#marci novalli

[happyfoxx-art]

Somewhere in the DFZ these two are being adorable 🥰 making my way Heartstrikers series a second time for good measure (i need to get the next set of DFZ books LOL)

[pisstachio-pierrot]

Heartstrikers and DFZ series as text posts

[discar]

I’ve got a lot to say after my latest re-read of The Heartstrikers.  Great series, great characters, great plot, GREAT themes.

But one thing that bugged me was that we really don’t know what mages can actually DO.  We mostly see them moving magic in and out of spirits, or sometimes using basic attack spells that are basically throwing magic at people.  Surely they can do more, but WHAT?

Can they shapeshift like dragons?  Can they raise corpses--either binding dead souls to service or just puppeteering a corpse?  Can they transmute one material to another, communicate telepathy, or read the past in the emotions of a stone?

We don’t know, and it feels like a missed opportunity.  I think this is part of why Marci is seen as a weaker character than Julius.  She’s the magic expert, but most of what we see her do is just play with spirits, which is explicitly not her area of expertise, so she’s getting a lot of stuff explained to her.  It’s like describing a character as “a scientist” and then never explaining what their specialization is besides “not chemistry.”

Also, the spirits act like they’re a lot more immortal than I think they should.  The Geirangerfjord isn’t actually that big.  What would happen if a dragon nuked it in the ninth century?

[words-writ-in-starlight]

ൠ for Julias and Marci

I’ve talked about this already, BUT

After the dust settles and the DFZ starts to rebuild, there’s still--a lot to figure out.  Julius is taking over a city.  The entire population of the DFZ, recently uprooted, is adjusting to the idea.  Marci accidentally promoted herself to Boss Of All Magic and she has exactly one subordinate, who she only barely trusts not to crack open the Heart of the World in the spirit of investigation.  They have sparkly new alliances with half the draconic world, and Julius has to teach literally even one of his Heartstriker-loyal siblings to play nice enough to maintain them.  They have to get married, also, because Marci is going to put a ring on it, thanks.

(Marci’s original suggestion was a 24-hour chapel with literally anyone off the street plus, probably, Fredrick for witnesses, because Fredrick has all but fused himself to Julius’ side and is displaying what Marci assumes is hereditary political brilliance in his position as Julius’ self-appointed assistant.  However, Fredrick shut her down.  Marci tried to steal Julius literally the morning after the dragon summit, and Fredrick gave her a long, flat look that looks alarmingly like his mother and then says, “Well, have fun telling Chelsie about that.”  Marci’s not afraid of Chelsie--okay, well, Marci is afraid of Chelsie, everyone should be a little afraid of Chelsie, it’s just good sense, but Marci isn’t afraid Chelsie is going to hurt her or anything!  But she starts thinking about it, and she’s surprised to realize that a good number of people would probably like to see Julius happy.  So she agrees to postpone the wedding until, at least, Chelsie is back.  It’s still a courthouse gig, though, because the DFZ wouldn’t hear of anything else.)

Anyway!  Anyway.  Point is, there’s a fucking LOT going on that first week!  Marci is still working on getting herself legally alive again, for god’s sake!  “There was an extremely morally dubious ritual performed with a lot of dragon blood and also this is my death god” is, somehow, kind of a lot for a bunch of bureaucrats to swallow.  And she’s, like, ethically opposed to letting the DFZ terrorize one of the only surviving functional government offices.

So it’s a good solid six weeks after the End Of The World That Wasn’t, what everyone’s taken to calling the Second Crash, that Marci calls up Myron and wrings a phone number for one General Emily Jackson out of him.

It takes a good three more months for Emily to have...enough of a body to go anywhere, but once she does, she trundles on over to the DFZ and gets coffee with the woman she murdered for the greater good.

Julius has what he personally considers a very understandable and frankly restrained response to this plan.  It is to stare incredulously at his wife as she gathers things into her bag and demand, in a growl his past self would have been shocked to hear, “Are you out of your fucking mind????  Absolutely not!”

“You’re not my boss,” Marci informs him.  “We’re going to need to play nice with the UN, and it’s not like she’s allowed to do anything here, no dragon hunting in your city, remember?”

“Yeah, a law I imposed, like, at least eighty percent for her, personally.  Do you remember that time she killed you?”

“She was perfectly nice before she killed me, and afterward she did admit it was a mistake.  And I’m fine now!  I got better!”

“MARCI.”

It takes her a full hour to argue Julius into submission, which is actually twice as long as she expected, so she ends up being a little late to coffee and also she ends up with Justin, who’s at least obvious about following her.  He gives General Jackson his best Knight of the Heartstriker stare--it’s very good, actually, Marci would be terrified under other circumstances--and sits two tables away, pretending to play on his phone and drinking a truly terrifying amount of coffee.

“And he is?” General Jackson asks, cocking her head.  Her voice isn’t quite right yet, and it buzzes electronically in her throat.

“My bodyguard,” Marci sighs, getting out her notebook.  “I made him promise not to talk.  The only alternative was bringing Julius with me, and with all due respect, General, I think that would be worse.  He, uh.  Doesn’t like you very much.”

“Understandable,” Emily says with a decisive nod.  “Is that your cat in your bag?”

“Yeah, he said that if I didn’t let him come he wouldn’t let me leave.”

Emily pauses for a moment, watching as Marci flips to a clean page in her notebook and takes a fortifying gulp of her coffee.  “Should I be worried that a death god seems to have something of a personal grudge?”

“Only if you’re planning on dying!” Marci says cheerfully.  “Don’t worry, Ghost is a professional.  Let’s get started.”

Marci and Emily continue to get coffee whenever Emily is the DFZ, and after a few years they’re something like friends, even.  Julius holds a grudge that Marci privately thinks is every draconic instinct he’s ever had, boiled down and directed against one woman.  Marci makes a point to meet Emily at really excellent coffee shops, though, and brings her husband peace offerings in the form of really excellent lattes and baked goods.

[dontheckinswear]

Some more sketches of Julius, Marcy, and Ghost ugghhh I love these guys. Maybe enough to actually color them.

Anyone who likes these books, please interact :/

[arynlight]

Marcy & Ghost from Rachel Aaron’s Heartstrikers series.  Because they’re awesome and I’m testing out a style for quick headshots.  I’ve got a Bethesda coming that I’m using to practice my chibi style on.

iPad Pro/Apple Pencil + Procreate March 2018

[words-writ-in-starlight]

Marci Novalli, grabbing her cat's face: Who's my clever boy???? Is it you????

The Empty Wind, God of the Forgotten Dead, First of the Mortal Spirits: I am the cleverest boy.