#cyberpunk tezcatlipoca

[smokedhummingbird]

I'm just bored 😜

[transman-badass]

Well, here we go. This isn't a formal WIP introduction, just an overview of what me and @pocketinferno have been messing with.

YA sci-fi/mythology

In a cyberpunk-ish Mexico City, some indeterminate years ahead of our time, there are two people, either friends or a brother and sister. The girl, 17yo Jill, is brilliant with machines of all kinds, and compassionate to a fault. Her eyes are trained on the future and improving the world she loves. The boy, 19yo Ghost, a transman desperate to prove himself, has become a bounty hunter against his family's wishes. His eyes are set on the past, the knowledge and wisdom that's been almost forgotten in the present day.

Their strengths become their weaknesses.

Jill's compassion leads to her kidnapping by strangers. Taken before their leader, her fate is sealed by one of her surnames: Cortez. Told she will be sacrificed to the gods in the morning, it will take all Jill's courage and cunning to escape. When compassion fails, and her skills cannot save her, what else is left?

Ghost's first client asks him to track down the man who assaulted her. On the hunt, he discovers a mysterious feathered snake that he suspects escaped from a lab. But his focus on the past has left him blind to the reality of the present. What will get the job done in the end: his training, or his heart?

Neither can imagine the depths of what they've been pulled into. Humanity is a failure in the eyes of the gods. With Huitzilopochtli still missing, Tezcatlipoca has chosen conquest, and Quetzalcoatl has chosen humanity. A war between ancient rivals stirs again...

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obviously a story, much less a trilogy, like this will take a lot, a lot, of research and planning. Reading and discussion and talking to people. Drew is Mexican and I'm American, so we'll have a good amount of options to go through in both English and Spanish.

part of the purpose of this is to introduce more people to Aztec (Mexica) mythology. The Mexica and their mythology is far more fascinating and intricate than just "ooooh, scary human sacrifice". (Drew is regularly shocked by how obscure Aztec mythology is to Americans.)

we're wanting to have a list of organizations in the book so people can donate to help indigenous peoples, women and other groups in Mexico. If you know of any trustworthy organizations or groups, please send me an ask and I'll make a note of them.

We would love to hear from other Mexicans, indigenous peoples, and those familiar with the Aztecs/Mexica and their mythology, along with anyone that's interested in this idea. Even if you're critical of us or this idea, we want to hear what you think. Just please don't bite our heads off if you dislike this idea 😅 we're doing this in good faith and trying to be respectful.

This is not really a priority for either of us. Drew is in university and I've got another WIP (or two, or ten...) that I'm trying to focus on. I mean I can make it a priority but I don't see a reason to do so rn.

Well, that's the idea. Without any spoilers at least. What do you think?

[newrealityworld]

inspired by both the Hades game and cyberpunk 2077. I’ve changed up my cyberpunk designs quite a bit, tried to make them fit with the gods themselves and the environment I have planned in my head.  So Loki, norse god, the norse designs I’m trying to keep as more practical and harsh than flashy. They live in a colder climate so there are elements that are beautiful but for the most part it’s designed for function over showing off and flash. I also used colder colours, or harsh colours, just to fit with the aesthetic of looking scary and intimidating. Loki does have some decoration on his, I wanted to references the mistletoe from the myths, also there are runes tattooed all over. They mean various things, the rune on his forehead and his glove is actually the run of fire, since Loki is the god of fire this seemed appropriate. 

Thoth is next, for the Egyptian ones I’m sticking with a more traditional look, just smoother lines. They’re not showing off. To me in my head I always see the Egyptian gods not needing to show off, they know they’re important and powerful, they don’t need to show it. In my AU they’re second powerful, and they always have this regal air to them. Sort of an old money kind of aesthetic, it’s about status and elegance, not showing off your wealth. 

Tezcatlipoca is an Aztec god, I mixed up elements of traditional with the jewellery and added in the cyberpunk elements of making it smooth and glowing. I kept with the obsidian and dark colours for Tez’ since he’s the god of the night sky among other things. I wanted to add some Jaguar pattern but it just felt like too much going on, so I kept it simple and instead gave him jaguar eyes. For the rest of the Aztec gods I’m going to keep it as this mixture of traditional jewellery and just add the cyberpunk clothes. Also Tez’s colour scheme on his face is inspired by the mask I saw of Tezzcatlipoca at the British Museum. 

Now on to the flashy gods, or the greeks. I’ve done a few more of them because these designs were in my head. Originally I was going to keep with the black and colour designs I have been doing, but then I thought that actually in ancient Greece white and gold was a symbol of power and authority. It showed you had wealth and when I changed to that colour scheme it just worked so well. It made them appear as I see them. The Greeks and the Romans did like to splash out and show off. I also wanted to really make them very cyberpunk in my style. In Greece in this AU all the arts have just exploded in Greece and it’s all about looks and status. The Olympians themselves are almost treated like celebrities which works out fine for them since it’s a style of worship anyway. I also gave their skin tone a gold hue because the greek gods bleed gold so, they’d have a golden tinge to their skin colour which makes them even more flashy and showing off. So their designs are all about showing off and being noticed. I would go into their individual designs but that would just take a long time and I doubt anyone is still reading this but hey ho! :D If anyone is interested about the reasoning behind their individual designs, let me know :) I hope you guys enjoy! There are more to come! I really enjoyed designing these!