#empyrean reflection

[haileyywrites]

hi!! how are you? i adore your writing and i was wondering if you could please write a bit of fluff! in which the reader gets overwhelmed and starts crying because their boyfriend is too sweet, nice, caring and cute. with anyone from genshin of your choice!

Summary: You become overwhelmed and cry from your boyfriend being too sweet, nice, caring and cute!

Pairings: Kaveh x Gn!reader

Notes/Warnings: Reader is completely gender neutral and not described in any way! Poc friendly! Just pure fluff! Reader cries but it's sweet and fluffy! Possible grammar errors!

You had always known Kaveh to be an incredibly kind human being; from the very first moment you met. Someone had rudely bumped into you which caused your items to fall from your hands, the person didn't even bother apologizing before continuing on their way. Kaveh happened to see the interaction and rushed over to help you - he even tried shouting after the person to apologize to you, but they didn't listen.

You appreciated the effort and his kindness nonetheless; he even offered to buy you some food to cheer you up! Though you protested against it, he managed to win you over in the end and he took you to a nice nearby cafe. You could see him eyeing at the prices with worried eyes and a strained smile, you could obviously tell he had some financial problems making his kind offer even more touching. You decided to order the cheapest item you liked and spent the afternoon with him just talking, god you could talk for hours with him!

Falling for Kaveh was the easiest thing you did in your life, but sometimes you wondered how it is you managed to get with him? With his looks and heart of gold you would think him to be more popular with suitors all over him; but no. The people in the Academia you understood as they were usually solely focused in their research, but he was so kind to everyone! Excluding his roommate whom he talked to you about, but didn't let you meet. Somehow Kaveh was a simple rock with gems hidden within, but others didn't seem to look deep enough to get to know him.

He may have not been that good with money, but he always finds other ways to treat you. One of his favorite things to do together is to go for a walk outside of Sumeru city and go sightseeing with you; he always finds the best spots too! Whether you're a morning person who he would go watch the sunrise with or a night owl who preferred the sunset, he will do whatever to make you happy. Seeing you be happy makes him beyond happy and it absolutely melts your heart!

There were many times in the past that almost caused you to burst into tears from him being too kind and sweet or too cute for you to handle! His tendency to draw in animals was strange, but so incredibly adorable. Stray cats would show up whenever you were sitting around and dogs would run up to greet you two - even birds would come closer to him than anyone else! Seeing him give in and pet or play with them was beyond cute!

He was also always so sweet and caring, he would never forget things you liked or cared about! If you needed space when upset he would give it to you; but if you wanted comfort he would be there in an instant with food or snacks he knew you loved. His kindness was also a bit of a flaw as he didn't want to think people would be terrible enough to use charity as a cash grab - which is why he often fell for them. This especially made you upset, but it didn't make you cry like today did.

Seeing the sky becoming darker and darker as your shift was beginning to end worried you, you had neglected to bring an umbrella as it had been clear all day before now. You would have to make your way to the other side of the city while getting completely soaked from the rain; not an ideal scenario. You though about staying until the rain stopped, but you had made plans with Kaveh today right after work and hated the thought of leaving him to wait for you without warning.

You sighed heavily as you changed back into your everyday clothes and prepared yourself for the downpour waiting for you outside, you said a quick goodbye to your colleague before heading for the door with a sad expression. The rain was as heavy as a shower or a bucket of water that was being emptied over you, you shivered as the cold outside air made contact with your skin. This was just your luck...

Out in the rain you could see a figure running full speed towards you, you wondered what kind of maniac was outside in this weather - until you recognized him. It was Kaveh! He held a red umbrella to shield him from the rain and wore a jacket that he usually didn't; it was one of your favorite clothing that he owned, but it was usually only on him during colder days like today. Seeing you he ran faster and almost bumped into you as he came to a halt!

“Thank the Archon's! I'm so glad I cought you before you left!” He said with a relieved smile.

“You came to get me?” You asked in a surprised tone.

He nodded his head as he handed you the umbrella he was holding and stripped off the jacket he was wearing; which he quickly handed to you. He had specifically brought it for you...

“Of course! I thought you probably didn't think to bring an umbrella with you today, so I couldn't possibly let you walk home and get yourself sick from this weather!” He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Kaveh helpped you put on his jacket before smiling proudly when seeing you in his clothing; it was warm and smelled like him, the fabric was also incredibly comfortable. Everything about it made you feel so incredibly touched... The fact that he came to get you to make sure you didn't get soaked from the rain to bringing you his jacket and looking so proud when you wore it. You couldn't help, but to burst into tears from the sheer kindness and sweetness - the love and thoughtfulness.

Seeing you cry made Kaveh panic and instantly ask if you were okay, he asked if he did something that made you upset and if there was anything he could do to help you while still keeping the umbrella over you to cover you from the rain. It probably made you cry harder seeing him be so frantic and stumble over himself trying to calm you down - he was too cute for his own good! He was just too kind and caring of a human being that it was bound to make you burst into tears one day.

“I'm sorry, you're just too sweet!” You sobbed.

“Wha... What?” Kaveh asked in confusion.

“You're so sweet and kind! It's making me feel so loved!” You cried louder.

“Honey, I don't know what to say...” Kaveh laughed lightly while looking a bit bashful.

“You're also too cute!” You covered your eyes with your hands and continued to cry.

Kaveh stepped closer and pulled you in for tight hug, his hand was wrapped around your back, while the other was steadily holding his umbrella over you both. He let you cry your fill against his shoulder; with his hand running up and down along your back in a comforting manner. By the time you were finished crying rain had calmed down a bit to a pleasant soft shower.

Kaveh let go of you gently and wiped away the remaining tear stains from your cheeks, you both lightly laughed about the situation. Being this close you noticed how his eyes sparkled with so much love that you couldn't help, but lean in for a short yet sweet kiss. After you separated Kaveh held up the umbrella between you and encouraged you to place your hand over his; not only to adjust the umbrella so that it was comfortable for you, but also to hold your hand as he walked you home.

A/N: Hii, I'm doing well and thank you for asking Anon <3 Hope you're doing well too; remember to stay hydrated! Thank you so much for the request btw, your words are so kind! I really hoped you liked this, but if you didn't feel free to request again ^-^ I spent a lot of timing thinking which character to pick, but in the end Kaveh felt like the obvious choice lol I will soon be posting request rules - incase you or anyone else would like to request something in the future!

[Feel free to like, comment and or reblog! Any interaction with this post is greatly appreciated <3]

[idolatri]

Millennia prior, a painter and sculptor by the name of Jyestha lived in Ay-Khanoum. Known for his distinguished works, Jyestha enjoyed a carefree life in pursuit of the arts. While in the prime of his creative life, Jyestha caught the eye of Nabu Malikata. The Lord of Flowers became his eternal muse.

Jyestha dedicated an endless amount of artwork and sculptures in her divine image. His affections for his lord soon took a turn much too sweet for this eraーthe nectar of the Padisarah lingers on his tongue. In an extravagant affair, the Lord of Flowers took her own life, causing the rift between the God-Kings.

Momo Rambles:

I love my God-King ot3 but then I was like 'what if gof was smitten with a human artist' led to 'what if kaveh'. That's why she offed herself before she fell in love with a human which is nono, otherwise she'd turn into a seelie husk. Her doing this devastates Rukk and Desh but you know...

She loves Rukk and Desh but she's lived a hard life and suffering together adds an element of grief, but this human artist is... liberating....A breath of fresh air. There's something alluring and charming in the way he lives his life to the fullest despite the fact that human lives are so fleeting. The way his works sparks different shades to light up her world like she has never seen before, a mix of curiosity and fascination catches the seemingly omnipotent eyes of a god. I'm also a slut for muse/artist ships so sue me

I decided to name him Jyestha which by name meanings are people who are free-spirited, flashy, brutally honest, and a bit selfish. Jyestha is also the name of the goddess of misfortune in Vedic tales, the opposite of Lakshimi. Which also fits because he did indeed bring misfortune and caused the downfall of civilizations

This feeds my reincarnation ship brainrot of: 'I couldn't be with you in this life, but perhaps in a kinder world...we could choose each other.'

This will kinda explain why he and Alh are kinda at odds with one another ( if we go with Alh = Desh ).

Something inside Alh just resents him:

'You took her away from me...from us...'

[genshin-impact-updates]

Knowledge of comprehension, benevolence, and aesthetics

"Mainstream Sumeru academia tends to hide a certain fact from time to time, which is that for some people, talent can occasionally be more of a burden instead. Nevertheless, this view can also be but an excuse. In truth, it is your character that determines your destiny first and foremost. The aforementioned ideas are the sort that Kaveh will persistently rebut."

— Alhaitham

◆ Kaveh

◆ Empyrean Reflection

◆ Renowned Sumeru Architect

◆ Dendro

◆ Paradisaea

A renowned architect from Sumeru, known as the Light of Kshahrewar. He is one of the most high-profile figures in the industry.

As a designer and an outstanding alumnus, Kaveh has quite the reputation among Akademiya students and is idolized as a role model by the students of Kshahrewar. Unfortunately, his career is not as plain-sailing as people imagine. The same can be said for many other facets of his life.

Titles, rumors, fame, and reputation... These are all mere by-products of his work. Equipped with astounding professional design skills, Kaveh puts his heart and soul into his work and is imbued with ideals and pursuits for aesthetics and architectonics. Designers are not in charge of the construction's final execution, yet they hold responsibility for all its aspects. Thus, be it design details, safety and security, or practicality, no effort may be spared in ensuring the quality of each aspect. On top of that, being one of the best in his field, Kaveh pays additional attention to the aesthetic and human elements that he is concerned about throughout the process. For him, designs that are completely divorced from reality should be classified as fantasy, whereas a building that is actually put into construction must have practical value.

That said, it is rather inconceivable that such an extraordinary architect could have been rendered bankrupt by a single project. Fortunately, very few know about this matter, and most of them keep it a secret. As for Kaveh himself, he is deathly afraid that the secret of his bankruptcy might ever leak out. It is thus fair to say that he is not really living his ideal life.

[aha-chuu]

Kaveh's Drip Marketing

I have a lot to say about the connections between the Kaveh info that released today and Alhaitham (and what we know about their relationship with each other). I'm not looking at this in a romantic way necessarily, but just in how tightly knotted their characters are with one another.

First, Kaveh's title and description:

"Empyrean Reflection", or more simply, 'Heavenly Reflection'. This ties to his constellation, "Paeadisaea", which is the genus for the birds of paradise. 'Paradise' is a more general term for Heaven, but neither of these are particularly divine in nature in a deity sense. Personally, I think they might be denoting a reference to the Golden Ratio, AKA: Divine Proportion. It's a mathematic concept often used in artistry, which matches well with Kaveh's archectural design profession and his education from the Ksharewar Darshan, which is the Sumeru school of technology.

So that's what it means for Kaveh's own characterisation/lore imo, but it also links to Alhaitham. Firstly, Alhaitham's constellation is also a bird (Vultur Volans, or essentially 'vulture' even though his name means hawk), which is a nice match to Kaveh's birds of paradise. But more interestingly, this is what Alhaitham's Character Story 4 has to say about why he lets Kaveh live with him:

He views Kaveh as a "mirror". What is Kaveh's title again? "Empyrean Reflection".

And the mirroring is all over the place. Here's a section from Alhaitham's drip marketing from December:

He is

Largely unknown

Only puts in the minimum effort required to do his job

People don't pay attention to him

In contrast, here is a corresponding section that came out with Kaveh's drip today:

He is

Extremely well known

Incredibly hardworking

People pay attention to him even when he isn't asking for it, as a by-product of his career

Basically exact opposites; complete mirrors. Here's something else, first from the end of Alhaitham's description and then second from the end of Kaveh's:

Alhaitham's life is super comfortable, ideal in every way he desires. Meanwhile Kaveh is practically crippled by anxiety, made uncomfortable by his life circumstances. The wording itself is mirrored!

Ofc, Kaveh and Alhaitham provide one another's corresponding quotes in the drip marketing. Here is what Kaveh has to say about Alhaitham:

This is an amusing quote, basically a backhanded compliment of "oh he's very smart but he's too self-centred so his talents are made worthless since he never uses them to help others". Alhaitham's quote about Kaveh goes like this:

Alhaitham is a little more wordy so I'll simplify -

Talented people have a lot of outside pressure on them, which can be a burden

However, letting other people get you down is a character flaw, not an inherent part of being talented

Kaveh disagrees

Once again talking about an individual's talents and how worthwhile they are in the context of a society. Where Kaveh complains that Alhaitham can never accomplish anything worthwhile with his skills because he doesn't take other people into account, Alhaitham argues that Kaveh gets nothing done as a consequence of listening too much to other people's expectations. It's not surprising, then, that Kaveh is bankrupt but successful and Alhaitham is comfortable but unknown.

It's like - can these two stop talking about each other for five minutes? Anyway, this post turned out to be more of a collection of Kavetham quotes, but I think it's hard not to draw comparisons. I'm looking forward to seeing Kaveh's actual voicelines if there's this much material just from one marketing post lol

[starfreak]

Random Elden Ring Rant (Contains Spoilers, VERY LONG)

So, the Numen. We can choose it as a character preset, which tells us they come from another world, or another land. I say "or another land" because historically, America is referred to as the "New World," but it's not a separate planet. However, translations from the Japanese version of the game suggest that the world they come from is one of spirits, the dead, etc., so it could definitely be a Literal other world.

Marika is (rumored to be) a Numen, as are the Black Knife Assassins that participated in the Night of Black Knives.

If Marika is Numen, then it stands to reason so is Radagon, since they are the same person in the same body. This means their children together, Malenia and Miquella (and now presumably Messmer since he has red hair like Radagon, but Miyazaki said that he's the child of Marika, so unless there's another red-haired hottie running around the Lands Between, Radagon is the father), are also Numen. This also means that other children of Marika/Radagon are half-Numen.

It seems Numen are not a single ethnicity, but a whole race of people, with various different contradicting skin tones and hair colors. The template in the character creator has medium-dark skin and brown hair. Marika has pale skin and golden hair (possibly changed to be gold from the Greater Will's influence) and Radagon has the same skin with fiery red hair. We know from the Giant's Red Braid item description (below) that Radagon was either cursed by the Fire Giants or simply born with red hair. I mean...no item descriptions suggest he was born with it...but if I was born with hair I hated, I would blame it on a curse too. Though, to be fair, it IS the same color as the Fire Giants' hair.

Also the Black Knife Assassins have no physical form, so we can't discern their hair or skin colors.

So skin tone seems like a non-factor, but Hair is much harder to parse, due to half the Numen in the game having fiery hair and pronouns. The game says nothing about Marika's hair changing to gold, so it may have always been that color, leading me to believe that indeed, Numen are just...magic humans from a land far away...she's just blonde.

WELP.

That's all cool, but what is the culture of the Numen like? Well we can see that they have a very strong affinity for women and femininity. Not only is Marika, the most powerful Numen we know, a woman...all of the Black Knives are women. Additionally, if we choose to believe that Malenia and Miquella are Numen, this fact is further evidenced by Malenia's being a strong warrior woman (she is literally a Valkyrie) and Miquella's own complex gender identity. Miquella was (supposedly) born male, but presented as rather feminine/androgynous all his life. While Malenia is a masculine woman and reflects Radagon, Miquella is a feminine boy reflecting Marika. Not to mention that Miquella is ALMOST DEFINITELY Saint Trina, who is exclusively referred to as feminine.

In addition to the stong feminine aspects of Numen society apparent in the overabundance of strong fem-presenting characters, the description of Marika's Hammer suggests that women in Numen society (like Marika) have a role as destroyers and warriors, while men (Radagon) have a role of construction and repair.

"Queen Marika shattered the Elden Ring and Radagon attempted to repair it."

Again, this is just speculation, and the mythological actions of Radagon/Marika are likely motivated by a mutlitude of things (namely, the Greater Will constantly looming over them, the presence of the Elden Beast constantly lurking just under the surface), but I'm making do with what I have.

Also, back to genetics of the Numen again for a second, of all Radagon and Marika's children outside of the ones they had together (Messmer and the Twin Empyreans), most of them seem to inherit Radagon/Marika's hair.

Radagon and Rennala's kids, Radahn, Rykard, and Ranni, (presumably) have red hair. We never actually see Ranni's hair pre-doll form, so I'm assuming it's red lkke her brothers'.

Marika and Godfrey's kids, Godwyn, Mohg, and Morgott, all have either pale hair or no hair (Mohg has no hair visible on account of all the omen horns).

So it seems like the genes of Numen are incredibly dominant, even dominating the gene pool multiple generations after the first. Godwyn's kids, Godrick and Godefroy, have the same hair color as he does. Malenia's "daughters," although not genetically related to her, all seem to have gained her red hair through exposure to her Scarlet Aeonia. This may also be true of the Cleanrot Knights, but they could also have plucked the red hairs from Fire Giants or Leonine Misbegotten and used them as decor for their armor.

Even merely interacting with a Numen as powerful as Marika, or her direct children, can change one's appearance irreversably. Sure, this could all likely be from her status as a God, but who knows how powerful the average Numen could become if granted the strength? We become Elden Lord after all.

[slavonicrhapsody]

HELL YEAAAAA LETS GOOOO

okay marika and radagon have a LOT of INCREDIBLY interesting dynamics here that, while not explicitly stated, seem to reflect some underlying gended dynamics going on in the lands between especially regarding Marika Radagon as Divinity

one of the BIGGEST examples here is the dichotomy of Active vs Passive. marika does not Act she Instructs. she instructs maliketh to slay the gloam eyed queen and seal destined death, she instructs godfrey to wage war against the fire giants, and she instructs the tarnished on their path to the erdtree and elden lord as we see via melinas church dialogue. contrastingly, radagon Does. radagon fights against liurnia, radagon marries renalla, radagon studies sorceries, radagon studies incantations, and pointedly radagon interacts with his children! we get stated lore about him interacting with miquella but no such lore about marika and HER SIX KIDS. marika distributes blessings but thats a very passive action, and in her OWN BOSS FIGHT she simply HANGS there. she has to transition to radagon to pick the hammer up!

in this way we can interpret marika as the golden orders Divine Feminine. she is passive, she blesses she instructs but does not Act, she is the reward won for the elden lord (who serves as the golden orders Intended Active Agent) and she is LITERALLY objectified by becoming a headless statue (only her torso is visible!) that the elden lord marries. she Has Heirs, she Blesses Heroes, she Instructs Her Lord And Shadow, marika routinely serves as the passive force in the lands between!

similarly we can interpret radagon as Divine Masculine. he goes to war, he chooses and marries a wife, and most especially he aspires to be the Perfect Hero by achieving physical and scholarly mastery over combat, sorcery, and incantations. radagon ACTS, he chooses his own wife instead of Being Married To, he interacts and raises miquella at the very least and studies WITH him, and overall if something is being done, radagon chooses to do it instead of using an agent to act on his behalf

we can therefore interpret many of the actions that occur throughout the story through this dynamic, especially as a source of conflict. many of the golden orders heretics defy this gender dynamic! the carian royal family had a line of queens, and rennala herself was a renowned, powerful, ACTIVE sorcerer. she led raya lucaria, and pioneered a new field of sorcerous study in the Moon. after her marriage to radagon, and therefore the carian merge into the golden order, rennala became passive and lost all her social standing in raya lucaria, mimicking marikas own passiveness (tho in rennala we see its poisonous effects in that by losing her agency she also loses much of who she is, becoming a motherly shell of who she once was).

while not strictly heretics, miquella and malenia themselves seek to break free of the golden order and this reflects in their gender dynamics. malenia is the more masculine of the twins, and acts as the Active Shadow of Miquellas Will. she Acts on his Instruction. similarly, despite being known as the Most Fearsome Empyrean, miquella works through Agents and through Diplomacy, and takes a passive nurturing role in the grander political actions the twins take. miquella Nurtures The Haligtree (through sacrifice of his blood), miquella will is acted through Malenia (who is his blade and serves as his Empyrean Shadow), and notably both twins are cursed explicitly due to radagon being the same person as marika!

marikas gender nonconformity serves as a major source of strife in the golden order, as liurnia falls to civil war (the cuckoos, raya lucaria, and the carian royal family), the twins are born cursed, and the elden ring itself is shattered by her, marikas only active action which serves as an attempt to destroy the golden order. radagons actions As Radagon are punished, the children he sires are forsaken or cursed (no ones really looking to rennalas kids as Scions Of The Golden Branch) because radagon is Marika Acting As Divine Masculine, and this is further symbolized by his red hair bearing the curse of the fire giants. Radagon Is Accursed because Radagon Is Marika, and marika is The Divine Feminine and thus is supposed to be Passive.

i wouldnt be surprised if this is a massive contributing factor in rannis decision to cast off her flesh, and her determination to do as much as she can herself. as an empyrean, shes slated to replace marika (and thus be relegated to Passive Goddesshood) and thusly rejects relying on Agents (iji, blaidd, seluvis, and the Tarnished MC) as much as she can, and why she does what she can to ensure you act on Your Own Will (repeatedly giving you outs to leave her, being surprised and somewhat thankful when you dont), and imo contributes HEAVILY to rannis trans-swag vibes despite being pretty clearly cisgendered (burns her old flesh, has a chance to remake her body and self image, chooses a form with long feminine hair and a delicate feminine face that is made in the spitting image of the witch renna who mentored her) which i attribute to ranni Choosing the femininity of her carian heritage, which itself is gender nonconforming to Golden Order Femininity

basically. radagon is marika acting out against Divine Gender Roles and being non-explicitly punished for that transgression, which escalates into an attempt to reform or destroy the golden order itself.

source: im trans and i think way too hard about gender dynamics in anything i hyperfixate on

oh my goddd this is such a great analysis and you’ve made so many interesting observations too… you’re making me think soooo hard about Marika contrasted with Ranni within this framework…

Marika being relegated to a passive, instructive role as god-queen makes her actions in the story and frustration with the Greater Will make a lot of sense. I think many of her actions as god-queen can be interpreted as attempts to carve out more autonomy for herself, rather than being the Greater Will’s passive pawn — such as her removal of the rune of death from the Elden Ring, her declaration to “search the depths of the Golden Order” rather than giving herself to “blind faith,” and of course her shattering of the Elden Ring. Then, because of the shattering, she is punished and imprisoned by the Greater Will.

Regarding the shattering, we can contrast Marika with Ranni’s actions leading up to the event: Ranni rejects her role as an empyrean, destined to become a passive god-queen like Marika, so she takes the active decision to initiate the Night of the Black Knives in order to slay her empyrean flesh. Marika then takes the action to shatter the Elden Ring (with her own two hands) in defiance of the Greater Will in the wake of Ranni’s rejection of the Greater Will’s prescribed role.

I think Ranni sees Marika’s fate as a passive pawn of the Greater Will as the worst possible fate for her — she admires her mother’s former strength and independence (taken away by the Golden Order), and wants to take that same active role in her own life. When Ranni finally confronts her Two Fingers, she takes up her blade and slays them personally.

Marika and Ranni both being prescribed a role that strips their autonomy by a higher power and then committing world-shattering actions to seize their own autonomy is literally soooo Gender of both of them… it totally reads as a subversion and rejection of Divine Gender Roles

[blooming-gwens]

The first 1,200 words of For Everything Chapter Two

Hey guys! I’m really, super excited to be back in action, working on this monster of a fic. It’s still going to take me a considerable amount of time to finish, but to tide you over, I am releasing to you the first 1,200 words of what I am expecting to be a 45-50k chapter. Enjoy~

»oO{|~|}{|~|}Oo«

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Time seemed to slow as she descended from the shadows into a brilliant night sky.

She’d never seen the stars so close before—Glittering like polished jewels caught in the light of a craterous, full, yellow moon.

Not even perched from the highest point of the city had the sky been so crystalline—above her an abysmal sea of a million luminous lights, glinting against the empyrean curve of the fathomless cosmos that retreated further and further away from her, falling out of reach, out of touch—smaller and smaller until they were just pinpoints—until they were absorbed by the silvery clouds she sliced through.

She couldn’t breathe, the air whipping around her stealing any breath she could greedily inhale. She couldn’t scream. She couldn’t cry.

There was nothing she could do.

Miguel had warned her. He showed her, as if knowing would be an advantage, as if knowing would slow her fall. As if knowing would inspire her not to take it all for granted—but she did, and there was nothing she could do, nothing she could say to change it now.

And there was so much she wished she could have changed.

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»oO{|~|}{|~|}Oo«

“Wait, I think there might be a way to figure out where the Go-Home-machine sent Miles.”

Gwen didn’t mean to roll her eyes, but she also didn’t fight the instinctual movement that reflected the otherwise unwarranted annoyance that curled through her. To be fair, the feeling had been festering for the past four minutes as she petulantly sat through a whirlwind of ideas—some good, some bad, some questionable at best.

That had been the first time Margo had chimed in through the plethora of plans being shoved into the mix, and Gwen had already been steadily losing her patience with every dead end they met.

Time was not at their disposal, yet there they were, on some secluded rooftop on Earth-616B, wasting more than they could afford, missing every mark they shot for.

And Miles…

Miles was missing in a finite cluster of multiverses, and Miguel was also on the prowl—armed with rage, and the numbers, plus every advantage they could only dream of possessing. Meanwhile they didn’t even know where to start looking or how, but all of a sudden Margo did.

“Well don’t leave us in suspense, pig tails.” Ham groaned.

“You’re one to talk.” Peter B huffed with a raised brow. Gwen leered at him, shaking her head once. “What?” He asked, meeting her narrowed eyes.

“Oh, I get it! Because he is a pig, and he has a tail!” Pav perked, gesturing down to Ham, who was glaring daggers at the pink robed Spider-man.

“Nice, Pav.” Hobie said, lounging with his arms folded behind his back in a web spun hammock suspended between two air conditioning units.

Mayday squealed from the carrier strapped to Peter B’s chest, kicking her chubby legs with a giggle and reaching towards the talking pig. She had been wholly fascinated by Spider-Ham since first glance as if he was a character from one of her storybooks.

“Right…” Margo sighed before continuing. “So the Go-Home Machine keeps an archive. Just the consequential details like the variant, where it was sent, stuff like that. The data is wiped intermittently as a security measure, but knowing Miguel, there could be a backup.” She explained promptly, Gwen scrutinizing her glowing figure with arms folded over her chest

“That guy does have some major trust issues.” Gwen heard Peter B mutter from behind her. Her eyes rolled again. At this rate, she expected them to be stuck upwards by the end of this conversation.

“Assuming you’re right, would LYLA have access to this back up?” Gwen questioned, her tone bristling.

“LYLA has access to everything.” Margo answered, turning to face Gwen, her holographic form glittering under a flickering flood light mounted to a wall behind her.

“Can you access it?” Gwen emphasized, her tone clipped. Already she could see all the ways her idea could go–none of them consisting of a successful resolution. “Without getting caught.”

A smile spread to Margo's lips. Gwen’s stayed set in a subtle scowl.

It turned out Spider-Byte also had access to everything, it just took a little more effort, and she would have to directly hack into the machine's mainframe on E-928. Any other way would significantly heighten the probability of LYLA’s security protocols being triggered.

“That sounds like a suicide mission if I ever heard of one” Noir added, tipping his hat forward and cupping his masked chin with his pointer finger and thumb. “And I have planned a couple myself.”

“Noir’s right.” Peni said, sitting inside SP//dr, the front hutch of the mech suit propped open. ”Miguel would never leave HQ without surveillance, especially if he knows some of us have gone rogue. Are you sure this is a good idea?”

Margo nodded before gesturing to herself. “I’m an avatar. They can’t catch what they can’t touch.” She waved one hand through her forearm, and everyone watched in astonishment when her arm wavered as her fingers passed right through it.

“Oh, that is creepy.” Pav whispered, covering his mouth with his hand.

”I’ll be quick. In and out. Easy.” Spider-Byte confidently continued.

“But what if—“ Peter B started before Gwen curly cut him off.

“She’s not going alone.”

All eyes turned to her as she spoke, silence following her decree.

Ham was first to break the seemingly long, awkward stretch of stillness. “Now it’s actually a suicide mission. Well, at least for Gwen who can’t do that cool arm thing like Margo.”

Spider-Byte took a single step towards Gwen, her brows knitting together. “I don’t need the back-up. Like I said, I’m untouchable.”

Gwen couldn’t trust that. She couldn’t trust her.

There had been no intention to harbor shock or malice towards Margo, but there was still an itch about her Gwen couldn’t scratch. She never really went out of her way to talk to the avatar, but they would pay each other a respectful acknowledgement anytime they crossed paths—which wasn’t often.

Margo spent a majority of her time in the confinement wing of HQ, where all the anomalies were stacked up to be sent back to their respective dimensions. Maybe it was Gwen’s uneasiness towards the machine, but she never strayed to that side of HQ on her own volition. If she was needed, she would report, but she kept her interactions and time there minimal.

In turn, the two girls remained distant.

Though Gwen couldn’t help but notice how her and Miles had looked a little longer, said a little more than she ever bothered to say to Gwen.

(And vice-versa.)

Her and Miles?

Perhaps the insistence of her blatant jealousy could have better timing. Her focus was needed elsewhere and her emotions were clearly clouding her judgment, right?

“You’ll need the back-up if things go south.” Protested Gwen, leering down at Margo.

“What happens if something happens to you?” Pavitr all but squeaked, his stress tangible.

“Nothing is going to happen to me, Pav.” Gwen hissed, her eyes still locked with Margo’s.

“Is it just me, or is Gwen being very intense?” She heard Pav ask in a hushed whisper.

“S’not just you.” Hobie replied flatly.

{|~|}{|~|}

And scene. I hope that satiates the pain of waiting. I appreciate all your patience, and above all, support! Much love <3

[genshingif]

Kaveh | Empyrean Reflection

[katyspersonal]

Thoughts about Crucible and conceptual corruption of religion

I've started trying to figure out what Crucible is exactly today while playing Elden Ring and I need to put down my thoughts about it before I forgot 🤔 I think basically it is what happened when the divine met the natural, the lifeforms on the setting's earth. In a way, the original Greattree is somewhat of a Crucible itself! Conceptually it is a very primordial faith that was yet filling life with meaning beyond just survival in a very good sense, but in ER the divine needs us as much as we need it, if not more so. Elden Ring hasn't always operated by Golden Order / Marika obviously; it was initially just a cool thing that fell from space and kind of accelerated everything, especially life itself! Presumably the result of Greater Will wanting to manifest itself in some sort of personality and coherent shape, but before the decision of what the order would be got handed to mortals (Empyreans first of all)

^ In Farum Azula there is a depiction of Elden Ring in more abundant form, very overflowing with life, so alternatively it'd rely on (ancient) dragons, the lifeform of whole other level back then for "order and personality"!

But yeah, uhhh like how do I put it...? Crucible is the result of the divine growing within the earth full of nature, primordial matters and mortal life. The initial Greattree "contracted" it like an influence, nature of life itself crept into it, it became the divine matter turning imperfect but alive! And the way Misbegotten, Omens and alike have animalistic features placed without any logic (and at times these features are useless) is a reflection of how chaotic life in its nature is brought from a concept to a display! Also the evergrowing "horns" were already a thing in simpler times, like what Ancestral guys are associated with! That's why Crucible used to be seen as a sacred thing - it was like a display of the divine matter wiling to live through you! But also Greattree wasn't meant to last forever and would one day die and in turn give the way to new life to replace it (Erdtree). It is a principle the divine naturally adopted upon becoming alive in the way nature knows it through the first big tree; life sprouts from death as much as it sprouts from birth!

So yeah, the problem began when the mortals (Marika?) pulled an ultimate purity wank and wanted that eternity, divinity and "perfection" forever rather than this new Erdtree once likewise dying (even if in turn it would give way to new life and so on forever). The whole DS3 is just Miyazaki being salty about how some people just won't let things die after their cycle expired, why not use what works again? XD But ALSO in these terms, the beastly idiocy nature of life started being seen not as simply something that MAYBE needed discipline to get the best out of it, but as a "disease" or a curse that "dirtied" the divine essence. So the divine in their eyes needed to be protected from being "sullied", from being pulled down to this level, the imperfections that make the life what it is started to just being liability - a bad mistake forms of civilizing (especially religions) keep making.

So Erdtree eventually ran out of its blessed sap and became ephemeral, useless as the holiness that only preserves its "purity" and doesn't sully itself for anyone can be. How it could give the world any more of the sap that was good for it without subjecting itself to it? It is like sharing advices without ever listening to what people's struggles are to BEGIN with. Age of Plenty was over because of obsession with the purity and defending the divine from "lowly" life, Crucible was an evidence that it once got "dirtied" but now never again, when in reality the very worst thing that could have happened with Erdtree is it dying like Greattree once did but giving life to the next tree in turn. I do think that fixation on the idea of eternity is still a larger part of it but I just can't ignore the thing about purity and control in it

^ @val-of-the-north also showed me these shapes when I shared my thoughts with him, to illustrate my point back to me (basically he said he agreed with my thought process). He pointed out that progression of the symbols shows the same thing - modern Erdtree and Fundamentalist incantations notably lack "life" in them in the form of branches and leaves. It could be not just what the Erdtree stopped doing, but also what they wanted to remove from the divine (Floral Crucible is only mentioned in cut content, but still). The latter two are "trapped" in concrete geometrical shapes, reflecting an actual order like what Greater Will wants in the end; it wants some organization, no matter which one. ...but also doesn't, there are enough implications that Frenzied Flame is just another side of the same coin. It even also has the hand as a conduct of the GW! And makes it funnier how they've sealed the Frenzied Flame away too, removing the alternatives- For sure, a decision that is understandable, but what does life mean if you don't have to fight against the essence of existential despair for it?

___________

Hhhhhh I went on a tangent but I was trying to say that I think Crucible didn't "come from space"! Elden Ring fell in this world cold empty and without self-comprehension like the cosmic void it came from, but initially assimilated with what life is here and Greattree was the manifestation! But Crucible also wasn't fully natural for this world too; it reflects aspects of life forms here but they get taken through this assimilation and then boosted with the blessing and given new meaning! Life for the sake of itself and next level magic for the sake of itself both are far from being meaningful but it is when low and high matters meet everything becomes full and complete! But in chasing to make the good things that come from it last forever people will end up demonizing and trying to exterminate natural things and prioritize only the divine.

Looking back at real humanity history, yeah I can see the relevance with how religion has been developing as a concept. How it started simple and fulfilling as a (successful) attempt to add higher meaning in existence than just surviving, was full of joy and wonder and freedom. And how in the end it came to incredibly suffocating and corrupt systems of control, purity wank and denial of normal parts of life 🤔

[haileyywrites]

Summary: Kaveh's strange ability to draw in animals of all kind had always been more of an annoyance than a blessing. At least until a particular cat lead him to meet someone interesting...

Pairings: Kaveh x Reader!

Warnings/Notes: Completely gender neutral reader! Poc friendly! Pure fluff! Possibly ooc Kaveh maybe? Not properly proofread!

For some reason Kaveh had always had the ability to attract animals of all kind to him. At first he didn't mind as he very much liked animals, but it became a real problem and a nuisance for him later on... He'd simply step outside for a break or something of the sort and soon enough birds, dogs and cats would begin swarming him for his food or affection - of course he would feel bad for them and give in to their demands...

After a thorough talking to by Alhaitham he begrudgingly listened and would avoid places where pets or wildlife gathered. It felt stupid having to avoid animals that meant no harm to him, but he understood Alhaitham's point and knew he would just give in again. Any pets that would approach him in the city would give up easily when he stood firm and shooed them away. Except for one...

This particular cat that had never begged him for scraps and only wanted affection wouldn't leave him alone no matter how much he tried. It was ridiculous really! No matter what route he took the persistent feline would always find him and meow at him until he agreed to either pet it or play with it for a while. No matter what he did he couldn't get rid of it, he was out of options since splashing it with water just seemed cruel.

The cat was definitely well taken care of and even had a collar that was clearly custom or homemade by its owner. It was a healthy rounfd and it's fur was well kept - then why was the cat so keen on him? It didn't seem interested in the scraps he would sometimes give to distract it, but instead it just wanted some belly rubs and a playmate. It was truly bizarre...

“Meow!”

“Oh no, it's you again! Listen I don't have time to just play with you all the time!” He tried to hopelessly explain to the clueless animal.

“Meow?”

“I'm serious! You need to find someone else to beg for pets. Why don't you go find your owner?” He exclaimed in frustration.

“Meow.”

“I know you probably don't understand what I'm saying, but I don't know what you want from me!” He sighed loudly.

Before he could properly react the cat jumped into his arms and stole the feather placed in his hair. The cat was quick to jump away before Kaveh could hold onto him and caused him to fall down in the commotion. Baffled he turned to look at the cat that was just watching him with the colorful feather secured in it's mouth. It slowly began to run away with Kaveh scrambling to chase after it.

It was truly a sight for others to see the blonde shouting and running with full speed chasing a cat... Some didn't react at all while others watched in either confusion or amusement, but no one did anything to aid the poor man despite his shouts for help.

The feline rounded one last corner before finally stopping much to Kaveh's relief. He followed after to see the cat facing away from him and meowing at someone standing in front of it. His eyes wandered upwards until they reached the face of the person and he couldn't tear his eyes away...

The midday sun made your features glow beautifully as if you were an angel with a halo, you were standing amidst a flower field making you look ethereal. Was he in a dream? He almost completely forgot about the cat that lead him here in the first place until it let out a loud meow which caused you to pick it up. You noticed the decorative feather in its mouth and carefully remove it without the cat caring in the slightest.

“Would this be yours?” You asked.

He was so preoccupied with your voice to register what you said at first, after an awkward pause he coughed and nodded with an embarrassed look. You didn't seem to mind as you smiled kindly and handed the feather back to him. His cheeks only continued to heat up as his fingers breafly touched yours, they were so warm and soft...

“I'm so sorry for the trouble my cat has caused you.” You apologized with a sincere tone.

“It... It's fine.” He mumbled, he couldn't bring himself to complain to you despite the trouble.

“Is there anything I can do to apologize properly to you?”

“Honestly it's fine! There's no need!” He tried.

“I insist! Please.” You smiled again.

Kaveh couldn't help but give up when you made a face like that, “Okay... Then how about lunch?”

“That sounds good! I'll just quickly take my cat inside and retrieve my mora!” You sprinted off before he could reply.

Kaveh was simply left standing with a flustered expression as he waited for you. He looked down at his hand which held the feather your cat had stolen, thinking about it now he wasn't even mad about it... He noticed you returning and quickly placed it in his long blonde hair without too much thought - which was unlike him.

You were about to say something before stopping and smiling humorously at him, he was confused before you reached out and gently adjusted the feather slightly. Kaveh couldn't tear his eyes away from your face as you were standing so close to him, close enough that he could feel your breath on his skin and smell your scent... He felt almost like a creep for some reason.

“There! It's very beautiful - especially against your blond hair!” You smiled brightly.

“Thank you.” He couldn't help, but smile despite his cheeks burning brighter - if that was even possible at this point.

“Your smile is even more beautiful!” Honestly were you trying to make his heart stop with how wonderful and lovely you were?! But he thanked you regardless.

“So, what should I call you?” That's right he never introduced himself to you or vise versa!

“Kaveh.” He held out his hand for you to shake out of habit.

Before he could pull his hand away you took hold and shook his hand gently while introducing yourself. Once again he was touching your soft and warm skin, though it was embarrassing he didn't want to let go... Your hand felt so nice in his, so lovely against his skin. He held onto your hand longer than appropriate which embarrassed him greatly but didn't seem to phase you thankfully.

Honestly he was thankful for that troublemaker cat you owned and for his strange ability to draw in animals, otherwise he would never have met you. He made a mental note to remember to bring your cat a treat tomorrow. If in the future it happened that the feather fell from his hair and your cat happened to run off with it in your direction... Well he wouldn't be that mad at it for being so mischievous.

A/N: Sorry for the long wait and shortness of this fic!! Posting this in honour of our pretty boy becoming playable! Congratulations to all the Kaveh havers! Anyway likes, reblogs and or feedback are appreciated! <3

[luniellar]

Breathe Me (Garrick Tavis X OC) - The Empyrean Series

When Xaden Riorson and Garrick Tavis arrive at Samara, they are forced to prove themselves all over again. When Xaden heads off to see Violet at Basgiath since their dragons are mated, Garrick finds himself alone in this unfamiliar area trying to get his name established navigating fights and ambushes. He owed his life to the man.

One particular night when Xaden leaves for Basgiath, Garrick finds himself with a new company. One who starts turning his world upside down and giving him something, that isn't just the Xaden and rebellion, to fight for.

______________________________________

All rights to Rebecca Yarros for her original work and original characters. ______________________________________

Contains: Iron Flame Spoilers Warnings: Language

Chapters: 1 | 2

Read on AO3 | Wattpad

Chapter 1: The Meeting

Garrick Tavis

I stretched out my body as I started heading up to the outpost. I didn’t mind taking on Xaden’s shifts when he had to go visit Violet. Hell, I always offered because it gave me something to do when Xaden wasn’t around. I looked up at the clear night sky scattered with millions of stars as I started up the stairs. With each step the sky felt closer as if I could reach out and feel the tiny stars in my hands. Not that I would want to do that either. I would probably crush them all instantly. I tend to do that with beautiful things. Xaden also loved reminding me that and I enjoyed reminding him the same message back.

When I got to the top of the stairs, my shift mate was already there. It looked as if she was cleaning up the mess the last shift left behind. I could hear her tiny, gentle voice as she skillfully navigated around the room mumbling to herself. 

“You would think that with all the filth around here, it was pigs who paired with dragons.”

I can feel Chradh, my brown scorpiontail who I’ve known for almost four years now, stirring in my mind. I’m insulted that she could think that dragons would even think about any other living creature being riders. We can barely stand humans. 

I smile, mentally rolling my eyes at Chradh. Still playing hard to get? You don’t mean that.

I do. Although, it is humorous that she is comparing humans to pigs. The state of your room definitely reflects that.  

The small figure turns from the desk towards the door where I’m standing and we lock eyes. Her brilliant blue eyes with gray flecks stare back at me and widen almost immediately as she drop the few pieces of trash on the floor.

“What the-” Her small, pale hands fly up clutching her chest as she staggers back. 

“Sorry, if I startled you. I’m your shift mate for today.” I say back calmly, trying to make sure she doesn’t have a heart attack. “I’m Garrick.” 

I don’t know what to do. I don’t know if I need to extend my hands to shake, but she definitely doesn’t look like the handshake type. Her long raven black hair is in a high ponytail and compliments her icy pale skin. It always made me wonder how some riders manage to stay light after hours flying near the sun.

Considering that we were both standing up, she only came up to my shoulders. She had a smaller frame than your average female rider, but through the rider leather anyone could see that she was built with lean muscle that only helped to accentuate her hourglass figure. 

“Gods, you scared me,” she started. Her soft voice gently filled up the small space we were in. “How does a guy like you manage to sneak around like that?”

“Is that a compliment?” I asked, taking a small step closer. I didn’t see her react or step back which gave me the assurance that she was just startled. I was always aware of my size and how people had to comment about it. This case was no exception. 

Her shoulders dropped as she let out a soft exhale. “I thought Riorson was on duty.”

I immediately noticed how she said Xaden’s name in a normal tone in that sentence. Here, everyone has a little disgust when they have to say his name. Or should I say spit out his name. Most try to avoid it all together and just ignore his existence. They will never understand what he means to us. 

“Sorry to disappoint. Riorson is on girlfriend duties. You’re stuck with me.” It only takes five big strides for me to go over to her and pick up the items from the floor. 

“No, you don’t have to-” She started to say as her small hand reached for my forearm. Looking down, I saw how small and soft her hands looked against the contrast of my dark, muscular forearms. The only regular female interactions I had was with Imogen and it’s been a month. We determined that a break would be best anyways since rider's life is short and all. “I’ll take this, Tavis.” 

Tavis? I didn’t remember giving her my last name.  

Her hands strategically moved around the few pieces of paper in my hands and took them into hers. She walked past me to reach the waste basket by the door, her warm scent of vanilla and clean laundry wafting up to my nose. Damn, she smelled amazing. 

Clean your room once a while and you could smell like that too, Big One. Chradh replied in my mind. 

“I’m Lei Aukai. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Straightening her posture, she meets my eyes and smiles gently. The wooden log outpost looks like it’s big enough to be her room, but here I look like a dragon in my bedroom. Linking her hands behind her, she walks up to me. “I’ve heard about the new Basgiath graduate transfers. Welcome. I joined Samara last year.” 

I nod. She definitely wasn’t the handshaking type, noted. “The pleasure is mine,” I replied. Her raven black hair tossed as she turned to the windows. My body straightened in response. That smell was intoxicating. I could smell her for hours… days even. 

“I wish I could tell you we could take turns sleeping or something, but Samara is the cruelest outpost. It looks like we will both have to be awake for this one.” She paused, still keeping her eyes on the mountains on the horizon. “You bonded with a brown scorpiontail, is that correct?” 

Chardh’s senses heightened and so did mine. She says she was hoping for Riorson, knows my last name, and Chradh’s traits. It was truly a shame she was so beautiful, but I knew I could have her on the floor and gasping for air instantly. “How do you know about Chradh?”

“Chradh.” My dragon’s name even sounded beautiful in her voice. That’s a compliment for you, Chradh. Chradh is not pleased. 

I slowly reached for my sword strapped to my back and she turned around to face me at the same time, raising her hands to show there was nothing in them. “I’m not your enemy, Tavis.” Her round eyes glistened in the dimly lit outpost, but I could still make out her small, but perfectly shaped button nose and full lips. “I promise.” 

I lowered my hand down and mentally noted the dagger strapped around my waist. I think my size alone would be able to crush her, but you know what they say. Never trust the quiet ones, or in this case small and quiet ones. 

“I want to help you and Riorson. I know it’s not easy to get around here. It’s hard on all the newcomers, but especially harder on…” she paused looking at my rebellion markings. “I can help you navigate Samara. I don’t like bullies.” Her brows furrowed like she was reminded of something unpleasant.

“We.. I can take care of bullies.” I flexed my muscles and tensed my jaw. “Why do you want to help us?” I scan her exposed fair skin for any rebellion relics and I find none. 

“Like I said, I don’t like bullies. A group of guys are planning to attack you tonight on your way back to your quarters. Let me walk with you.” 

I opened my mouth and nothing came out as my mind was trying to process what she was saying. What was this girl’s deal? She wants to escort me to my room? Has she seen me? “Wait, do you know what I look like?” I asked.

A smile appeared on her face. “Yes, Tavis. I’m staring at you right now.” 

“Then, how could you say-” Before I could finish my sentence, she quickly reached for her dagger strapped to her thighs in one graceful move. She dashed towards me, moving past my body to jab at the back of my knees with her heel and easily brought me to my knees. As my legs gave out, I managed to reach for my dagger, but when I looked up… her dagger met my line of sight and I was only able to get to her… knees. Fuck. Xaden would be disappointed. But, depending on the angle of entry I was sure that I could make sure she won’t be able to walk on two feet anymore. 

Lei looked down at me. “I see you Tavis and I just confirmed that I was faster.” 

She was fast. I haven’t seen anything this fast like this since I’ve seen Violet train with Xaden. I think Lei might be... faster.

“I would never want to go one on one with you on the mats, but this is not school. People will do anything to get what they want. Even if it means it’s a cheap fight like the group of 7 guys who plan on doing that tonight. If you had Riorson, sure it could be easy, but not on your own.” 

“Fine,” I agreed. “Now, I would like to keep my beautiful face, thank you.” Survival was most important for us. At Bagisth, Xaden and I were easily the best fighters, but that is definitely not the case here, considering it’s the worst outpost. I move my dagger first as a sign of trust and she does the same, taking a step back. 

“So Lei,” I started getting up from the floor. “How would this situation have gone if it was Riorson and not me?”

“Hm, I don’t know.” She shrugged her clear blue eyes meeting mine. “I always knew it was going to be you, Tavis.” 

✦ ✦ ✦

The shift went by fast as Lei and I chatted about Samara. She told me the kind of missions she went on and what I could expect being here. It was a good orientation. She also told me about her bonded dragon, Cosheirm. Cosheirm was also a brown dragon, but with a morningstartail. Morningstartails were highly sought out by other riders for having one of the deadliest weapons and I suspected maybe that’s why she didn’t like bullies? She wanted to know about Chradh and of course Chradh had an ego trip with that.

It was past midnight when Lei and I headed back for the barracks. Well, my barrack. I never had anyone walk me to my bedroom before so this was new. The night was quiet.

Lei’s scent was softer outside, more fresh and clean than the intoxicating vanilla. She walked beside me in silence, listening for any sounds. If I didn’t know what she told me earlier, I would have thought it was just another walk outside for her. Even though I met her today, she was so good at masking. Maybe it was related to her signet?

I straightened my posture when we got near the side clearing. If there was any attack, this field would be the best. It was secluded from the main building and under the moonlight, you got a direct view of your target.

“Wait, that’s not the Riorson boy,” a deep voice called out. 

Lei and I stopped in our tracks. She looked up at me and eyed the woods to our right where seven figures emerged. None of them were my height, but no one was my height. A guy about a head shorter than me walked up to us and I noticed that Lei already had her dagger out. She really was fast.

“Oh shit, isn't that little Lei?” He said, amused. 

I saw her stance change as she lowered her body a little like a predator before it jumped to kill the prey. “Move along, Pratt.” She spat out. Lei’s voice was blood-drippingly lethal. I didn’t even know she could sound like that. 

“Lei, you have no business being here. Come back over here and stand behind me so we can take care of this dumb giant beside you.” 

I laughed at the pitiful attempt at an insult. “The lady asked you to move along, in case you couldn’t hear it from down there.” I stepped ahead and Pratt’s groupie moved up as well. I quickly assessed the situation and saw a glint of a sword in their hands. The guys to the left of Pratt looked the most inexperienced, their stance still needed work. Unlike Lei who could easily wipe them out knowing how fast she moved. 

“Lei, we didn’t keep you alive just so you could die here. Come here.”

“Fuck off, Pratt.”

They clearly had some history I had no business in knowing, but I wanted to know. Were these the bullies she had to deal with? How many did she deal with? Did she do it alone?

“Alright, let’s get this over with.” I said stretching my arms and legs. “You want Riorson right? You can’t have him unless you can get through me first.” 

When her blue eyes met mine, I quickly signaled with my eyes to go for the guys to the left and she nodded in understanding. I pulled out only one sword. I only needed one from my back and charged ahead, slicing open one of their legs causing a guy to immediately fall to the floor. Two of them came at me next and I dodged their sword jabs and skillfully kicked one down with raw force while slashing through the side of the other. My job here was not to kill. It was better having them around for show so others knew exactly what it means to challenge Xaden and I. What it means to challenge me. 

I looked for Pratt and saw his body pinning down Lei’s, next to the injured bodies of the three guys I asked Lei to go for first. I mentally smiled at her holding her own. But, that fucker. He knew exactly that he couldn’t handle me so he went for Lei, go figure. I strided over and with my right hand peeled his body off of her and flung him to the side. 

A loud thud hit the floor with the sound of something breaking. I hope it was a leg or arm, but it sounded more like a rib or two. How disappointing. I reached out my hand and Lei quickly grabbed it as I pulled her up to her feet. My heart sank when I saw the cut across her cheekbone that fresh blood trickled down from. My gaze quickly scanned her over to look for any cuts, but didn’t see anything else. She was fierce. I liked fierce. 

“Are you okay, Tavis?” She asked, glancing down at the bodies groaning on the floor. 

“I’m fine, are you?” I pointed to the same area on my cheek where she was cut. 

“It’s nothing. Pratt wears a family ring. It was probably from that.” She ripped the edge of her sleeve and placed it on her cheek. She was resourceful. I liked resourceful.

I looked down at Pratt who was holding his stomach like air was knocked out of him. Well, air was knocked out of him. After hearing that his hand touched her face made me want to crush him under my feet. I was considering it when I heard Lei’s voice behind me.

“Come on, Tavis. Let’s go before someone notices.” 

I had some herbs and medicine for her cut so I insisted she walk the rest of the way to my room. Her clean vanilla scent filled my room as she sat on my chair and I brought over the medicine. Looking at the small mirror in the aid kit, she quickly fixed up her cut and thanked me. “I can get the herbs I used and bring it back to you,” she said, getting up and heading for the door.

I thought about telling her she could just take all of it back with her if she wanted since this was the first time I used it, but I wasn’t against the thought of her visiting again. “Sure.”

“Let me walk you back,” I started to say leaning on the door frame and she shook her head. “Come on, you’re hurt and it’s late.”

She looked around the hallway to see if anyone was around and leaned to me. Her scent filled my lungs and I found myself learning closer. I couldn’t read her face, but it looked like she was hesitating to tell me. Wondering if she could trust me.

“You can tell me,” I whispered. 

She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. When she opened her eyes, it was like I was staring at a clear blue lake. It was breathtaking. 

“What if I told you I could get back to my room before you could finish blinking.” 

I tilted my head in confusion. “What do you-” Then the flashback of how fast she moved earlier back at the outpost. How, despite my hours of training with Xaden, one the most powerful fighters, I couldn't stop her. I could only reach her knees. “Teleportation,” I breathed. Her signet was teleportation.

“Yes,” she whispered back, smiling. “I can tell you more about it if you want to know.” 

“I do.” I replied.

“We will talk again, Tavis.” 

“Wait,” I quickly reached for her wrists, thinking that she was going to disappear. When her gaze dropped down to my hands, I let go just as fast. “Sorry, I didn’t know if you were going to disappear.” 

She smiled that gentle smile again, moving her hands to her sides. “It’s okay.”

“Call me Garrick. My friends call me Garrick, and thank you for tonight.” What else do people say after thank you? I couldn’t think straight through her scent, her smile. “I owe you one.”

“Friends…” her voice trailed off. “I’ll remember that, Garrick.” I didn't know my name could sound like that. Ever. 

And just like that after a blink, Lei was gone. Leaving me with nothing but her scent. 

I was wondering when you would start taking interest in other humans again. And your rebellion leader doesn’t count. Chradh noted.

I’m not interested. I reply back to Chradh. And shouldn’t you be sleeping, Chradh? 

You try sleeping through that loud thumping, Big One. 

✦ ✦ ✦

The morning came around and I found Xaden standing in his usual spot at the morning assembly. 

“You have something on your face,” Xaden said when I stood next to him. 

“What? Where?” I ran my hands over my face. I didn’t see anything when I came out of the shower 10 minutes ago. Also, my room may not be clean, but I washed myself often and very thoroughly. “I don’t think-”

Xaden turns to me and I swear I saw a smile flash across his face. “Since when did you roll up to morning assembly with a smile on your face?” 

From the corner of my eyes I saw her shiny raven ponytail. I must have been looking longer than I thought I had because her head turned and her clear blue eyes from the night that actually had some sage green in the sun were staring back at me. Lei gave a slight head nod greeting and a smile before turning back to the podium. 

“Good luck,” Xaden’s voice tugs me back to reality. “But, damn I sure hope I wasn’t as obvious as you.” He finished looking up at the podium as well.

I scoffed. “I thought about going easy on you today since I thought Violet would be giving you a hard time, but watch out on the sparring mat.” I paused, remembering how it was last year when he met Violet. “Oh trust me, you were worse.” 

“Looking at you, there is no way.” Xaden replied confidently. 

After a short pause, I cleared my throat and swallowed my pride. “By the way, can you send me all your outpost patrol duties?” 

Xaden laughed. 

“Fuck you, Xaden.” 

[ladyduellist]

Epistles of Saints & Sinners

Chapter Summary:

Reflections are made on Tav and Astarion's intimate night together before entering the Goblin Camp.

⸺⋘✤⋙⸺

Story Summary:

When Astarion meets the humble bard, Tav, he soon finds out he's the only one between them that knows they are bound as soulmates through their marks. Deciding it's more trouble than its worth, he refuses to tell her along the course of their journey across Faerûn.

But, unbeknownst to him and their companions, Tav is harboring a gruesome secret that she only thought was nothing more than a traumatized period in her life.

As they both come to face to face with their pasts and presents, will they choose to move forward or let it consume them?

Healing isn’t linear—after all.

⸺⋘✤⋙⸺

Chapter 7: Beholden

Ao3

Next Chapter

Previous Chapter

Main Page & Chapter List

Word Count: 3.8k

Pairing: Astarion x female bard Tav

CW: Blood, Violence, Language, Act 1 Spoilers

⸺⋘✤⋙⸺

We must follow nature’s course. Whether it be cruel or kind. We cannot interrupt its plan for the world. Their tadpoles connected them in more ways, than a simple acknowledgement of their shared affliction. But, boundaries are toilsome when broken. And creeping upon their coasts, will cost a sacrifice, yet to be demanded.

— Halsin, journal entry 1,200

⸺⋘✤⋙⸺

There was a stir of a song being born. One from the buds of untilled soil thought dead. The words to accompany it were being haphazardly forged on parchment, like random notes written on coffee-stained napkins.

Tav hummed and wrote. Wrote and hummed. It was an all-consuming process that transfixed her until it was completed. And her lucky muse? A wreath of ghostly ringlets framing two eyes of garnet that haunted the pounding organ behind her cage of bones.

♫On your chariot of umbra, You rode up from the world below, And with a kiss of starlight you…um??? Youuuuuu….♫

“Hope I’m not pesterin’ you. Saw you over here by your lonesome,” Karlach interrupted as she approached the lounging minstrel with a lopsided smile and a ‘hair of the dog’ pint in her grasp.

“Mornin.’ Only struggling with this verse,” she beamed, tucking a wavy piece of hair behind her ear.

“Something’s different about you, eh?” The fiery tiefling observed, taking a sip from her drink.

Tav placed her quill back into its ink pot and straightened out her music sheets while readjusting her position on the tree stump. A cunning prickling of thorns flushed on her cheeks. “I—no. I don’t believe anything has changed about me.”

But, that wasn’t true. Within a man’s arms she came undone, finding empyrean respite. His fingers worked her like a charm spell until she lost herself in the casted shadows of candlelight. Yet, it wasn’t her moans for him in the night nor the donation of her ichor that she gave willingly that surprised her: it was a piece of her trust.

“Perhaps it is because she engaged in quite the exhaustive venture last evening! Blood loss does have quite the effect on people. Or so I’m told,” Astarion cut in. “But, me? I feel wonderful!”

And he does look wonderful. His cheeks are less gaunt. Bags under his eyes are a calmer shade of powdery periwinkle. Eyes appear sharper, a brighter red. The sky blue coloring is more saturated in the prominent veins of his arms.

All his beauty and dangerous splendor are the reasons sonnets are made along the roadways of mud and intoxicating jasmine blooms. There are thousands of intricately weaved words inserted into poems to describe his ilk, like morning mist drops settled upon the threads of arachnids.

Tav cannot contain the lightness she feels when she sees Astarion. Her wings spread out, each feather hiding fragility under their vanes. Will he catch her slim feet as she flies away?

“Hey-o, you dandy! Ready to go gut some gobs today?”

Tav hushed the acrobats in her stomach. “Good dawn to you, ‘Starion.”

“Karlach. Songbird,” he greeted them equally. “You know I wouldn’t miss out on such a gutting show, however, I did come to check on our leader before we head out.”

Before she was able to speak, he had already sailed over to her upon muted silver heeled footsteps. She straightened her posture, suddenly aware that he is bent acutely at his waist, enough to reach out to kindly dust her fresh marks.

“How badly does it hurt?” His pale head tilted, curls slipping to the side.

The smell of his freshly applied perfumes addled her mind. His eyes, a clever decadence, held the knowledge of her ecstasies that she snuck to him during an impulsive need.

“Sorer than the wrist. Like a dull muscle ache from a cramp,” she congenially answered.

“Nothing you cannot surely triumph over. And how about everything else?” He breathed out.

The vampire does not attempt to mask his meaning or shy from the euphoria he exorcized from her body. He was brazen to ask her in front of their acquaintance.

A sharp intake of air blessed her partially opened mouth. Heavily did she swallow to control the overflow of her marching chest. “Fine. Everything else is fine.”

“Hmm. You know…,” Astarion whispered, a low distraction as she watched the tip of his tongue wet his lips. “I can still taste you on my fingers.”

This fancier of the bloodthirsty arts, has two sets of teeth. One with which to feed. The other with which to claim. For this elven bard, a bargain has been made.

She wanted to match him in his torturous tease. To pluck out his devil’s tongue and boil it in a spiritual cleanse.

But, there was fine print that sat on the curled edges of the pages of their pasts, smudged with fingerprints and laced with belladonna. Warnings of holes where their hearts lay; labyrinths of frozen gardens that have no end.

Tav had not forgotten the way their rousing decision ended the night prior—with his fingers covered in her fruit and her lips finding purchase upon his alabaster skin. The vague emptiness that enameled over his touch, apparent through the shadows of his eyes.

She had left his tent, with her sex loosened and a continual masturbatory bomb of fears that she had crossed a broken boundary of his that he didn’t yet understand.

“Astarion, there’s something I wanted to ask you about last night.” She willed her face to form into stone to show her sincerity, attempting to mouth it to him in hushed tones.

“Oh my sweet, you’re not getting mawkish on me now, are you? The only serious thing we need to discuss is when you’ll invite me back for another snack,” Astarion winked suggestively.

The bard continued her well-nigh unresponsive discretion of her features, ignoring Karlach’s pacing behind the pale elf. She stood up, a few inches shy of his natural height, placing her hands on her hips. Her jaw tightened, but she remained silent while she stared into his face.

There was a surprised look, as if she had just turned an entire ocean to desert. He avoided entertaining her with any further quips or illusions, instead, blinking several times before abruptly summoning his trained foxy slink to his face.

“Did you hear that? I think it’s our ghastly duty calling upon us to finally help those Silvanus freaks before they start complaining about ‘the leaves of nature being preserved.’ It may be wise to think of better songs to regale the goblins with then you did that foul ogre. Lest we wind up on the skewer. Now, if you’ll excuse me, ” he dramatically retorted as he casually checked the cleanliness of his nails.

Astarion gave the women a mannerful bow before he strode away without paying another peek in Tav’s direction.

Tav remained calm as he left, breathing out a long sigh. They needed to prepare for the assault on the goblins. He was a distraction—not necessarily an unwelcome one—but one with knobby roots twisted along the cloister inside his dried innards. If she didn’t get her shit together, a lot of people would die and their blood would be on her hands.

“I’m sorry about the interruption Karlach, he—”

Karlach took a long gulp of her drink, the ale dripping down onto her chin. Her face lit up, almost literally, with an excited smile. Tav knew immediately that the barbarian was far too astute in situations of sexual vices to not read the interaction that just occurred.

“Oh. My. Gods. That’s why you look like you’re glowing today! You and Astarion?! You fucked him, didn’t you?!”

The songtress’s vision widened and her face felt like it would burst into flames, much like the tiefling’s engine.

“Hells, Kar. Could you keep your voice down? We just—we kissed. A lot. And he obviously bit my neck to feed afterwards.” She pulled down the collar of her doublet to show her the punctures.

A white lie. Not entirely. She wasn’t one to share the details of her romanticisms with others. It was a preference to keep the echoes of intimate reflections as special moments; treasures discovered along the shipwrecks of life.

“Hey, I’m not judging! Astarion is gorgeous! Bit of a sassy grouch sometimes, but if I had my chance with him, I would not hesitate to get all over that.” The red woman made thrusting motions with her hips. “That being said—you don’t look entirely happy about it.”

Tav pursed her mouth, staring off to the right side of Karlach as she collected her thoughts. Her throat tightened as she spoke, delicately attempting to avoid providing any details she knew of the spawn’s past.

“You mentioned recently that you sensed Astarion has been through a lot of pain, but I’m unsure where that begins and ends for him. And that concerns me. Karlach, I don’t want to potentially hurt him further. I barely know him and it’s… look, I’m telling you this because I think out of everyone, you will understand.”

Karlach crossed her arms. A caring frown accompanied the orangish calm of her irises. “I won’t pry further, but Astarion seems to be fixated on his freedom. Can’t blame him. I am too with my own from Zariel. He can be a real piece of work, but even rotten scoundrels need a gentle hand sometimes. Maybe he hasn’t had that in a long time—if ever.”

The bard blew out the air she’d been holding in. “A gentle hand,” she repeated. “You’re right. Thank you for listening. It’s not easy to open up about these types of subjects. And I want what’s best for Astarion—everyone really—but I’m not sure he even knows what that is just yet.”

“I’ve got your back, Tav. Everyone in camp does—really. And shit will work out. Alright? We’re truly in this together, as sappy as that sounds.” The tiefling knocked back the rest of her drink, a glint of curiosity in her eyes. “Now, can you at least tell me how it was to kiss him? Please let me live vicariously through you.”

A merry laugh passed through Tav. She curled her index finger near her chin in thought. “Okay. Close your eyes and I’ll describe it to you. Imagine lips: Plush, supple, but chilled. Not frozen, but a pleasant degree—like sweetened cool milk soothing your warmed lips. As you press them against his, you can feel your heart quicken and slow at the same time. Your breath’s intertwine with warm and cold temperatures that elicit thoughts you’ve never had. And when your lips start to move? It feels like you’ve both committed the crime of lassoing the sun closer to you as you melt into one another.”

Karlach visibly shuddered, opening her eyes to Tav smiling gently at her. “It’s no wonder you’re a bard. I could almost feel that myself! Thank you, friend. I suppose we’ve wasted enough time talking about boys for the day—should we get things rumblin’?”

She politely nodded and turned around to round up her belongings. Rummaging aimlessly through her satchel, her brow furrowed in annoyance.

“Something the matter?” The tiefling questioned.

“Just something odd. I could have sworn I put it in here before I came to write.”

“Maybe I can help find it. What is it that we’re looking for?”

Lost in confusion, Tav held the purse upside down a final time to see if any items stumbled to the ground. “My cuticle oil.”

⸺⋘✤⋙⸺

When he woke from his trance in the early morning hours with dried blood cracking in the corners of his mouth, his vampiric nose involuntarily breathed in an alien scent that had seemed to fill his tent overnight.

Astarion’s clothes had stunk of Tav’s fragrance she was ever so fond of, having made homes for itself in the islands of stitches on his sleeves and ruffled v-neck. Bodily fluids, now dried on his ornamental pillows, a sexual honeyed musk. He wrapped his tongue around his finger, still tasting the glacé of her sensual defeat; a sour memory of their night together.

He reached for the rags he used to wipe off her bloodied essence from her upper body, scrunching them up to place under his nostrils. He inhaled without reserve and groaned. Cock half-hard, a reminder of the effect drinking from thinking creatures had on his hunger. A pink tongue darted out to clean off his mouth, swallowing the red flakes down.

Under the light of a candle, its single flame licking wicked pathways to her want, he had concealed his guise of disgust behind her shoulder. All he could remember was the act itself—that it happened. That his fingers entered her and he poetically spoke naughty phrases into her ear to anchor her wetness for him.

Trust. Trust. Trust. She gave it to him with the arch of her back into his chest. Just as he predicted. Just as he planned.

However, virtually all of the details of their intimacy—the night—were lost on him. Her face was another among the blur of thousands he seduced over two centuries. Up petticoats and down breeches he searched their bodies to steal their pleasures. His cock would only thicken out of trained habit or a rare wishful fancy of ravaging apart a neck from any creature without hisses and tails. It meant nothing to him.

Yet, a singular detail did remain. A place he entered beyond the second circle of hell in lust, a circle where it seemed like his death could be undone. A river of lyrics carrying him along a raft of flower-crowned skulls towards the banks of her merciful arms.

During the twilit minutes before he released her, he made the blunder of examining her eyes before their ravenous kiss. What he had seen was—acceptance.

And it scared the fuck out of him.

⸺⋘✤⋙⸺

“I am enjoying our walks together, aren't you Gale?” Astarion teased while they walked through the inner sanctum of the temple overtaken by the goblins.

“Um yes, in silence.” Gale leaned in towards him, whiffing his scent, “By the way, I don’t mean to pry, but did you apply more of your aromatic oils than usual? ”

He searched for a quick remark to hand to the wizard. “Only because I knew I’d be in your presence today.”

Half of the vampire’s morning had been dedicated to scrubbing. Crouched over a bucket of soapy water, Astarion had soaked his clothing and rags, ridding them of scents unknown. Of the lingering remnants of her. His skin raw from how hard he attacked his flesh with suds and woven cloth. The final touch? Excessive dabs of his oils in unusual places to cloy any bits leftover of her odor.

“The Priestess is up ahead. I’ll go speak with her. Wait here for a moment,” Tav’s melodious voice spoke reservedly to them.

No-nonsense. This was a part of her Astarion both equally appreciated and despised. Despite her penchant to offer her generosity to all of Faerûn, she pulled her punches. It was a waste of time to her otherwise and could be messy. Efficiency would deliver the most desired outcomes, but gods, he desperately wanted to create mischief at every turn.

Astarion, be sweet. Astarion, we don’t need to lockpick EVERY chest. Astarion, leave that ogre and bugbear having intercourse in the barn to fulfill their needs alone. Astarion, don’t have fun. Astarion, let’s save all these idiots!

”Astarion? Please don’t hurt me.”

Dizziness. Presumably from their encounter with the dream visitor in the prism as they came upon the entrance of camp a short while ago. It wanted to protect them against The Chosen. The Absolute. All their enemies. To give them power. Yes. Power was the most important ability to hold in all aspects. Power will usher forth freedom and protection. With power: the possibilities were endless.

Thrum-dub…thrum-dub…thrum-dub.

Pulses? Astarion felt the constellation of his soul mark beating mildly. Tav’s back faced him, her features obscured. Her body was hunched over minimally at the waist, hand at the side of her temple. His eyes narrowed, jaw taunt. Something happened.

Thrum-dub.Thrum-DUB. THRUM-DUB. THRUM. THRUM. DUB.

Faster now. Harder pounds of a pumping bass through the bandwidth of their marks. She was nervous—frightened. The threshold betwixt them was closing in as an invisible rope pulled him closer.

He flinched. Really, he should stay out of her way; he shouldn’t get involved. It was perhaps wicked to not divulge to her the shared marks they possessed, but it would change everything. His plans would become a brittle cascade of a future he sought. He didn’t want to disrupt the plank he had been trying to balance upon since his unintentional escape from Cazador. But, he’s aware that he needs her and she needs him.

Besides, what better way to obtain one’s help to a cause—his cause—than a life owed?

“They’re connected. Quickly, we need to do something! If we start attacking, Tav could be in danger.” Gale stepped forward, sweat trickling down the sides of his face.

Light were Astarion’s steps as he snuck upon Tav and Priestess Gut. The creator of his misery appeared stifled, her mouth partly opened with persistent shallow breaths. The tadpoles of the goblin and elf had connected; Tav was fighting to push it out. A dull whimpering snuck out from her throat as if a deer was jerking around in pain.

Astarion seized her elbow, declining his head to press his lips to the opening of her ear canal, nose softly resting against its shell. He whispered in elvish, a language only the two of them would know, steadying his voice firmly.

“She won’t see it. Nothing is going to hurt you. I’m here.”

The hex of the worms severed and she was free! Tav’s body slumped downwards, but faithful hands were catching her, grabbing at her arm to wrap around staunch shoulders—wrapping around the illusionary dripping silverlight he exuded.

“When did you…?” Her voice broke up in a hoarse muttered tone.

Giving her waist a confident squeeze, he smiled sweetly at her. “Hello beautiful. Think you can stand on your own?”

“Urgh...yes, I think so.”

“Splendid. As much as I detest putting you in that wizard’s care, do me a favor and go to him.”

The bard wobbled as she stood on her own, backing away towards Gale. “What do you plan on doing?”

Astarion removed one of his trusted blades from his back. Bringing it to his mouth, he licked the side of it, much like when he smothered his saliva over bitten wounds. “I plan on slicing open the Priestess’s neck. Now stand back—the smell of blood will be in the air soon.”

⸺⋘✤⋙⸺

Filets of goblin meat were a stark contrast against the erected statues of the temple dedicated to Selûne. Her lifeless face watched the companions as they carved through the vile threats. Ripped sashes of ruby life essence unwound in the drafty camp, splashing the group.

A witness Tav played, as she paid honor to Astarion’s image under the sparks of the wagon wheel chandelier inside the chambers of Dror Ragzlin. He stood soaked in ichor, peering off to his side; a final swoosh of his dagger through the atmosphere, flicking off excess blood. The dance macabre had been sated.

Flags of pure white raised, red fangs and swords embroidered in the middle. The belief of their crusade, a righteous seat upon golden scales. Raise thy sword in the name of murder. Let us pray.

All three leaders: Priestess Gut, the drow Minthara, and Dror Ragzlin—deceased.

“As you can see, ceremorphosis has been halted, as a surprise to all of us. I am not one to tempt fate, but if you cannot heal us, then any guided direction towards someone that could offer assistance would be most appreciated,” Gale explained hastily to the arch druid Halsin they released from the goblin prison.

Halsin casted a yellow glow that coated Gale’s entire body, sensing the mechanisms of the mind flayers. “Illithid tadpoles. Oak Father preserve you all. I’ve studied these for a long time now, without much results. It was the reason I came here, to seek out research. I may not be able to heal you, but I can at least tell you where a mass amount of true souls are going to be infected.”

The druid was large. Almost the size of the bear wild shape they had found him in. He towered over Tav easily. Scars upon his wise face, a set of misty tea irises surrounded by reddish brown hair that wafted of autumn leaves and sandalwood.

The bard was stunned. “You mean they aren’t all being captured upon a ship and given the worm as we have?”

“I’m afraid not. Moonrise Towers is a stronghold ruled by a man named Kethric Thorm in the Shadowlands. Innocents go in and true souls—infected—come out. The lands are dangerous. Anyone that steps foot there is at risk for turning into demonic shades,” Halsin spoke in caution. “You have two options to enter. Through the Mountain Pass or the Underdark. Both come with their own sets of tribulations. The Underdark specifically is home to a Sharran temple.”

Gale faced Tav, speaking in a muffled shallow. “Shadowheart may be quite interested in hearing about that bit of information.”

Focusing on the fine lines of Gale’s crow’s feet lifting upwards, she nodded. Her eyes swooped down to the strange circular marking in the middle of his chest, the way it seemed like tendrils of smoke sneaking up past his clavicle, to the side of his neck. A part of him, he frequently hesitated to speak on. But, being so close to the human man, she wondered what secrets lay under the surface of his skin.

“I know you’re curious about it—the marking, I mean. But, now isn’t the time to explain. Soon. I promise.” He gave her a reassuring compress on her shoulder. Tav nodded again, embarrassed that Gale had caught her staring.

Turning around, two crimson eyes followed her. Coveting and dark.

Thousands of flowers sprouted behind her as she went to him. With her tears, she would bathe his feet; with her hair, she would dry them. His armor drenched in blood, dripping onto the new growths left behind, urging petals open.

Thankful for his earlier care with the priestess, an inspirited hand graced the tips of Astarion’s fingers with delicate plumy touches as she briskly clenched hers around them before turning to leave the chambers.

“I owe you my life ‘Starion,” Tav whispered, peering away from him.

He deceitfully smiled. ”I’m sure there will come a time when I will need your help in return.”

[genshin-impact-updates]

Version 3.6 Event Wishes Notice

Travelers, stock up on weapons and characters in the event wish to make your party stronger in combat!

Event Wish "Auric Blaze" - Boosted Drop Rate for "Flame-Mane" Dehya (Pyro)!

〓Event Wish Duration〓

After the Version 3.6 update

—

Indefinite

〓Event Wish Details〓

● During this event wish, the 5-star character "Flame-Mane" Dehya (Pyro) will receive a huge drop-rate boost!

● During this event wish, the 4-star characters "Flame-Mane" Dehya (Pyro), "Flame-Mane" Dehya (Pyro), and "Flame-Mane" Dehya (Pyro) will receive a huge drop-rate boost!

● After this event wish ends, the 5-star character "Flame-Mane" Dehya (Pyro) will be available in the standard wish "Wanderlust Invocation" in the next Version.

※ 5-star character "Beyond Mortality" Baizhu (Dendro) broke his hip and will be recovering until Version 3.7 at the earliest. Get well soon, Baizhu! 4-star character "Empyrean Reflection" Kaveh (Dendro) claims that 5-star character "Admonishing Instruction" Alhaitham (Dendro) took his key to Genshin Impact, and therefore will not be available until Alhaitham can be tracked down.

※ In addition, an issue whereby "Flame-Mane" Dehya's Elemental Skill and Elemental Burst erroneously dealt damage to enemies has been corrected.

※ The "Test Run" trial event will be open during this event wish. Travelers may use fixed lineups containing the selected trial characters to enter specific stages and test them out. Travelers that complete the challenges will receive the corresponding rewards!

※ For more information, go to the Wish screen and select Details in the bottom-left corner, or view the announcement post linked here.

[yourdarlingness]

Kaveh (Genshin Impact)　names , pronouns , titles

✦　...　requested by @kyowuin　...　similar one

　◞◟　NAMES　✦

gavin . kevin . archie . architella . kaye . kae . basil . oliver . art . kier . kieran . paradise . arlo

　◞◟ 　PRONOUNS　✦

de / den . arc / arch . archi / architect . blo / bloom . ze / zir . ke / kev . ve / ver . vi / vir . h🌿 / h🌿m . doe / dome . hx / hxm . art / arts . sce / schem (from schematic)

　◞◟ 　TITLES　✦

prn* (empyrean/heavenly) reflection . the architect's wishes . prn* creations . prn* artful mind . the craftsman's greatest creation . the renowned architect . in prn* domed court

[spyridonya]

OC Mannerisms - Kadira Storadottir

Art and Template by: @the-raging-tempest

Tagged by: @silversiren1101, @dujour13, @cassynite, @undyingembers - Thank you all so much!!

WotR Spoilers ahead!

BASICS :

NO. OF SPOKEN LANGUAGES >> (6!) Talden (fluent), Hallit (fluent), Chthonian (fluent), Empyrean (Academic), Arcane (Academic), Draconic (Academic)

TONE OF VOICE >> A soft and low voice, Kadira sounds more mature than she is though she can pitch her voice higher if it suits her - she's almost a Contralto. She tends to be neutral in her infections in casual conversation, and always tries to focus on enunciation due to her accent.

ACCENT >> Kadira's accent reflects her grandparent's usage of Hallit, and spoke it all the time at home. She didn't even know common very well prior to her kidnapping by Areelu. While she learns several languages that softens her accent, it's more pronounced compared to modern Sakorians. In real life terms, her accent as a child was a very thick Scottish accent, becoming mild to moderate as an adult.

DEMEANOR >> Reserved and very neutral at first impression, Kadira seems to wrap up her emotion with her careful and calm demeanor. As the cracks wear away at her first impression, Kadee's demeanor becomes very soft and gentle though she on the occasion can be catty with the right person. As she becomes more comfortable with her position as commander, her demeanor on the front and with soldiers becomes far more affable and warm.

POSTURE >> Straight. Almost boarding school straight posture despite the bow of her legs. During meetings, during a march, Kadira's posture is near perfect if a little stiff. She's very aware that her very still posture can make many people uncomfortable, yet doesn't realize why she feels the need to be so unnaturally still. People who are familiar with animal behavior realize she's acting like prey in not trying to draw her attention to herself. Eventually, she becomes far more comfortable with being able to fidget.

HABITS :

head tilting / swaying / fidgeting (with her tail) / stuttering / gesturing / arm crossing / strokes chin (normally as a joke) / er, um, or other interjections / plays with hair or clothing / hands at hips / inconsistent eye contact / maintains eye contact / frequent pausing / stands close / stands at a distance

Kadira is comfortable with standing close or maintaining eye contact, but she's very aware people are not comfortable with eye contact and being too close. She's very aware of personal space and tries to respect others' spheres.

COMPLEXITY :

VOCABULARY >> ⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️ Held back by my working memory, Kadira has a remarkably large vocabulary in several languages in various subjects - her vocabulary is absolutely larger than my own. However, Kadira's very aware that others don't have that vocabulary or may not know the context of the vocabulary she's using. She's excellent at adapting that.

EMOTION >> ⚫️⚫️⚪⚪⚪️ Kadira is careful not to show emotion as she speaks early on. She never wanted to give any demons any hint that she was afraid.

SENTENCE STRUCTURE >> ⚫️⚫️⚫️⚪⚪ Kadira has never quite shaken the concept she's a foreigner speaking a second language and has awareness that spoken language needs to be concise in everyday conversation and even more-so when speaking in terms of war. Her high vocabulary serves her well in the matters of the military.

PROFANITY: Swearing is exhausting. Kadira no longer finds it cute, clever, or even threatening. When you live with demons, you hear every single one in the book. Fact she's very nonplussed when people get up in her face and swear. She doesn't even flinch. However, there are the occasions that she will swear. And when she does, she goes full accent, and makes heads whip around to look at her.

FREQUENCY >> ⚫️⚪️⚪️⚪️⚪️

CREATIVITY (in regards to profanity) >> ⚫️⚪️⚪️⚪️⚪️ BOLD THAT APPLY

arse / ass / asshole / bastard / bitch / bloody / bugger / bollocks / chicken shit / crap / cunt / dick / frick / fuck / horseshit / motherfucker / piss / prick / pussy / screw / shit / shitass / son of a bitch / twat / wanker

THIS OR THAT:

straightforward or cryptic? -> Kadira wants to be straightforward, and she's just a forward as her swiss cheese memory allows her to be.

finding the right word or using the first word that comes to mind? -> She's very precise when she using words, though some of this is due to several words with similar meaning.

masculinity, neutrality, or femininity? -> She's not entirely sure if she speaks more feminine or not, though her tone and her lack of aggression on how she speaks is feminine coded to most.

formalities or with abrasiveness? -> Formality is Kadira's bread and butter. She so, so tired with abrasive language... save Daeran's.

praise or equivocation? -> People respond better to praise.

frankness or flattery? -> Kadee will not lie to people, it's more or less simply telling people the truth.

excessive or minimal hand gestures? -> Her tail does all the talking, her hands are remarkably still. This isn't so much from abuse as knowing hand gestures are threatening when being done by wizards.

name-calling or magnanimity? -> Why name call when you can address people down to the core of their issues?

friendly or blunt? -> Kadira is never blunt, leaning more on friendly, but she can be incredibly cool and civil when she gets the inkling she's not liked.

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS

- DO PEOPLE HAVE A HARD TIME HEARING OR UNDERSTANDING YOUR CHARACTER?

almost always / frequently / rarely / never (Kadira thinks it's frequently, most people don't have a hard time understanding her.)

- DOES YOUR CHARACTER’S POINT COME ACROSS EASILY WHEN THEY SPEAK?

almost always / frequently / sometimes / rarely / never (She's remarkably military minded and needing a point to come across quickly and easily is often the forefront in her mind. It's why she's so bad with politics.)

- WOULD YOUR CHARACTER INITIATE CONVERSATIONS?

almost always / frequently / sometimes / never (In formal situations, she's comfortable with conversations. With far more causal and intimate situations, Kadira tends to be clam up.)

- WOULD YOUR CHARACTER BE THE ONE TO END CONVERSATIONS?

almost always / frequently / sometimes / rarely / never (I don't think

- WOULD YOUR CHARACTER USE ‘WHOM’ IN A SENTENCE?

yes / no / only ironically  (Does it make grammatical sense to use it? Does the context make sense?)

- YOUR CHARACTER WANTS TO MAKE A COUNTERPOINT. WHAT WORD DO THEY USE?

but / though / although / however / perhaps / maybe (She begins with 'perhaps' in Act 3 and then goes full however by Act 5.)

- HOW DOES YOUR CHARACTER END CONVERSATIONS?

walk away / ask if that’s everything / say that’s everything / give a proper goodbye / tell their company they're done here / remain quiet / they don’t (Kadira attempts to be polite most of the time, but as the crusade goes on, she's keen to walk away.)

- WHAT SOCIAL CLASS WOULD OTHERS ASSUME YOUR CHARACTER BELONGS TO, HEARING THEM SPEAK?

upper / middle / lower (Judging by her accent alone, she's pin-pointed as lower class, regardless how she speaks.)

- IN WHAT WAYS DOES THE WAY YOUR CHARACTER SPEAK STAND OUT TO OTHERS?

accent / vocabulary / tone / level / politeness / brusqueness / it doesn’t (Kadira's accent and politeness always remains, no matter the audience she speaks to.)

Anything that wasn’t touched on?

Kadira, when upset, will go full on 'Hallit Burr' in terms of her accent. Daeran, Lann, Regill, Wenduang, Ulbrig, and Woljif are the canon characters who've had it used on them - Daeran and Woljif are neck and neck on how many times they've had it directed prior to Kadira and Daeran becoming public. @dmagedgoods's Salvadore, @iwoszareba's Knave, @baneschosen's Ven (yes, Ven is in another country, and?), @tenmillionbees's Aen, and @the-raging-tempest's Zrise have had it used against them. @thesolemnhour's Agria has heard it and fully understands it and has no impact on Aggie, what so ever.

I am tagging!:

@torntruth, @tenmillionbees, @blighted-elf, @desnas, @baneschosen, @knight-commander, @iwoszareba

[slavonicrhapsody]

gender essay anon thot again about the empyreans like. miquella being the only he/him empyrean!!! how the 5 divine candidates (ranni, malenia, miquella, marika, and radagon) all in some way have politics that in some degree reflect their gender dynamics

marika and ranni both feel the golden order is untenable and marika seeks to destroy it while ranni seeks to replace it with something hands ofd

divine masculine radagon feels the golden order is salvagable and seeks to repair the elden ring

miquella tried to follow in his fathers golden footsteps before seeing the golden order As Is could not help his sister and seeks to purify it of any polluting factors and impurities to create unalloyed gold whos only focus is establishing the guiding principles of the world and rejecting external influence and is self perpetuating

like hghghghhhh subtextual gender politics GOD

right there’s so much symbolism you can pick up on by digging into these dynamics…

Regarding Marika and Radagon, Marika is the persona that is worshipped as a god and under the Golden Order all faith stems from her (“Marika is the one true god”). But Radagon is the persona who is actively going out and accomplishing things and established the tenants and incantations of the Golden Order in the first place, not Marika.

Recently I noticed that when we look at the Scarseal and Soreseal talismans, both Marika’s and Radagon’s contain the exact same text, except Marika’s raise all mental attributes, and Radagon’s raise all physical attributes!

Marika’s Soreseal

“This legendary talisman is an eye engraved with an Elden Rune, said to be the seal of Queen Marika. Greatly raises mind, intelligence, faith, and arcane, but also increases damage taken by a similar measure. Solemn duty weighs upon the one beholden; not unlike a gnawing curse from which there is no deliverance.”

Radagon’s Soreseal

“This legendary talisman is an eye engraved with an Elden Rune, said to be the seal of King Consort Radagon. Greatly raises vigor, endurance, strength, dexterity, but also increases damage taken by a similar measure. Solemn duty weighs upon the one beholden; not unlike a gnawing curse from which there is no deliverance.”

Their gender dynamic is literally right in the game mechanics! We have Radagon portrayed as the physical body and Marika the brain; one acts on behalf of the other. Perhaps Marika became disillusioned with her prescribed role, and felt trapped and unable to act for herself? but Radagon was satisfied with his role and his illusion of autonomy and did all he could to preserve it?

This is also what makes Miquella and Malenia so interesting, because they are this exact dynamic but REVERSED… Malenia, the red-haired, is the physical body, the Lands Between’s most skilled warrior, and acts on Miquella’s behalf. Miquella, the pale-haired, is the brain, who inspires worship and devotion, yet is trapped in the eternal body of a child and cannot physically act on his own behalf. I wonder if their unique flipped gender dynamic helped allow them to see the flaws in the Golden Order in some way and informed their plans for a new order?

Ranni is unique because she isn’t really part of a dynamic, but I do think she saw how Marika essentially had power at the expense of her own autonomy and was determined to prevent that from ever happening to herself, or anyone else, by removing the gods from the equation entirely and keeping them far at bay. Which is interesting that it involves the rejection of her physical body!