A Random Blog

I am so so sorry I got absolutely no time to draw but here is an older (concept?) piece I thought I need to share with you. It’s just a quick drawing, no details and stuff. Hope you like it ❤️🙏🏻

Luke will always be my Jedi Crush 🤭😁

IF BUYING ISN'T OWNING

PIRATING ISN'T STEALING

WOOHOO FANFIC TIME

@maul-appreciation-week

He didn't know what planet he was on exactly. All Maul knew was that his ship had crashed, and now he was here. Sand swirled around his feet, an endless trail of the particles stretching out into the horizon. He wasn't sure what he was looking for, but he hoped it would lead to a way off of this desert landscape.

Maybe it was Tatooine? That's a desert planet. Savareen, mayhaps? There were a few planets he could be on. He wished he knew—it could help him off that rock if he had a general idea of his location. But it was just… sand. 

He held his hand over his eyes, shielding them from the sun. The heat didn't affect him too much, he was very resilient. Instead, the blinding light was what got him. 

The wind was starting to pick up, sand flying every which way, stinging his eyes and dulling his senses. It left him vulnerable. He loathed that feeling.

Maul pressed the heel of his hand against his eye in an attempt to clear his vision. When he pulled it back, he spotted a figure in the distance. He couldn't make it out, but it appeared to be humanoid and unarmed.

Prompt: Nightmare/Holocron

@maul-appreciation-week

*No Beta, we die like the Jedi during Order 66.

**Child Maul Maul, references novels but don't need to read them to understand, TW nightmares, TW abuse, Child Maul just needs a hug, I’m so protective of him

Maul didn't know how old he was. His Master had never bothered to tell him, and Maul quickly learned that trivial things like that were unimportant. So, it was hard to say how old he was when Sidious had to leave. He told Maul after one of his long and painful lessons that he would be away for some time.

“I have many duties beyond being your Master. During this time I will give you something to guide your training. The droids are programmed to continue with your regular lessons. Do you understand, Maul?” He had said, as the boy’s lungs caught up to him.

“Yes Master.” Was all he was able to pant out.

“Good, use this while I'm away.” Sideuous reached into his robes and pulled out a small red pyramid. It seemed to be made from glass, with a silver structure to cage the pieces in. “This is a Sith holocron. It chronicles the life and findings of a past Sith Master. You will learn to open it and navigate its teachings. Upon returning, I will test your breadth of knowledge. Now, my young apprentice, go clean up and return to your room.” He handed the holocron to Maul. It was warm and heavy in his hands.

Maul slowly went back to the small room he called home, limping from a new set of bruises along his thighs. The droid had been especially brutal today, no doubt a going away present from his Master. Maul had tried to resent Sidious, tired to sit in hate and fear. But, despite his undeveloped mind, he knew that this was the path to the promised freedom and power of the Sith. Finally alone in his room, he set the holocron on a dresser and stripped off his sweaty clothes, sliding on a loose pair of pants. The cool fabric felt nice on his skin. Master Sidious had him running a newer drill that tested his balance while also dodging fire from floating droids. He had done well but was hit a few times. The slightly charred flesh on his back breathed in the cool air.

Even though Maul knew he should rest, a flurry of excitement stirred in his belly. He went over and picked up the holocron, inspecting it closer. The glass was a deep red with geometric etchings on its surface. The metal framework surrounding it was made of a series of triangles and was cold, compared to the warm glass. Maul tried peering past the glass but only saw darkness inside. With a sigh, he set it down and went to his bed. It was a hard grey thing, providing no comfort on his weary bones, but it was his and better than the floor. Maul laid back and was reminded of the time his Master had set snakes into his room. It had taken hours to kill them all. By the end, he was bloody and barely standing. A slight shiver ran down his back.

He could feel them twisting around his ankles, the room filled with their hissing. Maul tried to run, but his feet were stuck to the floor. Panic swelled into his lungs, and he tried to scream, but nothing came out. Darkness pressed all around him, but he knew he wasn't alone. The snakes started to wind around his legs, pulling him downwards. Maul tried to grip the creature and was met with a sharp sting in his hand. He looked around wildly for an escape. In the distance, he saw a red light appear. A solitary blade of crimson getting closer. He tried to call for help again to no avail.

Maul watched as the figure approached. It was a tall man with a lean build, his skin glowed red from the light of the blade, and dark markings covered his body. With a start, Maul recognized him. It was a Zabrak just like him, but his eyes were a burning yellow, and a scowl marked his face. It was Maul. Helpless, he watched the older man stand and hold his lightsaber in front of his chest. Another red blade crackled to life. Young Maul cringed from the bright light, and the other man sneered, raising the blades. Before young Maul could do anything, they swung down towards his neck.

He awoke with a start, gasping for air. His body thrummed with adrenaline, the pain in his hands slowly fading. He sat for a moment, letting his body adjust and steadied his breathing. A faint red glow filled the room, and Maul looked towards the source. The holocron was now glowing brightly, its triangular corners twisted. Maul could hear faint voices emanating from it. The nightmare forgotten, he jumped off his bed and padded over. Maul reached out to touch the holocron, and it responded in turn, moving to levitate just above his hands. The voices grew louder, but they were speaking in a language he didn't understand. He wasn't sure what to do next. His Master had said it would guide his learning. Was it supposed to go into a computer? Was he supposed to know what it was saying? He thought for a few moments before deciding what to do. Tentatively reaching out with a tendril of the force, he tried prod at it. But, upon reaching it, there was a flash of light, and Maul found himself in complete darkness. The holocron had disappeared, and he was alone. Remnants of a dream bubbled up, but he quickly stamped them down.

“Hello?” He asked into the void. His voice swallowed by the darkness. He looked around and took a cautious step forward.

“Greetings young one.” A booming voice came. Maul whipped his head around but saw nobody.

“Who are you?” He asked.

“I am the gatekeeper of this holocron of a Sith long forgotten to history.”

Maul paused, not sure how to proceed. “I have been tasked with learning from this holocron by my Master, Darth Sidious.”

The voice did not speak for a moment. “Then let us begin.”

"oh, that's easy! it's because they're fundamentally Bad people who want to hurt others and choose their beliefs to justify that! :) hope this helps"

or

"they just don't have access to the same information we do. look at this person who was raised in a cult! don't you feel sorry for her?"

and like, yes, fine, some people were in fact raised in cults, but what i wish people would understand is that the bulk of it is just normal human flaws, like:

they want to believe stuff that makes them feel smart and cool and like they've figured everything out (you also do this)

they want to believe stuff that makes them feel like their emotions are justified and grounded in reality, and that the people they want to hurt deserve to be hurt (you also do this)

they form conclusions before they've processed all the relevant information, and cling to that first impression even when new info comes to light (you also do this)

they pick up beliefs from the people around them because they want to be liked and fit in, not because the beliefs are good or true (you also do this)

they come up with reasons that the stuff that benefits them (and the people they like and identify with) is actually overwhelmingly best for everyone and obviously the right thing to do (you also do this)

they pay more attention to stuff that supports what they already believe and avoid looking in places that might show them otherwise (you also do this)

they listen to people who talk like 'one of them' and ignore others (you also do this)

they come up with reasons to dismiss people with conflicting viewpoints as obviously in bad faith or ignorant or a shill or evil (you also do this)

they fail to take their own beliefs seriously sometimes, and take their beliefs way too seriously other times, in a selective way that lets them do the things they already wanted to do (you also do this)

the very ways they construct the ideas of 'knowledge' and 'wisdom' and 'belief' and 'understanding' are biased so that what they don't want to believe comes under lots of scrutiny and what they do want to believe receives less (you also do this)

you, dear reader, are presumably right about everything and were correct to die on every hill you've ever died on, but the difference between you and someone who's wrong about important stuff doesn't look like "well they're inherently evil and i'm not", it probably looks like a combination of:

natural environment (they would have been exposed to different information than you regardless of their choices)

being in the right place at the right time (your particular profile of flaws and virtues happened to be what was needed to lead you to the right conclusions, they had the opposite experience)

random luck (you doubled down on what felt right to believe but wasn't, but it turned out to be inconsequential, or even right for different reasons, while they doubled down on what turned out to be a horrible mistake distorting their entire worldview)

you do less of the things in the previous list, and over time the difference between you and them adds up

and, look, i also do these things. the nicest and most thoughtful people i've ever met do these things. if you meet someone who never does any of these things, i dunno, give them a fucking medal or something.

Italian Three-Toed Skink (Chalcides chalcides)

Family: Skink Family (Scincidae)

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Like several other species of lizard, the Italian Three-Toed Skink has adapted to move through areas covered with dense vegetation by developing an elongated, flexible, snake-like body with highly regressed limbs, although unlike many other "snake-like lizards" members of this species still possess four tiny limbs, each ending in a stumpy three-toed foot. Said limbs are far too small to support the skink's weight and serve no role in movement (which is achieved through an elegant snake-like slithering motion,) which has led many to question what purpose, if any, they serve; it is generally assumed that the limbs are vestigial and that, given sufficient time, the descendants of modern Italian Three-Toed Skinks will lose them entirely, although some herpetologists and evolutionary biologists have suggested that the continued existence of this species' limbs suggests that they must serve some function, such as being moved as part of a courtship display or allowing mating individuals to hold onto one another (although as these behaviours have never been observed these suggestions are entirely speculative.) Found in damp, well-vegetated areas across most of mainland Italy as well as Tunisia, Algeria, Libya and the nearby island of Sardinia, members of this species are diurnal, feed mainly on insects and breed during the spring; like most skinks, females of this species give birth to live young, with newborns, which resemble miniature adults, being independent immediately after birth.

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