The Desert's Storm

[Inactive] An Ask & RP Blog for Accipiter Aches & Gahiji, League of Legends OCs.

[the-king-of-the-river]

900+ Follow Forever- Valentines Edition

[I’m so very proud to announce we have reached the great number of NINE HUNDRED. 

I have been in this community for nearly 2 years now– and the friends I’ve made have been absolutely unforgettable. I won’t lie, the community here sometimes has its problems; but for the most part, everyone is a delight and I love them

Let’s have a role call, yeah? Honourable mention to my beloved boyfriend, who is between blogs right now. He’s sat right next to me. Happy Valentines Day, babe.

I’m not sure why I called it the Valentines Edition. There’s nothing particularly different about it. It’s just Valentines Day today.

♚ Good People & Their Good Blogs  ♚

♚ @mercury-hammercannon - Let’s talk about Fran, shall we? I’ve been talking to this fucker for a while now, and I love her Jayce. I love her writing. I love her art. I just love her. Fuck. She shares so many of my Piltover headcanons, except for the one where it’s pronounced Piltovan and not Piltovian. But I’ll forgive her for it.

♚ @steel-fixes-all - Marcie is great. I love Marcie. I love Marcie’s writing, I love Viktor, I love the amount of worldbuilding, I love Viksuo (SHOUT OUT @disxwned!). I love our thread. Just. -clenches fist- I love it.

♚ @theblindboxer - Niknak (teehee) here has been affectionately dubbed as my nephew. I am the vodka aunt. He is my grasshopper nephew. You probably know about him because he’s literally everywhere liking literally everything. It would be a weird day if Niknak wasn’t on my top fans list.

♚ @gxldendemon- I rave about Kayla all the time. This is Kayla. Follow Kayla. She is Good. Snek is good. 

♚ @masteredshadows - I’ll write you a starter for post-gift Tahm conversation I SWEAR. In the meantime, have this. I’m glad you came back <3

♚ @infinite-xerath- I wish I could maintain multiple blogs and yet be as cool as Xerath-mun. Brilliant writing, delivered so quickly.

♚ @ask-the-wench- Wenchie is adorable and so is her muse and it’s just -clenches fist- so wonderful, all of it.

♚ @sandsandsorrows - finger guns. Still some of the best art on tumblr.

♚ @ozimulmakesartwork- Your continued support means ever so much <3

♚ Good People & Good Blogs That I Don’t Interact Enough With   ♚

♚@athenafire  ♚ @a-rat-and-a-blob  ♚ @silvestreaelurus  ♚ @demacianwings  ♚ @accipiteraches  ♚ @piltoversego  ♚

♚ Quality Blogs To See On Your Dash That I Otherwise Have Little to No Interaction With, I Just Like Seeing Them  ♚

♚ @tengoku-no-chi  ♚ @summoner-zoey  ♚ @ladyoftides  ♚ @ladybuvelle  ♚ @morose-deserter  ♚ @lastscoutstanding  ♚  @thesandqrator  ♚ @noxiandove  ♚  @noxianboxer  ♚  @fateshunters  ♚ @vlolent-tendencies  ♚ @ionian-storm-chaser ♚  @thecrimsonexecutioner  ♚ @noxian-rose  ♚  @tantibus-aeternam  ♚  @willoftheblades  ♚ @remoteincandescence  ♚ @hats-and-snipes  ♚

And that, as they say, is that! I really am truly fond of everyone on this list and off this list, and if I missed you out I apologise! It’s early. I wanted to do it on Valentines Day, and I have a busy day of Uni stuff and other assorted things to do that I wanted to get it all down! 

With that, I say,

Frankie: Out.

[ancient-egypts-secrets]

Over its long history the Egyptians employed a wide variety of ancient weapons. During the earliest periods stone and wood weapons were used, these early Egyptian weapons included slings, clubs, throwing sticks, stone maces and stone tipped spears. Horn and wooden bows were also constructed and used with stone tipped arrows. 

By 4000 BC the Egyptians had started importing obsidian from the Eastern Red Sea areas for their weapons. This glass like stone has properties that allow it to have a sharper point than the sharpest metals; these almost molecularly thin blades are used even today for scalpels.

By the time upper and lower Egypt were first united and their society coalesced around 3150 BC, the Egyptians had already been using bronze weapons. They used bronze for spearheads, axes and maces. It was also during this period that the composite bow came into use, made with horn and wood. Over the following centuries as the Pharaoh’s dominated ancient Egyptian society they began to standardize weapons, stock pile arsenals and borrow weapons systems from invading peoples. Eventually these weapons developed into the quintessential Egyptian weapons discussed below.

The bow long remained the main armament of Egyptian forces throughout Egypt’s long military history; perhaps due to the lack of armor worn by Egyptian warriors and their enemies in the hot climate where they operated. Most archers were foot soldiers however Egyptian chariots also carried them. Archers provided range to the chariot warriors, and when range and speed were combined the chariot mounted archers became dominate figures on the ancient battlefields. Nubian mercenaries often served as foot archers and are said to have been their best bowmen.

The Sickle Sword or Khopesh is probably the most iconic of the Egyptian weapons. It features a curved, thick blade and measured about two feet long. A khopesh has a thick, crescent shaped blade that is used for slashing. There are several styles of this wicked weapon, and one very well designed style that combines the advantages of both of them. Basically one style has a hook on the end that is used for grabbing people, their weapons or shields and the other variety has a point on the end that can be used for stabbing. The hybrid type has both a point and a hook on it, and this can be used to pull an opponent’s shield down then thrust (stab) the end of the khopesh into their face. There is nothing nice about a Khopesh, it leaves nasty wounds and looks vicious.

Another weapon that the Egyptians developed with a uniquely Egyptian style was the battle axe. Their crescent shaped blades were affixed into grooves on long handles. This was a weaker connection than the axes made by their contemporaries that featured a hole through the axe head that the handle fit through, but it served their purpose of slashing unarmored troops and hacking through the hide covered, wood framed shields used at the time. However, once they met the Sea-peoples and the Hyskos they found their axes to be inadequate and changed their design. Egyptian axes could be used for hacking or be thrown.

The second largest contingent in an Egyptian army (after the bowmen) was the spearmen. Spears are cheap and it takes little training for levy soldiers to figure out how to use them. Charioteers also carried spears as secondary weapons and to keep enemy infantry from getting to close. Similar to arrowheads Egyptian spears progressed through stone, obsidian, copper and finally iron stages.

The Egyptians must have had a place in their heart for this weak little weapon (weak compared to bows and slings). A throwing stick was essentially a boomerang that didn’t come back. Perhaps it stuck around as long as it did because it was a cheap secondary weapon for infantry troops. Although a throwing stick was unlikely to kill anyone it could have also been used to distract an enemy during melee combat. While one guy throws a stick at your face another guy would stab you in the gut, that kind of thing. Famously, they were also used for hunting waterfowl along the Nile, even by Pharaohs.

Chariots represent more of an Egyptain weapons platform than an actual weapon in itself; however, chariots became indispensable to the Egyptian armies. The Egyptians built fast, light chariots and would use them to race into position shower their enemies with arrows and retreat before a counter attack could be launched. These strikes would demoralize an enemy army, making them feel helpless against further attacks. Egyptian chariots carried a driver and an archer and were assembled at the battlefield. 

[accipiteraches]

The King, The Queen, The Ace

[infinite-xerath]

accipiteraches:

Gahiji raised his head. A shiver running down the griffon’s spine. A scream, muffled by the tons of earth and rubble. Then silence. Was the desert always this quiet? The beast rose, the boy on his back barely losing balance. He had leaned forward the moment the second Ascendant hat disappeared into the hole in the ground. Now, the griffon jumped from the remains of the skeleton, carefully coming closer to the tunnel.

He could still see the light of the Ascendant down there. And after a few seconds, both of them emerged, the crocodile twice the size, as it seems. And both were covered in some kind of slime…was that…blood?

“Are you …” the boy started.

“Is…she…did you do it?”

Renekton’s rage had calmed (somewhat) as the thrill of battle passed, along with his Dominus state. Xerath followed close behind. The Butcher seemed a tad annoyed. “Like her spawn, the corpse practically turned to dust. The sand Shark left no meat behind!“

The Magus put a hand on his companion’s shoulder. “A minor loss, Renekton. Now, there is no dispute that you are the greatest predator in all of Shurima… And that the Ascended are unrivaled in might.” The second statement was directed to Accipiter.

“Now you have seen for yourself that no opponent, not even the mightiest of Void beasts, can stand against me. I can offer protection that Azir cannot, boy. So tell me: are you still skeptical?”

[accipiteraches]

Both the rider and his mount were still stunned. They really did it? That couldn’t be...could it? But gahiji felt it in his vones and in the air. Something had changed. Unless the Queen fled without them realizing it ... the Ascendants spoke the truth.

Accipiter only snapped out of his suprise when the Magus directed his words to him. He was right. They defeated Rek’Sai, a predator living in Shurima since ancient times who only grew in power over time. If they could defeat her...then they could defeat anyone.

The boy looked up to the two, a sudden confidence in his eyes.

“I’m not.” He answered.

“You did what I asked you to do. I’m not blind, you succeeded, there is no reason to doubt your strenght...or that of the Butcher.”

[cursed-assassin-deactivated2018]

Sea breeze

[accipiteraches]

While Accipiter tended to the room, bringing it into a shape that was worthy of a visitor, his companion in the stables raised his head as he saw a newcomer enter the building.

Gahiji was used to people staring at him. They did it back then, why wouldn’t they do it now? What he was not used to were people entering the stables alone. Normally, his little friend would have accompanied them, if only to make sure they wouldn’t anger the griffon. Now however...he didn’t.

The griffon blinked at the newcomer, curious eyes inspecting the man. He decided not to move. People get scared so easily if something bigger than them moves.

[terraformis]

Greetings in Shurima

  I’d like to talk about this for a moment because I’ve seen some Shuriman blogs use “marhaba” as a greeting. It is true that it is one of several greetings used by Arabic speakers in real life, but I would also like to bring the other greetings into attention, as well as a bit of context behind each.

  Marhaba (in real life) is derived of a verb that more or less means “to be open and welcoming”, but it also had roots in Aramaic (the language used by old Christians and Yahweh during his time on earth) that changes its literal meaning to “god is love”. Nowadays the religious context is often not remembered, but it is still mostly used by Christians, Coptics especially in Egypt.

  Salaam (formally assalaamu’alaikum; Muslims add warahmatullahi wabarakatuh behind it for religious context) quite simply means “peace”. Like in English (or Common in fanon Valoran or Runeterra) it can be used in phrases such as “peace be upon you”. Compared to “marhaba”, which is more often used by Arabic-speaking Christians, “assalaamu’alaikum” is more common with Muslims. Rarely will a Muslim greet you with “marhaba” instead of this.

  Ahlan (formally ahlan wa sahlan) is the most religiously neutral greeting out of these three, as it is a way to refer to “family”. The phrase it is derived from is the equivalent of telling someone to “make themselves at home”. Its reply is ahlan beek/i - “I feel at home because of you”.

  Now, keeping the state of Noxian occupation in mind, at the risk of falsely associating Noxus to real life Europe, I can theorize that “marhaba” would be more common in North Shurima, where Noxian influence and culture are rife. On the other hand, “salaam” would be more widespread in South Shurima where their local and historical culture is thicker (think Vekaura and its sun gates vs the Noxtoraa in Bel’zhun). “Ahlan” would mostly be used by nomads (although depending on origin, some may use the other two instead), or by other neutral parties.

  That said, my Taliyah greets people with “ahlan”, and here’s the reasoning behind it.

[terraformis]

// will be away from home for a while so have this for the moment. hopefully i’ll be back soon-ish!

[pridefulsuggestion]

to advance is to conquer; to live is victory. stand tall. (x)

[cursed-assassin-deactivated2018]

Sea breeze

[accipiteraches]

A room? He wasn’t from around here, was he? Or else he would know that…well, this isn’t how this inn works.

“Well…I’d have to look if a room is free.” or rather, if Nasir even made these rooms for other people.

“Washing…uhm, well, there’s a stable through that door.” I pointed with my thumb at the door behind me.

“There is a pot with water in there…but…maybe just take a bucket of it. The griffon drinks from the water, and…drinking blood isn’t tasty.” He said casually, before running up the stairs to look after the room.

[cursed-assassin-deactivated2018]

Azi tiled his head at the boys reaction. “This uhh… an Inn, correct? Is there a man named Nasir running it?” He tried to give a bit of informations without revealing anything. “I’ve been told that I should look for him, a mutual friend if you must.” He said, cupping his hands behind his back as he tried to make his body language seem friendly. “Oh… a griffon?” He hadn’t thought griffons to still be around, but the idea of meeting one brought a smile to his face. “Sure, that can work, I can get a bucket from it.”

[accipiteraches]

Accipiter had already took a few steps when he heard the question of the man. He turned back to him.

“Yes, this Inn belongs to Nasir...though it isn’t exactly well visited.” A mutual friend? Well, that meant he knew him, right? And his...business.

“He’s with another friend, but he’ll return in the evening.” With that, he went up, hearing the confirmation of the man when he was already upstairs. While the rooms were not exactly in bad shape, the beds weren’t made for visitors. Accipiter huffs. Guess he had to do it himself. Hopefully, the stranger wouldn’t cause problems while he was in the stables.

[accipiteraches]

The King, The Queen, The Ace

[infinite-xerath]

accipiteraches:

Gahiji got out of the storm area, sitting on the bone of one of the giant ancient creatures that died in the desert sand. Accipiter was still breathing heavily, sparks and light flickering around them, before disappearing like a hallucination. The boy shook his head. He still ahd to witness how this fight would end, even with the Xai lighting up like thousand flames.

Pumping veins. She could hear his heartbeet. Feel his rage.  So this was the fury of a Sunblessed? She could feel her own heart beat. Was that how fear felt? The moment he touched her head, she insantly got all her senses back. She screached, slashed, bite, slung her tail against his massive body, and when she felt that this didn’t had much effect, she buried her legs into the earth, in an attempt to stay underground.

Xerath could certainly hear the furious struggle down below, and was tempted to unleash his magic into the gaping hole. Unfortunately, he had no desire to wind up hitting Renekton in the process. Thus, the course left was to slowly descend into the large underground network.

The area was more spacious than he imagined, and eventually, Xerath stumbled across the two beasts locked in combat. Renekton has sustained much damage from the queen, but seemed unconcerned with the pain. Still, it was bet to try and end this before things escalated further.

Weiterlesen

[accipiteraches]

Gahiji raised his head. A shiver running down the griffon’s spine. A scream, muffled by the tons of earth and rubble. Then silence. Was the desert always this quiet? The beast rose, the boy on his back barely losing balance. He had leaned forward the moment the second Ascendant hat disappeared into the hole in the ground. Now, the griffon jumped from the remains of the skeleton, carefully coming closer to the tunnel.

He could still see the light of the Ascendant down there. And after a few seconds, both of them emerged, the crocodile twice the size, as it seems. And both were covered in some kind of slime...was that...blood?

“Are you ...” the boy started.

“Is...she...did you do it?”

[pridefulsuggestion]

you are ready enough. that’s all you need to be. (x)

[accipiteraches]

Tagged By: @unifyingleaguelore @cursed-assassin

Relationship status: Single and comfortable. Pets: none.

Last song I listened to: Burn - Hamilton Musical.

Favorite TV show: not watching much TV...I guess Steven Universe?

First fandom: Pokémon?

[terraformis]

// these things seem like they go around easier than promo posts (though I might still make one later anyway), so can you please LIKE or REBLOG this if you’re willing to interact with a canon-divergent Taliyah from the League of Legends universe? thank you!! <3

[pridefulsuggestion]

arm yourselves. be ready.

[void-corrupt-blog]

// I just set this blog of my OC up and a reblog would help me out a lot to find people to interact with 

[accipiteraches]

The King, The Queen, The Ace

[infinite-xerath]

accipiteraches:

She felt her magic hit him, and didn’t hestitate to follow up with a bite. The crocodile might have the bigger jaws, but did it have the stronger ones? She felt the blade in her chest, and an angry growl left her mouth. But a wound like that won’t stop her. It will heal…in time. The crocodile’s head won’t, once it’s bit off.

Gahiji was the first to notice the change in atmosphere, even with the Voidborn on his tail. This spell seemed a bit too familiar to the griffon, but he had other things to worry about. The lighting struck behind him multiple times, some even at his sides, and the beast was uncertain if taking flight was a good idea. But he also wanted to get away from the magic above him. Accipiter had storaged his spear once the lighting started to hit the ground. He leaned forward, laying on the griffon’s back, the wind pulling on his clothes and knocking his hood back.

“Come on, come on.”

He got goosebumps. Partly from the storm around them, partly … from something else.  For a moment, he could have sworn the winds clamed down around them. Then, gahiji suddenly truned around, his giant wings flapping once, knocking back the front rows of the remaining Voidborns. But that was not all. The winds still danced around them, allowing the griffon to turn mid air and actually fly even if it was close to the ground. but he was faster, and they were safe from the bolts…for now.

As the spell grew more and more powerful, the winds and lightning continued to throw the Xer’Sai into disarray. The gale swept up the sands, as well as any Voidborn hiding within them, leaving them at the mercy of these erratic lightning bolts. Many of them attempted to flee, but the swarm was almost totally exterminated by this fearsome spell.

Xerath paid none of that any mind, though. He hovered over to the large hole in the ground, where The Butcher and The Queen had descended. He could make out the vague sounds of their conflict, but saw no sight of either. “Renekton! Unless your true fury!”

The Crocodile needed no prompting, for as the Sand Shark’s maw came at him, he unleashed his Dominus to grow in both size and strength. Abandoning his blade, Renekton grappled her head with both arms, and used as much strength as he could must try and drag her back up to the surface.

[accipiteraches]

Gahiji got out of the storm area, sitting on the bone of one of the giant ancient creatures that died in the desert sand. Accipiter was still breathing heavily, sparks and light flickering around them, before disappearing like a hallucination. The boy shook his head. He still ahd to witness how this fight would end, even with the Xai lighting up like thousand flames.

Pumping veins. She could hear his heartbeet. Feel his rage.  So this was the fury of a Sunblessed? She could feel her own heart beat. Was that how fear felt? The moment he touched her head, she insantly got all her senses back. She screached, slashed, bite, slung her tail against his massive body, and when she felt that this didn’t had much effect, she buried her legs into the earth, in an attempt to stay underground.

[cursed-assassin-deactivated2018]

Sea breeze

[accipiteraches]

A room? He wasn’t from around here, was he? Or else he would know that...well, this isn’t how this inn works.

“Well...I’d have to look if a room is free.” or rather, if Nasir even made these rooms for other people.

“Washing...uhm, well, there’s a stable through that door.” I pointed with my thumb at the door behind me.

“There is a pot with water in there...but...maybe just take a bucket of it. The griffon drinks from the water, and...drinking blood isn’t tasty.” He said casually, before running up the stairs to look after the room.

[cursed-assassin-deactivated2018]

Sea breeze

//closed starter for @accipiteraches //

A cool, crisp breeze blew into the tropical town on the northern coast of shurima, the palm trees and lush grass that filled the area added to the wondrous scent of the town. Out from the dunes to the south came Azibo, a heavy backpack behind him as he arrived at his destination, the evening streets of the town were quiet, save for a few locals going about their business.

Though he has been here a few times, the assassin has never actually stopped for the night, but he had fallen a bit behind after an encounter with a group of Raiders, walking away with a bit of lost time and a few splatters of blood on his clothes; his schedule was off.

He approached an Inn that seemed to be open, not pay8ng much attention otherwise as he entered. The lobby seemed a bit empty, not a soul in sight, which wasn’t quite unusual. He looked around a bit before he decided to call out. “Hello?”

[accipiteraches]

Accipiter has just finished washing the griffon back in the stables when he heard the voice from the lobby. It didn’t sound like Nasir, he wasn’t home at the moment, something about ‘collecting debts’, and Accipiter didn’t have the time to ask what that meant before he left.

Thus, hearing someone he couldn’t identify was ... new. He quickly put his clothes on - he already met people who would’ve tried to capture and sell him, he wouldn’t encourage it - and went to the lobby to greet the newcomer.

Accipiter walked through the door connecting stable and lobby, then took a good look at the man. A traveler? Is he hurt? Or did he fought? Only one way to find out.

“Can I help you?”