#friday features

[noxhawthorne]

Abaia

Imagine, if you will, that you’ve gone on a quiet vacation to the islands of Fiji. Feel the sand under your toes, the sun on your skin, the smell of saltwater. You take an excursion, and find a beautiful, deep lake, surrounded by lush greenery. It’s a sweltering day, and the lake looks so inviting.

You walk into the lake, the cool water stinging pleasantly as you go deeper. Eventually you’re floating, unable to feel the ground beneath you. It’s calm, soothing. The local birds sing, the breeze rustles the leaves… you’re relaxed enough to let your eyes close and just drift…

Your feet touch a slippery rock, slick with grime from centuries of being submerged. You pay it no mind… until you notice the layer of grime is thick enough to give, making the rock feel almost squishy. You open your eyes. The birds have stopped singing.

You realize that you aren’t touching the rocking. It’s touching you.

The Abaia. A massive eel of Melanesian mythology, said to live at the bottom of freshwater lakes. The legend comes from the Fiji, Vanuatu, and Solomon Islands, though the exact location varies. There’s not really a specific size given, but, for an idea of what we’re talking about, the average American Eel is 16-33 inches long and about 2.5 pounds. So… bigger than that. Much bigger.

The legend of the Abaia poses it as the guardian of the lake it dwells in, protecting the inhabitants from humans looking to harm them. If a fisherman were to try and get his daily catch from the lake, or if an ignorant tourist were to throw their trash in it, the Abaia will unleash its wrath. Thrashing and twisting, it causes impressive waves that will claim the life of the perpetrator, dragging them down to the depths to remain with the great eel.

There is another version of this legend that claims the Abaia holds control over the weather via magic. The story goes that a fisherman discovered a bountiful lake, full of critters and creatures to sate his village’s hunger. He led the village to this lake, and has them help plunder it of life. The Abaia, upon seeing this, causes a torrential rainstorm, wiping out the village and drowning everyone who had harmed the creatures. The Abaia is often depicted as a motherly being to the inhabitants that share its home.

As someone who knows the basics about various eels, I have to wonder if there is some electrical aspect to this creature. Perhaps its ability to cause storms is caused by a powerful electrical charge. According to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, the Electric Eel has three organs — the main organ, the Sach’s organ, and the Hunter’s organ — that produce electric impulses used for defense, communication, navigation, and hunting. At 6-8 feet long, this eel can generate up to 800 volts of electricity. Is the Abaia electric? Being so massive in size, could its electrical shock cause a storm? It’s unlikely, yes, but an interesting thought to consider.

[the-last-dillpickle]

New fandom concept--- Fic Feature Fridays. On this day (any Friday you feel like it), you post a link to a fic you want to spread visibility to/think more people should read. There is ONE (1) rule: the fic must not have been posted or updated within the last year. The fic can be yours or anyone else's, have any number of kudos or views (tho boosting more obscure fics is encouraged), be any ship, etc. You don't have to write a short review of it or why you suggest it if you don't want to. The goal of this day is only to appreciate and give love to older fics that might get lost amongst the crowd.

[artchixs]

have more traumatized teens

[tazmiilly]

[nen-kaii]

[imaginarycyberpunk2023]

OC: Frankie Rossi aka imaginary

[fns-doodles]

[100] HAPPY FNS-DOODLES ANNIVERSARY!! 🎉🎉🎉 one year ago, this blog made its first post!

thank you to the very cool guest artists from the discord who helped out with this special 100th doodle!! @dadokid @fence-time inkyluv1 (twitter)

full drawings:

[edgeofn1ght]

it's still Friday! for a few more hours! so that means... i didn't miss fic feature Friday this week. 🫡

even tho i do ship obikin, i didn't always, but their relationship has always been important to me! and this one is great because you can read it as romantic OR platonic, which i appreciate. 💞 (and it's truly lovely either way!) acts of service ARE ways to say 'i love you.'

He already knew because the answer has always been there. Hidden in small gestures. In making his caf every morning. In having his back on the battlefield. In letting him use his lightsaber without asking first. In lecturing him for ten entire minutes every time Anakin ends up in the medbay. In letting him put his cold feet under his legs after only one long look of resigned suffering. In caring for him, no matter how it exasperates Anakin.

⇒ Other recs

[clairlycreature]

tfw ur a captive in this guy's cabin and he just waves at you innocently like he didnt just kill all ur friends earlier

bloody vers

[noxhawthorne]

Akh’lut

Also known as the kăk-whăn’-û-ghăt kǐg-û-lu’-nǐk, the Akh’lut is an orca or orca-like spirit/creature in Inuit folklore that takes the form of a wolf when on land. It’s a shapeshifter, said to change from an orca to a wolf when hungry. One can recognize their tracks easily, as they’re wolf tracks that come from the sea.

The Akh’lut is considered a dangerous creature, being known to attack Inuit fishermen when they’re on the water. It’s also been known to attack and kill people who asleep near the edge of the water. Some even say that it will go all the way to an Inuit camp just to snatch up their next victim. It has a voracious appetite, and will eat anything nearby.

There many different versions of how the Akh’lut came to be, however the most popular myth goes like this: the was a man who was obsessed with the sea. He wanted to be with it always. One day he comes back to shore and goes to his village, but he has become so obsessed with the sea that they no longer recognize him. He is banned from the village. Hungry for revenge, the man stumbles upon a pack of wolves who share his hunger (though, in more literal terms). The man becomes one with the wolves. However, he still has a deep affection for the sea, and eventually jumps in to be with it forever. In doing so, he transforms into an orca. He has found peace at last… however, whenever his hunger for revenge rears its ugly head, he comes back on land as a wolf, and feeds.

There are some possible explanations for the Akh’lut. The main one is this: Arctic wolves can swim in the water, meaning they could be the cause for the paw prints leading away from the sea. There’s also a possible explanation, but an unlikely one. It is said that when Arctic wolves are rejected from the pack, they commit suicide by jumping in the freezing water. This is highly unlikely due to survival instincts in animals, but it is worth mentioning.

Fun fact: another name for an orca is a seawolf.

[youtappedout]

oh they are going to HELL

[wastelandhell]

i cant believe its furby friday already

[rensartpark]

Lil' Funky Idea. Wanted to give him limbs somehow

Thank you to a friend for suggesting shiny limbs for fun!

[hufflepuffhabs]

Happy Ferran and Fellows on Loan Friday ❤️‍🩹

Hopefully, the weekend will be kind to us

[ectogeo-rebubbles]

Fic Feature Friday: truth-serum-cum 'verse edition!

You Make My Dreams (Cum True) by @cemetrygatess is a Garashir fic written from Garak's POV, where they discover during their first time together that Julian's cum acts like a truth serum on Garak. I always love it when Garak accidentally reveals more of the truth than he wants to, especially due to sexy and silly circumstances! The fic is so intimate and sweet and tender, and I recommend it so so much. <3

Honesty Cums Easy is a Julian POV sequel that I wrote in the same continuity as You Make My Dreams (Cum True), due to me becoming insanely obsessed with the implications of it. It's about Garak and Bashir's continued use of this truth serum cum effect as their relationship progresses. It's about trust and intimacy and kink negotiation and Garak finally getting the chemically-induced plausible deniability to say the things he wanted to say anyway. Anyway, step right into the Garashir truth serum cum 'verse and let me explain to you my hottest take of all: Elim Garak's honesty kink. XD

[noxhawthorne]

Amemasu

Look up the term ‘Amemasu’, and you might be met with the simple white-spotted char. However, tack on the word ‘yokai’, and you’ll learn of giant whales or fish from Ainu folklore that live in the lakes of northern Honshu. There are said to be multiple Amemasu, with some of the biggest living in Lake Mashū and Lake Shikotsu in Hokkaidō.

An Amemasu is a shapeshifting creature, able to turn into a human. It usually becomes a beautiful young woman with the intent of luring foolish young men to their deaths. You can identify them when in human form, however, as their skin will be cold and clammy, much like that of a fish.

There are a few different legends about the creature. Similar to Bahamut, a fish we’ll get to soon, the residents of Hokkaidō believe that the Amemasu holds up the earth. When the giant fish or whale becomes tired, it shifts, causing earthquakes. In Akita Prefecture, there’s a place called Amemasu Otoshi. According to legend, the Amemasu was so powerful that it was able to kill a hawk (despite dying, as well, in the end).

Another legend is about Lake Kussharo, also in Hokkaidō. An Amemasu resided in the lake, one with a head that looked much like a rock. One day, Otashitonkuru, an Ainu hero, took a harpoon and tried to poke the cryptid’s eyes out. The fish fought back, and, desperate to hold onto the harpoon, Otashitonkuru grabbed ahold of a large rock. The creature ended up pulling so hard that it dragged to rock into the middle of the lake, creating the small island that now sits in the middle.

Another legend comes from Minabe, Wakayama prefecture. A large whirlpool appeared in a deep pond, where a giant Amemasu lived. It would emerge from the pond every spring, taking the form of a beautiful young woman. For two or three days, it would lure men away, taking them to a place where nobody could find them. Then, one day, a cormorant dove into the pond to hunt for fish, and was swallowed by the creature. However, the Amemasu floated to the surface, dead. The cormorant burst from the creature’s body.

A final tale is about the flat Konsengen’ya plain. A deer came down to have a drink of water, and was subsequently swallowed by an Amemasu. However, the deer’s antler rip open the cryptid’s stomach, killing it. The corpse of the creature blocks the lake, making floods a real danger. So, a god in the form of a bird warns people living nearby. Those who lived upstream took to higher ground, while those who lived downstream didn’t believe the bird. They go and find the Amemasu, dragging away its body. This caused the built up water to flow downstream and wipe out everything, creating the Konsengen’ya plain.

In addition to the legends, the Amemasu is said to attack boats and cause earthquakes.