#i use it for that citizen archivist thing

[howfardoesthisgo]

the national archives changed their website and i am fuming it is so much worse

#i use it for that citizen archivist thing #which is a cool thing to do but they have made it unenjoyable

[earthstellar]

Warlord Ratchet: A Fascinating Concept 

“And to think, the Doctor of Doom’s mad quest for power continues...! His marauders pursued us to this planet’s orbit.” 

What gets me about Megatron telling Orion Pax that the current dilapidated condition of Cybertron was brought about by the Warlord Ratchet, Doctor of Doom (aside from the concept in and of itself) is that he also states that Ratchet has a legion of marauders who carry out his bidding 

and because marauders are raiders, and Megatron states they were “pursued by marauders” to Earth, the implication is that Ratchet is not on Earth himself--

-- which is smart on Megatron’s behalf, because this would deter Orion from potentially attempting to leave in order to confront Ratchet and instils a concern that perhaps marauders may appear at any time (at this point, Orion Pax does not yet realise that he is armed and is operating under the belief that he is still an Archivist and therefore not Warrior Class) 

but also, this gives us the incredible mental image of Ratchet milling around in some kind of rusted fortress made from the remains of several different Cybertronian buildings, quite possibly the remnants of Iacon -- maybe even the central hospital there, converted into a hive of terror 

still living on an otherwise uninhabited planet, with a loyal band of raiding troops who scavenge the remains of their world and possibly other planets as well (as we know these marauders supposedly have space capable vessels), quite possibly doing so in order to source spare parts and other various salvage -- Ratchet is a medic, who knows how he’s been having to piece together his army, repairing them from the remains of random citizens? 

and he supposedly, presumably either from his makeshift base in the shadows of Cybertron or from a war ship of some kind, commanded an army of raiders to chase Megatron and his followers as far away as Earth 

“I cannot imagine Ratchet capable of such horrors!” 

I can only guess at what Orion Pax was thinking in this moment, aside from his immediately stated disbelief: What drove Ratchet to such lengths? What happened to turn his compassionate, caring friend into a warlord capable of carrying out inconceivable destruction? How could such a thing occur, especially at the hands of a respected medic, someone he thought he knew so well? 

Would Orion Pax start to blame himself, for what was clearly the brutal decline of one of his greatest friends? I can imagine him starting to wonder if there was anything he could do, any signs of discontent, any indication that Ratchet was headed down a violent, dark path. 

And I’m sure he would be concerned about Ratchet himself, as well. How is Ratchet faring, nearly entirely alone on their planet save for his loyal bandits, as aged and worn as he ever has been, possibly accepting a lonely inevitable death on an already dead world? 

Or does Warlord Ratchet have yet more plans in store, his instruments of destruction poised to afflict themselves upon other worlds as well? 

The Doctor of Doom: How Could This Happen? 

It’s somewhat easy to dismiss the idea of Ratchet being this “Doctor of Doom”, because it so wildly opposes what we know of the character and what we know actually occurred with the war. 

But when you think about it for a little bit, an unhinged Ratchet would very much be a formidable opponent, especially with his social position in pre-war Cybertron giving him more immediate access to higher class/caste areas than many others would have been able to reach... 

...Perhaps this Warlord Ratchet was able to work his way into the Council’s good graces, possibly after attending to one of them after an injury and restoring them to health, gradually manipulating the Senate from the inside in order to secure more power, resources, allies, and ultimately the whole of Cybertron for himself-- Leading to a violent conflict which resulted in the destruction of their world? 

With his medical knowledge, even if he started out with a fairly small number of followers and whatever troops he could finesse away from the Council, he may very well have “built” some himself-- We do see in TFP that protoforms may be possible to manipulate into certain frame types, or some types of “cloning” may be possible. 

Any version of Ratchet without morals (or at the very least without any medical ethics) is a very dangerous Ratchet. 

Repairing the injured via patching them together with the remains of fallen comrades, creating a “zombie” army. Ghoulish, lumbering soldiers, marauders held together with armour designed for other frame types. Instructing his former colleagues (who would likely have at least started out with some inclination to follow him) to carry out “repairs” in such a way. 

Warlord Ratchet himself may have chosen to ingest dark energon much like Megatron actually did, perhaps out of a desire to create a new fuel source once Cybertron began to go dark and natural fuel sources began to dwindle. We already know that our actual Ratchet wasn’t afraid to test synthetic energon on himself, with similar motivations. 

His base of operations would quite possibly be Iacon’s medical centre, turned into a horrific hive-like structure, some wards actively still in use for repairs (at least for his own followers) and other areas dedicated to terrifying research, with supply basements full of experimental tech and defensive weaponry. 

Ratchet’s more support class (as opposed to warrior class) approach to things may well carry over to Warlord Ratchet’s approach to war-- An emphasis on intelligence ops, R&D, indirect and direct manipulation, initial political manoeuvring from within the existing system, and defensive systems to counter any munitions etc. that may come his way from opposing forces. 

His initial goals may well have genuinely been intended to improve Cybertron, to help people. Much like Megatron, back when he was Megatronus and wanted a more egalitarian, fair society. 

After working on lower class/caste bots who were nearly offlined from a lack of maintenance, poor to no access to healthcare prior to being dragged to him, etc. it may have been the catalyst for his decision to start using his upper class social contacts in an effort to change things from the inside out. 

Unfortunately, in this universe in which Warlord Ratchet rose to power, things may have derailed just as severely as they did with Megatronus and his initially well-intentioned efforts. 

The longer you think about it, the more plausible it could be. 

It would be easy for Megatron to build further upon this idea to manipulate Orion Pax, that Ratchet truly could have done this. 

I’m sure Orion Pax did not recharge well, his first night on the Nemesis. 

Where did things go wrong? What happened to his friend? How could he do this to their world, a world that Ratchet loved so much? 

--

IDK I just think “Warlord Ratchet” is an incredible idea, and I would have been totally fine if they did a whole season of TFP with the Orion Pax concept lmao 

also holy shit Ratchet in a built up fortress of a former hospital with a band of marauders under his command is such a powerful mental image 

[Screenshot: TFP Episode - Orion Pax, Part One] 

#tfp #transformers prime #megatronus #megatron #tfp megatron #tfp orion pax #orion pax #tf ratchet #tfp ratchet #maccadam #maccadams #warlord ratchet #me thinkin out loud again #long post

[statementends]

So who do we think is listening?

Last time of course it seemed like the tape recorders were beholding aligned, but turned out to be the Web using the Beholding's need to archive against it.

We're in a new universe now and a new story with new motives behind the recordings. They're just as sinister as the old ones, but now with internet access in a world where everything has internet.

The spying on the employees of the OIAR certainly aligns with Eye Powers, but it might be a redherring. What if the spying is done by humans this time?

Like, oh spooky the technology is listening into them oooo~~~~ but that sort of technology has been around for a long time. The tape recorders were 'analogue.' They turned themselves on and off, but the computers and phones, and things attached to the internet? That happens in real life right now. Someone can hack your computer and gain access to your web cam. We're in sketchy government department of literal horror. Let's tap everyone's phones!

To what end? Probably something that started as 'for the greater good' and has become a monster of its own.

Time for some conspiracy theories!

So. Here's another question. Was the Magnus Archives listened to by someone in the TMAGP universe? Is that why the OIAR was made? Because they heard the tapes and what happened and have used Jon, Martin, and Jonah(?)'s voices to, with a mixture of horror magic and technology, be able to find incidences.

I'm assuming the Voices in the computer are reading out the real statements. Maybe The Archivist's Voice is doing it automatically. It Knows everything all the time but that's useless if you can't see or search for the information. Whoever built the program needed a way to use the Knowing. So it puts in the data and the Archvist sorts it. Archive gotta archive.

My theory is the Archvist's voice is being used as a tool rather than having any agency or mind.

The OIAR needs to find and document horrors. You have three beholding alligned entities trapped in magnetic tape. You put them in a computer program and boom. You have things that can start monitoring the data you're already stealing from citizens and weed out the real horror from the fake ones.

I wonder if this time corporations and governments will be more overtly trying to use and control the dread powers. Like rather than cults and worship it will be people trying to bend the dread powers toward their own end.

Because the biggest question is, if the Voices are sorting real statements, and someone is listening in part for that reason, then what do they do when real ones are found?

Guess we'll see!

Oh and one more thing. It's called the Magnus Protocol

A protocol is the official procedure or system of rules governing affairs of state.

So when something happens, the protocol gets put into place.

So what is the Magnus Protocol? Is it to do with finding the TMA tapes? Or does it have to do with what the Magnus Insitute of this universe was doing with children (see the ARG).

So like Jon was actually the Magnus Archives, is Sam going to be a part of the Magnus Protocol?

Only time will tell.

#tmagp #tmagp spoilers #feel free to reblog and discuss #statementends conspiracy board #the magnus protocol

[popatochisssp]

Hi!! If the Papyri are knights what are the Sanses? Also you should totally make an AU of this, you beautiful brain

You have no idea, none of you have any idea how absolutely insane I went about this goofy little one-off AU concept

...Some of you have an idea. And some of you maybe know me well enough to have just guessed I would go off the rails the way I have lol

Anyway, this is the first, but absolutely not the last of The Court AU:

Sans (Undertale): The court jester, in possession of a quick wit and a cutting sense of humor and with no desire to let either go to waste. He’s much beloved at court and prides himself on his ability to make even the stuffiest of courtiers chuckle with his jokes and pranks—and his jester’s privilege makes him nigh untouchable to those who somehow aren’t amused by him. It’s a good life…

Papyrus (Undertale): A proud knight of the kingdom and a member of the Royal Guard! Er…well…eventually, he will be. The Captain won’t make him a full member of the Guard until he’s proven his valor through a series of knightly quests…but she won’t tell him what the quests are, so he travels the kingdom as a knight-errant, helping those in need and solving problems that may or may not have needed solving! You’re welcome, good citizens!

Sky (Underswap Sans): A squire, or knight-in-training, attendant to the Captain of the Guard until he properly earns his own knighthood. …Frankly, he’s already capable and qualified to be a knight now, but he’s aware that the Captain has some reservations regarding his health and is hesitating to just give him the job because of it. He fully intends to prove himself to her in the line of active duty, and someday be recognized as a fully-fledged knight of the realm.

Paps (Underswap Papyrus): The court archivist, most at home amidst shelves of tomes and records and far away from the social obligations of the court itself. He tracks and preserves all kind of documents, from agricultural reports to genealogies to romantic poetry, and is on call to locate specific texts for any nobles or otherwise literate folks seeking to reference them. It gets a bit musty sometimes but he wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Jasper (Underfell Sans): A mercenary, traveling the kingdom in search of people to sell his sword to for a bit of coin—and then traveling in search of satisfying ways to spend that coin. He does occasionally venture outside the kingdom for both of these things, but he has quite a few connections to well-paying opportunities within the borders, so as much as he avoids putting down roots, he tends not to stray too far from ‘home.’

Pyre (Underfell Papyrus): A knight in the Royal Guard, touted as a black knight for the scorched and stained armor he wears—a marker of the many deadly, heroic feats he’s conquered. No quest is too dangerous, no enemy too great for him to overcome, and he bravely takes on what lesser knights fear to risk. He’s quite accomplished dealing with dragons, and wildfires, and even mages, who always seem to cast fireballs and…well, perhaps that’s the reason his armor is so blackened…

Mal (Swapfell Sans): Personal guard to the Empress herself, nominally part of the Royal Guard as well but far from the front-lines of battle as his duty to her highness’ safety comes first and foremost. He’s involved in a lot of the structuring and scheduling of patrols for the lower ranking guardsmen, and his opinion is often sought in matters of state and military, but his primary concern is accompanying the Empress wherever she goes, or standing post just outside the door. Only on rare occasions does anyone else fill his role, and that’s just the way he likes it.

Rus (Swapfell Papyrus): He’s a nobleman who used his wealth and free time to pursue a passion in painting. His passion paid off in the form of a bit of notoriety for his work and several offers of patronage from other nobility seeking portraits and frescoes and the like done in his hand. …Or as he sees it, rich people paying him to do what he loves instead of some sort of actual job. As long as he can comfortably afford his paints, he’s happy.

Slate (Horrortale Sans): He’s a stableman at the queen’s castle, looking after the horses and hunting dogs kept there. He isn’t as quick as he used to be, and his memory hasn’t been the same since his head injury, but he was graciously employed elsewhere rather than dismissed and it’s…fine. Well enough, at least. It’s dirty and often thankless work, but he is fond of the animals, and much prefers their company to anyone else.

Papy (Horrortale Papyrus): He’s a medic in service to the knights of the Royal Guard. He actually used to be among their number…sort of��but there were some changes, in his life, and his eye-sight isn’t really what it used to be anyway, and… Well! He spent some time learning from the court physician and got very interested in ways to treat illness and injury. He’s not as skilled and knowledgeable as a full-fledged healer but he’s happily on hand for minor training accidents and sicknesses or injuries in those coming back from patrols. He loves to be able to help!

Ash (Undergloom Sans): A musician who plays his trusty horn for the court during all the feasts and festivals. He’s only one player of many but enough of a talent to be selected for the job and pleased that his music should entertain the king and queen and all their noble guests. It’s not the most glorious of positions but he’s happy enough doing it and lives well for his station.

Yrus (Undergloom Papyrus): Head cook in the castle kitchens, a station he worked up to from the bottom as a lowly kitchen boy. He has a lot of experience making meals for the royal couple and for all the nobles that regularly attend court gatherings and he knows how to give the people what they want. There are several other cooks and kitchen attendants that work with him but it’s his job to make decisions and keep everything running smoothly, which keeps him busy but happily so.

Brick (Horrorfell Sans): He sticks exclusively to the royal court these days, not as a hired sword but as a wealthy and rakish duke of the kingdom. His brother gave him the title and it’d be stupid not to take advantage of the perks—though he does have to earn them. He’s less a hired sword now and more a hired axe, performing the duty of the royal executioner whenever he’s called upon to do so. No need to wear a hood, everyone knows who he is and what he does to enemies of the crown.

King (Horrorfell Papyrus): The king of the castle, in a very literal sense. Some may call him a usurper or a traitor to the crown to have seized the throne for himself without proper claim… and for those people he arranges a meeting between their necks and his brother’s blade. He seized the throne because he’s loyal to the crown and the queen he deposed was wearing it quite poorly. If he could, he would’ve stepped down by now and given way to the true queen, but the people have been through enough upheaval—so he will remain as their king, as long as is necessary.

Merc (Horrorswap Sans): A cursed king who lives an austere, lonely life in a desolate castle by the sea. He fled from his true realm in disgrace and now awaits an end to his curse or his shame—whichever comes first—in the ruins of a fallen kingdom as degraded as he is. He doesn’t expect to be found, or saved from the curse that his own choices wrought upon him, and just tries to bear his fate with the grace expected of him.

Ell (Horrorswap Papyrus): Prince-errant of his kingdom, meant to be ruling his people but instead gallivanting off across the countryside in search of his missing brother. He wants to find him and know he’s well about as much as he doesn’t want to go back and be the ruler of a kingdom, for which he was never properly trained and is wholly unprepared! Maybe in his search and his hardships, he can find the strength and maturity to do what the kingdom needs him to do…but he’s not there yet, and finding his brother is his priority.

Pitch (Horrorswapfell Sans): Every knight in the Royal Guard is hand-picked and trained by him. He held a high office among the guardsmen once, but a severe injury put him out of commission and without his sight, he was no longer fighting fit, as they say. Still, his strength and his skill didn’t abandon him and while he could be a liability on the battlefield, he’s nothing less than a powerful asset when it comes to training the knights up to his own exacting standards. Only the best make it through his gauntlet.

Nemo (Horrorswapfell Papyrus): He walks the wall of the castle at night, standing guard for any threats to the kingdom that might otherwise go unseen. He takes his duty very seriously and refuses to let any night pass without a watchman on duty, even in foul weather or nights of great feasts and festivals. His vigilance has protected the kingdom from many a threat and he feels certain that his job is of much higher importance than any frivolous pastimes he absorbed himself in before.

Sunny (Gastertale Sans): A courtier of…mysterious origin. He’s often at court, making conversation and telling colorful stories to anyone whose ear he can snatch—and he manages to snatch quite a few—but no one can manage to figure out quite where he came from or what he ought to be doing. Mostly, he entertains himself and others with various leisurely pursuits, games, hunts, dances, songs, and as such he’s a well-liked person at court…wherever he came from.

Aster (Gastertale Papyrus): Another man of mystery who appeared at court on the heels of his brother, though far less flamboyantly. He’s obviously a learned man, well-educated and well-spoken, and though he wasn’t as warmly embraced by the courtiers at large, he was eventually welcomed into the king’s confidence as a royal advisor. The backing of the king being what it is, he’s accepted and respected as probably some sort of nobleman, regardless of his unclear origin, and continues to advise the king on matters of state.

Spectr (Transcendtale Sans): A wanderer, uprooted from his life and former kingdom and left to walk the land in search of meaning. Some say his kingdom was destroyed but for a small handful of survivors. Some say he turned to dark magic and sold his soul for the chance. to take revenge on the one who desolated his home. Some say he’s ageless, bones turned to cold iron and chest empty of breath to contain the power he now holds. …They’re all right. But his quest is long over, and all that’s left to do now is wander.

PapAIrus (Transcendtale Papyrus): He’s a proud knight of the kingdom! He may not have been in the Royal Guard when he was tragically cut down before his time, but he did come back from death as a ghostly semblance of himself at the same time everyone else did—and when your Captain is no longer worried that you might get yourself killed in battle because you already did, promotions are in order! So, he now serves his phantom kingdom as a phantom knight, valiantly and eagerly, but of course, taking time every now and then to visit his (mostly) living family member, to keep him from brooding too hard.

Xanth (Ascendswap Sans): It’s…slightly unclear what he does. He’s seemed strange for a time, a bit touched, but the queen seems to hold him in high esteem and never fails to consult him (among others) before any major decisions are made. Sometimes he’ll appear in unusual places with cryptic messages, or look into peoples’ eyes and divine their intentions (should they be ill ones), and for all this, though he holds no specific title, he’s at least informally called the court mystic. There are rumors that his strangeness and that of those closest to him is because he made contact and some sort of bargain with the faefolk…but those are surely just rumors.

Piper (Ascendswap Papyrus): The royal falconer, primary trainer, keeper, and handler of all the hawks and falcons owned by the queen. It wasn’t a job he was born into, but one he sought out of the blue one day, and he earned his way by demonstrating a remarkable affinity for the birds even prior to any training. By now he’s a figure of great respect for the command he has over the flighted beasts, and he happily demonstrates it during the queen’s feasts and king’s hunts.

Carmine (Underfell Fruition Sans): He’s earned his way at court with talent, performing dazzling displays of bullets and other magic for nobles and royals alike. He’s a standout from other such entertainers in that his well of magic never seems to run dry and he can keep showing off his juggling and his light shows and his dancing bullets from sun-up to sun-down without ever tiring. He doesn’t talk much about his life before coming to court, but he’s happy now so it’s just as well.

Tank (Underfell Fruition Papyrus): He was trained from a very young age to be a soldier, a paladin meant to fight in a holy war and raised to believe his greatest purpose was to die on the battlefield and bring glory to the cause. That all…never happened. He was freed from the grip of the zealots and reunited with the brother he hadn’t seen in ages, but then left at odds for what to do now—a warrior with no war to fight. Eventually he becomes apprenticed to a carpenter in town in the hopes of learning a trade to live on, and…he’s starting to be content.

Vi (Swapfell Fruition Sans): Spymaster to the crown, head of a small network of covert informants, assassins, thieves and the rest of their ilk. It was a career he…inherited…but also one he carried out diligently, carefully, and above all, secretly. At least, until his brother married and he left to join him in his new kingdom, where he serves much the same function at court—with the added responsibility of wrangling and occasionally nominally filling in for the crown prince. All according to plan.

Hunter (Swapfell Fruition Papyrus): He was in the same family business as his brother, but when he caught the eye of a visiting monarch and won an invitation to their kingdom, to marry, well… how could he refuse? And when, after an unsuspicious amount of time, his spouse is found dead under mysterious—but not too mysterious—circumstances, and no one from the proper line of succession seems to be coming to take their place… He really has no choice but to go from the prince consort to the crown prince, for the sake of his late spouse’s people. He’s far from a proper or responsible prince, and certainly has some kind of reputation, but he’s pleased enough with how everything’s going.

Kohl (Descendtale Sans): He minds the royal dungeons. It’s not what he started out doing, but somewhere along the way he lost the humor for anything else, and it’s as good a job as any. Not too many strangers make it into the kingdom these days, but plenty have foul intentions and it is something he takes some pride in, keeping watch over those ill-meaning outsiders and making sure they stay put, where they belong. He’s not the kindest of dungeon-keepers, but quite frankly, since when was ‘kindness’ part of that job description?

Bram (Descendtale Papyrus): His brother keeps the dungeon and he keeps the grounds. While a groundskeeper isn’t anything close to what he thought he’d want to be, a lot has happened—to him personally and to the kingdom as a whole—and well, he’s providing a very valuable service with his work, humble though it may be. Anyone with skin would have a horrid time pruning back all the wicked, cursed thorns that keep trying to consume the realm, and unchecked, they could probably run wild in less than a fortnight, where would they all be if he let that happen?

#anonymous #headcanons #court au #undertale #underswap #underfell #swapfell/fellswap #horrortale #undergloom #horrorfell #horrorswap #horrorswapfell #gastertale #transcendtale #ascendswap #underfell fruition #swapfell fruition #descendtale

[the-cosmos-withinus]

Shadow Puppets AU - The Collector “Astrophel” lore dump

-The Collector and the Archivists are physical manifestations of stars (If any of ya’ll have read Stardust by Neil Gaiman, or seen the movie, it’s a similar concept to the character Yvaine, just way more powerful) - Collector's siblings are called

 The Cataloger- who keeps records each and every lifeform that the Collector brings.

 The Assessor- who judges whether any lifeform is worth being preserved or wiped out.

The Preserver- who does the actual act of preserving the life deemed worthy by the Assessor.

The Archivist- The eldest who the entire species is named after, who keeps the preserved life and the records made by the Cataloger in a universal archive house, which the Collector bases his own Archive House on later

-He has limited Future Vision; he can’t tell anything about his own future and only vague predictions of others’, but he knows Pizza Bagels are coming and he is very excited about that -In the Shadow Puppets AU the Collector’s Tablet was sent to the Human Realm where it remained undisturbed for untold years -Previous to being uncovered by Philip, the Disk was initially found by Father Josiah, the Gravesfield Preacher who believed the Collector was an Evil entity, buried the Disk and warned the Colony to be wary of the Devil in the woods. -Only people who have touched the Tablet can see or hear the Collector, and he has a limited ability to affect things in the physical world -He has used this to limited ability to help Philip out of dangerous situations, leading the Colony to suspect that he has a Guardian Angel or has summoned a Demon. -During his friendship with Philip, the Collector decided to go by he/him pronouns and Philip helped him pick the name Astrophel. -Caleb was aware of Astrophel, whom they both believe is an Angel, so Caleb was at first supportive of their friendship until he met Evelyn and she warned him that the Collector is dangerous. -Caleb stole the Tablet and left for the Demon Realm with Evelyn, attempting to protect his brother and helped Evelyn hide the Disk in the Titan’s skull where no one would dare try to find it. -Many years later, Philip finally tracked Astrophel down and reunited with him with the help of ‘Luzura’, but when asked about Caleb, Philip simply told him Caleb was gone, and creating the Grimwalkers were actually Astrophel’s idea, to be a replacement for real Caleb until he came back -The Collector is not an innocent victim of Philip’s manipulations in this AU, he knows all about Philip’s plan to destroy the Boiling Isles and is a willing and gleeful participant- years of being wrongfully imprisoned have made him bitter and angry, and their mutual hatred of the Boiling Isles, as well as resentment toward their older Siblings for their perceived betrayals make both Astrophel and Philip feel vindicated by each other’s anger. The way Astrophel sees it, he did the time, he might as well commit the crime -Astrophel picked out the name ‘Belos’ for Philip’s new identity -He also aids in the deception of the citizens by using his limited influence in the physical world (which is stronger in the Demon Realm) to pose as the Titan by causing minor reactions to Belos’s commands, such as causing small Earthquakes when Belos speaks of the Titan’s wrath  -For better, or worse  (most often worst) they share one (1) braincell. Just a couple of charlatans planning to destroy the world together -Astrophel is aware that Philip is under a curse, but knows very little about what exactly his curse is and how it affects him (his job was to Collect creatures, not research them and the Archivist’s never got a hold of a Wendigo) . What he does know is that eating Palismen makes his friend feel better, so he should eat lots of them.  -I compared Philip to an addict in the linked Wendigo post, and Astrophel is an enabler

#Shadow Puppets AU #TOH Collector #I or my sister need to draw him in an oversized T-shirt that says 'Cute but Psycho' because that's it that's the AU #Just need a shirt for Philip/Belos to wear in the same pic #Lore post

[thefisherqueen]

I'm reading Letters from Watson's The Veiled Lodger today on this cloudy, quiet saturday morning. I'm so ready for the coming autumn! Give me rain, cold, long dark evenings to cuddle up in blankets and just do quiet things by myself. But I'll have to wait a while, it'll be sunny and warm again next week here in the Netherlands

When one considers that Mr. Sherlock Holmes was in active practice for twenty-three years Wish I could retire after only 23 years. I'd be halfway there already

There is the long row of year-books which fill a shelf, and there are the dispatch-cases filled with documents, a perfect quarry for the student, not only of crime, but of the social and official scandals of the late Victorian era. My librarian and social historian and archivist heart is fluttering at this

I deprecate, however, in the strongest way the attempts which have been made lately to get at and to destroy these papers. The source of these outrages is known, and if they are repeated I have Mr. Holmes's authority for saying that the whole story concerning the politician, the lighthouse and the trained cormorant will be given to the public. There is at least one reader who will understand. A very politely worded threat. Tread carefully, unknown citizen, I don't think that Watson will take kindly to any kind of danger regarding his dear Holmes. I do want to read about those buglary attempts, though. And certainly about the trained cormorant

But the most terrible human tragedies were often involved in these cases which brought him the fewest personal opportunities, and it is one of these which I now desire to record. So I'll need to prepare for a tragedy today? *grabs some tissues*

an elderly, motherly woman of the buxom landlady type What does that mean? *googles buxom landlady* Oh. Pretty much the only results are literal porn videos and erotic fiction novels. Not what I expected. Did Watson really just call her the victorian equavalent to a milf?

"This is Mrs. Merrilow, of South Brixton," said my friend, with a wave of the hand. "Mrs. Merrilow does not object to tobacco, Watson, if you wish to indulge your filthy habits. I hope Watson told Holmes to shut his nicotine stained mouth after this

Mrs. Merrilow has an interesting story to tell which may well lead to further developments in which your presence may be useful." "Anything I can do——" It's probably just a result of me looking up 'buxom', but this reads like the start of a porn script. Fucking hilarious

You say that Mrs. Ronder has been your lodger for seven years and that you have only once seen her face." "And I wish to God I had not!" said Mrs. Merrilow. "It was, I understand, terribly mutilated." Now that switches the mood around really quickly. Who did what to this poor lady's face

She seems to be wasting away. And there's something terrible on her mind. 'Murder!' she cries. 'Murder!' And once I heard her, 'You cruel beast! You monster!' she cried. It was in the night, and it fair rang through the house and sent the shivers through me. So I went to her in the morning. 'Mrs. Ronder,' I says, 'if you have anything that is troubling your soul, there's the clergy,' I says, 'and there's the police. Between them you should get some help.' 'For God's sake, not the police!' says she, 'and the clergy can't change what is past. And yet,' she says, 'it would ease my mind if someone knew the truth before I died.' I will really need those tissues, won't I? I like that women go to Holmes with their troubles, probably having heard from other women that he will be sympathetic and respectful and willing to help

Our visitor had no sooner waddled out of the room—no other verb can describe Mrs. Merrilow's method of progression Very, very unnecessairy addition, Watson

For a few minutes there was a constant swish of the leaves, and then with a grunt of satisfaction he came upon what he sought. So excited was he that he did not rise, but sat upon the floor like some strange Buddha, with crossed legs, the huge books all round him, and one open upon his knees. Holmes has the best poses

The caravan had halted for the night at Abbas Parva, which is a small village in Berkshire England really has the funniest place names

He was the rival of Wombwell, and of Sanger, one of the greatest showmen of his day. There is evidence, however, that he took to drink, and that both he and his show were on the down grade at the time of the great tragedy. A case of abuse in the world of show business, then

"They had among their exhibits a very fine North African lion. Sahara King was its name *does some reasearch* I learnt a new Thing. Apperently lions used to be quite common in north Africa. Since the 60's the local population is considered extinct in the wild. I guess, then, that it was the lion who attacked this woman

There was no other point of interest in the evidence, save that the woman in a delirium of agony kept screaming, 'Coward! Coward!' as she was carried back to the van in which they lived. Now that is curious. Did mr. Ronder assault the lion in some way, maybe, upon which it turned against them?

"I should think the whole camp was crying out by then. As to the other points, I think I could suggest a solution." "I should be glad to consider it." I think it is the first time so far that Watson comes up with his own theory? Keep doing that my dear :)

I fear I lied to him. Perhaps it would have been wiser had I told the truth." "It is usually wiser to tell the truth. But why did you lie to him?" "Because the fate of someone else depended upon it. I know that he was a very worthless being, and yet I would not have his destruction upon my conscience. We had been so close—so close!" Is she talking about her husband, which would make not much sense as he was already dead, or about someone else?

"You compliment me, madam. At the same time, I am a responsible person. I do not promise you that when you have spoken I may not myself think it my duty to refer the case to the police." Refreshing honesty from Holmes here

Reading is the only pleasure which Fate has left me, and I miss little which passes in the world. :(

"Those two pictures will help you, gentlemen, to understand the story. I think I know where this is going. Did ms. Ronder have an extramarrial affair with the strongman?

When I became a woman this man loved me, if such lust as his can be called love, and in an evil moment I became his wife. From that day I was in hell, and he the devil who tormented me. Husband was an abusive asshole

"Then Leonardo came more and more into my life. You see what he was like. I know now the poor spirit that was hidden in that splendid body, but compared to my husband he seemed like the Angel Gabriel. He pitied me and helped me, till at last our intimacy turned to love—deep, deep, passionate love, such love as I had dreamed of but never hoped to feel. So they did have an affair. But he was abusive, too. This is a very sad story

One night my cries brought Leonardo to the door of our van. We were near tragedy that night, and soon my lover and I understood that it could not be avoided. My husband was not fit to live. We planned that he should die. Murder! And then, after, the strongman also attempted to murder her? Oh, no, I think the lion was seen mauling her face. Something clearly went wrong

Leonardo could have saved me. If he had rushed forward and struck the beast with his club he might have cowed it. But the man lost his nerve. I heard him shout in his terror, and then I saw him turn and fly. That explains the shouting of 'coward!' Can't really blame the strongman for freaking out, though, that's a natural reaction

Its hot, filthy breath had already poisoned me and I was hardly conscious of pain. I think that was the adrealine, madam

When I came to myself, and saw myself in the mirror, I cursed that lion—oh, how I cursed him!—-not because he had torn away my beauty, but because he had not torn away my life. I had but one desire, Mr. Holmes, and I had enough money to gratify it. It was that I should cover myself so that my poor face should be seen by none, and that I should dwell where none whom I had ever known should find me. That was all that was left to me to do—and that is what I have done. A poor wounded beast that has crawled into its hole to die—that is the end of Eugenia Ronder." Very tragic. Cruel world, making her feel like she like she had to cover her face and hide away. The misogyny of it all. Is it really the worst thing that can happen to a woman, to get visible scars and deformities? Are our appearances really our whole worth? Men with scars are at least considered heroes. Women are just 'ugly'

But what of this man Leonardo?" "I never saw him or heard from him again. Perhaps I have been wrong to feel so bitterly against him. He might as soon have loved one of the freaks whom we carried round the country as the thing which the lion had left. She speaks with such loathing of herself. Horrible of Leonardo to abandon her

"Your life is not your own," he said. "Keep your hands off it." "What use is it to anyone?" "How can you tell? The example of patient suffering is in itself the most precious of all lessons to an impatient world." I will not cry I will not cry

Holmes held up his hand in a gesture of pity and protest What would that look like? I can't picture it

Two days later, when I called upon my friend, he pointed with some pride to a small blue bottle upon his mantelpiece. I picked it up. There was a red poison label. A pleasant almondy odour rose when I opened it. "Prussic acid?" said I. "Exactly. It came by post. 'I send you my temptation. I will follow your advice.' That was the message. I think, Watson, we can guess the name of the brave woman who sent it." She didn't! I'm so relieved. I need to believe she keeps in touch with Watson and Holmes and someday feels free to go outside unveiled

I made it without crying. Well, that was certainly a different kind of story than most of the other ones. Quite beautiful, though, it evoked some deep thoughts. I loved the ending

#letters from watson #sherlock holmes #the veiled lodger

[mountphoenixrp]

We have a new citizen in Mount Phoenix:

          Vitas Halvorsen, a 25 year old son of Odin.           He is an archivist at Phoenix Library & Museum.

FC NAME/GROUP:  Zhang Xincheng (Steven Zhang) CHARACTER NAME:  Vitas Halvorsen AGE/DATE OF BIRTH:  25 years.  Born April 1998. PLACE OF BIRTH:  Ásbyrgi Canyon, Iceland OCCUPATION:  Phoenix Library & Museum Archivist and Freelance Information Broker HEIGHT:  5'10"/177 cm WEIGHT: 146 pounds/66 kg DEFINING FEATURES:  Svelte figure somewhat emaciated in appearance, pitch black eyes that often have dark circles under them, silver-rimmed reading glasses, blind in his left eye, skin pale and very cold to the touch, old surgical scar mid-sternum, bruises easily, only wears black or white or grey, never wears color, med alert bracelet, smart watch for monitoring heart rate, indiscernible dialect.

PERSONALITY:  Vitas was born with a hole in his heart and it shows.  His time is precious and he will not waste it on something or someone he interprets as inconsequential, so he often comes off as cold and uninterested.  It is extremely difficult for him to make lasting connections with others due to a general distrust in people and he is an exceedingly guarded person; however, once he does make a meaningful connection, his loyalty is without fault considering the painstakingly complicated levels one must break through in order to achieve such a status with him.  A smile from Vitas is extremely rare.  He prefers people who are honest and direct with him rather than those who use superficial speech and flattery.  However, he does have a secret passion for poetry and someone truly heartless would not be able to write such beautiful prose…right?  Oddly enough, he seems to have a strong affinity with ravens, wolves, and horses.  He does not hesitate to vocalize his frustrations, but he does so with an eerily calm demeanor.  He will also not hesitate to bluntly correct someone when they are wrong or confront them for lying.  There is only one thing he fears and death is NOT it.  Very rarely does he raise his voice, mostly speaking with a monotonous and almost mechanical baritone.  Vitas is OBSESSED with learning everything that he possibly can, from reading books, to studying online, to people-watching.  To hear him speak the words “I don’t know” would be a rare feat.  He strongly advocates AGAINST gatekeeping knowledge of any kind and if he has the answer to a question, then he will give it; if he does not have an answer, then he will find it.  Has this been known to cause a bit of chaos?  Absolutely.  Does he care?  Not one bit.

He is VERY particular about routine and is an extremely clean and organized person.  It is common to see him with a cup of coffee which he really should not be drinking due to his heart condition, but if he is sleeping then he is not reading.  However, even when he sleeps, he maintains lucidity, relives memories and reviews information while dreaming.  He is able to recall every second of his life since the moment of his birth.  Because he is so transfixed on studying, he often forgets to eat and will only grab a quick bite when he remembers or just so he does not take his medicine on an empty stomach.  He is insanely efficient with regard to research and finding the desired answers, practically a living Google search engine.  Physically, his health is tragically fragile, but he is extremely resourceful.

HISTORY:   [Trigger warnings–Death, murder, violence, gore, torture, sexual assault, child abandonment, cannibalism]

Adelheid Halvorsen was hiking with her sister Marta to see the Northern Lights, celebrating her recent retirement.  In the still of the Wednesday night, amid the silence of the cold, neither expected to hear the squawking of ravens.  They scrambled in the dark to find the lifeless body of what had once been a beautiful woman, her throat slit and eyes being plucked out by two large, black birds.  Beside her, an infant barely even clothed with a blood-stained blanket was almost as pale as the snow upon which he had fallen, still and silent.  While Marta shooed away the ravens and checked the woman for a pulse, Adelheid gathered the baby and examined him.  Finding him to be alive and the mother dead, the siblings rushed to the nearest town for medical assistance and police were dispatched to the scene.  It was a miracle the newborn was alive–not just from surviving cold exposure within hours of his birth, but also he had been born with a hole in his heart which prompted a prolonged admission to the NICU.  Upon discovering the mother’s identity, her own parents underwent a gruesome investigation.  They confessed their daughter had not wanted the child and had tried everything to rid herself of the fetus.  When the baby was born, she wanted nothing to do with it yet did not want to be tied to it in any way; if she could not kill the child, then she would let nature do it for her and leave the newborn in the freezing canyon to die.  Her killer, however, was never caught.

Never had she expected that in her retirement she would become a mother, but after learning the newborn’s own grandparents were despicable monsters themselves, Adelheid offered to adopt the boy after having no children of her own.  She named him Vitas, meaning “life-giving”.  Vitas was a very quiet and withdrawn child which was often attributed to his physical ailment, having undergone several operations as an infant.  Before the age of three, it was apparent to Adelheid that she had a prodigy on her hands because Vitas learned things at a frighteningly fast pace and was fiercely independent.  She likened living with him to having a very intelligent but finicky cat for a roommate.  While others were often unnerved by his presence and despite his biological grandparents insisting he was an abomination, Adelheid still loved him and reminded Vitas of this each night.  It was important to her that he understood he was loved–because a monster was not a monster when it was loved.  He could read, speak in full sentences, and had a nearly breathtaking knack for writing exquisite poetry for someone so young; in fact, he seemed wise far beyond his years and remembered everything with astounding accuracy.  Adelheid discovered fairly early on that the boy could not see out of his left eye which doctors attributed to a blockage in the vessels they had missed during one of his many procedures.  Due to his physical limitations, he spent most of his time indoors with his nose buried in a book.  However, she also noticed he did not have interest in playing with her grandnieces and grandnephews his own age.  He had no interest in making friends at school or on the playground, more interested in playing Chess and Go with the old men at the park or frequenting the library; but the only company he truly cared about was Adelheid.  She was the only person who mattered in his world. 

And then she was gone.  At the age of ten, Vitas woke to find Adelheid unresponsive on the bathroom floor.  She had been so concerned about his health that she had neglected her own warning signs, thinking the pressure in her chest was just heartburn.  Despite his best efforts with chest compressions, Vitas and the paramedics were unable to revive her.  After the frail boy over-exerted himself trying to save Adelheid, Vitas himself suffered a cardiac episode that landed him another extended hospital stay.  He blamed himself for Adelheid’s death–if he hadn’t been asleep, then he would have seen the signs, could have caught it early, could have saved her.  Suddenly, there was no one left to love him, no one left to tell Vitas that he was not a monster.  His grandparents still wanted nothing to do with him.  Marta took custody of Vitas, but was deeply unnerved by the boy’s closed-off demeanor and struggled to connect with him, especially since she was very outgoing and enjoyed her social life as well as time with her own children and grandchildren.  Vitas became more like a shadow of a person and she often forgot he was there due to his quiet and independent nature.

Marta barely noticed that Vitas learned languages quickly; his excuse was that he wanted to learn everything and he could not do that if he did not understand the language the information was in.  When his teachers began suggesting to Marta that he skip grades due to his intelligence, she finally took note of him.  He became more of a commodity to her, just a way to get attention from people by bragging about his academic accomplishments, but she still treated him more as an obligatory guest than family.  He graduated high school at the age of twelve and was accepted to Bifröst University to study linguistics.  However, as a minor, he required a legal guardian and Marta was unwilling to move but also unwilling to part with the accolades that came with having a young genius, so her son took physical custody of the boy while Marta remained his official guardian.  Her son, Jakoby, was not a pleasant person.  He did not like how Vitas always corrected him and called out his blatant lies; he didn’t like how Vitas never laughed or showed any emotion; he didn’t like how Vitas required so much medical maintenance; he didn’t like that his mother was more interested in Vitas’s accomplishments than his own; but he DID like how pretty Vitas was.  And with how weak the boy was, it wasn’t like he could fight against the assaults of a full grown man.

Until he did fight back.  The first night, he was a victim.  The second night, he studied.  The third night, it was his turn to teach Jakoby a lesson.  After inducing a cardiac episode at school, he stole ketamine from the hospital along with other supplies including a scalpel which he snuck out in his backpack.  He made a quick stop at the grocery for other ingredients and returned home.  That evening, Jakoby wondered why the kitchen floor was covered in plastic tarps just as he felt the sharp prick of a needle in his thigh.  He fell to the floor, still conscious but paralyzed and unable to speak.  Vitas had no expression on his face as he flipped the man over, removed his clothes, and proceeded to castrate him with surgical precision, coldly describing every cut along the way with a heartless monotone.  Feeling the man’s blood oozing onto his hands had been the first time those fingers had felt warm since before Adelheid’s death.  Once he had sutured the wounds, he taped Jakoby’s wrists and legs together and nonchalantly prepared a pot of dumplings out of his minced genitals which he then proceeded to feed to his tearful and fearful abuser once the sedative had worn off.  Vitas informed Jakoby that if he ever told anyone what had happened, if he ever touched Vitas again, then Vitas would kill him, that Vitas already had complete access to his bank accounts, his emails, knew enough about his work and work relationships to imitate him without anyone being the wiser.  His studies and adolescence continued without further incident from Jakoby, who now feared the little monster under his roof and could tell no one.

Once graduating with a Bachelor’s in Linguistics at the age of fourteen, Vitas continued his education to obtain his Master’s and ultimately his Doctorate, graduating summa cum laude at the age of 21.  Because of his fluency in several languages, the university hired him as a translator, putting him to work not just with classes traveling to other countries, but also with upgrading their website to multiple languages in order to reach a broader variety of students outside of Iceland; he even taught English to several business professors and did some private tutoring on the side for other languages.  While he was at it, might as well digitalize the entire university library and learn computer code for fun.  Who knew hacking would be so easy?  And boring, honestly.  But what he found to be most satisfying as well as lucrative was selling information.  People wanted to know very personal and private details that may be difficult to obtain, but Vitas rose to the challenge and excelled.  Studying international law would be beneficial, too, so that was next on his list.  Several successful predictions regarding financial investments landed him quite the substantial albeit secret wealth that he merely used to fund further research.  While accompanying a class to serve as translator in South Korea, Vitas noticed a pair of large ravens nearly everywhere he went.  Despite having been born only hours before their first meeting, he recognized the pair immediately, recalled the night he had been found in the canyon, recalled how it had been their talons that had slashed his mother’s throat, had been the ones to draw Adelheid near to find him.  Once the class had boarded the plane to return to Iceland, he noticed the ravens still on the wing of the craft and took it as a sign.  He excused himself, took his luggage, and followed the birds to a bridge.  That bridge led him to Mount Phoenix and ultimately the truth behind his heritage when the ravens, Huginn and Muninn, told him the identity of his father and Vitas found a new home as well as an opportunity to learn from the gods themselves.

PANTHEON:  Norse CHILD OF:  Odin POWERS: 

Rapid Integration–Vitas is able to absorb information near-instantly.  Once learned, it’s in his memory for life.

Total Recall–With a perfect memory, all information Vitas has ever learned can be recalled with frightening accuracy.  In fact, he can even recall the moment he was born.

Muscle Memory–Much like his mind, his muscles are able to recall any physical move he makes; however, due to his health, he is very weak with poor endurance or stamina.

STRENGTHS:  

Resourceful–Vitas is quite astute in using his surroundings, knowledge, and people to complete any task.

Intelligent–Due to his eidetic memory, he recalls everything he has ever learned.

Omniglot–Due to his ability to learn things almost instantly, he speaks and reads many languages including Icelandic, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Dutch, English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Greek, Portuguese, Latin, Romanian, Russian, Korean, Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese, Thai, Braille, Morse Code, and sign language (American and Chinese).  He is ALWAYS in the process of mastering a new language.

Master Strategist–He is able to calculate moves far in advance, making him exceptionally good at correctly predicting what someone will do or how they will react; he is also quite adept at Go and Chess.

Puzzle Wizard–Vitas can solve most riddles, puzzles, cryptographs, and mysteries within moments.  He actually loves a good challenge.

WEAKNESSES:  

Paranoid–Due to past experiences, he is not at all trusting of people and often suspects everyone around him to have ulterior motives.

Standoffish–Vitas is not a friendly person; he comes off as cold and distant and is not a fan of idle chatter or schmoozing for the sake of connecting with strangers.

Obsessive–If something strikes his interest, he HAS to thoroughly research it, be it a book or a person; they are one in the same.

Stubborn–Once he sets his mind to something, it is nearly impossible to change it.

Physically Weak–His mental capacity may be formidable, but his body is significantly frail; easy fatigability. 

#cpop rp #crp #steven zhang #zhang xincheng #mp; welcome

[stanley578]

Sharing my thoughts on/recapping the events of Watching and Dreaming

Holy shit!!! Where the hell do I even begin?! What a fucking epic series finale!! Dana Terrace and her team went out with a bang and knocked it out of the park. It was an intense rollercoaster of emotions that got me on the edge of my seat.

I was right when I said Luz is living in a nightmare set up by the Collector, but thank goodness it didn't last long because she managed to escape it by using the light glyph. And it's also thanks to her good memory about the correct Good Witch Azura quote that she said to Amity back at the Covention. She eventually reunited with Eda and King at a giant Rubik's cube after using the light glyphs to get them out of their nightmares.

It got me worried when the Collector confirmed to Belos that King is a Titan and that Titan's magic cancels out the Collector's and further told him about the heart that's still beating. It unfortunately gave him the idea to possess the Titan's heart, a theory that has been floating around for several months and is now confirmed.

Luz, Eda, and King managed to beat the Collector's games, Pac-Man, marbles, and Jenga, resulting in him to give up and cry on a corner. As Luz tried to comfort the Collector, he told his story that made me sympathize with him and despise his siblings with every fibre of my being.

The Archivists basically pulled a Pink Diamond on him with "a game of hide-and-seek". They made him go to the Boiling Isles to see the baby Titans who were welcoming towards him. However, the Archivists were scared of the Titans' powers so they killed them and the Collector was wrongfully locked up in the in-between realm by Papa Titan. That made me believe that the Archivists set him up by having him face the consequences for something he didn't do. The Collector's feelings of loneliness, insecurity, and being misunderstood resonated with the trio and they decided to tell him their story of how they became friends.

Raine was no longer a puppet and struggled but managed to get rid of Belos off their body and did their absolute best to stop him from reaching the Titan's heart using their bard magic. However, with just a small amount of goop, Belos ended up merging with the heart and started corrupting the entire Boiling Isles.

In the archives, Puppet Amity got to carve the light glyph on the floor, turning her, Willow, Gus, and Hunter back to normal. All of them witnessed every citizen, including Camila, as puppets.

The trio took the Collector to the Grudgby arena and the Knee as they talked about their past adventures that made them grow into who they are now and taught him about real friendship. The Collector began to learn how wrong it is to force people to do things he wants, as well as the concept of kindness and forgiveness. That right there was the starting point of the Collector's character growth and I love it so much. The 4 of them heard rumbling and breathing as the Titan's eye lights up and they realized that it's Belos.

Can I just say how fucking magnificent Matthew Rhys delivered the line as Titan Belos? He definitely captured the evil embodiment and the sadistic nature of that manipulative motherfucker. The Collector flew up to Belos and used the lesson that he learned from the trio, but it obviously backfired. I'm so sorry, kid, but this ain't Steven Universe.

Luz protected the Collector from Belos's attack, causing her to be consumed by the mold and disintegrated into various balls of light. Eda and King were in complete shock to see Luz getting killed. The Collector was so desperate to bring Luz back, but it didn't work, causing him to learn the hard way that his powers can't revive mortals once they're dead. It took that serious loss for Eda and King to go into berserk mode with tears in their eyes and unleash attacks towards Belos.

The Hexside students and the Hex squad witnessed the balls of light floating up and it broke my heart to see puppet Camila crying as she sensed them, too.

In the in-between realm, Luz's soul was saved from drowning by none other than Papa Titan himself, voiced by Arin Hanson. She finally got to meet King's dad who has a glowing yellow left eye, a small Hooty on his right eye socket, wears a bathrobe, a Bad Girl Coven shirt, and glyph pajama bottoms. He was watching King all this time and those who have been kind to him. He also admitted that he imprisoned the Collector in a fit of blind rage while protecting the egg of King.

Papa Titan clarified that while Luz saving her loved ones comes from a genuine place, Belos only cares about himself, his goal to be a hero in his own delusion, and his fear of what he can't control. It brought me so much relief that Luz finally understood the difference between her and Belos. As Belos was about to have full control of the corpse, Papa Titan has decided to use what's left of his life to help Luz defeat Belos once and for all in return for being kind and helpful to King. He even relayed to Luz his message for King which would be revealed later.

Camila was brought back to normal by the Hex squad's light glyph, but they couldn't do magic to save everyone because they haven't had any rest for days, so Camila aided them by drawing glyphs so they can use glyph magic.

Back at the Boiling Isles, the Collector noticed that his hands were infected by the mold. He started to feel empathy, remorse, and grief, experiencing tears coming out of his eyes for the first time. As Belos was about to deliver the final blow, the Collector, Eda, and King were protected by a giant shield. It turns out that Luz has been revived with a badass-looking Titan/witch form. Overjoyed that they're reunited once again, Luz then used magic like a witch for the first and only time with the help of Eda and King to fight off the corruption. This was where the animation style became fluid which I absolutely adore.

The Collector made his way to the archive house to save everyone and used his powers to prevent it from falling. The trio rescued Raine, which made me so relieved that they're okay. Then they went to the Titan's heart where Belos is located. Luz used magic once more to make her way up to the heart and rip Belos out with all her strength. Raine, Eda, and King worked together to fight off the mold and Luz delivers a monologue inspired by her hyperfixation.

"Do not underestimate me, Belos. For I am the Good Witch Luz, child of the human realm, student of the demon realm, and warrior of peace. NOW EAT THIS, SUCKA!!!"

This scene right here is the most powerful shot I've ever seen in this series. Luz successfully removed Belos from the heart, undoing all of his moldy corruption that turned into ashes and faded away. The entire area of the isles remained unscathed, though the Titan's placement was adjusted as a result of Belos's possession.

Belos made one final attempt of manipulation by shapeshifting into Philip Shittybitch and trying to convince Luz that he "freed" her from the "curse" that "made him do all the horrible things". Luz did not buy any of his bullshit and suddenly, the boiling rain made him melt into the ground while Luz is immune from that. At that point, he still believed that witches are evil instead of admitting that he's the evil one.

Seeing Belos getting curbstomped by Eda, King, and Raine was extremely satisfying as fuck. Now that his reign of terror has ended for good, the Boiling Isles has become peaceful once again and wild magic is no longer outlawed. King finally saw his dad after his spirit exited Luz's body. King got to hear from Luz the message from his dad: "I loaf you". The trio laid on the grass as all their efforts to thwart Belos's plans have finally paid off.

Watching and Dreaming did something that Change Your Mind from Steven Universe failed to do. It is the fact that not everyone deserves forgiveness and kindness and not everyone can be reasoned with. I read that the criticism of the latter is how unrealistic it is to change everyone's minds. For someone like Belos who is an irredeemable and deluded lost cause filled with unreasonable hatred due to following an outdated and hateful ideology, it is only fair to have his existence completely annihilated as retribution for manipulating the populace with his lies, killing thousands of witches and demons, consuming palismen, attempting a mass murder, mortally wounding Flapjack, and being a complete threat to the Boiling Isles.

The Collector finally got everyone's approval after Amity reached out her hand to help him get up. Everyone reunited with their families after the Collector turned them back to normal. We got to see Amity's reunion with Alador, Gus's reunion with Perry, Willow's reunion with Gilbert and Harvey, the onscreen kiss between the latter two, and Hunter's reunion with Darius and Eberwolf.

I'd like to think that Odalia, Kikimora, Hettie, Mason, Osran, Vitimir, Terra, and Adrian get publicly cancelled by everyone for being accomplices of Belos and his attempted mass murder. Even after being turned back to normal, the 3 coven heads didn't change their ways as they attempted to take over the throne, but Darius and Eberwolf stopped them from doing so. They were like, "Hell no! Fuck off, you 3! We won't let you repeat history".

Back at the owl house, we got to see a second onscreen kiss between Luz and Amity, Camila finally meeting Eda, the Collector turning Hooty back to normal, and Lilith's reunion with Hooty. The Collector gave Francois back to King, but King gave it back to him as something to remember him by, hugging him and whispering, "I hope I see you again". It was a touching moment between them as the Collector finally found a real friend. The Collector decided to go back to the stars to do some growing up and soul searching. While Luz was saddened that the glyphs no longer work due to the passing of Papa Titan, she remained hopeful as it marked the beginning of a new chapter.

4 years later, Luz enrolled in all majors at the University of Wild Magic. We see photos of more adventures in the human realm pinned on the board, including the high school graduation photo of Luz and Vee, as well as a writing scholarship signed by Dana Terrace.

The old house is now owned by the Nocedas and has been completely renovated with a brand new portal that allows travel between realms. As Owlbert flies freely, the credits started to roll and we got to see the awesome timeskip designs of every character and the revelations of other characters in a democratic Boiling Isles.

Willow has short hair, a new pair of glasses, and an Emerald Entrails top.

A teenage Braxas is a healing and beast-keeping student.

Hunter, who is a Palisman carver, no longer has bags under his eyes as he's finally happy, he gets good amounts of sleep, and he has a blue jay palisman named Waffles.

A gravestone to commemorate Flapjack.

Lilith oversees the renovation of the Bonesborough Library and finally acquires a harpy form.

Amity has a badass ponytail.

Skara and Barcus are now teachers at Hexside.

Principal Bump has retired from Hexside and is now a gardener.

Alador has invented a machine and worked with healing witches to remove coven sigils which turned out to be successful.

Darius and Alador might be in a relationship, as hinted by Darius's blushing.

Raine sports white hair and has a fox palisman.

The Keeper of the Looking Glass Graveyard and Edric are professors of the University of Wild Magic.

Gus has dreadlocks and is in charge of an exchange program between the Demon and Human Realms.

Eda sports a pirate hook and is the headmaster of the University of Wild Magic.

King appears taller and his horns appear slightly longer.

Vee, Camila, and Luz arrived at the Boiling Isles and everyone surprised her with a King-ceañera as a way to make up for Luz's 15th, 16th, and 17th birthdays after she contributed to rebuilding the Isles for 3 years.

King has acquired the ability to empower glyph magic, albeit with a new language for Luz to learn. King brought Luz to the edge of a cliff as the Collector created a light show of shooting stars. Luz thanked Eda and King for their neverending support. As the light show is about to be over, Luz and everyone gave a one big "BYEEE!!!" to the sky and audience, bringing the series to an end.

To wrap up this long-ass blog, I would just like to say a huge thank you to Dana Terrace and her team for creating a show with a compelling narrative, character development, lore, worldbuilding, representation of neurodiversity, and most importantly, LGBTQ+ representation.

This show has changed a lot of lives with its subject matter that not a lot of cartoons have the courage to depict and it makes viewers feel seen, heard, and validated.

The entire voice cast did a spectacular job in bringing life to the characters that we love and hate. I wish them all the best in their future endeavours. 

It’s also thanks to The Owl House that I got to discover the following wonderful reactors on YouTube:

alyciadweeb

BFLReacts

Darqui

Director Nat

EdDaWiz

IAmZamber

Krystalogy Reacts

MikeyVenture

Morgan Terry

Not-So-Average-Fangirl

TheFlamingShark

thethirdbill

Wee Lass Reacts

ZachReacts

It is such a tremendous shame that we won’t get to see the origins of the Bat Queen, what happened to the palistrom seed that Dell gave to Eda, the sibling relationship between Matt and Steve, and many more storylines due to Disney’s cancellation of the show and their shortening of season 3.

Looking at the bright side, the wait for the series finale was totally worth it and I’m glad it ended on a satisfying note.

Titan bless you all! 💖🏳️‍🌈✌️

#the owl house #toh #the owl house season 3 #toh season 3 #watching and dreaming #series finale #thoughts #recap #thank you dana terrace and the owl crew

[rhetoricandlogic]

The Revolution Will Be Livestreamed: Nicole Kornher-Stace’s Firebreak

The Revolution Will Be Livestreamed: Nicole Kornher-Stace’s Firebreak

The Revolution Will Be Livestreamed: Nicole Kornher-Stace’s Firebreak

The Revolution Will Be Livestreamed: Nicole Kornher-Stace’s Firebreak

The Revolution Will Be Livestreamed: Nicole Kornher-Stace’s Firebreak

Molly Templeton

Wed May 19, 2021 2:00pm

If you’ve not yet read Nicole Kornher-Stace’s novels Archivist Wasp and Latchkey, I’d like to strongly encourage you to do so. It’s not because they’re connected to Firebreak—to my surprise and delight, they are, though Firebreak is a standalone—but because they’re just so good. Immersive, dark, vivid, imaginative and eerie, they follow one young woman in a post-apocalyptic world where her task is two-pronged: survive, and catch ghosts.

Firebreak is set in a world not yet turned totally apocalyptic—but close. In 2134, two corporations run what used to be the U.S. Stellaxis and Greenleaf are in perpetual conflict, and citizens are regularly caught in the middle, leaving shattered cities and families. Mallory is one of those orphaned by the war. She lives in a hotel room with a handful of other orphans, all scraping together an existence from odd jobs and whatnot, counting the gallons of water they’re allotted each week.

Mal’s world is a bleak magic-mirror version of ours, an all-too-believable extrapolation from the climate, political and otherwise, we live in. But we don’t have SecOps, the immersive game in which Mal spends much of her free time. Players in the expansive digital world stream their gameplay, earning fans and sponsors and gifts from those who watch. If they’re really lucky, they might stumble across one of the game’s celebrity NPCs, the digital counterparts of real-life soldiers who are known, in life and in the game, only by numbers. In the real world, the numbered soldiers fight for Stellaxis—and serve as the face of the war’s marketing. In the game, finding an NPC can be a ticket to more viewers, more in-game gifts, more attention. More water, too.

Mal and her friend Jessa are low-level players and streamers. Jessa’s the chipper, outgoing one who talks with their viewers; Mal is less social, more focused on her game and on getting a glimpse of 22, the NPC who intrigues her. There’s nothing really special about Mal or Jessa, except that they happen to be the people who stumble on NPC 08, out in the middle of nowhere in game-space. And that action gets someone’s attention.

Firebreak is part mystery, part gamer-geek-out, part scream of rage at corporate culture and capitalist greed. Mal knows her world is a mess, but she’s never seen any hope of it changing—let alone hoped that she could change it. She’s deeply aware of how the lives of her roommates are marked by grief and trauma, that all of their families were destroyed by the powers that rule her world. And when she has a chance to act, to help people, she’s believably torn between fear and the certainty that the scary thing is the right thing to do.

I’m being specifically vague on plot here because part of the delight of reading Firebreak is unraveling secrets along with Mal, whose oh-shit-what-have-I-gotten-myself-into-now narration is immersive, endearing, and wry and, as things go ever further sideways, increasingly intense in a way that’s perfectly matched to the book’s video-game aspect. The intensity of the plot is carefully balanced by the strength and depth of the friendships among Kornher-Stace’s characters. “I’m committed to putting as many books as I can out into the world that treat platonic relationships with all the weight and gravity and significance usually reserved for romance,” Kornher-Stace explained on Goodreads. She’s not just committed to these relationships; she’s really, really good at them. Mal and Jessa play off each other’s strengths, find ways to keep each other going, and from the get-go their friendship feels lived-in and fleshed-out, familiar and true. The relationships with their roommates are less detailed, but we get a glimpse of each of them, an outline of personality and perspective that’s enough to convince me that Kornher-Stace could write another novel about each one.

But Mal’s interest in, and eventual connection with, 22 is something rarely seen: the friend-crush. The NPCs are celebrities, with merch of their faces, figurines, posters, you name it. They’re everywhere; they seem less people and more action figures. Mal’s attraction to 22 doesn’t involve the usual trappings, but is something deeper and harder to parse—and something that rings true and familiar. Haven’t many of us had that person we just want to be near, to get to know, but not in the way everyone else thinks? Or been attracted to a person in a way that you feel like ought to be romantic, but isn’t? That’s what Kornher-Stace puts on the page: a connection that rarely gets depicted, let alone as effectively as this.

Firebreak has been compared to Ready Player One, and if you have any kind of reaction to that, I understand. So did I. Both books involve an immersive, addictive video game that takes the place of a lot of “real life” for people in a broken future. But you will find no ‘80s references, no quests, no glib nostalgia here. The game feeds the plot, and it plays an important role in Mal and Jessa’s lives. But change needs to come to the real world, the world full of hungry, thirsty bodies at the mercy of corporate greed. What happens in the game matters, but on an entirely different level.

It’s difficult to talk about Firebreak without talking about how it connects to Archivist Wasp, though as I said before: This is a standalone novel, and you absolutely don’t have to have read Kornher-Stace’s other books to get completely sucked into it. That said, there’s a real reward here for those who have met Wasp and her world. The books work in tandem to tell a story about how systems of oppression and abuse replicate themselves, how the horrors faced by one generation may be the same thing later generations face, in different shapes and with different names. All three novels prioritize vivid,  platonic relationships, often between characters in exceedingly fraught situations—people fighting against forces that don’t really see them as people, and trying to retain their humanity in the face of incredible brutality.

Kornher-Stace sends her characters to underworlds, erases their realities, isn’t afraid to make death stark on the page, and knows how to show us horrible abuses without ever edging into gratuitousness or melodrama. Her heroine’s only superpowers are curiosity, stubbornness, and care—things we’re all capable of mustering up. This world feels real; this world is real, and not that far away. Firebreak reads like a warning, but one that’s simultaneously a gripping, affecting tale full of characters I hope we’ll get to meet again.

#Nicole Kornher-Stace #Firebreak #mahreviews #long post

[archivyrep]

The erasure of records, digitization, and 1990s Hollywood films [Part 3]

Continued from part 2

Note: This article is reprinted from my History Hermann blog, with this post published there on May 19, 2019. I published it on my Wading Through the Archival Stacks WordPress blog on Aug. 28, 2020 with some revisions because I thought it was relevant to archives, at least when it comes to films.

Why do these films matter?

"If I could take all the things that I am, all the feelings I have, all the things that I want, and somehow get them on a computer card, you would be the answer. I don't know why or how you've come along at this particular point in my life. See, that's the magic part. I'm not gonna let you go."- Dr. Sidney Schaefer talks to his girlfriend (who ends up being one of the people who is spying on him) in "The President's Analyst," a 1967 film

They matter because more and more of the records held by archival institutions are digital, specifically "born-digital" (like tweets, Facebook posts). Of course, they are a bit dated, as they came out between 1992 and 1996. However, the point that records can be changed and manipulated should be considered. There should be measures in place to make sure that the records, especially digital records, are not tampered with. Perhaps this would require fixity checks, but also could necessitate rules on the usage of records themselves.

The haunting library in Citizen Kane

At the same time, the archives themselves should not be like the dark and haunting Thatcher Memorial Library in Citizen Kane, which has what some have described as having one of the world's meanest archivists, played by Georgia Backus, with hair up in a bun "and an intimidating stare on her face, a real dragon lady at the gates of knowledge." This is not the type of archives you want to go to! This is not the image that should be projected. [3]

© 2022 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[3] The same goes for Hollywood images of old archivists like in Vampires (1998) where the church archivist is introduced, a "slight, bearded man with glasses" who is sent along on a quest," in They Might Be Giants (1971) where a wealthy lawyer, who thinks he is Sherlock Holmes, teams up with a psychiatrist "to try to rid the world of evil" and in the process, one person plays an aged archivist who, despite his problems, "does come across as the sanest person in the movie and he finds clues to track down Moriarity," or in Amityville II: The Possession (1982) when a father uses a local archives to find out about a house causing trouble for his family, and in the process, he is helped by an elderly archivist, a person who says "I've worked here for 25 years."

There are other mentions of archives, but without archivists in Arlington Road (1998), Batman Begins (2005), Beverly Hills Ninja (1997), Broken Lullaby (1994), GoldenEye (1995), Journey to the Far Side of the Sun (aka Doppelganger) (1969), L.A. Confidential (1997), Message in a Bottle (1999), Ninth Gate (1999), Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2017), Secret Nation (1991) [Canadian film], Shooting the Past (1999), Smila's Sense of Snow (1997), The Dark Knight (2008), The Name of the Rose (1986), The Phantom (1996), and The Shadow (1994). Also, there are said to be flirtatious archivists in Carolina Skeletons (1991) and Just Cause (1995), along with helpful ones (either initially or ultimately) in Cloud Atlas (2012), Deceived (1991), Quatermass and the Pitt (1967), The Fugitive (1993), and The Mask of Dimitrios (1944).

There are also a number of films that have archivists in the background: Charlton-Brown of the F.O. (1959), Macaroni (1986), Red (2010), Ridicule (1996), Rollerball (1975), and The Age of Stupid (2009), and those that are said to have nasty or mean archivists: Blade (1998), In the Name of the Father (1993), Scream 3 (2000), The Nasty Girl [Das Schreckliche Madchen] (1990), and The Watermelon Woman (1996). Please, do not constitute this as an endorsement of any of these films, as likely they are mostly terrible.

#the president's analyst #1960s #films #1990s #born digital #the net #my fellow americans #attack of the clones #archives #archival science #archival studies #record loss #access #records management #the watermelon woman

[ober-affen-geil]

I do it a lot here anyway, but allow me a moment to get on my archivist soapbox because this is not only cool af but important too.

The US National Archives (and this may certainly apply to other countries but this post is about this specific institution) has a lot of material. And that may seem like an obvious statement, but what I mean to say here is that it has a lot of unprocessed material.

“Processing”, in the archive world, is the word we use to mean “organizing the collection materials in a way that makes sense and describing the collection so people know what’s there”. Essentially, processing a collection or material is what makes it accessible to researchers. Think about how you organize yourself or your space. Most of the time when we acquire material we get it exactly how the creator kept it, which is ranges from neat as a pin to literal garbage dump, but mostly falls into the middle area of somewhat organized but also not really. Processing gives the archivist “intellectual control” (we go through everything so we now know exactly what’s in the collection) and gives researchers something to look at that’s a lot more manageable.

But, like I said, the National Archives has a lot of material. Which at this point includes a massive backlog. So what they have done, with the advent of the internet, is turned to crowdsourcing. (Using a large group of volunteers over the internet to accomplish more than the few people who work for the archive can do, and/or using group knowledge and skills that they don’t have to their advantage. Wikipedia or any fandom wiki is an example of crowdsourcing.) This is a long process, because anything they put up has to be digitized first, and that is not as easy as it sounds. I won’t rant here, but it’s time consuming, labor intensive, and in some cases not even feasible with the material.

Anyway, the National Archives crowdsources through a program that they call “citizen archivists”. It’s something that’s free and obligationless, it’s totally voluntary and you do things like add tags to pictures, transcribe documents that are handwritten or otherwise not word-searchable, and add comments about things that are missing information or context.

The reason I bring this up is because they have divided the work into what they call “missions”, basically just categories of material to work on. They have a new one that’s just been made public (likely because they finally got the digitization completed) that is a large collection of pictures consisting of Native subjects, and they need help tagging them.

So if you feel antsy and need something to do or you feel down and you want something positive, consider helping out the National Archives. Because the work the citizen archivists do makes the materials more accessible to the public, and ultimately to any and all future researchers out there. 

#personal #archives #things to do in quarantine

[annabelleandjonbrotp]

Things in tma that gave every mechs fan deja vu

Jonny Sims chanting caused dread Gods to consume this reality?

Blowing stuff up> mourning your best friend in a healthy way

Eyes and lack thereof

Archivists under 5 foot 2

Being told gay little stories that make us sad

Hey look just an average day. Hello friends. Hello enemies. Hello immortal on their way to murder on a senior citizen.

You CAN simp and you WILL simp for the too-peppy murder doll. Simp for this other murderer while you're at it.

And here's our sapphic couple with very few relationship issues.

N o h a p p y E n d i n g.

#the magnus archives #tma spoilers #tma finale #gerard keay #jonmartin angst #gunpowder tim #jonmartin #what the girlfriends #wtgfs #wlw ship #nikola orsinov #basira hussain #jordan kennedy #the corruption #the mechanisms #jonny d'ville #jonnytim #ashes #ouatis #once upon a time in space #gptvtmk #tim stoker #sasha james #martin blackwood #alexander j newall #frank voss #jessica law #tim ledsam

[ithinkthiswasabadidea]

We’re Going Home

Set in a future where the Nein and Vilya have defeated Vokodo, we see the people of Vo lifted from Vokodo's influence, and the Mighty Nein must do what they can to help them get home.

.

Imagine, you’re living on an island, in the village of Vo, going about your days cooking, weaving, hunting, planting, mining, giving thanks to your god Vokodo who provides everything for you.

Something clicks inside your head, like a pressure valve releasing, a snap headache rocks you before… a memory comes back. And then another, and another. You… don’t belong on this island, you were never meant to be here. You got shipwrecked, or you were stranded, or you just decided not to leave. Why would you do that?

You had a home, in Tal’Dorei, in Wildemount, in Marquet, but that was… years ago. And now you remember all of it. You remember your name, your real, full name, you remember the family and friends you left behind, you remember the home you had before arriving at this ramshackle village. You notice everyone around you shaking their heads as they have the same revelation, and then you get angry. All of this was stolen from you, by a greedy, arrogant, false god who wouldn’t allow you the dignity of keeping your own memories.

Then, through the sky comes your village leader Viridian, though, that wasn’t her name when she first arrived. It was Vilya. She’s in her wild shape, carrying someone; with her fly two great birds, they carry figures too. They… they must be the new arrivals. They broke the curse. They slew the false god.

They SAVED you.

They land, the village is ecstatic as the story is told, and then comes the doubt and worry. How will everyone get home? The group found ships, but not all on the island know how to sail, and you’re all from different corners of the world.

The group, “The Mighty Nein”, they call themselves, talk to each other through the night, discussing possibilities. The blue tiefling speaks to the air for several minutes, facial expressions switching rapidly between concern, trepidation, happiness. The human man with bright orange hair and a spark in his eye tells the village the plan: for those who cannot or do not want to travel by sea, he can teleport you over the course of a few days to different locations.

The number of you who are content with this give your permission; you will be leaving this godsforsaken island if it’s the last thing these heroes can do for you.

“It seems they’ve done it again. You’re not the first person the Mighty Nein have saved from the brink, and you certainly won’t be the last.”

.

Imagine, you’re Vilya. Youve spent a quarter of a century on this island, happily serving as Vokodo's intermediary and leading the village with your equals, Terra and Lukash. The people love you, but the love somehow can't fill your heart completely, until you awaken and the hole fills with memory of your true family. You gladly hug each member of the Mighty Nein, the small halfling woman swearing you into their party with a solemn ‘Welcome to The Mighty Nein’ and letting you know that you will always be received with open arms if you choose to return. Ever in their debt, you walk into the teleportation circle before you. You’re transported to the Tidepeak Tower in Nicodranis, a city you’re unfamiliar with in all but name, and there waiting for you are two mages, an elf in gold and a lady in blue. The elf makes a noise of quiet surprise and wonder, stating,

The lady takes you by the hand, telling you she will take you back to Tal’Dorei to reunite with your family again. You walk through her teleportation circle, you are finally led to your husband, older but still as handsome as you remember. You meet with your daughter who is all grown up and powerful, with stories and adventures of her own to share. You see all the people you’ve known and loved, and you’re introduced to ones you haven’t met before; your life is instantly enriched with their presence. You live to remember the breakers of your curse and the journey you took with them to free the village that was once a home.

.

Imagine, you’re a human sailor. You spent your time on Vo longing to be back on the ocean, trading, fighting, fishing. The wizard draws a teleportation circle to Port Damali while the monk who stares you down with mirth in her eyes hands you a signed letter and she tells you to make a good impression. You’re led to the circle by the tall barbarian and when you hesitate, she pushes you gently into the circle. You tumble out and into a room, guards quickly opening the door in shock and you shove the letter into their hands; one takes it away. You sit on the floor, tears coming to your eyes as you realise you’re finally home. The leader of the Cobalt Soul archive comes to meet you, letter in hand,

“Another friend of Expositor Beauregard? You lot always like to make your entrances, don’t you?”

You smile, now understanding why the monk looked amused at you as you left. You’re led out to the port, weak at the knees at the sights and sounds and smells of the harbour, and spend your time finding the comrades you left behind. You remember those words the Cobalt Soul archivist said to you, that you’re a friend to the Mighty Nein; you live to hope you will do them proud and some day repay them for their aid.

.

Imagine, you’re an elven merchant. You’re from Zadash, and you were on the way home from a prosperous trip to Marquet, when you stopped by this cursed island to refuel and never left. The large, kind-eyed firbolg of the group takes you aside to get to know your story and asks the tiefling to send a message to a shop owner you once knew in your city. You get confirmation that a friend will be awaiting your arrival. You take a deep breath and step through the teleportation circle, walking into the halls of the Cobalt Soul in Zadash. A face pokes their head around the door, fluffy, bespectacled, with beautiful robes. Someone you’ve sat down to tea and trade with for many years, and not for many years have you been happier to see him again. Pumat Sol takes you by the arm into a hug, chuckling and telling you,

“Respectfully, my friend, if it weren’t for the Mighty Nein, I don’t believe either of us would be here today.”

You gratefully follow your friend back through the streets of Zadash, planning your re-entry into the commerce of the city, though now you place less value in material wealth. You live to trade tales of your adventures and find, unsurprisingly, the Nein are folk heroes to the city also; many citizens attest to the bravery of the party who saved you.

.

Imagine, you’re a smith. You’re from a great line of dwarven blacksmiths and creators. You left your home to search for rare materials to make your creations and name well known across the seas. You spend your time on the island smithing tools, simple hammers and spears, tools of function. Your memories clear of the great forges of Uthodurn, and you realise you were foolish to try to make yourself famous, all you needed was a place to work, your family beside you, and the gifts the All-Hammer gave you. The tiefling and half-orc speak to each other before she send a message away to the wind. The half-orc calms your travel nerves by showing you his blade, the incredible craftsmanship is mesmerising, and familiar, your fears are forgotten. You are led to the circle and roll out into a chamber of the Steeple Archive in Uthodurn, you’ve never been inside before and it is a grand place. You’re quickly escorted outside to a city that has changed just enough to make you worried again, when a stocky figure claps you on the shoulder. You spin into the embrace of Umagorn Smeltborne and he all but picks you up, exclaiming,

“My friend! Finally you have returned, we have much work to catch up on.”

You try to explain how you are here and what has occurred but he holds up his hand to stop you.

“By the grace of the Wildmother who watches over the Nein, the All-Hammer has seen it fit to return you to us.”

You congratulate your friend on his masterpiece of a sword, and vow you will never take your home for granted again. You live to create and learn and grow in prowess, you pay your tributes to the All-Hammer, and you make ones especially for your new friends, should they ever pass through Uthodurn again.

.

Imagine, you’re a dignitary. An orc with a good ear and strong voice for negotiations. You were sent by your queen, many, many moons ago, across the seas on a mission to secure new allies. You cast your mind back to Rosohna, the sweet richness of the dark city, and the queen you have been honoured to serve in your lifetimes. You wonder who is still in her council, whether you will be trusted when you return after all this time. The blue one and the wizard come to speak to you of someone you once knew, the Dusk Captain. The tiefling carefully words her message, asking permission for you to teleport, while the wizard tries to update you on the situation from your homeland. When the circle is ready, you steel yourself and march through, blessedly arriving in the Lucid Bastion. You take a knee, thanking the Luxon for bringing you home, finally. As you rise, you are greeted by the Captain, smiling to see a long-feared-dead member of the council back and well. As she walks with you through the halls, she recounts the changes in the Kryn Dynasty, culminating with the wizard and his friends who held up their missing beacon in front of the queen, and gave them new hope.

“We feared you dead, with no way to come back through the Luxon. The Mighty Nein have assured you your soul in this life and the next.”

You frown, realising the wizard and the group conveniently forgot to mention they were also heroes of the Dynasty. You are confident they shall return to Rosohna, and add your voice to those who reverently bless their coming to the Dynasty. You live to return to your position and help write the new history of the Dynasty, about the aid of the group who gave back your voice.

 .

Connected by land and by sea, The Mighty Nein continue to shape the lives of the people of Exandria. The Nein will bend the knee for kings and queens and nobles, they bow their heads under the gaze of gods and false gods alike, they take their orders to do what they can to better the lives of others.

But at the end of the day, a druid in a far off land, a sailor in Port Damali, a merchant, a smith, a dignitary, a farmer, a smuggler, a Crownsguard, a carnival master, an inventor, a half-dragonborn, a mage, a kenku, a stone giant, a family of clay and dust and stone…

They look to the stars and count their blessings of the people who have irrevocably touched their lives.

#Critical Role #The Mighty Nein #critrole #i spent half the day imagining how many lives the Mighty Nein have changed #Caleb Widogast #Beauregard Lionett #Caduceus Clay #Fjord #Jester Lavorre #Veth Brenatto #Yasha Nydoorin #Vilya #mini fic #but a little long without a read more #Rumblecusp #Vokodo

[plounce]

a thing i am doing right now is i am writing a post-canon cardassia garashir fic BUT it is wholly made up of primary sources and secondary sources discussing garashir in later cardassian society because in present canon cardassia is like homophobic so their relationship was kept verrrrry private, so a lot of historians in the future debate over whether garak and bashir were together or not. ambiguity and all that. im a history major. all the secondary sources are post-post-canon when cardassia is like. more socially liberal about certain things, where the writers are reflecting on that period of cardassian history. anyway these are the sections i have written / planned so far

bashir's will that asks for certain documents to be preserved “for the sake of historical preservation, so that future generations may know Elim not just as a patriotic statesman but as a warm and loving man.” <-- homo

a book on present-canon cardassian homophobia, going into the social history. this section got really long because i talked about trans cardassians navigating around homophobia a lot. bc the homophobia is from a place of “you have to have children” but like (binary) trans ppl are okay so like those people who marry in ways that don’t appear childbearing tended to have children really quick to escape that. but yeah i still need to finish this bit bc i need to actually talk about the homophobia not just the trans people

list of cardassian homophobic slurs. yeah lmao i know. we have fun here. one of the ones for “lesbians” is “friend of sapohi” because i couldn’t resist making up lizard alien sappho

first physical letter garak sends bashir post-canon when there’s power shortages and bashir is stationed a long way away. they’re not together yet. sort of an introduction. these letters are one of the only personal documents garak left behind bc he’s paranoid and very private

a federation relief worker’s notes on a briefing about power rationing, which is some further explanation about why the fuck star trek people would be writing letters on paper instead of their weird ipads

second letter garak sends bashir. idk what’s gonna be in that yet but i do know garak says “your doodle of me was charming but inaccurate”. just one side of the conversation bc bashir kept his letters from garak while garak read the letters bashir sent him, memorized them, and destroyed them for security reasons.

record request emails from a cardassian history graduate student to a federation archivist asking for access to any messages from the o’briens about bashir but oh no :( the o’briens only marked for archival some videos of their grandkids :( and also a video of a random cardassian kid from bashir? weird. this one was really fun

one of the last messages bashir sent o’brien through starfleet comms that’s like right before he leaves for cardassia. nothing Concrete but definitely Hmmm-able

an excerpt from a book about the history of offworlders on cardassia, which includes a letter from one of garak’s political opponents as an example of reactionary xenophobia. basically it’s just a letter where this dude is very rude and homophobic about bashir. but it’s fine because he uses fake homophobia

political cartoon where bashir is portrayed as a seducer trying to get cardassia to assimilate into the federation. meant to be kind of funny imo. might commission karin to draw it for me. i think bashir tried to frame it in their house but garak like super hated it but idk if i can squeeze that in

transcript of an interview bashir gave on his views on cardassian politics, trying to be like “haha im just here to be a doctor, im not trying to be a spy or anything, but yeah i do agree with the people who like social programs and the rights of the disadvantaged etc etc”

an excerpt from a speech parmak gives like a decade after that after a piece of orphan rights legislation got passed that thanks bashir for the consultation and support. heheh

third letter from garak to bashir. probably like. subtly indicates that their relationship is on the verge of romantic. the last letter

a negative book review of a book that argues that garak and bashir were together. the review is just like “terrans are just Like That!!” plus some other stuff like “they lived together bc nobody would rent a house to an offworlder in this era!!” and stuff like that. im looking forward to writing this

the entries on garak and bashir from a children’s book on cardassian heroes. very saccharine and glossy and patriotic. bashir especially is like “once he stepped foot on cardassian soil he knew he loved this land” etc etc. amusingly inaccurate

the speech of one of garashir’s grandchildren (they take in some wards - non-blood related adoption is formally recognized on cardassia after the wards are of age) while accepting some medical award that thanks her grandfather elim garak for the support and her beloved elder julian bashir for his advice and support

a foreword from a book of poetry written by one of their GREAT-grandchildren who thanks his grandfather for the love of literature passed down to him. because Oh You Know

idk where this will go but cardassians discussing a federation documentary about The Heroes Of The Dominion War that says “oh yeah bashir went on to become the first naturalized citizen of cardassia. elim garak became an important figure in the new cardassian government. they were common law married” and the cardassians being like THEY REALLY SAID THAT? and some cardassians being mad and some cardassians being like Someone’s Fucking Saying It Finally!

still thinking of other sections that go a bit more into their children/married life. maybe also some other incidents. the thing about this is it’s such a fun little exercise to think of different ways to angle into this relationship and this society through surviving primary sources and variations on secondary sources. it’s a puzzle though because i want a lot of differentiation

im thinking ill conclude it with like their great great grandchild releasing some documents from them that confirm their relationships that were meant to published like a couple centuries later when hopefully cardassia was more accepting. because i want gay people to get the last laugh and assert their places in history and regain control over how society sees them. yk

sorry this post is like so insanely long and also kind of deranged in concept. im kind of fucking tired of my main twitter being this place where i have to remember that 21k people follow me (because i post c*tcrumb art on my main twtter) that im trying to make tumblr a place where i can just run my mouth yk. anyway. hey i got really into ds9 in the second week of march

#chirps #long post

[facelessxchurch]

am i reading this wrong or did derek landy literally pin the blame for the tunguska explosion on baron, that little bollocks

Nah, it was never implied that Baron was behind it. The culprit was the Maggot God dude btw.

When they were fighting the Grotesquery at the Hibernian Cinema.

[Book 2 PwF, chapter 27]

I suspect in book 15 people will probably find out Valkyrie is the Child of the Faceless Ones (doubt Creed will keep it a secret and instead make a big villainous reveal out of it or some BS). Meanwhile the citizens of Roarhaven are like:

But I doubt the other mages know Valkyrie’s given name or else they would be trying to use her family against her a lot more, probably. So yeah, this doesn’t make sense. Then again, the archivists also know Skul is Vile so there is that. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ nothing makes sense anymore

Fair point. But tbh regarding the best case scenario for the SP lore-book, Landy would barely or not at all be involved in its creation 

Nope.

Yeah sure, why not? It kinda is a funny coincidence.

Not if the Sanctuary is as chronically underfunded as phase 2 SP is-

But yeah, if it’s meant to be a in-vers document it would make more sense for the artwork to be less stylised and more naturalistic, I guess.

I think that’s just the artists art style bc he drew Wreath and the Cleaver as thicc bois too.

I’m having mixed feeling about it. I actually like the ‘face’ part of the helmet more the way Percival did it bc he did it like D:< while Cook did it like D:> and I like the more abstract approach to the face more than the more direct one.

Imma just list the pro’s and con’s down below, that’s easier I think.

Tom Percival Version + Like the D:< ‘face’ of the helmet more - ‘Crown’ of the helmet makes him look like a retarded teletubby - Didn’t include the cape - Don’t like the actual armour design/it doesn’t look like something an evil warlord would wear but more like something a normal soldier would wear? + Apart from the gauntlet the armour is made of the right materials + The broad shoulders can be explained away by his armour bolstering them

Euan Cook Version - Don’t like the D:> ‘face’ of the helmet. Plus the Cheek spikes make him look like a reptile. +The Crown of the helmet looks like an actual evil crown, reminds me of LotR too + Actually included the cape (but not the hood and the sigils stitched into it) + The design of the actual armour looks better/looks like something a war lord would wear - the armour isn’t made of the right materials. the books describe is battle suit as being made of black and grey fabric, leather and chainmail woven together, this version has way too many metal parts - Mev is drawn as too broad shouldered, he has narrow shoulders and is of a slender build

Description of Mev’s battle suit:

All in all, I like Euan Cook’s version of Mevolent better, tho neither design is optimal. And I don’t like the Godkiller Sword designs of either tbh.

I don’t think his fly is open, that’s just the cloth piece that covers the zipper. Regarding the shaving thing, I think the artist may have made the mistake and took Percival’s old art as reference.

Idk Percival made Nef in book 1 look way too old and I hate that he didn’t make him smile, but he does look kinda hot. Land made Nef look too much like a Dishonored aristocrat for my liking, I’m really not found of the design.

But everything looks better than SoW Nef, so there is that.

#Mevolent #the Grotesquery #SP Grimoire #Grimoire Art #answered #Anonymous #q

[thegarchives]

May I ask for more details on either the Savage or Echo story you mentioned having in mind? 👀

oh!! of course you can, i wasn't expecting anyone to ask!! under a cut bc i... got a little carried away? it's very stream of consciousness, and an absolute mess.

savage wanders into the sundari archives purely by accident. he's just gone ten rounds with maul in the training room, spent hours listening to maul's endless needling about savage's form. an old, familiar rage is cresting inside him like a wave, and he has to get away, before he breaks something. or someone.

he's never been in this part of the palace before. he hadn't thought mandalorians would keep such extensive records, but he's surrounded by stacks upon stacks of data crystals and holocrons (?), some in written mando'a, others in basic, and more in languages he doesn't recognize. calm, he needs calm. what's calm about being called stupid and then finding yourself in a room with things you don't understand?

a;lkdjf;ladkjfla;dfkja BASICALLY savage wanders into the sundari archives and there is you, reader, the archivist. i had this headcanon about how mandalore had a strong oral tradition of passing down stories and knowledge bc of the constant wars and travelling; like i know sw is full of the kind of technology that can house all kinds of info in very small packages, but the tradition kept up within a lot of clans, and your particular interest as an archivist is recording these oral histories; some are epic poems of warriors long dead, some are records of a clan's adopted lineage, there's all kinds of things.

and the thing is, on dathomir, the nightbrothers ALSO have a strong oral tradition, bc nightsisters keep any and all access to technology that would make record keeping easier. and who else will tell the stories of all the nightbrothers who never returned home after the Selection?

so you and savage trade stories. it starts as a way to distract him from the all-consuming rage that overtakes him sometimes, but eventually the stories turn personal, trading stories you've never told anyone else before, exchanging secrets and intimacies until you feel like you've bared your souls to one another.

"do you think people will tell stories about us, centuries from now?" you ask him softly one day, your head resting against his chest, listening to the cadence of his hearts.

he hums, one large hand idly stroking up and down your back. "i know they will," he answers, quiet but confident. his love for you cannot be contained by this room, this palace, this planet. it will echo off the lips of every storyteller in the galaxy, and that is how he loves you.

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

you got hurt once, a long time ago. hurt bad. rich coruscanti citizens can afford synth-skin and vocal reconstruction mapping, but you get a chrome prosthetic lower jaw, and your vocal processor is the same model as some particular protocol droid that stopped being produced fifty years ago.

you got used to the stares, eventually.

a;ldskfja;dlkfj so reader was injured a long time ago, her lower jaw and vocal cords are synthetic, but one day her vocal processor craps out and she's stuck communicating via awkward sign language and typing things out on pads. cid owes her a favor, so she goes and asks for someone to repair her vocal processor. cid's like, well, i know the best guy in the biz, and calls echo- echo, who has never repaired a vocal processor, but knows his way around the kind of advanced technology that cid only hears rumors about. so surely he can fix a vocal processor, right?

it's uncomfortable. you're lying on a workbench, your prosthetic dislocated so echo can look at the gaping wound that used to be your mouth and throat. he hooked up a pad for you to type with to give him guidance or to tell him you're in pain. echo talks about his own prosthetics, how the GAR wouldn't pay to give him a prosthetic arm that could house his scomp link when he wasn't using it, how sometimes he still feels the phantom limb pain in his legs. he shows you his modified helmet.

you've got more than just prosthetics. you've got burns too. across your neck, your collarbone, and your chest. you keep yourself wrapped up tight so no one sees, they already stare enough, but echo has to pull away at your collar to work, and he doesn't stare, but he does go quiet. tells you that you don't have to share just because he did.

he's got a light touch, even working one-handed. sometimes instead of placing a tool back down he'll just grab the handle between his teeth, and if you had a jaw to smile with, you would. it's.... endearing. echo installs your new vocal processor and reattaches your jaw, giving you a few minutes to adjust while he meticulously cleans his tools and tidies up the workbench.

"thank you," you tell him when he finally looks at you again. this new voice is deeper than the protocol droid's, slightly androgynous. you like it immediately.

"you're welcome," he says with a wave of his right arm.

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

a;ldkjfa;ldkjfa;lkdfja and that's all i have right now. i have some backstory for the second character worked out but i didn't want to put it in here bc of reasons.

#are they ocs? are they reader inserts? yes #my ocs #visions #thank you for your interest! #sorry this took so long