#started reading alkibiades

[sandwich2451]

when i grow up i want to be like alkibiades, to be (in ilja leonard pfeijffer's words) 1. extravagant 2. genius 3. sensational 4. androgynous 5. bisexual 6. controversial

[architectuals]

@alki-biades liked for a starter !!

"Oh, are you looking for him?" Kaveh let out a short laugh. "Good luck. He's not one who lets himself be found so easily. Trust me, I would know." The blonde crossed his arms, taking in a breath as he swung one leg over the other. "You're welcome to wait around, but more than likely he'll ignore us both when he returns and simply go to sleep."

The architect perked a brow, his curiosity suddenly getting the better of him. "I've never seen you around. What interest do you have in our dear scribe?"

[mimbotomy]

First lines

Tagged by the wonderful @aeide, who included first lines for both their published fics and their unposted WIPs. Y’all would be scrolling for years if I did both bc I have too many fics and WIPs so I’m just going to do the unpublished fics that I’ve worked on the last three months - and you’re still going to be scrolling a lot 😬 I’m sorry!

In the Shadow of Zeus: Kassandra’s years on Kephallonia, as seen from multiple perspectives. This probably won’t end up being the first chapter but the second, but it’s the first chronological snippet I have written.

“Alright, rub a little bit of dirt on your face,” Markos says as their first target comes into sight, “Not too much, just enough to make your tears more obvious. You sure you can cry on command?”

As she has the last two times he’s asked, Kassandra rolls her eyes at him and starts to rub some dust on her cheeks with a surprising lack of complaining for a girl who grew up in relative luxury. Or so he’s assuming, judging from the little he’s been able to figure out about his new ward, as she refuses to talk about anything that led to her washing up on that beach.

But with her Peloponnesian accent and that broken spear that barely leaves her side, he thinks it’s fair to say she’s got Spartan blood in her. Her family had money or power or both too, saying she can read and write better than he can. And for all that she’s only seven, she has some semblance of manners and grace that he’s only seen in the wealthy Achaians he used to serve before he bought his freedom.

If he had to guess, her father was a decently high ranking Spartan officer stationed in Achaia or Elis. Maybe even as far south as Arkadia, depending on how far north that storm managed to take her. And judging from the nightmares Kassandra has had every night for the last ten days, he’s dead, along with her mother and her brother.

Worse, he’s pretty sure Kassandra watched them die.

A Flap of an Eagle’s Wings: my second Odyssey time travel fix it, bc I have a problem, except in this one Kassandra comes back earlier, saves Alexios, and then fucks up the canon timeline with the help of a couple others who came back with her 😳

In the ruins of Atlantis, Kassandra closes her eyes and finally, finally, falls into the long awaited, welcome embrace of Death.

“Earth, mother of all, I greet you.”

There is a crack of thunder that shakes the earth and a strange pressure on her wrist as her body becomes weightless. Thanatos, perhaps, personally escorting her to face the wrath of the King of the Underworld.

She is not afraid though. She had been young and brash and foolish when she last faced Hades and still she had held him at her mercy and stolen his crown as a final insult before Poseidon whisked her away to Atlantis. And she is far more powerful now.

Then there is another rolling crack of thunder, the world goes white behind her closed eyes, and a bond that has been broken for almost two thousand years snaps back into place as she is thrown from Mount Taygetos a second time.

She opens Ikaros’ eyes to see the horror in Nikolaos’, the way he lurches forward as if to try and catch her and the way his face fills with grief when his hand grabs nothing but air. She watches her mother scream her name and nearly throw herself off the mountain after her, only to be stopped by Nikolaos and the other Spartans.

The last thing she sees before Ikaros forces her back to herself is the fury in Myrrine’s eyes as she steals her husband’s sword from his waist and lunges for his throat.

Untitled Alkibiades Time Loop fic: this idea came to me in like a fever dream or something and basically Alkibiades is stuck in a time loop of the day Phoibe and Perikles die trying to save them both. I have about 40/50 at least vaguely planned out and this is loop 7 as of now, the earliest chronologically written.

“Allie,” Kassandra sighs, her brows unfurrowing as she leans back onto the kline. She’s not much older than him to begin with, but she looks even younger as her brows unfurl. Softer. “You know I love you, but I barely have the time to sit right now, let alone - ”

“Phoibe and Perikles will die today.”

Confusion. Grief. Confusion again. Suspicion. He watches Kassandra’s face cycle through a thousand emotions in a second, before she settles on unfathomable rage. Quicker than he can blink, her spear is in her hand and her eyes are full of fire and it’s impossible not to see why so many call her a demigod.

“Start explaining. Now.”

Begin, Muse, When the Two First Broke and Clashed: Deimos’ thoughts, maybe chapter two will be Kassandra’s, at the Battle of Pylos. Aka a small snippet that I just haven’t been able to finish yet for some reason

Sparta has no walls. Sparta has no walls.

According to Pausanias’ foolish boasts, Sparta has no need of walls to protect her people as Athens does. Sparta’s walls are her people, every man from twenty to sixty, born and bred to die defending Lakonia from invaders.

They should build a fucking wall.

Deimos will admit that the Spartans are better trained than the Athenians that fight under his command, but to compare the two is to compare a rat to a mouse. A rat will fight for its life more viciously than a mouse will, a rat will bite harder to try and escape than a mouse will, and a rat will die just as easily as a mouse will.

These Spartans fall to him just as easily as every other man he’s ever faced.

Perhaps his so-called sister will prove to be more of a challenge for him. Otykos trained him the moment he could hold a sword in his hand and she killed him. The Monger had been a monster of a man and she had killed him. Deianeira and her cousin had been deadly for mere mortals and she had killed them. And she tears through his men as easily as he tears through the Spartans. He’d almost find it impressive, but . . . Rats and mice.

Untitled Depressing one shot: inspired by a comment on my HPxOdyssey crossover, this fic is about Barnabas and Herodotos trying to figure out what happened to Kassandra when she doesn’t come back from Atlantis.

They wait three days before they begin to worry.

Kassandra had told them she didn’t know how long her adventure in Atlantis would take when she left them. Aletheia hadn’t been very forthcoming on the details, she had complained, but she had promised them she’d be back soon as she hugged them goodbye. And since soon can mean anything from a few minutes to a few days when Kassandra says she'll be back soon, they had tried not to worry until the third day.

Herodotos finally drags him away when he tries to claw open those cursed doors to Atlantis with his bare hands, tearing his fingers to bloody shreds after he breaks half the swords and javelins on the Adrestia trying to pry those fucking doors open.

Cage the Songbird: a little inspired by the Elton John song of the same name, this is the fic I write when I’m in the middle of a depressive episode, about the last few months before Elpidios’ birth. Featuring a fling gone wrong, one sided Kassandra/Natakas, past Kassandra/Brasidas, Alexios and Kassandra learning how to be siblings without wanting to kill each other, and Barnabas and Herodotos being the best dads.

Natakas wakes up in the bed he made for two, alone, as he has every day for months now. It still hurts.

His father is awake already, sharpening his blade and occasionally stirring a pot of something meaty. He greets him with a warm smile, “Good morning, Natakas. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, father. Is Kassandra up yet?”

Darius’ smile falls a little as he jerks his head up towards the roof. Kassandra has a hammock tucked away in a small corner in their home, but most nights she sleeps on the roof, on a thick mattress her captain brought her a month ago.

Natakas hates that mattress. He hates that it’s only big enough for her, he hates that it’s softer than the bed he made for the both of them to share, and he hates that when Barnabas brought it, the old man once again tried to convince her to go back to Sparta.

Untitled Alternate POVs: Because the Children of Kephallonia is written entirely from Kassandra’s perspective, something I’m not used to doing, I’m also rewriting parts of the fic from other POVs to help me better figure out the plot, characters, relationships, etc. Just for me right now, but I’ll probably post it on AO3 or my hypothetical patreon someday.

Brasidas has been sitting and half watching the Monger’s warehouse for the last hour or so. Just watching, unfortunately, because as much as he would like to rescue the captives held behind smuggled goods, he is only one man.

Hopefully, he’ll have collected enough information on the guards and their daily routines to bring five or so of his men and raid the warehouse within the week. He can’t afford to let the Monger run wild much longer.

He makes a note that the guard at the dock closest to him switches with a guard at the warehouse door and scrapes the last bit of food from his plate. When he looks back up, the guard at the dock is gone.

Strange.

For a moment, Brasidas wonders if the dock guard just walked a little further down he thought, but then he sees movement at the far end of the dock, a little bit east from where the first guard vanished. Someone comes out of the water and pulls a guard down in the span of seconds, before both disappear entirely.

Indiana Jones and the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus: aka I watched Indiana Jones 5 and have only one braincell and it’s dedicated to loving Kassandra. Also, I wanted to write her killing Nazis 🤷‍♀️

Immortality.

He’s not surprised that’s what the Nazis are after, again. What does surprise him is that they’re not going after something from Judeo-Christian tradition, again. But after their quests for the Ark of the Covenant, the Lance of Longinus, and the Holy Grail all ended with a bunch of dead Nazis and an increasingly enraged fuhrer, perhaps he shouldn’t be so surprised that they’ve decided to look for something even more ancient.

But the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus? Or all the myths to sink their hopes in, they’ve chosen one that the world knows nothing about?

As always, I’m tagging @auroralykos and @aetosavros and anyone else who wants to do this!

[coffeeworldsasaki]

Everytime i read the name of alkibiades somewhere i start vibrating because i love that stupid Twink a normal amount

[aamuntuoja]

...

[blarfkey]

Writing Tag Game

I've been tagged by like ten people for this so thank you everyone who tagged me! @redinkofshame, @cartadwarfwithaheartofgold, @kunstpause Consider yourself tagged if you see it and like it.

How many works do you have on Ao3?

38!

What's your total Ao3 wordcount?

702,253. I would love for it to be more but I am a slow writer lol

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

1. Woodstock 83 --3480 Kudos

Xmen fic set after Apocalypse where Peter keeps getting these golden opportunities to tell Magneto/Erik that he's his son, and keeps chickening out at the last minute.

I know I wasn't the only one who walked out of that movie theater pissed that Peter came so close to admitting this secret since the previous movie and never did, so I wrote a fix it.

2. The Sun Will Shine When Morning Comes -- 2567 Kudos

The sequel to Woodstock 83, told in Magneto's POV where he's coming to terms with being a father while he cares for his sick son. This is probably my fav X-Men fic I've ever written because I loved having these two figure out what their father/son relationship would be like long after Peter has grown up and how Erik has wanted a child again but doesn't know how to process having one.

3. Jail Break -- 2488 kudos

The first Peter & Magneto fic I ever wrote and the first fic I ever published! This takes place post Days of Future Past and it shows how Magneto could have found out that Peter was his son and build that reluctant connection. Peter has a lot of freaking out about whether or not he wants to accept a supervillain as his father.

4. Clowns to the Left of Me, Jokers to the Right -- 2396 Kudos

The third part of the series Jail Break Started. For some reason this is the most popular one shot in the series. In it, Peter has a huge fight with Magneto and then gets kidnapped by The Bad Guys and doesn't think his dad will come bail him out. But of course he does! And murders everyone in the compound to do it.

5. Two Lonely Souls in a Fish Bowl -- 2361 Kudos

The direct sequel to Jail Break where Magneto keeps showing up in the dead of night to visit Peter as they both figure out how they want this weird parent relationship to be.

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Always! Even if it takes me a while. I love the interaction and I want people to feel noticed and appreciated.

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Um, i don't really like angst. I think it would be Spark Me Up for Xmen. Professor X/Magneto angst with my first ever written smut. It was a remix of another person's fic for an exchange and they had an angsty ending so I kept it.

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

The last installment in the Jail Break/Come Together Series -- Shine On You Crazy Diamond. In it, Peter's little sister Wanda comes into her powers and they go through a lot of pain before she settles into them. It ends with Peter's mom coming to stay with them and her, Peter, Wanda, Erik, and Charles becoming one big family. I've had several people tell me it made them cry lol.

Do you write crossovers? If so, what is the craziest one you've written?

I'll write something like a set of characters from one fandom in the set up/premise of another fandom/piece of media. Like Dear Fen'harel is a crossover of Dragon Age with an old book called Dear Daddy Long Legs. But I don't combine different universes of different fandoms, it's too weird for me and I can't buy into it.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

took over and finished. We have an AU in our plans but so many other fics keep getting in the way! Sort of? I wrote the first part of a Solas/Maria/Varric series that@cartadwarfwithaheartofgold

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

I did receive a weird, angry message on one of my Xmen fics because they didn't like a fight that had happened between two characters but didn't read till the end to see it resolved so the bitched at me for the fact that the fight was mean? Which made no sense. But other than that, nope.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes! Though it's not as much as my non-smut. I didn't write smut for so many years because I didn't think I knew how. I tried to write some out a few years ago and kept it to myself until one of my tumblr friends read it and said it was really good! So shout out to @salexectria, you're the reason why I write and publish smut!

I write all kinds of smut, from dub con to vanilla, from f/f, m/m, and ace spectrum characters. Its all about the characters and what would fit them/the situation more than it is about a specific type of sex.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

If I have, I don't know about it.

What's your all time favourite ship?

Ummmmmm, that's hard. I don't think I have an all time favorite. I will say that Charles/Erik (Professor X/Magneto) was my first ever "otp" that I got completely obsessed with. Actually, I have never been that obsessed with another pairing. I write pairings that I enjoy or that I want to see a certain dynamic from, but that doesn't make them my favorite above all others.

I do really love Solas/Cadash and I prefer Solas rare pairs like Solas/Dorian, Solas/Cassandra, and Solas/Josephine over Solavellan.

What's a WIP you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

I will never not finish a WIP. I hate it when it happens, even though I know IRL gets in the way, but it's so frustrating for me as a reader. So I will finish all my fics. However, I am very slow and very busy so it may take a while.

What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue and character voice. I also am really good at developing friendships and platonic bonds or the slow burn get-to-know-you part of a romance. Apparently I write good smut, though its very hard for me lol.

What are your writing weaknesses?

Descriptions and transitions and pacing.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

The only thing that bothers me is if they never put in a translations somewhere and you have to just kind of guess. I don't care about reading something in another language and having a footnote or a note at the end of the chapter. I do it all the time in DF. I do think that putting "said in {insert language here}" is a bit of a cop out.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

The first ever fandom I wrote for and never published was Harry Potter at 13. I wrote a story about a muggle neighbor who had to emergency babysit the baby Weasleys and was shocked by the magic. But I tried to submit it to a website that only published fic by application and it didn't get in and I was like "whatever, I'll just read fic" and then didn't touch fanfic again until I was . . .24 or 25 lol. I mostly focused on my original fiction.

What's your favourite fic you've written?

I can't possibly have one favorite. I do really love my Peter fics, especially The Sun Will Shine When Morning Comes. I love my ACO fic with Apollo!Alkibiades. I love my Solas/Cassandra friendship fic Time Does Not Bring Relief. And I love Dear Fen'harel, of course, because it has so many things I wanted to change for Solavellan or didn't find, as well as a good analysis of myself and how I deal with anger and sorrow and homesickness, ect. through Ellana.

[shorkbrian]

Intensity

Alkibiades headcanon.

hdkjhsfkd EW no one knows who this guy is but he’s a horny demon of a man from Assassins Creed Odyssey. He’s flirtatious to no end and the main character (it doesn’t matter if you choose the man or the woman character, Alki don’t judge babey) has the option to uh, get frisky with him at literally every single meeting. 

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Alkibiades is an intense man. His actions, intentions, the way he touches you, his gaze is always passionate and needy.

At first he would merely see you as another warm body to potentially fall into bed with. Classic Alki, the man would flirt aggressively, confident that his wit and irresistible charm would be enough for a pretty little thing such as yourself. Working in his house meant that almost everyone around you had already experienced how charming the man could be in bed.

So when you simply brushed off his obvious (and frankly, lewd) advances, Alkibiades was unable to take it as gracefully as he usually would with an individual who could not be persuaded into sleeping with him.  He propositioned almost anyone he met, so of course he knew how to be gracious and friendly when met with rejection (which happened very little).

But you? He kept coming back, unable to leave you alone after you turned him down. Instead he became bolder in his flirtations, “accidentally”  pressing himself up behind you while you bent over the table to set it, requesting you help him dress even if you were supposed to be a kitchen servant, trapping you in conversation while you worked, going into great detail about what he would do to you if only you’d let him, how good he could make you feel. Worst of all was when he would proposition you in front of his other bedmates for the night so you would appear prudish and rude if you declined.

It was uncomfortable, but you were trapped. When you had tried to go looking for other employment, you found that Alki - the conniving man - had bad-mouthed you to every single household on the island, and none of them would even look at you, simply slamming the door shut after they saw it was you that had knocked.  Servants lived in their employers house, in the servants quarters - meaning Alkibiades come to torment you even in your down time. It made you desperate to get away from him.

You were surprised when he offered to move you to another part of his house. It had seemed such an enticing deal; you would have bigger quarters, a small bathhouse attached, and most importantly, you would get more privacy. If you had to deal with the persistent and constant attention from Alki, why not benefit from his infatuation from you? Naively, you had assumed that when the man had stressed the importance of the room’s privacy to you, he was inferring that he would no longer come to harass you when you were trying to relax. He would saunter in, glaring so strongly at the other servants that they would quickly vacate, before he would begin to annoy you, trying to play with your hair or sit next to you while you read.

It’s not like he wasn’t attractive. His looks were akin to a greek god, but you weren’t seduced by his delicate features, nor his charming personality. He was your employer; nothing more, nothing less. You were convinced that all Alkibiades wanted out of you was to sate his lust for the night, another body for him to use for his needs. You intended to stay virginal until you met your true love, and Alkibiades was anything but that.

The man was convinced otherwise. In his mind, what had been just another pretty servant to serve him wine had turned into the love of his life. Yes, he wanted to bring you to bed and ravish you over and over until you were delirious with his passion, but Alki also wanted to hold you, tell you about his day, cuddle you close on the rare nights his libido was calm. He wanted you to brush his long hair, and for the two of you to bathe together and talk and laugh over meals.  He thought that you were denying his love because you were shy, because a poor, sweet little thing like you was unused to such intense and emotional feelings. He had convinced himself that it was just going to take you a little while to grow used to his love, and then he could have your body as much as he desired.

Too bad the man couldn’t ignore the more carnal side of his affections

Unbeknownst to you, the room that had seemed like such a blessing due to it’s privacy was Alkibiades own. The first night  became the night of your imprisonment the second Alkibiades stepped through the door, his eyes darkening at he saw your body stretched out on his bed. He had intended to go slow, sleeping next to you after he had already bedded another so his lewd desires wouldn’t take over. He didn’t want to frighten his little darling. But the second your eyes met his, confusion ion your face, Alkibiades knew that tonight was the night he was going to make you his.

You had struggled and squirmed and cried for him to stop, for the man to leave you alone and go to his own quarters.  He had told you that he was already there, and that everything was perfect now that his pretty little darling was there too. The revelation that you had been tricked had been terrifying, but there was hardly time to focus on it when Alki was tearing off your clothes as if he was a starved man and you were a decadent dessert made just for him.  You had resisted, trying to stop him from exposing you but his lithe frame held more strength than you thought, holding you down and taking what he so desperately wanted, what he needed.

You had passed out at some point, not in fear or pain but from pure exhaustion. Alkibiades was well versed in pleasure, and to your horror he made sure that pleasure was all you felt.  

From then on, you were never left alone. You found that your role as a kitchen servant had been replaced, and Alkibiades had a long talk with you while he laid with you the next night about what he expected and how you were to behave. You were allowed to wander and be free as you like, but you were constantly followed by three men, hired by Alki to watch over you and keep you safe when you weren’t in his sight. The three men never left your side, but they never touched you either. They wouldn’t interact with you unless you tried to leave the island, or if you tried to sleep somewhere that wasn’t Alkibiades bed.  

Once you had tried sneaking away, making sure your bodyguards were distracted before running. A short while later you had stopped to catch a breather near the beach, and to your horror the bodyguards had trotted right up to you. You immediately took off, fear pumping through your veins as you fled, but a glance behind you revealed the men weren’t chasing you, the were simply meandering after you, giving you space and talking as they jogged behind you. The third man had advanced to stride next to you, once again never touching you. When the sun had started to dip, the men had marched you back to Alkibiades house; you too tired from all that running to do anything but follow their gentle prodding. Alkibiades welcomed you home with open arms before he took you to bed, and you were too exhausted to try and push at him as you usually did, letting the man ravish you without a fight (although you still had enough energy to spit nasty words at him before he pulled out the gag).

Talking to the locals proved to be no help either, as Alkibiades had already informed them that his sweet, darling little wife had experienced head trauma and would spin wild stories. The three men that followed you were viewed as nothing more than over glorified babysitters for Alkibiades poor, darling little wife. It was humiliating and extremely disheartening, the townspeople giving you pitying looks for the wrong reason.

Anything you tried to think of to escape, Alkibiades had already considered. When you fought against the bodyguards, or tried to poison Alki, you were met with a swift, severe punishment that left you locked inside for two months before Alkibiades decided you had been good enough to go outside again. Other times he would punish you by becoming even wilder in bed, forcing you to indulge in some of his most extreme kinks. You hated those punishments the worst. You hated Alkibiades, how he had tricked you. You hated how he doted on you and reveled in his fantasy of ‘love’ between the two of you. The man had ruined your life.

There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

Nothing to do but submit

[ruzzsta214]

If anyone wants to have a read 😁

Chapters: 14/? Fandom: Assassin's Creed - All Media Types Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Kassandra/Kyra (Assassin's Creed), Kyra/Aspasia, Kyra & Layla, Kassandra & Alkibiades, Layla & Thaletas Characters: Kassandra (Assassin's Creed), Kyra (Assassin's Creed), Odessa (Assassin's Creed), Alkibiades (Assassins's Creed), Aspasia (Assassin's Creed), Layla (Assassin's Creed), Alexios (Assassin's Creed), Nikolaos (Assassin's Creed), Myrrine (Assassin's Creed), Stentor (Assassin's Creed), Thaletas (Assassin's Creed), Thyia (Assassin's Creed), Original Characters, Praxos (Assassin's Creed) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Smut, Fluff, One Shot To Multi Chapter, Angst, Kyra Cheats On Her Girlfriend, one night stand to friends to lovers, will update tags as I go, Layla & Kyra Are Best Friends, Kassandra & Alkibiades Are Best Friends, Layla & Thaletas Are Siblings, Eventual Happy Ending, Action, Kyra Is Such A Dumbass At First, Undercover FBI Agent Odessa Summary:

Kyra moves to a new town and has the hots for her sexy neighbor. She has a one night stand which she soon feels very guilty about because she is already in a relationship. Things start to get a bit crazy when her new boss requires her help with a job she can't solve on her own.

 Will Kyra be able to solve the mystery presented before her without getting herself into trouble in the process and also end up with the love of her life?

 Stick around to find out.

  Sorry I'm not that good at writing summaries so my bad if it sucks.

[straight-into-the-animus]

assassin’s creed odyssey au (or my entire rework of the game itself)

blame @himbomisthios for this

(i mained alexios in my playthrough so this is all w him as the main char sorryyyyy but the places can easily be swapped. and this gets really long. obscenely long. sorry. and spoilers for the game and its ending)

But yknow what I really want now? Like, I know it’d be impossible. But now it’s canon that both Kassandra and Alexios survived that fall. What if when Alexios had been thrown he’d fallen near Kassandra. And he’d found her on the beach, barely alive but still crying, weak and frightened. And he’s barely doing much better and he’s still so, so hurt physically and emotionally and he can still hear the voices on top of the mountain. But he doesn’t care, he just knows he has to get his baby sister somewhere safe and away from here or she’ll die. And all of a sudden there’s an eagle guiding him (?) but there’s also a boat and he has that, his sister and his grandfather’s spear and that’s all he needs and they take sail.

And the winds are rough but somehow Poseidon blesses them most of the journey and they crash and he winds up on the beach and Markos finds them and takes one look at the situation of a bruised child and a squalling infant and yes he’s Markos but he’s also a human and he takes them to the temple on the island and after a long week they’re deemed fit and the baby will live.

The Cult has no idea where the grandchildren of Leonidas are for two decades and that’s fine, and both grow up as Kassandra and Alexios, a feared mercenary pair with an eagle to share. They’re known for the stories of them carrying a broken tip of a spear they toss back and forth during combat sometimes, passing it between one and the other sometimes without their enemies even knowing they have it. Phoibe has two older “siblings” she adores and they all keep Markos in line. 

The Cult does eventually find them and they have to deal with the cyclops and as the contract for their “father’s” head draws near they have to both seek comfort from the fact of a man that let them both die. Kassandra doesn’t remember it, or Sparta or any of the pain but Alexios remembers every moment and still has nightmares. Kassandra never had to deal with the memories and Alexios never told her the full story of what happened, instead simply stating the oracle had sentenced both of them to death and they survived leaving Aparta.

Stentor is a bitch. They meet Nikoloas finally. There’s an argument between the three of them and it’s finally revealed that Nikolaos is Kassandra’s father, but Alexios is not his son and that their mother is alive, but he doesn’t know where she is. It’s only with a silently fuming Kassandra basically pulling a raging Alexios away that they leave. They don’t complete the mission and Elpenor is silently furious as he orders them dead to their faces but does that go well with two highly trained, pissed off misthioi? No. And the siblings don’t leave anyone in that house alive.

Then they learn about the cult. Slowly, things are pieced together as they search through Elpenor’s records and library, his letters and scrolls. and they learn of something dark encompassing all over Greece. Kassandra wants to go fight it. Alexios, surprisingly, finds himself holding back.

‘We’re safe, Kassandra’

‘For how long? And no one else is Greece is. Or, they won’t be’

Eventually they meet Herodotus vis a vis Barnabas, and he tells them to come to Athens to warn everyone if this threat is real. Kassandra does, Alexios follows as he always will. Athens is nice, but they find Phoibe and Alexios freaks out over the possibility of her even being there, dread filling in him, but he’s fine, he can live with it. Alexios even finds that he likes Athens, though the people there like Sokrates and Alkibiades give him more than a few headaches that need to go away with wine. Kassandra doesn’t enjoy all the talk but the fact of a break is nice.

They help around Athens with what they can, though Kassandra steers away from Kleon out of a general dislike for his attitude and something just false about him and his promises.

Neither of them forget about Myrrine and start a separate hunt for her in the months that follow. It’s then that they have their first real taste with the cult in the form of a woman Chrysis who mentions the plans they had for them, the plans they still have for the siblings. Kassandra puts her down, disturbed.

They learn that Myrrine left Sparta in grief, but the matter of finding her is difficult for a long time until their search leads them back to Athens where they might have another lead in the form of a cult member getting close to her location. But Athens is sick and cultists kill Phoibe. They find what they were looking for but Alexios is devastated beyond belief. he sees his failings. He sees what could’ve happened to Kassandra. What could happen to Kassandra if he’s not there. Kassandra is just as upset and they hold each other and let it out but it doesn’t hit her the way it hits her brother.

Alexios and Kassandra finally leave Athens and find Myrrine having taken over an island, escaping her husband and finding something new with her life. Kassandra doesn’t remember her mother but remembers the small feeling of love and leans into it. Alexios embraces it wholeheartedly, craving the familial love after so long because now he doesn’t have to be the parent, the one in charge. The next few months that follow are wonderful but things ofc cant be the way they were and for the first time ever the siblings have to split; Myrrine keeps Kassandra with her and she says Alexios needs to find his birth father, needs to learn everything. Neither of the siblings really want to split but do so. Kassandra is the one who takes the spear point while Ikaros continues to fly with Alexios.

You all know the story from here on out, just in a different way. Kassandra helps regain everything in Sparta, while bonding with her mother, and Alexios helps his father to claim everything needed for Atlantis. Kassandra falls more and more into the idea of having her mother, eventually learning the complete story of what happened to cause her to fall, how she had been let go. But she can’t share any of this with Alexios while he’s running around to help seal Atlantis.

His mom? He loves. His dad? Not so much. But he doesn’t tell anyone about the Staff of Hermes when he does get it. He hides it away someplace safe and meets up with his family in Sparta, where they’ve reclaimed their home. But he’s been so detached from everything for a long while and he doesn’t understand much of anything. He still hates Sparta, some part of him loathes it. And some part of him is jealous that he had to continue onwards mostly alone while Kassandra and their mother stayed together.

And while Kassandra is overjoyed to see her brother safe and alive she isn’t going to fall back to how it used to be where he was the big brother, the ‘protector’, because now she’s grown as a warrior and as a commander. She lets him know that the first time they fight, taking command and rushing in headfirst away from what Alexios says. In her eyes, Alexios has been fighting myths while she’s been fighting people, fighting Athenians. And she doesn’t give back the spear point. Alexios tries to tell her she needs to stay behind him, he has this, they can stay safe. But she chafes at that and they end up both just butting heads. Ikaros tries to act as a contact point, a comfort source, but it doesn’t work all that much.

The tension builds up between both of them as they keep fighting the cult, and Kleon as head of Athens takes advantage and defeats the siblings on the field of battle with plans to execute them. Disarmed and not knowing what’s going to happen next, Alexios finally uses his words and admits that he’s been responsible for everyone and everything since he was a child and that he just wants his family together and wants Kassandra safe because he can’t lose any more family. Kassandra admits that she loves her brother and missed him terribly while he was gone because she wanted the family together and only wants the same thing, just a brother who will stand at her side and support her as she will support him.

They bust out of prison. They reunite with their mother; and Nikolaos, and Stentor, surprisingly, who reconnected. The friends they made in Athens, they help demote Kleon and make him unpopular. The siblings kill him, gladly, and finally they take that one small victory as an excuse to just breathe for one night.

They honor the dead, honor those like Phoibe. Alexios and Kassandra finally make one last trek up mount Taygeytos where it began. Alexios admits the truth of the Staff and what his father said. They don’t talk about it after that and eventually after a long time go back down and everyone sits down to a meal in Sparta.

The only time they bring it back up is once the cult is defeated, finally and truly, and they’re able to breathe easier without any constriction in their lungs. Then Alexios shows Kassandra the Staff at her behest, and after some talk, after long talking and consideration, they agree. They make a deal, do what they must, and they both share the power of the Staff of Hermes, including its power of immortality, and live to see the many ages of the world together as equals, as family. And when the time comes to exit, they exit together as equals. As family.

disclaimer: this is just my interpretation based on how i read the characters please don’t get mad

[rivertalesien]

Because I’m a damn fool, I finished AC:O, Fate of Atlantis storyline and decided to download and start the Legacy of the Blade dlc, I’m really dispirited by a few things: 

If you’re playing as Kassandra, all of the female love interests wind up dead or you leave them (one of them you get to know over time and then have to kill or become enemies with. Nice). One or two can join your crew, but then you never interact with them again.

She is constantly surrounded by men and is more likely to interact with male characters as friends and partners than women. Women are either helpless or the villain. She is also subject to a few men (Alkibiades, namely and yes I know he has a History) who are so doggedly persistent in having sex with her that it’s a shame the only options are to submit or politely decline and not, say, bash them over a rock.

In this particular dlc, LotB, Kassandra meets a young man and his father (if you’re playing as Alexios, it’s a young woman) and there are immediate Heart Eyes (tm) that you have little say over. 

While I think Kassandra is a great character and I love how she is presented, I don’t see any of the “romantic” or even friendship storylines around her as anything but deeply problematic and not at all progressive for this kind of game. And no, I’m not referring to the time period she lives in. 

While there are strong attempts not to make Kassandra herself too male-gazey, the rest of the game pretty much is and almost all of the female characters we meet fall into some classic sexist and even homophobic traps.  

I remember reading about one of the dlcs ending with Kassandra marrying a man and having a child (or something to that effect), with no choice from the player. I don’t know if that dlc ending still exists or got changed (I hope it has since I suspect I’m playing it right now), but it shows how far these games have to go to do better and whose input they seriously need to make them more inclusive.  

And no, the time period should have no factoring in this. 

And if AC and Mass Effect can offer a male or female protagonist, there is no excuse for any other games not to offer the same (looking at you, Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order).

[author-morgan]

Phobia ☤ Alexios

eighteen - and the streets run red

masterlist

“Be strong, saith my heart; I am a soldier; I have seen worse sights than this.”

Fate decrees two kindred souls from two different empires will find one another, and the spear shall be made whole again.

PLAGUE RAVISHES ATHENS. Threatening to tear apart everything Perikles has worked for. The air is heavy with a foul stench –burning flesh, bile, and other excrements. A haze lingers over the city, blocking much of the sunlight from reaching the streets. A once vibrant city is laid low by disease and looks more like the underworld.

Hippokrates is burning the diseased corpses in hopes to prevent the spread, and radicals threaten him for the perceived desecration. He assures Irene there is nothing she can do to help –this plague is the result of the gods' wrath; he is sure of it.

As they near Perikles' villa, the throng of people grows thicker and at their head is Kleon the Everyman. "Kleon," Irene hisses, hands balling into fists at her side. It only takes a second of deliberation for her to begin marching toward the demagogue spurring on the disgruntled rabble of Athenian citizens. Alexios reaches out –seizing her wrist before she does anything rash. Now is not the time to pick a fight with Perikles' adversary, especially when he heads a mob. The fire in her eyes does not die down and the Eagle Bearer begins to wonder what had transpired between the two for such vivid hatred to linger in the princess' stormy gaze.

"Alexios, you're back!" A small voice calls. They both turn to find Phoibe running toward them –she stops, bouncing on her feet with a smile. "Got to run! See you at Aspasia's!"

"Wait!" Alexios calls, but Phoibe is already gone. Irene frowns. Athens is not safe for children to run about anymore. She glances up at the Eagle Bearer and can tell he worries for the girl, too –even if he tries hiding it. Irene's hand brushes over his arm –when he shifts his attention to her, she nods toward the Athenian leader's home. They would be able to find answers there.

Sentries allow them passage into the villa, no longer wary about the misthios accompanying the princess. Alkibiades is pacing outside the home's entrance –for the most part, he's always able to keep a blithe outlook, but the city's gloom and sickness weigh heavily on him. "Allie?" He turns, surprised to see Irene. By now he figured she and Alexios would be halfway across the Aegean –he'd hoped that's where'd they be– far away from a foundering city.

"You've returned, sweetling," he says, though his voice doesn't hold the same charm it usually does. Alkibiades steps aside and motions them both inside. "Aspasia will want to speak with you." It troubles Irene to see him in such a despairing mood, but she nods and follows Alexios into the villa.

The villa has turned into a safe harbor –Aristophanes, Euripides, and Protagoras are among those present. "Oh, Irene," Aspasia cries and the two women embrace. The hetaera had nearly given up hope that she and the Eagle Bearer would return after her letters had gone unanswered. Irene glances around at those gathered within the courtyard and solar, but Athens' leader is not among them. She had hoped to speak with him about the war and the Cult. "Perikles?" The princess questions softly.

"Is dying," Aspasia chokes –suddenly Alkibiades grim guise made sense too. "He won't see me or Hippokrates." Perikles avoids her, as to spare himself from listening to her worry about his wellbeing. He refuses visits from Hippokrates too –claiming the physician's skills are better served helping the people of Athens than a dying old man. The hetaera turns to the Eagle Bearer. "Alexios, he respects you. Would you see he receives his medicine?" She asks, holding out a small vial filled with a thin brown liquid.

Alexios takes the tonic and nods before leaving to seek out the leader. Irene steps into the courtyard and looks up at the dusky air –she's never seen Athens in this state before. By the look of it, the city will still be suffering for many months to come. "How long has it been like this?"

"Since the last full moon," Aspasia answers. In the first days, it was only a mild sickness, though that was all it took for the plague to tighten its grip. People from the countryside flocked to the city when the Spartan army advanced, but now not even the Spartans dare get too close. They view it as the gods' punishment for the Athenians and a sure sign they will emerge from this war victorious.

New plumes of dark smoke begin to fill the air, followed by the acrid smell of burning flesh and hair. Some days they could not burn the bodies quick enough and resorted to having the sick dig their own mass graves outside the city walls. Aspasia lays her hand on Irene's shoulder –she knows the princess is a fighter, but before she'd ever gone searching for blood, she was a healer, albeit a novice one. "There is nothing you can do," the hetaera tells her.

"Hippokrates said the same." Irene knows it is a lie, though. Medicine is in your blood. She'd helped people on the precipice of death before –from sickness or injury. Their souls meant for Hades, but Irene kept them alive. She doesn't understand why she can help others in such a way, but couldn't even save her own brother in the forest from bandits. Look what I've become, Zephyr.

Aspasia leaves the courtyard and goes to the adjoining solar. She's amassed several scrolls about Irene's father and the Order since the last time the princess was in Athens. She lays them on the altar and tells the princess what they are. Irene unrolls one of the smaller pieces of papyrus and frowns. She evaded us in Argos the scroll reads in hurriedly written script and now she has the Eagle Bearer as a companion. Irene picks another scroll from the pile. We've come to an agreement then? Do as you will with Deimos and the brother, but the exiled princess is our claim. "How did you come by these?" She inquires, it seems odd that Aspasia is always the one to have news of the Cult and Order.

"Thucydides came across Persian scouts in Boeotia," Aspasia explains, "the ones regarding your father were sent from Kos." Alexios has not returned from delivering Perikles' medicine, and the hetaera begins pacing the perimeter of the courtyard, overwrought by something. Irene lays down another scroll and turns her attention to Perikles' partner. "What is it?"

"I expected Phoibe back by now-" Aspasia admits, turning back to Irene "-I sent her to Anastasios to see about a ferry."

It's at that moment the Eagle Bearer joins them. "You sent her out alone?" Alexios asks anger lacing his question. He would've stopped the girl before she'd run off if he'd known what she was meant to do. "I'm going to find her," he says, glancing between the two women before turning to leave.

"Why would you send a child out alone when the city is like this?" Irene demands. Aspasia blanches when as she recalls who else is within the city.

PERIKLES TAKES IT upon himself to leave his villa to pray at the Parthenon, telling no one of his intentions. When Aspasia realizes he is missing, she asks Sokrates and Hippokrates to find Alexios. Irene will escort her to the Acropolis.

From the steps of the Acropolis, the extent of the plague can truly be assessed. Pyres and columns of blackened smoke pock the city. Athens is but a shadow of what it had once been. Irene turns from Aspasia upon hearing someone approach –her grip on the broken spear loosens when she sees who it is. "Alexios," she sighs, relieved, but his eyes are red, cheeks streaked with dried tears, and his hands stained with blood. Her heart sinks. "No," she whispers. Phoibe.

"Quickly, Alexios," the hetaera says, motioning toward the temple's entrance. He stays rooted in place, gaze downcast. The grief is still too fresh. Irene lays her hand on his cheek and feels her own lip start to tremble. "What's gotten into you?" Aspasia inquires –the question sounds harsher than she'd intended.

"Phoibe is dead," Alexios chokes, pulling away from Irene's gentle touch. His brow furrows, hands clenching into tight fists. "She's dead because you sent her to do your work," he exclaims.

Aspasia takes a step back at the accusation. "No...I," she stumbles over the words, disbelieving, "it's not true. Phoibe wanted to go. She told me she would be all right." The words are hollow to Alexios and only serve to ease the hetaera's guilt.

"And you believed a child," he spits. Irene rests her hand over the scars wrapping around his arm, trying to bring him out of the trance of grief and rage.

"You know Phoibe! She wouldn't have taken no for an answer. It was out of my hands," Aspasia says.

"Out of your hands?" Alexios shouts with the tears in his eyes renewed. "You sent her away! You could have protected her!"

"What I asked of her was needed to protect Perikles," Aspasia explains. "She lived to help others, Alexios. She lived to help you."

The statement makes him go quiet for a moment and he finally notices the soft grip Irene has on his arm. "She should be here," he says, voice strangled with emotion.

"Of course, she should," Aspasia replies, her voice going soft. "You know the cost of living this life."

Alexios' gaze darts to Irene. "I do," he replies, "but did Phoibe?"

Hippokrates and Sokrates arrive on the verge of panting –they'd come as quickly as they could, but the streets were turning to madness. A low wailing comes from inside the temple. Alexios moves to the head of the group and shoves both of doors open and drawing his spear.

"Perikles!" Aspasia screams and both she and Irene move toward where Athens' leader is at the feet of Athena's likeness. Sokrates and Hippokrates restrain Aspasia. Alexios holds back Irene. A woman clad in gold and dark steel armor is leaning over Perikles. She holds Perikles' bloodied face and forces the leader to look upon his friends, her dark gaze following. Irene sees the resemblance immediately and knows who she is. Deimos.

Alexios' grip on Irene's bicep tightens when his sister raises her blade to the leader's throat with a flourish. Deimos drags the full length of her sword across Perikles' neck and lets the leader collapse onto the tiled floor before rising –covered in blood. "Stay out of my stay," Deimos rasps and three cult guards take her place as she disappears behind the statue of Athena. The Eagle Bearer releases Irene and unsheathes his sword –she does the same.

The hair on the back of Irene's neck rises and she sidesteps the cultist guard before he can even start the forward motion of his blade. Irene steps up onto a terra cotta vase and leaps onto the guard's shoulders, plunging the spear deep into the area of exposed flesh where shoulder meets neck. She twists the spear -something snaps and cracks then the man is falling forward into the shallow reflecting pool. The other guards' attention is focused on Alexios. He blocks both advances, sword behind his back –spear pushing forward.

Irene approaches the guard at his hindmost and kicks the cultist guard's knee inward –quick to drive her broken spear into the back of his neck as he falls. The man gurgles blood for only a moment before she pulls the blade free. Alexios turns looking down at the corpse lying before his feet and to where another lies in the shallow pool –the water now tainted. His gaze shifts to Irene. Her hands and spear are coated in blood, her eyes ringed with the same golden light he'd seen in the forge on Andros.

The princess drops her spear and kneels next to Aspasia where Perikles' body lies. The hetaera turns toward Irene, leaning against her shoulder. "You cannot stay here, Aspasia," she tells her. Athens will be too dangerous for her in the wake of Perikles's death, and Kleon is unlikely to offer sanctuary.

"We need to get back to the Adrestia," Alexios announces. Irene nods and helps Aspasia to her feet. She looks over her shoulder at the corpse of her partner for a final time before exiting the Temple of Athena. The Eagle Bearer moves ahead of the small group, scouting out guards and empty alleyways to pass through. Hippokrates, Sokrates, and Aspasia follow the princess, the former armed with a shovel and rake.

Several steps ahead, Irene watches as Alexios steps up behind a soldier and clamps his hand over the man's mouth. The flailing is over in an instant after a quick twist and the soldier slumps forward, unmoving. There'd been no sound, no blood. He looks back and motions toward one of the warehouses south of the Temple of Asklepius.

The docks are desolate –no one is entering or leaving the plague-ridden city– but the Adrestia is waiting for them –lit braziers like a beacon in the night. Alexios and Irene share a quick look before stepping out into the open. The others follow. "Stop!" A voice shouts, and the five of them halt -turning to face those who dare try to hinder their escape. "Kleon has ordered no one to leave Athens." The Athenian strategos glances between the two women, recognizing them. "He wants Aspasia and Irene brought to him."

"I'm not going," Irene spits, tone acerbic. Aspasia steps up next to the princess, head held high despite how her world was crumbling. "Nor am I," she echoes.

"Don't let them leave," the strategos commands his men and they all draw swords.

"Stay behind me," Alexios tells them. Irene steps up at his side, sparing him a quick disproving glance –sword and spear drawn. "Stay behind us," she amends. They move in sync with one another. A storm of grace and fury. She blocks an overhand blow, twists, and swings backward -opening her attacker's throat. A spear is thrust towards her, but Alexios deflects it with his sword and catches the wooden shaft. He wrenches the spear from his opponent's hands and hacks his blade down into the man's skull, splitting open both metal and bone.

Only the Athenian strategos is left and both Irene and Alexios turn their attention to him at the same time -stalking forward. None of the gods can save him from the princess and Eagle Bearer. He sweeps his spear in a wide arc. They step back then move forward. Irene slips to her knees and drives her broken spear deep into the man's leg. His howl of pain is cut short by a quick slice to the throat.

The philosopher and physician agree to stay in the city. They will do what they can for the people and try to reign in Kleon's control. Irene does not wish for them to stay, for as soon as Perikles' body is found she knows riots will erupt in the streets. She does not protest their decision, though. "Stay safe," the princess whispers, placing a chaste kiss on Hippokrates cheek. "Stay alive," she utters, reciprocating the gesture with Sokrates. "And please, give Phoibe's body the proper rites," she all but whispers. Both men bow their heads as she steps back and boards the Adrestia.

ALEXIOS SITS NEXT to Irene at the stern of the Adrestia -Athens is already behind them on the horizon. Even after all this time, the Persian princess is still a mystery to him. She glances at him and then to the dried blood under her fingernails. "Why do you hate Kleon so much?" He hadn't really thought Irene was capable of harboring such odium. She has a gentle heart, and he knows something must have happened for a black streak to form.

Aspasia overhears the question and turns abruptly. "She hasn't told you?" She seems surprised that Irene has not voiced the reasons behind her hatred to the misthios, especially given that they seem so fond of one another.

Irene crosses her arms, face twisting in anger and disgust. She's never longed to shed blood needlessly, but given half the chance she'd mount Kleon's head on a pike outside the gates of Athens for the world to see. "He has hounded me since I became a woman." In truth, the moment her chest was no longer flat marked the beginning of his unrelenting and unwanted attention. He'd even went so far as to try poisoning her brother to force her into a union.

"One time he paid-off common street criminals to carry her off, strip her and leave her in the woods for him to rescue," Aspasia recounts.

The misthios' expression contorts to outrage. "What happened?" He asks.

"I killed them before they could lay a hand on me," Irene answers, uncrossing her arms, "and found the scroll written in Kleon's hand promising them drachmae for their cooperation." Perikles had been wroth after learning of his adversary's scheme, even Zephyr had been on the verge of taking up arms. Alkibiades had even tried hiring a mercenary to do away with the then captain until Perikles found out about his plan.

Tired, Irene rises from the bench –her hand briefly moving to Alexios' shoulder before taking leave to the bow where she's amassed a small collection of pillows and pelts during their travels. He watches her go –resisting the urge to reach out and take her hand to pull her back.

Barnabas inspects the ship deck, as is his nightly routine and comes to stand next to Alexios at the helm of the Adrestia. The captain looks between the commander and Irene at the bow of the ship with his good eye. The Eagle Bearer can hide his exhaustion and worry, but he's failed to hide his feelings toward the princess –or at least Barnabas can see it plainly. "You should get some rest, commander," he says, clasping him on the shoulder. Alexios follows Barnabas's gaze and lets out a heavy sigh, knowing the captain's intentions. "What?" He shrugs. "You two are good for each other."

Alexios shakes his head and turns, leaning against the railing. "She's a princess, Barnabas-" he crosses his arms wearing a look of defeat. The old sailor has never seen such a quailing expression on the misthios's face before. "-I'm just a mercenary." Yet he's never felt the same kind of connection with another being that was so strong and consuming. He'd felt it ever since coming across her on the beaches of Samos. After years, he'd finally found the girl that haunted his dreams and she was perfect.

"I don't think she cares about that," Barnabas replies. If Irene cared about titles and status, she would have never agreed to sail with them on the Adrestia.

"Barnabas is right," Herodotus chimes, appearing to his right. "Go to her."

He listens to the historian and captain and kneels at her side, unsure of what to say or do. Frustrated, he begins to rise but a delicate hand seizes his wrist before he can stand. "Alexios," Irene breathes, pulling him back to his knees. "Stay," she says and he does, laying at her side, gazing up at a starless night sky. "I'm sorry about Phoibe," Irene whispers. She hadn't known the girl for very long, but in a short span of time, she'd come to admire her. A headstrong girl with a penchant for trouble that reminded Irene too much of herself.

"She-" Alexios bites down on the inside of his cheek to stay the tears that surface when he recalls Phoibe calling out his name, afraid "-she'll go to the Fields of Elysium," he tells her, voice heavy with grief. Irene rolls onto her side and tentatively lays her hand on his cheek. Seeing him fighting to restrain such dolor and pain makes her heart ache. You don't have to be the face of strength all the time she wants to tell him, but the words are stuck in her throat. Alexios covers her hand with his own and gently slides it toward his lips –he kisses the center of her palm and releases her hand.

Irene moves her head to rest on his chest. He stiffens and she quickly distances herself, face burning red. Alexios shakes his head and draws her back toward him, arms wrapping around her waist. "Stay," he breathes, pressing his cheek into the crown of her head. He hadn't been able to protect Phoibe, and it is a mistake he will not make again. Alexios makes a silent vow that he will always protect Irene as he begins humming a hauntingly familiar lullaby.

[felassanis]

Everything I love about Assassin’s Creed

1. Ezio da la la la

2. If you idle for long enough in Odyssey Ikaros comes and lands on Alexios’s/Kassandra’s arm and then alexios/Kassandra will greet him.

3. Edward’s outfit is by far my favourite Assassin robe. It looks so fooking cool.

4. Alkibiades

5. The first mission in Assassin’s Creed III. Finding the temple and it coming alive with all the lights and the humming was so fucking cool and the theatre with Haytham was such a good way to start the game, I loved the environment that went with the theatre and the parkour was really good too, everything was good even though I had no idea why we were there in the first place lol.

6. SHAUN HASTINGS

7. Edward’s tattoos being the only reason why I go whaling in AC:Black flag

8. The dynamic between Jacob and Evie, I’ve always wanted a twin duo in a game and Jacob and Evie Frye were awesome and y’all keep sleeping on them.

9. The different colour schemes in Assassin’s Creed 2 for the different cities gave the locations their own feel and vibe and it differentiated them from each other while also ensuring that the landscapes were utterly gorgeous. For example, Venice had cooler colours, very blue and silver while Florence was warmer, with more orange and brown thrown into the mix. It really gave those maps their own identity and it was great.

10. All of Lineage. all of it, it was flipping fantastic and I know it’s not a game but it was brilliant and the other Assassin’s Creed movie will never top it despite Michael Fasbender being in it.

11. That cutscene in Black Flag where Blackbeard lights his beard on fire, I love that historical accuracy because it was very likely true and it’s so SO bad-fucking-ass

12. Alkibiades

13. How quickly I fell in love with Frederico Auditore despite the fella only having about 5 lines.

14. Also just how quickly I came to love the Auditore family, that was how well written they were, that I fell in love after 30 minutes with them. 

15. LEONARDO DA VINCI

16. Desmond Miles’s snark.

17. ‘Hey whatta matta with you altair,’

18. SHAUN HASTINGS

19. How buffy Kassandra is

20. The hookblade was actually amazing in Revelations and I’m in full support that it shouldbe brought back. The noise it made was also oddly satisfying too?

21. The Glyphs in AC2 were spooky and ominous and I refused to do the last mission until I had found all of them and uncovered the Truth. Because that entire side quest was full of anticipation and the creepy vibe the Glyphs gave off and how the footage of Adam and Eve was cut up and glitchy was just really interesting and it peaked with a climax.

22. LEONARDO DA VINCI

23. The golden beads in Alexios’s hair.

24. And Alexios just being an overall gorgeous human being who’s face was chiselled by the gods.

25. The flying machine mission in AC2 while really aggravating if you didn’t do it the first time was also really fun and getting to see Leonardo all giddy and happy made it worth it.

26. I don’t know if it’s just me? but Connor’s hair? like I know for a fact that I like men with long hair but something about his hair and the feather intertwined into it was just really appealing? and while I know why Connor shaved his hair I couldn’t help but screech when he did lmao but that’s because it’s obviously not my tradition and it’s abnormal to me. pfft

27. Revelations is one of the best AC games and I’ll fight anyone on this. It was phenomenal given how it finally concluded Ezio’s story (and remember Ezio was the face of the franchise for years and he was fan favourite and still is so there were some pressure and expectations) and how it also concluded Altair’s story.

28. Altair wasn’t that interesting in the original game but Revelations added depth and layers to his characters and made him way more intriguing. The game also gave this character important significance to the lore and I think that’s the perfect way to honour the guy who started it all. As much as we love Ezio, Altair came before and without him, Assassin’s Creed wouldn’t quite be the way it was today. (although it’s up to you if that’s a bad thing or not lmao)

29. And seeing Ezio old and matured, becoming this wise legend of a man was really cool and getting to play as him in his final journey was both heartbreaking but satisfactory.

30. I have to give a massive applause to Ubisoft for making Leonardo gay as well in Brotherhood prominently. I don’t think it was ever proven historically if he was? but it was rumoured? and yet Ubisoft went and made it canon giving that representation while also having Ezio outright say he’s okay with Leonardo dating men?! Like, in that time period if you were gay you could go to prison and the general view of homosexuality was that of disgust and yet Ezio is just here supporting his best friend? hell yes.

31. ALKIBIADES

32. I have certain feelings with Unity, but I won’t lie that the parkour was spot on in that game.

33. Gideon Emery....just Gideon Emery as Reginald Birch. The character’s a massive prick but god...that voice.

34. Connor mentioning his grandfather Edward as he’s sailing the Aquila.

35. Getting to see the wreck of the Jackdaw in Assassin’s Creed Freedom Cry was gut-wrenching.

36. Finally getting to pet animals in ACIII.

37. Finally getting to feed pigs in a video game ^^

38. SHAUN HASTINGS

39. OKay, I like Shaun because the guy is really entertaining and he’s British like me and I need to see this fucker in future games again...because after Syndicate he just vanishes and we got...Fucking Layla ugh.

40. The Naval combat in Black Flag is unmatched, fighting other ships never felt like a chore and it was fun and thrilling and the rewards felt deserving. And the feeling of taking down your first Man’o War is RIVETING.

41. Rebecca calling the Animus ‘Baby’

42. She’s another character I want to see come back. And she and Shaun better come back and be alive.

43. Lucy being a Templar was a plot twist I never saw coming but I was all for that angst especially when it seemed like they were setting up what I thought was the inevitable Desmond x Lucy romance. But I guessed wrong.

44. Yusuf Tazim being the joy and light of Revelations. fuck you Ubisoft

45. Ezio’s family theme song is the most iconic video game songs ever.

46. The introduction of Alkibiades in Odyssey, what a great way to introduce a character. like seriously, I fell in love with that fucker the moment he started speaking and felt up Kassandra’s arms while being half naked and wasted.

47. Bayek being a breath of fresh air in wonderfully written complex characters whose story was powerful and tragic. He needs a sequel.

48. Assassins Creed Brotherhood’s trailer being iconic.

49. When returning to Florence to retrieve the apple and you bring Ezio back to his old home only to see the ghosts of his entire family waiting for him. I was gobsmacked when that happened and it’s such a beautiful detail.

50. Mary Read/James Kidd being one of the best characters in Black Flag and leader in the ‘did not deserve it’ club. Every minute of her was flipping terrific and her significance in Edward’s story as one of the driving points that turned him into a better man was great.

51. I cried at the end of Black Flag.

52. The little text about Shaun sobbing when you look at the database on Desmond the dog in Syndicate.

53. The lip scar being shared between Desmond, Ezio and Altair was a cool detail.

54. The interchangeable cloaks in ACII.

55. Henry Green was so soft, kind and lovely and I honestly adore him.

56. Cane swords in Syndicate WERE AWESOME

57. NO fall damage in Odyssey. Keep this feature I don’t care how impossible it is for me to survive a jump off of a giant statue of a naked god it’s cool and I want it for every other game about to be released.

58. If you walk through grass in Origins Bayek sticks his hand out like that scene in Gladiator.

59. The scene in ACII Where Ezio uncovers his father’s robes from the chest and holds it up, It’s an incredible scene and the music fits so well with it and if you’ve watched Lineage it’s all the more amazing.

60. Rosa being pretty and terrifying in ACII.

61. The Bleeding effect being that other thing in lore that is SO BLOODY INTRIGUING and I wish it was explored a bit more. Can you actually imagine having the bleeding effect? where you can’t tell the past and the present apart? where you see ghosts from the past and hear voices no one else hears? jesus,..

62. getting answers about Clay/Subject 16. Ever since he left that writing in the wall with his own blood I was hooked on his story and thank god we got answers and a face to the legendary name. I wouldn’t mind more of him though.

63. I’ve always been fascinated with Native Americans and finally getting to explore them a bit more in ACIII proved to be interesting and I hope it was satisfactory representation for Native Americans.

64. finally getting to play in the present day in assassin’s creed brotherhood and 3, like actually getting to run around and explore as Desmond.

(I did a post like this on my old blog and I’ve rewrote them on here but I also got some new things, I just like having a post like this on my blog and I like seeing people who also agree with these brilliant features in this franchise, you can pretty much tell which two games are my favourite lol, Black Flag and 2 will always have a special place in my heart,)

[mimbotomy]

fanfic writing asks: 10, 12, & 16!

Questions found here!

10: Favorite line or lines of dialogue that you've written

I actually did a similar prompt a while ago and while I couldn’t decide between a bunch of quotes then, I think I've narrowed it down to this little snippet from chapter 5 of The Children of Kephallonia, With No Hesitation:

So when their training session ends so they can eat, Kassandra beckons Phoibe over, kneeling down to grip her shoulder and look her easily in the eye. She is not Nikolaos - she will be better than Nikolaos - but there are no other words than the ones her father gave her so long ago, “You are my greatest pride, Phoibe. Remember that.”

12: What WIPs do you have going now? Are you excited about them?

Besides my posted fics, I have three WIPs that’s I’m actively working on, and by actively working on I mean I’ve opened them in the last month and think about them constantly and especially when I’m trying to work on my posted fics 😂

First is A Flap of an Eagle’s Wings, which will be my second Odyssey time travel fix it fic, except Kassandra and two others come back a lot earlier than in Rebirth and accidentally end up setting everything on fire in an attempt to fix things.

Second is my untitled time loop fic, in which Alkibiades keeps waking up the day Perikles and Phoibe dies. Chaos ensues.

Third, the Percy Jackson trailer inspired me to go back to my crossover fic which somehow ended with me starting a NEW FIC. So now I am working on the Personal Journal of Herodotos of Samos - with unauthorized annotations from Kassandra the Eagle Bearer and Barnabas of the Adrestia - from Delphi to Athens to Sparta to Atlantis and everything.

16: 3 favorite comments ever received on fanfic.

A little long, so I put them under a read more!

From the Children of Kephallonia, A Night for Blood

This story is awesome! I love Assassin's Creed but I never find any good fics for it. Then, while searching for an Edward and Conner fic (not romantic, mind you) I found this gem. You are righting a wrong that I didn't think would ever be fixed. On top of that, your writing is superb. I don't think I found a single grammatical error in seven chapters. I don't think that's ever happened to me before. Your descriptions are vivid and the characterization is excellent. Well done! I hope you continue with this fic, because this is incredible.

From Rebirth, Sparta II

That was so cool. Kass sounds like she's a force of nature, literally blowing everyone away multiple times or shaking the ground when she and Alexios spar. Also the constant, jumping and flipping gives the fight scenes some movement and make it feel fast paced. Which actually makes me compare Kassandra to a bird, all mobile and flipping and flying around. I guess the Ikaros part of her soul is influencing her. I like seeing how other people see Kassandra because it's like, do they see her as a demigod more, do they approve of her un-Spartan like lifestyle and all that. Also I like Stentor's point of view he's just done with it all or Nikolaos' gemeral confusion on what the hell is going on. They're funny 🤣

From Not a Málakes Ravenclaw, Molly I

I don't understand how you keep making great fics, and making them all feel new, and not just recycled ideas from your other fics. I didn't think a Harry Potter/Ac Odyssey fic would work but here we go with me wanting another chapter after I just finished reading what I'm thinking is gonna be another great fic from you. I like how Kassandra says all they traumatizing things and the other are freaked out that she's just nonchalantly saying something so crazy, like confirming God's exist or that her dad threw her off a cliff at such a young age. Thank you for writing these great fics, I'm always excited when I see you upload another chapter.

[shipsnthenight]

I guess I might as well answer to these in the same post. This is going to get long guys, I’m sorry but I have A LOT of thoughts on this.

So, apparently Ubisoft graduated from the BioWare school of giving-you-choices-just-to-ultimately-take-them-away with flying colors. 

Sigh... I’ve had a couple of hours to think about this and after really giving it some thought and looking at what Ubisoft said in the past, I guess I’m kinda-maybe-almost fine with it... ALMOST.

BEFORE YOU GRAB THE PITCHFORKS at least hear me out okay!?

DISCLAIMER: This applies to ME, MY Kassandra and the way I chose to play this game. I am not going to try and justify Ubisoft in any way, I’m just going to tell you the way I’ve chosen to see it. Because yes, this sucks BIG TIME, but I am not going to let Ubisoft ruin what has been one of my most enjoyable gaming experiences of this year. I just won’t. 

So here’s what I think: 

First of all... let’s just acknowledge the elephant in the room that has been there since Odyssey’s announcement in June: 

- How can you have a game based on choices when you’re re-living someone’s memories and when your story is inside a much bigger universe that has already been set in stone by 10 previous games? 

- Yeah... you can’t. There MUST  be something that is fixed, some events that you can’t possibly influence, so you have to take into account events like “biology” and “babies being born” at some point.

- In more than one occasion, everyone at Ubisoft always referred to Kassandra and Alexios as “bisexual”. 

I feel like this is the important one that’s going to seal the whole thing shut.

Many of us (including me) assumed that this was just the easy way they referred to them while in development, but they never said explicitly to us that we had the right to consider them anything different than that (my god I hope I’m explaining myself right... English is not the first language here) so technically they could totally simply be bisexual and just “not into” the people we chose to not have romantic encounters with during our personal games. 

Technically Ubisoft never lied, and we just assumed... technically.

Now we get to the tricky part, the one I’m going to TRY and accept. It’s still going to sting, but I guess I’ll swallow it if I have to, just to keep a positive attitude and don’t throw away 283 hours of gameplay. 

Okay, so let’s assume for a second that my Kassandra is 100% a lesbian because I chose to play the game that way.

Personal note and THE REASON WHY I’M ULTIMATELY KINDA-ALMOST-NOT-MAD-AT-THEM-AND-MAYBE-FINE WITH THIS: Technically my Kassandra did sleep with Alkibiades on multiple occasions, so she is “okay” with dick. What she’s not okay with is the fact that Darius’ son is waaaaay too much of a crybaby for her, not her type AT ALL, I totally don’t see her falling for... that so hard that she decides to start a family with him... but that’s another problem I guess.

In a previous post (click to read), weeks ago, I did bring up this topic (on the wrong assumption that Kass must have had to be related to Layla somehow, but the concept was there anyway) ...at some point in the past 2500 years, she must have had a kid... right!? 

I’m going to speak very frankly on this. In my opinion, 2500 years is a LONG-ass time to absolutely never question the fact that you don’t like dick, so she must have been at least curious what the fuss was all about at some point.

Now, I’m aware of the fact that this argument would be more valid if the DLC wasn’t happening when you’re level 28, so like... literally in the early years of Kassandra’s mortal life... but it’s the only semi-coherent argument that comes to mind... I hope if it’s not enough for someone, at least it’s a start.

If you’ve actually read this far into an actual unfiltered train of thought, I applaud you, I hope this long-ass post at least gave you some sort of... something.

[the-redlion]

A Question Game!

I was tagged by @ladynyxeris! Thank you! so much!!! I love reading your.

Rules: answer the questions and then tag 20 people (probably not gonna do that ^^: Most people I know have already been tagged aaaaand I am so weird with bothering people).

Name: Kelsey. 

Nickname: Well... at my job they call me Mako. It started in school because I loved sharks so much... kinda made its way into my job. ^^;

Star sign: Taurus.

Gender: Female. (as I was typing this, it autocorrect it to Feral... what are you trying to say computer?)

Sexuality: Um, I honestly don’t know. I know that’s odd. I have always been sexually attracted to men... BUT, I did date a woman for three years. I fell in love with her, then it kinda migrated into a sexual attraction. Never felt that way for another woman since, and I married a man. So... yeah... idk... Do you know?

Favourite Colour: RED!

Time right now: 7:55 AM CST.

Average hours of sleep: I have no idea. my job tends to make that go all over. Though I try to get to bed at the same time.

The last thing I googled: Some research content for a new D&D Character. We are playing in the “real world” this time, but it takes place in 800 BCE so I had to do my research on the time period. I know... pretty nerdy.

Number of blankets: One.

Favourite fictional character: Omg, I can’t choose!! I honestly think I have a top three... and that would be Cullen Rutherford, Kaidan Alenko, and Paladin Danse... but I am gonna still name more... haha.

Cullen Rutherford - Dragon Age.

Alistair Theirin - Dragon Age.

Zevran Arainai - Dragon Age.

Paladin Danse - Fallout 4.

Kaidan Alenko - Mass Effect.

Reyes Vidal - Mass Effect Andromeda. 

Marcurio - Skyrim.

Thaletas - Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.  

Alkibiades - Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.

Darien Gautier - Elder Scrolls Online.

What are you wearing right now: my uniform... I kinda just got home.

Favourite book: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas.

Favourite musician: B.B.King. I love the Blues, and I love playing it on my guitar. 

Dream Job: Honestly, my current job. I am a Firemen. It was a hard ass journey to get here... but I am loving it. ( I just made LT too at 27! ^^;)

Number of Followers: 14... hehe, but they are the most beautiful and amazing 14 people!!!

When did you create your account: Well this account is maybe only a month old. My old account I had since I started playing Dragon Age Inquisition... so like 2014. I left that account due to harassment. >_>

What do you post about: Id say about 90% Gaming related content.... then the other 10% is kinda just mood stuff, lol.

What made you get an account: Gaming content really. I found a lot of the stuff I was liking on Pinterest was linking me over to Tumblr

When did your blog reach its peak: lol... well my old one did really well when Dragon Age Inquisition came out... after that it kinda mellowed out. This one is a baby, so it hasn’t done much. Plus, I have been more into the Fallout Fandom on here. 

Do you get asks on a daily basis: No ^^; Though I am pretty new to this fandom. it took me a long time to get outta my shell with the last fandom too... haha

Why did you choose your URL: Well this is a kinda deep story. I was pregnant when I was 22, with a set of twins. I lost them at 26 weeks. When we got pregnant again, this time with my son, we called him “Our little Lion” because he was a fighter. My son’s first name is Rory, which means Red King... so we started calling him Red Lion. my gamer tag is named in a similar fashion.

Now, the tagging part: Well I am kinda shy about this... gaming stuff is okay, but I feel weird with more personal content... so if you wanna go for it, consider yourself tagged! I honest would love to see it.

[imtrynnawriteshit]

Hey! Hello! Its been a while I'm sorryyy haha. Been playing Odyssey a lot this quarantine and I've been missing Alkibiades quests so bad and thought of you! Today on Instagram Alexios and Kassandra did a live q&a and of course I was nosy and asked about our boy Allie. Turns out Alexios and Allie had dance offs while filming. To "Its Raining Men." To say I was excited was an understatement. I think I'm required by law to draw this now. Ironically, learning this made me miss Allie even more.

There’s no need to apologise at all, buddy!!

(Also not to be problematic but I may have gotten a little teary-eyed when I read that you thought of me)

I feel you, though, I’ve been playing Syndicate a lot and while I’m planning to switch over to Odyssey soon, I don’t think I can do that w/o starting the thing I’ve wanted to write for a certain Mr. Frye

(And also a Ms. Frye lbh we all know I’m weak for powerful womeneg. - Kass lmao)

Pls...pls if you do draw that, pls tag me in it I need to see it pls