#this is Miyana

[bravetigerwildwolf]

Pharos is Aaravos Marionette, someone on YouTube had the same thought as me and they made a video. If thats still true Miyana and Karim just gave Aaravos an Army.

[its-leethee]

season 6 trailer footage/2x06

[baatarthefirst]

[mandaloriandragontrainer]

If you don’t find any of them attractive personally, no worries! Go with who you think has the objectively best design, or just who you’d like to see win!

Yes, there are some lovely ladies missing from the list 😔 unfortunately, Tumblr only allows twelve options per poll, so I had to go with the characters that seem to be the most popular in the fandom.

Reblogs are appreciated!

Male edition here!

[sunfire-shield]

Rewatching season 4 and thinking about how you’ve got the bit with Janai having her crisis and the whole “At least Karim would lead the people with some sense of certainty” thing, how Karim and Janai work so well as foils for each other, and this thing the Sunfire elves have going on about certainty and strength, and the penchant Karim (who is a character fixated on and representing the conservative traditional) has for strong decisive gestures over even carefully considered plans, like how he steamrollers Miyana when she tells him that while some Sunfire elves are unhappy with Janai’s progressive attitude and policies, they aren’t ready for open revolt, and throws down a flashy and dramatic challenge to his sister, the way he demands “Fight me! Defeat me! Prove the throne should be yours!” during his duel with Janai, as if that kind of attitude proves the virtues of a leader, when in reality it is Janai’s mercy, something Karim no doubt considers weak, and a demonstration of her uncertainties and doubts that he would think makes her a weak ruler, when in reality her ability to stop and think and consider and show mercy makes her a far better leader than he could ever be. It all reminded me in an odd way of how when Viren didn’t like the idea of Ezran being king in season one and set Soren the task of killing the princes, he says to Soren “But if we are led by a child king . . .” and Soren questioningly goes “He will make bad choices?” and Viren’s response is “He will make weak choices.” The emphasis is on weak, not bad, being such an interesting moment. And when Ezran does take the throne, he refuses to wage war on Xadia, exactly what Viren wanted to do, was willing to kill a child and seize the throne to do. Because that’s what Viren considers the ‘strong’ choice. But Opeli points out “Peace will require just as much strength as war” something Viren could never see. The way the villains in this show keep putting emphasis on the ways they consider the protagonists weak and themselves strong, and how that plays into Harrow’s thesis of “these moments of purest strength appear as weakness to those who don’t know better”, inverting it, so that the ways that the shows antagonists think they are proving themselves strong are in fact proving the opposite

[kradogsrats]

A Song of Love and Loyalty (and Loss): General Miyana

So thanks to @raayllum I have been thinking about Miyana. Miyana is a very interesting figure in the cast of a story where the central conflict is shaped around what an individual will do for the sake of love, whether to themselves, to others, or to the world—because Miyana, in her initial arc, is characterized by what she won't do for love. She's very much a facet of the same theme, but in a way that people are liable to find unsympathetic: she doesn't support Karim when he's relatively harmless, to the point that could be considered a betrayal of him, but then she does when doing so means doing serious harm in a definite betrayal of "the good guys."

But I love a complicated woman, so why not do a deep dive on the motivations, story arcs, and thematic future of a character most of the fanbase probably can't name and most of the rest likely hate?

So What is Miyana's Deal?

Miyana is one of the "Six Horns," the best and most respected of the Sunfire generals, named for the six horns of Sol Regem. The Six Horns, as at least part of their duties, form a tribunal that is is implied to be the highest level of Sunfire justice. Their role appears to be determining innocence or guilt, and the sentencing is left up to the monarch—however, they are also powerful enough to completely displace the monarch if they unite in intent to do so.

In their role as judges, the Six Horns adopt ceremonial regalia that hides their emotions and gives at least a symbolic curtain to their identities, creating a sense of impartiality... but it does not appear to be any kind of secret who they are. Miyana is still one of the Six Horns when out of "uniform," and she and her colleagues freely mingle and discuss things among themselves.

From her role, we can assume that Miyana is smart, politically astute, likely good at reading both people and situations, and has demonstrated loyalty to the Sunfire kingdom (... empire?). It's difficult to tell whether being a warrior is also part of her skillset, because she doesn't demonstrate any combat ability or inclination in her appearances—ex. she does not walk around armed. The "general" title would seem to imply some amount of combat experience, especially with our one other "general" example being Amaya, an extremely hands-on commander. However, given the intertwining of government and military there appears to be in Sunfire elf culture, the position is more strategic and advisory in nature than front-line combatant.

Miyana and Karim: a Secret vs. a Symbol

Miyana and Prince Karim are engaged in a romantic relationship that is secret... but also not particularly subtle, at least on his part.

When Karim bursts into Miyana's... office? Quarters? Whatever, she's the one who is disturbed and slams the door behind him. He doesn't really appear to give much of a shit.

This makes sense, because Miyana is the one with something to lose if their relationship gets out. She's meant to be an impartial judge, even against the monarch—an entanglement with the royal family significantly compromises her. Presumably, if she wanted to be with Karim openly, she could relinquish her position... but she does not, either because she doesn't want to, or because Karim doesn't want to make things official.

Speaking of...

Karim, somewhat hilariously, suggests to Janai that she keep Amaya as a permanent consort, rather than officially marry her and have that marriage be a "symbol" of what he perceives as the beginning of the end for Sunfire power and culture. This suggests that it could be Karim who insists on maintaining secrecy over his and Miyana's relationship, assuming he feels the same way about making sure his own eventual marriage is appropriately symbolic for his people.

Personally, given the way Karim behaves, I think it's Miyana who isn't willing to abandon being one of the Six Horns for him—whether because of the power and status it affords her, or because she values being in a position where her service to her people has a strong impact, or because it took her a fucking long time to climb the ladder. Who knows.

But basically, Karim? Not subtle:

Look at this guy, he might as well have literal heart eyes. He also doesn't avoid openly socializing with her:

Not to mention that they have matching earrings, for fuck's sake.

Anyway, he doesn't even respond to Miyana's concern about them being seen together when he barges into her space. He's not exactly behaving as if he's committed to the secrecy.

Season 4 Arc: Gently Convincing Your Royal Boyfriend that He's an Idiot

Miyana is introduced in the s4 Sunfire arc when it pivots toward Karim moving directly against Janai. Immediately after being dissatisfied by the result of Lucia's trial and Janai revealing the Sun Seed to him, Karim meets with Miyana and their relationship is revealed to the viewers. She does appear before that, with Karim (the three previous screenshots are from before that point), but this is where they are formally connected.

This scene, immediately before Karim tells her that he has seen "the truth" that Janai must be removed, is the last time we see Miyana smile until the end of s5. She spends the entire rest of the season going through various stages of concern and doubt about Karim's... frankly unhinged plans.

She questions him at basically every turn, but never goes so far as to say outright that what he's proposing is a bad idea. She acknowledges that the others of the Six Horns might be sympathetic to his take on Janai's direction, but more than once cautions him that she does not believe they will be willing to turn against her.

So how does she really feel? Karim certainly implies that he sees her as his "woman on the inside," secretly feeding him information on the Six Horns and influencing them in his favor, in turn. There's a cut segment that has been referenced in interviews in which Karim cautions Miyana that she must not be the first to vote in his favor, because that will possibly reveal their relationship—which, while he may be thinking about her preference for secrecy, would also kind of invalidate the entire vote.

Miyana, on the other hand, expresses a lot of concern for Karim. She's very worried that he's misjudged the situation and will fail—possibly because she knows she cannot rescue him if he's wrong. And she doesn't, even when he cries out to her, specifically:

I bet that was real fun for her to try to explain. It's possible she could have helped him more after the fact if he hadn't implicated her that way, but it's also entirely possible there's nothing she could do—the monarch, after all, is the one who sentences the guilty.

Even if Miyana is 100% behind Karim's vision for the future of the Sunfire people, at no point does she appear to agree with the way he's pursuing it, and in the end she refuses to go down with him. (Contrast with, say, Sarai... who firmly expresses her disapproval to Harrow about his approach, but then backs him 100% with action.)

Season 5 Arc: Can You Even Trust Yourself?

Miyana does not appear a single time in s5 until she reports Kim'dael's infiltration of the camp to Janai. At this point, Janai entrusts her with concealing and protecting the Sun Seed.

This is an interesting exchange, since on Janai's end it indicates that she and Miyana probably don't know each other well. Janai at least suspects what they are facing, based on the description of "a ghost"—if she suspects that it's Kim'dael specifically, she would be aware that the only person who could have sent her is Karim. It's not clear whether some of Miyana's involvement with Karim might have come out after s4, but even if it did, it was probably brushed off because she didn't stand with him in his ill-judged coup.

Also, like... what does Janai expect her to say? "No"? This isn't really a question—Janai has decided that, absent other immediate options, she can trust Miyana as a member of the Six Horns to safeguard the future of their people. She's indicating to Miyana that she is being given an incredibly important, secret responsibility.

And personally, I fully believe that Miyana thinks she is being 100% truthful in her answer. I don't think she's been sitting around waiting for the perfect moment to run off to Karim—she loved him, and still loves him, but she chose being able to continue having a role in shaping her people's future over throwing away everything for him. She has no idea where he is or what he's doing. He's gone. Exiled. No longer a factor.

So what changes? The ransom demand:

Karim sends Pharos with a message that says, simply:

He has Janai.

He wants the Sun Seed in exchange for her life.

He wants Miyana to come to him with it.

For Miyana herself, this potentially changes everything, because what she's hearing is:

Karim is alive.

He is still fighting for his vision, and has gathered allies powerful enough to overcome Janai.

He has some kind of plan requiring the Sun Seed, which likely plays to his actual strengths (he's a mage, the Sun Seed is a powerful magical artifact).

He wants her at his side.

Personally, if I was her, I'd be at least a little worried that he wants her as the delivery person so he can punish her for her betrayal of him... but he's also such an unbelievably soft boy that I can see why that might not cross her mind. Like, his reaction to seeing "Miyana" riding toward him is unrestrained joy and affirmation that his belief in her was correct—if anything, what he's expecting here is that Miyana will convince the others of the Six Horns to agree to his demands, thereby getting him the Sun Seed and reuniting them.

Miyana, for her part, is now in a position to significantly shift the balance of power. She still loves Karim, and she presumably still believes in his direction for the future. She can bring him the Sun Seed. She can bring him her segment of the Sunfire army. Both of those will significantly weaken Janai's position, while putting Karim much closer to success. Unlike Karim's s4 plan, this is a good bet. This is worth throwing away what she has, in favor of something she could gain.

Removing the Mask: Miyana's Final Turn (So Far)

Bear with me for a moment, because we're going to briefly circle back to s4 and Miyana's position as one of the Six Horns. Throughout s4, there is demonstrable tension between her role and her relationship with Karim, for both of them:

Each of them, in a private moment, contemplates the mask she wears as tribunal judge—a symbol of what keeps them apart. Both of them know that this is her central choice, between her love for him and the duty (loyalty?) to her people that she won't let go. Karim, poor fool that he is, thinks that those will never come in conflict. Miyana spends all of s4 knowing that they will. Maybe even knowing what her choice will be.

In Amaya's deception to rescue Janai, she puts on Miyana's clothing and mask, pretending to be her in order to get close to Karim. Karim completely falls for this, and thereby suffers a second emotional betrayal from the "General Miyana of the Six Horns" mask.

He's so happy that his faith in her wasn't misplaced, and then he gets literally hit in the face with it:

So that sucks for him. However, when Miyana ultimately returns to him, she has stripped all aspects of her Six Horns role, wearing neither her tribunal mask/robe nor her usual fancy tunic and adornments (what Janai was wearing):

She professes her loyalty to Karim having only the most basic layer of her personas: the bottom-layer red tunic and pants that go under both outfits. She has, it is implied, completely discarded the position that previously held her back from Karim.

She also claims that her loyalty has never wavered (debatable), and equates her loyalty to Karim with her love for him, also unwavering (probably true).

This, the moment when Karim receives her (after literally starting to cry), is the first time she smiles again. She continues to smile through the end of the sequence, revealing to him both the Sun Seed and the army she has brought. She appears to have zero conflict about this—she has shed it all with the shell of her identity as one of the Six Horns.

So What Does This Mean for the Future?

Miyana has explicitly equated her love for and her loyalty to Karim. And what is love, in this series, but something to be tested?

Even having stripped away all the aspects of her dedication to her people that are related to the Sunfire mainstream rather than Karim's rebellion, Miyana is still going to have to reckon with whether Karim's vision is the future she wants and whether she can support how far he may go for it. She has handed Karim, and by extension Pharavos, a great deal of both magical and martial power. When Karim's ambitions collide with Aaravos's, he will almost certainly double down—accepting what Aaravos offers and/or foolishly believing he can somehow come out on top.

Miyana is the only one of this trio who is potentially even a little clear-eyed, though she could absolutely be blinded by love. She may follow Karim to the bitter end and self-destruction. She may try to save him. She may try to save others from him. She may realize she can only save herself.

Of the characters with close relationships that carry this loyalty/love tension of loving someone but not necessarily being able to support their decisions and actions, we have:

Soren, who was unable to continue following Viren's downward spiral and instead chose loyalty to his king. His father may be a lost cause, but he still believes he can save his sister.

Terry, who has been left by Claudia with the aggressive guilt that she has robbed herself of his support because she believes he will eventually abandon her, and has several directions he could go: doubling down on his loyalty to Claudia and aggressively following her descent, prioritizing his love for Claudia and focusing on finding a way to save her, or he might cut his losses and fuck off completely (unlikely).

Lissa, whose precise situation we don't know the details of, but who left behind everything she loved and never looked back (or was never allowed to).

While I'm sure whatever resolution they write for Miyana will be fine (*grits teeth*), at this time I think the best one for her would be a Lissa-style ending. Janai's path may lead to the end of Sunfire history, as Karim put it, but his path will lead to the end of their future. Miyana will eventually recognize that, and that like in s4, she can't save him from himself. However, this time she has already irrevocably cast aside her former position—leaving Karim also means giving up her chance (or perception of her chance) to be someone who actively shapes and safeguards her people's future. If she returns to Janai, she faces exile at best. Might as well skip the painful part of that and just... go. But in having given up her complex loyalty to Janai, and finally separating her loyalty to Karim from her love for him, she's left with an opening where loyalty to herself and her own principles can blossom.

[raayllum]

callum going "it means i trust her, unconditionally" and having that faith rewarded bc rayla would never betray him vs janai asking miyana "can i trust you?" and being assured that she can only to be betrayed. im chewing drywall

[bisexualenbyblueberry]

Hahaahah. Rayllum. Wait, no, that actually happened, this is too dark.

Hahdhahaha. Karim and Miyana. Wait no, that also happened. Try again.

Hahahhaa. Harrai. Wait NO-

hahahahahhhashah. Clauderry. FUCK

[a-very-sparkly-nerd]

Did Miyana have a change of heart, is this a sibling or doppelganger or what? Also, Sunfire elf markings are bloodred now...

EDIT: nvm, I think Ezran is visiting Karim's camp as an impartial(ish) third party to try and negotiate for some peace or at least a truce. Amaya probably isn't happy...

[parroset]

Parallels: Miyana and Aaravos in relation to their mages

So I’ve been thinking of Miyana recently (and of course I’m always thinking of Aaravos), and I wanted to point out a few similarities I’ve noticed between these two. Specifically, in their relationships with Karim and Viren, respectively.

First of all, arc 1 Viren and Karim have many notable parallels, which I’ve seen multiple people discuss already. To summarize, both are mages who are a brother figure to royalty and want to “reclaim” land that was taken from them. Both are driven (at least partially) by a desire for political power to “restore” their nation in some way. And they are both willing to take drastic action to get there, including a possible war. They both represent the cycle and show how it continues. They also share some similar plot points. They both argue/fight with the monarch, which causes their relationship with said sibling figure to fracture. They then have a very important meeting of some kind in which they could gain power (summit of the pentarchy and the six horns) but fail to. And at the end of season 5, Karim gains an army, similar to Viren in season 3 (more on this one later).

So where do Miyana and Aaravos fit into this? Both fulfill a similar role in allowing their mages to actually have a chance to succeed. Karim, so far, has been failing hilariously at every single goal he has attempted. Like, the man has not had a single success. Not even half a success. It’s sad. But, again, at the end of season 5, Miyana returns to him with a full army and reaffirms her loyalty to him. Karim can finally see some hope for his goals to be realized.

Likewise, Viren is failing pretty badly in season 2 until Aaravos steps in. I personally do not think he would have been able to escalate the situation as much as he did if not for Aaravos. He did break serious laws, and was imprisoned for his crimes. Aaravos is the reason he got out, kept Claudia by his side, rose to power, managed to bring an army into Xadia, and fortified said army. Without Aaravos, Viren’s “bright future for humanity” probably would have remained a distant dream. And this brings us to our first main parallel:

Both Miyana and Aaravos provide an army in some way to their mages.

While Viren technically had an army already, Aaravos helped him fortify it so that he had a decent shot at winning. He ACTUALLY allowed Viren hope for his dreams to be realized. Miyana brought a real army, which allows Karim some hope for his dreams to be realized.

They also both used some form of betrayal (disguising Viren as a prisoner, pretending to be loyal to Janai) to help their mages acquire a sun seed in accompaniment with said army. These physical embodiments of power make it even remotely possible for the mages to have some sort of chance at achieving their goals.

Miyana and Aaravos also, at some point, both affirm their loyalty to the mage they are working with, and continue to prove it through their actions.

I think these quotes are very similar in terms of intention. Both Viren and Karim are initially worried that Aaravos and Miyana betrayed them, but Aaravos and Miyana not only affirm their loyalty, but continue to act upon that by actively helping their mages succeed. And Viren and Karim accept this fairly easily, because let’s be honest, they don’t have many other options.

Also, I just find it interesting that we have these two scenes which are very similar in framing, with Miyana taking the exact (physical) place of Aaravos. Viren and Karim both cut their hands with a knife and use their blood in some form of ritual. While Aaravos is encouraging this, Miyana is very much against it.

As a bonus, the staffs are on the same side of the room lol

Of course, these don’t necessarily mean anything, but I do think that it’s possible that Miyana will play a similar role to Aaravos, in terms of guiding Karim. If there’s any chance for this poor man to make it, it’s her.

[a-certain-elf]

Miyana: You should apologize to Karim.

Janai: Fine.

Janai: 'Unfuck you' or whatever.

[beautifulterriblequeen]

this tent has so many Sol Regem references it's silly

[baatarthefirst]

Karim: [gets on one knee in before Miyana]

Miyana: By the Sun, it’s finally happening!

Karim: [Falls to the ground foaming at the mouth]

Miyana: The poison is kicking in.

[mandaloriandragontrainer]

I ventured into the cesspool that is the TDP subreddit to bring you these updates.

EDIT: Aaron Ehasz has clarified that his comments on Rayllum were misinterpreted and apologized for any confusion/panic he caused amongst shippers.

[sunfire-shield]

Just thinking about Janai giving Miyana, her trusted general, who she doesn’t know is also her brothers secret sweetheart the sun seed, which is followed shortly by Amaya riding out wearing her soon to be brother-in-law’s secret girlfriends clothes to go and rescue her fiancé from said brother-in-law, who’s holding her hostage and also wants the vampire elf who’s been bound to the fiancé’s family for hundreds of years to kill his sister so he can be king but fails because he didn’t take various important factors into account, again, only for his plans to be recovered by his secret girlfriend who was entrusted with the exact thing he sent the vampire elf after and can bring it to him along with an army. All before Amaya and Janai even get home

The Sunfire royal family has some crazy shenanigans going on man

[kradogsrats]

little on-the-nose of them to have named the architect in the s4 Sunfire arc "Lucia," literally meaning "light"... making executing her a crime equivalent to the one she committed: callously extinguishing a light