aura of joy

Wick knows his family is doing terrible things and hurting people; he hates his grandmother for doing these things and keeping him in the dark about them while smothering him in conditional affection to keep him compliant, but he still thinks there's good things in his family that are worth preserving. You can see this when he encounters his mother Iris and his brother Lioran again. He clearly loves them both dearly, even though Iris was not only an active participant but the architect of him being kept in the dark about the Creed. Seeing them again was a bright spot in an otherwise extremely tense and fraught homecoming for Wick, because even as he's realizing what harms his family is causing both to the world and to him, he still cares about these people.

Much the same can be said of Occtis. As horribly as he was treated by his entirely family and in spite of the fact that one of his own brothers killed him on his father's orders, he's still holding out hope that if he can talk to one of his siblings he can get them on his side. He read Petra and Ryah's letter and interpreted their reticence to rush ahead with Deva Vindicta ritual as them not wanting him killed. In spite of having just been in a fight where he was trying to kill him Occtis still took a moment to create a memorial for Frons. He repeatedly (though to no avail) asked Julien to spare Koral. When Julien asked as part of that exchange how he can still possibly extend any trust to any member of his family after what they did to him his answer was that they're his family. Despite everything that's enough for him to still have some faith in them.

There's also Vaelus and her complicated relationship with Sylandri. As much as she has stated that she hopes she can maybe bring her back it's clear it's less for the sake of having her goddess back, as she admits to Hannan that she hasn't prayed to her in a long time and quite readily hears him out and agrees with him about Sylandri hating the elves underneath her purported love for them, and more because her life with Sylandri is inexorably tied up in the things she does want back. Her memories of living in service to Sylandri are happy despite the limits and control (as seen in her memory of Sylandri refusing magic to Arthas for swearing) because her family is there. The world without Sylandri is also one in which she found herself utterly alone, in particular it should be noted that the death of Sylandri and the death of her sister Maywyn were near simultaneous. She's never known a world without Sylandri but with her family. She wants the happy life she knew with them back, and as Sylandri is a part of that, she considers bringing her back too. That life wasn't freedom and as she eventually agrees with Hannan about, was in many ways not her own, but it had something she has been grieving for 70 years, so it's little wonder part of her thinks that maybe that was better.

There's also something to be said about the orcs' ultimate decision to bless the Conqueror. He ruled and enslaved them with an iron fist and used them as fodder in his endless wars with his siblings, but when the orcs finally won their rebellion and their freedom and one of Azgra's war priests demanded a farramh for him, it was not only granted but granted easily. Agari Shadow, who lead the rite and was not only an orc but an orcish druid (and thusly a member of a people who were harmed by Azgra across multiple axes) said nothing could be easier than giving a blessing for the Conqueror, and lead a blessing that while it did not forgive him, acknowledged who he was to the orcs and how that effected who they became, and that who they became was ultimately what they are celebrating now.

[ID: A digital illustration of Wicander Halovar from Critical Role. His head is turned to the left, there is blood spray around his eye over his filament tattoos and across his mantle. Wick's expression is one of horror. End description.]

teor and cyd dying paw in paw.

bolire (choosing to go to his sister instead of help wick or tyranny) narrowly missing a disintegrate from termina, an utter betrayal and still saying that he loves her as he runs away. later when he tortures the man he possesses with the vision of his brother being murdered, directs a play using exact words from teor and cyd and struggling to make something that is solely his.

zebani saying she will kill wick for what’s he’s done to her.

jullien clutching the gem with his sister’s soul and choosing not to die in the dark and assumedly dooming teor with this choice.

occtis having hope that maybe his brother hasn’t wholly betrayed him, hoping that maybe julien wouldn’t kill him.

hal, his life’s work turned into a ritual by his brother to free their people.

vaelus tasked with chosing freeing her siblings from the underworld or the entire rungjani peoples gathered there at the hallowed round and just not knowing what to choose.

The Light

I think I'll colour it eventually <3

____________________________________

Welcome to our fair city. I hope that you enjoy your stay.

What are you doing here?

Azune: Wait! wait.

Vaelus: what?

Azune: What do you want? what do you want? what do you dream? what do you hope? a year from now, 10 years from now, what do you wish?