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distressedherbalist:
vii
He dreamed of her. It wasn’t something that happened frequently, just often enough that he wouldn’t forget her. Her face and the look of her eyes, the warmth in her voice, her laughter. It was just enough to keep him human, even in his darkest moments.
(And yet not her name. Never her name. One last, final punishment for her defiance. That the world would never remember her existence.)
viii
The Forgotten.
He never expected his niece to be so bold. To have erected a statue of her, in the heart of Insomnia. It wasn’t as imposing or massive as the ones of the Lucii that adorned certain points of the growing city but it was her, his baby sister, looking just as she did the last time he saw her.
He does his best to bury the spark of jealousy that comes every time he remembers his brother’s line can use the ring to actually interact with her.
ix
It was the work of a few generations of gentle prodding, for the kingdom to very slowly drift away from public, official worship, but they had succeeded. Shifting the perception that matters of faith should be kept private had been one of his better ideas, truly, even if his dearest wish was for it to stop altogether.
There had been a slight bit of pushback, at first, but most of their people were not the most fond of long, traditional services and eventually, temples sat empty for most of the time.
x
When they figured out the draining effects of the crystal on his family, he came very close to snapping. The only thing that held him back was the knowledge that he wouldn’t succeed. And he briefly wondered if his sister’s descendants, who knew nothing of the truth, had to contend with something like that. An artifact that sapped the life and vitality out of them, or if, at least in that, they had been spared.
The Wise started it, the secretive fund to anyone that approached with a curiosity for magic would get access to. Releasing information by trickles, until doubt set root in their people.
xi
He hadn’t given much thought to the civilization that rose from the ashes of Solheim. Not even when they had started to made inroads in their study of the old technology. But centuries after, when their war had forced his nephew to raise a wall around his kingdom, he had to wonder if the conflict had been part of the Draconian’s plan since the beginning.
What would have become of him, of his family, if his brother had truly done as ordered and trapped him in that ancient, cursed island?
@hamelin-born @theotherguysride
The much delayed second part, but. Ta-da!
@lectorel
@distressedherbalist SCREAMS ENDLESSLY.
This is magnificent. I just. Yes. YES. The Family Lucis Caelum, and how they are a family. How the Plan - the Great Plan - unfurls, century after century, generation after generation - a thousand tiny little movements in a thousand tiny little directions, all towards a single goal. The move towards secularism, the public revelation of the price of magic - Justice. Vengeance. Freedom.
And how Ardyn remains a part of the family. How he refers to the Kings and Queens of Lucis as his nieces and nephews, his family, how he is infuriated on their behalf when the truth of the Crystal and the Ring becomes known, how he’s worried about the war with Niflheim. (He and the Lucis Caelums of the day must have laughed when they started incorporating the Empire into The Plan. And oh, but the sheer vindictive glee when the Empire brought down the Glacian…)
How he’s concerned on behalf of the Nox Fleurets - the other side of the family. Honestly, I think the Lucis Caelums must keep a close eye on the cousins, and always, always make sure to keep the memory of what has been done to their Uncle’s Sister’s children alive. And - in a sense, whenever a King or Queen of Lucis interacts with the Oracle’s line - they’re reminded, all over again, of the reason behind the Plan.
Because look at what has been done to their cousins. They have been robbed of their heritage, of the knowledge of their family; they have been enslaved to the whims of the Astrals and raised in the worship of the entities who have set the noose around their necks. The Lucis Caelums have only to look at the Oracles to be reminded of why they are doing what they’re doing - and to take the Nox Fleurets as the warning they are. ‘There, but for the grace of grandfather and uncle, go we…’
I love how the Lucis Caelums know Ardyn, and love him as their Uncle.
(Your picture was not posted)
distressedherbalist:
vii
He dreamed of her. It wasn’t something that happened frequently, just often enough that he wouldn’t forget her. Her face and the look of her eyes, the warmth in her voice, her laughter. It was just enough to keep him human, even in his darkest moments.
(And yet not her name. Never her name. One last, final punishment for her defiance. That the world would never remember her existence.)
viii
The Forgotten.
He never expected his niece to be so bold. To have erected a statue of her, in the heart of Insomnia. It wasn’t as imposing or massive as the ones of the Lucii that adorned certain points of the growing city but it was her, his baby sister, looking just as she did the last time he saw her.
He does his best to bury the spark of jealousy that comes every time he remembers his brother’s line can use the ring to actually interact with her.
ix
It was the work of a few generations of gentle prodding, for the kingdom to very slowly drift away from public, official worship, but they had succeeded. Shifting the perception that matters of faith should be kept private had been one of his better ideas, truly, even if his dearest wish was for it to stop altogether.
There had been a slight bit of pushback, at first, but most of their people were not the most fond of long, traditional services and eventually, temples sat empty for most of the time.
x
When they figured out the draining effects of the crystal on his family, he came very close to snapping. The only thing that held him back was the knowledge that he wouldn’t succeed. And he briefly wondered if his sister’s descendants, who knew nothing of the truth, had to contend with something like that. An artifact that sapped the life and vitality out of them, or if, at least in that, they had been spared.
The Wise started it, the secretive fund to anyone that approached with a curiosity for magic would get access to. Releasing information by trickles, until doubt set root in their people.
xi
He hadn’t given much thought to the civilization that rose from the ashes of Solheim. Not even when they had started to made inroads in their study of the old technology. But centuries after, when their war had forced his nephew to raise a wall around his kingdom, he had to wonder if the conflict had been part of the Draconian’s plan since the beginning.
What would have become of him, of his family, if his brother had truly done as ordered and trapped him in that ancient, cursed island?
@hamelin-born @theotherguysride
The much delayed second part, but. Ta-da!
@lectorel
@distressedherbalist SCREAMS ENDLESSLY.
This is magnificent. I just. Yes. YES. The Family Lucis Caelum, and how they are a family. How the Plan - the Great Plan - unfurls, century after century, generation after generation - a thousand tiny little movements in a thousand tiny little directions, all towards a single goal. The move towards secularism, the public revelation of the price of magic - Justice. Vengeance. Freedom.
And how Ardyn remains a part of the family. How he refers to the Kings and Queens of Lucis as his nieces and nephews, his family, how he is infuriated on their behalf when the truth of the Crystal and the Ring becomes known, how he’s worried about the war with Niflheim. (He and the Lucis Caelums of the day must have laughed when they started incorporating the Empire into The Plan. And oh, but the sheer vindictive glee when the Empire brought down the Glacian…)
How he’s concerned on behalf of the Nox Fleurets - the other side of the family. Honestly, I think the Lucis Caelums must keep a close eye on the cousins, and always, always make sure to keep the memory of what has been done to their Uncle’s Sister’s children alive. And - in a sense, whenever a King or Queen of Lucis interacts with the Oracle’s line - they’re reminded, all over again, of the reason behind the Plan.
Because look at what has been done to their cousins. They have been robbed of their heritage, of the knowledge of their family; they have been enslaved to the whims of the Astrals and raised in the worship of the entities who have set the noose around their necks. The Lucis Caelums have only to look at the Oracles to be reminded of why they are doing what they’re doing - and to take the Nox Fleurets as the warning they are. ‘There, but for the grace of grandfather and uncle, go we…’
I love how the Lucis Caelums know Ardyn, and love him as their Uncle.
(Your picture was not posted)
