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theroseandthebeast · 4 months

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Yuletide 2023 Recs, Batch Two

17 recs for Castlevania: Nocturne, The Chronicles of Riddick, Crimson Peak, Critical Role / EXU Calamity, Daisy Jones & The Six, The Devil Went Down To Georgia, Dracula, Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

The Safety of Abstaining, Courteously, Olrox/Original Male Character + Mizrak/Olrox

Love is a dangerous thing for all vampires. It makes them vulnerable. Olrox has had the misfortune of experiencing this first hand. He is not doing that again.

Strange Allies, Olrox/Mizrak + Mizrak/Richter Belmont

Mizrak can’t figure out why Richter Belmont is still alive.

Three Principles, Dame Vaako/Vaako

Society among the Necromongers is cruel and ruthless. Death is the natural order of things, and life is to be endured. This is the story of the man and woman who would become Lord and Dame Vaako. Don't forget: you keep what you kill.

Blood in the Snow, Lucille Sharpe/Thomas Sharpe

Before the house, there was the earth, and the blood.

tempter or the tempted, Asmodeus the Lord of the Nine Hells/Zerxus Ilerez

“The tempter or the tempted, who sins most?” - William Shakespeare Zerxus won't give up trying to save Asmodeus. Asmodeus won't stop trying to damn Zerxus.

You Wanna Try That Again?, Billy Dunne/Daisy Jones

There are so many lines in the sand between Daisy and Billy - boundaries they won't cross, words they won't say, urges they won't give into. Right up until they do.

The Devil Went Down to Georgia Station, Gen, The Devil & Johnny

Me, I was just about ready to play the fool myself when the Devil arrived. You see, the sector sheriff had died a little while back, and the spaceways were so infested with bandits that no law-abiding ship dared to fly. The bandits didn't come stop at Georgia Station for a drink and a fiddler either—nobody comes down here unless they've got a resupply contract, for there's only one safe route in. I was feeling my old wanderlust, what with being cooped up in one place for so long, and besides my free meals were getting smaller by the day. That's why, when the Devil came sauntering into the station's only saloon and slid into the booth across from me, bringing out her fiddle from Devil-knows-where, I listened when she made me a deal.

The Calm before the Storm, Gen, The Captain of the Demeter

The Demeter's log was not the only tale of note to be found upon the ship.

Sanguine, Gen, John Seward

John is having bad dreams. Most of all, he dreams that Quincey might not be as dead as everyone thinks he is.

Into That, Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar

Edgin returns the Helmet of Disjunction. Xenk rewards him.

Not Certainty, But Hope, Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar

In which Xenk proposes. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to need you to repeat that," Edgin said. "I have come here to ask your hand in marriage," Xenk said in that annoyingly calm voice, like dropping in on someone at their local pub and asking them to marry you was just like popping next door and asking for a cup of sugar from the neighbor, "that we might infiltrate a temple of Ilmater and discover the means by which so many happy couples have disappeared."

Deception Check, Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar

Ed had lied a lot. Did lie a lot. There was a lot of lying, was his point. But the trouble and the lying did not typically involve Xenk Yendar, and this was proving to be the problem. (or, Edgin Darvis attempts to lie and rolls a one.)

Legends & Lore, Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar

Xenk gets truth potioned and doesn't say anything interesting at all.

Ink of the Covenant, Gen, Edgin Darvis & Holga Kilgore

Holga and Edgin get drunk. Edgin gets a tattoo. Standard 8th day in Targos, really.

it's a (fake) love story, baby (just say yes), Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar

“Back up,” Edgin said. “Explain how that’s connected to me going with you to a wedding.”

Perception Check (Roll for Romance), Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar

"I bet Xenk fucks like a metronome, too. You know." Holga makes a highly suggestive, repetitive gesture. "In, out. In, out. No variation. Same exact rhythm every time. Boring." Edgin stares at her, torn between horror and fascination. "You've really thought about this, huh?" (So has he. Unfortunately.)

you'll find us in the meadowland, Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar

Xenk let himself in with a slow turn of his key in the lock. The obedient door let out not a solitary creak or groan. It had better not; he plied the thing with oil as often as he cleaned any of his gear. There was a little moonlight seeping in through the window - enough to see the shape of the man rifling through his things. He was standing at Xenk’s desk, tucked into the corner and lined by shelves stacked with holy texts. Not his most valuable, of course - he wouldn’t be so careless as to keep the most precious of his collection here - but any one of them would feed a hungry man for a few days, at least. And yet this man wasn’t hungry, and he was no ordinary thief. Xenk judged this not only by the strong slope of his shoulders and broad back and the fine weave of his coat but also by the fact that he had recently been awarded the highest honours the Lord of Neverwinter could bestow. No, Edgin could want for nothing; even he could not have spent his rewards so quickly. There was only one explanation. This was an affliction of the soul.

#yuletide #yuletide 2023 #castlevania #castlevania nocturne #the chronicles of riddick #crimson peak #critical role #exu calamity #exandria unlimited #daisy jones & the six #the devil went down to georgia #dracula #dungeons and dragons #honor among thieves #fic recs #fic rec

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animefeminist · 2 months

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The Consequence of No Consequences: Mushoku Tensei and excusing sexual violence

Content warning: discussions of sexual assault, sexual abuse, and pedophilia

Spoilers for Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 1 and 2

The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen R. Donaldson, a novel series published from 1977 to 2013, is one of my favorite works of fantasy ever. It’s also infamous for having one of the most loathsome protagonists in modern fiction. The titular character, a misanthropic shut-in who gets transported to another world, sexually assaults a teenage girl in the story’s opening act. It’s a truly horrific moment, and while Covenant never does anything nearly that monstrous again, the weight of his sin hangs over his neck for the rest of the series.

I bring this all up to say that I see the value in stories where the protagonist is a horrible person. Handled well, a story with a main character like this can explore ideas and comment on parts of the human condition that more aspirational protagonists can’t. But there’s an important factor to that equation: consequences.

I don’t mean a moralistic “this character did a bad thing and should be punished by the author for it” mindset. I mean that when a character does something extreme, for good or ill, it should leave an impact on those caught in its wake. Thomas Covenant assaulting a teenager, for example, has far-reaching effects on her, on her family, and on himself, aftershocks that would naturally stem from such a terrible act. Any story that wants to explore this darker side of humanity must be willing to explore how doing horrible things affects the world and people around you, or it risks trivializing the true horrors of the darkness it depicts.

Mushoku Tensei, funnily enough, starts from much the same place as Thomas Covenant. A misanthropic shut-in transported to another world, Rudeus “Rudy” Greyrat is a pedophile given a chance to live a better life and repair his toxic patterns. Mushoku Tensei purports to be a story of redemption, exploring how even the most reprehensible person imaginable can grow into a respectable human being. But it undercuts Rudeus’ growth by constantly shielding him from the consequences of his actions even in his new life, twisting its world and characters however it wants to justify and excuse the horrible things he does.

Read it at Anime Feminist!

#mushoku tensei #rudeus greyrat #lilia greyrat #roxy migurdia #eris boreas greyrat #articles

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ginevrastilinski-ocs · 22 days

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Narnia OCs Time!!

It's the my Narnia's babies time! Since it seems like we're all in this mood, I thought it was a good moment to introduce them! (Special thanks to @andromedalestrange and @randomestfandoms-ocs for some fcs, I was getting crazy so thank you darlings!)

Also two little things I feel the need to tell: it's been a while since the last time I read the Chronicles (so don't yell at me pls) and! My ocs are going to be a "fusion" of the books and the movies (Like, taking my favourite things from both and changing what I don't like... Susan not returning at all for example lmao) And! It's me finding a different way to make almost all of them immortal/ageless/slow-aging bc I want them being in more than one movie/book lmao

Last thing, I'm gonna to explain so little about their plot/vibes/actual things so if you wanna know more about some specific ocs feel free to send an ask, I can't wait to talk about them more 🥺

Tagging my Narnia besties @daughter-of-melpomene @come-along-pond @dancingsunflowers-ocs bc I think they would enjoy this (tell me if I didn't have to 🥺)

Nevan Dair - basically Powerful Boy so The White Witch kidnapped recruted him as her little puppet right-hand man (yep, he's a child and there's a lot of manipulation here); meets Edmund and goes on full "I'm going to murder for you" so betrays Jadis; basically immortal (but not really, it's complicated) for the spark inside him; looks like they would kill you is actually a cinnamon roll vibe; Edmund Pevensie ship FC: Kit Young

Margaret "Magpie" Kirke - Digory Kirke's granddaughter; lives with her grandpa bc oopsie dead parents; enters in Narnia with the Pevensie sibs (and becomes a Queen of Narnia actually); will come back once again with them (and the third time she'll stay in Narnia lol); Peter Pevensie & Prince Caspian ship FC: Florence Pugh

Elizabeth "Liz" Pevensie - Edmund's twin sister; one of the ruler of Narnia along side her sibilings; will also be the Last Queen before the destruction of Narnia alongside Aine; Aine Meraxes ship FC: Maisie Williams

Verena Mars - Narnian noble, fights against the White Witch, meets the Pevensie sibs, during their reign her and Susan fall in love; when they come back to the Human World Aslan doesn't let her follow them so she finds a way to become "ethereal"/ageless to wait Susan's come back (is ready to kill Aslan anyone that comes in her way of having her happy ending); basically I'm all we supports women rights and wrongs; Susan Pevensie ship ovb FC: Hailee Steinfeld

Arjuna - The White Witch descendant, semi immortal due the Silver Apple her mother ate; will eventually bretray her mother for saving the kids she befriended; Peter Pevensie ship FC: Freya Allan

Avaluna Lohan Kirke - baby born under the Golden Age; wants to visit the Human World so searches the Door the Pevensie arrived with; basically finds it when they found the Lamp-post so she leaves with them and is now stuck in the Human World; gets adopted by Digory Kirke bc how do you explain it to anyone else?; Lucy ship FC: Elle Fanning

Aine Meraxes - princess of a little independent reign on a Isle on the borders of Narnia; they have dragons lol; the Long Winter didn't get there bc a Coven protects it; gets called for help against the White Witch; is a witch herself; uses a similar spell the White Witch used on Charn after the Golden Age ends; will eventually be the Last Queen of Narnia alongside Liz; Liz Pevensie ship FC: Milly Alcock

Killian Evada - leader of a secret organization that plots against the White Witch; turns out that is actually a human that found Narnia; comes back on Earth with the Pevensie sibs; Edmund Pevensie ship FC: Thomas Brodie Sangster

Shivani - world traveller (basically is born with the power of yellow and geen rings); comes from a world that was destroyed before Narnia was born and has lived for non-specified time in the Wood Between The Worlds; the time there made them kind of immortal; ship TBD FC: Jessie Mei Li

Amaranta Ira - High Witch of Narnia (at least she should be); her ancestors used to be the Second In Command of Narnia's Army before the Age of Winter; became basically the Narnian version of a vigilante during the White Witch's reign lmao; (will probably be with the Pevensie when they come back so she is stuck in England for a long time); Caspian and/or Edmund ship FC: Amita Suman

Leocadius Thorne - comes from a family of librarians basically; actually, keepers of the list of every Narnian Ruler since the beginning of everything; no plot just vibes ship TBD FC: Isaac Hempstead Wright

Merletta of Narnia - Aslan's priestess; just a little bit of plot, mainly vibes; ship TBD (but maybe Lucy Pevensie) FC: Ceara Coveney

Neera Merwyna - siren and pirate (sort of); no plot just vibes; Prince Caspian ship FC: Halle Bailey

Fitzroy Mahogany - Narnian noble? this is literally "I just vibe with this fc but I have no plot, might scrap them but until then..."; ship TBD (Peter?) FC: Douglas Booth

#i got a little bit carried away... might scrap some of them but until then here I am!#greta's ocs madness era #nevan dair #magpie kirke #liz pevensie #verena mars #arjuna #avaluna lohan #avaluna kirke #aine meraxes #killian evada #shivani #amaranta ira #leocadius thorne #merletta of narnia #neera merwyna #fitzroy mahogany

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mask131 · 9 months

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Fantasy books I DO NOT like: Chronicles of Thomas Covenant

... Or to be more exact, the first book of the Chronicles, “Lord Foul’s Bane”.

This book came truly randomly to me when I found it in a box of books given away for free. I am a big fantasy reader, and this was a recent, big-sized reprint of the book in very good quality. I had to take it - especially since I remember the name “The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant” popped up from time to time in my various fantasy researches on the Internet. I couldn’t remember anything else about it though, so I decided to go in for a blind reading, to see by myself if it was indeed a classic I had missed out on.

Three-four chapters in or so, I checked the Internet, because I felt something was wrong. I did a few aside, non-spoiler searches just to get more context and info on the story. What I discovered became worrying, but I still decided to go on, see how things really were in the text.

Eight or nine chapters in, I decided to drop the book and not pick it up again, back to being given for free to someone else.

It is really bad because... the author doesn’t seem to be a “bad” author in term of style and ideas. It became especially relevant when I checked the date the book was released, and was deeply surprised to find it was 1977! (I thought it was a late 80s or 90s book). In context, it makes very obvious the deep originality of this work, which clearly was something never done before - and it made me understand why people praised it over the other fantasy best-seller of the 70s America, “The Sword of Shannara”. The dark fantasy genre was still something quite fresh, being “born” with the Elric series in the early 60s, the idea of having a person from the real-world being sent to a fantasy world and thinking himself in a dream or hallucination of some sort was also not yet as cliche and worn-out as it is today, and overall it was a true move of genius and huge bet to have a main character being a diseased, dying and bitter man suffering from leprosy.

In fact, the very first chapters set in the “real” world, the ones depicting the social, psychological and physical consequences of leprosy, were very good! Very harsh and cynical and dreadful, but in a good way. It was the kind of mature, adult, dark content I expect from a real, serious, dark adult work - but unfortunately, in light of what followed it, I think Donaldson would have been better writing a book about a man’s battle and destruction against leprosy in real life. The story would have certainly been much better and enticing than the final product.

I will also point out that to create his fantasy world, Donaldson does have moments where the glimpse of a “true” fantasy author shine. For example, the introduction of Lena, her family and village, with the magical golden healing-mud and the strange apparitions on the rock-observatory, and the simple village life mixed with magical feats such as having stones glow by themselves or a bowl repaired by a tiresome magic... It all felt very good, very nice, and it had Donaldson’s unique style to it. There were these glimpses of a not-generic fantasy, of an author who really wanted to do his own fantasy work, showing through... But just glimpses.

It was all the things good... Now for all the things bad. Given not everybody might be interested in the talk, and things get pretty nasty at one point, I’ll put it under a cut - the true reasons why I will put this on my dislike list and not read it further, nor any of its sequels.

1) The “It is all a dream” motif. It is understandable to have a protagonist coming from our real-world, seemingly being hit by a car, and waking up in a fantasy world, believe it is just a dream or an hallucination. It makes sense, and it is the logical first step to take... But having the character repeat to himself again and again that it is a dream is not subtle at all, and when I learned that the protagonist NEVER departs from the idea this is all a dream, from beginning to end, I immediately felt this would become VERY tiring of having the character constantly remind us “It is all a dream, it is all a product of my mind anyway, nothing is real, I do not believe in this...”. I saw through my non-spoiler research that apparently the author works on leaving an ambiguity as to whether the fantasy land is a dream or not... But it doesn’t work because the way the fantasy world works and is described and interacts with the protag feels too much (at least in those first chapters) “real”. There is no oniric to it, no strangeness as in surreal, dream-logic things. Even lucid dreams make less sense that how precise, detailed, chronological and logical (in its own way) everything works there.

In fact, thinking back about it, what I did not realize reading those eight or nine chapters, was that... this work seems to suffer from something I would call “the fantasy author’s self-hatred”. The position of the work as coming from the 70s does reinforce my theory - though I haven’t read the full book, so I cannot give you a true assertion. You see, for a very long time fantasy was not considered to be a “serious” literary genre, to not be a “true” author work, and to do fantasy would lead to one being mocked or discredited. This was one of Tolkien’s personal greatest fear, and this is why most fantasy stories had to be released in pulps and magazines before being published, and this is why LeGuin’s Earthsea series for example was catalogued hastily as just “children books” when, in fact, they are maybe a bit too deeply philosophical and existential for tiny little children... This led to a certain syndrom of internalized, self-hatred within several fantasy writers of the second half of the 20th century. A syndrom usually shown by the writer clearly, very clearly, desiring and wishing to create a full, complete, fantasy series... but sabotaging or diminishing the importance and impact of their own work by adding elements that make it less “fantasy” like, to make it seem more “serious”. In this case, the situation of “Is it all a dream?” and the protag’s constant denegation of the “reality” of his fantasy adventures, despite the fantasy parts being written as a pure fantasy story, with no obvious effort to make it onirical or psychological beyond what seems to be a vague self-centered metaphor around the protagonist.

To get more into details, this “syndrom” also seems to show up in the way Donaldson treats fantasy. For example, Donaldson purposefully creates a very cliche, simplified and schematized fantasy world, where good and evil are clear categories, where each species/race have their constants unchanged, where the names are very simple and to the point, bordering on the joke... It can almost be read as a criticism or parody of the fantasy genre - and more specifically a jab or caricature of Tolkien’s work given the ENORMOUS amount of references to his books (it is quite normal, though, almost all 70s fantasy works were Tolkien-derived). But here’s the thing... There’s no joke, no humor in this book, and so it is clearly not meant to be an humoristic parody, and beyond that Donaldson doesn’t seem to make anything with his use of cliche and stereotypes, removing the possibility of this book being a criticism of the genre. Donaldson mocks with a nasty grin the stupidly binary morality, the oversimplification and the use of names in fantasy - but doesn’t do anything behind just exposing those caricatures like freaks in a show, and even worse, he himself indulges into more fantasy tropes, stereotypes and basis, creating a full, complex fantasy world with its own original ideas and elements. It is either as if Donaldson wanted to do a dark parody/heavy criticism of the fantasy genre, but found himself enamored with it and deciding to just play it straight mid-writing ; or if Donaldson wanted to make a traditional, typical fantasy story, but somehow feared it and so filled it with mockery, distance, ridiculous cliches and empty meta-references just so it seemed he wasn’t “truly” into this whole fantasy thing... And the latter option is the one I felt somehow more, hence why I call it a form of internalized, self-hatred of the genre.

Mind you I have no knowledge of Donaldson’ personal life, literary preferences, or view about fantasy and Tolkien, so this is all wild theory and speculation on my part. But it is the feeling I get: a book that starts out with a unique twist to make a true deconstruction and destructuration of the epic fantasy/Tolkienesque fantasy, and a meta-distance allowing for some genre commentary... But never doing anything with it, never bringing anything truly new, just pointing out cliches and twisting stuff in dark ways. I would almost call this work “edgy” in nature, and not in a good way - in a bad way, edgy for the sake of edgyness.

2) The info-dumps. BY ALL HEAVENS AND HELLS THE INFO DUMPS! This is a typical trait of bad fantasy writers: they create their world, their history and their species and their societies and their religions... But then they write a story, and realize they can’t actually write a small detaled guide alongside the book. So what do they do? If they are a bad fantasy writer, they wll resort to info-dumps. The info-dumps of “Lord Foul’s Bane” are so ridiculous I almost wanted to think it was a parody... But as I said before, a parody must either A) be funny either B) bring some commentary or point, and Donaldson unfortunately plays his info-dumps very seriously and very first-degree. And these, trust me, are some of the worst info-dumps I never read. If the protagonist asks one character about something, the character will start acting like some tourist guide and detail the social origins, history, many uses, and various political opinions on the thing. The flow of the story, which otherwise is very fine in itself, constantly gets blocked by these huge and dense info dumps. Lena first encounter with the protag is all but info-dumps as she explains everything to this strange man she just met and seems clearly unstable and unwell... Her mother later also does info-dumps to the protag, while pointing out herself she doesn’t want to and it is idiotic to do so, but she still does it anyway... And even in the very first chapters, the one in the real-world, while I do appreciate the desire of educating the reader about it, the huge scientifical expose and medical explanations about the workings and results of leprosy felt copy-pasted out of some doctor manual. The most offending one I can think about is without a doubt Lord Foul’s first interaction with the protagonist: unasked, unprompted, for no particular reason, this big bad evil, all-powerful wicked genius that is treated in the story as the cleverest, most manipulative and most dangerous threat of all times... Info-dumps the protagonist on his identity, his recent past, his goals, and the current socio-magico-political situation of the villains. IN NINE WHOLE PARAGRAPHS! I had a big-sized version of the book, not pocket-size, and it took FOUR PAGES!!! I was expecting Lord Foul to be pointed out, by the protagonist or anyone else, as being VERY stupid of just revealing everything unprompted and unforced to a character he knows to be mostly ignorant of the situation... But no.

3) Oh yes, and did I mention the rape? I know it is what everybody talks about, and most people say “Ew, the protag is a rapist, so the book’s BAD let’s burn it”. But, while I do agree with the sentiment that the book is bad and it is mostly due to the rape part, I have a slightly more nuanced take because, it might surprise you to hear so, but the rape itself isn’t what bothered me the most about it.

In fact, I would dare say that the rape is in-character and in-genre. The protagonist is explicitely described as a man made deeply angry, bitter, cynic and misanthropist by his disease. He hates the entire world and wants to terrorize and make people suffer because he himself is suffering, and angry, and dying. He is explicitely stated to not be a good person, and the entire point of the book, the idea of the plot was, “What if the chosen one is not a pure hero, but an “impure one”, a diseased, hopeless, loveless man who refuses sternly to answer the call and only thinks of himself, and is corrupted body and mind by a disease as severe as leprosy”. It was, as I said before, part of a VERY original and new idea back in the 70s, an interesting and clever twist not overtly done before as it was done today. We are supposed to be in a dark fantasy, with an anti-hero. And an anti-hero who believes himself to be in a dream, in an abnormaly detaled hallucination - he is convinced everything he sees is an illusion, or a product of his subconscious, and that nothing he does truly matters because it is all “just” a dream... Which would make him more prone to act on his deeper and darker impulses, without thinking of the consequence. And what better way to show that the “chosen one”, the “hero of the prophecy”, the “savior of the world”, is NOT the good guy than by him raping a girl that only tried to help him?

The way the rape is described is not pornographic or crude in the way other bad writers would describe rape scenes and, the good and positive thing, immediately afterward the protagonist realizes the graveness of what he did, the darkness of his crime, he regrets it deeply, understands the suffering he inflicted, and awaits for the consequences - he knows the girl’s father and all the men of the village will come to punish him, and he decides to await for it and receive his punishment... But, as many readers point out, nothing happen to him since the girl doesn’t talk about her rape and hides it. And HERE is the part where I just sighed “Oh no, fuck no” and threw the book away. The part where it went from “okay, it is dark and immoral but still within the lines set by the author” to “no, this is typical misogynistic behavior of a 70s American man and a very backward view of sexuality and women” is: the protagonist (as the voice of the author) claims the girl was BRAVE and HEROIC for not telling about her rape, doing an GREAT DEED by not accusing the chosen one of a crime and not soiling his reputation of a prophetized savior, because the world “needs” him and he is to “fight the greatest evil on land”, etc... At this point I said to myself, “No, this is getting too much. Despite few glimpses of interesting things, the book was already boring/exhausting because of its constant self-denial and its artifical thick info-dumps, but NOW I get to be subjected to such a backward and warped view of rape? No, thank you.”

Again, this was before I knew it was a book from the 70s (the reprint was so recent and fresh...), and while learning it does not excuse it, it suddenly made more sense as to why this sort of thing would be written, published - and then get praised by many as a “great twist” and a “new take” on fantasy, without people pointing out the very wrong way to depict rape. But even beyond that, as I said, the other two flaws of the book (the dragging “it’s all a dream” and the info-dumps) are enough to rob me of any desire or fun when reading this book.

So I will promptly forget it and move on to better fantasy series (I might even re-read The Sword of Shannara with a better appreciation, now that I know it was the alternative to this kind of books). I’m currently reading “The Kingdom of Thorns and Bones” which is certainly much more entertaining and interesting (even though there’s a few dubious sex elements too, but at least they are better treated than Donaldson’s take on an adult raping teenage girls). (And yes I say girls because before attacking Lena, the protag did express a sexual view of teenage girls working in a shop)

[ In fact, this is why I even make this post in the first place - the fantasy series I do not like, I will promptly forget, so I make this post to just collect my thoughts somewhere before they leave my head, and potentially return to check one day why I decided not to read the series in the first place]

#fantasy series #fantasy literature #fantasy works I DO NOT like #fantasy

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definesanity · 3 months

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One of The Many Tales of The Tomo Family.

Or: One Of My Tutors Wants To Know About My Lore.

Philip's day started, and he then heard someone falling down the stairs.

By this point, he has developed something of an additional sense to figuring out who fell down the stairs. But this time, a deep, feminine groan of pain told him it was Gunn.

Getting up, he made his way over to do his morning routine. Shower, brush his teeth, do his hair, put on his clothes; and as he looked at his mirror, and his reflection gazed back.

He was skinny. Nearly anorexic. Yet, his white hair fell back gracefully down to just above his knees, as deep purple eyes gazed back, little lavalamp earrings glittering. His everyday ensemble was extravagant to some; a greyish-purple tailcoat suit, with grey pants, boots and a large, purple cape.

The cape kept a little something he has as a surprise tool in check. But he'd have worn one anyways. If a bit smaller. Because he looks like Batman and not Ezio.

Philopator Agronium Isekaiden Tomo. And yes, his father was drunk while naming him. And everyone else.

He went downstairs, where he saw M'Gunnhildr Midorri Misstral Tomo, or Gunn, on the floor sprawled out. Short, dyed green hair and damp green eyes looked at Philip, herself dressed in a casual ensemble of pants and a t-shirt that says, 'yes i'm gay, was it the vibes that told you?'.

"Having fun?" Philip dryly asked.

"Oh, an amazing time." came Gunn's equally as dry reply. "Mind helping? I really can't be bothered this early in the morning."

Roll his eyes he did, but Philip still helped her up. Gumi's long ribcage expanded around her body, similar to an endoskeleton, and gave her the defence of a brick wall. Thankfully, not the intelligence.

"So, what's your work for the day?" Gunn called from the table, as Philip started to make breakfast. And with Gunn, it's always milk and cereal. In that order.

It's 2026 AMV, give her a break.

"A sudden Cocen meeting; I have to find Llo'Llo and An."

The Coven is the unofficial government of Diianas, and more of a talk show. Llo'Llo, the pint sized Ghoul Huntress, is a member, with her daughter Llo'An, or just An, as a guest, her daughter a Ghost Soother.

The point is, they have yet to come home after a late night ghost hunt. Normally, it wouldn't be a concern, but it was one ghost.

From behind the frame of the door, Malikuth Jiyuux Lilliean Tomo, her Marfan Syndrome riddled body coming into line of sight, looked at Philip, light blue eyes dead and her long blue hair in loose twintails lifeless.

Philip pushed the coffee mug to her and she nearly drank it all in one gulp. After a moment, and a silent "'Scuse me", Maliku looked up, eyes now less dead inside, as she tried to smooth out her creased suit and trousers.

"Thanks, I feel like I just hit by a bus." Maliku's voice wasn't as deep as Gunn's, mostly part to her being born female sans having the male reproduction organ, and more due to her tiredness in the morning. Usually, she sounds like someone who gets things done.

"Didn't you, though?" Gunn asked, a small quirk of her lips at Maliku, who blinked and sat down at the long table.

"'Bout a year back."

Another yawn, and as Philip exited the kitchen, T'hœmaas Makalinotol Tomo sat down, dark blue hair short minus the long wolftail at the back, along with dark blue eyes on an effeminate face. He wore his usually outfit, a suit over a blouse, and took a sip from his Darjeeling tea.

"Ah, excellen'. 'Ow are ya'all?" he sounded suspiciously like Mòrag from Xenoblade Chronicles 2. And that wasn't even a joke, he literally just sounds like her.

"Just about to head out, Thomas. I should be back in... call it an hour or two maybe."

"Righ', righ'. Off ya trot, troublemaker." that wry grin came upon his face, and Philip rolled his eyes, but a small smile was on his face.

"Sure, sure."

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

He first checked out the Bridge of St. Sophie. Llo'Llo is short, about 4'0, and her skittish personality off work doesn't help show she's 59 years old.

He did, however, find a short, black-haired girl and a taller, brown-haired girl.

Saiori, now called Heir Saiori of Haravin, and Nakitchi, the disgraced noble of Obliviution.

"Kcantro, lovebirds." a simple wave was all that was needed. "Enjoying the morning sun?"

That was something of a inside joke; Diianas was in the Frozen North, and many mountains, including Mt. Kiiriel, blocked out most of the sun. In this, enjoying the morning sun was more akin to, enjoying when it starts getting slighter brighter and before the Luxz turned on.

"Philip. And, eh." a nod and a shrug from Saiori. "The heck are you doing up so early?"

"Coven meeting in two hours; trying to find Llo'Llo."

Saiori's eyes, a molten gold, squinted. "You have got to be aljiralfrin joking me."

"Omaru, language." Nakitchi quietly spoke up, pink eyes glittering as she looked at her fiancé. Turning to Philip, she shook her head. "I'm sorry, but no. Last I heard was she was in the Garden."

"That helps, and nice talking to you both. See you later on, Saiori."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever..."

They're nice, really. Just not in the mornings, heh.

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

Next was Llizel's Garden.

Finding the pale green of Llo'Lo's hair is difficult enough, even when her yellow eyes glow like traffic lights.

Even then, he next came across the stranger visitors of Diianas, from the neighbouring Minor City of Twerkana.

Trisha, X, and Ar'qil. Trisha was a regular human, with X an alien and Ar'qil on the same boat as X.

He quickly walked past them No offence to them, he just needs someone who gets around a lot and not just around the bedroom.

Which led to the blond magician and her black-haired helper, Marie and Mary.

Marie was very... flamboyant. Mary was quiet. And also very gay for each other.

It's 2211008 AD, give them a break.

This then led Philip to the Neon Streets, and to Katrinka, the debt collector, who actually had seen Llo'Llo earlier that day. Following the trail then led to Charlie, a newreporter from the other City, Will, who is Charlie's father and has a relationship with his son that Philip realky doesn't want to try and figure out, Shovai Noir, the resident goth, and Reii, the person who might be the eldritch being, Omega, but that's a story for another day.

Finally, he reached a small building, and inside was numerous supplies. Philip himself was no Ghoul Hunter, but he could tell that the two were pulled into an illusion cast by the Ghoul.

Quickly and efficiently, he used the limited resources--Thank you, paranoia of Llo'Llo--and made a door. The goal of the door was to appear in the illusion and get them out.

And a moment later, Llo'Llo and An came tumbling out.

"W-WHY DO I KEEP THIS JOOOOOOOOB?!" came Llo'Llo's cry.

An shrugged. "More fool us, heh."

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

They sat around in a circle of chairs.

Professor Kanae Severus, Dynol Cyn, Roshiua, Xaltrin, Llo'Llo, and Saiori.

"Everyone here?" Cyn's calming voice echoed throughout the room. Nods were given.

"Excellent." she smiled. "And then, with this, The Coven shall converse."

#ryuusei's works

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multivcrsity-archive · 3 months

Text

MOBILE MUSE LIST

television

THE 100

bellamy blake + bob morley

clark griffin + eliza taylor

jasper jordan + devon bostick

john murphy + richard harmon

octavia blake + marie avgeropoulos

raven reyes + lindsay morgan

AMERICAN HORROR STORY

madison montgomery + tati gabrielle

misty day + lily rabe

THE HAUNTING OF BLY MANOR

flora fairchild + india eisley

THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE

luke crain + oliver jackson cohen

theo crain + kate siegel

film

AGE OF ADALINE

adaline bowman + blake lively

THE COVENANT

caleb danvers + steven strait

pogue parry + taylor kitsch

reid garwin + toby hemingway

tyler simms + chace crawford

billy batson + asher angel

cassandra cain + ella jay basco

chato santana + jay hernandez

floyd lawton + michael b jordan

freddy freeman + adam brody

harley quinn + margot robbie

lucy quinzel + chloe moretz

selina kyle + ana de armas

THE DESCENDANTS

carlos de ville + ross lynch

chad charming + nicholas galitzine

evie grimhilde + sophia carson

jay + booboo stewart

mal bertha + dove cameron

malinda bertha + elizabeth gillies (oc)

DISNEY

anna + sadie sink

aurora + elle fanning

belle + troian bellesario

chip potts + asa butterfield

elsa + gabriella wilde

eugene fitzherbert + thomas mcdonell

merida + sophie turner / eleanor tomlinson

moana + auli’i cravalho

maui + jason momoa

rapunzel + lily james

tinkerbell + freya allen

vanellope von schweetz + mackenzie foy

FEAR STREET

deena johnson + kiana madeira

ruby lane + india eisley

sarah fier + kiana madeira

avery hockstetter + felix mallard

beverly marsh + jessica chastain

bill denbrough + james mcavoy

eddie kaspbrak + timothée chamalet

greta keene + sabrina carpenter

henry bowers + nicholas hamilton

mike hanlon + isaiah mustafa

patrick hockstetter + owen teague

richie tozier + bill hader

stanley uris + andy bean

JURASSIC WORLD

maisie lockwood + mackenzie foy

MARVEL

peter parker + tom holland / andrew garfield

THE OUTSIDERS

curly shepard + jordan connor

johnny cade + steven r mcqueen

ponyboy curtis + jake t austin

adelaide wilson + lupita nyong'o

red + lupita nyong'o

misc.

GREEK MYTHOLOGY

aphrodite + nyané lebajoa

cerberus + aidan turner

dionysus + toby regbo

hades + cheyenne jackson

hermes + faceclaim

persephone + gugu mbtha raw

poseidon + jason momoa

literature

HARRY POTTER

cormac mclaggen + freddie stroma

dominique weasley + faceclaim

hannah abbott + faceclaim

hermione granger + jessica sula

lily luna potter + luca hollestelle

lucy weasley + elle fanning

luna lovegood + evanna lynch

millicent bulstrode + barbie ferreira

neville longbottom + matthew lewis

rose weasley + ashley moore

scorpius malfoy + austin butler

THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES

lestat de lioncourt + cody fern

louis de pointe du lac + felix mallard

original characters

alejandro valdez + danny ramirez ( serial killer based on ahs' the night stalker )

axel zimmermann + aidan turner ( vampire )

elijah catton + jacob elordi ( twin brother of @everyoneismytoy's felix )

gabriel + jamie campbell bower ( archangel )

isabelle blackwood + taylor momsen ( witch )

michael fitzpatrick + max thieriot ( spn hunter )

oliver todd + richard harmon ( serial killer / nightclub manager associated with @painofhumanity's alexander )

#( muse list. )#( mobile muse list. )#( full muse list. )

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sanguineverefae · 11 months

Note

Hello darling 😘

Here to ask you a few questions from the Writer (& Artist) Ask Game: 18, 24, 25 & 26.

Looking forward to reading you ❤️

Ah thank you so much for this lovely ask @cleverblackcat . I actually had to think about some of these, which was the point of the exercise of course! Hoping to see yours soon too! 18: Describe the setting of one or more of your wips Oh gosh.. *eyes twitches as I look at my WIP folder* .. For TWC I'm currently working on chapter 2 for "To break the Unbreakable" The setting for this is Catherine/Kitty struggling with her feelings for Mason when they explictely agreed they would keep it purely casual. Then there's Chapter 7 in Gwen's playthrough write-along (which, tbh, is now already 2 books behind and will probably never end). Currently the setting for this is pretty much still the beginning of Book 1 TWC *laughs somewhat nervously*.. so yeah.. The rest is under the cut ^^

24: Do you have/want a career in your medium? If not, what do you do/want to do instead? Ah, that ship has well and truly sailed. It's definitely a hobby for me, both the writing and my dabbling in digital art on the side. I really want to learn to work with software like CSP and PS, but I don't have the patience and dedication it takes to become an artist. Out of the two, writing has always been my first love, ever since I first started scribbling my little make-believe stories in my notebooks at age 9. 25: What’s your favourite genre to write? Is it also your favourite genre to read?

Fiction, with my favourites being Fantasy in any shape or form, although high-fantasy/medieval fantasy and Urban fantasy are at the top. Gothic/Horror next and SF/Crime after that. Although tbh I enjoy pretty much any well written (fictional) story. Anything that helps me escape reality for a bit. And yes, both for writing and reading.

26: What are your favourite books?

This pretty much changes with the latest book I read, there are so many amazing ficton authors out there. I love epic stories, seeing that there's more than 1 book instantly gives me a sense that a world is worth investing in, that I won't get invested in characters who will just be gone in 400 or so pages. So for that reason:

Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time. The first fandom I ever got heavily involved in and my first foray into fan-fic writing.

The Earthsea trilogy by Ursula le Guin

Black Jewels series by Anne Bishop

Any of Robin Hobb's books

A song of Ice and Fire (GoT) . Read this before it became popular and always loved the characters and the world (George R. Martin)

Kingkiller Chronicles (Patrick Rothfuss)

Malazan Book of the Fallen (Steven Erikson)

Any of Terry Pratchett's books.. I mean.. c'me on.

The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant/Mordant's need by Stephen Donaldson It's honestly painful to pick and choose, I also have great admiration for Brandon Sanderson, Neil Gaiman, Joe Abercrombie, Jack Vance, Stephen King, Tanith Lee ... the list goes on and on. Thank you for letting me think about this, it really was a great exercise. Tagging @cleverblackcat @serenpedac @glitchthemimic and anyone else that would be so kind to indulge me. Would love to see your responses to these! Please tag me!

#get to know your mutuals

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