#use that to cause strife within the group

[kurokoros]

it’s so hard to be anti st.ancy AND a Steve fan because all of the anti st.ancy posts are constantly shitting on Steve 😞

[gourde]

No but seriously why all the warriors in Claymore are women is both because they are easier to control due to less power hungry due to how they are raised in a misogynistic society but also it's a commentary on how women are changed, abused, and then tossed aside by the people who abused and changed them because they no longer have any use. They have self hatred drilled into them because it's easier to control them that way. In Those who Rend Asunder episode arc we have four warriors who are trouble makers. One is consistently defiant and is slowly coming out of her self-isolating mindset due to human connection (Clare), one of them is actively finding dirt on the association and learning of ulterior, world-shattering motivations (It is implied she knew it even then (Miria)), another is very care-free and actively helps other claymores see themselves as human and therefor less likely to be controlled (Helen), and the last one generally just causes problems and strife within the group (Deneve). These four are sent on a mission that they weren't expected to come back from. It doesn't matter how well they preform in battle, they are causing trouble and are influencing others to change and think for themselves. Also commentary on how women should act. Miria should stay in her lane and not snoop around and think for herself. She should simply follow orders and coordinate with her team, which is her strength. She should not step out of that box. Helen shouldn't be so loud and boisterous, and simply use her limb-stretching ability to the organizations benefit. She shouldn't bring other warriors up. She shouldn't connect with those around her. Focus on your job. Deneve shouldn't be so herself. She speaks her mind and is blunt, but women shouldn't do that. Stop causing problems and just keep to yourself. ALSO THE THING where people desire their bodies and see claymores as a sort of exotic find, until they see their scars. Unattractive, othering. Something to be sick by. Scars forced upon them by men, using them as experiments for some war.

I love Claymore I love women

[spirit-amplified]

Poppet Retribution Magick: Unleashing A Bellyful of Misfortune To Bring Financial Ruin

Update 5/7/24: My friend contacted me last night to let me know that Father has reached out and told them they could feel their pain and it has been weighing on him. 😁 He also wants to reconcile! This is exciting news for them and a new opportunity for them to build a relationship and heal together. Once I get the "Ok" from my friend I will release Father from his poppet.

Reader’s Notes: This working was originally constructed for a friend who wanted retribution against their father who abandoned and neglected them during childhood. They opted to hit their father where it would hurt him the most... his pockets... by any means necessary! We decided to go with a less intense sickness working and a working that reflected the weight of my friend's pain and sadness they have carried over the years. Also, if baneful, retribution or justice magick isn’t your jam…just quietly scroll on!! As always, feel free to take what resonates and leave the rest!

I did this working in alignment with the Solar Eclipse for more energy.

Please use safety as always with any working. This working uses fire, a sharp knife, and spicy pepper flakes.

Lastly, I am a "Words" witch... I love words of power (Mercury in my 10th house). You can always opt for no-words or you can record the sayings beforehand and play them on repeat at that step that requires that saying so that you can focus on the actions and energy.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

When a father walks out on his family, it can feel like the ultimate betrayal. The pain and trauma caused by his abandonment can have lasting effects on everyone involved. But for those who believe in the powers of witchcraft, there may be a way to not only cope with the misfortune of a father's abandonment but also to seek justice for his greed and neglect. This is where witchcraft comes in.

Ingredients:

Mix all the ingredients from the 1st group in a bowl (except the roaches, snakeskin, and thorns) before stuffing. Be aware that the pepper flakes can and will burn your eyes, possibly your skin, and make your nose run.

Thorns – cursing & hexing, pain, discomfort

Stones – pain & discomfort.. I went with 9

Spiderwebs – ensnaring, halting, binding

Ash – suffocation

Wormwood – strife & misfortune

Stagnant Water – rut, stagnate, failed plans

Snakeskin – inhibits growth

Helter Skelter/Cursing Oil – destruction

Dead/Rotting Roaches – causes hardship, strife, infestation of sickness

Poppy Seed – confusion

Mustard Seed -disruption, prevent help

Hot Pepper/Red Pepper Flakes – accelerates, burns

Boneset – cursing

Apple of Peru/Shoo-Fly Plant – Reversing Wealth & Money

1 Poppet - I sewed a picture of "Father's" face to it... thanks FB! When making your poppet, make sure you place a piece of paper with the target's name and DOB inside beforehand.

1 Red Candle

1 Craft knife

1 Needle with Red String

Poppet Stuffing - In folk magick stuffing was quite literally anything that could be used. I choose polyfill... however, feel free to use whatever you like.

Black Cord or String - Binding

Optional: 1 Plant or Something "Alive" to Tether To

Optional: Pictures, Taglocks, Sigils, Petitions - You need at least a full name and date of birth.

Optional: Orange Candles and Road-Opener Oil - To be done beforehand to remove any protections and help with the working hitting harder.

Steps:

Activate the Poppet: “Poppet, I name you _. Your limbs are their limbs. Your flesh is their flesh. Your life is their life. As you suffer, so shall they suffer.”

Then thinking about the life force within... take a deep breath and blow life into the poppet. Think breathing for CPR.

The next step I did was a road opener & path-clearing. I used 5 candles to represent the elements, roads, and planes. Each candle had "Father's" name written on it and then anointed with a road opener oil. You can use whatever method of road opener you want here.

Once the road opener finished I then tethered the poppet to a plant. I did this by tying a vine from the plant to the poppet's arm and energetically tethered them together. Just remember to choose a plant or something that is easily taken care of after.

Tethered to this plant, my work shall be

Bound by nature's energy, I decree

All blow back shall fall upon the tether

For this spell, my power shall weather

With hands held high, I cast my charm

As the plant's roots dig deep, my magic is armed

From earth to sky, the tether extends

My working and this plant, now forever blend

The energy flows, from me to thee

As this plant, my spell's vessel be

Each leaf, each stem, a conduit of power

Growing stronger with each passing hour

No force of nature can break this bond

For my magic and this plant, forever correspond

Together they thrive, in harmony

Tethered as one, for all eternity

So let the winds howl and the storms rage

My spell shall stand strong, in this earthly cage

For all the energy of this spell

Is now tethered to this plant, with magic compel

So mote it be, this working is done

Tethered to this plant, this working is one

Then taking the craft knife cut the poppet's belly open. You will have to more than likely remove some stuffing to make some room for your stuffing. Stuff the poppet with your bowl mixture, stones, dead roaches, snakeskin, thorns, sigils, and what-not.

Swallow your greed with a belly full of stones

For it will bring you nothing but a life full of moans

Chasing after wealth, blind to the harm

Leaves you with a bitter taste, like a snake's charm

Choke on the lies you told yourself

That money and power were the only true wealth

But as you suffocate, reality sets in

Your failure and greed, now it's time to begin

Financial ruin, your once thriving business now failed

Your ego and pride, too great to be bailed

You mistreated your (daughter/son/Pronoun), a soul so pure

Abandoning & neglecting (pronoun), now it's your time to endure

So, Swallow your greed, let it be consumed With each stone, let your finances be doomed.

Then take the needle and thread and sew the belly closed. Once finished, take a red candle and seal the stitches.

Then take your black cord and bind the poppet. I chose to bind "Father" in a pentagram/elemental binding. The binding is started by being tied off at the neck, then the cord is wrapped around the left leg, then the right arm, then the left arm, then the right leg, and then back up to the neck. You can wrap this as many times as you like and you can certainly just bind your poppet however you like.

In the midst of chaos, in the midst of strife,

There lies a number, 5, that brings unexpected life.

It holds the power to shake things up, to make you lose control,

And in its grip, you are left to pay the ultimate toll.

Earth, air, fire, water, and the spirit within,

These 5 elements, a force to reckon and herein.

They bind you to this spell, a spell you cannot break,

And with each passing moment, your foundations start to shake.

The earth beneath your feet, solid and strong,

Yet when it quakes, you realize you were wrong.

The air you breathe, so vital to your existence,

But in a chaotic storm, it shows its true persistence.

Fire, the element of passion and desire,

But when it rages, it leaves you in dire.

Water, so calm and serene in its flow,

But in a flood, it can cause you to let go.

The spirit, the 5th element, unseen yet ever-present,

It binds you to this spell, a force so incessant.

It connects you all in ways you cannot comprehend,

And in its grasp, you are unable to defend.

And as these 5 elements collide and intertwine,

Your finances, too, fall victim to this bind.

For in the midst of chaos, your finances are unable to thrive,

And as your finances crumble, you are left with nothing to revive.

So by the power of 5, you descend,

For it holds a chaotic force that has no end.

And by the elements I bind you to this spell,

Remember, it is not a fight you can ever win or quell.

Once bound, then I untethered the plant and placed "Father" in a bucket of stagnant stormwater to drown in (this is symbolic of all the tears my friend has cried over the years) at the height of totality during the eclipse. I placed a cover over "Father" and there he will stay until the night of the full moon. Then I will take him out and bury him deep in the woods off my property to slowly rot.

[abysskeeper]

Chapters: 1/8 (Wyll)

Part: 1/3

Summary: "They say a singular flap of a butterfly's wings can cause an ensuing storm on the other side of the world."

Nox'ani Skuldavi is not good with people. She is, however, good with magic. She is also smart enough to recognize her preferred status as a "living elf" (emphasis on both living and elf) is, at least in part, predicated on this small group of individuals she and her sister have found themselves with. Unfortunately, these individuals are rife with as much of their own, personal strife as they are stricken with the parasite. Even more unfortunately, Nox is finding she actually wants to help them however she can.

It's not much, she's not good with people. But she is good at magic, she's good at listening, and she really likes butterflies. It's hopefully enough to get the point across.

(AKA: Extra scenes from Act 1 companion quests; also AKA a BG3 friendship fic.)

***************************

The first butterfly to enter camp was Wyll’s.

It flew in on a rather heavy evening, carried by the winds at the forefront of an approaching storm. The air itself was weighted with the promise of a long, hard rain that was primed to burst from the sky at a moment’s notice, though that hardly stopped the flight of the endeavoring, little creature. Having already moved his belongings under the protection of his tent, the man the butterfly sought sat at the makeshift cloth entrance of his camp home, a goblet of wine in one hand and an old adventure novel in the other.

Wyll had thought this weather would be perfect for him to dive back into his reread—his fourth time through—of one of his favorite novels. He had just been reaching the climactic battle of the story when other matters forced him to set it aside, and he’d had little time or desire to pick it back up since. Even now, he could admit to a bit of forcefulness behind his actions, though he considered his reticence to be caused by the change in his situation rather than a lack of desire. Reading was a touch different now than it was from when he last held the book in his hands.

For one, newly acquired horns rested heavily on his head, and unused to the new weight as they were, the muscles in his neck protested under the strain by the end of every day. Attempting to find a comfortable position to read in was quite a hassle, and even when he finally found one…it did nothing to relieve the weight that rested in his chest. When he decided to take up the book again earlier in the evening, he believed the fantasy and escapism residing within the pages of one of his favorite stories to be exactly what he needed. The words used to fill him with such joy and admiration, such hope and aspirations of how he wished for his future to be.

But…there was some hesitance. A fear that was becoming realized the longer he attempted to push through the book’s pages. The words that used to rouse his heart were now only breeding a deep sense of disappointment and a dash of humiliation low in his gut. It had only been a day and a half since Karlach joined their traveling party. It had only been a day since Mizora punished him for acting against her orders.

It had only been a day since he became this. Whatever this was.

Wyll snapped the book shut and rested his head on the tentpole he leaned against. Perhaps, instead of the escapism and fantasy, what he really needed was sleep. He discovered last night that was a much more difficult task with his new appendages as well—they hardly allowed him to lay down comfortably, never-mind that he could not clear his head of the images he saw during his soul’s descent through the Hells—and he was starting to feel exhaustion’s pull on his bones. Based on how the sky was clouding over, the storm would be starting soon anyways. It was probably for the best he packed it in for the night, he could always try again tomorrow.

He heaved a sigh, but before he could move to stand, something fluttering in the corner of his eye caught his attention. Confused, he turned to watch as a butterfly, of all things, landed on the book cover in his lap. He blinked at it, waiting for some trick on his vision to clear. The butterfly’s wings fluttered a few times before it settled on the cover and decidedly did not disappear. Now utterly bewildered, Wyll gently pulled the book a little closer to his face to inspect the insect.

He had never seen a butterfly in only one shade before, and never one that was such a pure, dark-green color. It was strikingly beautiful in its simplicity but also odd, both in color and in its behavior. It was neither the season nor the weather for such a creature to be out right now, and it was far too calm with him being so close to it. Also, probably the most striking aspect that truly set it apart from anything he had ever seen before, a glowing aura around the tiny creature lit up the darkness of the night and the storm befalling their camp.

“Interesting…” Wyll mumbled. Out of curiosity, he held a finger towards the butterfly. In turn, it crawled up his finger and came to rest on the back of his hand.

He watched it calmly flap its wings a few times again before he heaved another sigh and looking towards camp, determined to find who sent him the magical bug. It wasn’t hard to narrow down the suspects; aside from himself, the only ones to use illusion magic in camp were the wizards and Shadowheart. He caught sight of the cleric knelt in front of her tent deep in prayer and immediately doubted it was her. And Gale was nowhere to be found, likely already settled into his tent for the night.

That just left the other wizard, and his eyes landed on her across the camp. The elven woman sat next to her sister—the paladin also deep in evening prayer—with her quill in hand. Her violet eyes, however, rested on him instead of the open journal in front of her. He noticed a subtle flick of her wrist, almost as if she were writing in the air, and the butterfly fluttered again. Wyll cocked his head in question at her and her shoulders rose and fell with a sigh. Her gaze flickered down to her journal for a moment before she set her quill down in the open spine and rose to her feet. She stretched out her back and then made her way over to him.

Wyll’s gaze shifted from her to the butterfly on his hand and then back to Nox when she stopped in front of him. Both of them stared at each other in silence for a moment, her waiting for him to say something and him uncertain where to begin with the odd gift. He finally held out his hand towards her, the butterfly curling around to sit in his palm.

“I believe you lost something, Nox,” he said lightly.

A small smile graced her lips as she shook her head. “I rather believe it found exactly where it needed to be,” she answered and motioned towards the ground beside him.

He nodded and scooted over to offer more space as the elf sat down beside him, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her chin on top of them. She fell silent again, chewing on her lip in thought. He waited for her for as long as he could in hopes she would give him a better answer. His hand twisted and turned while he waited, the magical butterfly crawling around and around.

Finally, his curiosity won out. “I don’t quite understand how I am where this little guy needs to be.”

“You’re struggling, Wyll,” Nox answered, matter of fact. As if his question warranted anything close to that answer.

He was unable to hide his wince, feeling his heart sink and the playful façade melting away. Was it really so obvious even she noticed? Or was he being foolish? Was it to be expected? “You certainly aren’t one to mince words, are you, Nox’ani?” Wyll asked with a chuckle he hardly felt.

“Sorry,” she grimaced. “I am…not nearly as eloquent or heartfelt as most,” she sighed and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, “but I wanted to offer you something, so…”

“So, you sent me a butterfly?” he asked, tone belying his confusion. Was he, perhaps, missing the context of some, elvish custom?

Nox shrugged, a slow rise and fall of her shoulders. “More than words, illusion magic is what I’m used to…well…using as a way to comfort others,” she answered. “Besides, it’s a far better icebreaker than words for me, if I didn’t just exemplify that.”

Despite himself, Wyll let out another, small chuckle. This one he did feel. “My prior question already had an answer then, you are rather to the point,” he agreed.

“Talking isn’t exactly a strong suit of mine, if that hasn’t been made obvious either,” Nox said with a thin smile.

It was obvious from their very first meeting that her sister handled most of the communication with people. Lux had that sort of personality; Nox was far better at handling the logistics and magical matters before them. “Not everyone is gifted with a silver tongue,” he shrugged and glanced around the camp. “Given the personalities in this little group, having someone who knows when not to speak is actually a boon, I think.”

Her smile smoothed a little. “Well, I am glad at least one person understands it. Not many appreciate the gift of listening.”

“It is a relief, honestly,” Wyll said. “And if nothing else, it is more than Lae’zel can say for herself. She is far brusquer with her words than you.”

Nox snorted, “I suppose I should count it as a win that, blunders aside, I at least have better manners than a gith.”

They both fell quiet again, wordlessly watching the magical butterfly crawl up and around his forearm. As the silence stretched on, Wyll began to wonder if she was waiting for him to speak on her original comment and he felt a bit of panicked bile rise in his throat. What could he say to it that hadn’t already been said? Where could he begin that wouldn’t cause a deluge of emotions he hadn’t started sorting for himself yet? Luckily, she continued before he felt obligated to ask.

“I do mean it though, the listening,” she clarified. “If you wish to speak on what troubles you, that is. Between my lack of words and these large things,” she chuckled as she tugged on her ear, “I am quite adept at listening.”

Wyll smiled at her joke but otherwise remained quiet. His attention remained on the butterfly as he cupped his hands and it crawled into the center of his palms. It sat there, nestled by his hands, and he felt the light brushing of its wings when they twitched in time with Nox’s soft sigh.

“Of course, you also don’t have to if you’d prefer not to. I would understand,” she added. “Over the years, I’ve learned that sometimes all people want is something pretty to look at. A distraction from what troubles them, or even just a reminder someone else is thinking of them. That’s really why I fall to illusion magic,” she explained. “I…never really know when I should step in, or how, even when I know I want to offer something. I’m good at magic, better at it than words, so…I offer what I can.”

Wyll didn’t think he wanted to speak on it; everything he believed mattered on the subject had already been said. He did not regret it. He was happy to have been stopped before he made an awful mistake, and he was happy to have found a new friend in Karlach. He could not speak much of his pact with Mizora, and everyone had respected that. Now that his latest orders had been cleared up and his punishment doled out, it was time to move on to solving the issue of the parasites.

Yet, the longer he stared at the butterfly and mulled over her words, the more he could feel it all churning in his heart. The disappointment, the embarrassment, the grief, and the anger. He blew out a breath and closed his eyes, his fingers curling gently around the butterfly, almost protective. “It’s…heavy.”

Heavy. That had been the one word on his mind since last night.

Nox hummed in understanding, and he felt her eyes roving over his face. “As the right choice often is,” she agreed after a moment.

“I…know.” He sighed again and opened his eyes. The butterfly still rested calmly in his palms. “That knowledge does not make it any lighter this time, though,” he admitted and turned to meet her stare.

She pondered him for a moment. “Do you regret it?”

“No.” He shook his head quickly, though his gaze slid away from her scrutiny. He did not regret it, he would never regret doing the right thing. That still did not necessarily negate his…dissatisfaction. “But that does not mean I have to be pleased with the result, does it?”

“Of course not,” Nox said readily. “No one would imply otherwise.”

He felt her shift beside him, and a quiet breath of frustration escaping her forced his attention back towards her. Bemused, he watched as her hand suddenly retreated from the space around his arm and she frowned. Instead, the butterfly’s wings brushed against his fingertips.

“Wyll, you sacrificed a lot for a stranger, based on the words of other, effective strangers,” she continued. “It was the right choice in the end, obviously, but there are not many men in this world who would do that. Fewer still who would do it when they knew the consequences of disobedience…and you knew the consequences, didn’t you?”

“I…” Wyll hesitated, swallowing hard as he was yet again forced to acknowledge all of the changes he had just undergone. “I…suspected several options. All things considered, this was one of the better outcomes.”

“I’m sorry,” Nox mumbled.

“For what?” he asked, incredulous. He thought he would be annoyed by pity; he had no desire to be pitied for choices he willingly made. But pity was not what she spoke with, and sympathy was not what he expected in its stead. “As you said, I knew the consequences. I have always known the consequences.”

Nox made her gentle humming noise again. “Knowing the consequences and accepting the burden regardless is a noble venture,” she answered. “I respect it, but I also sympathize with it.”

Wyll stared at her for a few moments before an astonished laugh pushed past his lips. “You know, most would not assume that of a warlock pacted to a devil.”

“Most warlocks pacted to devils are not you.” She smiled and flicked a finger. The butterfly responded by escaping from his hands and fluttering up in front of his eyes. “Actions speak louder than any words or deals ever could, and while I’ve only known you for a short while, I would like to believe I’ve been around long enough to be able to say with certainty that your actions mark you as a good man, Wyll,” Nox said and caught his eye. “A noble one, even.”

Despite his best effort, he couldn’t hold her gaze or stare at her illusion any longer. She spoke words that he needed to hear, words that he himself had been repeating consistently since last night. Those words were starting to taste like ash, however. The longer he tried to tell himself exactly those words, the more it felt like he was trying to convince himself of a lie instead of reminding himself of the truth. Hearing them aloud, spoken to him by an effective stranger he needed to trust and rely on was…complicated. Simultaneously, paradoxically hopeful and discouraging.

Beside him, Nox huffed out a breath. Wyll felt the butterfly ascend and stiffened when it settled on his left horn. It was one of the first touches he had felt on his newest body part, and definitely the first not from himself or their surroundings. It was still odd, to receive sensations from a part of him that was so new. Odder still was feeling something so gentle on a part of himself he considered quite ghastly. The legs of the butterfly almost tickled.

“I know you cannot speak on it,” Nox continued softly, “but I’d also like to think I have been around long enough to confidently believe your pact with Mizora came because you saw no other option for whatever situation it was you found yourself in.”

That was what he liked to believe as well, and yet he had his doubts. “Believing to have no other option than a devil is a failure in even the best of men,” he mumbled. After a long moment, he blew out a breath and turned his face towards the sky. The wind had picked up and the clouds were moving in faster now. “I can recognize that, even if I do not regret it.”

Nox clicked her tongue, and out of the corner of his eye, he watched her attention turn towards the sky as well. “Desperation is a great motivator…and an even greater undoing. I refuse to judge someone based on their most desperate moments; I will judge them for what they do after, though.”

For the first time since they had met, Wyll was reminded he was talking to a nearly two-hundred-year-old elven wizard. It was such a simple piece of wisdom, and yet one that could only be uttered so honestly due to time and personal experience.

“And based on what you have done after your pact, I am confident in saying that it is a heart of pure gold that beats there in that chest of yours…oh!”

The excited gasp caused him to look back at her in question. She was grinning, eyes shining as if she just solved the answer to a particularly difficult puzzle. She drew her finger through the air, and he waited for the butterfly to move off of his horn. It never did.

After several, quiet moments, he sighed. Perhaps whatever it was she just discovered had nothing to do with him at all. Though, given how she was staring at him and smiling, he had his doubts. He also doubted she would answer him even if he asked—he barely knew her, but the way she was looking at him all but screamed she was wanting him to ask, just so she could tell him to ‘wait and see.’

“Well, I am glad to hear you say that—” Wyll’s small smile dropped as he felt the butterfly move towards the tip of his horn. “—Even if I can’t help but wonder if the outside is now a better reflection of what lies within.”

“Oh, it will take some time to get used to, I have no doubt about that. But—” Nox was cut off as a flash of lightning shot across the horizon, followed by a distant rumble of thunder. “—But the outside most assuredly is not a reflection of what lies within at all,” she finished with a shake of her head.

It was his turn to study her: smiling face, bright eyes, utterly relaxed. She was not lying to him just to assuage his concerns and she was quite confident in what she was saying. “You seem quite certain of that,” Wyll muttered.

“And there will be many more who are quite certain of it as well, many more who know you better than I—” He had thought the same once. The people of the Gate. Florrick. His father. “—And there will be many more still who see it because they see what you do, for them and for others. You help people, Wyll, and you’re always striving to do what is right. You would do well to listen to those people’s words and no one else’s,” Nox said. “It will help you in one day being able to say them for yourself again.”

There was another rumble of thunder, closer this time. Nox was unbothered, still looking up at him instead with a sympathetic smile; a hopeful smile that proved she did still believe in what she was speaking and a knowing look that belied her age and experience. It was the first thing to truly make him feel better since last night.

Wyll returned her smile and nodded. “I would like to believe you are right. Thank you, Nox.”

“Rest assured, I am right. Besides,” Nox shrugged as she rose to her feet, “if I am to understand the trends these days, the…ah… ‘bad boy’ appearance is all the rage these days,” she smirked. “Many will outright enjoy the horns, I’m sure. And…all the better for them that something truly sweet lies underneath.”

Caught off guard, Wyll sputtered out a laugh and shook his head. Of all the things he expected someone like her to comment on—especially given the rest of their conversation—that certainly was not on the list. He wouldn’t deny it lightened his heart immediately, though. “On that note, I think it is time to say good night. I do not believe I am ready to receive your dating advice just yet,” he teased.

Both of them glanced towards the top of the tent as a few, small pitter-patters fell against the cloth. “And I do not want to keep you in the storm,” he added as he smiled back at her.

“Another night, then,” Nox chuckled. She turned on her heel and gave him a wave before bidding him good night. “I hope you sleep well tonight, Wyll.”

Wyll hummed in agreement and watched as she lightly jogged back to her tent in the drizzle. He watched her until she disappeared between the flaps before he grabbed the book again and entered his own tent. Genuinely feeling a touch lighter after their conversation, he set the book down at the end of his bedroll and set to straightening it out for the night. The butterfly—which he had incorrectly assumed disappeared when Nox did—floated down from his horn and onto his pillow. He sighed with a smile, moving to delicately nudge the thing out of the way, when a new addition caught his eye.

The butterfly was no longer solid green. Golden filigree spread throughout the four wings in gentle, swirling designs. His eyes traced over the looping gold patterns until they finally made sense of what he was seeing designed on the wings. There, surrounding the body of the glowing insect, the patterns on all four wings came together to form a heart in the center of the butterfly.

Wyll shook his head and let out a chuckle of disbelief. After a moment, he held out a finger to the butterfly and, once it crawled on, moved it to rest on the book laying at his feet. “You certainly are to the point, aren’t you, Nox’ani?” he asked softly while settling in.

Before drifting off, he glanced down at the butterfly resting on the book at his feet, wings fluttering lightly and softly casting the inside of his tent aglow. She most certainly was to the point.

Perhaps he really would try reading again tomorrow.

[mask131]

The other Olympians: Eris

After Eros, I just HAD to do Eris. Everybody keeps speaking of “Eros and Thanatos”, the pulsion of life and the pulsion of death – but what about Eris and Eros? Hate and love. One causes division, the other unification. One destroys the world, the other creates it. Heck, they are even just one letter away from each other!

“But…” I heard some of you say. “Eris isn’t an Olympian!”. Well yes and no. Sometimes she is, sometimes she isn’t. Let us explore that.

Who is Eris? The word “eris” means “strife” in Greek, and this is exactly what Eris is. She is the goddess of strife and the embodiment of discord (in fact, her Roman name was Discordia). She is the eternal enemy of peace and order, always searching to break harmony and cause troubles everywhere she goes.

Now before going further, I want to insist on something. Eris is not an actual goddess, in the sense we can understand it. Yes Eris is presented as a goddess in Ancient Greek literature and in the various epics forming Greek mythology. However here’s the thing… Eris was not part of Greek religion. Or if she was, she had no temples, no sanctuaries, she received no cult and no worship, nobody prayed or sacrificed to her. Eris only seems to exist in literature and philosophy – she was not an actual religious figure of Ancient Greece, even though she was a key character of Greek mythology.

I) The Hesiodic Eris

The Eris most people are familiar with today is the one I would call the “non-Olympian Eris”. It is the Eris described in Hesiod’s Theogony, as well as in his “Works and Days”.

Hesiod describes Eris as the daughter of Nyx, the embodiment of night and one of the primordial goddesses who manifested at the very beginning of the universe. According to Hesiod, Nyx was a quite negative figure, since all the children she gave birth to were actually the personifications of ills and disasters: beyond Eris, Nyx also gave birth to Thanatos, the god of death, to the Keres, the spirits causing violent and painful deaths on the battlefield, Oizys, the personification of misery, Apate, the embodiment of deceit and treachery, Geras, the god of old age and aging, and many many more… Interestingly, in turn Eris also became the mother of a large brood of personifications, each embodiments of even more evils that plagued and tormented humanity. No father is mentioned for these children – but given Nyx seemingly used her powers as a primordial goddess to have her children on her own, without the participation of any male entity, it is very likely that Eris inherited or used the same abilities. Remember, from our talk of Eros in previous posts, the beginning of the world in Hesiod’s universe was not defined by gender, and the primordial Eros was a creature of cosmic, abstract procreation that went beyond mere sexes.

Hesiod gives us an exact list of the numerous children of Eris. On one side you have “singular” children acting as specific personifications: Ponos (toil, hard work), Lethe (forgetfulness, oblivion), Limos (hunger, starvation), Ate ( mistakes, delusions, folly, recklessness, all things that bring ruin) and Dysnomia (lawlessness, absence of civil order). On the other side, Hesiod lists groups of entities, representing “swarms” of concepts: the Algea (the pains and sufferings), the Hysminai (fights and feuds), the Makhai (battles and conflicts), the Phonoi (murders), the Androktasiai (literaly the man-slaughters), the Neikea (the quarrels), the Pseudo-Logoi (the lies), the Amphilogai (the disputes)… Remember what I said previously, Eris was not an actual religious figure but a literary one – and the same way, all of her children are here mere metaphors and allegories. Hesiod is merely listing here all the effects that strife and discord have within human society. Hesiod adds to this list of children a final son of Eris, Horkos, the god of oaths. Why would “oaths” be a bad thing you ask? Because Horkos is more specifically the deity in charge of punishing oath-breakers, the spirit that all those that make false oaths fear. Hesiod even says that Horkos will make more damage to anyone breaking an oath than all of his siblings – and he later mentions, in his “Works and Days”, that the ERYNIES themselves acted as midwives when Eris gave birth to him.

Hesiod describes Eris as a hateful and harsh being, only concerned with causing slaughters and “evil wars” on Earth (remember the Athena/Ares divide, there was for the Greeks a good way of making war, and a bad way of making war). He mentions that no mortal being loves Eris, but that human still “promote” her – but only due to either compulsions (the natural drive of humanity to fight with each other) or by the “will of immortals” (when the gods purposefully send Eris among mankind). When Hesiod describes the legendary shield of Herakles, he mentions that Eris is depicted upon it among the many terrifying entities meant to frighten his adversary – he adds there that Eris is without pity or mercy, and that her mere sight will break the mind of anyone trying to attack the hero.

However, mind you, despite this very negative portrayal of Eris, in his “Works and Days”, Hesiod allows himself a philosophical or social myth about Eris, where he divides her into two identities, one good and one bad. If you recall my Eros posts, there is yet again a parallel with how there are two Eroses. According to Hesiod two Eris are at work among humans: the one he keeps describing above is the “evil” Eris ; but there is a “kinder” and older Eris, who is the one born of Nyx at the beginning of time, and who is even… likeable! Because this Eris is a positive form of strife, a productive form of discord that isn’t about having people slaughter each other, but prompts each human to excel and outdo each other in talents and arts. Specifically sent by Zeus among humans for this very purpose, the elder Eris will for example make a poor man envy his rich neighbor, prompting him to work even harder to become rich himself – and thus she can turn even the laziest man into a hard worker. This Eris isn’t so much about discord, as about a sort of mutual envy between humans that creates a competitive society, indeed, but one that prompts each human to try their best at becoming better than others.

II) The Homeric Eris

Hesiod mentions that of the two Eris, only the “elder” is the daughter of Nyx. Then, where does the “evil” Eris comes from? Well, Hesiod might have been evoking here another cosmogony… I am of course speaking of Homer’s own works, The Iliad and the Odyssey. For you see, the Homeric tradition and the Hesiodic tradition diverge strongly when it comes to the figure of Eris, and it is in the Homeric cosmogony that Eris is presented as an Olympian goddess.

Homer depicts Eris just as negatively as Hesiod. He describes her as a goddess with “relentless wrath”, as the “lady of sorrow”, as a “destroyer of cities”, and even depicts her during a battlefield scene as working in a triad alongside Ker (the spirit of violent death) and Cydoimos (the personification of confusion). But where he changes the story (or rather where Hesiod changes the story, since it is agreed that the Homeric tradition is older than the Hesiodic one, and reflects a more primitive form of the Greek pantheon), is when it comes to Eris’ parenthood. Homer explicitly presents Eris as working in a duo with Ares, the Olympian god of war, the two being “companions”. But more than companions… Siblings. Homer insists heavily on the fact that Eris is Ares’ sister, and given Ares is in the Homeric tradition the son of Zeus and Hera, it is very clear that Eris is also the daughter of the king and queen of the gods.

No need to tell you that Eris’ strongest presence in the Homeric tradition is within The Iliad, aka the epic describing the greatest mythological conflict of all times, the Trojan War. Eris is there usually paired with another deity: sometimes she forms a duo with Athena, and helps her in her role as a “war goddess” to encourage men to fight by her side ; other times she is alongside her brother Ares, as the spirit of hatred that complements the god of murder and bloodlust. This depicts Eris as a very ambiguous deity, that can serve and help as much the senseless, brutal, “wrong” war of Ares as the “good”, ordered, intelligent and civilized war of Athena. An even more interesting detail however shows that this ambiguity does not actually exist: Ares fought on the side of the Trojans during the war, while Athena fought with the Achaeans. This is a detail Homer himself notes and explains in his poem: Eris purposefully played both sides, and found herself on each line of the battlefront, since all she cared about was spreading bitterness and pain, so as to make the slaughter of the Trojan War even greater. Sometimes she does this to further the gods’ desires and plans: Zeus at one point, wishing for the Achaeans to keep on fighting and not just give up, send Eris among them so that she would bellow a great war-cry, so “terrible and so loud” it made every man who heart it want to battle again. But other times, she disobeys even the orders of the king of the gods out of pure perversion: most notably, when Zeus at one point gave the order to all the gods to stop interfering with the war and remain far away from humans, without causing interferences, Eris is the only goddess that remains upon the earth and among humans – merely because she takes a “great pleasure” in seeing them “battle like wolves”, and wouldn’t miss it for the world.

In short: while it seems from the outside that she is actually more of a neutral power that can serve both sides, good and bad, in truth she is a selfish, neutral psychopath only existing for chaos and destruction, and who only accepts to play by the rules when it furthers her own goals.

One last interesting fact: Homer, in his poems, keeps using another name for Eris, a name that many later mistook as being a different goddesses – however, at least in the Homeric tradition, they are just two identities of a same deity. “Enyo”, that is to say the female spirit and embodiment of war, the female counterpart of Ares. Beyond Homer, Aeschylus, in his tragedy about the Seven against Thebes, describes the Seven as making an oath upon the dreadful trinity of war formed by Ares, Enyo and Phobos – in a similar way, Eris was already described by Homer as part of a trinity involving Ares and Phobos (who also stood for his brother Deimos). The idea of Enyo and Eris being different deities seems to come from quite late sources, such as Quintus Smyrnaeus’ epic “The Fall of Troy”, from the fourth century CE, which did a very clear split between Eris (the deadly strife, which causes the battles by causing an “unbalance in the scales of war”, and then watches and gloat as humans fight) and Enyo (a ghastly and wrathful deity who fights inside the battles, and ends up gore-covered and all bloody and sweaty from her constant massacre of mortal beings). In fact, from the third to the fifth century, it became common to attribute to Enyo a “gore-fetish”, as she was described as delighting in piles of corpses left on the battlefield, or getting drunk on the flow of blood ; as well as the power to drive completely mad whoever she “touched”. Mad with war-lust and battle-fever, of course. But originally, for Homer and other early authors, Enyo and Eris were clearly just one and the same, two names for a same goddess.

What is quite fascinating with Enyo is that, unlike Eris which is purely literary, Enyo has some ground for actually having been a religious figure. Now, this is to be taken with a grain of salt, as the Greeks gave the name “Enyo” to several non-Greek deities of the countries east of Ancient Greece – but we have records of a statue of Enyo appearing in the Athenian temple of Ares, and it seems that the deities honored during the Homolôïa festival (in Thebes and Orchomenos) included Enyo. But beyond those two little facts, we don’t have more information about a potential cult of Enyo, who truly seems to be more of a female counterpart or extension of Ares. A last interesting point with Enyo is the presence of a name: Enyalios. Enyalios is the male form of Enyo, and is the name of a deity associated with her – but how? That is the question. Very, very late commenters of the Iliad (we are talking Byzantine commenters) made Enyalios a minor spirit of war, son of Enyo and possibly fathered by Ares. However, a more careful study of the use of Enyalios reveals that it is not the name of a distinct deity as many like to believe. Homer uses it as an epithet for various characters, but most notably for Ares. Other Ancient Greek authors also used Enyalios as an alternate name for Ares: Aristophanes in his play “Peace” (people claim it is used as two different deities, but I do not read it that way, I do think Aristophanes used the name as a nickname of Ares), for example, and Ares is also called “Enyalios” in the Argonautica. Plutarch did mention the existence of a temple of “Ares Enyalios” too, and the late myth collector Pausanias did mention the habit by Lacedaemonians of chaining up the deity Enyalios to prevent him from leaving the city – a custom identical to the habit of chaining up statues of Ares in Sparta. Overall, when you actually look carefully at things, it is extremely clear that Enyalios is just Ares.

And this confirms the true bond and link between Ares and Enyo: Ares is called by the male version of Enyo’s name, or rather Enyo is named after the female version of Ares’ nickname. This reinforces the idea of her being equivalent to Eris, presented by Homer as the sister-companion of Ares, and this feeds into this topic of the “duo of slaughter gods”. Ares/Enyalios, the male god of war, and Eris/Enyo, the female goddess of discord.

III) The golden apple

“But… What about the golden apple?” I hear you cry. “You talked about the Trojan War, but not about the golden apple!”

It is true that the most famous myth of Eris today is the one centered around the start of the Trojan War. It is the story of how Eris, upon not being invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, despite all of the other gods being there, decided to take her revenge. It is the legend of how Eris threw among the feast of the gods a golden apple with on it written “For the most beautiful”, and how this random gift caused a deep feud between Athena, Hera and Aphrodite who all believed the apple was for them. It is the myth of how to settle the feud, the goddesses demanded the opinion of a Trojan prince by the name of Paris, who gave the apple to Aphrodite, resulting in her rewarding him as a gift with Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world… Who also happened to be the wife of Agamemnon, the Achaean king who promptly declared war upon Troy since their prince had kidnapped his wife – a war where the scorned Hera and Athena supported the enemies of Troy, while Aphrodite defended Paris’ city, leading into the legendary decades-old conflict we know today.

Well, you might be surprised to learn that this story does not come from Homer. Nowhere in the Iliad is a golden apple mentioned, or the involvement of Eris in causing the war. It comes from other sources. It does not mean the story isn’t ancient: on the contrary we have records of very ancient epics, probably created around the same time as The Iliad, who described and explained this legend. “The Cypria” for example is the oldest record we have of the story of the “Judgement of Paris”, caused by Eris’ apple of discord. However these ancient epics were all lost, so all we have are secondary testimonies about them, and much later and modern retellings of the story – such as the “Bibliotheca” of Pseudo-Apollodorus, where this old myth was collected in an abbreviate and concise form, or the fifth-sixth century CE poem the “Rape of Helen”, which like Nonnus Dionysiaca, was an attempt at reconstructing the ancient myths of the now-gone Ancient Greeks. While this is not an exact source and has to be taken with a handful of salt, this poem is quite fascinating because it adds all sorts of details about the situation: including how the decision of not inviting Eris came from both Peleus and Chiron (the latter sent out the invitations), and how, before imagining her devious golden apple plan, the furious, fulminating, jealous Eris conjured up plans ranging from stealing Zeus’ thunderbolt and use it as a weapon against the gods… to freeing the imprisoned Titans so they would overthrow Zeus. (Yes, Disney’s Hades does exist in old – but not ancient – Greek literature, and her name is Eris). There is also the additional detail that the golden apple used by Eris is one of those that the Hesperides grow in their orchard, the same golden apples Herakles had to collect during his labors.

Speaking of Herakles, all the way back to the sixth century BCE, Aesop wrote a fable about Eris. Yes, THIS Aesop of the Fables. And he wrote one with Eris and Herakles – one that also involves an apple, and thus furthers proves that the story of Eris using apple to cause discord was an ancient part of Greek mythology. In Aesop’s fable, Heracles was going through a narrow pass when he saw an apple on the ground before him. He tried to smash it with his club, only for the apple to swell to twice its size. Heracles hit it again and again, but every time he tried to destroy the obstacle, it grew bigger. In the end, the whole pass was blocked by the giant apple (slip a Roald Dahl joke here), and as Heracles stood amazed and confused, Athena appeared by his side and explained the situation: this apple is actually the product of two personifications, Aporia (impasse, puzzlement, lack of passage) and Eris. By trying to fight it, Heracles made it larger and bigger – if he had just left the thing on the ground untouched, and ignored it, it would have stayed its size. In short, the moral is that strife and discord will always be there somewhere, but that it only becomes a true obstacle or something serious if you let violence take over you or decide to enter the fight instead of just passing over it.

This conception of Eris as something “growing in size” is not actually a pure invention of Aesop: it was already present, way back in the Homeric tradition. Indeed, when Homer first introduces Eris in The Iliad, he describes her as such: she always appears first as a “small thing”, as a little force, a miniature goddess, but as chaos and battles and discord grow around her, she too grows, and gains in size and largeness, until in the end she becomes a giantess who feet are on earth while her head is in heaven.

[dreamofmetoday]

QUICK READING RECAP

23rd of march 2023

🥂💒🍦does wendy want to leave red velvet?

↳ 10oS

not technically but she really is just over the drama of it all and thinks the whole girl group thing is tired.

🍰🍄🧣are aespa friends as well as coworkers?

↳ fool, 7oC rx, AoS

not really… but they’re a lot closer than they used to be. they’re mostly just preoccupied with other things and aren’t the type to have all been friends if they hadn’t been forced to be around each other.

🌈🌻🪷 is p1harmony’s keeho gay or bi?

↳ AoP, AoC

pretty resounding yes.

🌈🪸🍨 is astro’s cha eunwoo gay or bi?

↳ AoW

yes, could be gay or lean towards men too.

💒💌🍉is itzy’s ryujin bisexual?

↳ QoW, KoC

yes! but she may tend to focus more on actually dating men and right now views them more romantically. currently her attraction to women remains predominantly physical.

💕🛍️🧸are nct’s jeno and twice’s mina actually dating?

↳ AoW, 6oC

yes, they are.

🌈🎏🍓is itzy’s yuna gay or bi?

↳ 7oC rx, 3oS

no, she’s straight.

🍊🫒🥑how does itzy’s lia feel about the hate she gets?

↳ 7oW rx, 10oS, 6oW

it hurts her really bad. it’s given her a lot of painful, dark and dramatic thoughts before and she feels no matter how hard she tries it doesn’t get better. she tries to hold onto the hope that it won’t be her life forever. another way she copes with the pain is focusing on how pain can make you wiser.

🍇☎️🫕can you read about blackpink’s jisoo solo?

↳ 8oS, chariot rx, 10oS rx

she finds the whole thing stressful and after promotions finish she will not be satisfied with the result since she will face a lot of criticism but she will get over it fairly quickly. overall, she has worked hard for this and has likely been doing things such was losing weight and taking extra care of her looks for promotions so this part she will be satisfied with. the debut itself won’t be very unique or innovative but it will do well financially.

🍤🍨🍰why did blackpink’s lisa and rosé fight?

↳ 10oW rx, 2oP

one of them thought the other was being sneaky about a decision made in the company which then got worse due to constant nagging and not letting it go. they both said some pretty harsh things.

🥟🍘🌼how does aespa’s karina feel about giselle’s performance skills?

↳ 8oP rx, 6oC

she thinks giselle’s skills are mostly rudimentary and she has trouble improving due to laziness, immaturity and capability. however, she is mostly fine with her fit in aepsa overall.

🥂🍯🍨is nct haechan dating right now?

↳ death, 3oS

no, in fact he is quite upset with the state of his love life right now and feels lonely and regretful.

🍙🎞️🌻how will nmixx’s next comeback do?

↳ fool, KoS, KoC

not as well as the company likes but not completely terrible. this will result in stern discussions within the company and cause strife amongst the members, perhaps due to how they will be reorganised. they’re trying to use what has worked for other groups while still being different and it seems it needs to be perfected more. unfortunately, the girls will be upset with what happens after and will become more worried about their future direction.

🦚🌱🍈what is harry styles’ opinion on chris pine?

↳ magician rx, judgement, 3oS, 6oP

he’s annoyed that chris’ nice act seems to work on others and he thinks people don’t see him for who he really is. he sees chris as meddling, fake and selfish.

⭐️🌩️☀️what does sabrina carpenter think of olivia rodrigo right now?

↳ 4oP, hawk rx, AoP, KoS

she doesn’t think olivia is nice but she also isn’t very angry. she thinks out of all the people’s she’s had to deal with, olivia isn’t that bad. she thinks olivia is egotistical.

🍇🍓🥭how will ive’s next comeback do?

↳ AoW, KnoP, salmon rx, 10oW

there’s a lot of pressure for them to live up to their previous success and it seems they will live up to it but i don’t really see this comeback doing better than their previous ones. they will be impressing the general public steadily even if there’s criticism about trying too hard too. the comeback will seem creative and trendy.

🎧🕯️🦢is taylor swift’s song tolerate it really about her dad?

↳ the banes, the world

yes that song is about her dad

[aes11thetic]

The Middle Ages

In the mystical realm of Earth, a world where magic flows as freely as the rivers and forests are alive with ancient secrets, humans and magical creatures find themselves unexpectedly intertwined.

Countless of wars have been fought in the last couple of centuries where both humans and magical creatures have fought against one another, they have fought within their own domains as well.

In the aftermath of the countless wars, the collision between humans and magical creatures on Earth led to a tumultuous era of conflict and strife. Deep-rooted prejudices and misunderstandings fueled animosity between the two groups, causing divisions even within their own species.

Human kingdoms, once unified, splintered into factions, some advocating for peaceful coexistence with magical beings while others sought to dominate and control them. Wizards and sorcerers, once revered for their arcane knowledge, found themselves at odds with both their own kind and human rulers who feared their power.

Similarly, among the magical creatures, tensions ran high. As there have been war raged among a few kingdoms between the creatures, where they and other human lives have fallen to the difference of opinions on how the world should look like.

————————————————————

In the shadowed corners of Earth, a darker, more malevolent form of magic began to surface in the wake of the cosmic rift. Known as Dark Magic, this forbidden art was whispered of in hushed tones, its origins and practitioners shrouded in mystery and fear. Unlike the natural magic that flowed through the land, Dark Magic was twisted and corruptive, its power derived from pain, suffering, and the very essence of chaos itself.

Human sorcerers tempted by the allure of forbidden knowledge delved into the dark arts, seeking to harness its destructive power for their own gain. Magical creatures, too, were not immune to its seductive call, with some ancient beings succumbing to its corrupting influence, their once noble forms twisted into dark and monstrous shapes.

The use of Dark Magic escalated the conflict between humans and magical creatures, as accusations of curses and hexes flew, each side blaming the other for the rising tide of misfortune and despair that plagued Eldoria. Secret societies and cults dedicated to the mastery of Dark Magic emerged, their agendas hidden behind veils of secrecy and deception, their actions threatening to plunge the entire realm into darkness.

As to today, not many known the whereabouts of where this Dark Magic went, or where it has ever came from. Yet old tales and legends say that the forbidden art has been sealed away to prevent any more harm to humans as magical creatures

[wisteriasymphony]

Stupid MLB 'Rewrite' Lore Dump!: Jagged Stone and the Waifs of Wonderland

Luka Couffaine, the frontman of Vampire Revival and notorious cheater, is nothing but the spitting image of his father. The only thing Jagged Stone (or, as he was born, Jack Zimmerman) had that Luka doesn't is that he combined the two.

(whole ass fake article under the cut)

Founded in 1978, Jagged Stone and the Waifs of Wonderland owed its inspirations to the psychedelic movements of the 1960s as well as musical giants such as David Bowie and The Rolling Stones. Their first album, titled "Jagged Stone and the Waifs of Wonderland" was not a commercial success, but in recent years has amassed a following of fans who prefer the older psychedelic style of this album. In contrast, the second album, "A Kiss Too Far", was an instant hit that took on a much more "glam rock" aesthetic, helping popularize the style in France and Germany.

Much like his glam rock contemporaries, Jack Zimmerman took on a flamboyant, ostentatious, and occasionally androgynous style in his performances, and encouraged his bandmates--the aforementioned "Waifs of Wonderland"--to do the same. Each also adopted a stage name ending in "-ka". Drummer Anne "Anarka" Couffaine, Rhythm guitarist Ellen "Elvenka" Blackwell, Bassist Lucy "Lunoka" Müller, and Keyboardist Tori "Tonika" Blackwell are considered the most recognizable "Waifs of Wonderland", though other instrumentalists and artists have been featured in JSWW albums and been given their own "Waif Names" accordingly.

Aside from their music, Jagged Stone and the Waifs of Wonderland is best known for the sheer amount of scandal they used to further drive publicity. Zimmerman was reported to be in committed relationships with all permanent "Waifs" at various points in the band's career, with later testimonies by band members reporting that Zimmerman was involved with no less then two relationships simultaneously (though it was not confirmed whether these stayed within the band itself). This caused significant strife for the band in their later years, notably leading Anne Couffaine to formally leave the group in 1988, shortly preceding the births of Luka Marcel and Juliette Élise Couffaine.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

oh boy, there we go. if you got this far (or skipped past to get here), thank you :) tell me if y'all want to see more lore drops like this! mostly stuff for worldbuilding that isn't related to the main plot, obvi.

also, if it wasn't clear by the fact that i decided that Nino's name is now Nicolas Lahiffe... I like giving them all new names :) That, and because TWEOS is set nebulously around 2008-09, I changed the timeline of everything accordingly. :)))))

[hellscribbles]

Yikes' Backstory.

I decided I'm just gonna throw Yikes' backstory on here!! It's not quality writing by any standpoint since I'm very Get To The Point when I write backstories, but I figured its good to have it here for people interested!!

Yikes' backstory is set in a homebrew world, so feel free ask me or @controlledchaosetc questions!

LONG post below (If you're a player in the game I don't really care if you read, but spoilers below I suppose)

Wallowale

The Changeling, known later as Yikes, was born November 6th, 1461 to an Eladrin named Maylynn Nailo on the tiny island of Wallowale. 

The island of Wallowale was plagued by all manner of Fey creatures, some merely harmless pranksters, but others terrorized the town. Sowing mistrust between the human islander's and their Fey visitors from the very beginning.

Yikes and their mother lived on the outskirts of town on a quiet sheep farm. The land surrounding their home was dotted with Sylvan ruins from long ago, these ruins were believed to be an opening to the feywild and the cause of the towns strife. The townsfolk made many attempts to destroy the ruins and the portal they supposedly held. Yikes knows the portal was actually in their mother's water well.

Despite being a feywild elf, Maylynns healing abilities were far too valuable to the small isolated village. For Yikes early childhood, Maylynn was liked by the humans. Her charming music and gentle magic endeared her to the village. While valued by the community, Maylynn was never quite trusted.

From their earliest memories, Yikes knows their mother worked tirelessly to hide their identity, disguising them until they were old enough to master their shapeshifting. The skin Yikes used in Wallowale would later become Quinn. The skin was made to look like Maylynn’s daughter, so it shares a lot of Yikes’ actual features, therefore it was an easy skin for them to wear as a child.

Maylynn was an extremely superstitious person, she taught Yikes many routines and habits to protect them from a Fey’s ire. Yikes still practices these routines to this day, despite not quite understanding why. The most extreme manifestation of Maylynn’s paranoia was her insistence on Yikes not having a name, only calling them constantly changing nicknames or “Changeling”. She told Yikes it was to protect them from someone stealing their name. 

As Yikes aged, they became lonely. Longing to know and understand the world outside the island, as well as whatever strange land lay beyond the portal they lived so close to. Though by the time Yikes was old enough to realize these desires, the suspicion of Maylynn had risen beyond her usefulness as a healer. 

The Fey charming magic Maylynn was so practiced in had begun to be noticed by the townsfolk. People's opinions of her often shifted wildly, from adoring and singing her praises to despising her, sometimes all within the same hour. All manner of rumor had begun to spread about Maylynn by the time Yikes was 10. The most common beliefs spoke of her as a Nighthag, or a siren.

With every attack by the Fey, Maylynn’s name was sullied further. It didn’t take long for this to grow into a conspiracy that Maylynn was the source of evil and strife for the island. The fact none of the passing Fey ever harmed Maylynn, Yikes or their farm only served to solidify the growing suspicion of them.

Despite the growing unrest, by 1474 Yikes had begun spending more time with the village children, loneliness driving them to seek companionship amongst the humans. One of those humans being the cleric's daughter. After gaining trust with the local children over the course of a few months, Yikes freely revealed themselves to be a changeling despite their mothers warnings. The small group of children surprisingly took Yikes' confession very well, their abilities as a shapeshifter began to be treated as part of the group's normal play. 

However as the year progressed, one by one the children excitedly told their parents about Yikes ability to shapeshift, causing a paranoid frenzy in the town. It was in December of 1474 that Maylynn’s quiet sheep farm was burned to the ground, and her Hag trial began. 

The trial lasted 3 days, during which time Yikes and Maylynn were kept captive in an enclosed cell inside the village church. The trial was falsified and seemingly only a method of enacting "justifiable" torture upon Maylynn to prove her status as a Hag. Yikes has very little clear memory of their 3 days locked away, but they do remember the townsfolk breaking their mothers fingers and cutting out her tongue. Despite the torture, Maylynn gave them no evidence of being a Hag, but when the towns leader cut Yikes’ hair, that was enough for the town to damn Maylynn to a Nighthag’s fate. 

Yikes didn't witness their mothers pyre. Set to burn after her, Yikes heard her screams from within the cell they had shared. During the burning, the clerics own daughter came and freed Yikes from their cell, and helped them escape. 

Yikes fled to the shipping docks where the boat captains their mother traded with were about to set sail. Hoping to convince them to save their mother, instead the captain took Yikes aboard and set sail immediately upon seeing the rising smoke and hearing the distant cheers of the villagers.

The Capital

Due to the hard winter storms, the ship was blown off course and what should have only been a week of travel turned into months lost at sea. Yikes and the crew nearly starved to death on the freezing waters, the ship constantly threatening to sink. By the time the ship arrived in the capital in the Spring of 1475, the crew had eaten through what they'd meant to trade, leaving them with no resources to help themselves, much less Yikes.

Yikes spent the following year in the capital as a beggar, shifting skins constantly as they were caught stealing food and other supplies. However, at the start of November and just as the cold was threatening Yikes life, The Eclipse Freakshow pulled into town. Yikes spent their last few coins to see a show. Desperate for help and willing to do anything for safety, Yikes approached the head of the show, Jasper Moon and asked to join the Freakshow. When Yikes revealed themself to be a Changeling, Jasper hired them immediately.

The Eclipse

Yikes spent the next 4 years working as a freak in Jasper's show. It was during this time that Yikes started going by Yikes, a name given to them by Jasper’s (at the time) 12 year old daughter, Iris. The Eclipse was hugely successful during this time, if troubled by the law on occasion. Yikes was treated as part of a family, as long as they performed well.

At the start of the 1480 season the freakshow took a shift into more performance based acts, an attempt to shift into an even more lucrative and more respectable industry. Yikes became a sword swallower in this time to keep with the new look of the Eclipse. It was during this time the high turnover rates for performers began, few freaks or performers still remain that belonged to the old Eclipse. Jasper’s hard working conditions and rumors of his high spending at casinos spread in the industry, driving away the workers who weren’t contractually obligated to stay.

As the Eclipse declined further financially, so did Yikes stability. Yikes began spending their Winters in a city called Fearhar to party and over indulge in whatever vice they could find. 

Yikes found work and protection in Fearhar in the form of working in a lounge that prided itself on having exotic hosts, it was here Yikes began experimenting with escorting and casual love affairs with high society members.

Even during the working months at the Eclipse, Yikes’ over indulgence and reckless abandon started to become obvious to those close to them. As the stability and safety of the Eclipse slipped away from them, Yikes' mindset about their life as an open changeling costing them the chance at a long life became more ingrained, both due to their environment surrounding themself with other live hard and fast performers, and the continued close calls due to the Eclipse shrinking safety In 1482, Yikes changed their act in the Eclipse to that of a dancer. Fully embracing their new passion.

In 1483, a large number of performers walked out. Largely due to poor working conditions, pay and safety. However Iris, Jasper's daughter and someone Yikes thought of as their sibling, refused to leave. Despite being disillusioned with the Eclipse and being offered much better opportunities elsewhere, Yikes stayed in the Eclipse for Iris.

By spring 1486, the eclipse was left with less than a dozen performers. At the start of the new season, Yikes was invited to a dinner party by a strange noble man, which Yikes accepted.

This is where the campaign started!! The rest of Yikes' story can be found in summary here!!

[best-underrated-anime]

Best Underrated Anime Group G Round 3: #G5 vs #G6

#G5: Sheltered city boy meets outlaw and learns dark truth about the city

#G6: Emperor and Empress bodyswap in ancient China

Details and poll under the cut!

#G5: No.6

Summary:

Many years ago, after the end of a bloody world war, mankind took shelter in six city-states that were peaceful and perfect… at least on the surface. However, Shion—an elite resident of the city-state No. 6—gained a new perspective on the world he lives in, thanks to a chance encounter with a mysterious boy, Nezumi. Nezumi turned out to be just one of many who lived in the desolate wasteland beyond the walls of the supposed utopia. But despite knowing that the other boy was a fugitive, Shion decided to take him in for the night and protect him, which resulted in drastic consequences: because of his actions, Shion and his mother lost their status as elites and were relocated elsewhere, and the darker side of the city began to make itself known.

Now, a long time after their life-altering first meeting, Shion and Nezumi are finally brought together once again—the former elite and the boy on the run are about to embark on an adventure that will, in time, reveal the shattering secrets of No. 6.

Propaganda 1:

Ever watched a show that was obviously adapted from something, and you feel like there must be more to it? Such shows are often obvious to spot—My Happy Marriage, Pandora Hearts, Mekakucity Actors, etc. They present to us a unique plot with great worldbuilding, yet while watching, it always feels like it falls short somewhere. The characters aren’t that developed, plot points don’t seem to connect, side characters aren’t given much attention, etc. So much missed potential, and you can’t help but lament it.

No.6 is another one of such shows. I haven’t read the original novel, but as an avid web novel reader, I could just feel that there is so much more to it than the anime lets on. The mystery is intriguing, the world is complex, and the budding relationship between the two main characters felt natural and relevant (No.6 has a shounen ai subplot, by the way).

Overall, the anime managed a coherent plot, and I still like it. But after watching, you’ll be left unsatisfied. It keeps you wanting for more. Keeps you searching for answers. But despite this, I believe it’s worth a shot. Whether you vote for it or not, try watching it anyway.

Propaganda 2:

It's a suspenseful science fiction that has a unique take on class issues using the setting of a world post apocalypse. It crafts a unique world with incredible characters you want to succeed. The relationship that develops between the two mains is a heartwarming respite in the cold world they inhabit. The mystery of the show keeps the audience entertained and on the edge of their seat.

Trigger Warnings: Body Horror, Genocide, Graphic Depictions of Cruelty/Violence/Gore, Implied Child Abuse, Guns, Humans being treated like objects, Sexual assault on a supporting character, Mentions of prostitution

#G6: No Doubt in Us (Liang Bu Yi)

Summary:

Within the Chinese imperial court, stern-faced Emperor Xiao Jinyun and spirited Empress Xu Yu are at constant odds with one another. But the universe has an interesting way to solve their issues: an accident causes the two to switch bodies, forcing them to put themselves in the other’s shoes—literally. Now responsible for unfamiliar duties and court dynamics, the Emperor and the Empress must navigate the maintenance of their identities, unruly concubines, and the nation itself. In doing so, Xiao Jinyun and Xu Yu’s personal qualities and unconventional skills find new purpose, and a sense of understanding and compassion grows between the two.

However, great threats loom within and outside the court. If the imperial astrologer cannot discover the key to switching them back in time, then internal strife and suspicion may lead to the duo's untimely demise.

Propaganda:

Liang Bu Yi/No Doubt in Us is one of the most interesting donghua I’ve ever watched. The characters have varying personalities and, because it’s set in ancient China, are rather unique. Considering that Emperors had to keep harems and the fact that this is a straight couple rom-com makes the drama rather spicy. Plus, the Empress is far more qualified in the things a woman in those times wouldn’t be interested in, like sword fighting, archery etc.

To be honest, the contrast between Xu Yu (the Empress) and Xiao Jinyun (the Emperor) results in the show being far more interesting than other ones with the same trope.

Trigger Warnings: None.

When reblogging and adding your own propaganda, please tag me @best-underrated-anime so that I’ll be sure to see it.

If you want to criticize one of the shows above to give the one you’re rooting for an advantage, then do so constructively. I do not tolerate groundless hate or slander on this blog. If I catch you doing such a thing in the notes, be it in the tags or reblogs, I will block you.

Know one of the shows above and not satisfied with how it’s presented in this tournament? Just fill up this form, where you can submit revisions for taglines, propaganda, trigger warnings, and/or video.

[venusofvolterra]

how often do you think Felix and Dimitri… you know…

👀

I mean I’m sure they have sex but I don’t think it’ll be as often as one might think.

I imagine that they have recurring sexual relationships with people outside of the Volturi and I also imagine that they just hook up with other vampires they run into but I don’t think they’re allowed to do that when they’re on the job

Or at the very least, they’re not allowed to initiate those kinds of arrangements until those cases are closed and trials are finished.

I’ve said before that I see Aro as a very Machiavellian ruler, and even Machiavelli, to the very little credit he deserves, was against prima nocta. This was not because he was a feminist by any means but because it was impractical. You cannot gain peoples trust and maintain a good but firm image if you are using your power to sleep with or assault people. Thus, I imagine Aro has strict rules against the guard doing anything that can be perceived as abusing their power for sexual gratification.

I also imagine that vampires can go a long time without sex and their sexual frustration doesn’t tend to be as strong or debilitating as that of humans.

Now, speaking to the larger religious metaphors of twilight (bc SMeyer be damned if she left her Mormonism at the door), each coven pretty much represents a specific religious group. The Volturi are the Catholic Church. Like the clergy of the Catholic Church, most of the guard except for Chelsea don’t have mates. That isn’t to say that the guard is sexless entirely but that it was a poignant decision SMeyer made.

So, unless they get mates, I don’t see them running around having tons of sex. I also don’t see Aro letting them have casual sex with each other because that could cause unnecessary strife within the Volturi.

I do think they probably have some hook ups or fwb around the vampire community. That being said, twilight vampires are just not shown to have that much sex unless they are mated so I don’t think this is an uncommon thing in their world and some of them *cough cough* Demetri *cough* *cough* do have a lot of sex by unmated vampire standards but not as much as we as humans might think 

[ask-healthy-light]

A Summary of Events

After the fiery gate to the Dragon Lands closed, Luna had to accept that it would take time for the others to return, and she headed to the Palace, before she went to the Medical Centre with Eclipse.

Here, she met Celestia, who was staying with a weakened Starswirl, who did not realise how severely drained he truly was, nor how much rest he would need before he could safely and freely walk again.

While the Sisters watched over the Bearded, the Eastbound group met up with Boom, who revealed that he knew the Pink Pup, whose name of Courage was doubted, until he stayed calm near Nox and Inferno.

Unfortunately, tasteless jokes and harsh words caused strife to grow amongst the group, worsened by Boom's apparent ability to make the Dragonesses both freeze in place, only using the words he said.

But after the two Dragonesses woke up and were calmed down with the help of Light and Courage, they stood up for Light in turn before they could lose control of their emotions like back in Canterlot.

When everything was all right within the group, Light and Nox spoke with the Royal Sisters, who had created a Mirror for Starswirl to speak with the other Pillars, that they were headed further East.

Back in the Crystal Castle, Spike and Stygian had prepared lunch for everyone, and asked the others to return, save for Shining Armour in the barracks, to whom Spike planned to bring a plate of food.

With the help of a shy and fearful Dragoness Guard, Blizzard Frost, Spike found Shining, and helped him to be freed from his duties when they found that his Advisers had only wasted his limited time.

It took a long time before Frost felt safe again after Spike saw her scarred arms, a familiar sight and a story like his own, with which he and Eclipse promised to help her, as well as her abilities.

During their chat, however, Solar not only asked Twilight to calm down, but also had a thought that their friends could face more than just fire-breathers, so they asked Luna to send a letter to Nox.

Shortly after they met, though, Luna realised that the good feelings Frost held for her ran deep…

(Thank you to everyone for your continued support! Coming up to nearly 2 years of writing in a few months, and plenty more to come!)

(As always, the ask box and my Direct Messages are open for requests, so if you'd ever like a short story about your character, please do feel free to send a request!)

Send an ask or request! | Start at the beginning!

Featuring: Boomlord from @thedumbguywithaheart43 Nox Lunarwing from @nox-lunarwing Solar Eclipse and Twilight Sparkle as Twilight Eclipse from @asktwilighteclipse

[animehouse-moe]

Mahou Shoujo Magical Destroyers Episode 4: R U Ready?

Another day, another Magical Destroyers episode. It's not so much predictable as it is informative and relatable, but that doesn't cause the value or enjoyment of it to depreciated as it parades itself around through Inagawa's vision that tackles just as many abstract concepts as it does pieces of otaku culture.

So I think I'll try to keep this one short, since the idea is pretty well established and explained. The episode is effectively all about the rift between generations in otaku culture, as a hobby almost. It's about the modern day reconciling with its roots, and that source lashing out at where they've been forced to come to.

Before I get into that though, I want to establish some history with the term Otaku. It originated in the 80s, much like the otaku shown in this episode, and it is indeed a word that's come to embody a similar meaning to how English speakers see "geek" and "nerd", but it wasn't always that way.

Otaku is a very finnicky term in its early years. Originally, it was popularized as term in a magazine that was known for Lolicon Hentai content (though it was later lessened due to reader feedback). Regardless, the term came to be a way to refer to who we see as Otaku thanks to a columnist that would write articles titled "Otaku Research" (Otaku no kenkyuu). From there, it saw use at a marginally harsher version of "geek" or "nerd". Basically, like how old school movies would have bullies refer to kids as a geek. Derogatory and aggressive, but not something full of distaste or anything.

That changed at the end of the 80s though. As the term Otaku gained ground it was used by more, and was forever attached to the "Otaku Murders". Tsutomu Miyazaki was in their late 20s at the end of the 80s, and was a serial killer at the center of a batch of gruesome acts over the course of a year. After being caught and arrested, media began to label Miyazaki as an Otaku and created a massive moral panic to erupt towards the group in Japan at the time. The piece that remains interesting however is that Miyazaki's collection was largely live action horror and pornography, but the media ran with his collection being largely anime and manga.

It's very heavy, but it's how the life of the term Otaku really started. An immediate plummet towards rock bottom that created an intense separation and hatred of Otaku in Japanese society. Outcasts, people that are unable to understand or relate to reality, people that cannot integrate with society, failures. It was a harsh and terrible time to be an Otaku, which this episode does a solid job of depicting while leaving out the heavier aspects.

And within that, a rift is formed. The older otaku who struggled to enjoy their hobby, versus the younger otaku who know nothing of strife. It's a great interaction as you see it all over the place with generations across media and hobbies. Car guys, music (particularly stuff like Rap), even video games. The challenges that faced earlier generations were their rite of passage, one that newer generations never cleared or struggled with. And on the opposite end, why would the newer generations respect that struggle when they have everything in front of them and have their own issues?

It's a back and forth that, even though it's covered comically, gets the point across of the generational gaps in hobbies and the distaste that each sees in the other. So very much something that holds particular value in otaku culture, but can also be applied and related to other hobbies and interests.

Okay, well this is not short but there's still more to, sorry! I'll try to breeze through it.

It's impossible to remove tropes and clichés from the root of how many fans see and understand anime these days, so I like how much they're leaned on through this series alongside expectation subversion. It's fun, definitely not fresh, but an enjoyable feeling of nostalgia for the illogical and odd nonetheless.

Plus, random fanservice? Gotta love it, and how it both sort of mocks the pointless scenes of women in animanga, while also placing the sexualization of Blue in her own court.

The pervasion of Otaku culture in interaction and casual dialogue is still quite fun and it finds the right times to make it funny versus making it something closer to a parody. I wouldn't exactly call it a parody as it's not mocking it per se, but it's certainly not an entirely serious depiction either.

In addition to that, I'm also still liking the sort of romantic undertones that the characters give off randomly. I'm unaware as to whether or not it's an intentional piece, but it really adds to that immature feel that pervades a lot of the shallow aspects of the story. You can see it as the weird and wacky Magical Girl comedy that's a high schooler's vision, or you can see the pieces that it expresses underneath. It's easy to take the shallow without the depth, but the latter doesn't come without the former.

And I think that's an important piece to remember with Magical Destroyers. You can take it as it gives it you and have a good time if you're okay with the production value, but you can't separate the two facets of Inagawa's approach to his work in this anime. In for a penny in for a pound, and I think fans that dive in headfirst are really appreciating what Inagawa's giving out.

[voidsentprinces]

Think more games should just start with straight, curly, wavy, and everything in between options from the get go especially if it supports PoC's representation in media and video gaming as a whole. Same goes with gender diversity and relationship diversity in media writing to allow for more LGBT+ representation in media. Ideally these things would be baked in from the get go. World might not be an ideal world but it shouldn't stop us as creatives from making it that way.

Its like that one post about if a kid smiles at you, you should smile back so we can make the world a kinder better place. Not so much that you would be getting anything grand out of it or life isn't cruel its that we should be working towards a place where life didn't always be cruel, it could be kind and pleasant, happy and mostly free of strife. Bad things would still happen, no one can predict or 100% deal with cancer, immune deficient diseases, or chronic pain to fully cure stuff. But, it doesn't mean we can't make the world gentler to those afflicted to such things and even those who aren't.

We live in a world resistant to change that the future requires and requests. I vaguely recall from the time period between when I went to Middle to High School. People being gay, lesbian, etc. was like you basically walked up to someone and killed their dog or something akin to the atrocity. There were entire fucking marches through my small town of no real note to keep gay marriage from happening. Even at the time I felt that was fucking ridiculous. The following ten years was making it okay for two women or men to hold hands or kiss in an animated television show. Cause lord won't you please think of the children.

Despite all the resistance this world provides us, at least in America, I dunno how Germany, the Netherlands, Chad, Angola, the Phillippines, or Taiwan feel about this subject or how they've been dealing with it, we should be making the world more welcoming and representative of all its people within the certain limits that we are not providing a platform for dictatorship and fascist ideals that will strip a person of all rights while glorifying the legacy and power of a singular man or group of men whose selfishness absorbs an entire country and causes its people to suffer intentionally through ignorance or apathy.

But, with the stresses of the today's world. We cannot all be made to charge the metaphorical beaches of Normandy for the cause. Some of us haven't the mental, emotional or even physical bandwidth to champion good causes in an active manner. But we still feel it strongly even if we do not have the words to describe it. And as social creatures, humans will be passionate and want to communicate it. If they cannot, we wish to at least be validated in causes we hold fast to even if we are not at liberty to fully express it for whatever reason.

So just like...break even with us and give people, particularly those of the LGBT+, People with Disabilities and PoC and their intersection representation in options of hairstyle, skin tone, romantic or lack thereof exploration/representation and the options to give people the option to like turn on a color blind mode or a certain control set up to allow stuff like...Dark Souls to be more welcoming to them.

I dunno exactly who I am talking to in making this post I just have THOUGHTS after the recent FFXIV Hairstyle Competition. And the thought was mostly, "Why did we have to hold a contest to get some of these hair styles? Why weren't they in the game to begin with?" probably resources. But like...still, ya know?

Sorry for the tangent. I think therefore I Void.

[demon64]

Did some writing for fun of a Darksiders fic! I've had this idea for a while, since it's fun to think about what else beyond Human, Angel, Demon, and Nephilim could exist in the Darksiders universe.

Within Creation there are many species known for their trickery, for it is a constant, whether selfish or selfless. The Fae are one of those known for the former. Less often for personal gain and more for their amusement. For that amusement, many Faeries’ favorite target is Humanity. A fact that the Charred Council has become quite aware of.

Across the cosmos, a call is sounded. Silent to many, loud and clear to the four it beacons! The four it calls? The Horsemen. Fury. Strife. War. Death. Enforcers of the Council, enforcers of Balance.

“Wonder what kind of mission would need all four of us.” states Strife.

“Probably a number of Demons attempting to corrupt parts of Creation.” replies War

“Or maybe some rogue angels looking to “bring Order” once again. For all the good it will do.” adds Fury.

“Maybe you will get your answers if you decide to listen!” roared a voice, coming from one of the stone heads that physically represents the Council.

“Now that we have your attention. There is a group of Faeries that have been a particular nuisance. Going around the universe, tricking many, too many. Now they play with Humanity.” added a second Council voice.

“Find them. And deal with them how you figure best.” Said the third face of the Charred Council.

Given their mission, the Horsemen set out to the realm where Fae will commonly be found. Discovering their targets to be relaxing at a bar within a small town, the Horsemen prepared for an encounter with pompous charlatans.

A brawl would break out, magic and weapons flying and clashing. The Horsemen had the edge over the Fae in magical and physical power. One thing that the Fae did have though is their wits, and with those wits, they could use their words to reason with and boggle the minds of the Horsemen.

“We will leave Humanity alone, stick to ourselves, even return what isn't ours!” proclaimed the Fae groups’ leader, Ikol.

“Really? We’ve been informed of your group in particular. What you say is only as true as you wish to make it.” Death replied “We’ll need something more substantial than just your words.”

“Of course!” Ikol said “A contract. Now let’s get down to business.”

A long discussion was had, tricky wording was used, phrases and terms that threw the Horsemen for a loop were said. And at the end of it all, as the contract was made, Ikol and his compatriots would find it’s not always hard to outwit and trick the most feared beings in Creation.

“Alright, hand over what isn’t yours, and see yourself off.” said Death, going through the motions.

“Yes, and same to you, Horsemen! Farewell! Oh, and you’re invited to the celebration, wear something nice.”

What Ikol had said left the Horsemen baffled, what celebration and why? The brothers figured it was probably the Fae speaking out of fear and wanting to get on their good side. Thinking not much else of it, they set off.

“So, you ever noticed that those losers were eyeing up Fury? Not shaming them or anything, but I don’t think they’d exactly love her bubbly personality.” joked Strife.

“Where is Fury?” inquired War

“What do you mean “Where is Fury?” She and Rampage aren’t alongside us?”

“No. They are not.”

That caused the brothers to stop in their tracks. Their sister isn't with them? Where is she then? She could not have gotten lost, she’s not one to stray or get sidetracked. Deciding to double back, they hoped that Fury had gotten a bit drunk and not noticed her brothers had left. Upon arriving, they would see that they're adversaries had already left, and there would be no Fury in sight either.

NOTES: I did this a loooooooong while ago. It's something I still need to finish fully. I doubt i'll post the full thing anytime soon, gotten look through my drive and see if I got any ideas to hopefully finish it. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed this.

[thecreaturecodex]

Questing Beast

Image © Jonathan Hunt, from Bestiary: An Illuminated Alphabet of Medieval Beasts

[As @a-book-of-creatures​ goes into on their site, the idea that the Questing Beast is inspired by a giraffe is a modern fabrication. Giraffes were exotic but not unheard of in medieval European high society, and anyway were compared to camels, not to snakes and deer. The Questing Beast’s actual antecedents are the various monstrous boars in Celtic mythology, and the beasts of the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelations. 

I like this art among various Questing Beast interpretations because it looks bulky. Bulky enough to actually be pregnant, which is the whole point of the story. Most Questing Beast images, even the ones that aren’t just monstrous giraffes, go for skinny.]

Questing Beast CR 11 N Magical Beast This creature has the head and neck of a serpent, the body of a deer and a tail like a lion’s. Its coat is patterned with spots and rosettes. It makes a great noise, as if smaller creatures were barking and yelling from inside it.

The questing beast is seen as a symbol of chaos and dysfunction, but few can agree on the exact nature of that symbol. Some view it as a manifestation of impiety, others of civil strife, and others of incest or similar sexual misconduct. In truth, the questing beast is merely a beast, albeit one with a bizarre life cycle and dangerous abilities. A questing beast is parthenogenetic and perpetually pregnant as an adult. Its reproductive system is connected to its digestive system such that objects swallowed by it are torn to pieces by the young in its womb, and shared between the mother and offspring. The young are sufficiently developed to writhe and call from within the questing beast, giving its sides an undulating appearance and contributing to its wild cries. When some of the young are mature enough, the questing beast regurgitates them, rather than giving birth through any normal orifice. There is no parental care outside of the body; the questlings simply depart in order to begin eating enough to fertilize themselves successfully.

Questing beasts are ravenous omnivores, consuming both flesh and flora. They do not hesitate to attack humanoids, even in groups. They typically open combat with a terrible row, a cry powerful enough to kill weaker opponents and deafen and harm those stronger. It usually uses hit and run tactics, relying on its superior mobility and ease at moving through plant life to hinder pursuit. Questing beasts are brave but not stupid, and flee from a fight if badly injured. When a questing beast dies, the most developed of the young burst free. If there is no danger, they eat their parent before going their separate ways (or turning on each other). If the beast’s killers are still present, the questlings scatter in all directions.

Because of their immunity to magical divinations, tracking down a questing beast is a great challenge. They are constantly on the move, looking for new sources of food and water, and rarely stay in one place for very long. They usually bed down in thick undergrowth, the better to slow down a pursuer while not themselves being impeding. Wise hunters will attempt to lure the questing beast onto rocks or into water to slow it down, or use magical or mundane means to keep it from acting. Unless a questing beast is asleep, any forced inaction causes the questlings inside them great distress, and they start trying to chew their way out.

Questing Beast CR 11 XP 12,800 N Large magical beast Init +8; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +17, scent Defense AC 25, touch 14, flat-footed 20 (-1 size, +4 Dex, +1 dodge, +11 natural) hp 142 (15d10+60) Fort +13, Ref +13, Will +10 DR 10/magic; Immune divinations, sonic Weakness internal agitation Offense Speed 50 ft. Melee bite +21 (2d6+7 plus grab), 2 hooves +15 (1d8+3) Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with bite) Special Attacks bay, death throes, swallow whole (AC 16, 14 hp, 3d8+10 slashing and deafness), trample (DC 24, 2d8+10) Statistics Str 24, Dex 19, Con 18, Int 2, Wis 17, Cha 11 Base Atk +15; CMB +23 (+27 grapple); CMD 38 (42 vs. trip) Feats Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Endurance, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Mobility, Nimble Moves, Run Skills Acrobatics +18 (+26 when jumping), Climb +13, Perception +17, Stealth +14, Swim +13; Racial Modifiers +8 Acrobatics, +8 Perception, +8 Stealth SQ superior woodland stride Ecology Environment temperate land Organization solitary Treasure none Special Abilities Bay (Su) As a standard action, a questing beast can unleash a terrible noise in a 30 foot radius. All creatures in that area take 15d6 points of sonic damage and are deafened for 1 day; a successful DC 21 Fortitude save halves the damage and negates the deafness. A questing beast can use this ability three times per day, but must wait 1d4 rounds between uses. The save DC is Constitution based. Death Throes (Ex) When a questing beast is slain, 1d6+2 questlings burst from its body. All creatures in a 10 foot radius take 3d8+10 slashing damage (Reflex DC 21 halves), and the questlings are placed in random unoccupied squares within 10 feet of the questing beast, or in the nearest unoccupied squares if those are unavailable. The save DC is Constitution based. Internal Agitation (Ex) Whenever a questing beast is dazed, stunned or paralyzed, it takes 1d8+10 points of slashing damage each round. Superior Woodland Stride (Su) A questing beast ignores difficult terrain and movement penalties from natural or magically altered plant life. Swallow Whole (Ex) A creature swallowed by a questing beast must succeed a DC 21 Fortitude save each round or be deafened for 1 day. The save DC is Constitution based.

Questling            CR 3 XP 800 N Tiny magical beast Init +7; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +11, scent Defense AC 25, touch 20, flat-footed 17 (+2 size, +7 Dex, +1 dodge, +5 natural) hp 19 (3d10+3) Fort +5, Ref +11, Will +4 DR 5/magic; Immune divinations, sonic Offense Speed 30 ft. Melee bite +4 (1d4-1), 2 hooves -1 (1d3-1) Space 2 ½ ft.; Reach 0 ft. (5 ft. with bite) Statistics Str 8, Dex 25, Con 12, Int 2, Wis 17, Cha 11 Base Atk +3; CMB +8; CMD 17 (21 vs. trip) Feats Dodge, Mobility Skills Acrobatics +15, Perception +11, Stealth +23; Racial Modifiers +4 Acrobatics, +4 Perception, +4 Stealth SQ superior woodland stride (see above)