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four-loose-screws · 4 years

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FE4 Suzuki Novelization Translation - Chapter 9 Part 5 (The grand finale!)

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Chapter 9: And So, the Door of Fate Opens...

Part 5

Sigurd gathered his entire army in front of the castle and announced that the war was over.

He then went on to thank everyone for all their hard work, and stated that those who were not from Grannvale and wished to return home, should do so now.

That night, a huge celebration banquet was held at Velthomer Castle.

The next day, those who wished to return home did so. The Silessian soldiers and Orgahill Pirates traveled to the north, the Augustrian soldiers to the west, and the Isaachian soldiers to the east.

Before they left, Sigurd generously divided the army’s remaining funds between all of them.

There were less than two hundred soldiers remaining.

The next morning, they started their final march together.

They spent the night at a town along the way, and arrived in Belhalla Field the next afternoon.

There, the Roten Ritter was lined up and waiting for them.

When Lewyn saw them, he said to Sigurd, “There’s way too many people here, don’t you think?”

Sigurd nodded, stopped Farron, and turned towards his army. “If we move towards the palace in a large unit, then we will invite another misunderstanding. I’ve decided the army will stay here, and only a limited number of people will accompany me during my audience with the emperor.”

He then chose who would go with him - Lewyn, Claud, Lex, Azel, Brigid, Ayra, Jamke, Alec, Noish, Arden, Midir, Beowulf, and Chulainn. He left out Erinys and Lachesis.

Only less than twenty people joined him, walking slowly down the long path formed between the two lines of the Roten Ritter on either side of them.

Finally, they could see the Belhalla Castle gate.

Arvis stood before it.

When Sigurd’s group stopped in front of him, he dismounted his horse, and said, “Lord Sigurd, it is with joy that I officially recognize your return home. Congratulations.”

"Duke Arvis, we apologize for making you come all this way just to greet us. If I may ask, is His Majesty in the palace?"

"His Majesty is so gravely ill, that he cannot even leave his bed anymore. That is why I am handling all government affairs myself now."

"So that's what's going on. It pains my heart to hear it. His Majesty was very worried about me, so I will visit the palace after this to apologize to him."

"You will not be able to do that."

"Huh?"

"You will die here as a traitor. I cannot allow you to see the king."

"Wh-What are you… Duke Arvis, what do you mean?"

"Muah ha ha, you mean you haven't realized it yet? You're so soft! You plotted with Duke Byron to usurp the throne! There is no changing that fact. As the husband of the late Prince Kurth's daughter, I must punish you! Don't take it personally."

'He's such a good person, that it makes him a fool.' Arvis thought as he looked at Sigurd's face, dumbfounded in disbelief.

'Byron, Reptor, Lombard, Ring, Chagall, Dakkar… they were all such foolish men, and fools stand in the way of the utopia I am constructing. The nicer those like Sigurd are, the more of an obstacle they are. So there is no other option but for them all to die.'

The ideal Arvis had imagined was the construction of the Grannvalian Empire. The foundation of that empire would be equality. Everyone would be equal no matter which country they came from, the commoners would be protected from the self-centered orders of the nobles by law, and all people would be guaranteed freedom of religion. Of course, the followers of the Loptr Church would not be persecuted either, and would be able to freely worship Loptous.

The truth was, that on the night of his coming-of-age ceremony, Archbishop Manfroy of the Loptr Church had told him that Loptrian blood flowed through his veins. His mother, Cigyun, had been a descendant of Maira.

After he'd heard those words, Arvis was very troubled by them. He'd once witnessed a mother and child be burned at the stake just for being followers of Loptous, and realized there was a chance that something similar could happen to him. He worried and worried, and in the end, his conclusion was that all discrimination must be erased from the world.

'And this is something that only I can do. Only I, who has inherited both the blood of both a Crusader and Loptous, can truly understand the meaning of discrimination.'

To turn his ideals into reality, he would have to demolish the entire current structure of the world.

And to do so, he'd decided to use Manfroy.

Manfroy and the other members of the church stirred up the greed within the nobles across every region of Jugdral, while also planting suspicion in their hearts, causing every country to get involved in the war that soon spanned the entire continent. Whether the Loptr Church’s actions were good or evil did not matter. It was all about upheaving the old structure of society.

‘Anyone would probably think to use the Loptr Church. Yes, I used them. But I did not work with them. I said that very clearly to Manfroy. “I will acknowledge your existence, but I have absolutely no intention of reviving the Loptrian Empire.” When this war is over, I will subjugate all of the surrounding countries, and establish the Grannvalian Empire. My work will be the dawn of a utopia state, and my name will be forever etched into Jugdralian history. Arvis, the first Emperor of Grannvale, will be the most famous name in all of Jugdral.’

Arvis was in very high spirits, and wanted to show his new bride the world he was creating.

‘When she sees that I rule over everything, it should add to her good memories.’

She’d appeared in front of his villa looking confused and lost, yet he’d fallen in love with her at first sight. He hadn't realized it at that time, but it was because she looked just like his mother, Cigyun. She even had the same lavender hair as his mother.

However, while she could speak, she'd lost all memory of her past. At first, Arvis had been very curious about where she was from and what kind of life she'd led until they'd met. Once they'd married and vowed to love each other, though, it didn't matter to him much anymore. Still, whenever he saw her lost in thought, he couldn't help but remember that she had a past he knew nothing about.

At one of those moments, he'd gently rubbed her shoulders and said, "There's no need for you to push yourself to remember. The future is much more precious than the past. If we make lots of good memories from now on, everything will be fine even if you don’t know your past, won’t it?”

He’d said those words for himself as much as he’d said them for her.

Arvis stepped back to reach for his wife's hand, who he'd told to stay safe behind the soldiers, and gestured for her to stand next to him.

"Look, this is the man who killed your father! Sigurd, son of Duke Byron! His punishment will be execution!"

The moment Arvis finished speaking, Sigurd screamed, "Deirdre!!"

And she gasped when she heard his voice.

She felt like she'd heard it somewhere before. She furrowed her brows, stared straight at him, and tried her hardest to remember.

"So it was you! Wasn't it, Deirdre!? It was him!"

"Do you… know me…?"

"You are… my…"

Sigurd started to answer, but Arvis cut off their conversation by ushering her back behind the soldiers so roughly that he almost pushed her. "Escort my wife into the palace immediately."

Two soldiers each grabbed one of her hands.

"Wait, Lord Arvis… Just give me a moment with him…"

"Deirdre!!"

"I order the entire army to kill Sigurd, the traitor, and his accomplices! There is no need to bring any of them back alive. Execute them on the spot!"

"Damn you, Arvis!" Sigurd unsheathed Tyrfing and tried to attack, but Arvis' soldiers pushed him back.

He cut down all the soldiers, only for Arvis to attack him with a Valflame spell a moment later.

His body felt hotter and hotter with each passing second, yet he still took one step forward, then another, and another. 'Arvis!'

Valflame's fire hit Sigurd once again.

He could no longer continue forward, nor could he move at all…. 'Deirdre!!'

When the fire burned out, his charred remains were still standing proud and tall.

And in his right hand, Tyrfing was unchanged, emanating the same glittering light as always.

'Erinys, run!' Lewyn shouted in his heart, while casting a Forseti spell and walking north. 'I won't die. There's so much that I must do.'

When Erinys realized that things had taken a turn for the worse at Belhalla Castle, she yelled, "Run, everyone! Hurry, before the enemy reaches us!"

Then, she spoke directly to Lachesis. "Get on my pegasus!"

Lachesis climbed on behind her, and the two flew north.

'Lord Lewyn told me he won't die.' She repeated to herself over and over the entire way home to Silesse. 'Lord Lewyn told me he won't die.'

Beowulf jumped on his horse and started galloping in the direction he knew Lachesis was in, but standing in his way was a large group of enemy soldiers.

"Outta my way!" He yelled, and forced his way into their formation.

He thought nothing of defense, only swinging his sword over and over and over again.

However, their numbers were too great, and he couldn't make any progress.

'Run, Lachesis!'

A lance stabbed into his side.

As he fell from his horse, his last thought was, 'A noble knight like you needs to make it out of this alive…’

Chulainn stood still, not even unsheathing his sword.

The enemy approaching him thought that he wasn't going to resist, and rushed closer.

Suddenly, like a flash of light, he attacked the enemy. Then, he stepped to the side, and cut down another enemy. He jumped, and killed yet another enemy the moment he hit the ground.

But as he killed a fourth enemy, he was struck by a meteor.

'I don't have any regrets, Sigurd.’

Alec said to Noish, "Seems like this is the end."

"Yeah…"

"Shall we both charge at once?"

"Sure…"

"Alright, good luck."

"You too…"

They both shouted a battle cry, then charged their horses straight into the enemies surrounding them.

Arden followed along after them. "Hey, don't leave me behind!"

At the sight of Arvis' cruel strategy, Azel was finally able to overcome his inferiority complex.

'Attacking us like this makes you the loser, Brother.'

He countered a ball of fire that an enemy had cast with one of his own.

'I was happier than you'll ever be, Arvis.'

There were enemies coming at him from three different directions.

He cast two consecutive fireballs, killing two of them.

However, he couldn't take out the third one in time.

'Tailtiu, take care of the children…'

Midair and Brigid fought side-by-side.

They shot arrows one after the other, keeping their enemies from getting close to them.

But no arrow could stop a burning meteor that was headed straight for them.

It hit Brigid's right arm, and fell directly on top of Midir.

Brigid knew immediately that her arm was now limp and useless. Midir died instantly.

'We were so happy together.'

She endured the intense pain coursing through her body, held Yewfelle under her left arm, and waited for the enemies to approach her.

"I am Princess Brigid of Jungby! Go ahead, kill me!"

Ayra and Lex fought back-to-back.

They no longer had any idea how many enemies they'd killed.

Suddenly, Ayra heard Lex scream in pain.

She stepped back, and realized that he'd collapsed.

'Lex, we're in the middle of battle, so I can't hold you. But I will die with you.'

After that, she continued to fight, but didn't budge an inch.

Finally, lance that she could have dodged if she had moved pierced her side.

She fell atop her husband.

'We will never part ever again, Lex.'

Jamke focused on attacking the enemy general.

He jumped out from behind Sigurd's charred body and aimed an arrow right at the space between Arvis' eyes.

The arrow missed its mark, instead hitting Arvis' left shoulder, but still caused him to stagger.

Then, a fireball slammed into Jamke from behind.

'Aideen, take care of Lester…'

Claud witnessed the events that the Valkyrie Staff had not shown him in utter disbelief.

'This is so terrible. ...Gods, are you really allowing this to happen?’

He prayed to the staff, but it didn't respond.

'This must be wrong.'

The moment he had that thought, he realized what his duty was.

He tightened his grip around the staff, and prayed again.

'Gods, I accept what is happening. But no matter how I look at it, I know it must be wrong. Please do what you must to right this wrong, for the sake of our future. I exchange my life, so that justice and love may win…'

A light shot out of the gem in response.

'Ah… thank you for accepting my prayer. With this, I have fulfilled my duty. Please accept my offering of my life.'

Not even a second later, a meteor fell on top of him.

Lewyn suddenly felt a strange power course through his body.

'I will not die. There's so much that I must do.'

At first, he'd just been trying to convince himself, but now, he really believed he would survive.

He walked forward and cast Forseti spells in rapid succession, without pausing even once.

Each spell caused an explosion front of him, blowing his enemies up into bits and sending their dismembered body parts flying.

'I will not die.'

Lewyn kept walking.

He cast spell after spell, and continued forward...

-End of Fire Emblem Genealogy of the Holy War: Sigurd’s Story Book Two-

#fire emblem #fe #fe4 #genealogy of the holy war #nintendo #super nintendo #snes #famicom #super famicom #japan #japanese #translation #light novel #novelization #fe4 suzuki novelization translation

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gallantgautier · 4 years

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( 🌹 oops i dropped my 🌱 self indulgent flowers oopps i guess you'll have to. hit me with it azzie :ooooo oh also 🌸 )

Munday Asks Accepting

🌹 = my opinion on your character

Rai, oh Rai, you know I adore Felix! I want to talk about Kurth too, I really do, but it’s been so long since I played Tellius that I just... Can’t. Someday, I’ll reply! Until then, how do I love thee, Felix? Let us count the ways.

Honestly, Felix is my second favourite character in the game, he’d probably be first if Sylvain didn’t tick every single box on the list of Traits That Make Azzie Fall In Love.

But unlike Sylvain, Felix didn’t Kool Aid Man his way into my Loved Characters List. Why? I’ve mentioned this before to you, but I’mma put it here on record for the rest of ToA now. On my first playthrough of Three Houses, Felix... Fell behind. Badly. To the point that in the first battle after the timeskip, I had to keep him in the top right corner away from the action to keep him safe. I know you hated that Felix, I’m sorry.

He just... Got unlucky in my early battles and took a few too many near death hits, and I had other priorities in healing so he just... Lost out on exp. And especially since my Sylvain decided to be a show off and get every Good Level Up Ever, I didn’t really miss him.

Because of that, I didn’t get many of Felix’s supports early on. In fact, I got his first with Sylvain early game and was like... Wow, rude, be nice to my boy please. I didn’t get their B support until post time skip - amusingly, that made it look like poor Felix had been working up to apologise for five years and I had to stop to laugh. That was, though, my first hint that there was something more to him than He Angy, No Talk Him, and I made a very real effort to take him into extra battles, grind out the levels and the masteries and the supports, and I’m so glad I did.

Felix isn’t a contradictory in the same manner that Sylvain is, he isn’t so much hiding how he feels and more just... Externalising the only way he knows how. I still love that, I love characters where you have to really look and listen to what they say and do to figure them out. I love that his strained relationship with his father doesn’t follow the usual trope of I have to inherit after him and I don’t want to. I love how he’s the lone wolf but subverts the role by virtue of the fact that he just wants to keep the people he loves safe. He’s a fantastic, multi-faceted character, and I love and cherish him.

🌱 = a plot I want to write with you

OH BOY ARE WE REALLY DOING THIS? ARE WE ADDING MORE TO THE “Threads to do someday” PILE???

Okay, first, one that we’ve talked about. Flashback thread. I want this. Give me kid them. Give me still slowly learning how to come out of his shell Sylvain. Give me pure and sweet baby Felix. Give me unplanned nap time on the floor because they played too hard. Give me ”Can’t.”

Hmm, but is there a plot I wanna write that we haven’t discussed already? I feel like there’s some potential with Kurth after the Lance of Ruin plot thing we’ve got going. I kind of... Would love to see him in a situation that puts him out of his depth. Does Sylvain try and set him up on a date, only to fail spectacularly? Or, more serious, I feel like him witnessing his Laguz transformation could add an interesting layer. Considering how things went down the last time he saw a person transform... That could get interesting! But is likely a ways off.

🌸 = my roleplay petpeeve

hgjdhgj you actually asked this first, but since @houseofreglay only asked this, my answer to this is over here

#♞ ∴∵∴「GIVE VOICE TO THE WORDLESS - OUT OF CHARACTER」#♞ ∴∵∴「BURDEN OF CHOICE MADE WEIGHTLESS- ASK MEME」#Rai you can't just go dropping flowers everywhere #think about people with allergies!#hjdghd jk you know I love it #wolfhednar

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moczothe1st · 6 years

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Let’s Play Fire Emblem IV: Genealogy of the Holy War, Part 13: The Invasion of Doucheland

Part 12

Welcome back to Fire Emblem IV. Last week, we crossed the Silesse border into our old homeland, the kingdom of Grannvale. And here she is, right now! Hey there, Valey. You’re looking very invade-able this evening. Let me slip into something a little more militaristic, and I’ll be right with you.

Zaxon Castle has barely fallen, yet before Sigurd can so much as rest, the hordes of Grannvale stand before him at the captured Lubeck Castle.

For Sigurd, to challenge Langbalt is an opportunity to avenge his father, Byron, framed by Langbalt for his crimes. Beyond Lubeck, in the desert town Phinora…

Velthomer Castle, on Grannvale’s border with the Yied Desert,

And in Belhalla, the royal capital of Grannvale, Lord Arvis serves to aid the bedridden King Azmur, while Chancellor Reptor of Freege maintains peace and order in the city. A long road to Belhalla awaits Sigurd… a clash with Grannvale en route is inevitable. Sigurd refuses to endanger the people of Silesse any further in this conflict. He is determined to fight to the end. The year is Grann 760, early spring. The fields of Silesse peacefully rest beneath a deep blanket of snow…

…. Starting with a neutral unit. Not promising.

(Oh, hey Sigurd’s dad. Glad you aren’t murdered! .... Wait, how are you not murdered? Weren’t you framed for Kurth’s murder like a year ago? How are you still... going?)

Byron: No… not until the exalted blade is in your hands…

Langbalt: My ambush may have put an end to Chalphy’s Grünritter paladin brigade, but the survival of Byron alone leaves that utterly meaningless!

Random Idiot: Y-yes, sir… but, milord, Byron is gravely wounded… surely, he has very little time left…

Langbalt: I’ve never heard such naïve drivel! Byron may not be long for this world, but he’s determined to get the holy sword Tyrfing to his son, with the very last of his strength. Do you not understand the threat that Sigurd would pose to us, should he get his hands on that damnable sword?!

(… Well, I do now. Thanks for the heads up, definitely gonna get me that sword.)

Langbalt: Move out and kill Byron, immediately!

Random Idiot: Y-yes sir! Consider it done!

Langbalt: For the gods’ sakes, he’s leading the elite Grauenritter brigade! How could it take him so long to put down the Isaachian resistance?! First Lex, now Dannan… why must both of my sons be so worthless?!

Andre: Come now, Lord Langbalt, sir. Don’t worry about a thing. After all, you’ve still got the Beigenritter and I on your side.

Langbalt: I suppose you’re right, Andre. Be sure that your men are ready to join the fray at a moment’s notice.

Andre: Heh… it would be my pleasure, sir.

Langbalt: Duke Ring… may you be at peace…

(Awww, he’s a treasonous murdering lunatic with family values. How sweet. Just a reminder that while Reptor might want to run the country, Langbalt’s motivation can best be summed up as ‘Fuck House Chalphy’. He really has no issues with anyone else. Which kinda makes him worse, honestly, since it means he murdered the prince just to screw with Sigurd’s dad.)

Oifey: I don’t believe so. The Lubeck occupation seems to be pursuing him, so they’re most likely not with them.

Sigurd: I see. Let’s give them a hand. We’ll be clashing with Langbalt’s army sooner or later, so why not make the first move? Move out! Our target is their front lines. Today’s victory hinges on this first strike!

… You know, after we spend hours fighting in the arena. First, though, our three upcoming promotions.

Mmmmm. I also do a little inventory shifting; Ayra gives her bolt sword to Erin, who actually has the magic to back it up, and Azel gives his Magic Ring to Taillte, who needs it more than he does even after promotion. Now, then, time for some gladiatorial combat to remind the world what heroes we are!

Sigurd: Seven wins, gained three levels: +3 HP, +3 Strength, +1 Speed, +1 Luck, +2 Defense

Arden: Seven wins, gained three levels: +3HP, +3 Strength, +2 Speed, +1 Luck, +1 Defense

Lex: Five wins, gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +1 Speed

Azel: Seven wins, gained three levels: +3 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Strength, +1 Magic, +1 Luck

Aideen: Seven wins. Actually can’t level up anymore! All that warping and physicing maxed her out.

Midir: Three wins, Gained one level: +1 Speed, +1 Luck. Just… the fuck, dude.

Holyn: Seven wins, Gained two levels: +1 HP, +1 Luck, +2 Defense

Ayra: wins, Gained two levels: +2 Strength, +1 Defense

Jamke: Seven wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Strength, +1 Defense

Dew: Seven wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Luck, +1 Defense

Lewyn: Seven wins, Gained three levels: +3 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Magic

Lachesis: Seven wins, Gained two levels: +1 HP, +1 Resistance, +1 Speed

Beowulf: Five wins, Gained one level: +1 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Defense

Erin: Seven wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Strength, +2 Luck, +2 Defense.

Bridget: Seven wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Speed, +1 Magic, +1 Luck

Taillte: Seven wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Defense, +1 Resistance

And yes, Arden did so well because he still had the Brave Sword for his attempts, and he promoted halfway through.

The stat bonuses are nothing special, but this is actually a really good promotion. He gains the ability to use spears, axes, and bows in addition to his swords, and picks up for himself the truly obnoxious Pavise skill all those enemy bosses use to ruin your day. I’m pleased, Arden. You don’t get to get married and I will never use you again because this has been a giant pain, but you’re an okay person anyway.

So here’s the map. Our starting position is in the northwest; enemy formations are marked by red rectangles, and Byron is the yellow dot. Our first job is to reach him before he dies. He will not attack enemies (he’s unarmed), so he’ll spend the whole time running, but he’s also wounded and can’t outrun most of his pursuers. You won’t lose the map if you don’t get to him in time, but you will lose access to Tyrfing, which… no. Just no. Not acceptable. So our first, crucial job is to clear out that patch of enemies between us and Byron, and Sigurd has to be leading the charge because only he can talk to his dad, obviously. But we also do need to send a rearguard to the west, to wipe out the enemy unit there and protect the assorted villages from bandits. So looks like we’ll be splitting the army again, I know I love that!

First step, I send Sigurd, Midir, Lachesis, and Beowulf about halfway through their move range, and then have Sylvia run up to Dance them all. This will let them reach the enemy line on their first turn, doing some solid damage before they’d otherwise be able to.

This not only clears a few units, but it gives this enemy brigade a target. They’ll be moving away from Byron, which is key. He can’t take many hits at all, so every enemy you can draw away from him is worth it.

Now, there’s also villages to the north and south of our castle that have bandits right next to them, so I have Holyn and Ayra both take one. They’ll be able to reach them in a turn and have 100% chance of clearing the bandits immediately. Erin begins moving to the one directly east of the castle; it’s on a peninsula so she can reach it fastest by cutting across the ocean. Most of the foot soldiers move west to intercept the enemy there, while Lex, Azel, Aideen, and Bridget move to start catching up with the front line. Why Aideen and Bridget? Because their brother is there, and… well….

Aideen: I… I did. I’ve heard he murdered our father, and later Mahnya in Silesse as well… I can’t believe it. I can barely imagine the evil which would have possessed him to do such monstrous things…

Bridget: … I’m going to kill him. There’s no other way. Whatever the evil is, he has to be stopped. Right here, right now. You understand, right, Aideen?

Aideen: Bridget…

Bridget: Andre’s crimes are House Jungby’s crimes. They’re our crimes too, our responsibility. They reflect on us, even when they really shouldn’t. I know I’ll have his blood on my hands for the rest of my life, but… Aideen, I want you to understand.

Aideen: Of course I do, Bridget…

Well, big sis isn’t having any of that patricide, Andre ol’ buddy. It was nice knowing you.

Ya dick.

End turn.

Hot damn. Beowulf must be sick of being the team joke, because that level was brilliant. Either that or he thinks I’ll fail at saving Byron, have to reset, and lose it. Either or.

(Wait, Belhalla looks like that? And it took us this long to realize they’re evil? Dammit, guys.)

(Hey, Arvis! Long time no see! How’s your hair doing? Still deceptive?)

Arvis: Duke Langbalt and his army stand ready at Lubeck. It’s only a matter of time before their insurrection is suppressed.

King Azmur: Even so… even now, it is almost beyond belief, is it not? That Lord Byron would slay Kurth… or that Sigurd would incite a rebellion…

Arvis: Your Majesty

(Okay, he gets points for knowing the right term.)

Arvis: If I may explain once more… Lord Byron was plotting against the crown in concert with the late Lord Ring of Jungby. His Highness fell afoul of their assault, an act to which our very own Dukes Reptor and Langbalt bore witness.

(“And I mean, how could you disbelieve those faces?” )

Arvis: His Highness learned of their schemes to seize the throne too late, and paid for it with his life. Naturally, Lord Sigurd had a hand in his father’s revolt. What clearer proof is there than how he still harbors an enemy, the prince of Isaach? There is no question. Their treason against the state is grave. I, too, feel this pain as my own, having lost not only a prince but a father-in-law…

(… Oh no.)

Arvis: And in the name of my beloved wife, Princess Deirdre, I will never allow Sigurd’s traitorous rampage to stand!

(HURK)

Arvis: Even if Duke Langbalt fails to defeat him, that is not the end! The elite fire mages of House Velthomer, the Rotenritter, stand ready to stop this rebellion once and for all!

Azmur: I see… if you say it is so, then… perhaps this could never have been avoided…

Azmur: Ah… Deirdre. Bless you… you truly are a sweet child. Even if I have little time left, you give me hope for Grannvale’s future… I can scarcely imagine when Kurth could have had as fine a daughter as you. But there is no doubt in my mind. None outside the royal House Belhalla possess the Brand that graces your brow. Whence did you come, my dear? Where in the world have you been all along…

(“In the woods, mostly. It turns out that isolating me from all men was a great idea and they should have put way more effort into it. I genuinely can’t be trusted.”)

Deirdre: I’m so sorry, Grandfather. I simply don’t remember. Try as I may, I simply cannot recall anything…

Azmur: Ah, forgive me, my dear. I know you have suffered more and longer than any of us.

Arvis: From the moment I found her wandering lost in the castle grounds, it was clear she had no memory of her past. All she knew was her own name. The rest of her past is lost to her. At first I sought only to aid her out of sympathy, as any decent man would do, but before long love took root within me…

(HUUUUUUUUUUUUURK)

Arvis: With all due respect, Deirdre, not once did I suspect that you could possibly be the daughter of our late Prince Kurth.

Azmur: I remember well the day you introduced her as the woman you wished to marry… I simply could not believe what I saw! At first sight I knew, perhaps as only family can. Precisely as I thought, beneath your circlet was the Brand of Naga. Lord Arvis, I trust you understand. Only a full-blooded heir to Saint Heim can rightfully wield the Book of Naga and release its true holy power. And the power of Naga is the only force able to repel the Dark Lord, Loptyr.

Arvis: I am well aware of the legend, sire.

Azmur: The holy lineage of our lord Naga and Saint Heim must never perish! Deirdre, you must bear a son with all due haste!

(… Done. His name’s Seliph, I think he’s pushing two around this point? That was easy! … Oh, wait, you mean a son with Arvis. In that case, HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRK)

Azmur: And should your son be so fortunate as to inherit Naga’s power… he shall be Prince of Grannvale, and inherit the throne when I am no more. Lord Arvis, until your son has grown into a man, you shall be his regent. Guide him well to adulthood. I trust you understand… cough! Cough…

Well that was gross. Hurry, everyone, kill some shit to make me feel alive again.

Oh, Ayra, you always know just how to cheer me up. Holyn, you could stand to be more like Ayra. Now, on the eastern front, here’s where things get weird.

The enemy is not a big problem, the battle is almost won here. But Sigurd is not in place to talk to Byron. So what I’m going to try (and if this doesn’t work I shall be so furious) is position him and two other people as a wall.

The idea… and this had better work… is that Byron will get get his turn first and run through my units, where the enemy will not be able to follow him. That jerk in the top corner is just a bandit, he won’t attack anyone while there’s a village to pilfer.

Okay.

End turn!

(… Oh fucking score Byron will talk to Sigurd on his own. I win!)

Sigurd: Father! Come, you mustn’t give in now!

Byron: No… there’s no hope left for me now… listen well, my son. Langbalt was Prince Kurth’s true killer. And Reptor is the one holding his leash… His Majesty must know the truth! I… death holds no fear for me. But I cannot die in peace not knowing if our honor shall be cleansed of these lies.

Sigurd: Rest assured, Father. Our good name will be cleared. I promise.

Byron: Sigurd… I beg your forgiveness. It was my negligence which condemned you to this suffering… Sigurd. Take this. It is Tyrfing… our exalted blade…

Sigurd: Tyrfing… but Father! Surely you will still need this!

Byron: Take it, Sigurd.. use it to… restore… our honor…

Sigurd: Father… please, hang on! Father! … Father… Why… why in the world did he have to… grrr… REPTOR! LANGBALT! Mark my words! You will pay dearly for all you’ve done!

Ouch. But this is much better than not having him talk to Sigurd at all, in which case he still dies and his son never knows and doesn’t get his inheritance. Unfortunately, Tyrfing is useless right now, because the blade is broken; we’ll need to have Sigurd rush back to the castle to fix it on our turn. After, of course, axe jerks!

…. WHY’D YOU EQUIP THE BROKEN TYRFING, MAN?! A broken weapon can still work, mind you, but it will slow the unit down a ton and have a bare fraction of its attack power, so it’s a very dumb idea. Which, you know, makes sense.

Well, nothing else exciting happens on the enemy phase, so let’s start our turn right with some nice rampant slaughter. It does a body good!

I love it when an army comes together. And since Ayra, Holyn, and Erin are now on top of villages that are out of the way for anyone else, I liberate them.

(He was married? … Not to his sister, right? God, I hate that I feel the need to ask that.)

Gossip Girl: His name’s, er… Ares? Something like that. I feel pretty bad for the poor boy. He’s gotta be just three or four years old…

(I feel bad for him because his name is Ares, the douchiest Greek God. And they were all douches!)

Whiner: Argh, how did this world turn into such a savage place…

Info Master: You’ll often find that boys’ll take up their father’s traits more dominantly, while girls’ll be more strongly influenced by their mother’s.

… So did we start playing Pokemon, or something? Was that the secret to breeding a better Lapras? Whatever, the western front still has to fight. Almost forgot them!

Very nice! That little flashing screen there before Taillte finally gets some Magic was her also getting a Lover Critical for attacking while next to Lewyn. It doesn’t show up often, but it’s a thing of beauty when it does. Though, in fairness, Taillte also didn’t need it to end that fight quickly; like Ethlin before her, she’s ended up with weird stats, and one of them is that her speed is enormous. She also has the skill Adept (Chance based on speed to double-attack) since promoting, and so End turn!

Random Idiot: How could you have breached our front lines so quickly?

Well, like that, mostly. Also, holy crap, the Shield Sword and a promotion have done Beowulf great help. He’s gone overnight from the army’s whipping boy to an unstoppable killing machine.

…. Same can’t be said for Claude, though. God, I hate you, Claude. Reset! I mostly recreate the prior turn, though not as well; Taillte decided that Magic growth was a one-time thing, and she gets +1HP and +1 Defense this time. Defense is still good for her, so hey. Now, let’s see if this goes a little better?

… Am I being trolled?

Well, at least Claude survives. He might be bad at 90% of everything, but he’s got some killer Resistance. Now, let’s try to clear out the remaining enemies before something else fucks up.

All right, good start. Also, Random Idiot’s name was Slayder! I genuinely didn’t notice until I was killing him. Good for you, Slayder.

Beige is the most terrifying of colors. To show how scared I am, I have Bridget equip her holy bow and move into their range. Hee. Hee. Hee.

…….. I mean, I was expecting more of a symbolic slaughtering, but all of your archers moving into my melee range and just stopping, is pretty good too. Now, Aideen can’t kill Andre in one turn, so we can actually see him talk to both his sisters. Let’s go!

Andre: Your sins have soiled the honor of my House Jungby, and now, you must make your amends with your very life.

Aideen: Andre… what a pitiful man you’ve become.

(Awwwwwwwwwwwwwyeeeeeeeeah AIDEEN BURN.)

Literally. Bridget, your move!

Andre: No matter what it takes, you – the shame of my house – must be put to a timely death.

Bridget: ENOUGH! You murdered your own father! You, Andre, are the disgrace to Jungby’s honor, and to the good name of the Crusader Ullur!

… Isn’t Scorpius a Power Ranger villain…?

Bridget gains her brother’s power by eating his heart, and the rest of the team is now free to paint over the Beigenritter with a more interesting color. RED.

Oooooh the terror of the Beigenritter. Now, nothing more to be done until we move on Langbalt directly, so I take a few turns here to let the western front move back over to meet up with the east, letting our whole army move at once. I won’t need them; Lubeck Castle has very little in terms of defense, just three generals and four ballistae, the real danger being Langbalt himself. But dammit all, I put a lot of effort into promoting Arden, I’ll be damned if I’m leaving him behind for the main part of the map that opens after you take Lubeck. Oh, and, I have Sigurd sent home for a moment to visit the blacksmith…

Oh that is beautiful. In addition to having the same high-end offense as all Holy Weapons, Tyrfing gives him a whopping 40 stat points, +10 each to Skill and Speed, and +20 to Resistance, which almost instantly turns him from somewhat vulnerable to mages to one of our best anti-mage units. Plus, it comes with the Miracle ability, meaning he gets a very sizable chance to dodge an attack that would kill him… not that there’s gonna be a lot of attacks likely to kill him while he’s holding Tyrfing.

I love holy weapons.

Now, after we get everyone together again, it’s time to kick some ass on Langbalt. There’s three generals out in front of his castle, and four ballistae to its east; two to the north and two to the south. The southern ones are no issue, but the northern are below a cliff and can only be attacked by Erin (who shouldn’t be getting near ballistae!) or units with a ranged attack. I send Azel and Lachesis up to deal with them, which the rest of the army starts chipping at the generals.

One down! The four ballistae all take shots at us on the enemy phase, but only one hits and Lachesis can take it. And then she gets to counter with extreme prejudice when it’s our shot again.

And that’s the end of the defenders. However, like I said earlier, the real issue isn’t them. It’s this motherfucker.

Langbalt is actually really nasty considering he’s only the first boss of the chapter. His stats are fine, but more dangerously he’s packing Major Neir holy blood and his family’s Holy Weapon, Helswath. Like all Holy Weapons it has 30 attack, but it can attack at any range (so no cheesing him from a distance!) and boosts his defense and resistance by 20 and 10 points, respectively. Combine this with the fact he’s a Baron with the ever-obnoxious Pavise skill and is on a Castle, and he can be a serious pain to do real damage to if you get unlucky. As an upside, at least, It’s a very heavy weapon and slows him considerably, which mostly nullifies his evasion boost from fighting in the castle, but… I mean, he only had average speed to start with. The man has 41 defense and hits like a train, and that’s bad enough.

Oh, and, obviously, there’s some special conversations to be had.

1) I’m getting a little sick of people calling us traitors while they’re literally in the middle of treason.

2) God that combat result is sad. Lex barely scratches his dad.

Maybe somebody a bit more legendary will have more luck. Siggy?

Langbalt: How perfect! I’ll reunite you with your dearly departed father. He ought to be lonely by now!

Sigurd: Langbalt… LANGBALT! You will pay for what you did to my father!

… Better, but still kind of sad. This is our uber-sword. The top sword of all swords. And we got a little under half his health.

Okay.

Time to stop fucking around.

Lewyn, Bitches. So cool he doesn’t need good levels anymore. From here, all that’s left is to take the last few villages:

Oddly Happy Man: But the people of Isaach ain’t givin’ up hope. Prince Shanan’s still out there, and they know someday he’ll lead ‘em to freedom!

Okay, first of all, that day won’t be for awhile since he’s like 12, and second of all… where are we? I know they mentioned Lubeck Castle was conquered by Grannvale pretty recently last chapter, and certainly this village is oddly chipper about Grannvale not being able to fully pacify one of their conquests, but it doesn’t seem to be part of Silesse either. There’s no snow or pegasi.

Oh, screw it. One more village to go.

Captain Obvious: All they ever do these days is set their army on every country they can get their hands on. Prince Kurth’d be utterly ashamed to know what’s become of his beloved Grannvale… you have to do something! I’m begging you… go to Grannvale! Take the country back from the wicked folk who are perverting all it holds dear!

Well. I mean. Considering we are the army they set on two of those countries, I think we have to. Let’s take Lubeck and call it a week.

(I hope not! I think only Langbalt himself actually hit us more than once, unless you count Claude getting axed. And you should never count Claude.)

Sigurd: Listen, Oifey, I need to ask something of you.

Oifey: Of course, sire. What is it?

Sigurd: As I recall, the territory of Isaach should be very close to the north-east of Lubeck. From what I’ve heard, ever since Grannvale won the war, Isaach has been governed by Danaan, Langbalt’s eldest son. But I’d wager his influence has yet to reach much of the country, so…

Oifey: I beg your pardon, sire?! Are you seriously asking me to abandon you for safety, now of all times? No! I refuse! I will not leave you, sire! I’m here for you no matter what, till I draw my last breath!

Sigurd: Oifey, listen. I know this is a huge imposition, but please, hear me out. I… I don’t want to lose Seliph. He isn’t even two years old! I can hardly fight with an infant in tow. Please, Oifey. Take care of Seliph. Take him and find refuge from this blasted war. I know I can trust you, Oifey. You are my only hope.

(Heehee. Help me, Oifey-Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope.)

Oifey: Sire… I… very well. I’ll take Lord Seliph. I’ll protect him, no matter what happens. That said, you have to promise me. Promise you’ll come for us as soon as the war is over. I won’t leave if you can’t promise that.

Sigurd: Of course. I swear it.

(Yeah, well, you also promised Sigurd you would look after Deirdre, and you fucked that up, so forgive me if I don’t put a lot of weight in your promises.)

Shanan: I won’t hand him over to anyone, not even Oifey, until Deirdre says I can!

Sigurd: Calm down, Shanan. I know you’re still hurt about losing Deirdre, but it’s okay. He’ll be fine with Oifey.

Shanan: No! I need to protect Seliph! … And you’re forgetting that the people of Isaach won’t exactly be happy to see more Grannvaleans! Oifey along won’t last a minute there, but if I’m there it’ll be okay. Who better to protect Seliph in Isaach than the prince of Isaach? Please…

(Sigurd: Outwitted by a ten year old.)

Oifey: Now that he mentions it, sire, I would be a tad more at ease if Shanan was there as well. I know you’re reluctant to involve someone so young in something so dangerous, but I think we can agree he’s become a talented warrior.

(… He has?)

Oifey: Not to mention, I’ll need Shanan to secure the people’s support.

Sigurd: Hm… I’m sorry to burden you more, Shanan, but please… take care of Seliph for me.

Shanan: Leave it to me! I’m gonna keep getting stronger, and nobody’ll ever hurt Seliph! I’ll teach him all about Deirdre, too, but… I wonder how he’ll take what happened…

Oifey: I… suppose we should set out, then. Farewell, sire. Take care of yourself. I pray victory and clemency find you as soon as possible.

Sigurd: Thank you, Oifey. Be careful out there.

Oifey: Yes, sir!

Sigurd: Seliph… I’m so sorry. Please, grow up safe and strong.

Well. It only took us... I think the game timeline has been three years so far?... it only took us three years to realize we shouldn’t be bringing children to war, and so I think we’ll call it a week here. Check in next week for when someone brings some children to war.

Resets: 19. I hope you’re proud of yourself, CLAUDE.

Part 14

#Let's play fire emblem IV #let's play fire emblem #LP #let's play #Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War #fire emblem 4 #Let's play genealogy of the holy war #my writing #dammit claude

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fire-emblem-heroes-supports · 7 years

Text

Arvis/Seliph C-A Support

Written by animenutcase

CONTENT WARNING: Arvis’s marriage to Deirdre (his half-sister) isn’t going to be explored in-depth, but the subject is going to come up a couple times.

C SUPPORT

Seliph: Duke Arvis of Velthomer.

Arvis: …Can I help you? Seliph: I wanted to ask you something. Arvis: That’s fine, but we need to prepare for the next battle. Seliph: You wanted to unite Jugdral as one, correct? Arvis: Yes. My goal is to create a more equitable world, one without discrimination. Seliph: A noble goal. Then, may I ask why you killed my father? Arvis: …I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I don’t know who your father is. I don’t even know who you are. Seliph: I think you do. Arvis: My apologies, but I’m afraid I don’t. Seliph: Then why aren’t you looking me in the eye? Arvis: …! Seliph: I was told that my face resembles that of my mother, Deirdre of the Spirit Forest. It’s also my understanding that she was the wife of Emperor Arvis of Grannvale… in other words, you. Arvis: So it’s true, then. I could theoretically have pretended that Sigurd had been trying to trick me when he saw her at Belhalla, but this… You look too much like her for it to be coincidence. Arvis: Heh. Of course you do. Deirdre looked too much like… Seliph: Like your mother. Arvis: How- Seliph: Given how the Loptyr Sect was nearly hunted to extinction, it’s not that hard to guess that there was some foul play involved in Julius becoming Loptyr’s vessel. Lewyn only suggested it as a theory, but I think it’s true. He had some spies in Velthomer who distinctly remember a portrait of Lady Cigyun. Arvis: Tch! Seliph: I’m not going to force you to talk about it, but I will want some answers eventually. Good day to you, Duke Arvis. [Seliph leaves.] Arvis: He really does look like her... [Arvis and Seliph have reached support rank C.]

B SUPPORT

Seliph: Why don’t you tell me about Lady Cigyun, Duke Arvis? Arvis: You just dive right in, don’t you? You’re more like your father than I thought. Seliph: I’m just curious about the sort of woman my grandmother was. Oifey told me about Sir Vylon, but he never knew my father’s mother, so I can’t ask about her. I’d like to ask about Prince Kurth, too. Arvis: Prince Kurth was a kind and wise man. My mother always looked happier when he visited than she did with my father. Of course, Father also seemed to prefer the company of women besides his wife. Seliph: Duke Victor was rather infamous. I’d heard a few stories about him, as well. Arvis: How unfortunate for you. My father was a blight on the House of Velthomer, and his death was one of the few good things that came out of the mess with Prince Kurth. Seliph: Was your brother another of them? Arvis: You know about Azelle? Is he alive!? Where is he!? Seliph: I-I don’t know. I only know what I’d heard from Oifey, Shannan and Lady Edain, and none of them knew what happened to him! Arvis: I see. I apologize for grabbing your shoulders. Seliph: No, it’s my fault for bringing up a sore subject. Arvis: And yet you brought up my mother. Seliph: I… apologize. Arvis: Don’t apologize. It was a joke. Seliph: (It didn’t sound like a joke…) Arvis: As for my mother… I’d always loved her long, silver hair. I remember it tickling my face whenever she hugged me. Come to think of it, Deirdre’s silver hair was the first thing I noticed about her as well. It was a rather unusual color. In hindsight, I should have been more suspicious. Seliph: I’d… I’d prefer it if we kept the subject on Lady Cigyun, please. Arvis: Of course. My mother was a timid woman, but she was capable of standing up when she needed to. When Father tried to have Azelle’s mother banished, she argued that she should be allowed to stay. Seliph: Wow. Arvis: At the same time, trying to keep Velthomer stable and keep Father in check took its toll on her. I can count the number of times I saw her smiling in the days before she left on one hand. Seliph: It sounds like things were already starting to go bad even before the war with Isaach. Arvis: You may be right. That’s part of the reason I became as ambitious as I did. My mother swore me to secrecy the night she told me of her Maera blood. If anyone learned of it, we’d doubtlessly be burned at the stake. I couldn’t condemn her for fleeing Velthomer, especially after I learned the truth of why she did so. Seliph: … Seliph: When exactly did you learn the truth, Duke Arvis? Arvis: …It was shortly after the Battle of Belhalla. I had done some digging and learned that around the time Sigurd set out for Verdane, a woman matching Deirdre’s description had been seen near the Spirit Forest where my mother came from. That was where I learned the truth. At that point, however, it was too late. When I returned to Belhalla, Deirdre broke the news that she was pregnant. At that point, all I could do was pray that neither of the twins inherited our Maera blood. Seliph: Do you… remember finding out? Arvis: I spent every day praying that the mark on his forehead was just a birthmark. The day it became clear that it wasn’t was the worst day of my life. Deirdre went to check on the children, but then there was a commotion in the twins’ room. I rushed there, but when I arrived, Deirdre was lying on the ground and Julius had turned into… something I couldn’t recognize. And Julia was… gone. Seliph: Duke Arvis… Arvis: I don’t know anything beyond that. If Julia is alive, then Deirdre’s sacrifice at least meant something. Please, tell me! Seliph: She-she was alive last I saw her! But… she vanished in Miletos. We think she might have been abducted by Manfroy. Arvis: …I knew I should have killed him when I had the chance. Seliph: Duke Arvis, you’re getting angry. I think we should table this discussion for now. I’ll be happy to tell you about Julia later, but please try to calm down. Arvis: Very well, then. [Arvis and Seliph have reached support rank B.]

A SUPPORT

Seliph: Do you feel better, Duke Arvis? Arvis: Yes, thank you. Seliph: I met Julia right after we began our liberation of Isaach. She was rather quiet, but I felt drawn to her. Even if Lewyn hadn’t asked me to look after her, I think I would have done so anyway.

Arvis: How did she look? Did she seem healthy, like she was eating enough? Seliph: Heh, she looked fine. She seemed a bit shy about eating at dinner, but I think that’s because she didn’t know us very well, and it didn’t take long before she got used to us. Arvis: Good. Seliph: She’d lost her memories, however. Lewyn said that when he found her, the only thing she could remember was her name, and only because the words “Julia, you must live” were ringing in her head. Arvis: …! I-I see. Seliph: I’m sorry. I wish I could tell you more. Arvis: You’ve… told me enough. You could have lied to me or refused to tell me anything, but you were honest. I’m grateful for that. Seliph: Duke Arvis, how much do you remember of the future? Arvis: Like I said, my memories only go up to the night of Deirdre’s death. Why? Seliph: … Arvis: …You killed me. Seliph: I- Arvis: Don’t. I’m not angry. Your father was an innocent pawn in my schemes. I don’t have a right to condemn you for avenging him. I merely want to ask how you did so. Seliph: I… We rescued some children that had been taken in the child hunts when- Arvis: Child hunts!? By the Lopytr Sect!? Seliph: Y-Yes. The Bishop protecting them was from Chalphy, and he gave me the Tyrfing. He wouldn’t say where he got it, though. Arvis: He didn’t say? Seliph: It’s strange. People were saying that my father wielded it at the Battle of Belhalla, so I’m not sure how it got into his hands. The only person who could have had it after my father’s death is the king, and after King Azmur died, it would have passed into the hands of the… next king. Arvis: … Seliph: It was you. You sent the Tyrfing out with him. You were the one who let the children go. Arvis: I should hope so. The very fact that the child hunts were happening under my watch tells me that something went very wrong under my rule! Seliph: You really don’t know, do you? Arvis: Tell me what happened in the future after Deirdre’s death. I want to know every detail of what the Grannvale Empire was up to. Seliph: You’re not going to like it. […] Arvis: Hah. Hahaha! Seliph: Duke Arvis? Arvis: Oh, this is rich! You mean to tell me that everything I’ve ever worked for, every sacrifice I’ve ever made, has been for nothing!? Seliph: … Arvis: I wonder if I’ve been cursed. I don’t know if my brother is dead or alive, I’ve married my own sister, my son is going to turn into a monster, and my daughter is going to lose her memories and be raised on the run, and now you’re telling me that I’ve even failed to create the world I dreamed of!? Seliph: I-I’m... sorry. Arvis: As long as I put an end to discrimination and inequality, I could understand. Sacrifices need to be made for society to advance, and my own happiness is no exception to that. But it was all for nothing!? Arvis: Heh. I wonder if this is a curse from your father. Seliph: No, I don’t think my father resents you. Arvis: What? Seliph: After I killed you, I felt… empty. I went to the cliffs near Chalphy and held up the sword, telling my father that I’d avenged him, and… I saw my parents. Arvis: What!? Seliph: My mother said that Lewyn had done a good job with me, then asked about Julius and Julia. But my father… scolded me. He told me that I needed to know the suffering of the common people. I don’t think he agreed with your actions, but… I think he understood why you did what you did. Arvis: … Seliph: This has been an… interesting talk. I feel like I’ve gotten to know you better. Arvis: … Seliph: I understand if you don’t want to speak any more. I know you have a lot to think about. Good night, Uncle. [Seliph leaves.] Arvis: Idiots, both of them… [Arvis and Seliph have reached support rank A.]

#fire emblem genealogy of the holy war #male heroes #submission #arvis #seliph #arvis x seliph #seliph x arvis #oh gosh i feel so bad for arvis now... ;__;#thank you for this support chain it was GRAND!

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redthreadoflove · 7 years

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Modern fan plays old Fire Emblem games

I have played a lot of Fire Emblem the past few months and at this point it's obvious that I'm very obssessed with this franchise. I fell in love with the characters and the stories to the point I cannot wait any longer for Fire Emblem Switch. Over the last year I got very curious about the older titles thanks to the conflict between old and newer fans. As annoying these fights are I am quite thankful because without all the fighting I wouldn't have played any of other games! My friends who play Fire Emblem are all fans who started with the older games. I am the only who actually started with Awakening. It is painfully obvious that my knowledge is limited and I felt I needed to work on that. And playing the older games is the best method of doing so! ;-)

As for now I have played every single Fire Emblem game except for Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light and Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn. While this sounds like a lot I haven't beaten many of the other titles. I just have a habit of playing new games without beating the others. Nonetheless I did beat quite a few titles! Under the cut I will express my thoughts about the games I have played under the cut starting with Fire Emblem Gaiden.

Disclaimer: This is not a review and I am just merely writing my thoughts down and this might be a bit messy, especially since English is not my first language. Oh and also Spoilers for Genealogy of the Holy War, Thracia 776, Binding Blade & Path of Radiance!

Fire Emblem Gaiden (1992)

I start out by saying that Gaiden and Echoes as well as Genealogy of the Holy War are my favorite Fire Emblem games so far. The setting and the story are very intriguing and I really liked the backstory and the conflict of Mila and Duma. When I saw the teaser for Fire Emblem Echoes during the Fire Emblem Direct I was under the impression that Alm and Celica were going to be enemies but thankfully I was wrong. Personally I love Alm a lot. he might be very impulsive at times but due to his upbringings he is actually a very down to earth lord. Celica is currently my favorite female lord. Her pretty design and the fact that she uses both swords and magic made me love her even more! I played Gaiden because Fire Emblem Echoes got announced and I really wanted to play the original before playing the sequel.

It's been a while since I played a game as old as Gaiden and I am really proud to say that Gaiden is, in fact, the first NES game that I played. As a lover of all things 90s Gaiden's old art style and graphics really appealled to me. However it is also painfully obvious that a few of features are very archaic (for example you cannot see your unit and enemy's movement range, so you have to count them down). I also loved that this game takes place in the same world as Shadow Dragon (which is obvious - the titles means side story after all) and thus certain characters would return. The soundtrack too! Very retro and classic! My favorite tracks are Alm and Celica’s first map theme. So far I only played to chapter 3. With this game I had my first permadeath experience and I was bitter for the rest of the week. I am sorry Silque, I failed you... My favorite characters are Alm, Celica, Lukas, Forsyth, Mathilda, Genny and Zeke.

Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem (1994)

Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem is one of the last Fire Emblem games I have played. My first impression of this game was very good, especially since I can't help but compare it to Shadow Dragon. It is very colorful and because it doesn't have the prologue chapters you are able to see the story right away which is something that I really appreciate. If you prefer to see Marth's past in detail then Shadow Dragon makes a good job in doing that but to me the many prologues chapters made me tired and I would rather jump to the main story. But I will write more about it about it on the Shadow Dragon part. In my opinion this game is very interesting because it is both a remake and a sequel. Strangely enough the character sprites are more charming than in Shadow Dragon but like I said before I am a sucker for the 90s and 80s anime aesthetic.

I can't say much about this game because I have just started playing but I already feel that Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem might be the best game featuring Marth. Marth is my favorite lord, so I am very sad the he didn't get represented well in the West. I hope Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light will get the remake it deserves. By the way, this is the only game Japan only Fire Emblem game that I played in Japanese.

As I wrote in my About Me page I am currently learning Japanese and even though I somewhat reached intermediate level playing games is difficult for me because I am really bad with Kanji... I keep using an app to look up the characters and this is slowing me down but my goal is to beat this game in Japanese! Knowing this is a remake I am pretty sure my favorite characters have not changed and out of the Archanean characters I really love Jeorge, Marth, Caeda, Navarre, Palla, Catria, Merric, Linde, Lena and Julian!

Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War (1996)

Oh boy, where should I start with this one? Out of all the Fire Emblem games that I have not beaten I am closest to beat Genealogy of the Holy War. This game got me hooked! I know I am not the first one to say this (and this opinion might be overrated) but I honestly think that Genealogy of the Holy War has the best story. I really liked that the story is very political (at least in the first five chapters). Not only that but the big maps help to build up the atmosphere. It really feels like there is war. Yet playing through these huge maps can be tiring, at least for me. And if you are as bad at tactical games as I am then you might get overwhelmed by armies that come your way. But playing the same map a few times really helps getting used to the unique gameplay.

The love system was great and the decision on who you want to pair up greatly impacts the gameplay in as much as the children are not optional, unlike Awakening and Fates were having children are not a must. I wished there were more conversations between them but it is understandable that there aren't more because the support system didn't exists at that time yet. If Genealogy of the Holy War ever gets a remake I hope more comversations will be included!

Sigurd, the first lord in this game, is one of my favorite lords. Especially from a gameplay perspective. I always wanted an older lord. Sigurd gave me exactly that. A mounted pre-promoted lord at that! And a lord who gets a Silver Sword in the prologue at that! Named after a Norse and Germanic hero Sigurd is a character who fits perfectly in this epic tale. The story was written very well and I was hooked from the beginning. The medieval setting were not white washed and so the games addresses controversal topics such as human traffling and incest which makes the story more believable. And while there were many memorable events the chapter that impacted me the most was chapter 5, obviously.

You carefully raised your army only to have it massacred have way through the story. Sigurd faced so much hardship and in the end it seems like there was a glimmer of hope only to have crushed seconds later. His wife married another man and she doesn't remember him at all. Not only that but becuase of the fact that Sigurd is accused of killing Prince Kurth (who turns out to be his wife's father) his wife sees Sigurd as her father's murderer before he got excecuted... Thank goodness his son is there to clear his name! My favorite characters are Sigurd, Cuan, Lex, Ethlyn, Finn, Lewyn, Shannan, Ayra, Seliph, Bridget, Ares and Ced!

Thracia 776 (1999)

I played the first chapter yesterday because I could not wait until I beat Genealogy of the Holy War. In the last few months I have developed a love for everything Jugdral, so I knew I will have to play this one eventually. What really makes me reluctant to play this is my non-existing tactical skills as I already hinted before. However this will not stop me from playing this game, especially since one of my favorite character is included! If Finn is there then have to try this out! Cuan and Ethlyn were also one of my favorites and watching them get killed made me upset... I was surprised in a good way because Thracia 776's gameplay seemingly resembles the majority of the franchise more than Genealogy of the Holy War.

The capturing mechanic is great because it ties in neatly with the story! Since Finn had to flee with Leaf and Nanna there were penniless and the only way to get their hands on weapons was to steal them from their enemies. I think this was done very well. Because I only played through chapter 1 I had no chance to deal with fatigue. My units in Fire Emblem Echoes were not always fatigued when I explored the dungeons fortunately but I heard that Thracia 776 is actually very merciless when it comes to that. And thus, I was and am still scared of playing this game... Not gonna lie I was VERY happy when I saw Eyvel because I know very well who she actually is. I hope she gets a happy ending... I am not familiar with the characters obviously but as I said before I really love Finn and I like Leaf and Nanna as well! I am looking very foward to see Leaf as a lord, I am sure he will be awesome!

Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade (2002) & Fire Emblem (2003)

Finally moving onto the infamous GBA games! My friend is a huge fan of them and they are beloved by many Fire Emblem fans whether it's due nostalgia, the lovely characters or the well-written stories! I never owned a Gameboy Advance myself, so playing any of these game were a fresh experience for me. I always thought that GBA games in general had very nice graphics (I remember playing one of the Harvest Moon games with my friend and the game was cutely done, the Gameboy Advance was made for vibrant games like these!). The three Fire Emblem games were no exception. I put Binding Blade and Blazing Sword together because while I did beat Blazing Sword I only played the first 5 chapters of Binding Blade.

To me Blazing Sword is one of the most satisfying Fire Emblem to play. It has everything great gameplay, a good story and lovely characters! I was very happy when I beat this game and I would definite play again! I loved playing through Lyn's story and I was sad that she kind of lost relevance to the plot after the first chapters of the game. Lyn is a charming character and she definitely has an impact on the player because she is the first character that you meet. The idea of a mymidon like lords is a very good idea and Lyn stands out the most amongs the other lords due to her fighting style and her ethnic background. I hope for more new ideas for the lord that are different from the classic Rapier yielding royal.

Blazing Sword and I am pretty sure Binding Blade as well are the first Fire Emblem games the address xenophobia and racism. I never really expected the Sacae to be discriminated by other people though this is a very realistic scenario. Lyn handles her hardship very well and this adds more to her character. The Sacae are very refreshing and I hope Intellgent System will include more non Western inspired cultures in their future installments.

Eliwood is my favorite lord after Marth. I do feel that I prefer the mild and moderate lords more than their passionate and combative counterparts. Hector is great too (especially as a unit!! Which makes his death even more saddening...) but I cannot help but love Eliwood more.

Binding blade is very similar to the other two Gameboy Advance games but for some reason I can not get into this game. I play it more regulary but it did not get me hooked yet. The same goes for Roy as a character. Even though he is the protagonist he didn't really stand out to me... I hope I can open myself up to this game as I play through it. My favorite characters are Eliwood, Canas, Pent, Ninian, Kent, Sain and Raven. As for Binding Blade I enjoy Lance, Alan, Dieck, Wade and Rutger!

Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones (2004)

Everything I said about the other 2 GBA applies to this game as well. Therefore I will not write to much in detail about this game. The Sacred Stones resembles the Binding Blade and Blazing Sword very much but I also feel that it also has its own charm. For some reason it differs to the other two games (it kind of feels a bit more "modern", maybe? Probably modern is not the right word in the context of Fire Emblem)and I wonder why. Maybe it's due to the fact that Sacred Stones is the only Fire Emblem game that has no connection to any of the other games, maybe it is because the character designs seem different to me. To be honest I don't know why.

For me the Sacred Stones has it's own charm and every single piece in this game (be it the story, the characters or the soundtrack) comes together quite nicely. In my opinion the selling point of this game is the wonderful set of characters. This game is one of the few games (together with Gaiden/Echoes and Genealogy of the Holy War) where I like most of the characters! There is probably only one character that I dislike which is great! The story is nice too but I feel it does not stick out as much as some of the other games. Luckily, I am more of a character person and if I love the characters I do not care about the story. Unfortunately, the two lords did not stand out to me as well. This is one of the rare cases in which I can honestly say that I did not know what to think of the twins. I did not dislike them but I did not love them either. Eirika did grown on me and I do love her very much now! I have to confess that I have not played through Ephraim's story and hopefully I can have a better opinion of him in his story (since he is actually in the focus). The characters that I love the most are Seth, Joshua, Innes, Natasha, L'Arachel, Eirika and Saleh!

Path of Radiance (2005)

I played this game up to chapter 8 which marks the turning point in Ike's life. Almost all of my friends recommended me this game (not once but several times in fact!) and reading so many good things about this game I finally decided to give this one a try! Path of Radiance just like Blazing Sword strikes me as one of the most balanced games. It is really easy to play and I am very happy that Intelligent Systems kept a few features of the GBA games (like the rescue command). Tellius seems to have its own special athmosphere that makes it unique.

The story also deals with racism but in a different way. In this game there beings that are called Laguz who have their own distinct features. Because they are so different from humans they are called monsters and are treated accordingly. I was shocked to see Shinon one of the units call them sub-humans as I did not expect the racism to be displayed so frankly. I am very excited to see how Ike will change the lives of the laguz for the better. Unlike others he is very ignorant about the laguz yet he is not prejudiced (he even apologizes to a laguz for calling him a sub-human - he only learned of them recently and this was only term that he knew).

Ike himself is definitely very aloof and seems detached at first glance so even though I really loved his design, his personaltiy did not strike me as interesting. But whenever I see him interact with his sister (and his father) a very private part of him gets revealed which makes him very charming. I have the two versions of Ike in Fire Emblem Heroes and he is one of my strongest units. He was the one got up to level 40 the fastest. I love using him! Among the Tellius characters I like Titania Ike & Oscar the most so far! I cannot wait to see more of this game!

Shadow Dragon (2008) & New Mystery of the Emblem (2010)

Unfortunately Shadow Dragon has quite a few problems in my opinion. Compared to the GBA games the graphics seem very dull and and washed out. As a DS game it is understandable that Intellegent Systems tried something new but the 3D graphic just feels out of place to me. FE1, FE3 and naturally FE11 and FE12 suffer from the big cast as it is very difficult to characterize so many people. The result is that a lot of the characters are easily forgettable but maybe this is just me. I can remember most of them if I mentally make connections to other characters. Support conversations should have been the standard but they did not include them which makes it harder to recognize the characters. Marth and a few others stand out but it would have been nice to get to know these characters better. Nonetheless Shadow Dragon is still a Fire Emblem game that enjoyed and I would replay it anytime. In fact I beat it a few weeks ago...

Unlike Shadow Dragon I have not beat New Mystery of the Emblem yet simply because I wanted to finish Shadow Dragon first. Just like its predecessor the prologue chapters felt like a chore but things got interesting quickly when I got to the main story line. Kris is the first avatar character and I must say I do not like him/her. When I customized Kris I had high expectations back then but now I know that I should not have high expections whn it comes to the MyUnits. Even though I only played up to chapter 4 but Kris has no personality whatsoever. Kris likes to train and this is not even a personality trait. Marth is the sole purpose in Kris life and Kris is unable to do anything unless Marth orders him/her to do so. I do enjoyed customizing Kris (I love avatars for this reasons) however. If the MyUnit becomes a standard I prefer to choose their base classes. It was also nice to choose their family background (it does not make a difference whether Kris is a noble or an orphen though). As for the story I do not have much to say and I will have to see how the story unfolds (though it is very amusing to see Camu- I meant Sirius as early as chapter 4, haha). I am going to asume that my favorites are the same (Jeorge, Marth, Caeda, Navarre, Palla, Catria, Merric, Linde, Lena, Julian and most like Sirius as well!).

Originally I wanted to write something about Awakening, Fates and possibly Echoes as well. But I wanted to write my impressions of the older pre-Awakening titles. Personally I hope that more new fans give the older game a chance. They’re really fun to play! Hopefully Fire Emblem Switch will become a game that will satisfy both older and newer fans!

And I apologize for this mess I wrote this for myself mostly but I really hope to connect with other fans!

#fire emblem #genealogy of the holy war #awakening #path of radiance #fire emblem echoes #blazing sword #Sacred Stones

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itsfinancethings · 4 years

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New story in Politics from Time: ‘Zero Recourse’: Frontline Workers Say Republicans’ Proposed Liability Shields Threaten Their Safety

Like millions of American workers, Mercedes Taylor, an overnight security guard at Houston’s William P. Hobby International Airport, has been forced amid the worsening pandemic to make a grim calculation. As a 69-year-old asthmatic with high blood pressure, Taylor is susceptible to complications from COVID-19, but her need for a paycheck outweighs her concerns for her health.

It’s a frustrating position to be in, Taylor says. While the airport has provided workers with masks and hand sanitizer, she says management has not been forthcoming when employees test positive. “It alarms me that they don’t feel the need to tell you, ‘You might want to go get tested, you may have been exposed,'” she said. Her frustration increased this week when she learned that Congressional Republicans’ new COVID relief bill includes a proposal that would shield nearly all public and private organizations—including her airport—from legal liability if workers got sick on the job.

“We’re getting $12 an hour. We have no sick days,” Taylor says. “For them to be concerned about the liability of employers and them not being sued versus the employees who have been consistently showing for work and providing a service? I’m very disappointed.”

The Republicans’ 65-page proposal, introduced by Texas Sen. John Cornyn, and backed by the White House, would shield all corporations, schools, healthcare organizations, non-profits and religious institutions from most COVID-19-related lawsuits. Under the proposed language, corporations and organizations that are following any form of public health guidelines could not be held liable if a worker contracted COVID-19 on the job. If the legislation passes as it’s written, a worker who wants to sue for a coronavirus-related death or injury must prove that the organization in question engaged in “willful misconduct or gross negligence.” These terms would retroactively apply from December 2019 through October 2024.

Democrats and labor advocates argue that by making the standard of proof so high, the Republicans’ bill grants “blanket immunity” to public and private organizations, all but eliminating their responsibility for their workers’ safety. “It would essentially make it impossible to sue for a COVID-related injury,” says David Vladeck, a law professor at Georgetown University who testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in May.

“The goal here is to completely insulate businesses, schools, universities, anyone who is a service provider from any immunity at all. It sends a signal to the American people [that] we don’t care about your health,” he added. “If you get hurt from someone else you have no recourse. Zero recourse.”

McConnell and Cornyn say that’s not a fair characterization of the proposed law. “It will not ban coronavirus lawsuits, and it will not give anyone a ‘get out of jail free’ card,” Cornyn said on the Senate floor on Monday. “What it will do, though, is put safeguards in place that will prevent opportunistic lawsuits from harming the workers and institutions we are depending on to see us through this crisis.”

McConnell says liability shields are crucial to the U.S. economic recovery and warns of the prospect of “a second pandemic of opportunistic litigation enrich trial lawyers at the expense of Main Street and medical professionals.” “No bill will be put on the Senate floor that does not have liability protection,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

Big business lobbyists have been pushing for strong liability protections for months. The Chamber of Commerce spent $12.3 million lobbying Congress and the White House between April and June in part on liability protections, disclosure records show. Smithfield Foods, a defendant in one coronavirus-related lawsuit, paid a top lobbying firm, Holland & Knight, LLP, $230,000 to lobby for liability provisions. The American Medical Association, the physicians’ powerful lobbying arm, spent over $10 million to push for the shields. Trade associations representing real estate developers and airlines both spent more than $1.5 million.

Daniel Auble, a senior researcher at the Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks political spending, says lobbying disclosure forms have shown “considerably more attention being paid to ‘liability’ and ‘tort reform.’ In 2019, according to data Auble provided to TIME, 145 firms were hired to lobby for liability protections. By 2020, that number had increased to 291.

“We started hearing from our members, across all industries, of all different sizes, that one of the things they were anticipating was the potential for, from their perspective, very frivolous lawsuits,” says Neil Bradley, an executive vice president who oversees policy at the Chamber of Commerce. “We’re constantly learning about new and better ways to prevent the spread of the disease. That creates an opening for a lot of folks who want to argue that an employer should have done more than what they did, which has a chilling effect on your ability to reopen.”

It’s not yet clear what version of a COVID relief bill Congress will pass. Any bill will require bipartisan support to get to the President’s desk, and Democrats widely oppose the Republicans’ liability measures. The version of a relief bill that House Democrats passed in May does not include liability protections at all. It instead requires the federal agency, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), to set a national standard for workplace protection from the virus based on recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Democrats say that the Republican proposal goes too far and that a viable package must include protections for workers. “We want to make sure regulations – OSHA regulations or others – are followed and are sufficient to protect patients, customers, employees, and others who are utilizing services or public accommodations, that people are making sure that they make every effort available to them to protect people in this environment,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said Wednesday. “That will be the context in which we have discussions on liability.”

As millions of frontline workers like Taylor have continued to go to work despite the pandemic, a handful of COVID-related court cases have cropped up. In April, an anonymous worker in a Smithfield Foods meat processing plant in Missouri sued the company in federal court, alleging that it was failing to provide protective equipment and enforce social distancing policies. In May and June, McDonald’s workers filed lawsuits in Illinois and California making similar allegations. In June, Amazon employees at fulfillment centers in New York and California filed two separate lawsuits, both alleging the company’s work conditions were causing them to spread the virus to their families and communities.

Chiyomi Brent, a California Amazon employee who filed one of the lawsuits, said on a July 20 press call that she only went to the courts after she had raised concerns with her manager and filed a complaint with the California division of OSHA that went unheeded. “Without the ability to file a lawsuit, Amazon would be able to get away with its actions, and more Americans would needlessly get sick, or even worse, die,” she said. “It is my hope that workers in every industry will be safer because of my lawsuit.”

But litigation like this isn’t very common, in part because it’s often costly for everyone involved, and in part because it’s hard for workers to win. (The case against Smithfield Foods was dismissed in May, with the judge ruling the matter fell under the jurisdiction of OSHA). American Association for Justice (AAJ), a trade group for trial lawyers that opposes the liability shield legislation, analyzed a database of the more than 3,400 coronavirus-related lawsuits compiled by the law firm Hunton Andrews Kurth. It found that just 161 were for wrongful death or injury from the virus.

AAJ executives say the cases filed against corporations like Amazon and McDonald’s were critical in shaping the national conversation about the rights of frontline workers. “Senator McConnell is seeking to cut off one of the only tools Americans have to keep themselves safe,” says Julia Duncan, Senior Director of Government Affairs for the organization. “Just the filing of these cases can protect hundreds of thousands of workers.”

Taylor, who says she has no intention to sue her employer, argues that’s not the point. The real issue, she says, is that at a time of great peril, workers’ protections should not be rolled-back.

“I just think they can do better,” Taylor says of Congress. “I don’t mind working, I don’t mind rolling up my sleeves, but it’s a little bit annoying when I don’t feel like I’m being regarded.”

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proven-paradox · 7 years

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The Lesser Evil Side Sessions: Shey says goodbye to a friend then does her real job

<DM_Dox> ---

<DM_Dox> The confrontation with Tasha ended peacefully, even if Shey was left to wonder what exactly had happened.

<DM_Dox> The next day dawns, and apparently people are beginning to prepare for another day of festivities. The previous night was a long and loud one, whether celebrating in the common room or trying fruitlessly to get some sleep above.

<Shey> Shey finds her way down to the common room; she'd told the courier from the night before that she'd meet her here, to pay for room and board and to provide her a new fare. Persephone winds her way sluggishly after the ranger.

<DM_Dox> It takes a while for the courier to show up. It appears the gnome decided to partake in the festivities the night before, as she is disheveled. She sits next to Shey and orders a coffee before looking to her, grinning. "Don't worry, not 'spectin' you to get last night's tab."

<Shey> Shey cracks a smile. "Have yourself some fun?"

<DM_Dox> The gnome nods as her coffee is delivered, taking a short sip to test the temperature. "I did, I did. Not gonna pass up an opportunity. Ain't all that often a city ends a siege with gnolls, y'know?"

<Shey> "Not every day, no." Shey doesn't seem to be in the mood for breakfast, but she orders Persephone's chickens as usual. "You might be saying that again in a moment. Are you headed back to Leyline? I'd like you to return a message to my mother. The one who gave you the package to me."

<DM_Dox> The gnome doesn't seem much for breakfast either, content to sip on the coffee slowly. "I can do that, sure."

<Shey> "How are you with also taking her along, too?" Shey motions to the large cobra, content to lie on the floor and flick her tongue about at the smells.

<DM_Dox> That gives her some pause. She looks the snake over incredulously. "It--Uh, she. She doesn't like the taste a' gnomes, I hope?"

<Shey> "No, she won't hurt you. You could probably even ride her the whole way back, if I tell her to let you." Shey motions at the barding on the snake's back.

<DM_Dox> She looks unconvinced. "...I'll do it, but I'm gonna charge a hazardous materials premium. 75 gold."

<Shey> "Fair enough. I expected as much." Shey nods, not willing to haggle over her snake's safety. "My mother will be able to handle it once you lead her to the doorstep, and the letter I have will explain everything. And you'll be paid in advance this time, of course."

<DM_Dox> The gnome downs a big gulp of coffee and sighs. "Alright. Sounds like a deal t' me. Gimme thirty minutes t' finish gettin' ready for the road and I'll be on my way."

<Shey> "If you'd rather stay for the rest of the festivities and leave tomorrow, it wouldn't ruin any plans of mine." Shey offers.

<DM_Dox> She shakes her head. "Nah, 'preciate the offer, but I got a boss t' report back to. Especially given the problems goin' on around here recently, rather not keep him waitin' too long. Liable to write me off as gnollmeat."

<Shey> Shey nods. "Thirty minutes, then. I'll speak with Persephone when you are back so I can make it explicitly clear how she's to behave with you."

<DM_Dox> "Kay kay." She drains the last of her coffee and stands up. "Back in a half hour 'r so." She trots back up the stairwell leading to private rooms.

<Shey> Shey sighs once she's gone, and drags Persephone's head into her lap, lovingly stroking the snake's scales.

<DM_Dox> Almost thirty minute later, the gnome returns dressed in practical traveling clothes, hair done up into a simple pony tail. "Haright, all ready."

<Shey> Shey nods in greeting, then casts the spell that will let her speak to Persephone, to help the snake understand. "Listen," her voice cracks, and she clears her throat. "...Listen. I'm sending you back to the nesting grounds. Where you hatched. This one is," she gestures at the gnome, "is going to take you. You listen to her, until you're back to the nesting grounds. You need to go find a mate." The explanation is more simple, more appealing to the snake's instincts and needs. She won't understand, otherwise.

<Shey> When she's sure the snake understands, she gives Persephone a small hug, then sends the snake over to the gnome. "There's some simple commands you can use on her, if you need them. She'll listen." Shey gives the simple orders for follow, guard, and stop. "She ate this morning. She won't need anything else until she's home."

<Shey> Finally, she digs out the gold. "Letter for my mother is tucked in Persephone's saddle. Let her know, please."

<DM_Dox> She nods and accepts the payment. "Aaall righty. 'Sa weird turn for th' day, but I'll have i--her home quick as I can." She direct the snake to follow and leaves the inn.

<Shey> Shey's smile is tight as she watches them go. It's only after they're gone that it crumbles.

<DM_Dox> Time passes...

<DM_Dox> Early in the afternoon, Shey is heading out from Matilda's magewright store, having deposited the staff for repair and picking up a custom arrow she had ordered. Most of the city is still in celebration, though most of the towns' artisans have returned to work for the day.

<DM_Dox> Out of the blue, a man who looks to be in his late fifties with thin white hair, wearing a simple black cloak emerges from a side alley and runs into Shey. "Oh, oh dear! I am so sorry, miss, I wasn't paying attention!"

<DM_Dox> Somewhere in their collision, he presses something--it feels like a playing card--into her hand.

<Shey> Shey checks she still has her gold before moving out of the street to look over the card in her palm.

<DM_Dox> Her gold is still in place, but the card is more interesting. It is indeed a playing card from a standard deck. The queen of clubs. On its face, an address is written.

<Shey> Shey stops her grimace as it starts, memorizing the address. She almost tears up the card, but keeps it. Just in case. Better to head to the address now, though.

<DM_Dox> It takes a bit of research to get the location, but before long Shey makes her way to the east side of town, a residential neighborhood that is currently very quite. The residents seem to be either at the festival or at work right now.

<DM_Dox> Following the street numbers has Shey approaching what appears to be a simple brick home with a plain lawn in front. Outside, sitting on a chair on the porch, Shey spots Queen, lounging as though nothing were odd about the circumstances.

<DM_Dox> "Ah, there you are. Come inside, we need to start the cooking now if we want this done in time."

<Shey> "I hope it's not pie again," Shey quips cheerily, taking the porch steps to join her.

<DM_Dox> Queen takes an elaborate looking key from her pocket and unlocks the door. "Well... I guess we could do cake if you prefer?" She holds the door open and waves Shey forward. The interior is very dark, and Shey notes that the light that should be coming in from open windows on the front of the hosue isn't present.

<Shey> "Could split the difference and do cheesecake. I hear it's technically a pie." Shey steps in readily, despite the eerie surroundings.

<DM_Dox> Shey feels a slight dizziness as she enters the room, but it passes quickly. Queen follows behind her and closes the door. She flips a switch by the door, lighting several lanterns throughout a room that is clearly larger than the house the pair just entered.

<DM_Dox> One side of the huge room is lined with bookshelves containing unmarked folders. If there's a filing system, it's not an obvious one. A line of three beds rests against the wall to the right, basic but comfortable looking. An open kitchen area is on the left wall. A small round table with four chairs around it sits at the center of the room.

<DM_Dox> Queen nods to Shey. "Glad you could make it on short notice."

<Shey> "I do like to be punctual to my actual job." Shey replies, though the lightheartedness is quickly seeping from her tone.

<DM_Dox> Queen walks toward the table in the center, beckoning for Shey to follow. A pair of glasses and a pitcher of water float over to the table.

<DM_Dox> Shey gets the impression that Queen is not in a hurry nor overly worried about anything immediate at the moment. This is business, but not yet urgent business.

<Shey> Shey follows as requested, but only sits if Queen does.

<DM_Dox> And sit she does, pouring herself some water from the pitcher. "So. I hear you've been busy. Tell me about it."

<Shey> "I suppose I haven't had a chance to write a report, have I?" Shey settles in, almost guiltily. She starts from the beginning, from the loss and return of Kurth, to the sewers and dealings with Toad, to scouting for the druids, working with the Reavers, and finally the fight against Crimson. She gives every pertinent detail, with apologies for the time she spent as a petrified plant sculpture. "And that is the whole of it. The group is...fraying apart, after the last fight. Sending Persephone home may be enough to remove one thorn from Neera's side and keep the stitching in, though I worry about Akali and how to resolve things there. Ravanya will probably come around in time. Raido is a mystery."

<DM_Dox> "To you and I both for Raido..." She seems displeased by that detail. "Anyway. Crimson. I need every single detail you can give me about him and the halfing. You're certain Kurth doesn't know more about him?"

<Shey> "That's half of why they were so upset, as far as I can tell. 'How did you know me' was what they said after the fight, or something close to that." Shey shakes her head. "The halfling took off with his helm, nearly cooked Akali alive. Neera has the body and all its belongings."

<DM_Dox> "I've already learned what I could from the body. Damned shame the halfling got away with the head..."

<Shey> She pauses. "I do know that the halfling and Crimson were talking. Asking if Crimson was satisfied with how things had turned out. As if it had been the plan from the beginning to have the gnolls be routed and destroyed."

<DM_Dox> She tilts her head at the last bit. "Really now? And was he satisfied?"

<Shey> "It seemed so. The two of them were planning to retreat, it seemed. He stopped fighting us altogether. He died while protecting the halfling while we tried to interrupt her cast."

<DM_Dox> "Any idea whatsoever where the halfling might have gone?"

<Shey> "No," she admits reluctantly.

<DM_Dox> Queen huffs and nods. "Alright. That's all we've got for the gnoll invasion then." She takes a long drink. "Let's talk more about your companions. Starting with Kurth."

<Shey> "Neera, now." Shey cuts in, respectfully. "Kurth is dead, it seems, though Neera talked about going back to their clan. They aren't one to confide in me."

<DM_Dox> "Neera then. Is having her around helpful, or a problem?"

<Shey> "They're good in a fight," Shey answers carefully. "Got a stick wedged right up there about rules, maybe moreso than most Reavers. But I don't think they can smell a lie if the bullshit's right under their nose. If they're a problem for anyone...I would think it's Akali. I'm used to working around someone else's honor."

<DM_Dox> "Good segway to the next question. Is -Akali- helpful or a problem? If this can't be fixed between them and you have to choose one, which do you choose?"

<Shey> Shey frowns. "Akali's a wildcard. She's generally bullishly practical. I can work with her, sometimes, and other times I can't. She can alienate people, and likes to, just for fun. I can get her to listen, but only sometimes." She lets out a sigh. "If it's fighting...I'd keep Akali. Neera is getting better since the brush with death, but things are still dodgy. But socially? They're both just...messes. Neera happens to be the mess that doesn't annoy people for fun, is all."

<DM_Dox> "I'd call that more than a brush, but anyway. You've already said you can work with Ravanya. Next is Raido." She waits expectantly.

<Shey> "We'll see. She's as pissed right now as Neera." Shey moves on, however, as she is prompted. "Raido is...having trouble fitting in. I imagine that will lessen, but he's odd. He's very self-absorbed, it seems, unaware how uncomfortable he can make other people as he searches their eyes and talks about memories. He's very handy in a fight, but outside of it he is far too keen to use his abilities on every problem that comes along."

<DM_Dox> Queen nods. "That tracks with what Drake tells me. When all you have is a hammer..." She lets the thought trail off. "For what it's worth, that's also been how he's made his living for a long time now. He might just be trying too hard to sell his wares."

<Shey> "I'm willing to wait and let him settle in. The four of us in the original group had the benefit of starting this insane journey together."

<DM_Dox> "We'll see, I suppose. And lastly, I'm would expect you'd tell me if this happened, but just to be extremely sure. You have had no contact from TLE since the last encounter?"

<Shey> "Not that I've been aware of." Shey confirms.

<DM_Dox> "Alright. That'll save us both some writing and reading. I've been grilling you. Now it's your turn, I suppose."

<Shey> "I'm sorry?" Shey is rather startled. "I was always under the impression that I would be informed of anything necessary for me to know, and otherwise isn't important."

<DM_Dox> "Typically the ones handing out your assignments are in a hurry. Also typically an agent isn't our first good chance at getting information on a player as big as TLE. Unless some new disaster strikes I'm out for the rest of the week, and you are currently not expendable." She shrugs. "Let's try making this a two way street for a change."

<DM_Dox> "If I don't want to answer, I won't.”

<Shey> Shey accepts this answer. "I should ask, then, what's frightened Tasha? She currently thinks Ravanya is responsible for what was done, and as Fern told me a 'friend' was the one who took care of something..."

<DM_Dox> Queen chuckles. "For the sake of plausible deniability... I offered her silver or steel. And, ah, the captain of the guard, Calther I think his name. He might be in a bad mood for a while. Avoid if you can."

<Shey> "Ah." Shey knows there won't be more information than that. "I'll keep that in mind, though I'm not sure how well we can simply sneak out of town. Or where we'll even head to next, unless it's to Dalrok, or you have something for me to do besids herding these cats."

<DM_Dox> "Alas, I doubt I'll have more for you besides cat herding for a while yet. Not until after TLE's next move."

<Shey> "I suspected as much." Shey gives a half-hearted smile. "Anything new on your end? I imagine not after only a week or two, but..."

<DM_Dox> "Aside from Raido, no."

<Shey> She hesitates. "This may be me being paranoid, but...bone devils. Like the one with the gnolls. Any relation to Toxanox?"

<DM_Dox> She taps her chin. "Unlikely, but I can't rule it out. You said its name was Dnorgan? That's something I'll get my people investigating as soon as this vacation is over."

<Shey> "Pardon this personal inquiry, but...why are you on vacation?"

<DM_Dox> She chuckles. "Because this job is fucking hard and I need a break."

<Shey> "Fair enough. I appreciate the visit during your free time." Shey gives a small laugh. "...We really don't know anything about Raido?"

<DM_Dox> "Relatively little." She takes another drink of her water. "Drake apparently worked with him in the Leyline War. She revealed his connection with TLE to me only recently, or I would have mentioned it to you earlier." Her tone has a sour note to it. The leader of the Order of the Black Wind is now supposed to be surprised.

<Shey> "If he was in the Leyline War, there's...probably records of his service, somewhere, yes?" Shey knows Queen would have tried that, but it's worth mentioning.

<DM_Dox> "He was one of the folks working on the northern front. That front was mostly adventurers, and documentation on those can be sparse. We've traced his origins to Jowagon. The people who knew him immediately shut down and told my agent to leave when asked about him. His trail leads to Hillson, then goes cold. The next time we see him is working with Drake on logistics in the northern front."

<Shey> "How much do we know about Lady Drake? She's very...informal about Sir Bladebreaker. Everyone can have a private life, but I assume we'd vet anyone that gets that close to the top."

<DM_Dox> Queen exhales sharply, looking frustrated. "If I could pin down her intentions and motivations, I would want her in the OBW immediately. She lies effortlessly and more convincingly than anyone I've ever seen. She can charm her way out of almost any situation, and she can magic her way out of the rest. So far she seems to be quite benevolent, and willing to do what needs to be done for the greater good, but something in my gut tells me there's more to her than that."

<Shey> "Oh, good, then it's not just me." Shey replies bitterly. "But she is helping, so I'll be careful and properly grateful."

<DM_Dox> "As far as vetting? Her record is pristine. And her and Sir Bladebreaker's... arrangement seems mutually beneficial for them so far. The problem comes when he trusts her more than he trusts me."

<DM_Dox> "Any council I give against her is based on instinct alone, and he won't change his mind based on just that."

<Shey> "Maybe we can find him a better girlfriend. Do we have any very pretty agents he might like?" Shey knows this joke is in poor taste. "I'll keep my ears and eyes open."

<Shey> A pause. "And if it turns out she's just being as sneaky and pure-hearted as we are, I'll welcome her to the Wind with open arms."

<DM_Dox> "If only it were that simple. We have more than a few agents who've seduced far worse people for far worse things." She seems completely serious.

<DM_Dox> "As far as welcoming her in? Not until I figure out -why- she sets off every alarm I've built up."

<Shey> "Well, I said 'if.'" Shey rolls her shoulders. "Despite my newfound status, I know where I actually am in this organization, and I'm fine with that. I'm here to serve."

<DM_Dox> Queen looks Shey over for a long moment, cogs clearly turning in her head. She starts speaking cautiously. "...This is not the skillset we brought you into the OBW for. And not something I can comfortably order you to do."

<DM_Dox> "But if, at some point, you have time to speak with Cyrick, and if you are comfortable doing it, try to talk to him. Bring up your concerns about Drake to him. That is the one subject he utterly refuses to listen to me about."

<DM_Dox> "Your encounter with TLE puts you in a unique position in more ways than one."

<Shey> Shey nods without hesitation. She'll certainly have enough time to chew on the HOW she could manage that. "I'm prepared to do what's necessary. I don't know him well, or Lady Drake well, but I'll do what I can where I'm able."

<DM_Dox> Queen nods. "I say this, because the man is... driven by a strange sense of guilt. He hides it well. Even though there was nothing he could have done differently, I am sure he still feels somehow responsible for you lot getting into this mess. Whatever else is in our dealings with each other, guilt is not among them. They are with you. Maybe he'll listen to you over it."

<Shey> "Guilt. I'm familiar with that. I'll be careful how I use it." Shey runs a hand through her hair. "Easier if I could make him forget my first loyalty's to you, but, barring Raido's interference, that would be far more tricky than perhaps it's worth."

<DM_Dox> Queen tilts her head curiously. "Interesting. Why do you presume he knows that already?"

<Shey> Shey blinks. "He doesn't? Lady Drake told me about a 'mutual friend' who took care of Toad. I assumed you had told them both."

<Shey> "If she was just referring to you as the group knew you, I wouldn't imagine she would say so privately."

<DM_Dox> She shakes her head. "One thing Drake is very, very good at is keeping secrets. Especially from Sir Bladebreaker."

<Shey> "But if you didn't tell her, how does she know?" This is actually very alarming, causing Shey to sit up much straighter. "How did I get compromised?"

<DM_Dox> "I told her. I did -not- tell Bladebreaker."

<DM_Dox> "There are a lot of things we keep from him. I've already mentioned plausible deniability once this afternoon."

<Shey> "Ah." Shey lets her posture relax a fraction. "That's...better, then."

<Shey> "It does make speaking against her to Sir Bladebreaker tricky, as I'm sure she'll let that slip if I make any headway." Shey frowns. "I'll chew it over, still."

<DM_Dox> She nods. "This is true, and it may be that nothing comes of this. But I want the idea out there."

<Shey> Shey gives a slow nod, then works her jaw. "I...have something else to mention, not directly related to, well, any of this. Possibly very low priority at the moment, but..." she draws out the vial of black liquid and places it on the table carefully.

<DM_Dox> Queen looks at the vial curiously. "And this is...?"

<Shey> "I asked my family, my mother, specifically, for help in procuring bone devil venom if we should need it to placate the Toad. I tested what she sent me. If it's a synthetic...it's a very near miss to the true thing. It sizzles in holy water, even."

<DM_Dox> "And...?"

<Shey> She tries to stifle her shame at reporting on what was, ostensibly, a gift given in good faith by her family. "I know I'm to keep an eye on them. I wasn't even sure they would have this when I requested it, but somehow my family has access to devil's venom. It seemed important to keep in mind."

<DM_Dox> "That's unsettling, but at the moment not a priority. As well connected as they are, I can think of a few theories for how they got that which are only moderately sinister."

<DM_Dox> "Do find out more when you can though. Something to bring up over the next family dinner perhaps," she deadpans.

<Shey> Shey nods. "I know it isn't as important right now, but I would also you rather not think I'm keeping it from you." She quirks a self-deprecating smile up. "I'll work it into the conversation."

<DM_Dox> She nods. "I appreciate your candor."

<Shey> "Have to cherish those moments you can be really honest, you know."

<DM_Dox> Queen nods. "If there's nothing else, I suspect you have things to get back to. For my part, I'm not doing a damned thing unless I absolutely must for the next week."

<Shey> "I hear there's a banging party in Northwall you could check out." Shey stands at her dismissal. "They won a battle or something, who knows."

<DM_Dox> "Well, you go investigate that if you want. I'm staying right here. The portal should see you out just fine."

<Shey> "Will do." Shey gives a little bow, then heads out the way she came in, slipping her ring back on as she goes.

<DM_Dox> ---

#the lesser evil #dnd 3.5 #shey #Persephone #Queen

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thoughtsniteodoro · 2 years

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National Museum

Unlike what occurred at the MOA, this trip wasn't at all planned. Issa wants Kurth and I to accompany her since her mother told her to run some errands in San Juan. We told her that it would be dull and that we weren't sure that we'd like coming alongside her since her reason for going there is linked to ours. She did, however, add that she had spotted a location on Facebook that we could visit after her errands—the National Museums. We became more interested because there is no entrance fee. Free stuff are chances waiting to be taken advantage of for broke, unemployed students like us.

We both seemed to agree with that notion, and since we knew her mother would support us and let us travel, Kurth and I made the decision that we will be joining her. Issa's mother, tita, even gave her directions on how to get to Manila after we were done with her business. We don't know where we were, if we were truly honest. I was baffled because all we could see were strange places. At some point, we followed Tita's directions, but we disobeyed her advice to simply take a cab or grab. Even though Issa will pay for it, we still don't want it because it is too expensive for us. Once Issa recommended using Angkas, things got incredibly complicated. We had never thought of that concept before, and we didn't even have the Angkas app on our phones, so how do we begin?

Fortunately, it was enjoyable. We installed the applications on our phones and signed in using our names and phone numbers. Following that, we booked a few motorcycles and awaited our rides one at a time. My car arrived first, and even though it wasn't my first time traveling in that kind of car, it was my first time riding with a stranger in a foreign place, so I was really anxious! I had a lot of worries when riding with Kuya, including what if he kidnaps me?; what if a truck ran us over?; what should I grasp onto? and; will I pass away? It was all wrong, though. The driver is very good at driving that we even did "banking" which I really enjoyed. The breeze was cold and I saw a lot of amazingly structured buildings that are out of their time on the way to our destination. Kuya, the driver, provided a secure and comfortable journey.

I got there and paid him with such a low price but he still said his greetings sweetly with a smile. He truly is a wonderful person. Well, Kurth and Issa arrived not long after, and we had a nice chat in which we both shared our first Angkas experiences as well as mine. Although we were already at the museum's gate, we couldn't enter because we were still waiting for someone. It's Gerald, a friend of Kurth's from the internet, and we first looked for him before deciding where to eat. They said we should eat first before entering the museum so we did. We had lunch at a BonChon, again, not far from the museum, which was more enjoyable because it was Issa's special treat.

After that fantastic lunch, we traveled a little walk to the museum and went inside. Considering that it is a public space, we were surprised that it had air conditioning, but we are also grateful. Manila's hot climate makes it difficult to unwind there. Moving on, the location was undoubtedly stunning! It's already lovely without the art exhibitions. The buildings, windows, and even the staircases are excellent. Everything was worth capturing! It's amazing, but we strolled around the entire building since we were looking for the art. We looked at every floor, and none of them disappointed us. It continued to delight our small, happy hearts with a variety of items, including animal bodies, miniatures, wildlife sounds, and educational materials.

After that, we strolled once more to Rizal Park, which is not too far away. Due to the extreme heat, we stopped for cold drinks like buko juice along the way. The place was broad, spacious, and open, allowing the great sun to reach us from any location. We were exhausted when we arrived, but the sight of the park's beauty made us smile and laugh. It was kind of windy but the sun was not joking and we were getting tired too so we didn't stay for long. We got a lot of pictures and videos, though.

We rode the Angkas to Recto and then took the LRT to Antipolo on the way home. Since there were no seats left, we were forced to stand inside the train. My feet were already dead at that moment but my heart was very much alive because of the things that happened. I really enjoyed that day that I can add it to my list of my favorite days.

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valflame · 7 years

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@holysight

⊰ ♖ ⊱

He wanted Azel.

He wanted to speak to Azel to clear the air after their most recent argument and to see if he couldn’t attempt some level of reconciliation, that was, but as luck would have it duty bound him to the interior of a horse-drawn carriage for the length of the past several days, and for all his ability in discussing matters of a political nature he always seemed to misplace his silver tongue whenever it came to matters regarding his interpersonal relationships. Perhaps that was why he’d spent the better half of the day with his cheek pressed into his knuckles, staring out the window of the carriage in pensive thought ( and what else was he supposed to do? He’d already finished all the books he’d brought along with him, and there was precious little else to do. He couldn’t even turn to Aida for a bit of conversation what with her still back in Velthomer ) and lamenting his lack of any luck in bonding with his brother instead of engaging with the driver whenever he started up another feeble attempt at chatting up a storm on the way to Chalphy. The most the poor chauffeur managed to get out of Arvis was a curt word of goodbye as he departed from the coach, a book tucked beneath one arm and a letter addressed to the local Duke clutched within the other while he strode up the stone-marked path to Chalphy castle. With the way his luck was going Duke Byron wouldn’t even be around to accept his message from the king ( and why did he have to play courier now? His duty was to Kurth and his father, of course, but there was still that matter with Azel... ), which could only ever lead to more time spent in carriages without time in between to get his mind off of his brother and an inevitable uncountable number of hours further spent over-analysing the situation and mulling thing over in his head.

The sorcerer had thought it in jest, of course, but as more time passed and he failed to be met at the gates of the castle Arvis grew increasingly listless ( all internally, of course; he could hardly afford to start letting whatever feelings plagued him show on his face beyond the general fatigue that he was entitled to, of course ). He had crossed Grannvale to deliver a message for a recipient that seemed increasingly unable to receive it. He had wanted Azel, but a stirring out of the corner of his eye brought with it something that he hadn’t exactly been wishing for but nonetheless brought him at least some level of closure:

"Sir Sigurd. Well met.”

He spoke with the same level of stifling politeness he always seemed to have reserved for matters of business, though that didn’t keep him from subtly giving the man a bit of a once-over while he reached for his parcel. Arvis worked on the kings’ schedule more than he did his own; it wasn’t every day he happened to run into someone closer to his own age considering the sizeable generation gap between himself and most of Grannvale’s other Dukes. Part of him might have even entertained the thought of asking about Ethlyn if it didn’t call for crossing a certain line into the territory of personal lives that he typically didn’t bother getting into with other people.

"I have with me a message from His Majesty made out to your father. Is he not here today??”

#holysight #⊰ ♖ ⊱ WE HAVE SHARPENED OUR IDEAS TO JUSTIFY OURSELVES AS IF IT WERE NORMAL TO SOW DESTRUCTION / IN CHARACTER #(( don't let the length fool you... I had no clue what to hecking write so I just BABBLED INTO INFINITY OTL... ))#(( it's?? pre-game political postal nonsense since midgame things would be... /heated/ ))#(( ba-dum tss :T ))#(( let me know if you want this changed into something else!! I can edit it right quick >:V ))#(( also DON'T... MATCH THE LENGTH SMH I JUST COULDN'T MAKE IT SHORTER ON MY END OTL ))

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itsfinancethings · 4 years

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Taylor, who says she has no intention to sue her employer, argues that’s not the point. The real issue, she says, is that at a time of great peril, workers’ protections should not be rolled-back.

#IFTTT #Blogger

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