#his halo is an ouroboros :3

[misspelled-magic]

drawing of my 432 without his robe for visual reference

[snackhobi]

More ‘Straight Shooter’ lore yesssss I love that fic so much!!!!!!! Things I like to imagine after the ending: 1) JK about to go on his first mission and y/n cooing over him and fully kitting him out whilst Yoongi pouts 2) a rooftop date where Yoongi is like “sorry I’ve sniped here before but the view is beautiful” and y/n is like “you thought of me?? 🥺” 3) general domestic scenes in the Hobi/Yoongi/JK Household

I wrote this in like 20 minutes, thank you to @morndas for looking at this and assuring me it wasn't terrible (I haven't written anything in the straight shooter verse for literal years now)

a rooftop date where Yoongi is like “sorry I’ve sniped here before but the view is beautiful” and y/n is like “you thought of me?? 🥺”

straight shooter snippet ; 1

Familiarity breeds contempt, they say.

Yoongi doesn’t think so.

Then again, Yoongi’s found he doesn’t always agree with what everyone else says - what they say, what they think, what they do. Maybe it’s because he’s always hyperaware of his surroundings. He has to be in his line of work, after all. Contempt is a luxury he doesn’t allow himself to foster. A single slip-up and he could be dead.

The lower levels are looked down upon by those who live above. In the upper levels they turn up their noses, turn away from the grime and the filth, the decaying foundations that have been neglected for far too long. Dirty, ugly, abandoned, they say, even as they continue to build atop them, profit from them. There’s nothing beautiful down there.

But they don’t know the city like he does.

They don’t know about this secret perch, hidden atop a darkened skyscraper, dilapidated and hollow.

They don’t know that the lower city shines.

All the strata rise from here, a graduated terrace that ascends upwards and upwards. Each level sparkles and glitters, glowing even in the darkness, a kaleidoscope of neon colour that would be a riotous clamour if one were too close. Instead, from this distance it all blurs into one, a shimmering gradient that softens all the sharp edges of this place into something beautiful. Being at the bottom of this cascading array means that an onlooker can tilt their head back and never find an end to it all, almost, like they could lean further and further back and never fall. That they would be caught in this neverending ouroboros of light and life.

There’s nothing beautiful down there, they say, but Yoongi knows that’s not true.

Because, after all, you’re here.

You’re here in the lower city, and you’re here beside him. You’re here, staring up at all of these lights with eyes wide open, drinking in this view, the endless constellations that make up a city of man-made stars.

“It’s hardly easy to get up here,” you say. “Not exactly a great place for a tourist attraction, if that’s what you were planning.”

Yoongi lets himself smile. He’s been doing that a lot more recently. Smiling. Usually when you’re around.

(Who would have thought?)

“I was using it as a sniper’s nest,” Yoongi says. “I thought you’d like the view.”

You turn towards him. As far away as you are from all those lights, those shooting stars, you still shine brighter still. (Bold, brilliant, bright. Beautiful.)

“You thought of me?”

(Sniper rifle of your making braced against his body, staring down a scope that you’d built, weapon loaded with bullets that you’d designed. The remembered press of your lips on his temple, his mouth, his neck. The lights of the city haloed around his view even as he focused in on his target below.)

“Yes,” he says.

(It’s just you, and him, and the endless lights below you. In your own hidden world away from everything else.)

And - with no bite behind it, no hidden laughter, nothing but a rare moment of unguarded fondness - you smile.

–

Familiarity breeds contempt, they say, but there are some things that Yoongi grows more familiar with day by day and will never grow tired of.

(Even if he’d never say it out loud.)

[thebibliosphere]

Okay but, like, now I need Wedding!Fic for Good Omens, Joy. Joy, why did you do this to me. White and black color themed (of course), the Them arguing over who's the ring bearer, Anathema as a Best Man because someone couldn't think of anyone else (Look, I'm imagining her in a white tux and trying not to drool). They can't figure out who to preform the ceremony, it's not like they have legal identities, and just the DRAMA of it, it'd be so good. Crowley smashes cake into Zira's face. Please.

Hmmm see the way I see it in my head, they don’t actually get married in the legal sense. For one thing neither of them much wants to see the inside of a church again any time soon (and Crowely’s not sure he’d be able to find thick enough shoes, never mind flame proof underwear) but also they don’t have legal names, there’s no official paperwork they can walk into a courtroom with that doesn’t immediately draw attention to all their human personas and even though they’re no longer covert ops like they were before, it’s still not a good idea to create more of a paper trail than is necessary.

But they do have cake, possibly at the Ritz—or somewhere else Aziraphale has always wanted to try the food at.

“There was always that delightful little patisserie in—”

“Paris, yes Angel, unfortunately I think that was about 3 or 4 revolutions ago…”

(they might still wind up spending some time there, call it a honeymoon if you will. Eating crepes for breakfast on a rooftop garden overlooking the city as they reminisces about what it used to be like before the Eiffel Tower invaded the skyline and modern traffic took over the streets below and it became absolutely mental. The Them even get a post card in Uncle Zira’s florid handwriting, though there’s no stamp attached.)

But mostly the biggest thing they stop doing it pretending not to know each other, they let people catch glimpses of them sitting together, in fact they stop hiding from people all together. The words “my husband and I” leave Aziraphale’s mouth first, and Crowley honestly didn’t think it would affect him as much as it does, but the words go right to the place in the cavern of his chest where his soul ought to be and something he’d always feared long since dead flutters faint wings of giddy joy in the darkness.

Husband. Hussssband. He can’t stop rolling the word over on his tongue, drawing out the sibilant hiss and saying it with near malevolent glee at every given opportunity. Gone are the days where he has to say “my associate and I” not when he can say “my hussssssband and I” while the angel smiles indulgently across the table at him, openly smitten.

He’s always been smitten, he’s willing to admit that now. Even if he hadn’t realized it at the time, standing in the Garden.

“I always thought you were all right,” Crowley admits one night, sitting out under the stars sharing swigs from a bottle of wine as the summer night cools into twilight, a pleasant autumn breeze beginning to make itself known in the faint chill of the air. “For an Angel.”

And Aziraphale chuckles, plucking faintly at the grass on the green and letting the strands drift away in the wind. “Damning me with faint praise indeed, my dear.”

“No I mean that,” Crowley insists, passing the bottle back, “that first day in the garden, when you gave them your sword. I thought now there’s an Angel with his heart in the right place.”

“If not his head,” he jokes, and Crowley merely shrugs.

“Sometimes that’s more important.”

“Well, you’d know all about that,” Aziraphale says, and Crowley turns his head at the prim little quirk in his angel’s voice. “I always thought that for being a demon you have a remarkable capacity compassion.”

“Nah,” Crowley dismisses, taking the bottle back and taking a long swig from it before flopping down onto his back in the tall grass. “That’s all just common sense that stuff. You don’t need to feel love to know when something is wrong. You just…” he gestured vaguely, “know.”

“Do you indeed?” he asks lightly, “and what about when it’s right?”

“Oh, you know that too,” Crowley says, turning onto his side to look at the angel, the distant starlight twinkling around his blonde curls like a fractured halo. “Some things you just always know.”

The rings take a while longer to procure, and honestly it’s not something they’d really thought about until one day they’re sitting in St James’s park watching the world go by and two young people (they’re all young, they’re all so young and fragile and so wonderfully human) get engaged, the young lady kneeling down in front of her companion and radiating such love that Aziraphale feels it like a beacon and turns toward it like a hound, gripping Crowley’s arm and compelling him to look as well, thinking at first they must be in danger, only to see the two young women crying and embracing, holding onto each other for all they’re worth, and Aziraphale watching them with all the love he has for humanity welling up in his kind, blue eyes.

“How would you feel about rings?” he asks one night, after the idea has had time to turn over in his head.

“I think they’re expensive worldly things with no more meaning than what we ascribe them,“ Aziraphale answers, steadfastly working through his taxes.

“So no diamonds then,” Crowley nods along from his spot on the couch, his long legs hanging over the side of the armrest as he reclines at a languid sprawl. “Gotcha. What if we made our own? Something…unique.”

“Unique how?” the angel asks, intrigued despite himself.

“I dunno…there’s iron in stars. Silver too…”

“You seem to have a thing for stars,” the angel says, twisting round to look at his demonic husband, and Crowley shrugs, his eyes fixed on some distant horizon only he can see.

“I suppose that’s what happens when you spend all your time looking up.”

And suddenly this just isn’t about something immaterial and shiny, it’s something else entirely and Aziraphale doesn’t quite know if he has the words or even the emotions to describe it but he suddenly knows what kind of ring he wants.

“Wow an ouroboros,“ Pepper exclaims excitedly, peering at the new ring on Uncle Zira’s hand.

“What’s an ouro…oreo…what’s that?” Brian asks, leaning in to get a closer look at the carved head of the snake biting its own tail, the yellow citrine eyes winking in the light. “Looks like a snake to me.”

“That’s what an ouroborosis” Adam replies. “It’s a serpent that eats its own tail to signify the end of the world.”

“And the rebirth of a new one,” Zira adds, claiming his hand back and reaching over the table to claim a piece of lemon cake before it’s all gone. “It’s an omen of sorts. A good one.”

“Sort of,” Crowley waves his hand ambiguously, absently twisting his own ring around on his finger until the engraved design of an eight pointed star was the right side up, a minuscule diamond twinkling at the center. Only Aziraphale knew it was really a shard of starlight captured on the tip of an angel’s feather.

“Well I do wish you had invited us,” Mrs. Young says as she bustles around the kitchen, shooing Dog out from under her feet at she puts a plate of biscuits down on the table. “Honestly, sneaking off and eloping like that.”

“Oh, it was a spur of the moment kind of thing,” Aziraphale answers, giving Crowley a secret little smile over the table, reaching around the cake in between them to take his hand in his own. “Sometimes you just know.”

But…….y’know, if you want me to go full wedding!crack, I can absolutely go Full Wedding!Crack. Just load me up full of maple syrup and crank Queen up to an 11 and we’ll be good to go!

[fictionfromgames]

Project OUROBOROS (Halo Mythic setting)

April 3rd, 2560, UNSC West at Dusk, Pathfinder fleet

Dr. Virtanen stood at the console, watching the latest readouts. No degradation of the neural pathways, or at least, nothing that couldn’t be repaired. A derivative of 87556-UD61 would probably be what they needed to jump the hurdles of flash-cloned brains, but as it was, extra work and months of patience were needed to keep things intact. Doors opening interrupted her thoughts. “I still say fours are the way to go.”

“You know the resources involved,” Emilia sighed, “You know we need Spartans who can do what’s necessary even outside the armor. And you know the tension between UNSC grunts and ONI, even if you call yourself Spartan Ops now. Do you want a supersoldier mutiny?”  “Yeah, I know, doc,” the Spartan woman had her arms crossed, “And secrets tend to get out, especially in confined spaces. Do you think the threes will take it personally if they find out they’re fake?” Lauren Lucas, Spartan IV, loomed at least a foot higher. Her hair was longer than most of the other Spartans, but that probably had to do with her never having been a marine.

“Their conditioning ought to make them ambivalent, although maybe a little confused by it,” she replied, “But given the memories we scripted, they’re Spartans. Old style. Don’t know if you met any, but they’ll be the most task oriented soldiers you’ll have ever worked with.” “That’s not necessarily good,” Lucas stuck her chin out at the cloning tank, “Spartan twos, the ones that still exist, are said to develop sociopathic tendencies. And Gamma Company didn’t do much to dissuade people of that. Might do to make them a little more personable.” “So they’ll be like you?” Virtanen quirked a brow. “So they’ll be predictable, or at least a little more human,” the Spartan replied. “That’s not what made them legends, Lauren,” Emilia shook her head, “You know about S-117.” “Yeah, I know how literally nothing has stopped him yet, and the only reason that’s good is because he’s been on our side!” Lauren snapped, “He has a kill count in the millions due to the scope and sheer insanity of his career! Please tell me they have personalities, like, I don’t know, favorite foods, a fondness for a particular musical genre, anything.” “They have histories,” Emilia said defensively, “The original threes were all recruited, not abducted. They had early childhoods and faced the losses of their families. We’ve used psych specs and personal elements of extant Spartan threes to weave together their new fictions, don’t worry so much.” Lauren walked over to the cloning tank. The woman inside would end up taller than her, but she looked young. “Who is she?” “Spartan D013.” “Not what I asked.” “Gia Hughes,” the doctor sighed, “One donor from the Umaasa and one from cold storage. She volunteered for Project REPOSE as part of OUROBOROS, obviously classified at all levels except on a need to know basis. Told that we needed someone around in case Reach went sideways. If she goes offscript, let me know.”

“She looks like a kid,” Lauren said softly. “Some of the real threes definitely were when they started active service,” Emilia said in a conciliatory tone, “She’ll be about 18 when we wake her up.”

“She’s not now?” Lauren spun to look at the doctor, “She’s my height already.” “She’s tall, she’ll be about 7 feet once the augmentations are done.”

“Good thing they made the doors big, eh?” *******************************

Halo Mythic is a fan made game, which you can find on its sub reddit, r/HaloMythic. It’s mostly charts. Project OUROBOROS as a setting happens right before and concurrent with Halo Infinite, depending on how long the timeline is for that game when it comes out, and takes its name from the canon initiative to preserve humanity in times of crisis, while expanding what all they did to prepare. In the videogames, the only thing linked to the project is Infinity, a colony ship with great new engines repurposed by the UNSC. The campaign setting is mostly to explore more parts of what humanity has prepared, from evacuees to ONI contingencies, and to explore new planets, which is helpfully aided by a chart on planetary generation in the PDF.

Pathfinder Fleet

Headed by the UNSC West at Dusk, the fleet is half military, half large colony ships. The evacuation fleet was chosen to be genetically diverse and small, about 20,000 people, in order to avoid detection that would come in larger scales. Launched after the Created began attacking worlds, they’re following a similar “retreat immediately” reaction, constantly on the move, and ever outward at that.

You can put as many ships as you want, but a couple of Pheonix-class colony ships should be included as all civilian transports, neither of which are at full capacity, which can provide space for recreation areas, labs, schools, or just extra living space.

One of the things colony ships provide is “shore leave” space for UNSC personnel, who will typically stay aboard the military vessels otherwise. It hasn’t been that long, but time off does not need to be taken “at work.” As it’s only been six months since the end of Halo 5, it’s not an immediate issue, but following months and years could make time off a little more pressing of an issue.

What the hell is this about new Spartan IIIs?

The game lists character generation rules for everything from the Orions to Spartan IVs, but mostly makes the suggestion you play them era-appropriate.

Catherine Halsey developed Cortana with 24 year old flash cloning tech in 2549. ONI, seeing the successes of basically every Spartan program since, developed a more modern process following after the end of the Human-Covenant war, and while not flawless, provided something workable. With the addition of drug  87556-UD61 during the flash clone process, flash cloned brains held up with remarkable consistency, leaving only the now-less-frequent genetic anomalies of the rest of the body to deal with.

The UNSC West at Dusk has since been the primary laboratory for this process, highly protected and mobile in order to keep the secrecy of it. After the Created, it’s under the command of Spartan Commander Lauren Lucas, and is run openly under Spartan Ops, though due to her previous career in Section 3 and the sensitivity involved with REPOSE, typically works under the auspices of ONI as well.

Most of the Spartan IVs present are also ex-ONI, though a few are handpicked marines, one of whom had been an ODST (no it’s not Buck because I assume he’ll be in Infinite somewhere but it can be for your game, Buck is easily the coolest).

Project REPOSE is the codename for the cloning process, disguised as a deep-freeze op, mentioned above. Spartan 2s and 3s are flashcloned and, assuming they’re not bonkers, allowed to go into service for Spartan Ops, being told that yeah, it’s time, humanity might be destroyed for real. They can be as personable or not as you like, but again, the idea is that these ones were literally born/programmed to be on humanity’s side- they’re not here to pick fights with the other humans.

Setting Conflicts

So this isn’t Battlestar Galactica. While there could be potential conflicts between Spartans and the rest of the military present over secrets, they’re running from Cortana and the Created. Also there are just... so many Covenant remnant factions, and pretty much only the Arbiter’s group is at all amicable with humanity. And hey, who the hell knows where the Flood could pop up.

If you’ve never delved into the lore outside the games, humanity used to have an interstellar empire and got blasted back to the literal stone age in a war against the Forerunners. One of the armors in Halo 5, the Hellcat armor, is actually made using tech and materials from that old empire by modern humans, so it’s for real, and ONI knows in canon too, but most people don’t. You could run into a formerly human planet, such as Heian, which was later occupied by the Covenant, or you could make a new one and have reasons like The Flood is Here, Whoops. Maybe helping a Covie remnant against some Guardians yields new alliances. Shield planets are a good place to be in case some dork tries to fire off a nearby Halo ring. Maybe you’re in completely uncharted territory sooner than expected because of a slipspace wake and uh oh, you found the people you followed to get there and They’re Mad. In any case, there’s a need-- find a safe haven. Set up as many roadblocks to that as is fun for the players.

[kryptsune]

*Hell Lore

🌼I made a mention in the prior post that I have an entire Hell canon. It is something I maintain through many of my stories involving demons or angels so the newest addition of Contract (aka my Mafiafell verse) is not excluded. I made them separate so it wasn’t too overwhelming as most of the time these posts are. I hope you all enjoy and my ask box is always open for questions and curiosities. 

*Due to this being hellish lore there may be triggering or disturbing material ahead. Please be mindful of the warning! Thanks!

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Universe type: Multiverse Demon/variants 

Alternate “Nicknames” Info:

 *Demons {Nicknames and True Names}:*

Gered: Xaketh

Red: Valruth (Beast)

Crim: Derzath

Grimm: Cerberus (Rus)

Boss: Sokan

Gin (fallen): Kelran

Dusk: Dantillion 

Blade: Zorrol

Ouro: Ouroboros 

*Angels {Nicknames and True Names}: *

Comic: Halo

Cayn: Sariel

Nova: Sorath

Pap: Akriel

Dawn: Zaphkiel

Glitch: Adellum

Script: Malakh

There is a lot of info below the cut so if you are interested give it a look! 

The 7 Princes and Their Kingdoms (In order by power):

1. Lust (Crown Prince)- Gered: Being the second eldest to his brother Nas Gered is the next in line to inherit the throne. He conducts himself very similar to his Kingly brother as he is more the gentleman type. Don’t let that fool you however as Gered is known for his silver tongue. He appears gentle with those he comes in contact with but that only hides the true demon within him. Just as the elder of the siblings Gered embodies more than his crowned sin. He is known to be overly prideful and with quite the possessive greedy streak. The only time he will allow sharing anything that he considers to be his is when it is with his siblings and it depends on which ones. Unlike his younger brother, Red, Gered tends to not revel in his sin but rather enjoys it in moderation. It may be that due to Gered’s amount of angelic blood he is a more positive side of his sin with a desire for passion and possessiveness then just carnal pleasure. He appears in fine tailored suits and waistcoats looking like the prince he is. Since Gered is the second eldest he does not look as demon-like as he should though every Prince has a menacing true form to them.  

 Un-Crowned Prince- Red: Red or as he is known, Beast, is one of the youngest of their family. This, however, does not prevent Gered from taking the younger under his wing and as such Red becomes the next in line to become crown Prince of his kingdom. Red has very little if not any angelic blood in his bones. That would explain his more demon appearance with claw-like fingers, horns, and tail. Red is known for his love of carnal pleasure and sadism. He is one who does not take no for an answer which can be deadly to those he sets his eyes on. He is far more aggressive than his brother though that could be to some happenings in his past. He tends to show off his ribcage and he is not one to hide things. Red is a notorious flirt as is Gered but Red’s tactics result from more the physical than flowery language or silver tongue. He is actually quite blunt.  

2. Pride- Boss: One of the eldest of the princes, Boss is known for his ego. He is the Prince and warden of Pride. His kingdom revolves around imprisonment. A giant jail cell for the worst of the worst. Boss is the kind of demon that has no problem getting his hands dirty. In fact, he rather enjoys it. He is known to give hope to some of his inmates and strip that away from them as cruelly as possible. He is rather stern and far too serious for his own good but he takes a lot of pride in his station as well as amusement. Some of the souls he wardens are forced into mind games subjecting them to a series of near-impossible trials even going so far as to convince those imprisoned that they are still alive. Which is an outright lie. Boss’ appearance is more demonic than his older brothers but not to the level of Red. His fingers are more claw-like and have those iconic demon horns though his stature remains unaffected. Out of all the Princes Boss is most likely the most intimidating even with lacking the overly demonic look to him.

3. Wrath (Crown Prince)- Crimson: Crimson is a demon that is notorious for his blood lust. He also goes by The Crimson Lord or Bloody Lord. Crimson is the harsh ruler of the Kingdom of Wrath. A dog without a leash rather. He is frigid towards real affection/emotion unless he has the goal to manipulate you. The only exception would be that of his brother. His pride and ego are legendary and rarely ever take no for an answer. He is nicknamed the bloody lord for a reason as he has a vampiric nature. His love of the finer things in life leaves him very possessive and greedy as well. 

His favorite pastime is to break the will of the soul because he is known as the first vampire he can easily trance others into their own death. He brings souls up from his kingdom as well as others to feed on frequently in “bathing in the blood of his enemies” In the most literal way. Just like Gered and Nas, Crimson enjoys finery. His Kingdom rests as the third most powerful and wealthy but that does not exclude his own castle. It is presumably the most lavish of the kingdoms while the rest is fiery pits and bloody streams. He has a temper and usually finds even the slightest inconvenience irritating. He has a fascination for metalwork as his castle harkens back to the medieval time period. In order to fuel his amusement, he finds himself disguised while walking among souls so he can convince them that he is damned just like them only for it to be too late. Crimson is both a sadist and a masochist at heart and those things amuse him greatly. If you can get on his good side and amuse him he may let you live but it is very rare as his thirst for blood is nearly unquenchable.

Un-Crowned Prince- Grimm: Grimm keeps his brother's love of sadistic games but he is less bloodthirsty than the former. He is more animalistic then his brother giving into more carnal desires just as Red does. Grimm is Crimson’s older brother though even with his stature most think the opposite. He could be classified as the wild one. His eyes are usually a golden/yellow color looking more like pupils then the typical skeleton blank sockets. When he is more in his feral mode those sockets will turn black with that blazing yellow pupil. His eyes in this state resemble that of a wolf. He is known as the guard dog of the Realm due to his true demon form of a giant three-headed skeletal canine beast. Cerberus.  

He will be more docile unless it comes to his games is when he is in predator mode. Grimm is also incredibly needy and does not care about the state of his victims which he usually brings to his brother. He is submissive to Crimson but that does not mean he will tolerate being treated like a dog. He is still the older brother after all. He is a flirt just to get what he wants and he loves it when others fight back. Unlike his brother, Grimm could care less about all the finery all he cares about is the pleasure, fun, and thrill. Grimm is curious by nature so if you draw his attention you may survive long enough to get on his good side. He also has a well known sweet tooth though his brother tries to discourage him from the habit. 

4. Greed- Blade: Being the prince of greed nothing could more suited to Blade. He is the embodiment of greedily hoarding what he desires from others in an almost possessive and obsessive way. This includes material wealth or in Blade’s case human souls. He is the most… disturbing of the Princes as he has an obsession with mortals. Just like its namesake the kingdom of greed does not like to share its knowledge with others and keeps its secrets close. Blade loves to play with his toys and out of all the princes, he is probably the worst one to be stuck with as you may be turned into a puppet before long. He lures people in with a more approachable and likable personality before showing his more crazy side. Just like his universal counterpart Blade is still very much the yandere serial killer type. It’s rumored he keeps a room filled with various “human” parts hanging from the ceiling. His title is the doll maker. Which is disturbing in of itself. He is also 100% both a sadist and a masochist.

5. Envy- Dusk: Dusk is the prince of Envy. Unlike Blade dusk appears to have more of a gentlemanly attitude like his older brothers. Mostly because he looked up so highly to them. He may be envy but he does not exactly embody the sin with which he is assigned. That does make him a little jealous of some of his other siblings but he does not feel the need to openly refute their claims. If anything Dusk is quite the opposite of his kingdom. He was mostly appointed there since he is good at keeping others persuaded and calm. The souls in this kingdom can be unruly and unlike his other brothers, Dusk sees his station almost as some kind of necessary evil. He would rather walk on earth doing a job more suited to his own abilities and unfortunately, he is all too aware that his one brother, the angel by the name of Dawn, banished him here for his jealousy. He spends a lot of his time alone reading about the world above and what it has to offer. That kind of curiosity has never left him. He does have a rivalry and distaste for this brother of greed, however. He is a master of illusion, making you crave something you know you can never have. It is how the souls are tortured in this kingdom. 

 6. Gluttony- Ouro: Named after the symbol of Ouroboros, Ouro, is the prince of the kingdom of Gluttony. Ouro is known for being a hoarder of anything he desires. He is extraordinarily greedy and does not interact much with others. His appearance is more demon in nature with a mix of dragon and snake as his name dictates. He is hard to get to know if you are even given that opportunity but once you do he will spoil you. Out of all the princes, he is probably the least likable next to Blade though he does not have the same sick masochistic personality. Some say that he has to fill a hole inside of him and that is why he acts the way he does. He is very standoffish and nearly always has a scowl on his face. He also has a rather fiery temper. He does his duties to the kingdom ignoring his two neighboring brothers who always seem to be at odds. 

 7. Sloth- Gin: Gin is the final prince but not by choice. Once a seraphim angel he was cast down protecting his younger brother, Cayn. Once the lively angel of guardians now has become an uncaring demon. The only care he has in this world is to see if the sacrifice that he made for his brother protected him or not. Gin lazes around mostly locking himself up in his study. He has no servants or dukes to command but rather is content with what he has. He tends to always be on the grouchy side perhaps due to an overabundance of sleep. A biological thing that demons do not need by the way. He keeps his brother's memory alive by doing things that he used to love including baking. Gin is pretty laid back of them all but his nihilistic demeanor can be grating to his other siblings. In essence, this poor boy has lost a lot of his hope for anything better and thus does not care. 

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*The Kingdoms*

Lust- The kingdom that used to be ruled by the current King of Hell. The hierarchy works that each kingdom rules over a certain sin committed by those punished. The closer that they are to The Capital the richer and more prosperous. There is also little technology save for the capital and the two kingdoms following it. The lust kingdom is ruled by Gered who is the crown prince and following that is Red. He is a prince as well but uncrowned to one of the major kingdoms (he could honestly care less). The kingdom of lust revels in opulence and is known for its material wealth. The demons here tend to be debaucherous and are known for their slave/pet dealings. The demons in this kingdom tend to be overly needy causing them to sate their desires with damned souls or each other. 

Underneath the crown prince and his brother, this kingdom also has established a series of appointments with Dukes and lords. It is well known that nothing can really sate these demons appetites for pleasure. They do as they will still following under the rules set forth by the King however they tend to get away with more considering their kingdoms standing. It is known as the kingdom of servitude in multiple ways. Lust also does not just account for physical pleasure but lust for anything such as wealth or power as an example. It is rumored that the two brothers appear to be opposites in their handling of the sin. Gered being more about possession and passion while Red is more the stereotypical lust. Out of all the kingdoms, this one seems to be the “best” one to be sentenced to especially if you find yourself at the feet of its ruler. The humans here are usually taken care of quite nicely, though it is also rumored that these souls do not belong in Hell at all.  

Appearance-wise the lust kingdoms Castle is paved with marble and gold. It is near spotless excluding wealth and grandeur. The massive walls that hide the Castle from view are covered in thick lush green vines and flowers. The wall also has lace-like porticos that spill a strange liquid from snake-like mouths. It is said that a human that even consumes a drop of it will be subject to their demon masters will for eternity. A strong manipulative love potion in essence. The Palace gardens are almost as if they were taken from the Garden of Eden itself which is entirely possible. The further away from the center, the city becomes less ostentatious though not dilapidated by any means. Many of Hell's elite live in this kingdom. 

Pride- The kingdom of Pride ruled by Boss is the second one from the Capital. As such it too exudes opulence at its center. This is the kingdom known as The Cell unlike the kingdom of Lust, Pride only shows off its splendor near its castle and some of the surrounding areas. It is mostly utilized as a giant torture pit. This is where souls are sent as punishment for the most severe crimes and tortured mercilessly sometimes torn to shreds only to be revived. Their leader is a ruthless warden of sorts making sure that everyone obeys the laws both set forth for demon or soul. Demons sentenced to exile are also detained here in this confusing catacomb prison. It is filled with deadly traps and pitfalls to prevent escape as well. Humans of high status on earth and are now subjected to the same kind of torment they put on others in the worst way possible. Dictators, murderers and the like. 

The Cell is also where souls are twisted beyond recognition and where new demons are made. In this world, demons are made not born and those corrupted souls become the new generation. It could take years. It could take centuries but being thrown into The Cell is a sure-fire sentence.

Wrath- The Kingdom of Wrath is the kingdom of War and bloodlust. It is quite well known that the brothers all have had their eyes set on multiple kingdoms at one time that exemplifies their vices. The ruler of Wrath, Crimson, is a ruthless warlord with an unusual thirst for blood and not in a war-hungry way. The Kingdom supplies and trains those for the Capital's personal guard as well as the demons that are considered soldiers. This is also the Kingdom of the tainted. Those that are not quite a demon but also not quite human. A long time ago when demons walked among the humans, one demon wreaked havoc. A demon so infatuated with humanity that he began to turn them away from their old religions so that they would worship him. In turn, he gave them his power creating half breeds. What humanity calls vampires, werewolves, and fae. The humans began to decline at rapid numbers and since those of half-demon blood were considered corrupted they had little use. Now they span the kingdom of Wrath as soldiers, mindless, and obeying only their “king.” 

Its alternate title is that of the Kingdom of Blood. Those unfortunate souls forced to end up in such a horrible kingdom will find themselves burning alive in the flames of their own anger. Some are even dragged into labs to be experimented on. The human souls usually sentenced here were the warriors that committed atrocities without a second glance at the innocent. Those that killed children in the name of the king is an example of this. Crimson was the demon that started all of this half breed creation which would explain why he was passed up for the crown of Lust as his blood lust is legendary. It is most likely his mild punishment for his past actions. The two brothers are most likely where the vampire and werewolf mythology stems from on earth.    

 Greed- The kingdom of greed is unlike any other kingdom as it rarely has souls within it (they don’t last long). They are usually the type of killers that were mentally undone. Ones that took a sick twisted pleasure in their artistry. Those are usually brought from the outside. Their ruler, Blade, is what one might call… unhinged at best. They are known for their experimentation attempting to twist mortal souls into whatever is desired. The castle though appearing rather plain on the outside is a treacherous confusion of mind-bending illusions and hallways.  

Envy- This is the kingdom that trains and outsources spies as well as assassins. Demonic hitmen used to gain political power among their respective kingdoms. They are known for their thieves mostly stealing from their neighboring kingdom of greed, specifically souls. They are based around the shadows which are quite fitting as the ruler of their kingdom, Dusk, has the ability to manipulate shadows. Envy is known as the shadow kingdom usually housing those souls of the occult and black magic. Those that tried to obtain the unobtainable through magical or demonic means. Dusk does not take kindly to this as these souls are tortured for all eternity forced to relive and conjure their own worst fears in a land of darkness. A never-ending nightmare would be an apt description. 

Gluttony- Those that are placed into this kingdom as punishment are subjected to the torture of starvation and thirst. The prince’s castle is surrounded by a never-ending desert with no hope for food or drink. Souls are forced to starve wandering this desert for the rest of eternity. The demons banished into this place feast on mortal corpses that fall tearing them to pieces like scavengers. When the sun sets these mortals to end up back where they started in one piece having to endure the same torture over and over. Ouro the ruler of his kingdom does not do much in the way of duty. He tends to delegate his jobs to other lower-level demons. If a mortal manages to cross the desert the torture is withstanding. Any food will turn to ash in their mouths and any water will burn the throat. It is an endless never quenchable thirst and hunger. 

Sloth- Sloth is the final kingdom before the banished and forgotten kingdoms beyond. It is “ruled” by Prince Gin though no one could actually tell you what it took to maintain the kingdom. It is the poorest of the rest as the palace shines in all its glory through all the destitution surrounding it. The souls here are never allowed to rest forced to work the land for food production. Which is hilarious because that food does literally nothing for demons. Ok, hilarious in a cruel sick way. The demon lords and princes do like to have their feasts and lavish parties but that food is very different. In essence, mortals are forced into a constant state of fatigue. Never able to drink, eat, or most of all sleep. After this kingdom lies the outer reaches of Hell. Those souls are the lost ones forced into limbo. Those that have nowhere to go. This is also where the banished are sent. There is no hope as it appears to be an endless forest with no hope of escape. The fog takes their memory from them forcing them to wander for the rest of eternity and most likely consumed by rouge demons prowling the outskirts. A soul banished to limbo can find themselves at Hell’s gates but it is very rare and not at all a better outcome. 

The King of Hell:

Nasaros is the current King of Hell being the eldest son of his father. Just like his father his angelic blood makes him stand out above his younger siblings. He seems gentlemanly and rather laid back for someone of his status but do not let that fool you. Due to Nas, blood, he is just as harsh if not more so than his demonic brothers. He is not actually a demon either but rather a fallen angel (there is a difference). He has a silver tongue keeping to flowery language. Some feel as though he is weak due to his blood but his brothers know better than that and dare not question their older brother. Nas has an egotistical air about him but it is more subtle. He has an extreme distaste for demonkind as he does not consider himself one of their ilk. Therefore he is not tolerant of any kind of infraction. Demons that do not follow the rules are quickly dispatched of without mercy. His abilities are not as well known as the brothers but it can be assumed he can utilize all his sibling's abilities as well as some more angelic ones. 

Curiously he has more of a demon-like appearance than his younger brother Gered. He tends to wear white in the majority of his clothing leaning more toward tailored tailcoats and suits. An almost denial of what he has become. He has three sets of wings though they are rarely seen indicating he used to be a seraph. In his younger years before he was crowned King, he was the Prince of the Kingdom of Lust. In his state of mind, he did not want his demon half to “corrupt” him any longer. Out of fear and denial, he split himself into two separate beings. One as the embodiment of the negative side of sin and the other the more positive. These two Princes, though two halves of one whole, eventually were able to come to the conclusion that who they were before was their true self. 

Unlike his father, Nas seems to attempt to reform Hell in a way adding rules and regulations to the more unruly of his subjects. These rules mostly extend to those souls that are wrongly labeled as damned. He knows that an impurity leads Heaven to shut its gates on some of these souls with no hope for survival. It is not a common occurrence however under Nas decree these souls are to not be harmed.

Saros: If there was a complete opposite to Naos then Saros would be it. He is haughty, prideful, lavish, and over the top. His outgoing demeanor causes him to throw lavish banquets and parties surrounding himself with the elite of Hell. Saros is a negative aspect of lust. He is needy and uses pleasure as a manipulation tool. He drinks and sleeps around not giving it any thought. He is also possessive though it is more treating something like a trophy then someone to be treasured. He is the true embodiment of carnal pleasure and debauchery. 

Naos: Out of the two Naos is the more gentle. He tends to be very shy when interacting with others only making his presence known when necessary. He is not the flirty type but rather the romantic if you manage to catch his affection and favor. His appearance causes him to wear darker colors like black. Unlike his unruly brother Naos enjoys peace and quiet. He is easily flustered. Sometimes he will sit in the garden and sing a soft little tune. His personality is very soft but he is also very possessive and overprotective.    

The New Order:

The new shift in power causes some unrest among the denizens of Hell. Their old order was to corrupt and damn souls for all eternity no matter the cost. The spilling of blood was of no consequence. That, however, changes when Nas comes into power that all changes. His decree is that demons should be conducting themselves more decorum then they used to. No more earthly rampages. No more innocent deaths. The souls not meant for Hell are put under his protection. He cleans up Hell by holding demons accountable for their more sadistic tendencies. Humans have long since forgotten their presence. To them, they are nothing more than superstition and Hollywood fabrication. The new global ability to communicate in mere seconds leave them with a poor reputation. 

Nowadays they are known for making more deals. In fact, under royalty, the most prestigious job in Hell are the deal makers. The demons associated with soul collection as that is one way to gain more power as a demon. The more souls the stronger and potentially more abilities gained as well. These demons appear on earth offering their services disguised as humans tempting wayward souls. The dukes, lords, and even prince also do deals of a higher caliber though they rarely leave Hell. It would take a very powerful soul for them to gain any interest even if they are summoned. 

Each demon of high status also has a specific sigil used to summon them. It is, as stated previously, very dangerous and usually only 30% effective. Some demons, Crimson as an example, will gladly show up for a little bit of carnage or to mess with souls. Contrary to mortal belief demons do not take to sacrificing lightly in fact it is highly frowned upon. Any mortals of an occult stupid enough to try and summon any of them usually end up choking on their own blood.  

The Red String of Fate: 

The Red string of fate is constant in the world that has consequences when altered. It is very similar to the idea that our destinies are intertwined with others and if that string is cut it creates a butterfly effect. Demons tend to do as they please but when it comes to altering the course of humanity it is a very harsh offense. Under the Prince's father, this offense was minor but when Bas took control of the throne that sentence increase. A demon tampering with or severing the string of fate is exiled, banished, or executed. If one string is severed it is possible to reform however multiple could cause an apocalyptic event of biblical proportions. Contrary to human belief demons have no desire to obliterate the earth. They rather like their little playground. Anything that would jeopardize the fate of either Hell or Earth is grave.   

The Blood of the Innocent: 

Innocent souls subjected to the selectiveness of Heaven's elite are thrown into Hell just by association with any type of demonic ritual. Innocents sacrificed for summoning are branded as corrupted and therefore unworthy to enter Heaven's gates. These souls are considered pure and are housed in The Capital away from any demons that may cause them harm, especially that of children. If a mortal is sacrificed to a specific demon then that Prince is made responsible. This occurrence, however, is rare as the horrors that befall those that try this kind of act… are too horrible to describe. It takes someone really greedy or stupid to even attempt such a thing. 

Pure souls are constantly in danger as demons feel their power and have an almost instinctual desire to devour it. This is an outcome for those types of souls but the process is painless (if the demon in question desires it). It is better than living an eternity in Hell anyway. Some are kept at the palaces if a Prince sees fit though that is an even rarer occurrence than the former.

Demons are Made not Born:     

A souls prolonged time in Hell withstanding numerous tortures begins to twist their very being. Their souls become more and more corrupt as time goes on forcing a metamorphosis. It is said that one of the reasons demons devour souls is because they are trying to fill the emptiness of their own soul. The one that they lost long ago. Once this process takes place their memories begin to fade of their past mortal lives. They are then reborn as a demon befitting their newly corrupted soul. It is rare that a soul is corrupted to become powerful but it is possible. These demons are usually low level and serve as they were originally intended.

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[lostlegendaerie]

i have NOT SEEN a 'down below' crowley with his hell-assigned fursona attached to his head like everyone else and i took matters into my own hands anyway design notes 

1) all snakes, not just rattlesnakes, buzz their tails when they're angry and i physically could not resist drawing that in the top right image

 2) colors based off the snake in the show (crowley's alt form) but body based off a green tree python - thus the heat pits 

3) the position of the snake is supposed to mimic the shape of a halo

 4) it is both biting crowley AND biting its tail a la the ouroboros and crowley's (potentially) infinite lifespan - crowley is 'hurt' by the concept of 'eternity' bc he doesnt want the world to end

feel free to use and tweak! 

[mystech-master]

Blazblue Drives

Okay so I have been thinking about the Drives in Blazblue a lot, probably WAY more than I should.

pointless idea/rambling bellow for those who even care

In game, the Drives are described as “ an individual ability per character that can be activated by pressing the D button. It is a system where every character has one unique ability or mechanic during gameplay. Activating Overdrive will generally enhance this ability for that character.”

In Lore, they are described as “ the materialization of a soul’s power, made via the power of the Azure.” IMO, that sounds very similar to the Semblances from RWBY.

So what Drives to characters have in-game that could ALSO be their in story Drives.

Ragna: Soul Eater is not his actual Drive, rather it is the result of the Azure Grimoire’s power.

Jin: Frost Bite is simply Jin using Yukianesa’s power, as show in his battle with Tsubaki in CS’ story doesn’t allow you to use Drive attacks when Yukianesa isn’t working in-story. This is the first kind of non-story Drive, which I shall refer to as an “Equipment Drive” where the Drive is simply a character using their weapon/object of power they have.

Noel: Chain Revolver involves her chaining (ha) together attacks, this is more of a “Technique Drive”, which I shall use to refer to a Drive that could simply be look at as that character’s own fighting style/technique..

Mu-12: As Mu IS Noel, she should have the same Drive, but NOPE. Steins Gunner has her place floating laser turrets. Now this COULD be seen as an equipment Drive, but I could also see it being just a function she’s unlocked as being “The Kusanagi”. So kind of in the middle about this

Rachel: Our first official Drive user. Silpheed allows Rachel to control the wind. Not it isn’t wind magic, it’s her Drive, but she DOES have Lighting magic.,

Taokaka: Her Drive is Dancing Edge, which makes her launch in a torpedo like fashion towards her foes. Now this could simply be her pouncing, but looking at her Overdrive ‘Almost Becoming Two! Meow!” she seems to be moving so fast she creates an afterimage which allows her to attack twice. So her Drive could basically allow her super speed.

Carl: His Automaton Drive is simply him manipulating Nirvana. So that makes it an Equipment Drive

Litchi: Same with Litchi and her Mantenbō, it’s just her controlling her staff.

Arakune: His Crimson Drive could work.  He builds up his curse gauge and then summons bugs. I get a real Plague of Egypt vibe with this. So yeah, bug curse COULD work as an actual in story power.

Tager: His Voltic Battler Drive could simply be him using his Electromagnetism. I mean come on S7 is supposed to be the Science > Ars Magus/Magic team, or course Tager’s not gonna use an actual Drive.

Bang: Burning Heart makes Bang deliver flaming attacks which charge up his “Fu-Rin-Ka-Zan” meter. The flaming attacks could be it honestly.

Hakumen: His Slaying God Drive, is a block followed by a counter attack. Very much a “Technique Drive”, seeing as that could just be his fighting style.

Nu-13: Sword Summoner is either an acutal Drive, or just a Murakumo function, much like Mu’s thing.

Valkenhayn: His Werwolf Drive could simply be him using his Lycanthrope blood. It is simply his magic at work, as his species was made by magic, much like another character down the line.

Jubei: He is fairly new and I don’t really get his Drive, so this is a bit iffy. His Shiranui Drive (or Sea Fire when Translated/localized), according to the wikia is “A slashing attack that crosses up and leaves a black mark on the opponent, which eventually disappears.” Apparently this mark allows him to warp behind the opponent during two of his DDS. I have no idea how this could be made in story.

Tsubaki: She has two, which makes no sense (as her Tsubaki and Izayoi forms), First, her Install Drive is her charging up the Install gauge. Which could simply be the Izayoi charging up, I recall the way that she gets her bad ending sin CS, is to use Drive Attacks which means her overusing the Izayoi and thus dying. As Izayoi (who is the same person thus has the same soul and thus should have the same Drive) her Drive is Gain Art, which basically activates flight mode (also Gain Art apparently has like 3 other meanings in Blazblue, so there’s that crap).

Makoto: Her Impact Drive allows her to charge attacks, I think I heard somewhere that Impact was the name of her tonfa (which she uses like gloves/gauntlets for some reason so what do we classify them?). So, Equipment Drive.

Hazama: Ouroboros is him using his Nox, Equipment Drive.

Terumi: Force Eater, from what I’ve read on the wikia, his attacks increase the Heat Gauge w/o giving any heat to the opponent. Not too sure how this could be in story.

Kokonoe: her Drive is her Graviton, which is just her using another gadget. Like Tager, she is Team Science so she might HAVE a drive, but she refuses to use it.

Lambda: Much like Nu, Sword Summoner Revision could either be her Drive, or just her Murakumo-ness.

Platinum: Just her using Muchōrin, Magical Symphony is her summoning things using the Nox’s power to materialize matter.

Relius: Now he not only has a game Drive, but he also has a Story Drive. In Game he has Detonator which summons Ignis, so he has an Equipment Drive like Carl. But apparently, his real Drive is what allows him to create all those Marionette arms.

Nine: Her Drive, The Abyss Diver, is just her using Magic. Magic is not a Drive.

Izanami: She IS a Drive so this probably isn’t one, but she seems to be enough of her own person, IDK. Her Sand Shine <Exodus Ark> Drive lets her shoot that halo thing on her back. So I GUESS its an Equipment Drive.

Bullet: Her Lock On Drive lets her target and launch at opponents, which increases her Heat Level. In my mind, this is almost an opposite of Yang’s Semblance from RWBY. Increasing strength the more you hit someone, unlike Yang who gets stronger the more SHE gets hit.

Amane: I THINK his Drive is an Equipment Drive, his Spiral Drive has him drill his opponent with his ribbons, but all of hid attacks are shifting his ribbons into shit.

Celica: Her Drive Minerva is her just using the bot, Equipment Drive. She has Healing Magic anyways

Hibiki: His Double Chase could be very similar to Blake’s Semblance from RWBY, creating a shadowy double.

Kagura: Black Gale is just switching stances, Technique Drives

Es: Her Crest Arts COULD be a Drive (I do not feel like explaining the difference between the Drives of the o.g. series, and the XBlaze series), as it says her sword’s massive sheathe absorbs Seither, those Crests could just be made of the seithr it absorbs, so it COULD be an Equipment Drive.

Naoto: he canonically has the Bloodedge Drive. He’s good.

Susano’o: His Drive, God of Military Arts, has him unlock his attacks. Not too sure how this could go in story as a Drive. Plus he’s a god, he doesn’t need a Drive.

AND THAT is everyone. Those are the characters who have Drives that are either JUST gameplay or could be in Story Drives.

So tell me, if you could give a character a Drive IN-LORE, what would you give them.

[anaicdsantos]

dicionário de símbolos : Cirlot, J. E. (1995). A dictionary of symbols. Routledge. parte3

pp.41. Centre: To leave the circumference for the centre is equivalent to moving from the exterior to the interior, from form to contemplation, from multiplicity to unity, from space to spacelessness, from time to timelessness. In all symbols expressive of the mystic Centre, the intention is to reveal to Man the meaning of the primordial ‘paradisal state’ and to teach him to identify himself with the supreme principle of the universe (29). This centre is in effect Aristotle’s ‘unmoved mover’ and Dante’s ‘L’Amore che muove il sole a l’altre stelle’ (27). Similarly, Hindu doctrine declares that God resides in the centre, at that point where the radii of a wheel meet at its axis (51). In diagrams of the cosmos, the central space is always reserved for the Creator, so that he appears as if surrounded by a circular or almond-shaped halo (formed by the intersection of the circle of heaven with the circle of the earth), surrounded by concentric circles spreading outwards, and by the wheel of the Zodiac, the twelve-monthly cycle of labour upon the land, and a four-part division corresponding both to the seasons and to the tetramorph. Among the Chinese, the infinite being is frequently symbolized as a point of light with concentric circles spreading outwards from it. In Western emblems, an eagle’s head sometimes carries the same significance (4). In some Hindu mandalas, such as the Shri-Yantra, the centre itself is not actually portrayed, but has to be supplied mentally by the contemplator; the Shri-Yantra is a ‘form in expansion’ (and a symbol, therefore, of the creation), composed of nine intersecting triangles circumscribed by a lotus flower and a square. A great many ritual acts have the sole purpose of finding out the spiritual ‘Centre’ of a locality, which then becomes the site, either in itself or by virtue of the temple built upon it, of an ‘image of the world’. There are also many legends which tell of pilgrimages to places with characteristics which relate them to Paradise. This Chinese tale, for example, retold by the orientalist Wilhelm in his work on Lao- Tse: ‘King Huangti had a dream. He crossed into the kingdom of the Hua Hsü. The kingdom of the Hua Hsü is west of the far West and north of the far North. It is not known how many hundreds of thousands of leagues it is from the Ch’i state. It can be reached neither by boat nor by carriage, nor on foot. It can be reached only by the spirit in flight. This country has no sovereign: everyone acts according to his own dictates; the people have no lawmakers: everyone acts according to his own dictates. The joys of life are not known, nor is the fear of death; so there is no premature death. Self-withdrawal is not known, nor is the shunning of one’s fellows; so there is no love and no hate. Revulsion from what is distasteful is not known, nor is the search for pleasure; so there is no profit and no harm. No one has any preference, no one has any dislike. They enter the water and are not drowned, walk through fire and are not scorched. . . They rise up into the air as others walk on the face of the earth; they rest in space as others sleep in beds; clouds and mist do not veil their gaze. Claps of thunder do not deafen their ears. Neither beauty nor ugliness dazzles their hearts. Neither mountain nor ravine impedes their progress. They walk only in the spirit’ (58). This concept of the Centre coincides, of course, with that of the ‘Land of the Dead’, in which the theme of the coincidentia oppositorum of mystic tradition comes to signify not so much ‘opposition’ as neutralization, in the characteristically oriental sense. The Centre is located at the point of intersection of the two arms of the superficial (or two-dimensional) cross, or of the three arms of the essential, three-dimensional cross. In this position it expresses the dimension of the ‘infinite depth’ of space, that is, the seed of the eternal cycle of the flux and flow of forms and beings, as well as the dimensions of space itself. In some liturgical crosses, as for example that of Cong in Ireland, the centre

is marked by a precious stone.

pp.42. Centre, Spiritual: In Le Roi du Monde, René Guénon speaks of the ‘spiritual centre’ which was established in the terrestrial world to conserve intact a treasure of ‘non-human’ knowledge. This, he suggests, is no less than the origin of the concept of ‘tradition’ from which are derived all the religious, mythical and philosophical customs and explanations of the world. Guénon points out that Saint-Yves d’Alveydre, in a posthumous work (La Mission de l’Inde, 1910), places Agarttha at the centre. The author connects this symbolic city with the Rosicrucians’ ‘solar citadel’ and Campanella’s City of the Sun.

pp.48. Circumference: A symbol of adequate limitation, of the manifest world, of the precise and the regular (25), as well as of the inner unity of all matter and all universal harmony, as understood by the alchemists. Enclosing beings, objects or figures within a circumference has a double meaning: from within, it implies limitation and definition; from without, it is seen to represent the defence of the physical and psychic contents themselves against the perils of the soul threatening it from without, these dangers being, in a way, tantamount to chaos, but more particularly to illimitation and disintegration (32). Circumferential movement, which the Gnostics turned into one of their basic emblems by means of the figure of the dragon, the serpent or the fish biting its tail, is a representation of time. The Ouroboros (the circle formed by a dragon biting its own tail) is to be found in the Codex Marcianus (of the 2nd century A.D.) and also in the Greek legend Hen to Pan (The One, The All), which explains how its meaning embraces all cyclic systems (unity, multiplicity and the return to unity; evolution and involution; birth, growth, decrease, death, etc.). The alchemists took up this Gnostic symbol and applied it to the processes of their symbolic opus of human destiny (32). Now, by virtue of its movement as much as by its shape, circular motion carries the further significance of that which brings into being, activates and animates all the forces involved in any given process, sweeping them along with it, including those forces which would otherwise act against each other. As we have seen, this meaning is basic in the Chinese Yang-Yin emblem (30). Almost all representations of tune have some bearing upon the circle, as for example the mediaeval representations of the year.

pp.49: Climate: The analogy between a state of mind and a given climate, as expressed by the interplay between space, situation, the elements and temperature, as well as level-symbolism, is one of the most frequent of all analogies in literature. Nietzsche, for example, embarked upon a passionate quest for the true climate—for the exact geographic location—corresponding to the inner ‘climate’ of the thinker (3). The universal value of pairs of opposites, such as high/low, dry/wet, clear/dark, is demonstrated in their continued use not only in physical and material but also in psychological, intellectual and spiritual matters.

pp.50: Clock: Like all circular forms incorporating a number of internal elements, the clock may be interpreted as a kind of mandala. Since the essence of the clock is to tell the time, the predominant symbolism is that of number. As a machine, the clock is related to the notions of ‘perpetual motion’, automata, mechanism and to the magical creation of beings that pursue their own autonomous existence.

pp.50. Clouds: There are two principal aspects to cloud-symbolism: on the one hand they are related to the symbolism of mist, signifying the intermediate world between the formal and the non-formal; and on the other hand they are associated with the ‘Upper Waters’—the realm of the antique Neptune. The former aspect of the cloud is symbolic of forms as phenomena and appearance, always in a state of metamorphosis, which obscure the immutable quality of higher truth (37). The second aspect of clouds reveals their family connexion with fertility-symbolism and their analogous relationship with all that is destined to bring fecundity. Hence the fact that ancient Christian symbolism interprets the cloud as synonymous with the prophet, since prophecies are an occult source of fertilization, celestial in origin (46). Hence also the conclusion of Bachelard that the cloud should be taken as a symbolic messenger (3).

pp.75: Cycle: The cyclic character of phenomena—cyclic, that is, because of the tendency of the final stage to curve back towards the initial stage of the process in question—leads to its being symbolized by figures such as the circle, the spiral and the ellipse. All processes are cyclic in this way, embracing movement in space, passage through time, and any change in form or condition, whether they are cycles pertaining to the year, the month, the week, the day, or the span of life of a man, a culture or a race. The symbolism of the Zodiac and the division into twelve (four times three and vice versa) are inextricably linked with the symbolic meaning of the cycle (40, 51). Graphically, the completed cycle is represented by two signs or images facing in opposite directions, symbolic of the acts of going and coming. This can be seen for example in Roman steles, having footprints pointing in opposite directions.

[borisbubbles]

SURVIVOR: GAME CHANGERS Review

I only saw “Worlds Apart” again as a prelude to the latest season, which I hadn’t seen just yet. Keeping in the theme of self-parody, or so it would seem, this latest season was called “Game Changers” and reinforced its titular promise by... casting a bunch of randoms and like... seven legendary players? My personal pet theory the season was meant as a fanwank dedicated to the AWFUL (um, spoiler) Ciera “BIG MOVES!!” Eastin but then she was booted first, WHOOPS!!!!

I only saw “Worlds Apart” again as a prelude to the latest season, which I hadn’t seen just yet. Keeping in the theme of self-parody, or so it would seem, this latest season was called “Game Changers” and reinforced its titular promise by... casting a bunch of randoms and like... seven actually legendary players? My personal pet theory the season was meant as a fanwank dedicated to the AWFUL (um, spoiler) Ciera “BIG MOVES!!” Eastin but then she was booted first, WHOOPS!!!!

“Game Changers” turned out perfectly average in the end. As one might expect from a season with that name, it focused on The Game a ton, which... meh. The game of Survivor is a combo of social dynamics + basic arithmetic;  no guarantee for entertainment in itself, but a solid frame in which a good cast can shine if allowed to do so. As a subject to model a season of reality television around though... eh, no fanks. The Max Dawsons of the world love hearing about OPTIONS and hypothetical scenarios and blindsides, but not I. 

By investing heavily in The Game, I feel production dropped the ball here: The Game basically always pans out the same way, no matter how many gimmicky twists you throw into the mix. Speaking of which, omg the twists were ridiculous, are you KIDDING me??? The default elimination of Cirie Fields, one of the savviest players to every play Survivor, because she was the only person at tribal council to not possess a grossly overpowered advantage and had relied soley on her own cunning, is definitely a low point in the whole FRANCHISE.

So let me state the obvious truth the producers seem to have forgotten: 

It’s the PEOPLE in that game which elevate it because they are differing factor between seasons. Ergo, what makes them tick should ALWAYS be the main focus. Despite a SHOCKING lack of personable moments (there’s transgate and advantagegeddon but both were awful) personalities did -miraculously- manage to shine and made Game Changers... what’s the opposite of “boring”? Not boring? Acceptable? Cromulent? idk. I consider GC being decent dumb luck for the most part. Still, in a world in which once good shows such as Survivor drift ever closer to Openly Bad Television, we should count our blessings when they come. 

~CAST RANKING~

1. Sandra Diaz-Twine Mana Tribe 15th place

THE QUEEN OF SURVIVOR <3 Explaining Sandra with mere words always sells her short. If you know her, you KNOW why she’s #1. If you don’t, well... acquaint yourself

Sassy latina matron whose entire personality can be summed up by “I don’t give a shit. fuck you, adios” <3 Sandra is just INTENSLY charismatic and personable and even mundane shit, like instructing her minions on who to vote out is funny: "so this is the person i think we should send home and imma tell you why: SIERRA. DAWN. THOMAS.. :)”. <3

I’m secretly grateful she was voted off early though because it meant she was spared the editorial dettol and we finally got to see her unplugged. <3 Foolish men would gun for her all the time, only for her to effortlessly turn the tables on them every single time. It’s weird that despite her legacy, people STILL underestimated her. Of course, this all led to her being despised by the goldfish memory’d fraus. “WHO IS THIS “QUEEN” CAN SHE GO I DON’T EVEN REMEMBER WHO SHE IS” the only person to win Survivor *TWICE*, that’s who! THE QUEEN STAYS QUEEN. 

2. Michaela Bradshaw Mana 7th place

All that Sandra worship, aside, I ALMOST ranked Michaela above her. She -too- is one of my all-time favourite players. Like Sandra, Michaela’s awesomeness is difficult to capture in script; imagine if the entire “Candor” faction from the Divergent universe was distilled into one human being; that’s the Michaela Bradshaw experience in a nutshell.

Great Michaela moments include: 

(1) “TELL MALCOLM YA SEND HIM HOME TOO” (2) “SLIDE TO THE SIDE, SLIDE TO THE SIDE”

(3) Desperately trying and -failing- to control her attitudeface

(4) Stress eating at tribal council, accompanied by the usual attitudefaces:

(5) her strategy to keep Culpepper Culpepper from looking for the HII: michaela: “yo brad, go fish” culpepper: “what do you mean “go fish” is that some sort of metaphor?” michaela: “no... it's a suggestion. go fishing, like go fish. it’s low tide.” culpepper: “..........” michaela: “and bring back fish. at low tide.” culpepper: “............” michaela: “...............................” culpepper: “....................” michaela: “GO FISH!!!! >__<”

On most seasons a Sassy Black Girl With Attitude would be an OTT charicature. On Survivor Game Changers however, she was the ONLY contestant who felt like... a real, complex person, with trivial yet relatable struggles (coping with a resting bitchface, putting too much sugar in your coffee, you know, the sort of little things we all know we shouldn’t do but still do anyway). Survivor as a show doesn’t really do such characters anymore, instead focusing on charicaturizing the people with bigger personalities, and sanitizing the rest. It was great to have a character which broke this tendency, even if it were through sheer happenstance.   

3. Andrea Boehke Nuku tribe 8th place

Pet theory: Andrea was secretly delighted that Zeke turned on her, so she could gun for an obvious jury threat WITHOUT looking like an asshole <3

Seriously, Survivor is known for its comically vitriolic feuds (Sandra vs Jon, Marty vs Jane, Judd vs Margaret, Mike vs Rodney, etc) but especially this one? Andrea was SOOO visceral and bitter in that feud and destroyed him in confessionals (”TERRIBLE GAME MOVE. YOU SUCK AT THIS GAME. I HOPE I SEE YOU NEVER.” is a top 5 voting confesh), shaded him to his face (”PEOPLE AREN’T HUMAN CHESS PIECES”) and then actually got him booted lmao <3 She REALLY hated Zeke for feeling threatened by her stardom (lmfao, okay Andrea LaGrossa) and *I* too really hated Zeke, so it worked for me! 

Andrea is a blatant famewhore, but of the best sort: the one who isn’t fully aware of her own compulsiveness to make moves, not for the sake of her game, but for the sake of her own entertainment. Fortunately for us, she has a pretty good grasp on what “entertaining” involves. <3

After getting Zeke booted, Andrea targeted her friend FirstOfficerSarah, claiming she had never liked her rofl she’s too much, stawwwp.

4. Cirie Fields Nuku 6th place

Cirie’s time on this show was a perfect blend of all her previous arcs: overcoming the physical obstructions of being a self-confessed “couch potato” competing on a Survival show, competent yet interesting strategic ploys, getting screwed over by shitty production twists... wait wut????

I loved her fleshed-out relationships with other contestants. In particular: the Ozzy/Cirie paranoia of “will the other gun for me after what happened eight years ago.... hmm... i don’t think so BUT i’ll gun for them anyway :)”, only for Cirie to be blindsided when Ozzy was booted; her Good Cop/Bad Cop routine with Andrea, her insistence to ALWAYS refer to Sarah as “FirstOfficerSarah” and her secret mentorhood of Michaela. Like Michaela, Cirie’s deep relationships with everyone fleshed her out like a real person, despite several instances of gamebothood. 

I suppose now is the time I address her outrageous exit?

So, Advantagegeddon. Cirie getting default-elim’ed because she didn’t have a Ridiculous, Overpowered Rigged Advantage up her sleeve is absoutely fucking BULLSHIT no matter how you slice it. I have no doubts production was hoping something like this would happen at the Final six, just not to Cirie lol, WHOOPS. It totally backfired and will hurt the franchise, mark my words. Survivor is a social game first and a strategic game second and this meritocratic TREASURE HUNT it’s turning into undercuts its basic mechanics. For it to claim the one person commonly regarded as the best player to never win was just... the worst possible outcome? (or best, if it leads to the number of advantages getting culled in future seasons but i’m not getting my hopes up.)

But there’s always the returnee ouroboros to fall back on. Her and JaredGOD (

) for BVW3 plz.

5. Tai Trang Nuku 4th place

On paper, I shouldn’t care too much about Tai: an idol-finding gremlin who streaks and says weird things and talks about the game a lot... MEH

In practice, holy shit he owns. Sinewy, sixty-year old challenge beast gaysian <3 Tai had the best idol-related storylines in the franchise and his idoling of Malcolm was for sure epic. He instigated Advantageggeddon and as much as the moment itself sucked, the back-and-forth paranoia between him and Cirie leading up to it was great. He talked about The Game a lot, in a mr Hyunh-like voice (lolracist), only to succumb to language barrier-induced confusion and panic. His flakiness also inadvertently destroyed whatever remained Culpepper’s social game, lmfao <3 Mess with Taingel and get electrocuted by the halo!!!

Tai’s non-game related content was pretty great as well. Not everyone can pull of stuff such as “loving chickens” and “streaking” but he did, effortlessly and naturally. Tai setting the chickens loose, only for them to shit all over Cirie <3 Streaking  at the one reward because “MY BOYFRIEND AND I ALWAYS TALK ABOUT GETTING NAKED IN ARKENSAS”. <3 It was fun. I shouldn’t counterpoint this with not-fun instances such as  fake-drunk Debbie (X_X) mooning him at the merge feast, but our collective Dillip ptsd must all bear witness. 

IMMA VOMIT -- Malcolm, Tai, all of us. 

6. Sierra Dawn Thomas Nuku 9th place

Alol I can’t even type out her name without being reminded of how Sandra pronounces it. SYEAH-RAW. DAWWWWWN. TAW-MAS.

I kind of LOVE Sierra and I’m not sure if I can explain it properly. She just... really clicks with me? She’s a fun overdog, a scrappy underdog and a comitted townsperson, which means she’s good in pretty much every situation she’s in. As in World’s Apart, she is a disarmingly normal and relatable person among a cast of crazed goons. In Game Changers, this of course meant production had no clue what to do with her, so they made her a non-entity... except lolwhoops they didn’t because she kept tumbling into relevancy time and time over <3 

After the highest heights of the Double Tribe Tribal (the Kiss may actually be my famo of the season, in fact?

), Sierra hunkered down and wrapped Culpepper around her finger and somehow became the New Sheriff In Town around the merged tribe. An UTR floater from a hated season who was a replacement for Natalie Anderson calling the shots on a season dubbed “Game Changers” <3 I love how this universe functions, sometimes.

7. Troy “Troyzan” Robertson Mana 3rd place

um, i know right? I was TERRIFIED of  Troy “Troyhard” Robertson going into the season. I was SURE his getting owned by an alliance of women would have fed his macho ego and turned him full misogynist in addition to his Wacky Self-Serving Memebase Existence. Instead the Kim ptsd emasculated him and drove him into Queen Sandra’s arms, lol <3

Troy was barely on this show, but bear with me. I’ll take a non-entity with a fun and funny edit (everyone CONSTANTLY coddling him like he was a danger to himself AND others <3) over a potential chauvinist pig. Especially when said non-entity was the ONLY male on the original Mana tribe to cockblock Tony’s all-male, anti-Sandra alliance <3 Early Game Changers truly was Sandra’s Island, y’all.

lmao @ his FTC arguments tho

troy: i wasn’t surprused i made it to the end, because i played a really good game² ^__^ jury: ²[citation needed] troy: uhh i suppose i didn’t, whoops, my bad. *deletes his mental wikia page*

8. Hali Ford Mana 13th place

¯\_(ツ)_/¯  <-- Hali’s entire existence on this season.

You can preeeeetty much c/p my World’s Apart write-up for Hali here. She was once again an endearingly weird random, nuanced slightly differently? She didn’t spend her time fetishing over the constitution or regaling what her fourth and fourtheenth favourite things in life are, but in the neverending game of musical thrones which was Game Changers she was a random townsperson who loathed Brad Culpepper (and Culpepper loathed her too?), which worked me too, I guess.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

hali: “please take culpepper out. i beg you -_-” sandra: “k gurl” jt: “nope” sandra: “...hali?” hali: “u do u, guys ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ”

and then was targeted over residu floaterhood and became collateral damage in Sierra and Culpepper’s Plan To Oust Michaela. Sadly, Michaela and Cirie had already bonded, dooming Hali, who proved too peripheral to be worthy of saving. Oh well, it could’ve been worse (I.E.: Michaela going), I guess.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

9. Malcolm Freberg Mana 17th place

Much like how Sandra going early caused her to shown at the full extent of her sass and pizzazz, so does Malcolm benefit from being booted pre-merge. This was easily his most intrinsically likable appearance; *shockingly* without the otherwise omnipresent Golden Boy Edit blinding us... I wonder whether there’s any correlation???

But yeah Malcolm “at his best” to me is him as an analytic narrator/hapless follower and he provided that. He was the ONLY person to openly gun for Sandra while simultaneously understanding why she’s dangerous (ie: not being like “Sandra won TWICE... that must mean something... right??”): that she just doesn’t give a FUCK about anything but her own survival when push comes to shove <3

But we’re mostly here because of Malcolm’s reaction to being idoled out. You know, taking your exit with grace is one thing, but Malcolm is hilariously bad at losing with dignity and thank goodness he is. His reaction to losing the IC in Philippines after fumbling his rigged advantage is my fave non-Abi, non-COOKIES?? moment of that season, ngl. If defeat was a picture, it would look like this:

FWD to this season: "IMMA VOMIT!!!" & “JT IS NOT GETTING A CHRISTMAS CARD, KID COULDN’T KEEP HIS STUPID MOUTH SHUT *supernovas during final words*" hysterical.

10. Sarah Lacina Nuku Sole Survivor

For someone who is fundamentally boring, FirstOfficerSarah had several good moments. I mean, her “last time, I played like a cop, this time I play like a *CRIMINAL*” was the superobvious impetus to kick the Generic Winner Arc into motion, so I happily zoned out of most of the Sarah content... only to be pulled in by a random, unexpected fun moment at the turn of a dime???

“MOST PEOPLE CAN’T TELL WHETHER THE LICENSE PLATE THEY’RE DRIVING WITH IS OUT OF DATE ON SIGHT... *raises hand* I CAN ^__^” A+ Coach refs <3. 

Other things I enjoyed: the way she handled her Vote Steal Advantage (this game had too. many. fucking. advantages.), pawing it off to Cirie, only to be like “welllll actually it’s non-transferable, it says so at the bottom, ... so... can you give it back now? I plan on using it tonight :)” holy crap stone cold.  <3 And the breakdowns. The breakdown DURING Transgate, interrogating Varnercunt about his vile behaviour while calling out all the inconsistencies in his story <3 her breakdown AFTER Transgate, concluding Zeke Smith is the best (only) transgender she ever met in her life <3 Her breakdown AT the family visit upon seeing her.. idk... hubby? boyfriend? whatever Wayne is <3

In conclusion, Congratulations, Sarah, you were an acceptable Boring Gamebot Winner!! That being said, the memory of her becomes ever more distant, akin to a tumbleweed rolling downwind in the desert...

11. Tony Vlahos Mana 19th Place

BAI TONY!!! :) SAY HI TO CIERA FOR ME!!! :) The knowledge that Tony didn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell in going far made him far easier to stomach this go around. This was of course aided by his own obnoxious machinations; for ex: Upon landing at Mana beach he immediately (immediately.) brayed “IMMA LOOK FOR THE IDOL, SEE YA!!!! LOLOLOLO” and darted in to the jungle. <3 Psychotic, bellowing monsterbeasts are so much better when everyone’s in on the joke. Sadly, Tony then OF COURSE had to show is ass by turning on Queen Sandra *sigh*. Oh well, at least we know who won that battle. It also had the added bonus of making TROY situationally funny: Troy catching him in the act of digging out his “Spy Bunker” and making Tony explain why he’s all frantic and covered in dust and debris. <3 and when Tony tried rallying all of the men against Sandra, Troy REFUSED because he was already tucked under her sassy wing. WILL THE SANDRA OWNAGE EVER END???? 

12. Aubry Bracco Mana 5th place

I really like Aubry as a human!!! kick-ass aspergers princess <3 but she was barely on this show when you reflect on it. She had a token confessional every ep to narrate the strategic events to which she was tangentially related. Not bad, but in terms of personal development it’s nothing.

Her epic anxious aspie self eventually DID emerge at the F7 round buuuuut too little to late. It felt like a hollow non-sequitur to me. “LOOK AT AUBRY BEING AUBRY. :) SEE? :) SAME OLD AUBRY :) NOW THAT’S SETTLED, LET’S GET ON WITH ~THE GAME~ FOREVERMORE” cool storytelling, braz. I also did NOT enjoy the valedictorian Aubry/Probst one-two-punch at the end of every tribal council, trying to pimp ~The Game~ as if it were anything more than baseborn arithmetic. “WOW Aubry :o This Tribal Council has really been GAME CHANGING hasn’t it” “Mhm Jeff, I wonder how much the GAME will CHANGE after the vote :)” x at least half a dozen times, are you f’king kidding me.

13. Brad Culpepper Nuku Runner-Up

Culpepper was perfectly adequate this season. His time amounted to a whole bunch of whitemediocre strategy noises and superawkward sociodynamics that were honestly too awkward to appreciate. Luckily those inherently Not Good qualities were transmuted through the Monica megaphone making them Not Bad :) 

It is enough to colour Brad a very pale chartreuse once put through the red/yellow/green feelings-as-colours prism. He had a handful of quirks (Brad the Interior Decorator <3 “What do you mean, GO FISH??? O_O” <3 Being the Matt von Ertfelda to Troy’s Butch Locksley <3 (wait does that make Sierra the Cesternino? discuss.)) and a few Not Good Moments (browbeating Tai, Michaelousy) 

In the end, it all balances out to neutrality. Brad’s story was a reiteration of his spouse’s, nobody does Monica better but Monica. Not Brad, Monica.

lol I thought I’d have more to say about Brad, but I don’t. Sorry boo. 

14. Caleb Bankston Mana 18th place

Caleb was on this season? Like, not even POKING at his being cast as a “Game Changer”, which is pretty suspect in itself, it actually felt like he wasn’t on S34 at all?

lol what did he even do? umm, he pecked Tai on the cheek once, which... isn’t it precious when douchebro’s try to enforce their bromoerotic routine with an actually gay person, but that’s not how it functions. Bromosexuality with a homosexual is just homosexuality, Caleb, I’m so sorry to tell you [/karajanx]. He also had immediately bonded with his other “bro” Tony (... Brony?) and therefore became a semi-sentient anti-Sandra voice. Still voted Tony off anyway tho lol. 

And then he was swapfucked and used as a human sacrifice to grant Hali Ford just enough good fortune hoodoo to stumble into the merge. Which... is the best outcome I could’ve hoped for. If Hali doesn’t make the merge, Michaela gets voted off at the F13, robbing us of her Cirielliance and “GO FISH”, making this season way worse. So gratz for being the meatshield for another meatshield, I guess!

15. Oscar “Ozzy” Lusth Nuku 12th place

Ozzy was... IMMENSELY boring this time around, yep i’ve said it, dwi. Ozzy’s personality is notable for its basic smugness (</3) and delusional self-entitlement (<3) but neither side showed itself, so why should I bother with whatever bland husk was left behind?

Seriously though, Ozzy solely existed as the physical gestalt of the long-haired, athletic, situationally relevant (citation needed on the last one though) white male who catches fish. Apparently that’s all it takes to be the OVERWHELMING fan favourite (um until Transgate oops) with the fraudience. Jesus fucking Christ, I’ll never understand.

That said, I did enjoy his aforementionned dynamic with Cirie. (“she targets me... she targets me not *picks the petals off an imaginary forget-me-not*”) only to stumble into her side at the merge through their shared Andrealliance. A pity this potentially interesting relationship was whisked out of the spotlight like HvV Colberri was in favour of more STRATEGY TALK. Obladi, Oblada, life goes on~

16. Ciera Eastin Mana 20th place

Ciera is often cited as one of Survivor’s biggest game-changers because she VOTED OUT HER MOM... in a unanimous vote.... that was orchestrated by the opposing alliance for splitting up the last remaining family pair in the game... in which she had no say whatsoever, so she just jumped on the bandwagon. SUCH A “GAME CHANGER”!!!

Since then, Ciera has been retconned as ~The Brains Behind That Operation~ and spends her time haranguing others about MAKING BIG MOOOOOVES like she once "made”. *BARF*

As expected, she *immediately* started off her usual spiel by badgering her tribe mates on day two about BIG MOOOOVES. I don’t even remember whom she targeted. I think Tony and Sandra? Wait, the fact that everyone else was already targeting Tony and Sandra at that point proves that it was :) . It is fortunate she did though because it reminded everyone what an annoying brat Ciera Eastin truly is and nixed her at the first opportunity <3

17. James “JT” Thomas Nuku 16th place

As sure as day follows night, so sure can we be James Thomas Jr. is going to overthink a situation and clown himself if Stephen Fishbach isn’t there to hold him by the hand.

Credit where it’s due, JT instigated one of the best tribal councils ever. JT assuming that Culpepper would vote off Sandra based on sweet nothings and then informing him he was voting Sierra so they could idol Sandra out was “Cersei Reinstitutes the Faith Millitant” levels of accidental self-destruction. It created the pandemonic hellscape we all know and love: The Mana’s dancing on the ashes whilst Sierra bestows the Kiss of Death upon a devastated (understatement) Malcolm; Hali and Aubry’s jaws almost literally dropping to the ground, and JT and Sandra both coming close to tears as both of their plans went hilariously awry. It was EPIC and JT put that in motion.

That said, I find him sooooo smug and Michaelous that I just can’t help but dislike his pillsbury doughboy existence. Like, who cares if Michaela eats too much sugar, you just GOT YOUR ONLY ALLY BOOTED, sit back and eat a slice  humble pie. Luckily Sandra was there to mess with his g-ddamn’ mind, eat the sugar, make him feel safe and then mercilessly slitted his throat while he had an idol in his [proverbial because he didn’t even bring it to TC with him lolol] pocket. And people still wonder why Sandra is the best.

18. Ezekiel “Zeke” Smith Nuku 10th place

Ugh, Zeke.

Now, I understand that Zeke is notionally interesting and even likable as a “transmale who is more than just his gender”, but my first instincts were always to be wary of him. it wasn‘t until Andrea articulated her own reasons for disliking Zeke (um, the non-self-serving one), that I understood why I had disliked him myself.

As a transmale, Zeke wishes to prove he’s more than his transgender status, a plight I sympathize with. However, in doing so, Zeke inadvertantly ruins the seasons he’s on. 

(1) his in-game  personality is really barren and insipid. because Zeke avoided talking about himself or his past beyond what is skin deep, he really only talks about ~The Game~ and *snore*. Who on earth is Zeke Smith? I saw two back-to-back seasons of him and I have no bloody clue. This creates the paradox of Zeke’s transgender status being his most notable trait, by sheer force of being the ONLY ~personal~ thing we learned about him. By ignoring it, Zeke is pretty much no different from like... every other droning gamebot this show has produced.

(2) he actively goes after good people. Zeke’s way of getting the confirmation he craves so desperately is to establish himself as a Big Character/Great Player on a reality tv show. I do believe he’s self-aware enough to realize he doesn’t have the panache of a Sandra or a Cirie or even an Andrea but not self-aware enough to realize/accept he’s too bland to ever fill the rifts left in the space vacuum by their potential exits. In Zeke’s mind’s eye, he WANTS to be a Sandra. Ergo, he constantly targets people (mostly women or beta males) who are superior to him in both intellect and personality... I surely can’t be the only one detecting a Girl-Hating Girl vibe from this sort of playstyle, right???

As for transgate, eh. Definitely a memorable moment and one where I sided with Zeke, but it was epic because of others: Andrea breaking down and sobbing, complete with crodocile tears, Tai SCREAMING hard truths in broken English at a backpedaling Jeff Varner, Sarah pointing out inconsistencies and hypocrisies and being SHELL SHOCKED by her first sentent experiences with a transgender person. Zeke himself though, just stared and sat there doe-eyed, taking a moment to ponder philosophically about his ~metamorphosis~. On a human level the correct way to go about the sitch, on an enterainment level valium incarnate .

Ultimately, Zeke is TOO BORING to truly dislike even, and that’s precisely why I do and must? He’s clearly not made for reality television, he’s too earnest and reserved for a game he doesn’t even play well. Idk, Zeke, you’ll have to do something else for a living. Now, I heard there’s a job vacancy for an LGBT  councillor in North Carolina...

19. Debbie Wanner Nuku 11th place

When it comes down to “Putting Up A Character”, only two things can happen. Either you’re hilarious or horrific. This season Debbie pole-vaulted from the Coach/JFP side of the spectrum over to Corinneville and never looked back.

I refuse to recount any of her many insidious attempts at camera-muggery; they all boiled down to the same tired rhetoric of “AHA! I KNOW NOW MUCH YOU LOVE DELUDED OLD DEBBIE!! WATCH ME SAY SOMETHING DELUSIONAL OR DO SOMETHING CRAZY!!! PLEASE POINT AND LAFF. HA HA HA. I’M SO FUNNEH :)” bitch that shit only works when you DON’T fling it in our faces 24/sevs. I wouldn’t mind if she had any wits or originality about her, but nope, she’s just an arsehole. :)

People claim "Game Changers” ruined her, but, to paraphrase my Bio lecturer after I flunked my internship last year, ultimately it was Debbie who ruined herself, so~

lol this was prolly the shortest write-up of them all too. What an epic character.

20. Jeff Varner Mana 14th place

Ho, boy, it’s time to discuss Transgate, isn’t it? -___- I’m not even going to pretend like Jeff Varner’s presence of this season had any other bearing. Neither am I going to dissertate “Should’ve Known Better” scenarios because Varner - working as he did at an LGBT organization based in NorCar - definitely knew better. 

 Fortunately, none of his tribemates were having any of it. I can’t recap this entry any better than having them do all the work for me. Roll that tape: Varner: “What I’m showing is a Deception-” [nb: um weren’t you a pretend bisexual at the time of S2??] Debbie: "That isn’t a deception in a strategic game, I don’t think so :-/” Varner: “Jeff; I argue for the rights of transgender people on a daily basis in the State of North Carolina. I’m just fighting for my life here. I’m not outing him” Tai: “BUT YOU *ARE* OUTING HIM!!!! YOU JUST OUTED HIM!!!” Varner: “I don’t want people to have this perception I am some evil and horrible person” Andrea: “So... what *was* your goal in doing that, then?” Probst: “so, Jeff, you just equated “keeping your identity hidden” to a full-blown deception... isn’t that a giant leap? Don’t you see that’s kind of really bad?” Varner: “Oh I do see that, I feel bad about it. I support ya, Zeke~” Probst: “Dude, you can’t unring the bell-” Varner: “Imnotunringingthebellimapologizingtozeke” Ozzy: “You should be ASHAMED of yourself :-/ You’re playing with people’s lives at this point.” Varner: “I made a horrible mistake. I really thought he was out and loud and proud about it-” Sarah: “if you thought he was out and proud about it, then why were you making a point that everyone should know?  Varner: “because we haven’t discussed it” Sarah: (talking over him) “Because he’s *NOT* out and loud and proud about it.”

At the end of the gay, he really only cared about not coming off as the Bad Person, which... ouch. There’s no rock bottom to his dignity when a mil is at stake, is there, huh?