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darkficsyouneveraskedfor · 7 months

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Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows 4

Warnings: non/dubcon, clashing personalities, exclusion, and other dark elements. My username actually says you never asked for any of this.

Characters: moody boy Curtis Everett x bubbly, plus-size reader

My warnings are not exhaustive but be aware this is a dark fic and may include potentially triggering topics. Please use your common sense when consuming content. I am not responsible for your decisions.

As usual, I would appreciate any and all feedback. I’m happy to once more go on this adventure with all of you! Thank you in advance for your comments and for reblogging.

You vow yourself to confinement. You will not leave your desk for any reason. You even brought a thermos of coffee. The container is a honey brown and the lid has bear ears, an animated face painted on the metal. It makes you smile despite the gloom that clouds you.

You don’t know how it happens. You always mean well but things always end up so wrong. So you’ve determined you’re better off on your own. Minding your own business and getting through the work day without calamity.

It’s lonely. You eat your lunch in your cubicle, watching a crochet video on the small screen of your phone. You still can’t figure out how to get just the right shape for the hippo you’ve been working on. It’s the final piece in your collection; to go along with the giraffe, the elephant, lion, and zebra. With your new job, you haven’t even had the energy to try.

You get back to work, eyes fuzzy as you stare at the spreadsheet. Millennia of human existence and for what? For excel and stale coffee? Is this really progress?

You reign in your wandering mind and work through the numbers. You just want to get through your first week. That will be a feat you can be proud of. You drain the last lukewarm sip from your thermos and pout. You could really use a refill but you will resist. You can’t risk it.

At the end of the day, you sneak out down the stairwell. You’re breathless by the time you reach the bottom, dizzy from the winding levels above. You shake it off and head off. You could use a nice hot bath, those office chairs are really not comfy.

Your night goes by as any does. You get your bath and eat some ramen before tucking into bed and mindlessly scrolling on your phone. You fall asleep with the light on and wake up to the blare of your alarm the next morning.

It’s Friday! You get up and get dressed. A lilac skirt that buttons up the front and a frilly white blouse on top. You pull on a lemon yellow cardigan and a pair of matching flats. It’s bright and fun! Unlike anything else in that gray office.

You shove one of the pillows from the couch into your bag, the one that looks like a sprinkle donut, and grab your thermos. You race out to catch the bus and throw yourself into the day ahead. You just need to make it to the end and you have the whole weekend ahead of you.

Once at your cubicle, you settle in. You place the donut pillow on the thin cushion of the office chair and kneel on the floor as you work at readjusting the backrest and arms. You get up and plop down, testing the height and swiveling a bit. It’s slightly better.

You roll closer to your desk and boot up for the day. You reach for your pen cup but stop short as you find only the boring Bic sticks that overflow the supply cupboards. Huh?

You reach under your desk and grab your bag. You stir around, certain you careless slid your pen in there. You can’t find it! Your most favourite pen is gone. There’s a tiny penguin at the end and the pen’s body is filled with water and glitter that shimmers and looks like falling snow. Where is it?

Your panic has you searching the empty drawers of the desk and down on your knees crawling around. You don’t find it. You give up as your chest sinks and you mope at your monitor, clicking mindlessly on your Outlook and the company’s shared drive.

You sit back and uncap your thermos. You take a drink and nearly choke. Oh no! It’s so bitter it leaves your tongue gritty. The filter must’ve split in the machine again. You let out a blech and get up, letting your chair roll back carelessly.

You go down to the break room and dump the coffee down the sink. That’s when you remember you’re not supposed to be in there. Shoot. You look around. It’s empty. You should have time enough to fill your cup.

You go to the machine and pick a pod from the rack. You don’t pay attention to the flavour, you just want coffee. You wait for the machine to grind and claim your cup as the brew stops below the brim. You quickly retreat back to your desk and sit, leaving the lid off the thermos to let it cool.

Ow! Your tailbone hits the thin seat and jars your spine. You get up and look down at the barren cushion. Your pillow is gone. What the heck?

You roll the chair around, thinking maybe you knocked it off when you stood up. It’s not that hard to miss. Nope, it’s gone.

You look over at Dana as he yawns over a Starbucks cup. She has no donut under her bottom. Who would do that? Who would steal your pillow? You chew your lip and resign yourself to another day of discomfort.

You taste the coffee. Mmm, it must be the dark roast. It’s full-bodied and rich, slightly smoky. You don’t usually go for it, you prefer more caffeine. It might be good for you, you really don’t need the extra jitter.

You plant your elbow beside your keyboard and fall into your work. The office awakens around you. The clack of keys, the clicking of mice, and the low voices that rise and fall over cubicle walls.

You lean back and check the time. Barely an hour in. You stretch your neck and massage your shoulders as you try to work out the kink of your poor posture. As you do, you sense a shadow approach Dana’s desk. You shift your chair and peek over, quickly wheeling back to your desk to hunch down and hide. It’s him.

“Phillips,” he calls her by her last name, “you still in charge of supplies?”

“Morning, Curtis,” she replies tritely, “what is it? We don’t have budget left for tech upgrades until end of month.”

“Coffee,” he growls, “dark roast.”

You tap your foot nervously. You didn’t know he liked the dark roast. If you did, you wouldn’t have taken the last pod. Maybe you should offer him what you have left… no, you should just leave him be.

“I’ll add it to the list,” Dana acquisces dismissively, “anything else?”

He grunts but doesn’t answer as he pivots on his heel. You peek up above the wall of your cubicle and immediately regret it. His attention is drawn by the movement and his eyes meet yours as his features twist into a scowl. You try to smile and he rolls his eyes before setting his shoulders and striding away.

Oh, you have an idea!

#curtis everett #dark curtis everett #dark!curtis everett #curtis everett x reader #sunshine lollipops and rainbows #series #au #drabble #snowpiercer

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the-nysh · 10 months

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Oh Meryl.....:') This will be a longpost commentary on the events of Trimax vol5 & 6 primarily from her perspective, so let's get into it!

Alright, so remember the foreshadowing in Meryl's line about seeing Vash's 'entire enigmatic past' from Trimax vol3?!

Well in Trimax vol5 all that becomes true! When getting 'touched by an angel' directly connects her to Vash's memories through contact with his feathers, she gets a front row seat to personally SEE, feel, and experience ALL the worst pain and trauma Vash has endured over his functionally immortal lifetime of horrors!!! Bearing witness to just how heavy a burden of sorrow and torment he's suffered carried with him that she's always wondered about; now she knows the full context of everything.

From witnessing his lone struggles as a younger child first learning how to use a gun, grinding through all his bloody mistakes, losses, and failures, to the worst calamity that he, as a transformed nonhuman 'gun' himself, became capable of unleashing on the planet: the terrifying destruction of July itself.

As Vash regains his lost memories of July through a meltdown of grief, regrets and revelations of his own (how firing his power inadvertently killed everyone he knew and loved), all at once, his pain while reliving those horrors of the past resonates to become her pain. (Remember this for vol6!)

And just to grab a mic to reiterate, Meryl is only a normal human woman here, with no special powers or superhuman training to prepare her how to handle any of this! (This disaster exceeds her realm of expertise!) She’s also the only one who gets to see, understand, and resonate with the entirety of Vash’s pain and feelings on such a direct, private, and literally mind-melding intimate level of connection. (Linking the human with the inhuman/monstrous.) So of course she’s terrified! Being thrust into such an unprecedented dangerous situation, witnessing inescapable horrors beyond human comprehension, AND by getting a very real demonstration of Vash’s power (on the verge of exploding out of control) and his transformed inhumanity RIGHT UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL!

So it’s truly a testament to her mental fortitude and resilience that she didn’t just break from the information overload or succumb to the level of despair and terror right there--no, she bravely keeps her wits about her, and despite everything she remains on Vash’s side, shooting first to defend him (aiming right for Legato using the gun she picked up from Zazie's corpse) as the one who breaks the multiple-way stalemate between all their enemies instead! GO MERYL!!!!

(It's why this moment's probably one of my top favorites in the whole manga!!! ;o;) Cause the entire time, even while under severe mental distress, crawling through the rubble with his powers and feathers surging everywhere, Vash had kept her safe and physically unharmed within his wings, and then her first action upon surfacing was to take charge to protect him in turn!! I love it; cause even during such a dire emergency and all the mental stress she's put under while in the heat of the moment, her faith and dedication (to fight without hesitation at his side) still aim true~

And even after Legato critically pushes the crisis from bad to worse, to the point Vash is provoked into almost firing his Angel Arm in feral-retaliation to stop him (holy foreshadowing of their future duel!) with Meryl literally stuck in the middle of all this chaos (while shocked, powerless, and terrified--bless her heart) as Vash struggles to regain control of himself...

(Note: even Wolfwood was blown back by the surging energy, but with Meryl literally RIGHT THERE under Vash, it's amazing she didn't get hit being that close to him.) ...she STILL doesn't run away from him once the dust settles, and is in fact the first one to approach him in concern to ask if he's ok after...

(So whew, a relieved round of applause for Meryl remaining strong in the active face of so much strife!!) The immediate aftermath of this whole experience gives her the tangible proof and perspective from Vash to understand and fear that Knives--as his twin in power but having the actual intent to destroy the world behind it, is fully capable of ending humanity's future.

Of course, the experience doesn't also leave her unscathed without any lasting mental scars to cope with...as Trimax vol6 so graciously shows us how things will always Get Worse before they can get better...

Where sure enough, she's already having difficultly sleeping with night terrors and loss of appetite--it's honestly no surprise the terrible experience has given her symptoms of ptsd she'd be made of something unbelievably superhuman if she weren't affected, and consulting with Wolfwood unfortunately doesn't offer her anything (helpful) she doesn't already know...(cause at this point, she's literally seen more of Vash, especially the amount suddenly exposed to all at once, than Wolfwood could possibly know how to advise her on. He's still struggling with plenty of his own fears vs loyalties towards Vash himself.)

Only that he stresses the importance she weighs her options now to make the decision to quit her job while she still can (a choice and the freedom to 'get out' that Wolfwood comparatively doesn't have under direct orders from Knives) to remove herself and Milly from getting further involved with Vash--specifically the life-threatening danger he poses as a living weapon (despite his best intentions and character as a person!) set to explode with the firepower to raze the world--if Meryl values her life.

But truly, how does Meryl feel about that? What does she value and care for more, that'd be most important to her--her life or her job? Is following Vash (surveilling him for 'risk management') more than just a job to her at this point? What about her feelings towards him as a person--the man she already knows, vs her need to reconcile with the truth (that he's not even human!) that she didn't know until just recently. Is the level of imminent danger and risk she's putting herself into, now that she fully understands how dire, truly worth it (for him) this time? And if she still truly cares for him, does it even matter what he is? Despite any pros or cons and conflicting feelings about it, which will ultimately remain the stronger reason compelling her choice to stay?

Whew! She has many things to evaluate and consider going forward, especially if she wants to continue at his side. (And as Wolfwood stresses, continuing puts Milly at risk too, so that's even more weight/responsibility to balance on Meryl's shoulders.) Including processing the very nature of her fears--to identify what it is that truly terrifies her (is it truly Vash or something else?) before she can hope to face or overcome them. Before this biggest hurdle tips the scales to debilitate her resolve or outright prevents her from continuing her job at all. For now, she thinks and relates back to the firepower she gained when she first fired a gun...

And ah, HERE IT IS, she recalls what's scared her the most from her own past memories: "I gained the power of death at my fingertips. It was terrifying." Cause the first time she ever shot a person and realized the weight of the power she holds, she hated it. Shocked, collapsed, paralyzed, coming undone in the streets, closing herself off from others, regretting her action terribly... It was all too much. (Sound...familiar to the guilt and regrets of someone else we know? Meryl's shooting style is also notably non-lethal...because she too doesn't like to kill! When her first time wielding 'death' with her Derringers upset her this badly that she needed to adjust to be able to continue her job that required arming herself with this type of power...)

So remember when she resonated with the pain of Vash's memories? Seeing when he first struggled learning how to use a gun too, and all the blood and loss that accompanied it? However...his experiences didn't just end there, with only his first time shooting a person.....cause the first time he shot his real power (without him knowing what would happen) he caused the destruction of an entire city, killing everyone he loved in it! He didn't just 'gain the power of death at his fingertips,' he literally BECAME it, armed with the power to end the world. Hating and regretting his action so terribly, the catastrophe traumatized him with amnesia and led to a full-blown meltdown in grief and despair once he finally remembered. With Meryl there, witnessing and feeling all of it along with him. (His pain became her pain; his trauma became hers...)

That the sheer magnitude of wielding that kind of terror, as an intrinsic, inseparable part of himself (unlike a handheld gun you can choose to put down; he can't), let alone carrying the fear of it going out of control again if he's not careful, is indescribable. And if Meryl can now understand the gravity of that in relation to her own gun experiences (when the memory of firing her Derringers was already enough crushing weight for her to fear) then as the peace-loving person she knows him to be, who's always tried his hardest not to kill anyone, the crushing multitudes she knows he must feel now upon recovering his memories filled with so much death unleashed by his own hands must be unbearable. Feeling precisely just how much MORE terrifying and overwhelming the burden must be for him. It makes her wonder HOW can he still even bring himself to pull the trigger?!

Just look at Meryl's collapsed posture, it's the same she felt in her own past experiences...only this time it's directed in relation towards him--almost expressed in his place for the crushing weight he must feel. She's outright screaming/crying/bawling for him in empathy for the pain he must feel every time he's forced to fight and shoot someone with so much baggage behind it. Oh Meryl....:') (This is probably the strongest we've seen her cry for him...and it certainly won't be the last she cries in concern to relieve the pain of his burden.)

And Meryl, watching him fight on regardless, becomes struck and speechless for another reason, as she realizes how much his incredible strength and fortitude allow him to push past his unbearable pain to continue his job: "I felt...his determination is even stronger than the regret he carries."

Which is true, for the same stronger feeling that compelled him to stop at nothing, despite being on the verge of total collapse bearing his regrets of July, when he grit and forced himself to continue on his mission to save her from the Dragon's Nest. :') This is how he does it; how he continues to fight for what's important. (And yes she was that important, as the thought of losing her like his loved ones at July, is what fueled his determination back then to keep going.)

However, the struggle is never easy, as Vash, for his own part, masked behind his new goggle-edged glasses and kind Rem-like smiles 'as usual,' has not been coping well behind closed doors at all. (That Meryl could even sense an air of unusually 'off' distant/detached/avoidant behavior from him that she asks Milly about it.) We see him immersing himself in thousands of rounds of (non-lethal) target practice til his hand bleeds, and when drilling that level of focus + exposure isn't enough to take the edge off, he visits a church during service to hear a sermon on forgiveness...only for him to deem it hopeless there's no possible release from his sins when he can't even forgive himself, and there's even evidence he'd been drinking in not-quite-so savory (healthy or responsible) ways--unsettling even Wolfwood that something's uncannily off with him. (All being different attempted coping methods to drown out and escape the pain of his past regrets, but even Vash knows it's impossible now to forget...)

So all it takes is one slip-up when he's depressed off his game for everything to tumble into a trainwreck... Where Meryl seeing him block a bullet with his powers (instead of his usual self-aware dodging?) triggers all that terror to come flooding back into a panic attack.

Where it's truly unfortunate (and oh it hurts...) as an accident, something involuntary--a messy, instinctual reaction completely beyond either of their control. Cause Meryl didn't anticipate her ptsd to manifest and incapacitate her like this! that a single flash of his feathers would remind her of Everything--of all the worst horrors those powers are capable of when unleashed, the weaponized death and terror it represents, and the very moment she felt and experienced all of it while trapped powerless and panicked to do anything... No no no, returning to that headspace is horrible; it's all still too fresh to relive and TOO MUCH trauma for a human like her to bear; she couldn't help coming undone in the streets in a far worse way than she's ever had before (and I don't blame her.)

And Vash didn't mean to publically out himself as a nonhuman 'monster' to everyone either, when tensions were already high following Knives' mass murders for them to link the same culpability towards him, while he's still struggling to get a handle on his newly awakened powers too--ohshit indeed when they suddenly manifest and the truth breaches containment freaking everybody out in a witch-hunting mob of scorn, fear, misunderstandings, and hatred. (Ouch...)

What's more, Vash probably didn't even know Meryl had seen his memories, or had been affected by his trauma to such an overwhelming degree--since the transfer happened more as an autonomous side effect of his powers activating rather than anything he purposely intended....(once again, unintended consequences beyond his control; he never meant to cause any of this harm!!) So from his perspective he probably doesn't fully understand how to interpret her distress (apart from the crowd's?!) or know what to do to help. Cause reactions from strangers are one thing to bear, but if he sees her reaction to him--and his nonhuman display, as anything like theirs...then it's so much worse cause it's Meryl, who's known and been with him since the beginning. She's someone important he cares for...and now she's hurt and visibly scared from yet again another mistake he can't undo. ohno ohno he knows he messed up...

(Plus poor Milly has no context to understand what's wrong, or why Meryl's so upset either, since she'd been knocked out during the later parts of the Dragon's Nest to know what happened. So now she's alarmed and concerned trying to process why everything's suddenly gone to shit, anchoring Meryl the best she can, while shaken by the pain and cruelty Vash endures in such a situation masked with a smile...)

Despite the stones thrown by the crowd (nooo~) Vash's first priority concern is to run straight over to check on Meryl...

*And here's where I scream bloody murder* Cause that single flinch--from reaching towards her with that arm too, probably hurts him more than any of those stones thrown at him in hatred and revulsion that he's a monster. Cause to him it probably reads as a perceived rejection from Meryl (noooo~), and the amount he's hurt from realizing he's the one who hurt her this way....ohhhhh his crushing guilt must be heart-shattering...;A;

But there's no time, as before Meryl's even ready to speak or clarify how she feels, the choice she previously had on whether she wants to leave or stay is taken from her as Vash is the one who's forced to leave her instead. :')) The only thing Vash can do is repeatedly apologize as he runs away he can't even say goodbye--Wolfwood has to say that for him...and admit to Wolfwood how much he 'really feels like crying.'

(And once again poor Milly, left with no other explanations, can only read how much his pained empty mask of a smile has broken...)

What sucks even more, is knowing how much Meryl had already empathized with his pain (she could already feel that strongly for him!) and being in no condition to explain herself or her fears to him, once her panic subsides, she's bound to feel that much more terrible with guilt from realizing how her reaction (especially her flinch) had unintentionally hurt and pushed him away....leading towards a bad result she simply couldn't help and had no power to change...what a disaster.

But is someone as usually brave and tenacious like Meryl going to let that be the end of it? Broken on a disastrous parting and painful misunderstanding (she never meant to 'reject' him!!!) she literally had no say over? What of her brand of determination--especially towards what she feels (and decides) is most important, becoming stronger than the pain and regrets she carries? (Just like Vash! Can she find it within her to continue, or start over, inspired just as he does?)

Her struggle now becomes finding that strength (even a driving belief) to tentatively (re)build that trust and acceptance between them towards recovery. To endure, fight, and conquer those horrors to bridge (reconnect) the gap between the human and monstrous that separates them. (Especially if she truly cares and wants to do it--for the sake of what Matters, for what'll make the effort Worth it.) It'll be huge and seemingly insurmountable for any other person bearing the same strife she carries, but you can do it Meryl, I believe in you~~

#trigun #trigunbookclub #commentary #vashmeryl #long text post #aaaaaaAAAAAA well I Tried :'D #wanted to do this in vol5's week but didn't feel it'd be complete without covering the aftermath in vol6 #and WHEW the repeated 9999 critical hits of emotional damage made this Difficult

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felkithecreator · 3 months

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Do you have revalink fic recs?

Oh do I ever. (Please don't take the numbers that I use too seriously, they're not to really judge the quality of work or anything it's just level of enjoyment for me and my particular tastes)

My favorite Revalink fic of all time is Pinesong by aperplexingpuzzle!! Honestly it's just an absolutely amazing work, and personally I think it's one of the greatest post-calamity Revalink stories written. Link and Revali bond on Vah Medoh after Revali's been freed and exists as a spirit, and while Link struggles through the rest of his adventure. Absolutely recommend, 10/10.

Finding Link by Umbreonix is another one I'd absolutely recommend. It's so silly and just - the characterization of Link and Revali is so fun. Link goes missing after the defeat of Calamity Ganon, and it's up to Revali to find him and potentially bring him back. Honestly Umbreonix's other Revalink work Beating about the bush is also phenomenal - that one's unfinished, but it's also great if you want to read something silly. It's a modernized/human version of Hyrule, which is super interesting as well. All That Glitters is hilarious as well. Recommend them all around 8.5/10.

Linger On by ICanFlyHigher is one I genuinely loved as well. It's been a while since I've read it, but I do know that the vivid descriptions of combat and fighting, and just - the immersion of it is so impressive. So I'd really really recommend this one. It's basically just Botw, but you're really put in Link shoes + that extra touch of Revalink. Again, haven't read it in a while, but 9/10 recommendation from what I remember.

I Lost Myself by self_indulgent_authorship is amazing as well. I love reading from Revali's perspective, and just - the take on Link and Revali getting to know each other after Link's lost his memory is so interesting and refreshing. I wouldn't recommend it if you don't like a bit of Zelda-bashing, but I think this fic handles it well and it didn't feel as if it were over the top or anything. 9/10 recommendation.

Snow filled days by SharkPinata is a great one if you're just down for a fun time!! The author kind of took a concept/idea and ran with it, and the plot grew later - and it shows, a bit, but honestly that's part of the fun with this fic. A great thing about it is you can also see the author's writing style improve over time as they write (I desperately hope that the same can be said about my fics too), so it's fun in that aspect of well. The concept is that Link isn't a knight, and just lives in Selkie's Spot in Hebra - where Revali regularly comes to visit him because they're each other's only friends. 7.5/10 recommendation.

Shades of Blue also by self_indulgent_authorship is just fucking amazing. It's the normal botw journey, but you get so much more intricate lore and flashbacks than the OG game - one where Link and Revali knew each other before they became champions - and it's so so so so good. I genuinely think it's one of the greatest Breath of the Wild fics out there, regardless of Revalink. 10/10 recommendation.

Come Morning Light by misscoconi is great as well!! I haven't read it in a long while but I do know it's one of my favorites. It's very sweet - and it's where Link and Revali begin a shared sleeping arrangement. (Meet Me Halfway is the sequel, also very good.) 10/10 recommendation.

The Longest Night by tirsynni is amazing. It's a relatively short fic, and it's unfinished, but it's still just - great. Trigger warning for some things, I'd definitely recommend reading the tags first, but like, I love. It's an interesting exploration of Link's psyche, and Revali's response to it. Honestly, anything by tirsynni tends to be amazing. 8/10 recommendation.

The Effect of the Illusion of Truth by GeryutheTzakandi!!! This is genuinely one of my favorite fics ever - it's so silly and funny and just an all-around good time. Small warning in that it's unfinished and hasn't updated since 2022, but like - I'd still give it a read because what is there is a fun time. It's a fic where Revali and Link decided to get married so that Link and Zelda don't have to. (And no, the two of them were not previously dating.) 10/10 recommendation.

(Another good one by GeryutheTzakandi is Deftly avoiding saying exactly what you mean - this one's hilarious, and Revali is surprisingly self-aware.)

Inertia by sincosma is a great exploration of how Link's amnesia affects the relationship between him and Revali - and what promises they made pre-Calamity. The memories are so interesting yet heart-breaking to read - but the happy ending makes it very much worth it. 9/10 recommendation.

A Seed of Song by Ginneke is adorable. I'm always a sucker for child fics/baby acquisition fics, especially if they're done well, and, well - this one is definitely done well. It's very cute - it's unfinished, but I still think it's worthwhile to read what's been written so far. The drama of Link not wanting to marry Princess Zelda is also very interesting. 7.5/10 recommendation.

Under the Stars by peterpiez is one of my favorites!! Honestly because it's one of the very few Revalink Linked Universe fics to exist. There's very little active Revalink, given most of it is just Link mourning and being retrospective in response to the lives and loves of the other Links, but I still really enjoyed. This is also unfinished, and I don't see the author ever updating it, but I still would recommend giving it a go.

The Last Song on the Wind by Inked_Jael is another incredible fic. There's so much worldbuilding, and insight to Link's thoughts, I just love this one so much. It's super interesting because it explores the politics and the different cultures of Hyrule. I know second-person style can sometimes throw people off, but I think it works really really well given the story - and also if you keep in mind that it's about Link, just... please read this. Their work needs more love. 10/10 recommendation.

a moment's respite by cottonmouthcandy is another one of my favorites. It's a bit of a sad read, because it's pre-calamity and you know what's coming for the champions in the future, but it's a story where you get to just enjoy with them their little vacation at the beach. It's just sweet, and nice. It's been a while since I've read it, though, so those are more just the vibes that I remember rather than the content of the story itself. 9/10 recommendation.

the wind through the flowers by HopeStoryteller is also just a silly, fun time. The boys go Modulga hunting. 7.5/10 recommendation.

I have more, and I would continue, but I kind of have a class in six hours and I need to sleep before then, so uh... yeah. I hope this satisfies you question!! But honestly please spread the love to these authors their works are just absolutely amazing.

#revalink #botw #legend of zelda #ask response #fanfiction #loz #fic rec #sorry it took so long to respond

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utilitycaster · 27 days

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This episode feels like “oh no this balloon is going to explode! Ok we fixed it. Hey why aren’t you having fun playing with this half deflated balloon? What do you mean you wanted to see the explosion?”

Honestly I'm just like. The fact that it's going to be a brief interlude is a saving grace but setting aside that I haven't personally cared a ton about what the Crown Keepers are up to other than Dorian, and it's been over two years since EXU Kymal and over 2.5 since EXU Prime, I have rarely seen such exquisitely wretched timing. I think if we had an episode or two of Bells Hells in the wake of FCG's death and then aired this as an EXU episode that would have been fine - not my favorite, but certainly fine.

This choice on the other hand; part of why I learned that Bells Hells would be back next episode was because I was legitimately in the DMs like "...is a cast member about to have a medical procedure and be out for a few weeks? Did Matt design the Otohan encounter to be genuinely unwinnable and expected a TPK, which feels unlikely but hey, maybe, and then honored what actually happened but didn't have time to revamp his planning to switch over to the Crown Keepers for a while?"

Once again, hindsight is 20-20 but it feels like if you wanted to have Robbie answer for Dorian in that moment and you clearly had this whole thing planned but the party is dealing with character death [which...that's the other thing, even if Matt didn't expect FCG's sacrifice, the possibility that an Otohan encounter would end in deaths that could not be resolved immediately feels really likely] you could have Robbie record something quick as audio, record the Crown Keepers episode in full, and then actually take advantage of pre-recording to air one full Bells Hells episode and then air this as a flashback a few weeks later. Hell, if you wanted to do it as a mid-episode switch you could even cue Robbie to start telling the party what happened and air it as is. I'm not even terribly annoyed at the fact that it was an unannounced switch so much as the fact that I can honestly say I came into this episode with a level of anticipation I really have not felt much in C3 - and regularly felt for C2, or Calamity, or next week's Candela episode; and yeah, now there's a half-deflated balloon.

#cr spoilers

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robininthelabyrinth · 11 months

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For a prompt, could you do an AU of Spilled Pearl's where Lan Qiren is the older one by many generations and Wen Rouhan is a young upstart, Maybe even the youngest in his generation.

ao3

“I’m having a problem with one of my students,” Lan Qiren said.

“Oh?” Baoshan Sanren said, and put down her cup of tea. “This is going to be good.”

Cangse Sanren, the honorable eldest disciple seated beside her honored teacher, sniggered.

(Lan Qiren had never regretted saving her life, even though it had nearly cost him his own, even though bringing her back to her master’s mountain and fighting through the prohibition on her return had led to the highly singular sequence of events that had brought him to his present position as the mysterious near-immortal of the Lan sect that spent most of his time travelling but who appeared like clockwork every ten years to teach a summer’s worth of lectures at the Cloud Recesses.

But that didn’t mean he didn’t sometimes want to strangle her.)

“I thought you’d seen it all by now,” she said, her eyes curving into crescents even as her master cackled, the sound of her croaking slipping out of the strictly human towards the end. “What is it this one? He can’t be any more mischievous than my A-Ying.”

Lan Qiren had a headache just thinking about Wei Wuxian, and not just because the rascal was currently married to one of Lan Qiren’s favorite grandnephews (several times removed). If they weren’t so blindingly happy together, he would have objected long ago on the grounds of Lan Wangji being far too good to be wasted on a brat like Wei Wuxian, no matter how brilliant an inventor the latter had turned out to be.

“If your child is second in shamelessness, no one would ever claim to be first,” Lan Qiren said dryly, and ignored Cangse Sanren’s sniggered “That’s my monkey!” “But as it happens, this one is also a genius.”

“A genius?” Baoshan Sanren asked. “And here I thought you were going to say he was another Nie Huaisang.”

“…I thought we agreed you would never mention that name in my presence again.”

“You agreed,” she said. “I didn’t. Why would I ever stop mentioning the one true blemish on your otherwise pristine teaching record?”

“Mm, indeed. On the same subject, how is Yanling Daoren doing? Recovering?”

Cangse Sanren caught her teacher’s hand and lowered it back down to the table before it hit Lan Qiren in the face. She was still smiling, completely unaffected by the interplay between immortal and near-immortal – though he supposed, in fairness, that she was used to it by now.

“Tell us about this student of yours,” she said. “What’s the problem? Is he terribly arrogant?”

“Well, he’s a Wen. Arrogance comes with the territory.”

“That’s what happens when your sect is founded by a doctor turned general, I suppose.”

“Nasty little thug,” Baoshan Sanren sniffed. Lan Qiren wasn’t sure he believed her, less because he had any particular respect for Wen Mao than because he knew that the old immortal hadn’t had a nice word to say about anyone for as long as he’d known her…and that was quite a while by now.

“His name is Wen Ruohan,” Lan Qiren said, deciding to ignore her. “And sad to say, he’s every bit as brilliant as his arrogance suggests. Even your Wei Wuxian has accepted him into his personal classes.”

Cangse Sanren’s eyebrows arched, suitably impressed. Her son preferred inventing new calamities to teaching, and spending time with his husband over either of those, so he severely limited the number of students he accepted at any given time, allowing in only the truly talented (or family, of course). Of course, given his terrible memory, he could also be doing that so he’d be able to remember what all of them were called…

“He’s one of the younger ones in his generation, but he’s already an accomplished master of arrays,” Lan Qiren continued. “He’s invented a fair share of them, and his cultivation level is quite impressive, especially given his youth. Beyond his academic accomplishments, he’s well-mannered and charming, thoughtful and quite clever, a good conversationalist, with a decent number of achievements in night-hunting and the like under his belt…”

“I’d ask about his morality, but you’ve already said he’s a Wen.”

“He’s not as bad as all that. He has a younger brother he’s quite protective of, and that seems to have stimulated his desire to be a good role model. Even if his understanding of convention morality is – ah – imperfect, then at minimum he is willing to abide by the usual requirements of common social mores.”

“All right,” Baoshan Sanren said. “Now that you’re done singing his praises, will you tell us what the problem with him is?"

Lan Qiren contemplated throwing his teacup at her face. It would probably be suicide, but oh, how satisfying a death it would be...

Cangse Sanren removed his cup with the excuse of refilling it. “Go on, Qiren,” she said encouragingly. “Tell us the issue you’ve been having.”

“Well,” Lan Qiren said. “He appears to be…infatuated with me.”

“Big deal. If I had to count all the students you’ve had that’ve been hot for teacher, I wouldn’t have years enough to do it,” Baoshan Sanren grumbled. “Just because he’s been obvious enough for you to notice doesn’t make him special.”

“That’s not the issue,” Lan Qiren said, and almost on cue Cangse Sanren got it, which he knew because she started laughing hard enough that she had to put his cup to the side to avoid knocking it over. “Your reaction is unnecessary.”

“Oh no,” Cangse Sanren said, cackling, and Baoshan Sanren starting grinning ghoulishly as well. “It’s very necessary, you’ll find. Very necessary…tell me, are you actually sleeping with him, or do you just want to?”

“It would be monstrously inappropriate!”

“Just want to, then. You’re too repressed, my friend – if he wants to and you want to, what’s the problem?”

“I’m his teacher.”

“He’s of age, isn’t he? And a Wen to boot, so he’s not about to be intimidated by the fact that you’re more powerful than he is…tell me, is the age gap between you part of the attraction? Does he find how ancient you are unbearably attractive?”

“I hate you,” Lan Qiren informed his dearest friend.

“I think you should go for it,” Baoshan Sanren announced, and Lan Qiren glanced at her with arched eyebrows – she wasn’t the sort of person who encouraged people to do things, old doom-crow that she was no matter the color of her feathers. “It’d be funny when you crash and burn.”

Lan Qiren’s eyes narrowed. “I am not accepting his suit just because you would be entertained by it.”

“No, you’d be accepting his suit because he’s brilliant, well-mannered, and a good conversationalist, and because you’ll have far too much fun putting him in his place on a regular basis while he livens up the wrinkled-up miserable raisin of a life you live. It’s just that it will also be entertaining for me.”

“Once the season passes, you won’t be his teacher any longer,” Cangse Sanren pointed out. “You could offer to allow him to escort you on your travels for a little while – if he agrees, that means he values you above his ambitions, which is a very high compliment for a Wen. And you’ll get to see if you like it.”

“You make it sound like some sort of – spring fling.”

“Autumn fling,” she grinned. “You teach in the summer.”

“Cangse Sanren!”

“Oh, let me have my fun! This is lovely, Qiren. I support you entirely.”

“I came here to be talked out of this, not into it.”

“You came to the wrong place, then,” Baoshan Sanren said, rubbing her chin in a thoughtful way Lan Qiren didn’t trust at all. “You ought to have known better – no, to put it otherwise, you did know better, which means you didn’t really want to be talked out of it after all. This boy must be compelling indeed to get your attention to such a degree in such a short amount of time…”

She grinned, then.

Lan Qiren really didn’t trust that expression.

“What are you smiling about?” he asked suspiciously.

“I think I’d like to meet him.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Wonderful!” Cangse Sanren said, clapping her hands. “We should lure him in. I can set up a night-hunt in the area, separate him from the rest –”

“You are not hunting him down as if he were a weak sheep parted from his flock!”

“So protective. I really must evaluate him for himself –”

“Leave him alone!”

“Does he have the capacity to cultivate to your level, do you think? He must be very promising.”

Lan Qiren wanted to strangle them both, and then maybe himself for crushing on a young man so many generations his junior no matter how bright his eyes were or how jaunty his smile when he tried out the worst of his terrible pick-up lines on Lan Qiren.

Though if he really did manage to make it to Baoshan Sanren’s mountain and back, it would undoubtedly serve as an aid to his cultivation, making it more likely that he would eventually be able to cultivate to a level where he could live alongside Lan Qiren for longer than he might otherwise, if he were not powerful enough…

Lan Qiren huffed in disgust as he realized he had it exactly as bad as the two women cackling in front of him were insisting he did. Why was he friends with them again?

“Because you love us, because we last,” Cangse Sanren said, her eyes twinkling. “Just the way you do. Just give in and let it happen, Qiren – you really do need to live a little. Otherwise, what’s the point of being alive?”

#mdzs #lan qiren #cangse sanren #baoshan sanren #wen ruohan #my fic #my fics #I'm trying to finish posting all my old snippets as I get closer to getting the Megafic ready for posting

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captain-krow-drozdov · 1 year

Text

Two For The Price Of One

(Linked Universe/BOTW Wild/Link AU)

BOTW Link Has Two Braincells Souls

1. The Hero That Died 100 Years Ago (Link)

And

2. The Artificial Sheikah Soul From The Shrine Of Resurrection/The Player (Tech)

Upon Finding Out From The Old Man That Having Another Person In Your Head Isn't The Norm They Decided That Link Gets To Keep His Name And The Artificial Sheikah Soul Will Now Be Dubbed Tech (Once Joining The Chain Link Picks Up The Nickname Unity And Tech Picks Up The Nickname Wild).

Unity/Link Still Has Amnesia But Ends Up Gaining A Lot Of Their Memories Back Pretty Quickly After Finding All The Picture Locations And Wild/Tech Literally Just Got Here When They Woke Up In The Shrine So It Was A Learning Process For Both Of Em.

Unity/Link Is Good With Swords, Shields And Most Weapons Whereas Wild/Tech Is Good With Archery, The Sheikah Slate(Mental Connection Go Brr) And Stealth. Unity/Link Has The Heros Spirit And Wild/Tech Is Just Here For The Vibes And To Be A Chaos Enabler. (Unity/Link Was A Domesticated Chaos Gremlin By The Time He Died And Wild/Tech Is Going To Un-Domesticate Him If It's The Last Thing He Does)

They Are Unfortunately Both Idiots/Chaos Gremlins And Socially Awkward And Will 100% Play Mental Rock Paper Scissors The Loser Has To Deal With Socializing.

Wild Ultimately Looks The Same But Also Has Some "Something Supernatural Is Going On There" Vibes Like Sharper Teeth, The Fact That Their Eyes Glow/Eyeshine, Scary Good Night Vision, Always Cold, Movements/Vibe Just Off Enough To Trigger Some Primal Fear In Strangers, Their Blood Has A Faint Glow To It And When Wild/Tech Is In Control The Blue Glow In Their Eyes Is Brighter And More Noticeable.

Mentally However, Unity/Link Looks Like He Did Back When He Was A Knight Before The Calamity Hit And Wild/Tech Looks Like A Sheikah Recolor Of Unity/Link But They Have Ancient Technology Markings Near Their Eyes And Where Any Visible Veins World Be As Well As Blue Fire Eyes That Glow In The Dark Similar To Guardians/Ancient Tech.

At This Rate Unity/Link & Wild/Tech Are On "Do Not Separate" Levels Of Chaotic Head Roommates. They Can Actively Switch Out Who's Driving The Body At Will And With Enough Focus Can Copilot The Body.

They Are Actively Keeping Score Of Who Is Closest To Figuring Out That There Are Two People Behind The Mental Wheel Of The Champion Link (Four And Zelda/Flora Have The Highest Scores).

{I Offer Incorrect Quotes For The General Dynamic/Vibe Of These Two}

Wild/Tech: If you See Me Talking To Myself, Go Away! I’m Self-Employed And We’re Having A Staff Meeting!

Unity/Link & Wild/Tech: Am I a Boy? Am I A Girl? It Doesn't Matter. I'm Going To Burn Your House Down.

Unity/Link: Name A More Iconic Duo Than My Crippling Fear Of Not Being Worthy Of Being The Hero And My Anxiety. I'll Wait.

Wild/Tech: You And Me!!!

Unity/Link, Tearing Up: Okay.

Unity/Link, Trying To Put His Knight Training To Use: Ok We Need A Plan...

Wild/Tech, Currently In Control Of The Body Pulling Out A Bomb Arrow: We Have A Plan. The Plan Is Burn Everything Until We Are All That's Left Standing!

Unity/Link, Fighting And Losing To His Pyromania Demons: That'll Work =)

Unity/Link: Wild/Tech...

Wild/Tech, Bloody And Bruised From A Recent Tumble Down A Mountain Due To Ignoring Shield Durability While Shield Surfing: Oh No, 'Wild/Tech' In B-Flat.

Wild/Tech: You're Disappointed.

Wild/Tech: So That’s My Plan.

Unity/Link, A Trained High Ranking Knight: Are You Alright With Constructive Criticism? I Don’t Want To Sound Mean.

Wild/Tech: No, Go Ahead, I Want To Hear It.

Unity/Link: It Fucking Sucks We Are Going To Die.

Wild/Tech: That’s Not Very Constructive Of Your Criticism.

Unity/Link: I Prevented A Murder Today.

Wild/Tech, Who Watched The Whole Exercise Of Self Restraint Go Down: Really? How’d You Do That?

Unity/Link: Self Control.

Wild/Tech: I CAN'T DO IT UNITY/LINK!

Unity/Link, Laughing: I CAN'T EITHER!

Wild/Tech: I CANT FUCKING DO IT ANYMORE

Unity/Link: WELL I'LL TELL YOU WHAT WILD/TECH, YOU CAN GIVE UP NOW, OR YOU CAN FIGURE IT OUT. BECAUSE I CERTAINLY CAN'T DO IT WITHOUT YOU, AND I KNOW YOU CAN'T DO IT WITHOUT ME.

Wild/Tech: . . .

Wild/Tech: I Appreciate It,

Wild/Tech: BUT LOOK WHAT WE'RE DEALING WITH MAN-

Unity/Link: Wild/Tech-

Wild/Tech: YOU GOTTA DRAW THE LINE SOMEWHERE!

Unity/Link: Wild/Tech We Gotta-

Wild/Tech: YOU GOTTA DRAW A FUCKING LINE IN THE SAND DUDE. YOU GOTTA MAKE A STATEMENT.

Wild/Tech: YOU GOTTA LOOK INSIDE YOURSELF AND SAY 'What Am I Willing To Put Up With Today?'

Wild/Tech, Motioning To Calamity Ganon: NOT FUCKING THIS!

#captain's posts #played botw today and my brain was like yo new Linked Universe idea just dropped #linked universe au #linked universe wild #link botw #tag me if anyone uses this for a fic i wanna read it <3 #captain does the writing thing

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doudouma · 4 months

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“san lang.. do you wish to meet my mother?”

hua cheng meeting his husbands mother!

_______________________________________________

╔══ஓ๑♡๑ஓ══╗

my personal cute thoughts of what i think it would be like if hua cheng/san lang met xie lians mother.♡

there are no warnings, my dear lotus.

this isn’t a x-reader, so there’s no gender to mention.❀ 〜

a/n : well, well… it’s my first time writing for tgcf, wish me luck. my apologies if something is ooc〜! if you know, you’re probably thinking, “but xie lians mother..?” - - yes i know, but what if, my dear〜 i got the inspiration from someone on twitter!

╚══ஓ๑♡๑ஓ══╝

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚

i didn’t know whether to use a picture of san lang or hua cheng… you can imagine either!

oh my goodness!!!!

hua cheng would probably freeze up at the thought of that.

he does want to meet her yes, but what if he messes something up?!

xie lian would reassure him and tell him his mom is lovely〜

she would be so supportive!!! so happy to know that someone loves her son just as much as she does♡〜

most likely would be skeptical at first, it’s only her motherly instincts trying to protect her son〜

…your husband is… the ghost king..? a calamity..? feared by the heavens..?? ..well if you like it, i love it!

i think she would get over that quickly given the fact that xie lian would reassure her heavily that his precious san lang would never hurt him.

i believe she would be intrigued in why hua cheng loves her son, and listen to every detail with a lovely smile.

“im happy to hear your reasonings for loving my son. but as my son in law, i would love to know you on a more personal level, and welcome you into the family.”

you already know hua cheng would be so respectful!

bowing to her often, calling her the most respectful titles, cooking for her, opening doors for her, bringing her gifts and paintings he made of her, helping her with anything she needs, and more!

could even make xie lian jealous〜

the more they get to know eachother, the more motherly she becomes with him. treating him with the same, if not just as much love she treats him with xie lian.

i have a feeling hua cheng wouldn’t exactly want her to call him “hua cheng”. would he want her to call him “san lang” too?

definitely she would be the type of mother to watch the two lovebirds in the back, just adoring them from afar♡

i feel like by accident, she would embarrass xie lian a couple times.. hua cheng will have to reassure him that it’s okay!

“my queen of xianle, it was a honor to meet you. i promise to protect you and your son, xie lian. gege, thank you.”

overall, they two of them would bond heavenly, and would thank xie lian for such a wonderful opportunity〜

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚

this was incredibly easy and fun to write! super cute aswell〜 apologies of something is ooc though, i’m still new to tgcf but want to indulge in the fandom! i hope you all enjoyed this too, my precious flowers❀ 〜

#hua cheng #san lang #tian guan ci fu #heaven official's blessing #tgcf #tgcf donghua #mxtx tgcf #heaven officials blessing #mtxt #mxtx novels #mo xiang tong xiu #天官赐福 #天官赐福动画 #xie lian #xie lian tgcf #hua cheng tgcf #doudouma

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eerna · 11 months

Note

ok so its been a couple weeks how do u feel about totk zelink now

(context: here is part 1 of the ask, and also SPOILERS AHEAD!)

For reference, I am currently done with the dragon tears and sages questlines, but still haven't finished the Kogha one. Whatever happens after this point, I have no idea, I'm chilling and doing side quests and leveling up.

There is a difficult line to draw between "this is what the game is saying" and "this is what I am projecting onto it", but to me, this game is about how well Link knows Zelda. BotW was about trying to remember her and why she mattered, and TotK is about trying to figure out her plans and what she was trying to tell you, as she is no longer able to guide you the way she did in BotW. It's listening to what people are saying about her and deciding if it sounds like Zelda or not. It is beautiful, and shows how close the two of them are now! BUT. It would have worked even better if we saw traces of their relationship in the plot. This is a three-pronged feature: 1) In the main quest everyone calls Link "Zelda's swordsman" or "Zelda's chosen protector" and are surprised when they see him without her, but the NPCs STILL don't mention him. The way I almost screamed when I stumbled upon that Lurelin NPC who is like "oh yeah the princess would disguise herself and go on vacation and hike up to the Lover's Pond at sunset!" and I was READY to hear about the person accompanying her. But there was no one. Zelda was alone as far as this guy was concerned. Like pls. 2) Link should have revealed his thoughts on the mystery of Zelda's identity for this theme to work, at least by being the one to figure out the Zelda prancing around Hyrule is an impostor. In fact, the way they didn't try to incorporate the tears quest into the main storyline is pretty disappointing - sorry but Link would NOT just ignore knowing where Zelda is. They should have hidden the last few memories until you're done with the fifth temple to make sure he doesn't look like an idiot. 3) We are STILL in the "Link doesn't react properly to Zelda" era. I'm not even talking about animation, I would have settled for a "Don't look so concerned, we will figure it out!" or a "I know you wish to bring her back right away, but leave the research to me and focus on beating Ganon first!" from Impa at the end of the tears quest. Sure, I choose to interpret his mad dash through Hyrule Castle to get to the sanctum Ganon fight as him completely forgetting any caution or reason in his desperation to get to her, but is that really it? EVERYONE ELSE cares so so much about Zelda as a person instead of a princess, they are constantly talking about her, so Link could have gotten some moments of that too. I'm glad the game stated that Link's duty ended with the Calamity and he CHOSE to stay with Zelda, so it's not that he only cares because he has to, but I wish it was shown outside that one line in a secret diary.

In conclusion, I still stand by my previous claim: Skyward Sword did this same dynamic better, so if I hadn't played that game I might have been elated over this one, but alas. I am still hoping for an earth-shattering emotional moment towards the end of the game that is gonna render all my complaints wrong, I haven't lost hope, but wow my imagination is working overtime to keep me happy

#eernask #eernanon #eernask talk loz #totk spoilers

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sunset-peril · 2 months

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The Wolfbred Chronicles - The "Lost" Tribe - Part One - Moonlight, Markings and Musings

“You're… Wolfbred?” Zelda couldn't help herself but laugh.

Her bodyguard looked up at her. His face looked like he wasn't sure whether he was offended or very, very confused by her laughter.

“No, no… Father hates Wolfbred. He said he'd never knight another one. You're a personal bodyguard knight, Link. Father would never.”

Urbosa watched as the small, previously-assumed-to-be-Hylian man just looked at Zelda with a completely blank stare. The moon was on his head, painting his eyebrows white along with the mythical swirl of a wolf long gone that was shimmering on his forehead. She pressed on her temple as she tried to recall how her dearest friend interacted with these creatures, and how she determined that they were Wolfbred. Eventually, she bent down to his level and pointed firmly at his hand. “Give, Link, give.”

Almost instantly, Link offered up his hand.

“Wow! How did you do that? I've never seen the Tiny Princess get more than a black stare.”

“Wolfbred were a passion project of my dearest friend. I remember she gave them orders in a particular format. Simple orders in a simple format. I also remember something that could prove… particularly challenging in our future here with Link.”

“But what's with the hand, Urbosa?” Revali tipped his beak from her. “Did you just want to order the guy around?”

“The Queen told me a Wolfbred could be identified by the wrist. I needed his hand to check his wrist to see if he is truly Wolfbred, like I believe he is.” Urbosa retrieved her scimitar. “Catch, Link, catch.” She gently tossed the blade, handle outwards, to Link. A soldier like himself should catch it no problem.

And he did catch it… at first. His hand grasped the handle, but he dropped the blade when he turned it over.

Urbosa snatched his hand back, he leaned away from her.

“Okay, so the so-called hero is clumsy, what does that tell us?”

“He's not clumsy. He's Wolfbred.” She held up his hand. “See?”

“What in the-?” Revali muttered. “Those are some messed up thumbs. No wonder he couldn't hold onto your dumb sword.”

Urbosa bit her tongue. “His thumb is set back, partially on the wrist here.” Link yanked on his hand, she spoke soft. “Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you, Link.”

“Is that all, Urbosa? I fail to see how a simple mutation of the wrist was enough for exile.”

“No, of course. That's just a unique trait of the Wolfbred. He's got the marks on his face too.”

“But… he looks so much like a Hylian.” Zelda wanted to touch his markings, but Link kept pulling his head away when she reached out. “I'd expect him to have fur, or a tail at least.”

“But of course! They're supposed to be super soldiers. Part of their charm was that you couldn't identify them from afar, which meant enemy armies couldn't target them as easily. Once upon a time, the Hyruliean army was primarily Wolfbred.” She sighed. “We Gerudo were nearly ravaged by the Wolfbred of those days.”

“Oh boy, wolf in the name and descended from war crimes? Wouldn't be surprised if he was Rinkū's son.”

Link turned his head to Revali after hearing that name.

“R-Rinkū's… son? His father is named Ordon!”

Link whipped his head back to Zelda.

“Ah, Tiny Princess. Revali's not talking about a literal son. More like a descendant. A great warhound from ancient times. He was basically the pet of an ancient queen. When she was killed in battle, he… kinda went on a rampage. Goron, Rito, Zora, Hylian… but especially the Gerudo. He and his pack of warhounds slaughtered without mercy… much like this Calamity Ganon is planning to do now.”

“We… Gerudo have since come to forgive. His queen is believed to have been slaughtered by Ganon, who is believed to have once been Gerudo. If we will not stand to have Ganon's actions associated with our people… then we should not do the same to the descendants of Rinkū. However, I know not all of Hyrule feels the same way. My dearest friend risked her reputation to free the Wolfbred from exile…”

“It is said that the queen's sole female relative was the only one who could command them to stop. The king himself found his orders on deaf ears. Probably why your father dumped him off on you. He has the Sword, so we have to keep him around, but hey, the female Royal will keep him in line.”

Zelda's face exuded fear, disgust and anger.

Urbosa bent down to her. “Don't listen to Revali. Hyrule is known for its bloody history. This is simply his. But of course, if Gerudo and Hylia's own can commit atrocities and not be remembered by them, then Link here shouldn't either. He's a sweet boy. I assure you, his fear of you greatly outweighs your fear of him.”

“You… said there was a complication with him?”

“Ah, yes. You see, because the Wolfbred were exiled for so long… ah, this might be easier to show you.” Urbosa looked towards Link. “Link, there's a carriage with horses near the stable. It will hurt if you get hit.”

Link turned his head at his name, but didn't respond to the rest of the sentence.

“Urbosa, where are you going with this nonsense?”

Urbosa held her hand up to silence the bird. “Link, there's a hit with stable near the hurt. It will horses if you get carriage.”

Link continued to stare at her, staying perfectly still and emotionless.

“As you can see, little bird, Revali, Daruk… plain and simple, it doesn't matter if I speak coherently to him. Link can't speak Hylian.”

~~~~

Hyrule's Final Stand Masterlist

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cleolinda · 1 year

Text

Story time: wet chaos

Internet, do you remember this?

Internet, I have updates. They are not good. They are in fact Bad. There is a little bathroom on the basement level of my house and, as of this morning, it is flooding. I have a trashfire back from my spinal surgery a few years ago, so, it's my mom who's had to stay home and deal with this, while I wrangle the dog. My house is already made of drinking straws and cardboard (a story for another time), so we have a water vacuum. She has emptied it out into the driveway ten times so far.

I take our dog outside to do his thing, and I see bits of toilet paper washing around in the rain.

This means that the rain is not what flooded the basement.

"I KNOW it's not the rain because it's coming UP FROM THE SHOWER," says my mom. Oh, where Pennywise lives. Yeah, that checks out.

Now, because our house is a calamity magnet, we also have a plumbing contract. We have a problem, they come out and fix it. Well, whenever they can. After three hours, they're on their way (earlier than they thought they could get here, even). And, on the phone, the Contractual Plumber says, "Yeah, that sounds like [Redacted Internet Provider We Don't Even Use] messed up your sewer line AND your water line." See this picture I posted last week of a pipe in the yard mysteriously spewing into the street as to why this is a STRONG GUESS.

--Update, I have just been told how much we have to pay out of pocket to start and it is Not Good.

Now, the entire neighborhood is PISSED AF about this, and one of our neighbors started passing out the business card of a City Public Works representative. My mom talked to this rep in person, and he promised that The City would reimburse The Neighborhood for damages, destroyed plants, exorbitant water bills, etc. So we're about to put this guy to the test, let's put it that way, or he's going on Sasha the Christmas Tiger's list (I don't make the rules).

#story time with cleo #this might as well happen #it got worse #text post #wet chaos 2022

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keiiex · 11 months

Text

Tao x Fem. Reader !

Gokurakugai [ Sanbandori No Ken ]

Summary : The Troubleshooters are given a clue to where a Maga resides, an abandoned temple on the outskirts of the city. Through their conversation, Tao learns more about not only Yomi but herself.

“Are you sure there's supposed to be a Maga here? Grumbler probably just wants wanted to see you in a Hanfu. Oh— I’m gonna kill him this time.” Alma furrowed his brows, scrunching up his face while crossing his arms. They were walking through an abandoned temple, their footsteps echoing through the enclosed space as they walked away further from the light, and into the vacant entrance.

“I've heard rumors about this temple before. Apparently, some girl was seen dancing with a demon.” Alma’s eyes roamed the dark hallways, jogging up to a shrine where a thin line of incense burned. An offering of one peach alongside a bloodied katana. It lay down right below the ledge– where the peach stood as the red dripped onto the bare wooden floor. “It's fresh, they're here.” Tao’s voice echoed, taking one last drag from her cigarette before dropping the butt of the stick, burning out the weak flame.

A small whisper entered the room, a light melody humming on the tips of your lip. You study as the Maga and his fellow friend wandered into your home. A smirk wiped your lips before you whistle. The entrance door latch shut as the red-haired boy swung his head back to the sudden slam. Unlike the Maga, the woman kept her eyes up front. Her eyes tracked the small pitter-patter, as a shadowy fox rubbed down the side of her ankles.

“I presume you may be the Troubleshooters? I wasn't expecting visitors at this hour.” To the sound of your voice, the figured fox runs to you, jumping into your arms while you take a step into the light. “My name is Y/n and this is Jiaohu.” You watch as the two stare blankly at you, Alma’s mouth slightly a gap.

Your hands trail the mist of your voided fox, your fingertips running through an invisible force. Feeling impatience coming from your pet, you let him run straight to your katana. Licking off the blood of the sword, enjoying his fresh meal.

“If you're not here to kill me, what business do you have here?” Your question comes out more like a demand, your eyes scanning between the two curiously. Alma stepped forward, “We want you to join the Anti Calamity Organization.” With that, you only stare amusingly at the duo. “Were serious!” With the rise of Alma’s voice, you hear a grow come from Jiahou as she barked back at the young boy. His eyes widen, putting his hands on his hips before shouting back at the poor canine.

“Do you know a person by the name of Yomi?” Her question was straight and direct, not wasting any little time she has left till sunrise.

With the mere mention of his name, a wicked grin leveled on your lips. “Follow along.” You step aside from the doorway, Tao walking through as you slide it behind you. The shouts and barking become a mumble behind closed doors as you're left with the tall woman, alone. The area held a large open doorway, one that let the moonlight shine through. A low table stood inside the middle of the room, a simple pack of cigarettes left at the center of the table.

You kneel properly as Tao takes a seat across from you. She sits up with one knee propped against her chest, her arm resting carelessly on top. You take out a stick, offering one to the woman as she accepts. You light her flame first before lighting yours. These weren’t just any regular packs. These were infused with cherry blossoms as well as peach skin, a customary pack, and guessing from the expression from Tao, she enjoyed it.

“I know about the two of you.” You take the cigarettes to your lips, breathing through the stick. Your eyes flutter closed before releasing your breathe. “He wants Alma.” Your eyes stared back at her unchanged blue ones but you knew the truth, she was conflicted. “Why would he want Alma so bad, he's got other Maga’s.” She questioned. You only shrug your head, letting the white smoke trail out your tongue. “Seize power and control, round up the ones that are born to last.”

The night sky was dark but the moonlight illuminated the area surrounding us, an eerie yet serene moment. You watch as she takes a drag, tilting her head back to let the smoke escape. “I can't ever catch a break with that little shit.” The manner in which she uttered came out dragged, her voice raspy and quiet. Despite her tough and rough demeanor, she was outspoken.

“Yomi finds his victims when they're at their lowest.” You pick up, Tao’s gaze never leaving her painted fingernails but her focus was directed towards you. “Whether that be mental or through insanity. An easily influenced mind. He feeds them with his own bare hands, becoming reliable, becoming their supply.” You continued, leaning towards the woman as her eyes finally land on you. “Yomi knows Alma’s weakness. He’ll know how to use it in his favor.”

You take a huff of your cigarette, blowing the smoke to her face as she takes a deep breath into the fog. She shakes her head slightly, a ghost of a grin lining up her face. “You're not fond of him, are you?” Tao questioned, eyes gazing back to yours as she waits for your response. You chuckle to the sound of her question, relaxing back into a straight posture. “We had some history.” You kept your response short, not finding a need to give this woman who you just met— all the answers to her questions.

Very few moments did Tao find herself intrigued with another being. Her blasé personality overwhelmed her need for lingering curiosity.

“I don't see why you'll refuse our offer then.” This time, she spoke smugly. Shamelessly gazing into your eyes, her attention concentrated on you. She takes out one last puff from her cigar, putting out the blunt by the tabletop. She was confident that she would get what she came here for. “Working for an organization that serves justice... I don't exactly have a pristine record.” You raise your eyebrows toward the woman, burning out your flame. “What do I gain?”

The two women stared defiantly at one another. Tao, taping the warm ash that was left behind from where she had put out her cigarette. “Your revenge.”

A chuckle past your lips, your back relaxing as you center your pack of cigars back to the center of the table. “You're quite the observant one, aren't you?” Trailing your voice to the sound of your stuffing, both Tao and you made your way back to the doorway.

“In honor of my sister, Kanata.”

Past the sliding doors, Jiaohu above Alma. The two continue to argue, the shadowy fox biting onto the boy's collar as he tries to fight the entity off. Then once quiet and empty temple filled with something more... welcoming.

You tilt your head toward the talker woman, her eyes growing playful as the two wrestled in front of her. “A picture might last longer.” Tao catches your gaze, her eyes never leaving the boy and the fox. Even if she didn't hold much enthusiasm in her tone, the comment came out as a tease.

“I'll suffice.”

#gokurakugai sanbandori no ken #gokurakugai #gokurakugai tao #tao x reader #reader insert

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chaosintheavenue · 1 year

Text

Ghoul Survey Results!

The Ghoul Survey managed to collect 110 responses (thank you all!). The nature of the data means that pie charts aren't working very well to display it coherently, so I'm just going to present the numbers as they are.

Without further ado...

Favourite companion:

Raul: 35 Hancock: 31 Charon: 24 Dean Domino: 9 Lenny: 4 Otto Steed (VB): 4 Herbert: 3 Billy-Bob: 3 Measles (VB): 2 Chris the Ghoulrilla: 2

Favourite non-companion character:

Gob: 20 Kent Connolly: 9 Jason Bright: 8 Beatrix Russell: 8 Daisy: 7 Carol: 5 Harold (proclaimed by one respondent as an 'honorary ghoul'): 5 Desmond Lockheart: 3 Arlen Glass: 3 Rotface: 3 Oswald the Outrageous: 3 Eddie Winter: 2 Tulip: 2 Calamity: 2 Wiseman: 2 Dr Sebastian (VB): 2 Harland: 2 Ghoulrillas generally: 2 Ghoul NCR soldiers generally: 2

And as always, a list of those with one vote: Tommy Ten-Toes, Bessie Lynn, Hadrian, Keely, Typhon, Snowflake, Talius, Skeeter, Set, Bobbi No-Nose, Vault-Tec Rep, Griffon, T-Minus, Betty Hill, Zhao, Ghoulified!Moira Brown, Sun of Atom, Greta, Argyle, Eugenie, Billy Peabody, and Bert Gunnarsson

Favourite settlement/faction:

Underworld: 49 Necropolis: 21 The Bright Brotherhood: 14 The Slog: 13 Gecko: 4 Kiddie Kingdom: 3 Kansas City/Gravestone: 2 The Reservation (VB): 1 Camp Searchlight: 1 Eugenie's ghoul settlement: 1 Broken Hills: 1

Do all ghouls eventually turn feral?

No: 97 Yes: 12

What causes ghouls to turn feral?

General level of radiation exposure post-ghoulification: 25 Social isolation: 22 The circumstances of how they ghoulified in the first place: 11 Reliance on radiation instead of food as an energy source: 10 Genetics: 9 Other: 23

Within the Other category, most said a combination of some or all of the above factors, or pure random chance. Other theories included…

Level of FEV exposure

The person's personality and morality pre-ghoulification

Infections and how well the ghoul cares for their wounds

A form of dementia

Psychic/supernatural phenomena

Brain chemistry pre-ghoulification

Level of mental duress post-ghoulification

Their level of internal connection to their own humanity

Ghouls cannot physically starve, but do feel hunger. If they don't eat for too long, they get a severe case of 'hangry' and turn feral

(Looking through the theories on this question caused me to suddenly and violently remember the glaringly absent 'What causes ghoulification in the first place?' question I'd planned to include… I guess that leaves room for Ghoul Survey 2: Electric Boogaloo?)

Do ghouls still physically need to eat, drink, sleep, all the basics?

Yes, to survive: 71 Yes, to avoid turning feral: 30 No: 9

If a child became ghoulified, would they remain child-sized, or grow?

Remain child-sized: 53 Grow to adult size as a human would: 39 Other: 18

The contents of the Other category, in loose order of how common each theory was:

They would grow to an extent, but not to what their human height would have been, and will likely have a unique appearance generally

They would eventually grow to an adult size, but over an extremely long time frame

The ghoulification process is so unique to each individual that it's impossible to predict what would happen, especially in an exceptional case like this

Children are so unlikely to survive ghoulification in the first place that asking this question is essentially irrelevant

Feral ghoul children would grow, others would not

And now we come to the final question, the blank text box. I'll add a handpicked selection of the original comments and a brief ship count under the cut for brevity's sake:

I have 3 ghoul OCs that came to life because of a joke me and my friend had. They're a group of prewar cheerleaders turned borderline raider gang. They're like 17/18 year old girls. […] So all in all while all the rest of my OCs are dying and barely getting by they're sunbathing by a murky, algae filled pool with silly sunglasses and crappy cocktails. Oh and yeah,they kept their uniforms and wear them all the time.

Ghouls have one of the most heart breaking stories. Especially the Pre-War ones. They watched many (if not all) of their friends and family die in one way or another. The best in universe example of how mentally draining being a Pre-War ghoul was is in Oswalds terminals around the Kiddy Kingdom in Nuka World. You get a real sense of the fear and loss of seeing these people you've been forced to get close with slowly stop mentally existing even if their still physically there. Oswalds hope that a cure can be found is heartbreaking because we know (as far as I'm aware) of no existing cure for Ghoulism and especially for feral ghouls.

Ghoulification isn't a condition or a sickness or a consequence of making poor choices, its an adaptation for life in the wasteland and a useful one at that.

I love all the ghoul characters and chose Lenny as my favourite because A. I think he’s underappreciated and B. Second only to Charon, he has the most potential for a really cool backstory that they never addressed. Dude is a doctor in Necropolis, he would have been treating the other vault dwellers for radiation sickness. Imagine the trauma! The angst! It included his father who’s to say there wasn’t more of his family in that vault that he tried to help and failed? How did he survive the super mutant attack on necropolis? Was he below the city or above it (was he angry at humans and got over it or just trying to live peacefully?)

I think 90% of the veteran rangers are all ghouls. I like to think there's large ghoul settlements all over. I like to think there's ghouls who look completely human. Chris Haversam is ghoulifing on the inside but he still looks human. The Human Companions in Fallout 4 who are all immune to radiation are that way due to that process.

It makes sense ghouls would think their immune to radiation, but really, it just takes longer. their resistant, not immune. places like the glowing sea would make amazing homes for ghouls to the average eye, but once you see how many feral ghouls are around you start to think about how many came there feral to begin with.

I have this hc about Jason Bright where he is a pskyer and the reason why his voice echos is because one of the voices you're hearing physically with your ears and the other he is unintentionally projecting into your mind with telepathy.

I imagine there's many Vaults that are full of just ghouls.

I got a headcannon that ghouls are naturally warmer, due of radiation. the 'younger' the ghoul, the warmer. pre war ghouls arent that warm as the ones who turned years ago.

Headcanon: if a ghoul works to maintain their voice (i.e. general vocal care like how opera singers do), they can keep their voice from getting as scraggly as most. My 76 OC was a Broadway actress before the war and continued to maintain her voice despite aging and eventual ghoulification, which allowed her to keep it (mostly) in tact.

I think Oswald was the reason his friends turned feral. He kept exposing them to radiation and every time he healed them with radiation or brought them back from the dead makes things harder. But ultimately it's a super rare gene that keeps non feral glowing ones.

I think the Eldritch Old Ones are the unofficial cause of the ghouls. The radiation is just an effect but the the Old Ones choose who to make feral, who to turn, and sometimes they'll turn without radiation at all.

Rn I’m working on a setting set in central MA, and one of the characters is a ghoul history teacher since he is a prewar ghoul. It’s been a fun concept to play with!

Bit of a headcanon- ghouls tend to have a heightened sense of smell, but are mostly nose blind to smells of burning and rot.

Glowing ones don't turn feral. Every feral glowing one was feral BEFORE they were glowing.

I hc that all ghouls are sensitive to light which is why most chill in dark places.

And last but certainly not least...

I want to marry Raul.

And so, that concludes that.

A huge thank you once again to everyone who took the survey and offered your thoughts, and I hope you found this results post interesting/insightful :D

Appendix: But Chaos, you promised us...

1 - Analysis of ghoul x ghoul ships!

So, upon an brief glance-through of the data whilst the survey was still running (I was trying not to 'spoil' the dataset for myself so I only peeked here and there), it seemed like a relatively large chunk of the recent respondents had mentioned ships, which is why I proposed adding a dedicated section for them in the results. However, in the final results we actually only have two ghoul x ghoul ships mentioned: Carol x Greta and Gob x Charon. A handful of other answers talked about shipping Charon and Gob with their LWs and Raul with their Couriers, but overall there just wasn't a whole lot of shipping discussion going on. Sorry to disappoint lol

2 - Born ghoul discussion!

Ah. Yes. That. Well, this is a similar situation again, actually. There are references to relevant characters within the dataset, but nothing went into anywhere near as much detail as I somehow convinced myself it had, and so I didn't have to leap in with the dreaded Born Ghouls 101 after all. I think my brain may have bluescreened prematurely upon seeing the slightest hinted mention of Van Buren's ghoul lore in there hgfdfgh

#ghoul survey #the results are in!#the overwhelming outcome of this survey for me has been a renewed desire to learn more about ghouls in the fallout games I tend to neglect #and I have to say. I may just not have reached the right audience but there was *zero* hancock thirst. I was shocked lol #long post

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funkybotwstuff · 1 year

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good evening i'm not sure if y'all are still active but if you are could i please request platonic botw hcs (i don't recall you specifying whether you do platonic or not- i'm sorry if you don't, that's my bad) for a reader who's the youngest champion and has an intense competition against revali? all the champions know about it and they try and stop him from being too hard on the reader but he never listens

thank u <3

Oh my goodness, platonic hcs requests are very much appreciated! They're super fun to write, and this request was especially fun to jot down. Sorry for the wait again but thank you for the request!

After training your arse off to be as skilled as you can, you were chosen by the one and only Princess Zelda to become a Champion! And the youngest one at that, congrats!

You owe it to everyone and everything: your mentors, family, friends, and a whole lot of grueling training and luck to top it off.

Everyone's celebrating and the other chosen Champions are congratulating you on your feat! They're all amazingly proud of your accomplishments and warmly welcome you to the elite team chosen to fend off Calamity Ganon

One problem: there's another young Champion vying for that sweet spot of ultimate recognition, and he's not backing down that easy

Revali, being the overtly competitive and sardonic individual that he is, isn't going to appreciate you stealing another spotlight from him

I mean, first Link shows up seemingly out of nowhere and was assigned to take Ganon down...now this other younger teen Champion is the fresh talk of the town and barely anyone bothers to acknowledge Revali's impressive feats

You can't be that good, right? At least, that's what Revali believes when he first catches wind of your acceptance

Someone with not nearly as much life experience as everyone else couldn't possibly be a Champion, he thinks, even with excruciating training and dedication, reaching the level of a Champion takes a specific skill (let's not forget their abilities here)

Though (sadly for him), you do in fact have a seemingly supernatural ability. Like him, you've worked hard to be able to harness this skill

It irks the ever-loving hell out of him and you quickly catch onto his disdain of your presence

You can't be in the same room together let alone fight alongside each other without intense amounts of competitive, resentful energy radiating from him and yourself

It started out petty things: you'll stick your tongue out at him, he'll purposely stand right in front of you while walking, you'll speak before he gets a chance, he'll compare his skills to yours…it's never ending

Of course, this can't be kept secret for long; your colleagues are for sure going to notice. And since Revali is the oldest out of you two, the other Champions try giving him a pep talk to "lay off on the kid" since your rivalry could turn for the worse and ruin a potential mission

But in his mind, a Champion is a Champion, right? And being the bigger person in a moral stance isn't exactly his strong suit

"If this child is to be worthy enough to stand among Hyrule's leading force in a conflict of this magnitude, a challenge of authority should hardly be an issue."

No one could persuade him to quit it and that simply fuelled your dislike, no, hatred of him more. Mipha tried reason, Daruk attempted group bonding exercises and Urbosa thought brute verbal force would work… But it’s Revali we’re talking about. He changes on his own accord

In short, nothing's getting resolved anytime soon :/ It eventually escalated to both of you purposefully throwing yourselves in perilous situations just to prove one was better over the other. It was quickly becoming a conundrum when you basically challenged each other to a fight to the death

“Fight to the death” may be pushing it, but putting yourselves at risk of injury for just some rivalry? It became concerning rather than amusing for your friends-in-arms to stand another day of bickering and death stares seeing how it could turn to outright antagonism

Even Daruk is starting to get worried, and he's the more light-hearted one of the group!

To remedy this, Zelda purposely pairs the two of you together for a small mission in hopes you put aside your differences to complete a goal. The other Champions disagreed at first (fearing Revali and you would tear each other apart limb from limb), but trusted her instincts

You both vehemently protested this mission, but went along anyway. The journey there was quiet for the most part with the two of you silently stewing over the decision to go. However, you picked up on the fact that she's trying to make you get along and both thought isn't that ridiculous??

As you're walking towards the location of your mission, you converse about the others attempting to stop your rivalry in a somewhat casual manner

"Pfft, it's funny how hard they're trying. Like, are they really that desperate?"

"They must be. To think that we alone seem to be enough trouble for even the Princess to intervene… Perhaps you’re right, it’s nearly comical." This is absolutely an understatement on his end by the way; nearly killing each other should constitute more than ‘enough trouble’.

“Right? I didn’t think we’d strike that much of a nerve!”

After a bit of back and forth banter, you both return to the others…still bickering. Although, it’s not the usual mean-spirited quarrel everyone’s used to! The bad blood began thinning out bit by bit, with the healthy rival challenge every now and then

Now each passing day you’re on missions and such, it morphs into a type of older brother situation on Revali’s end: still an asshole to you, but a genuine guy to fight alongside

There’s still the odd, legitimate squabble here and there, but mainly just about counting monster kills (Legolas and Gimli style)

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utilitycaster · 1 year

Note

A lot of people who try to analyze religion in Exandria need to watch the Adventuring Academy episode where Brennan and Matt talked about worldbuilding, specifically when Matt said “In a game like dungeons and dragons, or a lot of role playing games where ultimately part of the game is to overcome villains and rise up and become a hero, there has to be some level of universal antagonism… there is a pure and defined entity or force that is evil, it may not be realistic to some stories out there, but that’s [how it works in DND].”

This is true, and it's really interesting to watch this happen because Matt will make a huge, unambiguous evil like Lucien or the Vanguard, or Brennan will do so with Asmodeus and people will do everything they can to try to come up with reasons to woobify them or argue why they're justified...but I haven't seen this happen in most of the D20 seasons, and I think it's because the villains in most D20 seasons have been things that reinforce people's beliefs, namely, capitalism and abuse of religious power. And to be clear, capitalism and abuse of religious power fucking suck, but it's telling that people assume the villain is capitalism in places where that doesn't apply on a wide scale, or in some cases, exist (EXU Calamity, Neverafter); or that the Ruby Vanguard or Tomb Takers, both of which have pretty much every single hallmark of a cult but just aren't affiliated with the main pantheon, are actually the good guys.

Incidentally: this is like, quite literally how people get sucked into cults. One of the leading cult researchers in the world, Janja Lalich, is a survivor of a now dissolved explicitly leftist/anti-capitalist cult. Abuses of power, which is, ultimately, what both Brennan and Matt lean on as their Universal Antagonist traits, rely on confirming people's existing biases and exploiting them - even if those biases are broadly good! This is in fact why I can get so fucking adamant about what is mostly silly fandom shit, because I do, on some level, look at some takes that completely lack critical thinking and am like oh you'd 100% buy into all kinds of dangerous patterns of thought if someone packaged it nicely; even something as stupid as the Caleb Werewolf Theory relied on circumstantial evidence and false information that you could easily verify was false. And it's annoying but mostly harmless in the context of fandom, but it always makes me wonder - does this person do this with political posts on social media?

Anyway getting back to the main point, I think watching/listening to Brennan commentary on Adventuring Academy is generally a really good idea because he is a very smart guy with a philosophy degree and has a strong grasp of the genres in which he works as well as TTRPGs as a storytelling medium, and talks to other people who also have a good understanding of the morality of fantasy stories. And if you listen to this, you will in fact get that the basis of evil in these stories is not something as specific as "capitalism" or "religion"; it's quite literally as basic as "exploiting other people simply because that is an option available to you and you don't care about them." And obviously that's the whole basis of capitalism, and it's a serious problem that exists within organized religion, but like...not to repeat myself from this weekend but I keep thinking about the "Suvi without the imperialism" and it's like...she is a 20 year old woman whose parents died for a cause and we have had ONE episode with her as an adult. We know nothing about the Empire except that it's an empire and it is at war. Like, can you look at imperialism and understand why it's bad? Can you separate the concept of imperalism - which, to be clear, is based on power structures - from say, your 21st century understanding of empires in the real world? Or do you see the word Empire and go "Bad Thing" without any capacity to analyze because that's how you end up looking at two flawed things in a story (well, if we're lucky; see the middle paragraph) and deciding one is perfect and correct for no reason other than because it opposes the thing you think is worse. And Brennan is REALLY good at skewering that, and Matt is REALLY good at portraying multiple complicated and flawed perspectives, but you do have to like, use your brain slightly.

#answered #Anonymous #i'm having flashbacks to when people were like The Dynasty (theocracy ruled by the same person for a millennium) is perfect no notes #simply bc the dwendalian empire was ALSO bad #cr tag #long post

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