Aug 11
Uhhhh repost cuz i posted it at a weird time in the day anyway Wriggle by cosmo sheldrake would ve automatically playing on this if I could attach a song like instagram
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Uhhhh repost cuz i posted it at a weird time in the day anyway Wriggle by cosmo sheldrake would ve automatically playing on this if I could attach a song like instagram
Chapter 3. Preparedness
The next summer, I turned eight years old. My parents hosted a small feast to celebrate the occasion. Birthdays are not typically celebrated on Gallifrey, but certain milestones are. Every Gallifreyan child was taken for initiation at the age of eight. We would hike along the three paths through the mountains and desert to gaze upon the Untempered Schism. It was a dangerous trail; there was a one in four chance I wouldn’t survive, and a fifty percent chance I would fail. Initiates had to keep a steady pace; they must not fall behind or stop, or that would be an automatic failure. Furthermore, being left stranded and alone in the Gallifreyan wilderness was a death sentence for those under the age of regeneration.
My father saw to it that I was physically prepared; he taught me wilderness survival within the Lume Forest and high in the surrounding mountains. He had us hike through the forest and through the Northern Mountains for hours, sometimes days. I hated these wilderness drills. He taught me how to build a shelter, navigate without a compass, and hunt and find food. I cried when he made me kill my first rabbit. I cried when he made me the second one as well, and the third. My father quickly snuffed out this weakness.
“Let this be a reminder of your fate if you fail me, you’ll either meet the same fate as the rabbit, or you will spend all of eternity hunting them to survive.”
He made me skin the rabbits, cut off their feet, remove their organs, and cook the meat, then made me eat it. Meat was not commonly consumed on Gallifrey; our diet mostly consisted of plants and fungi. The rabbit’s flesh felt foreign in my mouth. I couldn’t crush or grind it; I needed to rip and tear it. Its flavor was unlike anything I’ve ever tasted; it was strong, almost metallic, rich, and deep. It wasn’t sweet or sour like the fruits I commonly ate; it was savory and earthy, but unlike any mushroom I had ever eaten. It wasn’t sulfury or creamy like an egg, nor was it like any nut or seed I’ve eaten. However, it was delicious and irresistible, and with every bite, my hunger only grew. I felt disgusted after my meal. I could smell death all around me as if it were radiating out from within my stomach, and I was sickened by the fact that I craved more. My father tossed the rabbits’ remains into the Scarlet Lake. He had me keep one rabbit’s foot as a reminder.
~~~
My father showed me firsthand the monsters that would consume me if I let my guard down; he taught me to face them without fear. Within the slopes of Mt. Entropy, we had to find shelter from an oncoming storm. I couldn’t see anything within the red mist besides my father's shadow in front of me. The first sun had already set, and the second was hastily retreating over the horizon; we needed to find shelter quickly.
“Father, I am scared. I can’t see a thing,” I whined.
“Then don’t look with your eyes, hold my hand, and follow.” He said.
I reluctantly agreed and reached out to grab my father’s hand; it was freezing and felt as if I had grabbed onto a stone from the mountainside.
“Father?” I inquired, but this did not feel like him. Suddenly, there was a loud clanking noise followed by the sound of rock crumbling. I felt the gravel shower me, then familiar arms tightly embrace me and lift me from the ground.
“Take heed, boy!” He exclaimed as he scanned our surroundings; his hearts raced in his chest. I felt a twinge of fear, as if we were not alone upon this mountain top. My father adjusted his hold on me and clutched his weapon.
“What is hunting us, father?” I meekly inquired.
“Angels, we must be vigilant.” He said.
“But I cannot see, the fog is too dense!” I cried
“Quiet boy, you can see, just do not use your eyes.” He ordered.
“How am I supposed to see without using my eyes?” I questioned.
“How did you know we were being hunted if you cannot see?” My father retorted.
Understanding blossomed in me; even though I could not see what lay ahead of us, I could faintly hear the scraping of stone. I could feel multiple pairs of eyes on me, and I could sense the intent behind them. “They will not harm you if they believe you can see them. So you need to see them.” He explained.
“I-I see them…” I mumbled.
“Speak clearly, boy, you either see them or they kill you!” My father commanded.
“I see them! There are 4; the closest is 30 paces downhill.” I say.
“Good, face them, don’t turn your back, don’t let them get behind you.” He instructed as he put me down. He steadied his grip on his weapon and widened his stance. I stood closely behind him and faced the threat head-on. I could sense the angels begin to retreat to the north, but my father’s guard remained high. “Do not let your guard down.” He whispered as he began to move forward. I hastily followed him down the southern face of the mountain, where we made camp within a small cave.
“Will they follow us here?” I fretted.
“Absolutely, it will be dark soon, and weary eyes are hard to keep open.” My father said,
“I’m scared.” I whimper as I bundle myself tightly in the makeshift bedding.
“I will protect you, don’t worry. You’re my only child; there is nothing more precious to me.” My father reassured me. This made me feel warm; my father was harsh, cold, and stoic. I was surprised by his sudden affection, but it helped me feel a bit safer. I had a restless sleep that night. I could hear the wind howling outside the cave, thunder crashing, and ice breaking against stone. I wouldn’t sense the Angels again that night.
When the morning came, the mountainside was completely transformed. The entire mountainside was blooming with Aridosa flowers, these small red flowers with jagged petals and a small yellow bioluminescent center. I had never seen so many before, and I had never seen the mountainside so alive. The second sun was rising in the sky, making it glow a brilliant violet.
“Wow, I wish we could take a picture,” I mused.
“That is what makes it special,” My father replied.
~~~
I had entrance exams not long after our trip to Mt. Entropy. This would be the first time I would set foot on the campus I’d call home for the next 90 years of my life. The Prydonian Academy was the largest school on Gallifrey; the campus was the size of a small city. It was an imposing structure of ebony bricks and silver spires. The college stood at the base of Mt. Cadon, the tallest mountain on the planet’s surface. The light from our twin suns would illuminate the cliffs in the most spectacular ways. It looked like something out of a storybook; I half expected to see knights and royalty walking about.
What I did see didn’t differ too wildly from my imagination. The students all wore the iconic scarlet Prydonian robes; the length varied with their age. Time Tots wore short robes with golden lapels bearing their house name and year in circular Gallifreyan; some had a ruby star-shaped pin on their lapels, others had a white lightning bolt. Midlings wore knee-length robes that had burnt orange stoles with their names and year on them, and some of them had patches on their stoles to represent the clubs they were a part of. Junior Time Lords wore robes that fell halfway down their calves, with high golden collars bearing the school's crest, their names, their year, and their program of study. A Junior Time Lord named PsiChi Lungbarrow gave us a tour of the campus. He was tall and skinny with light brown hair and blue eyes. He spoke like a Lungbarrow, confident and passionate and sort of poetic; he sounded just like Theta Sigma. His collar indicated he was in year 87 and studying Intergalactic Diplomacy; he had the signature charm and intensity his family was known for. I bet his family is proud of him. I hope I will be like that one day.
PsiChi showcased the entire 28-square-mile campus in 90 minutes. He took us through lecture halls, laboratories, libraries, and workshops. This college has everything you could think of; the campus is both ancient and contemporary. This campus has stood here for thousands of years, through the rise and fall of kingdoms and factions; it has stood as a beacon of enlightenment. I was immediately captivated by the TARDIS bays, hundreds of TARDISes lined the room, and I had never seen so many in one place. They had every generation within them, antique TARDISes, battle TARDISes, custom TARDISes. This was so much cooler than the dealership my mother and I went to. Junior Time Lords and professors were working within the bays, servicing the TARDISes and breeding them. The room was filled with noise from the machines, whooshing, wheezing, warbling, grinding, and whirring in a strange rhythm. I was fascinated by the machines and felt a surge of motivation. I needed to do well on my exams so I could return to the TARDIS bays.
~~~
I was nervous before the exams; many of the other loomlings were as well, but I noticed a specific set of families who weren’t. The Lungbarrows, The Dvoras, The Heartshavens, and The Mgorvias, of course, wouldn’t need to worry about passing; admission was guaranteed for them so long as they passed their initiation. I saw some people I recognized from the feast. Theta Sigma stood out to me. While most of the other children were going over notes or talking amongst themselves, she was clearly focused on something hidden in her dress. I bet she has the test answers hidden in there; her aunt wrote the exam after all. I shook my head and refocused myself. The first exam was on civics. I went over my studies in my head, remembering my tutoring sessions with Eloquence. We still had roughly 15 minutes before we’d be allowed into the computer lab for the exam.
The proctors began lining all of us up in neat rows of 12 by birthdate. I was roughly in the center of the room, Theta Sigma was directly to my left. Our birthdays must be close. She waved to me subtly, we weren’t supposed to be talking to each other right now, but I snuck a wave back to her. She held something out to me, which was concealed by her grip. I raised an eyebrow but reached out to retrieve it. It was a red lizard tail. I wanted to jump out of my skin. I hate lizards. I quickly tossed it to the ground and wiped my hand off on my trousers, quietly trying to stifle a disgusted noise. She shook her head and made an eating motion with her hands; it seemed to be some sort of hyper-realistic gummy candy. She fidgeted with something in her dress again and flashed me a bag of hyper-realistic gummy candies. I made a face like I was pretending to vomit. Who would want to eat something like that? She shook her head and rubbed her tummy, giving me a thumbs up with her other hand. She held out a subtle hand with a candy clutched inside, once again, this time it was a yellow beetle. I took it and studied it for a moment before slipping it into my mouth and chewing. It wasn’t bad; it had a tart flavor and was a little sour. I actually enjoyed it. I bowed my head in thanks to her and held a thumbs-up at her. She smiled and nodded, her posture returning to focus on the proctor’s lecture on the testing protocols.
We soon entered the computer lab and found our seats. I felt a lot less nervous about the exam after eating that candy. It left a slightly tingly sensation in my mouth and a tangy aftertaste; perhaps the candy contained something to stimulate focus. I focused on the screen in front of me; we were each seated in our own cubicles, where we’d be individually monitored during the exam. The webcam scanned my biodata and began logging me onto the software.
Is this you?
Koscheivladetspravielvsegopredansyn Oakdown
Yes. No
I clicked yes, and the next screen loaded.
Gallifreyan Time Lord Academy
Prydonian Chapter Entrance Exams
Subject: Civics
Duration: 90 minutes
Begin?
I clicked begin, and the exam started. There were 100 questions on the exam and 3 reading passages; all answers were short responses except for the final question, which was an essay question. I cleared my mind and focused on working as efficiently as possible on the questions. I started with the essay since it was worth the most points. I had to write a paper about any of the landmark rulings mentioned in the text I read. I chose to write about the second law of intervention, which prohibits a Time Lord from posing as a god in developing alien cultures. I thought it was a stupid law; faith was a way more effective way to gain control over star systems. Diplomacy was slow and never lasted long; faith lasted for centuries and earned you complete devotion. I wrote the 5 paragraph essay in 20 minutes before moving on to complete as many short response questions as possible. When the time ran out, there were still 10 questions left on my exam. An hourglass icon flipped every couple of seconds as my test results loaded.
Gallifreyan Time Lord Academy
Prydonian Chapter Entrance Exams
Subject: Civics
Questions Answered: 90/100
Score: 90%
High Pass
Next Exam?
I smiled and moved on to the next exam, which was on reading comprehension. I would receive a high pass on this exam as well. The exam after that was on physics, which I got a high pass on. Then modern history, arithmetic, computer language, geography, astronomy, and finally biology. I passed all the exams and was among the top 10 scorers. I felt a surge of pride and relief. My parents will be proud of me, with scores like these, I may even be placed in the accelerated program. All I have to do is survive my initiation.
This is The Song of Thoschei, an academy era Doctor Who fic. It touches on themes of classism, generational trauma, gender dysphoria, mental illness, cults, abuse and death. Read at your own risk.
Chapter 1: https://www.tumblr.com/supaaaanova/824078002200723456/the-song-of-thoschei
Chapter 2: https://www.tumblr.com/supaaaanova/824099455181717504/the-song-of-thoschei
Chapter 3: https://www.tumblr.com/supaaaanova/824632331647221760/chapter-3-preparedness-the-next-summer-i-turned
💬 0 🔁 0 ❤️ 0 · Chapter 3. Preparedness The next summer, I turned eight years old. My parents hosted a small feast to celebrate the occasi
💬 0 🔁 0 ❤️ 4 · The Song of Thoschei · Chapter 2: Labyrinth I’m sure you picked up that the tent would be bigger on the inside, but that’s
💬 0 🔁 0 ❤️ 4 · The Song of Thoschei · Chapter 1. Beginnings My father was the head of the Chancellery guard on Gallifrey. He built Hous
I drew koschei with a bit more weight on him to make myself feel better about my body (as per my lovely boyfriends suggestion <3) and I like how it came out!
(The duke of dominoes by marc platt, a story in the book decalog)
I feel fucking sick
the casual intimacy academy era thoschei may have shared... gestures and inside jokes unique to them that have been lost to time ... things that once came as second nature to them while interacting, muscle memory lost through regenerations...
honestly i dont think that the deca would be at all kind to outsiders because their of young and naive brand of anti-institutionalism would just go back around to being stupidly pretentious to anyone outside of the deca
My Academy Era Attacks for Artfight
i love everyones designs sm guys… (including ones not seen here)
designs, from top left to bottom right, from:
@/barizk (theta) fun fact this was my first fullbody full shaded piece on artfight
@/drdonogood (koschei)
@/primesoultheta (theta, koschei)
@/rhobeta-and-epsilon (millenia)
if i didn’t get you, you were probably in my bookmarks! I just didnt have time to get everyone i wanted. i might do some more this month for people I missed :)
may take a while though, as I won’t be home for 3 weeks :’)
