The weapon is heavy in Kythra’s hands. It hums with their frustration. Unwieldy. Aggravating.
Rhulk dashes at them again, his own glaive raised high to slice through the air. The blow cuts clean through their form, lethal to any solid opponent. As it is, however, it only serves to irritate Kythra further.
“You think far too much,” says their fellow disciple with a flourish. Smug in the moment’s victory.
The truth in his flippant critique grates against their pride. “I am nothing but thought.”
“Then you are nothing.” He readies his stance, low and mocking. “Again.”
They clash once more. Kythra’s glaive – if a cleaver with all the finesse of a club could be called such a thing – is disarmed to the pyramid’s floor. It skates just outside their grasp as Rhulk drops his entire weight to the knee pressed through their chest.
“I cannot begin to fathom why the Witness chose you.” It is said with such sincere condescension that there is no doubt he finds them no more than a particularly boring puzzle. Beneath him. Unworth his time.
Kythra shoves him off with the strength of all Dari’s decimated suns, their talons shredding through the armored flesh of his abdomen. Their multiplicity crystalizes. Ichor and darkness dripping from fractal claws as their body heaves against itself. It is not meant to be a body, and yet here they stand. Solid. Furious.
They are Kythra. The last of their people because they alone were clever enough to confront the creator of their destruction and strike a deal with it.
Their life for all others.
–- How many did you kill to reach me? –-
As many as I needed to. No less.
They alone carved their place into this thing called salvation.
They alone will stand when everything else has fallen.
They will not be bested by some acolyte handy with the simplest weapon known to time.
They will show him just how they earned their place at the Witness’ side: with blood.
Kythra grasps their blade in those same bloodied hands, feeling the resonance within tune to the frequency of their fury. What had been a dull unresponsive mass shifts into a finely curving point. Working edge honed to a wicked gleam. Both a tool and weapon made to cut the very fabric of reality.
It will cut through Rhulk just as well.
Their fellow disciple has barely the time to right himself before Kythra descends like a charged meteor storm. Their scythe shrieks as it rends the air to clash against his glaive. The edges lock, grinding like the memory of bone against bone. Kythra can see themself reflected in Rhulk’s eyes. Many once more. A clever twist breaks Rhulk’s hold over their stalemate and their blade fits neatly against his throat. They pin him to the floor with the weight of every soul they carry within themself.
“I was not chosen. I was not gifted anything by your precious Witness,” they snarl with too many teeth. Rhulk struggles under their hold, eyes blazing, but they have more arms than he has strength in this contest of force. “I saw an opportunity and I took it because I am not weak like you.”
This is a commission I got from a friend of mine of an NPC from our D&D campaign named Asha Osgood dressed as the Scarecrow!
The ironic part is between Asha and my friends character, Delmont, Asha has all the brains in the relationship. She is the keeper of the braincell.
And actually sorta springing off that- Kythra being “not friendly to Zarkon” and happy to talk to Pidge but the one Kythran we see part of the coalition, they can’t help Pidge identify, and after Te-Osh’s death we don’t see any more Kythran rebels.
Presumably there’s more afoot here than just them lacking the means to fight back, since most of the coalition assembled around Voltron who was bringing the means to the table.
I also think a lot about how the generals discussing Lotor in s4e5, Acxa specifically says Lotor will “protect” them- and it wasn’t as if they weren’t prepared for the idea of the empire finding them out, meaning it was mostly the death of Narti that was the deal breaker.
Maybe Zethrid has nothing to do with Kythra- maybe something happened that she, or they, burned their bridges a long time ago. But I feel like it’s a safer assumption they’re connected somehow, they mean something to each other... because Zethrid cares a lot about protecting people. It’s sneaky, because she’s less the type to wrap you in a blanket and give you a big hug, and a little more the type to suckerpunch whoever’s sneaking up on you in a fight.
Because I think it’s really noteworthy Pidge points out that Kythra’s not friendly to Zarkon and not that Kythra’s not friendly to the empire- because at that point (s3e1), Lotor hasn’t even been introduced, much less the idea that Lotor and Zarkon are not a happy family together. Pidge doesn’t get to ask why Lotor’s attacking an imperial base until s3e6.
So was Kythra allied to Lotor? And was that allegiance more Zethrid’s doing than Lotor’s- or at least built around Zethrid’s operation as one of Lotor’s generals? Because Zethrid is galra-kythran- sure to the empire she’s just another “half-breed” that Lotor collects but to Kythra itself, who’s at best been a second-class citizen under the empire if we assume that they weren’t actively enslaved... how much of a diplomatic game changer would it be for Lotor to be able to say “oh, you don’t trust the galra? That’s fine. What about one of your own people, who I’ve put in a position of significant power and influence? Feel more like talking to her?”
That’s a big deal, and it’s not even entirely hypothetical because it was one of Lotor’s specific talking points in s3e1- he wants to desegregate the fleet, so that even if the empire remains as a political body, those governed planets will have increasing influence and authority in how they’re governed, in contrast to Zarkon’s “You must be this galra to advance in the ranks” policies.
So it makes sense in the category where he’s already done that- the Generals- he’s going to be proud of his good work.
But it’d make sense why he hasn’t gone back to Kythra in s5 while working with the paladins- because if he burns a bridge with Zethrid, he’s kind of burnt that bridge with Kythra as well. Going to a crowd of potentially desperate frustrated people and going “whoopsie daisies, I lost your daughter” is a gamble in sincerity that might pay off, they might still want to work with him if he’s worked with them for a while now, but... that’s just it. It’s a gamble in sincerity. Lotor doesn’t gamble with sincerity.
(Especially not when Zethrid is 1. at large and 2. has what he knows are very justifiable reasons to be pissed at him and could easily phone home and tell them exactly why she’s not following him any more)
Kythra floats near one of the many overlooks that are within their fellow disciple's ship, taking in his newly acquired plaything. It is a great hulking mother, grotesque in form but undeniable in her power. Her pain and anger reverberate clearly as she writhes within her confines. Kythra nearly wishes they had been the one to capture her, to think of what they could accomplish with a resource like that even with its primitive nature. Ruminating on those possibilities is where Rhulk finds them.
"She is the key to the Upended," he says, smugness radiating from every word. He hovers just close enough that they feel the need to tuck the arms he nearly brushes tighter within the nebulous folds of their robes.
"Your methods are brutish," they challenge. Communicating through the physical so the other disciple can understand their criticism has been a difficult process. "You lack finesse."
"You think you could have done better?" He stands straighter; a futile attempt to tower over them since they are not bound by the same material limitations.
"I would have chosen something better than worms." They cast a many eyed look of disdain back out over the ledge before turning to leave. They will keep watch over his project, but for now they have their own to attend to.
As much as I desperately yearn for backstory on all the generals like so badly you guys have no idea...
I think at this point I’m really interested in Zethrid in particular?
With the ears, eye design, eyebrows, etc. it’s pretty clear that Zethrid is galra-kythran, and we keep sort of getting edgewise glimpses at Kythra but not actually seeing it and its situation directly.
Pidge visited it in s3e1 and says that it’s a desert inhabited by tribes, and they’re “not friendly to Zarkon” but didn’t recognize the figure Pidge showed them- who was Te-Osh, so far the only Kythran we’ve seen among Olia’s rebels.
And besides Te-Osh we don’t see any obvious ones in the shots of the coalition or the rebels. It’d imply that outside of Pidge’s pit-stop she didn’t... come back and ally with them.
It really makes me wonder what, and how much, Zethrid is connected to the place. With any of the generals, there’s a question of if they were raised more within the empire or more with the other side of their heritage; Lotor seems to have had at least some connection to Altea but even then.
With the dark marking under Zethrid’s eye, I initially assumed it was a scar- but looking at people like Kolivan, Shiro, and Zarkon, scars in this art style have jagged edges.
Zethrid’s mark is way too even and smooth to be a scar. It could be a facial marking, but those tend to be symmetrical in shape from what we’ve seen.
Which makes me wonder if it’s a tattoo, maybe. It looks sort of like a stylized tear, and I know I’ve heard concepts about tear drop tattoos signifying mourning, having killed someone in the past, or gang affiliation. But of course these are alien cultures we’re talking about- so it could mean anything.
But I really have to wonder... what’s up on Kythra? Why haven’t we been there yet? And I have a sneaking suspicion whatever’s going on out there is going to be invovled with Zethrid.
Nimüe: it/they. warmind not built by braytech, but was eventually acquired by them when bt bought out its company. was forcibly shut down after going on a rampage when it learned all its scientists had been relocated to other projects. recently found again by a pair of guardians and their ghosts. very murderbot like
Auxâ: she/her. solar variant lucent wizard, former deathsinger and doesn't speak because of that (playing fast and loose with deathsong lore because i can). her ghost Tacet (they/them) speaks for her. doesn't particularly agree with Savathûn or the majority of the brood, a lot like Luzaku
Kythra: they/them. last member of a semi-incorporeal species destroyed by the witness. mad scientist. doesn't actually like the witness (definitely helped to destroy it when the time came) but the power was necessary for what they wanted to accomplish. beefs with Rhulk, helped create Nezarec, thinks Savathûn is fascinating. i have an entire idea for a raid with them as the final boss that plays with the manipulation of light and dark, and has lore reasoning for why it would be replayable
Bones: they/them. wish dragon raised by the ghost Skein (it/its) that now helps it get revenge on the people who wronged their ghost. just general chaos. works as a sorta back market dealer in wishes things that guardians want/need but can't get easily or at all (like the end to a losing streak in the crucible). a hunter
Sigurd: he/they. ahamkara pretending to be a recently lightless warlock to escape the great hunt. stole the face of the warlock that took their right arm. basically just a dragon learning to be human and appreciate humanity for what it is.
