#ooc

[esmorothfallen]

{ 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐃𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐎𝐃𝐘? }

Simon Laurent

Love as Religion

[ love as the sole object of your reverence--nothing about you is holy, but   maybe your love for another is ]

when sappho said "in the crooks of your body i find my religion" and when the cast of les mis sang "to love another person is to see the face of God" and when halsey said "i found God, i found him in a lover" and when katherine philips wrote "to the dull angry world let's prove there's a religion in our love"

tagged by: @countlessrealities​ (thank you for the tag!!) tagging: @waitlifted​, @dreamsofalife​, @lostinyourfacade​ & anyone else who wants to do it!

[candyredmusings]

Having a Multi Muse be like

[fractalcloning]

As I scream into the void seeking a Narek RPer to play against, I have finally caved and must explain why I want this Romulan loungelizard to be more popular. (It won't happen, but I can dream.)

Reasons I like Narek as a character that nobody but me gives a shit about:

Let me preface this with a fact about me: I know Romulans.

I've RPed as Nero for almost two straight years in a large game. I've basically learned Rihannsu back to front for the endeavor. The person who played my Ayel and I both dumped countless hours into developing grammar and extrapolating cultural rules. We were dedicated to making them as believeable and accurate to canon as possible.

I have the whole timeline of the destruction of Hobus/Romulus down to memory. I know about all the neat little tidbits and trivia from comics and adjacent materials etc, etc.

This is to say: I have read and written quite a lot about Romulans in my time. I am very familiar with how they work and what data is available to draw from when writing them.

We do meet a few rank and file military Romulans from time to time, however. So we know how the general military operates in direct contrast to the Tal'Shiar. Caution and secrecy is sort of baked into their culture, which makes a lot of sense given that they're constantly at war with basically everyone, but they aren't (generally) unreasonable people.

In canon Trek, Romulans are often a little over the top with the sneaky-backstabbing-untrustworthy-nonsense. They're almost comical with how much scheming they do, but most of the Romulans we meet in canon are Tal'Shiar. The Tal'Shiar are known, pretty explicitly for the depth and breadth of their sneaky-backstabbing-untrustworthy-nonsense. It's kind of their whole deal, apart from mnhei'sahe (literally the ruling passion honor).

Narek, however, was a child when Hobus went supernova. He is from the very last generation that had any living memory of Romulus. (Elnor is also from this generation and they are great foils for each other, but that's another essay.) Narek is from a (presumably) respected family of--if not Tal'Shiar then Military--operatives. His aunt held high rank, his sister did as well, and both were inducted into the Zhat Vash, an organization that worked so quietly and efficiently that even the famously paranoid Tal'Shiar thought they were a myth. They orchestrated catastrophes and manipulated Galactic law to their ends, one of their members was the head of Starfleet Security and Narissa was on a personal basis with her.

Their underlying culture is present, but it isn't explored very deeply in any one canon source. Taken collectively, however, it is just as substantial as Klingon Battle-lust or Ferengi Capitalism.

Nero was a break from the norm, not because he was vengeful, but because he was the first non-military Romulan we'd ever really seen. His designs, the tattoos, the crew of his ship with their very un-Romulan loyalty, the way he talked and sought equivalent exchange of lives (mnhei'sahe), was a wealth of Romulan culture that we hadn't ever seen. He was a regular Joe, had a regular non-Military job, trusted and worked with aliens to try and save lives. His failure (not his fault) was something he absorbed and sought to rectify in the Romulan way.

Nero was super interesting both for how much detail he cast on Romulan culture, and in how he slotted into the Prime Timeline. Nero was a guy desperately clinging to hope, to the last vestiges of his civilian life, but he was cut free by the destruction of Romulus and set adrift. The only anchor he had in the AOS timeline was his honor and the driving need to balance the scales and restore it.

Narek, however privledge his family was, was a washout. He was a failure. We know he wasn't Zhat Vash, and whether he was even Tal'Shiar is up for some serious speculation. He doesn't act like military officers, and only seems to be play-acting as a Tal'Shiar, miming his sister when it suits him.

Narek may have had authority on the Artifact, but it was probably by dint of Oh granting it. We never get any clarification whatsoever about his rank or dayjob, just that he is fully devoted to helping the Zhat Vash. He is analytical, prepared, but he is not good at thinking on his feet and clearly does his planning off screen. He's meticulous but not especially skilled at hiding or regulating his emotional state. He is far less aggressive and stalwart than just about every other Romulan we've seen...except for Nero.

He was literally a placeholder sent to keep tabs on Soji. He didn't even arrive until Narissa had failed to capture Dahj. That Narek managed to get close to Soji, that he discovered her dreams and correctly surmised what they are, was more luck than skill. Before his assessments the Zhat Vash knew that Dahj (and Soji) could be activated out of their cover, but they assumed that they could capture them. They probably assumed they could torture the data out of them, if not dissect them and rip out a harddrive.

Narek found an easy way to get right to the information they needed. His attachment to Romulan culture is his puzzlebox--Before Nero we had never met a Romulan civilian and before Narek we have never met a cultural Romulan who plays with a toy, we had never seen a child's toy like that. Of course, the puzzlebox (Tan Zhekran) was a mechanism to illustrate his thought process, to make the differences between Narissa and him very apparent, but it was also something from his childhood (presumably). It's a weirdly personal affect for a Romulan and he fidgets with it almost constantly. It's a tell, something he shouldn't have, and it makes him accessible on an emotional level.

Narek is a civilian.

He's a civilian in a family of spies and operatives, raised alongside his sister on the same stories, with the same care. There's no way a Zhat Vash didn't have a family home on Romulus. While Elnor is a nice example of the new generation of Romulans, Narek is one of the last examples of what is used to mean to be a Romulan. He saw Romulus and escaped with all his surviving family when it as it was destroyed. Narek was raised on Romulan tradition (private names for family), Romulan stories about the end of the world, and he is haunted by them because he knows they're true, they're real. His sister and aunt have seen it, seen the message that drives people mad, about Ganmadan. His living relatives have dedicated their lives to preventing it and, even if he isn't actually Zhat Vash, he does the same.

Narek is a failure, by his culture's standards, by his family's standards, but he is also the only one of them who lives in the end.

He's a civilian who is trying, desperately, to avert another Romulan apocalypse. He has already lived through one and somehow this next one is even worse. Like Nero he sees the writing on the wall--but instead of doubling down on the traditional sneaky spy shit, he tries something new--unlike Nero, it works! He makes headway where nobody else could.

Unfortunately, it's kinda fucked up, but he then gives up everything in the pursuit of this goal. (Which to him, seems like a noble one.) Narek gives up who he is (by playing at being Tal Shiar), his safety (he has no idea what Soji is capable of or what might set her off, they only have records of Dahj killing a dozen agents before being blown up), and eventually resigns himself to killing the woman he's fallen in love with (the baseline requirement for giving out his real name). He does it all for the greater good, to save people and he doesn't seem to make much of a distinction between Romulan and other organic lives. He has his little plans, tracking La Sirena in a single cloaked ship, hiding his presence to tail them, firing on them despite being wholly outmatched, allying with Sutra however temporarily, trying to sway Soji again, turning to Rios, Raffi, and Elnor for help--he's willing to do anything because he's terrified that everything is about to end and it will be him who failed to prevent it.

The very last shot we see of him, after his plan to detonate the transmitter fails completely, is him on the ground being dragged away by the Coppelius androids. He doesn't posture or threaten, doesn't say ominous shit like the other Romulans we're used to--He begs. He claws at the ground, trying to stay, and he begs. He pleads with Soji, calls her his love, tries that last ditch hail mary because it's all he can do. He fails his task and she's the last person he can reach out to and, in the end, despite the very real threat to her life, Planet, and Picard, Soji smashes the transmitter. The apocalypse is averted.

Narek failed but he also succeeded. His aunt is dead, Oh has been outed as a traitor, and his sister is killed by Seven of Nine. In a cut scene, apparently, Narek was supposed to be arrested by Starfleet. So he's facing (at the very least) retribution from the androids and the ExBorg. Starfleet is very likely to arrest and interrogate him, if not imprison him indefinitely since he has ties to the Zhat Vash and, subsequently, will be on the hook to explain the Utopia Planetia disaster. Soji hates him, for good reason, and his homeworld is long gone. Narek has nothing...but the world was saved.

Narek is singular because he's all about needing and interacting with other people, he has no real authority, nobody he commands. He's a civilian (insofar as any Romulan can be) and is a soft, emotional boy who hangs on to his childhood toys. He's driven in equal parts by fear and a deep sense of failure, like everyone else in the show, and he takes the steps that seem right and necessary to him (also like everyone else on the show).

Narek was a great contrast against Elnor in every possible way--from his evasiveness to his fear of death--and he was a great foil for Soji. On Coppelius, Soji's terror clouds her judgment and she very nearly does terrible things to protect herself. Her actions, her opinions, her hesitation were all driven by fear. The ends seemed to justify the means. She reflects Narek's state for the whole show. Season 1 is about finding safety and meaning.

Narek is afraid for the whole duration of the show and his choices all reflect that same desperate need to find permanent safety, to live. Soji exists on the peripheral of that with the Ex-Borg, and as a synthetic, and then she falls headlong into it after his betrayal. Narek regrets trying to kill her and the symbolism of his losing that box, of him trying to kill her in a room that is so very culturally Romulan, right after telling her his name, makes it very clear that killing her is killing some piece of himself. But the ends justify the means. He can and will give up everything to save the world.

And his last line in the show is desperately pleading with the woman he loves as he's dragged away.

Then we never see him again or get anything resembling closure for Soji or Narek.

Which I will be big mad about forever, because they didn't even get the bare minimum acknowledgement and closure of "moving on and living life is paramount because it is finite and beautiful ". Nope. Nothing. I'm furious forever.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk. I hope if Star Trek Legacy happens we get Narek as a sort of...side character creeper informant ala Garak. I also hope we get Soji on Seven's Enterprise because I love her.

[ride-a-dromedary]

I continue to think about an underdeveloped AU where Halsin was one of the potential new companions for Baldur's Gate 2 (and by continue to think about I mean the oven is preheated).

Because realistically it would have been 24-ish years before they Shadow Curse, which means he wouldn't have yet been Archdruid - would have been in his 220s about, so would have been out of his cynic phase (and likely post Underdark). He'd probably still be on the cusp of being young and idealistic enough that he'd come across a little more chipper and less even keeled/potentially more risky. His personality/disposition and alignment already seems to mesh pretty well with Minsc and Jaheira (in a way I can't quite describe but he's carried much like a BG1/2 era character), who are heavy returning hitters in BG2, so it would likely mean he'd conflict with companions like Korgan, Dorn, possibly Edwin, etc. He'd get along with Aerie (hearing about a "circus" but not experiencing one, then coming into play in BG3 like oh...OH) and Cernd and Mazzy (and Wilson, obviously), and I can see him coming around to Viconia after an initial icy and distrusting head to head.

It would have had to change how he reacted to BG in the third game if he had previously been there, but that's not a huge leap with some dialogue tweaking with less "first time shock" and more "can't believe this place has gotten worse, didn't think that was possible", but unlike Jaheira who begrudgingly grew to like the city after making it her home because it was her children's home (kinda...sorta...), he would have likely gotten right back out of there and held onto the viewpoint for 124 years, with nothing particularly to challenge that, and a particular wariness now of Reithwin's "little market town" turning into an entire city along with the other druids. So the contempt would be further informed by experience.

[ircnwrought]

if you like this you’re getting a short heartbreak starter

[astrxlfinale]

Sometimes I sit here and ponder how Fischl still remains a living spoiler for a lot of Genshin's overarching narrative involving Teyvat.

It's neat.

[secr3trings]

good morning — currently having a muse crisis.

[capthcwzer]

oh god oh jesus the clones don't have birthdays

[crusaderce]

sooooo if you ever wanna know where i'm at, usually i'm lurking or doing stuff on @edenpoise ( hazbin hotel roleplay ) but imma post a few inbox stuff on here every so often. usually that gets me motivated to write in my free time!

[esmorothfallen]

got another new verse for y’all!! the first of several crossover verses i’ll be adding. this one is for undertale!

VERSE EIGHT | the world below

verse summary: After the loss of both of his parents, a ten year old Simon runs away from home. Instead of boarding the Infinity Train, he instead falls into the Underground, where he is taken in by Toriel- and he stays for much longer than the other human children. However, as he grows older, he begins to realize that Toriel is keeping secrets from him. And everything comes to a head with the arrival of another human child, Frisk.

this verse is used primarily for undertale canons, but can also be used for other muses with undertale verses!

simon is around ten when he falls into the underground, and between sixteen and seventeen when frisk arrives.

this verse spans from when he falls into the underground, to possibly post-game depending on how things go.

more detailed verse info under the cut!! highly recommend reading if you’re going to write with me in this verse!

Unlike most human children, Simon has no desire to leave the ruins. He believes he has nothing to return to on the surface, and Toriel is kinder to him than his biological parents had ever been. And so, he stays. There’s a little bit of early hostility towards him from the Ruins’ monsters, but it doesn’t last.

Over time, as he grows older, he starts overhearing bits and pieces about other humans that had passed through the Ruins. Though those who were talking are quick to shut up when they notice he’s within earshot. This makes him increasingly uncomfortable, especially because of Toriel’s silence on the matter.

It just so happens that right around the time he’s working up the courage to confront Toriel, Frisk falls into the Underground. And he immediately notices that Toriel is far more pushy with them to stay in the Ruins than she had ever been with him. But he slowly comes to the realization that she hadn’t been pushy with him because he had never wanted to leave the Ruins.

He tries to ask her about the whole thing, but he’s barely able to get any words in edgewise, and is ultimately grounded to his room. But now he knows for sure that Toriel is hiding something from him, and he sneaks out as soon as the opportunity arises.

He ultimately witnesses the confrontation and fight between Toriel and Frisk, but is unable to intervene. In the process, he learns the truth about the other humans. Angered and hurt that he had never been told, he makes the sudden and rash decision to go with Frisk to the barrier.

He initially intends to return, but Toriel shuts them both out of the Ruins- and Simon takes this to mean she doesn’t want him back. Due to this, he grows bitter towards Toriel- and towards monsterkind in general.

The rest will vary from thread to thread!

[r3dblccd]

I'm kind of thinking of maybe adding a merman muse, maybe a merman siren muse?

[rogaire]

Shay n Liam definitely called each other "babygirl" at least once.

[bllakcat]

my muse is so high on felicia ( shocker deax, since you've written her for six years now? ) but guys, i am also tempted ... to add a lowkey muse.

my strong, precious love coded demon hunter.

[moonrevolutions]

im intending on making a southern muse that's like. really southern. not southern in just saying y'all and being from like. a progressive town in virginia or some shit. i mean appalachia southern. eating poisonous poke sallet and going to decoration day to celebrate the dead. at least throw me a y'all'd've, y'all'n't, y'all'da... salmon patties, homemade wine in milk jugs, and eating red / white clay.

[laprimera]

A LOOK INTO THE LECHE-VERSE.

featuring (most) of my blogs that I had over the years and the lore that connects them. I like to think that all my muses are in tandem with each other one way or another and I had enough of em to basically make plots on my own LMAO.

a lot of these are inactive or active spoadically.

most active: @lacampeona // @turojo

and those that rotate are: @koraichalcum , @pyroaress , @klarazy , @souledsilver , @silverformed , @heradea ( cryptically ), @luxestial ( active during plot )

but man do some of these take me back :'>

[sirserpentine]

# I had a Pentious moment today

Guess who tripped on her own feet and hit her head on a concrete wall

I'm hurting and I've got a bump but otherwise fine. A little nervous about being possibly concussed since I live alone, but friends have promised to call at night!

I'll defo be around here so I don't take an unnecessary nap during the day

So if I write weirdly tonight you'll know why xD

Owie.