add-on: i quite simply REFUSE to believe that vicky just rolled over and let eragon lock malbonte up for four years. i refuse to believe eragon himself locked malbonte up for four years. idk why the order got dumbed down for hs3 but they're not exactly dumb in hs2, they Have to know that the person who freed shephamalum would be able to kill him. like it's not even funny how ridiculously incompetent the order is being portrayed right now
I can’t remember if I thought of this myself, or read it somewhere. Thus, I take no credit for the idea itself. So, the theory: the stat-checks per season will rotate between the MCs.
For S1, Audrey had Adaptability, Lane: Cruelty, and Vicky - Mercy. I was thinking about this, and I wonder if sparing the spider could be the Mercy stat-check for Lane, this season? 🤔
I’m still not sure about the others. Audrey got Adaptability, so she would get either Mercy or Cruelty, with this theory. Likewise, Vicky would get either Cruelty or Adaptability. Just maybe, one of these could be the stat-check for her, in regard to taking Eragon’s place? Like, she’d get more support if she passes it. Maybe if it’s Cruelty, she shows her strength more harshly, which inspires some of those who’d trusted in Eragon for his ruthlessness, to believe in her?
And Adaptability would be the same, just not focused on Cruelty. Though, I kinda expect her to get the Adaptability check in S3, for the big battle against Sephamalum, in some way. I do expect winning to be a joint effort, of course. I also think maybe Vicky’s Cruelty check fits in S2 the most, and specifically against Eragon. In general, but also given A Lesson in Cruelty. That’s the episode Eragon invades her mind. It’s when he first alludes to her taking his place.
I mean, he says he’s waiting for the day she’ll take his place by force (have him drown in his own blood and step over him). I think he won’t give up his position without ‘one last test.’ To see if she’s ready to make ‘the necessary calls.’
[Whether he’s meant to die is another matter. I think he’s tired of life—so, he could kill himself.]
About Audrey…it’s harder for me to get an idea. Her Adaptability check could’ve easily been guessed as a Cruelty one—at least, imo—as it was tied to a desire to harm/punish Uphir. But it wasn’t, since it also had to do with her commanding her darkness effectively. That makes it harder to anticipation possibilities 🤔
[For context, the Cruelty path is partly defined as the MCs becoming ruthless and obsessively determined. That’s why I would’ve thought so.]
It’s not impossible that she gets a similar scene to what I just described for Vicky, though. We already saw her do something like this with the Virids, to earn their respect, after all. I suppose the question is, storytelling-wise, is it better for her to have a Mercy moment in S2, or S3?
If Lane isn’t getting the Mercy check in S2…
I think it actually makes more sense then, as it could possibly set off a chain reaction, for the way the Astreans are viewed by Vicky. We got something somewhat like this, with Astaroth to Cassiel, after the end of S1, but Vicky hasn’t shown any sympathy to them yet. She has - in recent updates - done so with Lane, but not yet Audrey or her family. And we still need to see Naum’s message and ring come into play.
Audrey’s ruthlessness taking the stage in S3 makes sense, too, since that’s when she’d need to align the most with her darkness. To fight.
But, if Audrey’s Cruelty check doesn’t have anything to do with Vicky, it works in S2.
I realized I didn’t mention how Lane’s Cruelty check was also unexpectedly indirect. Lane did have to go along with an attempted murder by a lover, to pass it, but she herself didn’t try to hurt anyone. It’s another way that these can end up being unpredictable 🤔
‘Cause honestly, I might’ve guessed that as an Adaptability check, instead.
That’s all of my ramblings on this, I think. But I’d really like to hear thoughts from others.
I just had a dream where there was a Donovan route and woke up ready to delete my Hunger/Dmitry/Raphael slot 😭 which is crazy because I'm playing two Cain slots with and without Abel for science.
finally getting a move on with the expecting collection
Mikael was a light sleeper. The habit was ingrained in him after years of service as chief of heaven’s army. So when Audrey lurched from their bed in the early hours of the morning, the archangel was right behind her, holding back her hair as she heaved over the toilet bowl.
He rubbed soothing circles on the woman’s back, pushing aside his own concerns. It was only when she leaned back against his chest, exhausted, that he allowed himself to fully focus on the burst of power he sent seeking through her body for the cause of the sudden illness. But there was nothing to be found.
The discovery had him tensing, recalling the last time his powers had failed him - when he’d hurried to heal her after the incident with Furius, and he hadn’t detected the poison lying in wait. The poison that had her choking on blood alone in the garden while they all fought, meters away and oblivious.
“Mikael?”
Her soft voice brought him back to the present moment.
“I can’t heal you,” he admitted. “I don’t know why.”
“That’s because there’s nothing to heal.”
He frowned, confused. “I don’t understand.”
“Try using your powers again. Don’t try to heal me, just…feel.”
Bemused, he obediently followed her instructions. The light coursed through her body once more, feeling like the warm summer rays. The archangel was about to give up and demand an explanation, when he picked up on some sort of flicker. Unconsciously, his hands followed the movement, encompassing her stomach. And the realisation hit him like a freight train. “Audrey, you…”
“Surprise?”
“How long have you known?”
“Only around a week. I was planning to surprise you on your birthday, but obviously he had other plans.”
Mikael’s next words came out slightly accusingly. “He?”
“I don’t know for sure, but I have a feeling it’s a boy.” She smiled a little shyly. “I thought we could name him after your brother.”
Mikael exhaled, long and deep. “I think he’d like that.”
The couple finally stood up, leaving the cold bathroom tiles for the warmth of their bed.
As they nestled together, Mikael whispered, “Thank you, Audrey. For giving me a family again.”
Note: Just for fun, I have a personal headcanon that Mikael would proceed to bother the shit out of Hunger about this. Dude is gonna be everyone's go-to midwife lol
