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ownedbythescribe · 1 year

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Zhongli | In Beloved Stars

ıllı Synopsis: Longevity is a burden to carry for immortals. But one should not wallow in self-pity. We make mistakes as mortals do, but we all have the chance to repent and do something better. Our lives outlive those of humans, but we saw how they thrive to have a fulfilling life. Why can’t we be better in the future too?

ıllı Genre: Romance

ıllı Notes: Zhongli x Female Reader, Description of Archon War and Cataclysm

ıllı Part 1: Zhongli - In Beloved Memories

ıllı A/N: The sequel is out! I’m really surprised I got this one out. I’m not sure if I’m satisfied, but this felt nearer to the ideal sequel I had in mind. I hope you will enjoy it!

“Planning on playing house with the Geo Archon, (Y/N)?” The uncordial voice from behind asked, watching your solemn figure stare at the festivities that engulfed Liyue Harbor. The luminescent lights were too bright for your eyes, so you opted to observe from afar, away from humans and deities alike. Yet, this person would always know where you are.

“So, humor has not fully left you, I see. Does the Abyss Order need anything from the simple old me?” You sneered, disdain flashing in your eyes. The figure scoffed, materializing a set of scrolls familiar to those who encountered you.

“We made the necessary set-ups in Enkanomiya. The mechanism prior to Dainsleif’s interference was recovered. The next step relies on you.” Aether replied. It might not be overtly said, but his words were orders to get the next part of the job done immediately. There was no time to be wasted, not even on simple self-indulgence. You simply sighed, utilizing your power to transport the two of you back to your workshop.

It had nearly been five centuries since you met the Abyss Prince, and your encounter was not in any good circumstances. In fact, it was the time when civilizations crumbled, and Teyvat bathed in corruption. The amount of bloodshed and divine residues left in the desert were instilled in your mind. Bodies were strewn across Sumeru, tainting the sands and its waters dark red. The plants withered, and the forest creatures scampered away from the battlefield for safety. You were on the side that fought the Abyss until Aether came to you.

‘Your heart tells you that siding with Celestia brought nothing but pain, so why do you force yourself? Why still follow a destiny that will once again cycle to bring disaster?’ He whispered back then. Unconsciously, you touched the scar on your left arm. It was a reminder of that day, that you betrayed your friends and aided the Abyss.

The past cannot be changed, but there is still the present and the future that you could take reign of. Hence, you did not dare involve yourself further in their plan, at least not with the majority of it. Revenge could take a toll on anyone’s body and mind, even with satisfying results. Aether noticed your internal struggles throughout the years. He disliked your reluctance, but he could not let go of your potential that rivaled those of Khaenri’ah’s engineers. Not yet.

“Let me see the current status of that mechanism. I would also like for you to see this sealed crystal from before. It had been exuding an ominous aura that tampered with leylines and elements. I haven’t pried much, but I hope this would be of help. I’ll give you my thoughts in a few.” You voiced, focusing on the scrolls laid on your table. Aether sat down on another chair to read the research you made on the said crystal. It detailed the effects and sealing as well as how to reverse it. He would have to keep an eye on that until then.

You, on the other hand, saw the damage on the core. It would need immediate smoldering of the same material and elemental pressure to keep it stable. By adding a few touches to the layout, you finished your work. You rolled them away before glancing at the desk where metals and rocks were laying about. This would have been something you could enjoy centuries ago with Guizhong and Deshret, but they were swept away by the consequences of the bloodstained fate.

“Aether, how could you go strong against the tides of time? You never seemed to waver in the face of death. I’m no fool, you must have noticed already that my mind and body grew tired of such pursuit, yet yours strived through the pain.” You muttered enough for him to hear.

“I have a person to come home to. We promised to see each other again at the end of this journey.” He simply answered.

“I see.” The slight movement of your sleeves showed the bracelet the God of Dust had long worn. You gazed at it for a moment.

Home was a foreign thought to you who was constantly on the move. Aether did not mean a house or any structure at that, but more of a person. That individual became his reason to move forward, to gain freedom against what trapped them here.

‘Maybe it’s time that I should be honest too.’ You thought.

“I’m done. You can give tell the lectors and heralds to investigate this. Enjou should know where to get these materials. Also, I fear that I will not be able to join you in this fight anymore. I’ve grown weary, but I wish to see you succeed. Teyvat became an unwanted prison because of the deity’s fear of outside corruption. This world was supposedly a paradise, yet the wars and death made it feel like a colosseum where only the strongest ones survive.” You sadly mused. Aether took the scrolls out of your hands, sending it back using his power. His golden eyes stared at yours intently before he traced the scar on your left arm. It made you shudder.

“You never swore loyalty to me nor the Abyss, yet you were a companion who fought with me through time. I do not wish to let you go just yet, so, do one more job for me. Enjou will be your partner, and I will announce later your ‘withdrawal’ from the organization. Just know that from here on out, the Abyss Order will treat you like an enemy.” He firmly warned. You smiled and nodded, taking his hand away from you. Whatever relationship you had before was now coming to an end.

The Abyss Prince left your workshop shortly after, leaving specks of abyssal energy in your wake. Possibly, the last memory you will see of him was his broader back that seemed stronger than before. You wished things could have been different, but the current you wished to simply see life as it was truly meant to.

“Let’s take a short stroll by the Guili Plains, then. It might clear my mind up a little.”

Stepping out of your workshop, you inhaled the fresh scent of mountain winds. The crisp chill in the air made your arms shiver lightly, yet it brought vigor to your exhausted body. Walking towards your destination, you met a few elderlies who welcomed you, unaware that a divine being mingled with them. It reminded you of the past when you would pull your friends to join you and enjoy the festivities the humans hold every now and then.

Upon reaching Guili Plains, you stopped in your tracks to watch the view ahead. What was once a lively province bustling with humans was now a deserted ruin occasionally visited by elders and the Millelith. It might have been in a barren state now, but the tranquility over the area was welcoming. You sat by the meadow and let the wind caress your figure.

“I didn’t expect to meet you here, dear friend.” The familiar baritone echoed across your ears, causing you to whip your head in its direction. Gentle joy and relief were evident on his face while yours reflected surprise and longing. Standing up, you slowly reached a hand to his face.

“Morax, it is you. I am not dreaming.” You muttered while he nuzzled further into your hands.

“I am now called Zhongli, a simple mortal living a mundane life as a consultant. However, I am delighted to finally see you back in Liyue.” He said, taking your hand to sit again by the grass.

It was difficult to hide the joy that you felt at the moment. His presence alone chased the thoughts that threatened to occupy your mind and fester with negativity. Words easily escaped your lips as you asked questions about Liyue’s current status, including the reason why he chose to give up his gnosis. He remained tight-lipped about his dealings with the Cryo Archon, and you understood the secrecy. In return, you told him stories of your own journey, dodging the memories you spent in the Abyss Order. It was not yet the time for honesty, or maybe there will never be a time for one. This might become a secret you will carry to the grave.

Zhongli, who intently listened to your stories, found mirth in one of your quests in Sumeru with the Forest Rangers and musings in Mondstadt with a certain bard. He was happy to see you fulfill your dreams of exploring Teyvat to learn more about mechanics and engineering. He loved how the passion that silently burned before now blaze with iridescent colors.

Suddenly recalling the time of the day, he asked if you had seen the entirety of Liyue Harbor. You told him no, and it gave him the chance to invite you to explore the harbor and familiarize yourself with the place. Truth be told, you had only been there once with Ping’s help to find him and see how he was doing. Zhongli could see the hesitation in your eyes and was about to take it back when you turned to him with a small smile.

“I… It… would be lovely to see the harbor with you.” You hesitated, actions not unnoticed by the God of Contracts. He attributed it to your shy nature, but he had a gut feeling that it might have stemmed from something deeper. He trusted that you would tell him in time, but for now, he wished to show you the lives of the humans you loved.

The God of Contracts escorted you to the harbor, introducing you to vendors that littered the port. One merchant called you out and gave you free candies sunsettia to welcome you to the region. Warmth blossomed in your chest as you tasted the delicacy, enjoying its sweetness. You shared it with the god beside you, him opting to eat it from your hand, making you flustered. He simply smiled and led you to the center of the docks where a music battle was ongoing. The melody they created was unique and creative, and you were sure that Ping appreciated their creations more than anything.

Going up and passing over the bridge, he led you to a restaurant called Third Knockout. Celebratory food was sold, and the storyteller was enthusiastically retelling stories from old times. He led you to an empty table away from the crowd after sensing your discomfort. You appreciated his acts of service, but it also brought emotions you thought were long gone.

‘I still love him even after all these years. It seems like I really can’t let go that easily.’ You thought as you take a shrimp ball from the plate, the umami bursting in your mouth. Noticing the lack of seafood on the table, you could not help but tease the male.

“You still dislike seafood even after all these years. Hahaha! I’m glad that didn’t change.” You voiced. Zhongli coughed out his embarrassment.

“You know why I don’t like seafood. The slimy texture and the scent that won’t wash off remind me of bygone days when I had to exterminate them from the sea and shore. I could still recall how exhausting it was to visit houses door to door to seal those foul creatures for good, and yet, their descendants seemed to have survived and thrived as… seafood delicacy ingredients of today.” He groaned. You could not help but laugh at his misery. It was not often that the Geo Archon articulates his distaste for them, but when he did, the faces he made were a memory to keep.

After eating and paying for the food, you two went to Heyu Tea House to relax. The black tea they served immediately became your favorite. Zhongli recommended trying their osmanthus tea the next time you two visit. You nodded then watched the orchestra play below.

“Will you be settling in Liyue now?” He asked.

“Mm. Maybe I’ll reside in Wangshu Inn for the time being while I finish my new abode. I hope Xiao won’t mind.” You replied.

“Will it be all right if I visit you from time to time?” There was confusion evident on your face as to why he would need your permission to see you, but you gave him a positive answer instead. He smiled and continued sipping his tea.

It did not take long for you to know why he asked that question. Three days after you settled near Wangshu Inn, the funeral consultant would come to your house to bring gifts or simply enjoy tea or wine with you. He would even join you in your workshop when you worked on new mechanisms. It was hard not to let him know about your past with the abyss, and it felt like a sin trying to hide it from him. The guilt ate you from the inside, but you urged yourself to think that it was for the best. Aether possessed a twisted radical mind, and he was aware of the sacrifices to be made. You wished to believe that, or delusion, in this case, it was hard to tell.

On one clear day, Zhongli decided to visit you with a gift in hand. A bouquet of plum blossoms would be good decor for your new home. He also had a jade bracelet designed in your motif. It was supposedly a day to share with you two alone, but Childe and the Traveler (whom he dragged after their battle) let their curiosities get the best of them. Sighing, he hoped that you would not mind guests in your abode.

Zhongli knocked on your door, but there was no reply. He tried again until Childe went to the back and saw your figure by the waters. The sway in the wind and chimes that accompanied your movements mesmerized him, and he thought you were a fairy, like those in popular fables in Snezhnaya.

“You did not tell us that we will be meeting a fairy, Xiansheng. Can I take her back to Snezhnaya?” He joked, but it was shut down by the dark look on the Geo Archon’s face that faded the moment the music faded. The 11th Harbinger was stunned, and the Traveler had to nudge him back to reality.

“L-Lumine, he did not just glare at me, right!? You saw that look right!?” Childe fussed. Lumine pinched his left ear down.

“You should really know when to time your jokes. Come on, I think we startled her enough.” She pulled the ginger to where you and Zhongli were talking. He glanced back at them and introduced them to you. The familiar blond hair and eyes startled you. Lumine was much more beautiful than Aether described her to be.

“My name is (Y/N). It’s nice to meet you Lumine, Childe. Zhongli talked about you two a lot, and I’m glad that he had good companions to help him out, especially when handling Mora. I do apologize on his behalf if he spent more than he let on. He’s learning, I promise.” You gave them a wry smile. Zhongli wrinkled his forehead in confusion. Childe was willing to pay for him, so he just took advantage of it, and the products that he bought were truly valuable to be bought in bulk.

“I know what you’re thinking, and no, it’s crucial to live economically if you wish to have a debt-free life. Now, stop with the wrinkles. It doesn’t suit your beautiful face.” You soothed his forehead, unaware of how intimate your actions had been. Zhongli was perplexed while the other two whistled at the public display of affection.

You turned to them to ask if they wished to have lunch with you, only to see their teasing faces. It made you stop in your tracks and immediately get flustered.

“Umm, p-please don’t mind that. I-I’ll prepare a quick lunch right away. Please sit by the stone table over there.” You uttered, a little loud to your liking.

They watched you dash to your home. Childe could not help himself at how adorable it would be to tease you. Lumine, too, had a similar feeling. They turned to the Geo Archon who was already on his way to the table. They wished to ask how he was feeling, but the red tint on his ears was enough to say how he, too, was embarrassed by the skinship.

“Say, Xiansheng, are you courting this lady? You brought gifts, and I haven’t noticed you that much in Liyue Harbor anymore. Could it be that you’ve been coming here to visit her?” Childe prodded. Lumine sat down beside the ginger and also commented on how he seemed to become more animated around you.

“Your eyes light up more whenever she talks, and you looked darkly at Childe earlier after that comment. He’s bound to have nightmares later.” Lumine jested. Childe pouted and was about to complain, but she shut him up with a pinch to his thigh. Zhongli could feel a sigh escape his lips. He wished he could easily deny their words, but it would be like denying his love for you. The concept was not new to him, but experiencing it with you felt like a dream.

“Childe seemed to love saying unnecessary things nowadays. He should have learned by now how to read social cues.” He replied, sipping the tea (which materialized out of nowhere, not that you would know). The two gave him incredulous looks.

‘Look who’s calling the kettle black. He’s down bad, isn’t he?’ Before they could usher more information about you, the smell of food immediately wafted through the air. The sound of clinking plates caught Zhongli’s ears, and he stood up to help you out. You gave him a sheepish smile.

“Thank you. I only got to prepare your favorites because I thought you were coming alone. I hope your guests wouldn’t mind the lack of variety for lunch.” You voiced, unsure of your decisions for lunch. Zhongli smiled and placed a featherlight kiss on your head as assurance.

“They love any food, but we might have to prepare another cutlery for Childe. He’s not… adept with chopsticks even after I taught him several times already.” He teased. Your eyes widened at his badmouthing, opting to keep the laugh that threatened to escape you. Zhongli watched you try to hide your laugh, and he found it adorable.

The day was full of banter between Childe and Zhongli, mostly the ginger being bullied. Lumine, on the other hand, told you stories of her adventures particularly her quest in Inazuma. The news of the region’s borders closing was no secret to you. It was talked about a lot by travelers and adventurers that the place was branded a danger for a while by the majority. The lockdown and the Vision Hunt Decree instilled fear in the Electro Archon’s people. You could not even imagine how it was to fight an army to free the country. The blond traveler assured you that the Raiden Shogun had realized her wrongdoings and was now on the road to redemption. It will be difficult from here on out, you surmised.

“I assume the next place will be Sumeru? You will have to pass through the Chasm and meet with the Forest Rangers. They will guide you to Sumeru City. The Land of Wisdom might just be the place to get clues with regards to your journey.” You uttered, gazing at the waters before you. Lumine noticed the cryptic tone in your voice, and although she wanted to pry, she could feel that you wished for her to discover it on her own.

Lumine stood up and held your hand, thanking you for your hospitality. She informed Childe that they should return to the harbor now or Paimon will throw a tantrum. He groaned, not really wanting to walk a mile. It made you laugh, but out of consideration, you materialized a container that held refreshments.

“Take this and drink it along the way. Liyue Harbor is a bit far, and I truly appreciate the visit. Come by again if you wish to enjoy tea, will you?” You urged. The two nodded, then looked at Zhongli who turned to you. He held your hand and gave it a tender kiss.

‘T-This man! How scandalous can he get!?’ You flushed.

“Enjoy the rest of your day, (Y/N). We will be going now.” His eyes were twinkling with mirth as he saw the red tint coat on your cheeks. Only a flustered nod was his reply, but he was satisfied.

Once they were out of sight, you sat down exhausted. The Geo Archon’s affection suddenly confused you. Morax rarely showed affection to anyone publicly. The Anemo Archon even pointed out how expressionless and a blockhead he could be at times. Love was not a foreign concept to you, but its fullness was. You wished Zhongli would say how he truly felt about you. Was it all right to love him? To be with him?

‘Or am I just trying to hurt myself again by hoping?’

Days later, you received a letter from Zhongli when you were out with Ping and Cloud Retainer, who were kind enough to accompany you to trek up the mountains. When they noticed who it was from, they let out teasing looks and comments. You were flustered, denying that it was just an invitation to visit Nantianmen where Azdhaha slumbered.

Suddenly, Guizhong crossed your thoughts. You were once again filled with anxiety and fear to express affection to your friend’s lover, even when she had already passed. Ping noticed it and held your hand.

“She will be happy that you two are moving on. She’s not the type to harbor ill feelings, and— Aya, I wish I could tell you more, but Morax should be the one to say it. Trust in him, (Y/N), and we all want what’s best for you two.” You smiled at her words. Ping knew how to assure you every time, and you appreciate her for that.

You sent your reply, and two days later, here you were in Nantianmen. The vibrant color of the tree’s leaves was an astonishing sight, and the crisp smell of the wind calmed your senses. However, that tranquility was destroyed the moment you felt a dimension rift not far from you. Standing there was an electro abyss herald who was seething with rage.

“You insolent insect! His Highness was kind enough to let you serve the Order, and you dare give up for the sake of a peaceful life!? Have you forgotten the bloodshed, (Y/N)?” It sneered. You could feel the intense concentration of electro waiting to hit you.

“Aether knew my value, and he was no fool to see how exhausted I had been. My promise was kept, and this will be taken to my grave. He did warn me that not all of you will be in favor of such decision. I have never once forgotten the bloodshed, but I was also a part of those that caused blood to taint this land. I’ve come to repent here in silence.” You answered.

The abyss lector growled and pointed its hand towards you, firing bolts of electro. You dodged them successfully and rushed to attack him. Using the Dendro element, you forced the plants to restrain it in place and hit its jaw. The lector stumbled before imploding the electro field around him. It grazed your neck and left arm, making it bleed. You took out your weapon and hit its stomach, the lector growled and swiped at you. You docked down then rallied consecutive attacks on it.

“Insolent fool! The abyssal light will shine the truth on you!” It roared. The ridiculous phrase they utter started to irritate you. Suddenly, three bolts of electro chased after you. It scorched the land, wilting the flowers around. You tried to break down its shield, but dendro could only do so much.

“Shit.” One bolt curled around you and electrified your veins. A chilling scream escaped your lips, unable to conceal the pain. Feeling your knees weaken, your body buckled.

“You should have known better than to wish peace for this life, not when the Order has yet to gain their revenge. You were an utter fool, (Y/N).” It whispered. Suddenly, a stone spear hit the lector. It staggered away from you, and the electro bindings disappeared. Burnt marks were visible around you, and your heavy breathes signaled Zhongli of the damage you sustained.

“You are not welcome in this land. Get lost.” He ordered. The lector merely laughed and tried to attack him, but Zhongli had already prepared his shield to protect you. The sharp spears rained down on the enemy, hitting the vital parts. It groaned in pain, reduced to its knees.

The lector looked at you in warning. It voiced its anger at you for leaving the Order and wishing you no peace. There was a rift in the dimension, and the enemy was gone. Zhongli dematerialized his weapon and turned to you who was holding your wound. The Dendro energy was healing it slowly, but it was eating at your stamina.

“I do not wish to force you to be honest with me, (Y/N). Your judgment alone knows whether your actions are for Liyue’s safety or not.” He voiced, turning his back to you. The inkling he had back then finally clicked in his mind.

Your thoughts fumbled inside you, unsure of what you should say. You could feel your hands tremble in fear, and the way he turned his back intensified that emotion.

‘No… Please don’t go. Don’t leave just yet. I—‘

“Don’t go. Please.” You whimpered, unable to look at him anymore.

The Geo Archon stopped in his tracks, eyes widening at your pleas. The sound of your pitiful cry made him crouch down and wipe your tears. It was difficult to stop yourself from breaking down. You knew that it was because you did not want him to go and leave you alone for something you wanted to repent for.

“I… I can’t tell you everything, but I want you to know what really happened to me. Why I chose that road.” You explained your journey throughout the years, and how decapitating the memories of losing loved ones was to you. Zhongli held you closer to him, listening intently as you clutched his coat.

Once you were done, you looked at him for his reaction. You saw the disappointment in his eyes, and you felt perturbed. However, it was not because of you, but of himself. He let you go back then to your own devices, afraid that you will push him away. And now, you also carried innocent blood in your hands.

“Longevity is truly a burden to carry for immortals. But one should not wallow in self-pity. We make mistakes as mortals do, but we all have the chance to repent and do something better. Our lives outlive those of humans, but we saw how they thrive to have a fulfilling life. Why can’t we be better in the future too? You are not alone, (Y/N), no matter how much it feels that way. The people who cherish you, and who hold deep affection for you are here. I am here.” Zhongli said, wiping the tears from your eyes. He patted your head, comforting you in his own way. Your eyes watered at his sincere words.

“How do you always know the right words to say? You see right through everything I put up.” Zhongli smiled at your words, placing his forehead on you. His warmth calmed you down as you listened to his next words.

“I cherish you more than you know, Dear. I vie for your love even from before. So please, let me stand by your side this time. Let me protect you against the past that continues to hunt you. Be the stronghold that you can rely on to stand again and face the future bravely.” He pleaded. You moved away from his warmth and asked.

“How about Guizhong? Wasn’t she your lover?” Zhongli saw the unease in your figure, so he held your hand, intertwined it with his, and looked at you directly in the eyes.

“Of the past, yes. But we realized that love can be familial too. We both felt true love in our own time, not one that we realized sooner. Her with another, and mine with you. You became a special existence in my life. So this time, will you accept this sincerity of mine?” He asked. You nodded, whispering your answer to him. Zhongli’s lips curled up before leaving a featherlight kiss on your lips. It made you smile, heart finally at ease.

“I love you, now, tomorrow, and for thousands more to come.”

Tags: @no-regrets-just-confusion

Please do not copy or repost my stories, but notes and reblogs are always appreciated!

#genshin impact #genshin #zhongli x reader #zhongli #romance

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contentloadingandstuff · 1 year

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Genshin Impact Necro AU: Beleth - Story

Finally an update to the AU. I just did the Lantern Rite event, and that *finally* pushed me to remember my neglected characters.

Link to the Necro AU masterlist.

Beleth, also known as Arfill, came to be when one of the Creators, Death himself, understood that his creation was not for him to enjoy. Regardless of his intent, anything created by Life withered and faded into nothingness when he touched it. Hence, he decided to separate a small fraction of himself. Beleth, whose destructive power was small enough to contain it, was to experience and witness his father's masterpiece that was reality.

And enjoy it in his name he did. Eons passed, and Arfill was still discovering more and more about everything around him. He kept records of all of his findings diligently, storing them in the Timeless Void as concepts and thoughts, later to be written down in his countless journals. When the first creatures gained sentience on a level unseen before, Arfill felt the need to share his acquisitions, hoping to find a fascination with the world similar to his among humans. Yet engaging with them directly as a deity contradicted the wishes of Life, so he decided to find a middle ground.

Leading from the back seat, Beleth guided a few of the humans towards the creation of the powerful and knowledgeable nation of Kaenri'ah. Its citizens were eager to discover and learn, much like their unseen ruler. For that, he gifted them a part of his amassed information. The designs and teachings lead to the development of technology, medicine, elementalism and the art of Khemia - creating life from the resources accessible. Khemia was a derivative of Necro alchemy, a fact that Beleth preferred to keep secret. Yet the thirst for development of the people was underestimated by Arfill, and the truth soon came to light. Even though the existence of Necro was made common knowledge, not many attempted to actually research it. There was simply no way to isolate it, as Necro visions didn't appear naturally in the world. The element was not meant for mortals - gods as well, for that matter - to manipulate. So the citizens stayed by their natural Khemia.

The development was also the time when Beleth met Makoto, a goddess with whom Beleth shared desires and values. The two of them wanted the best for their people, to avoid suffering, whatever form it may take on.

Celestia kept an eye on Beleth from the moment it was established by Life. They were wary of his origin and connection to the creator of death, Ush. The divine guardians feared that Beleth's people would break out of the cycle put in place by their superior.

They saw Khemia as an insult towards the natural order of creation. As such, punishment was due.

Beleth could only watch as his entire work, his people and heritage, was burned to the ground. Regardless of his demands or pleas, Makoto tried to protect Kaenri'ah. For her compassion she paid the ultimate price. If not for him, Ei would have met a similar fate.

He felt many emotions at that moment. Feelings he wasn't used to. Rage. Grief. Hate. A disgust for Ti and her rules. He did only what the premise allowed, did he not? The barrier between life and death remained untouched, he made sure of that. And what he got for his diligence to uphold the law? Suffering of his people, who weren't even at fault here. It was him who shared the knowledge, and him who should pay the price. Yet Celestia didn't punish him, for they feared the wrath of the second creator. At least physically. They cursed the folk, twisting them into lowly, idiotic monsters. Celestia hoped that the compassionate Beleth would fear to step out of the line ever again.

They didn't know the good-natured Arfill died along with his nation. What replaced him was a divine being full of the purest disdain for them and their ideals.

With nowhere to go, Beleth returned to the Void to consult his father. He was rightfully enraged by this slight towards his laws, and, with a mere flick of his wrist, brought upon the world something more horrible than the Standard Bearers themselves. His son was taught how to separate the very fabric of reality to free Necro from its confines, and use it to establish a new order in Teyvat. A new order dictated not by Life's idleness, but Death's care for his creations. The freedom to explore and create using everything within the world and beyond its scope.

To make this goal come true, however, Celestia had to be destroyed.

Beleth was powerful, sure, but an entire council of gods handpicked by Life would be too much even for him. So he had to enlist some help.

And what better soldiers than Famine, War, Fear, Pain, Sadness, Plague and Pain? Beleth knew that their introduction into the mortal realms would bring upon death, but he was alright with that. He came to terms with the idea of sacrifice for the greater good a long time ago.

The first step was to breach the barrier Celestia created to separate the Bearers from Teyvat. Beleth decided that the best way to go about it would be to rip it open with the same energy that was used to create it.

And so, during the first days of the Archon War that followed the destruction of his nation, Arfill created a mock Gnosis to lure living gods right to him. Blinded by greed and the need for power, seven souls reached for it. And seven were annihilated during their attempts, leaving behind only souls. The power contained within the Gnosis would be too much, even for Arfill himself. It contained the pure essence of Death himself.

The souls were presented to the Bearers. The elemental powers within would allow them to wield not only Necro, but a different power as well. Before entering the world, each of them took on a different element.

Sunqu, the Bearer of Plague, took on Dendro.

Qablu, the Bearer of War, took on Pyro.

Ubuttu, the Bearer of Hunger, took on Geo.

Adaru, the Bearer of Pain, took on Hydro.

Sibtu, the Bearer of Fear, took on Cryo.

Zerutu, the Bearer of Hate, took on Electro.

Sapal Libbi, the Bearer of Sadness, took on Anemo.

With their new powers, the council could breach the barrier once and for all. Along with Beleth, they lead armies of undead against loyalist gods. The victims, both among mortals and immortals, were countless.

As horrible as the events were, only the oldest gods remember them. With a heroic effort, a group of living gods allied with Beleth snuck into the newly created Sumeru and sabotaged the Ley Lines, wiping the memory of Necro from the majority of the world. A great deal of those who resisted either went insane or were eliminated, leaving only a small group of dieties to remember Beleth's conquest.

The power of the Eight was immense, but the feeble souls couldn't hold them up forever and the loyalist resistence was high. After a long and bloody campaign, their forces were spent, and the Bearers retreated to the Void along with Beleth. Their armies moved north, and settled in the Barren Lands, creating a new human nation from the local inhabitants - one where the dead and the living would walk alongside each other towards a new future.

Generations went by, and the leftover Necro threats dwindled in number. The memories among even the gods did too. Skeletons and violent spirits soon became unnamed monsters, associated more with Hilichurls and Slimes. The exorcists, focused on more recent dangers, forgot about the true demons over time, leaving only the most powerful of them (like Xiao or Shenhe) to face the occasional skirmishers from the Void.

Beleth, having reflected upon the damage of the Archon War, seeks to pursue a different path of achieving victory. Throughout the years new opponents emerged, and a change of strategy was needed. He plans from the sidelines, looking closely at Fatui's progress. Their plan has a chance to succeed, but Beleth isn't willing to see it come to fruition. He waits for the right moment to strike, for an opportunity to snatch all of the Gnosi at the same time. Their power is something he doesn't want to pass up on.

Thanks for reading!

#genshin impact #genshin impact au #genshin au #genshin oc #genshin impact oc #alternative universe #genshin impact necro au #genshin necro au #necro au #canon x oc #oc x canon

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anemoarchonhoe · 2 years

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I dunno about you, but I just love the idea of God!Reader picking Venti as their consort/lover and how he and everyone else would react to that.

Reader: why worship me when you can worship my lover, Barbatos!

Bestie this is a Venti simp blog, Venti is always the default and canon consort of God!Reader here. 🥰

Barbatos has loved and adored you for so long, the Most Enthusiastic Devotee of the Seven. He emulates your will by refusing to rule Mondstadt, just as you had refused to rule the entirety of Teyvat. He was so utterly enamored by you; the fact that your divine principle is Freedom just solidifies his faith in you more.

The gods of Celestia, he regards them with disdain for sitting on the throne meant for you, ruling with tyranny and destroying lives just because they could. So when you descended and declared war with Celestia, he was right there beside you and fought for the entire world's freedom.

Venti acts amicable to his fellow archons but he secretly thinks them as traitors for forcing the role of Supreme Ruler unto you. You wished for the world to be free from rule; it's why you battled Celestia in the first place! You wanted humanity to thrive on their own; you didn't want mortals to rely on you. He seethed in anger, protested against it vehemently because he also wanted you, the benevolent All-Creator, to be free as well.

Unbeknownst to everyone, it's what endeared him to you. It's why you fell for him.

And it's also why you chose him, out of everyone vying for your attention, as your lover.

In truth, you've always loved him even before getting transported to Teyvat. But seeing him defend your freedom, your wish to not rule, how could you not immediately point at him when your disgusting, vile, audacious loyal acolytes demanded requested you to pick a consort to marry?

Venti furiously blushed, yet smiled up at you with such vibrance that it nearly blinded your eyes, while your shameless, impertinent acolytes gaped with how fast you've decided.

They opened their mouths to protest, To change your mind? To make you pick someone else? To make you choose just one more to stand by your side?, but then you looked at them all with an empty gaze filled with cold rejection... and they understood.

You found Barbatos to be the only one worthy of keeping your heart.

The Anemo Archon vowed to always keep your heart safe on your wedding day, along with an unspoken promise to one day release you from the shackles of ruling Teyvat. When your lips met in a gentle kiss, he felt a sudden surge of power enter his body. Venti looks at his form to find himself now sporting three pairs of wings instead of one, and felt immensely stronger... stronger than when he still had his gnosis. Stronger than when he's on his prime and still had his gnosis. Is this the All-Creator's blessing? Is this the power of the All-Creator's most beloved?

He grinned, spreading his wings as he steps down the altar and slowly approaches the seated acolytes watching the wedding.

You merely watched with an adoring smile as your consort, your husband, exacted just divine punishment upon your worshippers.

Now, you are free.

#ventus.answers #sagau #genshin sagau #cult au #genshin!cult #just venti #self aware genshin #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact sagau #genshin venti #genshin impact venti x reader #venti x reader #sagau venti #10000/10 would renew your vows again #for those who didn't understand the ending very well #it's because he became your consort that he got a new boost in power #and it also caused a transformation!!!

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drtenebres · 3 years

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who are the most developed/most focused on characters right now??

Thanks for the ask!! It’s hard to say who is the most developed character right now, due to so many brain cells trying to work together, but we’ve all got our own individual ones we’re working on that we feel the strongest about !

@shslstraws :

blah blah blah this is where jude talks about oumota -Snelly (SHAAAAADDUPPPPP -Straws)

Kaito (My beloved) - A commonfolk who was oblivious by the magic world around him until he inevitably is pushed to it, by living his new life as a Tenebroso werewolf. The cause for how he became a werewolf is unknown, and he tries to keep away from his friends and family to protect them from this “curse”. Kaito gets in a mix of mages and eventually meets with Kokichi, a plague doctor who claims he can cure him. He slowly realizes and comes to face the reality that is Tenebres.

Kokichi (Most developed??) - A mage who lived in an orphanage until he gets adopted by two mages, Nagito and Hajime. Kokichi dreams of being far powerful than both his dads and going back to recruit the other orphanage kids to his upcoming organization. Until he gets a set back when he takes things too far with the magi academy, he gets demoted to a Plague Doctor; a low status of a mage. It is until he meets Kaito, on one of his duties, and believes if he figures out the mystery behind Tenebrosos, he will earn the right to regain his place back in the academy.

Shuichi (Most Focused on ATM) - Born from the great Kyoko Kirigiri and Makoto Naegi, there are a lot of expectations put upon Shuichi since he was very young. The expectations were too high and too heavy to carry that Shuichi decided to leave behind that life and the Kirigiri name. He meets up with Rantaro who gives him the ability of a werewolf, and thinks he can finally start anew. Until he faces the same problems with being a werewolf and being part of a pack, Shuichi decides to live amongst the commonfolk with his new friends Kaito, Kaede, and Maki by his side.

@baylardian-1 :

Kyoko (Most focused on) - A detective who grew up working under a large magefolk entity in the specific branch that deals with magic-based crimes. Kyoko is telepathic with a hindered use of magic due to a strange curse covering both of her hands. Because of her ability to read minds and the overwhelming loudness many voices can create in her head, Kyoko prefers working alone. Eventually she retires from her occupation and becomes a private investigator alongside her husband Makoto.

Hifumi (Most developed) - A hamster familiar most closely resembling a smitten patsy for Celestia Ludenberg. Not having many friends he impulsively chose to follow a pretty girl one day and has never ceased. Initially out of threat, Hifumi would perform healing spells for Celestia after her hunts in addition to take care of her every beck and call. Nowadays their relationship takes on a more unspoken respect and fondness for one another.

Mukuro (My beloved) - A Tenebroso werewolf nearing closer to being 400 years old in age. Born a mage alongside her younger twin sister Junko, many events surrounding their past are shrouded in mystery. As a Tenebroso she has an unnaturally extended life. Mukuro is naturally covered in scars and physically looks to be reaching her mid 50's-early 60's. She is most often however seen to be disguising herself as a young girl.

@snellymain :

Kiyo (Most developed) - A socially reclusive vampire with a guilty conscience and a sworn duty to feed by killing swiftly rather than turning anyone else into a vampire; since he hates his vampirism and his sister that cursed him with it. Has a huge fondness for humans and anthropology after his controlling sister's hatred for them caused him to have extremely limited interactions with them. Ends up committed to a mage named Angie while the unwanted spirit of his sister began haunting him after many years of being dead.

Mahiru (Most focused on) - A standard mage with very little powers and a high respect for her non-mage mother, matching her disdain for her mage father. She got into photography as she had no attachment to her underwhelming magic, until her mother urged her to go to an academy so she wouldn't let her powers go to waste like her father did. After doing so, being out in the world more, she met Hiyoko and Hiro; in which she happily adopted the former and angrily married the latter.

Angie (My beloved) - A healing-based blood mage raised communally on an island, she heals others wounds with their own blood and often secretly takes their blood for her own use while doing so; mostly to feed her partner Kiyo, but she also has a fascination for blood of her own, initially being a result of her village's blood sacrifices and now a result of her blood magic. Generally a loud nuisance, though a medically helpful nuisance, in her academy.

@samsquatchem :

Doodle + blurb done by Snelly ♥

Yasuhiro (Their beloved) - A nomadic powerful mage with a wide variety of powers, mostly focusing on clairvoyance and near-limitless telekinesis; generally wanders around getting money wherever he can but spending it horrendously, ending up in a constant flat circle of time. He’s basically homeless; not out of poverty but what he considers convenience and tax evasion, for the most part and bums around Mahiru’s place. Close friends and a father figure to Hiyoko, (much to Mahiru’s initial dismay) the two bond over their shared tendency to wander and be in a new place every week + magic that neither know how to use properly, she became quickly attached to him due to him being the first person to talk to her after she ran away from home. Hiro is able to see the future but unable to speak it verbatim or else the opposite outcome will come to fruition, he can only nudge clients in the right direction of his visions. Most people think his magic is a scam and he’s the most useless mage ever.

@sutexii :

Chiaki (My Beloved) - A wooden mask enchanted with a human soul, powered by dream juice and magic robotics. Created by Chihiro to live in the dream realm (where u go when u sleep + also where the killing games take place) to gather data on it for Chihiro’s research, and help those in it travel safely. Has a deep fascination with the unpredictable and strange, and enjoys seeking out new knowledge wherever she can. Still likes her games, and while originally given access to some to help entertain those she’s traveling with, she just ends up hoarding them herself.

Tenko (Most Focused On ATM) - Commonfolk w/ a smidge of monster that comes out when her anger peaks. Abandoned due to said anger issues as a child, and taken in by Aoi and Sakura. She had a very Ghibli idyllic childhood, having adventures with friends and delivering donuts for her mom. Learned martial arts from her mom, taking a particular liking to Aikido, and through it learned to control her anger. Follows childhood crush Himiko around to protect her, leading to her entering the less than legal artifact smuggling trade with her later in life.

Aoi (Most Developed) - Water elemental with a love for baking donuts and raising/rehabilitating carp. Married to Sakura, having met when she wandered into the pond in her family’s abandoned dojo and decided to stay to fix it up, motivating Sakura to fix the rest of the place up in turn. Very carefree, friendly, and laid back, loves kids and taking on the “fun auntie” role. Never worked on her humanoid appearance much at all until motherhood, Tenko enters their life and it became hard to hold back a feral monster baby with fins.

@Soupcifer_ :

Nekomaru (Franken-maru) (most developed) - A reanimated corpse who was brought back to life thanks to the help of Kazuichi and Mikan. Unfortunately, he has amnesia and thus no recollection of his past friendships and family. He's a lot more quiet and mellow in comparison to his old self which makes him seem pretty dull, but in actuality he's being rather attentive and simply trying to understand everything that's happening. He does a lot of behind-the-scenes work when no ones looking like cleaning up after Kazuichi and setting reminders for Akane (still a team manager at heart).

Gonta (My beloved) - A vampire raised by werewolves. He only recently came to terms with being a vampire as he lived most of his life assuming the form of a wolf. He has an obsession with bugs, classic literature, and vintage clothing. Gonta likes to follow around a few of his friends, Angie and Korekyio (wink), and be of assistance whenever he can. He unfortunately has trouble dealing with his vampire nature sometimes due to only having lived with werewolves, so he often turns to Korekiyo for help.

Chihiro (most focused on) - An electric elemental! Chihiro is the creator/parent of Chiaki and Monomi. They have a passion for creating things that run on electricity and magic and as a result created their two lovely daughters (that and to investigate the dream realm). Chihiro also has the ability to possess electronics and machinery! Despite being incredibly small, they can emit a surprisingly large amount of energy which makes possessing large or complicated machinery an easy task.

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teyvattherapist · 3 years

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Sandrone | Stories

Character Details

Sandrone is a man of many names and many faces, everchanging always moving, untrustworthy by nature.

Originally a man who sought knowledge above all else, he now finds solace in clear orders and directives.

Much like some of the other Harbingers, Sandrone finds himself coming to blows with many of those within his rank. He, however, doesn’t seem to take notice of this.

Or perhaps he doesn’t care?

Story 1

A natural infiltrator, some would say of Sandrone. The Puppet of the Tsaritsa uses words and personas to get just about anybody and everybody to trust him by doing nothing more than changing his mask.

This skill makes him untrusted by the other Harbingers, even the one he grew up with. To them he’s void, expressionless, monotone, some would go as far to say Sandrone lacks anything that makes him a person. But it all lends to his ability to manipulate a person’s perception.

However, one may find that Sandrone isn’t one for combat, his claymore is a powerful dangerous weapon, but he prefers his words over combat. He never liked the battlefield and if he had had his way as a child, he would have never been on it.

Perception and perspectives are the names of Sandrone’s game. He walks the line between friend and foe. Enemy and ally. Hiding things from him is almost futile, while he warps the perceptions of others, his own is sharper than most. Anything and everything is futile once the puppet has his strings attached.

Story 2

There are rumours of what Sandrone looks like beneath the mask and who he just might be, none of his subordinates know, and very few of his fellow Harbingers know. Nobody and yet everybody knows who is under the mask.

Some say he keeps his identity hidden because he’s a political head from Inazuma. Others say he keeps his identity hidden because he’s a captain from Mondstadt. And one may even hear whispers of a well known scholar from Sumeru.

These are all merely rumours though. Sandrone is a nobody from nowhere. Or at least, as far as he’s aware. No matter what he may say though, it doesn’t stop the rumours. So instead he began to listen to them.

Sandrone will apply other people’s perceptions and theories to any number of his masks in order to infiltrate them. Whether it be a suspicious subordinate with a pension for talking politics. A pesky treasure hoarder with a fear of authority. Or even a very curious merchant.

Nobody is safe from being heard or seen by the Harbinger and having their own ideals twisted against them.

Story 3

Before Sandrone, there was Sulien. A quiet and quite shy boy from Mondstadt in a foreign nation to learn a secret form of alchemy that once brought upon the destruction of a nation. Alongside his brother and very few others, Sulien excelled in this alchemical art.

Studious was an excellent word to describe the young boy, and it would seem this particular trait of his hasn’t been diminished unlike everything else. As a child he wanted nothing more than to learn and to teach, a scholar like his father.

These dreams are all but naught for Sandrone now. The only true semblance of his childhood dream lines the walls of his home in the forms of multiple bookshelves. Books in every language one could think of. He knows it all, and he’s quite proud of it too.

Sulien sought knowledge as a child and when it was given to him he learned quickly just how dangerous it could be. Now Sandrone wields that knowledge like a weapon against the foes of the Tsaritsa. And while he may no longer remember the boy he grew up alongside, he may vaguely recall late nights spent listening to stories.

There was no doubt of his skill even then, though the extent of his alchemical abilities are long since lost, locked away and unused due to their terrible nature. His thirst for knowledge and something more is what remains.

Story 4

Before being a Harbinger though, Sulien was an alchemist working under Dottore. For two years Sulien withstood the Harbinger’s.. Eccentric.. Personality. However, his heart wasn’t set on using alchemy for elemental infusions of mutated people and machinery.

No far more interesting was the reports that began to show up on the desk of the Jester a year into Sulien working for the Fatui. All done anonymously of course, reports of rogue agents and enemy movements, things that nobody else had managed to get ahold of.

Pretty eyes and smooth words, it was a lowly alchemist who managed to gain the trust of even the most skittish of Fatui agents behind these reports. His skill did not go unnoticed once more and more reports began to show up. In fact it took seven months for the Jester to find out who was placing them there.

Nowadays there is very little Sandrone and Sulien have in common, the latter washed away to make way for a puppet known specifically for his skills of manipulation. Little is retained but the cunning charisma that makes him who he is.

Story 5

Sandrone has long forgotten his past or who he is, where he’s from, or what the almost orange sun shaped birthmark on his right hip means. He vaguely recalls an obsession with the stars, with fate, with destiny. But he does not remember where this obsession comes from.

No, he no longer remembers the once great clan he hails from. Previously known for their gifts granted by Celestia itself. The Ambros Clan has lost almost all their greatness, dwindled down to two members, one of which who no longer remembers.

Any favour given to Sandrone, whether or not it is willing, is only used to advance his Celestia given powers. He can recite all of the constellations and their stories, and point out things in the sky that others may not care to know.

Sandrone simply cannot remember how he knows or why he cares. That burden falls to the moon-touched twin he has long since wiped from the fragments of his memory. There are reflections in the cracks he can’t seem to make sense of.

Perhaps his memory has long since been taken from him, his autonomy wiped away in lieu of following orders and adapting to needs. Despite this nothing can take his status as Celestia’s sun kissed favourite away from him. Even if he no longer remembers what it means to be favoured or even what those favours may do.

Celestia has not forgotten the sacrifice of the Ambros Clan long past.

Fellow Harbingers

Sandrone is not one to often hold grudges, his very nature doesn’t allow him much room to have an opinion on very much. Still, though, his opinion of his fellow Harbingers is rather low. Whether that is due to their treatment or due to his own perception of them is rather unknown.

While he knew Tartaglia while they were both children, the others are still new players in this game that he hasn’t been playing all that long. From Dottore’s horrific experimentations, to Signora’s brutal way of doing things, to Scaramouche’s general attitude. Sandrone does his best to ignore the less savoury parts of his colleagues.

There are times where even the puppet slips though, and it is almost always in response to Signora’s meddling in his business. Overbearing and mocking in how she conducts business with him, he prefers to work exclusively alone as a result.

Head of the reconnaissance unit and one of their best undercover agents, Sandrone often has the ability to work alone or with very few of his own people. This has changed now that his work has extended beyond the borders of Snezhnaya, however.

More opportunities for his colleagues to annoy him and thus more opportunities for them to get in his way. A solitary man and a group of people who all seek their own form of control don’t mix well. And while few of the other Harbingers make their disdain known, few also work behind the scenes to watch him fail.

Sandrone is a man of few failures nonetheless, an irritating fact to most.

Delusion

If there was one thing that somebody could find most common between the Ambros twins, it was their ability to both be cunning. The moment Sulien was conscripted into the Fatui after school, he began devising a plan to escape back to Mondstadt. It took two years of working under Dottore as an alchemist focusing on elemental infusion before he was given a leg up.

Backing the Harbinger, Pierro, into a corner, Sulien was able to secure a particularly lucrative promotion, one he deemed necessary to escape the harsh tundra that is Snezhnaya. Everything was going directly according to plan. Nothing could stop him. Or at least, so he thought. This was until the Tsaritsa caught wind of his plans to leave.

Under the guise of retrieving his new orders and a delusion, Sulien was captured and thrown into a cell for what would perhaps be the worst month of his life. Broken down piece by piece until he could no longer stand to remember. Sulien Ambros was completely washed away and replaced by the perfect marionette, Sandrone.

There was no ceremony nor prideful moment. Nothing more than a gift box with a set of black and green gloves within, the left one sporting a Dendro Delusion. Untrusted by his colleagues and further looked at as merely machine, Sandrone doesn’t particularly remember much, let alone why. Even his mask is a vicious mockery of the cracks his own mind holds.

#Sandrone #Genshin Impact oc #Stories 2

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potatotrash0 · 3 years

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I’ll literally never ever stop thinking about Celeste and Kokichi...they’re just. So interesting and I’m a sucker for complex characters that make me think and allow me the space to speculate and theorize the crap outta them....my little analysis? will stay under the cut because this got way longer than I originally planned.

I just find it so fascinating how Kokichi doesn’t bother with niceties like a lot of the other characters do. He frequently points out things that the other characters either don’t notice or don’t acknowledge, like the fact that Monokuma wants them to work together in order to break them apart and create rifts in the group. Similarly in THH, Celeste brings up several uncomfortable topics, one of the most notable ones for me being the idea of adaptability and survivability being closely interlocked, that those who can’t adapt are bound to wind up dead.

Their statements are cold and unnerving to think about, but I also can’t help thinking about how they’re...not actually wrong? Both ideas are unpleasant for everyone else in the group, but at least how I see it, going about things normally and trusting people you don’t even know isn’t smart, regardless of how optimistic you want to be.

Something I also want to note is that a fundamental part of both their characters is that they’re liars, but how they lie and the reasons why they lie in the first place are just so vastly different from each other.

Kokichi is someone who’s tendency for lying seems to stem from 1.) a lack of trust and 2.) a fear of vulnerability. He exaggerates and fakes his reactions to things frequently and says afterwards that all of it was a lie, but also mentions odd things like “just hit the reset button on your feelings,” which suggests he doesn’t really give himself much time to process how he truly feels. There’s also the fact that he writes, “油断ならない?” under Saihara’s picture on the whiteboard in his room. I believe, and I say this tentatively since I don’t know Japanese and I’m working off translators and kanji websites, that phrase roughly translates to “yudan naranai.” “Yudan” seems to mean “carelessness, recklessness.” “Naranai” seems to mean “do not become.” I’m guessing that Kokichi is making a note to be cautious around Saihara, or to not get careless around him, though why exactly Kokichi feels the need to make that sort of note, I’m not sure. From the English translation of “trustworthy,” I assumed that he trusted Saihara, but I’m wondering now if it would be more accurate to say that he simply acknowledges the detective as a notable figure in the trials or something along those lines. I think he was already formulating his plan with Kaito at this point, so perhaps he was noting that Saihara might’ve been able to find out about it if he wasn’t careful with his words, though I haven’t actually finished V3 so I’m not sure if my assumption lines up with canon. (I’m noticing now that @/oumakokichi said that yudan naranai as a phrase means “tricky,” not “be careful.” I don’t know if it’s like. A Japanese turn of phrase that I just don’t know about or if I translated it wrong skjfkdjf)

Kokichi’s lies are also very...wild. Like his rather chaotic and loud personality, he tends to lie like second nature. I believe in Salmon Mode, if you agree with the idea of Kokichi stopping his lies, he says that it’s arrogant to expect someone to change such a vital part of themselves just for the sake of other people’s approval. The best descriptor I can come up with for his brand of lying is that...it’s like a minefield with both real and fake mines. It’s hard to differentiate what’s what, and while you can take a guess, there’s always a chance that your assumption will backfire and blow up in your face unless you pay extremely close attention.

Celeste, on the other hand, seems to lie more out of insecurity than a lack of trust. She hates the idea of being ordinary, calling her real name a loser’s name, and is shown to be willing to go to extremes to achieve the lavish life she desires. Even beyond the whole murder plan, gambling in Japan is illegal, so she’s breaking the law as well as resorting to risking her own life in gambling matches in order to get the money she needs for her castle. She’s also a lot more particular in how she lies. She seems to have an elaborate backstory all planned out, from her being descended from French and German ancestors to her likely fake gambling matches inspired by various gambling manga. She sticks to it well, firmly restating details like her name being Celestia Ludenberg, even when it’s clear that some people don’t buy it. Juxtaposed to Kokichi’s minefields, Celeste’s lies strike me as more like a carefully woven web of half-truths. Not quite lies, but definitely not the whole story either.

I also find it interesting how their motivations and actions in their respective killing games differ. Kokichi is shown to actively despise the work of Team Danganronpa, calling them sick for enjoying toying with people’s lives. In the Japanese version, I believe he says something along the lines of, “A game where people lose their lives...how could that ever be fun?” He also mentions to Saihara that a game can be won by simply not playing. He flat out says, “Regardless of your reasons, the moment you felt the urge to kill, you had already lost. You agreed to be part of this killing game when you allowed murder to fill your heart.” He’s not really subtle about his hatred of the killing game, and even the whole “I love this game!!!” spiel in Chapter 4 is a rather pathetic lie. At least, it seems obvious to me, seeing as up until that point, some of his most serious moments have included him explicitly talking about not playing by Monokuma’s rules. I think Saihara himself notes that Kokichi seemed to have upped the whole evil persona. Though, being an observer, I guess I could be biased.

Celeste, however, said herself that she wanted nothing more than to get out as soon as Monokuma showed up. Just outright states it, that her whole “adaptability is survivability” mentality was a facade she put up in order to hide the fact that she was always considering killing someone in exchange for freedom. It’s a direct contrast to Kokichi’s insistence that they shouldn’t give into Monokuma’s trap, as well as his strong disdain for murder.

And since I’ve gone over their differences all this time, I wanna go over a few notable similarities real quick?

I notice that they both have a theme of hiding and suppressing their emotions. Kokichi’s more subtle about it, his most explicit line being that “hit reset on your feelings” line. Celeste states it outright, saying that she takes pride in being able to fool her own emotions, that “the conscious deceives the unconcious.” However, neither of them have full control over what emotions they show, as Kokichi is shown a few times to lose control and try to play it off as a lie afterwards, and Celeste loses her temper with Hifumi and during the trial. When it came time for her to be executed, even Makoto was able to see through her smile despite her efforts to appear composed.

Another thing is that they both seem to be rather commanding characters. Celeste is one of the first to take initiative, immediately establishing the no-wandering-at-nighttime rule, as well as bringing up the adapt to survive idea. She repeatedly reminds everyone to adhere to the rule, appearing ticked off when people don’t and even saying that Chihiro had their death coming to them for meeting someone at night. One of Kokichi’s first moves is to befriend Gonta, and he doesn’t have any issue ordering the guy around, not unlike how Celeste orders around Hifumi. Gonta obviously doesn’t really seem to find Kokichi physically attractive, but the boss/goon dynamic is similar. This is likely more of a “you’re easy to pick on so I’m gonna keep doing it” sort of deal than him being commanding, but I will bring up that Kokichi does seem to find Miu’s more wimpish side amusing, enough that he doesn’t seem to get bored of insulting her through the game.

This is...probably all stuff that me and plenty of other people have gone over before but I just. Man I just think they’re so neat........I love them.....they make me happy to think about....

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abyssmalice · 3 years

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(i dont have the prose braincells to put this into an eloquent headcanon post just yet, but since i dont think this is info that’ll easily come up in a thread or something, im shoving my thoughts on smol tonia’s relationship with the tsaritsa (with a bit of pierro too lmao) in her au down here)

initially, tonia absolutely Hated the tsaritsa for forcing her into a “hard rock and hard wall” situation re: choosing between staying as dottore’s lab rat and serving the tsaritsa as a harbinger

her hatred stems from the fact that tonia wanted Neither of those options - only to go home. which the tsaritsa didn’t permit because she saw the potential in tonia’s ability to use the elements and wanted to utilize the girl as an additional trump card against celestia.

that being said, the tsaritsa isn’t indifferent to tonia and her circumstances. she pities the child a lot, which is more or less why tonia is usually left to her own devices and a mere slap on the wrist despite her rebellious antics bordering on treason sometimes

additionally, her ultimatum was a bit of a bluff - the tsaritsa correctly guessed tonia wouldn’t want to go back to being experimented on and would choose to become a harbinger.

in that sense, the opportunity to become a harbinger was the tsaritsa’s way of granting her protection to the girl through an unrivaled title of authority, which also afforded her freedom and a sense of dignity - while still bringing on a powerful chess piece for the war against celestia.

it’s just that this protection still comes at the price of serving and obeying the tsaritsa. which tonia’s doesn’t want to do because she doesn’t like the tsaritsa, resulting in her rebellious antics - which further results in the tsaritsa needing to rein in her eleventh in various ways. mainly, by preventing tonia from freely returning to snezhnaya (unless commanded) until she demonstrates a satisfactory level of performance.

of course, with time, tonia did come around to see the tsaritsa’s viewpoint and reasoning for taking down celestia no matter the cost - but the bitterness of essentially being used and weaponized and dehumanized, so to speak, means that her hateful vitriol has only somewhat cooled down into a weary disdain and irritation at this point.

additionally, tonia dislikes pierro aka the 1st harbinger for more or less the same reasons as the tsaritsa. in her AU, pierro is a devoted follower and The right-hand man of the tsaritsa - meaning he is one of the few people privy to the truth around tonia’s circumstances, and thus one of the few who could weigh in on any decisions regarding her.

him being her official mentor in the fatui means he serves as a wise teacher/exasperated guardian figure to her - which tonia doesn’t like at all but she does eventually grudgingly appreciate his sound advice, even if she thinks said advice is completely unwarranted all the time.

that being said, he is also responsible for keeping an eye on her, including making sure she doesn’t enact actual treason - though he has spies and assassins prepared for that scenario anyway. tonia is vaguely aware she’s being observed (one of pierro’s people tends to accompany her, clearly to observe her movements), but she’s honesty unaware of how deep the surveillance is.

#(THIS GOT SO LONG PLEASE HELP I DIDNT MEAN TO RAMBLEEEEEEEEEEEEE)#(also this is just a quick rundown on the logic behind tonia's behavior with the tsaritsa and pierro)#(tsaritsa and pierro muses dont have to follow this at all!! its just here for explanatory reasons and as general clarification for her au)#headcanons | (without love it cannot be seen);

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mordenheim · 4 years

Text

Dr. Mordenheim’s Travels, Book 1: De Writer’s Equestria, Ch. 8

Dr. Victor Mordenheim has traveled to many different realities in his many centuries of existence. This series, which I shall add to from time to time, will explore some of them, beginning with the world of @ask-de-writer. Note: This tale takes place before the Hearthswarming story. It is actually the night after the Nightmare Night Celebration. =============================================================

The huge zebra sat at the table, waiting for the entrance of the two sisters. Luna had essentially twisted his foreleg until he finally agreed to meet with her sister, Celestia. Given that in his own world, Celestia was responsible for his curse and much of the suffering he experienced in his long, long life it had taken a LOT of twisting.

He clucked his tongue against the roof of his mouth and wished silently that he had brought his pipe. He imagined that it was likely bad manners to smoke inside of the royal palace, but his nerves were shot. He gazed around the room, which was smoothly tiled and decorated mostly in white and gold with deep midnight blue and black highlights. The black of a few of the tiles was so deep that he felt he might fall into one if he stared at it for too long.

He glanced back over his shoulders to the four guards posted by the huge double doors. Three of them stood at attention, their heads scanned the room as proper, well trained guards would. The fourth had his eyes locked on the “good” doctor, sneering with disdain at what he obviously considered a “lesser” creature. Victor turned away and rolled his eyes, sighing softly. There really was no escaping ignorance.

After a few moments there came a knock at the door. A new guard leaned in and whispered something to one of the others before the two nodded to one another and she backed out and closed the door.

“Night court is running late, I am afraid. Princess Luna will be unable to attend tea with her sister this evening. However, Princess Celestia shall be appearing in a few moments.

The zebra swallowed hard and felt his heart sink into his gut. This was not at all what he had agreed to. Meeting the two of them together was bad enough, at least he would have Princess Luna to lean on a bit and guide him through the ordeal, but this? This was almost too much to bear.

Victor stared wordlessly into the cup of milky tea swirling before him. His hooves tapped nervously on the tabletop as he waited. He turned his head to the left, casting furtive glances towards the door. The door where a mare who was the spitting image of the one who ruined his life would soon enter. He cast his eyes over to the side of the room and briefly considered hurling himself through the glass to escape. It might be poor form, but he wouldn't have to face his fear alone. He knew in his head that she was not the same mare who had been responsible for his centuries of torment, but he was not so sure of how his heart would react to seeing her face to face. He took a deep, cleansing breath through his nose and slowly exhaled through his mouth as he tried to get his nerves under control.

The door opened and he felt his heart freeze like ice. He turned to see the Princess of the Sun enter the room, alone. She was slightly taller than he, her rainbow mane seeming to blow in an eternal solar wind even in the still air of the room. He felt a sudden urge to flee settle into him until he met her gaze. Her eyes met his and studied him with curiosity. Where the Celestia he knew would only look upon him with coldness and disdain, there was none of that here. Her eyes held genuine concern. Her violet gaze seemed warm and inviting, like being bathed in the gentle light of the sun after a cold storm. He started to speak, then stopped. Unused to the process he bowed low as he did for her sister, if a bit stiffly.

The princess smiled brightly, “My sister told me that you were quite nervous about our meeting, yet it seems something has changed that already. What was it?”

He cast his gaze downwards, ashamed of how frightened he had been. “One look into your eyes and I could see that you were not the tyrant ruler of my old home, despite many physical similarities. Your eyes speak of inviting kindness, while hers spoke of solitude and hatred.”

Celestia, let out a musical laugh. She moved about a few of the massive array of cakes set before her to make eye contact easier. No doubt many of these were part of her sister's bribe. “I am glad to see you are so observant. The ability to see more than one's appearance is a very important trait to have.”

The zebra finally took a small sip of his tea. He enjoyed the milky richness and the slight sweetness on his tongue. He thought about her words and tilted his head a bit. “And what do you see beneath my appearance?”

The tall mare looked thoughtful for a moment. Her first few words were muffled, spoken as they were around a mouthful of cake. “Power... Great power and intelligence, and a kindness and wish to help others.” Her wistful look turned to one of sorrow, “Beneath that, however, is pain.. More pain than anyone should have to endure. There's a darkness down there, and that makes you a dangerous stallion.” Victor sat his cup down with a shaking hoof. The porcelain made a soft clattering noise against the saucer. How much did she know, he wondered. Steeling himself, he forced his eyes to meet hers and was stunned to see not judgment, but compassion in her gaze. “I have done many things I am not proud of over the centuries. Things I wish I could go back and change, but I can't. All of this power and all of the time in the universe...” “Yet you can't change the past...” Celestia finished for him.

He nodded mutely and stared down into his tea for a moment. The princess reached across the table and lightly touched his shoulder with a hoof. The zebra was so tense it was like touching a moss-covered stone. “I don't know what you've done in the past, but that was another place, another world entirely. Here, I want you to know that you can start over. A clean slate, as it were.”

She stared into the depths of her own tea for a moment. “I know what happened at the celebration last night.”

Victor had gripped the edge of the table with his hooves so tightly that the wood sounded like it was beginning to splinter. He glanced at the guards, his voice a hoarse whisper. “They were inciting violence around children, I couldn't just...”

She smiled softly, “I know... I know everything that happened, Victor. Luna knew what had happened and we do not keep secrets from one another.”

The zebra was confused by the smile, but relaxed a little. She hadn't shouted for the guards so all may still be well.

“My apologies. A transgression like that where I come from could result in several years in the dungeon, if not becoming a permanent addition to the royal statue garden.” He rubbed a bit at his eye patch and chuckled nervously, but could see genuine concern in Celestia's eyes.

“I'm sorry to hear that. To think that a punishment for a crime would be levied without looking into all circumstances involved, or worse that the circumstances did not matter is horrible. To think that it comes from a version of myself, even more so.” The tall alicorn helped herself to another piece of cake from the rapidly dwindling pile. As she took a bite, she mulled over a few thoughts.

“It doesn't sound like you are in any particular hurry to go back there,” she said softly, taking a sip of tea.

“Not at all. There is nothing left for me there anymore. Everything was taken from me.” He picked up the mug of tea in his hooves and sipped at it sparingly. It had gone cold while they were waiting, but that was fine as far as he was concerned.

Victor was once more bathed in that comforting warmth as Celestia smiled at him. “You may, of course, stay here for as long as you wish. You are after all a citizen of Equestria, if not this particular version of it.” She giggled a bit, “Luna has also told me that you were so anxious to open your clinic that you forgot to get the proper licenses even after she told you directly.”

Victor blushed, a deep crimson showing through his pale fur. “Y..yes, well...” He stammered for a moment before nodding, “Very true. If Princess Luna had not been visiting that day I could have ended up in a rather large spot of trouble.”

“Ah! Before I forget! Luna was extremely impressed with the demonstration of your prostheses. She even said that it has pushed her to try improving on her own design. Perhaps the two of you should compare notes with one another and come up with a single design using your combined knowledge?”

Victor hummed and rubbed his chin, “I think that is an ingenious idea! If you think she would be willing, of course...” Celestia chuckled to herself, “I think she would be delighted. After all, who knows what breakthroughs the two of you may devise?”

Victor slowly took another long, cleansing breath and allowed himself to relax at last. “Lord and Lady, I had been so nervous about this day. Thankfully, I see that it was for no good reason.”

The tall alicorn tilted her head at that statement, “Lord and Lady? I must admit that's an expletive I have not heard before.”

“Ah..” Victor blushed a bit and thought he had gotten a bit too comfortable. “It is in reference to the parents of Princess Luna and Celestia from my own dimension. Lord Kraken and Lady Faust.”

The princess nodded. She took a very large bite of cake and chewed thoughtfully as she mulled it over, “Yes, I suppose that would make sense. Though it is interesting to hear that a version of myself and my sister came from an entirely different set of circumstances.”

The zebra lifted a fork in his hoof and took a small piece of the sugary sweet cake onto it, “Well, the circumstances, unfortunately, created a very different version of you both.”

Celestia took one look and could easily read the hurt in the doctor's voice. She cleared her throat a bit and smiled once more at him, “Perhaps that is something we can discuss another time. This being our first meeting perhaps we should stick to more pleasant conversation.”

He placed the sugary treat into his mouth and let it melt upon his tongue. There was so much sweetness to it it made his teeth tingle, but it was still very flavorful. It wasn't sweet just for sweetness sake, but crafted with love and care by someone who knew precisely what they were doing. “Mmm.. sorry..” He took a sip of his tea to clear some of the stickiness from his maw, “Did you have something particular in mind?”

“Well, the running of the leaves is in a few weeks. We've changed the route a bit so it runs past your clinic and will clear some of the mess out in that area. I was wondering if you were going to participate in the running itself?”

His ears perked up at the sound of that. How long had it been since he'd gone for a run and just really let himself loose? He could actually feel his true cutie mark trying to push its way pas the wolf-head curse mark on his flank for a moment. “I.. would like that very much, but I don't know if I should...”

The princess blinked in surprise, sitting upright, “I don't understand. The running is open to any creature who wishes to join in. What could be the problem?”

Victor chuckled a little, “Simply put, my skill as a scientist is purely due to study, hard work, and dedication. It has nothing to do with my talent.” He smiles, actually puffing up with pride a little, “While I may be a bit rusty, my true talent is running. I just don't know if it would be fair to the others if I were to participate.”

She laughed a little, a high, cheerful piccolo like sound. “Oh, now I wish to see you run even more. If it is something you are skilled at and enjoy enough to brag about it in front of me, you must be impressive indeed!” He blinked as he realized that he had just stepped in a mess with this turn of conversation. He sighed softly and shook his head, “Alright then, I will participate, but I just hope the other ponies won't be upset if I show them up too badly.” He finished his small slice of cake and drained the last of his tea before smiling at her. However, the hour is late, and I still have a bit of paperwork to do before bed.” “Of course, of course. I should be getting to bed myself. It is a shame that Luna could not join us, but I did exercise enough restraint to save her a slice of cake.” Victor turned and bowed to the Princess, his head low to the carpet, “By your leave, your highness.”

She smiled and nodded, “Of course. I look forward to seeing you again soon, Doctor Mordenheim. I also look forward to what breakthroughs you and my sister may come up with.” The zebra stood and turned to trot out of the room. He took great delight in the look of impotent rage on the face of one particular guard as he passed by.

#MLP #text #story #mordenheim #pony #ask-de-writer #alternate universe #Princess #Celestia

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ask-de-writer · 4 years

Text

Dr. Mordenheim’s Travels, Book 1: De Writer’s Equestria, Ch. 8

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Dr. Mordenheim’s Travels, Book 1: De Writer’s Equestria, Ch. 8

@mordenheim

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Dr. Mordenheim’s Travels, Book 1: De Writer’s Equestria, Ch. 8

After a few moments there came a knock at the door. A new guard leaned in and whispered something to one of the others before the two nodded to one another and she backed out and closed the door.

��Night court is running late, I am afraid. Princess Luna will be unable to attend tea with her sister this evening. However, Princess Celestia shall be appearing in a few moments.

He knew in his head that she was not the same mare who had been responsible for his centuries of torment, but he was not so sure of how his heart would react to seeing her face to face. He took a deep, cleansing breath through his nose and slowly exhaled through his mouth as he tried to get his nerves under control.

Her eyes met his and studied him with curiosity. Where the Celestia he knew would only look upon him with coldness and disdain, there was none of that here. Her eyes held genuine concern. Her violet gaze seemed warm and inviting, like being bathed in the gentle light of the sun after a cold storm. He started to speak, then stopped. Unused to the process he bowed low as he did for her sister, if a bit stiffly.

The princess smiled brightly, “My sister told me that you were quite nervous about our meeting, yet it seems something has changed that already. What was it?”

Celestia, let out a musical laugh. She moved about a few of the massive array of cakes set before her to make eye contact easier. No doubt many of these were part of her sister’s bribe. “I am glad to see you are so observant. The ability to see more than one’s appearance is a very important trait to have.”

The tall mare looked thoughtful for a moment. Her first few words were muffled, spoken as they were around a mouthful of cake. “Power… Great power and intelligence, and a kindness and wish to help others.” Her wistful look turned to one of sorrow, “Beneath that, however, is pain.. More pain than anyone should have to endure. There’s a darkness down there, and that makes you a dangerous stallion.”

Victor sat his cup down with a shaking hoof. The porcelain made a soft clattering noise against the saucer. How much did she know, he wondered. Steeling himself, he forced his eyes to meet hers and was stunned to see not judgment, but compassion in her gaze. “I have done many things I am not proud of over the centuries. Things I wish I could go back and change, but I can’t. All of this power and all of the time in the universe…” “Yet you can’t change the past…” Celestia finished for him.

He nodded mutely and stared down into his tea for a moment.

The princess reached across the table and lightly touched his shoulder with a hoof. The zebra was so tense it was like touching a moss-covered stone. “I don’t know what you’ve done in the past, but that was another place, another world entirely. Here, I want you to know that you can start over. A clean slate, as it were.”

She stared into the depths of her own tea for a moment. “I know what happened at the celebration last night.”

She smiled softly, “I know… I know everything that happened, Victor. Luna knew what had happened and we do not keep secrets from one another.”

The zebra was confused by the smile, but relaxed a little. She hadn’t shouted for the guards so all may still be well.

“I’m sorry to hear that. To think that a punishment for a crime would be levied without looking into all circumstances involved, or worse that the circumstances did not matter is horrible. To think that it comes from a version of myself, even more so.” The tall alicorn helped herself to another piece of cake from the rapidly dwindling pile. As she took a bite, she mulled over a few thoughts.

“It doesn’t sound like you are in any particular hurry to go back there,” she said softly, taking a sip of tea.

Victor blushed, a deep crimson showing through his pale fur. “Y..yes, well…” He stammered for a moment before nodding, “Very true. If Princess Luna had not been visiting that day I could have ended up in a rather large spot of trouble.”

Victor hummed and rubbed his chin, “I think that is an ingenious idea! If you think she would be willing, of course…”

Celestia chuckled to herself, “I think she would be delighted. After all, who knows what breakthroughs the two of you may devise?”

Victor slowly took another long, cleansing breath and allowed himself to relax at last. “Lord and Lady, I had been so nervous about this day. Thankfully, I see that it was for no good reason.”

The tall alicorn tilted her head at that statement, “Lord and Lady? I must admit that’s an expletive I have not heard before.”

The zebra lifted a fork in his hoof and took a small piece of the sugary sweet cake onto it, “Well, the circumstances, unfortunately, created a very different version of you both.”

Celestia took one look and could easily read the hurt in the doctor’s voice. She cleared her throat a bit and smiled once more at him, “Perhaps that is something we can discuss another time. This being our first meeting perhaps we should stick to more pleasant conversation.”

He placed the sugary treat into his mouth and let it melt upon his tongue. There was so much sweetness to it it made his teeth tingle, but it was still very flavorful. It wasn’t sweet just for sweetness sake, but crafted with love and care by someone who knew precisely what they were doing. “Mmm.. sorry..” He took a sip of his tea to clear some of the stickiness from his maw, “Did you have something particular in mind?”

“Well, the running of the leaves is in a few weeks. We’ve changed the route a bit so it runs past your clinic and will clear some of the mess out in that area. I was wondering if you were going to participate in the running itself?”

His ears perked up at the sound of that. How long had it been since he’d gone for a run and just really let himself loose? He could actually feel his true cutie mark trying to push its way pas the wolf-head curse mark on his flank for a moment. “I.. would like that very much, but I don’t know if I should…”

The princess blinked in surprise, sitting upright, “I don’t understand. The running is open to any creature who wishes to join in. What could be the problem?”

Victor chuckled a little, “Simply put, my skill as a scientist is purely due to study, hard work, and dedication. It has nothing to do with my talent.” He smiles, actually puffing up with pride a little, “While I may be a bit rusty, my true talent is running. I just don’t know if it would be fair to the others if I were to participate.”

He blinked as he realized that he had just stepped in a mess with this turn of conversation. He sighed softly and shook his head, “Alright then, I will participate, but I just hope the other ponies won’t be upset if I show them up too badly.” He finished his small slice of cake and drained the last of his tea before smiling at her. However, the hour is late, and I still have a bit of paperwork to do before bed.” “Of course, of course. I should be getting to bed myself. It is a shame that Luna could not join us, but I did exercise enough restraint to save her a slice of cake.” Victor turned and bowed to the Princess, his head low to the carpet, “By your leave, your highness.”

She smiled and nodded, “Of course. I look forward to seeing you again soon, Doctor Mordenheim. I also look forward to what breakthroughs you and my sister may come up with.”

The zebra stood and turned to trot out of the room. He took great delight in the look of impotent rage on the face of one particular guard as he passed by.

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#Dr. Mordenheim’s Travels Book 1: De Writer’s Equestria #Chapter 8 #Hosted Tales #Written by @mordenheim

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mikaila-orchard · 7 years

Text

Our journey with the chaotic noodle man continues with “Keep Calm and Flutter On”. The episode that raised more than a few eyebrows. The thought of reforming the Spirit of Disharmony, the opposite of what Equestria stood for, seem ludicrous and shark jump worthy at the time (then again, what most would consider the true shark-jumping moment came a few episodes later). Of course, chaos is everything but consistent, so perhaps this could work.

Let me start off by saying it’s rather odd the idea of reforming Discord came from Celestia seeing as last time she had nothing but disdain for him. I remember reading a fan comic where Twilight expressed guilt over turning him into stone and wanted to see if she could teach him the ways of friendship instead. Honestly, I thought that would have been better, but that’s neither here nor there. Also, keep in mind that Celestia wanted ALL of the mane six to reform Discord and said that Fluttershy would simply know best how to do it. I’ll have a tangent on that in a later episode.

So Discord is free once again, and here we see how he handles treading on thin ice, which is pretty well it seems. He plays nice just enough to keep the group from blasting him back to stone and is actually one step ahead of Twilight when she tries to pull a fast one with a reforming spell. It shows that he can’t be tricked or strong-armed into reformation with any friendship cannon. Now you can argue in the end Fluttershy’s befriending of him was a form of manipulation, but it’s sort of a moot point by now.

Now the major turning point of the episode was with the “I’ve never had a friend before,” line. Here we see Discord suddenly realize the kind of validation he’d been subconsciously yearning for who knows how long. We see the walls of malice and trickery begin to crumble. We see that genuine kindness is the one thing his cunning and speechcraft has no answer for. This is something we saw last time, where Fluttershy was able to resist his manipulation until he had to force it.

This is why she was best suited for the task rather than someone like Pinkie Pie. Sure she is on similar wavelengths to Discord, but having someone like him is not what he needs. He needs someone with a different worldview to broaden his horizon and Fluttershy was as polar opposite to him as anyone. He sees what impact friendship has on him, and more importantly, the impact of having it retracted. He understands that maintaining a friendship is give and take and he needs to put his selfish impulses aside to make it work.

This, of course, is easier said than done as he now has thousands of years of bad habits to break. He now has something he’s wanted for so long without realizing it, but the only way to keep it is to go against almost everything he’s ever known. In the future, we’ll see him be at war with himself more than once.

It’s a little hard to dig much deeper into this episode as much of Discord’s character is made clearer than last time. So we’ll have to see if the next story, ‘Princess Twilight Sparkle’ has anything juicier for us.

Retrospectives

Return of Harmony

Princess Twilight Sparkle

Three’s a Crowd

Twilight’s Kingdom

#discord #discordant retrospective #My Little Pony #keep calm and flutter on #analysis #mlp

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jabbers-wild-world · 4 years

Text

Name: Tempest Rose

Age: Adult

Gender: Stallion

Breed: Pegasus

Talent: flower-arranging and other aesthetic decor, also he likes to include romance as a talent

Cutie Mark: a rose

Personality: flirtatious, charming, loyal to his brother, and a bit of an instigator from time to time, Tempest has a good heart and sometimes he comes across a bit aloof, but he is kind and caring, and genuinely wants to be sure everypony is happy

Backstory: Born in Ponyville, just a few minutes before his twin brother Venture, Tempest was like a whirlwind in his family, never wanting to stay in one place and jumping from one idea to the next like it was a competitive sport. But it was when their parents passed away and left the old clothing shop to their sons, Tempest argued rather viciously with his brother, finally losing his temper enough that he kicked Venture hard enough that he spent two nights in the hospital.

And Tempest left. He disappeared with nothing more than a note to his brother that he’d gone to Canterlot and he wouldn’t be coming back. So he moved to Canterlot. He spent a few years there, making his way up the social ladder, so to speak, even becoming one of the elite socialites. But.. It never really felt fulfilling.. He struggled to figure out why he felt so alone even when he was surrounded by so many like-minded ponies, and then.. It hit him.

Quite literally, as one night when he was out and about, heading to a party, Tempest was actually harassed and robbed by a gang of troublesome Earth Ponies, who kicked the pegasus stallion around a bit before they were chased off by a guard from Celestia’s elite forces, who followed behind them with the intent of making an arrest, but then.. returned to Tempest and helped him find his bearings again. The guard attempted to insist Tempest go home and rest, but Tempest wouldn’t have it and demanded he needed to get to the party.

The guard scolded him, considering him a fool, but ultimately helped him to the party. Upon arrival however, battered and disheveled and his clothes a mess, the other socialite ponies took one look at him, and laughed. They were disdainful, and rude, and found his current state so entertaining, that Tempest fled the party in tears. And there.. Back at his Canterlot home, hiding in his bed.. He rediscovered the last photo he’d taken with his brother on their birthday..

And he packed up and got on the next train to Ponyville, reuniting with his twin and vowing to never be apart so long again. Both brothers sobbed and hugged each other, and refused to part from the other’s side for the next two weeks at least. And that was how their deepest bond was made, and they became business partners in addition to brothers.

Trivia:

Tempest now makes sure to always stand up for other ponies that are in trouble, nopony gets harassed or robbed on his watch

He likes to think of himself as a great singer, Venture disagrees

If he can’t find the words to say something the right way, he’ll express his thoughts with flowers, which Venture also appreciates because they add to the decor of the shop too

Tempest frequently travels around Equestria, keeping his brother up to date on the latest fashions, so they both know what they should have in stock

He is a little jealous of the attention his brother’s cat gets sometimes

His favorite flowers are carnations, bluebells, and hibiscus

He once got lost for almost a week in the Everfree Forest, and needed his brother to come get him

His favorite kind of cake is strawberry with dark chocolate buttercream frosting

He always insists on actually getting dressed up for Nightmare Night, even if Venture isn’t always into his ideas. Usually the both of them dress up as vampires, because Tempest likes the classic allure of gothic aesthetic and always ropes Venture into it

#;; like a romantic whirlwind (tempest)#jabber's pony files

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darkcloud-kcalifornia · 7 years

Text

Alright, I think now is as good a time as any for more pony. Let’s see, apparently this next episode is titled “Marks and Recreation”. Given the title it’s probably Cutie Mark related and thus focused on the CMC. Not sure if this will be any good, but the last one was, so here’s hoping.

* Eeeyup, CMC. And they need to start making an appointment calendar.

* A Cutie Mark day camp? But aren’t CMs supposed to be very individualized things, where one on one counseling will do the best job? Do you not remember how trying everything under Celestia did nothing to help you get your Marks? No? Well do they at least have any idea how to run a camp? Probably not!

* Some of those blank flanks you kinda old for… oh right, parents/older siblings. Though it would probably freak the CMC out to find an older pony who was still blank.

* Rumble does not want. Thunderlane thinks it’s a great idea. My guess as to what this plot is going to be is… Rumble doesn’t feel any particular need to get his Mark right now, but everypony in his family is pressuring him about it and offering him “friendly advice” or “help” leading him to have resentful feelings about the subject of CMs in general.

* Oh Rumble, I feel sorry for you. Famously talented older brother to boot.

* Yet I find your obvious and sarcastic disdain entertaining.

* I wonder how many kids will get their first exposure to the concept of haiku through this?

* OK, I wasn’t expecting Ms. Circle Painting to get her mark in haiku. But then it may apply to other forms of creative writing. (I’m betting at least some of it is ruminations on the nature of the circle.)

* And the CMC completely miss the mark with Rumble. I think. At the very least they missed the fact that he wasn’t even trying today. Despite one of the “failures” being hanging out under the kayak on land with a lemonade.

* Have you tried talking with Starlight, young colt?

* So he has an ideological reason for his contempt of CMs. The question is if the ideological reason is the actual one, or if it’s after the feeling justification.

* The CMC tell themselves they don’t have to get bent out of shape over this. They’ve got others who do want help. Really. Obviously they’re not gonna interfere.

* Thunderlane is kinda dense. Also, it’s obvious that Rumble does have interests in flying at least. Is he afraid that getting a CM will force him away from that?

* Rumble has become the anti-CMC, and he’s here to recruit. Also, the CMC have already forgotten how stupid they could be about what more mature ponies were trying to tell them about CMs back when they were blank.

* Also, their language is officially called Ponish? I guess this really is one of those “translated into English for your convenience” series. Although, if that’s the case do they still speak Ponish on the Equestria Girls side of the portal?

* It would be hilarious if this gave Rumble a CM in musical numbers.

* Yeah, this kid is lucky he didn’t meet Starlight in her cult leader phase. She’d have snatched him up and forced him into a leadership position for the kids in the colony. Not that there were any little kids that I recall. …I wonder if the spell that removed both CMs and talent also had adverse effects on fertility, or the ability to feel passionate enough for… certain activities.

* No, girls. No declaring Rumble as your first villain.

* Nice set up for Raging Belle.

* Circle Girl just haiku’d without realizing it? Oh great, she’s gonna wind up the next Zecora. Though thinking about it that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

* And Rumble tries to call off all potential CM granting activities. Which is… everything. Man, he’s getting closer to Cultist Starlight with every minute.

* Uh, Scoots? I don’t think having Thunderlane butt in is the best option here. Oh wait, only five minutes left in the recording. Nevermind, it’s gonna work!

* Ah, so their talk with Thunderlane helped them realize what’s going on, and it’s that Rumble’s afraid a CM would keep him from being able to fly the way he wants to.

* I think I have to look up this episode online just so I can grab that screenshot of the foals lying around bored for a “the hiatus begins” caption.

* And so big bro solves the problem by helping build an obstacle course, and then not running it as he also enjoys cooking and is doing that instead, thereby showing Rumble he doesn’t have to be boxed in. Well, the cult was nice while it lasted.

And that’s the episode. I guess the moral for this one that’s supposed to be applicable to kids is that you can have more than one interest, so try out lots of stuff? Not a bad episode overall, but not one I’m likely to come back to. Except for that whole image capture thing. Oh wait, this thing’s probably already been screenshotted to death on Derpibooru anyway. Nevermind.

#tv talk #episode reactions #my little pony friendship is magic #MLP:FiM #mlp s7 e21 #marks and recreation

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ask-de-writer · 7 years

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SANDO’S LAKE : Origin of the Rom, part 5 : MLP Fan Fiction : (1 part)

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SANDO'S LAKE

the Fifth tale in the origin of the Rom by De Writer (Glen Ten-Eyck)

6312 words

Users of Tumblr.com are specifically granted the following rights. They may reblog the story provided that all author and copyright information remains intact. They may use the characters or original characters in my settings for fan fiction, fan art works, cosplay, or fan musical compositions. All sorts of fan art, cosplay, music or fiction is actively encouraged.

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We pulled off of the Royal Road into a spacious wayside. The high Sunset Mountains began their rise almost from this spot. My lovely chestnut sorrel wife, Nore Bel Morin, pulling in the harness beside me and our fourth filly, a darker brown sorrel named Delit Bel Nore, was in the lead harness, not only pulling, she was singing our road song cadence.

I suspected that there was no coincidence in her choice of song, either. She and the others pulling the caravans behind us were all singing Shehan Ja Rom. The name means Salvation of the Rom and tells the true story of the near miracle that saved the seven first horses of the Rom from death in the sere and deadly desert of Celestia's Anvil, just beyond the Sunset Mountains.

Nore's eyes had the sparkle of unshed tears. “I love this place, my dear husband. This is where you brought us to the roads of Equestria those thirty years ago.

“I see that we are the first of the three bands of Rom to get here. I hope that Sando will last long enough to get here before he goes to the Lake of Paradise.”

I replied softly, heart torn, “I think that he will. Our filly Naleen was there when he died four days ago. She restarted his heart with her magic and is keeping it pumping for now.”

Nore pointed with her ears up the long pass above the wayside. “Up there is Riten's Notch, the only place where we could get out of the mountains after that awful flood.”

I nodded soberly and looked up to Nore. “I remember. Saving you from Celestia's Anvil was easy by comparison to getting us all out of the mountains after the Red Branch flood. We almost lost Maina and Malit and their caravan, getting over the Notch.”

Wistfully, Nore wondered, “Whatever happened to that lovely Sunbreak and those fine Royal Armored Pegassi that helped us and saved Maina and Malit?”

I told her, “The Exile, old De Writer, told me that Sunbreak fell in action on the Prance frontier a few years after she helped us. Vard is now a full colonel and has a garrison not that far from here.”

Our conversation was stopped by the practical necessities of getting our caravan and the others all pulled into a neat circle. Dropping our hitches and stowing the whipple staves, single and double trees and all the rest of the caravan rigging, getting out cooking gear and generally setting up our camp had us all busy. Even the foals have regular chores to do when setting up camp. It was a hive of happy activity.

By the time that it was done, we had tea on, griddles heating and batter getting whipped up! Some of the foals, knowing the value of helping out, were making up favorite fillings to be rolled up in the thin batter cakes to come!

We all heard the wagon of the long haul drovers as it turned into the wayside entry road. Sarel, Rom's dapple gray wife and an excellent weaver, folded her ears back to shut out the sound. She exclaimed, “Three wheels as bad as ponies can make and one that's worse!”

We were all chuckling about that. True, too! We Rom live by our wheels and we all know the sound of good ones and bad ones. Some of the long haul cargo ponies have wised up that being friendly to Rom on the road can pay off big time. Some have not. It appeared that this team was one of each.

One of the two was a smallish red unicorn. The other was a fairly husky earth pony with a sandy tan mane and tail and a green coat. I recognized them both.

From the disdainful curl of her lip and the ostentatious turning of her rump to them, I guessed that Nore did too.

The earth pony was a really good sort. Whatever opinion he may have about Rom, Carter was always polite, even friendly. We all liked him and even watched for him on the road.

The red unicorn was cut from a different cloth altogether. Thirty years ago he was a follower of Foulip. He and a buddy named Lex had used military pikes at Foulip's order to try forcing us to perform as slaves at the now defunct Haulmarket Fair. Lex tried to kill me with his pike. My sweet Nore killed him faster than if he had been the one stabbed using an art known as Gyptian Death Touch.

Now here was Red, all over again. Twenty years at hard labor on the Royal Roads did not appear to have mellowed him any.

He spat in our direction.

Carter stomped him. “Drat it, Red! I told you to be polite to the Rom! We got a sour wheel. If we are nice to them, there is a good chance that they will fix it for us.”

“Meadow muffins, they will! Last time I seen Rom, I done nothing and was given twenty years on the Royal Roads!”

Carter snapped back, “That is a lie and you know it! I have heard your cant so often that I looked it up in Royal Road Police records. You were convicted for your part in trying to force the Rom into slavery under Crowns Law! You almost got sent over the Traitor's Drop along with Foulip for that.

“The Princesses excused your illegal possession of a military pike stolen from the Haulmarket Militia Armory. Be thankful that all you got was twenty years!”

Red sourly ignored the reality being splashed in his face. He started to crowd the hitch, attempting to force Carter to put the wagon next to our camp. Carter was bigger and held his line, snarling, “No! You are NOT going to mess this up! If you do, I am canceling our contract at the next RRP section station!”

Carter dragged both the wagon and Red, who was not helping at all, down to the far end of the wayside.

Nore shook her head. “Poor Carter, being saddled with Red! If it were not for why we have come here, I would suggest that we leave if he is going to be here.”

I sucked my cheeks in as I thought. Coming to a decision I suggested, “If we have him here, the reason for us being here will be marred at least. Gather Delit, Hasna and come yourself, dear. We will go to see if they will leave for another wayside if we fix their bad wheel.”

Chuckling, young Delit asked, “Which one? They are all bad!”

Nore corralled our offspring, while agreeing, “They are pony made wheels, dear. But one is far worse than the others. That is the one that we might fix.”

Hasna showed up with his wheel tool kit and a grim expression. He stated, “I do not mind fixing a wheel for Carter. He has always been friendly and respectful. That Red, though, I would not offer to pull him out if he was drowning in a mire. I have heard too many tales of the things he has tried.”

Nore nodded agreement. “We all have and we agree with you, Hasna, if that helps. We won't fix the wheel unless Carter agrees to leave. Red will have to go with him or not get paid for the haul.”

We crossed the tree shaded space of the wayside to Carter's wagon. Red started to snap, “Wayside camp Privacy! Get ...”

Carter actually clipped his jaw with a hoof! “I told you, SHUT IT! Stay quiet and keep to yourself or YOU pay for fixing that wheel at a wheelwright shop!” Turning to us, he offered, “Welcome! What can I do for you?”

Nore said bluntly, “Carter, you always have a welcome in our camps. Red is not welcome in or near any Rom camp. We want him gone. If we fix your wheel, will you leave and take him with you?”

^^Part 1 Part 2vv

Carter looked down sadly, and replied, “Thanks for being clear that I am still welcome in your camps. Yes, we will leave as soon as the wheel is ready.”

Red promptly stated, “I want to spend the night here!”

Carter nodded, “Feel free. That will be a contract violation. I will be shut of you and you won't get paid for the haul if you do. I am going to Wayside 14, next to Haymarket, to spend the night.”

I nodded to Delit. “OK, sweetie. Lift the corner of his caravan.”

Red snapped, “That's a wagon! You too dumb to know the difference?”

Delit, showing an excellent finesse of control, slapped a cap of her nearly golden magic on his horn and wrapped his jaws in it too. Without letting go of Red, she also lifted up the wagon's corner while Carter placed and adjusted the wagon jack.

Carter commented, “Thank you, Delit, I believe your name is? Both for doing this lift and for shutting up Red! There, jack's in place. Would you mind staying close enough to keep him quiet? Thanks, young filly.”

As Delit stepped clear, Nore and Hasna stepped in and began by simply turning the wheel. Hasna, our band's best wheelwright stopped it at a particular point.

Speaking to Delit, he asked, “Do you know why I stopped the wheel there?” Delit nodded, “I think so, Hasna. That is where the binding starts. Do we take it apart now?”

Hasna agreed, “You are right, Delit. Your mother will pull this lynch pin. It is very tight.”

Nore stepped in and laid an expert hoof to the pin. Though her hoof appeared to stay still, the pin could be seen to be working loose. In moments, it came free. Hasna reached into the hub and pulled out several metal washers which he examined carefully before proceeding.

He lifted the wheel free from the axle, which had an iron sleeve. He held the wheel up so that he could sight through its bore hole.

Shaking his head, he muttered, “Bad as a pony made . . . Well, it IS a pony made wheel! Nore, would you please go and get me a small stick of blackwood, please?”

As she trotted back to our camp, Nore was flirting her tail happily at being away from Red. At least Delit was keeping him shut up!

When Nore returned she asked Delit, “What have you asked, my filly? Did you grasp what answers you got?”

Delit smiled and replied, “What I have seen needed no questions, mother. It is a Pony Made Wheel! I can see that they put an iron sleeve on the axle. That could have been a good idea, but they only filed it to make it round. They did not even hone it. The filing was not really accurately round and the iron part of the axle has a rough surface from the filing. No wonder that hub turning on it was failing. Hasna has been honing it to true round. I already know how to do that. I will be most interested in seeing how he saves that worn hub.”

Nore respectfully gave Hasna the stick of blackwood. I watched, admiring the sheer skill that he used in adapting our method for making good wood from bad by the magic of his hooves. He swirled the stick about inside the worn out bore. It left a layer of blackwood lining the inside of the worn out hub.

He pared a shallow cone in it with a special reamer and pressed it to the axle. Working gently, he rotated the wheel while pressing it onto the axle. In a few minutes, the two parts were fitted and turning true.

Hasna advised, “These parts need to wear together, Carter. Take the time to re grease the wheel at each wayside for the next day. That should give you as good a wheel as you can get.”

Delit lifted the wagon corner to free the wagon jack and then set the wagon down gently on all four wheels. She released Red too. He was starting to gather magic to his horn when Carter hoof slapped his face.

“Get in harness, Red! Help to pull this wagon out of here or get no pay!” Red grumbled continuously but he did get into the hitch. We watched them leave the wayside.

While we strolled back to camp, Delit asked, “How soon will Sando and his band get here? I have been practicing a new dance and working in both iron and wood that I want to show him! He can be proud of my work and take the memory of how much I love him with him when he goes to the Lake of Paradise!”

I mulled that over. “Dear, the band of Sando is only about an hour away. The band of De Innis will be here in about two. Then, as soon as camps are set up, we can plan what ceremony we will have for Sando.”

Nore booped my nose as she pointed out, “WE DO KNOW THIS. Death here is NOT the END. Though you keep insisting that you only took a nap, it lasted for THREE DAYS on Celestia's Anvil. No desert is hotter or dryer. You started your nap, emaciated from hunger and thirst. Without any other source of food or water, you came back to us healthy and well fed. Those are facts.

“You, our loved dead, our ghost who guides, came back and have stayed with us always. Whether he comes back like you did, Sando will live on at the Lake of Paradise. He will be with us always in our hearts and souls at the least. Our loved dead will not abandon us nor we them.”

Actually, the band of Sando got to the southern entry road to the wayside before we quite got back to camp.

Delit turned an sprinted to them! “Sando! Phappa! Naleen!”

Big brown Phappa Al Oosa, smiled with delight and exclaimed, “Delit! You are growing so well! Your horn is lovely!”

Naleen's eyes were sparkling as she exclaimed, “Hi, Sister! We have missed you since I mated with Thom!”

Naleen gestured toward Sando with her horn. There was a thin veil of magic radiating from it to envelope Sando. “Big lunk here, did not want me to Pull beside him. Just walk along and keep his heart beating. Like meadow muffins I won't Pull!

“We won't let him try to pull full load. I could not keep him from leaving us if he pulled a full load. He wanted to get here and see all of our whole family before I let him go to the Lake of Paradise.”

Sando, with a bit labored breath, said, “I want to leave Equestria's roads at the same place where I first saw them. I remember what a marvel they were then and still are today.”

Phapa looked past Delit to me. “My stubborn old mule of a husband wants to come here to go to the Lake but he nearly left us back down the road a bit. We saw that awful Red. Carter was in harness beside him. Carter actually kicked Red to keep him from using his magic to foul our Thom's wheels.”

Sando looked up. He was shockingly worn. Old looking. His eyes told a different story. They were bright and reflected a mind still both alert and lively. I saw a look pass between Phapa, Naleen and Delit. Delit's magic reached back and pulled the hitch release for Sando. Naleen and Phapa dropped their hitches too. Delit and Naleen gently escorted Sando toward our camp.

Phapa, with practiced skill, reset the caravan's hitch for a single horse and pulled it on into the wayside. The rest of Sando's band followed. Soon they were setting up their camp too.

Malit and Maina, leading their band, called the band of De Innis because Malit's full name was Malit De Innis, came down the north entry road. Malit pointed with a hoof and called to her band, “De Innis! We will camp across the space between Sando and Rom! That will give us all shared dancing green!”

Following her directions, her band set up across the space between Sando's band and Rom's band, creating an enclosed space shared by us all. It was an open U shape facing the forest that we had come out of thirty years ago.

Solemnly, Nore's and my fillies and our grand foals went to the edge of the woods and began to dig as only surprisingly powerful unicorns can dig. The one exception was our filly Naleen who sat quietly beside Sando, keeping his old heart pumping properly.

Nore sat on Sando's other side and asked quietly, “When you were dying, four days ago, did you get any glimpse of the Lake of Paradise?”

Sando turned his head to Nore and breath labored, told her, “I am not sure. I may have. There was a wonderful light and a sense of well being. Then Naleen got my heart in her magic and started it to pumping again.”

He wept a few tears as he stated, “Naleen is a wonderful filly and a perfect wife to our Thom. Our whole band was honored by her asking him to be by her side.

“She has let me be able to say farewell for now to my whole family. I promise that if I can do it, I shall return to be among you.”

I was snooping and found his account to be fascinating. I was distracted by the fluttering roar of an entire platoon of Royal Armored Pegassi landing just outside of our camp in the wayside!

As their Sargent was checking their formation, an officer stepped forward. I took one look and exclaimed in delight, “Vard! I am so glad that you have come! I see that you brought an honor guard, too. You must all stay for the feast that will follow our celebration!”

I noticed Sando's ears prick up! Malit and Maina heard it too! They all converged on Captain Vard.

Malit and Maina simply hugged him and then exclaimed, “Captian Vard! We are so glad that you are here! We want to thank you again for saving us and our caravan on Riten's Notch!”

The platoon's Sargent asked, “Captain Vard, Sir, may we break formation?”

Pausing from the greetings, he replied, “Break formation but stay together. Sharpshin, I want you to do a recon of the road from Haymarket. Watch out for possible unicorn trouble. Try to get the best intel that you can and report back.”

^^Part 2 Part 3vv

One of the honor guard platoon saluted and took off, flying low. I watched him dodging treetops and admired his training.

I heard the Sargent telling his troops, “Did you see how they greeted the Captain? I was one of Sunbreak's troops thirty years ago. Thirty years and these horses have not forgotten how he helped to save them. Really good sorts, if you treat them right.”

One of the troops skeptically asked, “I heard them say Riten's Notch? Why would any sane being go over Riten's Notch?”

The Sargent nodded thoughtfully. “You are too young to remember it except as a lesson in both school and later in your basic training. The Red Branch flood totally destroyed the only other way out of the Canyon Maze. They were crossing the Sunsets from the desert kingdom of Gyptia fleeing from a drought and famine when the flood happened.”

Sando had wandered close and settled himself comfortably, Naleen by his side, her thin envelope of green magic encompassing him. However worn his body was, his eyes twinkled as he commented to the troops, “Do not think that the irony of fleeing a drought and almost getting caught in the biggest flood of Equestrian history was lost on us, either!”

Several of the troopers laughed at that. One noted, “The Captain called for honor guards for a funeral. Pardon my asking, but who died?”

Sando gave him a cheerful look as he replied, “Oh, that was me! I died four Pulls south of here. I know that might sound a bit odd to you. My mare in law, Naleen was there when my heart failed totally. I saw enough to be quite certain that the Lake of Paradise awaits me.

“Naleen, besides her other talents, is quite a good healer. She used her magic to restart my heart and keep it pumping. That brought me back for now. As soon as I tell her to, she will stop and so will my heart.”

One of the troops commented, “I always thought that dead was dead. Just an end. What makes you so sure that it is not?”

Returning him a grave stare, Sando pointed out, “When my heart was stopped, before Naleen started pumping it, I saw and felt things that confirm our belief in the Lake of Paradise.

“Besides that, Marchhare, over there, died in saving us when we were lost on Celestia's Anvil. I was there. I saw him die. To save us, he shorted himself on food and water. He was emaciated when he laid down in the shade of a rock ledge to take his “nap”.

“Three days later, with no food or water available on the Anvil, he walked up from the desert into our camp. He was well fed and looked then like he looks now.

“That was thirty years ago. By any account, since he was in the South Peak Gryphon War, and elderly then, that makes him over a hundred years of age. Sometimes, when he is interested in something or upset, he forgets to cast a shadow. He is our Ghost Who Guides.”

They were interrupted by the return of Sharpshank. He landed and whispered his report to Captain Vard.

Captain Vard snapped out, “Form up! Squads of five! Rig for ground combat! Cock and load all crossbows! Squads, arm with two pikes and three stabbing spears!

“Sargent! Place two squads, one on either side of the south entry road. Place the other two as wings in front of the civilians. The last squad will be with me in reserve.”

The Sargent just saluted and began placing the Royal Armored Pegassi troops as ordered. He was only just in time.

A mob of about twenty ponies from Haymarket town, led by Red, burst out of the south entry road. They were carrying shovels, picks and some pitchforks, which they aimed like they were weapons.

They strode arrogantly up the road and well before the mob got to our camp, Red sneered loudly, “I see the hole is still there! Just hoof over all the gold, silver and jewels you was going to bury with the dead horse and give us the corpse! We will chuck it in the garbage dump where it belongs!”

Captain Vard had heard enough. He stepped forward, the five of the reserve squad with him formed up where they had a clear field of fire. They knelt and aimed their crossbows.

The Captain bawled out, “Halt! In the name of their Highnesses, Celestia and Luna! You are all under arrest!”

Red promptly showed his lack of military genius. “They is twenty of us and only five of you. Six if you counts yourself. You give up! We are gonna have them riches and that is final!”

Coming quietly up the road behind the mob was a detachment of Royal Road Police, in their midnight blue uniforms.

Captain Vard replied, “You miscounted. Look around you. There are twenty five crossbows all loaded and targets chosen. If we have to fire, NONE of you will be left alive.

“Princess Luna has decreed as part of Royal Road Law that any being using the Royal Roads has the right to a Wayside Burial as a Royal benefice if they should die more than two days from their home town or village. Any disturbance of such a burial is Grave Robbery. It is punishable by from twenty years at labor to death.”

Captain Vard surprised me by asking Red, “Where did you get the idea that the Rom were going to load the grave with riches?”

Red promptly shot back, “Everypony down in Haymarket knows it! Story is all over!”

Captain Vard nodded. “I know. I also know that you started all of those rumors. Since you have been convicted of attempted slavery, by order of the Princesses, both the military and Royal Road Police have been keeping close tabs on your activities.

“You have committed the classic mistake of believing your own lies.”

I stepped up beside the Captain and looked sourly at Red. “What, besides your own mouth farts, ever gave you the idea that we would bury riches with Sando?”

^^Part 3 Part 4vv

Red actually furrowed his brow as he thought. “How else you gonna show your respect for the dumb horse? You gots to bury fancy stuff with him. Shows your respect.”

I sort of stuck my tongue into my cheek and and generally made faces at the whole load of meadow muffins that Red had just dumped. Finally, I asked, “Exactly how does making a grave into a target for criminal vultures like you, show any respect at all? Do you really think that we are that stupid?

“To answer your question, the Rom do not believe that death is an end. We call a grave the Gateway to the Lake of Paradise. What point to give stuff to somehorse that is going to a place where they will have everything that they could want supplied in the best sorts of ways? I mean, that is what Paradise is about.”

The pitchforks lowered. The mob looked at each other, shamefaced. One did ask, “If you ain't burying him with gold and such, why are you all here?”

Captain Vard answered that. “We are all here to wish a friend farewell. They will show him things like dances and music, handicrafts and the like. He will have memories to take with him to the Lake of Paradise.”

I gave Captain Vard a surprised look. I mean, really? Some pony interested enough in our ways to ask questions and listen to the answers about our ways? That was a first.

The Royal Road Police moved up and began to manacle the members of the mob. Almost predictably, Red squalled, “I didn't do nothing! This is the second time that I was just standing near the dratted Rom and gets arrested! It ain't fair!”

The constable binding him and capping his horn retorted, “Doing nothing? The rest of these ponies would not be here at all if not for you! You stirred up the mob to come rob a grave and rob the Rom in their camp, too!”

The mob was led away, protesting, down the same shady, well made Royal Road that they had come by.

Captain Vard ordered his troops, “Unload! Release Tension! Secure all weapons in parade order! Troops assemble!”

The Sargent saluted and reported, “Troops assembled, Sir!”

Captain Vard saluted them all. “Your coolness in this action prevented violent robbery and grave robbery. I am ordering a Unit Citation for you, with a benefice of five golden bits! Today, you have made your Princesses proud!”

Sando, accompanied by Naleen, Delit, and his wife Phappa Al Oosa, stepped up. Delit's magic was carrying a substantial bag. Sando requested, “Captain Vard, Sir, may we address your fine troops?”

Smiling, he replied, “Permission granted. Sando, the one that we are here to honor the passing of, wishes to address you.”

Sando began, “I know how strange that must sound to you. First, I want you to know that I did die, four days down the Red Branch Road Section. My mare in law, Naleen, who is a healer, was there and took over, making my stilled heart to beat. It will not beat without her assistance.

“I choose this place to leave for the Lake of Paradise. When all is in readiness, Naleen will let my heart have its way and I will leave both the Rom and all of you here. Memories are all that I can take with me.

“The memory of how excellently you defended the law and honor of Equestria has not marred my going. It is one of the finest things that I could possibly take with me.

“I am allowed by your law to give you a small reward for your service to me. Delit Bel Nore will gift you each with a package containing a counted ten golden bits.”

Delit began to circulate down their ranks. Phappa followed, writing down the name of each trooper. At the last, they gave the Sargent his and then Captain Vard.

Phapa hugged Sando and said, “I love you, my dear. I will keep you close in my heart. Here are the names of all of these valiant troops who stood to our defense.” She gave him the list.

He read it with care, folded it and placed it in his embroidered saddle bag.

The rest of us now began to busy ourselves with the preparations for the celebration feast. Even Captain Vard seemed to be confused by the apparently happy mood of what he understood to be a funeral.

Litte Shehan Ja Saken, a pony foundling that we had legally adopted back thirty years ago, was busy rolling out Ka'Chek pastries in thin sheets, doubling the dough over and rolling it out again and again. She had an impressive pile of the rolled out sheets. She laid out four of the pastry sheets and began filling them with a nearly glowing orange filling with large chunks of a yellow orange fruit. As fast as she filled four, she folded the sheets of dough over the filling and then rolled them, so that the seams were down. She used a special cutter with four short blades to cut notches into one side of the pastries and piled them onto cooking sheet pans.

As she was finishing loading one of our baking ovens, one of the honor guard troops who had been watching in fascination, asked, “How come none of you seems sad? I thought that this was a funeral. You know, a final farewell.”

Shehan looked up from her work in surprise. “A FINAL farewell? Why would we do that? We will welcome him back if he chooses to return and, in any case, we will keep him close in our hearts. We do not abandon our loved dead so easily.”

Somewhat diffidently he pointed out, “How do you know that this paradise is there for you? I mean, you are a pony.”

Only a little irritated, Shehan stomped for emphasis as she retorted, “I am a HORSE of the Rom! When I was adopted, thirty years back, I was an abandoned waif. Haulmarket would not even put me on their town rolls.

“I was helping these wonderful Rom with water hauling at their first show. Haken tried to steal the water cart. I called him out. He hit me and broke my neck.

“Marchhare, over there, and his lovely mate did surgery to fix the bones out of place but no pony would take me in for the weeks of healing. Maina and Malit adopted me on the spot, under Royal Road Law. They did not know if I would ever recover or if I might die. They did not care about that. They cared about ME.

“My adoption papers say my mamma is a HORSE. That makes me one too. And PROUD of IT!”

She softened and pointed over to me. “Our Lake of Paradise has room for him, a donkey. How could it not have room for me?”

She pulled out the first batch of pastries, now swelled up, with many fine flaky layers around the filling. They had five “toes” from the side cuts. Bear Paw pastries.

With a smile, Shehan offered the trooper one, cautioning, “Small bites, Sir. It is fresh hot from the oven!”

Soon Phapa, Sando's mate, rang a sweet toned gong. She called out, “Rom and friends of the Rom, it is time now to begin offering my dear mate, Sando, those gifts of memory that he will take with him to the Lake of Paradise.”

My lovely Nore led off, leading out musicians, each with a different sort of lyre, flute or drum. “Sando, as we began to cross the Sunset Mountains to Equestria, your brilliance in design, returned to us the music lost to us when the Master who cast us out kept our instruments.”

The musicians began to play and Nore started to dance for him the Shehan Ja Rom.

Every horse there had something to show or tell. Often it was not the best. The tale with it told why it was important. Sando, in many cases had showed them how to do better or in what way the flaw could become an asset.

His kindness and wisdom were given back to him in stories, poetry, song, and dance. The work of our hooves and even the many caravans that he had designed and assisted in the building of was all showcased for him.

At the end, Captain Vard and his troops came forward in perfect formation and presented a wreath of yew. The troops then lifted their spears up to a presentation position.

Sando, with labored breath, spoke to Captain Vard, “In coming to honor my leaving for the Lake, you have also brought honor to the land of Equestria. Continue to watch over these good horses that I love. Thank you.”

He turned to look up at Phapa Al Oosa, his wife of so many years. “Dear, it is time now. In my Gateway to the Lake of Paradise, is fine bedding straw. There is a pot of water from the spring for my journey. There is some fresh clover top hay for me and, I see, somehorse has sneaked in a pair of my favorite apricot Ka'chek pastries.

“Gather friends and family about me. I wish to see them one more time before I set out on the Journey.”

We all gathered up close. Sando smiled at all of us and turned to Naleen. “You may let me go now, Naleen. After these four days of keeping my heart beating, you can rest.”

She smiled back at him, laying in the soft grass near the hole, and nuzzled him before saying, “I will rest after we have closed the Gateway behind you.”

Naleen's green magic faded away slowly. Sando let out a breath deeper than any that he had taken in as his head lowered to rest between his forehooves.

All ten of Nore's and my foals and grandfoals, with their long straight horns, stepped forward. Their magic combined to the single task of gently lifting our friend, Sando, the Rom of his band, and placing him gently onto the fine straw bedding in the bottom of the hole. They moved the water pot, browse and snacks to be convenient for him. The cloth provided to give him shade on his journey was laid over him.

The dirt removed from the hole was sifted in gently to cover him. After about twenty centimeters of soft dirt over him, they began to lay in a layer packed so hard that it almost seemed vitreous. Earth then filled up the rest of the hole and the sods removed before digging it were then replaced.

I do not think that there was a dry eye in the whole of our three bands. Several laid flowers on top of Sando's Gateway to the Lake.

We all retired to begin the feast to celebrate Sando's time among us. While we ate, the stories flew thick and fast, as we all tried to share whatever we knew of Sando, and tried to listen and learn. Far more laughter galed about the tables than tears.

Nore looked up from the eating and the stories. She pointed and exclaimed, “Look! Our flowers are wilting already! That is not how I want to remember this place!”

We watched, mystified, as she galloped down the south entry road. Shortly, she came back, bearing her prize. It was a small stone from the shoulder gravels of the road. The face of it had been broken and showed a pattern of nested layers of different colors.

Nore swept the wilted flowers from Sando's Gateway to the Lake of Paradise and placed her stone there, glittering in the sunlight.

She explained, “Flowers fade and wilt. This stone will still be bright through all the ages to come. It will shine like our memories of Sando. It is not precious, but it is a thing of beauty from the roads upon which we all live.”

Horses scattered from the tables to go and find their own stones to put on Sando's Lake. Soon the place where we had buried our friend and mentor glittered in the afternoon sun.

As Captain Vard and his troops packed up goodies and gifts from our appreciative little community, the Captain remarked, “Got to admit that this funeral detail did not go at all like we thought that it would! Because we were watching him pretty close, I did expect Red to be a jerk, just because he was in the area and so were you. What I really did not expect is the way you horses look at death. Never seen anything like it.”

We watched the formation fly away to his garrison with heavy hearts. They were good ponies.

-THE END-

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#SANDO'S LAKE #Origin of the Rom #part 5 #MLP Fan Fiction #written by De Writer

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