Humans and Cybertronians experiencing uncanny valley about the other constantly.
Something so human, that speaks and walks, and most possessing faces that look so similar to someone of your own, something that might lack pupils, something that doesn’t breathe, moves so smoothly that it unnerves you, something that you can sense instinctively tries to communicate with you in ways that you cannot. The feeling of their EM fields on you is obtrusive and uncomfortable. None of the humans like it.
Something so Cybertronian, yet so much smaller and squishier. It’s so easy to forget the fragility that they are burdened with, so easy to forget their weak EM fields cannot respond in kind. If you do not see their you can almost pretend they’re a minicon with exotic mods, but the sheer amount of substances that they produce covers almost everything they touch.
Wafting a candle to their nose and being surprised when they can’t smell it.
Trying to speak to them in a higher tone and feeling bad for having forgotten that their ears are so sensitive when they squish their hands against their strange audials.
It’s so easy to forget how different you are. It’s impossible to see past the differences.
An analysis of the trio of light, their emotions and their cards from book 7
WARNINGS: bias, overthinking, yapping, delulu, spoilers from book 7, personal theories, daydreaming and thousands of other things.
In all of Twst, so far, there are only 3 characters with light magic. These are Rook Hunt, Silver Vanrouge and Kalim Al Asim. And they, in turn, are the only ones who during book 7 won cards with the same element present.
The only sources of light in the game are also the only ones who cry during their cards. Even though in the main story they are not the only ones who cry in moments of stress or relief, Ruggie for example, they are the only ones who have received cards crying.
Initially I found this a curious choice, but the more you analyze it the more you realize that this occurrence comes from how, unlike most characters, these cards reflect the end of an internal arc for them.
Rook: Throughout book 6, Rook gives hints about how much Vil's overblot affected him psychologically. He talks about nightmares very briefly, and how he still seems stuck in that moment to the point that he risks EVERYTHING to save Vil, even though he knows how irresponsible he is being.
Rook feels guilt, he blames himself completely for Vil's overblot and it clearly haunts him psychologically. It's something that eats away at him, something that is so deep that it even affected his dreams, and that in a twisted way kept Rook far away from Vil in his dream world.
It was this guilt that woke him up, this regret, this sadness, this trauma that haunts him completely. And this is reflected in his card, being the first time we see Rook without his barriers, the guilt, pain and sadness dripping from every expression. He loves Vil, and this pain, the feeling of being a traitor, hurts him more than any arrow.
And it is in this pain that we see Rook's true facet. A boy who loves too much, who feels too much, but who hid it all with his hunter's mask. But as a contemporary poet would say, he is just a man who was making an irrelevant choice but at the same time changed everything.
Kalim: In many ways, Kalim carries a toxic positivity. He tries to see the good side of everything and everyone as much as possible, but he constantly ignores his own discomfort or completely negative emotions.
What is not good, what is not healthy, the way Kalim lives in eternal denial and always suppressing EVERYTHING inside himself.
Until he became furious. In that dream, with that version that practically mocks Jamil, Kalim found himself completely irritated and disgusted. Angry at himself, angry at Malleus and angry at everything that had happened before. It is in this anger that Kalim finally fully computes the events of book 4, it is in this anger that he understands his own feelings and those of others.
He cries because he is frustrated, angry and tired. He cries for everything he has been through, for everything he has been denied, and he cries because it was all stupid and unfair. Kalim, who constantly smiles and brings joy, for the first time is completely tired of the fake smiles and his own denial of reality. Smiling would not change his and Jamil's situation, smiling was not helping him at all.
From a passive smile to determined anger.
Silver: The only one of the three whose tears did not come from stress or frustration, but from pure and genuine relief.
Unlike the others, Silver has always had difficulty showing what he feels. It is said several times that people cannot tell what he is feeling. He has always been different from the others because of this.
"Too human for the fairies."
"Too fairy for humans."
This is actually a very present theme in Silver's narrative, and during book 7 the human factor is put in his face as a doubt. A doubt about Lilia's love and his place by Malleus' side.
At every moment the need to choose, to hide a past he never knew, to discover what his real role is in the narrative of this story. Is he the knight in shining armor who will kill the monster? Is he the prince of an enemy kingdom, who will once again make the same mistakes as his father? Is he one of Malleus Draconiana's followers, trying his best to save his prince from himself?
And the answer? He is Silver Vanrouge, son of Lilia Vanrouge and brother of Malleus. He is not a prince or a knight, he is a brother, a friend and a son. He, who managed to save the people he loved so much, cries with joy and relief for this.
Silver reached his happy ending, surrounded by people who loved him as much as he loved them. People who could not care less where he came from, because the fact was clear who he was.
He was Lilia's little boy, who would fall asleep anywhere spontaneously and unexpectedly.
He was Malleus' little brother, who always smiled in his presence and who always wanted to stay by his side.
He was Sebek's rival, who grew up together both in power and internally. The one who would be by his side, both with the same dream and desire.
They all cry for the same reason, as they have finally finished their stories.
The hunter is still loved by the queen, as she never saw his actions as a betrayal.
The sultan and the sorcerer finally understand each other, they finally understand that they complement each other and do not depend on each other. And together, they can achieve freedom.
The little soldier can now finally smile with relief, as he has finally acquired proof that he has a home to return to.
always found it endearing how often kevin jumps in to protect someone else, seeming mostly out of reflex
like there is Kevin`s Big Score:
Darkstar Rising:
in The Final Battle Part 2:
in Map of Infinity:
A giant spiked hammer comes and seemingly crushes them.
Kevin pushes the hammer away.
Ultimate Echo Echo: I didn't know you could armor up that fast.
Kevin: You know, with the proper incentive...
in Where the Magic Happens:
this one doesn`t need elaboration
in Enemy of my Frenemy:
in The Ultimate Enemy:
in Many Happy Returns:
and an honorable mention goes to the Cosmic Destruction video game:
so to conclude,
Swampfire: You and Grandpa get to the control room and turn this ship around. (To Kevin) I'm gonna need some help, Kevin. Got my back?
Kevin: We got each other's.
