#eidolonlathi writes

[eidolonlathi]

Lettou and the Consequences of living for Revenge

I know most people like neither Lettou nor the Victoria arc, but what I find endlessly fascinating about his character is that he deliberately seems to be written in a way that shows what living for revenge looks like.

We know since his flashback with Theresis that Lettou never cared about Victoria and that his loyalty always had laid with Gaul. And that he had to hide that if he wanted to have a chance to successfully carry out his revenge. I wonder how much it hurt Lettou’s ego that he never got the chance to fully go “It was me! I sabotaged Victoria from within all along!” towards someone he deceived. I think it’s not always guilt that plagues him that much, but the burden of having lived a lie of that scale for that long.

Because look, who can be afford to be honest with? You have Duq’arael, who since ever knew that the face Lettou shows towards Victoria is the opposite of what he actually is thinking, and Duq'arael is on a path of revenge himself. He and the old Youth Vanguard Lettou was looking after are the few people Lettou didn’t need to lie to. But beside of that? The closest Lettou ever came to admitting the entirety of his destructive acts was when he was admitting to the soldier he had hidden from the Sarkaz (and who also was in the Gaulish resistance with him) that he had handed over everyone left in the Defense Forces to Theresis himself. But those are only fragments of the truth. I'm starting to think Lettou saved that one soldier he thought of as a coward from falling into the hands of the Sarkaz to prove to himself he still could spare people if he chose to do so. And as a fellow Gaulish remnant and a ‘coward’, that soldier was just the lowest risk option to confess to.

But why would that deliberate act of sparing a life be important to Lettou’s psyche? The story makes it clear Lettou is responsible for the end of dozens and dozens of random Londiniers, and additional to this the writing lingers on the way he is perfectly able and willing to even kiII people (plural) he knows. Like his soldiers he handed over to the Sarkaz when circumstances demanded it. And the old Youth Vanguard he mercy kiIIed. Or Golding. I never bought Lettou feeling sad about Golding's death as genuine, because you don't deliberately terrorize a years old acquaintance into kiIIing herself unless you mean it. What made him feel sad was the realization that leading her to her death made him fully face the fact that he has No Limits when sacrificing people for his goals. None. And the storytelling makes a point to show this here. It's no coincidence the writing deliberately shoves it down your throat how likable Golding is supposed to be: A kind and sentimental teacher who yearns for peace and joins Clovisia's Eartha in an attempt to help. Even the one flaw she has is that she is simply too naïve for her own good: Or to put it in unkind terms, if she wasn't too dense to realize that war is nothing like in her sentimental war novels she would be an utter Mary Sue. Don’t get upset about the buzzword, because the writing constructs this picture with intention:

All that likeability, and Lettou doesn’t care about any of that. He tries to win her over to the Defense Forces side because having a bureaucrat who is also an Eartha spy would be gold. And when she refuses and picks Victoria instead he is going to kiII her for certain. For one reason because she is siding with Clovisia’s Eartha, but also for the probably greater crime of siding with the nation Lettou’s revenge is set against. But she’s not going to get disposed of before getting deceived in a manner where she will reveal information about the Self-Salvation Corps. And when Lettou finally reveals that truth to her, it wasn't enough for him to let her know Molly had been switched out with a Damazti since weeks. He additionally made a point to fully blame Golding for causing the doom of her fellow Eartha members through her mistake. Like, just go and call her a cow at that point. That would have been kinder than the psychological torment he inflicted on her. But making her suffer was of course the entire point of Lettou's action. Because distressed people make mistakes (she already had made grave ones) and their enemies will use that.

This display of cruelty towards an old acquaintance is interesting, because in contrast Lettou extends pity towards random Eartha members like the family of a noble who got fed to the Vampires. Golding did not get a shred of that sympathy. Claiming he was sad after she had kiIIed herself feels hollow. He deliberately caused her end and did not slow down when she already was cracking. It’s just interesting that with Golding the story shows a character so obviously written to be liked by readers and characters alike that even Damazti liked her, enough that he made an attempt to change her mind when she declared that she wanted to kiII herself. And then we have Lettou who sees all of this likability, shrugs his shoulders and kills yet another person he knows because God beware you happen to be in his way to avenge Gaul.

And yet, up to a point Lettou feels sorry for the entirety of the damage he's causing, but it’s made clear that if he felt fully indifferent about what he is doing, the outcome would be just the same. Feeling sorry won’t stop him from committing his actions because his goal of avenging Gaul stands above it all. Duq'arael reduces people to bIoody puddles, and in comparison Lettou feels sorry when seeing his soldiers fall to their end when Team Amiya attacks the command tower, but some weeks later he will hand the soldiers who survived that over to the KMC anyway. Their approaches aside, the outcome of both of Lettou's and Duq'arael's actions is the same, and Lettou knows it. It’s worth pointing out that Lettou never puts the blame of sacrificing people who were in his way on anyone but himself. He never pulls a “you made me do it” on Duq’arael. He is very much aware about his own responsibility in the matter, and yet Lettou is not going to stop. Priorities.

And while we are at priorities, the point of 13-18 really is to show what sacrifices he is ready to make. In the same chapter we learn that he handed over what was left of the Defense Forces to Theresis. And that he is on his way to kiII the old Youth Vanguard so he won’t fall victim to looting Sarkaz or revenge driven Londiniers. Lettou was busy wrapping up what was left his of revenge on Victoria. If he would have felt regret about any of the damage he had inflicted, he would have chosen the "salvation" Clovisia offered him so conveniently. Instead he told the unicorn that he had seen through her identity and that she could go and get lost. Like, Lettou really doesn’t get enough credit for figuring out Clovisia’s identity as an ageless before everyone else did. No wonder he was so unfriendly towards her. Think about it from his perspective: He is getting approached by the embodiment of Victoria, the nation that destroyed Gaul. Ew. But also, Clovisia’s role in this moment is so important, because by rejecting her convenient offer for "salvation", Lettou makes it clear he still prioritizes his revenge. Additional, it’s a convoluted way of displaying loyalty towards Duq’arael by not using the chance to turn against him. Look, "Henchman of the villain of the story turns against him last minute (and picks side of heroes instead)" is such a lame trope and I'm glad it got avoided in this case. It’s always nice when I can point to a thing in the writing I think the Victoria arc did well.

No, Clovisia had no chance. The only thing Lettou still wants to do at that point is to return to Duq'arael, who we now know he shares a level of ruthlessness with. And it’s so funny to realize that at that point Lettou himself has kiIIed everyone he had some connection with until only he and Duq'arael had been left. Like, Lettou himself made sure no distractions were left when he faced Duq’arael for the last time. Duq’arael often gets the label as the obsessed one with him calling Lettou his pet bird etc, but it wasn't him who kiIIed the people Lettou had left. That all had been Lettou.

There is a thing going on here of Lettou being aware that he and Duq’arael are alike, and he drives attention to that point when he is deliberately making sure he spiIIs his bIood over Duq’arael when kiIIing himself. It's on one hand the act of leaving a trace of yourself on the last thing you felt a connection to. And for another point, Lettou claims he made himself a permanent part of Duq’arael’s blood by “polluting” it when he made sure his bIood spilled over Duq’arael when he kiIIed himself. Lettou is the one who searched for a way which would ensure he and Duq’arael could be Together Forever. That's one of the reasons why it was important to Lettou to return to Duq'arael. Lettou was aware that he and Duq’arael are alike, and that connection was something he just was not willing to let go of. So he searched for a way to make that connection permanent. No matter what.

A character who has been shown to live for revenge can only think of force to uphold the one meaningful connection he had managed to make with one of the few people he had never needed to deceive. Imagine my surprise.

[eidolonlathi]

About Andoain's new sprite

I prefer Andoain's old sprite over his new one. I truly do.

I liked it better when his specific brand of crazy was oozing out of every pixel of his sprite. I remember the first time I saw him in Guide Ahead: I got slightly startled when I saw him, because there is something so subtly off with his expression. It's something about the way his eyes are not fully symmetrically drawn, it immediately gives you the impression that this is a character where not all is what it seems to be. In contrast his new sprite has lost its edges. It looks inoffensive and tame in comparison. But I don't know, maybe it fits him after all. Because later in The Masses' Travels we learn that even though Andoain is just as happy as ever to follow illusions, he is no longer the Guide of those fixed ideas the Lock and Key gave him. This time the otherworldly creature that got his mind filled with new visions just made him its follower.

Look at this sad individual of a man, Andoain constantly needs saving: By Mostima and Lemuen to shield him from Fiammetta's well justified anger against him. By "Keph", who just used him for the Law's greater goal. By Patia to give him back a minimal sense of order once he woke up from the dream and went to face the Law – and yet there he went and still called himself a Guide and still believes himself able to find paths.

My guy, you are not a guide. You have been a sleepwalker since you decided to put ideals before reality. That's why you hurt a real and genuine friend you had made with Lemuen for the sake of pursuing a vision you had wildly misinterpreted. That's why you went and ruined it right again after you had given Fiammetta an apology that by all appearance had been nothing but sincere. That's why living a life with Patia and the other Pathfinders who saw you as their "Guide" wasn't enough for you and why "Keph" managed to pull you so easily into her dream. That’s why the Law decided there was no point in showing you reality but to instead translate the information it wanted to show you in yet another simulation tailor made for your view only.

Those "true angels" the Law was talking about? We have only seen them in Andoain's simulation the Law made for him. Taking into consideration he has proven to be easily influenced and swayed by visions that pry on his emotions like the Lock and Key and also "Keph", I’m very cautious with story information we only have learned from his point of view. Maybe his urge to chase after ideals made him fall prey to yet another false vision.

Look at Andoain’s new sprite. In contrast to his old one he is no longer facing the viewer. Instead he is evasive, avoiding to look at the reality in front of him, entirely distracted with his dreams. Someone so used to sleepwalking through his entire life like Andoain would feel little difference when walking from one dream into another, when mistaking an old memory for a vision of the future, when exchanging one illusion with another. I don’t like Andoain’s new sprite that much, but maybe it fits him after all.

[eidolonlathi]

The Sanguinarch and IS5

I’ve learned from Nymph’s Storyteller Record that some Sarkaz are starting to deify Duq’arael. It’s going to be funny when he returns on the 333rd day after being thrown into the parallel dimension and people will be happy to see that He Is Risen. Give it enough time and we’ll eventually get accidental godhead Duq’arael (not really, except that I’d really like to see it). Just look at this interesting little exchange here:

It looks like an obscure incident, sure, but it made me remember how the Nymph event showed that some Sarkaz feel unhappy with the ‘ruling elite up in their towers’. I wonder if in hindsight Duq’arael appears like the lesser evil. “He only appeared in the city every few months and spent the rest of the time in his castle and left us alone. Unlike those controlling tower dweller who are constantly looking down on us.” Maybe some are having a sentiment akin to this.

Babel confirmed the Sanguinarch didn't live in Kazdel city the entire time and only travelled to it when he had business with the KMC etc. With the Liches breathing down everyone's necks these days the memory of Sarkaz nobles who were not present the entire time might look more appealing.

And that little line in Nymph’s Storyteller Record makes me think of this new IS5 relic that dropped. It describes how if back in the day the outcome of the confrontation between Duq’arael and his brother would have been that Duq’arael wouldn’t have made it and the brother had survived instead, then people would look back at his attempt to overthrow the brother as a missed chance. Because the brother eventually would have started to drain everyone of their bIood:

It’s so interesting how Duq’arael’s failed attempt to overthrow his brother gets described as brave here. I wonder if this alternative outcome is supposed to show that the brother was not the pacifist everyone seems to take him for but a tyrant at heart. And that once Duq’arael was gone no one made him hold back these urges anymore and he just fully gave in to them. Like, look at the effect of that relict. It drains everyone, friend and foe alike of their blood. That may not be the equality people love to demand but the one you get if the bearer of the crown decides that is what he wants. Have fun with your bIood tax, I guess.

[eidolonlathi]

Some insights about Lettou, the Duke of Caster and Allerdale

Now that Ending a Grand Overture has ended it helped me to further reflect on some parts of the main story. Rereading the Duke of Casters statement about the situation in Londinium at the beginning of Episode 12 is so funny in hindsight because it highlights how systematically and thoroughly Lettou managed to win the trust of the Victorian nobles and deceive them. She's acknowledging the citizens of Norport are pretty much doomed but has no plans to interfere because doing so would mean risking conflicts with the other dukes. Like them her priority is to observe the situation and to wait before making any major move. At the same time she believes Lettou might be the one willing to put himself at risk by doing what none of the dukes have been willing to do so far. The reader though already knows at this point that his intentions couldn't be any more of the opposite. He doesn’t care about Victoria, what he cares about is avenging Gaul.

High-Ranking Officer: Then, Your Grace, about the citizens of Norport...

Duke of Caster: Lt. Colonel Lettou said that he was preparing a "rescue plan." You won't go wrong putting your trust in that Gaulish commander. I've met him before– he's an interesting man. The Sarkaz have never publicly claimed to "occupy" Londinium, as it has nominally been under the control of the Defense Forces. And this Lieutenant Colonel has managed to survive in his position for four years without getting caught up in any major trouble either... We all know how what those devils are like, so that fact alone is respectable enough. Who knows, maybe he's more keen on becoming a "savior" than we are.

High-Ranking Officer: I see what you're saying.

Duke of Caster: Getting the right people into the right positions, and turning valued friends into truly loyal partners... is harder than we initially expected. Old Wellington knows what I want, and I know what he wants. Though we've never talked about these things openly, we naturally helped each other, all while keeping an extra knife sharpened for one another. Poor thing. Windermere's been playing with the Leithanians for so long, it might be a while until she remembers how Victoria works.

From 12-2

But it's so revealing to look at the words she is using here. On the one side she describes Lettou as “an interesting man” and also voices respect he managed to survive the four years in close proximity to the Sarkaz since they've taken over the city. Yet she refers to him as ‘that Gaulish Commander', which means she does not truly acknowledge him as a fellow Victorian. Like in his exchange with Catherine it’s one of those moments that show that in their eyes he actually is not and never will be truly one of them. For all his efforts to overtly fit in, he’ll always stay “that Gaulish Commander”.

Keeping that in mind it looks puzzling how Caster brags about having succeeded in finding the right people. Given he's a descendant of a nation Victoria conquered it looks a bit odd Lettou is holding the rank and power he has. As Caster just stated a moment earlier, it might only have been on paper, but officially Lettou was the one holding control over Londinium since the years the Sarkaz have gained the power. But looking at the infighting the different factions of the dukes have, I believe they thought choosing a neutral party not affiliated with any of them would have been the guarantee no duke could backstab the other and take advantage of the others. Because that's their main worry. All Lettou had to do was to carefully hold up the appearance his loyalty laid with his new "home"country and that all he was feeling for Gaul was some sort of nostalgia instead of the deep loyalty, sympathy and longing the reader already knows he is feeling for it.

Caster's words really show how thoroughly Lettou managed to deceive the nobles in charge. Londinium is falling, Norport already has gotten abandoned and she still thinks of Lettou as trustworthy and that he might be the sort to do the dirty work in her stead – even though at the same time she admits that it should not be taken for granted he survived at the side of the Sarkaz for this long to begin with. The infighting and power plays of the dukes is exactly what allowed Lettou to take advantage of these instabilities for his own goals. No one as much as suspects that he never had Victoria’s wellbeing at heart and that becoming its “hero” is the intention furthest away from his mind. But as long as he holds the pretense up that he feels as one of them, the people higher up in power are content enough to believe what they see on the surface.

During Ending a Grand Overture the Duke of Caster makes an interesting statement that further contextualizes her though process in this. In GO-01 when she, the Duke of Gododdin and the Earl of March meet Vina, Caster outright states that she is willing to sacrifice all of Londinium and its people if that is what’s needed to ensure the stability of the rest of Victoria: If Londinium has become an ulcer sapping Victoria's strength, I do not mind gouging it out. I will allow other nations to see Victoria bleed, but I will not tolerate them mocking our scars, nauseating though they may be. In this moment Caster simply states what her fellow Dukes and members of the nobility have been thinking all along. The statement builds a complete contrast to Vina who wants to prioritize the wellbeing of the people of Londinium, no matter what.

It’s symptomatic that even at this point Caster and her fellow dukes are still so set on preventing Vina gaining a position of influence. She might have the title of the Speaker of Parliament now, but all the dukes can think of is in what ways they still can influence her for their own gain. It’s exactly this kind of infighting with each other that prevented them from noticing that people who have reason to harbor a grudge against Victoria and wish for its downfall had the chance follow their own goals already years ago. During a flashback of a young Allerdale in Episode 11-1 it gets confirmed that the Gaulish remnant has been planning to systematically undermine the command structure of Victoria (including the city Defense Forces) as their long term goals since years:

Indistinct Officer: ... the key is seizing the city Defense Forces ...some dukes got fed up with it long ago...

We never learn who this “Indistinct Officer” of Gaulish origin who Allerdale overhears actually is. All we know is that he’s a Gaulish loyalist hiding his true intentions and that he's part of the Victorian army. Well, my theory is that he is Lettou’s father. Interestingly he has a similar speech patterns as Lettou: The choice of vocabulary we see through the entire exchange and especially the pauses he falls into whenever there is a moment the context makes it clear he avoids telling the truth are something Lettou does as well. Them being related would make sense from a narrative standpoint. But actually Indistinct Officer could just be some Gaulish guy with a grudge against Victoria.

And at this point I’m once again baffled by some writing decisions that were made during the Victoria arc. It’s not in the main story but in Doc’s operator record of all places that it’s revealed that the resentment Gaulish survivors feel towards Victoria is not caused due to some old grudges but by things that are going wrong in the present.

Doc’s Operator Record is about him giving medical care to a village of Gaulish descendant in Victoria and it is quite depressing. The people of the village live in dire circumstances, have problems growing food and their attempts to improve their situation by paying for their own infrastructure and the like never go anywhere because the bureaucrats of the region keep intervening. They prevent caravans from going to that village and do business with it, sabotaging every attempt the villagers do to improve their lives. The reader also learns it is a widespread practice that people of Gaulish origin under the suspicion of still feeling ties towards their home country are forced to spit on a portrait of Corsica to prove that their loyalty is now with Victoria. If you read Golding’s lines in the main story how all people born in Victoria are the same, you would think Victoria would make no difference in how they treat their citizens. But Doc’s OpRec makes it very clear that the opposite is the case.

The people of Gaulish descent living in Victoria are not even allowed to keep their mother tongue alive. Speaking Gaulish is heavily discouraged and frowned upon, a matter of suspicion. All of this has led to most people of the younger generation not even being able to speak the language anymore. Learning that Doc can speak French/Gaulish they’re eager for him to teach them. What makes that point especially cruel is that in Episode 11-1 we learn during young Allerdale’s flashback that part of her education involves having to learn Gaulish. Victoria’s nobility is still interested in keeping the language alive for the sake of using it themselves while people of Gaulish origin are in practice forbidden to use it.

No surprise the main story never showed these points, I guess that would have made Lettou’s motivations too sympathetic. It makes me wonder though why that plot point was introduced to begin with when it never got a real conclusion in the events of the main story.

At the same time the main story shows that exactly these unresolved tensions have part in destroying Victoria from the inside since years. Or as Indistinct Officer put it: Even if this duke's home is razed to ash one day, the Cumberlands would never sell off this [steam] armor. Allerdale’s flashback in 11-1 already completely foreshadows that her involvement with Vina and with Clovisia’s Self-Salvation Corps – while still having to answer to the Duke of Caster - will end in her manor getting reduced to cinders. Lettou was the one who investigated her involvement with the Self-Salvation Corps and the Sanguinarch was the one who then burned Cumberland Manor to the ground. The fact that the Dukes were so busy with infighting and internal power plays while Londinium was already crumbling sure made it easier for these two to follow their own goals. Goals that are very much diametrical to Londinium’s wellbeing.

I actually liked how Allerdale’s arc ended in Episode 11. Even before the fire made her lose her manor and her last true ally, her maid Ailshie, her descent into disillusionment had long since started. Her betrayal towards Vina didn’t really feel like a surprise because of this, and her refusal to fully go through with it in the last moment felt coherent for her character. I wasn’t that enthusiastic when it was revealed she had returned and was now acting from the shadows. But seeing how things look for Londinium after Ending a Grand Overture I’m starting to think that an Allerdale going through her “I’m no longer nice!” edgelord phase is maybe the thing Londinium needs to prevent it will repeat old mistakes that led to its downfall.

[eidolonlathi]

A Look at the Dynamics between the Sanguinarch and Lettou

I’ll never get over the irony how a Vampire who detests non-Sarkaz and is so obsessed with the purity of Sarkaz bIood is shown to have the most stable bond throughout the Londinium arc with a Liberi, excuse me, with an outbIood.

They’re witnessing from afar how Allerdale’s manor is burning down, it’s the first scene they share together, and it’s already setting the tone for all of their future interactions. Lettou makes a tentative attempt to talk to the Sanguinarch – about what we’ll never know – just to immediately get ordered to stop talking because the Sanguinarch wants to enjoy the view in silence. He is picking up though that Lettou isn’t agreeing fully with methods having become more drastic and does two things: First he suggests (orders) that Lettou stops worrying and learns to enjoy the destruction in front of him while calling Lettou his friend. And second he offers him the slightest bit of justification of his own actions by claiming that witnessing the evaporation of the traitor bIood in front of them is the Sanguinarch’s responsibility, implying that he is driven by more than pure bIoodIust in this moment. Lettou can’t do much more in this moment than to agree that they share a common goal, but at the same time he does a bit more than that: He states that cooperating with the Sanguinarch’s methods is his duty, hence repeating the sentiment that both of their actions are driven by circumstances that go beyond personal motivation.

Those two finding this point of agreement is no coincidence. At their core they both are people who have no higher priority than fulfilling the things they view as their duty. With Lettou no one notices because he immediately gets dismissed as a traitor, and with the Sanguinarch one doesn’t because he’s so cruel and abrasive that it’s hard to notice any nuance beyond that.

You keep reading and see that the state in Londinium has now declined to a degree that now even the nobility who was kept safe in their bubble have become targets. The artillery canons Manfred uses spread terror from afar, the destruction the Sanguinarch and Lettou cause tends to be one committed from up close. We see the Sanguinarch relying on Lettou’s help when disposing of a noble who has become a nuisance and like in the scene with Allerdale’s manor getting destroyed carnage and enjoyment blur together. Once the noble is dealt with, the Sanguinarch suggests (orders) that he and Lettou follow the invitation of the now disposed of noble to sample his private wine reserve. As much as the Sanguinarch claims to despise outbloods, Lettou’s presence clearly doesn’t ruin his appetite, interesting.

You’ll continue reading and see that a destruction that is already spreading is one difficult to contain and control. Lettou tentatively implies to the Sagnuinarch that it might have been a measure too drastic that he has fed a nobleman’s wife and child to his Vampires. Or at least he tries to address the point. The Sanguinarch doesn’t even let him finish his sentence and uses his bIood arts to cut off Lettou’s ability to breathe. Lettou orders his men to stand back when they are about to defend him in this moment – thus ensuring they won’t end up as a guaranteed collateral damage against a Vampire they have no chance against – rather accepting to face his end alone. But that never arrives. The Sanguinarch lets him live.

The moment makes you question why the Sanguinarch is still keeping Lettou around at this point, and he just answers that himself. He calls Lettou his pet Falcon and claims that when other people wonder why he’s keeping around and spoiling a pet that occasionally pecks his finger, that he’s doing it because the personality and intelligence of his pet bird makes the effort still worth it.

At this point it really becomes striking how fear and control have become a constant element of their interactions. But at the same time this appears to be driven more by purpose than mere malice. The Sanguinarch will physically hurt Lettou and compare him to a pet bird when feeling disappointed with him, but in the same moment he will admit that he keeps him around because he values his personality and intelligence. If you continue to look at their interactions you'll notice how there is an ongoing theme how the Sanguinarch won’t hesitate to be crueI to Lettou – usually to ‘teach’ him to do better – but at the same time it is Lettou who is the one person he cares to keep around himself. Keeping a non-Sarkaz close apparently doesn’t count as long as he calls him his pet. Endlessly fascinated by the cope he puts in place here.

Because, you know, the Falcon thing goes both ways. On the first look it just looks like yet another way to humiliate Lettou. On closer look, the Sanguinarch just implied that he had been confronted with people who were wondering why he keeps that outblood this close. Making a point how he only keeps him around as a ‘pet’ sort of solves his problem and also protects Lettou from other Sarkaz assuming that the Sanguinarch cares. And with the tense and distrustful atmosphere around the Sarkaz Royal Court you can see how that would be a point he would like to make.

Team Amiya targets the command tower of the Defense Forces and this multilayered dynamic only extends itself. By this point Lettou has lost almost all sense of self-preservation and doesn’t bother to dodge the attacks directed at him. Partially he refuses to leave the tower because he can’t bring it over himself to abandon his men who are still fighting, partially he feels an end by the hands of the Sarkaz has become unavoidable, so why resist? Given this insight it’s a sad irony that the very first the Sanguinarch does when arriving on the tower is to put a shield of bIood between Lettou and Ascalon, protecting him from her attack. He immediately reprimands Lettou for being foolish enough to not dodge an opponent he knows to be stronger than him and puts his ‘blessing’ on the soldiers Lettou feels responsible for, disposing of the one thing that prevented Lettou to think of his own wellbeing first. But you know… For all the tantrum the Sanguinarch is throwing and for all the threats he is making towards Lettou, it’s again one of those odd situations where the words spoken don’t quite reflect the actions that were taken. Like, buddy, if Lettou is really that disposable in your eyes then why go through the effort of shielding him from Team Amiya at all? Why instead not instantly go for the crown you’re so set on destroying when surprise still would have been on your side, hmm? I guess danger forcing one to make quick decisions reveals some of one’s priorities after all.

Episode twelve shows little of those two interacting but the one instance that does is the more interesting because the scene involves Damazti. He treats it as complete routine to tell Lettou that he’d better hurry back to the Sanguinarch because "he had just opened a new bottle of wine, waiting for you, and we have already grown tired of his stories of yesteryear. You are a much better listener than we are". Stranger domestic habits have developed, I guess. It’s sort of telling though how Damazti views Lettou as his instant ticket out of having to participate in a conversation he finds boring, viewing the Sanguinarch and Lettou as some sort of item.

If Damazti noticed this you can be certain that Theresis did as well. I always found the timing a bit too convenient that the Defense Forces got disarmed around the same time Theresis was about to send the Sanguinarch to perform the ritual at Brentwood. One has to ask if Theresis had kept the defense at Brentwood this suspiciously low because he had hoped to get rid of the Sanguinarch. It looks as if from Theresis view it was most convenient to get rid of both annoyances at the same time. I wonder if he had counted on the Sanguinarch disposing of Lettou earlier and got caught by surprise when that never happened.

With the Defense Forces disarmed at the end of Episode 13, Lettou sees little hope for anything. It gets implied that he never really believed Theresis would hand back the Gaulish platforms and only hoped that his actions would create an opening for his compatriots in the Gaulish restoration to act. Witnessing the escalating violence in Londinim, he decides to kiII the old Vieux Vanguard he had been looking after before any of the Sarkaz can get him into their hands. And then he goes to see the Sanguinarch one last time, kiIIing himself right before his eyes.

With what we witnessed so far it comes as little surprise to see the kind of breaking point Lettou has reached, but interestingly amongst his desperation there are still elements of determination. On his way to see the Vieux Vanguard Clovisia approaches Lettou, offering him to join her side and safe himself through it. Not only does he decline, he basically calls Clovisia a ruthless opportunist who is using the chaos for her own goals. It's clear he neither trusts her nor holds any respect for her. But also, given what will happen later… in rejecting her offer he’s staying loyal to the Sanguinarch even when he has already decided that he wants to leave him on his own terms. Lettou kiIIing himself in front of the Sanguinarch while calling him names was an act of spite and desperation, sure, but also one ingrained with a twisted sense of loyalty. Even when acknowledging the dismal conditions he had been in and when checking out on his own conditions, Lettou did so in a way that wouldn't inconvenience the Sanguinarch.

Clovisia’s offer had no chance to shake his decision. Lettou moved in the confinements he was in at the time, sure, but he did so while holding on to the last shred of principles and dignity he had. It was also an act that left the Sanguinarch baffled. He could imagine that Lettou would try and hurt him in the state he was in, but he hadn’t seen the possibility that Lettou would hurt himself. The Sanguinarch gets taken by surprise but can’t even admit that to himself. Instead he tells himself like ten times that Lettou was an insignificant existence and that there’s no reason to care that he died.

The Sanguinarch has been shown to have the most stable bond throughout the Londinium arc with a non-Sarkaz he called his pet, but he tells himself that he doesn’t care the Liberi just cut his own throat, even though not even five minutes ago he told Lettou he should feel honored that the Sanguinarch let him close in ways he doesn’t even with his fellow Vampires. He reminds himself that the insignificant man he wasted the last couple of years with was but a pathetic existence, so insignificant even that he will not waste a single thought more to think about this annoying person who didn’t matter. The Sanguinarch is going to stop thinking about Lettou for sure. Soon. Any moment now. Dude goes and claims he doesn’t care even though we have seen by now that this is not entirely true. Dude goes and claims he doesn’t care and sounds like the person he has to convince the most is he himself.

[eidolonlathi]

How the way the Sanguinarch and Lettou were introduced already foreshadows their incoming dynamics in the plot

I can't stop thinking about the fact that the first time the main story shows the Sanguinarch he literally gets introduced by talking about Lettou. There's this short introduction to the members of the KMC right in chapter one of Episode 10, and of all the subjects he could have brought up it is Lettou the Sanguinarch is talking about.

And the way he is doing it is so revealing and already following the trend of their incoming dynamics. Yeah sure, on the surface he's complaining about “Theresis' friend” Lettou by comparing him to the Victorian nobles, but the really interesting part is the vagueness of his threat and the way he reacts once Theresis takes the bait. He instantly agrees when Theresis orders him to leave Lettou alone and abruptly changes the subject to something completely unrelated. It is atypical to how he usually reacts to Theresis' orders. The Sanguinarch usually challenges, questions or outright ridicules them. Just compliantly agreeing to something Theresis or Theresa says is not something he usually does. It's one of the symptoms that shows during the main story (and Babel) how tense his relation with them is.

Which makes me think that in this case he only brought his “annoyance” with Lettou up because he knew Theresis would predictably have no patience for it and order him to leave things alone, and thus give the Sanguinarch a chance to agree to just that. Like look, now it's not his idea to stay patient when he's spending time with Lettou. He's just following the Regent's orders here and the rest of the KMC heard this. It's not the Sanguinarch’s idea to act patient with the outblood. Like what, are you complaining now he's listening to Theresis in this case? Are you the one trying to pick a fight now? The Sanguinarch has just muted all criticism before it even got a chance to arrive.

Putting a distance between him and Lettou during moments the Sanguinarch's behavior could be interpreted as being too involved and lenient also perfectly fits in with the way he behaves during the main story. He falls into a rant of how he doesn't need Lettou every time he feels puzzled by his behavior while at the same time he is not letting his pet (Duq'arael's words) stray too far away from his side and keeps insisting that they're friends. But now that matters in Londinium are getting tenser no one can accuse the Sanguinarch of having grown soft towards Lettou. He's just following the Regent's orders by showing patience towards him, and he made sure everyone had to hear that he had no choice but to agree to that.

Keeping this in mind it is very revealing that during the first scene the Sanguinarch seems to lose patience with Lettou there is actually the opposite going on. The Sanguinarch is not angry, only disappointed: Lettou brings up that kiIIing the wife and children of a noble they have been after might have went a bit too far, and the Sanguinarch makes it clear that he disagrees about that by taking away Lettou’s ability to breath with his blood arts. The implication he is making is clear. They are in no place to have pity with the enemy, and Lettou should already know better. There’s a reason why through all this pain he is inflicting the Sanguinarch also admits he keeps Lettou around for his personality and intelligence. The reader could have guessed at this point: People the Sanguinarch feels displeased with and doesn’t care about usually end up as a bIoody puddle on the floor. It is noteworthy though how self-conscious Lettou’s objection manages to leave Duq’arael. He doesn’t even bother to refute anything Lettou just said, but instead voices disappointment Lettou doesn’t show him the same trust Duq’arael has been giving him. And then he tells Lettou he would prefer to not get pecked by his pet bird. And that might sound like someone is being a little bit oversensitive until you remember… The bird Lettou appears to be based upon is a peregrine falcon. Those were used in the middle ages by European nobility for falconry. It's a predatory bird, not a songbird. So, when Duq'arael calls Lettou his pet bird the statement also acknowledges that he keeps him because he needs him for hunting his “prey”.

It’s funny though how only a short while later the writing confirms Duq’arael’s approach of sparing none of their targets to be an appropriate caution. Because do you know what happens to the children of their targets who escape? They become RockRock and Stainless. RockRock’s father was killed by the Sarkaz, and RockRock still feels shaken by the memory of how Theresa was there when he was executed, doing nothing but watching in silence. Stainless only escaped from the Defense Forces who were already on his tracks because Lettou listened to Catherine’s plea to spare him. Lettou’s conversation with Catherine was the first time in the story we saw him in person, and it’s a bit funny that his habit of showing sympathy with the people of Victoria in the wrong moment was a theme already present there. I doubt Lettou had any pity left for Feist in that moment, but as Catherine is the person basically running the factory and is highly respected by her co-workers, keeping her cooperation was important. At that time Feist was but a little clog in the Self-Salvation Corps that Clovisia was running, I guess Lettou thought agreeing to Catherine’s plea and spare Feist was an appropriate price to ensure her cooperation.

You’re always wiser in hindsight and from Lettou’s perspective sparing Feist was the wrong thing to do. Team Amiya leads the attack on the Command Tower, and the spared children Feist and RockRock lead the charge. If it wouldn’t have been for the Sanguinarch putting a shield of blood between Lettou and Ascalon things would have ended fatally for Lettou. It’s not only telling with what impulsivity Duq’arael shielded Lettou instead of going for Amiya’s crown while surprise still would have been on his side, but also that this is the first moment we actually see him lose his patience. He snaps at Lettou for being foolish enough to not hide from the Sarkaz despite knowing that they are much stronger than him. Interestingly he sees not engaging in a fight here as a completely reasonable option. Ironically, this conclusion comes from his mindset of seeing non-Sarkaz as potential prey – as we’ve seen in his interaction with Siege – and for prey it is reasonable to flee from a stronger enemy. It really is telling that in the moment Lettou explains he only stayed because he couldn’t bring it over himself to abandon his soldiers who are still fighting team Amiya, the Sanguinarch’s reaction is to use Lettou’s soldiers for his bIood arts and kiII them in the process. He removed the one thing that was holding Lettou back this time. Actions speak louder than words, I guess. The Sanguinarch’s comment he soon will have no need to keep Lettou alive sounds like a cope after the outburst he just had. Guess admitting he cares if this non-Sarkaz lives or dies is in fact a potential weakness – especially with half of the KMC and the enemy still watching and listening – so he needs to cover that up.

Like, Duq'arael has an advantage over Lettou, yes, but it is funny the text makes it obvious he feels vulnerable over the fact he started to care so much for a non-Sarkaz. Duq’arael pretty much dislikes everyone we see him interact with, and then it’s this Liberi he will admit to feel affection for. If I was part of the cutthroat environment that is the KMC I would try to cover that up too.

And his effort was strong enough that the text could bring things to their conclusion. The story introduces Lettou through the Sanguinarch and the text lets Lettou return to the Sanguinarch’s side to die. Or as Lettou put it himself, he was always going to find His Highness. And Duq’arael doesn’t get what is about to happen until it is too late and Lettou has already cut his own throat. Instead Duq’arael is too focused on his own words during their last interaction, once again having no other subject than Lettou during his monologue. Or to be more precise, the Sanguinarch is really just a compilation of tsundere tropes during his and Lettou’s last meeting:

He mentions how his vampire subjects were sure Lettou wouldn’t stay alive long enough to return for the day of the ritual but that Duq’arael had always believed in Lettou to manage just that. And that he’s happy to see Lettou in better spirits because the mere thought of witnessing more of his revenge against Victoria is already filling him with affection for Lettou: “Yeah, I might like you, so you better feel honored by it.”

He points out that unlike Lettou not even other Vampires have the honor to see the horrors he is about to unleash today: “Do you even realize that I’m keeping company with you that’s below my standards? Do you appreciate it? Do you really?!”

And then, after Lettou kiIIed himself Duq’arael has an entire monologue how this René Lettou is definitely, definitely not worth to be remembered: “Oh you think you can hurt me by guilt-tripping me in such a dramatic manner – Well, you were pathetic to begin with anyway, it's not like I care or anything.”

Yeah. It’s not like the Sanguinarch cares, or anything. He is just shown to keep obsessing over Lettou for no particular reason.

[eidolonlathi]

The Parallels between the Sanguinarch and Lettou

It is an ironic thematic parallel that both the Sanguinarch and Lettou are the two people during the Victoria arc whose motives are almost solely driven by the catastrophic defeat their respective people suffered, and yet they are two of the most isolated characters during the arc and only really have each other. And it’s interesting how chapter thirteen makes a point to show this.

During the entire Victoria arc we can see that the relations of the Vampire court with the rest of the Military Commission is rather bad, up to a point that it comes as little surprise when it is implied that Theresis set the Sanguinarch up for failure at Brentwood to get rid of him entirely. But it is interesting that Babel clarified that these tensions were nothing new and the relations of the Vampire court with the rest of the Sarkaz had been terrible for at least centuries. These tensions make you wonder why the Sanguinarch agreed to go along with Theresis plan in Victoria to begin with. At least you do until his fight with team Amiya on the Command Tower where there is so much old and pent up bitterness coming out of him. He blames the Ancients and Elders for driving the Sarkaz into a corner He has not forgiven Kal’tsit for mobilizing entire armies on Kazdel during a time the Sarkaz were just trying to mind their own business. And it is interesting the people he seems to despise the most are the Sarkaz denying their heritage by trying to make peace with just those outbloods: The Sanguinarch made it quite clear he found Theresa’s ideals and those of the Sarkaz siding with her ridiculous.

It is a mindset similar of what’s going on with Lettou, really. It’s maybe just not that obvious because from the first moment we see him Lettou has been lying and keeps lying. He has to. Given his situation he has to hide the depth of his sympathies towards Gaul. Otherwise he would endanger the power his position in the military is giving him and the trust he established among Victoria’s nobles. Those are the tools he needs to drive his revenge against Victoria for making Gaul fall, and this is what still makes him useful to the Military Commission. Because just like the Sanguinarch it is mostly revenge that is driving him: He lied to Theresis when getting asked if he wanted to win back the Gaulish platforms, admitting much later to Clovisia he never had any hope of this succeeding. He lied towards Catherine about feeling remorse the Sarkaz were taking over Victorian factories, even though he very much did not mind the humiliation the destroyer of his fatherland suffered in that moment. And he lied to Golding about having lost all former goals and aiming for nothing but his own survival. – Since the moment her deep ties to the Self-Salvation Corps became apparent he deliberately and intentionally drove her into a corner. Even though she was a former acquaintance, even though she too had Gaulish roots, from the moment on she had sided with the country that had destroyed Gaul she had to die.

Lettou being so callous for the sake of Gaul is making even more sense now that Doc’s operator record of all people provided us with much needed context of how Victoria is treating its Gaulish inhabitant. Doc’s Operator Record is about him giving medical care to a village of Gaulish descendant in Victoria and it is quite depressing. They live in dire circumstances, have problems growing food and their attempts to improve their situation by paying for their own infrastructure etc. go nowhere because for some ‘mysterious’ reason the caravans don’t want to go to that village and do business with it. The reader also learns it is a widespread practice that people of Gaulish origin under the suspicion of still feeling ties towards their home country are forced to spit on a portrait of Corsica to prove that their loyalty is now with Victoria. If you read Golding’s lines in the main story how all people born in Victoria are the same, you would think Victoria would make no difference in how they treat their citizens. But Doc’s OpRec makes it very clear that the opposite is the case: The Victorian bureaucrats actively sabotage every attempt the villagers in Doc’s story make to try and improve their lives. No surprise the main story never showed that, I guess that would have made Lettou’s motivations too sympathetic. Circumstances of Gaulish survivors in Victoria so dire, they had to put its details into the operator's record of a true limited five star barely anyone will bother to E2, sad.

With these details giving much needed clarification, it’s impossible but to not see this as yet another parallel the writing established between Lettou and the Sanguinarch. It is made clear how thoroughly the Sanguinarch detests non-Sarkaz, but he feels repelled by the Sarkaz who try to find peace with them and subjugate themselves to them even more. He won’t take someone like Siege seriously, while mere mentions of his brother during the wrong time will make him lose his calm. On a similar note, it is interesting to see how most of the time Lettou will appear emotionally aloof, but will show instances where he clearly does feel a lot for the people who are by definition his enemy. He is betraying his soldiers in a long term way but loses it when he sees how they are getting slaughtered on the Command Tower. He is more than ready to kiII people who are part of the Self-Salvation Corps, but feels conflicted when seeing the wife and children of some noble are getting slaughtered. Both times it almost ended as a disaster for him that he felt pity for these Victorians during the wrong moment. In contrast he felt no regret but only exhaustion over Golding’s death. He might wish there could have been an outcome where kiIIing her wouldn’t have been necessary, but from his conversation with Clovisia where he impatiently rejected the ‘atonement’ she offered him, we can see that given the choice he’d do it all over again

I find it interesting how the writing made both Lettou and the Sanguinarch kiII people they had used to be close with to illustrate how they put the legacy of their home country above all else. Golding had sided with the Self-Salvation Corps, so Lettou drove her to her end. The Sanguinarch was convinced that his brother was putting the interests of the non-Sarkaz above the wellbeing of the Sarkaz, so he kiIIed him. Even the way Golding and the Toppled Blood Prince are characterized resemble each other. Throughout the Victoria arc we learn that Golding yearns for peace. That’s the reason she joins the Self-Salvation Corps, that’s why she sets up a stage play with her students that is supposed to teach them noble values, that’s why she keeps debating with Lettou about her ideas of peace and civilization, even though by this point in the story she long since feels repulsed and disappointed with him. Her ideals eventually crumble when confronted with the fact an undercover Damazti posing as Molly used her to gather intel used against the Self-Salvation Corps, and maybe worse, she realizes that her attempts to shield her students from the reality of war always had been futile.

Characterizing the Toppled Blood Prince is a bit harder, as we can only do it indirectly. The bits we know about the Sanguinarch’s brother are not really there to deepen his own character, but to show how evil the Sanguinarch was for rejecting a ‘peaceful’ future as a doctor and for kiIIing what chapter thirteen basically portrays as a proto-Theresa. It’s interesting though that whatever feelings Duq’arael once used to hold towards his brother, he is making it very clear he feels not a shred of regret for kiIIing him. You get the impression that the frustration towards his brother must have been brooding in him since ages before he had decided kiIIing him was the only option. There are glimpses of it when he recalls how he had to face on his own the Feranmut who was threatening Kazdel, and how even the barely lucid Feranmut was agreeing with Duq’arael that defending Kazdel actually would have been the duty of the King, his brother. You’ll get an idea why the Sanguinarch keeps complaining about the Vampires who are hiding in cozy castles while forgetting their origin as warriors.

That frustration echoes in what emotion we saw Lettou display towards Golding towards the end of her arc. One gets the impression he is feeling a not small part of satisfaction the moment he reveals to her Damazti had been deceiving her since weeks. Sympathetic as her motives are, in hindsight she appears almost painfully naïve, almost detached from the dirty realities of war. I wonder how her insisting all Victorians are born equal must have sounded in Lettou’s ears when in Doc’s OpRec we saw that this is very much not the case. No, Golding's attempts to discuss the morals of war never had a chance. Lettou knows he is right to avenge Gaul’s fall. Just as the Sanguinarch knows the Ancients and Elders deserve the blame for driving the Sarkaz into a corner. Both the Brother and Golding had made themselves a threat to their people by putting compromise and what the Sanguinarch calls a false “peace” as their priority. Therefor they both had to go.

It’s interesting though that the story keeps hinting that neither Duq’arael nor Lettou can fully face that they’re both the kind of person to drive someone to their end they used to be close with. There is this interesting scene during Babel where the Sanguinarch slays two Sarkaz who made fun of the fact Theresis and Theresa have become enemies. Nezzsalem believes that this outburst shows that Duq’arael feels just as sad about Theresa’s death as he himself. As the former teacher of her and Theresis, this conclusion would feel most natural to Nezzsalem. This claim Duq’arael neither confirms nor denies. The only thing he justifies his outburst with is that whatever their motivations are, in the hour of death the life of those siblings is not a subject to be treated lightly. Yeah, that’s vague. What siblings did you just mean, buddy? Could it be that being faced with another pair of siblings in lethaI conflict the memories of your own brother you’ve kiIIed got a little bit too intense?

This outburst at the same time manages to echo and contrast Lettou’s thoughts about Golding after he runs into Clovisia. He wishes there would have been an outcome where she still would have been alive and teaching her students but otherwise… he doesn’t know what to feel about her death. Given we have just learned that he handed over his own soldiers to the Military Commission makes me think he is less grieving her as struggling to come to terms with the knowledge that he is the kind of person ready to kiII old acquaintances for his goal. As Lettou admits towards the old Youth Vanguard he looked after, at this point in time he is just tired. He has done all he could for Gaul and yet he admits he is having doubts the Gaulish people will have a future. The only two things he still cares about are mercy-kiIIing the Vieux Vanguard before the Sarkaz have a chance to get him and then he is going to meet the Sanguinarch one last time.

Or as Lettou put it to the Sanguinarch, he was always going to find His Highness. You know, at this point in the story Lettou finally had reached a point where he no longer had to lie about his motivations. He just mercy-kiIIed his last ally, he rejected Clovisia’s offer and with it got the chance to tell Victoria’s ageless a piece of his mind and he broke all ties to the Defense Forces. Lettou no longer needs to hold up any lie for the sake of keeping his position of power. It feels fitting he feels the urge to return to the Sanguinarch. He is by that point the only person left who fully knows what Lettou’s actual thoughts had been all along. And it is interesting how their last meeting stresses that point. Duq'arael tells Lettou he believed in him to defeat his enemy, the nation of Victoria. And that the mere thought of going to witness more of his revenge was already filling him with affection for Lettou. And it is no coincidence that just in that moment the Sanguinarch, who so rarely bothers to address anyone by their name, calls Lettou by his full name – René Lettou. Yeah, nice of the story to tease the reader with all this potential just to let Lettou kiII himself seconds later.

But Duq’arael’s reaction to this is revealing. He had not seen it coming. He had seen that Lettou had been driven by lethaI intent, but Duq’arael had been so convinced that aggression would be going to be directed at him that he didn’t see the possibility of Lettou kiIIling himself until it had already happened. Duq’arael’s reaction is to deny that he cares in any way. He denies that this René Lettou is worth to be remembered – while still using his full name, entangling himself in a contradiction. And apparently not realizing what it signifies he bothers to remember and use Lettou’s name to begin with. Yes, it feels fitting that the Sanguinarch picked up that ability to deceive (himself, in this case) Lettou had always known to display when he still had been alive. Because if chapter thirteen hit something home then that René and Duq’arael had always been supposed to resemble each other.

[eidolonlathi]

Why Sato being an Miami Vice fanboy adds to his characterization

Sato liking Miami Vice and nicknaming him and his IBM after protagonist duo Sonny and Tubbs is a nice pop culture reference the manga inserted. But iconic action duo appreciation is only one side of this.

See, I wonder what pre-ajinificated!Sato's thoughts were watching the show when it aired. Because just like manga!Sato, Sonny is a Vietnam War Veteran too. Watching the episodes bringing up on Sonny’s war trauma must have felt relatable. Seeing the issue addressed and shared.

But also. After the war, Sonny found new meaning in his life working for Miami Vice. This kind of path was not an option for Sato after the war. Not with him lacking one leg. The scars he carried were not only visible but here to stay, present daily in an unavoidable way.

The story on TV was reminder and escape: The exciting thrill of dangerous undercover work, making friends with a likeminded buddy like Tubbs, having reliable colleagues, caring for a cute pet alligator: I'm sure these would have been the things Sato would have liked to experience too.

But it was fated to remain a dream, a lost chance of another life. Something that now only could be watched TV. Something at least was possible to be seen on TV.

After his ajinification the unreachable dream had the chance to become reality though.

No wonder his IBM resembles Sonny’s pet alligator. No wonder the entity becoming a friend felt like "Tubbs": It's a symbol of lost hope regained, implication Sato does not see this second chance as something to be taken granted but appreciates it for the gift it is.

Even the reliable colleagues seen on TV became reality. Convinced Takahashi's legendary Hawaii shirts are a reference to Sonny's work buddy Stan who likes to wear them as well.

Great minds think alike and wear Hawaii shirts.

In general, Sonny's work pals Stan and Larry might have been an inspiration for parts of the TakaGen storyline: Like Takahashi and Gen they were "those two always hanging out together", both at least implied to struggle with present and overcome addiction (gambling, drinking). And Stan unravelled when Larry d.ied