#and sometimes she’s the link between the mortal and god realms

[flamingfalcon3]

Nina, writing in their diary with a glitter gel pen: I'm losing my sense of humanity. Nothing matters. God is dead. There's blood on my hands.

#im sorry im just so obsessed with unhinged nina #sometimes shes a perfectly sweet teenage girl #and sometimes she’s the link between the mortal and god realms #incorrect house of anubis #house of anubis #nina martin #incorrect hoa #hoa

[senualothbrok]

Absolution

Summary: The God of Ambition considers the last of his attachments. Sequel/counterpart to Prayer.

Word count: 3.3k

Non-18+. God!Gale. Gale x female Tav. Angst.

AO3 link

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You watch Her sometimes.

You are not entirely sure why. You have prayers to answer. Followers to bless. Worshippers to mould to your purposes. 

Her prayers are worthless, Her supplications irrelevant. Her words are not worship. To listen is wasteful. And yet.

It is not longing. Not yearning, or desire. Those trappings faded long ago. You do not feel them as you used to, like a burning ache within you, a searing wound. Now, you are silver lightning, cracked ice. Now, there is only a shadow of a shadow, a cold smoothness where your heart once was.

And yet, you still hear Her prayers. You still watch as She walks along the seafront, enveloped by a sunset that is the mist of a memory.  Her face, pale and wan. Her hair, so dry and brittle. Her lips a scar where Her smile used to be.

“Come back to me.”

Something almost flickers inside you as She says it. The ghost of a feather. The faintest glow of an ember before it is snuffed out. Gone as quickly as it flares. Lost forever.

You watch Her as She weeps. Within you, there are distant echoes. An embrace that you once gave. A thumb on Her cheek, circling away Her tears. The tingle of Her breath on your ear.

A puzzle you cannot solve.

A plea you do not answer.

******

It is not quite dreaming, nor is it remembering. You are a god. You can bring realities to being from dust. You are pure reality in all its forms.

Your thoughts materialise before you as they come. No longer is there a gap between the imagining and the conjuring. You are not a mortal, scrambling towards power, scraping at spells. You are power, you are actuality. You have no weakness, no lack.

You need only to think of Tara, and she is there. Her wings are a cloak around her. Her green eyes blaze. Or perhaps they were grey, or blue, like the hue that transforms everything around you. Perhaps she was larger, softer, smaller. Sharper. The certainty of his tressym’s likeness eludes you. But it no longer bothers you. It is a trifle to even think of it.

Yet Her likeness comes to you without such hindrances. You would know Her in any universe, on any plane. You cannot cast Her off. And when She appears before you, you cannot cast off the vision of the mortal you once were. He withers beside Her, with his simpering smile, his faltering gait. When you look on him, there are vague vibrations of shame. Invisible lashes that you recognise as disgust. 

With arms you could snap with a blink, he caresses Her. He clasps Her head against his marred chest, a feeble frame that you could crush with a whisper. She laughs and presses Her lips to his. Their limbs twist and grasp at each other’s mortal bodies. 

You study them, as his tressym makes a rough sound beside you. A purr, you recall. It was pleasant once. 

You feel no heat, only a shadow.

******

As a god, you must understand mortals. You must understand the measure of their humanity, its limitations, its attachments. The follies that bind them. The frailties that are their cage. It helps you to recognise their hunger when they pray to you. It lets you separate the wheat from the chaff. 

You yourself were a mortal once. But it is slipping away from you, the knowledge of humanity. You are losing the memory of softness, light and warmth. What you recognise now is the sharp blade of ambition, the sword driving up into the dark. You can detect its traces across realms, no matter how obscure, how tiny its glint. You can sniff out the most gifted, the most ruthless, no matter how distant their screams. You have perfected your method, to coax the barest saplings of ambition’s greed to the ripest fruit.  

That is how you selected him. Bartholdi of Thay. Barely twenty two and already a formidable necromancer. Your Chosen.

At sixteen, your Chosen revived the corpse of his younger sister to slaughter his parents. That was only the beginning. He was the edge of a razor, always seeking the sharpening, no matter the cost. When you appeared to him, he was keen to explain that he had acted in self defence. His parents had beaten his sister to death, and intended to sell him to a slaver. You told him that his reasons did not impress you. You cared not for his anguish, his excuses, his revenge. What you cared about was the drive to dominate that had birthed his talents. When you told him your plans for him, his teeth flashed like tombstones.

When you summon him, She is there. She is curled on Her side beside his tressym, Her eyelids fluttering. You notice Bartholdi’s narrowed, smirking eyes. He makes no effort to conceal his disdain.

He forgets his place. Again. Sparks sizzle at your fingertips.

“Does something displease you, Bartholdi of Thay?” 

There is the slightest arch of his pruned eyebrow. He bows with exaggerated flourish.

“Of course not, my Lord. It is, as always, an honour to have an audience with you.”

You stare at him. His robe is plush silk and velvet. His fingernails are manicured, his dark hair carefully coifed. None of this finery masks the jagged edge of his voice, the spite in his gaze. 

You are under no illusions. Your Chosen would claim your power in an instant. He would form a ladder out of your corpse in order to ascend. He believes you are a stepping stone, but you will not be moved. You know his designs all too well.

“Speak your mind, young Bart.” You let your form expand, so you loom over him. “I will hear you.”

The spasm of his gaunt face pleases you. He loathes it when you call him that. He smiles. 

“My Lord.” 

He pauses, considering his options. It is amusing, the deliberation with which he hatches his schemes. 

“I bring news from your temples in Amn and Thay. The priests are preparing for the festival of your ascension. You will no doubt have felt the surge in your followers.”

“I have.” Even now, you pulse with their growing strength.

“Each day that passes brings more worshippers to your creed. I have been spreading your doctrines far and wide, Lord.”

His tone is self-congratulatory. He yearns for your praise, while simultaneously resenting it. It is a curious trait you have come to recognise in many of your followers. One that you use to your advantage.

“Very good, Bartholdi. You have done well.”  

He dips his head. But his jaw clenches as he glares at Her resting figure beside you. You harden, letting a swirl of power jolt through you. 

“Is there something else, Chosen?” 

“Lord.” You can hear his teeth chatter from the force you exude. “The City Watch has written to me again, demanding that the store in Baldur’s Gate be vacated. It is quite tiresome, this business of your-” He clears his throat. “Of the personal effects hoarded by your previous form.”

His grimace has the quality of a sneer.

“I am acutely aware of the many matters of supreme importance Your Lordship must attend to. And I cannot help but notice the vestige of your former…lover… is often here.”

He is teetering on another knife edge. He has always loved to test your boundaries. Today, he is clearly feeling brave. 

“Are these concerns of yours?”

He twitches. He is a master of interweaving truth and lies. 

“Your exaltation is my concern, Lord. For a god of your stature to retain such…mortal attachments… is, in my humble opinion, not fitting for the magnitude of your glory.”

He wrinkles his hooked nose.

“Neither is it becoming for a god of such unparalleled power and might to cling to…baubles from your mortal life.”

It is the last straw. You crackle and blaze, and the storm that gathers around you pushes him back with a flinch.

“Do you deign to pass judgment on my attachments, Bartholdi of Thay?” 

His derision is fading now. In its place, you see the tendrils of fear and desperation.

“Have you become the arbiter of my decisions? Do you question my wisdom?”

He collapses onto his knees. Whether this is of his own accord or from the whirlwind around you, it does not matter. It is submission, either way.

“Of course not, Your Holiness.” He raises his hands in supplication. “I would never dream of even the merest suggestion of-”

Your voice is thunder and tempest.

“You will return to the hovel in Thay which you call your abode, and you will not speak to me until you are spoken to.”

He trembles. “Your Worship-”

“Enough. Be gone, boy. I will summon you when you are worthy of my attention.”

Your command tosses him back into Faerun, shrieking as he falls. 

Something like anger and indignation rumbles through you at his presumption, his thinly veiled contempt. This foolish mortal, puffed up with delusions of grandeur. You could cast him aside in an instant, replace him with one of your promising priests from Amn. That would thwart his paltry threats once and for all.

But then you look at Her. She lifts Her head and gives you a heavy lidded smile. There is the thread of a scar on Her chin. Its fine bumps on your fingers are like a mirage. Her gaze is full and bright, Her lips a bitten blush. You do not reach out to touch Her, but you could. You almost do.

And in that moment, you know he is right.

It is not fitting. It is unbecoming of a god whose domain is transcendence, the soaring to ever greater heights. Such a god should not be shackled to the frailties of mortal flesh, the hungers of the heart.

Yet you cannot cast Her aside. She lingers, and you watch Her. Her cries find you across the planes, and you listen. You do not understand why.

******

“Come back to me.”

She asks this every time. Her meaning is plain. She seeks the reversal of your ascension. She prays for you to relinquish your godhood. She yearns for the meagre mortal form you discarded. 

It is absurd. Pitiful. But you are no longer capable of pity.

She was always strange, this human. She gave of Herself to exalt others, even when it diminished Her. She shunned godhood, preferring the weakness in him over his strength. She called it love.

Did you understand this once? Was this something you prized?

It only puzzles you now. 

******

They lie together, nestled into each other. There is a bed beneath their unclothed bodies, but it is an illusion. The night sky that glimmers, the trees that rustle in the breeze - they are also illusions, crafted by his weary hands. But it does not matter to them. They are wrapped in each other’s warmth and musk, their breaths in sync as their souls. 

He can feel the sheen of sweat on Her skin, Her heartbeat against his chest. Her taste lingers on his tongue. He savours it.

Was it salty? Sweet? Perhaps it was bitter. 

You remembered once.

She sighs, shifting closer to him. As She nuzzles Her nose into his neck, he chuckles.

“I could have shown you realities beyond your imagining, far beyond the stars. I could have given you sensations that no mortal could ever dream of.”  

He runs dancing fingers down the curve of Her shoulder, the side of Her arm. He shakes his head as he glances down at himself.

“Yet you opted for this humble display.” 

He gives Her a sideways smile, self-deprecating, almost bashful. She laughs.  

Was it a pleasant sound? Did its lilt grate on him? Or did it stir him? 

You cannot tell.

She tilts Her face upwards, Her dark eyes meeting his. 

“This is all I need, Gale. You and me, just like this. You’re all I’ll ever need.”

She cups his face with Her hand. They look at each other in silence. And then Her gaze mists, and She is frowning. Before the tears can spill from Her eyes, he is kissing them away. They are melting into each other again. For a moment, he cannot tell where he ends and She begins.

“You’re not doing it, do you understand?” She whispers. “You’re not dying.”

He says nothing. He cannot.

You remember this. He was still that shrew’s thrall, then. He was primed to sacrifice himself on her altar, to fetter himself once more under her yoke. Pathetic. 

“You don’t need her forgiveness, Gale.” She clasps him so tightly, as though She is terrified to let him go. “You don’t need to prove yourself. Not to her. Not to anyone.”

“My love,” he manages. “It’s not enough to-”

“It is, Gale,” She pleads. “Your life’s worth more than anything she could ever give you.”

Her gaze is so urgent, so desperate.

“You’re more than enough, just as you are.”

Ludicrous. Short sighted mortal prattle. Had he ever believed this? Had She?

He looks away, and he can tell that it hurts Her. So he holds Her close, resting into the rhythm of Her trembling breaths.

“Gale,” She breathes. “I don’t want to lose you.”

He runs his cheek over the waves of Her hair. He is memorising Her for when the time comes. Her softness, Her warm and cool places. Where She is firm and where She is light. He is drinking Her in.

“You won’t lose me.” His mouth finds Hers. “I’m yours forever.”

Was he lying? 

Had there been a silent promise there? A resolution to repay her? 

Did the flame of ambition flare? A pledge to be more, to prove himself worthy of her love?

You do not recall anymore.

******

They are lying in a boat, drifting through a sea of stars. A mirror of the astral plane cocoons them. He is staring up into the illusion, brows furrowed in focus. She is curled into him, weaving Her fingers through his hair.

“I could be a better god than she ever was.” His voice is low, tight. 

Wretched, how much time he spent thinking about that shrew. Contemptible, how he clawed after her.

“I could be better than any of the gods. I wouldn’t languish while mortals suffer and die, while we toil for them, all for nothing. I could right their wrongs.” 

He sits up abruptly. His hands grasp Hers.

“I could be better than them. You can see that, can’t you?”

Blind. Blinkered by the shackles of virtue, the fallacy of the collective good. A dog on a leash.

She rises, reaching for his chest. Sorrow quivers in Her eyes.

“You’re already better than them.” She presses Her hand to his heart. “You’re a good man. A great man. The best of us.”

He flinches, looking away. She shakes with something like a wince. 

“Why can't you see it? How can I show you?”

He caves at the pain twisting on Her face. He takes Her into his embrace, where She belongs. He cannot imagine living without Her. He does not know how he survived without Her love. 

“You don’t need to be anything else, Gale.” 

He nods, because it is what She needs. But Her pleas come and go like dust. They cannot quench the thirst that is sharpening like a blade inside him. He tilts Her chin up to him, caressing Her lips with his.

“I love you,” he says. 

It was a deceit. A misdirection. He had concealed the truth, knowing She might believe him. 

It had been the beginning of his awakening. The spark that fuelled his path to greatness. The first step in casting off his mortal cage. 

She had thought what they had was enough. But it was not. It would never be enough.

******

There had been a letter. Written by him in a trembling hand, the Netherbrain looming in the distance. It had been a threat, once, monstrous and all consuming. He had been ready to give that letter to Her, to give everything up for his delusions of self-sacrifice. They had stood there, on the precipice of battle, and She had refused to let him go. She had saved his sorry little life.

Ascension had come later. You had offered Her a place beside you, but She had refused it. A curious choice. A marvel, for a mortal to decline the offer of godhood. But She had always been an exception. 

She had always wanted the man. She had never wanted the god.

It had stung. You recall that there was pain. But you cannot remember the feeling of it. Only the way She had looked up at you through a waterfall of tears as you returned to Elysium without Her.

And then, Her prayers had begun.

“Come back to me.”

You had never considered answering. Each prayer was more futile than the last. For never again would you be a mortal. Never again would you debase yourself with the trappings of that man. All that wasted potential, blinkered by regrets and apologies, the endless quest for another’s approval. A woeful, feeble life.

But you kept the letter. It still languishes in the store in Baldur’s Gate unsent, unopened. You know its contents. You remember.

You know it would be an answer to Her prayers. You have always known, though you would not admit it. It would be the end of Her pointless supplications. No longer would She call out to you again and again, weeping and begging for the return of a man lost forever. 

It would be the key to Her freedom.

It was weakness to hold it back. Folly. You do not need your Chosen to point this out to you.

You think of your followers and the temples in which they toil, thundering your name. You think of your domain, roiling and growing like a gathering storm, surging against the boundaries of the other gods who will soon be dust beneath your feet.

You watch Her sobbing, keening. She reaches out to nothingness, grasping for a dead thing She calls love. There is the ghost of a stirring inside you.

And you know what you must do. You have known all along.

******

Things do not unfold as you intend.

It was not your plan for your lightning to trail across the sunset of Waterdeep. Nor had it been your design to send his simulacrum to Her on the docks, to hail Her departure.

If you were capable of surprise, you would feel it. But all you feel is puzzled at these thoughts of yours that materialise in Faerun without your willing them. Your lack of control. Your unknown desire. So unbecoming, so unfitting, for a god.

And then you see Her through his simulacrum’s eyes. 

She is smiling, tears cascading down Her face. Her small, calloused hands. Her slight frame that nestled so perfectly into the circle of his arms. The gossamer scar on Her chin, the haze of the birthmark on Her cheek. The places that were faded and broken now glow with a light and tenderness that have no equal. You will never see the likes of them again, in any realm or plane.

She is as beautiful as She ever was, as She ever will be.

“I’ll always love you,” She whispers. “Goodbye, my love.”

It starts as a ripple of heat through your deepest recesses. It is like an invasion of your form, so alien that you are momentarily afraid. And then, there is a tear. A rending, sharp and hot, burning through your being like a fire. The last sliver of his soul, ripped out of you like rot from a wound. You whirl from the agony of it. 

And then, there is only ice and silver. A shadow of a shadow, an empty space.

You watch as She boards the ship to Baldur's Gate. You watch as it pulls away and disappears into a horizon, carried away by a sea that is already forgettable, already dull.

You have set Her free. 

And now, you lack nothing. 

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A third of the way through writing this, I realised that I was channelling Dr Manhattan from Watchmen. So I should probably give credit to that work too!

Liked this fic? You can find more of my work here.

#gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #god gale #baldurs gate 3 #bg3 #baldurs gate gale #bg3 gale #bg3 fanfiction #baldurs gate 3 fanfiction #gale fanfic #gale fic #bg3 gale fic #gale x tav #gale romance #bg3 gale fanfic #god gale fic

[lazyveran]

I HEARD YOU HAVE ONE MILLION PAGES OF LORE FOR THE SUN GOD AU??

*sitting here kicking my feet holding a bowl*

HIII HIIII yes. my very beloved sun god au which i loveee.

azula is the god of the eastern rising sun, zuko is the god of the western setting sun. they're the twin gods that share the sky for it's different phases. now, they're both human, divine, and kind of... spirits too. it's a lot of intersectioning going on with them, they exist in a bunch of different ways and realms and all of that. they both essentially make up the concept of agni, and so are worshipped by the entire FN as the literal manifestations of their bending, their power and so on.

their origin is Shrouded In Mystery, and only the siblings know how they became agni himself during the split between heaven and earth. however it is mythologised as something to do with a father, two dragons, and a betrayal of the highest order. mysterious...

so these two are ANCIENT ancient, like spirit world and human world harmony ancient. as such, they're extremely not used to all things modern, hip and human. they speak like they only know an ancient language, and they dont exactly concern themselves with the changing of times unless it threatens the sanctity of fire bending (their gift to mortals), the dragons (their children, their masters, and the holders of the flame mortals use to bend), or agni himself. it helps too that they have their own island, temples, legions of servants, sages and so on. they're more than royalty, and they act like it. if azula or zuko venture from their volcano to dabble in mortal affairs, you damn well know fire and blood is coming to fire nation.

there are other gods in this au! yue is the divine manifestation of the moon, and has her own massive insane temple of worship ect like the siblings in the northern water tribe. she presides over the spirit oasis as her kind of garden, though yue's mortal shell is very rarely seen. katara has mantled the divine manifestation of the ocean --> this is a godhood that change it's chosen person-turned-god very frequently compared to sun and moon, which has been and will always be yue and the siblings. they work together to bring humans water bending, and balance the humours of the mortal world in constant ebb and flow. katara is a more hands on presence in mortal affairs compared to yue. toph is also a god! she's the divine manifestation of the earth. she's got a big name, the blind-god of creation, but she doesnt have a temple. really, the entire WORLD is her temple, but her mortal shell manifestation dwells beneath the great life-tree of the swamp. sometimes she'll wander the earth, and there's many myths about a sightless stranger and her strange powers. she chills with badgermoles and annoys the other gods

aang is the bridge between worlds! he acts as the avatar in that he is the emmissary for all these various gods and enactor of their will, being the only one blessed by heaven enough to commune with the divines. He-of-One-Thousand-Faces is the important (and basically only) reliable link between these gods and the humans who worship them. hes rushed off his feet the poor man. the avatar is also the only marker of time to the divines, since a change of his face (a new avatar) marks the pass of one era into the next

now. there's a big importance on names in this au. no one but azula and zuko know each other's names, because names are the expression of one's soul, essentially. it's the last remnants of who they were before they became the expressions of Agni himself (apart from their physical mortal bodies, which are more like shells used to communicate with humanity, really.) exchanging names is basically placing your entire being into someone elses hands - soooo, to someone not bound by blood, its like a marriage >:)

#this is the lore so far. im slowly adding to it #twin sun god au #genuinely having fun with this one hehe #ask #starrdio #thank u for asking me sm questions... we are married in my head

[dawnslight-aegis]

assorted etheirys mythological lore thoughts

on the Twelve and the Convocation:

we know that post-sundering, that humanity lost all culture, language, civilization, and magic (at least from the biased perspective of Emet-Selch). from what we've seen from Myths of the Realm, the Twelve seem to be creations of Hydaelyn, each associated with certain virtues/important elements of civilization. it's possible that Hydaelyn made them in order to have them guide the sundered peoples, to restore to them a measure of what was lost. this could be supported by the practice of certain regions/peoples having patron deities -- it's possible this was born from the ancestors of those groups being guided by that specific member of the Twelve.

meanwhile, we know that the Ascians were doing this same thing on the shards while working towards Rejoinings -- it's very possible/likely that they did the same on the Source as well (especially before a Rejoining method was devised)

so if we look at Hydaelyn, the Watcher, and the Twelve as a single group, and then Zodiark and the Convocation of Thirteen as another, you have two groups of fourteen deities, each led by an elder primal. on the side of light, you have the Watcher, whose duty is to maintain balance via the imprisoning of Zodiark and never intervenes, no matter what; and on the side of darkness you have Elidibus, the Emissary, tasked with maintaining the balance between light and dark to the extent that he sometimes works seemingly against the efforts of the other Ascians. The Watcher almost seems like an anti-Emissary of sorts.

it's possible that, given Venat's immense respect for the Convocation of Fourteen, that she might have loosely patterned her Twelve after the duties of the Convocation -- perhaps the management of sea creatures that was under Mitron's purview became Llymlaen, and Nophica, the earth goddess who created life, was inspired by the position of Loghrif, who had responsibility for terrestrial creatures. this aligns with my pet theory that Nald'thal is connected to Emet-Selch (there are interesting visual motif similarities between Hades and Nald'thal statues, Emet-Selch as ruled by Gemini and Nald'thal's status as twins) -- specifically the two men, considered nigh-inseparable, who were considered for the position.

au ra-specific mythological musings:

the au ra have two primary deities (Azim, the dawn father, and Nhaama, the dusk mother) as well as some vague mentions of "elder gods" worshiped by the Mol -- who seem to have some interesting insight, if Temulun is anything to go by.

on a possibly unrelated note, golden-scaled Bahamut and dark-scaled Tiamat are known by the titles of the Dawn Dragon and Dusk Dragon.

it's possible that the au ra originally had an entire pantheon of deities (the Mol's elder gods) but upon an encounter with Bahamut and Tiamat, the au ra saw two horned, scaled, tailed beings of enormous power, one golden like the raen and one dark like the xaela, and might have identified the wyrms as two pre-existing members of their pantheon (Azim and Nhaama). perhaps these two were always the creators of the au ra, or maybe that attribute was ascribed to them based on the physical similarities to each dragon.

having developed two separate near-monotheistic religious traditions around Azim and Nhaama, when the tribes inevitably came into ideological/territorial conflict, it would have been easy to gradually rewrite their mythologies to make Azim/Bahamut and Nhaama/Tiamat mortal enemies instead of partners as propaganda.

meanwhile, the rest of the original auri pantheon (which may or may not have links to the Twelve -- Urianger certainly draws parallels between Azem-Azim-Azeyma, and Nhaama and Nymeia sound similar/have overlapping associations of darkness/night and fate to a certain extent) only exists in the worship of the elder gods by the Mol, and perhaps the practice of kami worship by some raen. we know that the raen absorb a lot of cultural practices from the cultures they assimilate into, but the lorebook also states that a great deal of Hingan/Doman culture is rooted in raen traditions, so it's unclear from which the concept of the kami arose.

#have the bored wandering thoughts of a woman with a classics minor #who would have majored in anthropology with a focus in ancient religions if her university had offered enough courses on it #mythological syncretism is one of my very favorite things to think about #lore #ffxiv #ffxiv lore #meta

[mask131]

Magical summer: Hecate

HECATE

Category: Greco-Roman mythology

Hecate always was a quite famous goddess – already she appeared in Shakespeare’s time in popular imagination linked to witches, and still today American neo-pagans and Internet’s witches keep praising Hecate as their “goddess and queen”. Because this is mostly what Hecate is remembered for: being the goddess of witches. But as you all probably know by now, Greek gods are never just one thing and are very complex, multi-faceted beings. So who is truly Hecate?

  The earliest account we have of her comes from Hesiod’s Theogony, and… it is quite interesting because Hesiod’s description of Hecate is very unique, and doesn’t correspond to the image other authors of Antiquity gave of her. Hesiod described Hecate as a goddess that Zeus gifted with authority and powers over the sky, the sea and the earth, and that acts as a benevolent and caring deity who offers all sorts of good things to whoever prays or sacrifices to her. She gives wisdom to rulers and judges, she gives victory in wars and games, she offers glory, might, abundance and wealth to whoever pray to her, she helps harvest grow and cattle multiply… Zeus even made her a “nursing” goddess who takes care of all newborns. While future depictions would represent her acting in very different domains and sometimes in a less openly “motherly” and “nursing” role, Hesiod’s description got one part that stayed around: the idea that she is a very important goddess, as important as the Olympians, and that even Zeus held her in great regards.

If we take the legend of Persephone, or its literary depiction as the “Homeric Hymn to Demeter”, Hecate already becomes more similar to what we know of her today: she is a goddess only active at night, that helps Demeter search for her missing daughter thanks to her torches that light up the darkness, and when her efforts fail she is the one that helps Demeter get the attention of Helios, the sun-god, to answer her questions – later, alongside Hermes, she helps Persephone get out of the Underworld or guides her in it every year. We get here most of Hecate’s roles and functions in classical Greek mythology. She was a goddess of the night, an entity of shadows and obscurity ; but she was the light in those darkness, somehow linked to Helios the Sun – she was a lunar goddess representing the moon. She was also the one who descended into the Underworld and came back from it: she was a psychopomp entity similar to Hermes, a bridge between the world of the living and the dead, one of the keepers of the keys of Hades’ realm. More than that, she was a liminal goddess, a deity presiding over borders and boundaries, doors and travels, the in-between and the transitions. This is notably why she was said to be the goddess of crossroads: crossroads weren’t just a liminal space of transitions, limits and travels between realms, cities, regions – it was also believed they were in-between spaces where the dead could meet the living and the mortals could see the divine. Wherever there was a crossroad, especially one between three roads, you can be sure a statue of Hecate stood nearby. This idea of Hecate as a liminal goddess fits nicely with Hesiod’s original description: she was a goddess whose powers extended between three different realms, and she was a goddess from the previous generations of gods (the Titans) that was welcomed openly by the new gods (Olympians), embodying a transition from an age to another. In fact, it seems quite obvious that Hesiod’s original description seems to be one of a lunar goddess, as we know that the moon was widely believed to have influence over the sky (celestial bodies), the moon (tides) and the earth (fertility of plants and animals).

  This benevolent liminal moon-goddess was however just Hecate’s original description in early Ancient Greece. By late Ancient Greece, she had taken a much darker turn. She was less the moon goddess and more the Queen of Shadows. She was less liminal and more of a psychopomp. She took a darker turn towards death, and soon became a chthonic goddess, aka an Underworld goddess thought to live with Hades and Persephone (in fact she often was associated or confused with Persephone, both considered “Queens of the Dead”). Hecate’s psychopomp role got entirely reversed as it was now believed she led the dead out of the afterlife, under the shape of various shadows: she was the goddess that sent ghosts to haunt the living during the darkest nights, and she was the goddess who sent nightmares in the mortals sleep. In fact, she was often depicted as leading a true parade of specters and wraiths by moonless nights. In this darker, scarier, creepier incarnation, there was however still some “positivity” as she stayed a goddess of purification: people prayed to her to protect their house and cities, to keep the ghosts and unruly dead out of the living communities, she could reject and put down evil spirits, and the “bad dreams” she sent to people were merely the results of past crimes that came back to haunt them. When people prayed Hecate to have the bad dreams go away, in truth they asked for the “stain” left by a past fault to be erased, so that their innocence would protect them from nightly torment.

  Then we come to the Romans, who took back Hecate and cemented two of her aspects: goddess of the moon and goddess of witchcraft. Goddess of the moon, because they fused her with Luna (their equivalent of Selene, the moon-goddess) and with Diana (the equivalent of Artemis). Already the Greeks had noted a similarity and parallels between Hecate and Artemis, both being powerful goddesses with a moon symbolism, both surrounded by a pack of wild gods, both virgin goddesses (or at least in Hecate’s case with no husband or prominent lover)… The Romans just made more obvious the underlying text. As for the “witchcraft” aspect it doesn’t come from nowhere: already the Greeks believed that Hecate was a goddess gifted in both the art of poisons and the making of medicine. And as you know now, in Ancient Greece “poison” and “medicine” are the same, they are all just drugs, “pharmakos”, philters and potions – and whoever masters the art of “pharmakos”, the art of healing and wounding, giving life and killing, is a witch, sorcerer or enchantress. This is why by late Ancient Greece, Hecate the “mistress of poisons and medicine” became linked with the two other great “witches” of Ancient Greece, Circe and Medea – some said she taught them their art, others even claimed she was actually their mother!

The Romans latched onto this specific interpretation, and emphasized it, by mixing in it the nocturnal aspect of the “Queen of Shadows” and the chthonic nature of the “Mistress of Ghosts”: she became the goddess of magic and sorcery, the deity of spells and curses, the patron of all witches and wizards. And as the Romans believed witches to be dangerous, vile, creepy, disturbing creatures, Hecate became even more frightening and disturbing – a creature that got out of the darkness to gift others with the ability to inflict storms, diseases and sterility upon others, a dreadful entity that blurred so well the line between life and death she allowed for the art of necromancy to prosper – it went to the point that some Roman authors depicted her as a “corpse-goddess” with a rotting and pale body bearing the marks of decay, and forced to wear a mask when she visits the other gods in heaven to avoid scaring them away. The connection and equation with Persephone, Queen of the Underworld, became even stronger.

And finally, Rome’s habit of including foreign gods to their cult and syncretizing their deities with others put a final nail to the idea of Hecate as a goddess of both death and magic: on one side she became fused with the Babylonian Ereshkigal, queen of the underworld and mistress of the dead, lover of Nergal the god of wars, plagues and disasters ; on the other she was associated with Isis, an Egyptian goddess renowned as a spell-weaver, poison-user and great magician.

  So this is what people ended up remembering the most, and what Hecate became for the Middle-Ages and the Renaissance. The goddess of witches, the creepy deity of magic. The leader of ghosts and mother of nightmares. The goddess tied to the moon who ruled in the middle of the night over a court of shadows. The underworld queen able to open and close the doors of death at will.

Which, by extension, greatly influenced the idea people had about witches, and their ties to the night, the moon, ghosts and the underworld…

- - -

In terms of iconography, the most well-known fact about Hecate is that she is a "triple-goddess". She was usually depicted by Greeks as three women, back to back, each of the "bodies" looking into a different direction - it was usually how she was depicted on crossroads, each of her bodies looking at a different road. She was still considered an individual goddess, in fact there were also statues and paintings of her representing her as one woman - but she happened to be "triple". As time went by, late Ancient Greeks started to simplify her representation by just depicting her as a woman with three heads or three faces. And later, especially in Egyptian-inspired esoteric grounds or in ancient Hermetic texts (see my recap of Hermes Trismegistus), there was an habit to depict her as a three-headed woman but with the twist that two of her heads are those of animals. The most usual depictions go for a "snake/woman/horse" trio of heads (a depiction still very popular and well-known to this day), but there was also an alternate form with cow/woman/boar heads. Beyond that, you could recognize Hecate by the various items she held in her hands: torches (she used to light up the night), keys (symbols of her liminal role) or daggers (she had a ... quite ruthless, murderous side to her I didn't speak much about here). Outside of that you could recognize her thanks to the animals that acted as her regular companions: either snakes or dogs. Snakes because of their association with poison/medicine of course, but also because when she became more of an underworld goddess of night terrors and haunting ghosts, she was sometimes depicted with snakes in her hair or associated with other Underworld dangerous entities with snakes in their hair (like the Keres, spirits of violent death, or the Erynies, goddesses of vengeance and punishers of criminals). When a woman had snake in her hair, it was bad news in Ancient Greece. As for the dog, she was always seen followed or surrounded by wild dogs. Many people have interpreted differently her dog association: some say they were threshold guardians, and thus were fitting for a liminal goddess (notably Cerberus, the guardian of the limit between death and life, was a dog) or because they were watchdogs defending their masters at night, fitting for a night goddess protecting from evil spirits ; others say dogs were due to her poison and witchcraft associations, because dogs were often used to dig up poisonous plants or plants with so-called magical properties ; some even say it is part of Hecate's primary parallel with Artemis, and a leftover of a confusion or tie with the hounds of the hunting goddess... But overall, we know dogs were her sacred animals, and that their barking was thought to repel evil spirits just like their mistress' powers. As her sacred beast they were her usual "sacrifice animals": you could kill a dog on the road to protect yourself from the dangers of a future travel, or you could kill a dog to use their blood in purification rituals to wash yourself from nightmares, past crimes and the stain of death. The sacrifices of dogs to her were so frequent, numerous and important that the Romans ended up calling her "Canidis", "The dog-killer".

#magical summer #magic #witches #goddess #greek mythology #hecate

[baejax-the-great]

Wait i just realized finished works are also eligible so forget eiial….

Directors commentary for Zagreus in Void when he comes back and deals with everything that’s happened and what it means? I loved him hitching rides with Charon and chilling with Pat <3

Void was a strange fic in that 1. It went pretty much completely as planned and my section for "cut things" is almost empty, and two, the section with Patroclus was one of the first things I wrote. Long before I knew how I was going to rescue Zagreus, I knew he was going to spend his recovery chilling in Elysium with his feet in the Lethe, annoying his dad's husband.

This part in particular was one of the first things I wrote:

“Do you think the Lethe would work on me, sir?” Zagreus asks Patroclus. He says it like it’s a joke.It is not. “I do,” Patroclus responds. “Though, should you die and come back, I don’t know the result would be permanent.” Zagreus’s smile fades. Patroclus does not have to ask why he comes here to see him and not his lovers or his mothers. Hades has lifted the order to stop him, and now he can travel where he wills within his realm. His will brings him here, to Patroclus’s little glade. Sometimes the God of Death sits at his side. Often not. Patroclus once spoke to him of the difference between waiting for nothing and waiting for something. The restless prince has gained his own experience with this particular form of torture, Patroclus suspects. He is discovering a new form of it now, as he waits to feel his old self again. He sees how he smiles more with Death by his side. And he sees how tired he looks when Death leaves. He is trying. Gods do bounce back more easily than mortals. Perhaps he will succeed. “I drank from it, a little,” Patroclus says. “Sips, here and there, to see if it would dull the ache.” “Did it?” Zagreus asks. “Your ache and mine are not the same, stranger.” “That wasn’t the question.”

Hanging with a dead mortal who is very well-versed in self-pity made sense to me. Whatever mopey shit Zagreus was thinking, Patroclus has thought it twenty times over and wouldn't be impressed. So, with Patroclus, Zagreus gets someone who isn't going to coddle him, but also isn't going to judge him for needing some time to just not be okay. Patroclus has no expectations for Zagreus, being one of his newest acquaintances, but he's also a model of someone who went through some bad shit and is now pretty okay.

Charon is similar with this-- of all people in the game, he's the only person who has witnessed Zagreus's failures up close. I have a post about how Charon is basically a Zagreus groupie, and I stand by that. Zagreus knows at this point that Charon independently plotted to help him escape, and at the same time, Zagreus doesn't understand a word he says. Hanging out with him would just be chill. Charon's not going to judge him (Charon is totally judging him).

And the other part of Zagreus's recovery in Void was concerning the Styx. I thought a lot about Zagreus's godhood and how it works. I think it is very clever that as the god of life, one of the things he does the most often is die. It makes sense--life does that quite a lot. He's also the god of blood, and in Hades game, the River Styx is depicted as being blood. So, in Void, I figured that Zagreus and the Styx were deeply linked, to the point where he might be considered part of it. It's not like he can leave it, after all. If he goes outside too long, the Styx shows up to take him back.

In Herais's chapter, the Styx shows up in Argos to try to get Zagreus back. She also sees blood oozing out of trees and people getting sick with nosebleeds. The river wanted Zagreus back, and while trapped, Zagreus longed for the river.

This is another similarity with Charon-- they are both bound to the river, though in very different ways. Zagreus, not even knowing he was the god of anything, probably hadn't connected that prior to this experience. Once he's home, however, the river feels like safety. I have him coming to recognize this here:

“You know, I don’t like this river very much,” Zagreus says. Charon grumbles. He did not know that. He grips his oar a little tighter. “It’s just… I only come here when I die. I know it’s not the river’s fault, me dying, but it always does seem eager to sweep me away to my father’s house. Eager to have me back.” Charon eases up on his oar and continues steering them up the river. Perhaps, a long time ago, when Charon boarded his boat for the first time and understood the eternal nature of his task, he might have resented the river, too, for encompassing the entirety of his existence. If he did, the memories of that time are long gone.It’s a good river. Zagreus drops his head on his arm, his fingers still dipping in and out of the water. “I missed it, while I was gone, inasmuch as I could miss anything. I kept thinking about it, like I wanted to manifest it around me.”

It's just a small thing, but it's part of Zagreus realizing his nature and his limits. And that maybe the river isn't actually killing him or rooting for his death, but rather the river is the place of his rebirth.

#looking to pat for inspiration to get back out there fighting was a mistake though lmao #he does not give a shit and he thinks fighting is a waste of time #okay sorry this got long #I loved writing this fic

[cizzle-freezy]

I think I'm well and truly loving Tempys! She has such a pretty design. Could you perhaps tell me more about her character/role in your story and if she was particularly inspired from anywhere...

OOOH okay so

First of all, let's start with inspiration! A lot of it heavily stems from Zelda games! A bit of A Link Between Worlds, a bit of Twilight Princess, a bit of Breath of the Wild, and a sprinkling of Phantom Hourglass... But, mostly A Link Between Worlds! Purely because of the idea of Lorule, which me and my rp group (mostly consisted of @juan-o-clocks, @hikaririnku-blog, and their S/O) expanded further upon as some sort of Mirror Realm!

Reason why I mention the whole Mirror Realm thing, she's actually Skylyn's mirror counterpart, and they're more or less besties in a sisterly way due to their shared role involving the Dream Realm (Skylyn being a lesser dream goddess, and Tempys being a lesser nightmare goddess) (Also to mention Skylyn having the theme of wind and clouds while Tempys has a general storm theme)

I do also like making Genshin Impact jokes with her, but truth is, she's existed with her storm formchange gimmick since... February 2019, according to my file explorer.

Her role in the (current) story is mostly taking on a sisterly or mentor role to the rest of the group she's been traveling with, and her arc involves her complicated feelings with godhood, where she outright rejects the title of being one, but uses the perks to take care of those she cares about over the thousands of years she's been around... but sometimes her methods are rather.... self-destructive? She'd much rather push herself well beyond her limits for the sake of finding the answer to someone's problem, than to take time to rest and recover. But she also behaves similarly for the sake of knowledge, so...

.... I mean granted, she is also the accidental driving force behind the main story of this particular RP, in her eyes, one of the antagonists is literally her fault. She tried to, for lack of better terms, "foster" an angel who was abandoned, before it willingly fell. A lot of this fallen angel's behavior and abilities is influenced off of her.

Buuuut also she does live in the shadow of a technically-deceased sister that "died" before Tempys was even born--

However!! There is also some notable AU Counterparts that dissect her for the sake of exploration! (This has gotten extremely long so I'll put a keep reading buffer!)

I'll start with Chimera first because A) She has the more obvious Zelda references + Lowkey was also inspired by Professor Layton: Unwound/Lost Future??? Except I completely misunderstood the plot due to a tangled the animated series animatic??? And then the Nickname came from a type of enemy in Mother 3???

Okay hold on none of that makes sense I feel like--

Anyways B) she was initially created for a particular arc in the Main Plot in which the Main Cast ends up fighting bad future counterparts of themselves, versions of themselves that went on darker paths for one reason or another, and Tempys's leaned into her near-obsessive interest in magi-sciences, and fear of mortals turning against gods once more, mixed with a desire for her loved ones to live long enough to see whatever answer they were seeking for their problems (+ guilt over blaming herself for the loss of a girlfriend she had prior to Jira). Which led to her experimenting on herself.

Then we have Nightterror's universe (which I had nicknamed "Inverse" Universe). The complete opposite to Chimera. Giving up her passions. Embracing her role as not only a Nightmare Goddess, but then also taking Skylyn's role as a Dream Goddess when Skylyn was... "incapacitated." Perhaps permanently.

Nightterror's goal was to trap everyone in an everlasting dream so that way everyone can be happy! No one has to die! The cycle could be halted!

Except if everyone could get what they wanted, then obviously that could cause a lot of problems. And when people start recognizing that they're in a dream... Well, she certainly tries to put a stop to those trying to stop it, even if it means bringing harm to her loved ones. Not hurt or kill them, of course, but... if she has to put them in a deeper slumber, just as she did to Gelum and Ignis, her dear sisters... but oh well! They're safe, they're protected this way! Nothing can go wrong!

She's probably the one who is the reason why Tempys has such a huge playlist compared to other OCs of mine. It's just so easy to imagine her singing these songs in some sort of musical format, and roping others in to join her (whether they want to, or not)

And then we have Supercell who is VERY underdeveloped since she's newer in concept, but she inherits what the other two don't: The storm formchanges.

She mulled over the possibilities and gave up everything except for the Storm aspect. No more passions, no more connections... and it make her a cold, uncaring, force of nature. She probably couldn't recognize her loved ones even if she tried.

#cyz rambles #answered asks #oc: Tempys #hohoho i REALLY went feral with this one #so so sorry for talking your... eyes off? #i also wasn't sure how to get into her tangled web of relationships between mortals; fellow gods; her family; etc #but it feels like a ramble for another time... or some time spent in draw.io or whatever the flowchart website is #there is no way i can piece this all together cohesively i got EXCITED #and there's no spoilers involved with this one really since it's restricted to RP

[dreamingsushi]

Till the End of the Moon - Episode 13

I’m going to bed very soon, because with the jet lag and the pickup time tomorrow, it’s going to be a very early wake up time. However, I’m still very curious, so I’m going to indulge with the beginning of one more episode (if I manage to control myself from binging). So this recap will be written in two parts, not that it usually makes so much of a difference, but if so, you already know why there will be a gap between two different parts.

The episode starts with a character that I’ve never seen. He sends a child on a trial in the mortal realm after he dropped some camelias. It seems he’s one of the twelve high gods that are meeting to decide about how to get rid of the demons. He makes fun of Mingye that just got married, along with another goddess. Mingye specifies that he doesn’t love Tian Huan and that she’ll remain his underling as always.

After losing her divine essence, Sang Jiu isn’t as good at shooting arrows as before. She takes a break eating some fruits and ends up being found out by Mingye who scolds her for eating everything she sees without knowing if it’s poisonous or not. She gives him one of the fruit to taste, since he never had one of those, before running away to her room. Hand later on, he tells her that it was really delicious. She trains harder at shooting arrows. Seeing her practice, he gives her advice on how to improve. Teaching her seemed like it made him somewhat shy and he leaves. Then gifts her a new bow. To thank him, she takes him to watch shooting stars together.

The two gods from earlier decide to spy on Mingye since he’s going home much more often than he used to. Spying on him, they discover that he is teaching his wife swordsmanship. When he corrects her gesture, getting closer, she keeps staring at him. When her sword slips out of her hands, then it almost hits the quirky male god, giving away the fact that they were eavesdropping. Oh shoot! That guy is the one that told her about the three keys in Huangyuan and gives her the mirror of the past! I didn’t recognize him because I’m very bad with faces, generally speaking. Sometimes people come talk to me and they definitely know me, but I have really no idea who they are, but now that I know I can’t unsee it. I mean, we’ve seen him only like five minutes all hollowed by bright light too. He won’t explain why he said that she and him have a common fate. However as a gift, he tells her to remember why she came here. The other goddess tells her that it’s fine if she doesn’t understand what Jize said, she just need to remember it. Then she gives her a link between her and Mingye, so she can see him across space, once only, so must use it carefully.

Sang Jiu wakes up, her body acting up and freezing. She asks her brother why she’s like that. It’s because after losing her divine essence, her demonic nature is taking over, thanks to her divine essence she was like an immortal. If they don’t deal with it properly, she could lose her mind. Sang You is angry that Mingye didn’t treat his sister and he’s about to go have a talk with him. Sang Jiu says that it’s fine, since she knows now, she only needs to ask his help with co-cultivation, so far he’s been good to her. So she asks him if he’s willing to co-cultivate with her, if he doesn’t she’ll find another solution. But he agrees and it even seems as if he feels bad for not having noticed earlier all of her negative energy. He says it’s a good moment for trying now. While doing it, she ends up kissing him and then she faints.

Tian Huan is finally waking up. She’s going to have a very unpleasant surprise when she’ll learn that Mingye has been married to Sang Jiu... She’s really happy that he used very expensive spells to heal her. When she wants to go thank him, the maids tell her that it’s not a good moment because he’s co-cultivating with his wife. She doesn’t want to believe the maids so she runs, only to see...

Sang Jiu is still resting on Mingye’s shoulder. She slowly wakes up and thanks him for helping her as she feels much better. She gives him an apple and is about to go to bed when he calls her name. He tells her she can come to him anytime she needs him. Then he smiles while telling her goodnight. As much as I don’t like Tantai Jin because he’s really a monster, I still pity him very much, and it feels great to have him be just a normal person you know? I mean, as normal as you can be when you are the god of war of course. If only there was no evil bone to begin with. He’s so happy about his little apple. Then he notices Tian Huan and they have a talk. It doesn’t go well. She’s mad at him for marrying another one, when she’s the one who saved him and helped him all this time. She even dares to grab the apple! He took it away very quickly and tells her that they’ll talk again when she calms down.

After talking with the maids, Tian Huan about how they got closer after he found her on the tree eating the fruits. She orders to cut down said tree. It makes Sang Jiu a little sad. She’s happy to see that Tian Huan is finally up and she thanks her for taking care of Mingye. But then, Tian Huan tells her, to keep it short, that she’s going to pollute Mingye’s energy with co-cultivation and that he’s only helping her because of her father’s scheme, so people won’t gossip. She also said that Mingye ordered to cut down the tree. She may be pretty outside, but Tian Huan is really ugly inside ): Sang Jiu is too naive. Tian Huan tells her to ask her for help if her demonic side tries to take over again and she just thanks her. Who can hear the heartbreak coming?

Mingye is worried because Sang Jiu didn’t come to see him to co-cultivate. He prepares her a little shooting star gift because she likes it. But she goes to see Tian Huan instead. Looks like something really bad is going to happen. She takes her to a big bath saying that it’s good to reduce demonic energy. When Sang Jiu puts her feet and hand in the water, it hurts her a lot, but she still stupidly listens to Tian Huan and fully gets inside even though she’s in great pain. When she tries to get up, because she can’t stand it, Tian Huan forces her to sit back down. It’s so painful to watch. Without knowing any of this, Mingye is preparing her surprise. Tian Huan tells her to soak in there for at least an hour and if Mingye asks her how come she reduced her demonic aura, she can’t say Tian Huan helped her. So Tian Huan actually dumped something in the water that will make anyone touching the water feeling pain like it’s burning. But it’s not strong enough to kill Sang Jiu.

Mingye is waiting for Sang Jiu, but she doesn’t come. Tian Huan comes and touches his shoulder, he turns around smiling, thinking it’s Sang Jiu. Tian Huan tells him that it’s obvious that Sang Jiu is avoiding him. She knows that someone else is helping her to co-cultivate. It seems it’s something maybe you only do with someone special? Anyways, that’s the end of this episode. I couldn’t bear seeing Sang Jiu in pain, soaking in that water in hopes she’ll do better, when I’m pretty sure it’s only going to hurt her. Hopefully the pain doesn’t drag too long, because I don’t know how I’ll stand it.

#till the end of the moon #luo yunxi #bai lu #deng wei #chen duling #xianxia #xianxia drama #costume drama #chinese drama #cdrama #c-drama #drama review #drama recap #drama reaction

[tiodolma]

If I may say something concerning Arthur and Morgan in Kaamelott~

He tried to kill himself, a futile attempt to escape his fate, disrespecting the gods in the process.

Suicide is a big no-no in a lot of religion and choosing to end his life probably ruined his chance for a free ride to Avalon.

If the bath of Book 5 had been his last one, Arthur wouldn't have died a heroic death like the gods' champion but a cowdarly one, a waste of sort.

IMO Morgan didn't come because he didn't deserve it. He rejected the gods and lost his faith so they abandoned him in return.

Could also be because Morgan (or whoever is in charge to send her) knew his suicide attempt was not life threatening.

To go even deeper, you could imagine Meleagant has something to do with it. He likes chaos, feeds on it. He causes meham in the mortal world (Cesar, Arthur, Lancelot and those are only the ones we know of) but could maybe do the same in the realm of gods. What if he could severe the link between Arthur and the forces that are supose to protect/warn/help him, leaving him alone and defenseless.

The Lady of the Lake knows of Meleagant. She is truly scared of his name, what he represents, what he can do. Morgan could be scared as well and refuse to come has long as he's in the peremiter.

Ultimately it just serve the plot right. Since Morgan in just a background character in Kaamelott I don't think it was supose to be scrutinized as much. But like a lot of things in the serie, the less is said and showed to more it leaves for headcannons and theories.

This is a fine headcanon as well (also more coherent than mine).

Arthur rejecting his mission would mean everyone (magical) involved were kind of sacked from their own positions as well.

And as we saw in Livre 5 everyone were just fed up and the already visible cracks in Arthur’s administration only kept getting wider.

Also the ladies steering away from Malegaunt being like "nope! Not my jurisdiction! Let him do as he wants!” Is a fun concept. I sometimes see youtube comments say that he personified depression and like... yep... that’s kind of Malegeant being similar to a god in his own right.

Thank u anon.

#kaamelott #spoilers #maleagant

[stygicniron]

Swirls of black cut in by red light with seemingly no source swirls around him. The noxious smell [A mixture of monster dust and horrific morning breath] hangs in the air like a visible mist. Moans and gasps of pain echo in the endless corridors with no sense of rhyme or reason. The words of the desperate mixing with the pleas of the entombed in an endless call for mercy to uncaring ears.

[But there is one that stands out against the crowd of beggars. A single voice that doesn’t end in an inhuman hiss or whine but instead bitterly and completely human in sound.]

“ Nico ! ” Desperately called the voice of Bianca di Angelo. “Nico ! ” The same voice that she used to find him when he ran from their mother’s side. A mix of chiding and worry that by the call grew more desperate and sad. “ Please, before it's too late. “

A visage in a doorway that could barely be made out between the growing mist and shadows that seem alive. Seem to only exist to block his eyesight. “ I was wrong. " Broken, a gasp and sob drawing out the last word. “ I want to go home. Please— “

Something laughs beneath their feet and her shadow is gone. Swallowed by the growing red and a scent like deep Earth scent cut with iron and copper. Ancient and laughing as Bianca’s words turn to screams and the darkness snaps back taking sleep with it.

( @furys-burn -- In The God AU.)

Sometimes it’s hard to differentiate waking from dreaming in the Underworld. After all, the mortals sometimes refer to sleep as ‘the little death;’ and with sleep and death being brothers, it only makes sense that in the Underworld, the realm of the dead, they should be so closely linked. Nico likes to flatter himself that he can tell the difference between the two, that he’s not some mortal so easily taken in by spirits and dreamings, but it’s times like this that make him wonder.

A voice so familiar catches his breath away, almost dropping him to his knees as if he’s been punched in the gut. Frantic eyes search his surroundings, trying to pin down just where the voice might be coming from, a voice he so desperately wishes to hear even though he knows he would never hear again.

Because Bianca was dead, that truth could not be avoided. He’d felt it happen, although he had not been there, and he knew her soul had been judged, although she refused to let him be present in the Halls of Judgement to watch it happen. In fact, after Bianca started trying for the surface of the Underworld herself, he hadn’t had the chance to see much of her. Perhaps that’s why a part of him still wants to desperately believe he’ll see her again, that she’ll just reappear after so long away.

But this is the voice of Bianca’s spirit--his tenuous hopes stifled again for the moment--as a new fire lights in his chest. She’s in trouble! She’s been captured!

Breath catching in his throat as he takes stumbling steps towards the doorway, hand out-stretched as he tries to reach the spirit of his sister, he lets out a strangled cry as she vanishes again. “Bianca, no!” he yells, sorrow and fear mingling easily together. And his steps turn into a fall as the ground trembles, red light casting a haunting expression on his face as he rolls away from the crack.

Bianca! Bianca has been captured! Twin fists pound the earth for a moment, dreaded certainty coiling in his gut. Nico has to save her! It’s the least he can do for his big sister.

#furysburn #☠ ▌ ｓｕｍｍｏｎｉｎｇｓ ( asks. ) #( god au. ) #a kidnapped sister #this #~*~ hurts me ~*~ ='] #but i also love it

[heyovivi]

Gwyn and Azriel and Prejudice

Hello, back again with some possible theories and this time it's about one of my favorite Valkyries, Miss Gwyneth Berdara and some more controversial subjects such as the prejudice that surrounds her and other characters.

Now I'm sorry I haven't been posting a lot--though I'm sure not people even notice seeing how we have a large community of readers who also come up with some amazing theories! But I needed to slow down on posting my wild theories and imaginations because I felt that some of my readers who read my fan fiction were starting to catch onto the plot of "A Court of Shadows and Scars"--but I've been waiting to post about this one because I think it's important and because I've already addressed it in my story.

Moving on.

Gwyneth Berdara.

Although she was very much a newly-introduced secondary character to Nesta's story she is oh-so important and beloved by our reading community. Gwyn has stolen the hearts of many with her wit, charm, and inquisitive personality--and not just readers but her fellow characters as well.

All except a very few including Merrill and the main antagonist of ACOSF, Queen Briallyn--though there are many others I could mention, such as the Illyrians, but my main focus will revolve around Merrill and Briallyn and their prejudices against Gwyn along with other characters with their own prejudices such as Beron and even our own brooding shadowsinger, Azriel.

Yes, Azriel.

Now we know the story of Gwyn and we also a know a bit of her past as well.

Gwyn's grandmother was once a river nymph who seduced a High Fae male hailing from the Autumn Court and fell pregnant with Gwyn's mother who was sent to be raised at the temple of Sangravah because she couldn't dwell in the rivers of Spring Court and was too wild to be confined in the Forest House of Autumn Court.

"My mother was unwanted by either of their (Gwyn's grandmother and grandfather) people. She could not dwell in the rivers of the Spring Court, but was too untamed to endure the confinement of the forest house of Autumn. So she was give in her childhood to the temple at Sangravah, where she was raised..." (Gwyn Berdara, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 316)

Now what we know about nymphs is extremely limited in the ACOTAR world. But in Greek mythology--from which they hail from--nymphs were idolized as guardians of nature. They were revered as the spirits of specific natural features and were often identified with parts of nature such as the Oreads (mountain nymphs) and the Hamadryads (tree nymphs).

The name "nymph" comes from the Greek word that means "young woman", and so naturally these beings were considered to be female. Indeed, they were represented as young, beautiful, musical, amorous, and gentle youthful creatures. And while there is some question about whether they were immortal or not - Hamadryads in particular were linked with the lives of their chosen trees - it is believed that they were extremely long lived.

A beautiful, ever-young creature that inhabits the lovliest of all wilderness places including clear lakes, streams, and crystalline caverns. They do not like any form of intrusion but there is a 100% that a nymph will be friendly if approached by another good creature. Nymphs are exceptionally intelligent and are very rarely found.

Gwyn's lineage of nymph, according to Greek mythology, would be categorized as a Naiad, the nymphs of streams, rivers, and lakes. The Naiads, or water nymphs, dwelt beside running water. Like their cousins, the Nereids and Oceanids of the oceans, the Oreads of the hills and the Dryads of the forests and trees, they were usually sweet, benign spirits. Naiads, especially, were helpful and healing, nurturing fruits, flowers and mortals. Yet the youth Hylas who went to draw water from a pool was lured by the nymphs into the water and was never seen again--meaning that despite being creatures of nature they also possessed darker roles in certain legends.

I interpret this as Nymphs being hostile around creatures who were unwelcome in their lands for being ill-intentioned.

Many times in Greek mythology, nymphs were often seen as the symbolism of beauty and love; such as Aphrodite--and because they were always describe to be beautiful and graceful women with soft, sweet appearances they often drew the attention of the Gods creating legends of romantic affairs and infidelity.

Their very beauty caused the Gods to lust after them to a ravenous extent, making the Nymphs sometimes turn to the Goddesses for help. However, not all Goddesses were kind towards the nymphs--such as Aphrodite or Hera who grew jealous of their beauty when their very beauty and natural loveliness challenged the fidelity of their lovers.

In this case, let's assume that role of Gods, of higher beings, were the High Fae in the ACOTAR realm.

In the ACOTAR realm, it's easy to assume the nymphs are somewhat--if not--wholly the same as they are described in classic literature. When Gwyn tells the story of her grandmother she states that her grandmother seduced a High Fae, resulting in the birth of her mother. If this is the case then I think I can understand why characters such as Merrill and Briallyn look down on her lineage so much because again, Nymphs, in the eyes of major Goddesses such as Aphrodite and Hera, were essentially home wreckers (even though many confrontations with Gods and Nymphs were not always consensual).

With the reputation of being male-thirsty seductresses, nymphs are looked down upon as lower-beings, that and their lack of immortality (more often then not Nymphs linked their lifelines to an object in nature: a tree nymphs links their life to a tree, water nymph links their life to a stream (but I suppose that makes them immortal?)).

With this devious reputation placed on her lineage, Gwyn is often the butt of insults with being call half-breed and all by the likes of Briallyn and Merrill.

"But you made it easy for me: you went right to her house in Windhaven. Spared me the trouble of luring you. I let those witless Illyrians take her and the half-breed as an amusing bonus." (Queen Briallyn, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 721)

"I am descended from Rabath, Lord of the Western Wind...Unlike Gwyneth Berdara, I am not lackey to be dismissed." (Merrill, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 315)

Merrill glanced between her and Gwyn before saying, "get back to your work, nymph." (Merrill, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 315)

Okay--so Merrill doesn't specifically call her a half-breed, but dismissing her as a lower race and simply calling her "nymph" is basically comparable to an insult.

Now, that we've got Gwyn out of the way, let's move onto Autumn Court, more specifically Beron.

Beron is an ass--plain and simple. He is the personification of a conservative abuser and is honestly one of the most disgusting characters I have ever had the displeasure of reading. However--I suppose the problems he brings do push certain character formulas forward such as Eris and Lucien. Such as executing Jesminda for simply being involved with Lucien and for being anything but High Fae.

"Lucien fell in love with a faerie whom his father considers to be grossly inappropriate for someone of his bloodline. Lucien said he didn't care that wasn't one of the High Fae, that he was certain the mating bond would snap into place soon and that he was going to marry her and leave his father's court to his scheming brothers...His father had her put down. Executed, in front of Lucien, as his two eldest brothers held him and made him watch." (Tamlin, A Court of Thorns and Roses, pg. 160)

I don't think I need to go ahead and explain Beron and his prejudices against those who are not High Fae--his actions speak enough as is. But what I do want to do is go back to the specific wording Gwyn uses when explaining how her mother ended up in Sangravah, she says: "She could not dwell in the rivers of the Spring Court, but was too untamed to endure the confinement of the forest house of Autumn."

Confinement.

Not dwell. Not live. Not prosper. Confinement.

Now, we haven't navigated Autumn for all it's beauty and culture. We've only seen the Autumn Court through the eyes of Feyre when she is traversing through the courts in ACOWAR.

But I wonder how he approached with dealing with those who are not High Fae? What if the Autumn Court is much like the Summer Court where the court works around a system of class where High Fae are put at the top and anything but is put at the bottom? Therefore assuming that the treatment of such beings is cruel and unjust, creating a defining line between the races in which they can never reach equilibrium.

If that is so that brings me to the idea that many courts outside the jurisdiction of Night Court have assumed systems such as this, making there a limited amount of options for people like Gwyn's mother to prosper peacefully. Because we already know that the main reason why the first war with Hybern happened was because Hybern demanded to keep human and low fae as slaves, placing High Fae at the top. Spring sided with Hybern, because remember Amarantha and the former High Lord of Spring were close friends, Summer Court most likely fought to keep slaves as they still continuously oppress lesser fae, so I imagine it was worse for humans. And let's be honest, Autumn remained "indifferent" but one look at their current High Lord tells me that they weren't that indifferent--not unless Beron wasn't the ruling High Lord at the time.

So with that in mind, Gwyn and her family couldn't flee to Summer, nor Spring or Autumn. Night was probably never an option--as their reputation of being dark and gloomy more than likely frightened the idea away. Winter Court was obvious seeing how it's a winter wonderland of frozen lakes, streams, and rivers. Then there is Day Court which based on their current High Lord and aesthetic, is a desert land of sand and heat--with little to no water supply for any Nymph.

However there is one court that still remains. Dawn Court. From what we know they are a more than neutral court among the courts of Prythian and mostly value innovation. Geographically, Dawn is a lush, eternal countryside rich with the weight of summer upon it. The towns were red-roofed villages with sparkling rivers--a perfect destination for any relocating half-nymph- half-High Fae born child. However we also have to take into account the time period of when Gwyn's mother was born. Remember, prior to ACOTAR, Prythian was under the rule of Amarantha for fifty years--and even if that wasn't the case Summer was under the rule of a High Lord who didn't harbor the same compassion to change the unequal class system like Tarquin did when he assumed his place on the throne. Autumn was being ruled by Beron by that time already who'd probably have her confined. And Spring was under the traditional rule of Tamlin--and despite that Gwyn's mother would've still be considered as unwelcomed by the other nymphs.

If you take the time and current dilemma of Prythian--then there was really no where to go but Sangravah--putting into question the prejudices certain courts have against beings that are of the Low Fae variety.

I predict that despite being beautiful, charming, and compassionate, Gwyn still faces so much prejudice for simply being 1/4th nymph--which to the High Fae is a stain in her lineage to be a descendant from such a deviant being.

Now, let's move onto Azriel.

Azriel, as we all know, has his own conflicts with the Illyrians. Of course, that is to be expected, especially after learning of his backstory with being abused by his family and then later forced into training with the Illyrian army. The only comfort he had ever received was from the likes of his chosen family and so I believe he is projecting his own, personal experience of being an Illyrian into his hatred of Illyria--seeing the Illyrians as no more than a means to end due to their constant reluctance to move on with the times.

Don't get me wrong, I love Azriel. But I think a big part of his character is accepting who he is. He is an Illyrian--and I believe that with the combine power of him, Cassian, and Rhys they can bring the kind of change that Cassian had only ever dreamed of to Illyria. Yet, his own prejudices against his people hold him back and that's probably because he hasn't fully faced his trauma and instead skitters back at the mention or thought of it. I think if Az was healed he wouldn't be so reluctant to visit Illyria or wish for it's demise.

"A rare visit from the shadowsinger. Both myth and terror. Az looked just as displeased to be here, but he'd come when I asked...It was healthy, perhaps. For Az to sometimes remember where he'd come from. He still wore the Illyrian leathers. Had not tried to get the tattoos removed. Some part of him was Illyrian still. Always would be. Even if he wished to forget." (Rhysand, A Court of Frost and Starlight, pg. 222)

"Cassian rolled his eyes. But they both knew Azriel would sooner disband and destroy Illyria than help it. Convincing their brother than the Illyrians were a people worth saving was still a battle amongst the three of them." (Cassian, A Court of Silver Flames, pg. 42)

Now, moving onto the conclusion, finally. If Gwynriel's story was to happen, I think there is a sufficient amount of evidence to claim that Azriel's plot would revolve around the Illyrian conflict.

I'm just going to drop down this link: https://yazthebookish.tumblr.com/post/648449405425516544/the-illyrian-conflict-being-set-up-in-acosf-along

@yazthebookish highlights textual evidence that hints at a possible story arc for an Illyrian plot line because yes, there is still so much to uncover in Illyria and although I believe a large part of that was suppose to be Cassian and Nesta's story I also understand why it could go to Azriel.

Azriel needs to learn to accept his race, and the Illyrians need to learn how to accept change. I think they can learn something from one another and I believe Gwyn will play a role in Azriel's adventure. Do I think she's going to be the face some enlightenment in Azriel's journey--no. That's stupid. And if you twist my words, read it again. I believe because of Gwyn's past with prejudice against her and what she is, she can level with Az and understand him in a way that can potentially help him develop better as a character. Yes, she might be there for guidance or to give Azriel counsel, but in the end I think it's Az's job to tackle down the Illyrian conflict while Gwyn, with the help of Azriel, tackles down her own, whether that be discovering her lineage or where she came from or even healing from her trauma as a SA victim.

Please be respectful and leave your thoughts in the comments.

#gwyneth #gwyn berdara #pro gwyneth berdara #gwyneth berdara #azriel berdara #azriel #azriel shadowsinger #shadowsinger #a court of thorns and roses #a court of frost and starlight #a court of silver flames #lucien vanserra #eris vanserra #beron vanserra #gwynriel #azriel and gwyn #gwyn x azriel #prythian

[amjustagirl]

Chapters: one. ~ two. ~ three. ~ four. ~ five. ~ six. ~ seven. ~ eight.

Wordcount: 2k

Summary: Being with Miya Atsumu is like chasing a storm - equal parts exhilaration and danger. After all, it’s impossible to tame a storm.

Masterlist Here

AO3 Link Here

‘Hello, Miya-san? Yes, please don’t worry, Shino-chan is fine, just that your husband hasn’t come to pick her up?’ the nervous childcare assistant murmurs her apologies as she hangs up, ready to dial Atsumu to chew him out for yet another display of his bloody lack of responsibility. But it’s no use because Atsumu’s number is engaged, and after five minutes, she gives it up as a lost cause and after a moment’s hesitation, dials the other number most used on her phone. 

‘Samu – I’m so sorry to trouble you, could you…? Yes – Atsumu forgot to pick her up again. I’m sorry – I’m at work so I can’t just step out… Thanks ‘Samu – I owe you again’. 

She sighs, leaning her head against the cubicle wall in her office toilet. Then she squares her shoulders before heading back to her cubicle, preparing to tackle the stack of work on her desk until office hours end.  

She picks Shino up from Onigiri Miya later that night, promising treats to her daughter to persuade her to give up her perch from Osamu’s neck. 

‘He’s an ass’, he tells her, voice heavy with sympathy, and she lets herself rest her head on his shoulder. 

‘Yes, you’ve told me that’, she responds with a tired smile. ‘Maybe I should’ve listened’. 

He pats her back, and she departs with Shino in hand.

A storm blows into the city from the sea, so she shutters the windows and locks the doors, but the house still shakes from the blitz of thunder and lightning. She rocks Shino to bed, and sings her to sleep amidst the gale wailing outside their walls. 

She can hear the jangle of keys and opens the front door to let Atsumu in. He ignores her baleful glare and shoulders his way in, dripping rainwater all over the floor. 

‘Well?’ she demands, hackles rising at his sullen silence. ‘Would you like to explain how you managed to forget to pick up your daughter from childcare today?’ 

‘It just slipped my mind, alright?!’, he replies, face arranged into a sneer, and with a few strides he’s already halfway to their room, back turned against her. ‘You don’t need to make a big fuss about everything all the time’, he says, his hand on the doorknob. 

‘Atsumu!’ she snaps, her fists clenched by her side. ‘Do you know how embarrassing it is for me to keep bothering Osamu to help clean up your messes? Could you dig deep and grow the fuck up so you can act like a decent husband and father for once? I wish I listened to Osamu when he warned me about you, even before we started going out’.

He whirls around and grabs her wrist in a painful grip, a blaze growing in his eyes. ‘All I ever hear from you these days is  Osamu this,  Osamu that. If goddamned Osamu is so fucking perfect, why didn’t you just marry him when you had the chance? It would’ve been easy enough to pass Shino off as his, aren’t I right?’ 

‘Maybe I should’ve - then I wouldn’t be in such a state’, she snarls, wrenching her wrist from his grasp. ‘But my fate was sealed the moment I was stupid enough to fall in love with you instead.’ 

He snorts through his nose, the sound bitter, twisted. ‘Well, the feeling ain’t mutual, darlin’. Who said I ever loved you?’ 

She reels back from the force of his words, the bruises on her wrist nothing  compared to those in her heart. His eyes widen in shock – but he does not take his words back. 

The rain turns the apartment freezing cold and she shudders, fighting the urge to shrink into herself, counting the seconds in the strained stillness between them before stepping tentatively towards him to cup his face in her hands. 

‘What’s with you, Atsumu?’ she asks, more gently this time. ‘This isn’t like you.’

Her words break his silence, and he sinks onto the couch with a groan, dropping his head in his hands. ‘I’ve been offered a chance to play in Italy for a year, and MSBY’s agreed to let me go for a season. I just haven’t told you yet’, he finally says, shoulders hunched. 

‘Are you going to accept it?’ She manages to ask, a lump of ice lodging itself at the back of her throat, choking the airflow to her lungs. 

He nods mutely, and a storm erupts in her heart.  

‘Gods, Atsumu. Does it mean nothing to you that you have a wife and child now? Couldn’t you have talked to me first before making such a move? You know I can’t just up and leave Japan with my job and Shino. Are you going to just get up and leave? What’s going to happen to us?’ 

‘I’m just tired of all of this, ok?’ He shouts, jumping to his feet, his tone sharp enough to pierce right through her heart. ‘We got married and had a kid so fuckin’ young, and there’s so much out there that I could be chasing that I wonder sometimes if all of this is a mistake’. 

‘You asked me to jump off a cliff. This is what you wanted, Atsumu, don’t you dare pin this on me!’ she screams back, not even bothering to staunch the bleeding from her multitude of wounds.  

He throws his head back and laughs, the sound drenched with bitterness and contempt. 

‘Osamu fuckin’ talked me into it – do you think I actually wanted all of this?’ he says, with a callousness she always knew he was capable of but never experienced first-hand. ‘I wish I'd never listened to him, I should’ve just stayed away. Then all of my problems – all of  this - would’ve never existed.’

His words finally strike the breath from her lungs, and she chokes, chilled to the bone, unable to speak as she watches him grab his bag and storm out of the house again. 

‘He’s not picking up my calls either’, Osamu tells her, when she drops by his store a day later. ‘I could hunt him down for you and beat some sense into his thick head’. 

‘Don’t bother’, she says, shaking her head. ‘He’ll resent me even more if you take my side again’. 

‘What are you going to do then?’ Osamu asks, the steam from freshly cooked rice rising between them. 

‘Come home’, her mother said when she called to break the news, her words ringing clear even over the cacophony of threats her older brothers make in the background about ‘slicing that bastard’s balls off with a knife’. She'd be lying if she said she weren't tempted by the promise of her family's support - her father had always taught her to run for the bamboo grove if there were ever an earthquake, to trust in the strength of the bamboo’s roots to hold the foundations of the earth in its place. But she’s built a career in the city, a life for her and Shino in a small apartment between buildings that seem to burst through the clouds in the sky, and she’s not sure she can walk away from all that just yet. 

‘I don’t know’, she says to Osamu. ‘I guess I’ll figure it out along the way’. 

Atsumu evades all of her attempts to talk through matters again, and a month later, he’s packed his bags, ready to get on a flight to Italy. He pauses to kiss Shino goodbye, and slips her two stuffed toys – a fox and a jackal, and she almost smiles at the sentimentality of it. Then he turns to her but does not look her in the eye. 

‘It’s ok to forget me as long as you remember that we have a child’, she says softly.   

He parts his lips to respond but decides against it, eyes hardening as he drops his set of house keys and his wedding ring on the countertop by the front door and storms off. 

She does not cry until Shino is safely tucked into bed, and she finds Atsumu’s old jacket, carelessly thrown in a heap at the back of the closet. She holds it close to her chest, breathing in the memories sewn into its seams, and lets herself finally break. 

‘Miya-san, I saw on the news that your husband is playing in Italy now. We’re all so surprised you didn’t go with him?’ Yuna-san asks in a too-loud voice, and she has to suppress a cringe when the rest of the office hyenas swoop in, hungry for a kill. 

‘We decided that I should stay in Japan to ensure Shino has some stability in her life’, she answers with a tight smile, the practiced statement she and Atsumu’s manager eventually agreed on spilling easily from her mouth. The ladies slink away, and she sighs in relief. 

Atsumu thankfully heeds her words and sends money and gifts to Shino, and even calls their little girl twice weekly, so she still manages to recognise her father - she’s grateful for that. 

He only responds to her texts once, when she messages him to let him know that Shino got admitted to the hospital for a high fever, but seemed to be responding well to treatment, and would be discharged the next day. He promised to pay the hospital bill, and said nothing more. She does not allow herself to be crushed by her disappointment and stops texting him after that. 

Osamu does his best to step in to fill Atsumu’s shoes in his absence, fetching Shino from childcare and letting her hang around his shop until she’s done with work. He spoils her with far too much affection and food, doling both out interchangeably, and his staff and customers treat the little girl like their mascot. 

‘Thank you for all of this’, she says one night, when Osamu insists on walking her and Shino home. ‘I’m sorry for making you clean up Atsumu’s mess.’ 

‘Don’t thank me. Sometimes I wonder if I should be blamed for stepping in to meddle with ‘Tsumu in the first place’ he responds with a strained laugh. 

‘Don’t be’, she responds, pressing a chaste kiss to Osamu’s cheek. ‘Your interference gave me Shino. I could never regret that’.  

But Osamu can never fully step into Atsumu’s place - they may look heartbreakingly similar but he is not her husband, a fact she’s painfully reminded of when they drive back to Hyogo to the Miya family home for Obon without Atsumu. She does her duty with her head held high and Shino strapped to her back, placing the offerings by the family graves, releasing lanterns down the lake to guide the Miya ancestral spirits back to the mortal realm, but the matriarch of the family sniffed her disapproval when Atsumu’s mother shakily informs her that he isn’t visiting this year. 

‘You’re his wife - what good are you for if you can’t even make your husband come back home’, the old lady snapped. 

She bent herself into a low bow to murmur a litany of apologies, shaking her head minutely at Osamu before he even tries to put his foot in his mouth in a misguided attempt to defend her - dear boy that he is, but he does not deserve the burden of his brother’s sins, and she will not let him go to battle for her when she can hold her own - until the old lady stalks off, only vaguely appeased. The smile on her face for the rest of the night is unflinching but she still cries herself to sleep because she hates herself for being so goddamned stupid  - it should have occurred to her that chasing Atsumu into the eye of the storm would leave her with nothing more than a ruined home and a broken heart. 

But when the morning dawns and the sunrise reflects its colours in her daughter’s eyes, she’s reminded afresh that she's a knife maker’s daughter, and her spine is forged with steel. So she hammers the pieces of her heart back together and does not let herself break again. 

The months pass and the pain recedes. It slowly becomes easier to breathe. 

#haikyuu #hq #haikyuu!! #haikyuu! #haikyuu writing #hq writing #haikyuu imagines #hq imagines #haikyuu angst #haikyuu fluff #haikyuu romance #haikyuu x reader #hq x reader #hq x y/n #miya atsumu #miya atsumu x reader #msby atsumu #atsumu x reader #miya osamu #inarizaki #haikyuucreations

[deci-doodles]

Now that the 2.0 trailer is out I can finally start dissecting the trailer with way more intensity than necessary for as many lore crumbs as possible but before all that:

Mondstadt’s the city of freedom, we see this when Venti lets Dvalin go as one of the Four Winds as freedom isn’t really that when a god is ordering you

Liyue had its contracts, the adepti fulfilling theirs despite Morax’s supposed death and Zhongli creating his “contract to end all contracts” with the Tsaritsa

But what of eternity? That’s not really an ideal, not to mention it’s such a vague one too. So I’m gonna upload my write up on Baal I did a few days ago for my interpretation of what eternity is meant to be and her potential motivations to pursue it

(TLDR: Baal isn’t inherently malevolent and her eternity’s a bastardised version of Nirvana, but she’ll never be able to achieve it because she misunderstands it and it’ll only do more harm than good)

Buddhism is one of the biggest religions in Japan (as the saying goes, Japanese people are born Shinto, married Christian, and die Buddhist). As such it should come as little surprise that it also has had a huge impact on Japan’s culture. In fact, we can see this with the most famous floral symbol of Japan, the cherry blossom.

Now I know what you’re thinking, what do cherry blossoms have to do with Baal? Well we’ll cross that bridge when we get there, just be patient.

Cherry blossoms are also synonymous with ‘mono no aware’ (the pathos of things), something derived from Zen Buddhist teachings and described as a “gentle sadness” from the acknowledgement of life’s transience. In fact, you’ll notice that a lot of Japanese culture and values can be linked to transience and imperfection, from Hanami and wabi-sabi to kintsugi. This can all be linked to Buddhism. Now to blasphemously simplify an entire religion into a single sentence(I’d recommend doing further research if you’re curious, I’m not a practitioner so I don’t recommend asking me), Buddhism’s “aim” is to break Samsara (the cycle of death and rebirth), and the only way to do this is to achieve Nirvana (enlightenment).

So where am I going with this? Well, what if Baal’s “eternity” is simply her equivalent to Nirvana?

Think about it, because all living things are trapped by Samsara, they are doomed to live transient lives, dying and being born again before dying and so on.

This certainly wouldn’t be the first time Mihoyo’s nabbed inspiration from religions, the folks over on Khaenri’ah have done a fine job analysing various instances on their Twitter. Baal thinks highly of her ideal as shown in both the Vajrada Amethyst stone and the quote from Zhongli: “Seven ideals for seven gods, and of these, Eternity is the closest unto heaven”. Nirvana is enlightenment, it is freedom, it is what allows one to transcend beyond the material world and finally be liberated from samsara, so it shouldn’t be a stretch to assume that this is what Baal means by “eternity”, especially since it directly opposes transience. But still, why would Baal take such extreme measures? And is she in the right here?

Let’s start off with first question and the vision hunt decree itself. The decree’s a direct reference to the various sword hunt decrees in Japan’s history but what’s interesting is that Inazuma’s can be linked to the sword hunt under Toyotomi Hideyoshi where the confiscated weapons were to be melted and cast into a giant statue of the Buddha. In a similar fashion, Baal is in laying the statue of the “Thousand-armed, hundred-eyes god”’s palms with confiscated visions. This also leads to yet another Buddhist parallel.

The Bodhissatva Kannon (also known as Guanyin) is the goddess of mercy, and one of her most popular depictions in Japan is the thousand-armed Kannon (Senju Kannon), who grew 1000 arms out of her desire to help free everyone from samsara. Sounds familiar doesn’t it? Like how Baal wishes to achieve the “eternity” that she promised her people. 1000-armed Kannon was also sometimes depicted with eyes in the palms of her hands, and where is Baal placing the confiscated visions again? That’s right, the statue’s palms.

But still, can we use this to justify the actions she’s taken? Baal may believe her intentions are noble but they’re also heavily flawed. Let’s rewind a bit, transience is a huge metaphor in Japan and thus it should come as little surprise that it’s also reflected in Inazuma.

- Kazuha’s main motif is maple, a deciduous tree associated with autumn, both being symbols of change as autumn is a transitional season and maple leaves fall

- Ayaka’s shown with cherry blossoms, but also her clan mon (crest) depicts a camellia flower (tsubaki). Camellias are associated with divinity but also a noble death as the flowers “decapitate” themselves

- Yoimiya has a firework theme, fireworks themselves last briefly but shine bright nevertheless. Her choker is also a butterfly, an insect synonymous with change

- Sayu’s kimono has bellflower patterns, bellflowers being one of the ‘seven autumn flowers’ and, again, autumn is a season of change

- Even Baal herself is the electro archon, storms never last forever and lightning (Inazuma’s namesake mind you) is also extremely brief

So where am I going with this? Well there’s another aspect of Buddhism that I left out. When one reincarnates, there are six possible realms you may go to depending on your karma: hell, hungry ghosts, animals, demi-gods, humans, and gods. Only those who reincarnate as humans have the opportunity to achieve nirvana. Baal’s obsession with eternity is only doing more harm than good regardless of her intentions because she fails to truly understand both the beauty that transience holds as well as transient mortals themselves. Her ideal directly contradicts Inazuma itself, so even though she may love her nation and it’s people oh so fiercely, the more she pursues “eternity”, the more she’ll fail to truly help her people. We’ve already seen this through Kazuha and Atsuko, the former losing his friend when he decided to make a stand and the latter nearly dying as she escaped. People have already drawn connections between her and Decarabian, and it seems that if she continues her path she may meet a similar demise to him.

#genshin impact #genshin baal #Genshin analysis #Genshin theory #Raiden shogun #Inazuma #watch this get obliterated by canon wHEEZE

[flecks-of-stardust]

Everyone’s Favorite Moth God: Dreamless AU

radi post!!!!!! because i couldnt write today but i still wanted to make Something

- the radiance is about average when it comes to age among dream beings. she’s nowhere near the age of the oldest dream beings, but she’s much older than unn. she watched unn establish her domain while her moths had long since settled in, and didn’t really say anything about unn putting her domain this close to hers.

- she chills in the dream realm most of the time, and visits the mortal realm through the dreams of mortal bugs, both her followers and non-followers alike. she Can manifest herself a physical form to move about in the physical world if she really wants to, but it takes a fair bit of sustained focus and effort for her to do it, and it’s a hassle she’s not really interested in.

- more often, she will channel her presence through one of her moths. they allow her to see through their eyes, so she can directly view the mortal world through them, and she can temporarily take control of their body. this is taxing for both god and mortal, though, so she doesn’t do it often, and only uses it in case of emergencies or when she needs her presence to be there, physically, in the mortal realm.

- the few moths that are able to channel their god through them are called the Seers, and it is more innate connection than training. it is possible for one to train to become a Seer, but it is a long process of grasping at the purest threads of godly essence and attuning to the radiance. a few notable moths have achieved this feat regardless.

- the radiance’s domain is over light and to some extent heat. she influences daylight and cycle lengths, and is often described by non-followers when she appears in their dreams as ‘a massive, radiant orb of light and warmth.’ while in the dream realm, she is able to see and touch the dreams of mortals (where their minds brush briefly against the dream realm, spinning and spiraling senselessly due to the mortal mind’s inability to grasp at the dream realm), and can use her light to gently guide them away from the nightmare realm (a subset of the dream realm where nightmares are rife). she isn’t able to stop nightmares completely, and doing so would render the nightmare gods weak, but she can guide certain minds away from the nightmare realm.

- due to the radiance being more connected to the dream realm, it is possible to use light magic to access the minds of creatures, sentient or not. even then it is a difficult feat, and must be carefully used, lest the wielder be stranded in the veil between the dreams of mortals and the lucid world. few moths ever attempted such a feat, and those that did often spoke of feeling a loss of identity after exploring the mind of another.

- as an individual, the radiance generally stays out of mortal matters, watching distantly from the dream realm and receiving information from her moths as they commune with her. however, she is quick to anger about injustice among her moths and followers, but also among other populations if her moths report the information to her. she has a tendency to be brash in her actions, though it is perhaps apt in that she is the embodiment of light and warmth and as such is passionate about what she does.

- the radiance harbors a slight protectiveness over unn, however minor. she is of the opinion that gods should not mingle too much, and is well aware of the results of godly warfare, but she does in part view unn as a sort of younger sister, due to her immensely young age for a god. she keeps her interactions with unn cordial, but is and always will be the first to speak out for her in the event that anything happens to harm her or her people.

- the radiance and her moths have a weak neural linking of sorts, enabling them to somewhat share thoughts and emotions through those links; this neural link does not extend to non-moth followers. it fades with physical distance, and even at close proximity is limited in what information can be shared. in the height of their rule, the moths would utilize the link to send out scouting parties into the lands, and have them send information back through the links, however fractured and garbled, to the moths back at their homeland; the information would later be consolidated through speech.

- the radiance is able to speak, especially if she has a physical presence in the mortal realm, but her voice always has an echo effect to it. it multiplies and layers over itself, and is disconcerting for mortals to listen to. if not careful, the echoing of her voice can cause immense pain to mortals; godly beings are typically spared from this, though the echoing may still be unnerving.

- in her natural state, the radiance emanates a soft, yellow glow, bright but not searing to look at. she also naturally produces warmth, always a comfortable temperature for whoever is basking in it. when in pain, angry, or fearful, her light intensifies and becomes nearly blinding, and the color darkens from yellow to orange. the heat she produces will also get uncomfortably warm, sometimes even burning anyone too close to her. when Seeing through the eyes of one of her moths, she has to be careful with how much of herself she is channeling through them, or she may severely wound them.

- she was irate when she heard of the pale wyrm’s arrival next to her lands, and even more so when she learned that he had set up a kingdom there. she monitored him and his activity with great disgust and wariness, dipping into the dreams of his citizens to check on what was actually going on behind the guise of glamor. when news of unn dying reached her, she forced her way into the mind of the pale wyrm and demanded that he leave. the two sparred briefly in his dreams, but the battle ultimately ended with no winners. after that, the radiance began trying to break his spell on his people by entering their dreams and showing them the truth.

- she was distraught and enraged when the wyrm began killing her moths, and aided them where she could, but her general lack of presence in the mortal realm ultimately limited what she could help with. when they fled deeper into their caverns, she assisted them with her magic in collapsing the tunnels they used.

- a physical form of the radiance was sealed into the mind of the Pure Vessel. few know about this fact. as per the events of dreamless, she is slowly, but surely, dying. even in her death throes, she is still reaching out for the minds she can feel, and inadvertently presses her pain and fear into them. her communication with her moths has been severed due to how close to death she is, though she tries to scream for them anyway.

and as a closing remark, dreamless is solidly radi-sympathetic. that was the whole original basis for this au, actually, so if youre looking to bash on radi, maybe pick a different au to do it sfkjghks

#radiance #hollow knight #dreamless au #i mean dont get me wrong. canon radi has done lots of shitty things #with the most common interpretations of what she did and why she did it anyway #but if the pale king gets positive interpretations of him #and whole redemption arcs #radi should be given that opportunity too i think #i wanted something radi sympathetic when i first got the idea for this #and it snowballed into this gigantic au #so yeah sfgkjhs #also wrt unn and radi's interactions its basically this: #unn: hi im new :) #radi: oh. hello. you are a child. i just met you but if anything happens to you i will kill everyone responsible for it and then myself #to put into perspective the age gap between the two radi is like. #in human years shed be about 60 ish #unn would be like. 20 #its a bit rough since theyre both gods but multiply that by a magnitude of like ten thousand and youll have an approximate of their age gap #its definitely not BARK SNARL GRRR DONT TOUCH MY LITTLE SISTER protectiveness #but it wouldnt be accurate to say radi doesnt have even a tiny soft spot for unn #anyhow yeah i think ive written a long enough essay in the tags

[mybg3notebook]

Lore: Details about the “Orb”

Disclaimer Game Version: All these analyses were written up to the game version v4.1.104.3536 (Early access). As long as new content is added, and as long as I have free time for that, I will try to keep updating this information. Written in June 2021.

Let's start with the context, because everything related to Gale is packed heavily with Forgotten Realms lore, and since the game is not fully released, whatever extra information that the game could provide to help us understand this is not there yet. Also, it's always important to keep in mind this post about "Context, persuasion, and manipulation" to be sure we are talking in the same terms. 

The lore

I'm going to enumerate some objects or elements related to Forgotten Realms lore that I personally see worth checking out in addition to other “orbs” that I've seen the fandom put attention on. All this information can be expanded using the references and sometimes wiki, even though I personally distrust forgotten realm wiki, unless I can check that info from the original sources.

Shadow Weave

The Shadow Weave is the space between the strands of the Weave. If the Weave is a spider's web, the gaps in between are the Shadow Weave. Shadow Weave reaches everywhere the Weave does, and more. It is not subject to Mystra’s laws or state of well being. If Mystra were to die and the Weave collapses, the Shadow Weave would persist. [Magic of Faerûn 3e. Personal Comment: Yes. It explicitly says in the book that it’s independent of Mystra’s well being. Clearly this has been modified in 4e since the Shadow Weave needs the structure of the Weave to be somehow stable. It collapsed when the Weave did so, so we can see this begins a series of inconsistencies]

Shadow Weave is a dark and distorted copy of the Weave created by Shar, more suited for spells that drag life or confuse the mind (necromancy, control, illusion schools), and gives more difficulty to cast spells that manipulate energy or matter (evocation or transmutation schools). It can't sustain spells that produce light. Both Weave and Shadow Weave are means to use Raw Magic (see at the end of the post). The more familiar a mortal becomes with the secrets of the Shadow Weave, the more detached they become from the Weave. Shadow Weave is NOT a part of Mystra, so Mystra can't block people from accessing magic via Shadow Weave. 

It’s a common mistake to make the analogy that the Shadow Weave is to Shar the same way the Weave is to Mystra. No. Shadow Weave is NOT Shar, while the Weave is Mystra. Shar never developed that level of commitment, making herself one with the Shadow Weave. This is one of the reasons why she could not sustain the Weave during the Spellplague when she tried to corrupt it completely into Shadow Weave. 

All this information belongs to Magic of Faerûn 3e and the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3e and novels of 4e. There is nothing about Shadow Weave in 5e. If it weren't for Ed Greenwood's twitter, we should have guessed it disappeared from the lore. So far we know it's slowly recovering in the same way the Weave is. And the Shadow Weave doesn't feed on Weave. For some mysterious reason, fandom started to think so due to BG3.

Death moon orb

This artefact belongs to the 3rd edition, created by a Netheril wizard. From him, it passed to the hands of Szass Tam, who saw it destroyed when the Spellplague corrupted the magic in it. I won't give more details about this object because it looks so unrelated to what Gale has in his chest. Not only is its shape inconsistent with what we see in-game, its powers and properties are unrelated to what is explained in EA. The object is cursed, compelling its owner to cause greater acts of evil; it has a size that changes and looks like a violet-black sphere. In my opinion, the only detail in common with Gale's “orb” is the name "orb". Which is a fallacy, since Gale says explicitly that he uses the word "orb" for the lack of a better one, because clearly what Gale has in his chest is not an orb, but a mass of Black Weave. 

Netherese orbs

These objects are found in Neverwinter MMO in the quest Whisper in Darkness:

The Netherese are foul plague upon this world, corrupting everything they touch. They have cursed the Gray Wolf Tribe, turning them into bloodthirsty monsters. We must find what the Netherese intend to do with their werewolf slaves. The Shadovar Emissaries use the Netherese Orbs powered by Soul Shards to communicate orders from the Prince of Shadow.

This is all the information we have of this object. That's all. It comes from a Neverwinter MMO game which belongs to 4th edition. Once more, the concept that Gale's “orb” is not an orb but a black mass of untamed magic makes me believe that these objects don't apply either. The nature of their magic is compatible though: Netherese orbs are made from shadow magic by Shadovar, descendant of Netheril stuck in the Plane of Shadow (called Shadowfell later on, read more in the post of "The Netherese in 1492DR"). This plane is the source of Shadow Magic, they don't use Raw Magic. Ethel explicitly said in BG3 that Shadow Magic is Netherese Magic, so maybe we can consider this object filled with Netherese magic? In any case, these Netherese orbs are used for communication... which has nothing to do with Gale's “orb”'s properties. There is also no reference of consuming Weave to remain stable.

Devastation orb

The mention of a "devastation orb" happens only in Yartar in Princes of the Apocalypse (related to the god Tharizdun, the mad god): 

In page 5 we have some context: Four elemental cults grow in power in the Sumber Hills, claiming abandoned keeps that connect to an underground fortress once part of an ancient dwarven kingdom. The leaders use elemental magic to create devastation orbs capable of ravaging the countryside. They’ve been testing these magic weapons, bolstering the cults’ ranks, and infiltrating various communities, all directed by visions the prophets receive from the Elder Elemental Eye (Tharizdun). These orbs are plainly described as: essentially bombs of elemental energy to unleash natural disasters.

In page 222 we have a more detailed explanation of what these elements are: 

Devastation Orb: (Wondrous item, very rare) A devastation orb is an elemental bomb that can be created at the site of an elemental node by performing a ritual with an elemental weapon. The type of orb created depends on the node used. For example, an air node creates a devastation orb of air. A devastation orb measures 12 inches in diameter, weighs 10 pounds, and has a solid outer shell. The orb detonates 1d100 hours after its creation, releasing the elemental energy it contains. The orb gives no outward sign of how much time remains before it will detonate. Regardless of the type of orb, its effect is contained within a sphere with a 1 mile radius. The orb is the sphere’s point of origin. The orb is destroyed after one use.

Again, I don't see a real connection with Gale's “orb”. These devastation orbs are not netherese-based, they have elemental energy, and despite the explosion, they don't have any mechanics that resemble the consumption of Weave to remain stable. However, I do find a link between these devastation orbs, their process of construction, and the book that Gale found out. The remotest concept I can scratch here is that, whoever crafted the book with that piece of blackest Weave, could have used the knowledge of the construction of these devastation orbs. Instead of filling them with elemental magic, they filled it with a blackest weave of netherese magic. A procedure that could have been applied to the netherese tadpoles as well.

That's all the information I could gather that remotely is called “orb” or has some vague chance to be that blackest weave.

The Game BG3

In the game, all the info that Gale provides in EA about the “orb” is given before his revelation. The what it is, the how it works and the how it feels. In the revelation scene we only learn the details that are personal and intimate for Gale: the why he ended up with the orb, and potential solutions he can guess so far. To show proofs:

During the meeting:

Tav [Wisdom/tadpole] Try peering into his mind. If he won't open up, you'll sneak in.  [Success] Narrator: For a split second you see a swirl of untamed magic – then his defences drop like a portcullis. 

During the Protocol:

Tav: I simply want to know what it is you're keeping from me Gale: I'm dangerous. Not because I want to be, but because of... an error I made in the past.  [before Gale speaks of his loss] It makes me dangerous – even in death. [after Gale speaks of his loss/tadpole intrusion] I told you how I sought to win the favour of Mystra. I did this by trying to control a form of magic only one wizard ever could. I failed to control it. Instead it infested me. It makes me dangerous... even in death. […] Tav: The darkness inside you, what is it? Gale: It's magic from another time and another place. It is something that is beyond me, yet inside me. That makes me dangerous... even in death. 

During the stew scene or the ask for artefacts in neutral or lower approval

Tav: [Wisdom/tadpole] you sense secrecy and danger. Use your tadpole to probe Gale's thoughts. [Success] Narrator: you become one with Gale's mind and you can feel something sinister oppressing you. It's... inside of you, a mighty darkness radiating from your chest. You could try to push further, but your hold over Gale feels brittle. It won't be easy delving deeper without him noticing. Delve deeper: [Success] Narrator: “ you see through gale's eye, staring down the corridor of a dread memory. A book, bound, then suddenly opened. Inside there are no pages, only a swirling mass of blackest Weave that pounces. It's teeth, it's claws, it's unstoppable as it digs through you and becomes part of you. And gods, is it ever-hungry.

Gale: The only way to “appease” said condition is for me to take powerful magical artefact and absorb the Weave inside. [...]Tav: What happens if you don't consume any artefact? Gale: Catastrophe. [...] Think of it as... tribute. The kind a king might pay to a more powerful neighbour to avoid invasion. As long as I pay there will be peace. But should I ever stop, along comes a war. I can assure the battlefield would extend well beyond the borders of my body alone. [...] I will consume the magic inside. What was a powerful artefact will be rendered no more than a trinket. But it will save my life- even if only temporarily.

Tav: That condition of yours is a very expensive one. Gale: I obtained it in Waterdeep. Nothing there comes cheap.

Artefacts scenes:

Gale: I can feel the storm abating. [...] I will feel it stir again – like a distant thunder sending tremors through the soul. I will need to consume another artefact before the lightning strikes. There's no choice but to find more. [...] It's good to perceive this constant fear repressed into a quiet scare. Let's hope it will last a good long while.

During Revelation scene:

Gale: The gist of it is that he sought to usurp the goddess of magic so that he could become a god himself. He almost managed but not quite, and his entire empire – Netheril – came crashing down around him as he turned to stone. The magic unleashed that day was phenomenal, rolling like the prime chaos that outdates creation. A fragment of it was caught and sealed away in a book. No ordinary book, mind you; a tome of gateways that contained within it a bubble of Astral Plane. It was a fragment of primal Weave locked out of time – locked away from Mystra herself. ‘What if’, the silly wizard thought. ‘What if after all this time, I could return this lost part of herself to the Goddess?”

Narrator: You feel the tadpole quiver as you realise Gale is letting you in. Into the dark. You see through Gale’s eyes, staring down the corridors of a dread memory. A book, bound, then suddenly opened. Inside there are no pages, only a swirling mass of blackest Weave that pounces. It’s teeth, it’s claws, it’s unstoppable as it digs through you and becomes part of you. And gods, is it ever hungry… [...] This Netherese taint.. this orb, for lack of a better word, is balled up inside my chest. And it needs to be fed. As long as it absorbs Weave it remains stable – to an extent. The moment it becomes unstable, however.. [...] It will erupt. I don’t know the exact magnitude of the eruption, but given my studies of Netherese magic, I’d say even a fragment as small as the one I carry…. It’d level a city the size of Waterdeep

Tav : I should godsdamned kill you GALE: Perhaps that is what I deserve, but you deserve no such thing. To kill me is to unleash the orb. 

So far, if we don't use the tadpole, we learn from Gale that he is unwillingly dangerous, there is an ancient magic stuck in his chest—acquired in Waterdeep—that he never could control and it inspires a dreadful state of mind (constant fear). It requires Weave to stay stable, and if it is not fed, a catastrophe will happen that will extend past his body. 

With the Tadpole we learn, in addition, part of the details we can learn during the revelation scene: it's a swirl of untamed/chaotic magic which is an ever-hungry "blackest weave". 

During the Revelation Scene all the information acquired by the tadpole intrusion is given, in addition to describing this mass of magic as an "orb" despite its inaccuracy. We also learn that killing Gale will only unleash the orb instead of putting an end to the problem. 

Gale said everything that is important related to the orb before the party scene, excluding only the personal information since he is a private person. This was exactly the boundary he set when he promised during the stew scene that he was going to explain the what, not the why. With the use of the tadpole we only learn details, simple extra descriptions; all information that Gale will willingly share during the revelation scene anyway.

We can learn a bit more of the “orb”'s function if we explore the goblin party. There, Gale explains part of the mechanism of the “orb” in a "poetic" way, that may or may not be taken exactly as such:

Gale: Two shadows are darkening my soul.The shadow within and the shadow without: you. You led me down this path. [...] I don't know myself anymore. All this... It's not who I am. Around you, I'm not who I want to be. I should leave. 

Tav: [Insight] Stay. We make each other stronger. We make each other survive. /OR/ [Deception] You don't stand a chance alone. You're free to go. I dare you. 

[Success][DC15] Gale: [...]. Few things are more powerful than the will to live. But carnage such as this.... the shadow within is spreading like poison, corrupting kindness and compassion. [...]. Tonight I need to wash my hands of blood and my mind of shattering memories. 

This shows that when playing an Evil Tav who sides with the Goblins, we have an extra description for this “orb”. Again, I ponder every bit of information with its context: Gale is a poet, and he tends to speak with metaphors specially when it comes to emotional painful states of mind or when it comes to the “orb” (which puts him in a very emotional state that even the tadpole doesn't), so these lines can perfectly be understood as a poetic way to describe his deep regret for participating in massacring the Tieflings. However, there is this detail that I can't overlook: the shadow within, understood as the blackest Weave, is spreading across his body, corrupting his good essence. As we saw in the post of "Extensive list of Gale's approvals", compassion and kindness are key elements in Gale's personality. This scene shows a potential that is not explored in EA: the “orb” seems to set a path in which it will corrupt Gale. 

Now this could be considered as a potential beginning of a shift of alignment, but it goes against what Sven said several times in interviews and presentations: he stated that they were not considering to change alignments in the companions (if you can imagine all the extra branches that it opens up, it makes sense not to allow it given the already colossal proportions of the game), so it's hard to suspect how Gale would evolve from here, or if this situation will give him reasons to attempt to kill this Evil Tav eventually (which is my personal guess). Sven suggested many times that companions could potentially kill Tav or other companions during their sleep. We saw this happening in EA with Astarion. Using datamining content, we saw the same with Lae'Zel and Shadowheart. I don't see why not to give in-character reasons to make this mechanism work with Gale as well.

As an extra (datamining) detail, we have Ethel's vicious mockery line emphasising the concept of "the shadow within":

Ethel: I can smell what's under those bandages wizard, you're all rot and ruin.

Putting aside the unnerving detail that Gale's concept art has bandages on one of his hands while the game is oblivious to this, the idea of Gale's “orb” as a source of rot and ruin, in combination with that necrotic aura when he dies, gives us a sure idea that there is a “disease” spreading in Gale's body as a consequence of this blackest weave stuck in his chest.

All the in-game information was presented, so now let's drag conclusions: Comparing all the information extracted from the scenes, we can now consider how much potential has the lore object named before:

Shadow Weave: Could Gale's “orb” be a fragment of Shadow Weave?

Strengths of the argument: Gale's “orb” is described as "blackest weave". It could barely be a hint, even though the Shadow weave has no canon colour nor physical description in the corebooks. So this is a very weak strength.

Weaknesses of the argument: Shadow Weave doesn't feed on Weave (this is a fallacy so far I've checked. It would make no sense to feed on the same object that it needs to exist.) Shadow Weave doesn't explode nor is chaotic. 

Death moon orb:

Strengths: It's called an "orb". And it was made by a netherese arcanist, so it must contain “netherese magic”.

Weaknesses: This object was destroyed during the Spellplague. It's a physical orb which changes size, but it's not an "amorphous mass" of magic. It doesn't consume Weave.

Netherese Orb:

Strengths: It's called an "orb". It's made of shadow magic (which is not netherse magic in corebooks but in game Ethel used both denominations as synonymous). We know Shadovar are masters of Shadow Magic. Read more in the post "The Netherese in 1492DR".

Weaknesses: This object doesn't appear in the corebooks. It's used for communication. It doesn't seem to have any explosive properties nor consumes Weave.

Devastation orb:

Strengths: It's called an "orb". They explode with the intensity to destroy a city. 

Weaknesses: It's made of elemental magic (not netherese magic). It's a solid object, a bomb (not an amorphous mass). It doesn't consume weave.

Personal speculation

I don't think any of these canon objects are or inspired Gale's “orb”. If we take the descriptions in-game as they are, and considering the importance that Karsus and his folly have been given in the whole game (to the point that Larian added ingame books explaining part of it) I support two hypothesis that, by now, they must be obvious for lorists since I want to work with what the game (and datamining) gives me: 

1- The concept that this is a piece of corrupted Weave that Karsus' Avatar allowed to have access to when he disrupted the Weave. Gale calls it “primal weave” as well, which is a concept that doesn't exist so far in the corebooks, and one could relate, very barely, with raw magic. Maybe.

2- Heavy magic (key concept during 2e)

To understand this we need MORE lore (I know, this has no end; this is why I think a lot of misunderstandings with Gale’s character come from the big holes of lore that EA leaves, which is obvious, it's EA) So, allow me to clear out the concepts: 

Karsus' Avatar is the name of the spell that caused Karsus' folly and made him a god for just an ephemeral moment. The notes regarding the spell’s essence were nowhere to be found. It’s believed that Mystra, the reincarnated form of Mystryl, snatched the spell information from the ruins of Karsus’s enclave and sent it “on an eternal journey to the ends of the universe” (who knows what this means). Besides, as if this were not enough precaution, Mystra changed the rules of magic on the material plane making it impossible to cast spells over 10th level. Karsus' Avatar was a 12th level spell.

Raw Magic is “the stuff of creation, the mute and mindless will of existence, permeating every bit of matter and present in every manifestation of energy throughout the multiverse. Mortals can't directly shape this raw magic. Instead, they make use of a fabric of magic, a kind of interface between the will of a spellcaster and the stuff of raw magic. The spellcasters of the Forgotten Realms call it the Weave and recognize its essence as the goddess Mystra.” [Player's Handbook 5e]

The creation of the Weave allowed all mortals to have access to magic through study. The Weave works like a barrier and an interpreter to use the real source of magic: Raw Magic. For more information on this, check the wiki (otherwise each of these posts will be mini books of lore). Few mortals can tap magic from the raw magic. Spells like silver fire are part of the raw magic. Some wild mages can tap into it as well, but at the cost of making their spells very random. Only Weave-disruptive events can allow an uncontrolled influx of raw magic into the world (which can be considered what happened during Karsus' folly)

Mythalars are immense artefacts that work like intermediates of the Raw Magic. They don't use the Weave, they have direct access to Raw Magic and were used to power up magical artefacts around them (thanks to these objects the Netheril cities floated in the air). Touching a mythalar causes instant death since Raw magic is harmful for most mortals.

So the first hypothesis (corrupted Weave) means that when Karsus cast this spell and became the Weave itself for a brief moment, he may have access to Raw magic directly. His spell Karsus' avatar started using common Weave, but in the second he connected deeply with the Weave and with Mystryl's powers, he had access to Raw magic as a god. His spell may have changed the source of its power from the Weave to Raw Magic, adding the latter's randomness and chaos to the spell itself and therefore, corrupting the Weave. The transition, so violent like the whole event, may have corrupted part of the Weave that was being used while casting the spell. According to Gale's description, the “orb” stuck in his chest is a piece of Weave with the active effect of Karsus' Avatar (the spell), but the Narrator gives us the extra information that it's corrupted. Apparently Gale never realised this object was corrupted, or may have known it and he tried to cleanse it so he could return it to Mystra. Either way, the source of the corruption may have been the sudden transition to Raw Magic during the casting. My main problem with this hypothesis is how a spell can be stuck in a piece of Weave, since Gale's “orb” maintains Karsus's avatar's effect. 

On one hand, Karsus' Avatar main effect is “to absorb god-like powers”. In that moment of history, this spell was aimed at Mystryl, and therefore to the Weave. The disruption of the event “stuck” the effect of “absorbing weave” in a piece of Weave, while the chaotic nature of this “orb” could be attributed to the direct presence of Raw Magic, also stuck in it. Now, another weakness of this hypothesis is that nothing of this causes a "corruption disease" as Gale implies it (we only know that the failure of the spell turned Karsus into stone). So we don't have a good argument for this effect beyond the one “I believe that since the moment was disruptive, it must have corrupted something, and that corruption is quite unhealthy in a mortal body”. Which it's not of my liking, but this is what we get up to this point in EA.

The second hypothesis I talked about is another lore concept intimately related to Karsus in 2e: Heavy Magic (which I personally prefer over the first hypothesis). 

Heavy magic is physical, tangible magic, usually presented as a viscous mass of chaotic nature. It can crawl, entering into cracks of a wall or a body, for example. Karsus created a distilled version of this magic called super heavy magic, and experimented with people. The subject eating a bit of this magic will have heavy magic spread on all the inner walls of their body and will kill them (it's not a disease, but it spreads inside and kills). The usual effect of the stable super heavy magic was to magnify the powers of a spell or enchantment (it allowed spells to be stuck in it), however it could be used for everything. 

Karsus used this element to enhance enchantments on walls, for example projecting illusions endlessly. This means that this product has the ability of keeping a spell functioning in it (as we see that this black weave keeps the function of the Karsus' avatar). [Dangerous Games, 2e]

Naturally, heavy magic absorbs life energies (maybe another characteristic fitting the concept of disease and necrotic effects). There is an event (2e) related to this aspect in which the renegade arcanist Wulgreth became a lich after heavy magic overflew him [Power and Pantheons, 2e]

As it is easy to see, this concept shares a lot of similarities with the object stuck in Gale's chest. But there is still more:

In the novel Dangerous Games (2e), strongly focused on how Karsus experimented with Heavy Magic, it is explicitly said that Karsus infused himself with super heavy magic before casting Karsus' avatar (probably to magnify the spell power but we also know that heavy magic can get spells stuck in it). He grew taller, and glowed in a white-silver radiance. Babbling arcane chants, the super heavy magic raged within him until he came into a state of being between a man and deity. Then it followed his folly. Karsus “died”, turning his body into red-hued stone, bound in eternal torment to relieve repeatedly the moment he became aware of his folly. 

So there exists a chance that a pieces of super heavy magic (in which Karsus was infused when all this happened) may have kept Karsus' Avatar effect stuck in them. One of these pieces could have been recovered later around the red stone where Karsus is now. This could potentially be the object or, at least, in what it had inspired Gale's “orb”. It's also worth noticing that one of the main characters in this novel Dangerous Games was looking for ways to safely contain heavy magic and avoid its damaging effect, so there is extra lore information about vessels that could justify the sealed book that Gale found in Waterdeep. 

As an extra detail on this matter, we know that the runes of teleportation may have been made with heavy magic: "Gale: See that rune? Netherese, I think. Weave's so thick on it, it's almost viscous." 

Since Gale is calling "Weave" to the element attached to the teleport runes, it makes me wonder if this was a slight variation that Larian made of the canon concept of Heavy Magic to not add new concepts to the already complex world of Forgotten Realms. Maybe, in the end, both hypotheses are the same: the second one is strictly more canon-related than the first one, which is more or less the same but simplified in terms and concepts. 

As a last conclusion from my personal point of view, I see no much sense in calling this thing “orb”. In game it's clearly described as an amorphous black mass, not an orb. And it made me remember Gale's original description, when the EA was not released yet: it's the only way where I can see its nonsensical origin, which was done in a completely different context. 

Gale has one ambition: to become the greatest wizard Faerûn has ever known. Yet his thirst for magic led to disaster. A Netherese Destruction Orb beats in his chest, counting down to an explosion that can level a city. Gale is confident he'll overcome it, but time is not on his side.

After the game was released in EA, Gale's description changed radically, and therefore his current description has a different approach entirely, removing the concept of "orb" for what we know in the game: “ancient chaotic magic”. 

Wizard prodigy: Gale is a wizard prodigy whose love for a goddess made him attempt a dread feat no mortal should. Blighted by the forbidden magic of ancient Netheril, Gale strives to undo the corruption that is overtaking him and win back his goddess’ favour before he becomes a destroyer of worlds.

This is one of the many details that make me believe that Gale's original concept/character was changed significantly before the EA release. But this is a mere personal speculation. For more details on netherese magic, read the post of "The Netherese in 1492DR".

Source: 

2nd edition: Powers and Pantheons, Netheril: Empire of Magic, Dangerous Games by Emery Clayton. 3rd Edition: Faith and Pantheon, Magic of Faerûn 4th edition Player's Handbook 5th edition: Player's Handbook, Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

This post was written in May 2021. → For more Gale: Analysis Series Index

#bg3 meta #bg3 lore #bg3 early access #gale #gale of waterdeep #bg3 gale

[mamamittens]

Long Awaited LoZ Thoughts

I’d like to start this off by explaining my background. I have a BA in English with a minor in Humanities. I have lived all my life in the Bible Belt of America, so my PoV of this series is inevitably going to be, at least in part, from the perspective of a Western-centric, Christianity-influenced woman. I have grown up with a deep interest in folk tales and mythology though, and took several classes on ancient cultures, so my base knowledge of religion all over the world is broader than what you’d probably expect. I am not religious myself, I’m actually agnostic. And this is just an in-universe look at the very strange religion of Hyrule. So, to make things easier, let’s just put aside the obvious meta issues with this world. The wonky timeline, complex lore changes between said timelines, and the fact that the whole series has clearly grown wildly over the course of its development without an overarching plot. The game mechanics being game mechanics. All of it. This whole thing will just be me trying to make sense of the world without the ‘it’s just a game, bro’ crutch. I will be drawing on what I know from the many games I’ve played myself, so if I don’t mention a big piece of lore from a specific game, it’s because I didn’t play it. Go ahead and rule out the early games before Ocarina of Time, as that’s the first game in the series I can remember playing. I was legitimately too young to have ever played anything prior to that, having been born in 1996. Now let’s get started, shall we?

 So, obviously everyone knows that the LoZ world is said to begin with the three goddesses. Din, Nayru, and Farore came together to create the world and before they yote themselves out of the narrative as direct players, they created the Triforce. A powerful artifact capable of granting a wish and giving their respective bearers undefined power. This is directly from Ocarina of Time and we see their symbol, the Triforce, all over the many games with very few exceptions. Now, to be clear, having a polytheistic religion with three main gods is hardly new. Hinduism has three main gods after all (Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva), and depending on your flavor of Christianity, you have the holy trinity (God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit). There’s even the Celtic goddesses that come specifically in threes (collectively called The Morrigan; Eriu, Fodla, and Banba). This isn’t an exhaustive list of three divine beings, by the way, just know that three is a weird trend in western-centric stories, including religion. But what’s different about the three Hyrule Goddesses? Well, they’re weirdly small for big shot gods. Let me explain.

        So, the three Hindu gods I mentioned earlier each handle a specific aspect. Creation, destruction, and preservation, not necessarily in that order though (which god does what isn’t the point, so just roll with me here). These are very broad and powerful subjects. Christianity is much the same, even though it’s a monotheistic religion. God is literally an all-powerful, omniscient, omnipotent deity. Jesus is his son who gave his life to basically forgive all sin. And I’m not totally clear on the Holy Spirit, but these three are clearly Big Deals with Big Ideas behind them. A good rule of thumb for old religion is that the older the deity, the wider the scope of their job or what they represent. Which makes sense. If you had to personify the forces of the universe, you’d probably start with the sun instead of like… whatever god is responsible for the creation of rice specifically. The bigger and scarier the natural force, the bigger deal that god usually is, putting aside politics and cultural trends. Egypt is a good example of this, as their roster of gods tended to change a lot depending on who was Pharaoh at the time and wherever the city center was. Horus is the god of the sun, or at least one of them, and is generally considered king of the gods. Which makes perfect sense for a land largely made up of a desert.

But what are the three goddesses’ rulers of? Power, Wisdom, and Courage. Each with clear elemental associations and people that are obviously affiliated with them. Nayru, Goddess of Wisdom, is clearly associated with water and likely has a close connection with the Zora. Din, Goddess of Power, is associated with fire and has clear connection with the Gerudo (unclear if the same goddess as the one present in the desert temple in Ocarina of Time). Farore, Goddess of Courage, is associated with all things green and of the earth, including the child-like race of Kokiri who perpetually inhabit the forest. Sure, these are broad topics, but not really… the first thing you’d think of for creators of the universe, are they? And it raises the question about the Hyrule people, who are said to be able to hear the gods due to their pointed ears… let’s put a pin in that and move on.

So, we know there are many gods in this universe, primarily because we meet them. For example, Zephos, God of Winds, in Wind Waker. But he’s clearly a fairly forgotten god, as he shares a shrine with Cylcos, God of Cyclones, which is about as bare as it can be. Just what appears to be a Tori gate with two stone monuments with the simple notes to summon them, almost completely out of the way. Which… I mean, I don’t know many gods with their extension number written on their monuments. That would kind of like going to church on Sunday and seeing “Hit me up if you need me, J-Boy 555-TAKE THE WHEEL” written on the podium. And remember, this is a world and game where the gods actively flooded the world and would therefore hold or have held enough power to directly interfere with Hyrule.

And Skyward Sword clearly has divine beings, one of which even flooded a whole area, though they’re subservient to Hylia. Who we will get back to later, I promise. The three dragons (again, that magic number), capable of divine power, though where that power comes from in unclear. The dragons are of a high status though, as evident by their servants and clear reference to high-class dress of their clothes. These dragons are revered, but clearly not worshipped, much like nobles in that regard. A curious note is the parallels to the three goddesses, and how the symbols are muddled and mixed for these dragons.

Lanayru clearly has the symbols associated with the Zora, and by extension Nayru, but is yellow. He also is saved by time travel used to grow a magic fruit, which Link often uses (time travel) in many games to advance the plot himself (and wouldn’t you know it, but mixing blue with yellow does produce green. Weird). Faron is the water dragon who flooded an area, and she is almost entirely blue (as well as unsettling to look at), surrounded by a species clearly related to the Zora though closer to octopi. But her name is Faron, which is weirdly close to Farore’s name, not Nayru. I mean, they are close to locations that resemble their names of course, but it’s still an interesting note. Finally, there’s Eldin, clearly bearing a symbol associated with the Gerudo without any strange mixes of symbols for the series. Oddly, he’s also the most open of the three dragons, especially considering the Gerudo’s traditional stance of being a ‘no-sausage’ club. Not terribly relevant, but I just thought it was interesting to point out. You can consider the Giants in Majora’s Mask on the same level as them, though their status is unclear (Since they’re summoned by a song and can stop the moon from falling, they probably straddle the line between mortal and divine).

Now, spirits also exist in this world, both as the ghostly variety and the more pseudo-divine. Not to be confused with actual divinity. Divine being can be spirits, but not all spirits are divine. In this context, spirits can be defined more as being of power capable of granting aid in return for something. Zephos can change the winds if called upon, but you don’t need to feed him, for example. But the spirits in Twilight Princess need aid before they can help you. And they’re also not very independent and are able to be fooled easily, which isn’t usually a god-like quality. While more physically present than the three goddesses, they’re also not strictly tangible, and seem to be extremely limited to their location. At best, these spirits could be classified as minor deities below the gods we see in Wind Waker. They also share the same abilities in keeping the realm of Twilight from falling over the land of Hyrule, as well as their weakness to parasites of undetermined origin. An interesting note is that they all seem to live in bodies of water. Let’s put a pin in that one too.

Someone that also counts as a spirit would be Fi and her counterpart, Ghirahim. Literally two halves of the same coin, these two are both very limited in power and function. They don’t represent anything on their own and are very dependent on others to achieve results. How or why they were made is unclear, but it is obvious that both were forged at some point, and clearly gained sentience. Even their personalities and allegiances are a bit odd. Fi for her sci-fi appearance and calculating personality in a fantasy land, and Ghirahim for his… well, everything. I don’t know why the root of all evil would make his weapon a full-tilt diva, let alone on purpose. Ghirahim always struck me as odd since his bombastic personality seemed to clash with his ultimate fate of just being a weapon for Demise.

Okay, so the Great Fairies are weird, okay?! Like, really weird. They act as spirits (I can’t think of any that aren’t restricted to a body of water in some form), but are very independent. They also don’t necessarily need anything from Link to offer assistance. Sometimes, just opening the fairy fountain is enough to gain items needed to progress. And there’s also the fact that fairies heal you upon ‘death’, though with a limited heart capacity. Sometimes they need you to do something though, like the Breath of the Wild fairies need rupees to function or items to upgrade equipment. They also usually look human, like Majora’s Mask Great Fairies are clearly just… giant women with color coded accessories. But like, they float. Where Great Faires come from, or even just regular fairies, is unclear. Until Wind Waker, Great Faires were adults. But when you finally meet the real Great Fairy in Wind Waker it’s… a child. With a doll that looks just like the ‘Great Fairies’ you’ve seen along the way. This sort of implies that Great Fairies age and die, though clearly with a different lifetime than most races in Hyrule (the child Great Fairy also only looks somewhat human compared to other Great Fairies, so make of that what you will). And it also implies that all the adult Great Fairies are dead (you’re welcome for that depressing thought), with the last one trapped in a hollow tree only accessible by the power of a God.

In Breath of the Wild, the Great Fairies are both diminished but more powerful. They literally are stuck in a giant flower with water in it, with few fairies around them, and require riches to get stronger. The connection to their new restrictions to this need for material wealth is unclear. It’s also interesting to note that their fountains are no longer places that appear to be man-made holy temples and they seem to be out of the way… well, for a given value of ‘out of the way’ (looking at you ninja village). These fairies can accomplish more tasks, but certainly won’t be doing it for free or with minimal effort. A far cry from their first appearances (no, I don’t consider using explosives a difficult task).

But Fairies are also companions with nebulous tasks, such as in Ocarina of Time, where Tatl follows Link until the end of the game. And Kokiri have their own fairy as a sign of whatever accounts for adulthood in their race. The Skull Kid in Majora’s Mask has two fairy friends who seemed to have been either lost or abandoned. Who or what gives them purpose and life is unclear, though the Great Deku Tree from Ocarina of Time can give commands, it doesn’t seem to be something he does normally? As a side note, it’s really not clear what, if anything he can actually do. Though the relative safety of the surrounding area is clearly tied with his wellbeing in all iterations, he doesn’t seem to directly influence it, or be capable of self-defense.

Now, onto the elephant in the room! Hylia! Who the hell is this?! A more recent entry to the series, her divine roll is unclear (though she clearly guards the Triforce in some capacity). It can be assumed that she’s somehow a goddess tied directly to the Hylian people, but when she appeared is up for debate. Timeline wise, it’s almost like knowledge of her was suppressed for some reason, giving rise to the Triforce mythos we all know and love without hide or hair of her seen. We know that she favored the original Link greatly, enough to shed her divinity to be reborn as a mortal and assist him. How or why is also unclear, though it wouldn’t be unfair to assume she loved him, as divine ladies holding an affair with a mortal isn’t uncommon in mythology (or even male gods doing the same, before anyone brings up Zeus). But she makes a resurgence in Breath of the Wild, with statues and everything, with the three goddesses left to only vague references in the background. Which is super weird, though not uncommon for places like Ancient Egypt. The fact that the ruling family was literally descendant from a goddess is what makes it weird though, since any monarchy worth their salt would milk that until the peasant folk revolted and made a new religion to justify killing a god.

Zelda in every incarnation is literally descendant from the original and still held at least a fraction of that divine power. So much so that a cornerstone of a powerful religious artifact inevitably ends up in her hands (or on the back of her right hand, as it were). But what is Hylia a Goddess of? We don’t know. It’s never said. Anywhere. And that’s super weird, even for a ubiquitous deity. Sure she’s a Goddess of Hyrule but… what does that mean? That can’t be all she is? Her reincarnation is literally locked in a generational struggle against the forces of darkness! What can she do as a Goddess? Well, she makes Link stronger in return for items, but that seems to be it. In Ocarina of Time, Zelda was capable of sending Link back to the past, but that was with a magic item. And we know Hylia isn’t the Goddess of Time, because Zelda references her in Majora’s Mask (sequel to Ocarina of Time, therefore implying that there are more gods unmentioned at that time), when Hylia should be mortal or at least fragmented (because Zelda exists at the time with powers and a Triforce piece). The Guardian of Time in Hyrule Warriors also fell in love with Link before splitting into Cia and Lana (and was unable to fuse back together again), so it’s unlikely that she’s the Goddess of Time Zelda was referring to, though that detail is interesting to note. No, I will not discuss if Hyrule Warriors is canon (either game), as this is already long enough as it is.

So, that brings us to Ganon, or in his original form, Demise. Which… what’s up with that? Who is this guy? He directly opposes the gods and just… gets away with it! Repeatedly! Sure, he loses most of the time, but still. It’s unclear where Demise came from, or even what he is, though judging by Ghirahim’s ‘Demon Lord’ title, it can be assumed that he is some type of demon himself. And that the many monsters we see are also considered demons, which makes sense with how they always work for Demise (or his many iterations) in some form or another. Considering how much it takes to simply seal him away, he can’t be just a demon though.

        Demise obviously pulled the same trick Hylia did, which directly sets him up as a counterpart to her, but what does it mean? Why would he do that? What is Demise that he can’t be beat with the power of a Goddess alone and needs not only a brave knight but a blade literally made to counter him? Within the context of religion, the best guess I can make is that he’s some form of a God of Darkness, possibly also Temptation, Greed, and Pigs Corruption. It fits within the narrative since power is often the strongest form of temptation and we know that demons capable of opposing the gods exist. The Horned Statue literally takes Hylia’s blessings in exchange for wealth, and was turned into a statue for it. What it stands to gain from any of it is unclear, but interestingly enough, Hylia doesn’t mind that it closely resembles her own statues. So, this raises the question… why isn’t Demise a forgotten statue somewhere along a dusty road? How did he curse(?) both a reborn goddess and a human in an eternal struggle for the fate of Hyrule?

        Being a god is about the only explanation for why he can do the things that he does. It explains why, in every incarnation, he ends up a rule (like Zelda). How he controls so many different species with ease. He corrupts the conflicted as easily as breathing. An interesting note is how Demise in his many forms usually ends up corrupting once good forces in some way, typically with parasites or evil spirits. And with this context, Hylia must be a Goddess of Light, and possibly some form of Will and Purity to oppose Demise’s power. It would also make her a good candidate for looking after the Triforce in that case. And yet we don’t know any of this for sure either, which is, again, very strange considering their presence from the very beginning. Literally.

Now, I want to mention the temples as a last point before wrapping this up, because it has bothered me since I was a wee little whipper snapper. For a place of worship, they sure are hard to navigate, even when they’re empty of monsters. And it’s not like Hyrule doesn’t get this, because the Temple of Time in Ocarina of Time is straight up a church. Just… without pews, so clearly not perfect, but it is possible for people to come in and… worship time, I guess. And no, not the Goddess of Time, because there’s no statue for that. I mean, I know it’s secretly hiding the Master Sword, but it is definitely a church otherwise. What a normal service looks like I can’t say for sure, but it’s definitely not like literally any other temples we see.

        Now, I know it’s a little hard to remember, but temples are usually places where one goes to worship the gods (or even just a god). And we know gods exist in a very real way in Hyrule! They still manage to name Zelda the same thing despite having seemingly buried their divine origins, so some knowledge of gods walking the mortal realm exists. But the temples/dungeons we see usually don’t have much in the way of religious iconography, with a few exceptions (interestingly it’s typically the desert area that actually has statues and could feasibly have had a real capacity for worship). You want to be a devout follower of a god anywhere else? Well, fuck you. Hope you brought a sword and a good pair of boots. If you’re allowed inside at all, since it’s usually the local leaders that are only allowed inside for some reason. And most games don’t seem to have very religious people, despite all the references to divinity. Not like we’d expect them to, at least. And I personally can’t blame them. If I tried to join a religion but found only a wall as an entrance, I’d be pretty disheartened too. Then I’d be pretty pissed to find out I needed not only a royal instrument handed down the monarchy, but their freaking lullaby to even get in to the place of worship. But we know they pray to the gods at least semi-often, since that’s one of the inciting incidences in Wind Waker. And they have offering to statues of Hylia.

        The temples suggest the bar to impress the gods is pretty high, and not in a ‘sacrifice your eldest child’ kind of way. To even get the chance to reach the inner chambers you better hope it’s been kept well and that you didn’t skip leg day recently. Something I didn’t really mention before is that usually, the less involved the gods are, the more independent the people are from worship. If you worry that your local deity will flood your fields, you’re probably leaving regular offerings at their nearby shrine or temple. But if you know that the gods don’t care about literally anything you do, why worship them at all? Why make statues, art, or temples? Why bother with any of it? The answer is you don’t. So these highly selective temples are pretty weird unless you go with the idea the gods are just really done with people and never want to talk to them unless absolutely necessary.

So, I’ve rambled for over twelve pages now. What’s the point? What does any of this mean? I’m honestly not sure, but I have a sinking feeling that there’s some serious shit going on in the Hyrule pantheon. Mortals have been mostly abandoned to their doom. Gods cast out and forgotten entirely. And somehow advanced civilizations keep forming and getting destroyed with only remnants left behind with zero explanation. Assuming the original gods are even alive at this point, which I’m not entirely certain of. Their death certainly explains how Demise/Ganon keeps getting stronger, looking less and less Hylian as time goes on, if he looks humanoid to begin with.

I wouldn’t even assume it’s entirely voluntary at this point either, as Ganon clearly doesn’t have the same motivations in every incarnation (see my previous post about Wind Waker). I’m rather excited about Breath of the Wild 2, as the implications of dehydrated husk Ganon is compelling. Particularly in light of the character development Link and Zelda have received in the first Breath of the Wild. I wouldn’t be surprised if Ganon/Demise turns out to be a fallen god trying to get back home (a nice parallel to Wind Waker, actually), cast out as a scape goat. Blamed for every form of corruption and greed that naturally follows in his wake. I think I said this before, but it is interesting that he is always reborn among the Gerudo, a race famously all females. Sometimes thieves, but nearly always in a position that would naturally crave power to take control of their lives compared to Hylians. Regardless of the consequences.

Is it true? I don’t know. Probably not, but the fact that I can draw these conclusions in three hours of writing is pretty neat. I have a lot of feelings about this franchise, having grown up with it, but I eagerly await what comes next. And I should probably go to bed. Make of all this what you will.

#Legend of Zelda #Botw #majora's mask #Wind Waker #hyrule warriors #link #zelda #hylia #ganon #demise #this series hurts my brain #or maybe it's the lack of sleep #if this makes sense to anyone i will be happy #but there are some series conspiracy vibes going on behind the scenes here #just like #everything #all of it #it's weird how mixed things are #and each game makes it worse somehow?!? #ngl i love it anyway