An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
So, I’ve bit the bullet and put a pin in Strong. Honestly one of the most psychologically challenging things I have written, fanfic or otherwise.
I have written the things I wanted to the most, from active nitty gritty emotional abuse and psychological conditioning to non-hetero families in Blumental. The only big thing I didn’t get to was Bren and Astrid actually breaking up (but that would seriously be a whole other story - and who knows, maybe that is one that can be told with non-tiefling, canon!Astrid).
Last chapter is just a scene I had not fit in yet - about a ‘family heirloom’.
Anyway, sorry for the rambling. If you’re one of the little group of precious beautiful people who know me for this fanfic/series... welp. Here we is. And I’m now just considering whether to make a crazy ubermeta out of my reference document.
Chapters: 8/8
Fandom: Critical Role (Web Series)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Relationships: Trent Ikithon & Caleb Widogast, Astrid & Eodwulf & Caleb Widogast, Eodwulf & Caleb Widogast, Astrid/Bren Aldric Ermendrud
Characters: Caleb Widogast, Bren Aldric Ermendrud, Trent Ikithon, Astrid (Critical Role), Eodwulf (Critical Role)
Additional Tags: Pure uncut non-magical indoctrination of teenagers, Why Caleb cannot see himself as a victim, Or Trent Ikithon as a monster, Other canon Caleb-related warnings, TW: substantial gaslighting, TW: physical and emotional abuse, tw: torture, Psychological Torture, Realistic and dark as hell, Non-graphic mentions of 16 year-olds having sex, tw: religious-based abuse, tw: radicalisation
Summary:
Lessons learned by Bren, Eodwulf, and Astrid, under the dedicated tutelage of Trent Ikithon.
Trent does groundbreaking work, and together these three students, with Bren at the helm, will have the strength to protect the mighty Dwendalian Empire.
Alternatively, this is the story of three teenagers being psychologically molded into executioners by a person they have been taught to trust.
(If I had any way to spell the laugh Caleb/Liam gave in episode 18 in response to the line 'I don't think it's anything to be ashamed of', that would have been the title of this fic.)