#hero vikare

[coffeecakecafe]

having some thoughts,,,,, thinking some things,,, pet-size griffin things,,

her name is Hero :>

[dryococelas01]

As a worm fan I have to speak up about the best character in worm, the greatest hero in worm, a tragic and severely underappreciated character (I've seen like 1 fanfic with him in. And it was a pretty mediocre one imo) and a character I seem to be the only fan of.

The most powerful man in the world. Kevin Norton.

This is gonna be a big ramble and I have not planned this out and it's gonna contain a shit ton of worm spoilers so ignore if you don't want to be spoiled.

And considering its involved in his backstory, trigger warning for homophobia, rape, homelessness, and partner abuse.

Kevin Norton, unhoused gay English man.

We get 2 versions of Kevin's backstory, the one he tells Lisette and the one from scions interlude.

I'm pulling this from memory so please forgive me for errors.

To her he says essentially he went to college, got a girlfriend. Lived with her for a while, and eventually realised he was gay. When he informed his girlfriend it didn't go well, got abusive, and eventually he left, to live on the streets. There he, eventually, found Scion (and Duke, his dog, the more important character). Scion at the time wasn't exactly a hero. He had healed Vikare and his sister and he definitely wasn't a villain, he just sortof floated around. Kevin goes off on him about all Kevin's been through, how dare he look sad etc. And tells him to help people. And Scion listens, and begins to help. Later he meets with Scion a few more times, to talk to him.

Then there's scions interlude. Its about the same, with one slight difference. He explicitly mentions that he has been raped. I don't believe, off the top of my head, that it's made explicit it was his former girlfriend, but l feel that's very obvious.

I live in Britain, and I've seen a lot of people on the streets like Kevin. I doubt any of them are talking to alien god beings but many of them are on the streets for very similar reasons to Kevin. LGBTQ+ people get kicked out a lot when they come out, many do end up on the street like Kevin when the homophobia from their family or partners becomes too much. There are also a lot of people with abusive partners who end up on the street, or who, upon realising they are LGBTQ+, get a very negative response.

He is a character who's suffering a lot. But, and I don't phrase it like this to minimise it, it is a mundane sort of suffering. He didn't end up on the street because Behemoth sent a lightning bolt through his house, or the slaughterhouse nine altered his face to look like Jack Slashes, or even a possible but still unusual form of suffering like Taylors locker.

The tale of Kevin Norton (minus scion) is one that no doubt countless people are going through now. And I know it's kinda tiring that a lot of stories of LGBTQ+ people revolve around our suffering, but idk, I'm fine with it here.

And yet, and this is the thing that sticks in my brain and makes him so intriguing to me, he doesn't ask Scion to fix it. Kevin Norton dies of a disease (cant remember which), and he knows Scion could cure it. The first thing he did was cure a man's cancer. And Scion could easily give him whatever he needs to live, whether directly with his powers or by just yknow, asking Scion to take him to a nearby hero team and going 'hey, I command Scion and made him a hero, I've saved millions of lives through this, can I have a house'.

So... why doesn't Kevin ask for that.

There's 2 answers I can think of, the selfless (but still kinda depressing) and the full on depressing.

The first is that he recognises scion has so many people to save and doesn't want him wasting time he could be spending saving 10 peoples lives to help him live better. In this interpretation, Kevin has made his peace with living on the street, and with his eventual death.

The second is that Kevin Norton is tired. He has suffered a lot, he has lived on the street for years, he has borne the emotional burden of being the man who commands the strongest hero in the world, and he has discovered that he could have done so much more, if he had just phrased things differently. In this interpretation, Kevin Norton just doesn't want to go on.

There's other possible interpretations, but in truth I think it lies somewhere between these.

There's something tragic about him that captures me. The greatest hero in the world, who has likely saved more people than any member of the triumvirate, and he likely dies alone, bar perhaps his dog, with only one other person knowing what he did. His last act as a hero, is to pass on the torch, an act he clearly feels guilty about, knowing the burden its been for him.

And that's captivating to me. And I don't know if I've even fully explained why.

I like to think he died after hearing of Behemoths death. He would know he had fixed his mistake, and performed a last, great act of heroism.

And there's something to say about how, for only a small kindness of money and a few minutes, he made Lisette the most powerful woman in the world. I try, when I can, to give money and time to the people I see on the streets. But I don't always have money, or time, and whenever I walk away I always feel a great amount of guilt. I'd like to think the little helps I give make as big an impact as Lisettes to Kevin's, but I doubt it. We don't have alien god beings.

Perhaps his rant to Scion was unfair. He didn't know Scions perspective or history. Scion could have suffered a lot. But it was very real. An outburst of a man so powerless and suffering to one who seems to have all the power in the world and is doing nothing with it. There's something about that that resonates with me, despite having had a pretty privileged life myself.

Speaking of privilege, this is sortof a tacked on note but there's something interesting to note about the stories 2 more impactful (in setting) gay male characters.

We have Legend and Norton.

Legend has a lot of power and influence, he has a husband and an adopted son. He definitely suffers from homophobia, not taking that away from him, but he lives pretty well. His suffering doesn't come from his living situation, but from external forces: Endbringers, supervillains, the weight of the entity over his head, the lies of his teammates etc. He has done good. He has saved many.

Norton suffers because of his living situation. He suffers very directly from homophobia, as essentially the cause of his living situation. Other than Scion he likely hasn't really been directly impacted by Cape stuff much. He has done good, he has saved many.

They both have such drastically opposite lives, and you can see it in their relationship to the being that plays an important part in both their stories. Scion. To Kevin he's a seemingly mentally broken man who has saved thousands under his direction. To Legend he's a Venus fly trap, an entity appearing heroic waiting to destroy hundreds.

Under a certain perspective, you could argue both are right.

You could also make a point about how privilege can shield you from some of the worst impacts of homophobia and seeing that by comparing them etc etc but I find such conversations often end up being very dismissive and suffering Olympicsy, and don't feel entirely qualified to talk about it as I am a not out trans woman, not a gay man, and only know about that effect of privilege in relation to homophobia second hand, from discussions other people have had. If other people want to talk about that who have more experience there, feel free.

There's more to say about these two characters, but I can't grasp it right now.

One last point I want to make.

Fiction... does not treat people living on the streets very well. It would have been very easy to have Kevin being a raving man, wearing a tinfoil hat and ranting about how powerful he is. And many other stories would have.

And to a degree, he does initially come off as such, and it appears that Lisette, for a moment, thinks he is after hearing him talk about being The Most Powerful Man and so on.

But he isn't. We get in his head and he's never treated as anything but a human being in a terrible situation.

I don't know what else to say about this part of it other than that his interlude is very well done, and while there's a lot you can, and people have, say about how Wildbow handles certain subjects, I think he did well here.

Also he has a cute loyal dog and one of the best interludes in worm.

I stan Kevin Norton

[lakesbian]

ok interlude 1. everyone loves interlude 1. fun things happening in interlude 1 i.e. meeting danny hebert and meeting scion also.

you guys remember seeing that one tumblr post thats like. [in response to experiment where bees read a fake bee on a stick as a real bee] stupid bees. falling for a fake bee on a stick being a real bee. and then someone else is like. i bet eldritch beings are like that about us. stupid humans. falling for fake humans on a stick being real humans. you guys know that post? anyway that's what this interlude makes me think of.

“The golden man would reappear several more times in the coming months and years. At some point, he donned clothing. At first, a sheet worn over one shoulder and pinned at either side of the waist, then more conventional clothes. In 1999, he donned the white bodysuit he still wears today. For more than a decade, we have wondered, where did our golden man get these things? Who was he in contact with?

^ stupid humans. mistaking a fake human on a stick for a real human. i love the horror of this interlude in retrospect. people assuming he's miraculously curing cancer as the world's most heroic original parahuman when he's actually the nigh-incomprehensible alien that's the cause of the pandemic and was healing the cancerous person because they were a host for a parasitic part of the alien's own body that had been implanted in them.

“His pace increased, perhaps because he was still learning what he could do, perhaps because he was getting a greater sense of where he was needed. By the middle of the 1990s, he was traveling from crisis to crisis, flying faster than the speed of sound. In fifteen years, he has not rested.

this seeming to everyone else like him intentionally increasing the effectiveness of his heroics when he's just. life on a scale one cannot comprehend experiencing a mental health crisis It cannot comprehend. and oblivious to the fact that the coping mechanism he's trying is not fucking working.

“Just five years after Scion’s first appearance, the superheroes emerged from the cover of rumor and secrecy to show themselves to the public.  Though the villains followed soon after, it was the heroes who shattered any illusions of the parahumans being divine figures.  In 1989, attempting to quell a riot over a basketball game in Michigan, the superhero known to the public as Vikare stepped in, only to be clubbed over the head.  He died not long after of a brain embolism.  Later, he would be revealed to be Andrew Hawke. “The golden age of the parahumans was thus short lived.  They were not the deific figures they had appeared to be.  Parahumans were, after all, people with powers, and people are flawed at their core.  Government agencies took a firmer hand, and state-”

i love the implication that because scion was so obviously. Not Fucking Normal. people assumed the first parahumans to show themselves were also on some level deific or Above humanity. and eventually people did realize. oh these are just regular guys but with powers. leaving the mystery of why scion is Like That just kind of up in the air. you think that's ever uncomfortable for people? like it's normal, it's default, but if anyone ever thinks about it too hard while they're bored....it's weird, man.

anyway onto mr daniel hebert. i think it's really notable that his introduction is him watching tv about parahumans, then shutting it off and getting up to pace with this line being given:

It was three fifteen in the morning, and his daughter Taylor was not in her bedroom.

but then despite how this is Immediately preceded by a talk about how actually, capes are just normal guys, there's a conspicuously absent lack of danny...connecting that thought to taylor being out late. and, like, i explicitly do not think this is a flaw of danny at this point--there's no reason anyone would leap to assuming THEIR teenage family member that is just a normal person is secretly a cape bc they were out late once. but the juxtaposition btwn the tv program abt capes and his "huh. anyways" reaction is very much There and i think you can 100% view it as a start to a pattern of behavior he'll have where all common sense should lead him to taylor being a cape (just fucking. out adn about thriving post-leviathan randomly knowing shit about the s9 out there living an obvious double-life!) but he's just Completely Not Even Thinking About It. which is the same thing as the shit he does in this first interlude:

Danny thought about clearing his throat to let her know he was awake and available should she knock on his door, but decided against it. He was being cowardly, he thought, as if his clearing of his throat would give reality to his fears.

He was stopped by the smell of jam and toast. She had made a late night snack. It filled him with relief. He couldn’t imagine his daughter, after being mugged, tormented or humiliated, coming home to have toast with jam as a snack. Taylor was okay, or at least, okay enough to be left alone.

he keeps getting up in his own head where hes like. oh nooo i know shes being bullied but i cant do anything about it yelling at the school didnt work and i cant move her to arcadia. while being completely emotionally disengaged from taylor and also somehow managing to convince himself that they have some sort of trust/understanding from him Not Acknowledging It At All so its basically fine. he Genuinely believes that clearing his throat would magically inform her that hes awake and available if she wants to ask for help (as opposed to giving her a heart attack over being caught??) but can't even do that because he doesn't want to actually take the problems from like. a hypothetical he gets mad about in his head into a real life material thing hes supposed to support her thru. if he doesn't see it it can't hurt him. he's processing everything thru "well i guess shes okay enough to be left alone" while just wildly oblivious to the amount of pain shes in and he has genuinely convinced himself that he's doing the best thing of giving her the Dignity of suffering alone or whatever. convinced he's available to talk to and expecting her to come talk to him and increasingly mad she's not but not actually very obviously available to talk to. and it eventually boils over into taking away her autonomy to attempt Forcing her into talking! he has no conception of anything that isnt sitting there expecting her to do the work of emotional connection or going "you will emotionally connect with me. now. or else." this is just kind of a ramble because this will not be fun for me if i cleanly edit every single post into a masterpiece but im enjoying poasting my thoughts on a second go around hopefully theres something coherent i can crystallize

[shakertwelve]

the obvious defense of this point would be that Victoria is simply supposed to be Wrong About It, which I would love, except that the narrative very carefully bends to make sure that Victoria is Always Right, and ESPECIALLY Always Right about Cape Science

[ context: the quote we're talking about: “I guess it doesn’t make sense as a thing powers would do.  Powers tend to steer clear of the suicidal, the helpless, the invalid, or people who are limited.” ]

my best guess as to what wildbow meant, if he put any thought into this at all? this is ward's version of the scene in worm that goes out of its way to make clear that labyrinth is not autistic and had a "normal" mind before her trigger (and the similar clarification about bitch). wildbow didn't want to write about developmental disabilities, probably because he thought he didn't know enough about the subject not to mess up and get in trouble for writing something offensive, so his solution was to just state that no one in parahumans is meant as "representation" of that demographic and avoid the issue altogether. this at least makes some kind of sense, if you are wildbow.

the obvious issue here is that this quote doesn't just single out developmental disabilities, but is phrased broadly enough to apply to almost any kind of illness or disorder. worm presents superpowers as explicitly tied to a traumatic event and as a metaphor for the effects of trauma, and experiencing other forms of illness and distress make someone much more likely to process an event as a trauma, so logically, mentally ill and disabled people should be overrepresented in the parahuman population (feeling "helpless" or distressed enough to be suicidal are common elements to many parahuman triggers), and the ways capes tend to act in the text of both books consistently reflect this. the only other explanation i can think of is that we're using an extremely restrictive definition of mental disorders (i.e. we're being the guy who thinks adhd isn't a real neurotype, so imp and kid win don't count, and low-empathy is just code for being a bad person, so cradle doesn't count, and so on...), and even that doesn't explain why we're claiming physically disabled people also can't get powers, when wildbow has written about it happening plenty of times (thank you @john-cherry-the-6th for bringing up this wog about triggers in suicidal people that includes the trigger event of a coma patient). also, we've seen that powers can cure illnesses as part of the trigger (see: vikare, famously the first hero ever, whose powers manifesting cured his cancer) if they really need to (they don't even do it all the time if the host isn't dying and can still fight with the power, like genesis), so why would they care if a prospective host is disabled? but whatever--let's disregard all evidence to the contrary and assume that all capes were 100% Mentally Normal (a very objective standard) before their triggers, so their erratic behavior after triggering must be purely the influence of their superpowers.

of course, now we have to go back to the first part of the quote. victoria claims that she doesn't think it's likely that finale's powers would affect her mental development after she manifested them, because powers want their hosts to be able and ready for action. so that can't be why capes like labyrinth and bitch exist, either; powers avoid choosing "limited" people as hosts and they also don't want to make their hosts limited, therefore all parahumans must be healthy because shards want healthy hosts. except there's absolutely no way any scientific study of parahumans in this world would come to this conclusion! scores of therapists run themselves ragged dealing with the various complexes of just the heroic capes, and capes on the "villainous" side are understood to be, on average, even more unstable! victoria has been working with jessica yamada, who definitely knows this, for ages! what the fuck is she talking about!

CONCLUSION: ??? wildbow got confused while writing about his own setting's alien brain parasites and started describing yeerks instead

[lilliankillthisman]

Lucy Ellingson Posting

OK so after posting this I physically couldn’t stop myself from going back and reading the chapter where Lucy confronts Paul, Stolen Away 2.4

And WOW these chapters are perfect presentations of Lucy’s character progression. And I don’t mean that as “these are good examples of how she used to be compared to how she is now”, I mean “Wildbow has written these chapters as deliberate mirrors to showcase her development”, and I am absolutely obsessed with it, because Lucy has genuinely become the person she wanted be in 2.4. Yes, she’s gone from an honestly cool, put-together but isolated and insecure 13 year old learning about magic and struggling with keeping secrets, to an absurdly cool practitioner, with close friends beyond Verona and Avery, who she supports and who support her back, with a tentative but really, really positive relationship with her mum, but more than that she’s now a very literal hero.

The most obvious counterpart scenes in these chapters are with Paul and Anthem, that I’ve already mentioned - Lucy confronts a shitty dad who doesn’t look after his kids and abdicates responsibility when they’re struggling. The change that instantly strikes you is how much more badass Lucy is now - instead of chasing a guy out of a convenience store and (however magically) stabbing his car, she’s chasing a warmage while transformed into a beam of light before stabbing straight through the road and setting his car on fire with mystic runes. But she’s also far more in line with her ambition to a person who unabashedly stands up for what’s right; compare:

“Remember what I said at lunchtime?” Lucy asked, quiet.

“About needing to cut loose,” Lucy said.  “And needing backup when I do something stupid.”

with:

“Someone please tell me I can do something about this,” Lucy said, quiet.  “And that the council won’t get mad at me, or that people won’t try to stop me.”

“Lucy,” her mom said.

“If you can,” Toadswallow croaked, as he led Liberty toward a side street.  “If you can’t, that’s fine too.”

It hurt too much.

“Lucy, you really shouldn’t-” her mom started.

She knows this isn’t the sensible action, but the reason she’s doing it isn’t because she feels like acting out; it’s because she knows she’s right, and that’s why she’s ignoring Toadswallow and Jasmine instead of asking for support. That’s not to say her confronting Paul isn’t a brilliant moment or that it wasn’t incredibly impressive when it happened (it’s one of my absolute fave moments from Lucy), it’s just that she is now much more what she wanted to be back then. The other change, though, is even more important in terms of her self-perception. She’s no longer lashing out for herself, she’s taking drastic action for the sake of her friend. That’s been key to Lucy the whole time; she’s wanted to do right by her friends, and she’s finally managing that instead of just managing to keep her head above water in her own life.

However, reading the whole of both chapters gets you a more subtle, extremely touching parallel outside the drama. I hadn’t realised it was in 2.4, but this is the first time we find Lucy’s motif of being bulletproof. It’s just as striking as I remembered it:

She moved to her bedroom, and picked her clothes with a similar mindset.  She hadn’t said as much out loud to even Verona or her mom, but her mindset when it came to picking clothes was that she wanted her things to be bulletproof.  Not in the literal sense, but in the sense that it had no weak points, gave her critics nothing.  No fading, no rips, no tears, no stains.  The material was often from the higher-end athletic brands, because it was hardier and tended to hold up better over time.  Anyone who pointed and laughed at stuff branded with the Vikare swoop or the Dassler waves just looked like an idiot.

She settled on a hooded top that stopped just past the ribs.  White, sleeveless, moisture-wicking, with the Mission Canada logo on the breast.  She put it on, then immediately removed it, changing bras, before pulling it on again, so she wouldn’t be flashing hot red through the hole of the sleeve.  Her pants were looser, black, with slits all down the sides and inside of each leg, to let the air flow.  She dug sandals out of her closet and slipped them on.

Hair… clothes… the stuff she needed to put in her bag.  She included a spare umbrella, because she wanted to be triply sure she didn’t get her hair wet.  She weighed everything against the day to come.

Against the mundane day to come.

She tries incredibly hard with her appearance and presentation, and it’s clear that her classmates’ opinions and her teachers’ unfairness are getting to her - she’s struggling emotionally day-to-day, and more than that she’s struggling alone. She isn’t just hiding the practice from Jasmine, she’s hiding the problems in her normal life too.

Now we come to 18.7, and the contrast getting ready here is incredible. I think this is a deliberate callback to 2.4 - the drawn-out, detailed description of every outfit choice, the fact that it’s armour for the day/challenge to come, even the fact that in both chapters she overhears her mum talking with someone about how cool she is. But instead of her making herself bulletproof visually for the “mundane day to come” all alone, her friend and mother are helping her protect herself from violent magical danger:

Lucy handed Liberty the brassy-gold metallic marker.

Chainmail hooded sweater, runes on her neck and arms.

“Thank you for trusting me to do this,” Liberty said.  “And for the nice dinner.  It’s been a bit lonely.”

Liberty left, and Lucy’s mom came in.

“Is there enough done by Liberty, or is it clear enough for you to finish that up?” she asked her mom.

The development in her relationships and her deepened bonds and support from her mother are wonderful to see, and the payoff is made practical later - her defences hold up (just) to Slaygarrrr who Slavishly Slays, probably the most physically imposing Other she’s faced. But while rambling to my sister-in-law about this chapter and how great the character development was, she said something that made my head rattle around: this is a Homeric arming scene. And it is! In-depth descriptions of her arming and armouring herself, going into the background of special items, constant references to metal, mail and metallic-coloured decoration make this more than just her getting ready, or a call-back to 2.4; this is her being presented as an actual warrior hero. She’s moved on from worrying about school and being 13, but rather than moving on to become a mature adult like her mum or aunt in 2.4, she’s become exactly what she wanted to be - someone who takes to the battlefield to protect people.

My biggest but also most tentative takeaway from all this is that Lucy is going to beat Anthem. I think it’s going to work. I don’t know how it’s going to work, but I think in a few days we’re going to get a really satisfying resolution not just to the Tedd family drama that’s been building for a dozen arcs, but to Lucy’s arc of becoming someone who can throw down and protect her friends.  Because Wildbow is screaming at us that sure, a lot of things in Pale suck, but as a coming-of-age story it’s overwhelmingly about things getting better and our protagonists becoming more amazing in a way that we’ve never got to see in his other works. 

That theme of things getting better, by the way, brings us to another contrast between the two chapters: the Others. It’s been a long, long time since I read the Hungry Choir arc and I had completely forgotten how fucked up they are, but I’d also forgotten they come to Lucy’s home.

The sound of high voices filled the house, all at once.  Seven waifs stood in her upstairs hallway.

Five boys, two girls.  The waif closest to Lucy was a black girl, nine or so, her hair in two braids, and she had one hand at her mouth, teeth digging and chewing at her own fingertips, which were in ruined tatters.  The waif’s shoulders flinched inward as she bit through a part of her middle finger, a fresh trickle of blood running down to her elbow.  The ruined fingers of the girl’s other hand clutched at a dress with tiny flowers in a repeating pattern.

Six sets of hands seized her from behind, grabbing at her arms, the back of her collar, the back of her top.  She could feel the fingers of the one waif at her arm, grooves cut into fingertip by teeth and filled in with scabs and scars, the edges rough.  Another had ragged long fingernails, painted canary yellow where the paint hadn’t chipped.  Others were just small hands, incredibly strong.

In 2.4, the Others Lucy deals with violate her home and her privacy, they threaten her, they grab her. They leave her shaken and terrified. And now in 18.7, we have... Flopsy and Lewdtube. The cutest, most polite goblins you ever did see. They come to Lucy’s house... for dinner with her mother, who’s fine with them.

I don’t think the choice of friendly Others here, and their placement in this specific chapter is an accident; I think they were made specifically to be childish so that they form a more obvious counterpart to the Hungry Choir. This is WIldbow showing that it isn’t just Lucy who has changed, the world/people/Others around her have changed for the better too. That isn’t a coincidence - in befriending Liberty, and in helping to defeat the Hungry Choir, she has changed the world around her for the better. I’ve believed for a while that we’re going to get a happy ending to Pale and a happy ending for the trio, and it’s exactly because of things like this.

[artbyblastweave]

TBH when making Parahumans OCs, the extremely-dead-character-who's-noteworthy-because-of-the-historical-impact-of-their-death archetype is definitely one of my favorite niches to fill. I also actually came to the conclusion over time that Wildbow doesn't use it nearly enough - there are a lot of problems I have with Ward, but one of my favorite ones to gripe on is that the low rate of posthumous characters feels much more egregious than in Worm (where it was already in retrospect too low). I'll actually go so far as to say that the worst thing about Worm's timeskip is how few named characters died offscreen during it. "Leet died in Brazil" shouldn't be memeworthy, it should be a fairly typical fate for a background Worm character during a two-year timeskip. This of course becomes even more ludicrous in a story set shortly after Gold Morning, but it's not like Earth Bet wasn't a dangerous place before that. The noteworthy thing about the Quadrumvirate shouldn't be that one of their members died, it should be that they've managed to keep three out of four alive for decades.

Last year I finally read Watchmen, and it shocked me how starkly it reinforced this complaint: it portrays a setting that in theory isn't nearly as dangerous for superheroes as either Worm or Ward, but what danger there is is sold to the audience much more effectively. Much of the cast, perhaps most of the cast, is posthumous. This is important enough for creating this sense of superheroism as a dangerous lifestyle that designing the posthumous cast is at least as important as designing the non-posthumous background cast. Funnily enough, in retrospect, The Incredibles, which takes significant inspiration from Watchmen despite being a work aimed at a more general audience, actually does recreate this strength of Watchmen well, and could therefore also be said to be a story that outdid Worm in this regard before Worm even existed. Posthumous characters aren't as focal in The Incredibles as they are in Watchmen, but they are responsible for some of the movie's most memorable and affecting sequences.

...huh, I just noticed that "posthumous" and "parahumans" have the same number of characters and many noteworthy characters in the same places. Neat.

Oh, no, I agree with the importance of dead heroes as a worldbuilding tool totally (although I'd quibble with the idea that Ward didn't have a ton of dead capes shaping the narrative just, like, numerically, Vicky's extended family got fuckin' pasted by the rigors of the cape game, with her aunt being another precedent-setting death, there's the weird situation with Ashley and Furcate and Solarstare and Grue, Taylor's whole.... thing, Gallant, I personally did not feel like Ward was lacking in this department although I understand how someone could come to that conclusion looking at the same story.)

No, I just want to know what they fucking did. What did Vikare, the first superhero, do? What the hell were his powers? Tell me, Wildbow! I beg!

[havoc-warband]

(@commanderhorncleaver) I'm not curious... how did Vikarous react to/deal with dying during pof? During/after thoughts and perspective? How has it impacted him?

it has been 4 days since i got this ask and i have been THINKING ABOUT IT SO HARD because story wise i have no idea what happens after Mordremoth yet. but my dear mustelid friend has advised me! that i can just answer in hypotheticals. because i'm not even sure how/if this event is going to happen in what i've been calling My Canon! i'm gonna need something catchier for that. havocverse? anyway-

(note from after i regained control over my imagination & fingers - this got very rambly but it was really fun getting into Vikaros' head for this! thanks & apologies >:] )

if it DOES happen as in the story - he's alone, ambushed away from his allies, iirc - it would make so much sense that as a soul he's too traumatized to regain his memories entirely on his own. perhaps tybalt would guide him back. there is just so much stuff that would parallel claw island - separated from his warband, facing seemingly impossible odds, fighting an enemy that they don't know that much about yet, clearly on the road to losing after a drawn-out torturous battle - and if you've read the relevant writing thing on here you know that Vikaros did NOT handle that well at all: he went back, took his warband & quit the High Legions with all of them: surrounding himself with his family/friends and evacuating from the environment he perceived as Bad For Their Health.

so, back to the balthazar-corners-and-murders-us moment in PoF, when Vikaros eventually has his jesus moment and comes back to life, he's nearly catatonic - because let's not forget, at this point he's like, what, 25? and his whole life he's been a soldier and leader, and dying probably yanked his perspective on that upside fuckin down - and he does NOT respond to Anyone or Anything until his warband is brought to him, at which point he finally Breaks and just Refuses to let go of them, basically forces them into a multi-hour cuddle pit, very much confusing anyone who's only ever seen his Tough Commander exterior and even the rest of Havoc themselves who have Never seen him like this. he recovers to the point of being able to Speak after a few hours, and is a little bit embarrassed.

he would return to work shortly after, though, philosophy of "try and drown myself in work so i don't have to think about that", work consisting of fighting so it kind of fails at keeping him from Thinking About That, but at least he can burn off his rage and fear turning the forged hordes into dead porcupines from a distance. at night, he has nightmares, and wakes up screaming, but his warband is there for him, and they never let him go out without at least one of them and the entire warband if possible, an arrangement which will continue until balthazar's death, which does help him a little - the alone-ness after all was part of the horrors - and after balthazar's death, he does relax a little and the nightmares do relent a little, though they'll of course never go away fully

Thoughts-and-perspective wise, a LOT would change. Before, he's still on a high from a moderately successful campaign against Mordremoth with Trahearne only being able to participate from afar, so Vikaros *is* the highest officer in the jungle, and in his mind, he's this wildly successful soldier and commander, and it doesn't matter that he's never been anything else, because this is the thing he's so good at, and of course he can do a few other things too: he smiths daggers and axes and weaves baskets for the healers and suppliers and that's kind of fun - but that's not his primary purpose in life. And his primary purpose is what should bring him the highest joy, because he's a life-committed hero. (It doesn't matter that he didn't sign up for this, he tells himself, it doesn't)

Afterwards, he starts getting a lot more crises-of-faith, both of the "i'm not actually that good a fighter" kind and the "oh fuck i didn't realize i was throwing away so many chances to do other things in my life" variety. At this point he would still be Commander of the Pact, but he will start to consider resigning from that in order to pursue other things he wants to do personally. It's hard to conceptualize, though, because for so long, his work was his life, and now he has to separate them and also create a balance between them. And that's Hard, because sometimes he feels like he's letting every soldier and person on Tyria down by even thinking about it, and there's so much riding on it, but he's never felt this fucking Stuck before, before he realized that he was in fact Stuck. and again, recall the situation with the legions, he's not a fan of feeling Stuck somewhere he thinks will bring him his death one day.

[ask-the-super-frat-bros]

Super Frat Bros, an intro.

      In the city of Safeway, there exist two powerful assemblies that rule the streets: The Chaos Order and The Force of Honor. The organizations that sport these incredibly cheesy names have been warring with each other for decades, origins starting way back to the teenage years of the two leaders, Quantum and Hodges, before they ever formed their parties of good and evil.

      Neo Quinn, known publicly as Quantum, leads The Chaos Order, with members by the names of Ahmes (Pietro Ignace), Monster Nature (Mizalia O'Conner), Deimos (Ezekial Winters), Firebird (Phoenix Vikare), Hypno (Remi Suthers), and Seductress (Persephone Lopez). The Order exists to cause chaos in an already broken world, hopefully to force society to better itself before it is completely destroyed.

      Trevor Hodges, known publicly as Hodge, leads The Force of Honor, with members by the names of Schism (Juno Martin), Angel (Landon Weiss), The Wiz (Eustace “Stacey” Costa), Shadow Rabbit (Callum Mactavish), Chronos (Akira Tryst), and Typhoon (Theodore Yu). The Force exists to protect the city and to stop the Order specifically.

      As tensions continue to rise between them, what will their members’ fates become, and will the city be destroyed in the process? Only you can help us find out!

-

Introducing the mod team...

Hello! I am Mod Fish, and I will be the main artist for this blog. My characters include Ahmes (Pietro), Schism (Juno), Firebird (Phoenix), and Quantum (Neo). I run the Safeway server and I'm super excited to get this going! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to message me @elysifish !

Hi im mod eli. my bbys are ezekial (deimos) and landon (angel). please never be afraid to ask my sons questions. @captaintinystudentparadisestuff

Hiya! I’m mod Alex. My characters are the over confident Trevor “Hodge” Hodges; the bitchy “Seductress” Persephone Lopez; and the anxious tech genius Stacey “The Wiz” - formerly known as - Wiz Kid - aka wizard kid, Costa. @thedisasterthatisalex

Hey, I’m mod eggy! My character is Theodore Yu aka Typhoon. Feel free to ask my stressed boy anything you want! (they/them/theirs pronouns). @everyonehasbeatenmetotheusername

Ello Ello! I'm Oak, welcome to this little groups chaos! My characters are Kaiden and Macey, feel free to ask anything! @kaidentherockcollector

Howdy y’all, I’m Mod Sol/Solis, feel free to call me whatever your little heart desires, additionally whatever pronouns are chill. My characters are the chaotic enby Remi “Hypno” Suthers and super queer Dad-friend Akira “Chronos” Tryst. Feel free to ask me and my babies anything that comes to mind~ @criesin-gay

Callum / Shadow Rabbit and Mizalia / Monster Nature are characters belonging to @meepymorps, who will not be a mod on here but will still be helping out!

-

It should be noted that this ask blog may delve into heavy topics and other general sensitive material. posts containing any sensitive topics will be tagged, but readers should still have an open mind while going through the story.

[clownstho]

okay i’ve got a first draft of my hiveswap ships. let me take you on a tour babes

wow this is the same incomprehensable bull from before! Let’s start with the platonic stuff because I think it’ll be quickest.

wowee that’s almost startlingly clear. Here’s some various business relationships that I think would be interesting. Note Konyyl and Nihkee here - imagine the theatrics Konyyl could learn from Nihkee. Imagine the shenanigains.

Note Chahut and Fozzer - based completely on that One Comic from before hiveswap’s release. You Know The One. I think Skylla needing a lawyer is funny.

Imagine Vikare’s absolute disgust when faced with mister “i can’t wait to become a space ship”. Also skylla gives me hero vibes so i think she can have a nemisiship with a mean girl as a treat, and in the same sense so can tyzias+chahut

Babies need parents/siblings the chart

Various cute little friendships. Marsti has the most connects at 5, followed by Tyzias at also 5 (imagine there’s a line connecting tyz and marv they should be friends)

Romance time! Let me just mention right off the bat that these aren’t complete charts - mostly because i don’t remember who all is a fan of Hatched2Dance but suffice to say, if they’re a fan of H2D I’m gonna assume they also have SOME strong feeling about Marvus. Also note that I am not including most Zebruh ships because, while social torture is entertaining to read, that’s not the type of ship i’m here for. But we don’t care about ship theory we care about ship practice so here, witness me pair off characters in various ways.

Ft. Bronya escalating her bad girl attraction, LanquexZebruh, Marvus Ships based on fate, tragedy, suffering, and meta bullshit, various lesbians and bisexuals, intellectuals and dummies, meangirls, Konyyl and whatshisface, and one cute school crush.

Okay pale ships. This one is also incomplete but mostly because I hc that marvus is the pale equivalent of celebrity eye candy. A personal fav is Marv<>Stelsa. But damn i missed attaching cirava to marv, but i guess its fine because i remembered to attach cirava to ardata. i call that one “copestream”

remele and zebruh is one that’s funniest if you realize that she’s getting paid to be there and also she gets to be mean to him.

You can see what I call “the care-angle” between bronya stelsa and skylla.

Tagora “I only associate with pretty people” lastname

mixed feelings is an understatement but also my #1 pitch ship since the jump has been marvhut because, and i’m glad because hiveswap repeatedly gives me the impression she can’t quite stand him. In fact I’m guessing lots of people can’t stand him.

Trashwoman hates Trashnb more at 11

A lot of the hateships and the enemyships have the same basis but like. make it romance instead of murder

and finally, the only reason xefros is on this list! honestly he deserves more aus ships, but i’m lazy and i’m really here for what I call the intellectual disaster of MarvGalFoz, as well as KupVikFoz, and ZebeAzdTeg. There’s also a triplet with Charun and Galekh somewhere but at this point i’m done with thinking of ships and auspice is the hardest one to think about so......... that’s my incomplete ship charts i have no idea what i accomplished here but i hope you enjoyed this info spaghetti!

[snowtimeisbesttime]

Thoughts and questions (remix) on Friendsim Volume 10.

Tegiri:

-Tegiri is so fucking dramatic and personally I love it. // His new Troll Call bulletpoints tone down the assorted internet references and reinforce that he kinda sucks with a sword and is conflicted re: Alternian law vs not really wanting to kill people; they also give him another pinch of weeb points.

-Does he have (a replica of) Marquise Fucking Mindfang’s sword??? and while we’re on the topic of ancestors, was that a fucking Signless manga?????

-Tadashi Inu joins the list of Extremely Good Lusii

-Looks like the rebellion is growing by the moment! Meanwhile, Tegiri himself definitely has some doubts about murdering people because the law says so, and seems to be aware of it? (the whole “pull of the light vs path of darkness” thing in his good end) // also like i'm reasonably sure that the “dont murder ppl” thing was the path of darkness??? and he's literally voidbound And a derse dreamer??? in case i messed up and it was the “pull of the light”... he Is shown with closed eyes most of the time, even though it's because of sharingan contacts reasons, but he’ll have to see the light eventually.

-In the process of connecting all these dots I remembered that classpects didn't really play a role in the writing of the Friendsim routes and that put me out a little but regardless, he's probably going to have to choose between following what Alternia says is right vs what his conscience says is right, and I think he'd probably choose the latter, be it because dersies have more rebel vibes or because the consequences for choosing the former were unacceptable (ie: the whole Polypa should have been culled because her lusus died thing)

-Also looks like all teals have some kind of Law Thing. Tirona’s got the whole tattleterror thing, so Stelsa’s the only one that might be an exception now.

-Things that exist on Alternia: Fullmetal Alchemist, Boku no Hero Academia, Fate:Stay Night, Overwatch, Megaman, One Piece (one of Tegiri’s figurines resembles Luffy), Sugoi Quest for Kokoro, Naruto and who knows how many more that I’ve missed.

-Regarding that list and what I’ve seen on my dash, as far as we know Tegiri has good taste in anime.

-About Tegiri’s troll sharingan contacts: either cosplaying as a different (higher only?) caste IS illegal, or it’s not but Tegiri always has his eyes closed anyways because he’s Just That Extra. Considering he wants to stick to the rules, I think it might be the second. Also, the troll Uchiha family are seadwellers confirmed.

-Polypa’s also an anime fan!! And the protagonist’s still her moirail… wonder what might come of this in Act 2?

-An aside: Tegiri thinks he’ll have to kill Polypa eventually (yeah, good luck with that) because she doesn’t have a lusus, so either she’s above the culling age for that but he thinks he has to right his “wrong” (saving her life), or she’s not and Diemen is very lucky he hasn’t had any close friends before the main character.

Zebede:

-Zebede’s got the protagonist’s yearn for Friendship up to eleven, and then up to eleven again. What he doesn’t seem to have is the emotional maturity required to not guilt-trip the fuck out of people.

-Regarding this, my theories are: the friends he has are assholes, and/or they live literally in the opposite side of the planet.

-On psionics: the owner of the anime shop’s eyes were both pink and they seemed to have weak psionics; maybe only the strongest ones get two-toned eyes? Taking Cirava into account, probably only the most powerful of these can become helmsmen… Meanwhile, Zebede confirms that 1: not all golds are psionics and 2: golds (and presumably other potential psychics like burgundys or bronzes) can have other powers, such as animal communion!!!

-Bee communion sure seems like a convenient power for a beekeeper. Perhaps the trolls who have this power become beekeepers, in the same way that jades become carers of grubs and strong psionics become batteries. Now I have to wonder if Sollux had it too… (the 2nap) // Wow Sollux why does your lusus let you have two sets of powers??

-Who was expecting Zebede to write RPF? I wasn’t!

-please please please tell me he did not send that fic to Cirava…

-Speaking about Cirava, they’ve been looking for us on the internet since we left their hive. They also retwitted our post!

-Seeing as there wasn’t even a peep of hatched2dance in Vikare’s route, being kpop on main might be a cultural taboo on Alternia. // Or the most likely explanation, that Zebede replaced Vikare as the kpop guy just as he replaced Beekeeper as well, the beekeper guy. His other new Troll Call bulletpoint ramps up just how far he lives from everyone else, from 3 hours to 2 days.

-We now have a Car. Hopefully we’ll figure out how to get rid of the GPS chip, assuming the bees didn’t fucking destroy the former owner.

-About the car, though… it was conveniently unlocked as if left for us, and it drove to Zebede’s hive without any kind of input besides turning the autopilot on??? The protagonist even says they don’t have any idea of where his hive is… that isn’t ominous as fuck or anything

[coffeecakecafe]

OCs 👀!!!!!!!!!?

okay so i got this over the weekend but it had to wait until i had time bc like,, i have So Many Of Them. so many ocs. i love them all equally except for my favorites but I'm going to try and hit the big ones lol. also I'll tag all the relevant tags on this post so u can Find More Info

Aerin, Milo, Riley, Wallace, Lucy, Knox, and Zach are the main crew from Guardians of Atlas. I've been working on their reference sheets, so their info is either up to date or coming soon! All of their current info is under the Guardians of Atlas tag, and older stuff is under vcg (for Victoria City Guardians, which was the previous working title). They're a group of heroes (and Zach) and their story is about trying to find a way to stave off impending doom and certain endtimes by fighting monsters and learning the power of teamwork and friendship.

Noah, Jayla, and Ash are from Cross & Nightingale. C&N is the same world as Guardians but like a decade before, and follows the journey of a small group of Huntsmen (monster hunters) trying to find answers to who they are. It's kind of about helping people deal with monsters and kind of about helping Jayla figure out her whole Nephilim thing and mostly about dealing with the expectation of legacy and the stress of trying to follow your heart when the world wants something different from you.

I've also got Oberon, my current dnd pc! I love him dearly he's having a Crisis in game at the mo, and his tag is his full name Oberon Ozymandias Vikare. He's a fallen aasimar bard/paladin ex-architect and right now he's on a boat in the ocean (he hates the ocean) after losing his tower (his very good tower that he spent his whole life on so he could talk to god) (it's gone now) (the tower is very destroyed). The party dnd shenanigans are under League of Just Some Guys or lojsg (or on @justabitscrewy's blog she's keeping a way cleaner timeline and also banging out SO MUCH stellar campaign art)

Occasionally i also talk about Tristan and Evander (dnd pcs-to-be hopefully, their tag is their names) or some side characters from the big projects (like family or friends of the core casts or like the villains i need to work on lmao, i just story tag them generally)

this is maybe not helpful except to explain that i have a brain full of little people and sometimes i make them smooch for kicks or fight monsters for trauma, but I've got Lots and Lots of ocs posting backlogged and lots more coming down the line haha

[skeletorific]

CLASSPECTING TIME

You have no idea how fucking long this took. Also I’m willing to like hear ideas about this but as these are my personal headcanons don’t be like….weird about it ahfdksafd classes are FAKE AF and we are all just guessing bitches out here.

Ardata Carmia: Maid of Doom. A Maid is typically understood as “one who creates [aspect]/creates though [aspect]” for the benefit of others. The Doom aspect represents death, suffering, misery and destruction, something Ardata quite literally serves up on a silver platter for her subscribers. She creates (relatively) low stakes of misery for her subscribers to watch and enjoy, as well as to feed her lusus’ hunger for blood. Despite the apparent selfish motivations, its clear that Ardata doesn’t really enjoy what she does. At least, not for its own sake. Its a means to fulfill the role she believes society demands of her, even if filling it makes her actively miserable and very, very lonely. 

Diemen Xicasi: Page of Hope. A page is typically understood as one who “provides [aspect]/provides through [aspect]” for themselves. While his meal of choice may be some savory meat products, Diemen’s real bread and butter is his unwavering optimism. Not to say he’s always looking on the bright side, merely that he allows the miserable realities of being a homeless rustblood on Alternia to wash off his back. Like other pages that have proceeded him (Tavros Nitram and Jake English), Diemen has been noted to have an effect on people that makes them want to help him, without any apparent psiionic tricks to force it out of them. Furthermore, when he really wishes for something (and its usually hot dogs), well, things have a way of working out in his favor, no matter the twists and turns it takes to get there.

Amisia Erdehn: Heir of Mind. I’m gonna be honest, Amisia was tricky. Mind doesn’t on first glance seem like a natural fit for her. However, while there’s a variety of definitions for what an Heir does, I prefer the description of the Heir as someone who strives (or succeeds) to wholly embody their aspect. As such, Amisia is the pure embodiment of both Mind’s decisive problem solving and single-minded logical framework. Need paints? Well, blood is multicolored. Actual creation is difficult, yes, but when it comes to getting the right materials, well, there’s no one more driven and no one less deterred by mere sentiment. This isn’t to say she’s emotionless, merely that emotions are often an obstruction to her true potential, rather than an aid.

Cirava Hermod: Prince of Hope. Awful dark class for such a chill motherfucker, but like most things about Cirava, it makes far, far more sense in context. Hope is about convictions, about right and wrong, about doing what your internal code compels you towards. And, there was a time when Cirava felt like this. They would constantly get into fights on Chittr with highbloods, despite knowing it was risky, because they felt it was wrong to take credit for their work. However, the Prince is ultimately one who bring about destruction through/destruction of their aspect. Cirava certainly brings about destruction in a physical sense: they destroy their eye in order to prevent injustice. Likewise, they take the time to try and destroy their own connections to the hopeful aspect, attempting to kill off their morals and content themselves with keeping their head down and quietly streaming.

Skylla Koriga: Knight of Time. While Time is perhaps the aspect most bound up in the mechanics of Sburb/Sgrub, its ultimately defined by a determination to triumph despite the odds. In Skylla’s case, like Dave Strider, that desire is tempered by a sense that what she does should be for the sake of others. Skylla is one of the most selfless trolls we encounter, expressing generosity and kindness to a stranger even at her own personal costs and even expressing confusion when others (like Konyyl) are not so kind. Skylla, while she may slip into despair when the situation is pulled beyond her control, ultimately refuses to take anything lying down that she can fight against.

Bronya Ursama: Sylph of Breath. The typical verb applied to a Sylph is “one who heals through/heals their aspect” for the sake of others. In general, I prefer the verb “restores”, as it has a broader application. However, in Bronya’s case, that healing is for the most part literal. Breath is the aspect of freedom and individuality, which seems an odd choice for the rules-oriented Bronya. However, by looking at the people in her life it begins to snap into greater clarity. Bronya may restrain herself, but her presence provides freedom to so many characters: she gives the reject wrigglers a chance at new life even when the culling system would condemn them to death. The other jades are allowed the freedom to explore themselves and the world around them because, on some level, they know Bronya will protect them from consequences as much as she can. Bronya does not serve freedom or necessarily provide it wholecloth, but she restores it to others who would have it taken from them otherwise.

Tagora Gorjek: Thief of Space. Space is hard. Like time, its an aspect very bound up in the mechanics of Sburb. How Kanaya describes it, as concerned with propagation, didn’t seem to have much to do with a guy who doesn’t seem concerned with much more than the propagation of his own wealth. This is part of why Thief felt natural for Tagora: “one who steals/steals through their aspect” for themselves. However, as we’ve seen from Meenah and Vriska, while the motives of a Thief may often be selfish, it doesn’t mean that they are necessarily harmful to the party. The Thief will take the most direct path to getting what they want, but if what they want is the good of the party, then they make powerful allies. Space heroes, like Tagora, are creative and very aware of the way they go through the world. Tagora is environmentally aware, which is part of what makes him an effective legislacerator (and an effective con artist).

Vikare Ratite: Mage of Mind. The Mage, like the Seer, is bound up in knowledge about their aspect. However, they are often cursed by either an excess of or severe shortage of their aspect. Vikare, arguably, suffers from both an excess AND a shortage of Mind. On the one hand, atmospheric flight a logical first step before interstellar flight, and the fact that Alternia didn’t take that step is in fact, pretty fucking wild if you consider it. Vikare suffers by being (apparently) the only one aware of this level of absurdity. However, in other respects, Vikare is cursed by a lack of Mind when it comes to decisive action. Rather than actively pursuing his desires, he hides them behind an apparent embrace of his true role, and eventually has to have flight “forced” on him for him to truly enjoy it.

Polypa Goezee: Rogue of Breath. Polypa here can be seen to be stealing her aspect in two regards. One, she is literally stealing “breath”, or life (not to be confused with Life GODS ASPECTS ARE HARD) from her targets. Two, she is in some sense stealing their movement and independence, in particular from highbloods, who are not used to the fear of death impeding their choices in the way it impedes the lowblood. However, unlike the Thief, Polypa steals for the sake of others, whether it be working as a hired killer, getting vengeance for her lost lusus, or protecting her friends from the uncomfortable truths that would force them to act against their true wishes (as with Tegiri).

Zebruh Codakk: Heir of Doom. One who invites misery and despair wherever they go. Definitely sounds like how it feels when Zebruh walks in a room. Jokes aside, Zebruh is drawn to situations of misery and destruction (e.g., his attraction towards lowbloods) out of some latent sense that he can exploit it. If the Heir is someone who reaps the benefits of their aspect, then Zebruh certainly fits the bill. Likewise, the world is affected when the Heir is finally allowed to “Become” their aspect. Easily one of the endings most literal about it being a “doomed” timeline is Marvus’ bad ending; notably, its also the only ending where Zebruh dies. When Zebruh finally fulfills the promise of doom, the entire timeline goes down with him. That is very possibly some powerful godtier commentary.

Elwurd: Witch of Hope. One who changes their aspect/changes through their aspect. Elwurd doesn’t believe in shit if she doesn’t want to, and if she wants to believe something then damn it if she won’t make it true. She commits herself consistently to relationships that she knows are a bad idea under the presumption that she can change them. You can’t ever properly convince her that she’s not hung up on her relationship with Bronya. In the end, the only one who can change Elwurd is Elwurd.

Kuprum Maxlol: Knight of Hope. optimistic Duelist has a good video already on the topic and while I disagree with their classpecting for Folkyl ultimately I don’t really feel the need to add much onto it. Suffice to say, Kuprum defies fate for another person. Rather than let voidrot run its course, Kuprum volunteers himself as a battery for his moirail. While its perhaps a short sighted plan, its one that stems wholly from Kuprum’s belief in his ability to make a difference, if not for society at large, at least for one person.

Folykl Darane: Seer of Void. One who is wholly in sync with their aspect, in full understanding of it. Folykl is entirely aligned with the nothingness and emptiness associated with Void, being quite literally denied vision, power, and even the ability to ambulate on her own. Likewise, though, she has a clarity of vision in the metaphorical sense. She accurately assesses both Kuprum’s feelings towards Trizza and Trizza’s worthiness of those feelings, emblematic of Void’s disdain for a comfortable lie. However, true to the passive nature of her class, while she often chastises Kuprum for his feelings she isn’t ultimately willing to do more than bicker about it. 

Remele Namaaq: Page of Space. Initially I thought we might end up with two Thieves of Space, but what important to note is that whle Remele does steal artwork, theft isn’t necessarily her true nature. At her core, she’s an artist that has been forced to become cynical because of the society she lives in. Sburb roles aren’t just meant to embody you. Often they’re meant to challenge you. As such, her more derivative works can be seen less as the final fulfillment of her role and more the beta stage of her coming into her aspect. While it may not show in her artwork yet, Remele demonstrates a great potential for on the spot creative thinking that could potentially be bolstered into a powerful force in its own right. Likewise, like Diemen she demonstrates the Page’s intuitive ability to get people to aid her in her quest, regardless of whether or not its in their own best interests 

Konyyl Okimaw: Prince of Light (because gendered classes are FAKE NEWS). One who destroys/destroys through their aspect. Light is associated with both fortune and knowledge, and Konyyl can be seen destroying (and destroying through) both. Her matesprit, Azdaja, is the Mind aspect: he supplies knowledge to Konyyl, who in turn uses that knowledge to destroy the lives of others. Likewise, she’s heavily resistant to doing the thinking for herself, seeming to intuitively sense its not her role. She’s also a bit on the unlucky side (I mean, what are the odds of an adult troll being there at that exact drop off point) but can destroy the luck of others. By killing them. Worst luck ever. Also she’d look cute in the puffy pants don’t tell me otherwise.

Tyzias Entykk: Page of Blood (damn there’s a lot of pages in here its almost like most of these characters have yet to come to their true potential or something). While its not always the case (Jake English being a notable exception, to my mind), Pages may often start the game with a deficit of their aspect. Tyzias has a deficit of friendships. She mentions she doesn’t have time for any quadrant but her matesprit, who is arguably the only troll on Alternia more overworked than she is. Beyond that, her social circle is restricted to people she meets in class. Despite this, Tyzias has a unique capacity to reach out to other people, which, once tapped into her, makes her a force to reckon with, especially so far as the empire is concerned.

Chixie Roixmr: Witch of Mind. GODS Chixie was so hard. However, what ultimately unlocked it for me was the rap battle. A witch is one who manipulates/manipulates through their aspect. Chixie, for as sweet as she is, is a pretty effective manipulator. She keeps Zebruh on the hook without getting forced into a quadrant with him, she manages to sway the crowd into her favor (despite the fact that no one in their right mind should be siding with a bronzeblood in a highblood owned club), she even manages to get the Reader to act in her favor on certain occasions. She does this through clear, decisive action, and through careful combinations of absorbed information, all of which come to a head in the rap battle. Despite potentially risking everything she’s worked to build, she forces herself onto that stage and, under pressure, synthesizes everything she knows about the band from social media and her own encounters with them into some pretty sick lyrics.

Azdaja Knelax: Thief of Mind. Azdaja, as previously mentioned, is the information half of Konyyl’s duo. Utilizing powerful psiionics, a quick grasp of strategy, and a willingness to do whatever it takes (all of which can be understood as part of the Mind aspect), Azdaja manipulates scenarios into ones that will directly benefit him. Often, he quite garners literal monetary gain, but equally as powerful for him is the added notoriety his actions gain him.

Chahut Maenad: Knight of Hope. No title more fitting for a defender of the faith. Chahut has strong convictions that run to the core of her being, something vital to a Hope player. However, while her convictions may render her single minded, they do not necessarily render her selfless. When the player does not antagonize her morals Chahut seems happy to benefit them (although most players would probably not view being a sacrifice as a benefit). She is happy to learn at the feet of people who have earned her respect, and defend those like Amisia who she considers worth protecting, all of which render her an apt candidate for the Knight category.

Zebede Tongva: Heir of Light. One who embodies their aspect, often perhaps to the point of excess. Zebede is many things, but he is certainly knowledgeable, in particular about his interests. At times, that interest can be cute, but at other times it can lead him towards creepy and possessive behavior. He knows everything about Cirava, to the point that he feels comfortable posting fanfiction about their life. Likewise, he displays frustration and anger when he is not allowed knowledge (or, in a meta sense, is denied union with his aspect), as in hs bad end when the Reader implies they are talking to other people while at Zebede’s house. Zebede, though his method of expression isn’t the healthiest, at his purest form is really just curious about the lives of the people he watches, and allows that curiosity to overcome him. 

Tegiri Kalbur: Rogue of Void. If Tegiri embodies anything to me, its how much the temperament of a person affects their expression of their classpect. On first glance he and Roxy Lalonde have nothing in common. However, like Roxy, Tegiri has the ability to “steal” nothingness by replacing it with something else. He replaces it with order, imposing laws whether otherwise no sane troll would think to enforce them. By doing so, he’s not only stealing away the chaos associated with the Void, but also the sense of meaninglessness he might otherwise succumb to if he ceased to believe in Alternian law (much like a few other teals I could mention). Also like Roxy, Tegiri seems troubled by the sense that he may be irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, and becomes determined to impress his status as a hero of the blade upon us as quickly as possible.

Mallek Adalov: Witch of Time. Ok this one’s a little weird, but hear me out: a Witch, inherently, is about a refusal to accept your aspect as it is. Mallek demonstrates an understanding of the lacking nature of Time. With his Rites of Maturation perigrees away, he has a hard time coming to terms with how little time he has to do everything he wants to do. This might imply a Mage or a Seer, but what strikes me is not that Mallek wants to understand time, but that he is frustrated with his inability to do anything about it. We aren’t really told what he does after his conversation with the reader, but it can perhaps be assumed that, inspired by their words, he is doing what he has to to give himself the time he needed. Were an sgrub session to take place, he would be given the literal chance to do just that.

Lynera Skalbi: Maid of Rage. Again, whipping through an unusual class combo. The Maid is one who creates their aspect, for the benefit of others. Rage is not just about anger (although Lynera certainly has that in spades), but about convictions and truth. Lynera creates her truth and beliefs, and makes them in alignment to the people that matter to her. When she understands that keeping under the radar of Alternian society is important to Bronya, she becomes the bad cop needed to enforce those convictions. When she understands her making other friends is important to the Reader (and to Bronya), she immediately latches onto them as her nearest and dearest friendship. Ultimately we never see Lynera at a healthy place with her aspect, but she’s a dedicated soldier, ready to evangelize (or, create convictions) on behalf of the people in her life to matter to her.

Galekh Xigisi: Seer of Blood. The Seer is of course, associated with understanding. However, its important that unlike the Mage, one who already understands and suffers from it, the Seer is rather one who invites understanding. They may have a large knowledge base already as regards their aspect (a la Terezi with Mind) but are constantly on the hunt for more to the benefit of their party. Galekh, while he can be pompous and uptight, at his very core wants to understand people, and the people who matter to those he cares about especially. He is one of the few trolls to approach us with the explicit intent of forming a relationship (and deepening an existing one with Tagora). That wordiness and sense of self-righteousness likewise aligns him with our other known Seer of Blood, Kankri Vantas, although Galekh has arguably gotten more of a chance to mature than Kankri got.

Tirona Kasund: Thief of Heart. Tirona seeks to override the convictions, and by extension the “soul”, of others, whether by force or by persuasion. Her memeaganda is one branch of this, ingratiating the Heiress to people in a way that will make them forget the various ways in she has harmed her. Likewise, she goes rooting through the offices of their friends to dig up details about their personal opinions and politics in order to expose them for her own gain. Heart Players really can’t catch a break outside of Boldir huh. Speaking of…

Boldir Lamati: Muse of Heart. Unusual, I know, but then, she’s an unusual lady. Not much is known about the muse class, given that our only Muse is Calliope. Typically, the verb that I would assign to the Muse is “inspires” or “unifies”, as a contrast to the Lord’s “command” or “dominates”. Boldir’s strong unity of the self would likely explain how she demonstrates an uncanny awareness over the strange time activities. She is, arguably, on the verge of becoming her ultimate self. Likewise, simply by being around her the reader becomes deeply aware of their alternate selves. However, unlikely Dirk’s existential dread in the face of his splinters, Boldir inspires that peace and independence unique to the Muse class which allows her to transcend the division of self so often toxic to Heart Players.

Stelsa Sezyat: Knight of Blood. Together with Galekh, they’re two halves of a whole Signless kin. Knights defend their aspect and defend through their aspect. In the case of relationships, Stelsa does both. She is a loyal and caring friend, always on call for both the Reader and her matesprit Tyzias even when she disagrees with their actions. Likewise, Stelsa’s strongest asset, in addition to her boundless energy and organizational talent, is her capacity for networking. More so than perhaps any other troll, Stelsa understands that the key to victory sometimes isn’t what you can do, but who you know. In the event she goes godtier, though, the first thing she’s doing is ditching the hood. Not subjecting her hair to that, no sir.

Marsti Houtek: Heir of Void (side note, Inherit Nothing by phemieC may have been written for Equius but it is a jam and a half and kind of snaps this class into greater perspective for me). Like every troll on Alternia, Marsti has been forced most of her life to confront her limited options under the hemocaste system. True to her nature as a Void player, she seemed to have accepted her apparent irrelevance in the grand scheme of thing. As an heir, she embodies not only this irrelevance, but the enigma around it. We’re never truly given an insight into how Marsti actually would want her life to go. She seems resistant to any attempts to force her into some kind of emotional arc. Rather, she frames her actions in terms of simple “this is what I do” statements. Marsti is content with her own nothingness, and is frustrated by people who cannot accept that about her.

Karako Pierot: I uh…..really like the Lord of Mind theory. There are a lot of mind players in Hiveswap, but Karako, to me, embodies the karma aspect of Mind more clearly than any that proceed him. He either gets justice against his attackers, or, should he be killed, the reader feels compelled to enact that justice on others. Karako at once breaks the rules of his aspect (his illogical speaking patterns, his afterlife return to the Dark Carnival, the embodiment of whimsy and mystery) while commanding it through his will and the forces surrounding him. 

Charun Krojib: Sylph of Rage. If Lynera embodies the part of Rage that deals with convictions, then Charun embodies the more anarchic, confusing parts of the Aspect. However, they do not seem to use it for destructive purposes, but deconstructive. Charun meets the player at a point when they are feeling low and burnt out and angry. However subtextually, Doc Scratch’s imposition over their narrative is starting to chafe at them a bit. Charun utilizes that anger and that confusion into a tool for healing via their art. They encourage the Reader to make something. Doesn’t matter what: if it turns out crap that it can just be stripped down and made again. And working with those nebulous guidelines, the Reader is able to process their frustration into art. Art that has no set meaning, but who’s lack of stakes and general confusion bring healing to the reader. Thus, Charun embodies the Sylph’s restorative role. 

Wanshi Adyata: Seer of Doom. Seers are often seen as already understanding their aspect in some respect, but the role of Seer is one who is perpetually learning and understanding more about their aspect. Notably, Rose and Terezi are both still having revelations about the nature of their aspects and abilities even as late as Act 6, where most of the other players have broadly figured out their own as far as they need to. Wanshi has demonstrated a proclivity towards knowledge and understanding, being a voracious reader. However, we as the Reader are there with her as she takes her first steps into her aspect. Though no stranger to the suffering of Alternia, we see her experience death in the most direct way she has at that point in her life, and struggle to comprehend it. Depending on how Hiveswap goes, as she grows older she may be forced to reckon with this role, and part of her maturation will be whether she buckles under the negativity of doom, or successfully incorporates it into her worldview, allowing it to inform her without sinking her. 

Fozzer Velyes: Bard of Heart. Man, heartbound derse players just canNOT catch a break….criminal. In any case, the heart has to do with the self, the soul, and the identity. The Bard is not someone who destroys, but someone who invites destruction of (or destruction through) their aspect. Notably, bards often demonstrate avoidant personalities, often refusing to directly confront the things that scare them (as Fozzer with the ghosts), and are prone to talking big game but falling victim to minor hitches in their plans (as the Reader notes contrasting his cowardly reactions with his revolutionary spiel). Fozzer’s self is in fact destroyed over the course of his route, and rewritten by forces beyond his control. Its possible he will continue to enact this role on others. If we’ve seen anything from homestuck, its that bards are the ones to watch out for.

Marvus Xoloto: Seer of Time. Alright, so like I said, I’m like 99% sure we’re do for some kind of twist with Marvus. However, the Caprist sign he’s been previously associated with is timebound, and based on his bad end especially I’d say that’s a good fit. The Seer is the role I chose because Marvus doesn’t really seem to exert any particular control over his aspect, nor does he feel bound to serve it (actively defying it, in fact). Rather, he demonstrates a more in-depth of the machinations of paradox space and “canon” than any character prior, arguably even more than Dirk. Marvus may not successfully wrest control of the narrative, but he provides further insight into the function of doomed timelines, as well as some possible hints as to how paradox space’s pull can be resisted by means other than the retcon juju. 

Daraya Jonjet: Rogue of Hope. Something notable about rogues is that in their immature stages: a lot of them seem to initially covet their opposite aspect. Roxy, Rogue of Void, struggled with a desire for recognition from others (Light). Rufioh, Rogue of Breath, tries desperately to forge relationships that ultimately he isn’t ready to live out (Blood). Likewise, Daraya seems desperate to perform the anarchic and embittered Rage aspect. Her bad ending is her giving herself fully to these bitter teen “burn it all down” impulses. However, that’s not ultimately how she’s happiest. She is at her best when she learns to redistribute Hope to other people. Notably she’s the first person we make legitimate effort to connect with Tyzias’ revolutionary actions. Tyzias is a powerhouse in her own right, true, but she’s one person, and though her Blood aspect gives the the ability to connect to other people, as we’ve seen she’s not the best at rallying the troops (given that her attempts at a pep talk with Daraya fall flat with the Reader not there to help). Daraya, as she grows into her role and partners more with Tyzias, may be able to help with that, stealing the Hope so long denied alternian trolls and giving it back to the people with her rebellious actions. One things for sure: the two are stronger together than they are apart.

Nikhee Moolah: Knight of Rage. She weaponizes anger into her powerful arsenal, but arguably does do it for the benefit of others. In her good ending she strengthens the reader to their utmost, actually reaping muscular benefits as a result. Likewise, her fights are (arguably) a place of catharsis for Alternian trolls and may draw in more outsiders (given the only non-clown purple we have ever seen is….there PLEASE SOMEONE EXPLAIN THIS NOT CLOWN TO ME WHAT’S THEIR STORY). That anger becomes just as powerful a tool turned against the Reader as it is for the Reader, but ultimately Nikhee seems to do what she does for the good of her audience.

Lanque Bombyx: Thief of Life. Insert mandatory vampire joke here, but its not far off from how Lanque goes about his day to day. Life isn’t just about literally being alive, its also associated with growth, betterment, and positivity. We see Lanque take these things, especially from Lynera. While the amount of growth Lynera really demonstrated is VERY debatable, its hard to argue that Lanque immediately shut down the first attempt at reaching out to someone romantically that Lynera has done for anyone but Bronya, immediately turning it into an opportunity to put the moves on someone else. This may nudge him into the Prince class, but I think its more accurate to assert that Lanque isn’t destroying his aspect, necessarily, as he certainly seems to benefit from it. Instead, he’s simply ensuring that no one else gets it. Lanque is childish in temperament, and may assume that other people are as slow to mature as he is. Likewise he displays the Thief’s attitude that “I should get what I want if I’m smart enough and strong enough to take it” that we see with both Meenah and Vriska. Like both of those characters, he’s not necessarily doomed to evil behavior, merely that its more realistic to hope that he’ll start to see the good of the party as beneficial to him as well, rather than wish he’d just lose his self-interested ways (as Bronya does).

Barzum and Baizli Soleil: the fact that these two embody two different aspects (Breath and Doom respectively) seems to imply that there is at least some difference between the two twins, but whatever it is is hard to riddle out, given that they effectively switch personalities on a whim. As such, its possible to see Breath and Doom as merely two potentials towards which they could drift, either becoming more and more individuated as they embrace their Breath aspect or more and more singular as they embrace Doom. As such, I would probably assign them both the page role, as they are both untapped potential yet to mature enough to really embody anything but chaos.

[imdoingthismspaintadventure]

Worm Interlude 1 - In which we talk about “descendants” and “progenitors”

Huh? Interlude 1? What is this, some sort of bonus between sagas? Hmmm.

“We don’t know how long he had been there.  Suspended in the air above the Atlantic Ocean.  On May twentieth, 1982, an ocean liner was crossing from Plymouth to Boston when a passenger spotted him.  He was naked, his arms to his sides, his long hair blowing in the wind as he stood in the sky, nearly a hundred feet above the gently cresting waves.  His skin and hair can only be described as a burnished gold.  With neither body hair nor clothes to cover him, it is said, he seemed almost artificial.

Oooh is this like backstory?? On the world itself?? This is all the way back to 1982!! It sounds like a documentary of important events of the past! Is this what the interludes are going to be? Lore bombs?. I’m game for that : D

So floating in the middle of the ocean was a man with long hair, no clothes, and his skin with the apearance of gold. That makes for an incredible mental image. Holy shit powers are awesome

He’s giving me strong Dr Manhattan vibes, but this one has hair and is yellow instead of blue.

“After a discussion including passenger and crew, the liner detoured to get closer.  It was a sunny day, and passengers crowded to the railings to get a better look.  As if sharing their curiosity, the figure drew closer as well.  His expression was unchanging, but witnesses at the scene reported that he appeared deeply sad.

People getting closer to something that could be dangerous to record it and/or touch it is such a staple of humanity. That would 100% happen in our world

He looks deeply sad....Maybe it’s because of the Manhattan vibes, but this screams deep, profound loneliness to me. Or detachment from the world. Where did this golden man even come from? He was suddently spotted one day all radiant and sorrowfull...

“‘I thought he was going to crack his facade and cry any moment’, said Grace Lands, ‘But when I reached out and touched his fingertips, I was the one who burst into tears.’

Damn, they make him sound majestic. Holy shit.

Also this is totally a documentary! I love the format of this.

“‘That boat trip was a final journey for me.  I had cancer, and I wasn’t brave enough to face it.  Can’t believe I’m admitting this in front of a camera, but I was going back to Boston, where I was born, to end things myself.  After I met him, I changed my mind.  Didn’t matter anyways.  I went to a doctor, and he said there was no sign I ever had the disease.’

!!!!!

The golden man can cure cancer! Is his power omni-healing? A universal cure? He basically did a miracle there!

He has this amazing healing power and was just floating idly over the sea... He still gives me massive Manhattan vibes..

“‘My brother, Andrew Hawke, was the last passenger to make any sort of contact with him, I remember.  He climbed up onto the railing, and, almost falling off, he clasped the hand of the golden man.  The rest of us had to grab onto him to keep him from falling.  Whatever happened left him with a quiet awe.  When the man with the golden skin flew away, my brother stayed silent.  The rest of the way to Boston, my brother didn’t say a word.  When we docked, and the spell finally broke, my brother babbled his excitement to reporters like a child.’

Were superheroes less common at that time? I mean, golden man here still seems amazing even with that we have seen, but they are acting like it happened in our world!

“The golden man would reappear several more times in the coming months and years.  At some point, he donned clothing.  At first, a sheet worn over one shoulder and pinned at either side of the waist, then more conventional clothes.  In 1999, he donned the white bodysuit he still wears today.  For more than a decade, we have wondered, where did our golden man get these things?  Who was he in contact with?

So he has a contact! Who gives him clothes and maybe equipment? And no one in the world knows? He seems as much a mystery to them as to us!

“Periodically at first, then with an increasing frequency, the golden man started to intervene in times of crisis.  For events as small as a car accident, as great as natural disasters, he has arrived and used his abilities to save us.  A flash of light to freeze water reinforcing a levee stressed by a hurricane.  A terrorist act averted.  A serial murderer caught.  A volcano quelled.  Miracles, it was said.

H-Holy shit.

This makes Lung seem like nothing. What is even his power??

Curing diseases, freezing water, calming volcanoes....He performs actual miracles! Is his power just... all the powers??? Or a power that does everything???

How high in the hierarchy is this guy??

“His pace increased, perhaps because he was still learning what he could do, perhaps because he was getting a greater sense of where he was needed.  By the middle of the 1990s, he was traveling from crisis to crisis, flying faster than the speed of sound.  In fifteen years, he has not rested.

Oh my god....

He has been saving people and doing good deeds for over fifteen years, EVERY SINGLE MOMENT OF EVERY DAY.

Holy fucking shit.

Is this the #1 hero?? The “All Might” of this world?? But this....this is even more insane. He’s like the ultimate good!

“He has been known to speak just once in thirty years.  After extinguishing widespread fire in Alexandrovsk, he paused to survey the scene and be sure no blazes remained.  A reporter spoke to him, and asked, ‘Kto vy?’ – what are you?

“Shocking the world, caught on camera in a scene replayed innumerable times, he answered in a voice that sounded as though it might never have uttered a sound before.  Barely audible, he told her, ‘Scion’.

!!!!!!

This is giving me all of the chills, ever.

Scion

Descendant?? What does that even mean?? Why are you so mysterious and amazing at the same time, golden man????

“It became the name we used for him.  Ironic, because we took a word that meant descendant, and used it to name the first of many superpowered individuals – parahumans – to appear across Earth.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WAIT HOLD THE FUCK UP

He’s just not the best, he’s the first!!!!

The first superhero ever!!!!

Oh my god, he’s superman! Both in meta and in-story!!

Godly do-everything powers, ultimate good, first ever superhero....

He’s the man of tomorrow!!! But without like the secret identity part. This is who Superman would be if he never stopped saving people, ever. If he was a hero all the time!!

THIS IS SO COOL.

“Just five years after Scion’s first appearance, the superheroes emerged from the cover of rumor and secrecy to show themselves to the public. Though the villains followed soon after, it was the heroes who shattered any illusions of the parahumans being divine figures.  In 1989, attempting to quell a riot over a basketball game in Michigan, the superhero known to the public as Vikare stepped in, only to be clubbed over the head.  He died not long after of a brain embolism.  Later, he would be revealed to be Andrew Hawke.

WAIT AND NOW YOU DROP THIS ON ME.

One of the first superheroes was the man who touched him at the boat!!! Did he give him his power??? DId touching him grant him powers??? What???

But then what about all the other people who got powers afterwards??. I’m sure he wasn’t there for them all??? WHAT IS GOING ON?? Was that just a coincidence??

“The golden age of the parahumans was thus short lived.  They were not the deific figures they had appeared to be.  Parahumans were, after all, people with powers, and people are flawed at their core.  Government agencies took a firmer hand, and state-”

Can I just say that I fucking love how despite all their powers and grace, parahumans are just human, with all their virtues and flaws, and it was this that made people realize that they were not gods, just men?? That one of the superheroes of the golden age died from a simple hit to the head??

God, this is so great.

The television flicked off, and the screen went black, cutting the documentary off mid sentence.  Danny Hebert sighed and sat down on the bed, only to stand just a moment later and resume pacing.

It was three fifteen in the morning, and his daughter Taylor was not in her bedroom.

WHAT. It was indeed a documentary! A documentary that Taylor’s dad was watching! While waiting for his daughter to come home (and her being presumably dealing with the fire demon situation)

What a way to link this to the main story

For the twentieth time, he felt the urge to ask his wife for help, for advice, for support.  But her side of the bed was empty and it had been for some time.  Daily, it seemed, he was struck by the urge to call her cell phone.  He knew it was stupid – she wouldn’t pick up – and if he dwelt on that for too long, he became angry at her, which just made him feel worse.

Oh so Taylor doesn’t have a mom? ):

Poor Taylor and poor Danny... He seems to have regrets... I would say they broke up but the “she wouldn’t pick up” line makes me think she’s dead..

He wondered, even as he knew the answer, why he hadn’t gotten Taylor a cell phone.  Danny didn’t know what his daughter was doing, what would drive her to go out at night.  She wasn’t the type.  He could tell himself that most fathers felt that way about their daughters, but at the same time, he knew.  Taylor wasn’t social.  She didn’t go to parties, she wouldn’t drink, she wasn’t even that interested in champagne when they celebrated the New Year together.

Hmm, Taylor doesn’t have a cellphone? Danny seems to have an issue with them..

Also damn. Taylor did this to free herself from her troubles and start her dreams but didn’t account for how she would make his father feel.... Probably didn’t even think on the possibility that he would wake up and she wouldn’t be there.

Two ominous possibilities kept nagging at him, both too believable.  The first was that Taylor had gone out for fresh air, or even for a run. She wasn’t happy, especially at school, he knew, and exercise was her way of working through it.  He could see her doing it on a Sunday night, with a fresh week at school looming.  He liked that her running made her feel better about herself, that she seemed to be doing it in a reasonable, healthy way. He just hated that she had to do it here, in this neighborhood.  Because here, a skinny girl in her mid-teens was an easy target for attack.  A mugging or worse – he couldn’t even articulate the worst of the possibilities in his own thoughts without feeling physically sick.  If she had gone out at eleven in the evening for a run and hadn’t come back by three in the morning, then it meant something had happened.

Damn, I feel the adult fear Danny is expierencing. Having a daughter to take care of, worring about horrible things happening to her, about her general happiness ...

This is very well written.

He glanced out the window again, at that corner of the house where the pool of illumination beneath the streetlight would let him see her approaching.  Nothing. 

Checking out over and over again to see if she has come back, knowing that each time you look and it isn’t so, it is yet another weight of worry over your weary shoulders....

The second possibility wasn’t much better.  He knew Taylor was being bullied.  Danny had found that out in January, when his little girl had been pulled out of school and taken to the hospital.  Not the emergency room, but the psychiatric ward.  She wouldn’t say by whom, but under the influence of the drugs they had given her to calm down, she had admitted she was being victimized by bullies, using the plural to give him a clue that it was a they and not a he or a she.  She hadn’t mentioned it – the incident or the bullying – since.  If he pushed, she only tensed up and grew more withdrawn.  He had resigned himself to letting her reveal the details in her own time, but months had passed without any hints or clues being offered.

Oh god, they bullied her so bad she went to the phychiatric ward??? What the hell!??

Oh my god those three fucking monsters. And Danny has been tormenting himself over all this since! Wanting to help but not wanting to intrude in such personal matters...

There was precious little Danny could do on the subject, either.  He had threatened to sue the school after his daughter had been taken to the hospital, and the school board had responded by settling, paying her hospital bills and promising they would look out for her to prevent such events from occurring in the future. It was a feeble promise made by a chronically overworked staff and it didn’t do a thing to ease his worries.  His efforts to have her change schools had been stubbornly countered with rules and regulations about the maximum travel times a student was allowed to have between home and a given school.  The only other school within a reasonable distance of Taylor’s place of residence was Arcadia High, and it was already desperately overcrowded with more than two hundred students on a list requesting admittance.

Ugh schools being so useless is also very realistic, sadly....

It sucks and everyone refuses to help.

With all that in mind, when his daughter disappeared until the middle of the night, he couldn’t shake the idea that the bullies might have lured her out with blackmail, threats or empty promises.  He only knew about the one incident, the one that had landed her in the hospital, but it had been grotesque.  It had been implied, but never elaborated on, that more had been going on.  He could imagine these boys or girls that were tormenting his daughter, egging one another on as they came up with more creative ways to humiliate or harm her.  Taylor hadn’t said as much aloud, but whatever had been going on had been mean, persistent and threatening enough that Emma, Taylor’s closest friend for years, had stopped spending time with her.  It galled him.

Aaaaaa, if you only knew!!! This is so sadly ironic, Emma’s got more to do with this than you are even aware of...

And what the hell did they do that time???

Impotent.  Danny was helpless where it counted.  There was no action he could take – his one call to the police at two in the morning had only earned him a tired explanation that the police couldn’t act or look for her without something more to go on.  If his daughter was still gone after twelve hours, he’d been told, he should call them again.  All he could do was wait and pray with his heart in his throat that the phone wouldn’t ring, a police officer or nurse on the other end ready to tell him what had happened to his daughter.

Ugh, what he is living though is just... awful.

He’s completely helpless to her daughter when she might be in need (or at least that’s what he thinks) and he’s waiting for a phone call telling him that something terrible has happened, and for his life to stop making sense.

Fuck

The slightest of vibrations in the house marked the escape of the warm air in the house to the cold outdoors, and there was a muffled whoosh as the kitchen door shut again.  Danny Hebert felt a thrill of relief coupled with abject fear.  If he went downstairs to find his daughter, would he find her hurting or hurt?  Or would his presence make things worse, her own father seeing her at her most vulnerable after humiliation at the hands of bullies?  She had told him, in every way except articulating it aloud, that she didn’t want that.  She had pleaded with him, with body language and averted eye contact, unfinished sentences and things left unsaid, not to ask, not to push, not to see, when it came to the bullying.  He couldn’t say why, exactly.  Home was an escape from that, he’d suspected, and if he recognized the bullying, made it a reality here, maybe she wouldn’t have that relief from it. Perhaps it was shame, that his daughter didn’t want him to see her like that, didn’t want to be that weak in front of him.  He really hoped that wasn’t the case.

Oh Taylor has returned after the Armsmaster talk!! Yess

And now Danny doesn’t know if to approach her for if he sees her in her weakest moment, he thinks it would break his daughter even more

Damn being Danny is suffering, at least today! Worse thing is, Taylor must be feeling realtively happy after being owed a favour by a famous hero and helping stop a villain...

So he ran his fingers through his hair once more and sat down on the corner of the bed, elbows on his knees, hands on his head, and stared at his closed bedroom door.  His ears were peeled for the slightest clue. The house was old, and it hadn’t been a high quality building when it had been new, so the walls were thin and the structure prone to making noise at every opportunity.  There was the faintest sound of a door closing downstairs.  The bathroom?  It wouldn’t be the basement door, with no reason for her to go down there, and he couldn’t imagine it was a closet, because after two or three minutes, the same door opened and closed again.

It was probably the basement, to hide her costume again.

After something banged on the kitchen counter, there was little but the occasional groan of floorboards.  Five or ten minutes after she had come in, there was the rhythmic creak of the stairs as she ascended. Danny thought about clearing his throat to let her know he was awake and available should she knock on his door, but decided against it.  He was being cowardly, he thought, as if his clearing of his throat would give reality to his fears.

Her door shut carefully, almost inaudibly, with the slightest tap of door on doorframe.  Danny stood, abruptly, opening his door, ready to cross the hall and knock on her door.  To verify that his daughter was okay.

Aaaaaa this hurts! If only you could talk to each other! The worse part is I know Taylor would be distressed if Danny tried to talk with her! She would worry about her cover being blown, about having to explain herself or even just about making her father worry!

He was stopped by the smell of jam and toast.  She had made a late night snack.  It filled him with relief.  He couldn’t imagine his daughter, after being mugged, tormented or humiliated, coming home to have toast with jam as a snack.  Taylor was okay, or at least, okay enough to be left alone.

He let out a shuddering sigh of relief and retreated to his room to sit on the bed.

Yes!! At least now he has some proof that things are somewhat ok : D

Relief became anger.  He was angry at Taylor, for making him worry, and then not even going out of her way to let him know she was okay.  He felt a smouldering resentment towards the city, for having neighborhoods and people he couldn’t trust his daughter to.  He hated the bullies that preyed on his daughter.  Underlying it all was frustration with himself.  Danny Hebert was the one person he could control in all of this, and Danny Hebert had failed to do anything that mattered.  He hadn’t gotten answers, hadn’t stopped the bullies, hadn’t protected his daughter.  Worst of all was the idea that this might have happened before, with him simply sleeping through it rather than laying awake.

Damn, this still hurts.

Danny you are a good father, you worry about your daughter so much. Don’t hate yourself for feeling useless. It’s a bad situation overall.

He stopped himself from walking into his daughter’s room, from shouting at her and demanding answers, even if it was what he wanted, more than anything.  Where had she been, what had she been doing?  Was she hurt? Who were these people that were tormenting her?  He knew that by confronting her and getting angry at her, he would do more harm than good, would threaten to sever any bond of trust they had forged between them.

He wants to be more of a father, to demand answers and try to protect her, to see if she’s doing something self-destructive or dangerous, but he’s afraid that he’ll lose her if he does that. That their bond will be irreparably damaged...

Danny’s father had been a powerful, heavyset man, and Danny hadn’t gotten any of those genes.  Danny had been a nerd when the term was still young in popular culture, stick thin, awkward, short sighted, glasses, bad fashion sense.  What he had inherited was his father’s famous temper.  It was quick to rise and startling in its intensity.   Unlike his father, Danny had only ever hit someone in anger twice, both times when he was much younger.  That said, just like his father, he could and would go off on tirades that would leave people shaking.   Danny had long viewed the moment he’d started to see himself as a man, an adult, to be the point in time where he had sworn to himself that he wouldn’t ever lose his temper with his family.  He wouldn’t pass that on to his child the way his father had to him.

“Unlike his father”... Oh

Oh no.

Danny you are not him, you are better than him. You seem like a wonderful man!

Seems Taylor inherited her tall, thin physique from him.

He had never broken that oath with Taylor, and knowing that was what kept him contained in his room, pacing back and forth, red in the face and wanting to punch something.  While he’d never gotten angry at her, never screamed at her, he knew Taylor had seen him angry.  Once, he had been at work, talking to a mayor’s aide.  The man had told Danny that the revival projects for the Docks were being cancelled and that, contrary to promises, there were to be layoffs rather than new jobs for the already beleaguered Dockworkers.  Taylor had been spending the morning in his office on the promise that they would go out for the afternoon, and had been in a position to see him fly off the handle in the worst way with the man.  Four years ago, he had lost his temper with Annette for the first time, breaking his oath to himself.  That had been the last time he had seen her.  Taylor hadn’t been there to see him shouting at her mother, but he was fairly certain she’d heard some of it.  It shamed him.

This makes it seem like they broke up. but.. if she really is dead... what a final conversation to have, angry with each other. No wonder he seems to have a lot of regrets with all of that. And with Taylor seeing him like he saw his father as well...

The third and last time that he had lost his temper where Taylor had been in a position to know had been when she had been hospitalized following the incident in January.  He’d screamed at the school’s principal, who had deserved it, and at Taylor’s then-Biology teacher, who probably hadn’t.  It had been bad enough that a nurse had threatened to call for a police officer, and Danny, barely mollified, had stomped from the hallway to the hospital room to find his daughter more or less conscious and wide eyed in reaction.  Danny harbored a deep fear that the reason Taylor hadn’t offered any details on the bullying was out of fear he would, in blind rage, do something about it.  It made him feel sick, the notion that he might have contributed something to his daughter’s self imposed isolation in how she was dealing with her problems.

He’s probably right about that, that Taylor doesn’t want his father involved...

January seemed a horrific month for them both.

It took Danny a long time to calm down, helped by telling himself over and over that Taylor was okay, that she was home, that she was safe.  It was something of a blessing that, as the anger faded, he felt drained.  He climbed into the left side of the bed, leaving the right side empty out of a habit he’d yet to break, and pulled the covers up around himself.

He would talk to Taylor in the morning.  Get an answer of some sort.

The space he leaves for Taylor’s mom   )):

Things will be better in the morning, sleep it off for now...

Also I wonder how Taylor will explain herself. Maybe she’s thinking about that.

He dreamed of the ocean.

We started this chapter with the ocean, and we seem to end on it, how poetic.

One ocean the scenery for a sight that would change the world forever, and the other a moment of peace in a storm of anxiety.

This interlude was incredibly good.

[sexythembo]

Friendsim Headcanon Voices!

Friendsim Voice

Ardata: Eris from Sinbad

Diemen: Chills (you know the Burger King foot lettuce guy)

Fozzer: CrazyRussianHacker on YouTube (go check him out he’s neat!)

Mallek: Duece Gorgon from Monster High

Marvus: Aaron “Prowler” Davis Into the Spider-Verse

Folkyl: Raven Teen Titans

Kuprum: Dib from Invader Zim (with a lisp)

Wanshi: Moonkitti on YouTube (check them out too! They’re actually a Warrior cats Channel so yup!)

Bronya: Sonia Nevermind from DanganRonpa 2

Elwurd: Lady Gaga (I was really tired of people putting Marceline down for her because I feel like she would have a raspier voice, and who better to play Elwurd then the queen of the gays!)

Chixie: Adrisaurus on YouTube (check her out! She does covers of video game songs and her voice is beautiful!)

Azdaja: Dante Basco (who else were you expecting! Azdaja means dragon you fools!)

Konyll: Jasper from Steven Universe

Skylla: AppleJack from My Little Pony

Zebruh: Michael Bublé (fuck if I know I just greatly dislike his Christmas albums.)

Chuhut: Angela Bassat as Marie Laveau in American Horror Story Coven

Amisia: D.Va from Overwatch!

Charun: Prozd as Brian Yu in Monster Prom

Cirava: Scotch on YouTube (pleeeeease check them out their art is amazeballs)

Tagora: Liam DeLioncourt from Monster Prom

Galekh: Tenya Iida My Hero Academia

Stelsa: Fran Drescher

Tyzias: Bridgette from Most Popular Girls in school!

Karako: The goose from Untitled Goose Game (jk if we had to give him a voice it would be Beast Boy from Teen Titans)

Lynera: Taylor Swift

Remele: Collette from Ratatouille

Vikare: Gavin Free RoosterTeeth/Achievment Hunter

Zebede: Grubber from My Little Pony The Movie

Tegiri: Fern from Adventure Time

Polypa: Maki Harukawa from NDRV3

Marsti: Moira From Overwatch

Tirona: Marisol De La Gorgonzola from Brandon Rodgers’ Halloween Therapy skit on YouTube

Boldir: Life with Mak on Youtube (she’s great!)

Daraya: Sam Mansen from Danny Phantom

Lanque: Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen from Twilight

Nikhee: Kylee Henke (please look her up she sings you can’t fight the Homestuck)

Barzum and Baizli: Kokichi Oma and Himiko Yumeno NDRV3

Xefros: Steven Universe

Dammek: Robin from Teen Titans

Jude: Gumball Waterson from Amazing World of Gumball

Joey: Princess Bubblegum Adventure Time

[echobearhsfanblog]

Hiveswap Friendsim Potential Sburb Session Totals

I enjoy making lists of certain things now and then, and figured since I started this fanblog I should share any HS ones whenever I make them.

On today's menu/agenda/whatever is figuring out how the friendsim trolls would fit into sburb sessions. Let's start with listing off their aspects as given to us through their signs. Plus their dream moons since we get that from their signs as well.

:33 <

Trolls and Aspects, listed in order of friendsim volume.

Diemen Xicali – Hope Derse

Ardata Carmia – Doom Derse

Amisia Erdahn – Mind Prospit

Cirava Hermod – Hope Derse

Skylla Koriga – Time Prospit

Bronya Ursama – Breath Prospit

Tagora Gorjek – Space Derse

Vikare Ratite – Mind Derse

Polypa Goezee – Breath Prospit

Zebruh Codakk – Doom Prospit

?????? Elwurd – Hope Prospit

Kuprum Maxlol – Hope Prospit

Folykl Darane – Void Derse

Remele Namaaq – Space Prospit

Konyyl Okimaw – Light Derse

Tyzias Entykk – Blood Prospit

Chixie Roixmr – Mind Prospit

Azdaja Knelax – Mind Prospit

Chahut Maenad – Hope Prospit

Zebede Tongva – Light Prospit

Tegiri Kalbur – Void Derse

Mallek Adalov – Time Prospit

Lynera Skalbi – Rage Derse

Galekh Xigisi – Blood Prospit

Tirona Kasund – Heart Prospit

Boldir Lamati – Heart Prospit

Stelsa Sezyat – Blood Derse

Marsti Houtek – Void Derse

Karako Pierot – Mind Prospit

Charun Krojib – Rage Derse

Wanshi Adyata – Doom Prospit

Fozzer Velyes – Heart Derse

Marvus Xoloto – Time Prospit

Daraya Jonjet – Hope Prospit

Nihkee Moolah – Rage Prospit

Lanque Bombyx – Life Prospit

Barzum Soleil – Breath Derse

Baizli Soleil – Doom Derse

Friendsim Aspect Totals

Time - 3

Space - 2

Heart - 3

Mind - 5

Hope - 6

Rage - 3

Light - 2

Void - 3

Breath - 3

Blood - 3

Life - 1

Doom – 4

Lunar Sways

Prospit - 23

Derse – 15

:33 <

Some interesting stuff here. Hope being the most frequent aspect and Life being the least. Also a pretty big Prospit over Derse asymetry. We have the numbers now, let's start categorizing things further down.

I don't think there's technicly any canon statement about a limitation of classpects within a sburb session within homestuck itself, so while I think mechanically multiple people of the same aspect could join the same session that'd make the minimum session number 1 if everyone could just pile in so for now I'll stick to the narrative style from the comic that doesn't have any cross over of classpects in any given sburb game.

Thinking about it the minium number of sessions isn't too hard to figure out because that's more or less determined by the aspect with the highest number, which is Hope. The maximum number of 'full' 12 player games (since there's only 12 canon aspects so far) would be 1 game Since Lanque is the only Life player to complete any 12 aspect loops. There's also only 2 Space Players in the Friendsims so that means only 2 possible regular/null sessions, all other sessions will be void sessions.  If we also try to balance games in terms of Lunar Sway we'd also have to put 8 trolls on the sidelines and make them wait for more Hiveswap characters to have enough balance for a classical sburb session.

Since we've gone this far how about we list out some possible session combinations? I won't list out all possible combinations because I'm not THAT masochistic, and I won't claim that the ones I list out will be optimal or your favorite groupings of these characters, they're probably not even going to be my favorite so I feel your pain on how bad some of these sessions might look. They're going to be organized to minimize the number of sessions while following narrative aspect and lunar sway balance of sessions, with the leftover extra prospits at the end awaiting some derse pairings.

This is all assuming of course that all of the classes pair up correctly with no doubles as well. While there's some good speculation on some of their classes I'm not aware of anything being confirmed (not to mention there can be red herrings figuring out a classpect) so we'll just ignore class conflicts for these lists for now.

D -->

Session 1

Skylla Koriga – Time Prospit Player

Tagora Gorjek – Space Derse Player

Boldir Lamati – Heart Prospit Player

Karako Pierot – Mind Prospit Player

Kuprum Maxlol – Hope Prospit Player

Charun Krojib – Rage Derse Player

Konyyl Okimaw – Light Derse Player

Folykl Darane – Void Derse Player

Polypa Goezee – Breath Prospit Player

Stelsa Sezyat – Blood Derse Player

Lanque Bombyx – Life Prospit Player

Ardata Carmia – Doom Derse Player

Session 2

Mallek Adalov – Time Prospit Player

Remele Namaaq – Space Prospit Player

Fozzer Velyes – Heart Derse Player

Vikare Ratite – Mind Derse Player

Cirava Hermod – Hope Derse Player

Lynera Skalbi – Rage Derse Player

Zebede Tongva – Light Prospit Player

Tegiri Kalbur – Void Derse Player

Bronya Ursama – Breath Prospit Player

Galekh Xigisi – Blood Prospit Player

Session 3

Marvus Xoloto – Time Prospit Player

Tirona Kasund – Heart Propit Player

Amisia Erdahn – Mind Prospit Player

Diemen Xicali – Hope Derse Player

Nihkee Moolah – Rage Prospit Player

Tegiri Kalbur – Void Derse

Barzum Soleil – Breath Derse

Baizli Soleil – Doom Derse

Session 4

Chixie Roixmr – Mind Prospit Player

Marsti Houtek – Void Derse Player

Leftovers

Chahut Maenad – Hope Prospit Player

Wanshi Adyata – Doom Prospit Player

Daraya Jonjet – Hope Prospit Player

Zebruh Codakk – Doom Prospit Player

?????? Elwurd – Hope Prospit Player

Tyzias Entykk – Blood Prospit Player

Azdaja Knelax – Mind Prospit Player

Galekh Xigisi – Blood Prospit Player

D -->

So apparently the Prospit/Derse imbalance shrunk the sessions from 5-6 potential sessions to 3-4. I'd say 3 of them are decent sized sessions, the fourth would need some more players but is at least viable as a void session as is, and I really didn't want to put Chixie in the same session as Zebruh even if it was as a miscelanious section. I really like how the first two sessions built out and the third was kind of fun making it a clown-y session.

Tagora seems to be the first HS character to be a male Hero of Space. Sburb session or not, that means Space is not a gender restricted aspect in HS canon. Considering how flexible everything is in the HS universe I wouldn't think it was anyway, but Space was one of the most common aspects with only female heros having it so I wasn't sure if it was an exception to the flexibility.

[yasthvqueen]

Updated Headcannon Voices for Hiveswap

Joey Claire- Connie from Steven Universe

Jude Harley- Dipper from Gravity Falls

Dammek-Robin from Teen Titans

Xefros Tritoh- Rigby from Regular Show

Trizza Tethis- Courtney from As Told by Ginger

Zebede Tongva- Gene from Bob’s Burgers

Tyzias Entykk- Raven from Teen Titans

Mallek Adalov- Tuffnut from How to Train your dragon

Daraya Jonjet- Buttercup from The Powerpuff Girls

Barzum and Baizli Soleil- Siamese Cats from Lady and the Tramp

Nihkee Moolah- Ashley Spinelli from Recess

Chahut Maenad- Envy from Full Metal Alchemist

Diemen Xicali- Steven from Steven Universe

Skylla Koriga- Miley Cyrus

Folykl Darane- Amethyst from Steven Universe

Kuprum Maxlol - Beast Boy from Teen Titans Go!

Charun Krojib- Stevonnie from Steven Universe

Amisia Erdehn- Aquamarine from Steven Universe

Polypa Goezee- Meg from Family Guy

Tegiri Kalbur- Ronaldo from Steven Universe

Tirona Kasund- Lola from The Loud House

Lynera Skalbi- Sapphire from Steven Universe

?????? Elwurd- Marceline from Adventure Time

Galekh Xigisi- Nick from Zootopia

Vikare Ratite- Numbah 2 from Kids Next Door

Boldir Lamati- Bubbles from The Powerpuff Girls

Cirava Hermod- Dill from Rugrats All Grown Up

Tagora Gorjek- Lars from Steven Universe

Ardata Carmia- Lapis Lazuli from Steven Universe

Marvus Xoloto- Puss in Boots

Fozzer Velyes-Branch from Trolls

Stelsa Sezyat-Turanga Leela from Futurama

Wanshi Adyata- Susie Carmichael from Rugrats

Bronya Ursama- Princess Bubblegum from Adventure Time

Chixie Rioxmr- Retsuko from Aggretsuko

Zebruh Codakk- Tadashi from Big Hero 6

Azdaja Knelax- Jake from American Dragon Jake Long

Konyyl Okimaw- Jasper from Steven Universe

Who is this?- Donny from the Wild Thornberrys

Marsti Houtek- Bee from Bee and puppycat

Lanque Bombyx- Fin from Adventure Time

Remele Namaaq- Kim from Kim Possible

Some are the same and some are different. I believe it’s more accurate now