Where did 2011 go? :’3

To start off, I find it really interesting that when it comes to misinformation and propaganda, not much has changed. Sure, the technology has and the people. But the purposes and motivations, as well as the use of media, they have remained the same. I’ve always had a love for history and looking back especially at the various forms of propaganda in the 20th century and today are both fascinating and horrifying to me for respective purposes. And especially for more propaganda considered positive at supporting minorities, to me it feels like someone who is chosen for that role is someone who they can easily dissect and put out only the pretty and appealing parts that most like and can’t always embody. You effectively get washed down and given a new identity.

For Tyto, previously known as Striga, they were featured in multiple advertisements that supported the Nexus Core. At times, they felt they had to do it to maintain their status as elite, and by doing so, were guaranteed a comfortable life. A pretty woman who had risen from relative obscurity and found success in singing and joining the Nexus Core alongside their leader, is a great success story that people outside of them, could probably support and love. And so they relentlessly made posters, banners, digital ads, etc. that had Striga’s likeness on them.

So what did Striga feel? At first it was happiness, at being able to support Phobos and themself. But as the output increased, Striga would find themself growing not only disgusted, but disturbed by how they could see themself everywhere they went. Reduced to something that was pretty and telling you to join the Nexus Core. They would go on lunch dates with coworkers like Hofnarr and every so often, him, Jeb, and even at times Crackpot, would find them just staring at the glowing screens outside that flicked through ads, many of them with Striga’s face on them.

The Fall was undoubtedly the decline of Striga’s fame and she couldn’t have been happier. She could finally be herself again. There was no more need to pretend, to act and pose for a cause that she was forced to by circumstance. All you needed to do now to finally leave and close the door, was to erase every part of the self that was made to market. The chaos and growing distaste of those associated with Phobos had already claimed a good number of former advertisements, records, music, any media that had her in it. Why not take back your freedom by continuing to purge that image? And so she did.