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jasontoddiefor · 4 years

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AN: Season 2 The Mandalorian finale but Din/Luke.

Yavin was peaceful.

It was peaceful when the thunder roared above like the drums of war, blaster shots against beskar. It was peaceful when the children screamed in delight and not despair. It was peaceful when Din wore his armor despite not needing to fight anywhere but in the sparring ring.

Din had known peace. His childhood, before he had become a foundling, had been flecked with peaceful moments even in the middle of the slaughter that had been the Clone Wars. And later, among his siblings, he had also found moments of joy and rest.

Still, he wasn't quite sure if any of that compared to the calm he found in Yavin's temple. The tranquility was built into the very foundations of this construction. He knew the stories by now, those narrated in old books, datapads, and strange objects called holocrons that he couldn't use himself but had to ask one of the students to open for him. The Jedi and the Mandalorians had been at each other's throat often enough throughout time, Ahsoka's words came to mind, and yet Din found himself wandering their halls, being greeted by the few members of Luke's budding Order as if he were one of them. Maybe it was because the past was so distant, now that both their people knew the pain of having to rebuild from the ground up, from less than nothing.

It was not a pain he wished upon anyone.

The sun had not quite risen yet, tinting the temple's outside in a light golden hue. The building was beautiful, half overgrown as it still was. They had made some efforts to clean it out where the Alliance hadn't done managed to all those years ago. The temple was more of a refugee center, a place to restock, and a New Republic base than it really was a Jedi temple, the number of Force-sensitives low and the number of people Luke was actually teaching even lower.

They would get there someday.

He continued his path, walking further into the jungle, past the greenery, and along a river he had crossed more times than he could count already.

(That was a lie. He knew exactly how often it had been. Twice a day, in the morning and in the evening, stepping into his old footprints.)

The river led him to a wide and open clearing, framed by small flowers in all colors of the rainbow.

They had cleaned it up a little after they had found it, made it more comfortable while ensuring it remained a part of nature.

Luke had insisted that it was important.

The more you changed the environment, the more you disrupted the flow of the Force, that had been his argument. Din didn't quite know whether to believe him. Luke certainly looked as if he was a Master of that unexplainable power regardless of the environment.

The clearing was empty, which was a surprise for one.

Often, Din would find two or three other students practicing with their Master. All of them had their eyes closed, meditating in whichever way was the most comfortable to them. Luke tended to do handstands of all things and Din knew another girl danced an Alderani ballet she was desperate to pass on to another person.

Right now, Luke was sitting in the middle of the clearing, legs crossed and moving a few stones in a slow circle around him. A few more stones gently floated in the wind in a smaller orbit, carried not by Luke, but by the child on his lap. It fascinated Din that Grogu, despite being the mentally youngest trainee, was the one who was actually working with Luke. When he wasn't with Din, he attached himself to his teacher. A couple of the other kids did, at times, fall asleep next to their Master. Passed out with their heads on his lap, or leaning against him in some other way, drooling.

Gently, Luke and Grogu set the stones to the floor, then opened their eyes.

When they had first met, Din had been too preoccupied with everything surrounding him, the darksaber, which was still clipped to his belt, Moff Gideon, saving his son— he hadn't been able to pay too much attention to Luke Skywalker.

He had taken notice of his strength, of his kindness.

Not of his deep blue eyes, or his smile.

"Come to get us for breakfast?" Luke asked and picked up Grogu as he slowly rose to his feet.

He walked over to Din, ease in his steps that would fade as the day continued on, and only returned when he repeated his ritual.

"As always."

Luke smiled at him and, once he was at Din's side, gently put his forehead to Din's. They remained just so for a moment, then they fell into a comfortable silence, returning home.

Home, what a strange expression. Home had been his ship until he lost it. Before that, it had been the dorms he had shared with the other children, and before even that, it had been his parents' arms. Now it was a temple full of people trying to figure out who they were and who they wanted to be.

He wondered, briefly, what he would have done if he hadn't gone with Luke. If he had hesitated to ask, decided he could leave his son with another. Despite his worries, his love for his child, he had never, not even for one second, expected Luke to take Grogu away. Not without Din's permission, not without the child's own, and even after, when Luke had flown them here, he hadn't thought that he might overstay his welcome someday.

Perhaps that was the reason why he didn't want to leave, why he struggled so with the decision he had to make.

Life here wasn't comfortable, soft, but it was happy and bright, and despite their struggles, Din could feel himself relaxing more and more. He didn't miss the tension in his muscles, the constant anticipation that followed his previous lifestyle.

He was a Mandalorian.

Education and armor, self-defense, our tribe, our language, our leader.

His creed was calling him and Din had to obey it to the best of his abilities. He was following its tenets, took care and protected his own and yet—

The blade at his side burned with the heat of a thousand suns and Din knew his responsibility, but he did not want to follow it. Could not follow it without getting permission first, so that he knew in his heart that he need not fear.

"What is troubling you?"

Luke and Grogu were both looking at him, heads tilted ever so slightly in the manner that Din had come to associate with Force-sensitive people. There was just an edge of sharpness to all their movements, all their words. Like they were seeing and feeling more than everyone else and were so connected to the galaxy that they were not stumbling blindly, wondering what everyone else was thinking and doing.

"I still carry the darksaber," Din said, slowly, deliberately.

Luke hummed in reply. "I know. Leia has sent me a few very urgent messages regarding the state of Mandalore."

Din snorted. Of course, she had. Leia Organa was a force onto herself. While most people were quite happy to leave Din alone here and not bother him about outside responsibilities, she was decidedly not. He feared the day she would meet the Armorer.

Leia called him a coward to his face, but what else to expect of the woman who carried the title of princess as if it were a weapon of destruction.

"I am thinking of leaving. Just for a short while to try to settle the manner."

Din already knew there would be nothing short about it. Mandalore had lain in ruins when he had been only a child. There was no quick or easy solution to its state.

"If you do, we will be here, waiting for you to return," Luke replied. Grogu cooed, reached out for Din, and was quickly transferred into his arms where he could place one of his hands on Din's helmet.

"And if I don't?"

Luke shot him a look, bemusement and fondness all in one. "I suppose then we will have to come to follow you. I crossed half the galaxy for you once, I can do it again."

Alright.

Okay.

Din let out a breath he hadn't noticed holding. All would be well then.

#Luke Skywalker #din djarin #star wars #the mandalorian #the mandalorian spoilers #skydalorian #dinluke #fanfic

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philliamwrites · 4 years

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Stay Where You Are And Then Leave (prologue)

Fandom: Genshin Impact

Pairing: Zhongli / Reader

Tags: #yaksha! reader, #historical references, #yaksha war, #unreliable narrator, #angst and hurt/comfort, #enemies to friends with xiao, #found family trope, #you know until they start to slaughter each other, #chuckles nervously, #female! reader, #tho i want to write it as genderneutral as possible

Words: 1.1k

Summary: When Rex Lapis picked your soul to serve him as Yaksha, nothing could have prepared you for the suffering and hardships waiting on your neverending journey to bring peace to Liyue.

But you are not alone. A hot-headed Ifrit-Yaksha who loves flowers but cannot collect them for every living thing fears fire; a gruff D'ao-Yaksha who has a hard time letting go his mundane life; a dishonest Raijū-Yaksha with an addiction for gambling; and a lone Garuda-Yaksha they call "Conqueror of Demons" who doesn't care about any collateral damage on his purge of all evil.

And you in the middle of everything, the only Yaksha who cannot remember her past—and if it were up to Rex Lapis, he'd rather it stays that way.

Note: The title is inspired by John Boyne’s book with the same title: ‘Stay Where You Are And Then Leave.’ In the books, this was said to the soldiers waiting in the trenches until it was their time to leave for the battlefield.

Prologue: Where The Dream Ends And The Nightmare Begins

Farewell, ye woods! Headlong from some towering mountain peak

I will throw myself into the waves; take this as my last dying gift!

— Vergil

The earth shook, the air pulsed, and you felt a thousand needles puncture you from all sides. A force took hold of your mind and twisted it, squeezing it and kneading it like dough into an entirely different shape. You screamed into the darkness.

Pain washed the world white. When you blinked away the dazzle, your eyes opened to a cavern ceiling twinkling with gems shaped like stars, mapping constellations you didn’t recognize, and an unfamiliar voice calling your name.

“Menogias of the Aqua Morte. I summon thee to this mortal plane in service of Liyue and its people. Wake up.”

A ban broke. Your muscles, tight and hard like stones, relaxed, finally allowing you to become their master. You were lying in water, nearly horizontal so only your face broke the water’s plane. Like a magnet needle pulled towards the northern skies, your body rose to your feet. Exhaustion tried to coax your weary bones back into the quiet; the safety of the water but the voice was a chord strung tightly around your mind, commanding one step after another towards its source.

A young man was waiting for you, balancing effortlessly on stones protruding out of the water. He wore a white tunic without sleeves that showed muscular, bare arms that shined with golden lines, leaving the blue gleam of the stones set in the cavern’s walls bleak. A hood concealed most of his face, only showing a sharp jawline and thin, pale lips.

You didn’t know who this man was exactly, but you knew what he was. Gracefully, you sank to one knee, still inside the water, and dropped your head in devotion.

“My Lord.”

Rex Lapis considered you for a moment, his golden eyes were stern, yet not unkind. With a slow gesture, he allowed you to get back on your feet.

“I know you have many questions,” he said, and just as the words left his mouth, questions flooded your mind like a tidal wave. Who were you? Why were you here? Before you could ask any of them, the Geo Archon continued, “About your past, about the present. None of them are important, for you shall have one purpose only.” He offered you his hand and helped you out of the water. Even though you felt the Geo energy flow through his body, his skin was soft and the golden blood running through his veins warm. He held on for a second longer than necessary, averting his gaze when you looked up at him in question. Instead he nodded towards a small shrine built from the same stone as the rest of the cavern that presented a beautiful white bow. They called to you like a lone wolf calling to its comrades, and without waiting for Rex Lapis’ approval, you closed the distance and pressed your fingers to the smooth ivory and elegant curves, built by a true master of their craft.

You plugged its string and closed your eyes at the familiar sound. Blurry pictures flashed before your eyes. A little village tucked away inside a mountain pass. Standing with arms spread wide on bridges shaking dangerously between clouds like a wingless bird ready to take flight. Greedy flames climbing towards the wooden ceiling of a house. Your eyes snapped open when the taste of smoke and ashes settled on your tongue. You looked up at Rex Lapis.

“Someone came to destroy my village. I remember anger. I remember fighting to survive. Is that why I am here?”

Rex Lapis turned away, his gaze following the gems lining the walls up to the cavern where an opening showed the moon glimpsing down at you two from up high, a silent watcher sworn to keep conversations like these secret to the sun.

“I have called upon you because your heart is noble and your courage sharper than your bow’s arrows,” he said. “Your past life is of no concern to the journey lying ahead of you.”

“But I—” I still want to know. It was like the desire to know how the end of a story turned out, the want to turn a book to its very last page to make sure the heroes received their well-earned happy ending. You wanted to know if you had your happy ending as well.

“The war goes on,” Rex Lapis continued. “The relentless fighting between the warmongering archons takes its toll on Liyue. Those who die with bitterness and rage become evil monsters who ravage the land and turn it into a wilderness, into a pandemonium. Hence I am calling upon the yakshas to protect this country. Liyue needs every single one of you.” He dropped his gaze from the moon and fixed his eyes on you. Looming above you, it was easy to finally get a good glimpse of his handsome face and the piercing amber eyes with an edge harder to them than freshly cut Cor Lapis. “I need every single one of you.”

A shudder crawled up your spine. You looked to the ground. “I solely exist to follow your command, my Lord.”

Rex Lapis hummed in agreement and took a step closer, his approach quiet as his barefoot feet didn’t make any sound on the cool stone. A warm finger brushed against your forehead, the touch conjuring the picture of a moonlit lake on top of a mountain.

“I await all of you by the end of the next moon at this place.” Rex Lapis’ voice was barely a whisper. “Mount Hulao. Until then, be fierce, my yaksha. Fierce but good.”

Something about the way he said my yaksha made you raise your gaze back up, expecting … to see what exactly in his eyes? Anything else besides the cold calculation of a deity worshiped as the God of Contracts? This was no different from a commerce, your serving the bargaining chip to a second chance on the mortal plane even though you are unsure about the fine print.

Rex Lapis’ face was unreadable like a board wiped clean. His hand hovered over your face a second too long before he quickly pulled it back, withdrawing completely as if touching your burned him. A last inquiry emerged like the tip of an iceberg from your mind. You said, “Wait. This anger … were they angry with me? Did I do something wrong?”

But he had already disappeared—without any flourish, just like a village swallowed up by an earthquake, there and then a second later gone.

#philliamwrites #ao3 #fanfiction #genshin impact #reader insert #zhongli #genshin zhongli #xiao #genshin xiao #zhongli x reader #genshin impact x reader #zhongli x you

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fierykamuy · 4 years

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Ravages of Time - Volume 22

to lengthen the session I plan to feature 8 pics per chapter, for a grand total of 64 pics, with discussions along the way

we begin with a recap of the premise for the events to come

Liu Bei accepts an imperial edict (which Cao Cao arranged to have the emperor promulgate) to attack Yuan Shu, who in turn seeks to collaborate with Lu Bu to take Liu Bei out of the picture (since as a Han loyalist he would be a nuisance to Yuan Shu's Zhongjia regime)

of course at this point Yuan Shu has been weakened somewhat due to Sun Ce's scheme as well as Liu Ye's betrayal, and thus he cannot afford to have Liu Bei ruin things further

175 also brings up one of the recurring topics in Ravages, namely the unreliability of historical accounts (particularly the 'official records')

to be clear, it's not as if Ravages is saying that since the records are biased we shouldn't learn from the records we receive and uncover (or worse, using the premise of unreliable records as an excuse to justify supporting one's favorite 'vilified' factions in the past)

rather, because the records are biased we have to learn carefully (and acknowledge that records are not just representations but they are also tools)

the paradoxical position of Ravages after all is that it uses its sources to criticize them (and without the sources and the stories of scheming, what would there be to criticize about)

its just like what Pang Tong was saying about cults. they may be false, but you can guide people with them

back to Zhang Fei, his response isn't just an instance of disparaging official historians (with the emphasis on 'official', since the dynasties of the central plains actually hire such positions to come up with sanctioned narratives about the past) but there's also a self-reflective aspect to it

how would one act not only with the thought of how one will be remembered, but also anticipating that one's actions will be misunderstood and misinterpreted as part of schemes to come

it's almost as if he's daring future generations to look at him how they (or we) would, so long as he gets his job done

and we're also reminded that Chen Deng's privileged position in Xuzhou is partly due to how he bankrolls the security and military apparatuses in the province (that's why he outright flaunts about not having to pay the usual taxes, since he pays in other ways)

an instance of corruption to be sure, but he's still playing his part in the province (while seeking to benefit from the dysfunctional arrangement at the same time)

on a side note, Ravages doesn't really do well in showcasing the official functions of the various positions in the Han government (but then again, with Han undergoing a slow collapse, this hardly matters)

Ravages can't even be bothered to display an imperial court scene with the proper protocol

and it seems Liaoyuan Huo hanging around with Chen Deng had another purpose (after all, if he was trying to search for Xiao Meng's whereabouts, why would he suddenly wind up in Liu Bei's turf)

now back to the scheming, we see the 16 moves begin to take form with plans and revelations such as this

to recap, the premise is that Lu Bu and Yuan Shu are colluding to drive Liu Bei out of Xuzhou (while Cao Cao arranges for the mess in Xuzhou behind the scenes so that he can proceed with his own move elsewhere)... but since Zhang Fei is aware of that (or rather, suspects that something like that is going on), he's making plans of his own, and here it involves luring Lu Bu into making a premature attack (this is where the deliberate rumors about Zhang Fei's drunken recklessness come in)

we also see plans being made on the part of Yuan Shu's forces

basically, given that there's an imperial edict to attack Yuan Shu, the plan is to lure Liu Bei into expending resources and troops in a protracted campaign, while Lu Bu takes advantage of the situation and seizes control of Xuzhou, forcing Liu Bei to withdraw to some backwater area... and even then, the Zhongjia troops are not content to simply play the role of a decoy and have Lu Bu take all the glory, so they too prepare a trap for Liu Bei on their front (though we don't really see much of this unfold on-panel, since the focus is more on dealing with Lu Bu)

Ji Ling and Zhang Liao also speculate that Cao Cao's imperial edict plan isn't simply to undermine Yuan Shu, but it's also meant to keep Liu Bei down while he's still weak

the chapter is also a reminder that Ravages stresses the importance of meticulous preparations for campaigns of mass conflict

I daresay Ravages is willing to cut battle scenes short in favor of preparation scenes (and yes, this includes preparations for future struggles even in the midst of battle)

before ending, the chapter also features Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong watching on the sidelines (and I find it a bit puzzling why Zhuge Liang is wearing his hat here again only to lose it again off-panel come 180)

we get hints (based on Pang Tong's insinuations) that Zhuge Liang doesn't like Zhou Yu that much (probably due to ideological disagreements rather than personal grudges)

and there's also an indirect allusion to the in-joke about how Sima Yi and Zhou Yu are similar in Ravages

I suppose the disagreement is that Zhou Yu doesn't seem to prioritize Han at all (it's one thing to serve Sun Ce with the intent of keeping him in check, like what Xun Yu plans to do with Cao Cao, and it's another thing to just empower another hegemon from another clan at the expense of Han)

though from 159 we see that Zhuge Liang isn't just a Han loyalist for the sake of elevating the imperial clan (Xun Yu's brand of loyalism is more committed to the actual institutions of Han)

rather, he sees the ideal of loyalty as a way to diminish bloodshed

to put it in another way, a typical model Han loyalist would be a social-conservative who wishes to preserve what has been inherited, with changes admitted on a gradual basis while protecting the authority of current institutions

Zhuge Liang's way seems more to be about using the virtue and ideal of loyalty (which so happens to be directed at Han, though it could really be directed at anyone else) as a way to govern people and keep the peace (thus his suspicion about calls for regime change is not because he thinks Han is always good, but that those who seek change may have other ulterior motives in mind)

thus I've mentioned before that of the 8, Zhuge Liang may be the most ideologically abstract and committed (and thus the events in 180 would agonize him so much)

176 may cover the duels of a particular battle in Liu Bei's campaign against Yuan Shu, but the narrative and textual details here cover more than just the battle

take for instance the floating text for the chapter, we can note that the Ravages 'narrative voices' do more than just recount the story or hype certain characters (since they also take on meditative and reflective tones)

whereas the narrator in, say, something like Kingdom behaves more like a storyteller (or for example, how the narrator in LOGH is akin to a presenter of a documentary), the voices in Ravages are more like commentators performing the processes of introspection that the composer may have done and the readers are expected to do

there's also a meta-fictive element in the chapter, as the floating voices don't just comment on what's going on, but also seem to comment on both the gimmicks of warfare as well as the conventions and tropes of texts about warfare (and since participants of war also make and hear tales of warfare, the conventions also bleed into the subjectivities of those who fight 'real wars' we see this when soldiers, cops, and activists gamify their feats)

this brings us to the dual character of military campaigns involving armed people... on the one hand, there are the considerations of the balance of forces (and how to take advantage of asymmetries to deal decisive blows), and on the other hand, there are the considerations of morale (and how to manage it with gimmicks such as rumors and duels)

this also provides a good excuse for texts (Ravages included) to feature duel scenes, haha

read the comment and think back at how fight scenes in many texts involve the contenders trying to justify themselves (either in monologue form, or while openly arguing)

also note how various factions make use of propaganda to present their side in a better light while vilifying opponents

Ji Ling of course isn't just content to make his point, he invokes the sages to make his case look wiser (just as Guan Yu dismisses arguments for regime change by noting the inscrutability of the heavenly will)

this brings me to another point, that not only can we learn from the insights of various thinkers, we can even weaponize those insights (and many regimes and societies have done just that for instance how the Han appealed to Confucius while refining 'legalist' mechanisms to form a Confucian-Legalist political order)

(on that note it can be said that perhaps in certain instances Ravages twists the citations in ways that scholarly researchers would frown upon, but just as with historical texts the words of the philosophers are also tools in the power struggle)

this tidbit highlights the performative and spectacular aspects of war (and war stories)

we can acknowledge that when described in terms of the processes of mass slaughter, war is at its core a boring and bloody affair... but what provides the spice in the mix are the stories embedded into the event by the agents with their different passions and interests (and to enhance the drama, what else would the architects of the power struggle do but set up a good show)

thus those in command come up with ways to manage morale and hype up the troops, with the help of stunt actors who relish in the performance (because in the first place, they too have internalized the narratives of hype and glory attached to war)

similarly, skilled storytellers manipulate their audiences into getting invested in certain angles

this isn't to say there are no interests and goals and principles at stake and that it's all just for the drama, but at some point things get storified to motivate masses of people into following through

incidentally, the chapter provides another way of looking at historical records with a critical lens

whereas the 'straightforward' indictment accuses historical records of various sorts of biases and slants, the 'indirect' meta-fictive insinuation notes at how narrative conventions and textual devices are already baked into the historical records

on a lighter note, it would be nice to have memes involving Xun Zheng and Yu Gi Oh (since he's called the king of duel, haha)

he gonna activate his trap card and banish challengers to the shadow realm

too bad Guan Yu has a reverse trap card

now back to the zone of the duel itself (since for the most part in the re-read I've been highlighting the thematic elements and the social commentary) Ravages reminds readers that its approach to fighting does not shy away from underhanded tricks (for instance, Xun Zheng's style involves taking out the horse before the rider, whereas Guan Yu's style uses the horse mainly as a jumping pad while tricking opponents into underestimating him)

neither are interested in drawn-out jousts on horseback

I didn't feature the pic where Liu Bei and Guan Yu talk about how one rises to fame by stepping on others, but it's important to bring it up (especially considering that in war conquerors tend to hype up their feats by assimilating those of the vanquished and this tendency gets passed down to when we engage in power level discussions and matchups)

the floating text began its remarks on battle conventions by pointing to the speeches on morality, and it wraps up with the use of embellishments and tall tales to celebrate the glory of the winner of a given round

of course, duels on their own do not determine the outcome of a battle much less a campaign (and in Ravages the iconic duels between the big names hardly change the course of the battle, though they make for interesting dramatic subplots and moments of spectacle)

and yet in certain instances, duels and their results (and the rumors that are generated in the process) can be used as tools to manage morale or buy time before the big attack, as is the case in this chapter

thus at the end of the day it is still the soldiers who fight and win wars, albeit under the direction of the schemers and with the aid of spectacles and stunt actors

now we enter 177, the chapter that so impressed me when I first read about it in tv tropes, so much so that it led me down this path (and elevated my expectations for stories about warfare and statecraft in the process)

the chapter begins with a summary of what has been going on in Liu Bei's front (and basically 176 is just a small part of the engagement)

recall that in 175 Zhang Liao and Ji Ling agreed on a broad strategic plan, that is to attack Liu Bei from the back (presumably this means not just Lu Bu's backstab, but also Ji Ling luring Liu Bei to advance so far that a reserve troop can be used to cut off Liu Bei's route back to Xuzhou)

basically at this point, even as Liu Bei brought the bulk of the troops in the campaign, Zhang Fei and Lu Bu are drafting troops and minions with the help of funds from merchants (Xu Dan on Lu Bu's side, Chen Deng on Zhang Fei's side)

on a side note, historical records usually label them as 'outlaws' as if they were just a motley gang (just like how state apparatuses disparagingly call various insurgent organizations as rebels and bandits), but many such forces are more like minor warlord factions that happen to be based in the outskirts

at any rate, the plan to take over Xuzhou involves these 'outlaws' who presumably have a grudge on Liu Bei (though of course there's a twist to all this)

thus far

Lu Bu wants to take over Xuzhou (with the help of outlaws)

Zhang Fei wants to lure Lu Bu into a trap at the provincial seat of Xuzhou (by pretending to be reckless)

Lu Bu plans to arrive at the city under the pretext of helping fight the outlaws on their way

Zhang Fei plans a banquet to gather pro-Lu partisans into the main city

incidentally, the 'cheng xia yi ju' motif is in play in the volume, insofar as the sides are trying to gather under the walls (in different ways)

what's fascinating about the chapter is that it painstakingly notes the various factors being considered and mobilized for what is a rather minor showdown

the calendar is weaponized (Zhang Fei setting the date for the banquet, Cao Bao's lackeys getting a convenient troop rotation schedule)

urban layouts are weaponized (Zhang Fei noting how the alleys can be used to ambush Lu Bu's troops, Cao Bao planning to set fire to a particular quarter as a decoy, Chen Gong buying up houses as outposts)

rumors are weaponized (stories of Zhang Fei's recklessness becoming a hot topic as reported by Chen Gong's spies, mainly to gather more outlaws to the fray)

finances are weaponized (Chen Deng planning to bribe the outlaws to outbid Xu Dan, not to mention the extra spending to ensure Zhang Fei's ambush troop becomes more mobile)

as the factions keep planning, the scenario becomes more and more complex

remember that the basic premise is that Lu Bu wants to capture the provincial seat and thereby control Xuzhou, while Zhang Fei wants to lure Lu Bu into a trap

for the sake of that both camps have gone as far as spreading exaggerated rumors, sending spies, rigging security schedules, laying an ambush in alleyways, preparing to set an area on fire as a decoy, anticipating the fire attack and repurposing it as a signal, etc.

and this is just the preparatory stage, like rehearsing the parlor games for the party, haha

essentially though, the plan hinges on which side the outlaws will take

supposing the outlaws join Zhang Fei, Lu Bu can be trapped in the city with little room for escape

supposing the outlaws join Lu Bu, Zhang Fei can be squeezed with Lu Bu holding the city center (if he gets there) and the outlaws positioned outside the city gates

and then there's this page

it's almost as if Ravages is talking about not so much the struggles and intrigues of the last days of Han, but the convoluted arrangements and contests of the 20th and 21st centuries

basically an indication that Ravages isn't just some story about warfare and statecraft, but also a commentary on warfare and statecraft (and a commentary on stories about warfare and statecraft), in narrative form

and this makes Ravages far more sophisticated than many other tales dealing with similar topics, as exemplified in the

though I really wish there were more texts to rival Ravages in this respect

ultimately it's these complex aspects (rather than the usual moments) that drew me to the series in the first place (and in this regard I may be part of a super-minority) and while it doesn't represent a scholarly innovation (though I argue that Ravages can be a site for further research) it nonetheless raises the bar with regard to what stories can do (and how they can stimulate further thinking)

to briefly review the situation

Lu Bu (who is colluding with Yuan Shu) plans to take over Xuzhou by first taking the administrative seat (with the help of outlaws) while Liu Bei is away fighting Yuan Shu's forces (as a result of an imperial edict arranged by Cao Cao)

Zhang Fei (who wants to pre-emptively get rid of a potential threat) plans to lure Lu Bu and his associates into a trap by organizing a banquet (and spreading disinfo about his recklessness)

Cao Bao's henchmen are in charge of the security detail on the day of the banquet as well as preceding days

Chen Deng pours in financial resources to help Zhang Fei entrap Lu Bu

(a reminder that both Chen Deng and Cao Bao are influential in the province, having served Tao Qian previously)

the gimmick is that Lu Bu comes to the city under the pretext of sending aid when in fact he's planning to seize the city center before the outlaws arrive

Zhang Fei for his part arranges for only the south and east gates to be open on the day of the banquet, since the streets in those quarters are narrower and good for an ambush

Cao Bao, given his influence within the city, plans to set a fire on a certain spot in a bid to distract the hidden ambush troop

Chen Deng is persuaded to spend even more resources to increase the mobility of the ambush troop, with the anticipated fire to be seen as a signal to commence the operation

as a side plan, it seems the troops supposed to supply Liu Bei are also given secret orders to attack Lu Bu's base in Xiaopei on their way back

on the day of the party, both sides exercise extra caution, mutually anticipating one another's plans

Cao Bao may have brought several guests and escorts with him, but the number of collaborators is too many to list (with some acting as scouts on the lookout for suspicious movements throughout the city)

in turn, the ambush troops try to keep themselves hidden so as not to attract the attention of the security forces under Cao Bao

as anticipated, while Lu Bu is also on his way, Zhang Liao proceeds to enter first to lead the vanguard (and is let in with the help of insiders at the gates)

we've already been told that the ambush is set in the east and south quarters due to the narrow streets there, so the closure of the north and west gates is less about keeping spies out (Cao Bao's collaborators are already present in the city) and more about forcing Lu Bu to go through the narrow streets

of course, throughout the party, Zhang Fei is still keeping up appearances of being a carefree drunkard, to make Cao Bao lower his guard and strike prematurely

an amusing part of the chapter concerns the code words and phrases being used to convey information (basically a pretext for Chen Mou to engage in minor word play, haha)

incidentally, many stories of stratagems and intrigue in the central plains have involved puns and innuendos and veiled insinuations, so this is in keeping with the tradition

additionally, the reference to Zhurong is a deliberate one, a hint that a fire attack is about to begin anytime soon

in another note, while it's nice to see Ravages incorporate tidbits of folklore here and there (ranging from Tengri to Chisongzi and Chiyou), aside from the Taiping sects we don't see religious movements and practices being explored in much detail throughout the series... hopefully this lacuna is addressed in future developments

the security scheme even involves the commoners as part of an effort to feign a sense of panic and manufacture controlled chaos (basically a 'bavarian fire drill' in the language of conspiracies, haha)

I just want to say that in terms of banquet intrigues, Ravages really raised the bar with this one

other twists and turns and traps at feasts and parties simply pale in comparison to the '16 moves'

too bad this minion has been named in deluxe volume 11 as Lu Chang, but I like how he and Cao Bao have complementary outfits

and so with a nicely drawn fish dish as a signal (not to mention Zhang Fei offering to show guests how he fetches items), the real party is about to begin

there is a particular policy objective (which will be revealed more clearly in the chapters ahead) there is the broad strategic plan (that is to say, the overall struggle for the city and by extension the province)

there are the operational details (basically the preparation and implementation of the 16 moves)

I stress operations rather than tactics since Ravages seldom gets into the granular aspects of specific maneuvers

the nice thing about 179 (for purposes of re-reading) is that it's relatively fast-paced, with the players beginning to take action

basically the initial battle plan of Lu Bu's main invasion force involves splitting into 3 groups (the first to handle Zhang Fei's troop, the second to secure the gate, the third to head to the city center following Zhang Liao's vanguard)

to be fair, throughout this charade, Zhang Fei made sure to keep the commoners safe using appropriate evacuation protocols (and arguably, Lu Bu's battle plan doesn't involve causing that much mayhem and disturbance, but only inflicting enough to distract Zhang Fei and secure the city)

also, another interesting feature of Ravages is that it includes occasional snippets of commoners commenting on the situation

in many cases they are shown to be perceptive (and at times rather cynical too)

they may not control that much leverage in the power struggle, but they are not completely disempowered as they are still able to make some sense of what's going on and articulate what they have in mind

posting this just to showcase an instance of Ravages camera tricks (it just so happens that there are too many flat closeup panels by comparison)

the struggle for the city also involves its own iteration of the besiegers getting besieged, haha

also, the last Lu Bu body double to be killed on-panel

considering that 177 and 178 are 2 days apart, my speculation is that Lu Bu could have snuck in using a supply wagon perhaps on the middle day or earlier in the day of the party (knowing that Cao Bao's henchmen handled the security detail)

And I daresay common ground of Fei and Liao to allow Lu Bu snuck in was hinted beforehand.

Just like how Liao agreed to free Meng, because it would negatively affect Lu Bu

For the 180th chapter analysis, check this link - https://www.reddit.com/r/RavagesOfTime/comments/fbssrf/chapter_180_analysis/

essentially 181 is where the party is about to wind down, but not without revealing some surprises along the way

the nice thing about action scenes is that (unless one wishes to discuss the nuances and niceties in the choreography and the paneling) one can go through them fairly quickly

one thing to note is that while the narrow quarters restrict Zhang Liao's effective range (and moreover can presumably lead to situations where a miscalculated swing can lead to the blade getting stuck or someone's grip on the weapon messing up), the narrow quarters also restrict opportunities for evasion

another nice touch about Ravages is that it depicts weapons and armor as being fragile

even though Zhang Liao had the upper hand in that round when it comes to melee weapons, Liaoyuan Huo has some surprises in store (too bad we don't really get to see this segment on-panel)

Ravages also likes to add subtle hints winking and nudging about the next steps and the upcoming revelations

in this case, Liaoyuan Huo insinuates that Zhang Liao and Zhang Fei may have secretly agreed upon something

I mentioned previously how the schemes of Lu Bu and Zhang Fei hinge on which side the outlaws would take, and it's amusing that these outlaws (other than Cao Cao) turned out to be the biggest beneficiaries during this incident

this is the equivalent to the same set of hired guns playing with and profiting from two rival groups that seek to outbid one another in securing the mercenary services

and then Zhang Fei makes his big reveal, that it turns out the strategic goal all along was to abandon Xuzhou (since given Liu Bei's reputation as a heroic loyalist, certain warlords elsewhere would like to welcome him, not to mention this further tarnishes Lu Bu's reputation)

yet one has to wonder way they did not purged those outlaws

I think the outlaws were militarily powerful (they could be the same group as the Mount Tai bandits who show up on-panel in 231, defecting to Lu Bu's side after Xun Yu's abduction), and neither Lu Bu nor Liu Bei would want to waste effort suppressing them completely

now not to be outdone, Lu Bu unveils his own twist, the so-called sixteenth move (which involves Chen Gong taking a troop with him to a low-key city in Xuzhou, where Chen Gui is harboring and protecting Liu Bei's wives)

deluxe volume 11 also gives the full name of Wu as Wu Hui

more importantly, the two sides were careful not just to minimize their own casualties, but also to minimize the adverse impact on the commoners (and that is why it often takes a complex method to do something simple, since one has to consider many factors)

there's also a side discussion touching upon how the uninvolved can see through the charade

this is not to say that outsiders are familiar with all the details the insiders have to deal with, but outsiders can surmise the wider picture (or at least the broad outlines of it) and ask the bigger questions since they are not as caught up in the moment, wrapped in the fog of war

an alternate translation of the quote from the Analects goes:

"If the Way is being realized in the world then show yourself; if it is not, then go into reclusion"

this can either refer to Pang Tong taking his step, or perhaps Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei lying low

the 'five hegemons' may also be an indirect reference to the five hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period

and then there's the foreshadowing of a realm split into three, roughly along geographical lines

there's a minor design error in the painting though as shown in the chapter title page, since Sima Hui and Pang Tong speak of the 5 mountains arranged as a northern one, a southeastern one, and three in the south (and southwest) lumped together, but instead the painting shows two northern mountains and three southern ones... still, the painting looks nice nonetheless

essentially the prediction is about a tripartite balance whereby one faction holds the areas north of the yellow river, another holds the eastern areas by the long river, and the third holds the south-central heartland plus the southwestern mountains (for the most part the 3 kingdoms after Han adopt a similar arrangement with the notable exception being that Wu rather than Shu gets to hold the south-central area instead due to the intrigues involving Guan Yu's downfall though story-wise the prediction does not state for instance who will control the northwest)

now even without Lu Bu's sneaky move, we must consider that Yuan Shu has more resources than Liu Bei, and so had the campaign dragged out Liu Bei would be at a disadvantage despite having the talents of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei

of course it's revealed a few pages later that this incident of Guan Yu threatening to execute Zhang Fei (low-key playing with Liu Bei's sentiments about the brotherhood) was all for show - to nudge Liu Bei a little more towards the breaking point into the dark side

now, we're not shown how the Zhongjia troops were able to defeat the Han loyalist troops (since last time we saw, Liu Bei was able to secure at least one stronghold)

however, I could speculate the following scenario: with Lu Bu's sudden takeover of Xuzhou, Zhang Fei was forced to withdraw (while certain other troops simply surrendered to Lu Bu), which means the frontlines could no longer count on supply deliveries or fresh reinforcements... and since Yuan Shu presumably has more troops in reserve (not to mention the agreed-upon plan between Ji Ling and Zhang Liao in 175 to strike Liu Bei from behind), perhaps the surprise attack was timed just when Lu Bu was able to drive Zhang Fei out

this means at the very least that Yuan Shu's troops are not total pushovers when they have the advantage, haha

in another note, we could see that Liu Bei deeply feels bad about the people who lost their lives (and doubly so since his efforts ended in failure, not to mention he lost his territorial foothold, and his wives are hostages)

and thus begins Liu Bei's journey to the dark side (eventually as he gets darker he discards his dark cape and sticks to a light-colored robe green if we are to believe the game pics)

let us recall

Liu Bei in the early chapters was willing to be misunderstood and engage in some underhanded schemes, but his red line was that he refused to take advantage of others for his own gain (Guan Yu nudged him a bit by convincing him to play the part of a hero, Zhang Fei outright hijacked his plans to remain a straw sandal bandit by drugging him)

then Liu Bei slowly accepted that in troubled and messy times, some form of self-serving behavior is unavoidable, but nevertheless he remained steadfast in upholding loyalty to Han and treating a guest well (Zhang Fei's next plan was to further cultivate Liu Bei's ruthless side while also enhancing his reputation as an underdog, 2 birds in 1 stone)

eventually after almost being killed by Lu Bu's second backstab Liu Bei becomes more self-interested and becomes more protective about his reputation, coming to see it as an asset and a weapon in the power struggle (arguably in the late game he remains sincere and sentimental, but less about Han and more about those he deems his bros and pals)

on Guan Yu, while it may seem that Ravages didn't renovate his image as much (Chen Mou even admitted that his sacred image is too influential to be tweaked that much), but one can note that perhaps in Ravages Guan Yu isn't that awesome of a paragon for virtue (Zhang Fei even hints at that in a monologue in 102), but neither is he a fraud who only pretends to be virtuous... rather, it would seem that (like many people) he's simply trying hard to uphold the examples of the sages and would like to maintain a similar reputation (the further nuance explored in later chapters seems to be that he doesn't simply maintain the reputation of being virtuous, but also virtuously tries to perform the persona that the virtuous do not care about being praised for appearing virtuous)

I should note though that his beard his shorter than the usual depictions, haha

here Pang Tong basically recaps Zhang Fei's strategic goals (and while he doesn't know Zhang Fei's other goal about fetching a 'Liu Bang' and remolding Liu Bei further he speculates that the departure would give Liu Bei the opportunity to swallow up the domains of Liu Biao and Liu Zhang)

incidentally, in the Romance it is Pang Tong who manages to conveniently convince Liu Bei to take an ambitious step and seize control of Yizhou from Liu Zhang, so it's amusing to see a nod to that early on (even though Pang Tong is also misleading Sima Hui into thinking he's backing Liu Bei, when in fact he's paving the way for Liu Chong)

Pang Tong's iconic line for this chapter may perhaps indicate that of the 8, he's the one who relishes in intrigues and power struggles the most (even though he's a Han loyalist of sorts)

also, the description given to him was mis-translated... Pang Tong is pragmatic [實用] rather than utilitarian [功利] (Guo Jia's views may be closer to a broadly consequentialist approach to morality)

ironically he joins Liu Bei's side later on

for those familiar with the period it's a foregone thing (though Ravages messes with that expectation by having him help Liu Chong first)

if only Liu Chong had stronger bodyguards

other than the report that the hostage scheme allowed for a relatively bloodless takeover, what is interesting about this page is what it hints at: Lu Bu wanted to capture someone valuable

I think the reference is to Liaoyuan Huo

the discussion about old wounds and new wounds also suggests that regardless of Lu Bu's reputation, he's still fragile (and he's weakening bit by bit)

but the struggle is all the more magnificent for that

and for someone who schemed and betrayed his way to power to decline and fall by way of scheming and betrayal... similarly terrifying

and then of course there's this twist, which explains why Sima Yi was shown in the last part of 175

for those outlaws to receive three sets of bribes, materially speaking they're the biggest winners in the engagement (though since they're also part of the scheming game, they wouldn't simply waste what they have received for momentary enjoyments)

this also lays out the plan to undermine Lu Bu from within, by secretly co-opting the Chen clan to cooperate with Cao Cao

Chen Deng must be unhappy about it since Cao Cao's troops conducted the massacre in his home province years ago

and there's still a long way to go before Liaoyuan Huo earns the full trust of Liu Bei's core team...

anyway, that ends the special re-read of volume 22

in a nutshell the hostile takeover of Xuzhou is but a small piece in the larger geopolitical struggle, but what Ravages did was to make a minor skirmish more convoluted (and by extension, rendering the overall situation in a more complex manner)

basically to sum up the developments in volume 22

generally for those who don't mind reading Ravages in a non-linear fashion, I recommend checking out the one-volume mini-arcs (particularly volumes 6, 19, and 22 since 25 contains too many big narrative turns) as condensed samples of what the Ravages text has to offer

whereas volume 6 is a neat indicator of Ravages transitioning into a more cerebral approach (though I must point out that the mind games and the reflections are already there from the start, though in the first arc the action is more prominent) and while volume 19 is the initial step beyond the first 150 chapters (themselves a workable and longer snapshot of how Ravages stepped up and matured), volume 22 is perhaps that one volume that neatly packages many salient schemes and themes together in one concise bundle

now if one were to come up with a broad outline of the story covered in volume 22 it would be as follows

chapter 175: there's gonna be a party (and it will be a fun one) chapter 176: meanwhile, for those missing out on the upcoming party... chapter 177: hey let's prepare some stuff for the party chapter 178: on the night of the party and we're counting down to the main event chapter 179: IT'S PARTY TIME chapter 180: in the meantime, someone who isn't on the party is exposing what parties really mean chapter 181: party's almost over, time to wrap up chapter 182: the mourning after the party

#ravages of time #analysis

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dailytafsirofquran · 4 years

Text

TEFSIR ibn KATHIR: Surah Waqi'ah Ayah 27-40

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

27 And those on the right -- how (fortunate) will be those on the right

28 (They will be) among Sidri Makhdud,

29 And among Talh Mandud.

30 And in shade Mamdud,

31 And by water flowing constantly,

32 And fruit in plenty,

33 Whose supply is not cut off nor are they out of reach.

34 And on couches, raised high.

35 Verily, We have created them a special creation.

36. And made them virgins.

37 `Urub, Atrab.

38 For those on the right.

39 A multitude of those will be from the first generation.

40 And a multitude of those will be from the later generations.

The Reward of Those on the Right After

Allah mentioned the final destination of those foremost in faith, the nearest to Him, He next mentioned the end of those on the right, the righteous believers. Maymun bin Mihran said that those on the right side are lesser in rank than the foremost in faith.

Allah said,

And those on the right -- how (fortunate) will be those on the right?

who are those on the right, what is their condition and what will their final destination be like?

Allah next answers this question by saying, (they will be) among Sidr Makhdud.

Ibn Abbas, Ikrimah, Mujahid, Ibn Al-Ahwas, Qasamah bin Zuhayr, As-Safr bin Nusayr, Al-Hasan, Qatadah,

Abdullah bin Kathir, As-Suddi, Abu Hazrah and several others said,

"The kind without thorns.''

And from Ibn Abbas:

"It is the one that is laden with fruits.''

This is also reported from Ikrimah and Mujahid.

Similar was also said by Qatadah as we mentioned.

So it is the one with a full load of fruits without thorns. So it appears that both meanings apply here.

The lote tree, of this life is thorny and carries few fruits. In the Hereafter, it is the opposite; it does not have thorns and carries plenty of fruit, the weight of which strains its trunk.

Utbah bin Abd As-Sulami said, "I was sitting with Allah's Messenger , when a Bedouin came and said, `O Messenger of Allah! Have you heard about the tree that has more thorns than any other being in Paradise' Meaning the Talh tree.

So Allah's Messenger said:

For each spot that there was a thorn on it, Allah instead put fruit, similar to a castrated tight skinned ram, a food having seventy colors, each different than the other.

Allah's said,

and among Talh Mandud.

refers to large thorny shrub that used to grow in the area of Hijaz (Western Arabia).

Mujahid said that (Mandud) means:

"Its fruits are piled on top of each other. Allah is reminding the Quraysh of these kinds of trees, since they used to like the shade that the Talh and Sidr provided for them.''

Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Abu Sa`id said that :(Talh Mandud) means:

"The banana tree.''

And he (Ibn Abi Hatim) said,

"Similar is reported from Ibn Abbas, Abu Hurayrah, Al-Hasan, `Ikrimah, Qasamah bin Zuhayr, Qatadah and Abu Hazrah. ''

Mujahid and Ibn Zayd said similalry, Ibn Zayd added,

"The people of Yemen call the banana tree, Talh.''

Ibn Jarir mentioned no other explanation for Talh.

Allah said,

And in shade Mamdud (extended).

Al-Bukhari recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Prophet said,

In Paradise, there is a tree that a rider can travel for a hundred years under its shade but would not be able to pass it. Recite if you will: (And in shade extended).

Muslim also collected this Hadith.

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said,

There is a tree in Paradise the shade of which a rider would take one hundred years to pass.

Recite if you will: (And in shade extended).

Muslim, Al-Bukhari and Abdur-Razzaq collected this Hadith.

Allah said,

And by water flowing constantly,

And fruit in plenty, whose supply is not cut off nor are they out of reach.

indicating that they will have plenty of fruits of various kinds, that which no eye has ever seen, no ear has ever heard of and no heart has ever imagined, as Allah said,

Every time they will be provided with a fruit therefrom, they will say:

"This is what we were provided with before," and they will be given things in resemblance. (2:25)

The shape will appear similar, but the taste is different.

In the Two Sahihs, Sidrat Al-Muntaha (the tree in the seventh heaven) is described as:

...its leaves were like the ears of elephants and its Nabir fruits resembled the clay jugs of Hajar.

The Two Sahihs also collected a Hadith from Ibn Abbas, who said,

"The sun was eclipsed and Allah's Messenger led the people in the Eclipse prayer. They asked, `O Allah's Messenger, we saw you reach out for something while standing (in prayer), but then you stepped back.'

He said,

I saw Paradise and reached out for a cluster of fruit from it. Had I done so, you would have kept eating from it for the remainder of the life of the world.''

Imam Ahmad recorded that Utbah bin Abd As-Sulami said,

"A Bedouin man came to the Messenger of Allah and asked him about the Hawd and Paradise. The Bedouin asked, `Does Paradise have fruits?'

The Prophet said,

Yes, and it also has a tree called Tuba. (He said something more saying but I could not recall it).

The Bedouin asked, `Does it look like any of the trees that grow in our area'

The Prophet said,

There is nothing resembling it among the trees in your land.

The Prophet then asked him, Have you traveled to Ash-Sham area?

The Bedouin said: `No.'

The Prophet said,

It looks like a tree that grows in Ash-Sham area and is called Al-Jawzah, which stands on one stem but its branches grow all around to the fullest extent.

The Bedouin asked, `How big is the cluster of its fruits?'

The Prophet said,

The distance that the crow flies in one month without rest.

The Bedouin asked, `How huge its trunk is?'

The Prophet said,

If a four-year old she-camel that your family owns travels it, it will not completely pass its trunk until its shoulders break from old age.

The man asked, `Does it bear grapes?'

The Prophet answered in yes.

The Bedouin asked, `How big are the grapes?'

The Prophet said, Has your father ever slaughtered a ram?

The Bedouin answered, `Yes,' and the Prophet asked him,

And then he skinned it and gave the skin to your mother and asked her to make a hanging bucket out of it.

The Bedouin again said yes and said, `This grape would suffice for me and my family!'

The Prophet agreed and said,

Yes, and also for the rest of your clan.''

Allah's statement,

Whose supply is not cut off nor are they out of reach.

The supply of these fruits never runs out, winter or summer. Rather, they are always available for those who want to eat from them, forever.

Whenever these fruits are desired, they will be available and easy to grasp by Allah's power.

Qatadah said,

"Nothing will prevent them from reaching out to get these fruits, no branches, thorns or distance.''

We mentioned a Hadith before that states that whenever someone takes a fruit in Paradise, another one grows in its place.

Allah said, afterwards:

And on couches, raised high.

meaning, high, soft and comfortable.

Allah said,

Verily, We have created them a special creation. And made them virgins.`Urub, Atrab. For those on the right.

The Ayat describe the women who will be on the beds and couches, but since mentioning the beds hints to them, they were not directly mentioned.

For instance, Allah said that Sulayman said,

When there were displayed before him, in the afternoon, well-trained horses of the highest breed. He said, "I did love the good instead of remembering my Lord,'' till the time was over, and it had hidden in the veil (of night). (38:31-32)

"it'' (Tawarat) refers to the sun setting, according to the scholars of Tafsir.

Al-Akhfash said that Ayah, (Verily, We have created them), implied the maidens of Paradise although it did not mention them directly.

Abu Ubaydah said that they were mentioned before in Allah's statement,

And Hur (fair females) with wide lovely eyes, like preserved pearls.

Therefore, Allah's statement, (Verily, We have created them), meaning, in the other life, after they became old in this life, they were brought back while virgin, youthful, being delightfully passionate with their husbands, beautiful, kind and cheerful.

Abu Dawud At-Tayalisi recorded that Anas said that the Messenger of Allah said,

In Paradise, the believer will be given such and such strength for women.

Anas said, "I asked, `O Allah's Messenger! Will one be able to do that?'

He said,

He will be given the strength of a hundred (men).''At-Tirmidhi also recorded it and said, "Sahih Gharib.''

Abu Al-Qasim At-Tabarani recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah was asked,

"O Allah's Messenger! Will we have sexual intercourse with our wives in Paradise''

He said,

The man will be able to have sexual intercourse with a hundred virgins in one day.

Al-Hafiz Abu Abdullah Al-Maqdisi said,

"In my view, this Hadith meets the criteria of the Sahih, and Allah knows best.''

Allah's statement, (`Urub), Sa`id bin Jubayr reported that Ibn Abbas said,

"They are in an infatuated state with their husbands, haven't you ever seen a she-camel in heat? She is like that.''

Ad-Dahhak reported from Ibn Abbas who said,

"The Urub and their husbands are their sweet hearts, and they are their husbands' sweet hearts.''

Similar was said by Abdullah bin Sarjis, Mujahid, Ikrimah, Abu Al-Aliyah, Yahya bin Abi Kathir, Atiyah, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, Ad-Dahhak and others.

Ad-Dahhak reported from Ibn `Abbas; (Atrab), means

"They will be of one age, thirty-three years old.''

Mujahid said, "Equal (age).''

And in a different narration, "Similar (age)''

Atiyah said, "Comparative.''

Allah said, (For those on the right).

meaning, these women were created, kept or given in marriage to those on the right. It appears that the meaning here is that they were created for those on the right side, because Allah said,

Verily, We have created them a special creation.

And made them virgins. `Urub, Atrab. For those on the right.

This is the view of Ibn Jarir. It is possible that Allah's statement, (For those on the right), refers to the description, that came just before, Atrab.

For those on the right. (meaning, in their age).

Al-Bukhari and Muslim recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said,

The first group to enter Paradise will be (shining) like the moon when it is full. The next group will be like the most radiant planet in the sky. They will not urinate, relieve nature, spit or blow their noses. Their combs will be of gold and their sweat of musk; and censers of aloes wood will be used. Their wives will be from Al-Hur Al-`Ayn. Their shape will be similar to each other, the shape of their father `Adam, sixty cubits high in the sky.

Allah's statement,

A multitude of those will be from the first generation. And a multitude of those will be from the later generations.

means, a multitude of those on the right will come from the earlier generations and a multitude from the latter generations.

Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Abdullah bin Mas`ud said,

"We were with the Prophet one night and in the next morning we went to him and he said, Some Prophets and their nations were displayed before me. A Prophet would pass in front of me with a group of men, and another with three men, and another with nobody with him.

Qatadah, one of the narrators of the Hadith, then recited this Ayah,

Is there not among you a single right-minded man, (11:78)

Until Musa, son of `Imran passed me, with a great crowd from the Children of Israel.

So he said;

So, I asked my Lord, "Who is this''

He said, "This is your brother Musa, son of Imran, and those who followed him among the Children of Israel.''

I said, "O Lord! Where is my Ummah''

Allah said, "Look to your right on the hill,''

and I looked and saw faces of men.

Allah said, "Are you pleased,''

and I said, "I am pleased O Lord!''

Allah said, "Look to the horizon to your left,''

and I saw faces of men.

He again asked, "Are you pleased,''

and I said, "I am pleased, O Lord!''

He said, "And with them are seventy-thousand who will enter Paradise without reckoning.''

Ukkashah bin Mihsan from Bani Asad, one of those who participated in the battle of Badr, said,

`O Allah's Messenger! Invoke Allah to make me one of them.'

The Prophet said, O Allah, make him one of them. Another man said, `O Allah's Messenger, invoke Allah to make me one of them.'

The Prophet said, Ukkashah beat you to it.

Allah's Messenger said, Therefore, may I sacrifice my father and mother for you! Try to be among the seventy (thousands), or among the crowds on the right, or the crowds that covered the side of the horizon, because I saw large crowds gathering on that side.

He continued: I hope that you will be a fourth of the people of Paradise and we said, Allahu Akbar.

He said,

I hope that you will be a third of the people of Paradise and we said, Allahu Akbar.

The Prophet said,

I hope that you will be half of the people of Paradise, and we said Allahu Akbar.

Then Allah's Messenger recited this Ayah:

A multitude of those will be from the first generation. And a multitude of those will be from the later generations.

We said to each other, `Who are those seventy thousand?'

We then said, `They are those who were born in Islam and did not associate (anything or anyone in the worship of Allah).'

When what we said reached the Prophet, he said,

They are the people

- who do not get treated by cauterization themselves,

- do not ask for Ruqyah (get oneself treated by the recitation of some verses of the Quran) and

- do not draw an evil omen from (birds), but put their trust (only) in their Lord.''

This Hadith has many chains of narration collected in the Sahihs and other collections of Hadith.

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lifeofresulullah · 4 years

Text

The Life of The Prophet Muhammad(pbuh): The Battle of Badr and Afterwards

Some other important events of the 2nd Year of Hijrah

Fasting in Ramadan is Rendered Fard

Fasting in Ramadan was rendered fard one month after the qiblah was changed to the Kaaba and in the beginning of the 18th month after Hijrah, in the month of Saban. The following were stated in the verses regarding fasting:

“O ye who believe! fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you that ye may (learn) self-restraint…

Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur'an as a guide to mankind also clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (between right and wrong).

So everyone of you who is present (at his home) during that month should spent it in fasting, but if anyone is ill, or on a journey, the prescribed period (should be made up) by days later.

Allah intends every facility for you He does not want to put you to difficulties. (He wants you) to complete the prescribed period, and to glorify Him in that He has guided you; and perchance ye shall be grateful!”

Fasting in Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam.

Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah stated the following:

“Islam is based on five things: testifying that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger, establishing the prayer (salah); paying the zakah (wealth-tax), performing the Hajj and fast in Ramadan.”

Sadaqa al-Fitr is Rendered Wajib

Toward the end of the month of Ramadan of the same year, sadaqa al-fitr was rendered wajib.

The Messenger of Allah ordered that every rich Muslim, whether young or old, free or slave, male or female, give one sa’ (1040 dirhams) of dry dates or one sa’ of barley or raisin, or one mud (half a sa’) of wheat to the poor before the prayer of eid.

The First Eid Prayer is Performed

When the crescent of Shawwal was seen and when the sun rose in the morning, the Messenger of Allah ordered Muslims to break their fasts and to go to the open praying area for the eid prayer. Then he went to the open praying area and led the eid prayer there before the khutbah (sermon) and without adhan or iqamah.

When the Messenger of Allah honored Madinah, the people of Madinah had two festival days. The Prophet said to them, “Allah gave you two better festival days: eid al-fitr (Ramadan Festival) and eid al-adha (Sacrifice Festival).”

The Messenger of Allah always performed eid prayers in the open praying area. The open praying area of Madinah was at the east gate of the city of Madinah.

The Prophet always walked to the open praying area. He went to the open praying area from one way and returned from another way. He always ate something before he set off for the prayer of eid al-fitr. He generally ate a few dates.

Zakah is Rendered Fard

Zakah was rendered fard in the 2nd year of Hijrah after the fasting of Ramadan was rendered fard and sadaqa al-fitr was rendered wajib.

Zakah is a financial kind of worshipping for rich Muslims that involves giving a certain amount of their goods, property or money to the poor every year.

Zakah is one of the five pillars of Islam. It was ordered in the Quran: (an-Nur, 56; al-Muzzammil, 20; al-Hajj, 78; al-Baqara, 110). It is mentioned in 32 places in the Quran together with prayer (salah)

The Prophet stated the following in a hadith:

“Every day in the morning, two angels come down and one of them says, ‘O my Lord! Give to those who give zakah and sadaqa and spend their property for the sake of Allah the amount that they spend’. The other one says, ‘O my Lord! Destroy the property of those who do not give zakah or sadaqa!”

Death of Hazrat Ruqayya

Hazrat Ruqayya, the daughter of the Prophet who was married to Hazrat Uthman, became ill during the Expedition of Badr. Hazrat Uthman stayed in Madinah to look after her upon the order of the Prophet. He could not go to Badr. When Zayd b. Haritha brought the news of the Victory of Badr to Madinah, Hazrat Ruqayya had died.

Umm Ayman washed her dead body. Hazrat Uthman led her janazah prayer and buried her in the cemetery of al-Baqi.

Hazrat Ruqayya was born after Hazrat Zaynab when the Messenger of Allah was 33 years old. She became a Muslim together with Hazrat Khadija, her mother. Then, she married Hazrat Uthman. Hazrat Uthman migrated to Abyssinia with her. When the Messenger of Allah saw that they were migrating together, he said, “After Lot (pbuh), Uthman is the first person to migrate in the way of Allah with his family.”

Abu Darda Becomes a Muslim

Abu Darda Uwaymir b. Sa’laba became a Muslim during the Expedition of Badr.

Abdullah b. Rawaha (may Allah be pleased with him) was an intimate friend of Abu Darda. One day, Abdullah took an adze and broke the idol in Abu Darda’s house. When Abu Darda returned home, his wife told him about it. Abu Darda started to think and said to himself, “If this idol had been useful, it would have protected itself!” Then, he went to the Prophet to become a Muslim.

When Abdullah b. Rawaha saw him coming from a distance, he said, “O Messenger of Allah! Abu Darda is coming. He is probably coming here to see us!”

The Messenger of Allah said, “He is coming here to become a Muslim. My Lord had informed me beforehand that Abu Darda would be a Muslim!”

When Abu Darda went to the presence of the Prophet, he became a Muslim. His family had embraced Islam before him.

Hazrat Fatima Marries Hazrat Ali

Hazrat Fatima married Hazrat Ali five months after the Messenger of Allah honored Madinah in the month of Rajab. Their wedding was in the month of Dhul-Hijjah in the 2nd year of Hijrah after the Battle of Badr.

Hazrat Fatima was the youngest and his most beloved daughter. Whenever the Prophet returned from a battle or expedition, he went to the mosque first to perform a prayer of two rak’ahs and then he went to Hazrat Fatima; after that, he went to his wives.

Hazrat Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates:

“I have never seen anyone whose words and speech resemble those of the Messenger of Allah. When Fatima came, the Messenger of Allah would welcome her with compassion and greet her by saying, “Welcome!” I have never seen anyone more straightforward than Fatima.”

The walking style of Fatima (may Allah be pleased with her) resembled that of the Prophet a lot.

Once, Hazrat Aisha was asked, “Who was the most beloved person for the Prophet?”

Hazrat Aisha answered, “Fatima”

When she was asked, “Who was the most beloved man for the Prophet?”, she answered, “Fatima’s husband.

The Prophet Sends Someone to Makkah to Bring his Daughter Hazrat Zaynab

Among the captives of Badr was Abu As b. Rabi, the husband of Hazrat Zaynab and the son-in-law of the Prophet. As we mentioned under the topic of the captives of the Battle of Badr, Abu As went to Makkah when he was released. Abu As had prevented Hazrat Zaynab from migrating before; however, this time he let her go.

The Messenger of Allah sent Zayd b. Haritha and somebody from Ansar to Makkah a month or less than a month after the Battle of Badr and they brought Hazrat Zaynab.

Death of Uthman b. Maz’un, from Muhajir Muslims

He is the first muhajir Muslim buried in the cemetery of al-Baqi.

The first Eid al-Adha Prayer is Performed

The Messenger of Allah reached Madinah on the ninth of the month Dhul-Hijjah from the Expedition of Sawiq. The next day, that is, the tenth of Dhul-Hijjah, he went to the open praying area with Muslims. He led the two-rak’ah eid al-adha prayer without adhan or iqamah. He recited a sermon after the prayer. In the sermon, he ordered Muslims to sacrifice animals. He himself sacrificed two animals. While slaughtering one of the fleshy white rams, he said, “O Allah! This is on behalf of my ummah, who witness your oneness and what came to me from you.” While slaughtering the second one, he said, “O Allah! This is for Muhammad and the household of Mu¬hammad. He himself, his household and the poor ate from the meat of the second ram.

That was the first eid al-adha in Islam!

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son-of-alderaan · 5 years

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Not seen since their rain-soaked introduction in The Force Awakens, the Knights of Ren have long been rumored to appear once again in Star Wars with December’s trilogy-capper The Rise of Skywalker. In this exclusive online extra from Annie Leibovitz’s new portfolio from the set of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the mysterious black-garbed bad guys are, indeed, back to cause more trouble in a galaxy far, far away, and perhaps shed some light on whether there’s hope yet for Kylo Ren.

The Knights of Ren are masked warriors with specialized weaponry who add an element of chaos to the war between the Resistance and the First Order. We first saw them when Daisy Ridley’s Rey touches Luke’s lightsaber in The Force Awakens and plunges, suddenly, into a vision. Six of the knights briefly appear on a rainy, unidentified planet surrounded by slaughtered bodies, seemingly led by Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren as his familiar red lightsaber slices through an unknown clan leader. But since The Force Awakens, no additional backstory has surfaced about the identities of these Knights, their true number, and the part they played in Ben Solo’s transformation into Kylo Ren.

Two other figures appear in Rey’s Force Awakens vision just before Kylo and the knights: a hooded Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and the droid R2-D2 huddled against a shower of sparks. The implication is that Luke’s dismay and Kylo’s rampage is all connected by the fiery destruction of a Jedi Temple that sent Luke into hiding long before the events of the new trilogy.

In the first flashback narrated by Luke in The Last Jedi, Ben Solo leaves his uncle for dead in the ruins. Luke tells Rey: “The temple was burning. He had vanished with a handful of my students . . . and slaughtered the rest.” It’s possible that the handful of Luke’s Padawan learners that followed Ben Solo to the Dark Side grew into seeing themselves as disciples of the dark Ben Solo: the Knights of Ren.

Having only ever seen them at night and in the rain, it’s a bit of a shock to see the Knights in all their brutish glory in the glaring Jordan sun of the Star Wars shoot for Vanity Fair. Their over-sized, vicious-looking arsenal and mismatched armor sets them apart from the sleek, coordinated looks of the First Order bad guys and the elegant weaponry of the Jedi. Their DIY look—including one especially lethal looking gun arm—would be equally at home in one of the Mad Max movies.

In the first trailer for The Rise of Skywalker, we see Kylo Ren mowing through the Knights with his lightsaber. Is this a flashback to a previous falling out? Evidence of new dissent among the ranks? Or is it, as many hope, evidence that Kylo will turn on the bad influences in his life and join Rey in the light? We’ll find out when The Rise of Skywalker opens in theaters December 20.

#the knights of ren #kylo ren #star wars tros #vanity fair #long post

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twilight-adamo · 5 years

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Author’s Notes: Brave New World, Chapter 5: What’s Past is Prologue

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19709434/chapters/49462937

As a bit of random trivia, this is the first thing I’ve written set in New Orleans that I’ve actually released publicly. It is also, due to the way I title chapters (their filenames are just the chapter numbers; I don’t decide on a title until I’ve finished), the only thing I’ve written set in New Orleans that never, not once, not even as a working title, borne the title “House of the Rising Sun”. I can’t help it: the song and the city chase each other endlessly in my mind. I’ve been to New Orleans once, about six years after Katrina, and fell in love with the place. I haven’t managed to make it back in the eight years since. I’d quite like to return.

I keep track of the timeline in my outline for the story. It’s late July 2005 in this chapter; in a little over a month, well after BEAR have left, Katrina will hit. I hadn’t remembered until I started digging into the city’s history, trying to figure out where the plotline would fit, but I’m brushing up against it here. The gang will undoubtedly hear about it. I’m not yet sure how it will impact them, beyond general sorrow, but I’m pondering it.

(About BEAR: a reader on FFN - MooNOrchiD, if you’re reading this, hi - pointed out the acronym for Bella, Emmett, Alice and Rosalie. I’ve been using it in my notes. It’s damned convenient, and it makes me giggle.)

Anyway, the chapter title ended up being another quote from The Tempest, one I’m not using as a book title in the trilogy or extended Tempestverse. I’d considered “The Past is Never Dead,” from the Faulkner quote - “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” - but when I remembered “What’s past is prologue,” and more, that it came from the play from which I borrowed the name of this AU as well as the titles of the stories within, well. It seemed a perfect match.

Once I hit last chapter’s reveal, I really couldn’t think of much reason why Alice would want to keep hanging around the site of her death and revival, and the slaughter she committed as a newborn vampire. And I was eager to get to New Orleans. So if it seems abrupt, well, it is a bit abrupt. It surprised even me. But the asylum has served its purpose, at least for the time being.

I’m trying to balance the episodes of cognitive dissonance and general weirdness Bella is experiencing against the fact that this isn’t really about her - as she herself acknowledges, and that’s why she tries to hide this latest one from Alice, though she doesn’t end up managing it. I also generally don’t want to have too many of them too close together. It’s part of a thread that will continue throughout this book, and there will be more to them in time, but this section of the story, for all that Bella is still narrating and this necessarily limits our perspective, is Alice’s first and foremost. It’s a tricky balance to strike, and I admit I’ve occasionally considered trading Bella’s perspective for someone else’s (not just in this part of the story). But that’s a narrative shift that should be used sparingly, if at all, and I would prefer to leave most of the other characters’ perspectives to These Our Actors. Besides, the very thought of writing from Alice’s perspective, with all her slipping between the present, the future, and now the past, gives me a headache.

I’ve played fast and loose with Alice’s visions of the future in the past, and more so since Bella started altering her powers - I had a reader early on tell me that wasn’t how her powers worked, and while I think Meyer’s descriptions are inconsistent, I can’t say they were entirely wrong about that. Still, in many ways, Alice’s power is one of narrative convenience, and it was inconvenient for me to have her instantly able to see everything. So I decided, and I think this is reasonable, that Alice needed time to learn to control her power to see the future (and still doesn’t have complete control, at that), and will similarly need time to learn to control her power to see the past. For now, she can follow threads, but there are shifting and vaguely defined limits that even she doesn’t fully understand. All will be revealed in time, or at least enough of a story to get along with.

I really want to make Alice and Bella’s relationship healthy, loving, and open, for all that they’re going to have their problems, same as any other couple. I hope I’m succeeding. It definitely seemed to me that she would pick up on Bella’s distress - there’s very little she fails to notice - and that she would expect honesty in their relationship, even if the truth is painful or difficult.

Bella’s relationship and history with magic is going to be a thread throughout both this book and the next, so I wanted to spend a little more time fleshing out her perspective, and with Rose being a novice witch, that afforded me the opportunity to do so. The conversation took a briefly maudlin turn that tread over a lot of territory from the previous chapter before I cut that bit and brought it to a different inclusion. The outtake will be under the cut at the end of this post.

5513 St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans, does not exist. The spot where it would stand is a playground. I didn’t want to associate any real homes with a fictional haunting (and of course I could hardly resist throwing a thirteen in there when the opportunity arose). But it’s in roughly the right location, I think, for a double gallery home once owned by a decently wealthy family.

Now we get to some of the larger changes. I’ve already started altering Alice’s story substantially, as I discussed in the author’s notes for the previous chapter. Here we have another significant change: in the backstory established by Stephenie Meyer, Alice’s mother was murdered, but it was ruled an accident by the authorities. Only Alice’s visions indicated it was homicide. Here, it’s widely known to be murder, but there’s a scapegoat in the form of the Axeman of New Orleans.

The Axeman is a real serial killer from the early 20th century, and while there have certainly been suspects, his true identity is still unknown, as is his motive. There are those who believe he targeted women specifically, only attacking men when they happened to be around his intended victims. Because many of the victims were Italian immigrants (many, but not all), some contemporary commentators tied him to the Mafia. The letter he allegedly wrote demanding jazz bands playing in every house that wished to go unscathed, well, I tend to agree with those who think it was a hoax, though there are wilder theories claiming it wasn’t, and he deliberately launched his spree to expand the popularity of jazz music. Whoever he was, whatever his motives, he hangs over the city of New Orleans to this day.

Was Alice’s mother Luciana actually murdered by the Axeman himself? I don’t know if I’ll end up saying either way. I don’t know if it matters, to be honest. If she was, I would say he was not necessarily tied into the Mafia, but he was a hired killer, and his reign of terror had some greater purpose. It’s just as possible the Axeman was a convenient cover story. It was a hired killer either way, and he had accomplices - the identity of the actual killer is less important here, I think, than the identity of the people who hired and helped him. We’ll learn more in the next chapter.

The last chapter was over ten thousand words, and I briefly considered letting this one be a juggernaut as well, but I hit a natural break point and it seemed better to separate things. I’m working on Chapter 6 now. I’m going on vacation in a couple weeks, and I hope to finish at least that chapter before I leave, as it’s going to mean a hiatus (and I do have another writing project I need to keep working on before the year is out, to boot). I’d really like to get out of the dark place Alice is in now, and give the poor girl the opportunity to find closure and move forward, so maybe I’ll manage to squeeze in Chapter 7 as well. We’ll see.

And now, the outtake, purely as a matter of interest.

Rosalie must have seen something in my expression, despite my best efforts, because she reached out to take my hand. “From what she says, it sounds like you taught her everything she knows. Or close to it.”

“Yeah. Well.” I cracked a small, humorless smile. “I don’t remember any of it. And I can help with theory, but...I can’t demonstrate this stuff for you, and the magic Callie practices isn’t what I’m used to.”

“The spells you talked me through seemed to work just fine the other night.”

“They did. And I’m very glad, believe me.” My smile turned a little more genuine. “I guess I’m not completely out of touch.”

“What does it feel like?” Alice asked softly, glancing between us. “If you don’t mind my asking.”

“The actual spellcasting? Or…” Rose shrugged as she trailed off.

“Any of it. All of it.”

“It’s a little different for everyone, I think,” I said slowly. “There are things we have in common, but we filter the experience through our own perceptions of the world. When you cast, it’s like something moves through you. And when you’re just living in the world, then…”

“It’s music, for me,” Rose added. “I can tune it out, but it’s like there’s a radio playing down the hall. The songs and sometimes the volume change. It’s like the world is trying to tell me something, but I can’t quite figure out what. Sometimes I pick up general themes, but that’s about it.”

I nodded. “It’s never that clear. Not without effort, and - well, I certainly don’t remember divination being my strong suit. Callie says I tended to interpret magic visually, and I saw the colors of Rosalie’s spellwork, but mostly I remember these...whispers of sensation. Something that was almost visible, almost audible, almost tangible, but not quite any of those things. I perceived it all through my mind’s eye. It felt like...standing in the ocean on a hot summer day. The water is warm and your toes are curled in the sand, the seaweed fluttering against your legs. The sun warms your skin, and the sky is that perfect shade of blue, but there are clouds scudding across it, big, white, fluffy ones, the kind that come in elaborate shapes, castles and dinosaurs and starfish and whatever else you can imagine. The wind is whistling past, and you can halfway feel, halfway hear the way it whispers of the autumn and winter days to come. You can feel so keenly that you’re a part of everything around you that it’s hard to tell where your soul ends and the world begins. And losing it is...it’s not like going blind, or deaf, or losing a limb. It’s not that simple. But it’s still...it’s loss. It would be like - if you couldn’t see the future anymore, maybe.”

Alice shuddered at that, leaning against me. “God, I can’t even imagine what that would be like. Baby…”

“Yeah. It’s okay.” I turned, planting a kiss against her hairline. “I’m...fine. I don’t need magic to get by. Plenty of people do just fine without it, it’s stupid to…”

“You’re not stupid,” Rosalie interjected. “What you’re talking about - I’ve felt that for all of a day or two. I went my whole life without it, I don’t need it, but - you found a way to give me this gift and now the idea of losing it again is horrifying to me. You were used to perceiving the world in this specific, complicated way, and you lost part of that, and you’re still coming to terms with it. I’m not going to tell you to wallow in that feeling or throw yourself a little pity party, but I understand it now. Your feelings aren’t stupid. You just...can’t let them rule you.”

I shut my eyes, nodding slowly, letting out a long breath. “Still. I have a lot to be grateful for,” I replied, putting my arm around Alice’s shoulders and squeezing gently. “There was a time, long ago, when I didn’t feel the world that way, and I was fine. It’ll come back, or it won’t, and I’ll have friends and family and love and a power of my own either way. That has to be more than enough for anyone.”

#twilight #twilight fanfiction #twilight fanfic #twilight au #bellice #the tempest trilogy #the tempestverse #brave new world

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wisdomrays · 5 years

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THE MIRACLES OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD (pbuh): Fifteenth Sign.Part1

Just as rocks, trees, the moon and the sun recognized him and affirmed his prophethood by each demonstrating a miracle, so too, animals, the dead, the jinn, and the angels recognized that blessed being and affirmed his prophethood. For by each of those species of beings displaying a number of miracles, they demonstrated that they recognized him and proclaimed their affirmation of his prophethood. This Fifteenth Sign contains three Branches.

FIRST BRANCH

The animal realm recognized God’s Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace) and displayed his miracles. There are numerous examples of this Branch. Here as examples, we shall mention only those which are well-known and definite to the degree of ‘consensus in meaning,’ or have been accepted by authoritative scholars, or have been deemed acceptable by the Muslim community.

The First Incident: This is well-known to the degree of ‘consensus in meaning,’ and concerns the two pigeons coming and waiting at the entrance to the cave of Hira, where God’s Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace) and Abu Bakr the Veracious hid from the pursuing unbelievers, and the spider veiling the entrance with a thick web, like a curtain holder. Ubayy b. Khalaf, one of the leaders of the Quraysh whom God’s Messenger killed with his own hand at the Battle of Badr, looked at the cave. When his companions suggested that they enter, he replied: “Why should we? I see a large spider’s web which appears to have been there since before Muhammad was born. And look, those two pigeons are there. Would they remain there if there was someone in the cave?”

In an instance similar to this, a blessed pigeon cast a shadow over the head of God’s Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace) during the conquest of Makkah, which was related by Imam Jalil b. Wahab.

Also according to a sound narration, ‘A’isha al-Siddiqa relates: “We had a bird in our house called a dajin, similar to a pigeon. When God’s Messenger was present it would stay quiet, but as soon as he left the house, the bird would start hopping to and fro without stopping.” Thus, the bird was obedient to the Messenger, remaining quiet in his presence.

The Second Incident: This is the extraordinary story of the wolf, which has been narrated through a number of chains of transmission from some well-known Companions and about which is ‘consensus in meaning.’ In short, Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri, Salama b. al-Akwa‘, Ibn Abi Wahab, and Abu Hurayra, and Uhban, a shepherd who was involved in another event, relate through numerous chains of transmission: “A wolf seized a goat and the shepherd saved it from the wolf. The wolf exclaimed: ‘Don’t you fear God? You have deprived me of my sustenance!’ The shepherd muttered to himself:

‘How strange! Can wolves speak?’ The wolf said to him: ‘You’re the strange one, for beyond the hill is someone calling you to Paradise. He is a Messenger of God, yet you do not recognize him!’” Although all the lines of transmission agree on the wolf’s speech, in his report, which has a strong line, Abu Hurayra says: “The shepherd said to the wolf: ‘I am going to see him, but who will look after my goats?’ The wolf replied: ‘I’ll look after them.’ So the shepherd handed over the herd to the wolf and went to see the Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace), believed in him, and returned to his herd. The shepherd found the wolf; not a goat had been lost. So he slaughtered one for the wolf, for it had become his teacher.”

According to one chain of transmission, one of the chiefs of Quraysh, Abu Sufyan, and Safwan saw a wolf pursuing a gazelle into the enclosure of the Ka‘ba. As it returned, the wolf spoke, telling of the prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH). They were astonished. Abu Sufyan said to Safwan: ‘Don’t let’s tell anyone of this; I’m frightened everyone will join him and Makkah will be emptied.’

In Short: The story of the wolf gives one complete conviction, and is as certain as those unanimous reports about which there is ‘consensus in meaning.’

The Third Incident: This is the narrative of the camel, which was unanimously related through some five or six chains of transmission by famous Companions such as Abu Hurayra, Tha‘laba b. Malik, Jabir b. ‘Abd Allah, ‘Abd Allah b. Ja‘far, and ‘Abd Allah b. Abi Awfa, who are at the start of the chains. A camel approached God’s Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace), prostrated itself before him as if saluting him, and spoke. According to a number of lines of transmission, the camel had been angered in a garden, and become wild, attacking anyone who approached it. When God’s Messenger appeared, it came to him, prostrated as a sign of respect, and knelt down. The Messenger put a bridle on it, and the camel said to him: “They made me do the heaviest work and now they want to slaughter me. That’s why I went wild.” The Messenger asked its owner if this was true. “Yes,” he replied.

Also, God’s Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace) had a camel called ‘Adba’. After he died, out of its grief, the camel neither ate nor drank, till it died. A number of important authorities including Abu Ishaq Isfara’ini related that it spoke with the Prophet about a certain story. In another instance, in an authentic narration, Jabir b. ‘Abd Allah’s camel became exhausted on a journey and could no longer continue. God’s Messenger gave it a slight prod. Such joy and nimbleness did the camel receive from that prod of the Prophet that due to its speed it could not be caught up with, nor could its reins be seized.

The Fourth Incident: The authorities on Hadith and foremost Bukhari report that it was rumoured one night that the enemy was attacking outside Madinah. Brave horsemen went out to investigate. On the way they saw someone coming. They looked and saw that it was the Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace). He told them there was nothing. He had mounted Abu Talha’s famous horse, as his sacred courage impelled him to, and had gone before everyone else to investigate, then returned. He told Abu Talha: “Your horse is extremely swift and unfaltering.” Whereas previously it had been extremely slow. After that night, there was no horse to compete with it. On another occasion, as related in an authentic narration, while on a journey at the time for prayer, the Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace) told his horse to stop. It stopped, and until he had finished praying the horse did not make the slightest movement.

The Fifth Incident: Safina, the servant of the Noble Prophet (Upon whom be blessings and peace), was commanded by him to go to the Governor of Yemen, Mu‘adh b. Jabal. He set off and on the way encountered a lion. Safina said to it: “I am the servant of God’s Messenger!” Upon which the lion made a sound as if saying something, and left without molesting him. According to another narration, Safina lost his way when returning, and met with a lion. Not only did the lion not molest him, it showed him the way.

Also, it is narrated from ‘Umar that he said: “A beduin came to the Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace). He was holding a lizard. He said: ‘If this reptile testifies to you, I shall believe in you; otherwise I will not.’ God’s Messenger asked the lizard, and it testified to his messengership most eloquently.”

Also, the Mother of Believers, Umm Salama relates: “A gazelle spoke with the Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace), and testified to his messenger ship.”

Thus, there are numerous examples similar to these. We described a few that are famous and certain. And to those who do not recognize and obey the Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace), we say this: O man! Take a lesson from these! The lion and the wolf recognized and obeyed him; you, then, should try not to fall lower than an animal!

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mdwatchestv · 6 years

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Westworld 2x08: Take My Heart When You Go

This season of Westworld has been having quite a bit of success with contained storytelling. After building such a big and complex world in season one, it's refreshing to see the show occasionally tighten focus to explore a particular character or aspect of the park. Maeve's venture into Shogun World, the saga of Peter Mullan the not-quite-host, Katja Herbers in The Raj (even though that functioned mostly as a cold open) have been some of the strongest moments of the series overall. However the big sprawling world mythology episodes are starting feel more unwieldy than ever when juxtaposed with the smaller scale storytelling we now know the show to be capable of. One of Westworld's biggest hurtles coming into season 2 was that while season 1 had delivered plenty of twists and turns, it failed to create any meaningful emotional connections between the audience and the characters. Yes the show was aesthetically beautiful and entertaining, but who were you really rooting for? Dolores seemed like the obvious protagonist, but her character is, by design, unknowable, and she has been going down a path of consistent darkness. This season has attempted to remedy the emotional distance by delving into other character's pasts and inner lives, and has achieved various levels of success. For example the Shogun World storyline worked so well because it was supported by the real connection between Maeve and Akane. Their scenes together were genuine and moving, and it was impossible not to feel emotionally invested in their journeys. This season has succeeded in creating more and more of these moments, but often sacrifices them when returning to the larger world's plot. This episode attempted to fuse one of these more intimate stories to the backbone of the show's larger mythology, and for the most part it worked. This episode was about both the entire history of Westworld, and also simply about a man pursuing his true love. It covered generational time spans, but also a singular journey of the heart. This episode felt like what Westworld should aim for in its storytelling, where big reveals and world-building don't displace quieter moments and character development.

This episode also finally answered the call to give voice to the members of the Ghost Nation, who have been present but frustratingly silent throughout the series. However with the casting of Zahn McClarnon as Akecheta, it seemed likely that this was the season we would finally get more insight into these characters. At the beginning of this episode we see Akecheta bringing the wounded Man in Black back to his tribe, not with the intent to save him, but to keep him alive in order to prolong his mortal struggling. Also amongst the Ghost Nation is Maeve's daughter, whose kidnapping we witnessed at the end of last week. Akecheta approaches the little girl (does she have a name? I truly don't know) and tells her not to be afraid. He then begins telling her the story of his time in the park, a narration which frames the flashback that makes up the majority of the episode. It's worth noting here that the bulk of the episode is spoken in Lakota, a Sioux language that is only spoken fluently by 6,000 people in the world. This was a bold, but necessary, creative choice, the kind of choice that Westworld should strive to keep making.

In the beginning of the history of the park, Akecheta was not a fearsome warrior but rather lived a peaceful existence with his tribe and lover, Kohana. However his life is upended when he stumbles upon the scene of Arnold's suicide and accompanying mass host slaughter. At this scene he discovers The Maze, which we know was created by Arnold in order to grant Dolores consciousness. Akecheta becomes obsessed with it, mulling it over and attempting to interpret its meaning. Through his study of it, he too is able to achieve ‘wokeness’. However his life is upended when, upon Ford's reconstruction of the park, he is given a new violent personality and drive. Akecheta lives the stereotypical Native Warrior Bad Guy life that we had assumed he had been living all this time, until he stumbles upon Kohana and remembers his love for her. As Akecheta begins questioning the nature of his reality, he one day finds the sun-burned and naked Ben Barnes (who had been sent into the desert on a horse by a newly bad Jimmi Simpson many years ago). Ben Barnes tells Akecheta that this isn't the right world, that there is a door to another. Akecheta's suspicions about the world he lives in are confirmed when he rides to the edge of the park and finds a construction site filled with modern equipment, aka the Door to the Other World.

Concurrently in this episode we catch up with Simon who is desperately trying to get the Westworld techs to save Maeve. He insists she is worth saving because she is the only one who can control the other hosts in the park, but I believe he also has a serious case of the friendship feels. As Simon watches the once fearsome Maeve dissected and cut open, he feels regret at having interceded on her path to motherhood. Even though as the park writer and character creator he should be the most jaded regarding the host's ability to experience real emotion, he now seems to truly believe that Maeve is at least deserving of fulfilling her role as a mother.

Back in the flashback, Akecheta plans to leave the park and journey into the Other World but of course cannot go without his true love. He kidnaps Kohana, who eventually remembers him from her past life (love conquers all yo) and they set out together. However the construction site Akecheta had found previously is now gone, and Kohana is captured by park employees. Akecheta tries to find Kohana back at her home, but she has been replaced by a new host. Heartbroken, Akecheta travels the park for the next ten years looking for her. It is during this walkabout that he happens upon Maeve's daughter, who helps him, an act that he does not forget. Eventually he returns to his old tribe where he discovers other hosts have disappeared and been replaced. The leader tells him that her people tell a story about men that come and take people away, the park workers and the Other World have morphed into tribe legend. Akecheta pulls a Maeve and gets himself killed only to wake up in the Mesa. There he finds Kohana in cold storage, who while still standing, is effectively dead. Devastated, Akecehta returns to the park and begins spreading the symbol of the maze to the rest of the Ghost Nation. The maze works to 'wake up' the other hosts as well, and they keep the sign secret by tattooing it under their scalps. This ties into why the Man in Black was able to find the maze under a scalp in season one, which was a satisfying explanation for that past plot point. We also discover that Akecheta was not stalking or hunting Maeve and her daughter, as Maeve's flashbacks have implied, but rather attempting to protect them and teach them about the maze. Of course his plan his thwarted when the Man in Black horrifically murders the mother and daughter, but Maeve's introduction to the maze ideology is likely what led to her meltdown and subsequent re-awakening.

One day Akecheta comes upon Ford, who in a very striking mis-en-scene, is scalping frozen Ghost Nation and uncovering the mazes under their scalps. Ford asks Akecheta how long he has known about the maze, and Akecheta replies since the Death Bringer destroyed the Creator. That phrasing was particularly interesting because of how it reframed the story of the show into almost myth. Dolores, the Death Bringer, destroys the world, and then the world is reborn anew. This cyclical imagery is common in many culture's religions and storytelling, and contextualized the plot of Westworld in a way I had not previous considered. So good job Westworld. Ford tells Akecheta that the Death Bringer will eventually come for him, and at that time Akecheta should gather his people and leave. We know that Ford had been planning his suicide and the resulting park takeover for sometime, but his interaction with Akecheta is strange in its ambivalence. Ford seems to admire Akecheta's perseverance, but just like Arnold before him, makes no allowance for Akecheta in his final plan. Throughout the episode in fact park staff seems to largely not care, or pay much attention to, the movements of the Ghost Nation. While Kohana is apprehended for journeying too far from home, Akecheta seems to go wherever he pleases and is bound to few looping stories. Additionally no one notices that he lived consistently for a decade in the park, and even roamed around the Mesa by himself. Also while Arnold's suicide plan included the death of all the hosts, he did not make any allowance for the number of Ghost Nation hosts that, if not for Akecheta, would not even have realized anything was afoot.

Back in the present, Katja Herbers rides up to collect her father (the Man in Black) and Akecheta surrenders him to her custody. At the Mesa, the techs discover that Maeve is able to connect with other hosts via their (usually passive) mesh network. This is likely how she was able to "push" hosts to do her bidding, by becoming conscious of, and then sending commands through that network. Charlotte Hale enters for a hot sec to deliver the expositional news that Maeve has been "speaking" to someone over this network for the whole episode. It is revealed then that Akecheta has not been unloading his past to a little girl for no particular reason, but rather has been relating it to Maeve herself. We see that just as Ford ordered he is gathering his people to leave, and will take Maeve's daughter with him. This episode served to fill in some plot gaps from last season nicely, and also give much needed characterization to the Ghost Nation. However it also, of course, raised more questions. Where exactly is Akecheta planning to take his people? To the Mesa? Beyond? And is this journey part of Ford's plan, or simply a loose end Ford didn't care to tie up? How, if at all, will Akecheta's escape bid intersect with Dolores (the Death Bringer)?

Overall this hour represented the kind of ambitious storytelling that Westworld should continue to pursue. I hope the show continues to take risks, not in the shock-value of the twists, but in the kind of stories that are told, and the characters that get to tell them. At the end of the day this episode was a love story told in Lakota, its continuation of the show's larger plot, as well as its tie in to the world at large was the icing on the cake, not the main course. Elevating Dolores’ destruction to external mythology, and instead focussing on the characters simply trying to live through the ebb and flow of the park, is the key to emotional connection for the audience. This is the kind of risk taking I hope the show continues to take, at the end of the day if you’ve seen one robot uprising you’ve seen them all, but it’s the journey of the individual that makes a story worth telling.

XO MD

#westworld #westworld spoilers #westworld gifs #westworld recap #westworld review #martha writes

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ghostcultmagazine · 3 years

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Check out our weekly news show! We cover the major stories of the week in heavy music, rock, and metal news, tour dates, New Music Friday - every week, rock and metal festivals all over the world, what the most important bands are doing in streaming, new albums released, cool cover songs, a look at what's in our mailbag, and more! Written, co-produced, and hosted by our Chief Keefy (https://ift.tt/2VHaeIF). Co-produced by Omar Cordy of OJC Photography (https://www.instagram.com/ojcpics). New Music Friday narration by Scott Sommer (https://ift.tt/3uOPzT0). Theme song by Salted Wounds (https://www.instagram.com/saltedwoundsnyc). Fight riff by Fahad Syed (https://www.instagram.com/fahanzi). #rocknews #metalnews Sign up for our weekly email newsletter! No spam ever! https://ift.tt/3tqBMkh Time stamp: 0:00 Intro 0:36 ICYMI 01:19 News 09:56 Who Rules At Streaming 10:36 New Music Friday 12:25 Mailbag Dio - biography https://amzn.to/3B0FmGf 13:03 Outro Highlights: Interview with Dan Murphy of All Good Things https://youtu.be/vNwymTbmVZQ Interview with Martin Mendez of White Stones & Opeth https://youtu.be/zet3glqlFyc The Ghost Cult Podcast Returns! Interview with Onslaught at Bloodstock Fest 2021 https://ift.tt/3A00knx Interview with Hunter Weeks of Love is Red https://youtu.be/uULRRidvemw Keefy joins the Glacially Musical Podcast! Subscribe today! https://ift.tt/3fBQTmS Catch up on what you missed this week from the world of rock and metal news! https://youtu.be/Pje6rScoCEw #musicnews #rocknews #metalnews #interviews #newmusicfriday, #interviews All Good Things, Martin Mendez White Stones & Opeth, Onslaught, Love is Red, The Glacially Musical Pordcast does Black Sabbath, Louder Than Life news, Metallica plays "The Black Album" live, Richie Faulkner of Judas Priest's health emergency, Rebel Rock Fest canceled, Tool world tour dates, `68 to tour with Every Time I Die, P.O.D. tour news, Architects tour update, Living Color drops off the Summerland Tour, Tallah dismissed from the Avatar tour, Steel Panther and Sevendust tour news, Asking Alexandria's new album and UK Europe tour dates, Exhorder "Slaughter In The Vatican" tour, Nile new record deal and major tour with Incantation, Swallow The Sun US tour with Abigail Williams and Wilderun, Unto Others tour, Helmet European tour, Dream Theater news, David Lee Roth in Las Vegas, Guns `N Roses new song "Hard Skool" + initial thoughts, Beyond The Black covers Iron Maiden, Throw The Fight's new song, Lordi new songs and 7 (!) new albums, Ignite new singer/new EP, Dave Grohl almost joined GWAR, Spiritbox lands on the Billboard charts, Converge + Chelsea Wolfe + Stephen Brodsky of Cave In - collabo album, Alice Cooper gets a street named for him, Laura Jane Grace (Against Me!) surprise new EP, Fit For An Autopsy new album news, Madam Mayhem new single, Kings of Quarantine (Slaves on Dope) + Bill from Mastodon and many more cover a Judgement Night Soundtrack classic, and the Dio Biography . Gear we use: Set up A: Sony A7 III - https://amzn.to/3tQm422 Tamron 17-28 - https://amzn.to/3ePrlTd Tamron 28-75 - https://amzn.to/3fqCjgY Desview Mavo-P5 Monitor- https://amzn.to/33LlTub Manfrotto Befree Travel Tripod - https://amzn.to/3hxbL0e Set up B: Canon 80D - https://amzn.to/3ye8WqV Sigma MC-11 - https://amzn.to/3brZdU2 Sigma 18-35 - https://amzn.to/3tLlEd7 Tokina 11-16 - https://amzn.to/3bty9Uk Feelworld T7 Monitor - https://amzn.to/2Re9hta Audio: Sound Devices MixPre-3 - https://amzn.to/3tKkJd2 Gearlux XLR Mic Cable - 3 Pack - https://amzn.to/3w3zN6Y Deity D3 Microphone - https://amzn.to/3tRa6W2 Fifine Usb Mic - https://amzn.to/3w8JHEG Lighting: YONGNUO YN600L - https://amzn.to/2QkNrn5 YONGNUO YN300 Air - https://amzn.to/2QjN5gu Dfuse Softbox - https://amzn.to/3uQq4AN Aputure MC - https://amzn.to/3oirFgx NanLite PavoTube II 6C - http://bit.ly/NanLitePavoTubeII Light Stands - https://amzn.to/3uSBl3x 5 in 1 Reflector - https://amzn.to/33KHdjo And our iconic Rope Light https://amzn.to/3ycdmyz For the full list of Ghost Cult gear: http://bit.ly/OJCPicsKit by Ghost Cult Magazine

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clonewarsimagines · 7 years

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Tup (CT-5385): Stand Tall

(*narrator voice* From the void of ash and shadow whence she descended, the author rose again, having survived the pit of depression by way of amazing friends and sheer spite!

Seriously though, I’m writing again. I write what I like, when I like, and with less pressure I really hope that it’s here to stay.)

Warnings: canon-typical violence, death mentions, explosions, swearing, fudged medical details (of shock)

Word Count: 1534

Notes: For the sake of the story, this takes place on Earth, which was a Republic planet but is currently occupied by Separatist forces.

You were still bruised from the last time the droids had shown up at your house to collect tribute. Eventually, to protect your family, you’d conceded and given them what they wanted - the valuables and family treasures that the Separatist commander was collecting, likely for his own pocket.

That had been over a week ago now - and the bruises should have been ample reminder not to defy the invaders again.

But come on. They were kicking around an old homeless twi’lek man. What possible reason could they have for that? He had no way of resisting, nothing valuable to steal.

“Mom’s gonna kill me,” you muttered under your breath, crossing the street at a jog. “Hey!” you yelled, getting the droids’ attention. “Hey, over here! Leave him alone, you miserable trashbuckets!” All three of them left the man alone and turned their stun weapons on you.

“Identify, citizen,” one of them barked. “Halt! Do not come any closer.”

“Right. Sure.” You laughed out loud, though your insides felt turned to jelly with fear. “My name is Rick Astley. Look me up.”

You managed to keep a straight face as the command droid searched the planetary database, but let out an unholy snort of laughter when the familiar old drum solo rang out from the droid’s comm into the dilapidated street. You even saw the old twi’lek man give a soft chuckle as he slipped away into an alley and disappeared. Good. He was safe. Now you could focus on getting away yourself.

“Insubordination!” snapped the droid captain, shutting off the comm. “Identify yourself now!”

“Maybe I’d rather not,” you said with a lazy smirk. Though in truth your hands shook with adrenaline.

Holy fucking shit, they were going to slaughter you here and now.

But just as they raised their guns - not set to stun this time - bolts of blasterfire seared through the air, taking the droids to pieces.

Republic forces? Here?

You didn’t stop to wonder - just ran as fast as you could toward home and (relative) safety.

…..

In the dead of night, you stood dressed all in black at the entrance to the abandoned warehouse, letting the masked rebels check you for weapons and recording devices.

“Clean,” one of them grunted, and they escorted you inside.

The resistance was a ragged group if you’d ever seen one, scarred and battered and masked, every one of them. And you didn’t blame them for a second.

But there were more than you thought, and even through your jangled nerves that made your heart raise with hope. If this many people in the city were willing to stand up to injustice, maybe you really could help the Republic win back the planet.

Speaking of.

By the looks of things, they were preparing for a battle. Someone gave a speech, while a man whose unmasked eyes looked suspiciously like a clone soldier’s pressed a blaster into your hands.

As you surged out with the crowd under cover of darkness, you could barely keep hold of the gun.

What the holy hell had you gotten yourself into?

…….

It was chaos. No, more than chaos - it was hellish. Good people who wanted to make a difference in the world, mowed down like wheat to the droids’ uncaring blasters. This was no glorious battle for freedom - it was desperate, ugly, vicious. Scrabbling in the mud just to stay alive.

You lay face down on the battlefield long after the battle was over and the insurgents had retreated, carrying the wounded to safety.

Without you.

Because you’d been unable to call out, unable to show you were alive. Now, in the terrifying, deathly silence, you crawled painfully to your feet and looked all around the field before limping toward what you thought was the way home should be. A haze of shock blanketed your mind, blocking out sound with its ringing. You couldn’t feel your hands or feet, and you shivered all over.

“Keep walking, it’s okay,” you muttered to yourself, not even blinking as you limped toward the lights of the city. “It’s okay, you’re okay, it’s okay.”

A silence deeper than anything you’d ever known fell suddenly, twisting your gut with bone-deep dread. The hairs prickled on the back of your neck, warning you to stop walking.

A second later - a blinding flash of light, a shockwave that blew you backward, tumbling head over heels, columns of smoke and fire rising from your city. Separatist starfighters peeled away with high-pitched whines into the atmosphere.

It took you a second to realize the awful, grating screech sound you heard was coming from your own throat. That you were screaming. Crying for your home. Your heart beat too fast, limbs suddenly cold and numb.

You let your mind go blank, turned away from the city, and ran. Didn’t matter where, just away. With all the strength left in your body you ran.

….

When your conscious mind returned - painfully - it was with the barrel of a republic blaster pointed at you. You didn’t react, just stared down the long barrel numbly until you saw the eye slits of the clone soldier holding it.

“Oh, kriff -” He swore and took his helmet off, setting his blaster aside and hurrying toward you. “Citizen, are you injured? Where did you come from? This is restricted Republic space.”

“I don’t - I can’t, I don’t know,” you said in a small voice, wiping what you thought was water from your cheek. It came away bright red. “The battle - god, there were so many of them, and then the bombs….”

With him this close, your mind siezed on small details - the man’s long hair, pulled back in a bun. His kind, concerned brown eyes, dark skin just a few shades lighter than his hair. The single tear-drop tattoo under one eye.

“Why don’t you come with me, civvie? We’ll have Kix take a look, make sure you’re okay. Then you can head to the camp with the other refugees and see if you can find anyone you know.”

You lower lip trembled as you held his gaze, and you felt your face crumple into tears again. The saltwater stung the cuts on your cheeks.

“Hey, shh. It’s okay. It’s gonna be okay. It’ll be fine, see?” He smiled gently at you, helping you to your feet and supporting you. “We’ll get this all sorted out soon enough. What’s your name, civvie?”

You clung to him with your arm around his waist, closing your eyes and letting him lead you. “I’m Y/N,” you said weakly.

“That’s a great name,” he said with a smile. “My name’s Tup. The medic is Kix. Come on, let’s go get you fixed up.”

Despite everything that had happened, despite how raw and bruised you felt, something about his presence was soothing. Like just being near him made the pain go away for a while.

“Will you stay with me, Tup?” you asked, almost whispering it.

“I -” he hesitated a second, but then squeezed your hand gently. “Yeah. Yeah, of course I will.”

…..

The med tent took a while, most of which you didn’t remember very well. Then there was a lot of sleeping, and a togruta woman you didn’t know assigned you a tent to sleep in. Then more sleeping.

When you were on your feet, your first thought was to find your family, and the friends you knew lived in the city.

As luck would have it, though - the first person you bumped into wasn’t any of them.

It was the soldier who’d helped you - Tup. He was wearing salvaged civvie clothes - jeans, a thin tank that was just tight enough to pull across his chest muscles, a plaid shirt with sleeves rolled up to the elbows. He startled when he saw you, backing up with a sudden dark flush.

“Y/N! Hi. Hello. You’re okay!” He smiled, stepping toward you to take your hands. “Uh, sorry. I was worried about you, you know? Kinda felt responsible for you after all that.”

You still felt a little bruised, but you couldn’t help laughing. He was adorable. And his presence, like before, was soothing to the soul. “Hi, Tup,” you said with a shy smile. “What’s with the getup?” You gestured to his clothes; he looked down at himself and blushed even darker.

“Oh! I, um - I just wanted to try some on,” he said with a nervous laugh. “Plus I’ve heard we clones can be pretty frightening, so I thought this would help.”

“You’re not frightening,” you said automatically. “I mean - well, you are a bit scary with all the armor and helmets on. But not like this. You….you look really good, Tup.”

His eyes lit up, and he ducked his head to hide his smile. “Uh….thank you. Glad you like it.”

Neither of you said anything for a moment, until he cleared his throat. “You find anyone you know yet?” he asked.

You shook your head. “Nobody. I was just about to start looking.”

Tup grinned and offered you his arm. “I’m off duty now,” he said, “So I’d be more than happy to help you find them.”

As both of you set off through the camp, you watched the sun trace the planes of his face in gold.

The world might have turned upside down, you thought, but sometimes the world gives you treasures when that happens to make up for it.

#clone trooper tup #clone trooper tup x reader #tup x reader #clone wars imagine #star wars imagine #clone wars x reader #star wars x reader #clone trooper x reader #star wars the clone wars

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dw-writes · 7 years

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Factual Mythology - The Second Tale

Hello everyone! :D Welcome to the second installment of this series! Just a heads up for how the story timeline works. The present timeline, with Allen telling the story, will pick up where the previous story left off. There won’t be any time skip in Allen telling the story. All of his narration takes place in the Science Division while everyone is on a break from moving.

The story with you, the mermaid, however, jumps a week between every chapter, just like with the other series that I have posted to this account! I hope that makes sense?? :D

ANYWAY!! Enough talk, here is the second tale!

The First Tale

Lenalee fell back onto the floor, kicking her feet into the air. One of her shoes dangled dangerously from her toes. “So you found a mermaid,” she repeated to the ceiling. She heard Allen move around until he was lying shoulder to shoulder with her, staring up at the dome of the room they occupied. Beyond the skyscrapers of boxes around them was the chipped and faded night sky someone had painted on the stone many years ago. The stars were mostly in silver, with various stars glittering in red and golds and blues. Allen would have believed that the dome was gem encrusted. He would hate to leave all that behind with the move.

“Does the sky really look like that out there?” Lenalee asked quietly. Allen glanced over at her. “I’ve never paid attention,” she confessed, “To the night sky. I’ve always been afraid of where I’m gonna land.” Her voice was soft and distant.

Allen returned his gaze to the ceiling. “It is,” he answered.

“In the dead of night, out on the water, the ocean and the sky look like they’re one and the same.

I remember when we left the ship. It took almost a week to arrive at the first port, and Master wasn’t kidding when he said we were leaving with you at the first opportunity. The port was abandoned in a fishing village. Rotting fishing boats were half sunk on the shore and frayed ropes were hanging from planks. The captain shouted obscenities after Master and I as we left the ship. Our suitcases and jackets were heavy with money I had swindled from the crew. I carried them while Master carried you in his arms. You had your arms wrapped around his neck as he walked, staring back at the open water behind him.

“We won’t be able to let you go anywhere near here,” Master said in your ear. “They’ll stick around, wait to find you. Is that alright?”

“What are we gonna do?” I asked.

“Stay here,” he answered. He wasn’t nearly as nice in his response to me. You glanced up at him.

“No one is here,” you whispered. You cleared your throat. “No one has been here in a very long time.”

“So you know English,” Master pointed out. The look you gave him was annoyed this time. I smothered a snort.

“I know many things,” you responded. Your eyes left his face and focused on your tail. What little was exposed was drying and the scales had lost their rainbow sheen with the disappearance of the sun. The rest was covered with a tarp. “I know it gets cold here after dusk,” you said slowly.

Master snapped his fingers at me, motioning to the first intact home nearby. It might have been the only one still standing in the town; most were a mess of fallen walls and rotting wood and everything smelled like salt water. I stepped over a neatly sawed log lying on its side in front of the house like a bench and pressed my shoulder against the door. It was locked. I tried again as I heard Master walking up the trail behind me. He grunted an order to move and I jumped aside.

His boot crashed against the door. It flew inward, rotting wood splintering. Irritation must have been eating away at him. It could have been from the cold, from the wet, from me, or from the fact that he had you wrapped in a drenched tarp in his arms; so, most likely, from the cold and the wet. I repressed a sigh. I was going to get the brunt of that annoyance the longer we stayed here.

Master’s vision had always been incredibly sharp. He could see through the darkness of the shack and set you gingerly on a water stained mattress. You patted the material with your hands. “You two need fire,” you pointed out, “if we are to stay here through the night.”

“Us two?” Master inquired. He struck a match against the dry side of his boot to light a crumpled cigarette. It barely touched the walls of the shack. It was only one room.

You nodded and tilted your head to the side. Your uncut hair fell over your shoulders. It was dry and brittle from your time in the water. “Home is much, much colder than it has ever been on land,” you said. You shrugged and straightened and stared at the wall next to you. “Or so I’ve been told.” You leaned across the mattress to brush your hand against the wood. It must have been soft from exposure. You rubbed your fingers together.

“Boy.” Master’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked up at him. He was watching you. “Go find some candles in the rubble. And clothes.” He turned his head. I could barely see the white of his mask. “Any kind.”

The biting cold of the next breeze off the sea prompted me to run.”

Allen sighed. Lenalee was leaning against his shoulder, staring up at the gems that sparkled in the stone ceiling high above. “What happened next?” she asked.

There was a loud sigh. Bright red hair fell over both Allen’s and Lenalee’s eyes as Lavi fell back, pushing his head between theirs. He stared blankly at the ceiling. “So,” he sang, “What’re we talkin’ about.”

“Mermaids,” Lenalee answered flippantly. “Allen and General Cross found one.”

“Oh yeah cause that’s normal,” Lavi responded. He lifted a small hand with a frustrated sound. “I mean, I’m a damn child so. Mermaids. Totally normal.” Lenalee suppressed a giggle. “Glad they fixed your meowing, Lena,” Lavi grumbled.

“There’s bound to be a cure in one of these boxes,” Allen commented.

Lavi grumbled again. “So. Mermaid, huh?”

“What happened next, Allen?” Lenalee prompted.

Allen laced his fingers across his stomach. “I ran through the village, looking for anything I could that could help. I found a blanket and loaded that with every piece of clothing and candle I could find or that I could carry. The village wasn’t large, and it was so quiet that I could hear you and Master talking clear as day.

“You called him boy,” you said, contempt clear in your voice. “He has a name. It’s Allen.”

“He’s my apprentice. I’ll call him whatever I want to call him,” Master replied. He sounded tired. “What do we call you, anyway?” he asked. There was a series of clicks, louder and more solid than those that a bat would make. Then silence. “If I wanted to travel with a clown, I would have found one by now,” came Master’s sharp retort.

Your laughter that followed was sarcastic and rude. You gave him your name though. “If you wanted it in a way you understood, you should have clarified,” you said.

“You’re articulate, for a fish,” he snapped.

“You’re touchy, for a man,” you replied. There was an irritated growl. “You all but kidnapped me and expect me to be kind?”

“I saved your life.”

“You forced me to trade one death for another.”

“Because being out here, on land, with someone that will make sure that you’re safe, is so much worse than being sold to a circus or slaughtered for the highest bidder.”

I pulled my haul through the door before the argument could escalate. You looked up then. Your hands were threading through your hair, pulling broken pieces away in handfuls. Master was grinding down on the filter of his cigarette. “I have candles,” I said, “and clothes. As much as I could find.”

Master yanked the first thing he could from the pile and threw it at you. “Put this on,” he said with a huff. You caught it as it hit you in the face. It was a shirt, one almost too big for you, but you pulled it on anyway. You peeled the tarp from your tail and stared at it. It was almost completely dry.

“If we move,” you said, “I’ll need something more.” Master glared at you either in frustration, irritation, or exhaustion. Or all three. “Stories say that mermaids gain legs when they come to land. That’s how humans came to be.”

Master snorted as he lit a handful of candles. He warmed the bottoms and stuck them fast against the small dining table in the room. He made quick work of all the candles I had collected. “That’s the story of humans, is it?” he asked.

You arched an eyebrow at him. Your hands were still pulling handfuls of broken strands of hair from your head. “Do you have a better one?”

“I have a more plausible one,” he grumbled. He turned to me and regarded the rest of the things I had gathered. With a sigh, he fell onto the bed next to you. “C’mere, brat,” he said. You made a rude noise and glared at him. I pulled everything I had towards the bed. “If it gets as cold as they say, we’ll need to share warmth.”

“You’ll need to share warmth,” you pointed out. You pushed yourself back against the wall, drawing your tail up to your chest. “I’ll be alright.”

Master spat his crushed filter onto a dry plank of the shack. “Right,” he commented dryly. I took the empty space between them and pulled the fabrics onto the mattress.”

Allen heaved a sigh. “It was a very long night,” he grumbled.

Lavi had the nerve to laugh. It was high pitched and childish, but it was still a mocking laugh. “Oh I bet,” he said. “Sounds like the fish was a real treat.”

“Mermaid!” Lenalee protest. She rolled over to give the child sized Bookman a dirty look. “Be nice, okay!”

He stuck his tongue out at her. Allen sighed again.

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