks, pulse-less children almost always have a trauma or respiratory cause. This means responders give children more rescue breaths.

Your character keeps their elbows locked. Here's a playlist of some examples of bad CPR (and some are really quite bad). Actors generally can't lock their elbows because they'd risk injuring or even killing their scene partner (so, okay, fine, that's a decent excuse), but people with real training will know better.

They do not always give rescue breaths. Any CPR is better than no CPR. Rescue breaths can put the first responder at risk because they can involve lip-to-lip contact, assuming no PPE is available. I once had a paramedic say bluntly that he really only gives breaths to children—it's just not worth the risk to him for anyone else. If this sounds callous, remember, CPR is (almost) only performed on dead patients, and the number one priority in any disaster is yourself.

(ModN edit: in a professional setting your character will always have some sort of PPE for rescue breaths: a face shield at the minimum, or in the front country a full-blown bag valve mask (BVM) that allows them to use their hands to get air into the patient.)

Your character does a blood sweep before staring CPR in a trauma injury. You may have heard the rule no pulse = chest compressions immediately. This is almost always true, especially in the frontcountry, when most pulse-less patients you encounter will have had a heart attack. However, in the wilderness, we can run into a bad situation: chest compressions that pump all my patient's blood out the gushing wound in their side.

Maybe you're thinking, hey! I thought you said my character could always do CPR on a dead patient and they'd be fine! And yes, I did say that—thank you for listening. If your character performs CPR on a patient with no pulse and arterial wound, they have not killed their patient. This is because the patient was already dead. They have not "sped up" the bleeding out process because this patient has basically already bled out. So, I'm not blaming your character for anything.

That said, the pro-est of pros will do a blood sweep after finding no pulse and stuff/apply direct pressure/tourniquet as necessary. As an added note, your character with no pulse and the arterial bleed? Probably not going to survive.

This leads me to...

Writing more realistic necromancy

If your character's CPR is successful, your character has just raised the dead. Thinking about it this way can help you write more realistic resuscitation scenes. Here's the number one thing that will make all your CPR more realistic:

Your dead patient does not go from dead to walking and talking in a few seconds.

When the body has no pulse for a while, it gets unhappy. This is because all its internal organs are dying and also because it is dead. CPR replicates the pumping of a heart, but not particularly well. Most people whose organs are all dying don't get that shot of adrenaline to the heart (this is not part of any WFR or EMT protocol but whatever) and then go back to swashbuckling adventure after a quick sip of water.

In fact, in real life, checking the pulse of your patient is an important part of performing CPR because sometimes they come back to life and you don't notice.

So how might you accurately describe someone who's just come back from the dead via CPR (possibly plus defibrillation)? May I recommend some of the following words (no need to cite me—just plop 'em in your writing):

Unconscious

Unmoving

Pale

Clammy

Weak pulse

Non-responsive to pain

Not dead!!!

An added point: absolutely no one whose heart stopped is now "okay" because their heart restarted. They are "not dead" because their heart restarted. Admitedly, not dead is pretty good in the first response business, but they need to see a doctor. As soon as possible. This is because something caused the heart to stop and CPR did not treat that underlying cause. Many people who come back from the dead die again soon after, and could come back and die multiple times before picking a state more permanantly.

Wilderness-Specific CPR

In the wilderness, we have get one (1) special CPR-related ability and that is the ability to stop.

In the US, there's a thing called patient abandonment that can get folks in trouble. Basically, if you start treating a patient, you need to keep treating them until 1) they are dead, 2) they are conscious enough to refuse further treatment and do so, or 3) someone else with an equivalent or higher level of training is treating them (ModN: as a W-EMT this is tricky – it's hard to find people more qualified in the wilderness to hand a patient off to!).

Because WFRs and EMTs cannot declare patients dead, and a dead or unconscious patient cannot refuse treatment, that means you are treating them until someone else is treating them. (As a side note, my first first-aid instructor told the story of performing CPR for 30 minutes in an ambulance on a patient missing part of his brain [this is bad] because the police officer at the scene didn't want to declare him dead on the highway, which would mean shutting down the road for a few hours).

CPR is unique, however, because it's performed on dead patients. The law doesn't want a poor WFR to be stuck in an endless CPR loop because they can't abandon their patient, so in the wilderness only, your character can stop CPR:

After 30 minutes of sustained pulselessness.

If another patient needs more help.

If continuing is dangerous to self or others.

Otherwise, backcountry and frontcountry CPR are pretty similar.

Summary

CPR is generally performed on dead people.

It is difficult to get worse than dead.

Garbage CPR is better than no CPR.

Recovering from being dead takes time and always warrants more care.

WFRs have a superpower and it is called stopping CPR.

Good luck raising your characters from the dead!

[artstorieshusbandos]

Tale of Two Tragedies-Theo's route (Ikemen Vampire) **spoilers**

Tragedy #1 Exhibit A

I honestly half expected him to haul off and draw a masterpiece in the tavern notebook. Not because he's a Van Gogh but because there's almost no way someone with his appreciation for art , his eye for it and his hardcore determination wouldn't have managed to at least be drawing on the side for enjoyment.

This scene would have gone down a little differently if I had actually been in MC's place. MC, it seems, doesn't do art. I've been at least scribbling since I was a kid that figured out I could rub the paint off my toys onto the wall. I would not have noticed the notebook on the counter, but ever since we left the private gallery earlier I'd been dying to ask him if he'd ever done any art. I daydreamed about asking while I was waiting for my tickets to replenish Why?

This isn't the voice of someone who doesn't want to do art.

Usually when someone tells me they can't draw I find out one of 3 things. They either don't really want to draw or at least they have other things they'd much rather put their time into which is fair. They actually can draw but have fallen into the trap of undervaluing their own work which may or may not be a result of comparing their work to the work of others. Then there's the third crowd that has the desire to do it, puts in the time but can't get anywhere because they are trying to draw from their left brain.

What am I talking about? I'm sure you may have heard that our brains have two halves and that the left half is connected to logic, mathematics, language, symbolism, ect, and the right brain is associated with imagination, creativity, music, spatial relations, distances, ect. Most of us don't know how that actually relates to someone's ability to draw or paint. The truth is art is something all humans can do to some degree. How good you manage to get is one part the desire to do it, one part putting in the practice and one part how well you can get your left brain to give over control to the right brain.

Vincent and Theo are such wonderful examples of what I'm getting at here with the whole left brain/right brain thing. Vincent is right brain dominant and I know this not because he's a talented artist but because it's a fact that Vincent Van Gogh is left handed. Our dominant hands are opposite our dominant brains. Theo is clearly left brain dominant not only because we can see it in his organizational and business skills we can see how he's talking in the second image where he's trying to draw King. He's thinking about drawing fur and eyes and the components of the dog not the forms. The parts are all named and labeled....this is left brain thinking. Compare it to how he talks when he is observing paintings and pushing the technical aside to just let it speak to him. This is the mode he needs to be in to create but he's trying to attack it with his stronger mode which is his left brain mode. It doesn't matter how much you practice if you are practicing the wrong thing.

The other pitfall he's hit is comparing himself to Vincent. As an artist never ever ever ever compare yourself to anyone but the you from yesterday. There will always be someone "better" than you and "better" will always be subjective. Vincent got a head start being right brained. When his brain reaches for it's stronger side it's going to pull from the correct one automatically.

Maybe at this point you're wondering why I spent so much time analyzing a fictional character in this manner? Honestly it breaks my heart to see him like this and though I know he's fictional I also know there are many many Theo's in this world who have given up because they don't know what's holding them back or that it can be conquered. I wrote this for them.

If this is you and you'd like to see what you're truly capable of do this one really easy exercise. Find a picture of something you'd like to draw. Draw it as best you can. If all you can do is draw a stick then draw that stick. Then take that same image and flip it upside down and draw it again. The reason for doing this is to force the left brain to let the right brain work. The left brain doesn't like to work with anything it can't define and slap a label on. When you flip the image upside down it makes it so the left brain can't properly identify the subject. It has no choice but to shut up and let the right brain work. Compare your two drawings. I was astonished the first time I did this. I no longer have my original upright drawing from the first time I tried this technique but I do have the first drawing I ever did upside down. Here it is.

Granted I had been drawing for years upright already but if you need a point of reference as to where I was in my skill when I started training my left brain to sit down here's another drawing from the same year.

Quite a bit of technical difference.

If this exercise worked for you and you're interested in learning more about how to train your brain for better art this is the book that taught me.

I recommend this book to any artist that hasn't read it. It's been the biggest help I've ever gotten on my journey. I don't know if Amazon is the best place to get a copy or not I didn't price match I just put up the first link I came to so you might want to shop around.

Tragedy #2 Exhibit B

Here is one of the last pieces I completed.

It was done in 2012. That's right.....it's been damn near a decade since I've turned out a completed art piece. It would probably break Theo's heart even more to know that there are people out here like me that have talent and aren't using it while he would love to do it and can't seem to. In fact he'd probably dump my ass if we were actually dating before he found out. I felt guilty before but now it's guilt x 1000. Are any of you out there in the same boat as me? Anyone out there that managed to get out of the rut that might have some tips for me? Maybe I should take some requests? What would you all like to see me draw?

Also if you're interested in seeing more of my stuff my gallery is collecting dust here

Theo has everything he needs to be a great artist. He has the eye for aesthetics, he has the desire and commits himself to everything. In his time psychology is in it's infancy. He doesn't even know yet what he doesn't know. If I was wrong about this and he still couldn't draw after a few training sessions I guess I'd have to start making him paint by number kits. He can pick the subject and the colors I'll map out the design and we'll do it together.