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#to rant about venat
asleepinawell · 2 years
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not out of zodiark jail even five minutes and he’s already dragging him
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isayoldbean · 11 months
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today is part 2 of the @woltourney beefaganda loredrop! in truth i meant to post the full thing yesterday but i was exhausted and my whole body threatened to beat me with sticks if i didn't go to sleep when i did, so. i will finish today!
when we left off yesterday, beef had decided to run away from her grief by committing atrocities and working her way up the most wanted list instead of going to therapy like a normal person.
unfortunately for everyone--including herself--she was incredibly good at it, experiencing a meteoric rise to infamy over the next few years. and while she did retain her own sort of moral code, the amount of blood on her hands could not be justified or rationalized away. she had to be stopped.
and so an ambush was laid. many had been attempted before, but this one was different--during the fighting, she received what should have been a mortal blow and was swept overboard into the sea. a brief search for her body yielded no results, but based on the damage she had taken and the amount of time she had been submerged, she was presumed dead and the mission deemed a success.
what they did not factor into the equation was hydaelyn. who would? the thought that the will of the star would intercede on the behalf of somebody like her would never have entered anyone's mind. and yet...
this was her chosen champion. although she could barely recognize her from her villainous behavior, there was no doubt in her mind that this was the warrior she had been waiting for. and so she reached out, expending as much aether as she dared to ensure her champion could continue on to fulfill her destiny.
and so the unconscious form of the roegadyn we now know as huge beef washed up on a distant shore, altered from the deluge of aether she had been subjected to in ways both perceivable and unknown, where she was found by a young raen woman who brought her home and nursed her back to health.
when she came to consciousness, her mind was a blank slate. the amount of aether her mind had been bathed in to keep her alive had the unfortunate side effect of aetherblasting her brain into something of a factory default. and yet even though she could not remember, she felt--a violent snarl of anger in her chest, urging her to lash out at somebody, anybody; a heavy cloud of grief she couldn't place that nonetheless haunted her like a shroud; a potent cocktail of abject misery that she had no reason to be feeling, and yet it refused to leave.
she was grateful nonetheless to the woman who had helped her, and offered to stay and help in any way she could. however, this was occupied garlean territory--somebody with her penchant for violence offering to 'help' could bring more danger than anything. and so the woman arranged to sneak her onto a ship headed for eorzea, where she could start anew.
when she arrived, she learned that eorzea was starving for adventurers. she could be as violent as she liked, and as long as she directed those impulses towards monsters, garleans, or other acceptable targets, she would earn praise, money, and glory instead of infamy and scorn. with an offer like that, how could she refuse? and so she set forth to make a name for herself.
eventually she was discovered by y'shtola, who despite her reservations about her character (as she was such a hot mess at this point), offered her the opportunity to join the scions and use her gift of the echo for a noble purpose. beef didn't see much of a reason to refuse, so she headed to thanalan to investigate.
at first, she saw the scions merely as the means to an end--all she wanted to do was fight stuff to appease the ever present roiling anger within her, but doing it for an allegedly noble cause would get her better benefits in the long run, and the scions had agreed to help her try to find out about her missing past as well. but as she continued to work with them, something strange began to happen: the anger and grief within her started to ebb away, and a strange warmth and peace took its place. she began to heal. from what, she didn't know. perhaps one day, she would remember.
aaaand that's beef's story through arr, roughly! obviously there were many more Horrors awaiting her as msq progressed but that's the basic backstory. if you read all this, consider voting for her in her upcoming @woltourney poll!
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prismbearer · 2 years
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Braindead at the sudden thought of Ascian!Venat.
Uncertain if this would be a straightforward roleswap AU where say... Elidibus and Venat switch places somehow or if it would be better to form it like an alternate reality created by WoL's actions in Elpis etc.
Maybe Venat simply being more susceptible to the light? SHB had themes for light corruption and despite Ancients being able to hold mass quantities of aether maybe Venat having to weaken herself prior? Or simply a take where Hydaelyn weakening overtime leaves what remains of Venat at the core damaged, corrupted by light? A Venat without memory emerging from Hydaelyn similar to the concept of Elidibus as the Heart of Zodiark, quasi corrupted by the intentions during the final days? That would sort of run more like a thematic reversal though for the Source.
I suppose the Elidibus Swap has more ground to be less altering. Eli being young and close to the current Azem, maybe being inspired by them leaving the Convocation or the like? Influenced by their refusal to sacrifice their people etc? Harder part is Venat supporting the convocation. Maybe due to a setting altered by WoL where they befriend Themis a little too well and it leaves Venat having to do damage control since Elidibus rebels from the predetermined path of their fate? Perhaps she steps in to fill the seat Azem vacates?
Ooh. Venat who tries to stand by her intentions and principles, putting her faith in her protege and Themis to still light the way. Still becoming tempered despite her best wishes, knowing it is inevitable despite the knowledge that she could theoretically save the others with the travellers blessing etc. Being unwilling to risk the future that WoL comes from too much, knowing that it is the path of salvation for the Universe against Despair. Venat still being affected by the tempering, surviving with ES and Laha. Forced to experience the state of the star from the other side. Pushed by the tempering and knowledge of being WoL's enemy but still believing in them deep down.
Only bc frankly the idea of ES as Hydaelyn is horrific, would have to be Elidibus.
Maybe Azem finds out about the future and since they're apparently the "there has to be another way" type decides to attempt to alter that fate even at the risk of their own future self etc? Venat having to accelerate the summoning of Zodiark?
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saturn-sends-hugs · 1 year
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AAAA WANNA HEAR MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE BAD BATCH SEASON 2 TRAILER YES YOU DO HERE WE GO
First off, the new lady?? Who?? I’m sure someone knows if we’ve seen her before or not, but I haven’t at least so that’ll be interesting.
Then Echo!!! He got so many lines aaaa <333 I’m so glad they made a point that he wants to do more to fight the empire, because he absolutely would. That scene looked like him and Hunter arguing over maybe joining Rex/the rebellion and aaa I’m so excited to see how stuff goes down.
The heist in the venator omggg, I’m so stoked for the batch to team up with Rex again and in an old venator too? Incredible. Also, the line Cid says about that being how they get a future is really interesting.
CODY. AND. CROSSHAIRRRRRRAHHH omg I can’t wait, there was so much in the little look Cody gave him like 👀 sir what are you thinking rn. I stg though if either of them die I will sob so hard. Also Cody’s lines about the empire bringing peace to the galaxy made me so sadddd, I’m really not gonna be ok with actually seeing imperial Cody.
Echo and Omega! I really hope they lean into how both Echo and Omega really want to help people, and hopefully the scene with just those two and Gungi means they get a semi-seperate mission or something!!
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And then the Coruscant scenes! Cant wait to see the senate again, although I can’t say the same about Palpatine. There was also a quick shot that looked like a speeder chase up high there somewhere?? Not really sure, but I always love Coruscant cameos :)
Couple other little things: Tech racing aaa, I wonder what the tunnel he’s in is cause it looks like a sewer thing but there’s lights? Idk. And Bail Organa??? Weird new droids/people with masks? That explosion with Tech and Omega at the end?? And then the soft armor aaaa they look so cozy I love it.
Anyways, I love hearing everyone’s thoughts on the trailer rn and I just kinda had to rant abt it, I’m so excitedddd <333
But uh… does anyone else think Echo had a suspicious number of really strong lines… cause I’m so scared rn. If anything happens to my boy I would genuinely not be ok, like I’d have to take a day off 😭😭😭
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arcann · 5 months
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modern au where gaius falls for emet-selch's pyramid scheme
Taigat listening to gaius rant about star wars and how good the PT is and how shit the series turned out to be without understanding a single word: I want to fuck this guy so bad it's making me look stupid
Taigat when gaius offers him some herbalife bs and how they too can become filthy rich in a totally legal and fair way: i changed my mind i have to fight this guy behind a walmart
And then taigat beats up like 5 guys behind the walmart and emet selch has final boss music (modern au version) (shb nightcore)
Azem and Venat are there and they hit him with their handbags.
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astralartefact · 1 year
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after all that happened you still think they made nymeia, the incest sister god, look like manah on accident????? it was 100% an accident
FFXIV 6.3 Thoughts and Feelings - Heavy Spoilers (kind of turned into a weird rant? sorry)
First off I feel generally pretty positive about 6.3, I liked it, Euphrosyne was nice, I'm not in a 'Everything is going downhill' mood at all, I'm thriving, Bunny Boys finally have short hair, I'm super excited for Eureka Orthos (bc of the music q.q my favorite ff theme is comingggg)
...but...
I'm hardly the first person to point out that the writing in 6.3 was... pretty meh.
And I had a bit of a thought about why it felt like that, because on the surface, I'm fine with what happened. I like Zero and her arc about making friends and her starting to care about others, I like the reveal that the twelve + 1 are Venat's group (When they pointed out that the thirteenth god might be the moonwatcher I legit gasped, I don't know why, I began to care about this guy at some point and didn't even notice)
But like. All of the writing was kind of flavorless, which made it a bit boring tbh.
Zero learns the magic of friendship through another mo-cap eating animation bc people liked the Graha Burger scene i guess (what is it with Endwalker and animating eating please use that cutscene budget for something else I don't want to see it anymore)
Rubicante and Cagnazzo exist I guess. I love their designs and fights, but the other two had a little bit more build up and it shows imo. (We fought Scarmiglione twice, Barbariccia had a quest of voidsent being absolutely terrified of her arrival, with these two we only have "I have a plan Cagnazzo, come with me")
All of the Twelve are friends :) No conflict, no chaos, just happy people being absolutely unnuanced nice and non-controversial :)
Instead of actually learning about the gods we get to meet a weird cultist as a nod to 1.x whose conflict felt like we already did that thrice (at least i hope that was a reference, bc if it wasn't then why???) and we got a crumb of Krile development. Which is good and I love her. (I hope the 6.5 raid reveals her new outfit, If she isn't our company for the last raid I will be upset.)
I guess there's a lack of superfluous-ness in this patch that's usually there. Like in Lapis Manalis, one of the group (I think Y'shtola) goes to the village to search for lore/information/whatever. Usually the game would let you do that. "While Vrtra is sad, let's check out this village." And then you get to go around and the writers spoon feed us the lore we crave so much. It's superfluous in a good way.
Like imagine we go to a new place, we need to find something out, Y'shtola is with you when talking with a local. That local tells you "And as everybody knows Light Aether is black!" Cut to Y'shtola doing /ponder. "Interesting. Thank you for your time." The conversation ends and Y'shtola pulls you to the side and explains to you what exactly you were supposed to get in that situation. Actually, Light Aether is white, so why do they think otherwise? Here are some hypotheses based on the lore we know that either are correct or will explicitly be ruled out later on.
Of course we could also come to all those conclusions ourselves - and in another questline game you would be expected to do that work for yourself. And in my opinion both of these approaches are perfectly fine - But since ffxiv generally does it one way it needs to be done on purpose if you suddenly do it differently. Especially if you suddenly stop doing it from one patch to the other in the main story.
But this time Y'shtola comes back and tells you: "No, I looked and there's nothing here worth mentioning." Get a barrel and carry some fuel. You don't get to learn more about Galatea the Puppetmaster or Drusilla's home or some weird new piece of Reaper lore. Go and reread the three notes in the Dungeon if you want that. We have stuff to do so go ahead and waste play time with this engaging filler quest.
The gods say "Yes, what people tell, feel and think about us affects us and our being." And then nothing happens. No examples given, even though several are kind of right there and it's a lot weirder that they don't adress them. Not even something basic like "Althyk and Nymeia are siblings, some people think they had children together, but that's actually not true." And of course nothing like "For example, Nophica and Halone were actually good friends, but the stories of the people literally created hatred between them and turned them into rivals, even though nothing actually happened between them."
I am bitter they erased their feud. Justice for Nophica.
Anyways, that's a lot of words to say "It was fine." To me it's at most a worrisome precedent, but I doubt this will continue? Again, the general outline is fine, it's just filling the gaps between it that didn't work out great. They probably just took it easy on this patch or something, who knows what happened behind the scenes. Maybe XVI needed help with something, maybe somebody quit, we'll never know.
And even if this continued, the music and the art design continues to amaze me and they'll have to do a lot of things wrong to make me consider dropping this game anytime soon lol
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kitschysapphic · 6 months
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ffxiv endwalker 6.5 spoilers below
if you enjoyed the EW alliance raids or like ancients, then its a bad time for you in there. its an angry rant.
fucking hell i hate this alliance raid series.
awful. boring. difficult in dumb ways (if you say skill issue ill kill you)
what was the point? predictable. there was no humanity. the last raid was okay, i guess, but was just another hallway of killing things. boring.
whats this need to kill off all the gods? i already didnt care about hydaelyn, or killing hydaelyn, or venat, or her never-ending speech that just would not fucking stop. what was the point of any of that? why do npcs in this game assume i care about them? ive known them for maybe a week.
i already didnt like ancients. this made it worse. thats such a boring explanation. i hate it. i hate ancients i hate elpis i hate the convocation i hate it all its boring its boring its boring its boring!!!
i dont care who they used to be. i hate that venat made them. i hate venat. none of this felt human. it felt like just a series of events that were gonna happen no matter what. no agency. nothing. i hate that my character fucking smiled as i grimaced and my eyes glazed over in boredom for yet another long-winded speech given by some high-and-mighty ancient acting like i cared about this. i dont. stop explaining things. i dont want to know!!!
"its optional content" "youre just bad at the game" "what did ancients do to you" "venat is mommy im gonna dox you" SHUT UP!!! i didnt like pandaemonium's story either!!! it was boring and the characters were flat and themis acted like i was just SO. DEEPLY. IN LOVE WITH HIM. IM NOT!!!! why do you assume i care!!! you dont act like a human you act like a puppet! a cardboard cutout that someone has fallen in love with, and parades around insisting that it is their spouse!!!
this game never has anything interesting to say about ancients beyond subtext, and even when it does, it throws that out in favor of just flatly stating that every fucking thing you love was just Some Dude on a place i never signed up to hear about!!! i dont care!!! why did you make the gods ancients!!! thats stupid!!!!!!!!!!!!!! theres no intrigue. no weirdness. just flat explanations of things i didnt want to hear about. stop explaining it. divinity is supposed to be weird. wheres the weirdness?? the drama between members of your pantheon??? ANYONE having a sense of humor???
i really fucking hated the myths of the realm raids. i think theyre everything wrong with this game. okay, thats a little hyperbolic, but it was still bad!! i still didnt like it! if someone came up to me and was like, "omg what was your wol like as an ancient? what was their name?" ID SLAP THEM!!! I DONT KNOW AND I DONT CARE!!! "how can you not like so and so theyre literally mommy/daddy/meow-meow" have you SEEN how little they emote??? SHUT UP!!!
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driftward · 2 years
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Title: FFXIV Write 2022 - 4. Free Day 1 Characters: Venat, Karasawa, Atraxae Rating: Teen Summary: What if a failed would-be Azem made it all the way to the modern era? These are the Misadventures of Karasawa Atraxae. Notes: So a theme I am leaning into for FFXIV Write 2022 is that of focusing on the Scions of the Seventh Dawn; I decided, however, to use my Free Days to focus on other possibilities. Warrior of Light concepts I have thought of, but will never use, since the game is so alt-unfriendly. These are not any kind of canon, and in fact, I am feeling free to be kind of nonsense with them.
Atraxae paced on the stage as she ranted about her thesis to those Ancient fellows who had seen fit to make an appearance at her little one-woman conference.
"Our world is being improved all the time," she said, "by the hard work of our compatriots, who are striving ever forward to improve our star. And when their hard work is done, of course, it is the done thing to retire, job done, go back to the lifestream, give the energy back and pay it forward to the next iteration of who we might be, and hopefully maybe learning something ineffable in the process. Well, swive that, I say! Look, we think we're going for perfection, but hey, maybe we don't know what perfection really is, right? Maybe someone somewhere will come up with some paradigm-shifting Etheirys-shattering paradigm shift, and then what? You're asleep in the lifestream, unable to appreciate the changes that have been made. Maybe you could've found something new to improve! Maybe you could've learned more! But no, you checked out early, and so you don't have squat to do with the brave new world that may have been made.
"That's why I'm proposing something completely different! Instead of just checking out of existence, why not simply take a little sidestep? Sure, go to the lifestream, but instead of getting all your life experience flushed gone and away, just hang out there for a bit, and come back in, oh, I don't know, maybe a century or something? Maybe something will have changed while you were gone, and when you come back and learn about it, you'll go hey, look at that! There's more work for me to do now! You can find new purpose without having to do the whole retirement gig, and you'll be smarter for having done it.
"That's why I'm presenting today the culmination of my personal life's work. A way for any one of us to immerse ourselves fully into the lifestream, and then, at a predetermined time, come back up, just as we are! I mean, there's probably a few more things to work out, and it hasn't been tested, but just think of it! Instead of returning to the lifestream fully and pretty much getting erased, you can take a bit of a break, come back, uh, hopefully refreshed, and then, boom! Learn about how much more awesome our world has gotten in your absence, and then use that to springboard yourself into a new life with new discoveries! Wouldn't it be grand!"
Atraxae stopped at this point, throwing her arms wide and grinning at her assembled audience. Most of them looked back, their expressions unreadable behind their masks, but their body language was... well, if she was to be honest, it was less than interested. Only Karasawa, her good friend standing in the back, seemed enthusiastic at all as he threw a fist up in the air and pumped it a few times in support.
Well, one was better than none, even if she knew that the one would always be there for her. She grinned back at him, and gave a bow as she moved on to the next part of her presentation.
"So that's why today I'm revealing to you, dear friends, the IDEA engine and the SWORD device, as well as the FOCUS chamber!"
The assembled Ancients looked back and forth at each other. One of them shook his head - no, wait, that was a her- and raised her hand. Atraxae pointed at her.
"...I am certain I am going to regret asking this, but what could those acronyms for these concepts you are proposing possibly stand for?"
Oops, it was a him. Oh well, not like she was planning on any formal relationships with anyone present. She hated how well the robes hid the forms of those under them, and how the masks hide their faces from one another. Better to go bare faced and naked, she thought.
Where was she?
Oh right.
"Well, here is the IDEA engine," she said, holding up what appeared to be a gem. "And uh, the acronym, let's call it a work in progress. But! It's the bit that keeps you, you. At least in spirit. See, we all are capable of pretty impressive shape changing, and what form is in vogue now may not be in vogue when you come out, so it's designed to help shift and adapt your spirit to a new vessel so that you'll fit in whenever you come out! The SWORD," she said, and here she hefted what appeared to be a sword in the air, "Stands for the Soul Wave Omega Reinforcement Device. Spending so much time in the lifestream may make you a little bit thin, and the SWORD draws on ambient aether to reinforce your form, no matter how long you've been gone. It also makes a pretty good focus for magic and, uhm, well, it's... it's an actual weapon. You can stab people with it if you like. Its form is mutable, though, so it can appear to be practically any weapon you need it to be! And that over there, that bed like chamber with a lid that you can close, well, that's what'll help reconstitute - uh, reinvigorate - uh, it's... it's what helps to bring you back. It stands for the Final Oculus for Constraining the Universe of Spirit. You store your pattern in it, and set a time. When the time comes, it looks for your pattern in the lifestream, and activates your IDEA engine, as well as attuning your SWORD to your new, old, reborn self!"
She grinned wildly at the assembled few, and waited patiently.
Finally, one of them with a sigh, raised their hand. Atraxae pointed at them. She decided to stop guessing at the kind of person that might be in those robes. If pressed, however, she was certain this one was male.
"Did you pick those names just to make the acronyms work? Also, have any of these concepts been passed by review?"
Drat. Wrong again.
"One, yes, of course I did. Two, no, shut up, I don't need to, as I still haven't even tested them. Which I just need a bit of help with, and then, sure, we can punt them up for concept review." Atraxae saw another hand go up. "Oh! What's your question?" she asked cheerfully.
The owner of this question stood up, and she was positive this one was a man. "Atraxae. Is this just a pathetic attempt to see if you can outwait the current Azem, and when they are done with their job, make another bid for their seat? Are you that upset about losing the bid for that convocation seat?
Okay, ouch, that was rude, she thought. But at least she got his gender right.
"What? No," she said breezily, "and I'm insulted that you would think that. I mean, yeah, I do plan on outlasting the current Azem. But if my work is good and I've done the math right, I won't just outlive this Azem. I'll outlast a dozen Azems! And then when I come back, hopefully we'll have changed as a civilization enough that maybe I'll find some new purpose! I won't even want to be an Azem, you know. I'll have something even better to aspire to, I'm sure!"
She clapped her hands. "That's enough questions for now though! Please come back tomorrow if you're willing to help, we can use all the hands we can muster!"
"Who's we?" said the same man, dryly, clearly not expecting an answer as he headed for the door. As did the other six people present. Which was everyone in the room except for Karasawa.
The room had been reserved and able to seat a hundred. Atraxae had to admit, she might have set her expectations a bit high. Still, she was more than a little disappointed at the small turnout.
"Well, it's me and Karasawa, that's technically two people, that's enough for a we," muttered Atraxae under her breath as Karasawa walked up front to her.
"Enthusiastic as always," said Karasawa. "You continue to be a light upon this star, as bright as any."
"Yeah, well," said Atraxae. "Wish others saw it the same way." She sighed, and gathered up her equipment and gear, shoving them into her robes where they vanished into an ethereal other space that she used for storage, like many ancients did. At least, those who didn't just use their creation magics to collapse and rebuild their belongings as they needed. "Oh well," she said. "Could've gone worse." She looked to the door, and sighed, her shoulders slumping.
"Wish Venat would've shown up," she said.
Karasawa crossed his arms, and nodded. "I'm just glad that she has continued her work, despite relinquishing the seat of Azem. We could use more people like her."
"Yeah," said Atraxae, despondent. "Well, that's that, I guess. There's a place that makes a killer food concept not too far from here, they call 'em chupaquesos. Let's go snag a bite."
Karasawa nodded as Atraxae finished gathering up her equipment, and they headed out.
-*-
The next day found Atraxae and Karasawa working. Once it had become clearly obvious that nobody was coming to help them, they had shed their masks. Atraxae hated having to wear one, and while it Karasawa pretended to be reluctant about the matter, secretly, it gave him a quiet thrill to push into such a taboo.
"Was what that one man said yesterday correct? About the seat of Azem?" asked Karasawa. It was a topic they had not talked about at all since Atraxae had lost her bid for the seat, as he did not want to unduly distress his friend.
"Oh, hells no," said Atraxae. "I mean, yeah, I wanted the seat, but I see now I had it all backwards. I wanted to become Azem so I could go out and see the world and do all that cool shite and explore and whatnot. If I was really suited to the seat, though, I would've done what Venat's protege did, which is to say, already have been doing all that. No, I swived it up, and the better Azem got the seat. The Convocation made the right call."
Atraxae held up a lattice of crystal work, and let it go, allowing it to hover in the air as she held a hand up to it, and pushed aether into it. "Besides, look at us! This is a way better use of my talents. Just you wait, Karasawa. I'll show them. I'll show them all!"
"You know, you talking like that is why people are wary of you," said Karasawa, who nevertheless moved to the side to peer closely at Atraxae's work, and help make small adjustments of it.
"Pft. Whatever. Maybe I'll just zipper a few hundred years into the future and they'll appreciate me more then."
"I think you misestimate how slowly our society moves."
"Is this the workshop for the Future Technologies Symposium?" said a voice, and Atraxae and Karasawa both scrambled to put their masks back on.
"Yes! Hello! Welcome to our workshop! We're currently calibrating the IDEA engine, but we're happy to - VENAT!" said Atraxae animatedly, and Karasawa looked up from adjusting his mask to see her standing in the doorway.
"I didn't expect you to drop by! I thought you were busy out exploring the star or whatever!" Atraxae continued, babbling now.
Venat's robe was white, as befit her role as an advisor, and her mask unmistakeable, with its fine filigree. One of the few methods of personal expression allowable in their society. Karasawa gave her a bow, which she returned in kind.
"Well, I cannot stay for long," said Venat. "But I have heard very interesting things about what you are working, and I wished to see for myself. But wherever are my manners? It sounds like I was interrupting a conversation about our fair society."
Karasawa looked to Atraxae, and shook his head slightly, worried. Atraxae frowned at him, and he thought for just a moment that she would be able to contain herself.
"Aw, we're just griping about how slowly anything ever changes around here," said Atraxae, and Karasawa groaned. He -had- meant to spin her up into a good rant, as she was entertaining to listen to, but he had meant it to happen in private, and not in front of a former member of the convocation.
"Do go on," said Venat, and Karasawa moved to pretend to work on the crystal lattice.
"Well, look, all the work we do, everything we are, we're supposed to be stewards of the star, right? Aiming for perfection? But what the bloody hell is perfection? I'll tell you, what we're making, we ain't making perfect. We're making stagnation is what we're doing. I was at the Concept House the other day -"
"That's not what it's called," said Karasawa, exasperated. At least she could not slag off on beloved public works institutions if she was going to rant in front of others.
"-whatever, and you know what I saw?"
"What, pray tell?" asked Venat.
"SHARKS."
Venat's expression was unreadable behind her mask, but Karasawa certainly felt bewildered. This was a part of the rant he had not heard yet.
"And the time before that, and the time before that. I don't go there nearly often enough for it to have been just a fad or something. Sharks! Nothing but sharks. Nobody coming up with anything new, just a dozen variations on bloody sharks. And you know what? That's a symptom, that's what it is. That's just part of the whole thing. Nobody has any new bloody ideas anymore. No, you go down to the Concept Store-"
"Also not what it's called."
"-and you pick up someone else's ideas, and you drop off your ideas, but they ain't new. Ain't -nothing- new. Karasawa here was just reminding me of how slow our society moves, and you know what? He's right. It's just about moved itself to a dead stop! Perfection, my perfectly pert round -arse-."
"Atraxae!" gasped Karasawa.
"Well it is, I made it myself."
Karasawa looked in horror at Venat, and was relieved when she reached up a hand to hide a laugh.
"And so I'm working on this," said Atraxae, grumpily. "Between the FOCUS and the IDEA and the SWORD, I'm gonna send people into the future. Maybe someone, somewhere, will come up some Etheirys-shattering idea that'll change everything, and when we come back out, the whole bloody star won't be so backwards anymore. It'll be something new." she turned to Venat, and grinned at her. "...I bet you can imagine, can't you? Look at you, all white-robed and still working after you were done with the convocation. Just itching at the bit. Imagine never returning to the star, but instead just jumping forward a bit whenever you think it's time. Just infinitely into the future. Never leaving."
Atraxae had grown quiet towards the end, and Karasawa looked at her quizzically. Venat shook her head.
"It is the duty of all of us to return to the star once we feel our work is done, Atraxae. I'm just not done yet, that's all, but I do intend to return one day."
"Right. Right. Of course, of course," said Atraxae, rubbing her arm. Karasawa tilted his head at her. To say she was a chaotic personality would be an understatement, and this was a side of her he wasn't sure he'd ever seen before.
"Wait. Infinite. Oh, that's a good word! Hang on, hang on, let me think about it. Okay. Okay. Infinite Diversity Etheric Attuner! Yeah, that's a great name for it! Oh, oh, Karasawa, write that down."
Karasawa dutifully fetched his notebook out from his robes, and wrote down the device's name next to its entry that he already had mostly filled out.
"What is that, I wonder?" asked Venat.
"Oh right you weren't at the presentation yesterday. Right! The three fold devices. It's how I'm going to help people skip into the future. The IDEA engine takes your pattern and keeps it for you while you're in the lifestream, and then when it's time for you to come back, it'll put you in a new vessel appropriate to whenever you are, neat as you please. The SWORD is actually kind of an aetheric converter engine. Like if the IDEA makes sure you're you, the SWORD makes sure you stay, reinforcing you and shoring you up and stuff, and, uh, well, it's also legitimately a weapon. And the FOCUS, well, that's what calls you back when the time is right. Boom! Just relax into the FOCUS, let yourself drift down to the lifestream, and you'll wake up just like coming up from a nap when the time is right, ready to get back to work.
"It's genius, if I do say so myself. Say, while you're here... would you mind helping calibrate the IDEA engine? I've tested it with me and Karasawa, but as you know, one time's just an event, doing it twice is just coincidence, we really need three patterns to make sure we've got a pattern. A pattern of patterns. Of working! Yeah."
Venat tilted her head at Atraxae, and Atraxae grinned back.
"It's okay. It'll just record parts of your pattern, nothing more, and once we check that it looks okay, we'll wipe it right here, don't you worry. Karasawa will monitor from there, and I'll be right here to help calibrate it as you go. All you need to do is hold your hand out to this crystal lattice we've got floating right here, and we'll do the rest."
"...intriguing," said Venat, and after a moment's hesitation, she held her hand out to the crystal lattice, and began to pour aether into it. Karasawa quickly moved to watch while Atraxae fiddled with the crystals.
Venat's aether work was beautiful, he had to admit, and as he saw the 'signature' of who she was started to form, he thought that beautiful as well. Venat's was a pretty shade of light blue. Atraxae had been a purple, while his own had been orangish.
"And you say the intent is to preserve a soul into the future, that it may come back to our star, as itself, intact and hale and whole?" asked Venat as they worked.
"Yeah! You get it! Genius, right?" said Atraxae.
"...perhaps." said Venat.
"I think we have enough, Atraxae," said Karasawa. Atraxae fiddled with the crystals one last time, and then after a moment, she nodded to Venat, and Venat withdrew her hand. The gentle aether flow stopped, and Atraxae took the crystal lattice down, and she worked with it for a bit.
"...I think that's it. Yeah, that's - look at this pattern, Karasawa," she said, handing the crystals over.
Karasawa took it, and looked it over, and nodded. "...your pattern is quite lovely, if I do say so, Venat."
Venat smiled and shrugged. "I shall have to take your word for it. I trust, however, that you are not going to be plucking me from the lifestream at a moment's notice?"
"Oh, no no no, not with this alone," said Atraxae. "You've confirmed our work, though, but no. Here, I'll release your pattern from the crystals in a moment, but for this to work - we need a bigger crystal, and you'd have to commit your whole self to it. Basically this serves as a prism for your soul, and you push yourself through it on your way to the lifestream, and it remembers enough of it as you do so to call you back later. This is part of the IDEA engine. The other part's the resonator, over there - I think I'll make it into a necklace, I can get it small enough - and the crystal as its main stone. When it's time, you get called back, and the resonator's what's responsible for finding you a new form to inhabit, while the crystal busies itself making you, well, you once more."
Venat crossed her arms, and looked thoughtful, and when she spoke, Karasawa got the feeling she wasn't really talking to anyone in the room. "A spark thrown into the future." she said. "...but who?"
Atraxae and Karasawa looked at one another.
"What?" asked Atraxae.
Venat smiled, and shook her head. "Nothing. Just idle musings. I think... you should continue you work, Atraxae. You have my support, should you ask for it. I think... perhaps it will make for a good alternative, perhaps to - ah. To, ah... other plans one might make for the rest of their life. In service to the star, of course."
It would've been hard for someone else to tell, because of the mask, but Karasawa had long been friends with Atraxae, and could tell she was lighting up.
"Oh yes! Of course! I'm so glad you approve! Maybe with your word, we can get more help here. I mean, if you want to give it, but really, your support alone is enough, and I think we're pretty close to testing anyway!"
Venat smiled, and bowed. "Thank you for sharing your work with me, Atraxae, Karasawa. I am afraid, however, that my visit, by necessity, must be a short one. I have other matters to look after. Kindly keep me appraised of your progress, however."
"Oh yes. Absolutely. Have a good day. Hey! Tell the new Azem I said hello! No, tell them I said congratulations!"
Venat nodded as she glided out of the workshop, and Atraxae grinned giddily at the door as she left. Karasawa slowly turned to her.
"...it's not for the seat of Azem," he said. "It's for her."
"What? Huh? Sorry. What?" said Atraxae, shaking her head clear.
"All of this that you're working on. All that you're doing. You were thinking about her. You were thinking of a way to keep her around on the star, and instead of talking to her like a well-adjusted being, you decided to throw yourself into this project," he said. "You care deeply for her."
"Everyone who's ever met her cares deeply for her, are you kidding? She's one of like five people who are interesting at all on this planet. It's like, you, me, her, the new Azem, and iunno I'm sure there's a fifth somewhere."
Karasawa smiled gently, and Atraxae grinned back at him. "I am certain there are more than five," he said. "Sheer statistics alone-"
"Yeah yeah by the numbers, sure, I know, I know," said Atraxae, rolling her eyes. She held the crystal lattice between her hands, and shrunk it down to be the size of a gem. "And I'm not going to tell HER any of this though, what kind of idiot do you think I am?"
Karasawa looked around the room. "The kind of idiot to forward some of the most heterodox research our star has seen in an age in the pursuit of violating one of our society's most dearly held taboos. This sort of thing might be why you have so few friends, now."
"I will have you know I was quite popular in my youth," she huffed.
"You were so popular because you were such an iconoclast, running around with your mask off and almost as frequently without your robes. They saw you as a punk, if not a bit daft. They thought you were interesting. But most of us grew out of that phase, Atraxae."
"Yeah. They had better things to do. Saw to their duties, fulfilled their goals, settled down into an existence of mediocrity complacency and fitting in or flitting off once the job was done and dissolving into stardust," she grumbled. "Venat's the only real one around here. She knows what she's about."
She focused her creation magics, and began to form a necklace in her hands. Across the room, the resonator she had mentioned earlier floated up, and came to rest in the middle of the band, and in front of it, she placed the gem. She frowned as the energies came together, and looked up at Karasawa over them.
"...you're not gonna leave me too, are you, Karasawa?" she asked, her voice quiet. "Wouldn't blame you if you did. I'm a disaster. You know it. I know it. It's a fair miracle I haven't been censured yet."
Karasawa grinned at her. "I am your entire conscience and half of your impulse control. No, Atraxae, you will not be rid of me that easily."
Atraxae smiled as the IDEA engine formed, finished at last, in her hand, and she looped it around her neck.
"...chupaquesos before we test this thing?" she said.
"Absolutely," he said.
-*-
The world had gone mad.
The world, for Karasawa, had long been mad. Not due to any special circumstance, other than the close orbit he had insisted upon living his life around Atraxae's gravitational pull.
But now she was gone, and he was here, and the sky was literally falling, and monsters roamed the world.
Overhead, meteors and fireballs fell lazily towards the ground, a rain of fire that had left devastation in its wake. Around him, monsters from nightmares and worse rose up out of the firmament, razing entire cities and robbing the star of thousands of lives.
The convocation was supposedly convening with a plan, but Karasawa had no interest in waiting around to see what it might be. He held in his mind a singular purpose, and with that purpose he strode through rubble strewn city street and past burning plants and trees.
He had met the monsters, of course. There were so many of them, and they seemed unavoidable. He noticed they seemed to go after those who were most panicked first. He supposed, whatever they were or wherever they came from, that they were inclined to go after easier prey first, but he had no intention of making himself be easy prey, much less appear to be any.
So when they met, he held tight in his mind's eye that he would be the victor. Determination poured through his veins and sheer stubborn will powered his every step.
He could not save this world. He could not fix it. That would be a problem for the convocation to solve.
But there was one thing he could do, and he would do it.
He made his way to a small nondescript building tucked away in an unremarkable corner of an unnotable city. One of the most boring places on Etheirys, someone had once complained to him. The perfect place to set up shop and shake the star, he had been told.
Well. The star was shaking now, but it certainly was not from his own work or that of his friend.
He looked behind him just once as he crossed the threshold, and saw a mighty monstrous entity tear down an entire building, towering over its rubble, and he ducked inside.
This was a long shot, he knew, but it had a chance of working, which was more than the star had at the moment.
He found what he was looking for.
The FOCUS, its panel blinking plaintively in the dark.
He knelt next to it. It was a largish rectangular box, fit to hold a body. And though it did not appear to be holding a body at the moment, he knew the truth of it, as he wiped away its display, and checked its settings.
Ten years.
A short test.
A short test, and then they would celebrate, and toast one another's accomplishments, and at last submit their concept to -
He laughed to himself, despite everything.
"To the concept house store," he said, and he laughed, shaking his head.
His friend had always been just shy of insane, and he was certain they would have been both censured had any of these concepts gotten as far as being submitted, but oh would in not have been worth it? To be the first minds in an age to be censured?
She would've celebrated the occasion, and probably would have wanted to see if getting double censured was a possibility.
A possibility she would not get to enjoy.
Well, not yet, anyway.
He checked the other settings and was mollified to find that the IDEA engine and the SWORD device were both tucked into the FOCUS, and apparently working correctly.
He bowed his head, and thought for a moment of the sky burning high above him.
The convocation might rescue the star, but how long would that take, he wondered.
He looked at the display once more.
Ten years seemed very optimistic.
He sighed, and reached into his robes, and pulled out his notebook. He scribbled a quick note down, and wished desperately that he had more time, to leave more notes behind, not just for his own benefit, but for those who would come after.
But he did not have enough time, and what time he had was just about up.
He opened a panel on the FOCUS, and slipped his single note down into its side, then closed it again. And then he lifted another panel, the aetheric siphon that was used to power the FOCUS. The more power it had, the longer it could keep track of a person's pattern for recall.
He wondered how long he would need, and shook his head with a sigh.
Well, gambling was more her thing than his. In this, he would not gamble.
He held his hand to the siphon, and he pushed. He pushed, and he saw the display indicating how long it would wait for the future start to tick up. It went up slowly at first. Eleven years, twelve years, thirteen, fourteen.
He pushed harder, and it began to tick upwards faster and faster, and as he got a feel for it, he felt something shift, and he smiled.
"Goodbye, Atraxae, you mad woman," he said. "May the future to be everything you hoped it would be."
Karasawa closed his eyes, and he pushed the remainder of all that he was into the device, even as the building crashed down around him, burying the FOCUS and all that it contained underneath a pile of rubble.
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echohaver · 11 months
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1, 7, 10!
the character everyone gets wrong - i guess it's hard to say 'everyone' because i have smart fans who actually think about characters LOL. but i have definitely seen some absolutely mindboggling zenos takes, as well as way too many people being like 'i dont understand why hermes didn't just get unsad.'
7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them? hmmm this is hard for me. i do have a character my opinion swiftly worsened on but that was bc of a hard turn in the way they were written rather than the fans... its maybe zenos. it kind of annoys me how every minion we're given there are zenos fans throwing a fit because it's not him, or going on and on about how if he's not your absolute favorite character you hate people with mental illness or whatever. i wouldn't say i hate him though. i do think he was really funny in canon from like, the shb patches up until the zodiark fight. every moment of him suffering through fandaniel's rants is pretty peak to me.
10. worst part of fanon - the part that always overstates the importance of the guy characters and ignores the girl characters : P ffxiv already kind of sucks about this, you dont have to help them. i hate seeing, like, fanart of the ancients that includes every male ancient who's face we've seen but leaves out venat, or heavensward stuff that includes every ishgardian male npc but somehow leaves out ysayle. its embarrassing.
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stxrmnight · 8 months
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Endwalker Story: Meeting Venat...
First Elpis Replay post, Previous to this part 2.
Post is what the title says. Yuri under the cut. Don't like? don't read
Leaving the transporter, Nemi asked what the hell was the bizarre Shark man in the distance. She probably had felled one of this before but to see someone deliberately created that was... icky. She heard Hyth start to rant about receiving more fads of this concept with no real thought for practicality of sense of an about to be living thing, when she tried to shake her arms and make him move away from the beast plunging at him, and then... A woman in white and a sword that, singed with familiar energy knocked out the Sharknado. Nemi knew who this is, but seeing her just swoop in like that...
"Oh wow... she's strong," escaped her mouth. "Heh, excus me?" ("Shit, I said that out loud," was regretted in her mind.)
That her first word was to bully Emet and expose him as a young piece of shit? And he wasn't retorting. Incredible. She must be a knockout at bars and parties but ah... what is she doing thinking this of the one fated to become something as distant and irrelevant as Hydaelyn? They were so, different.
"She sounds fun- AH SHE IS LOOKING AT ME"
She should have known Venat would recognize her own magic in the Blessing of Light. There was no point in denying it, much as she smiled courteously and swallowed. At least the fact Venat's acceptance of uncertainty meant that, she was taking this well. Others would likely freak out and attack her or something like that.
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When Hades scolded her for keeping secrets of the fate of the star, she just crossed her arms and explained she couldn't have an impact, stipulating it was one of their own who said this before sending her here. Venat enthusiastically remarked they were "meant to meet" then, and she was looking forward to knowing more the person bearing her "mark." Nemi might have exploded.
She recovered quickly and helped her search for the lost concept, commenting "You sound like you prank people like that often." How exactly? Venat wondered and Nemi pointed to the idea of her, marking someone. Like what did that mean in this context? Venat explained it's really to find lives again in the great expanse of the world, be a small bee she gave water to or a traveler from another biome. She'd even begun fashioning a way to try to find this traveler magick for other people to use to find each other, but others were vexed by its complexity. This made Nemi surprised later, at the dinner in Venat's chambers, that botomless bags seemingly were not invented yet.
With the time come to tell everything... she concluded she might as well come clear and take the sash off her eyes, but keeps her hair tucked underneath. Venat was awed by her eye tattoo, warmed by its family inheritance meaning that Nemi shared with a smile. There wasn't such a sense of family permeance in Amaurot, and carrying something form your origin through your life was such a beautiful way to live the nature that made you. making her smile and say it's passed down and mixed in her clan of family.
Hythlo kindly intervened they needed to get talking, pointing to Emet sitting grumpily. He saw Thanatos' lesbianism bleed way worse from Nemi. And though he didn't want to believe what she would tell, it'd at least mean he didn't have to fear his colleague secretly hated him.
Nemi joined her hands and gave a heavy sigh. Her face was now stern with a heavy frown. "Well, form the beginning? be warned, you won't like what you hear... or maybe not, from what I've gathered here."
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After she's done speaking, she just sits back with irreverent air, but does lean when Venat is vexed by Hydaelyn's decision to cause the sundering. That she finds odd opposing the 14th.. is she happy with society as it is then?
As they try to figure, Nemi just looks away, feeling mixed about pushing them to guess to themselves, wanting to argue with Venat that it's been millenia and people change over time drastically. "You don't have to fit yourself to this mold of the future. You are you right now." But Venat stresses she knows herself. It's just an exercise to find answers and logic to help the future.
Then Hades' interjection made her jaw drop and need to cover her face. Never would she think she'd feel second hand embarrassment for this guy. If only the Scions could hear this...
"Hmm, you do sound like the asshole I killed, I gotta say." "Neirmer! You said yourself we're not like the after!" "Sorry, I'm not gonna lie about what I did. You will come to threaten all I hold dear as well, and such fate can't be changed." "Even if your ridiculous story was true, I would not hurt you just for having an insufferable mouth! I'm a civilized man!" "True... it's just hard when you're not that different in personality of disrespect, you know? But let's move on." "..."
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When saying she feels Hermes and Meteion seem center of the mystery, she expresses their grievances feel natural to any person of the future. She tries to ask who started the philosophy of "the will of the star" and if there were other rituals to deal with the grief of elected passing, and everyone looked lost for an answer. Nemi incquired if anyone ever passed away to disease or accidents, and they said even murders are inconceivable. Then Nemi wondered if they're truly so good warders of the stars if they can't understand the creatures who are mortal, specially the ones they create. Only Venat could respond that, she came to love them in their travels, and didn't neglect one detail to ensure her concepts' happiness... but she stopped creating after Argos. She didn't find the vastness of the world lacking of more life. At this, Nemi smiled and said they should search clues together.
They were surprised by how well they flowed with inquiries. Nemi got to make people open with casuality of their interests, letting Venat get to the heart of the matter in an unsuspecting way. Nemi wondered if Venat's travels made it so, since not everywhere can be like Amaurot's cushy walls. Venat said there are many people outside of these walls of all kinds, even some who don't like the Ancients, but people in the city rarely do acknowledge they exist unless they're to be saved of natural phenomena. Nemi recalled the volcano situation with Thanatos... but didn't ask about it.
Nemi drops the fact Meteion has more sisters casually, making Venat wishes she mentioned it earlier. Nemi apologized for this flaw, too used to filling reports that filled everyone up to speed. Venat squinted at her and she admitted it was more regular than that. Venat laughed and patted her back, saying she's so earnestly sincere and honest then. Nemi blushed as they walked closer to their next inquiry.
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When the archivist lament Venat hasn't returned, Nemi is shocked. She almost yelled at them if not for Venat side hugging her and replying too briefly. way from them, Nemi asks baffled if everyone says they look forward to watching you her die, why do they think death is rest when they know it erases their self, not even taking breaks in their lives! No one sounds like they take a break in their actual lives! "This, this is bonkers! And I can tell you're not happy with it either. Don't throw that honor bullshit at me as well."
Venat looked at her transfixed, then admitted she, wished that people understood her choices. That walking with her makes her wonder if a future of mortals would think differently... Then asks her, how beautiful is the future?
Nemi says the future is more beautiful, that everything is free to take its own shape and form. There are always new discoveries, and... There are customs and beliefs, shaped by the nature one lives in, and traditions and beautiful art that would not flourish in this past.
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When Venat asks of her adventures... she would tell her of the avdenturer guilds, of finding the crystals, of the floating city of Nymnh, of the many minerals that fortified her craft, of her village's ways of survival, of the rivers of Doma... every person she weeped for in her imprisonment in the lightwarden, the joy of Ala Mhigo' back's flag flying, the Winds of the Churning Mists, seeing the Night bloom in the First, what she has treasured with the scions and her friends.
When Venat responds with her speech about life, Nemi is totally awed, intertwining her own fingers and taking them to her heart. She asks why she talks of needing to help humans stand.To her, it just sounds like she just wants to behold life's beauty.
"That is alright... you have done a lot already." "What is it with you and this talk of winding down?" "Well, I heard you all don't know how to play but, you don't seem that lame. Surely this is a rest for you too inbetween?" "Hmm, maybe I'm as shaped by this rhythm of life you find so monotone." Venat took Nemi's wringing fingers and interlocked them with her own. "Maybe, you could stop me." Nemi gasped with heated cheeks. "B-because others don't appreciate the world how we do?" Venat smiled and lowered their hands. "Because you may hold answers I seek... tell me, has your journey been good has it been worthwhile?
Venat's question makes tears spring, but she rasps her breath and nods determinedly. , or well was going to. she is irritated by the interruption, wanting to talk to Venat more and her passion, and a measure of concern. But this moves her to think of the next possibility, and that is when she excitedly points at Argos. She is amazed by how much gruffier he is now, then fucking, questions why in the goddamn is the dog picky about fighting skills.
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Nemi is intimidated by Venat's sagacious air, but she takes courage and takes her hair cover off. "If this is what it is, then I won't censure myself any further. You'll see my kicks fully!"
After Nemi endured Venat's last blast to one knee, Venat held her up and checked over her robes. Nemi gestures her to stop fretting even as she struggles to stand, giggling in her hold. "You should know... my real name is Nemi, Nemi Norxares. That's who endured your ravaging today." She smiled so wide that Venat's face burned up.
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This only didn't continue cause Argos jumped on them, making them go witness the flight of the Meteia through the echo. Nemi would connect the tree nearby to the forms of those at Ghyr Abania,but colors of Lakeland. Venat wondered if she could gaze them through her mind, if she allowed of course... Nemi batted the hand caressing her hair away playfully, saying they really need to focus.
When they walked back to the others, Hythlo perked at seeing Nemi's face fully uncovered, and for what reason this time? When Venat teased Nemi to be civil, Hythlo grinned at Nemi knowingly. She could not hide, specially when Venat grabbed her hand strongly after she returned from the morbol gardens.
At the garden, she claimed to Hermes that she felt more safe to unveil in this world, now that she met someone like Venat. Hermes is puzzled, and Nemi explains she sees nature more freely than she thought. Something told her to, ask Hermes if it's alright, and give Meteion a hug and carry her on her shoulders. Hermes had to scold her the morbols were still around.
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Nemi looks downtrodden when Hermes says "even you Venat." Guess she overstimated her a little or, assumed too much of her lives experiences, but it's not what she wanted to imply. Nemi stressed that "Despite everyone's lack of tact,"she really thought there was more to this they had to find out, for the sake of everyone's safety. This relaxed Hermes while Emet glared, continuing to formulate why the blasphemies were formed as they were.
Emet gruffed that she has capacity of better behavior and, well.I think there is no more to say lol.
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Then when Meteion was invaded by the doom of necrospace, Nemi tried to reach her to calm her even as she too was twisting in pain and agony on the floor. She teared up when Meteion begged to be left alone, screaming into the nothingness to please not bottle up her hurt. She needed both Venat and Hermes to get her up and settle, struggling to explain what even just happened. Whatever it really was, they needed to find her fast. Who knows how a small mind like hers would decide to, make it stop.
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Nemi tried but failed to counter Emet's insistence to take Meteion into the city, knowing stopping this would just be denial of what inmerse hurt had just occured. Hermes thanked her kindness, lamenting this society would not listern to her either. And so, he had to take flight to the top of Ktisis Hyperboeia. Though she fought to the top, she was the first to approach Hermes and beg to let her be present, at least to find a way. Hermes smiles sincerely at her before trapping them all in chains, putting her too distant to pass Meteion's last words before losing herself: "Please, protect all..."
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When chaos unfolded at the escape, Nemi concentrated and broke her chains with her claws, hissing with her tongue and scaring Hermes off into losing concentration. She argued her presence meant to be the steps of humans of a different kind, who deserved to know the physical step to what their kind struggled with emotion. She recited Matsya's prayer, and showed her claws and tongue as evidence of the torture she'd endured for survival, and coming out of the other side with friends and love. Hermes looked up at Nemi's tearful gaze, and weeped as the Death of his kind acknowledged his suffering. He peacefully let her and Venat go, begging her to give Meteion a kinder fate.
Once they descended, Nemi asked Venat if she's okay. She asked if Nemi was okay, with all the twisting and corrupting she claimed to go through. Nemi sighed and shook her head, saying that was just for Hermes to hear really. Venat gasped and asked if she didn't trust her. that she too was horrified at the idea this world might be the last to love life. Nemi said it was not about that, but how she seemed to not be concerned to limit Emet and Hythlodaeus' pushing. She said they were just doing their duty as convocation members, and Nemi waved her hand exasperatedly.
"Exactly that! In your travels you've never learned how to treat people who are unwell? Maybe if I didn't show up, this calamity would have started way worse....."
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Venat took a deep breath, and said they had to check on the others. Nemi sighed and followed, weirded but not opposed to Argos' mode of espionage. Nemi scoffed offended being called a manner of creation by someone else. "it's not my fault I got transmogrified!"
Venat begged her again to tell her what exactly happened to her, and Nemi questions her interest. Did she look at her like another bizarre creature like everyone else here? Was that why she was coming off so strongly on her? Venat stepped back like slapped,
"In that case, what do you think of Meteion? Do you think we have to simply stop her, or save her from the cacophony neither she nor the world that created her could bear?"
What is Venat's Answer?
I'll make that post, soon hopefully...
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thelittlestancient · 1 year
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Until I get a formal About Me post written, here's a list of my blogs:
Here: Sosomeni Tutumeni, Sisinno Sinno, and friends @chaoswillraen: Rakuyo Yatsurugi and Enrei Okeya @selfmademeteor: my take on Meteor @elidibus-emissary: my take on Elidibus @a-mortal-sword: original writing, both poetry and fiction
@selfmademeteor and @elidibus-emissary are both LF RP contacts, especially for group NPC RP!
I am very EW-negative. I openly and explicitly think the Ascians were right, and that Elidibus was the true hero of the story all along. This is not a shtick, these are my real opinions. Feel free to block me if that makes you uncomfortable--I wholly support others curating their spaces as I curate mine. I have every version of Venat/Hydaelyn's name blacklisted that I've found so far, and will continue to add more versions to the list. I would appreciate mutuals tagging content about her so I don't have to see it. Apparently going on 4h rants every time I see her is not good for my mental health.
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asleepinawell · 11 months
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my background story for my himbo lizard boy wol has always been fairly vague and mostly along the lines of: he grew up in thavnair, his family were fishers who made him learn to fish even though he preferred fighting things, he attempted to fish by just jumping in the water and wrestling fish, and then a giant fish kicked his ass so hard he left home on a journey to grow into a better fighter so he could come back and get revenge (he never did. he got thancred to beat up the fish for him and now it lives in an aquarium in his house)
but I was thinking of elpis and the wol being told to relate the whole story from the beginning to the elpis squad and like...this boy cannot stay focused on a long story like that, he doesn't have a single braincell, if you tell him to relate the story from the beginning he's gonna go way too far back and spend half an hour complaining about the fish that beat him up back home
and there's hythlodaeus in the corner quietly making notes about this fascinating fish. notes he will find in his pocket after he returns home and turn into a concept leading to the creation of the fish ancestor of the wol's nemesis. the circle of stupidity is complete
other things that probably happened in elpis:
1) the wol almost definitely made some vague comment to hermes that hermes then recalled later as he looked down at meteion and inspired his decision to destroy the world. the comment would have been something you'd expect to find on one of those awful motivational posters that has some trite phrase over a stock photo of the ocean
2) the wol asked venat "have you ever wondered what the ancients really are?" (he probably read a conspiracy theory on tumblr) but he had a brain slip (without the brain part) and said "have you ever sundered what the ancients really are?" and venat was like hmmm while taking notes
3) wol told emet he looked "out of shape" and "not at 110%" in the future and offered to teach him his exercise routine. this would have happened in the middle of him relating how emet was going to have everyone he knew die and then murder millions of people. hyth prevented another murder from taking place but also took notes on the exercise routine and later built a home gym based on them. azem used it regularly. emet threatened to divorce both of them. soon after, emet unmade azem's favorite barbell in a fit of pettiness leading to them squabbling, a fight which started out serious and then drifted into more mundane topics like should we summon zodiark. azem took his gym and left
4) grani bit the wol. this didn't have any far-reaching consequences but it made him sad and he wants you to know
the legend himself:
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zacolyn · 5 months
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This is an anti-Hydaelyn rant, because I have a lot of feelings.
So I'm talking to my friend and we're on the topic of the Final Days. This is a topic that often comes up between us.
We have often said we felt Hydaelyn was wrong. She was wrong to sunder us, and Her idea that we should run and never look back--an idea even Venat thought absurd--was senseless, because the Final Days had been going on for 12 thousand years by this point. Every other world out there was dead, and now it had come to Etheirys. We would be leaving the tidepool for the ocean, as it were. The Final Days would get us within hours of leaving, days at most. It wasn't a viable solution. There was never any other answer than to defeat the Meteia.
Which brings me to the Forum (Fourchenault's) stubborn arrogance. Because Fourchenault and those like him saw the Scions as warmongers who only ever fought and never did diplomacy or find non-violent ways of doing things, they barred us from essential information until it was almost too late to save anyone and because of their delaying, people died who didn't need to die. Because Hydaelyn put it in their heads that flight was the only option, they didn't consider another course.
Why? Why did Venat put enough faith in us to follow the future we came from, but not believe we could fight the Meteia? Why did She tear our souls apart, intending for us to remain 1/14'th of our full selves forever, and not believe in us at the last?
Just consider that. Whether we needed to be sundered and sensitive to dynamis or not (which I also disagree with, but that's another rant) She didn't want any of the rejoinings. She speaks of them as failures. Is that why She only considered flight? Because She realized She might have made a mistake by sundering us and thought we might be too weak to fight the Meteia?
I only forgave Hydaelyn because the narrative forced me to. As far as I'm concerned, She was just as much a villain as the Ascians. She tore our souls apart and made a world of misery because her society was so bad at managing suffering, thinking somehow that it would make us strong. Maybe She was even right about that, and obviously the game's narrative only allows for so much freedom, but for my WoL it was a strength born of rage and fury.
So yeah, between Hydaelyn only considering flight which would have ended in death anyway and the Forum being so sure of this course of action that they caused people's souls to be--presumably--obliterated because of how long they kept vital information from the Scions, I was pretty angry by the end. Zenos sure got to take advantage of that to be sure, but....well let's just say that my WoL had some very harsh words for the Forum when all was said and done.
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dragoon-mid-jump · 10 months
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What does your character hate the most?
--Unsundered Etheryis, pre-Pandaemonium--
"I hate--" Ares begins angrily before Persephone puts a hand over his mouth.
"Yes, yes, I'm sure we could hear you go on and on all day about how much you hate your late sister-in-law and your brother and his life choices revolving around her, if we could afford the time." She replies nonchalantly. Her expression softens into a mix of sadness and exasperation. "Including how it all affected you and your reputation." She sighs.
Ares removes her hand for a moment. "Not Erich, though. I could never hate Erich. I need to point that out. His fucking parents, on the other hand--" Persephone's hand returns to his mouth with greater force.
"We do not have all day, you know. I will summon Mistress Venat to make you stop."
Ares starts frantically shaking his head.
"In case you were wondering," Persephone continues, "he is very capable of going on full-day rants about this and has done so before. I am very aware of what exactly he alludes to, but my poor Ares is...magically sworn to secrecy on speaking directly about it. I understand him enough to be able to figure it out, but for the sake of all involved, I can't speak of it much, either."
She grits her teeth as her expression turns into a grimace. "As for me personally, I've little patience for her line of thinking, after learning and inferring from Ares. On on a similar note, a certain Chief Overseer of Elpis has been getting on thin ice with me as of late after he turned our last conversation into an infuriating circle until he got called away. Even Councilors to the People can get frustrated."
--Sundered Etheryis, post-Endwalker--
-Omphalos-
"Zenos." Kouh'to answers without missing a beat, angrily snapping his book closed. "Don't need to explain why. (Reference: In From The Cold, Y'dehlya being his victim) Oh, and Archon Loaf. One time. Never again."
-Thavnair, Radz-at-Han-
"Don't call me a brute." U'reksh grumbles. "I ain't a brute. I'm not a 'barbarian', I'm not a 'savage', and I'm not a 'weapon', either. I'm me! I'm a person! So what if I didn't grow up with any advanced formal training? I'm plenty smart in my own ways, and I've learned so much so fast from so many people ever since my journey started!"
Y'dehlya reaches over to scratch him behind his ears before he can continue, and he lets out a long purr as his body relaxes. "And we're all so proud of you for how far you've come." She adds warmly. "Proving wrong everyone who ever doubted you."
He grins. "Yeah, I'm not great at meetings, but I'm trying to be. But everything else? Not only am I one of the star's strongest fighters, but I can make my own weapons!" He crosses his arms confidently as his grin widens. "I know almost as much as Cid and Nero when it comes to technology, and I kept up with Raha last I talked with him about Allagan tech! So there!"
Y'dehlya continues to scratch him. Her smile starts to fade. "I've very little patience for narrow-minded thinking." Y'dehlya tuts. "Reksh touched on it when he talked about personal attacks on his character, when people casually misjudge him just because of his background and attitude. It is what leads to wide divides amongst people that can and have snowballed into disasters. We've seen the destruction it's caused time and time again over the course of our journey, and we've had to painstakingly bridge such gaps, or at least start them enough." She lets out a sigh. "I admit, while I understand their concerns over sovereignty and the future of the nation, I still emphasize this harder to the Garleans I've met in Garlemald, because the propaganda still talks even though their system is no more. Though at the same time, the remainder of the world will also need to learn to peacefully coexist with the new Garlemald if we are to prevent further tragedies of this scale." She smiles. "I'm glad that Vrtra is having Thavnair take that first step."
(Prompt is here!)
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draculasbane · 2 years
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queenofnohr · 2 years
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EW spoilers
major spoilers do not pass go do not collect $200
Like. Okay. I can understand ppl who don’t like Hermes bc he’s Fandaniel and some ppl just can’t stand clowns like I get it. That’s fine as long as they can be normal abt it
but apparently there are ppl who are like “if Hermes would’ve just let us deal with meteion” and then ppl defending it like “she was his daughter” like even apart from that like
Hermes’ whole thing. His whole entire fucking thing. Is that he is too kind. He thinks every single thing has a right to exist to the point where he is extremely distraught by creations who solely seemed to be only able of killing things - not out of necessity but for enjoyment or simply because their purpose was destruction - needed to be put down.
Like sooooooooo many people just don’t know how to read huh. Like even when Fandaniel dies before we even know about Hermes his dying words are something akin to him wanting humanity to struggle against their fate. And when Hermes does his whole thing like yes he’s protecting Meteion but more than that. More than that he wants proof. He wants hope. He wants an answer. That’s why he created Meteion in the first damn place! Because he was hopeless and didn’t know how to deal with death or existence and hoped other stars would have an answer! And when he found despair he didn’t want that to be the answer! Like why would he have his own fucking memories wiped - why would he reject Meteion’s offer - if he was solely on her side, if he really and truly simply wanted himself and the star to die. What he wants to see is humanity oppose despair. What he longs for is hope. That’s why he wipes his memories as well - so that he can play his part to help the star. He’s the damn person who came up with how to recognize where the Final Days would manifest bc of weakness in aether after all like????? If he was firmly on the world destroying side why wouldn’t he just keep his memories so he could manipulate everything since he would Know.
And then when you defeat him in the 2nd to last dungeon too he’s even like “was this the answer I hoped for…?” LIKE HE SAYS IT. HE DIDNT WANT DESPAIR. HE WANTED PEOPLE TO OPPOSE DESPAIR. HE WANTED PEOPLE TO FIND MEANING. like yes the way he went about it was kinda fucked up but again. he wants to give everything the chance to live and to thrive even if that thing is dangerous even if that thing kills others he wants to believe in it. He does not want to believe that there is anything inherently evil, that there is anything that would exist simply to hurt another. That is his fatal flaw. You can dislike him for being naive, you can dislike him bc you don’t vibe, whatever I Do Not Fucking Care but please learn how to fucking read
same with my Venat rant even ppl defending the character I want to choke out a Little Bit cuz it’s like. Jesus Christ you’re defending them but you don’t know how to read either!!!!
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