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Devil’s Due: Part 37: Ascension

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I’m actually surprised that a few people weren’t sure which companion Murlesson was going to pick to keep and which to put in the Rakata box, I thought it was pretty obvious. ; )

Turns out this is the second-last chapter after all because I always underestimate how long social scenes are going to go. ONE MORE I PROMISE

Part 36: Darth Nox

 

Part 37: Ascension

Thanaton’s body was unmoving where it sprawled, his presence was well and truly snuffed out. The final explosion of his soul had not done much damage, only sweeping a hot, bitter wind over everyone. Murlesson let himself float to the ground and nearly staggered from weariness, as he capped his internal wellspring, pulling his aura back in close – though he wasn’t as careful as usual, what was the point? The whirlwind of rubble collapsed unceremoniously, and the dark swirling clouds overhead dissipated like they’d never been. Continue reading →

Devil’s Due: Part 36: Darth Nox

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Soundtracks for this chapter: Scene one gets a blend of two of the best soundtracks from Corpse Party, The Nightmare of the School Years (which I used before but it’s still good) and Chapter 5’s Main Theme. But the final fight is upon us! I’ve used so many different tracks for this fight I have a whole playlist just for this one fight. The first one on there was The Stains of Time from MGR (for some reason I’ve always felt like that was the most edgey teenage boy song on the OST), which in a way was a callback to the very first soundtrack of this story, from the very first chapter, being I’m My Own Master Now also from MGR. Then over time the playlist also expanded to include Angel of the Dark by Aviators as a callback to when Murlesson first showed power and mysticism in public (although in this scene it actually goes at the end), and then Change the World by Man With a Mission, and finally a song which I think is called something about ParadiseLost (Belial Avatar BGM) from Granblue Fantasy (I felt “let me feel the power that could rip me to shreds” was a pretty appropriate chorus line!). I hope it lives up to the hype I’ve built!

Part 35: Paradigm

 

Part 36: Darth Nox

 

Bursting through the door down from the roof, he nearly crashed into Revel. “Had a fight with Shara, huh?”

“Shut up,” Murlesson growled, storming past him at a run. “I don’t have time. She’s in trouble.”

“So you’re going to rescue her anyway, of course,” Revel said, turning to jog after him. “She’s really got you wrapped around her finger.”

Murlesson turned, eyes raw and blazing. “Don’t you talk about either of us like that.”

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Revel said. “I’m surprised you haven’t had more fights-“ Continue reading →

Devil’s Due: Part 35: Paradigm

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Sorry to the people who don’t like this sort of drama? (and yes I threw in a bit about my obsession with urban planning lol – in my opinion, Corellia in-game has the perfect aesthetic for Corellia, it’s just how I imagined it… but from an immersion standpoint, it doesn’t look like a place I would want to live. BioWare is really, really bad with big maps and it’s particularly bothersome to me here. There’s no draw to exploring because every bit looks the same as every other bit. (the MMO with the best, most explorable maps, imo, is probably GW2.))

 

Part 34: Accelerate

 

Part 35: Paradigm

The tunnels were dark and he’d lost all sense of direction. A full battalion of enemy soldiers led by Lord Kogni, a fraction of the attacking force but still enough to give him a bad day, had pursued him into the depths of Coronet City and were right behind him as he ran. Continue reading →

Devil’s Due: Part 34: Accelerate

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Mannnnn I know it’s been so long since I had a chapter, but first I burned out on work real bad this year, and then Tharash/Aristheron came over to hang out for 3 weeks and we drove all over my province and it was really fun but I didn’t start feeling creative again until I’d recovered from that. So that’s why it’s taken so long. And unfortunately, my beta-reader is too busy right now to check everything, so I just have to hope it’s good enough like I did with the first 3/4 of this story. XD (He still helped talk me through some of the tricky plot bits though!)

Originally there was going to be another defecting Sith at the end of this chapter, just to show Thanaton losing his grip on his underlings, but that was one step too complicated for me.

Three more chapters until we’re done, let’s go! (and I’m not just saying that, they’re already mostly written, let’s really go!)

 

Part 33: Labyrinth

 

Part 34: Accelerate

Ashara met him back at the park, alone. “Are you okay? You met Thanaton, didn’t you? I sensed your feelings.” She frowned. “Still do, actually, now that I’m close to you again. What happened?” Continue reading →

FFXIV: Absolution

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It’s still strange to me how much of a cliffhanger 3.0 is compared to 4.0 or 5.0. Then again, 2.0 had a bit of a cliffhanger, with Bahamut’s roar, but even though Bahamut was in the trailer blowing up the world, it wasn’t like we’d already fought him once, and his quests ended up being the 8-man raids and not MSQ.

(Reminder: in the European medieval period, ‘small beer’ was not really considered alcoholic, everyone drank it, even children)

If you like Kekeniro and want to see much more of him from another angle, he’s a blatant expy of my tactician Ceniro from my FE7 fics.

With this, my 3.0 interpretation is complete. I’m going to take some time before getting into 3.x; I haven’t plotted out how the raids and 24-mans will fit into the timeline yet and I would like to just play the game again and see how it’s changed since… 3 years ago I last played? I’m not leaving forever, I’m really excited about the Dragonsong War, and Achiyo going back to the East in SB, and just how ShB is going to work with 8 WoL, to name just a few things.

Chapter 30: Unbreakable

 

Chapter 31: Absolution

Achiyo could not eat, could hardly drink a little water, so much was she filled with fear. It would not pass from her, no matter how she breathed, no matter that the healers all told her she was physically well and urged her to eat and regain her strength. She just couldn’t. Her stomach hurt, and not from any wound. Continue reading →

FFXIV: Unbreakable

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This chapter is of course named for the soundtrack of the Fractal Continuum – which is not the ARF, I am aware (the music of which is named Imagination). But while Imagination is all beautifully desperate and heroic and I love it, Unbreakable is one of the most kickass dungeon tunes in the whole game, maybe even my favourite dungeon theme (yes, even over A Long Fall (Twinning dungeon) – that name always reminds me of a ONE OK ROCK song…). Unbreakable makes me want to learn to play drums. But that’s gotta wait because I’m learning bass guitar first.

I wonder if Azys Lla is supposed to be pronounced in a Welsh fashion, with the double-L? Given that, for instance, the level 60 24-mans take naming inspiration from Gaelic (Mhach, Cu Chulainn) I don’t think it’s out of the question. In which case everyone’s pronouncing it wrong. : D

I feel like Thordan’s motivations weren’t really adequately explained in the game? Why he came to Azys Lla (so that his primal form could absorb the Warring Triad? I would have liked better clarification at the time, especially since you don’t fight the Triad until later patches), and what he intended specifically to do once he became a god. It would also have been nice to have a better idea of Lahabrea’s plan, but at least his goals are clear.

I enjoy the in-game canon that the WoL single-handedly one-shots Thordan and knights out of pure rage. (BFG Division starts playing) Continue reading →

FFXIV: On the Hunt

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So my grandparents gave me a bonus gift this year, so I used it to buy like 5 FFXIV books, including the first Ishgard artbook and both Encyclopedia Eorzeas! I have no idea when they will arrive but since I think the Encyclopedias are being reprinted they probably won’t arrive until I’ve finished HW. Sure, all the info is also on the wikis, but it’s nice to have it in book form to flip through. (Also the Primals Blueray concert, let’s go!)

Vivienne isn’t actually ice-aspected; she’s Umbral Earth (Althyk, December birthmonth) and I headcanon that Fray is lightning-aspected. So when Alain mentions elements he’s really speaking more poetically.

Chapter 28: At What Cost

 

Chapter 29: On the Hunt

Cid had been enlisted into the chase, naturally, as the archbishop had left upon an airship heading into dangerous territory, and who better to aid them than the man with an airship and no fear of danger? The engineer was delighted to bear them on another adventure, and sailed them cheerfully into the Sea of Clouds to the far north. Continue reading →

FFXIV: At What Cost

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Achiyo’s theme songs are Bibliophobia (for in-game tracks) and The Legend of Ashitaka (for out-of-game tracks). They maybe don’t fit the asskicking that happens in this chapter, but I thought it was worth a reminder. : )

As a pipe organist myself, the Vault’s soundtrack made me nearly cry with happiness when I first heard it because it’s so beautifully Baroque (I was seriously freaking out musicgasming all over the place haha). A videogame piece for organ that treats it seriously and not just a trope for “intellectual bad guy”! I mean, it doesn’t even sound specifically like videogame music, and I think that’s one of the great things about it. It sounds like heavy Buxtehude, tbh. IT’S SO SPARKLY. I really want the sheet music. I tried transcribing it myself but there’s so much reverb it’s really hard to hear a lot of the individual mid-range notes. Though it’s also so cool how when you go to higher floors of the Vault you hear less and less of it, just the bassy pedal notes that would naturally carry farther, it’s a great detail, I love it. I also appreciate how Soken weaves the organ into random other soundtracks (and bagpipes, my other favourite niche instrument, though I don’t play that) purely for the timbre.

And then I cried with sadness, obviously. Continue reading →

FFXIV: Victory Achieved

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Hey guys! I know it’s been forever since I uploaded… I’ve been trying to finish Devil’s Due, because there’s only 3.5 chapters left in that… but I’ve headed (deliberately) so far away from the source material that I’m basically writing original fic, and it’s really complex and hard and I’m too busy to brain it through. So I’m coming back to something more relaxing.

So you guys know the video on YouTube where (among other things) some people test the bite strength of a T-rex as portrayed in the classic Jurassic Park movie? Now imagine that strength test for Nidhogg. :3

I actually didn’t mean for Lilidi to get so involved? But she’s not the sort of person to sit around when people she cares about are in danger. I’m actually not sure how that’s going to develop! I didn’t make a plan!

Next chapter is the one everyone’s been not waiting for… Some of my readers have referred to it obliquely, saying they’re not prepared, and that was years ago… you prepared yet? Just kidding, no one’s ever prepared. (Liam O’Brian voice: you are not prepared– wait wrong game) Continue reading →

Devil’s Due: Part 33: Labyrinth

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Oh my god, I had this chapter mostly finished three months ago and I got so hung up on the Selonians. I think this is my third version of the scene? I’m pretty confident about this version.

The final scene in the chapter is inspired by Run by Disturbed : D

Who knows when the next chapter will be out!

 

Part 32: Battle of Wits

 

Part 33: Labyrinth

Jeik had hacked a random speeder for him, and he drove it recklessly. He hadn’t really practised in months and it slid across the road dangerously, made worse by his twitchy overcorrecting. His breath came quick and his hearts thudded distractingly; Darkness was with him, his anger and fear taking over, but it only aided his reflexes; it didn’t tell him how to drive.

Xalek had called from his own base to report the attack really was underway, and that Lord Skar was causing a lot of damage. Even Xalek was having trouble with him. Not good. Jeik and his Mandalorians would be able to take the other base in its current state – he’d killed or crippled anyone foolish enough to attack him, and there were not many personnel left after that – but that meant he had nothing to bring to defend his own except himself. Continue reading →