#i died and my soul ascended out of my body

[gskycy]

tha frickin ?? junkler or something

[deviouz]

. . . mean!ascended astarion headcanons !!

Something about Astarion’s ascension had changed him, mind, body, and soul. His very chemistry had been altered, everything that had made him him, was rewritten. He had always said that it was for the best, that he was better in every way imaginable after gaining such heightened powers, but that day was troubling for you. Astarion, your Astarion, had died. Nothing perturbed him more than seeing that far off, longing expression etched into your features whenever you thought he wasn’t looking. Gods know he’ll make you regret it later.

“And just what was going on in that pretty little head of yours earlier, my sweet consort? You couldn’t possibly have been thinking about him, could you? No, that simply won’t do. Perhaps all could be forgiven if you get down to your knees and grovel before me. I’m feeling rather nice today, as it is, so beg and I might be tempted to show you a sliver of mercy.”

Astarion is no stranger to any kind of public displays, but he seems to be much keener on doing so in front of his inferiors. To look upon a crowd of people who are no doubt petrified of their ascended vampire lord alone is invigorating, but to be able to do so with you mindlessly rutting away on his thigh makes him feel much more powerful. To have the savior of Baldur’s Gate rendered down to a pleasure-driven pet, and all his for taking, is just one of the many ways he rules with an iron fist. He’ll have one hand on your hip, guiding you along the fine fabric of his pants, and the other propping his head up as he looks amongst the crowd with a smirk. It was completely and utterly humiliating the first few times he had called for your presence and demanded you to undress completely in front of so many people, but he had long since bullied those thoughts out of your head.

“Yes, that’s it. Come on, darling, you can moan louder than that. I would certainly know. Let them see how well I treat the savior of Baldur’s Gate.”

Your lover could be cruel at times, but nothing ever felt crueler than when he would relentlessly pound into your aching heat with such fervor you were sure you’d be unable to walk come the early hours of the morning. He simply adored pinning your hands above your head, his hips rutting in such a way that it made your eyes roll back and clamp shut. The pleasure was almost always too much yet never enough. It didn’t matter how prettily you begged for astarion, for your lord. He was cruel in these moments. With a grip to your jaw, he’d squeeze your cheeks together and demand you to gaze into his crimson eyes. Astarion relished in witnessing the glassy fog that overtook your irises each and every time you came around his cock, body perfectly bowed and cries loud enough to reverberate in the room, perhaps the entire castle. He was the only one ever capable enough to draw such intense pleasure from your body. He’d kill anyone who ever even thought of you in such a way.

“Ah, ah, ah. look at me, won’t you? Let me see lust-laden those eyes when I grant you such ecstasy. Such a good girl, aren’t you?”

Oh, how Astarion loved to hear those pathetic little pleas and blubbering begs escape past kiss-swollen lips. Your teary eyes read nothing but desperation, and that much was evident by the way your hips twitched and gyrated each time his touch would disappear. Of course, you had Astarion practically wrapped around your finger. All it took was a few slow, desperate blinks and a couple of soft pleas to have your way, but that was long before he had ascended. Now, Astarion would have you beg, long and loud, until your voice went hoarse and lungs felt as if they were going to give out. He would do this all the while smiling so sweetly down at you, a type of sickly sweet that made goosebumps dot across your skin and all the hairs on your body stand up.

“Come on, darling, don’t be so coy. This coquettish nature is long since necessary. Let me hear those pretty pleas and I will grant you such immense pleasure.”

Astarion’s ascension had brought something new from the depths of what was left of his depraved soul. He relished in your tears. The sheer vulnerability carved into such perfect, delicate features, and all by his doing? Oh, he simply adored it. Nothing is sweeter than seeing you write and sob in his arms, teetering on the edge of your umpteenth orgasm of the night, yet he wasn’t even halfway done with you. You’re a shuddering, sweating, and sobbing mess of numb limbs and can’t help but spew out a cacophony of desperate begs for his relent, but it is never really that easy. Not with Astarion, anyhow. On the other hand, he could be just as equally cruel and spend the entire day bringing you to the blissful edge of what was sure to be a mind-shattering orgasm, over and over and over again, just to practically laugh in your face and deny it. You can pout and grovel all you’d like, but your pleasure is his and his alone. Astarion is the only one who gets to decide when and where you are allowed the pleasure, and sometimes displeasure, of an orgasm, and it’s something he instills in your mind every now and again.

“Really now, pet, did you really think that I was finished with you? Oh, you poor thing — you are quite mistaken. The night has only just begun, after all, and I haven’t had my fill yet, so you will sit there, nice and pretty, and take what I give you with every ounce of gratitude that delectable body of yours can muster.”

[loving-family-poll]

Ultimate Incest Tournament - Round 3

The Locked Tomb fanart provided by @lezbijski thank you!

Propaganda under the cut:

Coronabeth/Ianthe:

They are everything. Fucked up codependent flesh-bending murderous twincest sisters

When you have to cry yourself to sleep every night because your twin sister didn't eat your soul, something incesty is definitely happening

no one is doing it like them. what if I loved you so much I wanted you to eat me and you loved me so much you refused to do so. what if the only threat I had against you was my own death. what if we had only spent three nights apart in our lives. what if I spent my whole existence covering for your lack; what if everyone assumed I was the one who was lacking. what if we were sisters. also what if someone said it wasn't surprising that people thought I was your boyfriend. they r winning at twincest AND gender AND godhood AND codependency

This entire section [Corona - Crown; Ianthe - The Prince] where Ianthe is possessing their dead servant's body and controlling a corpse army: "Crown threw herself out of her chair and went down on her knees in front of the Prince—wrapped her arms around the Prince’s legs and put her cheek on the dead right thigh. The Prince reached out and tangled one hand in her bright, springy curls, and sighed a cold, dead, defeated sigh. When Crown spoke her voice was low and tender, the lowest and tenderest voice Nona had ever heard: “Baby, it sounds awful.” “Corona, it’s death.” “So stick it. Stick all this and come home with me … throw this all in and come to me.” [...] “But we’re closer to the goal than ever before.” “Of course we are, you perfect genius,” said Crown, lovingly, and she took the dead gloved fingers, and she kissed them. Every single dead soldier’s fingers twitched..."

Dave/Rose:

Daverose blondetwin sweep because they were codependent without ever meeting from growing up seeing each other in their dreams

What does it mean to be an abused teenage boy growing up alone and seeing a girl in your dreams every night who is also your best friend. and when you finally meet her you go on a suicide mission together even though nobody was asking you to die with her. and then you are the only two human beings left in the recognizable universe on a cold meteor surrounded by aliens but you’re glad it’s with her. and when you finally touch the girl from your childhood dreams she looks exactly like you. because she’s your sister

I don't have words for how good these snarky assholes are together. DaveRose is brain chemistry changing. They both put up so many fronts, and engage in so much snarky wordplay, and are constantly trying to get under each other's facade. They play off each other so well, witty and sharp, I need them to be together always

We all die & we all die alone are the two cold truths of the universe but dave and rose broke both simultaneously by ascending to godhood together

Their twincest wins because it is just so confusingly tragic? profound? dave leaving rose behind in a doomed world, dave following her to the bomb. they are both so closed & cut off & curt its hard to imagine the depth of these things. but that is their love language: giving up their lives for each other over and over, in a confusing and fumbling and heartfelt love song. i can’t say i love you but i know we’ll die together anyway. because we’re made of the exact same stuff. i’ll find you again at the last moment. that’s love.

THEY DIED TOGETHER, YOUR HONOR

Confirmed canon by the author, (something happened) between them. Parallels of dying by each other's sides in EVERY timeline. They are THE womb-to-tomb. There is nothing platonic about winking at your brother while talking about crushes, that shit is incestuous. Seer/Knight archetype. They will die protecting each other.

do you realize love someone if you don’t follow them on a suicide mission into the gaping maw of a literal fucking sun after they knock you out and psychoanalyze you in your dreams? the blueprint of the “ethereal androgynous blonde boygirl twins” trope. witch/knight dynamics. they find each other to die together in every timeline no matter what (but they’re still emotionally constipated teenagers who bicker and make fun of each other in pesterchum). kids with grown-up powers. perfect little freaks of nature. what if we looked exactly like each other’s eyes

[blueberrypancakesworld]

If you’re taking headcanon requests, I have a very specific idea for Frollo that’s been living rent free in my head for awhileeeeeee.

Imagine Frollo being summoned as a ghost into the modern world by a nonbinary spirit medium or witch. Just, let this man loose his entire mind as a FAR too lovely witch is running around chatting with ghosts, and trying to calm him tf down in the process XD

Probably doesn’t help that “nonbinary witch” would probably sound like evil itself to Frollo lol

The horror of the new day

Frollo x nb!reader

warning : just some funny things and a very confused Frollo

Info : Thanks for this request @add-a-bit-of-neurospice it was an interesting idea/concept but was like I said really,really fun to write. Frollo just in our time and dies again of the ,,sins" he sees everywhere :) I hope you like it and have fun reading ;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hell had been his home since he had fallen into the flames in front of Notre Dame, the stone had crushed his body and the flames had not left him as ashes, he had been in hell.

His faith was right after his soul had left his body he found himself in. The infinite inferno was burning again, an eternal flame that tormented him until he threatened to lose his mind.

Time was irrelevant and he no longer had any feeling for it except the pain of seeing the souls of his victims and enemies pass by, but he hardly paid any attention to them.

Until one day in infinite time he felt his body rise from the flames and was freed. It had to be God he was convinced as the flames around him. Around him became less and less.

The darkness enveloped him before he heard a distant voice calling out to him, saying his name. Looking around for the person, his soul coalesced into the image, his body easily visible around the ring that had suddenly appeared.

He was heavier than the flames, heavier than the pain and it held him. It held him until the darkness around him receded, his voice became clearer and when he lifted his gaze he was standing in a room. ,,What is this?" he asked, confused as to why his jellyfish had ended because when he ascended he was supposed to be in the clouds, singing and becoming an angel.

,,Oh my Lillith, it worked!" he heard the voice more clearly and saw the right person. The first thing he noticed was the pointed hat and the necklace with the pentagram. A witch someone he would have burned immediately if he still had the time.

But when he looked further at the she-devil, he saw pants instead of a dress and her hair was short. A demon. ,,Demon, why did you call me?" he asked, a hint of fear in his voice, it must be a powerful being if it could summon him with a ring. ,,Demon? Oh no, I'm a witch, a medium do you understand Frollo?" the person asked him and continued to walk around the room excitedly, collecting ingredients, clothes and books and muttering to themselves.

It was a sight that confused and unsettled him. It couldn't be his time, in his time there was no glowing sun on the ceiling, no clocks that seemed so small and thin.

And this glowing book on which his summoner was typing only confused him even more. Suddenly he felt the ring that had summoned him glow and he understood even less what was going on. ,,Okay, Frollo, listen. You are in the year 2023 and I have to ask you a few questions for a assignment," he listened to the demon and gradually realized that hundreds of years must have passed.

Hundreds of years in which he suffered that felt like the eternal time of an hourglass. The world and especially the church seemed to have changed.

The more he saw of this wonderful space, the more he realized that there was neither a cross nor a holy image of Jesus and Mary. ,,Two thousand and twenty-three... and you demon summoned me?" he asked hesitantly and stopped in front of a glass box with a sun in it and saw a snake inside.

The demon's soul animal. He turned back to the strange creature in disgust. ,,Yes, I did, to be more precise, my first summoning. How do you feel, or rather, what was it like to fall to your death like that?" The person asked again and the spirit looked down at the ring.

The world was strange to him things had changed and yet the hellfire had stopped. Talking was not a sin and if it meant staying away from the fire why not...nothing could be worse than hellfire. ,,I fell dear summoner creature, the flames had surrounded me but not caught me. It was the stone that broke my body before the fire could take me," he began to tell, walking around the room and seeing the interested look on his necromancer's face.

He saw how the summoner continued to make notes while he told his life story.

It felt good to talk again and not just think about pain. And the longer he talked, the more interested his counterpart became. Maybe he even told untruths, lies, but in order to be heard, to be right and not get caught in the fire, he would tell this witch, this demon everything.

Even after death, his justification and his guilt had not changed. But why should it? He had a listener who believed it and that was all that mattered in the here and now.

Even though he had to admit that the longer he looked around this strange room, told his story and listened to the witch, he was still interested in these new things around him. Maybe he would have to make a contract to take on this kind of witchcraft.

He even had to smile once when he managed to scare the stranger. When he showed him the picture when he died. However, this only led to the stranger turning on music or something similar on the glowing book and starting to pray wildly and say prayers.

It was very confusing and these words like cell phone, light bulb and non-binary were things he called divine and devil. But all this time he started to like the company when he sat down in the chair that was touched by the witch, giving him access.

Even if his gaze went to the suns around him, his gaze was always on his savior while Frollo strove over the ring…for a moment he was completely grateful to have been saved…maybe there was still hope…for his soul in the end.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you enjoyed it @add-a-bit-of-neurospice

[morgana-ren]

Ascended Astarion is so full of veiled threats and warnings against you misbehaving and I love it.

I won't need to compel you, because you're going to be wonderfully obedient.

Meaning he absolutely will.

He also is definitely toeing the line of yandere.

"Don't stray too far. But you'd never dream of doing that, would you?"

"As much I wish to sequester you in a deep chamber of my palace and keep ypu all to myself..."

The looks and body language is so manipulative. He's so careful with what he says and how he says it. There's no definite answers to your questions or worries, he feeds you platitudes and empty reassurances without actually saying anything.

Its such a toxic, and definitely crossing the line into an abusive, relationship. Ascended Astarion feeds into my kink of being owned and subjugated so hard

Astarion is a very different kind of predator than Cazador.

Cazador was a lot of brute force. An abusive master that had no need to placate his slaves because he was bigger, stronger, and better than they were. They had to obey him by nature. He never had to worry about underhanded tactics because at the end of the day, they were incapable of hurting him. He didn't give a fuck about them beyond their usefulness to him. If they died or got hurt, he only cared because of how it inconvenienced him. When Astarion disappeared, he didn't care because he cared for Astarion in any capacity; it was because Astarion dared to disobey him and inconvenience him.

So how did Astarion survive? Through manipulation. Through subtle action. Through words dipped in sugar and sweet smiles that hid absolutely venomous lies.

Now he is the power to be feared. He is the powerful one. Sure, he could break bones or flay flesh or whatever else have you, but old habits die hard. Why use the rod when gentle coaxing will work just as well?

Astarion has a vastly different relationship with Tav than he had with Cazador. His old master did not care about him at all. He didn't care if he was miserable or in pain or in the process of having his soul utterly destroyed. Astarion was a means to an end to him. He did not matter at all. There was no need to waste kindness on him. He did as he was told or he was punished. A very simple but effective system.

Tav, on the other hand, is very important to Astarion.

Now, does that mean he won't hurt her? Absolutely not. If she gets mouthy enough, or disobedient enough, or gets out of line, he will absolutely hurt her. Not in the same ways that Cazador did, mind you, but just as dreadful. Just as soul-breaking.

His words act as a warning.

'Behave, and you'll be just fine.'

He's pulling the opposite move. He's brandishing the carrot rather than the stick. He's saying "I won't do this to you." as opposed to saying what he will do. He's leaving that part up to your imagination, but he is letting you know that your actions very much do have repercussions.

Cazador didn't really give a singular fuck about Astarion. But oh, Astarion cares about Tav. Or, perhaps care is the wrong word. He is obsessed with her.

He won't kill her. He won't flay her and mar her beauty. He won't lock her in a tomb underground where she can't be by his side. But he will make her obey. He has other ways of doing that, and he's telling you outright what they are and what he wants without technically saying it.

He doesn't just want Tav, he is demanding her.

He's effectively saying "You belong to me and are mine to do with as I please" without actively having to say it. Cazador didn't have nearly the finesse that Astarion does. He would just outright say that. But Astarion? He's a smooth operator. But it's not just manipulation at that point anymore, is it? You know he has the power to back up those threats. You know that if you anger him, you very much will not like the consequences. You don't necessarily know what he will do to you if you dare to try and leave him, but you know he will find you. You know you can't escape. You know a lot of people will die in his efforts to exert his control over you.

Astarion doesn't have to outright say "I own you" because he can say it without saying it. He has a very special way with words where thinking about the consequences of it might be worse than facing them. He tells you that he will lock you away, but says it in such a way that it sounds like there's reasons he doesn't want to do that, and that obviously if he has to, it will be your fault. He tells you he's not going to compell you, and that if he does, it will obviously be because you made him do it.

It's the beginnings of a tactic that you see a lot in abusive relationships where the partner isn't just an outright brute. It's a great way to keep someone under your thumb. It's a great way to keep someone subservient and obedient without having to hurt them every time they anger you.

"I'll never have to hurt you if you behave. If you don't behave, obviously I have to hurt you. But that would be your fault, wouldn't it?"

He is extremely unhinged, obsessed, and possessive while seeming entirely composed. He is warning Tav to stay close. To obey. To be a good girl. Because if she doesn't? Well, whatever happens to her is going to be her fault. He loves her. He's doing it to keep her safe. To keep her in line. He doesn't want to hurt her (right? oh, never, he'd never want to hurt her, surely it doesn't get him off to exercise his power over her.) He loves her.

But there's nothing he won't do to keep his beloved queen and consort his safe.

[chocolatecoveredbrusselsprout]

Okay would LOVE to see some discourse/hear other people’s thoughts (respectfully plz no one be rude for no reason) cuz I HAVE SOME.

I have never liked the Raven Queen. The Matron of Ravens. I wanted to so badly! Her aesthetic? Iconic. The way she OUSTED the previous god of death? KILLED him? As a mortal? And she ascended to godhood? A total flex. Like damn fr. BUT

I can’t get over what she did to Vax. If she just hadn’t taken advantage of him, I could love her so much. But I can’t. My disdain has also grown the further into Campaign 3 we get and the more I read.

Some Reasons!

1. She took advantage of Vax when he was in a weak spot. He was struggling, depressed, and desperate at the sudden loss of his sister. She used this to make a deal with him.

2. She took Vax immediately after they defeated Vecna. Why could he not live out his life as her champion? (I do know that because of the Disintegrate spell, there was no body to revive him so this would kind of “go against” her rules?)

3. Why make Vax her champion? He wasn’t willing. Yes, he offered himself, but that was more so coercion. Consent should be enthusiastic! Vax’ildan was desperate and afraid to lose the ones he loved, so he made deals with a god previously unknown to him. We’ve seen that the Matron has MANY followers in Campaign 3. There were so many she could have chosen to be her champion. Who would have WANTED to be her champion. Why Vax? Are we to truly believe that in all of Exandria, no other follower of the RQ was fate-touched? (If that was her reason)

4. She also made him her *eternal* champion. (This is part especially where I’d love to hear others’ thoughts). Vax does not get to die. Not like most people. He is now stuck in that same limbo as the Raven Queen. Yes, he gets to shepherd souls to The Other Side. Purvan did. But Purvan GOT TO REST. He served his time, and then got to pass on. As of right now, Vax will never know rest, and I hate that she stole it from him. If Vax has died-died, eventually he would be reunited with his loved ones in the afterlife. Now, when they die, they’ll see him, but only briefly as he must go back to his ETERNAL DUTY. May I remind you that he did not ask for that position?

Also, doesn’t that kind of contradict her whole “death is a part of life” thing, having an eternal champion? Yes, Vax is now a celestial and he did “die,” but he never passes on to the afterlife. Some blurry lines there.

5. The Matron has punished Vax for visiting/“interfering” with his loved ones. In latest 4-sided dive, Matt clarified that the first attack on Zephrah/Keyleth, Vax showed up and saved her (that’s how Otohan knew he would come again). Matt continued that his actions were technically against the RQ’s commands, and that she punished him for it (we don’t know how). Now, Vax’ildan is stuck in a painful orb as a lens, and she has done nothing to help.

So that’s all I have at the moment. What do y’all think? Please share your thoughts or tag me in stuff cuz I want to read more on it. It continually bugs me that the Matron was lonely in her task (fair) and that she may have not realized that before ascending, but that does not mean that she should force Vax to the same fate/keep him to herself.

(Also, I think Gargo/Shithead may have been her animal companion? That will be another post though)

[emanation-aura]

can i ask for your rant on Genshin regional specialities? your meta on the bosses was very entertaining, and i largely agree–although i do have to argue that the ruin serpent is worse than the wenut in the spiral abyss

(Meta on boss drop bloat in Genshin)

Ok, well don't say I didn't warn you, anon.

Regional specialties suffer from the same problem as the boss drops as we always need to have at least one or two per expansion, and that as the expansions have gone on, the drops have become more and more mismatched. I mean, I have problems with some of the Liyue characters' regional specialty assignments too, but I'll deal with them too.

I'm gonna address them region by region.

(Highlights: Chongyun why do you use Cor Lapis, Dendrobium Chiori but she doesn't seem to be killing people?!, Thoma you poor soul on Fluorescent Fungus, Navia using Primordial Water, the thing she nearly died to—)

Liyue

Here is the current canonical list of who ascends with what in Liyue. Besides the obvious paradigm of why Gaming, a Pyro Vision user, is ascending with the Starconch (which has, for literal years, been a Childe and then Childe + Yelan exclusive, making it pretty much "Hydro Liyue ascender" for everyone released after 1.0, plus it's also literally a conch from the ocean, the theming—), I actually have more issues.

Chongyun using Cor Lapis, for instance. Like, let's look at the other two characters that use Cor Lapis: ah right, Zhongli aka Rex Lapis the (former) Geo Archon, whom this ore is named after, and Keqing, relentless driver of an ideal of change for Liyue Harbour, who is so dedicated to the idea of Liyue she is willing to blaspheme its Archon to do so. Both of these people, in very different ways, hold a great love for Liyue and wish to see it prosper.

Chongyun doesn't have this. It's not like he's disloyal or hates Liyue Harbour, but it's not a focal point of his character. He's more along the lines of Xiangling and Xinqiu as passively treating and treasuring Liyue as his home, but he doesn't carry the strong convictions that the Cor Lapis (lit. "Stone Heart") implies, at least not in the direction of Liyue Harbour. His character is all about his yang spirit and exorcism,

Honestly, I know it's not a regional specialty, but Chongyun would theoretically make the most sense ascending on Mist Flowers. Beyond that, my opinion is that he suits Qingxin more— like, come on, Qingxin (清心) means "pure heart" (or "mind cleansing"), and what's Chongyun's most famous motto? That's right, "Heart be pure, evil be erased. Mind be purged..." (and, via Shenhe, "world be saved").

Note: Ok, now the Chinese version of the motto is obviously very different, which might affect my argument. Combining what Shenhe completes for us, the motto is:

驅邪縛魅，內外澄清，回向正道，保身護命。 To expel evil and restrain demons, inside and outside pure and clear, turn back towards the upright Way, protect life-destiny and guard the body.

Translation courtesy of this site, since these mottos are based on the Eight Great Incantations in Daoism, specifically the "purifying the heart incantation" and "pacifying the earth incantation".

But I'd argue this makes the Qingxin argument even stronger. First of all, it straight up uses 澄清 chengqing "pure and clear", the same as the 清 qing in Qingxin. Second of all, the Daoist chant this comes from is the 淨心 jingxin "purifying the heart" mantra, like come on, I don't have the energy to explain even further how this suits him. Plus, the Qingxin description says "It eschews the warmth and moisture of the plains to gaze out afar from the solitary mountaintops." Apart from applying to the three (pseudo-) Adepti very well, doesn't this perfectly describe Chongyun's character struggle? Having to deny the warmth of life and keep himself cold (physically, mostly) and under control so that his yang spirit doesn't lose control??

Like, I know Qingxin is somehow the 'adepti' ascension material (excluding Xianyun and Yanfei, because Qingxin only applies to adepti/adjacent who don't really fit into the mortal world), but Chongyun fits this too well, and he can join his aunt Shenhe in using it too.

Other sins of Liyue ascension materials: ok, this one is less egregious, but I feel like Xinyan deserves Jueyun Chilli and not Violetgrass. Like, I get that the description of Violetgrass says it has a "strong vitality" and that its "downward-blooming flower keeps its fragrance from dissipating", both traits that reflect Xinyan's rock'n'roll persistence and her character, but Violetgrass is also a medicinal herb both factually and given that Baizhu and Qiqi both use it, so it's sending out mixed messages here. If anything, Xinyan suits Jueyun Chilli as well for being the "kick up the ass" for Liyue traditionalists (paraphrased but the sentiment is there). I'm not as sure on this one, since Jueyun Chilli also doubles as "Madam Ping's disciples' ascension material" with Yaoyao and Xiangling, but it doesn't even make sense for Yaoyao, swap her with Xinyan since Yaoyao is a healer and takes care of people and would make more sense ascending on a medicinal herb.

There's also, glaringly, the issue with Clearwater Jade and Xianyun being its only user. This has an easy hotfix: remember my problem with Gaming? Let him use Clearwater Jade instead for Chenyu connections, therefore fixing the 'there's literally only one user of this ascension material' problem. I know it's Clearwater Jade and Gaming is Pyro, but at least he has a lore connection to Chenyu Vale.

Speaking of the 'only one user of this ascension material' problem...

Inazuma

Q: Thoma, why the fuck are you the only one to use Fluorescent Fungus??

A: Because Thoma released in 2.2, just like Tsurumi Island.

There are two ways we can go about hits. First, we scrap the Fluorescent Fungus entirely and move Thoma to a different ascension material. The question is, which one? None of the others really have an MO that fits Thoma...

at least, in Inazuma.

Remember, Thoma is half-Mondstadtian. And if we wanna bend the rules a bit (or, in fact, actually give this half of his heritage some weight rather than just ignore it), why don't we give him a Mondstadt regional specialty?

Let's take Fluorescent Fungus' description. "A mushroom that glows like a night-light... [and] can help to light the way." Great, so we're dealing with only one theme here: bioluminescence and 'lighting the way in the dark'. Thoma has a Pyro Vision and works as a retainer for the Kamisato Clan, this isn't too strange. Hey, wait, isn't there also a bioluminescent plant from Mondstadt?

Small Lamp Grass: "A wild grass that emits light at night. Used in cooking to enhance other flavors. Just as the subtle fragrance of wild flowers will not distract a focused person, Small Lamp Grass' delicate glow will not attract their attention either, even at night."

Thoma could use Small Lamp Grass as a substitute, which three other characters already use, therefore reducing the amount of regional specialty bloat and making farming him not contingent on completing the Tsurumi Island questline, (which can be a good or a bad thing depending on what type of player you are), but as his """intended""" playstyle was a Hu Tao shielder at his release, the Lamp Grass choice also makes strategic sense since a Hu Tao owner will have likely already gotten a lot of Lamp grass by being in Mondstadt already, versus having to explore all of Inazuma. Plus, the Lamp Grass has an even better theming boon: "used in cooking to enhance other flavors" (like as a retainer, Thoma enhances the Kamisato Clan by his dedicated service).

If you wanted to play up Thoma's nostalgia for his homeland, you could make him use Windwheel Asters, which cannot grow in places with no wind or plagued by strong storms, only where the wind is gentle and nourishing. Inazuma, literally surrounded by a strong storm due to the Sakoku Decree and ravaged by the storms of war (metaphorically), would not be able to grow the Windwheel Aster until after the events of the Inazuma AQ and Raiden SQ II (assuming, for the sake of it, that Windwheel Asters can theoretically grow outside Mondstadt), reflecting how Thoma is stuck in a 'windless land' antithetical to his very nature. Big sad. I wish this was touched on more often, but that's an Inazuma critique, not just regional specialty reorganisation. And believe me, if I got into the Inazuma problems (as I have done in the past) we would be here all week.

The other option is not to scrap the Fluorescent Fungus, which in that case, someone else should use it. The only obvious candidate are our two new Inazuma releases: Kirara and Chiori. Out of the two of them, I think Chiori doesn't deserve Dendrobium, because it's such a reference to the red spider lily and death that even Chiori, who has her 'dark side' (being a blunt communicator??) doesn't exactly fit its MO. I mean, Sara is a war general. Of course she gets Dendrobium the flower that grows where blood was spilled. If Kokomi were a more competent character she would get Dendrobium too— *gets shot*

but it's hard to make a case for Chiori using Fluorescent Fungus unless you lean really hard into it being the "Inazuma outcast ascender", i.e. Thoma, a non-(full)-Inazuman living in Inazuma (everyone treats him considers him a 'naturalised' foreigner despite being half-Inazuman because that's the inevitable consequence of not being the picture of conformity in a society like this, trust me, I know the feeling), and Chiori, an Inazuman not living in Inazuma. The bioluminescence angle could also reflect Chiori's aspirations to become a fashion industry leader, like "the light shining in the dark", something like that. Alternatively, Chiori could use Amakumo Fruit, which fits her MO far better: "as if showing its defiance, it will bear fruit while facing the peals of thunder from the sky." Chiori is determined and defiant of the odds to achieve her dream, a "bold spirit" (quote from the desc.) for someone who emigrated and is struggling to make her life out there.

Kirara doesn't suit Amakumo Fruit either, given what I've described of it. She's neither 'defiant' (in the way that the description implies) nor strongly Electro-tied, she's just an international cat courier. That's why Fluorescent Fungus could suit her more— like, the luminescent angle lighting the way (through the fog of Tsurumi Island), just like her traveling self. It's not a deeply strong connection, but it tracks better than Amakumo Fruit does.

(Moving Chiori and Kirara away from Dendrobium and Amakumo Fruit respectively means that we're only moving the 'one character one material' problem, but given how well those two suit Sara and Raiden respectively, I'm loath to move or delete one of them. The ideal balancing factor would be moving Kirara to Fluorescent Fungus and Chiori to Amakumo Fruit, leaving Dendrobium with a single but extremely fitting user, which is more than Thoma + Fungus can be.)

Also, Yae Miko not ascending on Sakura Blooms is a sin. Swap Miko and Ayato (like, Ganoderma lore is literally the souls of dead children, what better way to imply further darkness in Ayato raising child soldiers in the Shuumatsuban especially given this is a criminally overlooked aspect in his character). Hell, if this aspect was further emphasised in Sayu's character, we could move Sayu to Dendrobium too, move Aloy literally anywhere else don't you think the Subdetection Unit, Trishiraite, or any other ore/mechanical thing would suit her more, time of release be damned??, and scrap Crystal Marrow. But that's getting dangerously close to talking about an Inazuma rewrite again, so I'll leave it there.

Hey, wouldn't it be really fucked up if Kokomi used Crystal Marrow to ascend? HYV, you cowards—

Sumeru

(Warning! I am going to be factoring the ascension material of Sethos, who was recently drip-marketed for 4.7 and hails from Sumeru. This is minor leak territory, but if you don't wish to see it, skip the section double-labeled Sethos at start and end.)

Sumeru is an interesting case because a lot of the regional specialties do clearly fit well, but at the same time are organised weirdly. I won't get into Collei and Wanderer using Rukkhashava Mushrooms because those, while weird on the surface, there is an interesting explanation behind it (ft. Ashikai's video on Eucharist lore) that coheres well. Nor will I take issue with Kaveh and Mourning Flower, since it's so clearly themed around the Iranian cultural significance of the Kaiser's Crown and dovetails with Kaveh so well, so we can let his single usage of it slide.

My first issue is with Sand Grease Pupa on Alhaitham and Dehya. Alhaitham does not really fit Sand Grease Pupa. Like, I will hear the argument that the description "the hardened shell is meant to protect the Quicksand Eels' larval bodies until they finally acclimate to the conditions of the dry desert" is a subtle reference to Alhaitham's character and temperament, where his """"callousness""" and blunt personality are a method to enforce boundaries and keep the personal peace he strives for in life amidst the sea of uncertainty. But the thing is that doesn't hold for Dehya, who also uses Sand Grease Pupa and doesn't have this kind of thing unless you count her being a hardened mercenary? Which is incredibly strange.

But things are complicated by the fact that there is no satisfactory place to move Alhaitham, unlike previous occasions where we found better places for Chiori and Kirara, etc. Like, I've tried my best, but against all odds the quote I mentioned from Sand Grease Pupa is the only one that remotely seems to work for him, and that's even if I ignore release order and consider Trishiraite or Mourning Flower.

So I feel compelled to keep Sand Grease Pupa. In that case, let's eject Dehya from using it, because it clearly doesn't fit her apart from the desert origin, which isn't even consistent because of Alhaitham. I'll talk about where Dehya should go in a moment, but now we have the problem that Alhaitham is the only user of the Pupa, which is something we try to avoid unless the theming is strong enough (like Kujou Sara - Dendrobium). So, taking into account "a hardened shell" theming, who else fits this?

"I must make a lot of Mora." "With enough Mora, my family will never have to smile at me while swallowing their pain, and I will never have to lose anything due to lacking Mora..."

Ding ding ding! It's Dori. In fact, I want to make the case that she fits Sand Grease Pupa better than Kalpalata Lotus, which she currently uses. The motif of Kalpalata Lotus is about "it looks like a lotus, but it isn't", which... works with Dori, I suppose, but isn't particularly compelling. Meanwhile, the Pupa is a 'hardened shell'— like Alhaitham's own boundary-setting unique personality, Dori's shell is her love of Mora, something she uses to face the outer world after the pain of losing her sister to a disease that could have been cured had they had enough money to purchase the herbs needed. Dori's obsessive love of Mora is real, of course, but it's the "hardened shell" that protects her from disappointment after the trauma of losing her sister. It's almost too perfect! (And, Alhaitham and Dori are some of the only rainforest-origin characters to have a slightly strong enough connection to the desert to justify this, not that we really need to.)

This, obviously, ignores release order. My previous comments on reordering regional specialties in Liyue and Inazuma just so happened to be compliant with the order in which they released the items. However, from Sumeru onward, I no longer care.

Ok, but that leaves Nahida high and dry on Kalpalata Lotus, another single case user. Again, the theming works for her, but it isn't really perfect— of course Nahida represents the "looks weak, is a lot more" archetype pretty well, but it isn't exactly congruent with "looks like a lotus, but isn't", because that's more of a question of identity than of power. I mean, I guess our meeting her in the AQ is kind of like that, but that's also a weak argument.

I think, therefore, we should move Nahida to use the Padisarah, which has hitherto only been used by Nilou, fixing another one of our single-character-material problems and allowing us to delete Kalpalata Lotus (or make it a quest exclusive item to Caribert, that would be cool). Like, I hope I don't need to elaborate why the Padisarah is suitable for Nahida, being a "holy and noble" plant descended from GoF and the era of the Three God-Kings of Sumeru, plus it being a calque (more explicitly in CN) of Padishah, the sovereign title used in Persia and beyond, which of course suits Nahida as she is, like it or not, sovereign ruler of Sumeru (would be a nice fuck you to the Sages too).

Sethos

At this juncture, we need to talk about the elephant in the room. Before Sethos was drip-marketed for version 4.7, I would've completely discounted Trishiraite as useless and said to dump it. However, I now have to reconsider, since Sethos has been leaked to use Trishiraite (wow, were they setting this up more than 9 patches ago?).

We don't know much about Sethos, admittedly, but we know he's a desert native and seems to be affiliated with the Temple of Silence and has connections to Cyno (I have not fully played through Cyno SQ II at the time of writing. If you have a more compelling case based on its events, please give spoiler warnings). Given this, Trishiraite seems perfectly reasonable for him, although there is the question of if he's a Temple of Silence member (albeit seemingly opposed to Cyno, given implications in the trailer), why he isn't just using the Scarab, because just read the Scarab lore:

Legend has it that when the desert king ruled this land, the souls of those vanquished by him would be sealed within these insects by the magically-skilled priests at great triumphs held in the City of the Pillars. The scarabs would then be charged with defending the sacred temples and palaces for all eternity in the name of Al-Ahmar. In the end, the temples would collapse and the palaces would fall, and only these golden insects would remain, fulfilling their ancient, forgotten oaths.

Like, even if we don't know Sethos' true role, his Temple of Silence affiliations (?) would make this far more fitting.

But, as you may have noticed, I've been delaying assigning Dehya anywhere. That's because I think if Sethos does use Trishiraite, Dehya should too. Read the description:

During the sun-swallowing battles of that bygone age, even the hardest of stones were set aflame. As the flames of war died out, all that remained from the calamity were these deep-red ores.

Trishiraite is ore born (allegedly) from the flames of the Cataclysm setting fire to stone. Like, it's a very warlike thing, and it's something that might be ok with Sethos but definitely suits Dehya more than Sand Grease Pupa. The thing is, nobody wins here because if I think Sethos suits Scarab more, that leaves Dehya alone on Trishiraite; if I don't, then Sethos + Dehya use Trishiraite while Cyno stays alone on Scarab, which is fine but ugh....

...unless, of course, we put Dehya on Henna Berry, which is very definitely the "female desert ascension material" and annoying stereotypical (fits with Dehya's love of makeup, though). Then we could make Sethos use Scarab alongside Cyno and just delete Trishiraite anyway, but this is a problem I don't want to propose a definitive solution for. I just think that Dehya shouldn't use Sand Grease Pupa, and Sethos seems weirdly better with Scarab, at least for now.

Sethos

Fontaine

(Warning! I am going to be factoring the ascension material of Clorinde and Sigewinne, who were recently drip-marketed for Version 4.7. This is minor leak territory, but if you don't wish to see it, skip the sections labeled Clorinde and Sigewinne.)

Fontaine is obviously still a nation-in-progress, so I'll cut it some slack, however:

Why does Navia use Spring of the First Dewdrop. Please. For the love of god.

Spring of the First Dewdrop is heavily implied to be somewhat related to Primordial Water, which is just—? Can I say how cruel this is for being Navia's ascension material? Like? Navia, who almost dissolved in the Primordial Water??

Although, the description calls it Ichor, which according to Wine Goblet of the Pristine Sea is the 'essence' extracted from Primordial Water, but then we have the question of why Dewdrop's description calls it "a final gift from Egeria" even though it was Remus who isolated and created Ichor, like we know Egeria was the substitute Heart of the Primordial Sea created by the Shade of Life to replace the Hydro Dragon, so technically the creation of Primordial Water is her domain, but this shouldn't even be her "final gift" anyway because logically that would've been literally anything else she did, because she abandoned that Heart role when she ascended to become the Hydro Archon and then died in sacrifice at Tunigi Hollow to repel the Cataclysm—

But this isn't a rant about Genshin lore, this is about the regional specialty. So.

Navia should not be using this. So, what should she be using? I'd suggest Lumidouce (French: soft-light) Bell, given the variety of people with whom Navia has parted and wishes to be reunited with ("Lumidouce Bell is said to represent parting and the wish for reunion"), but given that this is already being used by Chevreuse and Lynette and is absolutely slated for Emilie, the perfumer, whenever she releases ("...is often used for making rare perfumes"), that would be a bit of a crowd when Fontaine still doesn't have many characters.

Chevreuse doesn't really seem to fit Lumidouce Bell, though. Like, every attribute and theming doesn't seem to relate to her, unless you count the events of Roses and Muskets, which is about her personal feelings on justice, not the actual events that happened which could, possibly, fit the parting and reunion theme. So maybe we can boot Chevreuse off to Subdetection Unit, which actually suits her better— it's a detection unit, which gathers data, and it being used by Wriothesley seems like a not-so-subtle indicator that it's used to gather intelligence and for lack of a better word, spy. Which is something that Chevreuse's job involves, as once again demonstrated by Roses and Muskets.

So, with the Chevreuse tangent out of the way, Navia and Lynette can use the Lumidouce Bell. But what about Dewdrop? Should anyone use that?

Well, the obvious argument for Dewdrop as a Primordial Water thing is that Neuvillette should use it. Like, he's the reborn Hydro Dragon— thematically it makes more sense than Lumitoile (French: light-star). Let's again set aside the problem of time (Neuvillette released Version 4.1, Dewdrop came with the Tower of Ipsissimus in Version 4.2) because it makes things boring...

that being said, it's not entirely unreasonable to have Neuvillette use the Lumitoile, and simply delete the Dewdrop instead. Let's examine that below.

Clorinde and Sigewinne

So, what should we do about Lumitoile? If we move Neuvillette to the Dewdrop, that leaves Clorinde the sole user of the Lumitoile, and it's pretty justified in her case given the unsubtle implication of the Lumitoile as an environmental cleaner/digester and Clorinde's job as a Champion Duellist but with the Marechaussee Hunt techniques she inherits. After all, remember it's Clorinde who starts the plan to 'hunt' Furina in the AQ, to entrap her. She's good at hunting and cleaning up, so that makes the Lumitoile quite suited for her...

...Although, there is a scheme I'm cooking up. See, Sigewinne uses the Romaritime Flower, which fits fine with the Hydro stuff just fine, but I was reading the description of the Romaritime Flower, and it said: "Romaritime Flower is said to represent loyalty and unswerving oaths." And what, apart from being a strong hunter, is Clorinde known for?

Clorinde: Mr. Callas' last wish was for me to ensure your safety, and I will not betray his trust.  Like the Faint Moonlight of Yesteryear, in As Light Rain Falls Without Reason, after Clorinde saves Navia and Traveler from the Gardemek attack

It highly depends on what you think her character hinges more heavily on: hunting, or her loyalty/oath-swearing.

As for Sigewinne, using the Lumitoile would also work, because apart from the obvious Hydro theming, the Lumitoile is also about 'underestimation'— "though the weak light they give off is often ignored by divers, these small soft-bodied animals have the remarkable ability to consume and degrade industrial waste." Sigewinne's surprise gun attack in the AQ earns her this, in my opinion.

This is quite a complicated web to unravel. If Neuvillette no longer uses Lumitoile, then either both Clorinde and Sigewinne should use Lumitoile, or neither. Therefore, let's examine two cases.

1: Neuvillette uses Dewdrop. Therefore, nobody else uses Lumitoile, ergo, Clorinde should use Romaritime Flower alongside Sigewinne to avoid the 'single-user' issue.

2: Neuvillette does not use Dewdrop, and that material is deleted from existence. Therefore, Clorinde and Sigewinne can stay with their current specialty materials: Lumitoile and Romaritime Flower respectively.

I like case 2, personally.

But maybe I'm getting ahead of myself by analysing the ascension materials of characters that haven't released yet. Let's get back to normal.

Clorinde and Sigewinne

Quick recap: Neuvillette uses Dewdrop instead of Navia, and Navia uses Lumidouce Bell in place of Chevreuse, whom we boot off to use the Subdetection Unit. Therefore, we have solved the problem of Navia and Wriothesley being the only user of one ascension material, and realistically we have to leave Neuvillette alone with the Dewdrop because no one else actually makes sense ascending via Primordial Water, what the fuck.

Ahem.

We also leave Furina alone, being the Lakelight Lily dovetails with Erinnyes and the lore of her weapon, Splendour of Tranquil Waters.

So that leaves Charlotte with the Beryl Conch. Hey, Charlotte, what the fuck? Like, the Beryl Conch doesn't have anything visibly in common with her. It glows, and it's not actually a shell but something condensed from elemental energy. It's theorised to have connections to "ancient civilisations". What else? If you take this from Charlotte's 'investigative journalism' angle, perhaps the Conch can symbolise Charlotte digging for the truth, but the "oh perhaps the Conch has marks left by the Hydro Lord or is related to ancient civilisations" is such a weak connection to that kind of "what is the truth" ethos that Charlotte represents.

So, get rid of the Beryl Conch. Then what should Charlotte use? There's an obvious option here: what ascension material have we just talked about that applies to information-gathering, spying, and mechanical parts? What boss did I assign Charlotte to in this post about boss material bloat that also fits her mechanical companion, Monsieur Verite?

That's right.

The former two, as justified above, also share the Subdetection Unit. So why not Charlotte? It's the 'mechanical' ascension material of Fontaine, just like Prototype Cal. Breguet is the corresponding 'mechanical' boss material. Last time, I justified this with the mechanical focus of the three characters: Wriothesley's gauntlets and his rule of the steampunk-themed Fortress of Meropide, Chevreuse's gun and rifle focus, and Charlotte's entire kit and lore revolving around Monsieur Verite in her pursuit of journalism. This applies here, but it gets better because they also share the theming of the Subdetection Unit's 'spying/detection/information-gathering'.

It's so perfect that it feels a bit too perfect, actually, but who am I to complain? This would cut down on another ill-fitting regional specialty and make farming easier for all of us.

***

Thanks for reading! And letting me rant about this. I have problems with how Genshin treats boss and ascension materials with some degree of lore relevancy, only to also throw some of that relevancy out the window when it suits them. It's inconsistent and bothers me, lol.

[arthropod-concoctions]

(AO3)

Grian's ears were still ringing when he respawned, back at home. He closed his eyes, buried his face in his hands, and groaned.

“I'm so sorry, Scar,” he muttered to himself. He'd decided to go make an apology to the man himself as well, as he would also be waking up right about now. Grian opened his eyes-

And immediately noticed that he was not in his own base.

He sat up and looked around to get his bearings. He was lying in a soft green bed, in an organically-shaped room with walls of living wood and beautiful wood-carved furniture. Jellie was lying in a cat bed a few meters away.

Scar's base. Why on Earth am I in Scar's base? He thought. “Scar?” he called out, then cleared his throat, because his voice sounded incredibly hoarse. There was no response.

He got up to go find Scar, but barely made it two steps away from the bed before collapsing onto the floor. His legs felt like he'd walked a marathon. That was concerning; respawn pain wasn't supposed to be this intense, even after exiting a hardcore world, and he'd barely even hurt his legs when he died. His ears were the part that got hurt-- and they still did. He rubbed his ears, hoping to make the ringing stop. It didn't, but Grian noticed something else: his ears had pointy tips.

“Wait a second...” Grian suddenly had an idea of what might have happened. He hastily dug through his horribly unorganized inventory for something with a mirrored surface. He eventually found a hand mirror with golden decorations, which he'd never seen before, and looked into it. A scarred face with dark green eyes looked back at him.

“Oh no,” Grian said, in Scar's voice.

He was in Scar's body. That must be why his legs hurt so much, he realized. He looked around and quickly saw a cane carved from spruce wood leaning against a nightstand, with a large green crystal worked into the design. Grian grabbed it, and immediately felt the pain lessen; slowly, he stood up again. For a second he tried to rebalance with his wings, but of course they were gone now.

This was a very big problem; seemed like something had gone wrong separating his and Scar's soulbond. He should probably check how his own body was doing; he closed his eyes to Watch elsewhere--

And nothing happened. He just opened his two regular eyes again.

He sighed. “Right. Scar's not a watcher.” he'd have to go check things out the old-fashioned way, but before then, he decided to send a quick message to everyone online. He pulled out his chat; the device was colored cyan and orange.

Grian joined the game

GoodTimeWithScar joined the game

<Cubfan135> heyoo

<Zedaph> Hi there!

<GoodTimeWithScar> guys

<GoodTimeWithScar> there's a big problem

<Cubfan135> need some help, Scar?

<GoodTimeWithScar> not right now

<GoodTimeWithScar> but

<Grian> no im having the time fo my life lol

<GoodTimeWithScar> im not scar

Grian experienced kinetic energy

<GoodTimeWithScar> that is

Well, at least Grian's questions of what had happened to his body and Scar's soul were answered now. He decided to go find Scar, and see if he had any idea what to do now. He left Scar's treehouse, opened his elytra-- mechanical elytra, he'd have to get used to those again-- and took off.

He flew towards Scarland's main street at first, before realizing his mistake; he set his own spawn point at his own base, so that would be where Scar was. Sure enough, when he approached his base he also saw a figure with black-and-white wings circling around the rocks floating high in the sky. It was a surreal sight.

Grian ascended up to where Scar was flying around-- quite clumsily, he should add-- and called out to him: “Scar!” he landed on top of a rock, nearly losing his balance but regaining it by using Scar's cane. Scar, who had been singing to himself, looked in his direction.

“Flying around, so gracefully on the wings of a- WHAT IN THE WORLD!” Scar shouted, the sight of Grian spooking him so much he involuntarily flexed his wings, and he began to fall down.

Grian watched Scar plummet down and try to recover, frantically flapping the wings but not letting them catch any air, before eventually hitting one of the rocks floating lower down and dissolving into white smoke. Grian winced, and began gliding down again, towards his bed this time.

He touched down just in time to see himself rolling out of his own bed, visibly shaken. Scar looked in his direction and startled again, falling back onto the bed.

“That was hard to watch. Hello, Scar,” Grian said to him.

“I don't- who are you and how have you- wait.” Scar stammered, before stopping to think for a second.

“...Grian?” his expression on Grian's face was dumbfounded. I hope I don't look like this much of a loser when I'm myself, Grian thought to himself.

“Yeah. It seems we've done a bit of a switcheroo for some reason. What, did the wings not give that away to you?”

“Yeah, but I thought we'd just merged together for some reason! I didn't think you would be in my body!”

“And that didn't concern you for even a second?”

“No, I was having too much fun for that. Look, dude, I have wings now!” Scar said, and spread his wings out again.

“Yeah, I know, those are my-” Grian didn't finish his sentence, distracted by the sight of Scar jumping up and flapping the wings, not gaining any air at all, and faceplanting into the ground. He groaned.

“You just respawned. You have to give them a few minutes before they work again.”

“That's lame,” Scar said, sitting up. “Anyway, what should we do now?”

“I dunno. Maybe we should go check on some of the other people that've come back, see if they're- what's so funny?” Grian said to Scar, who was giggling.

Scar stifled his laughter, and waved his hand. “Nothing, nothing. Keep talking.” His smile looked very out of place on Grian's face.

“Right. So, check on the other peeps, or maybe we should talk to X and see if- why are you laughing?”

Scar's giggle had evolved into a full-on laugh now. “I'm sorry!” he said between wheezes, “It's just... I sound so stupid with a British accent.”

Then he added, doing a terrible imitation of Grian's accent: “'maybe we should go see X to-' see, I just sound normal now!”

Grian pursed his lips, then whacked Scar on the shoulder with his cane. He half-expected to feel the impact in his own shoulder as well, but fortunately that wasn't in effect anymore.

“Hey, back off!” Scar said in response. “You know, technically you're hitting yourself when you do that. Self-harm is very unhealthy, don't you know?”

“Oh- you're one to talk, mister powdered-snow-baths!” Grian responded. “Anyway, I think I'm going to go check on Tango and Etho now. You wanna come with, or...?”

“Okay!” Scar said, before standing up again. “Let's fly, bird boy! Wait, no I'm the bird boy now. Let's fly, elf boy!” With that, he spread his wings out once again, and successfully took off this time. Grian grabbed a firework rocket and followed suit.

“Remember, Scar, I'm using regular elytra now. So if you fall, I'm not gonna be able to catch you.”

“Oh, you think I'm gonna fall? Of course not, I am an expert at flying with wings now! Did you not see me practicing...” Scar's voice faded into the distance as he moved closer and closer to the ground, too distracted by talking to keep his altitude consistent.

Grian heard his own voice yelp from below, and burst out laughing. Server-moving bugs aside, it was nice to be flying again. It was good to be back.

(next)

[zhongrin]

a favor granted, a favor returned

◇ characters ◇ zhongli

◇ tags ◇ fem!reader, smidge of angst, violence, platonic/familial zhongli & guizhong, zhongli in his rex lapis days

◇ a/n ◇ inspired by @nohrenvia’s ask where the reader died and got brought back to life. disclaimer: i’ve only heard lil bits and bobs of the tales of guan yin from my mom who was a buddhist so apologies if i made her uh awkward?? but anyway it’s supposed to be just an imaginative depiction of her! you can think of her as an oc i guess??

𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡 ⬙ 𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡

ʀᴇx ʟᴀᴘɪꜱ was a god.

a god who was merciless, strong, yet still wise at times. one could say he was a simple brute who - fortunately for his people - was continuously influenced by the good nature of his friends. he gained wisdom through his connections, life lessons through his experiences, and humbleness through his fellow adepti comrades. unbeknownst to himself, he had shaped a safe haven for the lonely and saved many from tragic ends, all by his own hands.

but that was not to say he wasn’t ruthless. his hands were drenched in blood and his fangs had sunk into many fleshes. he had killed, hell, slaughtered, all in the name of peace and protection for his people.

it was mostly thanks to his closest companions that he hadn’t strayed far from his original path.

and so, it would be an understatement to say that the impact of guizhong’s passing was enormous.

the gatherings that were once bright and lively were silent and solemn. the banquet lasting into the night was not filled with laughter but soft sobs and drunken slurs. one less glass of wine on the table. an empty, untouched plate. the amount of food normally wiped clean within minutes getting colder as the hours ticked by. a hollow gap in between what was supposed to be a tight-knit group of friends.

on that day, they all lost a family member. from that day on, their hearts went numb.

no one stopped him when he wordlessly set out to subdue an unknown encampment that had just settled near guili assembly. guizhong’s people were his people - their people. it mattered not that she had passed. he would protect every single one of her followers; it was a promise he made to himself as he watched her body disappear at her parting rite.

besides, at the back of his mind, he desperately wished to feel something. anything. he was so sick of the weight in his steps, of feeling like nothing mattered.

perhaps the adrenaline spike from a battle was what he needed.

spear slashing, stones unearthed, screams of the innocent vagrants. his limbs moved on autopilot, pure muscle memory guiding him into a deadly form of art; a mesmerizingly morbid dragon dancing in the moonlit night, rains of blood as its background and song of the souls ascending to the higher celestia as its music.

yet still, the regret remained; and this time coupled with shame, because what would guizhong say if she saw him now?

“i know you’re part dragon and all, but killing for the sake of killing will never give you the satisfaction you want,” a smile as pure as the freshly bloomed glaze lilies spread over her face, “i can’t say that my hands hadn't taken any lives either, but why don’t you at least try killing only for the sake of protecting people you care about, huh?”

it wasn’t long until a deity - presumably one who was leading the group - appeared and kneeled in front of him, along with her attendant, who was shaking like a leaf.

in comparison, her master looked calm. saddened upon the death of her people, but still eerily serene nonetheless. she took one look at him, and the tears gathering in her eyes fell.

was she crying for her people?

or was she crying for him?

… no. impossible.

“a mercy for a favor,” she said, unshaken.

a natural outcome. there was no need for any explanation on his part. this was the age of war for the archons’ seat. there was only one reason a god would invade another’s territory.

kill or be killed. such was the law of teyvat at this time.

she smiled wryly when he continued to glare at her mutedly, “you’ll need it one day. i know you will.”

he scoffed, “and what, prey tell, could a lesser god like yourself give me, rex lapis?”

“you really need to dial down that arrogance, you know! it’s so off-putting!” laughter as clear as the chimes of a bell followed her scolding as everyone else agreed with her.

instead of cowering in fear or showing distaste for his haughty tone, she fell silent as she gazed into his eyes. briefly, he wondered what was it that she saw.

could she tell the pain he hid behind the mask of cold indifference?

could she fathom the loss he felt?

“i will save you, just as you saved me today.”

could she tell how lost he was?

“are you insinuating i will fall in battle? your insolence is surely guided by your lack of knowledge. do you not know of my-”

“there is no one in teyvat who would refute your infamous reputation, warrior god. all i’m merely saying is that not all battles can be won by brute force and pure strength.”

“preposterous. i have not lost a single war waged against me-”

“but are you not dangerously losing the inner battle within your mind, right at this very moment?”

his jaw set.

those eyes… those straightforward eyes that seemed to stare into his very being.

those familiar eyes…

... perhaps this woman too, was a dear sister to someone.

“we all might be enlightened beings, but that doesn’t mean we’re not fickle!” mischief colored her bright eyes as she wiggled a finger in front of his nose, “so make sure to use that power of yours to the fullest potential, yes, mister lord-of-contract?”

“what is your true name?”

“miao shan. my name is miao shan.”

“very well then, miss miao shan,” his eyes, cold as slate, stared her down as the gold veins on his arms glow brighter in the darkened night.

“let’s make a contract.”

“did you hear? about the woman who came back to life?”

“oh, i know her husband! he works in the funeral parlor as a consultant!”

“what an extraordinary miracle…”

“or maybe it’s just another case of a quack doctor. aren’t those scammers still running around to this day?”

“no no, it couldn't have been! dr. baizhu himself was the one who tended to the woman on her last moments.”

“then, it really is a miracle?”

“archons… he must’ve saved a god or something in his previous life, haha!”

“….”

“miss miao-”

the attendant gasped upon receiving a warning look from her lady, “m-my-apologies, i-”

“that’s alright. just be careful next time, hmm?” the woman chuckles, turning away from the gossiping crowd of tables to sweep over the streets, “mortals these days have quite the active imagination, don’t you think?”

“pardon…?”

a glitter of gold. familiar amber eyes, stern glint softened with love, edges crinkled with salvation. blood-soaked hand riddled with scars washed with tender adoration, caressing feathers onto the newly born adeptus’ skin.

“…. nothing. let us depart. my business here is finally finished, after such a long time.”

“certainly… lady guan yin.”

as i have saved you, just as you had saved me, i will consider our contract fulfilled, rex lapis.

© zhongrin | 2023 ◆ no repost. reblogs much appreciated. feel free to reach out to submit suggestions, feedback, comments, or if you just want to talk!

◇ taglist ◇ @thestarsofenkanomiya | @genshinparty | @abyssmal-skies | @hamdehlesmis | @depressivecomforts | @sophiethewitch1 | @why-am-i-here-someone-save-me | @sunnshineflxwer | @heartonthemoon | @yuutasbabe | @percyval-archives | @carbs-need-more-love | @rebeccka | @queen-belial | @stygianoir | @silentmoths | @niktwazny303 | @dustofthedailylife | @herdrops | @diebischesther | @marina-and-the-memes | @angryhope | @mixed-kester | @shuangxo | @fiannee | @lordbugs | @anonymousficreader | @shizunxie | @ladylofspades | @sup-zfam | @ansy-tea

[beepersteeper]

I Will Always Find You -- Astarion x Tav -- I promise | part 1

Astarion and F!Tav live happily together for the remaining years she has, she refuses to be turned into a vampire because her faith says that her soul isn’t finished with its work yet. Tav dies of old age and leaves Astarion to put together the pieces of his broken heart. AN: Lord of Light lore taken and changed to fit the story's means. Not canonically accurate. TLDR storyline stuff. This is an AU where Astarion ascends but isn't a power-hungry bastard and Tav is able to help him continue healing. Wyll is immortal and the Duke. Karlach in my mind, if given a new engine would be able to live a lot longer than the usual tiefling. Another AN: idk if anyone wants tagged in this WIP but let me know.  

“Let me. Please Tav," Astarion begs from his knees on the marble floor. Holding her hands tightly to his lips "Let me give you the gift of eternity.” he waits holding his breath for her to respond.

"No Star,” she whispers through shallow breaths "I've had enough time. I've lived the best life I could, done some amazing things. When it's my time to start again, I'm ready.”

"I'm not.” He openly weeps into her hands. The vampire Ascendant, the strongest vampire that has ever existed, is moments away from losing the only thing he's ever truly cared about. Moments away from losing her. "I will never be ready.” He urges through his tears.

“You'll find me again. This body has done enough. I need to know what my next role is darling.” She says with a blissful smile. “Just promise you'll find me when I come back.” Nothing is hanging in the air around them besides his weeping. Nothing left unsaid, no final things to add. They have shared everything they possibly could. Writing their own love story that could rival those that are written in fiction. He doesn't have the words he wants to say at his disposal. He wants to convince her to stay with him. So he just asks "How will I know? How do I find you?” He sighs, placing gentle kisses on the fragile skin on the back of her hands. Admitting his defeat.

“I don't know love, but you will, or I will. We will know. Maybe you'll hear my laugh, or I'll see your face in a dream or smell your scent on the wind. However it happens we will know." She sighs “I believe it. We are destined to be together. But I'm just not ready yet.” She smiles tilting her head toward him, white hair that has lost its midnight color over the years falls around her face “Besides you don't want this old crone on your arm for eternity." She laughs

“You are as beautiful as the day I met you Tav” Astarion tuts “Is there anything at all I can do to change your mind?”

"There's not, Star." She shakes her head “I can't explain it but I know there's something more for me to do. Once I have that done I will stay with you until the sun blinks out.”

“I…" he pauses looking into her emerald eyes “I will find you Tav. Every time if that's what it takes."

“I know you will." She sighs closing her eyes for longer than Astarion would like.

“Tav?!" She shouts in a whisper.

“I'm here Star, just so tired." She coughs and squeezes his hand. “Will you kiss me?"

“There's nothing I would like more." He laughs hearing his voice ringing back to their days on the road, all those times she would ask to steal a kiss when others weren’t looking, or when he wasn't ready for any surprise intimacy. He leans down, brushing her hair behind her small rounded ears and gently kissing her lips feeling her warmth transfer to his own. “You are perfect, my love." Cold tears escape his eyes and fall into her hair. “I love you. I will love you forever."

"And I love you more.” She smiles one more time before her grip on his hands goes limp and he hears the breath of her soul leaving her body. 

He runs the pads of his thumbs over her cheeks feeling no resistance at his shaking touch. He screams until his throat is raw. Tears flow freely from his eyes, and he feels his dead heart break into pieces. He holds her for a long time until he feels no more warmth emanating from her form. He made arrangements to bury her next to his headstone, sparing no expense for her, but only having their close friends in attendance, shutting out the entirety of Baldur’s Gate from the ceremony. 

Astarion kneels in the fresh dirt, pressing his hands to the cold stone that bore Tav's full name Tavilline V. Ancunin, and imagery of The Luxon. He traced his nimble fingers over the image, parts of him cursing the Lord of Light, part of himself pouring any faith he could into them because they were the only hope he had to see the other half of his soul again. He accepts condolences from all of his companions from the adventuring days and flies back to his palace. When he arrives he burns into a blind rage. When he comes back too he looks around and sees all of the damage he has wrought. Broken furniture, shattered glass, and torn fabrics surround him as he realizes he is heaving air into his lungs. Tears still streaming down his face and feeling a breeze on his skin through the torn holes in his funeral best. He locks the door of their- his… their bedroom and he lays in the too-large-for-just-him bed. 

Days pass before anyone sees him in person, and he lets the room be cleaned and brought back to its original state. He has sent word for his workers to send for Wyll, Blade of Avernus to take his place in court. Wyll is the first person to see him since the funeral. They sit in silence for hours in Astarion’s office as he is stacking books and files in front of Wyll.

“I need to get away." Astarion states plainly. Refusing to make any kind of contact - physical, visual, emotional. He refuses any kind of attempt to connect.

“I understand." Wyll responds, knowing his friend is unwell. How could he not be?

“I don't know when I'll be back. Anything you need is here. Deeds, gold, keys, notes, and ledgers. Any decisions you make I will trust." He puts his hand firmly on Wyll’s shoulder, allowing himself this touch. An old friend. The only one he trusts right now. "take care of the Gate. But more importantly, please take care of her.” He whimpers, refusing to cry right now. 

"You have my word Astarion. Everything will be in order when you return.” Wyll places his hand over Astarions “Send word when you can. You have people here who care."

“I will." He nods and walks out the heavy doors. He gathers his old daggers her crossbow and his old armor and heads out of the palace. Unsure where he's going but he heads out of the gate.

Years pass, decades pass. He finds himself in adventure. He finds himself in years of vast nothing staring at the sky looking for something to tell him where to go. Eventually, his travels guide him back to Baldur’s gate. He tried to send letters or messages to Wyll monthly just to keep that contact. Baldur's gate continues in his absence, thriving under Wyll’s control. Wyll reassured Astarion that Tav's grave was well-manicured and pristine in his absence.

Astarion, dressed in a dark hooded cloak made his way to the cemetery. Making the walk to his and Tav's plots like something else was controlling his legs. As he approaches their plots he notices a young woman sitting at the base of a nearby tree sketching images of nearby headstones. He sighs and rolls his eyes why someone would willingly hang out in a cemetery is beyond me. He kneels between their headstones sweeping away dust from their names. He feels the tug in his chest returning. Some days the pain is muted, others it feels just as bad as the day he lost her. Today is somewhere in the middle. A dull ache in his chest sits there as his only company. “I'll find you Tav, I swear. I’ve never stopped looking. But I just wish I could have a hint." He sighs tracing her name with his thumb as he would her cheek. 

The darkness is cut through with a lamp accompanied by a stern voice. “Vira! Ta’Vira?! Are you in this bloody cemetery again?" An elderly man lumbers up the stairs as Astarion walks in the opposite direction, still listening, his interest piqued at the conversation. 

“Yes." The woman sighs, pushing her deep black hair behind her ears. “I just can't get this sketch right, so I need to be near the engraving."

“I will never understand your obsession with the first light." The man chortles, helping her to her feet “It's not like the woman buried there will answer any of your questions." 

“I know daddy." She sighs again “but I feel comfortable sitting with her. I can tell she was a peaceful person. I just feel drawn to her.”

“She was one of the heroes that saved our city all those years ago, Vira. She was a pillar of peace. If you feel a connection to her, I suppose there are worse things you could find comfort in. But you need to get to bed to open the shop in the morning.” He ushers her away into a nearby building, a bookstore. 

Astarion listens to their conversation until they are out of earshot. He leans down to Tav's headstone, kissing the smooth stone. “I love you more.” He pats the stone and walks quickly to the palace. He walks past the guards, who regard him with warmth welcoming him home. Ready to ask where Wyll was he heard a familiar voice from down the hall “Had I known you were coming back I would have made myself more presentable" Wyll joked gesturing to his bedtime clothes "Welcome back my friend.” he offered his hand to shake.

Astarion hesitantly accepts the gesture, he’s made a habit of not having physical contact with anyone. This is the first he's felt in decades. "It's just where I was led” he shrugs "It seems you are doing well.” he forces through a smile.

"Everything in the gate has been just fine in your absence, I only hope I was able to hold things to your standards. But enough about business for the night, let's get you something to drink and we can catch up before business.” 

Astarion shrugs and waves away the notion “I'm full. 'm just honestly looking forward to sleeping in a real bed." He pushes his hands into the small of his back to stretch “though I do have a few questions if you'd indulge me.”

Wyll sets himself in a black velvet chair and gestures to a matching one opposite a small table. “You have my undivided attention friend." Astarion asks several questions in rapid succession. Who runs that bookstore by the cemetery? What do you think about the Lord of Light? What has the court said about my absence? Do you think Tav is out there somewhere? “Quite the array of questions." Wyll hums. “Tav certainly believed that she would be. And with faith that strong who's to say she's not." 

Astarion studies Wyll’s face listening for more answers to his questions. “The court murmured for a while about me being in your place but when I threatened to recall you from your sabbatical they quieted quickly.” Wyll chuckled remembering the days he spent threatening to send for Astarion to return. Nobody on the court dared to want that after what he had been through and in the manner he left. 

Astarion nods happily with those answers. “And the bookstore… “ Wyll pauses thinking what store he means "Just an old man and his daughter, recently moved back to the Gate. They have made a bit of a stir in the city for selling any and all religious texts, not everyone is thrilled about Bhaals teachings shelved next to the oak fathers but they seem to be doing well for themselves.” Wyll looks to his vampire friend "an odd interest for your first night home I must say.”

"The daughter I assume, was hanging out by Tav's plot when I visited before coming here. They just caught my interest.” He shakes his head implying that it wasn't anything major.

"She's probably intrigued by the engraving on her marker. It's the only one like it in the whole cemetery.” Wyll offers an explanation. 

"Probably.” Astarion responds but feels himself drifting miles away. "thanks Wyll. Do you think you still have a few days in you before I fully come back?”

"Of course, I'm just happy to have you back.” Wyll nods as Astarion retires to his and Tav's room.

[tired-reader-writer]

Enabled NY @insert-clever-username-1133 here is the AU lore I have come up with for Liminal: The Unstraying.

Put under the cut because I have a suspicion it will get long.

Geduldh as an eldritch goddess of decay right alongside earth, winter, etc. Geduldh being powerful.

In the AU lore, if Ewigeliebe hadn't gone bananas and constantly tried to reduce everything to white sand out of jealousy, dead things would decay and “return to the earth” and in turn enrich it, enrich her. Underground, caves, and such are frequently associated with death and the afterlife in many of our religions and myths, what if the same applied to Geduldh? Or would've applied, if not for Ewigeliebe. Maybe the soul still ascends to the heights but the body returns to her warm embrace, maybe she's supposed to have both. They're her descendants after all. The all-mother.

Let's take a look at Aztec cosmology for instance.

So there were two earthly entities (Coatlicue and Cipactli) both of whom were characterized as ever hungering Lovecraftian horrors. Coatlicue was said to she “feed on corpses, as the earth consumes all that dies”, a goddess of also war and childbirth I believe. On the other hand, Cipactli represented the earth floating in the primeval waters— no idea how the two were related to one another but a source did mention Coatlicue as having originally been a priestess not a goddess so who knows really— who ate anything the four sun gods made because there was no land and so their creations kept falling into the primordial ocean. They had to kill the thing and make it into the earth (even then Cipactli wasn't really dead, so had to be sated with blood sacrifices so it won't go all murder-happy on the rest of the population). Also Cipactli was described as “always hungry, every joint on its body was adorned with an extra mouth”.

Heck, even outside of Aztec cosmology if we look at say Demeter, she's still fucking terrifying? Like, she can withhold her blessings so that nothing would grow? Her sulking/grief over Persephone nearly killed the world? WINTER EXISTS BECAUSE SHE REFUSES TO LET ANYTHING GROW????

And Persephone herself, even if it's debatable whether she actually was a nature goddess or not (sources vary), is still like. Both a nymph and a fuck-off terrifying queen of the underworld.

I'm not sure if it's canon but while fics invoke Geduldh's name in euphemisms to mean passivity... Sure, canon Geduldh may be like that, but what if she was allowed to be angry? The thought that earth goddesses are supposed to be all demure and passive is kinda laughable.

She's compassionate and wants to embrace her children in death but she can't and that makes her fucking angry. And perhaps Geduldh's all-encompassing acceptance is an offshoot of her father's all-devouring hunger/loneliness. She is her father's daughter, after all, and it would be fun if she was more like him than anybody else.

Darkness and earth could be very plausibly linked too, in my opinion, like so:

“Never fear the darkness, Bran. The strongest trees are rooted in the dark places of the earth. Darkness will be your cloak, your shield, your mother's milk. Darkness will make you strong.”

and

“The old that is strong does not wither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost.”

Also earthquakes are terrifying, let me tell ya, and I haven't even experienced a big one.

On the topic of earthquakes— Remember that Mycenaean Greece's Poseidon was more an earth/underworld god with the “earth-shaker” epithet than a sea god and Hades didn't exist in that era and Zeus wasn't the most important god back then— Poseidon the earth-shaker was.

And on the topic of passivity, it actually made me think of Cinderella, and how Cinderella to me is a tale of an abuse victim persevering and escaping her abusive situation. She remains kind and polite bc you know abusers, they don't take well to being talked back to or anything like that, they see any sign of discontent, they bring down their boot on you ever harder. I know this because I'm in an abusive household at the bottom of the totem pole 🥲 People have talked about and analyzed the Cinderella story from this angle far better than I have, and I hope y'all come across such analyses eventually. I'm not too physically well to do an in-depth dive into this one unfortunately.

Geduldh is trapped in an abusive marriage. Her family doesn't cast Ewigeliebe out or kill him because they (it was the God of Darkness in particular I think) want living things. How does Geduldh feel about any of it? Of her body being used like that? Unclear in canon. But what if in the AU, she's angry?

It's not that she doesn't want children or living beings, far from it, it's just that she wants a say in how Yurgenschmidt is governed. She is also associated with compassion if I recall correctly, and noble society... is the opposite of compassionate.

And to add to the fucked up cake we have... The goddess of Chaos. If I remember correctly she desired the God of Darkness but couldn't obtain him but what if. What if she had a fucked up Petyr Baelish thing going on, like he saw Sansa Stark as the daughter he could've had with Catelyn but also desiring Sansa to be his, same dynamic between the Chaos Goddess and Geduldh, the child most like the God of Darkness.

All of that cumulates in Geduldh making a divine messenger in the form of a Devouring child born mysteriously fatherless in the Adalgisa Palace. Well, twins. But Horaia's is a whole nother thing not many will be stoked to learn about since they're an OC and I've already posted about their backstory on tumblr before, so we're skipping over it.

Bonus round: Geduldh's Monster.

Not the backstory, but the Vibes™ Horaia, especially civil war era Horaia, is supposed to give:

The vibe of blood vessels being exposed and pulsating, even on armor and clothes, like they're a part of Horaia's body itself. Not literal blood vessels but like. Looks close enough to be Creepy™. The armor is them and they're the beast the monster the killing machine on the battlefield, it's just another of the roles they play. Horaia already feels like they're acting out roles in hopes of not sticking out as inhuman among noble society (it's naaaaasty) so this time, why not lean into a role they'll fear out of spite? (In the sense of “oh you preach cruelty to me? you want cruelty? FINE I'LL GIVE YOU CRUELTY.”)

Like Hector who spooks his son because he was wearing a war helmet and it symbolizing how war makes monsters out of them all? Somewhat like that but entirely voluntarily.

Horaia, touching the face of her betrothed Ferdinand, the one whose hand in marriage they won in ditter after Magdalena ditched him (not out of romantic love, it's entirely platonic, both Ferdinand and Horaia in this AU being aroace, but a deep desperate sense of friendship, codependency, attachment, and duty), asking him “If I become something unforgivable, would you still love me?” and afterwards accepting Geduldh's (+chaos') blessings into their body to become That™. Corrosive, devouring magic, if you know the Shadow from Fate/Stay Night: Heaven's Feel? Yeah, that. The same effect that thing has on pretty much everything.

A drawing of Horaia as Zent, disheveled and bitter and resigned, to close this post off.

[bridgyrose]

Charlie only wants to ascend souls because every time one of them dies in Hell she feels the physical pain of it.

Charlie curled up in pain as the extermination finished, her breathing ragged as she tried to move. It was like this every year, feeling in pain and exhausted from the countless deaths that came from the angels as sinners were killed left and right. The souls of the damned calling out to her as they disappeared, pain coursing through her body in every place the sinners were killed. Small marks littered her body where each sinner had been killed, each one a reminder that she couldnt protect them. 

“Charlie?” Vaggie asked as she walked in. “Everything okay?” 

“F-fine…” Charlie whimpered out as she struggled to sit up. “‘M…. fine.” 

Vaggie rushed over to her and rubbed her back. “Charlie? What’s going on?” 

“Ex… exterm…” Charlie couldnt get the rest of the words out as she tried to sit up, her voice still rough as the marks around her neck started to fade. Even as her strength started to come back, it was still hard for her to sit up on her own, only able to as she felt Vaggie help her sit up. 

“Take it easy Charlie, I’m here for you.” 

Charlie gave her a small nod as she felt a bit of the pain fade away. “I-I… I have to… save them.” 

“Save them?” 

“The sinners.” Charlie nearly gasped as she felt a little more of the pain faded away, her strength slowly coming back to her. “Every time one of them dies, I feel their pain.” 

“Sinners kill each other all the time, right?” Vaggie asked. “What makes this so different?” 

“Its… its how they die.” Charlie stood up and made her way to the window of her bedroom, looking out at the aftermath of the extermination. “If sinners kill each other, their souls still stay here. But when the exterminators do, those souls disappear and I can feel their pain. Every stab, every sting, every death, I feel all of it.” 

Vaggie sighed and put a gentle hand on Charlie’s shoulder. “Then we stop the exterminations.” 

Charlie tried to smile, her eyes still glued to the destruction below. “Its… its more than that. Even if we stop the exterminations, there’s still a chance someone in Heaven will try something else. That’s why I started this hotel, so I can help sinners move on so I dont have to feel this pain anymore.” 

“You know you wont be able to save them all, right?” 

“I-I know.” Charlie relaxed against Vaggie as she tried to calm herself, glancing at the last of the fading marks on her arms. “Its… its part of being the princess of hell, you know? These sinners… they’re my life no matter how I look at it. All their pain and joy, I feel all of it.” 

“Then no matter what, I’ll stay by your side.” 

Charlie nodded and took a deep breath, hiding how much it still hurt to breathe. Even as the last of the injuries had faded away, it never went away completely. Each extermination taking away a piece of her, each year her life getting that much closer to its end. Still, she kept her smile as she pressed into Vaggie. “Thank you.” 

[justafeweggnoodles]

Chaotic Art Journal

(there is nothing else to this, just enjoy some chaotic art made with charcoal, collage and some other things thrown in (im going to kinda explain the spreads / artworks))

Front cover: Watcher eye thing, its going to keep appearing through out so that's something. Text: They are always watching

Inside of cover / Page 1: just the start of the book Text: A collage of thoughts. To begin press X. Entertain Them.

Page 3/4: A list of things I like drawing and some prompts I came up with and didn't do. Text (black scribbles): Mushroom. The Stories we tell, Guide the worlds formation. The ones who watch. Prompts.

Page 5/6: So this was just a cute pastel sketch then the rest of the book was black scribbles so I added some, the writing has to do with the Everything's Interconnected AU but I haven't covered it before. Text: Fairy Floss Duo. The forge burns. The power of knowledge takes.

Page 7/8: soooo um Mr Sunshine from Pikuniku and eyes with pupils made from coins. This was once again originally did not have the black writing. Text: Free Money. He kills YOU. Our perception lies. What do you SEE.

Page 9/10: Cabaret by Penelope Scott lyric reference and my friend's character, Emily. Text: Am I a fucking cabaret to you? Emily.

Page 11/12: OOOO look life series imagery and random photos from the newspaper. Text (the pencil this time cause there is no black text): The canary will always go first. If you stop trying it will burn. You can't escape. They make the rules. There is always the next game. Play again?? Yes. They always watch.

Page 13/14: More lyrics, this time a full 2 page spread of them. They are from Blueprint by Slowly Slowly. Text: Call the cops, somebody stop me. RIP my sick head of off this body. WE are the gods now, we say what goes. Off with the fairies, horns up, eyes closed. 666, just make a wish. Please promise you'll always have time for this. Back to basics, back on our bullshit. I'll get the hang of it. You be my blueprint.

Page 15/16: this is about a character I made to go in the Everything's Interconnected AU. She is from a time right before Kingdomcraft and grew up with the rulers, but she wasn't alive when they ascended to their thrones. What happened to her??? Text: She died before them ALL. The candles guide the souls to HER.

Page 18 (page 17 was blank so I left it out): It is a bit hard to see but here is the girl talked about in page 16 and 17. Text: The Rapids Keeper.

Page 19 / 20: Talking about the watchers with a little bit of front cover thumb nailing visible. Idk what the general consensus is with the life games but I think that the players where taken and have no memory of their home and between games they are in a prison thing. Text: THEY took us from our homes. They are always watching, always.

so that's it. hope u found that interesting. There are more pages left some maybe one day I'll update u guys with what gets made (if it gets made). Now im going to go and try to tag this, which is going to be... interesting.

[astarionfreak]

Gireoowoeofivjvnwkkskdkfjcvdbs based on your fiction of dying tav how would astarion react to this:

As she starts feeling that she is starting to lose consciousness, she uses the last strength she has to hug Astarion tightly and whispers “part of me is relieved.. I know you were just pretending and this is the most I can get to be with the one I love, part of me is relieved that I helped you ascend so after my death you will remain safe, I won’t be there to protect you but you won’t need me to.”

She’d start speaking slower, fighting to let out the words “I will tell you something funny. I am getting jealous of whoever you will end up with after I die. I wish it was me that would get to know every corner of your soul but I hope you find happiness..” after a few quiet moments she says her last thing “if reincarnation is real, I hope I never get reincarnated if I don’t get to see him again..”

Ahhhh! Okay. Hmm. Lemme see.

Original fic: You'll hate me (make love)

cw; major character death, sad vibes

Tav rested in Astarion's lap, her arms curled around him, her face pressed against the curve of his neck. How long they had been like this? Astarion did not know. He wasn't counting the seconds. He was listening to the drumming of her heart -- and with each passing moment the beats grew further apart.

Her heart. The very thing that kept her here, with him, that pumped her blood through her veins -- it had been steadily growing weaker for some time now. It wouldn't be long before her mortal form betrayed her. Before her soul was plucked like a ripened cherry in the summer heat.

So, he listened, completely silent, not even daring to breathe, as she spoke her final words. Her voice, weak, as though each word was a struggle. Astarion wished he could ease her pain, but death would soothe her soon enough.

Astarion was quiet, listening to the sounds of her failing body for a moment longer before he spoke.

"Yes, little love, it is funny that you believe there will be anyone after you," Astarion whispered. "There is no being, not in my past, nor in my future that could possibly bring me the happiness you offered in our short time together."

She was too weak to respond, falling limp, fading in his arms. He knew this feeling well. Countless others had died at his hand, but it wasn't like this -- it didn't hurt like this. Their lives were meaningless. She was -- gods, she was everything.

And it stung, knowing that she did not truly love him. Not in the way she used to. That she yearned for a version of him who was long dead. The version of him that had been so weak, so pathetic --

He loathed the old him. But he pretended, for her. His reasons, for all of this, they were his own. He would not speak them aloud. He would not even allow himself to think on it.

"I'll find you again, he'll find you, I swear it," Astarion whispered. "There is nothing that could keep us apart, my love, not even the promise of oblivion."

He would do almost anything to freeze this moment. To keep her here, his, forever. But she hadn't given him enough time. Part of him resented her for that -- it was easier to hate her than to blame himself for his shortcomings.

What good was all this power if he couldn't have her? If the only one he'd ever truly cared for could still be taken from him?

He lost her the day she walked away. He let her go. He should have stopped her -- he should have turned her then. She would have forgiven him in time, surely. No --

No, the cost would have been too high. They were both so strong willed. He would have destroyed her love. She would have ruined him in return.

This was better. This, this ending, it would mean that what they had was real -- and would remain that way, in his memory, for as long as he lived.

A/N: Okay, so, he almost seems too well adjusted here and I swear he's not. Lol. He's actually a mess.

[thunderon]

so i dont think we ever get an explanation for why pyrrha and g1deon are compartmentalized in one body. he ascended at (maybe?) roughly the same time as augustine and mercy, but pyrrha was clearly left out of the suicide pact of alfred and cristabel, which leaves a lot of questions on the how and why g1deon became a lyctor and, to the point, how did he do it wrong… and to my theory: what if he didn’t? what if he had just never intended to become a lyctor like that in the first place?

now hear me out. thinking back to the note harrow left gideon when she undoes lyctorhood:

which mirrors g1deon/pyrrha’s note from gtn:

now what if g1deon had also attempted to undo his lyctorhood (or even tried for perfect lyctorhood with pyrrha when he ascended), got that wrong, and accidentally compartmentalized pyrrha in the process but believed he totally failed and consumed her soul? i mean theoretically he could’ve just done normal lyctorhood wrong, but then how did mercy and augustine get it right and g1deon didn’t? and we know mercy and augustine had their hands forced by their cavs, and that leaves a giant question mark as to how pyrrha died, but im willing to bet g1deon didn’t become a lyctor with pyrrha as a battery by choice.

and that raises another question: why would pyrrha not communicate to g1deon that she’s alive for all those years? maybe she was afraid he’d destroy himself to save her…. quite like harrow did with gideon 2.0

[itsmmatchaa]

NICO

.*𓆩♡𓆪⸸･ﾟ “the red flags are big but so is my dick” :)

𓆩♡𓆪.SEX: god male

𓆩♡𓆪.SEXUAL ORIENTATION: yes

𓆩♡𓆪.SPECIES: demon? incubus prince? sex machine? the name you'll be screaming tonight? a nuisance for sure. Half demon prince, half human

𓆩♡𓆪.NAME: Niccolo Cifarelli

𓆩♡𓆪.NICKNAMES: nico, nilo, "the angel of art department", nicky, asmoday, the son of asmodeus, your highness

𓆩♡𓆪.OCCUPATIONS: prince of second circle of hell (lust), art student and a barista

𓆩♡𓆪.AGE: 246-ish

𓆩♡𓆪.BIRTHDAY: 6/9 nice (6th september)

𓆩♡𓆪.HOMETOWN: hell/woods in Italy

𓆩♡𓆪.HEIGHT: 195 cm

𓆩♡𓆪.APPEARENCE:

𓆩♡𓆪.EYECOLOR: Nico's eye color changes accordingly to his emotions, thats why he hides his eyes with glasses or his hair. Usually they are blue with brown hues, but can have hints of purple when he use his demonic powers, when he's angry or feeding himself with sexual energy, blood or flesh.

𓆩♡𓆪.HAIR: thick dark hair that cannot decide if it's black or dark brown, wavy and fluffy.

𓆩♡𓆪.BODY INFO: Nico's body is ripped. he use a lot of his time working out and carrying weight, art equipment and stones or clays since he likes sculpting. all that activities helped to turn him into a very strong guy. He also enjoys deadlifting and helping his dad with mechanics when he's fixing up cars.

𓆩♡𓆪.SKINCOLOR: Nico has a tanned skin thanks to the amount of time he gets under the sun helping his mother with orange harvest and sketching people.

𓆩♡𓆪.ABOUT NICO: son of asmodeus himself and a human woman. his mother died in Triora centuries ago being judged as a witch, when in fact she was just a very beautiful young and intelligent woman without a husband and refunsing to marry a old man.

when nico's mother arrived in hell, the demon asmodeus was amazed by her beauty and kindness, he decided to woo her and take her as his wife. she was strangely kind even though she was in hell. Asmodeus knew that someone had probably misjudged her and sent her to hell, which at this point was a daily basis (seriously heaven/hell bureaucracy is a mess), but asmodeus didn't want to lose her and decided to hide her existence. asmodeus waited years for her to feel comfortable enough to get into a relationship and copulate with him and together they had only one child: Niccolo.

Niccolo was born human and very weak, unfortunally the infernal air was not good for his weak human lungs, he was always coughing a lot so Asmodeus took his wife and children to a wood cabin to live in the human world. years passed and despite the efforts of his mother and father, unfortunately Niccolo died at the age of 13, due to the plague and his fragile health, on the island of Poveglia, along with other infected people. Asmodeus knew that he could not interfere with his son's death, otherwise the boy could become a lost soul without memories of his life, however de demon lord had a little bit of hope that maybe his son could turn into a demon when he died.

after Niccolo's death, a search was made after all the dead souls hoping to find Asmodeus's son but without success. Nico disappeared for about 200 years until a young boy suddenly appeared in hell, looking for his parents, saying that heaven was too boring

"I really tried be a good boy, but I couldn't do anything and they were already pointing their swords at me.”

when asmodeus learned that the heavens had kept his son for all this time, he was pissed, but at his son's request nothing was done and he wouldn't declare war to heaven... this time

"it took me a long time to see you father, and I don't want to look at any angels so soon"

Niccolo was now dead, and as Asmodeus predicted, he became a demon and a refused soul (when you ascend to heaven but get kicked out). asmodeus was proud while Nico's mother was slapping his shoulders while crying after so much time without seeing her only son.

after spending time with his family, Niccolo had been given the title of Asmoday, reborning as a hell's prince, and no one demon ever speak his name again. * (please check trivia for more information)

𓆩♡𓆪.PERSONALITY: even if he's flirtatious, full of shit and sometimes mysterious, he's kind and caring, he's a goofball honestly. his demonic personality does get the best of him sometimes, he can't fight the urge of making jokes and stealing people's heart with his looks (and he will seduce you in purpose, yes) but at the same time he's also clumsy and cute.

hes the type of guy that makes every woman's heart beat fast not matter the age, the type all mother want to their daughters. the way he talks to mrs. Amelia, an old lady and his neighbor, like she's young again, it's so cute, and it's so beautiful to see her smiling and blushing because of the compliments that Niccolo has said. he knows that a little compliment makes the day of the old lady.

"Oh Mrs. Amelia, you're shining today! May I have the pleasure of your company to the train station my lady?"

Nico also enjoys his time alone, listening to music or running early in the morning, calisthenics or painting. But there's nothing he enjoys more than vacation, when he goes back to Italy and can see his parents in the human form, and pretend they are normal humans for a bit, helping his mother taking care of her farm, and helping his dad when he's messing up with old cars. that one hobbie made Nico a big fan of races, it's not rare seeing him in street racings with his white nissan 180sx and believe me, he's fast as fuck when wants to win.

Nico is like a puppy dog when in love, he'll cherish and love you, you're going to be his sun, his moon and all hi starts, he'll draw you, sculpt you and kill for you if necessary. he´s the type that would wear a "my girl is hotter tahn you" shirt and he would be proud about it, even if he's supposed to be bad, if you ask, he'll be the most loyal puppy in the world. but don't be surprised if one day you wake up with a very hungry half demon boyfriend next to you needing sexual energy. after all he's kind of the prince of sex demons and when incubus fall in love they can only feed from his beloved and oh boy he's insatiable.

𓆩♡𓆪.LIKES: playing bass, cars, sculping, oranges and tangerines, messing with cars, iced coffee with 2 spoon's of sugar and milk, cats, the smell of rain

𓆩♡𓆪.DISLIKES: flu, hospitals, extreme unhygienic people and places, blank pages, when he miss a race, pure milk (he only drinks milk with chocolate powder or sugar). Cooking (he can't cook for his life), churches

𓆩♡𓆪.TRIVIA:

names are sacred to demons, so when a demon makes himself known he is given a false name or title. Some demons are so ancient that we only know their titles. If you speak the real name of a demon, you can end up dying or you will feel enormous pain. The only ones who can speak a demon's name are those close to them or to whom the demon has made a confession (the act of telling the demons name).

can't cook for shit, but he's very good at making drinks. he work as an barista with Yao Mei.

each demon has a way of protecting its name, by telling it to everyone and putting a seal on themselves, or being so powerful that even if everyone knows it won't change anything. Or killing everyone who knows their name.