[Exalted, ?] Most High
- Thread starter Rihaku
- Start date
-
- Tags
- exalted (white wolf)
Interesting thought, if Uly trusts Nilul, he may tell her he's a mostly perfect reincarnation of Ody. And the Yozi didn't do much to scrub the infernal Exaltations of their past memories. Trusting her may be the best way to prevent her betrayal.
And with absolute power, she can be absolutely safe and happy!
Also absolutely corrupt, but who's counting?
Fanwork##
1895 words
Reaction
Heh.
I suppose if you can see past enough of all the other issues that come with being Uly's friend you start to look past this kind of thing and appreciate it as part of his charm.
And for all that it really showcases how goddman weird he really is, it's also rather admirable how simple his needs and wishes really are.
I suppose the hilarity of how paranoid Odyssial is makes up for it, but that hilarity is sadly tinged with how depressingly accurate he is in his paranoia.
A bit surprised that Hero was actually feeling conflicted over his relationship with Uly. I mean, we admittedly were told pretty clearly how devoted he was, but I kind of thought that disconnect just... didn't occur to him?
Probably means I both consider him a lot more stupid than he actually is and that I actually know hialriously little of him as a person.
High Expectations Asian Father ramped up even harder, indeed.
I suppose that's a rather visible sign of how happy with his life he currently happens to be.
It's also interesting that he can in fact recognize his standard scowl of concentration.
And it's not like his rampant paranoia and Odyssial's version of the High Expectations Asian Father will really be satisfied with excuses like there literally not being enough time in the day to train more than he does.
Then again I suppose keeping his training secret from Nilul counts as training of a different kind as well.
Luckily Nilul is probably more interested in amusing herself than actually making him stop training or the wine might have bee drugged.
Then again, I wouldn't be surprised if Uly also used this opportunity to train his skill at spotting attempts to poinson him and was therefor reasonably sure this wasn't the case.
I suppose it's possible I'm just underestimating Hero again, but I'm more than a bit suspicious that the Stress we've accumulated so far is growing rather visible.
On another note, it's a bit depressing we can't even tell Hero how much is actually at stake here and have to leave him in the belief that Uly is pushing himself so hard just for the Tournament itself.
Then again, I suppose he might in fact realize how significant it is for Uly's advancement in the Realm without having to know about all the Solar stuff and that Creation will end in two decades and he's just trying to calm Uly down. I've just made way too many incorrect assumptions about Hero recently not to consider the possibility.
Seriously though, the change of subject is appreciated since the points Hero raised could have easily gotten uncomfortable to discuss with him, even if Nilul has an ulterior motive in raising the subject.
Uly's musings here really do help get away from the immediate "I wanna take X!" reaction one can easily get upon hearing we can take someone with us, which while having it's place in the discussion of our options, is probably not something you should be thinking about when in the middle of this scene.
Interesting that she's calling him Ulyssian here, even though how latest infraction was so long ago. Nice hint at her not wanting to annoy him too much right now.
Seriously though, for all that it's disguised as messing around, she does make a rather good point about his Second mainly having to cover his weaknesses anyways.
Is this how Uly using his high Integrity to get out of social situations usually looks like?
And it's kind of hialrious how his attempt to defuse the situation largely works because it reminds people that if you keep fighting and snarking at each other Hero will be sad.
Makes me want to reread his previous scenes again.
He's really hopeless, isn't he?
They're both very nice to read and probably help as a refresher given that this is really only the, what, second scene he and someone this important to him interacted with each other?
I mean, the mentioned first day of the library was so long ago it's really easy to forget how much has really changed since then.
It's just lovely to see how Uly's Exatation just opened up one more way for their relationship to be even more heartwarming to watch.
It's also rather impressive that they've managed to do this much work with both of them embarrassedly trying to supress their competitiveness. I can only imagine what they'd accomplish if they didn't have to deal with that distraction.
Then again, this is adorable enough that I can't get myself to feel even remotely bad about it happening.
It does make upset with Uly for not being there next month and adding to Moon's workload though.
1895 words
Reaction
Honestly have no real idea what this is referring to.
Always like how descripitve the scenes are being set here.
Especially when it's a lead-in for a joke about how Uly doesn't even remotely care about the scenery because he's finally doing what he really wants to do and doesn't care fr distractions right now.
So not only is he ignoring the wonderful scenery for the sake of training but he also isn't really engaging the people he's hanging out with.
Heh.
I suppose if you can see past enough of all the other issues that come with being Uly's friend you start to look past this kind of thing and appreciate it as part of his charm.
It does really say a lot about him that what he apparently really wants in life is his friends simply being around and him being able to effectively train.
And for all that it really showcases how goddman weird he really is, it's also rather admirable how simple his needs and wishes really are.
Well, that certainly stopped being a serene scene to watch quickly.
I suppose the hilarity of how paranoid Odyssial is makes up for it, but that hilarity is sadly tinged with how depressingly accurate he is in his paranoia.
Yeah, it really stops being funny when you have well reasoned arguments for why such periods of peace and relaxation can only be temporary and need to be entirely focused on preparing yourself for the next challenge you have to overcome.
I have to wonder whether Uly here is subconsciously bringing up his guilt here to make himself stop being happy so that his paranoia stops bugging him about how being happy just means you aren't seeing the next threat coming.
A bit surprised that Hero was actually feeling conflicted over his relationship with Uly. I mean, we admittedly were told pretty clearly how devoted he was, but I kind of thought that disconnect just... didn't occur to him?
Probably means I both consider him a lot more stupid than he actually is and that I actually know hialriously little of him as a person.
You know someone is being ridiculously demanding of themselves when growing faster than Odyssial himself did is not satisfactory.
High Expectations Asian Father ramped up even harder, indeed.
Well, at least he's not gruffly telling her not to interrupt his training.
I suppose that's a rather visible sign of how happy with his life he currently happens to be.
Man, Nilul is just hilarious, even or perhaps especially when she's broaching such an otherwise serious topic.
It's also interesting that he can in fact recognize his standard scowl of concentration.
The fact that he thinks this apparently is a sufficient answer to a friend showing concern over his worries makes it rather obvious how bad he really is at this whole not being a bad friend thing.
But if he had worked hard enough at training the necessary skills he could be spending less time sleeping!
And it's not like his rampant paranoia and Odyssial's version of the High Expectations Asian Father will really be satisfied with excuses like there literally not being enough time in the day to train more than he does.
As hilarious as this is, I'm honestly a bit surprised that Ulyssian was actually happy in a situation where the only training he was allowed to do was covert training.
Then again I suppose keeping his training secret from Nilul counts as training of a different kind as well.
Nilul's reactions to Uly's particular brand of insanity never cease to amuse me.
How devious of him.
Luckily Nilul is probably more interested in amusing herself than actually making him stop training or the wine might have bee drugged.
Then again, I wouldn't be surprised if Uly also used this opportunity to train his skill at spotting attempts to poinson him and was therefor reasonably sure this wasn't the case.
When even Mountain Hero notices that the guy who always spent all his time each and every day training is pushing himself even harder, it becomes rather clear that you may in fact be pushing yourself too hard.
I suppose it's possible I'm just underestimating Hero again, but I'm more than a bit suspicious that the Stress we've accumulated so far is growing rather visible.
On another note, it's a bit depressing we can't even tell Hero how much is actually at stake here and have to leave him in the belief that Uly is pushing himself so hard just for the Tournament itself.
Then again, I suppose he might in fact realize how significant it is for Uly's advancement in the Realm without having to know about all the Solar stuff and that Creation will end in two decades and he's just trying to calm Uly down. I've just made way too many incorrect assumptions about Hero recently not to consider the possibility.
Nilul to the rescue!
Seriously though, the change of subject is appreciated since the points Hero raised could have easily gotten uncomfortable to discuss with him, even if Nilul has an ulterior motive in raising the subject.
The little interlude detailing the issues with the two other candidates that would easily spring to mind is rather appreciated.
Uly's musings here really do help get away from the immediate "I wanna take X!" reaction one can easily get upon hearing we can take someone with us, which while having it's place in the discussion of our options, is probably not something you should be thinking about when in the middle of this scene.
I'm actually a bit surprised Uly managed to figure out her angle. Then again when he's actually trying he's only shit at social stuff by Exalted standards and it's not like Nilul was even trying to hide what she wanted.
Especially when she's clearly intending to milk him asking her as much as she can for playing coy and pretending it's him that wants her there.
Of course, that doesn't stop her from giving actual arguments, which is probably important whenever you're trying to convince Uly of anything.
Interesting that she's calling him Ulyssian here, even though how latest infraction was so long ago. Nice hint at her not wanting to annoy him too much right now.
At first I thought Uly was just being a bit sore for Nilul messing around a bit before she brought her actual arguments, but now that I think about it, given the way they do kind of keep track of favours owed, it's kind of important to make clear who is doing whom a favour here, which puts Nilul's attempts to make it look like he's asking her into an entirely and not that favourable different light, though I suppose, given her true competence at manipulation, the fact that it's so easily noticed likely means she was really just messing around.
And of course to spread rumors that Hero, Uly and Nilul had some sort of threeway relationship going, but sadly Uly made Nilul stop those rumors in their tracks.
Seriously though, for all that it's disguised as messing around, she does make a rather good point about his Second mainly having to cover his weaknesses anyways.
And it's also interesting that he doesn't really respond to her (admittedly more thna a bit playful) arguments so much as he just ignores them and snarks at her.
Is this how Uly using his high Integrity to get out of social situations usually looks like?
Hero is a really nice guy isn't he?
And it's kind of hialrious how his attempt to defuse the situation largely works because it reminds people that if you keep fighting and snarking at each other Hero will be sad.
He's also a pretty hilarious guy in general.
Makes me want to reread his previous scenes again.
And of course Uly just takes how nice the atmosphere in this scene was as prrof that he needs to start working even harder.
He's really hopeless, isn't he?
Really liking these callbacks to what Uly loves about Moon so much.
They're both very nice to read and probably help as a refresher given that this is really only the, what, second scene he and someone this important to him interacted with each other?
The reminder of how much Uly has grown even outside of martial pursuits now, of how different their time spent studying together was before and of how new this parity of theirs is are also rather appreciated.
I mean, the mentioned first day of the library was so long ago it's really easy to forget how much has really changed since then.
And of course the two of them continue to be incredibly adorable together.
It's just lovely to see how Uly's Exatation just opened up one more way for their relationship to be even more heartwarming to watch.
To be honest until now I was basically just abstracting graduating in six months as having to spend X actions studying in order to do so. This much being the work of a studying session when even one action is doing this for an entire month does drive the point home of how much work it really is and why Uly and Moon are really the only ones with a hope of actally managing it.
It's also rather impressive that they've managed to do this much work with both of them embarrassedly trying to supress their competitiveness. I can only imagine what they'd accomplish if they didn't have to deal with that distraction.
It surpsises me again and again how much just mentioning that it's raining steadily does for setting the mood.
And only after all that time. Moon's academic energy is such bullshit.
She makes up for being so obviously unfair by being really adorable though.
I honestly never grow tired of Uly doing such ridiculous things like retreating into his battle-trance meditation, when he's too exhausted to continue studying.
Man, this almost makes me feel bad for getting her to study this hard at all.
Then again, this is adorable enough that I can't get myself to feel even remotely bad about it happening.
It does make upset with Uly for not being there next month and adding to Moon's workload though.
Gotta love how she keeps getting to him this much even after he Exalted and regained at least some of Odyssial's memories. Really goes to show how strong Uly's relationship with her is.
It's almost ridiculous how she says this kind of thing without even a hint of exaggeration or overestimating herself. She just decide she'd protect Uly and will now throw everything she possibly can at that goal regardless of how difficult it is or how ridiculous the notion of a young Dragon-Blooded protecting Odyssial's reincarnation that even surpasses his old growth rate is.
And it's very nice to see just how much Uly appreciates having someone as amazing as Moon. I can't wait until they're allowed to meet whenever they want again. Here's to hoping Anys Syn doesn't fuck everything up before then.
Really loving how much this turns Odyssial's fundamental source of fury at the world around.
And that parallel to Pearl's scene is just precious. Makes it very clear that Moon is just as important to Uly/Ody as Ody's other companions.
Rihaku
The Internet
We're so close to some kind of compromise option on the trust issue! But you guys really, really need plans for attending this Feast! Seriously, your chances aren't good right now if you just yolo it.
Nah, that's too ambitious! You may not trust her not to unleash titanic enemies upon you, but trust at least in the humbleness of her ambitions.
Unless you do something like GIVE her Ambition, of course.
Nah, that's too ambitious! You may not trust her not to unleash titanic enemies upon you, but trust at least in the humbleness of her ambitions.
Unless you do something like GIVE her Ambition, of course.
Rihaku
The Internet
Ah, the main point there was TMoverload was talking about using Nilul's Past Life memories to impress upon her the... debilitating boldness of attempting to betray Ulyssian, who was Odyssial. But that may not be viable, if she simply doesn't have Past Life memories due to a non-Infernal Exaltation!
Hm. Ulyssian's strengths lie in gathering intelligence; with Better Listener, he doesn't need to truly engage others in conversation, just suss out other peoples' weaknesses through careful observation. Would taking a more passive role be an option, or is Zao's student unlikely to fly under the radar?
Man, Nilul with Ambition would have been the bad news bears.
Rihaku
The Internet
Unfortunately, that would fit better with not going at all, which seems to have lost... spectacularly.
Opportunity costs of focusing all my argumentative energies on one option, I suppose.
- Location
- The end of all things
I'm definitely interested. Sorcery is pretty useful, and we already have or are considering the charm choices that make spamming workings a viable choice. The ones that make it clear why Solar Sorcerers are so terrifying. The ability to enhance ourselves or particularly our friends is not to be underestimated.
Also, just considering spells, Unity of the Closed Fist effectively lets five people wield Ambition at the same time. They don't even need to learn any Evocations for it, they can use Ulyssian's. It would be quite a force multiplier in the right circumstances.
I'm kind of inclined not to talk too much and try to let Nilul handle things, mostly because I'm way too tired to come up with anything reasonable myself and because this entire networking thing was her idea, so she should have at least some kind of plan, but that is kind of connected to the whole trust discussion and it honestly seems more than a bit lazy, as hilarious as the outcome of allowing Nilul to take liberties would undoubtedly be.
Pretending to be the Sesus asshole doesn't attract my interest too much, since I'm not too confident in Uly's acting skills and he can just be himself if he wants to be an asshole. Just ramp up the grumpiness and the inability to be consistently impressed by anyone but Zao and he's enough of a dick to be memorable on his own.
Does everyone forget that trusting Nilul basically gives her the okay to just throw any Shennagins her daddy sends over to her at us instead.
Judging by how last quest Ebby sent Ulyssian of all people to get her, he's probably going some of the best Infernals to come after her if Torment is a thing. Even if not I have no doubt he put a huge bounty on her.
We have enough trouble dealing with Anys bullshit. We don't need the Yozi and the Infernals making our life difficult right now too. Especially if the Yozi learn who we once were.
That's just asking for Ebby to work towards a plan that reveals our Anathema status. Which would affect Zao as well and make getting Nilul that much easier so it's all the more likely he would do it to "get two birds with one stone" as the saying goes.
This wouldn't be too much of a problem if Ulyssian in-character knew he had to be ready for that type of shit. Unfortunately Nilul's mostly likely to only tell us about just how fucked her situation is when she throws us at an Infernal coming for her.
Our relationship as it is now is perfectly fine until we learn more about her situation IC. Then trusting her night scone more viable.
To say nothing of how Rihaku repeatedly remind us her betrayal is all but inevitable and that we should be more paranoid. He might like playing Devil's advocate but he makes good points and makes sure we know what we're getting into with options.
Remember just because we vote a certain way doesn't mean it'll turn out the way we expected. For a recent example, the Syryns situation. A major reason she was spared was the hope we'd get her on her side. However
Ulyssian left her to Zao and Rihaku said Zao would just kill her unless Uly was there to social fu him into sparing her. As he didn't care anymore, she is likely dead. Hope I'm wrong because that would make me mad we gave up 50L XP but I won't hold my breathe.
Trusting Nilul will not ensure she won't
betray us at the most opportune moment. Rihaku said it is a very slim chance that she won't betray us even if we trust her.
Besides I like their current interactions and she didn't take the olive branch to come clean. She have tried to but failed miserably or she might have tried to bullshit us. That the problem with the princess of Lies she lies even when she's telling the truth. So until she is more open with us, I want to err on the side of caution. It's not like we can't cooperate with her.
Judging by how last quest Ebby sent Ulyssian of all people to get her, he's probably going some of the best Infernals to come after her if Torment is a thing. Even if not I have no doubt he put a huge bounty on her.
We have enough trouble dealing with Anys bullshit. We don't need the Yozi and the Infernals making our life difficult right now too. Especially if the Yozi learn who we once were.
That's just asking for Ebby to work towards a plan that reveals our Anathema status. Which would affect Zao as well and make getting Nilul that much easier so it's all the more likely he would do it to "get two birds with one stone" as the saying goes.
This wouldn't be too much of a problem if Ulyssian in-character knew he had to be ready for that type of shit. Unfortunately Nilul's mostly likely to only tell us about just how fucked her situation is when she throws us at an Infernal coming for her.
Our relationship as it is now is perfectly fine until we learn more about her situation IC. Then trusting her night scone more viable.
To say nothing of how Rihaku repeatedly remind us her betrayal is all but inevitable and that we should be more paranoid. He might like playing Devil's advocate but he makes good points and makes sure we know what we're getting into with options.
Remember just because we vote a certain way doesn't mean it'll turn out the way we expected. For a recent example, the Syryns situation. A major reason she was spared was the hope we'd get her on her side. However
Ulyssian left her to Zao and Rihaku said Zao would just kill her unless Uly was there to social fu him into sparing her. As he didn't care anymore, she is likely dead. Hope I'm wrong because that would make me mad we gave up 50L XP but I won't hold my breathe.
Trusting Nilul will not ensure she won't
betray us at the most opportune moment. Rihaku said it is a very slim chance that she won't betray us even if we trust her.
Besides I like their current interactions and she didn't take the olive branch to come clean. She have tried to but failed miserably or she might have tried to bullshit us. That the problem with the princess of Lies she lies even when she's telling the truth. So until she is more open with us, I want to err on the side of caution. It's not like we can't cooperate with her.
Last edited:
Rihaku
The Internet
As if Uly would allow valuable training time to be wasted in that form!
Indeed, the rumors that would start! Poor Moon... or lucky Moon, I suppose?
inawarminister
I ♥ anime
She is a Breeding 6 Dragonblood with access to Infernal Charms (Ebon Dragon), not a full Infernal though.
Most likely, she has no previous memories.
To be honest, I'd rather take a wide shot to "redeeming" her, especially since she's only 19 - 5 years old.
Having her trust on us would be a big one, I assume.
We really do need Social ally we can trust absolutely and warn each other of ours follies. She'd be great for that.
Mayhaps Lea would do better, but eeeeee
Moon can't do it though.
Giving Nihul Ambition would ensure that we can trust her. It bends your every action towards benefiting us, after all.
inawarminister
I ♥ anime
Hmm...
Two birds with one stone??
I think the issue would have been that actually getting into meaningful conversations with meaningful people would have been a lot harder without Uly, because he's the one others will be interested in.
There's not too much point talking to his socally capable aide on her own, unless you think you can get something useful about Uly out of her, but in a situation likely full with socially capable Exalts she'd have to show her own capabilties too soon for that to really last.
Last edited:
Attributes and Abilities are not actually an option since we committed to spending all the XP we could on combat stuff in preperation for the Tournament.
Rihaku
The Internet
When Odyssial started developing Social Charms seriously, (at like, E6) he probably focused on inflicting fear and paralyzing doubt. He's already good at intimidation, but Odyssial has a Charm that causes anyone he intimidates to gain a Defining Intimacy of (Terrified Helplessness) towards him, instead of being allowed to choose the context of the intimidation-derived Negative Intimacy.
And remember, as a Dawn Caste, he can terrify things that are immune to fear, like rocks and the fabric of reality.
And remember, as a Dawn Caste, he can terrify things that are immune to fear, like rocks and the fabric of reality.