#he technically has some interesting stuff since his brother is the dark vessel and his wife is one of the wizard star fusion things but

[chisatowo]

The true pain of the random card au is that Rokka's dad is relevant to worldbuilding stuff since not only was he a light vessel during a time when the dark vessel was also a culturally respected figure but also he was the light vessel at the time period when the light god betrayed the dark god. And I don't give a shit abt him! He's just some middle aged man who gives a fuck! He's so important to this world's history and he's committing micro aggressions against his kid while reading the morning paper I don't careeee I don't wanna think abt him to flesh things out moreeeeeee

[hollenka99]

August Fic Recs

Multi-Chapter Fics

I'm never gonna leave you behind someday by Nelleva - T, 17k, completed

The year after a red sky gives people that viewed it powers, Wilbur's family dies in an attack staged by supervillains. He is discovered by Phil who takes him in indefinitely. He is allowed to heal but there is someone he misses and wishes to see again, no matter how much he's wronged him. There is some mild gore in the first chapter and the attack causes a lot of death so be wary of that but the second chapter is full of Dadza raising a teenage Wilbur. This is the first (and currently only) fic in a series.

Whispers of Red by Alexander_Wesker - T, 58k, completed

This is the sequel to Drawing Dead so I suggest you read that one first. Wilbur comes back to act as the Egg's vessel. His goal is to expand his Family and naturally, the first person he wants to join him is his little brother. Alex is able to write unsettling stuff really well and this fic is no exception. I love Eggbur but please keep him and his particularly raw diet far away from me /j.

I Was Looking for Someone by Raisans_Grapeon - T, 9k, ongoing

SBI zombie apocalypse fic where Wilbur (Ghost) is a zombie who runs into a group of three humans who recognise he's self aware and capable of relearning English. There isn't really gore/cannibalism except for one or two brief bits where it's heavily implied but not graphic despite everything being in Ghost's POV. Also, since Wilbur is learning language, whenever he hears a human conversation, the speech is presented as garbled. It takes a little effort to get the hang of deciphering what is being said but it can be done. Ghost is a sweetheart and I would absolutely protect him with my life if necessary.

Home Again, Home Again by teeth_eater - G, 33k, completed

Tommy, a human who was taken from Earth, crashes the ship he was on and becomes a stowaway on a cargo ship that happens to be manned by SBI. When they discover him living in the vents, they keep him in a cell until they are sure this member of a dangerous species won't do them harm, leading to them eventually becoming friendly. The clingyduo friendship is great. I really like 'humans are space orcs' type content and this is a great example of it. I love the worldbuilding and the thought that went into the alien designs. This is part of a series (Human Error) so there are some great scenes like Chiquitita dancing and Tommy downing 'poison' to everyone's horror after the events of this fic are over.

In the Dark Place by teasdays - T, 24k, ongoing

After November 16th, Ghostbur wakes up in Techno's house. He insists he is dead but Techno and Phil keep insisting he's not. As he adjusts to his new way of living, he has to come to terms that something bad happened before he died and that maybe none of his old friends want to hear him out. I find the exploration of 'what if Wilbur survived Nov 16th but just believes he's dead?' really interesting. I also appreciate that Techno's a bit more patient with him about his insistence that he's a ghost. The gardening scene was quite sweet too.

(Also a special mention has to go out to A Twin of Light by Alexander_Wesker (T, 205k, ongoing) since it's caused me to make a bunch of friends, including Alex themself. If you want to see cc!Wilbur and c!Wilbur become arguably the most important people to each other, I recommend this one. Worldbuilding is fantastic)

One shots

Prayers for the Ill by this_is_a_dumb_username - T, 1.5k

Tommy is diagnosed with the same chronic disease his mother died from. He catches Wilbur and the rest of his friends praying for him on various occasions as he deteriorates. Features illness and character death so stay clear if you aren’t comfortable with that.

death, be not proud, though some have called thee mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so by cptFOZZ - NR, 13k

Tommy is Death and his work sees him encouraging souls to go through the door to the After. However, he meets Wilbur and from there, things unravel as he gradually gets attached to Wilbur's family and friends. There is obviously a tw for the deaths of both humans and animals but also one of the souls he encounters is due to suicide and Tommy is fond of the bugs that follow him around. So be aware of all that, along with anything else mentioned in the tags.

Worth a Try by Solena2 - T, 2k

Eret prevents Wilbur from detonating the TNT on November 16th. I loved their dynamic of ‘traitor and imminent traitor’ and the way they are both characterised. Wilbur clearly wants to get it over with despite how many times he’s backed down and Eret wants to talk him out of it.

Little Wings by Pixelfun20 - T, 7k

Wilbur seems to have been his mother's son in appearance from day 1. Phil doesn't mind this as much anymore but when his infant son becomes irritable and seemingly inconsolable one week, he realises Wilbur might have inherited something from him after all. Essentially, Babybur starts growing wings and his parents try to comfort him through it. It's technically an ongoing fic but the only chapter feels like a one shot to me and it hasn't updated since March so I'm putting it here.

5 times being a seer changed the future, and the 1 time it set it in stone by 5ievel - NR, 7k

Wilbur has prophetic dreams and he uses them to decipher what he should look out for. They help him save Techno's life, prevent the Final Control Room and he thinks it will help him stop a traitor from using explosives. You know immediately whose name should be on his list of suspects but the last line makes all that pay off so well.

[whitewitchdani]

Laters, Baby: Chapter 6

Read Chapter 5 Here

Word Count: 2084

Pairing: Winchester!Sister x Lucifer

Warnings: angst, language

A/N: Chapter 6! I really like this chapter and I hope y’all like it too! :) let me know what you think or if you’d like to be tagged!

Laters, Baby Masterlist

Sam stood and began pacing the motel room, stopping to look out the window. The sun was up. Y/N had been gone for a couple of hours now and they still hadn’t heard anything from her. If Cas hadn’t flown out to check on her, he for damn sure would not be in this motel room just waiting. 

He took a deep breath and ran a hand over his face. She looked so distraught when she left. He just wanted to talk to her to make sure she knew that Dean’s confession changed nothing. He and Y/N were still twins; peas in a pod, two sides to the same coin and any other expression he could think of. They’d been inseparable since he could remember and he did not want that to change. She was his best friend and he wouldn’t know what to do without her. 

Sam was shaken from his internal struggle by the sound of the motel room door slamming. “She’s still not back yet??” Dean asked while setting coffee and breakfast on the table.

“No and I’m starting to get worried. She’s been gone for a while and Cas left an hour ago to check on her and I haven’t heard from him either. Should we go look for them?”

Dean sighed and took a long drink from his coffee. “Let’s eat first, give her some more time if she’s still just processing. If they’re still not back when we’re done, we’ll go look for them.”

Sam nodded at his brother as they both sat down at the table to eat. He went to take a bite of his food when Castiel burst through the door of the motel room. Sam looked the angel up and down; he looked like crap. Shit. This could not be good.

“Cas what the hell happened, man? You look like you got your ass kicked.” Dean got up to examine the cut on the angel’s forehead and looked behind him to the open motel door expecting Y/N to walk in next. “Where’s Y/N Cas?”

Cas took a deep breath, “She’s gone, Dean.”

“WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN SHE’S GONE?!” Dean bellowed in the angel’s face.

“I tried to save her Dean. We were talking in the park, I believe I was successful in helping her feel better regarding her situation, when demons appeared. Originally it was only Meg,” Dean cursed and Sam ran a hand down his face at the demons name. Would they ever be rid of her? “But then two more arrived to assist her. The two attacked me while Meg went after Y/N. She held her own but by the time I dealt with the two demons and tried to help her, Meg had rendered her unconscious and blinked away with Y/N in her arms. Most likely to Hell as I could not follow wherever it was they went.” 

Sam jumped up from the table with wide eyes, “Meg works for Lucifer, Cas. Basically his right hand since he’s been topside. Dean, if Meg has her...”

“She took her straight to Lucifer. Dammit!” Dean punched the wall in frustration.  

“Calm down! We need a plan. Lucifer is most likely in Hell; if we’re going to get Y/N out we’re going to need to find a way in. That means we need to call someone with direct access to Hell...”

“You don’t mean?” Dean asked Sam incredulously. Sam nodded sadly. 

Dean sighed and wiped his hand down his face. With a punch downward, the eldest Winchester yelled, “FUCK!”

The first thing you noticed when you started to regain consciousness was the ache in the left side of your head/face. Your mouth was also extremely dry; when you went to lick your lips, you winced as your tongue grazed your split lip. Fucking demons. You went to rub the side of your head and found you couldn’t move your hands. You looked up and saw them chained above you.

“Owwwwww. Fucking demons, man.” As soon as you moved your head the pounding worsened. You pulled on your restraints with no luck; they were completely secure. All of the movement was causing your head to pound even more. “Fucking fuck. Fucking demon bitch.”

A chuckle came from the darkness in front of you, “You have quite the mouth on you little Winchester. Don’t worry though, I kinda like it.”

You looked ahead and saw two eyes flash red. Of course it was Lucifer, should you have expected anything less? “Lucifer. Wish I could say it’s good to see you, but I’ve tried to cut down on lying through my teeth.”

The devil chuckled once more, “Like I said, doll, quite the mouth.” The devil emerged from the darkness and came to stand right in front of you. His blue eyes met yours as he moved forward and cupped your face, running his thumb over the split in your lip. He tsked, “I told them to go easy, precious cargo and all. You must’ve really pissed Meg off.”

“I may have called her ugly, and told her to tell you to shove it up your ass. And then I broke her vessels nose.” You shrugged your shoulders as best you could with your arms strung up above you. 

Lucifer laughed again. Odd, he sure does laugh a lot for being the freaking devil. “Feisty, I like it. You seem much less afraid of me than before. Have you warmed to me baby Winchester?” He asked with a smirk.

You rolled your eyes, which made you wince; your head really did hurt. “I have a name you know? And I wasn’t scared of you last time necessarily. Just kinda shocked, I guess? Not everyday the devil shows up and says ‘I’m your soulmate!’ It was half shock and half thinking you were most likely full of shit.”

He looked at you and put two fingers to his chin, “And now? Do you still think I’m full of shit?”

You sighed, “No. I know you were telling the truth. We’re really soulmates.”

His eyes went wide but the ever-present smirk remained, “Really? I’m assuming you didn’t just take me at my word, I am the devil after all.”

“Well duh. Told my brothers and Castiel what you told me, and then I got to have Cas shove his arm up my ribcage so he could touch my soul. You know the fun, excruciatingly painful stuff.” 

Lucifer’s face fell; he honestly looked upset. Did you say something wrong already? “You’re telling me my brother touched your soul?”

“Yes? He said it was the only way we could be absolutely sure. He touched it and said he could feel a connection to yours, meaning you were actually my soulmate. It’s been an interesting 12 hours let me tell you.” It hit you just how long this night had actually been. You were going on over 36 hours without sleep and were pretty sure Meg had given you a minor concussion when she knocked you out. 

Lucifer noticed that the woman in front of him was struggling to keep her eyes open. “We’ll come back to that, what in Dad’s name is wrong with you?”

You rolled your eyes for at least the hundredth time that night. “Well Lucifer, where should I start? I’m strung up by my arms in what I’m assuming is Hell, correct?” Lucifer nodded. “Your demon bitch split my lip and gave me a concussion; I haven’t slept in over 36 hours; I’m starving; oh, and tonight I’ve found out that not only is the devil my soulmate, but that my brothers aren’t even really my brothers! Yep my birth mom just ditched me on a motel doorstep. John and Dean lied to me and Sam for years.” You let out a breathy laugh and let your head loll down. You were so tired, mentally and physically.

Lucifer tilted his head at you. That certainly explained a lot. Something odd was happening though, he was feeling something for you. He felt... bad? He had the desire to comfort you and to try to make things better. What the fuck, Lucifer? She’s a human. He internally scolded himself but his new feelings won out. He sighed, “If I take you down you have to promise to behave.”

You looked up at him incredulously, “What would I do, Lucifer? I’m half unconscious and you’re a friggin’ archangel, I think I’m a bit outgunned here.”

Lucifer snorted, “Touché, baby Winchester.” He snapped his fingers and the chains disappeared, causing you to fall to the cold, stone ground with a yelp. 

“Ow,” you rubbed your head and then your wrists before standing up, “And are you going to keep calling me that? I have an actual name.” 

“I enjoy it, but since you aren’t technically a Winchester it isn’t as fun anymore. What’s your name again?” 

“Y/N. And I’m still a Winchester Lucifer, just not by blood. Speaking of blood, I can’t believe I’m about to do this, but can I ask you a favor?”

Lucifer’s eyebrows shot up and he grinned, “So eager to make a deal with the devil already Y/N?”

“No, no deals, just consolation for kidnapping me and for Meg beating the crap out of me. Can you please heal me? I’m assuming you’re going to want me conscious for whatever it is you have planned and with the concussion and lack of sleep that will be an issue very soon.”

Lucifer placed a finger to his chin as he contemplated your request. “I suppose you make a good point.” He removed his finger from his chin and placed two to your forehead. 

When he touched you, you felt the familiar soulmate connection spark through you. It was followed by the cooling sensation of his grace, its flowing tendrils moving to each part of your body to heal the wounds left behind by Meg. “There. Happy now?”

“Thank you, Lucifer. While I could still go for four hours and a sandwich, I feel better.”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. He should just kill you and get this over with. If the soulmate connection was allowed to blossom and eventually be consummated, you would be a weakness. But he couldn’t, and he was cursing his father for it. “Come with me.”

You raised an eyebrow but followed Lucifer as he exited the room and turned left into the corridor. As you followed, demons bowed to Lucifer as he passed but brought their heads up in time to glare at you. The devil bringing a human woman into Hell, a Winchester at that, was probably not an everyday occurrence. 

He stopped at an ornate door isolated at the end of a corridor, Lucifer turning to you with a smirk on his face. “This is yours. You will stay in this room when you are not with me, I certainly don’t need a Winchester running loose through Hell. Everything you will need is in here.”

You looked at him dumbfounded as he pushed the door open. The inside looked like a nice one-bedroom apartment that you’d find in a city somewhere, not deep in the bowels of Hell. As you stepped inside you entered a living area with a large couch and television along with a massive bookshelf on the wall completely filled. As you trailed your fingers along the spines you noticed they were some of your favorites: a mix of classics and new fiction. You went deeper into the apartment, passing through the exquisite kitchen and into the bedroom. In there, a king size bed sat in the middle of the room clad in red. 

“Red, Lucifer? Really? Isn’t that a bit too on the nose?”

“I’m nothing if not one for the classics.” He smirked and sat down on the edge, “There will be a demon posted outside this door at all times, the only person allowed in and out is me. If you need anything, just tell them. I have some Hell business to attend to; if I knew this place became so bureaucratic and paperwork-centric while I was away, I may have just let Crowley keep it.”

With that, Lucifer stood and exited your new, what was this place even, chambers? Upscale prison cell? You didn’t know. All you knew was that you were stuck in Hell at Lucifer’s beck and call, and that it most likely was not going to end well. 

You missed Sam and Dean.

Read Chapter 7 Here

Tag List:

@lovesamwinchester​ @tomhiddleston-is-mischief​ @loco-latte​ @stuckinsaudi1​

[chubbyooo]

Blurred Lines: Cursed Past Chapter 95 - Vaylin

I feel like I hold onto these sorta moments for ages but still hope you enjoy all the returns now we're expanding the stories :D

Kavaraa comes face to face with the former Empress of Zakuul

Kavaraa tried to keep herself from hyperventilating as Vaylin stood over her looking as scary as ever, this was so much all at once Kavaraa knew Vaylin had died; Kyradia had fought her on Odessen. But here she was standing over her angry as ever, the last time Kavaraa had encountered Vaylin she’d completely outclassed her and stopped her attempt to save Kyradia from carbonite.

Vaylin beared down on Kavaraa “who are you Jedi and why are you here, don’t make me ask again” Kavaraa shuddered she’d hoped never to encounter Vaylin again as close as Kavaraa was with Arcann his stories had only heightened her fear of Vaylin.

Kavaraa swallowed hard as she leaned back away from the saber at her throat “I’m uh Kavaraa Bysh Jedi Basen’thor and well I don’t exactly know how I got here do you?” she felt like that was a valid question for the former Empress

Vaylin seemed to frown for a second but brushed it off “you’re not the one asking questions here I could have the fleet here in a second to destroy you” Kavaraa eyes widened did she not realise?

Kavaraa cocked her head at Vaylin “you don’t know?, um Vaylin what’s the last thing you remember” she could see Vaylin twitch as she asked the question

She blinked and looked off for a second “I was fighting the Outlander in the fores…” she trailed off and frowned “no I was fighting my father with my family and the Outlander…” she looked around the room her focus no longer on Kavaraa allowing her to shuffle away from the saber “they freed me from his control…” she looked off distantly clearly confused by the memories “and then I was here” she turned back to Kavaraa a pained expression on her face

That pain quickly turned to anger as Kavaraa saw Vaylin snarl and lift a tree out of the ground and throw it at the wall, Kavaraa gulped as much as she was scared of Vaylin it was clear she needed some help otherwise she may kill Kavaraa. 

She slowly moved closer “you said you were fighting the Outlander did you win?” Vaylin’s grip was tight on her saber and as Kavaraa got close she found herself at the end of it once again

Vaylin snarled at her “what’s it to you Jedi!” Kavaraa jumped back in fright and as she did she noticed Vaylin’s expression soften in surprise

She cocked her head as Kavaraa shivered “are you scared of me?” Kavaraa looked away awkwardly was it better to lie here or be honest

She took a deep breath “I am yeah I’m sorry but you’re pretty intimidating, I’m not trying to play you or anything I’m genuinely just trying to help I don’t know my way out of here but I know it’s not at the end of your blade” Vaylin looked down dejected Kavaraa didn’t know if she was hurt by the fact she was scared of Vaylin or if it was something else “so again did you win?” Kavaraa hoped her helping Arcann could help her understand but Vaylin seemed entirely different

Vaylin lowered her saber a bit and blinked “I don’t think so, I don’t remember winning” a more frightened look was coming over Vaylin’s face

Kavaraa moved closer how on earth did she tell her this “and do you think either of you would’ve left each other the option to escape and prolong the war” Vaylin’s eyes widened as she shivered

She dropped the saber from her hand as she shuddered her mouth agape “I… I… I died she killed me and held me in her arms, I gave her no other option” Kavaraa couldn’t even imagine what she was going through right now, she knew this was the former Empress who’d done terrible things but Senya had explained how if anyone was to blame it was Valkorion and herself.

Kavaraa tried her best not to overstep Vaylin’s boundaries while still comforting her “I’m sorry Vaylin but you left us no other choice, everything Valkorion did to you was horrible you didn’t deserve any of it” Vaylin’s sadness turned to anger again

She scowled at Kavaraa “what do you know of my pain Jedi!” Kavaraa swallowed hard as she felt the force energy coming from Vaylin, she had to stay strong though if she was going to survive

Kavaraa gave the kindest smile she could “I knew your brother and I helped him come to terms with his past, he still has a long way to go but he’s not what anyone made him. He told me what Valkorion did to all of you-” Kavaraa didn’t get to finish her sentence as Vaylin tackled her to the ground

Vaylin bared her teeth at her as Kavaraa began to hyperventilate “you’re the one who turned my brother against me! With your lies of peace and forgiveness as if anyone could forgive us for what we did” Kavaraa could feel her heart rate spike as she shook from fear she didn’t realise quite how afraid she was of Vaylin

Kavaraa closed her eyes to try and fight through the fear “I’m not saying it was easy but he helped save the galaxy from Valkorion and by the sounds of it so did you, I didn’t turn your brother against you I only did what I promised Senya if you want to blame someone blame her she certainly feels guilt for what happened” as soon as Kavaraa finished she felt the grip loosen as Vaylin let go of her

She was sitting on the ground looking away “you really are scared of me aren't you” Kavaraa nodded lying seemed like it would do no good here “it’s ok I’ve done plenty to earn it” she sighed “you’re wrong though, not everyone can change I’ve had plenty of opportunities” Kavaraa sat up brushing the dirt off her

Kavaraa nodded “I don't see it quite like that you say you’ve had opportunities but they’ve always been influenced by one common villain” Vaylin still seemed angry and like she’d snap at her in a second but at least she may be getting through

Vaylin hugged her knees and mumbled “Valkorion” Kavaraa nodded “but he’s gone now?” Kavaraa nodded again and smiled

She sighed “look I don’t know if you can change, I used to think everyone could change with the right environment but I think I was wrong some people just don’t want to change and that’s that. But who knows maybe now with that part of your life gone you could and if you don’t want to then I guess I can’t help” Vaylin sighed clearly considering what Kavaraa had said

She scoffed “it doesn’t matter anyway I’m dead, I had my chance and I wasted it if we were both alive I wouldn’t have indulged this conversation I’d just have killed you on the spot, but this is the most vivid thing that’s happened since we defeated Valkorion” Kavaraa shivered at the thought glad she had some buffer to stop Vaylin’s destructive side

Kavaraa shrugged “well you say that but clearly this holocron has stopped part of your soul from passing on into the living force so you’re technically alive even if your vessel is dead, plenty of people have had multiple vessels” as much as using those tyrannical people as an example was a bad idea it may reassure the former Empress

Vaylin seemed to consider it “I guess but they were all evil and dark methods” Kavaraa nodded sadly “what do you mean about a holocron?” she asked causing Kavaraa’s eyes to widen

She explained “well that’s how I got here I noticed something familiar from a holocron in the archive I’m at and when I focussed on it I arrived here” Vaylin frowned looking around

She scowled “so I’m trapped forever in a prison, the more things change the more they stay the same” Kavaraa nodded she didn’t really have any answers for Vaylin or any solutions but she could at least try to help her, more for Arcann and Senya than anything she knew they’d appreciate this. “But you’re not here for me Kavaraa what’s the actual reason you’re here” Kavaraa was surprised by the question although true she was surprised Vaylin had the context to put it together

She looked away “well my ancestors run this archive and there’s a threat to it so I kinda gotta stay and protect it” she felt like telling the person eternally trapped in a holocron was fine she couldn’t exactly tell anyone

Vaylin clearly had given up on being aggressive accepting her fate at least for the time being “what sort of threat? I’d kill for something interesting” Kavaraa shivered knowing she meant it but while she was stuck here she may as well talk about it

She explained “well um it turns out the Emperor’s Wrath is here trying to consolidate power and I don’t exactly want her finding this place or getting herself more power” Vaylin nodded leaning against a tree

She yawned “is the wrath the tall pale one with the red robes or the red and black one with the pretty hair” Kavaraa frowned a bit at the descriptions especially because she’d fought Kyradia on multiple occasions

She let out a small chuckle “the first one, very tall, very angry and very powerful” Vaylin seemed to frown at this and turn to her

Vayin shook her head “I mean sure she’s pretty powerful but she’s so easy to get in the head of, that’s how I beat her; you just get her all angry and rage filled and she’ll start making mistakes. Fighting her isn’t about outclassing her power cause believe me even I was a little intimidated by her power, it’s about out thinking her cause she isn’t the smartest one you’ve ever seen” Kavaraa nodded surprised to be getting advice from the former Empress of all people but she did bring up a valid point

Kavaraa stroked her chin “what sorta stuff did you use to get in her head” she’d never been the trash talky type

Vaylin smiled “oh easy stuff like ‘you’re just a pawn in the emperors game’ or ‘he’s just using you you’ll never be part of his empire’ or ‘he abandoned you’ usually stuff people would say to me, although they may need to be adapted now father is well and truly disposed of” Kavaraa shivered hearing her talk so casually about her father's death but she doubted she understood what it had been like

Kavaraa nodded “I think I can work out something like that, I can’t believe I'm gonna say this but thanks Vaylin” Vaylin seemed confused by the statement

She frowned “Uh why I didn’t do anything?” Kavaraa shook her head

She smiled “seriously before this I have never come close to beating the Wrath now I have a genuine chance you just helped me out” Vaylin seemed confused and unsure what to say

She let out a deep breath “uh you’re welcome I think, I didn’t do it for you though this is just the only thing that’s been more than a vague memory for ages I’d take anything over how it feels in here” Kavaraa shivered she couldn’t imagine “can I ask how long it’s been since I uh ‘died’” Kavaraa didn’t even know how to answer that

She twiddled her thumbs “um it’s been about 2 years give or take” Vaylin’s eyes widened as she looked around

She put her hands to her temples “ugh 2 years and to me it felt like a couple days I gotta find a way out of here” she looked to Kavaraa and for a few moments clearly had to bring herself to ask something “can you uh… can you um… can you come visit me every now and again so I don’t go crazy, I’ll even help with your problems just keep me from going insane, well anymore insane” Kavaraa was surprised at the request clearly Vaylin’s initial anger had melted away when she’d realised the magnitude of her predicament but was she ready to visit someone who terrified her

She thought of Senya and Arcann and realised she had to help “ok Vaylin I’ll visit when I can but first of all I have to work out a way out of here” Vaylin nodded thinking to herself

She smiled “Maybe I can help with that” she concentrated and a quick fog built up around them and before Kavaraa knew it she was back in her chambers in the archive breathing heavily.

She gasped realising the magnitude of what just happened. She’d just found the dead former Empress Vaylin in a holocron and she was seemingly cooperating with her, Kavaraa expected it was because she had to to even think about escaping the thing. But still maybe she could do something similar to what she did with Arcann, she certainly wouldn’t mind helping the Tiralls a little more. Kavaraa picked up the holocron and looked at it with a smile, maybe she could fix them...

[therovingstar]

So I’ve been lowkey obsessed over the last several weeks with Odzaya just maxing out all the healing jobs and essentially being an “omnihealer” in canon. She already has WHM and AST under her official canon belt, but the reason I couldn’t see her going Scholar basically came down to the fact that she’s not a bookworm lol, she doesn’t do the whole research/theory/scientific speculation stuff that the Arcanists’ Guild is so known for (and I tried to get her to be, I really did; she just didn’t wanna).

But I think I may have found a way for her to go down that path and still have it be in-character. Cue another mini essay:

So back in Heavensward and Stormblood, after Odzaya (re)found her true niche as a healer, Alisaie offered to introduce her to Red Magic, specifically after it was thrown out there that Odzaya was technically proficient in Black Magic from ARR (an attempt at some soul-searching that didn’t work out, which is why she tends not to use it). Odzaya accepted, thinking it a fun idea (and feeling genuinely good about herself and her abilities for the first time in almost a decade). Well, Alphinaud, ever being in secret lowkey competition with Ali for Odzaya’s attention, suggested that she learn Scholar and/or Summoner, as well.

Odzaya had her reservations about that one. Again, the book thing. But for little brother’s sake, she tried it, and enrolled in the Arcanists’ Guild at the same time she sought out X’rhun Tia.

Long story short, one job out of the three stuck. You can probably guess which one. But just in case you can’t, just know that it’s an ongoing joke that Odzaya’s technically a school drop-out.

Needless to say, Alphinaud was sorely disappointed, especially since Odzaya proceeded to be a Red Mage for the entirety of post-SB with (a very smug) Alisaie at her side. Well, fast forward on past Shadowbringers (which Odzaya did as a Dark Knight, cuz Elidizenos made her go a little feral), and things are more or less back in a good place. Odzaya hung up the DRK mantle after its need was served, and she was back in her healer boots. Well, over the course of the research done to get the Scions back to the Source, she actually expresses interest in some of the technicalities of the whole deal, which she usually avoids and leaves to the more scholarly-minded members of the team. She even asks questions insightful enough for Beq Lugg to comment upon, prompting a conversation that just so happens to bring up her drop-out status at the Arcanists’ Guild. While the group get a good-natured chuckle out of it, Alphinaud comments in a way that makes it clear he always held out hope that she would return to the guild and give it another try.

Well, to everyone’s surprise, Odzaya shrugs and says, “I guess I could.”

“Really?” Alphinaud asks, daring to hope. “But it seemed not to resonate with you before. Why now?”

“Why not?” she replies. “It could be interesting, getting a better grasp on all of...this.” She smirks at him. “And it might rid your face of that pout. But only if you help me through the dry parts.”

“That’s practically every part,” Alisaie mutters. Alphinaud’s too busy seeing stars and planning a curriculum to pay her any mind.

And that’s how Odzaya starts on the path to becoming a nerd. I headcanon that between job quests, she’s learning largely on the First from Alphi, Urianger, and Beq Lugg, with some additional help from Y’Shtola and Ali. She tends to hang out in Il Mheg while studying; Urianger graciously offers his little cottage for her to use, which she sometimes does, but she also goes into the wilderness, where the sunshine and flora create a stimulating-enough atmosphere for her to focus. The pixies will sometimes hang with her (and play with Eos and Selene) and she also heads over to Wolekdorf and spends time with the amaro, especially (of course) Seto.

The research and books are still an obstacle, though, so I’ve decided that to help Odzaya get through them, the others leave little anecdotes in her tomes for her. Yes, the books are desecrated with margin-writing, though they are at least neat. Diagrams, SparkNotes-type explanations from her various teachers, and when Odzaya’s attention inevitably wanders, little doodles, short diary-type entries, some cooking and medicinal recipes, as well as some of the blank pages used for pressed herbs and flowers lol.

(If you look deep enough, there are also scribbled formulas in her handwriting, theories, quotes copied from other codexes and grimoires. About vessels and spirits, summoning and reincarnation, about aether manipulation, and about soul transference. And a single name attached to it all: Ardbert.)

Story-wise, post-ShB is a good time for her to learn and master SCH/SMN as they hearken back to Hausos, my personal Azem who, unlike Odzaya, was a bit of an eccentric bookworm and hardcore seeker of everything ~knowledge~. A rather appropriate reference for that part of the story, I think.

[mrsmess]

Faves and fails of SPN (season 11)

Favorite episodes in chronological order:

11:1 Out of the darkness into the fire - And Crowley out of the fire into the orgy. And poor Cass. Sam asking the relevant questions, making the relevant comments. ”We have to change”. Let’s just see how much follow through comes from it. ”Do what you do, but you have to let me do what i do too.” Mr Mess’s reaction to the Darkness being a girl ”Well, at least she’ll be Dead in like two episodes.” Lol. Also; naming the big bad The Darkness

Deputy Jenna: [about the baby] ”I have no idea what I’m doing.”

Me [in Dean-voice] ”We don’t either and our baby is the world!”

Mr Mess: ”Saving the world, one poopy diaper at a time!”

11:4 Baby - About a car. Wow. This is awesome! Technically this stopped being a rewatch two episodes back so I am ecstatic to get to see this gem of an episode for the first time! Gives me hope for the remaining seasons. Seriously though: dreamy roadtrip two brothers in a car should be an obligatory episode format at least once each season. This makes my overall top list of episodes all seasons.

11:5 Thin Lizzie - Ghostfacers-references! ”Your weird serial killed-fetish” and Cass bingeing The Wire. Lol! Wow, is this the Cheshirecat Inn? The boys are fun this episode. I have to remember that most of my issues w Supernatural is surrounding the intro- and outroepisodes and that the best stuff is always in the gooey middle of the seasons. Interesting thoughts on how differently soullessness affects people.

11:7 Plush - Oh yes! Oh yes! Yes, officer? A plush bunny killed my worthless husband. Here for it. Sam can’t look at the clown! I’m dying. Oh! Full on clown-time! And Donna! I’m so happy! The story’s sad too.

11:8 Just my imagination - Sparkles! Nooooo! Brilliant concept! Sam has an imaginary friend <3 The boys dressing up as Mr Rogers. My heart. Dean trying to name creatures: a manicorn, werepire. :D The Totoro-reference. The conclusion is kinda lame and unearned, but I love the episode anyway. ”Okay. Not happening. Good talk.”

11:10 The devil in the details - Lucifer bringing it. Making very good points. Ambriel is cute, and the Darkness wearing literal Darkness - neat . But the whole thing about the brothers, Cass, being vulnerable to negging and plan manipulation centered around their relationship and importance is kinda... old? Would they even listen to trash talk at this point? The reference to Lucifer, the comic.

11:11 Into the mystic - good song, freaky banshee. And hey, Supernatural, I was gonna scold you for going all ick at age differences under the circumstances, but then: The brothers talking about the golden girls. Lol. Eileen, and Mildred - yay! Kudos to the show’s contingency having Sam apologize for the first half of season 8. Less kudos for blaming a fictional character for real life bad writing. #notforgivennotforgotten.

11:12 Don’t you forget about me - YES. Just yes. Ramdeen and Newton are both great and I love ’em. I love Dean and Sam at the dinner table.

11:14 The vessel - time for a retro nazi adventure! I love it, obviously.

11:16 Safe house - I love monster of the week stuff! But it’s rly getting hilarious, the brothers having the exact same discussion everytime they work a case inrelated to the season’s big bad. Especially since I need zero explanation. Got all the rationale built in right here *taps head*. Bobby! Oh god! And Rufus! This episode needs no more. ”Not it!” And a losing game of rock-paper-scissors. Lol. ”How messed up is our lives that you seeing a vision of me dead, is actually kind of comforting?” True.

11:17 Red meat - Yeah I get it, this is a good episode- tight and terrifying, and Sam is one badass motherfucker, but Dean! Going straight for the dealmaking w/o even making sure Sam’s dead. That is hilarious. ”He was just mostly dead.” Dying!

11:19 The chitters - I like this, mostly because I have no idea what’s going on. Partly because of the reference to It. Because of the gay hunters. The brothers being funny w each other. Monsters in the woods, my kinda shit.

Fail episodes in chronological order:

11:21 All in the family - Hey, god? You should probably be careful who you call a disappointment. Also, I’m laughing at how mismatched Dean and Amara are, and she’s so confused by his hesitation, it’s hilarious.

11:20 Don’t call me Shurley - Meta. Please tell me Chuck isn’t actually god. Fine. Chuck is god. God is Chuck. Guess that explains him being so useless. Goodness! When did Metatron become one of the good guys?

Honorable mentions:

The witch in Love hurts - I like her.

Oh brother where art thou is mostly main plotline. Yawn. Bring back Sully! But Lucifer appearing in the cage - *chills* And Rowena having her fangirl moments is pretty funny.

Lucifer and Crowley measuring up, power, sass- and it’s awesome!

Teenage!Lucifer is a it of fun. The brothers co-counselling God and Lucifer, lovely.

Things that makes you go hmm:

The fact that Lucifer needs consent from other angels to possess them, I would’ve thought it a bit more interesting if he didn’t. It would make an interesting point about free will and the lack of it, and it would spare Cass from looking stupid.

Didn’t Sam kill the Darkness sickness with fire in like the first episode? Why doesn’t he do that in Don’t call me Shurley?

Summing up:

Darnit I am enjoying this season. It’s frickin comforting. But the finale is a bit of a let down, and I’m never anything but annoyed with Amara. But then again, kudos for having a finale w some kind of peaceful sollution .

[cherokeegal1975]

Chapter 1 of “Unexpected Cargo” by Meriah Smith

Running       A desperate man fled through a desolate landscape east towards the safety of the weathered stones ahead.  He hoped he had lost his pursuers for good this time.  The day was already beginning to grow hot and he carried no water, no food and no gear to help him to survive for long and he needed to find shelter from the desert sun until nightfall.  His dust colored robes and pants billowed back in the rising wind and he worried that a sandstorm might be approaching.  It would a blessing if he found shelter in time.       Jonathan Taylor Smith, who was sometimes also known as Desert Rat, didn't really know why he was being pursued so determinedly across the Red Sands Desert by King Richard's personal guards.  He was just a political nobody that transported cargo and passengers; offered his services in various trades in general labor now and again.  He had made himself an excellent reputation for always delivering his cargo to where it needed to go on time.       Admittedly, not all of his cargo and business ventures were technically legal, but he never hauled anything immoral like slaves bound for the market (except on the rare occasions when he planned to liberate them), narcotics for pleasure or cargo meant for harm like weapons.  Of course his trade might have been the reason why he was now being hunted, Johnny reflected as he tried to run even faster in spite of his exhaustion.  They thought he had something they wanted.       Just the night before they had captured his sand ship (a kind of multi-functional low flying hover craft that resembled a train) after a long chase along a dirt road that led away from the little trading post he had just left behind at the breakneck speed of nearly two hundred miles per hour.  To the observer, his rust colored vessel looked like a boxy and ponderous near derelict, but it was capable of going over terrain that most wheeled vehicles would have difficulty with or found impossible to traverse.  His sand ship could travel at greater speeds than one's initial impression would suggest as it sat still or floated slowly, almost silently over the ground.       It could turn on a stone, stop dead in a heartbeat and accelerate from zero to one hundred and eighty in sixty seconds flat.  It's interior and exterior were spelled to handle the physical stresses of the sudden shifts in speed without damaging itself, its cargo or its passengers.  No matter how fast his sand ship sped above the ground, his ship and his cargo never suffered from the additional g-forces.  The spells kept gravity at a steady normal, as if it were standing still.       Johnny mentally cursed and mourned the loss of his sand ship as he panted through parched lips and his thick leather boots beat the ground with every running step.  It had been his home as well has his main source of his livelihood and he was uncertain if he would ever get it back.       However, he was not so blinded by the loss of all of his possessions that he couldn't remember to be grateful that he escaped before the guards or Prince Richard decided on the best way to kill him.  And he thanked the Goddess of all Creation with every fiber of his being that they didn't catch Goldie and Little Girl.       They would have killed Goldie outright and sold Little Girl back into slavery as a gladiator in the worst blood sport events some of the oasis towns had to offer.  The very thought of Goldie dead and Little Girl winding up mad and broken of spirit from the abuse of her captors and fighting life and death battles just for entertainment, squeezed his heart with fear and worry.  He would die to protect them both.       He spared a glance up at the sky and was rewarded once again with the form of a young dragon leading him on towards the safety of the rocks and water just ahead.  She carried what little supplies she managed to recover, with Goldie clinging to the base of her neck. This was his dragon that he had rescued from slavery and then adopted as his own daughter.  He called her Little Girl because he couldn't think of what else to call her and she refused to respond to any other name.  It wasn't her true name, neither he or Little Girl knew it.  They hoped to find it together someday, if they survived being hunted.       Little Girl would have let him ride her across the skies along with the rest of what she was carrying if she could have, but she was still too small to bear his weight.  In her true form she was not much bigger than a Great Dane and she was yet unable to make herself any bigger by shape shifting alone.  One day she would grow to the size of an African bull elephant, but she was only about ten years old now, not much more than a baby in dragon terms.  She could only lead him on and carry Goldie the female desert rat he had befriended as a boy.       He staggered up a long steep grade that led up to the big jagged rocks he was headed for.  Just a bit farther...just a bit farther...then they could rest. Even now he could see the cave entrance that didn't look to be more than a mere shallow crack.  He knew there was a concealed passage just to the right once he squeezed past the narrow opening.  There was good shelter inside and a pool of spring water, its overflow trickled further back into the cave system, so no one from the outside would discover there was water here.  Unless they had the assistance of a desert rat, a dragon's unfailing ability to find water even when it was miles away, plus his own working knowledge of the local landscape.       His hunters neither had the assistance of his companions nor possessed his intimate knowledge of the desert.  No self-respecting dragon would willingly permit herself to be domesticated by anyone and the royal guards hated desert rats.  Like most city dwellers, they tended to kill them on sight whenever possible, which was not easy to do.  Desert rats were intelligent, opportunistic, highly alert and magically gifted.         Anyone trading in grains or other edible food stuffs had a terrible time keeping the tenacious rodents out of their stores.  They could bring a trader to ruin in a matter of days without the proper wards to keep them out.       Johnny stumbled and fell gasping; another one of those damned cramps had him in its grips again.  He didn't know the source of what ailed him, though he suspected magic. The source of that magic might have been the princess that found him eight days before.  She was recently widowed when her husband was killed for the throne by his younger brother.  She had fled for her life, found Johnny and asked for his help.       Warning bells went off in his head, but one look at those big dark eyes tearing up after he initially refused her and he had to relent.  Johnny was tough as nails, resourceful and capable of cold practicality when needed.  Yet by no means was he heartless; it was both his strength and sometimes his weakness.  His good nature got him into trouble more than once in his thirty years of life.       The princess was a competent white witch; she had drugged him somehow or cast a sleep spell on him shortly after he agreed to help her.  When he had awakened, she gave him the royal seal, asked him to keep it safe for her until she contacted him again and requested its return.       He accepted the task along with twenty-five pieces gold as a retainer.  Yet he had sensed some other motive and that keeping the royal seal safe was just a cover for the real reason she needed his help.       Before he could discover the truth, they had been attacked by Prince Richard's guards.  He made his escape at Princess Elena's barked command to go while her own guards fought to protect her. He liked Princes Elena, but he wanted nothing to do with politics.  Getting too much attention from royalty meant they might discover the less than legal cargo he sometimes carried.  He would honor the contract that he made with the Princess to the best of his ability; he had a reputation to maintain.  Besides, Elena could take care of herself.  In addition to her personal guards she was powerful in her magics.       Johnny had no knack for spells himself, so he could not divine what the princess had done to him while he lay in his enchanted stupor.  Nor had he been able to ask any practitioners of magic along his usual trade routes.  Since agreeing to help the Princess, every time he stopped for more than a few hours, Prince Richard's guards would find him again.  Why Prince Richard wanted that stupid hunk of metal bad enough to kill him for, he didn't know.       The cramps started just twelve hours after he had escaped capture from the royal guards.  They started as annoying twinges he forgot about as soon as they passed, but the steadily became worse.  The cramps would go from a dull pain nothing would fix, to so agonizing that it left him sick and weak until it passed and he could catch his breath.  The constant dull pain passed in a couple of days, but the periodic attacks would come and go without warning.       After four days of this, he realized couldn't continue business while trying to hide from the guards.  So, he stocked up on extra supplies and headed out into the deep desert intending to stay there until things cooled down and Prince Richard lost interest in him.       For three days the ruse seemed to work, relatively few people dared to live in the largely unmapped and completely untamed wilderness where water sources were unknown to the city dwellers and royal houses of the Red Sands.  Johnny had grown up there and had lived with a nomadic tribe of honorable thieves since he was twelve years old.  He knew how to survive in the desert far better than any of the royal guards that were chasing him.       Then somehow they located him, after he had passed briefly through a tiny trading post looking for any useful local gossip.  They chased him down with their heavy wheeled vehicles after he and his family had fled back into the Dune Lady, driving away as fast as his sand ship could go.       He might have gotten away if they didn't have a powerful armor piercing rifle that took out his main engine before he could make it to terrain too rough for them to cross at any great speed. Little Girl had been sitting in the passenger seat in her child form holding Goldie in her lap when the sand ship suddenly dropped out of the air and skidded to a halt in a cloud of dust, nearly tipping over sideways more than once as it came to rest.       "Get out!"  Johnny had ordered desperately as he leaned over them and shoved open the passenger door.  "Take Goldie and fly away from here!  Go find the other dragons and stay with them!  I will catch up when I can."       "Daddy, no!" she cried in protest as she hugged the frightened rat to her bare chest, terrified tears running down her cheeks.       Already he could hear the guards approaching through the rapidly dissipating dust cloud.  He couldn't fight them all, defend them both and he wasn't fast enough to escape them on foot.  He had to get Little Girl to flee.       "GO!!!" he shouted at her with a gentle shove toward the open door.  "Fly into the sun as fast as you can!  Do it now!"       With a sob, the brave and beautiful child tumbled out of the passenger door and shifted into her true form with Goldie still in her arms.  She did as she was told, flying into the sun as fast as she could. The guards fired their guns at her, blinded by the bright sun they missed their target and she was soon out of sight altogether.       They had hauled him out of his broken ship and attempted to subdue him with great difficulty.  He knew he couldn't fight them all, but he was determined to kill as many as he could before they killed him.  He could at least buy Little Girl and Goldie some more time to get away. He managed to break free of the first guard that grabbed him, killing that one first with his pistol and then several more.  They rushed him before he could reload, but he managed to kill three more with his curved short sword.       He might have brought down a few more, possibly even escaped in spite of his initial misgivings, if he hadn't come down with another attack of those damned debilitating cramps that caught him by surprise and involuntarily doubled him over in agony. Johnny cursed the princess under his breath, face pressed in the dirt, as they pinned him to the ground and took his sword.  They tied his hands behind his back with rough hemp ropes and hobbled his feet then stood him up again.       He watched helplessly as they ransacked his sand ship's cargo hold, tore up his and Little Girl's few personal belongings and maliciously blew small holes into his ship's hull with their fire arms after they finished with their reckless search of his ship's interior.       They found the seal.  He didn't have time to hide the troublesome thing while he was busy running and hiding in the oasis towns that were his usual haunts.  They "officially" declared him a thief, a murderer, and a traitor to the crown and he was to await judgment by his Highness King Richard...blah, blah, blah...       Johnny didn't care, all he wanted was to escape, with his sand ship if possible and find Little Girl and Goldie.  He wasn't loyal to any established government.  How could he be a traitor to a kingdom that he was not a citizen of?       The sun was setting when he had finally been captured.  He soon learned that Prince Richard himself was coming in person to see him.  The guards' orders were to remain until he arrived early the next morning.       Johnny's heart sank.  A personal visit by royalty in the middle of nowhere couldn't be good news.  Out here, one could get away with murder and worse without anyone in polite society being any the wiser. The guards didn't feed him or give him any water.  They kept his confiscated supplies and their own to themselves.  Laughing and gaming with cards or dice, they would sometimes try to torment him by offering him food and water then denying it.  After the second time, Johnny just ignored them, laid down and tried to rest as the night cooled uncomfortably.         He didn't know how long he lay there, shivering on the still warm sand in the cold air.  They had not provided him with a fire to keep warm and his only company was a single guard that watched over him grimly.  It was clear to Johnny that he would rather be gaming with the others.       Sometime later, he heard his guard say with a nasty chuckle, "Have a drink!"       Johnny opened his eyes and then rolled out of the way barely in time to avoid being urinated on.  The guards all looked up, laughed at him and cheered his antagonist as he put his private parts back into his loose fitting grey pants.  They laughed again when Johnny doubled over in pain as he lay on his side, trying not to cry out as his lower belly cramped up.  The mysterious attacks never lasted long, but they left him sweating and sick to his stomach.  So far he managed to avoid vomiting; he needed to conserve his body fluids as much as possible.       He didn't know how he was going to escape in his current condition, but he was determined to try once the opportunity presented itself.  Until then, he let the guards think he was completely subdued.  He tried to make himself comfortable on the sand again, trying not to shiver, trying to will his stomach to settle and trying to ignore the increasing ache in his limbs from being tied up for so long.       Then to everyone's surprise off to the west, came a sweet singing voice with words no one could quite make out.  It was haunting, achingly beautiful and filled with such longing that tears were brought to Johnny's eyes.  He knew who it was and prayed that Little Girl would come back to her senses and fly away again.       Even a few of the royal guards started to sniffle quietly; it would take a heart of stone not to be moved by the Little Girl's singing.  Their leader barked an order for some of his underlings to go find the singer and bring her to him.       While everyone was distracted by Little Girl, there was a soft almost inaudible scuffling coming up from behind him, then a tugging sensation at his wrists.  Johnny smiled, he didn't know whether to praise or reprimand Little Girl and Goldie for coming up with this plan.  He feared that they may be all killed before he got the chance to either.  Goldie continued to gnaw as fast as she could through the tough ropes at his wrists from inside of his left sleeve so the guards wouldn't spot her.  It was a good thing that Johnny's sleeves were so loose fitting because Goldie was the size of a small domestic cat.  In about thirty seconds his rat's teeth made short work of the rough hemp rope and then she scrambled silently to chew through the rope binding his feet while hiding inside his loose pants leg.       By now, all the guards were straining to see who the singer was through the darkness of the moonless night.  Little Girl kept eluding the guards hunting her as she kept singing, no easy feat, even for a dragon.       Johnny resisted the urge to sit up and stretch his limbs and instead remained unmoving with his hands still behind his back.  He planned to wait until the last second to make a run for it.  He looked up carefully at the guard standing next to him, he was staring fixedly to the west, head slightly cocked and listening intently.       Goldie cut his ankles free and hurried back to his hands, pressing her furry back into his palms.  To his surprise, a small sheathed hunting knife was strapped to her back by a leather cord.  He grasped the hilt with his right hand and Goldie backed up to free the blade from its sheathe.       Suddenly she leapt up onto Johnny's shoulder and then launched herself at his guard's black bearded face.  She went for his eyes, viciously tearing at them with her sharp rat teeth before the man managed to dislodge his attacker.  Johnny was on him a second after the guard had roughly dislodged the rat from his face with a startled cry of pain and revulsion.  In one practiced move slit his throat to keep him from calling for help or try to stop Johnny from escaping.         His limbs aching and stiff, Johnny none the less managed to flee with as much speed as his long legs would carry him, a blood stained Goldie following close behind at his heels.  Fortunately, none of the blood was hers; she had managed to escape injury when the guard had thrown her.       It only took a few seconds for his captors to realize what happened and they were after him with shouts and ringing explosions of gunfire.  Little Girl circled silently as an owl above Johnny just out of range of the firelight, so she was nearly invisible in the darkness.  Whenever a guard got to close to her father she spat fire balls at them with deadly accuracy and neatly evaded being shot by their fellows, flying quickly away from the area she had launched her fireballs; making herself an unpredictable and elusive target.  She hated to use her fire on living things, but she would not allow the men to hurt her father.       Johnny ignored the screams as they burned and he fled deeper and deeper into the desert.  He stayed in the scant scrub and rocky places where the guard's vehicles couldn't go as easily as he and his companions did.  The guards knew that so they continued to chase him on foot, but they couldn't keep up for long.  For all of their special training, compared to him, they were soft and a little out of shape.  They couldn't run in the desert all night with barely a pause.  Johnny however could, because he had great stamina built up from many years of hard work in harsh conditions.       And he had two other boons in his favor that they didn't have, he had a dragon and a high steep cliff looming ahead of him.  At just inches above six feet tall, Johnny knew that his lean frame was too much weight for Little Girl to carry any distance; however she was strong enough to slow his fall.       "We got him men!"  shouted their leader from some distance behind as they tracked him with their electric torches.  They saw the cliff too and assumed that he would stop once he got the edge.       "Goldie?" he panted as he pointed to the cliff's edge.       "Okay go," she squeaked as she guessed his plan.  "Meet you below."  Then she was gone, vanished into thin air.       Trusting that Little Girl would see what he was up to and in total confidence in her, he ran even faster, almost heedless of his footing as he fled towards the cliff.       "HEY!  He's going to jump!"  Someone shouted.       ZZZZZING!  A bullet was fired at his shoulder with the intent of slowing him down, but missed in a flash of greenish light he saw out of the corner of his eye.       Little Girl hit the marksman in the chest with a fireball and he fell screaming and rolling in the dirt, trying to put it out.       Too busy running for his life to contemplate the significance of what he had just seen in that green flash of light, Johnny filed it away in his mind for later and kept moving.       "He's warded!" another guard shouted.  "SHIT!"       BANG-BANG!   "Where is that fire coming from?"  "Watch out!"  "Hurry up!  Don't let the prisoner get away!"         The shouts of the guards barely registered in Johnny's mind.  Just then he reached the edge of the cliff, heart leaping even higher into his throat than he knew possible, he gathered himself up and jumped as hard as he could before he lost his nerve.       Little Girl screaming in horrified protest as he fell with his arms spread wide, she dove after him, catching him in a matter of milliseconds after his leap of faith. Johnny got a vague impression of a small dark mass falling past him as she caught him.  She had been carrying something and had dropped it to be rid of the extra weight. Smooth scaled forelegs wrapped around his upper torso just under his arms, her hot breath gusting in desperate pants just above his head, Little Girl's feathered wings beat frantically to slow his decent to the rocky ground below.       Johnny did his best to help her by trying not to move too much and cause his weight to shift around.  He also tried to not act as terrified as he felt.  If he panicked so would she, possibly causing her to make a fatal mistake.       Thanks to the moonless sky, he couldn't see anything beyond Little Girl's beating wings.  Below, it was almost pitch black at the base of the cliff and he couldn't see how fast they were descending.  Fortunately Little Girl's eyes would have no trouble seeing in the dark; she could see well enough for both of them.       Little Girl made high distressed whistling noises every exhale as she strained to save her father's life.  Her wings beat harder as she redoubled her efforts to slow them down and he could literally feel her frantically slamming heartbeat between his shoulder blades where her chest was pressed firmly up against him.       The controlled fall and the rush of wind seemed to take forever and Johnny began to worry they might not make it.  Then he could just make out the starlit ground a few yards below his hanging feet.  It was coming up fast, almost too fast.  He gritted his teeth and braced for impact and he resisted the urge to tell Little Girl to slow down; he knew she was doing her best.       "OOOFF!" he said as the wind was knocked out of him as he finally hit the ground and tumbled sideways.  He nearly slammed into a thorn bush when she was forced to drop him a couple of feet off the ground to avoid crash landing on top of him and injuring them both with the impact.  Fortunately the satchel Little Girl had dropped had landed in front of the bush and it served to stop his roll before he wound up in a rather prickly situation.       He sat up panting and looked around to see if Little Girl was alright.  She was fine...and she was seriously pissed off.  She had landed a few feet away to his left with her eagle wings and elongated triangular head drooping tiredly.  Tongue lolling, her mouth hung agape as she panted hard to catch her breath, causing her flanks to heave with every inhale and exhale.  Her furiously glaring yellow gold eyes flashed dimly in the starlight as they fixed on him when she lifted her head.  They were wet with tears that had been blown back during their decent.  Her tail lashed back and forth like an angry cat.  Her jaws still hanging open as she breathed in great steaming gusts of the cold night air, she bared her fangs and emitted a short growl.       "Sorry Sweetie," Johnny apologized with complete sincerity as he tried to catch his own breath.  "I'll make it up to you, alright?"       Little Girl barked angrily, hopped on her forelegs, landing stiffly with a soft thump and kicking up small puffs of dust with impact of her front feet.  Before she could make any further comment, her attention was suddenly diverted by a sound Johnny didn't catch at first.  The shadowy form of her head had whipped to the right and upward, then she snarled viciously.       Then he heard it as Goldie finally came out of hiding and curled up in his lap.  Engine noise from some of the trucks as the guards started them.  He knew there was a way to drive down from up there and it would be only a matter of time before they found it.       He turned to Little Girl and asked, "Can you fly?"       Little Girl lifted her wings experimentally and then chuffed an affirmative.       "Good."  Johnny grabbed the satchel with its unknown contents.  Untying the sheathe from Goldie's back, he replaced the knife he had somehow managed to hang on to, placed both in the sack and gently tossed it to Little Girl.  She caught it deftly in her forepaws as Johnny stood up with Goldie in his arms and placed her on Little Girl's withers.       Goldie clung tightly to the dragon's feather mane with all four feet, readying herself for takeoff.  Little Girl launched herself up into the air with Johnny running along behind her.       They went like this all night, stopping only briefly to catch their breaths.  Luckily, Johnny's attacks were not frequent and he managed to recover quickly enough not to slow them down too much.

(This book can be purchased as a paperback book or as a Kindle on Amazon)

[avalonsilver]

Supernatural questions

SPN Questions Game!

I was tagged by @lovedsammy

Thank you! I appreciate it. Sorry this took so long. It was fun answering the questions though. :-)

1. When did you start watching Supernatural? The night the show first premiered on Sept. 13, 2005 (according to Google). I knew Jensen and Jared from other shows (more recently at that time, Jensen's recurring role on Smallville and then Jared on Gilmore Girls) and was curious. Sci-fi/fantasy is a fav genre for me, so Supernatural seemed right up my alley (the horror/gory aspects sometimes was a little much for me, but the character dynamics keep me watching). I watched the show regularly for the first five seasons. What got me to fall in love with the show was a small scene in the first episode.  (rest under the cut)

That was when Dean answers Sam's belief about Dean doing this alone [find their Dad] with a "Yeah, well, I don't want to." The way this line was delivered by Jensen... it just showed a vulnerability in Dean. It showed what sort of character Dean was -- that he needed, wanted his brother by his side. That moment left me wanting to learn more about Sam and Dean, and I cared about their journey in each episode. After the Season 5 finale, I stopped watching the show regularly. I watched the first few eps of Season 6 I believe, but they failed to hold my interest. Not enough Cas I guess (I loved him in Seasons 4 and 5 and his character development in those two seasons). I randomly watched a few Season 7 episodes when they aired (the one with Charisma Carpenter & James Marsters (7x05) and the Eliot Ness episode (7x12)). I was wondering where Cas was at as I didn't really know then what had happened to him. Finally, about five years later, when Season 13 was airing, I fell back into watching the show. I saw War of the Worlds 13x07 live without much of an idea of what had gone on in the show in the last few years. So I had no idea that Sam and Dean now called this bunker their home. It was certainly an experience watching that episode being pretty confused about things. The mid-season finale/"The Bad Place" really peaked my interest that I should catch up with this show again. Jack got me curious. I ended up watching the Season 13 finale live. 

Over the summer, I binge-watched the seasons I missed post-Season 5. I watched the episodes I missed in Season 13 first. Then I went through Seasons 6, 9, 10 and 11 (still working on Season 12- finished through 12x08). With Seasons 7 & 8, I mainly watched the episodes where Cas appeared (with S7, that made the season go fast for me since he was only in five episodes... I did see 7x03 though because of Colin Ford. He is my favorite version of "young Sam"... and catching up with the show, it was a nice surprise that he returned in Season 7). I am planning to see those S7 & 8 episodes I skipped over-- feel kind of bad for not watching those seasons completely.

2. Who is your favorite in TFW? Castiel -- I looked forward to his scenes back in Seasons 4 and 5. His journey since then has been interesting to watch. While his development in Season 6 was hard to see unfold, I see it as the unfortunate fallout from averting the apocalypse. It was a win that TFW stopped the apocalypse particularly through Sam's sacrifice. But sadly, Cas's desire to prevent Apocalypse Take 2 from happening caused him to go to dark places -- leaving TFW fractured. I think his experience as a human was one of the best things that happened to him-- it really helped him be more compassionate and understanding-- or just really bring out what Cas already had inside him. I still prefer him to be an angel though (I have a weakness for "superpowers"...like the glowy eyes/healing...). But I appreciate that Cas did experience being human and learned something valuable from that.

3. Who is your least favorite in TFW? Dean, although it's hard to choose a least favorite. Each one has their good and bad traits. Dean's harsh treatment of Jack in Season 13 is not something I can brush aside completely. So that's why Dean comes to mind. Dean has gotten better with Jack, true, but his early S13 handling of Jack while Sam pleaded with Dean to give Jack a chance is still hard to forget.

4. Tag your top 5 Supernatural blogs. (I think most everyone has done these questions, so below are just the Supernatural blogs I like checking out) Let’s see… I tag: @hallowedbecastiel, @lovedsammy @flightoftheseraph​, @soluscheese, @castielisourhero, @sastiel-daily, @canonspngifs

5. Who is your favorite character (not including TFW)? Bobby Singer, although I guess he can be considered an honorary member of TFW. I have not seen the episode where he dies (7x10), but I plan to and I know it'll leave me teary-eyed I'm sure. But seeing the episodes where he returns in some capacity (10x17 "Inside Man" -- so much love for that episode, and 11x16 "Safe House") got me really emotional. That letter to Sam in 10x17, and Dean figuring he and Bobby were there at the same time in that house thanks to some time-wimey explanation... it just made me wish Bobby was still alive. He was really like a father to Sam and Dean and it'll certainly be hard to watch those early seasons with Bobby -- knowing now that he's gone. At least he's in Heaven. I want to add Jack too-- even if he is a part of TFW, but technically it's TFW 2.0 for him, so he does sort of count I guess (I'm reaching here, I know, but couldn't resist). Mostly because his character got me curious and led me to watching all of Season 13 and motivating me to finally catch up with the seasons I've missed of the show. Seeing all the crap that Sam had been through with Lucifer post-Season 5 made his willingness to help Jack, Lucifer's son, all the more compelling.

6. Who is your favorite woman in Supernatural? As far as a female character who's currently still alive, Rowena is pretty awesome -- some of her outfits have been gorgeous. And there's the 13x19 scene on the phone where she flirts with Cas --"oh is the handsome angel there with you? Hello, Tweetie Pie." was amusing in how it left Cas a little flustered and off-footed in his response. Considering back at the end of Season 10, Rowena cursed him with that "attack dog" spell causing Cas some considerable misery... it's just so like the show for the pair of them to be sort of chill with one another now. Cas still doesn't quite know how to take flirtations-- it's endearing. Also, due to my summer rewatch, I really enjoyed Meg 2.0's character. I loved her dynamic with Cas and was sad when she died. I love that she saw Cas as "her unicorn." Rachel Miner did a great job with the character of Meg. I'll never forget that moment in 6x10 when Meg made out with Cas.

7. John or Mary? Mary (I haven't seen all of Season 12 and did hear her storyline had its issues, but from what I know about her, I prefer her to John). Watching the 300th episode caused me to warm up to John again. I'm glad Sam and Dean got some closure with him. I think I blame the background music sometimes used during the John moments... it got me all nostalgic and emotional. I enjoyed Mary in Season 13 and being protective of Jack -- to where she decided to stay with him even if it meant needing to leave the camp because AU! Bobby was suspicious of Jack's half-angel status. So I'll stick with Mary on this one.

8. What were your first opinions of Sam, Dean, Cas, and Jack? Sam: I thought he was a compelling character. He was like the "regular guy" character at the beginning helping to introduce the audience into the strange world of hunting the supernatural his family was a part of. I took a television course back in college, so this kind of stuff was discussed, bear with me. lol ... as the show went on, it was ironic that he was the one with psychic powers, the demon blood and was the "true vessel" for Lucifer. After playing catch up with the show post-Season 5, I feel so bad for the crap Sam has gone through particularly with Lucifer. It has been a long time for me, so I can't exactly remember my first impression of Sam. After seeing Jared on Gilmore Girls, I think I just automatically decided to find any character he played likable since I generally liked his character on Gilmore Girls. It was sad how badly Sam wanted to live a normal/safe life with Jess in the pilot but that wasn't in the cards for him.

Dean: I found his "devil may care" attitude kind of cool, but as brought up earlier, I liked that he cares about family. That he came to get Sam because he needed him by his side to search for their Dad. Even despite the big fight that was close to John disowning Sam, Dean wanted to make the effort to mend bridges. Dean took the chance that Sam would still care about their Dad's well-being despite the big fight. Or maybe Dean knew that deep down, Sam would agree to help -- as after all, Dean practically raised him so he obviously knew Sam pretty well (even if he didn't quite understand Sam's strong desire to head to university and try for an "normal apple pie life.")

Cas: He was a big part why I was excited for Seasons 4 and 5 when they were airing. Although in retrospect, he didn't really have a lot of scenes in S4 &5. I just ended up being grateful for what we did get back then. I liked how though seemed alien in his first appearance and interaction with Dean, there were hints that Cas did care and wasn't a cold, unfeeling angel. Like I couldn't quite hate him completely for burning out Pamela's eyes even though I wanted to initially. Cas just seemed a little regretful about that, so I could see sparks of opportunity for character growth. I need to rewatch the scene again, but I vaguely recall Cas looked sad/regretful about Pamela's fate. And when he told Dean, "You don't think you deserve to be saved,"-- the way the line was delivered got me even more curious about Cas. Then his end of episode appearance in 4x02 freaked me out a bit because he was intense there. But honestly, during most of that 4x02 scene, I was bothered by his lips being dry/cracked... why I still remember this after all these years, IDEK. Still wish someone had given him some chapstick or something then. lol 

Jack: The first episode I saw him in was the mid-season 13 finale. I was interested in Jack and learning more about him... I'm sure it would have been better if I'd seen those earlier Season 13 episodes to understand Jack better. I really enjoyed how everything went down in 13x09 and how climactic it ended up being. The last shot of Jack in "Apocalypse World" with him looking up at Mary in a cage was a well-done shot. After seeing 13x01, I liked Jack's curiosity about the world and his love of nougat. He seemed like a sweet and caring person and eager to please.

9. What’s your favorite season? Season 1. It was when I first started watching and was just a pretty solid season overall. The cliffhanger was evil, but hell, that really got me on the board to continue with this show. Plus, the memorable lines --"driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole", "hope your apple pie was freakin' worth it!" and I loved the moment of Dean bringing peanut M&Ms as one of his provisions in 1x02 "Wendigo" (and they did prove useful in the end in tracking him down). It's tempting to say a season with Cas too because I like his character. With Cas, probably Season 10 since I enjoyed his interactions with Claire. Also, I love 10x17 so much (just made me miss Bobby and that end montage is an automatic rewatch for me). Although Season 4 was good too with Castiel's introduction. I like how his character developed to the point where he was prepared to fight off archangels to stop the apocalypse. Even if this defied the other angels wanting the apocalypse to come to fruition. Honorary mention to Season 13 mostly for the journey of Sam and Jack's father-son bond. I always love seeing tributes to that bond and the support Jack received from Sam.

10. What’s your least favorite season? Season 7, but then again I haven't seen the entire season yet. From what I saw of the Leviathans, I didn't like them as villains. But Leviathan!Cas was pretty awesome-- he definitely freaked me out for the brief time the Leviathan took him over. Just a shame that the Leviathan after that were just kind of meh... For a season I saw entirely, I'd have to say Season 6. Though Castiel had some great moments in this season (6x20 of course being a highlight), it hurt to see Cas turn against Sam and Dean. Yes, Cas was doing all that to stop Apocalypse 2.0, but I hated that he resorted to breaking Sam's wall (leaving Sam a mess into Season 7). Also, the first half of the season with soulless!Sam was weird to watch... since Sam wasn't himself and knowing that was sad. I enjoyed the episode 6x11 where Dean made a deal with Death to get Sam's soul out of the cage. So yeah, I liked some parts of Season 6, but overall, it's not easy to rewatch knowing this is the unfortunate fallout of averting the apocalypse in Season 5. Back in the day-- for just Seasons 1 through 5, I'd say Season 3...the season had its moments, but it just ranked lowest for me in terms of the first five seasons. Although S3 gets points for one cliffhanger of an ending.

11. Opinions on Destiel? I used to be big on Destiel, or just Dean and Cas's friendship/strong bond in Seasons 4 and 5. Maybe my enthusiasm for them just faded away over time... after catching up with the show recently, my perspective has changed. I can't completely get over Dean's treatment of Cas at the end of Season 7 after he'd taken on Sam's hell trauma leaving him broken and not mentally stable. Dean yelling at Cas more than once was frustrating to see during this time. I just can't get into Dean x Cas as much as before... though Cas sticking around and still being Dean's friend, helping him and Sam out, does speak a lot to Cas's ability to forgive... not to stay angry with Dean after some of the things Dean has said to him and put him through (such as kicking him out of the bunker in 9x03 without any offer of assistance so Cas wouldn't continue to be homeless... I can understand why a lot of people didn't like 9x03).

12. Do you believe Supernatural queerbaits? No. t's nice that Dean can have a solid, meaningful friendship with someone who isn't Sam... so it's good that he has Castiel. But the moments where it seems like it's leading to something more than friendship for Destiel... I think it just shows the strength of their friendship.

13. Seasons 1-7 or 8-14? Seasons 8-14 -- mostly because I liked Cas's character development in the later seasons. That he's more compassionate, maybe more human -- his short time as a human influencing him in a good way for the most part. Even if his angelic powers were diminished in the later seasons. 

I miss his teleporting (I had grown used to the "rustle of wings" sound effect in Seasons 4 and 5), and to learn he'd lost that ability for a few years already by the time of Season 13 -- that was sad to know. Despite that loss, I like that Cas has become more expressive -- like in the 14x12 scene where he's discussing "Rowena's remarkable command of profanity" on the phone to Sam -- The line delivery and his facial expression was on point there.

14. Favorite villain (plot wise)? Crowley. He had some great moments on the show, and it was great to see his journey on the show. From full-on antagonist to sort of being on Team Winchester. I don't like that he killed Meg 2.0 (I miss her :(), but he was a compelling character and it's sad that he's not on the show anymore.

15. Do you think they should end the Lucifer plot line? Yes!

16. Who do you think has gone through more trauma (Sam, Dean, or Cas) Sam. They all have gone through their share of trauma, so it's not easy to just choose one. But Sam has been tortured by Lucifer himself, and still suffers PTSD from that every time he has to deal with Lucifer.

17. What’s your favorite Supernatural episode? 1x12 - "Faith"  -- I have a fondness for some Season 1 episodes. Asylum was another fav for me along with Home and Something Wicked. At the time that “Faith” aired, I was big on hurt!Dean, and this episode delivered. I loved how determined Sam was to save his brother. This was still back when some great classic rock songs were used. The "Don't Fear the Reaper" song playing while Sam and Dean carried out their plan to stop the reaper was pretty epic. And looking back, boy, do I miss those days when iconic songs like that were used on the show. 18. Do you like case episodes? Yes -- I like seeing how the mystery unravels, and finding out who the culprit is in the end.

19. Who do you relate most to in TFW? Sam. Mostly due to his love/appreciation of research. I like to research too and learn new things. Also, he's the younger sibling, which is the same for me. I can relate to his frustration with his dad -- though it was for different reasons, I've felt similarly-- just different personalities and perspectives clashing, I would say.

20. Why do you like Supernatural? I like Supernatural because of the brotherly bond between Sam and Dean. Sam and Dean was what first drew me to the show and I still enjoy seeing the twists and turns they go through -- and I appreciate the moments that strengthen their bond and get emotional and heartbroken when they're divided. At the end of the day, I feel Sam and Dean are the heart and the soul of the show -- my hope for the end of the series is that the brothers' bond is as strong as ever. I would be so sad if they end the show with Sam and Dean at odds with each other-- I have faith the writers wouldn't do this -- it would be hard to watch (like back in 4x21 where they fight each other and go their separate ways... it was painfully heartbreaking to see).   Also, I love Team Free Will -- it's nice that Sam and Dean have Cas now as a long-time friend and confidante. I like Jack and the more recent Team Free Will 2.0 that formed to include him. Though the original Team Free Will is more iconic, I guess, for me since it formed as the apocalypse approached in Season 5. And the name really had a meaning: that Sam, Dean and Cas weren't going to fold and follow what the higher up angels wanted... that their free will mattered more than following their long foretold destinies.

21. If you could bring back one character and kill off another who would they be? I'm torn between bringing Bobby back or Meg 2.0. I'd kill off Lucifer (if he is really woken up in the Empty -- he needs to be put down again. :\). I'd like Kevin Tran to come back. I would be okay with killing off AU! Bobby if we can get the old Bobby back. And Meg 2.0 being brought back would be great-- I miss her interactions with Cas.

[gascon-en-exil]

The Top Ten Women of Fire Emblem (As Written by a Gay Man)

#1 - Micaiah

When we were separated during the war, you changed, Sothe. And I changed too. I want to protect Daein more than anything. Our people must be saved, and if I can help in that effort, I will.

Let it not be said that this was an obvious pick simply because Micaiah happens to be a lord, and one from my favorite game in the series moreover. Although I thought it appropriate to end this ranking with a lord I’m well aware that all the women who’ve fulfilled that role in FE (excluding Avatars for obvious reasons) have had to work against writers determined to screw them over in one way or another. There’s not much point therefore in me rehashing the many criticisms, valid or not, that have been leveled against Micaiah over the years. I’m instead going to be breaking down just why I think she works for me as well as she does, and how thoroughly she earns the distinction of being the least narratively compromised female lord in the franchise...for whatever that’s worth.

Revenge of the Jugdral Waifs

Parts of Tellius’s worldbuilding borrow extensively from Jugdral, some in more subtle ways than others. Micaiah is one of its more obvious allusions, as both her look and class design owe much to a group of female light magic users from those games who also exist outside the framework of the traditional clerical classes (some - or all? - of them even share their starting class name with the Japanese name of Micaiah’s third tier class). Deirdre, Julia, Linoan, and Sara are all women of high standing, and three of them are linked by blood to the dark Loptyrian cult not unlike Micaiah’s association with the “dark” goddess Yune. In spite of circumstances that ought to grant them significant plot relevance however all four of these characters are diminished by the narratives of the two games, either kept on the political sidelines in preference to a man or turned into barely-characterized damsels in distress. To paraphrase Markoftheasphodel, Deirdre and Julia in particular encapsulate the whole of Jugdral’s particular brand of misogyny - some of the most important and powerful characters in the setting reduced to tormented plot devices devoid of personality.

It’s probably a stretch to suggest that Micaiah was intentionally written as a means of redeeming these characters after the fact merely because she owes so much of her design to them. Still, that reading is certainly there. Micaiah assumes Julia’s role during Part 4, becoming the human vessel for Yune as Julia is inhabited by the spirit of Naga during the last chapter of FE4. While there’s no arguing that Micaiah drew the short straw when it came to gameplay power-ups from her resident deity, in return she is allowed substantially more screentime and agency even when she’s sharing her body with someone else. Certain characterization threads relative to Micaiah and not Yune, like vengeance against Numida and Lekain and the back story of Micaiah’s relationship with Sothe, are followed through to their conclusions only during Part 4. Also, while it’s Yune calling the shots as the army ascends the Tower of Guidance Micaiah is still an active participant, taking responsibility for awakening Yune before Dheghinsea and saving Lehran among other things. 

It’s a common criticism that Ike takes over the plot of Radiant Dawn from Micaiah, but the truth is that he’s sharing the endgame spotlight with Micaiah and Yune together. Ike is still the saga hero of Tellius - the Seliph equivalent - but Micaiah displays none of Julia’s blankness and passivity at any point. She’s unquestionably closer to being the deuterotagonist of Tellius than any Leif equivalent (Elincia, perhaps?). What’s more, while Linoan must cede her political relevance to Leif and Julia’s epilogue has her being little more than a support to her emperor brother, Micaiah gets to rule the kingdom she’s spent the game trying to save - while not invalidating the rule of her recently-discovered younger sister over her own country, incidentally - whereas Ike leaves the continent to have adventures and gay sex. In Jugdral the best most women can hope to be is support for their ruling husbands; in Tellius all three beorc nations have women ruling them by the end. Indeed, even compared with the other non-Avatar female lords that’s a huge step forward.

Conquest Needs to Take Notes: FE10′s Villain Campaign

This should really be a more controversial statement than it actually is: the Dawn Brigade chapters of FE10, especially those in Part 3, make for a better villain campaign than the entirety of FE14′s Conquest route.

It’s sad how that it isn’t really an exaggeration at all, and even more sad that FE10 doesn’t rely on narrative shortcuts to convey the idea that you’re temporarily playing as the bad guys like Conquest does. Daein isn’t draped entirely in black, and its antagonistic history as a nation saddled with a legacy of racism and Ashnard’s goals of conquest isn’t swept under the rug or left to be inferred only from Path of Radiance. The Daein of Radiant Dawn still displays its anti-laguz prejudice from the previous game, and there’s no indication that that prejudice doesn’t extend to members of the playable cast or that it’s something that will be quickly and cleanly done away with after the credits roll. Micaiah herself plays to the wishes of her racist followers when she has to in Part 3, and though she’s not rabidly bigoted like Jill is in FE9 before her character development she does have a personal interest in not making waves.

I’m not only talking about her ambivalence toward laguz as a Branded, either. One of Micaiah’s most defining traits is her patriotism. It’s a curious element of her character, based in her feelings toward her adopted homeland and willfully unconcerned with Daein’s racism even as it forces her to hide her Brand. It’s rather amusing that probably the most common criticism leveled against Micaiah is that she’s a Mary Sue blindingly adored in-universe, not just because the same could be said for Ike but because that’s exactly what she’s built up to be. If anything the mounting conflict between Ike’s loyal followers - technically the Gallian army and later Crimea and Sanaki’s forces, but they all join together under him - and the cult-ish adherents of “the Maiden of Dawn” deconstructs this accusation. Everyone in Daein may adore her and may have rallied around the Dawn Brigade in a bid to remove the Begnion occupation, but by Part 3 that fervor is shown to be clearly unhealthy and something that Lekain is able to manipulate to his advantage. 

It’s not just the alliance with Begnion that places the Dawn Brigade chapters in villain campaign territory, as Micaiah is forced to resort to increasingly underhanded tactics to satisfy the demands of the senate, from ambushes in the dark to outright war crimes. All the while she’s being ironically proclaimed by her soldiers a symbol of light and divine will, a stark contrast to Nohr’s shadowy branding. It’s a matter of opinion whether Lekain’s blood pact is more or less contrived than the various plot devices that keep Conquest Corrin in line during the invasion of Hoshido, but Micaiah is actually allowed to be genuinely antagonistic toward the armies she’s opposing, in large part because of her pronounced nationalism and the atmosphere of blind worship she’s allowed to grow around her. One of the most important elements of a well-written villain story is that the characters involved shouldn’t think of themselves as the villains unless they’re fully evil and are committed as such (which usually isn’t that interesting anyway). Conquest focuses too much on Corrin’s angst over the ruin of Hoshido and leaves the motivations of the Nohrians vague, whereas Daein in Part 3 carries both its legacy of bigotry and militarism from FE9 and the memory of its glorious uprising against foreign oppression from Part 1. It’s not hard at all to imagine the members of the Dawn Brigade and even the Daein military thinking themselves heroes of their own story, bolstered by a leader determined to do whatever is necessary to save her people.  

The Token(-ish) Het of Tellius

I would be remiss though if I didn’t talk about queer content at some point, because Tellius pretty much runs off the stuff. In that regard Micaiah is admittedly lacking; she has her auto-A support with Sothe and almost nothing else, and while exposition on their early relationship reveals that their bond is a quasi-incestuous one riddled with age issues it’s not in the same league as Nailah/Rafiel totally inverting gender roles, Haar/Jill almost literally robbing the cradle, or Elincia’s complex feelings for her two closest retainers. One can appreciate though that Micaiah/Sothe displays a certain symmetry with Ike/Soren, from parallels in their first meetings to the experiences of one member of each pairing being Branded to their roles at the heads of their respective armies (from a gameplay perspective note that Soren and Sothe stand beside their partners when faced as enemies in 3-13 and 3-E respectively). I might go so far as to say that these symmetries provide additional legitimacy to Ike/Soren as a paired ending, especially since they get their own exposition-laden base conversation in endgame.

Ooh, Shiny!

And ok, my bias in favor of light magic users is on display here too. I was hyped for Micaiah as soon as she appeared in promotional materials as a caster lord, the first and so far only purely magical unit to hold that title. Even notwithstanding the fact that Radiant Dawn is arguably the worst game in the series in which to be a magic user Micaiah has some serious issues as a unit, but at least when she sucks in-game she does so in manner completely distinguishable from the likes of Leif and Roy. She can be a staffbot (she can use Physic as soon as she promotes), she can nuke stuff with Thani and/or Wrath crits thanks to her nonexistent defenses, she can riskily play around her late promotions with Resolve (Easy only, please), and even at the end of the game when she’s probably still frail and will never be fast enough to double everything she’s still the best candidate for Rexaura just because the saints are even worse. I appreciate too that light magic got some much-needed statistical buffs compared to Path of Radiance, and we most likely have Micaiah to thank for that. Even if the game hates her she can make for a fun if challenging unit to use to her greatest potential.

...Now I want to play FE10 again.