actually, also, an idea i love is heinrix taking a sip of water from a canteen during a mission, normal behaviour, he’s being a completely average dude for once.
but then the rt bends over or does something Entirely Not Sexual To Everyone But Repressed Freaks and heinrix feels something in him flare up, pressing against restraints and his control, and he ends up freezing his canteen to his hand for a few seconds.
i’ve talked about the rt hugging companions, haven’t i? well i’m doing it again.
abelard gives the best, warmest, most comforting hugs. just enough pressure, he smells good, and he thumps the rts back once or twice before he lets go. it’s the classic “i feel protected and loved.” kind of hug that certain older men give. it’s good, and he’ll do when the rt needs it, in private. they do need to uphold the dynasty image!
argenta also, great hugs, but sometimes she can be a bit too intense. while displays of affection aren’t inherent to sisters, the sense of camaraderie she shows to rts that align with her views is common with them, so i think she would be open to a hug, even in public. she does that little thing people do where they sway you back and forth while hugging.
cassia is shy, so shy, about pda. only on her failed romance path does she get better with it, but… it is a failed path. so i think, while she gives gentle and sweet hugs, it always has to be in private. and even then, the rt runs the risk of her accidentally slicing their back open with her claws, and feeling a bit guilty.
but she does love hugging, loves how warm it makes her feel, loves being tenderly held, loves hugging (perhaps it’s more cuddling) the rt and talking to them at the end of the day, loves when they rub her arms or back during the hug. she’s a very happy fish.
heinrix is horrendous at hugging. inexperienced, awkward, fumbling. he stiffens up, hands twitching at his sides, because he’s… not quite sure what to do? it’s been so long, should he hug them back? is that too forward? why exactly are they hugging him, even in private? is he not masking his emotions properly?
but then the romanced rt rubs his back, burrows their face into his chest/the top of his head, and he just melts into their arms, with a mixture of happiness and guilt. buries his face in their hair or neck, beginning to tremble. it has been so long since anyone was so gentle.
idira hugs the rt in public, on the bridge, at the end of the game if they choose so. she’s much more casual with hugs, but won’t ask for one or anything. but she is… well, a normal person, lol? she’s hugged, been hugged, experienced normal human connection. her hugs are good, even if the weakened veil around her gives the rt tingles on their arms.
jae is so forward, and gives good hugs. the shock of her augmented arm is still there everytime, but then the smell of her perfume, the brush of her silky hair, the giggle she lets out all overwhelms the rt, and they quickly forget her arm, just enjoying a well-practiced and warm hug.
plus… on her romance route, jae isn’t above using every part of her to her advantage. so she does lean forward a bit while hugging, pressing her and the rts chests together as a little reminder. or guiding their hands further down than is totally proper. heydari, please…
kibellah sucks at hugging. similar to heinrix, absolutely inexperienced. awkward, gangly limbs all stiffen up when the rt holds her close, even platonically. she just snaps her eyes over to look at them with a confused, mildly shocked expression.
she does get into it during a romance, though, once she grasps the purpose and meaning. but then her hugs get too intense, almost strangling, and she has to re-evaluate how weak her domin is. perhaps they should undergo some muscle conditioning.
marazhai feels a wave of disgust if the rt steps near him with their arms open. his pupils shrink, his mouth curls into a grimace, and he almost wants to drive a boot into their ribs. how revolting, to think something like you could casually touch something like me? without me initiating? eugh!
but romanced… he gets those scheming, half lidded eyes, and casually opens his arms. once the rt steps close enough, he uncoils like a snake, and grabs them in a crushing, brutal grip. enough that they bones grind against each other, and their ribs creak under the pressure. painful, awful, overwhelming. he hisses in their ear that they can’t complain, they wanted this.
pasqal gives… awkward, and overwhelming hugs. but they are warm. all of his both of his arms, and even the mechadendrites curl around the rt, and his warming systems kick on with a pleasant vibration. but when the rt pulls away, pasqal just goes back to whatever he was doing. seems he’s not very into hugs… but he’ll tolerate them.
but romanced, i think pas gets a bit clingy. he doesn’t want to let them go, and now he has a reason for that feeling: to further their relationship through physical touching, which is observed in several different animal species, so, really, his justification is quite sound-
sol gives great hugs, when he gives them, which is rare. he’s warm, his muscles make the rt feel so protected, and he absolutely does that little thing where he lifts the person slightly off the ground during the hug. he can’t help it, even if the rt is taller, it’s just a habit at this point. but, he doesn’t give hugs often. he respects the chain of command too much. maybe more in private.
when romanced, awh, sol is even sweeter. he uses the hug to physically pick the rt up and carry them to bed, whether because they’re tired or for another reason. he rubs their back, lets them burrow in close, and talks about something so they can listen to his chest rumble while he speaks. what a sweet, devoted man.
ulfar has to watch his strength, lest he crush his aett-vater. but he must give good hugs, surely. he’s so big, so warm, so full of life. his hugs have him laughing at the size difference between the two of them, but he does like hugging. physical touch is big for space wolves, be it friendly nipping or real roughhousing, or just nuzzling and playing like this.
a romanced ulfar probably loves those hugs even more. he is so protective, and having his body literally shielding them while they hold him fills his chest with a happy rumble. a pleased fulfillment of purpose and nature, to hold his mate so close and to be able to watch over them like this.
5.9k word analysis of the bottomless pit dialogue below the cut. obviously not claiming any of this is how you MUST view these options, but just my personal opinions + analysis i did for fun.
abelard is the "the decrepit old man in the tattered remains of a military uniform." in terms of the tattered military uniform, abelard, even in his current duty as serving the dynasty, references being part of the navy several times and still wears his navy service medals in his portrait.
while abelard only ever refers to his rank as "officer" his clothing (and actually his whole design in general) in his portrait is eerily similar to what lord high admirals were depicted wearing in inquis exterminatus, a warhammer artbook published in 2000. of course, he isn't that high of a rank, but it can be presumed abelard climbed as high as he could. his outfit is also very similar to a lower rank, a commodore (specifically commodore teodor naremmus in the rogue trader: hostile acquisition book, published 2011)
however, the uniform is noticeably tattered to the point of just being remains. abelard, in his questline, is torn between his duty, and his calling as a voidsman on your ship (and officer of the imperium)
[...] Abelard replies proudly. "No, 'used to be' is not quite right. It was not simply a job — it was my calling, the essence of my life. I was proud to serve Lord Captain Theodora, but in my heart and mind, I am still an officer of the Imperium."
[...]
"But such is my duty to the Rogue Trader — to keep tireless watch at the Lord Captain's side, to serve as a support in the darkest of times — for you and for me." Abelard straightens and looks you in the eye with grim conviction. "I will not step down from my role, no matter what happens. Do not doubt me. The Werserian family will learn from what has happened and, if our blood is worth anything, will be ready to face new trials without my guiding hand."
and his duty as the patriarch of his own dynasty/family.
"As patriarch of the Werserian family, I have a responsibility to my bloodline. Yes, it is my duty to serve as Seneschal to the Rogue Trader, and I have no intention of relinquishing that role if you find my service as satisfactory as did Lady Theodora."
[...]
"If it would be possible… after the immediate need for my presence is over… I would like to return to that position. To oversee the trade protectorate on the capital world, while at the same time presiding over the Werserian family — and using my authority to help elevate it."
for the decrepit old man part, well. abelard is old. he acts like an old man, calls himself old, is called old by multiple people, and is the most visually aged character. he also gets his implants fixed by pasqal in a specific banter, and is called "outdated" and "suboptimal" by pasqal.
it ties into him being a patriarch too, but being aged and full of experience is one of abelards simpler character traits.
idira is "the strange animal-like creature with barely noticeable shadows swirling around it." strange, animal appearance reflecting how she is from a completely different doctrine than the imperium standard (described as "daughter of a distant world" + being unsanctioned) many, many, many companions also treat idira as if she is a wild animal, and argenta even attempts to "put her down" in idiras first personal quest. alongside the above, idira is very isolated and distrusted by many (except for jae, my sweetheart) which is similiar to the other "beast" (ulfar) in the above descriptions but, while ulfar is left alone out of respect and a bit of fear, idira is left alone solely out of fear.
as for her whispers being described as "shadows..." she described her psykerism as:
"[...] As for me, I've got a door in my head, one that's open just a crack. There's no way to close it, no matter how hard I try — I've just had to get used to the whispers from the other side. When I need to use it for work, I listen in more closely, but I usually just try not to notice it."
and refers to the voices in her head as "little whispers." her powers aren't as bombastic as someone who can make heads explode, light themselves on fire with a thought, or boil someones blood, but the power of foresight can be extremely powerful... when it is predictable, which idiras is unfortunately not. she is not limited by sanctioning, but she is also not as controlled as a sanctioned psyker is. so they are barely noticeable as they aren't as overt as heinrix, or a pyromancy rt, but they are still there, worming their way into her brain.
argenta is described as "the brawny woman with bloodied hands." the brawny woman (notably not YOUNG woman since despite physical age, argenta is a woman out of time and feels uneasy over this) with the bloodied hands describing her guilt over not specifically killing theodora, but hiding it. alongside, of course, her guilt/shame over being directionless on footfall despite being a blessed sister, a calling she cherishes.
blood on her hands is a direct reference to macbeth, which is a play with the major theme of guilt (among other things)
Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand?
interestingly, relating to the theme of neptune and the sea, cassia, someone who can guide a ship through the sea of souls, notices argentas guilt (described as a "greenish-grey") and calls her out on it
heinrix is "the sinewy young man wearing a blindfold." sinewy young man (despite heinrix also being a man out of time + slowing down his physical aging with biomancy) reflects his lack of experience in actually living life, since he has devoted so much of himself towards repaying the inquisiton, to repenting for his psykerism, for serving something "greater" than him.
Heinrix pulls away from you. "Why… why wouldn't I be? The Imperium deemed me stable enough to keep me as a sanctioned psyker. The Inquisition gave me a new, higher role, a more honourable role. How could I not repay those debts?"
the blindfold is an obvious callback to the saying "justice is blind" and how many depictions of lady justice herself are blindfolded. while this now means/is interpreted as "impartiality" (so justice should not be based on appearance/wealth/etc) originally the blindfold was added around the 16th century as a satirical jab at how justice herself is blind to the injustices around her. heinrix is a character caught between doing whats "right (to the imperium)" [harsh]
"You needn't have used the word 'sometimes.' The good of the Imperium always prevails over the lives of its individual servants. I may sometimes falter, but that speaks of my weakness, not the generosity of my soul. Much hinges on the decisions made by the Inquisition, sometimes far more than an ordinary servant of the Throne can see."
versus what's "right (to him)" [mercy]. because, tying in with him still being young, heinrix is still very much a little boy that wants to help.
The Interrogator's eyes narrow. "I haven't said I would not like to be able to afford such luxury. In fact, deep down I understand why you acted that way… I have yet to eliminate the understanding and acceptance within myself, but I will."
he repeats mantras about the throne, the inquisition, the imperium, but he can realize that the "justice" he serves is brutalizing both himself and others. so, the idea of heinrix being "blind" or, more accurately, blinded by another to the injustices around him is fitting.
it also ties into his eye injury, which he had to regrow and resulted in his differently coloured eyes and is only revealed if you grow close to him through his romance. it also partially blinded him, and was something he had to repair himself. this eye injury was NOT self inflicted, or even something he could have avoided, and was instead inflicted on him by loyal subjects of the ""just"" imperium.
"When the Lord Inquisitor took me out of the Guard, he had me remove the augments installed in psykers when they become sanctioned. So I lost an eye and gained some nerve damage." [...] "Repairing my eyeball took the longest. Even the nerve connections took less effort. Years went by before I managed to eliminate all the visual aberrations and I could see as well as I had when I was a child."
yrliet is described as "an ancient woman who only recently joined your caravan." while the "ancient woman" part draws reference towards her vast experiences of walking numerous different paths, correction: yrliet has only walked two paths, thank you to redstairs for the correction! it also reflects how she is deeply connected to the aeldari, who trace their ancestry far beyond human history. while she struggles with her inner guilt about her craftworld, she is still deeply devoted to the aeldari and wants to save and protect them no matter what. "recently joined your caravan" is a specific word choice, as historically the word caravan can mean:
"a company of travelers on a journey through desert or hostile regions." (source)
BUT ALSO
"also: a train of pack animals." (source)
while yrliet can, at the start, think of the rogue trader as an insect
"You see Yrliet among the beings clustered around the strange, tall structure. She watches you with complete indifference, the way one watches an insect crawling up a wall."
again, through her romance, she grows to realize that the rogue trader is capable of connecting with her in the way that she desires/craves (non-sexually, and a more metaphysical connection) and she even grows to express remorse for those around her. she even apologizes to several crew members, especially if she is brought back from commorragh. while her path only ever crosses with the rogue trader for a mere sigh of her long life, she realizes that she can walk parallel with a caravan of fellow travelers, instead of walking parallel to a pack of [train] animals.
jae is described as "feeble-minded one who is gnawing at anothers bones." it, at first glance, reflects how jae does not have a proper education + had to become literate through her own means due to her upbringing of being on mining world. this is even hinted at before you find out about her "dark secret"/past if you force her to fill out forms in the adminstratum.
Jae holds out the scroll, now covered in writing, for you to reinforce the words with the von Valancius coat of arms seal. Only now do you notice that the plebian expression 'chicken scratch writing' describes her gnarled penmanship absurdly accurately.
she expresses contempt for the penal worlds/mining worlds/etc, notably in her dialogue about Porta Septentum:
"A mining world? It looks to me like a filthy, inhospitable hole where loyal subjects 'freely' toil in fathomless mine shafts century after century. Usually until death."
And Mortis Acies
"The Imperium is laughably unoriginal in its educational methods. Corrective labour in the mines? Places like this show mercy to no one, adult or child."
while the first immediate definition for feeble-minded, personally, makes me think of lack of intelligence, feeble minded was also used to refer to someone who is "vacillating" or "irresolute"
VACILLATING - "to waver in mind, will, or feeling : hesitate in choice of opinions or courses." (source)
which, jae is in spades.
she does have self respect/consistent core traits (hatred of slavery, hatred of child abuse, death cults, etc) in some areas (as evidenced by her "Jae Heydari does not serve in bed." line, among others) jae is also willing to, due to having to scrap, suffer, and drag herself out of the shithole situation she was born into, be quite sycophantic towards anyone who has iron clad power over her, or even those she wishes to gain the favor of.
jae knows that in the pond she exists in, she is a little fake fish surrounded by big fishes, so she plays to her strengths and sticks by those that mutually benefit her.
"gnawing on anothers bones" references how jae is, in fact, not a princess from efreet, and is not "sweet-spoken lady from a hot planet." she uses those bones of another person to live and survive in the imperium, but she will never be able to fully erase the "filthy underhive scum" origins she has. cassia describes her soul as:
"Jae is like a gem — the brighter people shine around her, the clearer her faces reflect a myriad of colourful gleams. They are all parts of Jae, but no single one of them is her. I cannot discern her true colours through the veil of her motley shawls. I peel off hue after hue, only to find a different colour underneath every time."
jae buries all the real "hers", the tiny girl who scraped and suffered until her lungs gave out, the scared 16 year old who's whole regiment was wiped out on its first sortie, the young woman who is just trying to get by, to instead personify an almost cartoonishly exaggerated "Cold Trader." she is greedy, silver-tongued, intentionally sexy, and has a solution for everything, because she knows that the tiny girl and the 16 year old will get eaten alive in the cruelty of the imperium. jae is, for better or for worse, all of these traits, as evidenced above.
pasqal is "the ugly mutant with multiple heads" which references his primary storyline of being part of a collective, one seventh of a whole. pasqal, alongside his brothers and sisters were created because of "deviation from dogma." or, a mutation. alongside, this, pasqal is physically "marred" (to outsiders) through his True Flesh and received a cleft jaw due to his involvement with Eschatos (and this is reflected in his portrait!)
"Here in this hall, we released Eschatos and allowed an unconscionable heresy to happen! Do you remember? Do you remember how you got your cleft jaw?"
Pasqal looks thoughtful as he touches the crack running across his armoured respirator. A green spark runs through the deep gash left by an enemy's weapon in the metal.
see his cleft jaw scar above. i'm sure you could draw out more conclusions, but pasqal and his description is quite straightforward, at least to me.
kibellah is the "young girl in heavy chains." young girl is obvious, kibellah is incredibly young and is even called "scarcely more than a girl." by abelard, and abelard even jokingly threatens to adopt her.
alongside this, kibellah is very similar to the other "girl"/"infant" in the above descriptions, cassia. which is noted on by a dialogue between argenta, cassia, and kibellah.
both socially awkward young woman who have been abused by the people around them, and (non-sexually) groomed into becoming a specific Person for a specific purpose, and not being allowed to grow into who they actually are (although parts leak out) and indeed, an ending slide states that kibellah and cassia grew close (for a brief time...) due to their similarities.
"Novator Cassia and Vizsier Kibellah were brought closer by their common burden of assuming a high position of power at a young age. Though their friendship was short-lived, as it could not overcome the gravity of their duties and the differences between the worlds to which they belonged, they exchanged gifts out of respect for each other and to honour the memories of the journeys they had shared. Cassia used Kibellah's blood to paint an incredible piece which became a relic of the Bloodspun Web. Kibellah, in turn, assigned one of her best spinners to act as Cassia's bodyguard. Many years later, this spinner was rumoured to have ended Cassia's life on the Novator's own orders when her body could no longer resist the strain of mutation."
tying into the above, kibellah (and cassia) are both chained down by their destinies, but kibellah is not even given the chance for freedom in any of her endings. while she can grow to love, and can even dramtically change the cult, as soon as kibellah begins to feel things not endorsed by the cult/doubt the cult, she becomes so severely mentally distressed, she basically shuts down.
"I remember… stumbling. I remember my doubt in the truth of the Tenets throwing me off my feet. I remember deciding to kill… and not because I had heard His whisper, but because I deemed it to be right. Death whispered my name. For a spinner without a thread is like a sky without stars. They would drown in their own soul's darkness."
+
"The Second Spinner is in the throes of a spiritual ailment that we call doubt. This most terrible ailment, though harmless to layfolk, is deadly to us. For a doubtful spinner will stray from their destined thread and into bloodthirsty madness. Doubt brings them to the Undying One before their time."
you can also torture kibellah with chains explicitly
The black chains dangle from Kibellah's body. They look more like a macabre form of adornment than an implement of torture. Kibellah gathers up the chains and pulls them until her skin goes taut. "The flesh remains untorn. Good."
alongside this, kibellah is heavily associated with the metaphysical/philosophy, and there is classical metaphysical/philosophical concept called "The Great Chain of Being" which can be summarized as:
[...] According to the principle of linear gradation, this series ranges in hierarchical order from the barest type of existence to the ens perfectissimum, or God. (source)
+ she has chains featured in her design, specifically around her chest and neck. galen, a greek philosopher and surgeon (among other things) theorized, after being directly inspired by plato and aristotle, the soul could be found in various locations of the body and specifically called one section "the spirited (θυμοειδές) in the heart." so, personally, i viewed this as kibellahs soul itself being chained.
kibellah is forever chained to the bloodspun web, and has been from her birth. while in game many companions and people around her realize and are disgusted by the severity of the abuse and grooming she was put through, kibellah herself is so deeply imprisoned in the cult she can't imagine her life without them. thus, she wears the heavy chains of the cult, even in the warp.
(you can skip these next two paragraphs)
for solomornes description of "bloodied guard with two animal heads" i originally focused on the two animal heads part of it before anything else. i thought it was a clever reference to orthus, the (often) two headed guard dog and sibling of cerberus, the famous (often) three headed guard dog of the underworld, since solomorne is extremely associated with dogs and their traits (loyalty and obedience). orthus is involved in the twelve labours of hercules, as is cerberus, having been tasked with guarding cattle for the giant geryon before he is killed by hercules.
this was, originally in my mind, an interesting way of portraying solomorne as someone who is represented by a classical guard dog, abit not an extremely noble one. while myths around the giants vary (as do all mythology tbh) many times the giants were known for hubris, excess, violence, and insolence. while not a directly 1:1 comparison to the lex imperialis, the idea of a guard dog (solomorne) being employed by a monstrous being of violence (lex imperialis) made sense, in my mind.
however, the game shows that one of the heads actually represents glaito.
You swing to strike, but one of the heads lunges out at an impossible angle and bites you… You regain consciousness at the edge of the precipice, surrounded by your concerned companions, your hand clamped in Glaito's jaws. Solomorne quickly commands the cyber-mastiff to loosen his grip, keeping his anxious eyes on you.
glaito bites the rogue trader out of a protective instinct (protocol 3 - protect the pilot!) interestingly, neither of the heads are explicitly described as a dog or a canine. just an "animal." perhaps this is a reference to how, despite starting out as one, glaito is... not exactly a dog anymore. he might look like one, and move like one, but the rogue trader can explicitly point out that glaito is not much better than a servitor.
"You do realise that we are talking about a half-servitor, a tool?"
however, glaito being one half of solomorne is screamingly obvious in game. solomorne, several times!, states that he cannot live without glaito and turns into a wreck without glaito around, despite how hard he (solomorne) tries to view, and convince you, that he views glaito as a tool.
"Great. An error. Our synchronisation is broken, and now he…" His voice rises to a roar: "Will this damned day ever end? My dog, the only one I would trust with my life — he…" Solomorne shakes his head furiously.
+
"No. He's not guilty. He never was and never will be. It's just… You can see I have a problem, can't you? What kind of Arbitrator turns into a quivering mess over a cyber-mastiff? It's a dependency, a weakness… I'm no longer fit for purpose."
+
"There is no meanness in him, no fickleness. Tell me I'm mad, but he's my dog and without him I lose all reason."
+
"But, above all else, I cannot bear to look at myself — an Arbitrator who is coming apart at the seams. Who turns into a wreck without his dog. Who…" Solomorne releases a ragged sigh. "Who no longer believes that the Lex Imperialis prevails anywhere at all."
and solomorne views glaito as his partner, or at least more diligent than most
"In general…" Solomorne pauses, looking pensively at the cyber-mastiff sitting at attention. "He is more resourceful and diligent than most people I've met."
it could also be a horrible (emotionally) reference to one of solomornes endings, when he is abandoned in commorragh. in the ending, both he and glaito get their heads ripped off and glaitos head is sewn onto solomornes body.
For a time, Commorragh's streets were abuzz with tales of a mon-keigh accompanied by a leashed beast who exacted his perverse justice, but these rumours soon died down. However, around that time, a new gladiator entered the arena — a muscular Wrack with a dog's head sewn onto its body. It died while trying to climb the Archon's stand during a show.
the bloodied guard part represents his position as a sentinel, the ever watching eyes and arm of the lex imperialis. he guards the imperium against lawlessness, and follows it (the lex) rigidly (unless he is swayed away from it due to the rts influence). bloodied could be a reference similar to argenta, of guilt, which is reflected when he stumbles and falls apart in commorragh/after act 3, and even declares himself guilty, but he also states he is untroubled by doubt in a conversation with argenta so...
described as "the infant who is crying piteously, calling for its mother" cassia is, especially compared to every other character in game except for kibellah, extremely young. her education as a navigator wasn't even completed before she was unfortunately thrust into the real world. thus, the infant. abelard even refers to her as the "navis nobiliate child"
"crying piteously" cassia is extremely emotional, and specifically intense with her negative emotions. her powers force her emotions onto others, and she struggles to control them unless a specific, limiting amulet is put on her. said amulet is also given to you by someone who wants to kill her, so...
"calling for its mother" is interesting, because we never actually meet cassias parents or even learn much about them, and even in game her birth planet has been censored.
but, specifically, the mother only being mentioned definitely refers to tisiphone (even though she's not cassias mother.) tisiphones name is a direct reference to tisiphone of greek myths, one of the three eryinyes, or three furies. known as being goddesses of vengeance, tisiphone is also described in virgils aeneid as the guardian of the gates of tartarus, the prison of the titans, which feels like it might be a direct reference to navigators being the only ones to perceive the light of the emperor (a "titan.")
cassias name origin, cassiopeia, also is associated with motherhood, as cassiopeia was the arrogant and vain mother of andromeda, who eventually attempted to sacrifice their daughter after angering poseidon after boasting that her (or her daughter) was more beautiful than the sea nymphs nereids. even cassias full name has a shortened version of tisiphones name, her full name being "Cassia Tisiphia Evriaella."
this ties into how cassia was selected to bear tisiphones atlas without any input for her, and was suddenly thrust into being a sacrificial lamb for inner house conflicts. alongside this, having her atlas put into her means she would be a vessel for tisiphone to be reborn into, which ties into how andromeda was a pawn for her mother tisiphone. also, the obvious sea metaphor relating to how she perceives the sea of souls.
marazhai is "the broken youth with empty eyes and a madman's laugh." abelard directly calls him young (another proof that abelard is an old man and being old is one of his key character traits)
and indeed, marazhai does give off the energy of being young (for a drukhari...) and he is explicitly a younger brother.
Marazhai's lips stretch into a saccharine smile. "My poor older sister, you still cannot stand the fact that I was born… but how can I be surprised? It is hard to think of more glaring proof that our mother considered her first attempt to continue the line a failure."
in regards to being broken, it could refer to how marazhai is kicked out from his specific purpose, and even has an intense breakdown over being exposed to the warp on the first warp jump, and how that unsettles him. marazhai has, from his birth, been convinced of his purpose as a trueborn drukhari to dominate, to lead, to control things around him. alongside this, all drukhari are batshit bucknuts crazy just from their culture, and of course having to engage in more and more depraved things to even survive. (this sounds negative: it is not, i have 4k+ points of drukhari lmao)
empty eyes is related to the soul, specifically how marazhais soul is constantly dangling over the edge of being devoured. "empty" or "soulless" eyes is a common trope in every piece of media, and usually refers to when a character has been pushed to the brink or fully snaps.
and, i also think it is a reference to how marazhai is pushed to the brink by the rogue trader, even unromanced. you can disrupt his trial and throw all of his plans into disarray, but even successfully using you gets him punished regardless. the rogue trader was originally meant to be used as a tool by him
"A good question, Rogue Trader. You are my tool, you see. A sharp and narrow scalpel that I will use to cut away the festering boil on the body of my Kabal. I spared no effort to set up this performance: the witnesses, the spies, the agents… and a small bargain to guarantee the result."
which doesn't work out for him until the very end of the game.
in regards to this with the romance angle... while marazhai consistently plays off that he is confident, assured, and knows what he is doing, he stumbles and does have weaknesses in certain areas, specifically with his obsession and, dare i say, love for a true romance ending rogue trader.
marazhai, due to the culture of drukhari where weakness is easily exploited and the weak are killed almost instantly, hates showing weakness. but he does! to the rogue trader!
Dismay flickers on Marazhai's face, as if he realises he has just revealed a weakness to his opponent. The next second, he snorts contemptuously. "Do not try to get under my skin, [NAME]. And do not mistake candour for weakness."
+
Marazhai's eyes go wide in disbelief. "What?" He freezes, clearly confused. "No. No, you cannot… you cannot… abandon me! We are bound by the ties of possession, [NAME]! It may have once been a game, but after all you have been through in my charge… after the branding…" Marazhai's voice is shaking with anger — and unconcealed fear.
the rogue trader is a knife, a tool, but one that is turned against marazhai and forces him to reconsider so, so, so many parts of himself.
marazhai is, alongside solomorne and ulfar, one of the three characters that will not be thrown into the pit, and instead attacks the rogue trader (although for solomorne, technically glaito attacks you but ehhh)
You raise the knife up high… when the youth suddenly bares his teeth and strikes you first, too quickly for you to react in time. The pain causes your consciousness to come rushing back. You find yourself standing at the edge of the bottomless pit, with a bleeding stab wound on your body, surrounded by your worried companions, one of whom, Marazhai, is staring at you ferociously, clutching a bloodied Drukhari dagger.
that drukhari pride, as well as the drukhari reflexes, will not allow him to be taken out by some mon-keigh. the contrast of this is, again, his romance branding scene, where you can specifically kill him with a narrow drukhari blade.
[Grab the blade and stab Marazhai]
"shouldn't yrliet also have those reflexes?" yes, she should! but, there is something to be said about trust as well. yrliet, after being convinced (of certain things) does trust you... whereas marazhai is FORCED to rely on you for protection, lest he be torn apart by the crew or heinrix/argenta/ulfar.
He brandishes his blades with a guttural snarl… raising his arm to strike… and then, as if realising that to remain on the mon-keigh ship without his patron would be tantamount to death, relents. Clenching his jaw, the xenos casts one last glance at you, and then turns and rushes away, never looking back.
+
People say the hideous xenos faced a reckoning for his savagery at the hands of the crew, who allegedly tore the enemy of Humanity apart at the cost of dozens of lives of those brave enough to attack the wretched creature.
the specific use of dagger also ties back to macbeth, but even i will admit this next line of thinking is a bit of a stretch, but it just wouldn't leave my brain. the specific quote from macbeth:
Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand?
Come, let me clutch thee. I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.
and the use of a dagger towards the rogue trader harkens back to how marazhai uses the rogue trader as a tool although the rogue trader is referred to as a scalpel so y'know. bit of a stretch.
ulfar is "the huge shaggy beast radiating coldness." ulfar is a space wolf, a chapter of space marines that are known for their wild nature, and even wilder appearances. space wolves are known for their tattoos, piercings, and ulfar has tribal tattoos on his huge form.
Tribal scar-like tattoos cover his chest, arms, and back, and you glimpse intricate braids in his mass of unwashed hair. [...] and muscles bulge beneath his skin like boulders. He looks like a statue carved from stone
ulfar is also the tallest companion, both in lore and in game. in lore, ulfar would stand at about 8 ft tall (compared to marazhais 7 ft) so yes, he is huge in all regards. shaggy, well, he's unwashed and hasn't had a haircut in a long time. he is, unfortunately like so many other marines, hairless body wise though
beast refers to the canis helix, which is also known as spirit of the wolf. while ulfar specifically mention the curse of the wulfen, which the canis helix is related to, the curse is what happens when the canis helix is left unchecked and a space wolf succumbs to base, beastial desires. ulfar even has an ending increment called wulfen, where he succumbs to the curse and goes feral. ulfar has struggled with this for his whole service, as all members of the space wolves do, but he admits it and the rogue trader themself can pick up on the obvious scenes.
You are staring into the eyes of an animal that enjoys killing. No, it does not enjoy it. It just kills, finding no joy or delight in doing so. It kills because that is its nature.
+
"Mortal, if you were to know of the bitter taste of Wulfen's malice, you would learn that grief takes no prisoners. Grief claims lives."
+
"It was not devotion to the Allfather that guided my hand. Only the black malice of Wulfen."
+
"The hour will come, and the Curse of the Wulfen will have me. And that hour approaches. I can hear the crunch of snow beneath claws. But it has not arrived yet."
ulfar even admits the wulfen has existed in him since his ascension to astartes, with the line:
"Everyone who appears before the Gate is granted a vision, and mine was… a dark omen. I saw myself, in two guises — one as white as the moon, the other as black as the lowering sky. And the two were locked in combat."
+
"The black wolf's gaze was fearsome, full of more pain than he could ever inflict himself. It drove him mad, turning him into a monster. And, as dark as he appears, I… recognise myself in him. After all, I was made for destruction, torment, annihilation. I am the more agile monster."
radiating coldness is a clear reference to fenris, but also space wolves in general. the description of fenris in game is a clear indicator, alongside ulfars description, of where that coldness comes from.
The giant's gaze thaws. "Fenris is home. A harsh land of harsh winters and harsh people. When comes the Helwinter, a fearsome season of frosts, the merciless Worldsea freezes and great white bears, snow wyrms, and ice trolls go on the hunt. Then the murderous frost retreats, and boats of harpooners sail out to ply their craft, capturing sea snakes and krakens."
ulfar is, alongside solomorne and marazhai, one of the three characters that will not be thrown into the pit, and instead waits out the rogue traders assault except for a shove.
You try to cut the beast's flesh again and again, but the blade cannot pierce its thick fur. You raise your knife for a desperate strike… but then a powerful shove brings you back to your senses. You find yourself standing at the edge of the bottomless pit, surrounded by your worried companions, one of whom, Ulfar, is shaking his head sombrely.
tying into the noble nature of astartes (or, well, the fact that they should be noble) ulfar doesn't hurt you, he simply lets you flail against him until he gives you a harsh shove. it's thick fur is his power armour, and your puny human blade will not pierce it.
while i previously mentioned that marazhai won't get thrown in because he doesn't trust you, and how glaito is just performing his guard function, ulfar does trust you. but, he's also huge. simply put, i don't think the rogue trader could throw him in even if they did succeed in stabbing him.
If the RT turned into their childhood self through some warp shenanigans for a while, how do you think each companion would react to having to take care of them? Who would volunteer to do it?
d'aww, this is cute, lol. i actually thought about it way back when the game first came out.
obviously, abelard is volunteering to take care of them. he already does that, really, and he has experience with kids. so, yes, he's ready and willing to pick up the lord captain when they raise their arms up to him in a clear pick me up motion.
i also think argenta is really enamored with them, especially if the rogue trader is a bit shy. argenta is really kind to children in game, right? if the rt asks for a bedtime story, argenta is more than happy to dump dozens of stories of saints into their eager mind. she volunteers.
cassia is… struggling. children are so delicate, and often say rude things, though, that’s dependent on the rogue trader. and what it they stare at her like she’s some freak? or scream and run away? oh, but, cassia sitting and painting while the child rt (depending on their age) fingerpaints/uses crayons or markers at her feet, both of them quiet and serene? so cute! not volunteering, but, she’ll suffer through it.
heinrix is awkward. not bad! but he doesn’t really grasp the idea of playing anymore, and probably just sits the rt under his watchful eye with an age appropriate novel or object to occupy their attention. definitely cringes from giving them a hug if they start crying, because, well, i only think he becomes a good, if overprotective, parent when he has kids with the rt. doesn’t volunteer, and really doesn’t want to do it.
idira is fun, but a little risky. not intentionally! she doesn’t want anything bad to happen to the little rt at all, and would be beside herself with guilt if something happened, but she is cheeky. she might tell them they can order all the sweets they want, and the adults have to listen. or maybe she answers “adult” questions with a bit too much honesty (not, like, a gross way) and teasing. doesn’t volunteer, but rises to the challenge.
jae is pleased as punch. such a cutiepie, and she can charm children like it’s nothing. why yes, she is a princess! and she has so many fun stories to tell them about beautiful princesses, daring rogues, and the treasures they both claim. it probably ends with the rt asleep in their bed, jae utterly assured that she has just scored major bonus points. boo-yeah! volunteers eagerly.
kibellah is bad. not hurtful, or mean, but she’s scary as hell, man. she keeps the domin very close, and refuses to let them play anywhere dangerous. total helicopter guardian, way worse than abelard and his grumbling and strictness. they probably go to pick up a stuffed animal and she sticks a needle through it to be sure it isn’t trapped with something. also, doesn’t know how to soothe them if they cry, because nobody did that for her. she doesn’t need to volunteer, she will bully and threaten her way into being their guardian.
marazhai- no.
pasqal is okay! he probably hands them a puzzle box, and sits them in his workshop with explicit orders not to touch anything. he’s probably one of the only members of the crew who can deal with the annoying way kids constantly go “why?” and how they ask questions about literally everything, and he answers while adjusting something incredibly dangerous, and that he should be focusing his full attention on-! might volunteer if he has no experience with the rts age group, for the quest of knowledge after all.
solomorne is great with kids. he canonly adopts three, so he clearly wants to be a dad (at least, when he’s romanced, but, let’s assume those parental instincts activate now) so he lets them hold his hand while he guides them very carefully through the ship. it’s pretty scary, and loud, huh? don’t worry, nothing bad will ever happen with him and his trusty companion by your side, don’t worry one bit. the rt gets a very important lesson about doing what’s right, too, even if they are a little angel. gotta start them young. he might not volunteer, because he would defer guardianship to abelard, but will perform is requested.
ulfar is dumb fun. he gets to scare them with spooky tales of ghosts on fenris, of monsters that snatch little girls with hoods off beaten trails before they’re rescued by wolves, of giant krakens sinking ships, and the icy wonders of his homeworld. he probably enjoys getting to tell so many sagas, and watching them try and draw some of the monsters he’s describing. he volunteers, chuffed at the chance.
yrliet doesn’t volunteer? human children are so… sticky, and bad with boundaries. no.
heinrix with some grey hairs + a raspy morning voice + dragging the rt against him because he’s still sleepy and warm and vulnerable and hasn’t had his self worth complex kick in + he just refuses to let them go until he’s satisfied sexually or simply just by holding them, either works.
normally i operate on the “Heinrix and Cassia are bisexual and have always known they’re bisexual.” agenda BUT there is something infinitely hilarious about the rogue trader being their gay awakening.
like, oh, yeah? the one with kleptomania who ate mold slime in front of you? who tried to pet a cyber mastiff despite being told very plainly that it’s a bad idea? the one who bathed in actual, literal blood after being drugged? who can eat three extremely weird dishes on a feudal world without blinking an eye? the one who adores capybaras and actively makes efforts to save them? who kicks a 6ft+ thick wall when it doesn’t open? the one who counts down their enemies monologues? who demands recaf from their enemies? the one who can rip out someones throat and drink their blood? who raises some weird abomination from the cogitator on the bridge?
