I have so many questions about the timeline of this. So Kennedy and Connor are the oldest, but Persephone was the first? And she has another sibling but Eleanor may or may not exist? But she didn't grow up with any siblings? And what's the dreaded fic thing you keep saying about? What the hell happened here?
In terms of the timeline for Byoldervine’s creation, I’ll give you what I can:
• 2018-2020: Kennedy and Connor were conceptualised some time around here, I think? Possibly earlier? They were originally intended to be prison inmates looking for a way to bust out, though I never really had many ideas I could settle on for that so it was scrapped quickly. The characters remained and went through a few variations over time
• March-April 2020: The Dreaded Fic™️ began. Prototypes of Persephone, Alicia, Eleanor, Corrus, Clay and the Guardians emerged here, as well as some inspiration for Angelus. Most of the plot for Unholy War was created here
• June 2021: Started actually writing The Heir and the Cure. Kennedy and Connor finally found their forever story, along with new character Perianth. The story took place in Paracosm and focused on the trio journeying across the land in order to make a cure for Nordsvark’s sickness and save Layni from being Taken
• 2022: Realised I could put Unholy War and The Heir and the Cure into the same universe in order to minimise additional worldbuilding. I called it the Byoldervine series
• December 2022: Started this side blog!
• 2023: Realised I could combine both stories into one book without sacrificing much of anything. The new story was just called Byoldervine
• 2023: Finished daydreaming and plotting and started actually writing. Took me long enough
Okay so I’m still going with these Byoldervine musical numbers because I have no life and holy shit I didn’t think Aegis’ one was gonna be that good but I’m actually getting really into it. Like I’m 95% sure it’s just me being vain but I think it actually lowkey slaps
I’ve pretty much finished one with Persephone and Alicia so I might share at least some of the lyrics here soon if people actually want to hear this stuff? I can record vocals but don’t expect any music to it I have no ear for that side of things
Byoldervine had tanned skin and brown eyes that looked almost golden in certain light. Her hair was often in a braided updo with long strands left out nearer the front, though her hair colour could vary and often was adorned with different flowers. She often wore loose and flowy clothing, finding it to be the most comfortable for her. She was always the most likely of the Celestials to be seen wearing what even humans would consider as casual clothing
Personality
Byoldervine was always very curious of humans and the way they perceived the world around them. She could get very protective and possessive of her realm, as well as easily frustrated with the other Celestials for meddling in her observations. She was very studious and perceptive, but also quite comfortable in her own solitude, preferring to observe than involve herself
Likes:
• Hearing the humans’ stories and myths
• Anthropology
• Peace and quiet
Dislikes:
• The other Celestials meddling in her realm
• Involving herself with humans
• Bitter food/drink, especially black coffee
Known Abilities
• Invisibility - Byoldervine was able to turn herself invisible
• Shapeshifting - Byoldervine was able to take the forms of those around her, though this ability was limited to humanoid beings
• Astral projection - Byoldervine could send her soul outside of her body for brief periods of time to allow herself to witness events all over Terran
• Mauthe (dog, later turned Barghest, treasured companion)
Friends/Allies:
• Aegis Cantor (fellow Celestial)
• Corrus Acaron (fellow Celestial)
Enemies:
• N/A
Backstory
Byoldervine was the youngest of the Celestials. Created by Nordsvark when life was new, he gave her a realm called Terran to watch over as she saw fit. He helped her to conjure beautiful landscapes and vast oceans, then filled the world they’d created with wondrous lifeforms of all varieties
Unlike her fellow Celestials, Byoldervine was much more content to watch over her realm and its development from afar. She was fascinated by how her human creations perceived the world around them, delighting in hearing their mythologies come about. She quickly learned that it was best to avoid intervening in their affairs if she wanted their own creativity and determination to really shine, and she discouraged the other Celestials from allowing their creations into Terran. They were allowed to visit, but they weren’t allowed to notably interact with the humans or allow the creatures to have their worldviews altered
Byoldervine treated her realm like a long-running TV show, always being keen to watch what they were getting up to, for better or for worse. Her distance from them lead to an emotional disconnect, with her growing desensitised to the violence and suffering she witnessed; she hated it as you’d hate it in a movie
She’d found the scaremongering about Y2K quite amusing until she began to fall ill, and for a time she feared the humans had predicted something far beyond her. The other Celestials were equally panicked, for they had never had to fear a Celestial dying. Byoldervine’s eventual passing in the year 2000, twenty-five years before our story takes place, struck fear and grief into the hearts of all those who outlived her - even more so after Corrus found no trace of her soul in Nexus after her death
Fun Facts
• Byoldervine had a mild allergy to peaches, but sometimes ate them anyway since they taste good (to be clear, her death was not peach-related; this is a fun fact, not a spoiler)
• Byoldervine was closest with Nordsvark, who would come visit her often to see how her realm was going. He was also fascinated by the humans’ mythos and would sometimes bring life to their fantasies, letting them find a home in his own realm of Paracosm
• Byoldervine had a pet dog named Mauthe, who stayed by her side until her passing. As per Byoldervine’s last wishes, Mauthe was turned into a Barghest and taken under Corrus’ care, remaining happy and loved by the Acarons to this day
Persephone: Thinks she’s going to be scared, but isn’t
Angelus: Thinks he’s not going to be scared, but is
Lazulai: Hiding under the blankets
Connor: Leaping five feet in the air at every jumpscare
Kennedy: Still and silent, eyes locked on the TV, nobody’s quite sure if she’s entirely unfazed or deathly afraid
As a group: Angelus has Persephone wrapped in his wings claiming she doesn’t meet the age requirements to watch horror movies that’ll give her such awful nightmares, she initially thinks it’s purely to piss her off but quickly catches on that he’s using this as an excuse to not watch. Kennedy and Connor are critiquing the plot and realism of this, booing and calling everyone stupid. Lazulai and Connor are both snacking but Lazulai’s getting annoyed with him because every time a jumpscare gets him the popcorn goes flying
Wait wtf did Angelus say to Enigma that made her think he's a misogynist???
It was more just treating her like an incompetent whiny child and she misinterpreted the constant ‘weak little girl’ comments to mean ‘all girls are weak’ and not ‘you specifically are weak and little’
After seeing Angelus interact with Lazulai and Kennedy, Enigma quickly realised that it was just a her thing and not a women thing. If Angelus had known this was in question, he would’ve clarified sooner
